brazen's (mostly) gluten free adventures!: July 2008

31.7.08

Links - Meat Dishes

Beef Chimichangas

broccoli beef

chicken bean & tomato soup

chicken enchilada throwdown

chicken poppers

Costa Vida Chicken (good for entertaining)

garlic chicken with white wine

Greek Chicken (thanks susana ;) and chris lol)

kerala style chicken curry

Old Fashioned Fried Chicken - want to try this for chicken nuggets for the kids

Spicy Shredded Pork - for enchiladas etc

taco soup

NEW Wednesday Night Chicken Delicious

Links - Breakfast & Brunch

Chakchouka Baked Eggs

NEW Thermomix Truffled Eggs (scrambled egg method)

see also sweets (pancakes) and breads

Links - BBQ ideas (marinades, salads etc)

Asian BBQ chicken

Barefoot Contessa's BBQ Sauce

Barbequed Chicken

Beetroot & Haloumi Salad with Walnut Dressing

Garlic-Mustard Glaze (for meat)

grilled corn salad

Mango, avocado & red onion salad

Mom's warm potato salad

napa cabbage salad with buttermilk dressing

Potato Salad with apples and bacon this one looks soooo good!

Southwestern three bean salad

Summer lovin' salad (with bacon, chicken, hard boiled eggs, blue cheese, dijon mustard etc etc mmmm)

thai noodle salad

wild rice salad

assorted recipes from eb (main meal ideas)

Day 3 - No-Meat Week (sick today)

so a simple dinner tonight (i'm home from work now but about to crawl into bed) will make Gai's vegetarian chilli but will try these ideas from teh food nazi to add in some vegies (will chop in tmx though). serve with jasmine rice if i can find the bag in the garage to fill the container, and to keep the kids happy.

30.7.08

Day 2 - No-Meat Week

no pics tonight as i wasn't in the mood (plus i skipped lunch and was very hungry)

we had pizza, was very good.

kids had garlic and parmesan pizza (that is the only pizza they will eat)

we had pizza with bbq & sweet chilli sauces, roast pumpkin, onion, feta, sundried tomatoes and cashews.

bases were the thermomix recipe and i made an extra (sometimes we need more than one batch, but not tonight) which i have put in the freezer so it will be ready to go for another time.

29.7.08

Day 1 - No-Meat Week

dinner tonight was pretty damn good. everyone enjoyed it :D (the kids didn't know there was no meat) thanks to bec for the inspiration! I take no responsibility for the lack of mexican authenticity ;)

i'll definitely do this again next time i have the chance to roast up a heap of vegies while the oven's already on...

Roast Vegetable Enchiladas and Mexican Rice

Roast vegies - i used pumpkin, capsicum, zucchini and a small parsnip. i meant to do sweet potato and forgot. i should have done onion too!
olive oil
1/2 onion, finely diced (if you didn't roast one)
pinto beans, soaked& drained, or a can of refried beans
spices - ground cumin, coriander and garlic (optional any kind of chilli spice)
10 tortillas
small amount grated cheese

gently fry onion and spices with a little olive oil
if you're using pinto beans put them in with enough water to cover all. put the lid on and cook for 5-10 minutes until the beans are soft enough to mash.
dice all your vegies (or chop in the tmx like i did)
mix your mashed / refried beans with the vegies and put 1/10th of the mix into each tortilla. roll up and place in a greased oven dish.
sprinkle with cheese
bake in moderate oven for about 15 minutes

1/2 onion, finely diced
olive oil
cumin seeds
ground coriander
garlic
around 3/4 cup of rice (? just guessing!)
1 tin of diced tomatoes or a jar of salsa or taco sauce etc etc
stock or a little salt & water
finely diced green capsicum
1 tin corn kernels, and the 'juice'
fresh herbs - coriander and / or garlic chives
optional - also great with sliced black olives, jalapenos

gently fry onion and spices with a little olive oil
add all other ingredients - and enough water to reach 1cm over the top of all the other ingredients.
bring to the boil
cover and turn down to low, cook until rice is done. (you can take the lid off and stir once or twice)
mix herbs through

i did use the thermomix a lot for this and you could probably do most of both recipes in it, but i wasn't in teh mood to play (plus i was making another slice in it lol)

PS: do you think i take too many food pictures? tonight ryan insisted i had to take one of them all eating, when he saw me taking one of my plate lol

recipe conversion

my passionfruit slice recipe converted for the Thermomix, find it here :)

Making your own yoghurt

saving some recipes and links so i can find them when i want to try it! (i have some out of date easiyo packs to get through first!)

from Blonde

1 1/4 cup powdered milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbls of last yogurt batch OR Easi-yo sachet
Fill container with water and shake. Brew as normal.
Add flavour after yogurt is made.

note: i found 1/4 cup sugar way too much, i'm now using about 2 tablespoons

from down---to---earth

and of course there's also a recipe in the thermomix book which i keep forgetting about too.

i need to remember to put powdered milk on the list for the next Aldi shop.

28.7.08

a meat free week...

i've been meaning to do this for a while and keep procrastinating because meat is so much easier to cook with than vegies - you can toss it in the slow cooker whole and slice it up later, or let it fall to pieces. vegies NEED chopping. plus my kids are little carnivores.

anyway, i had no menu plan or list ready for today's choku bai jo shop so decided this week is it! so now i'm trawling for ideas.

so i've already decided the following -

one of the weekend nights will be a huge indian feast with a couple of vegie dishes, some fried breads and some accompaniments. that give me time to buy the spices i need too.

one night will be a simple pasta with sauce (after work)

dixie's roast vegie tacos (but in burritos, and with lentils)

chickpea and sweet potato fritters with soem more roast vegies in a ratatouille type dish

probably a soup of some kind

and a mexican style bean dish i can do in the slow cooker

in other news choku bai jo had BIG parsnips!!!! I have been desperate to make more of the honey roasted parsnip soup but as it is so time consuming as it is i wasn't going to faff about peeling finger sized parsnips lol

i have been disappointed lately though in their garlic, and also in the response i got when i told them (not complained, just told) as every bit of garlic i have bought in teh past few months has been mouldy :( so i've given up on garlic til november, which is when it is back in season again apparently, and am using horrid jarred stuff for now. i'm also hoping to plant some to try growing my own (i have a black thumb so we'll see lol)

and in still yet more news i broke my recipe book buying ban today for this book which is truely drool worthy Curry only problem (so i disocvered this afternoon) there are very few vegetable dishes in it!!!! it's 95% meat! we have a book seller who leaves discount books in our kitchen at work and though i often drool i generally convince myself i dont' really need it, but i just had to have this one, especially for only $16!

Loyal, sweet, intelligent readers...

LOL

yes, i am after something! ;p

i'm not sure if this will work, but if you are on facebook can you please go here and confirm that i do indeed own my blog? i will be ever grateful :D

thank you!

UPDATE! i have enough people to confirm i own the blog but i'm very excited because i was looking at the top 50 "food" blogs on FB to find some new ones and discovered that i am #44!!! wooooh! so please come and join the blog as a reader - then i'll not only go up the list but i'll also be able to have feeds from my blog to FB :)

27.7.08

pumpkin & sweet potato soup

onion, peeled and chopped
olive oil (if desired, or skip the frying stage)
pumpkin, peeled and diced
sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 potato, peeled and diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
chicken or vegetable stock
1 tin evaporated skim milk
fresh freen herbs

optional:
garlic,
curry powder
coconut cream

if desired fry off the onion (and garlic / curry powder)
add all other ingredients except evaporated milk & herbs
bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer
cook until all vegies are very soft
puree with a stick blender or mash.
add in evap milk. puree to mix well
serve sprinkled with fresh herbs, crusty bread on the side

NOTE: to make in the slow cooker simply place all ingredients into cooker and cook for 4-6 hours. puree in cooker.

spinning daddy around and around

spinning daddy around and around
Originally uploaded by brazen20au

testing testing!

just added this blog to flickr so i can blog direct from the phot!

yesterday we went out to the heritage park at forde, one of the new suburbs in gungahlin. we bought some noodles from wok it up - one of our favourite take away places, and had them for lunch (and for dinner again tonight).

today i hosted a bookclub lunch and an undercover wear party. i had a lot of cooking to do!

i made
* pumpkin and sweet potato soup
* foccacia with the fennel, mustard and onion topping from this recipe
* carol's chocolate fudge cake (which only lasted minutes after i cut it - all the kids and grown ups loved it! it was very simple in the TMX too, though i wasn't paying enough attention to write a conversion)
* and this banana loaf

honestly, i cannot rave enough about how much easier the tmx makes my life at times like this!

Chocolate Fudge Cake

my gorgeous friend carol (with whom i shall be spending a fantastic weekend of relaxation and partying at the gold coast in around 80 days - woooooh!) has been working her butt off and lost 16kg over the past few months. this is a recipe she has used to make a special treat that is not goign to break her diet. thanks carol!

Chocolate fudge cake

60g choc finely chopped
1/4 cup cocoa
1/4 cup boiling water
6 egg whites
3/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup plain flour sifted

Preheat oven 170c line tin (I never do that)

place choc and cocoa in a small bowl pour over boiling water and stir til choc melts and mixture is smooth

Using and electric mixer beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and continue beating until sugar has completely dissolved and the meringue is thick and glossy. Add the choc mixture and mix to combine. Use a metal spoon to gently fold in flour until just combined.
Pour into tin bake for 45 mins or until firm.
The book says to cool in oven with door ajar but I never do that image.

I serve this with a berry coulis image

Enjoy

i have people coming over today for a bookclub lunch followed by an undercover wear party, so i need to make some pumpkin & sweet potato soup, foccaccia, this cake and some pikelets with jam and cream. that's teh plan but somehow i doubt i'll have time for all that lol

26.7.08

that'd be right!

ryan and rory are miserable with middle ear infections so i decided to make chicken soup (i had put the chicken in the SC for a roast but didn't think anyone would feel like it tonight.) rory asked for rice so this recipe was born.

it's FAR too bland and tasteless for me but rory's onto her second bowl already lol

Chicken & Rice Sickie Soup

1 cup rice
2-3 chicken stock cubes
1 onion, finely chopped*
2 zucchinis, finely chopped*
1 large carrot, finely chopped*
1/8 of a cabbage, finely chopped*
3-4 tomatoes, blended into puree
around 2 cups of finely shredded cooked chicken
lots of garlic - around 4-5 cloves or more, finely chopped*
pinch of saffron

simply place ingredients into the saucepan and top up with enough water to read 2cm below the top of the pan. bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer, cook until the rice and vegetables are soft. you will get some scum on top but keep stirring it in and it will pretty much disappear when the soup is done.

serve with parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper

* i chopped them all in the thermomix but a food processor would work just as well.

I'd imagine this would be very easy to make in the slow cooker and would probably take about 4-5 hours on low.

thermomix hollandaise sauce?

has anyone made it?

i just did and was very disappointed - it was really really runny and wayyy too sour (it was only a smallish lemon i used too)

i've never made hollandaise before (not sure i've ever eaten it when not from a packet lol) so i'm not really sure what it SHOULD be like, but not like that i'm sure...

25.7.08

Vegetarian Nachos (weight watchers)

Vegetarian Nachos

Serves 4

Not quite as yummy as ‘real’ nachos, but heaps quicker and easier to make.
Use any flavour of rice crackers.

1 medium onion, chopped
2 tspn garlic, chopped
¼ tspn minced chilli
400g can diced tomatoes
450g can refried beans
100g shredded cheese
2 x 100g gram packets rice crackers – pizza or tomato salsa flavour
Sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 200’c.

2. Coat a pan with cooking spray, heat and add the onion, garlic and chilli. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until the onion is softened. Stir in the tomatoes and beans. Heat through.

3. Arrange rice crackers over 4 flat over proof plates (or use one large oven dish). Sprinkle evenly with cheese. Top with the bean mixture. Place in oven and bake for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Top with sour cream and serve.

The Crumpet Report

at last!

i made Thermomix-er's crumpets last Saturday, but they weren't a great success. i think it was mainly because
a) i had them too thick and they weren't cooking through (and i wasn't gettin the bubbles on top of many of them), and
b) they needed a touch more sugar and salt in them.

I was happy to eat them *blush* but i like things like that lol no one else was keen though.

does anyone have any ideas why i didn't get the bubbles i should have? stale yeast maybe? I'm about to buy a new pack...

24.7.08

crazy week

i honestly don't know where the week has gone, but it is nearly over. i still haven't even posted my review and pics of the crumpets from last weekend!

anyway, our lentil soup was very nice the other night, geoff commented that "it was much better than i thought it would be" LOL

i won't do a thermomix conversion for it (because i like to have leftovers and the tmx only does enough for a meal for the 5 of us) but if any other tmx owners would like to do their own version please feel free :)

Bacon or salami of any kind - 4-6 slices, finely diced
Onion - 1-2, finely diced
Garlic, crushed
Carrots - 1-2, diced
Celery (optional)
zucchinis - 1-2, diced
red capsicum, finely diced
tomatoes - 6, roughly chopped, or 2 tins of diced
red Lentils - around 2 cups
vegetable stock
tomato paste - heaped spoonful (optional - i can't remember if i acutally put this in or not lOL i think i didn't in the end ;))
baby Spinach - a few handfuls

fry bacon/salami and onion over med-low heat in a large saucepan or soup pot, until onion is starting to turn translucent. add garlic and carrots and fry for a few more minutes.

add in all the other ingredient except the spinach, fill the pot to just below the top with extra water if needed.

bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook until lentils are starting to fal apart and look almost creamy. there will be a 'scum' on the top, you can skim it off if you like or be lazy like me and ignore it and it will go away ;)

when the lentils are done add in teh spinach and stir a few times til the spinach wilted and serve with parmesan if desired, cracked black pepper and crusty bread.

22.7.08

lazy dinner

we've been out all day since just after 9am and i have had to deal with a feral disobedient 2 year old almost all day (the only break being when i went to have a pap smear, oh joy) so i can't be stuffed cooking 'real' food.

a few weeks ago i bought a really yummy soup from woollies - can you believe it? it's the woolworths select brand tomato and lentil soup (in the cold section). i'm going to try to replicate it tonight. i have no celery but i have everything else.

here is the list of ingerdients i wrote from the back of the container, i will finish this after dinner :) i've left it too late (yet again) to make foccacia so will make the basic TM31 bread...

Lentils
Bacon
Onion
Carrots
Celery
Spinach
Garlic

20.7.08

today's dips

i had planned to make beetroot dip, carrot dip and tzatziki.

i couldn't do the carrot as i forgot and put the last of my carrots in our spag bol sauce! (it's usually half vegies) so i did a white bean and feta dip after discovering the last of a block of feta in my fridge

1 tin butter beans, drained
some feta
some cream cheese (or sour cream perhaps)
a little olive oil
enough water to give the consistency you're after
fresh parsley
sprinkle of paprika

mash all ingredients until smooth or mix in thermomix (i forget, i think i did about 2o seconds on speed 4 or 6)

i also used jeff's tzatziki recipe (link later) and did my usual beetroot, though draining the yoghurt meant i didn't have enough lol

Whole Orange Cake, Thermomix style

WHOLE ORANGE CAKE

2 big oranges
2 eggs
200g cup grapeseed or other oil

270g plain flour
460g sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder

1 extra orange, halved
1 tablespoon or so of sugar extra
icing sugar - around 1/4 cup or less

heat oven to around 160-180'c *
wash your oranges well, rinse.

cut the ends off, cut into quarters. remove the white centre and any seeds, cut in half again so you have 8 pieces per orange. place in thermomix.

add eggs and oil.
blend on speed 8 for 25-30 seconds until it's mostly smooth, thick and creamy.

add flour, sugar and baking powder
mix on speed 4 for 10-15 seconds until mixed.

pour into a cake tin (greased, lined, whatever you want ;))

bake for about 30-40 minutes until a skewer comes out clean *

let cool for 15-20 minutes

meanwhile juice the extra orange and add the extra sugar to it.
either in a saucepan on the stovetop or in the micrwave heat it until the sugar is dissolved
Add some sugar to the juice and bring to a boil, stir to make sure it's well dissolved.

use the skewer to stab holes all over the top of the cake!
pour the syrup mix over the cake
sift the icing sugar over the top and serve.

* my cake ended up a bit too dark around the edges but took longer to cook in the middle, so i think i need a lower temperature for longer to cook it properly.

we quite liked this cake - it is a stronger and slightly more bitter taste than a 'normal' orange cake, because of the whole orange being used. it is sooooo simple in the TMX though and i like using the whole orange instead of wasting half of it!

Orange Cake (with whole oranges)

taken from Full Bellies Happy Children

i'm just C&P here so i can print it out without all the pics ;) i'll then attempt to convert to thermomix :D

ORANGE CAKE

2 nice big oranges
2 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups of flour
2 cups of sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder

We start by taking both oranges and cutting the ends off, then throw those in the trash, you won't need them.

Now take each orange and cut it into fourths. Forget about the ends in the background, I hadn't thrown them out yet, but I will in just a sec.

Ugh those ends are still there mocking me...I should have just gotten rid of them in the beginning. But anyway....forget about those. Take your orange slices and cut out the white skin part thingy in the middle, make sure you get all of it otherwise it makes your cake bitter.

Also remove any seeds, if there are any....mine didn't have any.

Then you chop it all up into small pieces. I know at this point you're wondering if I'm crazy because I didn't peel the oranges, but just go with me here ok? It's ALL going in the cake and don't mock it till you try it....that's all I'm saying LOL

Dump all the juicy orange chunks into the blender, then add the 2 eggs....

Add 1 cup of vegetable oil and then blend everything together until you get this nice yellow cream

Take that mixture and dump it into a mixing bowl

Add in the 2 cups of flour and the 2 cups of sugar and the baking powder and mix everything well....with a spoon. Don't bother getting the electric mixer out, no need to dirty it....

Pour the cake mix into a greased baking pan and pop it into a 375º oven for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Here's our cake straight out of the oven....go ahead and run a thin knife along the edges to make sure it's loose and then invert it onto a plate.

At this point you're going to take a fork or whatever and poke a bunch of holes all over the top of the cake.

Then walk over to the stove again, grab a small pan, put in the juice from one orange, or just pour some from the OJ carton like I did. You don't need a lot, you don't want to drown the cake just make a little syrup to pour on top.

Add some sugar to the juice and bring to a boil, stir to make sure it's well dissolved.

While it's still hot, pour it all over the cake.... *drool*

Sprinkle some powdered sugar on top and cut yourself a big slice of that baby...add some orange slices and you're good to go. Go anywhere, even outside to the driveway while you turn off the water sprinklers.

Menu Plan

well, i've been pretty bad at not sticking to a plan lately. i write them, shop for them and then that's as far as it goes! let's see how i go this week...

Sunday
lunch - foccacia and dips: beetroot, tzatziki & carrot
dinner - Bavarian Beef Crust Pie

Plus cooking:
spag bol in the slow cooker
orange cake
slice

Rest of the week
spag bol
all in one pot shepherds pie
chicken jambalaya
vegetarian chilli
roast chicken with Southwestern three bean salad and Beetroot & Haloumi Salad with Walnut Dressing

F&V to buy:
onions
capsicums
tomatoes
carrots
zucchinis
potatoes
sweet potato
garlic
coriander
lettuce
red onion
beetroot
baby spinach

18.7.08

My favourite ever muffin recipe

(Lemon) Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins
Makes 12
Topping
1/4 cup oats uncooked (quick or old fashioned)
2 tabs white sugar

Muffins
1 1/2 cups oats uncooked (quick or old fashioned)
1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tab baking powder
1/4 tspn salt (optl)
1 cup skim milk
2 egg whites or 1 egg, slightly beaten
2 tabs vegetable oil
1 tspn grated lemon peel (optional)
1 tspn vanilla
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

Heat oven to 205’c / 400’ F.
Line 12 muffin cups with paper baking cups or spray bottoms only with no-stick cooking spray.
For topping, combine 1/4 cup oats and sugar; mix well. Set aside.
For muffins, combine 1-1/2 cups oats, and remaining dry ingredients; mix well.
Add combined milk, egg whites, oil, lemon peel and vanilla, mixing just until dry ingredients are moistened. Gently stir in blueberries.
Fill muffin cups almost full. Sprinkle with reserved topping, patting gently.
Bake 20 to 24 minutes or until light golden brown. Let muffins stand a few minutes; remove from pan.

Nutrition Information: 1 muffin Calories 160,
Calories From Fat 27, Total Fat 3g, Saturated Fat 0g,
Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 140mg, Total Carbohydrates
29g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Protein 4g

i have used this recipe to make all sorts of muffins - sweet and savoury! try it with raspberries and white chocolate chips - mmmmm! oh, and i never put the topping on, too lazy lol

i know i've said it before, but it is SO important - DON'T over-mix your muffins! you only mix a muffin mix until it is just barely combined... if you mix it well you will end up with cakes, not muffins.

it originally came from this website.

Minestrone & TM31 bread

well, i could have sworn that i'd already posted a Minestrone recipe on my blog but i can't find it!

so here's the one which geoff gave to me based on the one his mum used to make...

Geoff's Minestrone

Serves 4

Another of Geoff’s favourites, based on June’s recipe!
You might want to add extra liquid (water or stock) if it’s too thick.

3 rashers of bacon, fat & rind trimmed
1 large onion, peeled & diced
1-2 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped
1 large carrot, peeled & diced
¼ cabbage, shredded
800g diced tomatoes
approx 250g pasta shells
1 jar pasta sauce, try garden vegetable
chicken stock cube
1 can kidney beans
2 cups water
parmesan cheese, grated

1. Lightly fry bacon & onion until onion is transparent.
2. Add garlic and fry, stirring for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add all other ingredients and simmer until pasta is cooked.
4. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
5. Serve with crusty bread. Enjoy!

and here's how i made it tonight...

Tonight's Version

6 shortcut rashers of bacon, diced
1 large onion, peeled & diced
1-2 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped
1 large carrot, peeled & diced
1 small green capsicum, finely diced
a handful of green beans, topped and tailed and cut into 8mm - 1cm pieces
800g diced tomatoes (i used tins)
approx 250g pasta shells
about 1/4 cup white wine
beef stock powder or cube
1 can borlotti beans, drained and rinsed
1 can butter beans, drained and rinsed
around 5-7 cups water
parmesan cheese, grated

1. Lightly fry bacon & onion until onion is transparent.
2. Add garlic and fry, stirring for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add all other ingredients and simmer until pasta is cooked.
4. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
5. Serve with TM31 bread. Enjoy!

TM31 bread
i made this tonight - had my first try at plaiting - it's really hard to plait bread as compared to hair lol
anyway, i was too lazy to brush with milk or water to get the seeds to stick, so drizzled olive oil over it - discovered that the top remained really soft instead of going crunchy!

Apple Mustard Relish

from a recent New Idea magazine :)

APPLE MUSTARD RELISH

1 tspn oil
1 chopped onion
2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1/4 cup water
1 tbspn wholegrain mustard
1 tbspn apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tbspns brown sugar

sterilise jar.

heat vegetable oil in saucepan. add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft. add apples and water. bring to boil. reduce heat and cover. boil gently over medium heat, stirring occasionally for about 10 mins or until apples are tender.

add mustard, apple cider vinegar and brown sugar. stir until sugar dissolves. season with salt and pepper.

pour into hot jar and seal while still hot.

rough thermomix instructions here :)

eating out... and weekend plans

in the past week we've eaten out twice (unusual!)

on sunday we went to the Mawson Club with geoff's mother and aunts. we chose it because of the kids play area.

the meals were more expensive than we would usually choose and quite disappointing really. more disappointing is the service and the fact it took 45-50 minutes for our meals to come - including nuggets and chips for the kids! how hard are those to cook? thank goodness we'd ordered when we arrived instead of waiting for g's family to come (as they were an hour late - that would have meant the kids wouldn't have got lunch til virtually 2pm!)

the cake and coffee on the other hand is quite nice and VERY cheap (though i suspect i wasn't charged for everything i'd ordered this time around lol) . so after being there for coffee twice we've decided it's definitely the place for a morning / afternoon tea catch up but not for a meal.

it's very nicely presented though, the kids love the play area, and it's only $6.50/60 for 3 years membership.

last night we went out to jimmy's place in dickson. we decided not to go to the usual (pho phu quoc) and let ryan pick where he wanted to go. his criteria was the place that was brightest lit LOL

anyway, we were both a little disappointed. the food was nice enough, i wouldn't say it was horrible, but it certainly wasn't great, especially for the price. the meat tasted like cheaper cuts tenderised with bicarb though it was tasty and the portions were large. the kids ate mostly rice (with a bit of beef -rory- chicken - emelia- and broccoli -ryan- thrown in so they were happy enough). they are so gorgeous the way they try to eat with chopsticks! they manage to do quite well too, considering they can't hold them properly lol

eta: i've just come across this thread which may be useful for canberrans ;)

this weekend i plan to cook:

those bran muffins
beetroot and carrot dips and foccaccia for lunch one day
a big slow cooker full of spag bol sauce
and maybe a slice or cake for the kids
apple mustard relish
crumpets

15.7.08

It's Breakie Time!

brazen's fruit porridge

Rick blogged his version of TMX porridge the other day which reminded me that I'd been thinking about blogging my own, wondering if i did it differently to everyone else! now i know i do lol. porridge is one of my favourite things to make in the TMX, it is sooooo creamy and rich, and SO quick and easy! pre-thermomix i basically didn't eat porridge because it's was too much trouble and just not nice without all the 'naughty' extras such as brown sugar, cream and butter :-0

1 piece of fruit such as a banana or an apple
55g oats (i use aldi oats, the packet doesn't say they're instant but i think they probably are)
160-220g skim milk*

peel banana, halve and place in tmx, add other ingredients.
if i'm using apple i just cut the sides of it and cut them in half (so use eighths) and leave the core behind.

cook for 4 minutes on 80' or 90' speed 4

pour and scrape out - i LOVE my tupperware spatula for this (but don't ever use anything but the tmx spatula to cook with!), top with anything extra such as yoghurt, and serve.

this is enough for rory and myself, or just me (but a big bowlful)

*if i'm going to have yoghurt on top i use 160g for a thicker porridge. 220g makes a runny porridge which you don't need to add anything to.

14.7.08

Self Saucing Puddings

I haven't made the chocolate one, but have made the butterscotch one several times - yum :)

thanks to alex, who got them from someone else on eb ;)

Self Saucing Butterscotch Pudding

Base
1 cup SR four (you might like to sift first)
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tspn salt
2 level tspns melted butter
1/2 cup milk

Mix together and place in greased oven proof dish.

*(Although when I made it I mixed all the ingredients in the ovenproof dish and didn't bother greasing it and it worked fine)

Sauce:
2 tbspsn golden syrup
1 1/2 cups hot water
1 tbspn butter

Place sauce ingredients in saucepan, stir over low heat until melted, pour over pudding gently and bake in oven at 180 for 30 to 35 minutes.

Thats it very simple and very yummy! I was actually really dubiouse about it but honestly it was really good, especially for cold nights tongue.gif We served ours with some vanilla ice cream.

Oh also worth a go, one my mum use to do for us, just as simple and yummy.

Chocolate self saucing pudding

1 cup self raising flour
1 dessert spoon Cocoa
1 teaspoon coffee
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2oz melted butter

In an oven proof dish mix all the dry ingredients. Add the egg, milk and butter, stir well.

In a seperate bowl mix 1/2 cup sugar, 2 dessertspoons of cocoa and 2 teaspoons of coffee. Pour over the cake mixture and gently even it out (kinda like a layer ie don't mix it in with the cake mixture). Pour over 1 1/2 cups of boiling water. Bake in a moderate oven (350f - 180c) for about 40 minutes.

We also have this with vanilla icecream

Thermomix Lovers!

check this out and come and join me!

A little bit of Thermomix Magic - group blog

12.7.08

Thermomix Quiz

Jeff set up a Thermomix group - check it out if you have one :)

anyway, i asked these questions over there but forgot to answer them myself lol plus someone on eb is looking to find out more about the TMX so i thought this might help ...

1. How often do you use your TMX?
usually 6-7 days per week, 1-4/5 times a day

2. What things do you cook on a regular basis & how often?
i make porridge every morning for breakfast (recipe coming soon!)
i use it to chop though i do find it hard to judge enough vs too much for some things.
i also love it to mix up cakes and doughs
geoff uses it to cook meals, once or twice a fortnight.
all natural custard for te kids - probably a few times a week

3. What do you use your TMX most for cooking or preparing?
I use it more for prep work but geoff definitely cooks in it more

4. Does anyone else in house use it?
yep, everyone ;) well, mostly geoff and i and ryan likes to help with it and is learning to read the weights, time etc. he won't turn it on if it's over about speed 5 though - too loud LOL

5. So far what's your favourite thing that you've cooked in it?
i think it's the pasta dish with salami, tomato and cream in it (where you cook the pasta in the tmx). geoff has made it quite a few times and it's very yummy! that polenta with blueberries was delish though!

what else have i made?
butter (easy though getting a softer butter is trickier)
bread, yum (and making the flour from whole wheat
foccaccia - YUM!
pizza dough
chopping large amounts of garlic, herbs etc
making my own spice blends with whole spices
risotto
icecream with nothing but milk, sugar and fruit
sorbet
hot chocolate and lattes
smoothies
cake mixes
apple sauce (which i then use instead of the fat and sugar in cakes etc)
custard (oh how did i forget this in my list above! we make vanilla, strawberry (with fresh berries) and chocolate, all with no preservatives etc etc)
mixing batters (pancakes, pikelets etc)

i'm sure there's heaps more, will keep pondering!

11.7.08

Mum's Tomato Relish

This is a fave of both geoff and my dad (though geoff likes his with indian and dad has his on sandwiches lol)

originally posted here

from my mum:

cut up tomatoes and onions, add salt.. stand overnight.

next morning pour off brine. almost covere with vinegar, bring to boil, then add sugar and stir well. take curry, mustard, cornflour and mix to smooth paste with a little vinegar. sir into mixture until it thickens. boil from 1/2 to 1 hr.

Add cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger. stir well.

bottle while still warm

Full quantity Half

2.7kg toms 1.35 kg toms
900g onions 450g onions
700gms sugar 350gms

* 1 cup salt

1 tab curry 1/2 tsp curry
1 dspn mustard 1/2 dspn mustard
3 tbs cornflour 1 1/2 tab cornflour
1 tsnp cinnamon 1/2 tspn cinnamon
1 tspn nutmeg 1/2 tspn nutmeg
1 tspn ginger 1/2 tspn ginger

* 1 cup of salt is too much.......maybe about 1/3 cup.....can always add more later if needed

receipe can be adjusted for different quantities of tomatoes and onions

haha the only time i've made it (my dh loves it and mum had run out of supplies for him to steal) she didn't tell ME that a cup of salt was too much! believe me it IS WAY too much LOL blerg, it was nearly inedible...

she always keeps it in jars from Rose's Lime Marmalade :)

A Feast for Friday!

some how or other i went from entirely uninspired to make dinner (was thinking beans on toast) to cooking this feast... not sure how that happened but was pretty good lol

Menu:
Butter Chicken (TMX recipe)
Daal with pumpkin & spinach
basmati rice
raita
tomato & cucumber sambal
bananas with coconut (is that a sambal too?)
pappadums
tomato relish
brinjal pickle
click here to see what each dish looked like :)

and more details...
Butter Chicken (TMX recipe) I'm not sure about the success of this recipe. i don't think it was like the butter chicken we're used to but it's been so long since we've had indian out i can't remember!! lol i didn't have cream so i used a mix of sour cream and evaporated milk and made it too runny. I also only had 50g of cashews so subbed in 100g of almonds. i did add some tomato paste as i was worried my tomatoes weren't ripe and tasty enough. i'll probably make it again but i'll have to try a takeaway version and see if i can adapt this one ;)
Daal with pumpkin & spinach This is very simple :) melt some ghee, gently fry some garlic, black mustard seeds and garam masala. pour in water / stock. add in red lentils and diced pumpkin. when lentils are cooked add in spinach and coconut milk and allow spinach to wilt before serving.
basmati rice
raita
tomato & cucumber sambal
bananas with coconut (is that a sambal too?)
pappadums we just microwave ours - they are so much nicer not done in oil!!
tomato relish mum's recipe :) will track it down (i think it's on eb) and repost here
brinjal pickle

More Fete Treats...

just a few more recipes before we head home - we came to M&D's place at 9am this morning to catch up with some old family friends, and we are still here at 4pm lol

Peanut Brittle
Put 2 cups light brown or granulated sugar into a saucepan and stir til brown (caramel).
Then add 1 tab butter and 1 cup raw peanuts.
stir and boil few moments longer.
pour onto wet marble slab & spread thin with 2 forks.
break when cold

Simple Toffees
1 lb sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 tspn cream of tartar
1 tspn vinegar

place all ingredients in saucepan. stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture boils. do NOT stir once mixture boils.
boil until syrup becomes honey coloured then remove from heat immediately (if prefer drop small quatity into cup of cold water for testing set)
pour into greased 6" square tin and mark into squares as it cools. when cold break into squares and top with nuts or coconut
this mixture is ideal for putting into paper cases for the favourite 2c toffees (2c!! LOL)

OMG, these pikelets...

are the best!

they really knew how to make pikelets in 1962!!!

i had little helpers to measure, mix and spoon into the pan. also for eating :D

though with different toppings - ryan had peanut butter and sprinkles, and the girls had peach jam and sprinkles lol

we had no cream but healthier that way huh

Pickles

Choko Pickles
3lb Chokoes
1lb onions

cut up and soak for 24 hrs and covered with water and 1 cup salt, cook til soft

2 1/2 cups sugar - add to pickes
2 cups vinegar
1/2 cup flour
1 tab mustard
1 tab turmeric
1 dessertspoon curry

mix together and add to pickles and before taking from heat add
1 tab golden syrup and stir.

Mustard Pickles
2lb cauliflower, chokoes, green tomatoes or a mixture
1 lb onions
1/2 lb beans
1 tspn salt
enough vinegar to cover (1 - 1.5 pints)
1/2 tspns spice
1 cup golden syrup
12 cloves
12 peppercorns
1 tab each mustard, curry powder and plain flour

cut vegies into pieces, put in basin and stand overnight.
put vinegar, spice, syrup on to boil. adding cloves and peppercorns in muslin bag.
drain vegies. add to boiling vinegar. boil 20 mins or until crisp. remove bag. blend mustard, curry and flour with vinegar. add & simmer 10 mins. bottle in warm jars and seal when cool.

hmmm these instructions don't make that much sense to me, i need mum to explain LOL

OK, turns out mum has never made either of these so if anyone has any tips please do share :)

Macaroni Bake

this one has no instructions - i'm assuming you would gently fry the first4 ingredients, mix everything togther in an oven proof dish and back in a 160-180'c oven til the pasta is cooked.

3oz butter
1 onion
1/4 cup celery
1/4 cup capsicum
1/2 cup creamed corn
250g macaroni (uncooked)
3 eggs
1 cup tasty cheese, grated
2 1/2 cups milk
S&P

Sweet Treats for fetes and parties

more of mum's old recipes

Marshmallows
2 cups sugar
1 tab gelatine
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup boiling water

add cold water to sugar, then dissolve gelatine in hot water. add to sugar and beat til thick. set in shallow tin. cut into squares. roll in coconut.

FRENCH JELLIES
2 lbs sugar
1 pint water
2-2.5 oz gelatine
pinch cream of tartar
food colouring
soak gelatine in half of water. place sugar, cream of tartar and remaining water in a saucepan. boil until dissolved. add soaked gelatine and boil for 20 mins. add colour. pour into wetted trays and allow to set overnight. cut into squares and roll in castor sugar.

Coconut Ice
6 oz coconut
4 tabs sweetened condensed milk
12 oz icing sugar
1 drop cochineal

mix condensed milk and icing sugar. stir in coconut (mixture should be very stiff) and divide into two parts. tine one half with cochineal. shape into 2 identical bars and press firmly together. dust plate with icing sugar and leave on this til firm.

Chocolate Roughs
Chocolate Coating
3oz copha
1/2 cup drinking chocolate
melt copha over gentle heat - it should be barely warm, not hot. add gradually to drinking choc. stir til smooth

Chocolate Roughs
add 1 cup of coconut to chocolate coating (above). place in small heaps on greaseproof paper. Stand in cool place to set.

Crumpets

oooh i've been wanting to try these! we hardly eat crumpets because you can't buy them without the dreaded 282 preservative.

1 lb flour
1 egg
1/2 pint milk
1/2 oz compressed yeast *
1/2 tspn salt

crumble yeast into a bowl
add slightly warmed milk and egg
gradually beat in flour and salt until smooth
add extra milk
stand in a warm place and allow to rise for 1 1/2 hours
heat frypan to 380'F (?) and grease lightly
pour into crumpet rings in heated frypan
cook until brown underneat and firm on top

some classics from 1962

i'm at M&D's and thought i'd type up a few of mum's recipes. these ones are from mum's 1962 frypan book, and the pikelet one is the best!

Pikelets
1 cup SR flour
pinch salt
1/4 tspn bicarb soda
2 tab sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup sour milk or fresh with 1 tspn vinegar
dessertspoon butter, melted

sift dry ingredients
add sugar, egg, milk and butter
beat until smooth and thoroughly mixed
place by dessertspoonful into electric frypan heated to 380'F
cook until bubbly and brown underneath
turn to brown

Fritter batter
1 cup SR Flour
1 tspn baking soda
1 egg
1/2 cup milk

sift dry ingredients
add hmmmmm hard to read.... i think it's egg yolk and milk and beat until mixed
add stiffly beaten egg white

note: this makes a fairly stiff batter which is good for moist food as as something i can't read LOL so i assume you can add more milk to batter dryer foods. we use to use this one for leftover roast meat, serve with homemade relishes or chutneys, or tomato sauce.

cut foods to required size
dip in batter and shake off excess
fry in electric frypan heated to 400'F. i can't read it but you would need to put butter or oil in to fry in
turn when brown underneath

9.7.08

An old favourite!

This recipe is really yummy, despite coming from a 1960's Sunrise cooking booklet my mother had ;) (I left out the very politically incorrect salt to taste in the recipe btw)

Bavarian Beef Crust Pie

Beef Crust
500g lean beef mince
3 tabs tomato sauce
1/2 cup day old breadcrumbs (boiled rice can be used)
1 onion, chopped
1 tab chopped parsley
pinch cayenne pepper
pinch mixed herbs

Rice Filling
2/3 cup white rice
1/4 cup chopped green capsicum
3 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped (or a tin, drained and chopped)
250g shredded cheese
pinch cayenne pepper

Method
Combine all crust ingredients. press onto bottom of a 9" (22-24cm?) pie plate. bake in moderate over 30 minutes. Remove from oven and drain any excess fat.

cook rice in boiling water for 12 minutes, adding capsicum for the last 5 minutes, drain. add tomatoes, half the cheese and cayenne pepper. mix well.

spoon rice mix into meat crust and sprinkle with remaining cheese.

return to oven and cook for a further 20 minutes.

8.7.08

Delicious Breakfast (Thermomix)

this recipe looked so delicious and i just had to try it for breakfast! of course i decided to put a LOT less sugar in it (especially for breakfast). i think this could be made with any variety of fruit :)

this amount made enough for rory and myself, i will update the amounts later when i work out quantities for one (i'm thinking 55g polenta but not completely sure how much milk would be needed)

3/4 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 tspn maple syrup

70g polenta / cornmeal
470g skim milk
zest of one small lemon
pinch of salt
maple syrup to taste (about 1/2-1 tspn for me)
1/2 tspn vanilla essence

put the blueberries and 1 tspn of maple syrup in a microwave container, loosely cover, cook on high for 2 minutes. (i'm sure you could also do this in the thermomix, i just couldn't be bothered!)

place the polenta, milk, zest, and salt in the thermomix. Cook for 10 minutes on 90' speed 4 until the polenta is soft. add maple syrup and vanilla, mix on speed 2 until combined.

place polenta in bowl/s, top with blueberry mix, stir just a little and serve.
(warning - it will be VERY hot for quite a while!)

7.7.08

Menu Plan

Tonight - Cauliflower & Bacon Soup and pork fried rice (to use up some roast pork i didn't recognise and defrosted yesterday lol)
Tuesday - Moussaka
Wednesday - baked potatoes with baked beans and salad
Thursday - slow cooker roast chicken with veg
Friday - corn chowder
Saturday - some kind of grilled pork fillet warm salad, with potatoes & sweet potatoes and whatever else we have left
Sunday - leftover / freezer meal

6.7.08

Honey Jumble Success & Disaster!

i bought a new book last week when ryan was off sick (again)
The ABC of Kids Cooking by Woman's Day

the kids are pretty impressed by it lol

anyway, i told ryan that i thought he would like honey jumbles and we would make them on the weekend. so even though i actually wanted to sleep that's what we did this afternoon.

the success is that he did actually like them and so did emelia :)

the disaster is that the icing did NOT coming up at all like it should - it was wayyyyyy too thick. they look terrible!!! plus there was way too much icing on each jumble because that was the only way to get it on.

so no photos as they look very un jumble like ;p

3.7.08

default oven temp

sorry, if i ever vague it like i did in that last post my 'default' oven temp that i use for virtually everything (unless i think to check the recipe lol) is 180'c :)

Creamy Chicken, Bacon & Veg Enchiladas (TMX)

this dish went through about 10 different incarnations in my mind before i started making it - it was going to be mini shepherds pies for a while there!!

anyway, i think it could have been improved but it was a hit with everyone so i'm noting it down for the future :)

you could do this thermomix or non-tmx.

2 medium orange sweet potatoes / kumara, steamed or microwaved until just cooked then peeled and roughly chopped

a few rashers bacon, roughly chopped
(1 onion, quartered. i didn't have any)
garlic to suit your taste - i used about 4 cloves

chop in tmx for a few seconds on 6, scrape down sides and do a few more seconds if needed
cook for 2 minutes on 100' speed 2

1 large head brocolli, roughly chopped (or 1 pkt spinach, you'd add this at the end though)

chop for a few seconds on speed 6
cook for 2 minutes on 100' speed 3-4

remove bacon / broccoli mix from tmx

make white sauce as per tmx book (less milk - 400ml milk - i used skim - 50g flour, 30g butter, 1/2 tspn salt but instead of nutmeg add a little ground cumin and coriander) also add in sweet potato before cooking.

cooked chicken, most of a BBQ chook or 2 breasts or whatever you have, diced
1 tin kidney beans, drained
(jalepeno peppers, to taste, chopped finely)

mix the broccoli / bacon mix, chicken and beans with the sweet potato sauce (i did this in the tmx but i don't really recommend it, there was too much and it ended up nearly pureed as a result)

put 3-4 spoonfuls into a tortilla of your choice, roll up and place in greased oven dish (i used a lasagne dish)
when finished pour some salsa or passata (with spices would be good, but i couldn't be bothered) over the top then top with grated tasty cheese

bake until cheese is slightly browned.

sorry for the shocking recipe writing, i am just so lazy atm...

1.7.08

Curried Sausages, Thermomix (first draft)

this is going to be such a rough recipe - i wasn't paying attention when i was making it, it was very hap hazard lol...

curried snags are one of G's favourite meals. we didn't really have them growing up so i'm not really all that good at cooking them. but he RAVED about these tonight (i thought they were okish and the kids wouldn't eat them lol) so he actually requested that i write this down.

they were a last minute thing with leftover sausages in the fridge and still no choku bai jo shop.

1 onion, quartered
olive oil, about 20g i guess
1-2 garlic cloves
curry powder to your taste, i used about 3-4 tspns maybe? (half aldi curry mix and half keens curry powder, plus some cumin and coriander to add more flavour without spice for ryan)
flour or cornflour, quite a lot, maybe 1/3 cup?
around 600ml water
about 1/4 cup sweet soy sauce (or some beef stock powder and a little sugar OR mango chutney)
about 1/4 cup tomato sauce (ketchup)
about 8 or so sausages, precooked (boiled or fried) and skinned, sliced
1-2 packets frozen vegies (or fresh diced mixed veg)

chop onion and garlic, spped 6 for about 5 seconds
add curry powder and flour and cook for 3 mintues on 100' reverse speed 2-4
add water and soy sauce, cook for 10 minutes on 100' reverse speed 2
add sausages and vegies, cook for 5 minutes on 100' reverse speed 2 *
serve with steamed rice

* i actually had to cook mine longer to thicken the sauce but i had used a LOT more water and a lot less flour so you may need to adjust the time if this isn't long enough. by the time the sauce was done half the vegies had disintegrated :(

not sure when i'll get around to refining this recipe as it's not my favourite meal ;) so if you try it please report any changes!

ETA - forgot the tomato sauce!

Winter Day Activities...

what do you do with 3 sick kids on a day that is too feral to step foot outside?

go crazy first
then find a recipe for microwave playdough!
i googled only to find the recipe on eb anyway lol thanks to jez

Microwave Playdough
2 cups plain flour
2 cups water
1 cup salt
2 tspn cream of tartar
1 tbsp oil
food colouring

mix all ingredients. microwave on high 2 minutes then stir
microwave 1 further minute then stir again. microwave 1 further minute then remove, in total 4 minutes *
allow to cool, knead well and store in an air tight container **
if you need more than one batch it's better to make them one by one

* i had to do an extra 30 secs as my mw is not very powerful
** i let it cool only enough to be touched - it's so cold here today it was nice to use warm playdough!