Ngaio Crofton Downs Residents Association

Prepare the Dough

• Whisk together the water and yeast in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Let it sit for a few minutes while you prepare your dry ingredients.
• Stir the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder together in a large mixing bowl.
• Stir 1 tablespoon of oil into the yeast and water mixture, then add the mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir to form a soft dough.
• Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead it for about 7-8 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
• Lightly oil a medium bowl, roll the dough into a ball and place it in the bowl. Cover with a towel and place it in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.

To Make the Pickled Veggies

• While the dough rises, mix the water, vinegar, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add the veggies and allow the mixture to sit while you make the filling and finish making the buns.

To Make the Mushrooms

• Stir the soy sauce, vinegar, maple syrup, sesame oil, sambal oelek, and liquid smoke together in a small bowl.
• Coat the bottom of a large skillet with oil and place it over medium heat.
• When the oil is hot, add the mushrooms in an even layer. Cook the mushrooms for about 4 minutes, flip and cook 4 minutes more, until lightly browned.
• Add the sauce to the skillet and flip a few times to coat the mushrooms. Allow them to continue cooking until the sauce is thick and forms a sticky coating, about 3 minutes more.
• Remove the skillet from heat and transfer the mushrooms to a plate.

To Steam the Buns

• Once the dough has doubled in size, divide it in half. Remove half from the bowl and divide it into fifths.
• Roll one of the fifths into a ball, then flatten it with your hand.
• Use a rolling pin to roll the ball into a 4-5 inch round. Brush the top with oil, fold it in half, and transfer it to a piece of parchment paper (I like to to place the parchment paper in the steamer, so I don’t have to move it again later). Make sure not to crowd the dough rounds.
• Repeat for the remaining pieces of dough, then remove the other half of the dough from the bowl and repeat. You should have 10 rounds.
• Cover the dough rounds and let them rest for 15 minutes.
• Transfer the parchment rounds to the bamboo steamer if they’re not already there. They may not all fit — just work in batches of that’s the case.
• Layer the tiers in your steamer, place the lid on it, and place it over a large pot of water. Bring the water to a boil and steam the buns for 8 minutes.
• Very carefully remove the lid and remove the buns from the steamer.

To Serve

• Slather the insides of the buns with hoisin sauce, then stuff with mushrooms, pickled veggies, peanuts, scallions and cilantro. Serve.

• Make sponge: In a large mixing bowl add the lukewarm water and stir in yeast and sugar until dissolved. Add 1/2 cup flour and whisk together. Place the mixing bowl in a warm place, uncovered to form a lose sponge. Give it 15 minutes or so, the mixture should bubble.
• Form the pita dough: Now add salt, olive oil and almost all the remaining flour (keep about 1/2 cup of the flour for dusting later). Stir until mixture forms a shaggy mass (at this point, the dough has little to no gluten development and just looks like a sticky mess and you can easily pull bits off). Dust with a little flour, then knead the mixture inside the bowl for about a minute to incorporate any stray bits.
• Knead the dough: Dust a clean working surface with just a little bit of flour. Knead lightly for a couple minutes or so until smooth. Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then knead again for a couple more minutes. The dough should be a little bit moist, you can help it with a little dusting of flour, but be careful not to add too much flour.
• Let the dough rise. Clean the mixing bowl and coat it lightly with extra virgin olive oil and put the dough back in the bowl. Turn the dough a couple times in the bowl to coat with the olive oil. Cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap then lay a kitchen towel over. Put the bowl in a warm place. Leave it alone for 1 hour or until the dough rises to double its size.
• Divide the dough. Deflate the dough and place it on a clean work surface. Divide the dough into 7 to 8 equal pieces and shape them into balls. Cover with a towel and leave them for 10 minutes or so to rest.
• Shape the pitas. Using a floured rolling pin, roll one of the pieces into a circle that’s 8-9 inches wide and about a quarter inch thick. It helps to lift and turn the dough frequently as you roll so that dough doesn’t stick to your counter too much. (If dough starts to stick, sprinkle a tiny bit of flour). If the dough starts to spring back, set it aside to rest for a few minutes, then continue rolling. Repeat with the other pieces of dough. (Once you get going, you can be cooking one pita while rolling another, if you like).

Option 1: Bake pita in the oven

• Heat the oven to 475 degrees F and place a heavy-duty baking pan or large cast iron skillet on the middle rack to heat. Working in batches, place the rolled-out pitas directly on the hot baking baking sheet (I was only able to fit 2 at a time). Bake for 2 minutes on one side, and then, using a pair of tongs, carefully turn pita over to bake for 1 minute on the other side.  The pita will puff nicely and should be ready. Remove from the oven and cover the baked pitas with a clean towel while you work on the rest of the pitas.

To cook pita on stovetop:

• Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. (Test by adding a couple drops of water to the skillet, the skillet is ready when the beads of water sizzle immediately). Drizzle a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil and wipe off any excess. Working with one pita at a time, lay a rolled-out pita on the skillet and bake for 30 seconds, until bubbles start to form. Using a spatula, flip the pita over and cook for 1-2 minutes on  the other side, until large toasted spots appear on the underside. Flip again and cook another 1-2 minutes to toast the other side. The pita is ready when it puffs up forming a pocket (sometimes, with this method, the pita may not puff or may only form a small pocket. Try pressing the surface of the pita gently with a clean towel). Keep baked pita covered with a clean towel while you work on the rest.

• Make the mango-avocado salsa. In a medium bowl, combine the mango, avocado, onion, cucumber, orange juice, lime juice, and cilantro and mix gently. Season to taste with salt.
• Make the Jamaican Jerk Seasoning. Combine all of the spices together in a small bowl.
• Prepare the jackfruit: Drain the canned jackfruit and lightly rinse under water, shaking off excess water. Use your fingers to remove any thick cores and pull the pieces apart so that it resembles shredded pork.
• In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the the scallions and cook until browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and chile pepper and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Add all of the Jamaican jerk seasoning, stir to coat, and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly, until very fragrant.
• Add the shredded jackfruit, coconut sugar, tomato paste, tamari, and lime juice. Stir well. Pour in 1/2 cup water and mix again. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Serve the jackfruit with the tortillas and mango avocado salsa.

• Make the sauce: In a blender, combine the white beans, broth, lemon juice, olive oil, nutritional yeast, garlic, onion powder, salt, and pepper, and blend until smooth. Set aside.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the pasta according to the instructions on the package, cooking until al dente. Drain and set aside.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the chopped broccoli stems and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes or until tender. Add the broccoli florets and leaves and a splash of water or vegetable broth. Cover and turn off the heat.
• Allow the broccoli to steam for 2 to 3 minutes or until tender but still bright green. Add the pasta, then stir in ¾ of the sauce, adding more broth if the sauce is too dry.
• Season to taste with more salt, pepper and lemon juice, as desired, and portion into bowls. Divide the remaining sauce onto each bowl. Top with the pine nuts and serve with lemon wedges on the side.

• Wash the barley until the water runs clear, strain through a sieve and add to a medium saucepan. Add enough water to cover by about 5 centimetres and then bring to the boil on medium-high heat. Cook for 50-60 minutes, or as per the packet instructions until cooked through but with a slight bite. Strain through a colander placed in the sink and leave to drain and dry out.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220C. Place the next 7 ingredients with the lemon slices, ¾ teaspoon salt and 90ml of oil onto a large baking tray and bake for 20 minutes, until the vegetables have softened and taken on colour.
• Heat a griddle pan on high heat. Put the carrots into a medium mixing bowl and coat with the extra remaining 1 teaspoon of oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Once the pan is hot, grill the carrots for ten minutes, turning as necessary, until nicely charred and cooked through. Transfer back into the mixing bowl.
• Once the vegetables are cooked, transfer into the mixing bowl. Squeeze the garlic out of their papery skins (discard the skins). Add 15 grams of torn basil, all the maple syrup and lemon juice to the mixing bowl and toss gently to combine.
• Add the barley to a bowl and mix with the parsley and the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Transfer the barley mixture onto a large serving platter and layer the tomato and carrot mixture on top. Sprinkle over the remaining basil leaves and serve warm or at room temperature.

• Soak the 1 cup of lentils in water for 30 minutes, or up to 60 minutes. Meanwhile, prep all the other ingredients (i.e., chop the onions and garlic, chop the walnuts, etc.)
• Heat a 12-inch deep sauté pan or Dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, and once it’s shimmering, add the onions and season with a pinch of salt. Stir occasionally and cook the onions until a light brown fond starts form on the surface of the pan, about 5 minutes. Add a few spoons of water to deglaze the pan, and stir. Continue cooking the onions, adding more water every few minutes and stirring frequently to prevent burning, until the onions are softened and golden brown, 9-10 minutes.
• Add the garlic, thyme, oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Stir frequently and cook for 60-90 seconds.
• Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2-3 minutes to caramelize, stirring very frequently, until it’s darker red in color.
• Optional: If using the red wine, pour the wine into the pan and deglaze, scraping up any browned bits. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the smell of alcohol has burned off and the mixture is jammy.
• Soak the 1 cup of lentils in water for 30 minutes, or up to 60 minutes. Meanwhile, prep all the other ingredients (i.e., chop the onions and garlic, chop the walnuts, etc.)
• Heat a 12-inch deep sauté pan or Dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, and once it’s shimmering, add the onions and season with a pinch of salt. Stir occasionally and cook the onions until a light brown fond starts form on the surface of the pan, about 5 minutes. Add a few spoons of water to deglaze the pan, and stir. Continue cooking the onions, adding more water every few minutes and stirring frequently to prevent burning, until the onions are softened and golden brown, 9-10 minutes.
• Add the garlic, thyme, oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Stir frequently and cook for 60-90 seconds.
• Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2-3 minutes to caramelize, stirring very frequently, until it’s darker red in color.
• Optional: If using the red wine, pour the wine into the pan and deglaze, scraping up any browned bits. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the smell of alcohol has burned off and the mixture is jammy.
• Note: If you’re not serving all of the bolognese at this time, transfer the amount of bolognese sauce you’d like to eat to the pasta pot. Add the hot cooked pasta, turn the heat to medium, and toss to coat. Store the leftover bolognese sauce separately in the fridge.

• Bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Scrub the potatoes clean, cut them into quarters and carefully drop them into the boiling water. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until a skewer pierces the potatoes easily, but they’re not breaking apart.
• Meanwhile, steam the cauliflower for 3–5 minutes, or until just tender; you can do this by placing them in a steamer basket on top of the potatoes, or popping them in the microwave for about 1 minute.
• Preheat the oven to 220°C conventional, or 200°C fan-forced.
• Peel the sweet potato and pumpkin, cut into thick slices and spread over a large oiled baking tray with the blanched cauliflower, ensuring there is plenty of space between the veggies – you may even need to use two baking trays to prevent overcrowding.
• Drain the potatoes and use a fork to rough up the edges, so they get nice and crispy during cooking. Roll them in a little olive oil, sprinkle with the rosemary and stock powder, then place on the baking trays with the garlic cloves.
• Place the baking trays in the oven and bake for 40 minutes, or until the vegetables are a burnished golden brown.
• While the veggies are roasting, heat another baking tray in the oven, and prepare the chickpeas.
• Heat the olive oil in a heavy-based frying pan, then add the chickpeas. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a minute or two. Add the whole garlic cloves and stir constantly for 20–30 seconds, or until aromatic. Take the frying pan off the heat, add the sage leaves and stir to coat them in the oil.
• Once the veggies have been cooking for 20 minutes, pour the chickpea mixture onto the preheated baking tray and roast for the final 15–20 minutes of the veggie cooking time, or until the chickpeas turn golden. Stir them once or twice to prevent them from sticking.
• Remove the chickpeas from the oven, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then add to a serving dish over the roasted veggies. The roasted garlic cloves will be creamy and mild – just pop them straight out of the skins for a sweet and savoury flavour hit! Serve with lemon wedges and lashings of hot gravy.