Easy Entrées: Goat Cheese & Honey Roasted Walnut Salad

Goat Cheese & Honey Roasted Walnut Salad - high in protien, calcium and folic acid!

Summer time is salad-eating-time and this one is a real treat, espeically if you are a fan of goat cheese. The first time I came to France, I hated the stuff. In my opinion, it smelt like vomit. And no one likes that smell.

Over time, I acquired a taste for it - goat cheese, not vomit - and now, actually really love {mild} goat cheese, especially in salads. In saying that though, when at a market, I still have to hold my breath when walking past the Corsican cheeses because they really do take that cheesey-puke-smell to an entirely different level of pungency!

This salad has a lovely consistency; soft, creamy goat cheese; sweet, crunchy walnuts and fresh, leafy greens! It's a winner!

If you really dont like the thought of eating goat cheese and dont think that you can stomach it, I really urge you to try a mild one and if it really isn't palatable for you, the goat cheese could be substituted for feta cheese or mozerella - anything really as long as it's white!

Ingredients for the salad:

• 200g mesclun - I like this mix because it is exactly that, a mix of mache, rocket, arugula & oakleaf.
• 1 goat cheese - about 80 - 100g
• 100 - 150g natural walnuts, shells removed
• 1/4 cup of honey

For the Vinaigrette:

•  3/4 cup of olive oil
• 1/4 cup of balsamique vinegar
• 1 tbs seeded mustard

Directions:

1. Place mesclun in a salad bowl and chop goat cheese into cubes. Add to mesclun and set aside.
2. In smaller bowl, combine oil, vinegar and mustard. Mix well and set aside.
3. Heat a small frying pan and add honey and walnuts. Cook until slightly brown and add to mesclun and walnut mix along with any left over, warm honey. 
4. Stir in vinaigrette dressing and serve while walnuts are still warm.

Voila! Quick, delicious, little mess, little time; Easy!

Banana Brake {Bread + Cake = Brake}

Banana Bread is one of my favourite things to make and eat! It is something that everyone in the family loves and something that I make regardless of whether I am {trying} to diet or not. Not that I diet, but I do try to eat things in moderation. I even eat things in moderation, in moderation - it's a vicious cycle!

Usually, I always have the ingredients for this in the cupboard, so if I am feeling like a sweet treat that's not too indulgent, it's my go-to thing to make. Also, if I have some bananas in the fruit basket that are going to go black, I throw them in the freezer to use at a later date.

I have experimented with this recipe for the last seven years and in several different ways. I've attempted the low fat to no fat versions - and they were ok, but this is - in my opinion, the perfect recipe for Banana Bread and it will leave all the others that you have tried for dust - even Starbucks, Gloria Jeans and Gosh Coffee! 

So why do I call it a Banana Brake? Well, the title is pretty self explanitory. It's not a bread and is in fact more like a cake, but I beleive that cakes should be frosted so for arguments sake, we'll call it a Brake. Or if you prefer, you could live on the edge and call it a Cread {Cake + Bread = Cread} - but that doesn't sound like it should be eaten, now does it?! 

Mini Banana Brakes! 

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/4 cup ripe bananas - mashed 

• 1 teaspoon lemon juice{this is to keep the bananas from going brown, but as I use bananas that I have frozen, they are brown anyway!}
• 1 3/4 cup flour 
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar - packed 
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 2 eggs 
• 1/3 cup buttermilk 
• 1/4 cup oil 
• 1/2 cup apple sauce 
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
• 1 1/2 tbs Cinnamon 
• 1 cup chopped walnuts 

I'm not a fan of washing up {no, I dont have a dishwasher at my place} so I try to use only the essential utensils.

Mash the bananas and mix everything together in a bowl, as you would for any other cake. Pour the mix into a greased loaf tin and sprinkle a few walnuts on the top. 

Bake in an oven on low to medium heat, or at 180° for 35 - 45 minutes, depending on your oven. I say this because all ovens are different and since you are the one who cooks with it, you know it better than anyone else.

The last few times that I've made this, I've divided the mix amongst four small, greased, aluminium loaf tins. They took half the time to cook and I ended up freezing two of them - which I still haven't eaten yet! 

Leave to cool on a cake rack or eat warm with some cinnamon butter {1 tbs butter, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp vanilla sugar, mix together, spread on warm Banana Brake}... and, enjoy!!