Back to school - lunchbox treats

All over Australia children are putting on uncomfortable school shoes, scratchy uniforms and backpacks and heading back to the classroom.

 

The irony that they head back as  we inch towards February, traditionally the hottest month of the year, is lost on no one. Not the teachers, the kids or their parents.

 

It makes filling lunch boxes all the more challenging.

 

We like to vary our lunch boxes a bit. I'm not the mother who makes her kid's sandwich into art work but I'm also not the one who sends the same thing every day year in year out.

 

Some of the favourites staples here are:

- homemade sushi

- pasta salad

- chicken salad wraps

- meatloaf sandwiches

- leftover sausages on a roll

- leftover meatballs on a roll (aka a meatball sub)

- savoury muffins

- homemade scrolls

 

I'm big on protein so I try and ensure there is plenty for young minds to work to capacity...and older ones too as my husband also takes lunch...I work from home so my options are wider.

 

Our lunch boxes always contain fruit. One of the best summer fruits are frozen orange segments. They help keep the lunch cold and well they're refreshing. Just be sure to cut them up before you freeze them!

 

 

Other additions we like vary:

- homemade weetbix slice

- homemade mini muffins - 2 make a nice sized snack (banana nut, banana choc chip, apple, orange poppy seed, lemon curd) (Here are some frozen and ready to grab in the morning)

 

- dip and veggies or crackers (hummus or guacamole usually)

- banana bread

- wholemeal banana carrot cake

 

Last year I relied too much on pre-packaged snacks. This year I'm trying to

move back away from that both for cost and nutrition.

 

I'll be posting more recipes and options over the coming weeks.

Summer food - lamb koftas

It's always amazing to me how differently we eat in summer to winter. It's not just what's in season, which of course has an impact, but it's also what looks good to us.

 

Soup in the middle of a heatwave? Not so appealing.

 

Here are a few things we've had this last week or so - Asparagus Tart. To me this is summer on a plate.

 

Caprese salad - the Italians sure know a thing or two about food and there's a reason this dish is a summer classic.

 

Hummus - this is actually a white bean hummus because I was out of chick peas. It was super yummy and I think less work for my poor old food processor than grinding chick peas. I made this to take on a picnic. And I ended up with two tubs worth so I kept one for later. I had some dukkah so I sprinkled some on top. Those sprinkled dips are very popular now in the deli and supermarket.

 

 

Finally last night we had lamb koftas. This was a great way to use up the rest of the hummus. I also made some tabbouli to have with them and we wrapped them in Lebanese bread with homemade tzaziki.

 

Lamb koftas

700g of lamb mince

1 1/2 teaspoons oregano

1 egg

dash of tomato sauce

zest and juice of half a lemon

1 garlic clove, crushed.

8 bamboo skewers (soaked)

 

1. Combine above and mix together really well (You do need to use your hands. If you're squeamish wear disposable gloves).

2. Form lamb into sausage shapes and shape around bamboo skewers.

3. BBQ or grill until done.

4. Enjoy on their own with tzazkiki or like we did in Lebanese bread with salad.

 

 



2014 New Year for blogging and some goals (and a recipe for Simple Salmon Dip)

Somehow the end of 2013 got a little crazy and my time  and ability to blog evaporated, it seems.

 

I would make something new and forget to take a photo or realise I was making the same old things  to save myself time and energy so it didn't seem blog-worthy.

 

I have a few goals for 2014 for the blog and my kitchen. Hopefully they are simple and manageable.

 

1. Blog weekly (hopefully more).

2. Waste less food

I read an appalling statistic about Australians and how much food we waste. When you consider how many people go without, the affect on the environment and the personal economic cost well it makes sense to waste less.

 

This isn't the article I read but it sure makes the point.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/australians-wasting-78bn-of-food-a-year-20110101-19cmg.html

 

3. Buy less pre-prepared food.

Some of the things I buy for convenience I could just as easily make myself and this would help with the food waste issue as well.

 

I've already started on this and I'm doing pretty well so far. Below is an example. We were heading out on our boat and we wanted to take some snacks. I often go buy some nice cheese or dip but instead using some things lurking in my fridge I made this yummy dip which was as nice if not nicer than store bought and I was able to use up some things that would have ended up being tossed otherwise.

 

Simple Salmon Dip

50g smoked salmon

1/2 tub of leftover cream cheese (about 100g)

1/2 tub of leftover sour cream (about 100g, you could easily use natural yoghurt)

1 teaspoon of fresh dill (dried would work)

a squeeze of lemon juice

1 dill pickle diced.

 

1. Place ingredients in a food processor and blend till smooth.

2. Enjoy!

 

(Not the best picture or presentation but boating can be a bit rustic!)

 

Super simple onion rings

Ok so I confess onion rings would appear reasonably high on the "fried foods I shouldn't eat" list for me.

 

I'm not that big on hot chips or French fries but I do love an onion ring...I also adore a potato scallop but thank goodness I've never been tempted to make my own.

 

Now onion rings may not be super good for you but they are pretty simple to make and they are very inexpensive as well. If you're having a group of people they're a great side dish with burgers or even as a snack with a drink.

 

These ones aren't battered just dusted in flour so they are a little bit healthier.

 

Simple Onion Rings

 

3 large onions, sliced, rings separated.

1 cup milk

1 cup flour

s&p

1 teaspoon of paprika

 

1. Soak sliced onions in milk for about 30 minutes. (Longer won't hurt). This step takes the bit out of the onion so they get that slightly sweet flavour.

 

2. Heat oil in a pan, or a deep fryer till hot. (We used canola oil in a saucepan)

 

3. Meanwhile combine flour, S&P and paprika in a bowl.

 

4. Drain the onion slices and drench in flour.

 

5. Cook in batches in the hot oil until golden.

 

 

6.  Drain on absorbent paper. Season to taste.

 

Enjoy!

Time to kick-start the blog again

Time to kick-start the blog....

 

I just checked and I absolutely can't believe I haven't blogged since March. How is that even possible. I mean, I knew it had been a little while but that is ridiculous.

 

I guess I've been busy with work and my writing. I write my own novels and I did recently release the 3rd one. Be sure to visit my writing blog if you want to read about that.

 

http://moniquemcdonell.weebly.com/blog.html

 

Meanwhile I have of course been cooking. I was only thinking today that I really go through phases where I try new things and then fall back on faithful old friends/recipes.

 

A few weeks ago I realised I had a gift certificate to use up so I went and bought myself a couple of lovely cookbooks. Including this one which I have made a couple of things including Tupperware Chorizo.

 

Now I have to say it didn't taste exactly like regular chorizo but it did taste super yummy.

 

I then used it in the recipe from the book Chorizo Carbonara which was very yummy served up with a green salad.

 

I also added some to some beef mince for meat balls. And I added the rest into some beef and made two delicious meatloaves.

 

It was yummy and fun to experiment with something different. I'm looking forward to getting back to blogging about my cooking adventures now that spring is almost here. I have some really fun things I want to make.

 

 

And here is a picture of the birthday cake I made for my daughter's 13th birthday. I found this on Pinterest and it was the easiest cake ever - so much easier than Dora the Explorers Backpack or the Australian Women's Weekly Princess Castle.

 

If you like to cook and haven't joined Pinterest you should totally look into it.

 

 

 

 

Baked spinach & ricotta gnoccchi (gluten free/low carb)

I'm currently on a lower carb diet and do you know what I miss?

Bread?  No!

Potato? No

Sugar? Not even.

 

I miss pasta. It's yummy and it's hearty and it's a great fall-back family meal.

 

So this is my way of having pasta while not really having pasta. The gnocchi doesn't stay together as well as traditional gnocchi because it lacks flour to bind it but once it's baked it's reasonably firm and it's rich and cheesy and gives you that lovely "I just ate Italian food" feeling.

 

You can use full-fat ricotta and parmesan or low-fat. The result is the same.

 

I froze 2/3 of this for another meal so I think with salad this feeds 6.

 

Baked Spinach and ricoota gnocchi

500g ricotta

1 egg

1/2 cup grated parmesan

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs (or use fresh)

1 box frozen spinach (thawed per instructions and drained).

500g spagetti sauce (Home made or the jarred variety)

pepper to taste

 

1. In a bowl combine ricotta, egg, spinach, herbs, parmesan and pepper. Stir to combine.

2. Spray a dish with olive oil.

3. Using two tablespoons form dumplings and arrange in dish (or in two as I did). Make sure they don't touch.

4. Pour sauce around the gnocchi.

5. Bake in a moderate oven about 25 minutes.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Simple Asparagus Frittata

For some reason my fridge is especially full today. It's not a bad thing but it's a bit crowded in there. I have loads of lovely vegetables to use up.

 

Luckily we're having visitors tomorrow and we'll be making good use of the beans, asparagus, sweet potato and corn which we'll have with a nice leg of lamb on the bbq. We also have loads of avocados so I think some guacamole might be in order too.

 

Even so I decided to whip up a quick aspargus frittata this afternoon to clear out some eggs. Fritatta's are a great way to use things up. Last week I made one using a bit of leftover ham, the last of the frozen peas, half a box of frozen spinch and a big handful of herbs including mint, basil and oregano. It was delicious!

 

I often make my frittata in a slice tin and bake it in the oven. It means I can walk away and do other things. However, for sheer presentation you can't beat a skillet. This would be delicious for a breakfast or brunch, to take on a picnic or just served with some salad and crusty bread for a simple meal.

 

Simple Asparagus Frittata

1 bunch of asparagus

1/2 a leek, diced (of course an onion would be fine)

a spash of olive oil

about 20g of butter

a handful of herbs - I used fresh basil, sage and oregano but dried would do

6 eggs

salt & pepper

1/2 a cup of cream

1/4 cup grated tasty or cheddar cheese (swiss would be nice too)

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

 

1. Combine oil and butter, leek and herbs in a skillet and cook on low until leek is soft.

2. Meanwhile in a bowl whisk together eggs, cream, s&p and tasty cheese.

3. When leek is soft arrange aspargus in skillet and pour egg mixture on top.

4. When the fritatta is almost firm, sprinkle with parmesan and a little pepper and put under grill (or broiler as the Americans say) and cook till golden - about 10 minutes.

 

Enjoy!