Musk Stick & Marshmallow Cake

Birthdays are a great excuse for trying new cake ideas! 

Earlier this year I made the 'Kit Kat Cake' filled with Smarties for Rupert's 1st birthday. You can see it here. Its a cake design that looks fantastic and the great thing is that its so easy to make. So, when a friends birthday came up last week I pondered on how I could make a different cake with the same concept as the 'Kit Kat' cake, and this is what a came up with!

I used my all time favourite butter cake recipe which makes 2 cakes, stacked them with chocolate butter cream icing in the middle, then iced the outside with pink butter cream icing. The weather is so humid in Darwin so you've got to be quick, so following the icing I used 3 packets of musk sticks to place around the outside of the cake.

I then filled the top of the cake with small marshmallows, you can find these in the baking isle of the supermarket. I used about 1 1/2 packets.

A ribbon tied around the middle and a couple of 'barber' straws over kebab skewers finished it off quite nicely.

Easy Vanilla Butter Cake 

Recipe taken from Taste.com

Ingredients

3 cups self-raising flour

1 cup plain flour

2 cups castor sugar

300g butter, cubed and at room temperature

1 1/4 cups milk

6 eggs, at room temperature

3 tsp vanilla essence

Method

1. Preheat oven to 140°C. Position rake on second lowest shelf of the oven. Grease 2 round cake tins.
2. Place all the ingredients in a [very] large mixing bowl and beat on low for 30 seconds or until just combined. Increase the speed to high and beat for 1-2 minutes or until the mixture is thick and all the butter is incorporated. Evenly spoon the mixture into prepared cake tins.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 2 - 2 1/2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from oven and set aside for 10 minutes. Turn onto a wire rack for 2 hours or until completely cook.

Apple Tarte Tatin

For our 'French' date last night I made Apple Tarte Tatin for dessert. I'd never made nor eaten this dessert before and I was delightfully impressed by its simplicity and flavour. I was also shocked at how much sugar is required! SO sweet! Not only because we're on detox but also because we want to limit our sugar [fructose] intake, I used Stevia, instead of the usual castor or brown sugar. I also did some experimenting with quantities but this just wasn't the dessert for escaping 'sweet free'.

Ingredients

40g butter

1/2 sheet puff pastry

1 granny smith apple

4 tbs Stevia

Coconut cream to serve.

Method

Preheat oven to 250°C. Melt butter. Grease 2 ramekins with a little of the melted butter. 

Halve the apple and place cut side up in each ramekin. 

Sprinkle 2 tbs stevia over each apple and drizzle the remaining melted butter over each one. 

Using base of ramekin as a guide cut 2 circles from the sheet of pastry.

Place on a baking tray and bake on the top shelf of the oven for 15 mins or until bubbling, and you notice the sugar caramelizing.

Remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 230°C. Place a pastry circle over each ramekin and tuck down the sides using a spoon (so that the pastry hugs the apple). Return to the oven and bake for a further 8-10 mins or until pastry is golden.

Turn out onto plate and drizzle with any caramel left in the ramekins. Serve with some cream, ice cream or, as we did, some coconut cream for a healthier option.

Makes 2.

Note: I experimented a little with the Stevia/sugar quantities. I made two tarte tatins using 2 tbs (which we had for dessert) and then I also made one with 1 tbs and another with just 1/2 tbs. The ones pictured above were made with 1/2 tbs and 1 tbs and as you can see, they aren't overly caramelized. They were nevertheless sweet enough! But the tarte tatins using the full 2 tbs did taste better, and was the right amount to form a good caramel.

Recipe :: Lemon Chicken Roast

Thought I'd share my chicken roast recipe with you all... Because it is so delicious! It has a subtle lemon flavour with a crispy skin and is tender and moist on the inside. Very yummy!

Ingredients

1 whole chicken

1 lemon halved

2 garlic cloves

Olive oil

Paprika

Rosemary

Method

Preheat oven to 220°c. Rinse chicken under cold water, including cavity. Pat dry with a paper towel. Squeeze one half of the lemon over chicken and rub into the skin. Put both halves of the lemon into the cavity along with the garlic and tie legs together.

Rub a small amount of oil into the chicken and season with paprika, rosemary, salt and pepper. In a normal oven cooking time should probably only take an hour but our oven (our dodgy oven) takes about 1 1/2hr to do a roast. I also rotate the baking dish half way through.

I bake veggies in a separate dish and, lightly coat with olive oil and season with salt and pepper and chilli flakes. I leave them to bake for as long as the chicken takes but cover with foil for the first half of cooking time.

I make gravy using the juices and it gets a lovely lemon flavour.

I Quit Sugar :: Week 4

Hmmm... well... on Saturday evening I went out to dinner with the sisterhood girls and we dined at the 'Buzz Cafe Restaurant'. Such a lovely restaurant with mellow music, soft lighting and a gorgeous view overlooking the water. It was so lovely to be dining in such wonderful company with great food and a relaxed atmosphere. 

However, the night took a turn much unexpected when all six of the girls I was dining with suddenly pounced on me like a cat to wool, and they tied me to my chair! Before me they set the most amazing desert I'd seen, it was some kind of almond chocolate panforte with a dollop of ice cream and a drizzle of strawberry syrup. And well, they gang fed me! Spoonful after spoonful, it was just dreadful and it tasted awful.

Okay so your after the true story right? Well yes I did eat an amazing desert and no it didn't taste awful. We had all ordered our meals and all but two meals were brought to the table. Myself and a friend didn't recieve our meals with the others and after some time we brought it to the waitresses attention. By now the other girls had just about finished their meals. The kitchen staff had made an error and they were very apologetic and gave us all a free desert to make up for it. Hmmm, yes, what was I to do? Everyone was getting a free desert off the menu because I and another didn't get our meals on time and, I kind of felt like I deserved the desert. The best part was that it was free and the worse part was that I broke my detox with no good reason. Theres no excuse and I am feeling quite guilty, so much that I wasn't even going to mention it on here but I wanted to continue to be transparent on this journey of mine, and now you know my weakness! My detox continues.

Coco-nutty Granola Recipe by Sarah Wilson. Great for breakfast or an afternoon snack.

On a better note, I have otherwise been enjoying not having so much junk food in my life. As I've become more aware of the sugar content in foods I've also realized how much rubbish I had been filling my body with. On a much too frequent basis. It is such an awesome feeling to have done away with my habitual sweet-snacking. I usually make healthy substantial dinners and I can't believe that I was counteracting that by having a packet of lollies here and there! I mean, what was the point of making sure we have healthy meals if I was only going to eat lollies and chocolates in between?! 

Thanks to the detox program I've been able to replace my unhealthy snacks with some wholesome ones which still taste great!

Above is a picture of some Coco-Nutty Granola that I made using [homemade] activated nuts. Granola is great for breaky or morning/afternoon tea. I like to serve it with natural yogurt and, have found it to be quite filling (hubby thinks not so much). 

Now you're all probably wondering how hubby is going with the detox? Well he was doing great until Fathers Day came around and, he decided to eat the tasty celebratory foods offered at morning tea after church... he caved. I had actually thought he was doing away with the detox but on Monday he was back to the 'sugar free' ways. I didn't realize until a few days later. He's not much of a sweet tooth nor a sugar addict so even if he had discontinued detoxing he would not have hindered me. I'm a hindrance to myself as you've learnt already! 

Poached Egg with Bacon. A yummy sunday breakfast.

I Quit Sugar :: Weeks 2 & 3

Okay, here I am finally with an update on my "I quit Sugar" detox. On Sunday just gone I completed week 3 and, my it was tough! Week 2 was still in the 'cutting back' phase and I was still allowed to eat sugar in very small doses but then week 3 came along and it was 'cold turkey' time. No fresh or dried fruit. No juice. No muesli or muesli bars. No jams. No condiments containing sugar eg. bbq and tomato sauce. No flavoured yogurts. No honey. No chocolate, soft drinks etc. And basically nothing with more than 6g sugar per 100g.

It was particularly tough because I had my parents and one of my brothers make a spontaneous visit to Darwin and, it gave me that holiday feeling. 'Holiday feelings' tend to come with celebratory food! I wanted to chill out with my family with chocolates, cake, lollies and a bottle of soft drink. Its what you do right?! I was strong enough to resist but I did make a few mistakes along the way.

In the [welcomed] chaos of having 3 extra people bunk in our 2 bedroom unit I ate a few fruit bars and didn't even realize till days later that I ate them - and wasn't supposed to. I also ate a bit of carrot which I later found out is high in fructose. Not really the kind of sugar I'm addicted to and need cutting back on but I did feel like I had let myself down a little. Oh and I've also had an issue with low milk supply (breastfeeding) so along with a herb called 'Fenugreek' (which by the way is a miracle worker for getting your supply back up!) I also took Sustagen which contains a fair bit of sugar. At this point I had to weigh up what was important and of course it was Samson's well-being. I contemplated whether there was even any point continuing the detox if I couldn't do it thoroughly?! I felt like I had failed what I so desperately wanted to achieve.

The two foods that have really helped me through my challenging moments have been natural yogurt with cinnamon and bacon and egg cupcakes. 

I came to the conclusion that surely it would still be better for me to continue even if I couldn't follow all the rules. The purpose for me doing the detox program was to break my addiction with 'sour worms' and 'chocolate coated licorice', and to replace them with healthier snacks. Although I've made 'Sustagen' the exception I have been keeping to the rules of the detox and I am feeling proud about that.  I will no doubt do the detox again somewhere down the track.

Something else that has also been challenging is peoples negative responses to others wanting to live a healthier lifestyle. I've discovered that there are some narrow-minded and condescending people who think its ridiculous to cut back on sugar. I don't believe I've pushed my 'detox' ways on others, and other then here on my blog I don't tend to talk much about it, or at least not in a way that should make others feel bad about their own eating habits. So its been very frustrating that people will try and bring you down with negative comments, which anyway reads to me that they need to make you look bad in order for them to make themselves feel/look better. I am part way into week 4 and I shall not be moved by negativity!

Once a Month Cooking

When we had Rupert the three of us spent 5 days in hospital with delicious meals brought to my bedside each day. But when it was time to leave and bring our little one home and Matty was to return to work, reality set in and, I didn't know how on earth I would manage cooking as well as being a new mum! Somehow the thought of cooking was one that was very overwhelming. 

We were so grateful for our church family who cooked us yummy meals which kept coming for about 2 weeks... so very blessed.

This time round I decided to plan ahead. I spent a weekend cooking meal after meal and it was the best thing I could have done. Samson is over 2 weeks old and I still haven't had the need to cook. I cooked enough to cover us for about a month. Although I certainly feel that I would be capable of cooking if had to (definitely not as overwhelming second time round), its just nice to not have to worry in these early weeks. 

The idea of 'once a month' cooking and meal planning has worked so well that I think I might do it on a regular basis, not every month but possibly every second month.

On my weekend of cooking I created a very delicious and easy recipe for 'Honey Mustard Drumsticks' - thats what you do when you haven't got the 'Chicken Tonight' jar in your cupboard. Hehe.

Honey Mustard Drumsticks Author Mama Essy (Jessica Kartawidjaja-Fong)

Ingredients

8-10 chicken drumsticks

1 1/2 tbl Whole grain mustard

1 tbl Dijon mustard

1 tbl white vinegar

2 tsp mixed herbs

1/4 cup honey

Method

Combine all ingredients together. Mix well and pour over drumsticks. Bake in a glass baking dish until cooked through (I think it took about 40-50 mins in our oven).

Tip: make marinade ahead of time, place in a bag with drumsticks, mix through and store in the fridge for 2 hours before baking.

Toddler Cooking

My son Rupert is 13 months old and has been eating solids for sometime now and only has a cup of milk after his meal.

For snacks he loves a variety of fruits, sultanas, rice cakes, cheese and plain biscuits. Breakfast usually consists of toast with either Vegemite, Promite or peanut butter or, Weet-Bix with yogurt and milk of course. Lunch is a sandwich with one of the already mentioned spreads, sometimes adding cheese or sliced banana. For dinner I usually pull out a frozen meal which is a concoction of vegetables and fruit. 

Rupert goes to bed at 6:30pm so he usually has dinner between 5:30 - 6pm and so, I found it convenient to cook up a big batch of this vegetable "concoction" once a fortnight, separating into individual meal portions and freezing.

I'll also mention that I often mix his meals around and give him his vegetables at lunch instead of dinner. If I know we'll be out for the evening its easier (and cleaner) to pack a sandwich for his dinner. 

This vegetable concoction I make may contain all or a variety of the following ingredients: pumpkin, potato, carrot, peas, pasta, chicken, tin tomatoes, apple, pear. It then all gets boiled in one big pot!

The reason for me writing this post is because I've come to realize that I should be making meals of more variety and textures. I have occasionally tried different dishes such as spag bol but Rupert has not liked it and probably because I have made it too flavoursome. So, I've decided I need to introduce more foods and meats but still keeping it simple and somewhat bland until he can acquire a taste for these new ingredients. 

People have given me many suggestions and ideas which I love to take on board but then I have considered what my sons eating habits, likes and dislikes are and come up with 2 recipes that I think will be a good start for Rupert. 

Now, yesterday I cleaned out the fridge and I've realized a grocery shop is needed so, the below recipes are of what I could find in the fridge and cupboards. I would have liked to have added more vegetable varieties. But my main aim was to come up with recipes that contained minced beef and tuna and I have managed to do that.
At 13 months Rupert isn't quite old enough to eat like a gentleman but is old enough to want to try so, I've opted to chop the vegetables chunky so that he can easily grasp with his fingers. 

Tuna & Tomato Risotto 

Author: Mama Essy

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 cup uncooked rice, cooked

2 celery sticks, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 small potatoes, diced

1/4 cup frozen peas

2/3 cup canned kidney beans, drained

1 cup vegetable stock

1 400g tin diced tomatoes

1 185g tin tuna in springwater, drained

1/4 Parmesan cheese

Method

In a large saucepan fry onion and garlic until soft. Stir in rice, tomatoes and stock. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and add peas, celery, carrot, potato and kidney beans. Cover and simmer for about 30 - 45 mins. 

Stir through tuna and Parmesan cheese.

Savoury Mince with Pasta

Author: Mama Essy

Ingredients

1-2 cups uncooked pasta (I used combination of brown and white), cooked

500g mince beef

1 onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 170g tin tomato paste

1/2 cup water - stock added optional

1 carrot, chopped

2 potatoes, diced

1/2 cup frozen peas

Method

In a large saucepan fry onion and garlic until soft. Add mince and cook until browned. Stir through tomato paste and water. Add carrot, potatoes and peas. Stir through cooked pasta.

Wibbly Wobbly Walking Tiny Teddy Bear

My recent post What Christmas Means For Our Family, only written a couple of days ago tells of Rupert learning to walk and, taking odd steps unassisted here and there. 

Well yesterday the little guy walked! Not just 1 or 2 steps but he was walking short distances across the lounge room unassisted. Matty and I were very excited to watch Rupert wobble along on his own two feet. I was so excited that even after we put him down for bed, I wanted to wake him to experience the thrill all over again. 

This morning I was concerned he may have forgotten his triumph of the night before but it was not so, much to my joy. So here we have a [nearly] 10 mo (who looks more like a 6mo, hence why I refer to him as our 'tiny teddy bear') wobbling around the home.

Now, an update on the Christmas baking which I am having oh so much fun with!

Earlier this week I made my first Christmas Cake and it does look great but... I don't eat fruit cake and I can't stand the smell of it! I figured I needed to do it once in my life, and well, hubby can spend the next 6 months getting through it.

It's not particularly Christmas-sy but it did taste great so I'll give it a mention. On Monday I made a Chocolate Walnut slice in my new Tupperware silicone form and it tasted GREAT! I've never really been into making slices as they seem to be somewhat fiddly when moving from the tin to the container. With the silicone form I don't even have to cut the slice prior to moving it! I thought it was great. 

On Wednesday I spent the afternoon with my 2 sister in-laws decorating gingerbread houses and a gingerbread train. I felt like I was cheating myself a little as I have previously made and shaped the gingerbread from scratch but, this year I was not in the mood for 'complicated' and really only wanted to participate in the decorating side of things. We bought the gingerbread house and train kits from Coles and... well... they don't taste nearly as good as our homemade gingerbread but, they did look FABULOUS! 

To talk about something that does taste great would be to tell you that today I have made the first Pavlova for the year. Its actually still in the oven but looks to be doing great and the batter tasted amazing. I love making pavs and it was something I did a bit of when growing up in NSW. However, since living in Darwin I only ever make a pav at Christmas time (whats Christmas without a pav?). The humid weather here in Darwin is too often the cause of many flopped or flat pavlovas. Last year I made 2 successfully which I believe was the result of trying a different recipe, and maybe not cooking on an extremely warm and humid day. If you get the pavlova blues then maybe give this recipe a go. 

Marshmallow Pavlova

Taken from Women's Weekly Classic Cooking cookbook.

4 eggs

1 cup caster sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp white vinegar

300 ml thickened cream, whipped

Fruit for topping

1 Preheat oven to 120c/100c fan-forced. Line oven tray with foil; grease foil, dust with cornflour, shake away excess. Mark 18cm-circle on foil

2 Beat egg whites in small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form; gradually add sugar, beating until sugar dissolves, Add extract and vinegar; beat until combined. 

3 Spread meringue into circle on foil, building up at the side to 8 cm in height. Smooth side and top of pavlova gently. Using spatula blade, mark decorative grooves around side of pavlova; smooth top again.

4 Bake pavlova about 1 1/2 hrs. Turn oven off; cool pavlova in oven with door ajar.

5 Cut around top edge of pavlova (the crisp meringue top will fall on top of the marshmallow centre . Serve pavlova topped with whipped cream, and desired fruit.

1 of 2 last years pav using the recipes 'marshmallow' design. Excuse the over-whipped cream!

2 of 2 last years pav, using my usual traditional design.

On The Menu This Week

Here is my meal plan for the week and I'm very excited to be cooking 4 recipes from my Retro Cookbook. Last night I came down with the dreaded flu so I'm praying my week will be smooth and I have the strength to carry on BAU. I have a few Bible College assignments to complete and a double bed patchwork quilt to finish for a birthday next month. So, hopefully amongst house duties, assignments, sewing, cooking, parties, Ruperts play dates and mothers groups, I can find the time to post about the recipes I have so far cooked from my challenge. 

Life since motherhood has become incredibly full and our social calendar far outweighs that of our life before precious Rupert. It's such a blessing to be able to mingle and meet with other mothers and talk all things house and baby from teething troubles to sagging boobs! 

Anyway it's time to carry on with my day, till next time. X

On the Menu

Monday: Baby Rocket Quiche Recipe #3 My Julia & Julia Challenge

Tuesday: Chicken Leek and Mushroom pies Recipe #4 My Julie & Julia Challenge

Wednesday: Lamb Shank and Vegetable Soup Recipe #5 My Julia & Julia Challenge

Thursday: Mixed Mushroom Stroganoff  Recipe #6 My Julie & Julia Challenge

Friday: Homemade Pizza

A Week of Leftovers!

After two weeks of cooking I have now come to week three with a freezer full of leftovers! I will not be cooking this week unless its toasted sandwiches or something of the like so, therefore I will not be posting a meal plan for this week. And the best part is that I won't have to do a very big grocery shop and, will only be buying the essentials. Have a great week readers!

Cake Anyone?

Today I thought I'd try out a recipe posted by "The Everyday Blessings". It was for an Apple and Sultana Cake which after looking at the list of ingredients, I realised I didn't have all that was required. So, I customized it a little and came up with an Apple and Walnut Cake!

I left out the sultanas as I didn't have any and I'm not particularly a fan of them anyway. I didn't have any almonds left so I used walnuts instead and, I also added an extra half teaspoon of cinnamon. In place of wholemeal flour I used white, it was what was in the cupboard.

The recipe has been tried and tested and, I give it 5/5 aprons! Tasted very delicious and very quick and easy! Thanks Nadia for posting the recipe, I think I have a new favourite.

 

I have cooked two dinners from My Julie & Julia Challenge this week and I shall post about how they went on Sunday.

The Challenge begins!

Last week was one of those weeks where the housework got the better of me! Clothes left in the washing machine, greasy baking dishes soaking for days and, our bed was not made once! 

Anyway, my meal plan worked a treat so here I am again to document this weeks meals. I Will be staring My Julie & Julia Challenge this week and have included two meals from the recipe book.

On the Menu

Monday: Shepherds Pie -  Recipe #1 Julie & Julia Challenge

Tuesday: Apricot Chicken - slow cooked

Wednesday: Baked Penne with Kumara and Spinach - Recipe #2 Julie & Julia Challenge

Thursday: Salami, Mushroom and Capsicum Pizza

Friday: Cabbage Soup - Frozen left overs

On The Menu This Week

At late I have enjoyed reading meal plans of other bloggers, they have given me ideas and tips for my own meal planing.  

So, each Sunday I plan to post my meal plan for the week. And as I will be taking on my Julie & Julia Challenge starting September, you'll all be able to keep up to date with what I'll be cooking for the week. 

Every second week may be very similar to the first as we usually have a lot of leftovers. There are only two of us so I often get two dinners from one meal. On some weeks I may cook every night and freeze the leftovers which, means the following week I may not do much cooking at all. 

On The Menu

Monday: Cabbage Soup

Tuesday: Kangaroo Curry Mince Stew & Rice - slow cooked

Wednesday: Moroccan Lamb Shanks & Mashed Potato - slow cooked

Thursday: Marinated Chicken Wings & Potato Bake

Friday: Beef Stew - frozen leftovers 

1 Week, 4 Meals, 1 Slow Cooker

While I was still pregnant I bought a nice big slow cooker. I thought that it would be handy for the busy work days, particularly when I was feeling tired and unwell. It would also be handy after I had the baby however, I used it once [maybe twice]. That was until last week! 

Over this past week I have developed a new love for my slow cooker! The cooking is long but the effort required by me is quick and easy. At 10 am, whilst Rupert is still having his morning nap, I chop up and prepare the required foods and ingredients to put into the slow cooker. And BAM just like that I have extra time in my afternoon and evening to tend to other things. It really does take the rush and stress out of cooking. Each time I have cooked on low for 8 hours.

I have taken my friend Nadia's advice and tips and I have been very rewarded with most of the dishes cooked in the slow cooker. You can follow Nadia's blog "The Everyday Blessings" here. She posts her weekly meal plans as well as recipes and cooking tips.

Here is what I cooked in my slow cooker this week.

Thursday: Nadia's Beef Stew - The beef very tender but I did forget to add some gravy powder to thicken so it was a little soupy.

Monday: Kangaroo Stew - Again the meat was so tender and almost melted in your mouth. I served this with homemade bread.

Tuesday: Apricot Chicken - My favourite dish! And having slow cooked it made me even more in love with it! I used drumsticks as they were cheapest and, I also took the skin off. Served with white rice. 

Thursday: Spaghetti Bolognese - I found the mince to be somewhat dry, this may have been because I did not add enough water? I shall try again.

If you have some favourite slow cooked recipes you'd like to share than please feel free to! I'm up for trying anything.

My Julie & Julia Challenge

Usually we make time for the things we love to do however, it was time that let me love the thing I hated most. Cooking. Not being at work and having more time at home has made a huge difference to my cooking skills, and I am loving it!

I recently watched the movie titled "Julie & Julia" and what a fantastic movie it was! I thoroughly enjoyed it and was very inspired to take on my own cooking challenge. If you haven't seen the movie, its about a woman (Julie) who decides to cook every recipe in Julia Child's cookbook "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". Its 525 recipes in 365 days, and she writes a blog of her progress along the way.

So I've decided that I will embark on a cookbook challenge of my own, starting September. I will be cooking from AWW The Retro Cookbook cover to cover. It is a lovely cookbook that was a Christmas gift from my sister in-law Kathleen. It contains 160 recipes that range from the original 1950's AWW (Australian Woman's Weekly) cookbooks to today's. I too will blog of my progress and let you all know how my culinary journey is going.

I would like to complete the challenge before the New Year begins but if things don't quite go to plan, than I have given myself a 6 month deadline.

There are some interesting recipes so, stayed tuned!

Meatball Fail.

**Sigh**

So I thought I'd try out this Chorizo Meatballs Recipe minus the chorizo. It didn't go so well. After browning the meatballs, as per the recipe I added half cup of water. Not such a good idea when its a hot saucepan. It looked like a volcano was erupting out of the saucepan and... BAM. Smoked the home out! But anyway not to worry so, I pushed on with the recipe and added the tomato [paste], turned my back and... BAM! Tomato sauce spitting EVERYWHERE! Well couldn't give up there so, I continued with the recipe and added the meatballs and... **sigh** They fell apart. It better still taste alright!

Popcorn, the New Ice Cream

Over the weekend I attended a dear friends hens party. I was asked if I could contribute by making a dessert of some kind so, I decided on some pretty choc cupcakes and caramel popcorn choc tops. Now cupcakes are cupcakes but the caramel popcorn choc tops were fabulous! These would be a fantastic addition to any kids party and they taste delicious! They were so easy to make.

Homemade

I love my homemade sausage rolls, the recipe taken from ABC Delicious Quick Smart Cook Book. They are quick, easy and not too expensive to make! Great for a snack, side, or even a meal if you don't cut them into small lengths and leave them long. You can customise the flavour with different spices, pastes, or a different type of sausage mince. 

Whats for Dinner?

With the new addition of Rupert in our lives and the absence of my wage, our family has stepped into a new chapter of our lives. Our family has changed [for the better], our budget has changed... our lifestyle is now different to that of our previous.

So, lets start with whats for dinner.

How can I shop cost effectively for groceries? Which meals are most cost effective? And how can I keep it healthy, delicious and exciting?

When we both worked full time I found it difficult (or inconvenient, lack of desire rather) to make the time to do proper grocery shops and to cook regular healthy meals. I usually cooked the same few meals on a regular basis. Spag bol, apricot chicken, schnitzel ect. Whatever was quick an easy! And then on other nights we might resort to supporting our local fish and chip shop, or maccas.

I've started with a budget of $200 a month excluding perishables such as milk and fruit and vege. It's been 14 days since I did the monthly shop and we're not doing too badly. I've probably spent about $20 over the past 2 weeks on additional groceries. At the end of the 4 weeks I will evaluate how well the $200 was spent and whether I had to make many additional small shops within the month. And remembering to create a shopping list along the way so, that when I get to the next monthly shop I won't leave anything out (to prevent additional small shops).  I brainstorm and source all the meals I want to cook within the month before doing the shopping, so that I can be prepared with all ingredients.

Now for the meals. What have I been cooking? I've decided to expand my repertoire/menu and try new recipes or new variations of recipes I already use. This months cooking recipes I have sourced from the taste.com website. Let me give you bit of a commentary of a few recipes I've tried at late.

Thai kangaroo salad with crisp-fried garlic - Kangaroo is my favourite selection of meat as its cheap (comparatively) and very healthy for you. It's 98% fat free, high in iron, high in protein, low saturated fat, gluten free and most of all  its delicious! This dish was quick and easy however its supposed to serve 4... not so. Matty and I only got one meal for 2 and we were still hungry so, next time it would be best served with garlic, herb or focaccia bread. Otherwise it was very nice and had a refreshing taste. Click on the link to view the recipe.

Spanish tuna pasta bake - This was a great recipe. We managed to stretch it out to 4 meals for 2! But that doesn't allow for seconds or massive portions. I've decided this is cost effective, yummy and easy to make.

Sweet and sour pork - now for something asian. This dish tasted good but felt like a bit of work. I didn't enjoy the process of deep frying, it was messy. And it's also not the healthiest of dishes. You can get about 3 meals for 2 out of this recipe.

So there you go... thats what was for dinner.