{Slow Cooker Roast & No-Potato Mash}

Tuesday afternoons now are busy afternoons due to soccer training that finishes right before dinner time. Since its Autumn, and we are heading into winter, it's the perfect time to get my slow cooker out and make my time away from the house work for me.


I bought an $8 roast beef from Aldi and put it in the slow cooker dish. Then i covered it with:
- A jar of passatta sauce (or tinned diced tomatoes if that's what's on hand)
- Splash of left over red wine (or open some vino and have a glass with dinner).
- 3 cloves of garlic chopped
- 1 an onion sliced
- 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
- 1 tin of butter beans or other white beans
- salt and pepper

{I actually then put the bowl back in the fridge and let it marinade overnight. You can prepare the meal in the morning for the same night.}

Turn on high at lunch time (or low in the morning) and hours later walk in the door to the delicious scent of a tender, juicy 'fall apart' roast. The best part is the sauce creates a delicious kind of a gravy.

I served it with green beans and a no potato mash. Simply cook some cauliflower and mash it with a tin of white beans. Then season it with a tsp of garlic powder, a TBL of margarine and salt & pepper. As I can't have potato at the moment this makes it possible for the family to eat the same meal at the same time.

This was met with rave reviews in the house, definitely doing this again!!!

Lauren x

{Soup Day Monday}

Since the weather has started cooling down, I have decided to add soup night on Monday's to our menu. Once you start looking at recipes, there is so much variation. The sky is the limit!

Last week was roasted pumpkin and that was glorious!

This week was roasted tomato soup. It actually fell on Tuesday this week cause we had leftovers to use up and that seemed wise ;) sometimes you gotta go with the flow!

{Chick Pea Patties & veggie stack}

If you are new to the blog you may not know that I have mentioned before about how each year I start January with a 21 day Daniel fast. It is for mainly spiritual reasons and also health reasons too. If you have never done this and are interested, see info here. The basic 'jist' is that I eat only plant based food for 21 days, ergo no meat, no diary, no sugars, no processed food, no alcohol and no caffeine (this is always hard to detox from).

I have shared recipes on here before that I usually eat at fast time in Jnaurary, like
- My ESSENTIAL homemade tomato sauce
- Falafel
- Hommus
- Baked Fish Parcels (fish is not strictly on the fast according to my research unless you need some extra protein for an active lifestyle. I choose to include some during the fast.

The next few posts will be Daniel Fast recipes that are delicious enough to eat all year round!

{CHICK PEA PATTIES}

1 can of Chick Peas
1 can of lentils
1 potato cooked (could also use sweet potato or carrot)
1 handful of mixed herbs (i used basil and parsley as I had plenty in the garden)
1 small onion and garlic clove cooked (not essential but i like the taste)
2 TBL pasta sauce (could use store bought if your not being as 'picky as me')


Method:
1. Mash the chick peas, lentils, potato (or similar).
2. Mix other ingredients into it and season with salt and pepper.
3. Form into patty shapes and fry gently.
**i would probably include bread crumbs and an egg when off the fast to help bind it together a bit more. But as long as you are gentle with them, they cook fine**

SERVING SUGGESTION:

My favourite way to eat these is in a stack with char-grilled eggplant, capsicum, avocado, the tomato sauce, avocado, hommus and fresh herbs and rocket. YUM!

Enjoy;
Lauren x

{Almond, Veggie & Herb Dip}

Since I found Tess from Healthy Blender Recipes I have been eating very differently. I have had some battles for a lot of my life with digestion issues, and something has clicked in me over the last few years (but more so recently) that isn't craving dairy or meat as much. I still eat it, and am not a hard core vegan/ vegetarian at all. But I am finding myself drawing more to 'plant based' foods.

I just made a dip for lunch and it was SO delicious I just had to share it. The bowl was VERY empty afterwards and I wish I had made more. As per usual when I am cooking, and not baking, I made it up as I went. But, feel free to play around with quantities and ingredients to suit your tastes.

Ingredients:
A handful of raw almonds
A few tbls water
1/4 cup semi dried tomatoes
1/4 cup roasted eggplant
1/2 cup baby spinach leaves
Fresh parsley, coriander and basil to taste
Pepper
Small squeeze of fresh lemon

1. Blend almonds and water until it makes a nutty paste and looks 'milky' in a food processor
2. add in all other ingredients and blend until a 'dip' consistency.
3. Taste and make any adjustments needed (I added a bit more lemon and some onion and olives to mine at this point).

Serve on garlic toast, with veggie sticks or on crackers :)

Lauren x

{No Bake Healthy Sweet Treats}

I found this website last night and went into my sort of "chefs coma".
What's that you ask?!
It's when you completely zone out and that mostly happens with a good cookbook, a foodie magazine or a blog etc.... These 'episodes' (lol) are characterized by lots of flipping, making mental notes, making bookmarks of recipes to try, gushing over the spectacular photography and planning future events just so you can use that recipe!

This blog is called "The Blender Girl" and you should read her story - it's fascinating.
I love her food philosophy and think society could get a long way by incorporating some of these types of recipes into our diet. No processed foods, no bad fats but lots of good food as nature intended it.

So I just made my first "blender girl" recipe. I started with her 'raw vegan chocolate fruit balls'




I didn't have all the exact ingredients and added some extras - so here is my take on Tess' recipe.


Ingredients (made about 16 balls)
1 cup mixed raw nuts (I used 1cup of cashews)
1/2 cup pitted chopped dates
1/2 cup dried chopped apricots
1/2 cup raisins
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 Tbsp fresh orange juice (I only had apple on hand)
a couple of drops – 1/8 tsp of natural almond essence (I used vanilla)
I added 2 tbl LSA and a small squirt of honey

1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup desiccated coconut

Method
Mix the coconut and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside for rolling.
Put all other ingredients in a food processor, and slowly add in the orange juice if it doesn’t bind together completely.
Roll into small balls and coat with the coconut mixture.
Store in a sealed glass container in the fridge.


I have to say these are delicious and I was thrilled with the result. Took a minute to prepare and it's great having them in the fridge to satisfy the sweet tooth.

Enjoy;

Lauren X




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

{Homemade Ricotta Gnocchi}

I love a great recipe that is healthy, quick and easy! This has een on my to-try list for ages and I can't believe that this has taken me so long to try this. Gnocchi.
Its one of those recipes that seems so mystical. So Italian and authentic.
So, I had some left over ricotta in the fridge after making Cannelloni and I decided to try and use it and give ricotta gnocchi a go (not sure how it would turn out). It turned out to be a MASSIVE hit and everyone gave it a 2 thumbs up.
I was hoping it would be a success or baked beans was on the menu ;) Here is a rough recipe (as usual I made it up as I went).
1/2 kg ricotta (the dry kind from the deli or that comes with a colander works best)
1 egg
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup parmigiano regianno (parmesan is fine)
salt and pepper
1 cup of plain flour (can use rice flour to make it gluten free)

1. Place cheeses, spices and egg in a bowl and mix together.
2. Add 1/2 the flour and mix in. then add a little at a time until the mixture resembles a dough consistency.
3. Sprinkle some plain flour on the bench / board and roll out handfuls of the 'dough' into a thin sausage shape.
4. Cut off little bite sized pieces and set aside.
5. Repeat until the 'dough' mixture is all rolled and cut.
6. Boil salted water and place gnocchi in the water. They are ready when they rise to the top of the water and float. Take out immediately and place into your favorite sauce.






I simply fried some eggplant, onion, garlic, zucchini and a tin of tomatoes. Topped it with fresh basil, parmesan and freshly ground pepper to serve. Enjoy; Lauren x

{One Pot Orange Asian Chicken}

I kinda made this up as I went tonight, so feel free to adjust flavours i.e. add chilli etc... This went so quickly that I didn't even get a chance to get a photo. The dish fed 4 adults and 2 children. On top of that I had everything on the pantry and freezer already so it was a very cheap meal too!


ONE POT Orange Asian Chicken

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts (could use thighs, but this is what I had on hand)
1 onion chopped
3 cloves of garlic
1 cm piece of fresh ginger (minced in a jar is fine if you don't have fresh)
1/2 bunch of shallots chopped in chunks on an angle
1/2 capsicum (red or green) cut into thin strips
2 oranges juiced
1 tbls Kecap manis (thick sweet soy in Asian isle)
2 tbls soy sauce
1 tsp of white vinegar
1 tbls honey


Method:
Place all ingredients in an oven proof dish and bake in a 160' oven for about an hour.
Place 2 cups of Basmati rice and 2 cups of chicken stock in a microwave dish for 10 mins (your microwave may be different).
Serve!

How easy huh???

Enjoy;
Lauren x

{School Mum In Training} Lessons Learned So Far

Well, this year our family eased into 'school life' with Joshua (4.5 years) has started prep school two days a week. It is a wonderful way to get used to the world of big school for mother and child alike.

TOP 5 LESSONS I HAVE LEARNED SO FAR!
1. Always have a sharpie and a labeller handy!
2. Make lunchboxes fun as well as healthy. I have made very good friends with my cookie cutters and often cut sandwhiches and cheese slices into different shapes. He loves finding the surprises at lunch time.
3. For the first few weeks, talk through the lunch box with them and make sure they know what youve given them for morning tea and lunch. It helps them keep their day somewhat predictable and have something to look forward to.
4. There is A LOT of paper work that comes home each week. So I have made a folder that sits in my kitchen with sections for newsletters, general school info, awards, notes, term dates and office phone numbers etc.... This has been wonderful and makes it easy to know what's happening and organise what comes home.
5. Keep morning routine simple and predictable. Our morning goes breakfast, uniform, make bed and brush teeth.

But on thing has made these (potentially crazy) mornings very easy.For his first morning at prep I made a yoghurt parfait the night before and it was a hit on more than one level.

Firstly I layered a clear glass with:
2 spoonfuls of yoghurt
2 spoonfuls of strawberry fruit puree
2 spoonfuls of berries fresh or frozen
2 spoonfuls of yoghurt

Then out it into the fridge that night. At breakfast time take out of fridge and top with a sprinkling of meuseli or crushed cereal for a crunchy texture. This is a great way to use up the 'dregs' in the bottom of the cereal packets too! You can also chop some banana or other fruit on top. That's the beauty of this thing, personalise it to tastes and what you have on hand.

Cheap, easy, quick and healthy!!!

Enjoy;
Lauren x

Delicious Falafel

Sorry for being quiet on the blog front, we have had a busy week or two around here and there are some sewing projects I am working on too.
DON'T forget to enter the Lime Light Giveaway also as it's drawn on the 30th ;)

Recently I have had a few people asking for my Falafel recipe so I tried to remember how I do it (I don't use a recipe, so each batch may be slightly different but componants are the same).



INGREDIENTS:
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic (ish depending on size, but we like our garlic too)
2 heaped tsp ground cummin
2 heaped tsp ground corriander
1 tsp of ground cardomom
2 cans of chick peas
1 bunch corriander
salt and pepper
1/3 cup rice flour (can substitute plain or chick pea flour also)

METHOD
1. In fry pan, fry dry spices first with NO oil to release aroma slightly.
2. Add a little olive oil or vegetable oil with onion and garlic and cook on medium heat untill onions are transperant.
3. Drain and add chick peas to your food processser with onion mixture.
4. Blitz until smooth
5. Add a handful of fresh corriander and the salt and pepper (not much required)
6. Remove mixture into a bowl and gently mix through the rice flour. 7. Chill mixture for about 1/2 hour or so (optional, just allows mixture to set better)
8. Roll into small balls, sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional) and put onto an oven tray and bake at 180' until golden (usually about 20 minutes in my oven).

Best served HOT and we usually eat in a mountain bread wrap with homemade hummus, homemade tabouli and avacado.

Enjoy adding this meat free meal to your family menu, we do!
Lauren x

Homemade Hommus

Our house eats very healthy (even the kids!) and one thing everyone here loves is hummus. Whether its spread on a wrap with freshly made falafel and tabouli, used instead of butter or margarine on a salad sandwich or just dipped with veggie sticks, it's always a winner!!!
So here is my recipe for it, I've never bought it from the store since and always make a double batch!

Ingredients:

2 tins chickpeas, drained.

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons tahini (unhulled is the best)

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste about 1/2 a can worth of water (sometimes I need more/ less depending on the batch of chickpeas)

2 tablespoons olive oil

**If you want a kick, add a sprinkle of cayenne pepper, yum!

Method:
1. Put all ingredients and blend in food processor. Done! Hard huh ;)
2. I always taste test first because sometimes the chick peas are saltier than others or the lemon may not have as stronger taste. Just add more of the seasonings (i.e. lemon, salt and pepper or garlic) to refine recipe to how you want t to taste.


Chick peas are a helpful source of folate, zinc and protein. They are also very high in dietry fibre and a healthy source of carbohydrates. They are low in fat and the fat the do have is polyunsaturated anyway. These are always in stock in our house and I hope you try this one at your place. I will also post the falafel recipe soon too - one of our favourite meals. Delish!

Enjoy;
Lauren x

Thai fish cakes with dipping sauce and herb salad

We have been quite into fish at the moment and have loved oven baking them in parcels which I have posted before. I had similar ingredients, but wanted to try something different. This would probably be rightup there in my TOP MEALS that I have made / eaten before. Per usual, I made it up as I went and don't really have a recipe, so I will try to put down how I made it here. Can't wait to have left overs for lunch - DEEEEELICIOUS! For something with alot of ingredients, it was very quick and easy and cheap for us because a lot of these ingredients I have already.

Fish Cakes:
In the food processor b;end the following ingredients.
- About 1/2 kg of white fish fillets chopped up (I used 3 of my frozen hoki fillets I get from aldi).
- 1 egg
- 3 dessert spoonfuls of corn flour
- a bunch of corriander leaves (maybe about 1/2 cup)
- a small bunch of mint (about 1/4 cup) - a splash of fish sauce (about 1 TBS)
- a splash of sweet chilli sauce (about 2-3 TBS)
- a splash of soy sauce (about 2 TBS)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- a handful of roasted peanuts
- 1 fresh chilli (omit if you don't like spice)
- 1/2 tsp of fresh ginger (or dried if you don't have it)
- 1 tsp of yellow curry paste
- 2 shallots
- a squeeze of lemon and lime (and some rind too if you want)
- a little salt and pepper
- about 1/4 cup bread crumbs to bind (you may need less or more depending on your mixture)

Once blended, spoon out with a dessert spoon into little patties. My mixture at this point was still a little sloppy and sticky. I was making it ahead of time, so I sprinkled a plate with bread crumbs and dollopped the mixture into little piles. Then I sprinkled more bread crumbs on top and put in the fridge for about 8-10 hours. By the time I went to cook them, they were firm and easy to roll and cook. You could make these ahead of time like I did or even freeze them for a quick meal on a busy night.

In batches, then shallow fried them in oil and placed in the oven to keep warm and make sure they were cooked through. They didn't take long either :)


Dipping Sauce
In a bowl I just added some soy sauce as a base. Then I added a tiny bit of soy sauce and olive oil (about a tsp). Then I chopped up some more shallots, chilli, corriander, ginger, sweet chilli sauce and a squeeze of lime juice and mix gently.


Spicy and Crunchy Herb Salad
I chopped up some corriander, shallots, mint. Sprinkle with some frech chilly and smashed roasted peanuts. Serve with lime wedges.


Serving
What I love so much about Asian food is apart from the fact taht so much of it is healthy, the experience of eating it is always fun!. Arrange the three elements above on a platter. Then you take a chucnk of the fish cakes, dip it in the sauce and top with some salad.


I hope you enjoy this like we did. DEFINITLEY having this again. Don't be put off by all the ingredients, it's worth it!
Enjoy;
Lauren x

Healthy Dinner Idea : Fish Parcels

I bought some frozen and skinless fish fillets the other day in my grocery shop. They cost me $12 but would last 3 meals, which is good value in my books. So I turned two fillets into a delicious meal as follows. Like alot my cooking, I make it up as I go and you can alter the ratios to your taste.

Ingredients:

Grated ginger
1 Finely chopped chilli
4 chopped fresh garlic
zest and juice of half a lemon
zest and juice of a lime
2 slices of lime and lemon
1 bunch of corriander chopped (even using teh stalks and roots)
salt and pepper
olive oil


Method:
1. Lay out a sheet of foil and then a sheet of baking paper on top of the foil per person.
2. Lay out the above ingredients on to the centre of the foil and then place the fish fillet on top.
3. Wrap the parcel up and seal.
4. Bake in a preheated 200' oven for about 10-15 mins.

I decided to serve it with a stirfry. Mix some bok choy, chilli, garlic, soy sauce, ginger, olive oil, red onion, sesame seeds, salt, pepper, lemon juice and lime juice in a bowl. Heat up a wok or frying pan and then stir fry for a minute or too, just until the bok choy is a little tender but still crisp.

We just loved this dinner and felt so healthy after eating it, I definitley recommend it :)

Lauren x

I feel like Chicken Tonight

Chicken Pie

Tonight for dinner I decided to try to use a jar of honey mustard simmer sauce I had in the pantry. I wasn't convinced but wasn't convinced it would make a tasty stir fry. So, I went on a mission to make a cheap and tasty meal, and SUCCESS!!!!

Ingredients: (this filled one quiche dish)
3 sheets of puff pastry
1 chicken breast, diced
1 onion
1 zuchini
1 carrot
1 stick celery
3 cloves garlic
dash olive oil
fresh thyme
1 jar of honey mustard sauce
2 tsp dijon mustard (or whatever kind you have)
salt
pepper


Steps:
((Preheat oven to 200'}}

1. Chop up the onion, garlic, and saute with some oil.
2. Chop up the celery, zuchini, carrot and put it into the pan with the onion and garlic.
3. Add some of the fresh thyme.
4. Add chicken and fry through until golden.
5. Pour in the sauce, mustard, and salt and pepper and turn down to low heat.
6. Grease dish with spray oil and line the base and sides of dish with 2 of the sheets of puff pastry. Prick base with a fork and then place in oven to prebake the base untill cooked.
7. Then scoop filling from frying pan into the pastry case.
8. Place 3rd sheet of pastry over top and poke a whole or two in center to let steam out.
9. Turn oven down to 180' and bake untill pastry lid is golden.

I love this and the family did too. It cost so little and I had the items already at home, I love those kind of meals.

Enjoy
Lauren x

New Pancake Tuesday Recipe

In our house we have a weekly pancake tuesday morning which is a BIG hit!!! What the kids don't know is that I make them chocolate pancakes (with carrot, pumpkin or betroot puree) and honey panackes (with apple and cinnamon), so there is always a healty aspect to them!

This week I adapted a recipe from Martha that looked yummy : "Orange and Ricotta Pancakes". I love ricotta, so this is now a favourite for me :)

{{{Serves 4}}}

• 1 3/4 cups part-skim ricotta cheese (almost a 500g tub, you could add all of it if you like it as much as i do)
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons grated orange zest (1 orange)
• Juice of 1 orange
  
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• Confectioners' sugar, or maple syrup

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 3/4 cups part-skim ricotta cheese, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, 2 large eggs, and 2 teaspoons grated orange zest (1 orange) and orange juice. Whisk in 2/3 cup all-purpose flour until just combined.
2. Heat 3 tablespoons canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Working in batches (and adding more oil to skillet as needed), add batter, using a scant 1/4 cup for each pancake. Cook until browned, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer pancakes to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
   

Bannana 'icecream' with a difference.

Last night I tried a recipe for a healthy dessert that was met with rave reviews. I adapted the Banana Fluff recipe from the Better Health site mentioned in an earlier post. I followed their instructions, but added had some cream cheese (yoghurt would work too) that I had in the fridge which made it extra creamy. In retrospect though, I would freeze it longer next time.
Now I didn't tell my 4 year old that I made it untill I handed him an ice cream cone and said look, its a special banana ice cream! He said (looking suspicious)...."let me try it to make sure it is yummy" (he takes a lick) "ooooo mummy, thats delicious!" SCORE!!!!!

{Homemade Pasta Sauce}

This a very yummy way to be ultra healthy and eat with no preservatives and additives. Bake a tray or two of veggies like tomatoes (this is your base ingredient so i tend to add more and I like roasting the cherry or grape variety), garlic cloves, zucchini, capsicum, red onion, olives and a chilli. Then drizzle with olive oil and roast in oven.
Once its finished, try to resist eating the yummy roasted veggies (it smells amazing).
Using a food processor, stick or normal blender; blend till it makes a sauce.
Then add some freshly chopped herbs like parsley and basil, season and 'voila'!!!

Serving ideas:
1. On pasta
2. Over lentils instead of pasta
3. Spread as a Pizza sauce.
4. Top Cannelloni with it (see past blog)
5. Put sauce in oven proof dish and pop freshly made meatballs in it and bake in oven.

Enjoy;
Lauren x