focaccia

Applebee's Lemonade

1 Quart water
1 Cup sugar
1 Cup FRESH lemon juice
Sparkling Water (not tonic water, like Perrier)
Mix first three togther. Fill a tall glass 2/3 to
3/4 with Lemon mixture then fill with sparkling water.
An intresting variation is to puree some fruit
(raspberries, strawberries, etc) with a little
superfine or powdered sugar and put that in the
glass before adding the the lemonade and water. Applebee's Low-Fat

Grilled eggplant with tabbouleh

3 small tomatoes (270g)
1/4 cup (40g) burghul
2 large eggplants (1kg)
1/3 cup (80ml) extra virgin olive oil
4 cups coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint
1 medium red onion (170g), chopped finely
2 tablespoons lemon juice
{preparation time 15 minutes (plus refrigeration time) cooking time 10 minutes}

1-Chop tomatoes finely, retaining as much juice as possible. Place tomato and juice on top of the burghul in small bowl; cover, refrigerate 2 hours or until burghul is soft.
2-Cut each eggplant into 8 wedges. Brush eggplant with half the oil; cook on heated grill plate (or grill or barbecue) about 10 minutes or until browned and tender.
3-Meanwhile, combine tomato mixture with the parsley, mint, onion, juice and remaining oil.
4-Serve tabbouleh with eggplant.

Tunisian tuna salad

This colourful salad from the Tunisian capital of Tunis , tastes as good as it looks. North Africans like their food highly spiced and, while this recipe only includes tow chillies, you can increase or decrease the quantity as you like.
You can omit the canned tuna and serve the salad with fresh char-grilled tuna, if you prefer.


preparation time: 30 minutes cooking time: 3 minutes serves 4
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2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped finely
1 medium green  capsicum (200g), chopped finely
2 medium tomatoes (300g), seeded, chopped finely
4 green onions, chopped finely
2 drained onions, chopped finely
1/4 cup (30g) seeded green olives, chopped finely
2 fresh small red chillies, chopped finely
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves
185g can tuna, drained, flaked
1 tablespoon drained baby capers, rinsed

HARISSA-STYLE DRESSING
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Make harissa-style dressing.
2 Combine salad ingredients in medium bowl; drizzle over dressing, toss gently. Serve with flat bread, if desired.
harissa-style dressing : Heat oil in small pan, add garlic and seeds; cook, stirring , until fragrant. Stir in juice and vinegar.
per serving 14.3g fat; 886kj (212cal)

Beef and fig cigars

preparation time : 30 minutes cooking time : 30 minutes makes 48
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20g butter
1 medium brown onion (150g), chopped finely
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cloves garlic, crushed
250g beef mince
3/4 cup (150g) finely chopped dried figs
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives
8 sheets fillo pastry
cooking-oil spray
1/2 cup (125ml) plum sauce
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1. Melt butter in large frying pan; cook onion , cinnamon and garlic , stirring, until onion softens. Add beef ; cook ,stirring, until beef is browned. Stir in figs and chives ; cool 10 minutes. 
2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 200°C/180C° fan-forced. Oil tow oven trays.
3. Spray one pastry sheet with oil; cover with a second pastry sheet. Cut lengthways into three even strips, then crossways into four even strips.
4. Place 1 rounded teaspoon of the beef mixture along the bottom of one narrow edge of pastry strip, leaving 1cm border . Fold narrow edge over beef mixture then fold in long sides; roll to enclose filling. Place cigar , seam-side down, on tray; repeat process with remaining pastry and beef mixture.
5. Spray cigars lightly with oil. Bake, uncovered , about 10 minutes or until browned lightly. Serve with plum sauce.

per cigar 0.9g fat; 146kj (35cal)
beef mixture can be made the day before and kept , covered, in the refrigerator.

Frittata with onions and zucchini

20g butter , melted
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium (300g) onions, thinly sliced
6 eggs , lightly beaten
3/4 cup (60g) grated parmesan chesse
1 small (90g) zucchini,thinly sliced
1 tablespoon shredded fresh basil
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1. Brush base and sides of deep 19cm square cake pan with butter . Heat oil in pan,add onions , cook , stirring , until onions are soft; cool.
2. Combine onions , eggs , cheese, zucchini and basil in bowl ; mix well . Pour mixture into prepared pan . Bake in moderate oven about 25 minutes or until lightly browned and set .

• Recipe can be made a day ahead.
• Storage: Covered , in refrigerator.
• Freeze : Not suitable.
• Microwave: Suitable.