It comes as no surprise that I enjoy food. I love eating. I like cooking for friends. I enjoy making new meals from recipes I’ve never seen before.
I’ve shared recipes here in the past, and I’ll share another two in my comments to this post.
And you get to share a recipe or two as well!
Do you have a recipe to share? Please do! Does the recipe have a story behind it? We’d love to hear that too. Has the recipe been in your family for decades? Was it given to you? Did you come up with it yourself?
Just one rule…
Someone should be able to read your post and make the recipe a reality. So no eyeball amounts.
Do you like something but not have a recipe for it? Ask us for our versions!
And just to make things interesting… I’m going to try every recipe you folks can drum up.
So here it is, page 1 of the SplatOn cookbook!
Ooh, ooh, ooh! One of my FAVOURITE topics!!
Let me sleep on it & I’ll get back to you.
Here’s one of my favourites. I adapted it myself from a plain cheesecake recipe.
Turkish Delight Cheesecake
For the base
250g packet of chocolate tiny teddy biscuits
140g butter melted
Blitz together in food processor and press into base and sides of lined spring-form tin. Put in fridge while preparing filling.
Filling
500g cream cheese at room temperature
1/2 cup caster sugar
Juice of one lemon
4 teaspoons rose water (available from delicatessens)
1 tablespoon powdered gelatine
1/2 cup boiling water
500ml cream, whipped
2-3 drops red food colouring
250g good quality rose flavoured Turkish Delight, roughly chopped
Place the cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice and rose water in a bowl and beat until smooth.
Add gelatine to boiling water and stir until completely dissolved. Allow to cool slightly.
Stir gelatine through the cream cheese mixture evenly.
Fold whipped cream into mixture. Remove one cup of mixture to small bowl.
Add the food colouring to the small bowl and stir well.
Add the turkish delight to the remaining mixture and stir to combine. (Because the turkish delight is bloody sticky, I add it in bit by bit otherwise I end up with one big lump.)
Briefly fold through pink mixture, just enough to form swirls.
Pour into prepared biscuit base and refrigerate for at least six hours before serving.
Mr R loves turkish delight, so this will be great for his birthday! Thank you.
Sounds yum!!
Sounds amazing, How much gelatine?
One tablespoon?
Falafel
32 oz chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small bunch chopped fresh coriander
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup dried breadcrumbs
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
vegetable oil for frying
Mash all the ingredients together. Try to crush as many of the peas as you can, but don’t worry if some remain whole. Form them into meatball size, about 2″ each. Then deep fry at 375° until golden brown. Give the oil time to build up heat between batches or your 2nd batch might get all fall-aparty.
Serve on warm pita with tzatziki.
Tzatziki
32 oz Greek Style yogurt
3 cucumbers, deseeded, grate 2, medium chop the other
(Lebanese cucumbers if available.)
2 small garlic cloves, put through a press or chopped very fine
1 lemon, use the zest and half the juice
1 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
If you don’t have a zester, skin the zest off with a veggie peeler. Try to get as little of the bitter white as possible, and then chop the heck out of it.
Save the other half lemon juice til after you taste the tzatziki. You may not need it.
I am salivating *so* badly right now!
It’s Falafel, not Pavlov(a).
Haha psychology joke!
That name rings a bell
Hey I’m salivating too!
What a strange response
This one Pokelyn and I saw on The Cook and the Chef and had to try it.
Crispy Skin Pork Belly
1 piece pork belly
salt
Hang the pork in the fridge for 3-4 days uncovered. This starts to dry out the skin so that you get a good crackling. (you can skip this part if you don’t like uncovered food in your fridge – or put the pork in your esky with some freezer packs or ice that’s in a zip-top bag. Just be sure to check the temp each day.)
Put pork belly in a steamer, skin side up for 15-20 minutes.
With a docking tool prick the skin side to depth of 1.5 cm to penetrate the skin and the top fat layer . You can also do this with a fork if you don’t have this tool. (or use a knife – a fork is difficult to get through the skin)
Rub salt into the skin side of the pork belly at the ratio of 2 tablespoons per kg of pork.
Preheat oven to 100C.
Place a cup of water in a baking tray at the bottom of the oven.
Hang the pork upright in front of the fan in the oven, the skin towards the fan and the pork hanging vertically so that the fat renders down through the piece and not into the skin. If the angle of the hang is such that the rendering fat drips into the skin, the skin will not crisp. Cook for about 50 minutes. In the last 10 minutes of cooking, increase the temp to 240C, this will give the skin a good crust.
We couldn’t hang the pork, so I ran 4 long skewers through the corners of the belly. The bottom 2 sat on the edge of the water pan and the top 2 kept the belly mostly upright, acting like supports of a lean-to shelter.
If the skin doesn’t blister, remove the hooks or skewers and lay the belly skin side up at the top of the oven and set your grill at 200C until blisters appear.
Brush off the excess salt, then carve into 4 cm wide slices and serve with rice and your favorite dipping sauce.
This doesn’t reheat well in a microwave, but does work well going back under the grill for a few minutes, skin side up.
I am doing this next week
Thank you!
1. Flick switch on kettle.
2. Locate tea bag and large mug. Drop tea bag into mug.
3. Wait for kettle to boil. Now is a good time to locate packet of Arnotts Chocolate Royals and a spoon.
4. When kettle boils, immediately fill mug with water, leaving room for a splash of milk – which must only be added AFTER the removal of the tea bag. The tea bag should remain in the boiling water from 15 seconds to 1.5 minutes, depending on your preference regarding the strength of the tea.
5. Remove tea bag using a spoon.
6. Put tea bag in the bin, not on the side of the sink.
7. Add milk. Return milk to fridge.
8. Now is the time to add the required amount of sugar – i.e. “season to taste”. This may be some or none.
9. Stir tea.
10. Pick up 2 chocolate royals, a piece of tissue and your mug and make your way to a comfy spot.
10. Dunk your biscuits. Drink your tea. Be merry.
11. Using aforementioned tissue, wipe chocolate off of face.
12. Repeat steps 1-11 as required.
I’ll come back with a real one tonight!
Ahh one of my favourite recipes except I would replace the Royals woth McVities Hobnobs
*with*
Hobnobs are my top choice for dunking
chocolate hobnobs especially… Royals are secondary because they require surgical operations before they are dunkable.
Oh yes – has to be the chocolate hobnobs!!!
I prefer Tim Tams
The fabled Tim Tam Slammer
Prefer Coffee too
Tim Tams are also a great option. I do the Tim Tam slammer with tea not coffee as I don’t drink coffee at all – never have …
Me neither. Coffee is bleurgh. You can come to my house any time!
Thanks! I will bring the chocolate hobnobs
Ah ha! That’s where I’ve been getting it wrong all these years!
Whenever I make this recipie, I tend to forget this step and then, when I get to step 10, I find I;m incapable of becoming merry due to the sharp pain in the back of my head.
Further investigation proved that the pain was caused by my SO slapping me there and telling me to pick up after myself…
This is one of my favourites, great for taking on picnics or travelling. Below is not my actual recipe as I was in too much of a rush this morning to remember to dig the book out, but one I found on the net which seems about right.
Roast Kumara, Peanut, And Raisin Loaf
1 medium kumara/sweet potato (you will need 1 cup mashed kumara)
1 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
2 teaspoon mixed spice
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger (optional)
3/4 cup raisins, (you can chop them)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil (I use peanut oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped
Roast whole kumara until tender, about 45 mins in 180°C oven, but timing & temperature are not critical for this stage, I usually put it in the oven when I’m cooking something else anyway. Otherwise you can prick kumara, cover with plastic wrap or lid, and microwave for 10 minutes, or until soft. The flavour is better if you can roast it.
Cool slightly, peel and mash. Cool completely.
In a bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Add the ginger, raisins and sugar (but not the peanuts).
Stir oil with the eggs, vanilla, juice and add the kumara. Add to the dry ingredients and mix until all is well blended.
Cover the base of a greased 15cm x 25cm loaf pan with baking paper, spoon mixture into pan and level with the spoon. Sprinkle over with the peanuts. Bake in preheated 160°C oven for about 1 hour or until inserted skewer comes out clean.
Stand loaf in pan for 15 minutes before turning onto wire rack to cool. Slice to serve.
This recipe can be made 2 days ahead. Store in an airtight container, it also freezes very well.
I f*cking *love* this!
Did you f**king see the f**king Gruen f**king transfer last f**king night?
Let’s make some f**king money, Australia!
I’ve still got the three condoms as bunnies ad in my head. F**king hilarious!
Yep – it was very funny!
That sounds fabulous and because it has oil in it the recipe will convert into gluten free without to much tinkering. Yay. Shall be trying this out on the weekend.
Maz’s Gluten-Free Brownies
1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup plain gluten-free plain flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
150g butter, melted
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 4cm-deep, 20cm x 30cm (base) slab pan. Line with baking paper, allowing a 2cm overhang at both long ends.
2. Sift flours, baking powder and cocoa into a large bowl. Add sugar. Stir to combine. Make a well in the centre. Add eggs and melted butter to flour mixture. Using a metal spoon, mix until just smooth.
3. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out with crumbs clinging.
4. Remove from oven. Allow to cool in pan. Lift from pan. Cut into squares.
This is my fail-safe brownie recipe, and hopefully one of the first things I am able to sell in my planned coffee & GF treats shop. It’s also the version that has been sent out to several of the Splatters for taste testing!
These keep for about 3-5 days, although mine never quite seem to last that long.
I have made them with a handful of chopped nuts of your choice, and choc chips as well, so they are like a rocky-road brownie then. Dense, moist and really, really chocolate-y.
Oh, I forgot. If you want to make sure they are gluten-free, check your baking powder – some aren’t gluten-free.
Yay for brownies
I’m not the cook in the family – too clumsy, too uncoordinated, too likely to drop into deep thought mode and and forget the universe around me as the house burns down.
I do make a pretty good vegetarian pizza though. And a quick and nasty but very tasty tuna and pasta dish. And I do make Gyryswald’s chilli marmalade, which I thoroughly recommend.
Mrs H got a recipe out of the CSIRO cook book (the second one I think) which was basically shepherd’s pie but with kumara or sweet potato instead of potato. Bloody delicious. I suspect it’s copyright, but if you take your normal recipe and swap potato for kumara I’m sure that would work.
Yes, the girls long ago learned that the only way to get a usable recipe off their Mum was to watch her do it and write it down. It’s all ‘a splash of this’ and ‘a bit of that’. It’s not deliberate, it’s just that she’s been making them so long she does it on autopilot and couldn’t tell you the actual quantities. Even if she can find the original recipe she has usually modified it (for the better). She often whips stuff up out of what is left in the cupboard as payday approaches and does brilliant stir-fries that way.
Her recipes for rissoles and bread and butter pudding were passed down from my Mum; nearly the only things she could cook properly, although she did do curries well, not those anaemic pretend curries people used to do back then. My Mum got them from her Mum who was a fantastic cook. She’d cook up a banquet for the extended family on get-togethers, all done in an old wood-fire stove.
When I get home I’ll see if there are any of Mrs H’s recipes that are translatable and post them up if so.
I’m looking forward to the results of this blog.
Mrs H’s cooking style (splash of this, bit of that) sounds exactly like my Mum. There are only a few things she makes that need to follow the recipe exactly, but it happens so rarely that we tease her about it. She looks at a recipe, then does it her way anyway!
I have to admit I have learned from her & tend to do that with some things, but if making something for the first time I do follow the recipe, then tinker with it if needed, for the subsequent tries.
I make that sheperds pie recipe with sweet potato from CSIRO all the time – we love it!
Here’s another favourite and so easy. It’s from the Smitten Kitchen website and I highly recommend any foodies go take a look. I’ve made this a few times and have tinkered with the recipe slightly to get a result that works best for me. The Simplest Apple Tart is also divine (www.smittenkitchen.com).
Crisp Rosemary Flatbread (fantastic with hummus or any dip really)
Preheat oven to 220 degrees C
1 3/4 cups plain flour (can be white or wholemeal or a mix of both)
1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (plus some extra sprigs)
1 1/2 teasp baking powder (NOT baking soda)
3/4 teasp salt
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup olive oil (plus some more for brushing)
Flaky sea salt
Mix flour, chopped rosemary, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
Add water and oil and mix together until a dough forms.
Remove dough from bowl and knead on a floured surface for three to five minutes.
Divide dough into four pieces.
Roll out each piece very thinly. Place on a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
Just before baking, brush with extra oil, sprinkle with sea salt and push in a few pieces of the extra sprigs of rosemary.
Bake eight to ten minutes until bread is golden and browned in spots.
Cool on wire rack.
When cold, break into pieces and serve with dips.
Love Smitten Kitchen and have made this recipe multiple times – works well with wholemeal flour too!
Fishpond.com.au are having a cookbook sale today:
http://www.fishpond.com.au/advanced_search_result.php?rid=1164163157&keywords=cooking&outprint=1&filter=half_price
AHHHHHHHHH Fishpond is like the Book Depositary!!!! Slams lid down on laptop and runs from the room chanting “must not log onto fishpond, must not log onto fishpond, must not log onto fishpond…..”
You’re stronger than me then…!!
Gluten free flours do not blend and raise as well as wheat flours so when it comes to dough’s etc the results are often quite tragic but a couple of months ago I came across this damper recipe. It is the bomb!
Gluten Free Kumara Damper
1 2/3 cups (225g) gluten-free self-raising flour
1 teaspoon caster sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
20g butter
½ cup cold mashed sieved cooked kumara (I roast the kumara in salt, oil and garlic)
½ cup (125ml) buttermilk (it has to be buttermilk not ordinary milk)
2 tablespoons water, approximately
2 teaspoons milk, approximately
2 teaspoons gluten-free self-raising flour, extra
Preheat oven to 220°C/200°C fan-forced.
Sift dry ingredients into large bowl; rub in the butter. Add kumara, buttermilk and enough of the water to mix to a soft, sticky dough. Knead dough lightly on floured surface until smooth.
Divide dough into four equal portions. Roll each portion into rounds, place on oven tray. Cut cross through top of dough, about 5mm deep. Brush tops with milk, then dust with extra sifted flour. Place on baking paper on an oven tray. Bake dampers about 35 minutes.
** I also find the different brands of gluten free flours give you different results. I much prefer the Orgran brand of both Self Raising and ordinary flour.
Have used Orgran myself to make GF dark choc brownies, not a bad one to use (then again, I haven’t tried any other brands).
I’m going to think long and hard about this one today. Like H, I’m not the family chef because we long ago learned that anything I cook still has to be eaten, but I’m working on it.
More likely, I’ll be frantically writing down anything I see here that looks doable, so if anyone has some good, simple dinner staples bring them on!
Dinner staples?
Steak. What? You can’t cook steak? Yes you can!
The trick is knowing whether it’s done to your desired wellness.
Hold up your hand. See that meaty bit at the base of your thumb? That’s your done-ness meter.
Press it with a finger on your other hand. That’s raw.
Touch your pointer finger to the thumb (same hand). That’s rare.
Touch your middle finger to the thumb (same hand). That’s medium.
Touch your ring finger to the thumb (same hand). That’s well done.
Touch your pinky finger to the thumb (same hand). That’s overcooked.
This works for all meats.
Ghrys,
I actually have difficulties making steaks and rely on the stab and check method. Your method sounds a whole lot more intuitive. Can you please explain this a little more?
Cheers,
Mel
To cook steak Medium, for instance, touch your middle finger to your thumb, as if to make a circle or the OK signal.
Now when the meat you’re cooking feels as firm as the meaty bit at the base of your thumb when you are making the circle, it’s medium.
No need to stab and let all the juicy goodness escape.
Some of my cheat dinners for you to try out PP:
- Chicken thigh fillets marinated in a jar of pasta stir-through sauce (I know it sounds crazy, but everyone asks me for that recipe, when really it’s throwing some sauce over the chicken and ignoring it for an hour or so!), then either BBQed or oven-baked.
- On a plate, mix a handfull of very finely grated cheddar cheese with breadcrumbs (I use rice crumbs, but that’s for a GF option), and some finely chopped parsley. Crack 2 eggs into a bowl and whisk. Take a pork chop, dunk in the egg to cover, then dunk in the crumbs to cover both sides. Shallow fry in a little oil (to avoid sticking), and serve with veg.
I just had this mental picture of a chicken covered in sauce sulking in the corner because it was being ignored… Yeah, my mind is in a strange place today.
Quickie meal: Sausage & Sauce over Rice
Take some sausages, like Woolworths Pork & Veal with Onion & Sage.
Cut the sausage on the bias (that means diagonally, 30-45 deg)
Fry them in a skillet on both sides.
Chop up an onion and a pepper (capsicum) and add them to the pan after you flipped the sausage bites over.
Add a jar of cheap spaghetti sauce.
Cover and reduce to lowest heat setting for 10 minutes.
Serve over rice with garlic bread.
Cheap Chop Casserole
Cook lamb chops in Foreman Grill
Place in a bake dish
Jar of cheap spag sauce
Cover chops, cover in foil
Bake in the oven
We eat them with peas
Also some mashed potato
Quick and easy meal
Try that with pork and
Thickly sliced rings of onion
All day crockpot meal
I enjoy cooking. However I rarely stick to a recipe and measure almost exclusively using the force.
One thing I do sometimes when making a thick steak, just to make it different.
Slice a pocket in the middle of the steak.
In the pocket spread a small amount of pesto and ricotta.
Grill steak to preference.
Sorry, but the no eyeball measurements precludes me from further participation, other than to say how nommy other things sound.
This is another one from Smitten Kitchen that I’ve made heaps of times and always goes down a treat with guests and the boy. (I even served it at the Mystery Dinner!)
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (standard 7g packet)
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups plain flour
1 large egg
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
3-4 large brown onions, halved and thinly sliced
1 or 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Stir together yeast and warm water in a small bowl and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Put 1 1/2 cups flour in a medium bowl, make a well and add yeast mixture to well. Stir together egg, 1 tablespoon oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt with a fork. Add egg mixture to yeast mixture and mix until a soft dough forms. Transfer dough to a floured surface and knead, working in additional flour (up to 1/4 cup) as necessary, until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Transfer dough to an oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
While dough is rising you can caramelise your onions in a large fry pan. Heat the 1/3 cup of oil on medium/high heat and then add your fennel seeds. Cook for about 30 seconds then add onion, salt and pepper and reduce heat to medium/low. Cover with a round of baking paper and then just stir occassionally while they cook. Will take about an hour and a quarter for them to caramelise (should be golden brown, sweet to taste, very soft).
Pat your dough out on a rectangular baking tray, spread with dijon mustard, then the onions and then top with grated parmesan. Bake at 190 degrees for about 30 minutes or until base of tart is going golden. I find this best served warm. If you are going to let it cool to room temperature then put it in a baking rack, do not cool it on the tray (base will go soft if you do).
This is one I use quite regularly for family dinners. The recipe is pretty basic, so I add different herbs, try different kinds of sausage, and vary the veg to change the flavours. It’s really filling, and tastes even better heated up the next day for lunches!
Oven-Baked Sausage & Tomato Risotto
1 tablespoon olive oil
400g Italian or country-style sausages
1 red onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
2 celery stalks, diagonally sliced
400g can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf
parsley, to serve
1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Heat oil in a 12-cup flameproof casserole or ovenproof saucepan over medium heat. Fry sausages for 10 minutes, turning until browned and almost cooked. Remove from pan.
2. Add onion to saucepan, and more oil if needed. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes until soft.
3. Slice sausages into bite-sized pieces.
4. Add rice and celery to saucepan. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring. Add sausages, tomatoes, stock and water. Stir. Remove from heat. Cover with the lid or foil.
5. Transfer dish to the oven and cook for 30 to 35 minutes or until almost all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, but firm to the bite. Serve sprinkled with parsley.
I love cooking, but I almost always need a recipe. I won’t always follow exact measurements, but I have no faith in my abilities to just wing it. I have some favourite recipes, but I couldn’t tell you them by heart. Always looking for new ones though!
Big ditto here…
These are the risotto balls I always make when I’m hosting a cocktail party. The boy and I particularly enjoy reheating the leftovers and eating them for breakfast the next day, hehe.
Parmesan Arancini
1 tbs olive oil
20g butter
1 medium brown onion, halved, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
440g (2 cups) arborio rice
125ml (1/2 cup) dry white wine
1L (4 cups) chicken stock
40g (1/2 cup) grated parmesan (I always add more than this)
1/4 cup shredded fresh basil
55g (1/3 cup) toasted pine nuts
2 eggs, lightly whisked
60g (2/3 cup) dried (packaged) breadcrumbs
Vegetable oil, to deep-fry
Heat oil and half the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until onion softens. Add rice and stir to coat. Add the wine and half the stock, and bring to the boil. Cook, uncovered, until the liquid is absorbed. Reduce heat to low and add remaining stock. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat. Stir in the remaining butter, parmesan, basil and pine nuts. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool.
Add egg to the rice mixture and stir until just combined. Use wet hands to roll tablespoonsful of rice mixture into balls. Place breadcrumbs on a plate. Roll rice balls in breadcrumbs to coat. (It is good if you can rope someone in to help you with this step, so one person rolls the balls and the other person coats them in bread crumbs. Otherwise your hands just end up a total mess.)
Add enough oil to a large saucepan to reach a depth of 6cm. Heat to 180°C over medium-high heat (when oil is ready, a cube of bread will turn golden brown in 15 seconds). Deep-fry rice balls, 6 at a time, for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel. Repeat with remaining rice balls, reheating oil between batches.
A true staple in our household is the fried rice recipe I have been using since Year 8 Home Economics. It’s a recipe I know off by heart now, and can cook in about 15mins with my trusty Tupperware Rice Cooker.
Quick & Easy Fried Rice
3 eggs, beaten lightly
3 spring onions, chopped
1/2 cup bacon bits
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 spoon crushed garlic (to your own taste – I use a dessertspoon)
2.5 cups cooked rice (I cook this while chopping the other ingredients and getting to the point I need the rice. Alternatively, you can cook it beforehand. You don’t want gluggy rice).
1 cup frozen peas
Soy Sauce (I use Tamari, which is a GF soy – again this is to taste)
1. Heat wok/large fry pan. Add a little oil, and pour beaten eggs in and allow to cook as an omelette. Remove and set aside to cool slightly.
2. Add a little more oil, and add garlic, celery, bacon and spring onions. Cook until the bacon is cooked, but don’t burn the garlic.
3. Add a little more oil, and add cooked rice, sliced omelette and frozen peas. Combine over high heat, then add soy sauce to taste. The idea is to add enough to coat all the rice. Continue turning until the peas are cooked (takes a couple of minutes).
4. Add the bacon/garlic/celery/spring onion mixture, and stir through until all combined.
I serve this with honey soy chicken, and the kids devour it. Again, it keeps pretty well, and I love eating it (hot or cold) the next day.
I have been known to make a really huge batch of it in advance and serve it as a cold rice ‘salad’ at parties, where sometimes you want something more than just a leafy salad with your BBQ.
Oh yes – good old Year 8 Home Ec. I also still use recipes I learnt then and I *still* have my copy of ‘Day to Day Cookery’
I am not our cook
Can’t improve without practice
No-one eats my food
On the Barbecue
I’m master of my domain
Meat’s easy to cook
I don’t cook and I don’t bake. I’m very bad at both and everyone has pretty much come to accept this. Mind you, it doesn’t stop them trying to encourage me to learn. I believe for my birthday my mum is giving me a day to day cookery book and a set of beaters. How I wish that was the Weasley twins… Mmmmm…
Wonderful topic,
I was treating Scoobette the other night and, while improvising. I came up with the below
2 Chicken Breast
Baby Spinach
1 tub of roast capsicum, parmesan and cashew dip
pine nuts
8 slices of proccuito
Broccolli and Mashed potato served on the side.
Preheat an oven to 180-190ish
Butterfly each chicken Breast to create a pouch
Layer some of the dip, Baby spinach and pinenuts (toasted if you wish)
Lay out 4 pieces of proccuitto overlapping by about 1cm.
Tap down on the over lap to seal.
Wrap the chicken breast, Tap the joins to seal.
Place on a slightly oiled oven tray/baking tray and bake for 25ish minutes or until cooked through.
Here’s another.
Choc-Mint Brownies
125g butter chopped coarsely
200g dark eating chocolate chopped coarsely (the Coles brand Belgian dark chocolate is excellent).
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1 teasp peppermint essence
About 125g of Coles brand Belgian mint chip chocolate chopped into choc chip sized pieces (although I think Coles is phasing this out which is a tragedy. Use Peppermint Crisps if you can’t get the Coles chocolate.)
1 Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (160 degrees fan-forced). Grease deep 19cm square cake pan, line base with baking paper
2 Combine butter and chopped dark chocolate in medium saucepan. Stir over low heat until smooth (be careful not to burn it). Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
3 Stir in eggs, then peppermint essence, sifted flour, and chopped mint chip chocolate.
4 Spread mixture evenly in pan. Bake about 30 minutes. Cool in pan and then invert onto a chopping board.
5 Cut into pieces.
6 Eat all pieces by yourself.
Done!
This one sounds like something I’ll be making for myself this weekend….
Ghryswald – any chance of you posting your recipes for your Chocolate Raspberry Port and Chilli Marmalade? Pretty please?
I’ll give you cheater’s methods for both.
Habanero Marmalade
Make a sweet marmalade or buy a jar. Add 1 diced habanero and simmer in a pot for 10-15 mins. A whole habanero makes hot, 1/2 makes medium, 1/4 makes mild.
I’m not a fan of the bitter breakfast style marmalade you folks have over here, and the habanero flavor gets lost in that bitterness, but the heat will be there.
Chocolate Raspberry Port
Find a local distributor for Wine Expert Kits and see if they carry the Chocolate Raspberry Port kit. I believe it comes out in September.
Thank you!
I am functioning on about 2 hours sleep today due to extreme delays to my flight last night but I can give you this recipe as it is a family favourite and a no-brainer.
Spinach Dip (100% yummy and even people who hate spinach have been known to go back for seconds)
Get a large uncut bread loaf (try and get a sour dough as it is the perfect texture/ taste, it will work with wholemeal and white bread too though) and cut a large hole in the middle and hollow out the loaf so you are left with a bread shell.
In a large bowl mix 1 ¾ cups mayonnaise (around 350ml) and 1 small carton of sour cream (300ml) together with a packet of spring vegetable soup mix (for those on a budget these can all be as cheap and generic as you like, I have tried just about every brand and they all end up tasting pretty much the same, I find that the low fat versions of these work really well too) Sit this mixture aside while you cook the rest to bring it to room temperature-ish.
Slice 2 rashes of bacon finely and cook them in a small pan. Defrost and drain 1 packet of frozen spinach (250g) and combine it with either chives of spring onion (either 1 whole bunch of chives or 3 or 4 spring onions, depending on the size) in the small pan with the bacon to heat through. This will also help get rid of any excess water in the spinach. Add garlic to taste, I would suggest about 1 teaspoon of minced garlic or 2 cloves of fresh if you like a little garlic flavour, if you love garlic put 2 teaspoons in.
Once the bacon and spinach have reached a relatively thick consistency (water is gone) and are cooked through set them aside to cool a bit before combining them with the mayo and sour cream.
Preheat oven to about 180C
Put combined mixture in the bread and put the pieces of bread you scooped out of the middle around it on the tray to crisp up. Dip does not need to be cooked through again; this step is just to crisp up the bread.
When bread is “toasted” nicely (probably about 15 mins) remove from oven and serve on a large platter. People may be shy about ripping into the bread once the first bits are gone but that it essentially what the loaf is for, dig in.
It’s a bit naughty but I usually double the quantities and keep some in small containers in the freezer then I defrost some and eat it with a crusty bread roll for brunch on the weekend. It’s perfect with coffee or a glass of wine (I like it with a sparkling rose).
The ladies at Comp. Squash often used to bring that. They never could eat all the food they brought so I used to help them out with finishing that one off.
Okay, I am going to list my method for the Epic-Pizza-Of-Awesomeness, though please don’t villify me for my obvious lack of measurements, fuzzy memory on brands, or volumes. But I felt the need to put in more.
Start with pizza bases from the bakery. Most supermarkets have thin crust bakery bases. The ones I like come in a 2 pack from a mob who also do some nice Turkish breads. I prefer the wholemeal bases than the white.
Next comes the sauce. Being a bloke, mine does come out of a jar, though after extensive experimentation the sauce I prefer is a pasta sauce called Five Brothers (I think) Roast Garlic and Onion. It gives a great flavour to the pizza. Spread it around the base with a spoon. Not too thick or you end up with soggy pizza or floating toppings.
Next comes spices. Generous sprinkle of Pizza Topper, modest sprinkle of Italian Herbs, and light sprinkle of Ground Chillis to give it a bit of bite.
Cover with cheese. Mozarella or a pizza blend of grated chease. Again, don’t go berserk on cheese or things will get too oily.
Next comes the first dead animal flesh. I personally prefer cabanossi, though that is often difficult to get and I will use pepperoni in a pinch.
If you are an anchovies person, lay a few on at this stage.
Then comes sliced mushrooms. Some diced red pepper. Just a little. Green pepper can be used for colour, but I think the red suits the very European theme to the flavours.
In many supermarkets, in the olives section, they often have a little antipasto tub of pitted kalamata olives, which just happens to be a perfect volume for two pizzas.
Sprinkle over the top with diced bacon, then sprinkle a light layer of cheese over the top just so your olives don’t roll off as soon as you pick up a slice.
The main dangers in home pizza construction is to just pile on slabs of your favourite toppings so that you end up with something two inches thick when you put it into the oven.
Instead, go lightly on the topings and make up for it with more slices. But a pizza is a personal thing so consider amounts to be ‘to taste’ in all instances.
Lost me at the fish
Olives and the Fungus too
Bases are good though
There is another person on the planet that doesn’t like olives, anchovies and mushrooms. WOW!
Me too = hate all three!
You can count me in as well – not a fan of any of those!
I like mushrooms.
This sounds good beez!
Another yummy variation is to add some pesto to the sauce or add an aioli swirl to the top of the pizza.
We had a Moroccan Pizza at a gourmet pizza place in SA once that was very nommy and which we have since recreated at home. I make my own pizza dough using wholemeal flour, which we find we actually prefer now to the white options. I use this recipe:
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/14433/pizza+dough
Just cook some chicken in moroccan seasoning/marinade, chop into chunks and spread on a pizza with red onion, roasted capsicum and oven cooked sweet potato discs. (Cheese etc. too of course.) Serve with a swirl of garlic aioli/yoghurt when ready.
Another awesome one, thanks.
This recipe I’m posting is actually a Donna Hay chocolate cake recipe, however, the first time I made this cake I had some leftover cake batter, so fashioned it into cupcakes. The end result was that I found the cake stayed more moist in cupcake form, so have made it this way ever since. Very much welcomed by my dad…and my ex-dancing classmates/instructor when I brought them to class twice.
[b]Chocolate Cake/Cupcakes[/b]
(Makes 1 cake or 24 cupcakes)
INGREDIENTS
170g butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
1 1/2 cups milk
2 1/4 cups plain flour, sifted
3 teaspoons baking powder, sifted
1/2 cup cocoa, sifted
CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM
250g butter, softened
2 cups icing sugar mixture, sifted
1/2 cup cocoa, sifted
1/4 cup milk
Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. (This recipe was done in a fan-forced oven.)
Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer or beaters until pale & creamy. Gradually add the eggs and beat well.
Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in the milk and add to the butter mixture with the flour, baking powder and cocoa. Beat until combined. *Spoon into a lightly greased 22cm-square cake tin lined with baking paper. Bake for 1 hour or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Leave cake in tin for 5-10 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool*.
*IF YOU ARE MAKING CUPCAKES*
Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 12 hole muffin pan or into a 12 hole muffin pan lined with patty cases. Bake for roughly 20 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Leave cakes in pan for 5-10 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool.
BUTTERCREAM
For the buttercream, beat the butter until pale & creamy. Add the icing sugar, cocoa and milk and beat until fluffy. Spread over cooled cake or cupcakes.
Note: If you do make cupcakes instead of a cake, you will have leftover icing, so make up another half-batch of cupcakes to compensate.
Will have to come back later with a recipe for nachos…
Here’s the nachos recipe, for anyone still reading. Nicked this one from my brother before he flew the nest. Feel free to put extra spice in – I always put heaped teaspoons in cos I don’t mind it being a bit more spicy, but that’s up to you.
Nachos (Serves 4)
500g beef mince
1 brown onion, finely chopped/diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 400g can kidney beans, undrained (you can drain them, but I’ve found that the dish is a bit tasteless when the beans are drained)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tomatoes, diced or chopped
1/2 cup water
Brown mince in medium saucepan, then set aside.
Add 1 tablespoon oil to a small-medium saucepan (or use a non-stick pan if you prefer) on low-medium heat. Once heated, add onion, garlic & spices, cook until onion is reasonably tender. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, kidney beans & water, simmer until sauce is reasonably thick (takes roughly 30-45 minutes, depending…keep an eye on it). Add tomato mixture to mince & stir through.
Assemble nachos as you desire (corn chips, cheese, sour cream & guacamole, if you like).