Simple savoury solutions
In a world of complicated recipes and confusing ingredients, Linda Duncan has come to the rescue. In The World’s Easiest Recipes she combines just five ingredients per meal using low-cost, easy-to-source items.
Lemon, basil and feta chicken
The combination of these simple Mediterranean flavours will have your taste buds singing. It’s such an easy way to jazz up chicken breasts and have you looking like a culinary genius at the same time. You can use chicken breasts or thighs in this recipe.
SERVES 4 | PREP TIME 10 MINUTES
COOKING TIME 20–25 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thighs
2 tbsp lemon rind, finely shredded
1/3 cup basil leaves, roughly chopped
120g feta, crumbled
salad, to serve
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Combine the oil and lemon juice in an ovenproof dish that will fit the chicken snugly but with a little gap between each piece. Add the chicken and turn to coat in the marinade.
2. Sprinkle the top of the chicken with the lemon rind, basil and feta. Season with freshly ground black pepper.
3. Bake for 20–25 minutes or until topping is golden brown and chicken is cooked through. Cover with foil during cooking if the topping starts to burn.
4. Rest for 5 minutes before serving with salad.
Quick potato bake
A potato bake is a must in your recipe repertoire. This one is quicker to make than a normal potato bake, with the help of your microwave. It’s also a lot easier than a potato gratin as you don’t need to slice the potatoes thinly and then layer them. Just chop into cubes and throw into your baking dish. Couldn’t be easier!
SERVES 4 | PREP TIME 15 MINUTES
COOKING TIME 45 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
800g roasting potatoes, peeled
and chopped into 1cm cubes
30g butter, melted
30g dried French onion soup mix
1 cup cream or milk, or a mixture of both
1 cup grated tasty cheese
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a 20cm square microwave-safe baking dish.
2. Place the potatoes into the prepared dish. Pour over the butter and season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Mix to combine, then microwave uncovered on high for 15 minutes.
4. In the meantime, add the soup mix to the milk or cream and mix until well combined. Pour over the potatoes then sprinkle the cheese over the top.
5. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is golden and the mixture is bubbling. Stand for 5 minutes before serving.
Couscous, pea and feta salad
I just love the freshness of this couscous salad. It's delicious served alongside roast lamb. It can be prepared well in advance so is perfect for entertaining. I really like the texture of Israeli couscous in this recipe; however, any couscous will work.
SERVES 4 | PREP TIME 10 MINUTES
COOKING TIME 10 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
1 cup Israeli (pearl) couscous
2 cups frozen peas
1⁄2 cup mint leaves, roughly chopped
2 tsp lemon rind, finely grated
2 tbsp lemon juice
80g feta, crumbled
1 tbsp olive oil
METHOD
Cook the couscous in a large saucepan of boiling water according to the packet instructions, until tender. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool.
2. Cover peas in boiling water for 5 minutes to thaw, then drain and rinse under cold water to cool.
3. Place couscous and peas into a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, season with salt and pepper to taste and toss well.
4. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Three-ingredient peach cobbler
Old-fashioned peach cobbler is made even easier with the use of packet cake mix. The great thing about this recipe is you can get quite creative with it. I have made this recipe multiple times using different tinned fruit like plums, apricots, pears or cherries. A handful of berries thrown in is also delicious. I have also used chocolate cake mix instead of vanilla. Dust with a little icing sugar before serving.
SERVES 6-8
PREP TIME 15 MINUTES
COOKING TIME 40–50 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
820g tinned peach slices, in juice
540g pkt vanilla cake mix
120g butter, melted
vanilla ice cream, to serve
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a 23cm square baking dish.
2. Tip the peaches (including the juice) into the dish and spread out evenly. Place the cake mix and butter into a bowl and mix until combined. Scatter the mixture over the peaches. It doesn’t matter if the mixture doesn’t completely cover the peaches.
3. Bake for 40–50 minutes until golden and bubbling.
4. Stand for 5 minutes, then serve with vanilla ice cream.
Extracted from The World’s Easiest Recipes by Linda Duncan. RRP$45.
Published by HarperCollins NZ.
