SUMMER IS COMING!

It seemed for a while there that it would never happen. Those bleak cold winter days are have disappeared and spring is sprung...which means summer is finally approaching with the promise of beach, salt, surf, and in Australia, al fresco dining around the iconic Aussie Barbie! There are loads of things you can use your Thermomix for in summer, least not being all those smoothies, sorbets and ice creams, but don't forget to make good use of it for salads, meat preparation and dressings, all of which feature on this blog.

Asiago and Beef Burgers

Ingredients
250g Asiago cheese, cubed
180g walnuts
2tsp black peppercorns
Pinch sea salt
1kg beef mince
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Rocket leaves to taste
1 large tomato sliced
100g TM mayonnaise
6 slices cooked bacon
6 hamburger buns or choice

Dressing;
1 tsp seeded mustard
2 tbsp raw honey
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
Sea salt to taste
100g EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

Method
Place cheese into TM bowl and grate for 2 seconds on speed 6. Set aside.
Place walnuts, peppercorns and salt into TM bowl and mill for 6 seconds on speed 7.
Add beef mince, sauce and grated cheese to TM bowl and combine for 10 seconds on Reverse + speed 7 with the aid of the spatula.
Form into 6-8 equal burger patties, place onto baking paper and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Clean bowl before making the dressing by placing all ingredients except EVOO into TM bowl and mixing for 10 seconds on speed 6. Add oil and stir through for 4 seconds on speed 6. Drizzle over rocket leaves and set aside.

To assemble burgers; Char grill buns and patties to taste. Cook bacon. Spread mayonnaise on bottom half of bun, add cooked burger patty, top with slice of tomato, dressed rocket leaves and a slice of bacon. Drizzle with additional dressing if desired.
Serve immediately.

Sweet Potato Salad

Ingredients
Zest 1 lemon
Handful Italian parsley
1.2L boiling water
6 eggs
400g potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm square cubes
400g sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2cm square cubes
Small bunch baby asparagus (optional)
1/4 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
4-5 rashers short cut bacon, roughly chopped
Sea salt to taste
½ quantity TM Mayonnaise mixed with juice 1 Lemon

Method
Place zest and parsley into TM bowl and chop finely for 10 seconds on speed 7. Set aside.
Place water into TM bowl and place eggs into basket, potatoes into the Varoma dish and sweet potato in the tray. Set Varoma into position and steam at Varoma temperature for 15-20 minutes on speed 4 or until potatoes are cooked to your liking. Add asparagus in last 5 minutes of cooking time. Discard water and peel eggs. Remove and set aside to cool.
Place cooled potatoes on a large serving platter. Cut eggs into wedges and add to platter. Arrange asparagus and sliced onion over, top with cooked bacon and parsley mix. Add salt and drizzle with lemon mayonnaise. Serve immediately.

General Tips
Leave the dressing of potato salad until you are ready to serve as warm potatoes start to absorb dressing and become stodgy.

So with summer approaching, what are your cooking plans? Let us know...we're warming up to bring back Monthly Mouthful, and we need to see how you all feel about that! Talk soon!