Cous cous, but not as you know it

New Zealand blogger, photographer and self-taught cook Eleanor Ozich has a big following among wholefood fanatics. Her approach to diet has been shaped partly by her young daughter's battle with eczema. Her recipes exclude refined grains and sugar, additives and preservatives. This is an extract from her first cookbook, My Petite Kitchen Cookbook.

Nut flour crepes with ricotta, wilted greens and toasted seeds

These crepes have a lovely texture and are fantastic for a simple weekend lunch. For a dairy-free version, use Cashew cheese, or Cashew cream aioli instead of the ricotta.

Serves 3–4; Makes about 5 crepes (gluten-free)

75g seeds; I use a mixture of pepitas (pumpkin seeds) and sesame seeds

2 tablespoons ghee, butter or olive oil, plus extra for greasing

2 handfuls of roughly chopped leafy greens, such as spinach, silverbeet (Swiss chard), kale or cavolo nero (remove the stalks before chopping)

115g ricotta cheese

For nut flour crepes

50g (1/2 cup) almond meal, or other ground nuts

4 large free-range eggs

Method

Toast the seeds in a large dry frying pan over medium heat for about 3 minutes, or until fragrant. Set aside to cool.

To make the crepes, put the almond meal, eggs and a pinch of sea salt in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.

Grease a large frying pan and place over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, then add 80ml (1/3 cup) of the crepe batter to the pan, swirling the pan to coat the base. Cook for 1–2 minutes on each side, or until golden.

Repeat with the remaining batter, keeping the stack of cooked crepes warm.

Melt the 2 tablespoons of ghee in a small saucepan over medium heat. Rinse the greens under running water, then add them to the saucepan with only the water clinging to the leaves. Cook, stirring, for a few minutes, or until wilted. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

To serve, fill the crepes with the wilted greens, ricotta and toasted seeds. Serve warm.

Cauliflower 'cous cous' tossed with salmon and a fried egg

Ready in less than half an hour, this perfectly balanced meal uses crumbled and lightly blanched cauliflower to make a delicious and lightly-textured couscous, tossed with rich, buttery salmon, sweet basil and extra virgin olive oil, and then topped with a fried egg.

Serves 2 (gluten-free and dairy-free if no ghee or butter used)

1/2 cauliflower, broken into florets

1 tablespoon ghee, butter or olive oil

2 free-range eggs

1 large handful of basil leaves, roughly torn, plus extra to garnish

2 salmon fillets, skin on, cut into small bite-sized pieces

juice of 1 lemon

a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

Method

Put the cauliflower in a food processor. Pulse until it has a rice-like consistency, then transfer to a heatproof bowl.

Melt the ghee in a frying pan over medium heat. Crack the eggs into the pan, then cook until the yolks are done to your liking.

While the eggs are cooking, cover the cauliflower with boiling water. Leave to sit for 1 minute, then drain immediately.

Toss the cauliflower in a bowl with the basil, salmon, lemon juice, olive oil and a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

The salmon will cook perfectly from the heat of the cauliflower.

Serve each portion topped with a fried egg and garnished with extra basil.

Recipes and images from My Petite Kitchen Cookbook by Eleanor Ozich, published by Murdoch Books $39.99, May 2014. Photographs by Eleanor Ozich.