You may know her as The Wholehearted Cook or a familiar face from the kitchens of MasterChef Australia, but for the winter weeks ahead Dani has teamed up with Hyperdome to become our resident foodie queen! 

Sharing her whole food recipes that not only warm the soul but keep healthy, fresh and whole food ingredients at its core - a curated series of easy-to-follow and budget-friendly recipes are coming straight to your kitchen.

Get your best apron ready for some MasterChef-quality cooking in your own kitchen this winter with more step-by-step videos to be released.


Sweet Potato & Chickpea Dahl

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Serves: 6

  

Ingredients

2 tablespoons full flavoured coconut oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon Indian style curry powder
1 teaspoon whole cumin seed
1 teaspoon dried red chilli flakes (optional)
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 ½ cups red lentils
400ml can coconut cream or milk
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 can chickpeas, drained
2 large handfuls baby spinach leaves (optional)
Salt flakes, to season
½ bunch of coriander, to serve

Method

Place large saucepan over medium heat, add coconut oil, when melted and hot add ginger and garlic and cook for a few minutes then add curry powder, cumin seed and chilli flakes if using. Stir well to ensure even cooking and cook for a further few minutes.

Add red lentils to the saucepan, stir well to coat the spices, add about 1 litre of water and coconut cream. Bring dahl mix up to the boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook for a further 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes, add diced sweet potato and allow to cook for a further 20 – 30 minutes or until cooked through and the lentils are nice and creamy or the dahl is starting to catch at the base of the pan. Remove from heat.

To finish the dahl, add chickpeas and stir through spinach leaves and season with salt. Serve warm with flatbread or steamed rice and fresh coriander.

Italian Sausage & Broccoli Cavatelli Pasta

Prep Time: 30 minutes plus 30 minutes resting
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 2 – 3

Ingredients

Pasta Dough
1 cup semolina flour
1 cup “00” plain flour
¾ cup lukewarm water
Pinch of salt

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 good quality Italian sausages
2 cups broccoli florets
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 long red chilli, finely diced

Salt flakes, to season
A few handfuls of grated or shaved Parmesan to serve.

Method

Combine semolina flour, “00” flour and a pinch of salt into a mixing bowl or bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Combine by drizzling in the water to the flour and mix with your hands to combine or mix on low speed if using an electric mixer.

Once dough comes together, lightly flour your bench and knead dough using the palm of your hands for about 5 – 10 minutes or until dough springs back on itself if pressed down with your finger. When smooth, form into a ball and press down to form a flat circle.  Wrap in cling wrap and allow to rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

To make the pasta sauce, place a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, add olive oil, when hot add your garlic and chilli and sauté for a minute or so, then add in your broccoli and squeeze the meat out of the sausage casing straight into the pan to create little meatballs. Stir well when cooking to ensure everything is evenly cooked. Add a splash more olive oil if required.

To make your cavatelli, take a small piece of dough approx. ¼ of the amount of the dough or less and roll out into a thin sausage shape onto a lightly floured bench. Cut approx. 1 cm rounds or less if the thickness of your dough is wide. Then using your thumb press down on one piece of dough to form a circle then roll the circle onto itself to create a cavatelli shape. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, add rolled cavatelli pasta, cook for approx. 2 – 3 minutes. Drain and add immediately to the pasta sauce. Stir well and heat over low heat if needed. Drizzle over extra olive oil if needed. Season with salt flakes and grated parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Tips:

Italian style sausages are usually made with pork and fennel, so you could look for this flavour combination too.

You can add extra flavour to this dish by adding some chopped fresh herbs like basil or parsley too.

Pumpkin & Bacon Mac N Cheese

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

 
Ingredients

500g macaroni or elbow pasta
80g unsalted butter
1/4 cup plain flour
1 litre of full cream milk
1 – 2 cups pumpkin puree (see tips)
½ teaspoon ground smoked paprika
250g tasty or cheddar cheese, grated
Salt flakes, to season
Cracked black pepper, to season
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 long rashes of bacon, rind removed, diced
¾ cup panko breadcrumbs

Method

Preheat fan-forced oven to 150 degrees on grill setting.

Place large pot of salted boiling water over high heat, when boiling add pasta and cook for about 2 minutes less than packet instructions suggests as pasta will cook further when placed in the oven.

Place a large saucepan over medium heat, add butter and allow butter to melt and bubble a little before adding flour, whisk together and cook flour for about two minutes to cook out the flour taste. Add milk a little at a time and whisk together until smooth. Cook for a further minutes until thickened. Season with salt, cracked black pepper and stir through pumpkin puree and cheese until smooth, reserve a little of the cheese to sprinkle over the top before baking.

Pour pasta into cheese sauce and stir through, place into oven proof baking dish.

To make your crunchy topping, place medium sized saucepan over medium heat, add olive oil, when hot add bacon and cook for a minute or so then add panko breadcrumbs and cook through for a few minutes until coated in oil and slightly golden.

Sprinkle bacon topping on top of pasta, add a little more grated cheese and place in the oven to bake for about  15 minutes until topping is golden and crunchy. Remove from oven and serve warm.

Tip:

To make this recipe gluten free, use gluten free pasta and add cornflour instead but add about ½ cup of water to corn flour before adding to pan and don’t cook for as long before adding the milk.

To make pumpkin puree, remove skin from pumpkin and dice into chunks. Steam pumpkin until softened then blitz in a blender until smooth or press through a sieve.

You can add in extra veg like steamed cauliflower, blanched frozen peas, steamed carrot or sweet potato.

Cheesy Fish Pie with Cauliflower Mash

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 cauliflower, cut into florets
2 tablespoons cream
1 cup grated tasty or cheddar cheese, plus extra for topping
1/3 cup thickened cream
1 kilo frozen mixed vegetables (carrots, peas, corn), blanched in boiling water
400g tinned tuna in brine, reserve half of the brine
2 teaspoons corn flour
2 tablespoons water
Salt flakes to season
Black pepper

Method

Preheat fan-forced oven to 200 degrees.

Steam cauliflower using a double boiler or electric steamer until cauliflower has softened. Place into a blender with a few tablespoons of cream and a little salt to season and blend until a rough puree or mash has formed. Add in cheese and stir through.

Place large saucepan over medium heat, add cream and bring to a simmer, add in vegetables and tin of tuna and half the amount of tuna brine, stir well  to combine and cook for about five minutes brining excess liquid to the boil.

Combine corn flour and water in a bowl, stirring well to combine making sure there are no lumps. Pour this mixture into the hot pan and stir well to combine as the sauce thickens. Season with salt and black pepper.

Pour pie filling into an oven proof pie or baking dish. Top with creamy cauliflower mash and sprinkle over some extra grated cheese. Bake for around 15 – 20 minutes until golden and bubbling. Remove from oven and serve warm.

Tip:

Dani loves serving this with a side of sautéed dark leafy greens that have been finished off with a little butter and salt.

 
Curried Vegetable Pasties

Prep Time: 30 minutes, plus resting for 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 3

Ingredients

Shortcrust Lard Pastry
2 cups plain flour
50g chilled unsalted butter, cubed
50g chilled lard, cubed

Curried Vegetable Filling
2 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil
1 clove garlic, diced
½ small onion, diced
1 teaspoon brown or yellow mustard seeds
2 springs curry leaves
1 teaspoon Indian curry powder
½ cauliflower, chopped into small florets
½ cup frozen peas, blanched
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 teaspoon salt flakes, to season

1 egg, lightly beaten

Method

To make the shortcrust pastry, ensure that all equipment and ingredients are cold and room is not too hot. Wash hands under running cold water if hands are warm.

Place flour into a mixing bowl, add butter and lard and cut the pastry using a butter knife until its crumbly and then use the tips of your fingers to rub the pastry together until it resembles breadcrumbs. If there are some small chunks of butter or lard in the pastry that’s OK. Don’t overwork the pastry too much.

Add a few tablespoons of chilled water into the pastry at a time and use the butter knife to bring the pastry dough together. Once the dough has come together, remove from the bowl onto a clean work surface and lightly press dough just to bring together. Place onto a sheet of cling wrap, wrap tightly and place in the fridge and leave to rest for about 30 minutes, or you can leave for a few hours too. If leaving in the fridge longer you may need to let the dough soften a little at room temp before rolling out.

To make the curried vegetable filling, place a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, add coconut oil and when hot add onion, garlic, mustard seed, curry leave and curry powder and sauté for five minutes, add cauliflower, peas, potatoes and a few tablespoons of water and cook until mixture is slightly softened for around 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool in fridge before using as the pasty filling.

Preheat fan-forced oven to 180 degrees.

To make the pasties, lightly flour a clean bench space as well as a rolling pin, cut a piece of dough roughly third of the size, roll out dough so it’s about 3mm thick and a circular shape. Place filling in the center of the dough, leaving a two center metre  border around the edge. Roll the pasty onto its self to create a half moon shape, then press the sides down with your thumbs and crimp the edges with a fork. Repeat with remaining mixture. Place pasties on baking tray lined with baking paper. Brush with a little beaten egg wash. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until pastry is golden and crispy. Serve warm or store in fridge or reheat to serve. 

Japanese Pancake (Okonomayaki)

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes per pancake
Serves: 2

Ingredients

2 cups thinly sliced white cabbage
½ carrot, thinly sliced or grated
2 spring onions, finely sliced
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 cup plain flour
¾ cup water
2 eggs
1 sachet instant dashi stock powder
2 teaspoons sunflower or neutral flavoured oil
½ cup tomato sauce
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
Kewpie mayonnaise, to serve
Extra chopped spring onions, to serve

Method

Place cabbage, carrot, spring onion and grated ginger into a bowl, add a teaspoon of salt and mix well with your hands to season the vegetables.

Place flour and water in a separate mixing bowl and stir gently to combine, crack in your eggs and whisk to combine until its smooth, stir in instant dashi powder (or stock powder). Add batter into the vegetables and stir well with a large mixing spoon.

Place frypan over low – medium heat, add a teaspoon of sunflower oil, allow to heat then add a cup or so of pancake batter to the pan to form a circle. Cook for about five minutes before flipping the pancake, then flip pancake, put a saucepan lid over the pancake for about three minutes to steam a little. Remove lid and ensure both sides are nice and golden before serving.

To serve, place tomato, Worcestershire and light soy sauce in a small bowl and mix to combine. Place in squeezy bottle. Drizzle over a few teaspoons on the cooked pancake followed by a good squeeze of kewpie mayonnaise. Sprinkle with spring onions to serve.

Note: I prefer to use an MSG free dashi stock, like the Spiral Foods dashi that is available in Asian grocers and some green grocers. Alternatively you could use some chicken or vegetable stock powder.

Tip: You can adapt the ingredients in the pancake to what you might have available in your fridge at home, mushrooms, bacon, leftover cooked chicken works well too.


Carbonara Risotto

Prep Time: 10 minutes