Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls

These are great because you can really get creative with fillings. I've included the standard fillings I usually use in this recipe.

Ingredients

• 300g chicken stripped (You could also use prawns)
• 2 grated carrots
• 2 handfuls of salad leaves (I grow Mizuna in my garden so I use that)
• 1 handful mint (optional)
• 2 cucumbers thinly sliced
• 2 red capsicums thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp Hoi Sin sauce or Sweet Chilli Sauce for serving
• 1 packet Rice Paper sheets

Method

1. Slice, grate and prepare all your ingredients ready to assemble rolls.
2. Follow the instructions on the packet of rice paper sheets to soften the rice paper.
3. Laying rice paper flat once softened, place a small amount of chicken, carrot, cucumber, capsicum and salad leaves in the center of the roll.
4. To fold, pull one side of the rice paper across and lay flat over the filling. Then fold in the top and bottom of the roll. To seal shut, roll the rest across the rice paper until all is rolled together. This website has great instructions and pictures on how to handle and wrap rice paper rolls.
5. Serve with dipping sauce of your choice and enjoy.

A standard serving is between 4 to 8 rice paper rolls. This recipe should make you 16 rolls.

Slow Cooked Beef Stew

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 400g diced beef
• 400g green beans
• 400g potato
• 2 celery stalks
• 1 carrot
• 1 onion
• 2 tsp beef stock powder
• 5 cups water
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• 2 tsp minced garlic

Method

1. Peel and chop the potatoes into large cubes. Top and tail the green beans and cut in half. Slice the celery, carrot and onion.
2. Add the vegetables with the diced beef into the slow cooker.
3. Mix the beef stock powder with the water according to instructions on the packet. Once mixed, add the stock to the slow cooker.
4. Add garlic and mustard and stir, mixing ingredients together.
5. Set on low for 6 hours, or high or 3 hours.
6. Serve with bread if you like. This recipe freezes well.

Baked Risotto with Bacon and Peas

This one is adapted from Donna Hay's The Instant Cook

Serves 4


Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 6 strips bacon, chopped
• 2 leeks, sliced
• 5 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• ¾ cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 bunch of spinach
• 300g pumpkin
• 100g feta cheese
• Sea salt and cracked black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 390-degrees F
2. Heat a frying pan over high heat. Add the oil, bacon, leeks and thyme
3. Cook for 5 minutes or until the leeks are lightly browned
4. Spoon the mixture into a 10-cup capacity ovenproof dish.
5. Add the rice, pumpkin and stock and stir.
6. Cover tightly with foil, and bake for 30 minutes.
7. Add the peas, re-cover, and cook for a further 10 minutes 
8. Remove the risotto from the oven; add the parmesan, spinach, salt and pepper and stir for 4 minutes or until the risotto has thickened. Crumble the feta over the top
9. To serve, place the risotto in bowls.

Often I will omit the peas if I am including spinach.

Honey Soy Chicken Wings

This is a recipe adapted from Taste.com.au - an easy one to make because I have most of these things in my cupboard already, and just happened to acquire a kilo of chicken wings from my Po!

Ingredients 

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1.5kg chicken wings

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. 
2. In a microwave safe bowl, mix the honey, soy sauce, ginger, sesame seeds and garlic. Microwave on HIGH for 20 seconds to melt honey, then set aside for 2 minutes to cool. 
3. Place chicken wings in a ceramic baking dish, and pour over some of the sauce evenly. Turn the chicken wings to make sure all sides are coated. 
4. Bake for 50 minutes. Halfway through cooking, turn and baste the chicken wings with the remaining sauce. Bake until cooked through and browned. 

Serving Suggestion: Serve with fried rice, or salad

Banana Bread

Adapted from Margaret Fulton's Encyclopedia of Food and Cookery. 

Ingredients:

3 ripe bananas well mashed

2 eggs well beaten

2 cups self raising flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C 

2. Mix bananas and eggs in a bowl

3. Sift in flour, sugar, salt and baking powder

4. Mix well

5. Put into a loaf tin and bake for 1 hour. Remove from pan to a wire rack

6. Serve either warm or cool

Grilled Lamb Chops with Pumpkin and Beans

Ingredients

• 600g pumpkin
• 240g green beans
• 4 lamb chops (400g)
• 100g low fat feta cheese
• 20g pine nuts

Method

1. Chop pumpkin into pieces and place in the oven at 180 degrees C to roast until tender (roughly half an hour).
2. Season the lamb chops with pepper and cook in a non stick pan over a medium high heat until it is cooked to your liking.
3. Steam the beans until they are tender and ready to eat.
4. Once the lamb has finished cooking, give the pine nuts a quick toasting in the pan. Be careful not to let them burn.
5. Serve lamb chop with pumpkin, green beans, pine nuts and crumble the low fat feta over the dish.

Grilled Bassa & Chickpeas

Ingredients

• 2 cans chickpeas
• 2 punnets cherry tomatoes
• 1 red onion
• 200g spinach
• 4 bassa fillets
• 2 tsp cajun seasoning

Method

1. For this recipe you can either grill the fish or bake it in the oven. To grill, cover the fish in a bit of pepper, seasoning of your choice (mixed herbs works well) or some lemon/lime juice. Grill until cooked through (it should look white). To bake, place fish in alfoil, season and then cover. Can take between 20 to 40 minutes.
2. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Slice the onion into thin slices.
3. Fry the onion in a non stick fry pan until it becomes tender.
4. Add two cans of chickpeas and cajun seasoning. Stir fry for a few minutes.
5. Add the cherry tomatoes and stir fry for another two minutes, until cherry tomatoes appear softer. Mix through the spinach leaves right before taking it off the heat and serving.

Laksa with Chicken and Broccoli

Ingredients

• 1 can of bean shoots
• 300g broccoli
• 350g chicken breast
• 2 cans of light coconut milk
• 2 tbsp laksa paste
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp chicken stock powder

Method

• In a large saucepan, add the laksa paste and the olive oil and mix until fragrant. This should take a minute or two.
• Add the chicken stock powder, 500 ml water, and two cans of light coconut milk. Stir and simmer over medium heat.
• Add chicken and cut up broccoli stalk and cook for 5 to 10 minutes until chicken is almost cooked and broccoli stalk is getting tender. Add in the broccoli florets and the bean sprouts and continue to cook for a further three to five minutes. 
• Once the chicken is cooked, you can add 50 to 100 grams of dried rice noodles. These will soften up as it slowly simmers over the heat. 
• Serve while hot. If you like your laksa to be spicy, add dried chilli flakes or chilli sauce to your bowl.

Serves four

Creamy Chicken & Zuchini Pasta

Ingredients

• 60g Parmesan cheese
• 250g Philadelphia light cream for cooking
• 300g mushrooms
• 2 zucchini
• 2 red capsicum
• 3 tsp garlic
• 1 onion
• 400g chicken breast
• 250g spaghetti

Method

1. Prepare the spaghetti/pasta of your choice according to packet instructions
2. Slice the mushrooms, onion, capsicum and zucchini. You may find it easier to use a potato peeler to peel thin strips of the zucchini ready for cooking. 
3. On a medium-high heat, fry the onions and the chicken with the garlic until the chicken is starting to become golden. Add in the mushrooms and capsicum and continue cooking until capsicum starts to soften. 
4. Add the zucchini, and cooking cream to the pan and continue cooking for a further 3 to 4 minutes.
5. Serve on top of the pasta with some Parmesan cheese

Serves 4

Beef Fajitas

Ingredients

• 2 red capsicum
• 2 red onion
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp cajun seasoning
• 600g beef strips
• 1 packet tortilla wraps
• 1 cup no fat natural yoghurt
• 1 cup shredded tasty cheese
• handful mixed salad leaves

Method

1. Thinly slice the capsicum and the onion. Add to a large non-stick frying pan with the garlic and the cajun seasoning and heat over a medium to high heat. Stir and cook until onion is slightly golden, then remove from pan.
2. Fry the beef strips, seasoning with pepper.
3. Assemble with lettuce and other ingredients in the wraps and enjoy.

Adaptations

• Can also use other vegetables such as cucumber, tomato, and avocado to fill out the wraps
• This version of the recipe (minus the shredded tasty cheese) works out to be roughly 300 calories per serving
• To lower calories, use Mountain Bread wraps in the place of tortilla wraps 

Spaghetti Marinara

Once everything was chopped, it went into a frypan and just cooked. I barely had to do anything other than chop, stir and make sure it didn’t burn (semi-successful at this). It smelt amazing. I added extra herbs to my dish, I have a dried Italian mix that I love adding to pasta, and I added some cracked pepper to the sauce while it cooked.

Ingredients for 4 serves:

• 600g Marinara Mix
• 1 packet pasta (we used linguine orignally)
• 1 can crushed tomatoes
• garlic
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 onion chopped up (prepare the tissues!)
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• season with mixed herbs and pepper
• optional: 1 red chilli finely chopped
• serve with: parsley and parmesan cheese

Method:

1. Cook the pasta according to instructions
2. In a non-stick frypan cook the onion and garlic. Then add the marinara mix and cook for about 5 minutes
3. Add in the can of crushed tomatoes, plus tomato paste and seasonings. Cook on a high heat until the marinara mix is fully cooked through, or until the sauce has thickened. To thicken the sauce more effectively, mix the cornflour in a cup of cold water until the cornflour is dissolved, then stir it through the sauce.
4. Serve whilst hot with some parmesan cheese and parsley to garnish.
5. Optional: you might want to make some garlic bread to go with it!

Chicken Teriyaki Stirfry

I love stirfry. It was one of the first meals with vegetables that I learned to cook when I moved out of my mum’s house in university. It was one of the meals that I used to default to when it had been a busy day. There was always a jar of Kantong and rice in the cupboard, always a packet of veggies in the freezer – what else did I need, really?

One of the things I’m discovering as I cook more widely, and from more recipe books, is the wonderful variety of simple sauces I can make for stirfries without having to rely on the store bought, pre-made, full of calories and preservatives and salt, varieties. What a money saver!

This recipe was rather simple, it was just chicken, vegetables and noodles. I was meant to use a different type of noodle but with these noodle dishes, I tend to just use whatever I have left in my cupboard. I find rice noodles to be more slippery than egg noodles, but they still did the job.
For this recipe I used:

• A variety of vegetables – Chinese broccoli, bok choy, celery, capsicum, snowpeas, shallots
• 150g of chicken per person
• Sauce was a mix of ginger, soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine and honey
• Noodles – I used rice noodles when I first made this, but have also made it with rice and soba noodles.

Method:

1. Cook the chicken in  frypan
2. While chicken is cooking mix the sauces together in a separate bowl
3. Remove chicken from frypan once lightly cooked
4. Throw in chopped vegetables and stirfry until vegetables are at desired firmness (whether that's super crunchy or soft is up to you)
5. Toss chicken back in with sauces and vegetables
6. Prepare noodles/rice according to direction (if you are preparing rice you should've turned on the rice cooker a long time ago)
7. Serve with the carbs of your choice and enjoy

I personally love colourful cooking. If you have a bunch of Asian greens ready for a stirfry, that’s great but throw in a red capsicum! Don’t hold back, add a carrot or two. Happy eating is the best kind of eating, and what makes you happier than seeing a rainbow of fun on your plate?

Tomato & Capsicum Soup

This little number has been adapted from the CSIRO Total Well-being Diet book.

I simply threw everything in the slow cooker and walked away for a few hours. It turned out really nice though. It used almost a kilo of tomatoes, and only one red capsicum.

Once it had sat in the slow cooker for a few hours (three maybe?) I blended it with my stab-blender and added two basil leaves and some chili to give it an extra fresh kick of flavour. Feeling pretty proud that I grew both the basil and the chili – my thumbs are slowly growing greener (with the help of my mum!).



Ingredients

• 2 red capsicums
• 1 brown onion
• 1 tsp garlic
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 7 tomatoes (about 700 grams)
• 2 cups chicken stock
• basil leaves to serve

Method

1. Chop all the vegetables into chunks
2. Toss them all into the slow cooker minus the basil leaves
3. Leave to cook for three or four hours on high
4. Blend with a stab blender until smooth
5. Serve with basil leaves – Serves 4

Health: 137 calories per serve | 573 kilojoules per serve | 1 serve vegetables

Isobel's Beetroot Salad

Ingredients

• Dark green mixed salad leaves – like rocket, spinach
• Tinned baby beets (chopped in half)
• Lebanese cucumber, chopped into small pieces
• Haloumi cheese, sliced and toasted (I just fry them on the stove in a non-stick frypan, bbq works too)

Dressing:

• Olive oil
• Caramelised balsamic vinegar or balsamic vinegar
• a bit of honey

Calories: 196 serving 4 people

Isobel's Coleslaw

Isobel’s Coleslaw

• Finely shredded red cabbage (1/4 is usually more than enough)
• Julienned carrot, if you don’t have a slicer, finely sliced into strips or coarsely grated will also be fine (2 large)
• Green apple with skin, finely sliced into strips (2 large)
• Coriander leaves (optional)

If you want to pre-prepare the apple, put the strips into a bowl of cold water with a little squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkle of salt to stop it turning brown.  Store in the frideg and drain before using.

Dressing:

• Fresh lemon juice – 1/4 cup
• Olive oil (same amount as lemon juice) – 1/4 cup
• Salt and pepper to taste

Calories: 179 per serve – serving 4 people

Stay Fresh Scones

 

Don’t know why these are called stay-fresh; they never last long enough in our house to find out how good they are at staying fresh!

Ingredients

• 500g self-raising flour
• 1 egg
• 1 ½ cups milk
• 1 tablespoon icing sugar
• 2 rounded teaspoons baking powder
• 60g melted butter

Method

1. Sift dry ingredients in a bowl
2. Add beaten egg, milk and butter
3. Quickly combine all ingredients into a dough
4.  Gently roll out to required thickness (about 2cm)
5. Cut circles using medium size round cutter
6. Stand scones close together on a greased baking tray for a further 15 minutes
7. Bake at 210C for 10 minutes

 Handy Hints:

• Dough will be fairly sticky.
• When working with dough try not to add too much extra flour
• For a savoury scone to serve with soup, add herbs and grated cheese to mixture ( a mixture of tasty and parmesan cheese would be nice), you could also add some paprika for extra flavour

Rum Balls

 

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup icing sugar
• 4 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 tsp instant coffee powder
• 60g plain sweet biscuits, finely crushed (I use milk arrowroot)
• 60g copha
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• Chocolate vermicelli (chocolate sprinkles) or desiccated coconut
• Rum to taste (or rum essence)

Method

1. Sift the icing sugar, cocoa and coffee powder into a mixing bowl. Add the crushed biscuits and stir until well combined.
2. Place the copha in a small heavy based saucepan and melt over low heat. Cool slightly. Add to the dry ingredients and stir well.
3. Add vanilla essence and pour in the condensed milk, add rum or rum essence. Mix ingredients together until well combined, then beat until the mixture is thick. Place in the fridge and chill for 30 minutes.
4. Pinch off pieces of the mixture and form into balls, slightly smaller than a walnut shell. Roll the balls in chocolate vermicelli or coconut until well coated. Place on a baking tray and leave in the fridge until firm, approx. 1 hour.

These are a traditional family Christmas-time treat. Each time these are made, we share the story of our youngest brother who, when he was two years old, helped himself to several and spent the rest of the evening bouncing.

By Dianne

Pavlova

Ingredients
9 egg whites
500g caster sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla essence
1 ½ tsp vinegar
1 ½ tablespoons cornflour
Cream & Fruit to decorate

Method
1. Line a baking tray with baking paper
2. Whisk the egg whites till stiff and add ½ the sugar and whisk until
stiff again. Fold in remaining sugar
3. Add the essence, vinegar and cornflour – fold in gently
4. Spread meringue onto the baking paper, in a circle
5. Bake in the centre of the oven until firm, do not open oven door
while cooking, and when finished cooking – turn oven off and leave
in oven until cold.
6. Carefully remove the paper and lace the case on a flat serving
place
7. Arrange the cream and fruit on top, serve immediately

For ensured success when whipping egg whites, use a glass or stainless steel bowl, it is imperative that all utensils and bowls used are clean and free from any oil – it’s a good idea to wash in hot soapy water prior to use to be certain. When separating egg whites and yolks, do not allow any part of the yolk to get into the white. Always separate the egg into a small bowl or glass, and each time it’s done, pour the white out into the mixing bowl – this way any ones that don’t separate properly can be discarded without ruining the whole mixture. When whisking the egg whites, make sure you have stiff peaks before adding any sugar. Egg yolks can be used to make custard, or confectioner’s custard which is used in making profiteroles. That’s why I usually serve both profiteroles and pavlova at the same event. This is David’s favourite dessert, so make him one for his birthday!

Marmelade Glaze Pork

Another adapted recipe from Donna Hay The Instant Cook

Ingredients:

• 4 x 200g pork butterfly steaks
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• seasalt and cracked black pepper
• 1 tablespoon sage leaves
• 1/3 cup breakfast orange marmalade

Method:

1. Heat frying pan over high heat.
2. Brush the pork with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Add the pork and sage to the pan and cook for 2 minutes each side or until well browned.
4. Add the marmalade to the pan and cook for a further 2 minutes each side or until cooked to your liking.
5. Serve the pork on steamed greens and spoon over the glaze. Serves 4.

Health Rating: 442 calories per steak

Bruschetta

Ingredients

• 12 slices cibatta or pana de casa
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
• 4 vine ripened tomatoes, peeled,
• deseeded and finely chopped
• 1 Spanish onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons torn basil leaves
• Sea salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 ½ tsp read wine vinegar
• Cracked pepper to taste

Method
1. Heat char-grill. Brush bread with oil and grill on both sides until browned. Rub bread with cut side of the garlic
2. In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, onions, basil and sea salt, mix briefly. Top the 12 slices of bread with this mixture.
3. Combine olive oil, mustard, vinegar and cracked pepper in a small bowl, mix well to combine and drizzle over bruschetta.
4. Serve immediately

Easy Chicken Fricassee

 

 Serves 4-6
Preparation time: approx. 1 hour

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 size 15 chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• 1 can Campbell’s cream of celery soup
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 carrots, chopped (about 1-1/4 cups)

Method

1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat and brown
chicken pieces on both sides, about 10 to 12 minutes.
2. Remove chicken to a platter and drain all but 2 tablespoons liquid
from pan.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together soup, milk, lemon juice, thyme, bay
leaf, salt, and pepper.
4. Reheat pan drippings over medium-high heat and add onions and
carrots; sauté 3 to 4 minutes, or until onions are soft.
5. Return chicken to skillet; pour soup mixture over chicken, and
cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer about 30 minutes, or until
chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Remove bay leaf
before serving.

Serve over cooked rice or noodles.

You can substitute diced chicken breast and panfry chicken till cooked, and then continue with recipe. You will not need to simmer for the 30 minutes as instructed 10 to 15 minutes should be enough to develop the flavours.

Chicken Croquettes

Serves approx. 6
Preparation time: approx. 2 hours

Ingredients

• 2-3 cups finely cut or minced cooked chicken
• 2 cups finely chopped mushrooms (cook in microwave & drain)
• 1 finely chopped onion (cook in microwave)
• 2 tsp mixed herbs – or more if desired
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 1 ½ cups chicken stock
• 3 eggs beaten
• Bread crumbs
• Oil for frying
• Butter
• Plain flour

Method
1. Make a thick roux sauce with butter, plain flour, chicken stock and
evaporated milk
2. Add herbs, chicken, mushrooms, and onion
3. Place in fridge till cold then with wet hands, form into patties and
dep in egg then roll in breadcrumbs
4. Fry until golden brown
5. Serve with salad or veges
• Can be frozen before being cooked in oil, then defrost, fry and serve.
• Nice served with garden salad, or savoury rice and veges

Zucchini Slice

Ingredients

• 375g zucchini
• 1 large onion
• 3 rashers bacon
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1 cup self-raising flour
• ½ cup oil
• 5 eggs
• Salt & pepper

Method

1. Grate unpeeled zucchini coarsely, finely chop onion and bacon.
2. Combine zucchini, onion, bacon, cheese, sifted flour, oil and lightly beaten
eggs, season with salt and pepper.
3. Pour into well-greased oven proof dish, bake in moderate over for 30 to 40
minutes or until browned.
Can add a small can corn kernels if desired
Freezes well
I reduce the amount of oil to approx. 1/3 cup
A nice touch is to sprinkle a small amount of grated cheese on top before placing in oven.

Alison's Mexican Salad

Ingredients:

• Rump steak (or another cut)
• Can of kidney beans, drained and washed
• Lebanese cucumber, diced
• Red/Green capsicum, diced
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• Green coral lettuce, washed and torn into bite sized pieces
• ½ small Spanish onion, diced finely
• Small tub Natural yoghurt
• Mild Tomato Salsa
• Taco/Burrito seasoning
• Lime

 Method

1. Combine lettuce, tomato, cucumber, capsicum, onion and kidney beans together. Divide into 4 serving bowls.
2. Combine yoghurt with 2 teaspoons of taco/burrito seasoning.
3. Lightly coat steak with olive oil, salt and pepper and cook in a fry pan until pink. Remove from heat and cut into small strips.
4. Top salad with strips of beef. Place a tablespoon of yoghurt on top, followed by 2 teaspoons of salsa and squeeze with fresh lime juice to serve.

Spaghetti & Meatballs

 Ingredients

• olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, crushed
• 250 gm minced veal
• 250 gm minced pork
• 1 egg
• 3 heaped tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• chilli paste
• sea salt & freshly ground pepper
• plain flour
• 400 gm passata (Italian tomato cooking sauce)
• ½ cup chicken stock
• 2 heaped tspn fresh basil leaves, torn
• 400 gm linguine
• freshly grated Parmesan

Method

1. Heat a little oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and gently sauté the onion and garlic until softish.
2. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl with the mince, egg, parsley, 1 tbsp chilli paste and a decent amount of seasonings. Stir well using a wooden spoon.
3. Wipe out the pan with kitchen paper towels and heat a thin layer of fresh oil.
4. Form the mince mixture into walnut-sized balls. Then roll in flour and panfry until browned all over.
5. Add the passata to the pan with 2 tspn chilli paste, ground pepper and the stock. Toss the meatballs and cook until the sauce has reduced, turning every now and then. Then taste the sauce for seasoning and stir through the basil.
6. At the same time, cook the linguine in plenty of well salted, boiling water until al dente. Drain well.
7. To serve, mound the pasta in individual flat soup bowls and top with the meatballs, plenty of the sauce, a good amount of parmesan and a sprinkling of fresh oil.

My Alterations: I will be using regular Aldi pasta sauce, less chilli paste in some of the meatballs (Soong does NOT like chilli to my dismay), and 500 grams of beef mince rather than pork and veal mince.


Taste Rating: 3.5/5
Calorie Rating: 585 calories per serve – serves 4

Cob Loaf Dip

Ingredients

• 1 cob loaf
• 2 packets Spring Veg Soup Mix
• 2 cartons sour cream
• Chopped spinach
• Grated tasty cheese

Method

1. Mix all together
2. Cut top off cob loaf and tear apart the insides
3. Scatter on tray.
4. Place dip inside and put lid back on
5. Place in oven on 180°C for 40-50 mins
6. Tear apart lid and serve

Taste Rating: 4.5/5! This one is awesome

Slow Cooked Sweet & Sour Beef

Ingredients

• 3 carrots
• 1 onion
• 1 red capsicum
• 600 g diced beef
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons chutney
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 4 pineapple rings, diced
• 1/2 cup pineapple juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons cornflour

Method

1. Peel and slice carrots. Peel and dice onion. Chop capsicum
2. Place in slow cooker with 1/2 cup water and remaining ingredients (except cornflour)
3. Cook for 4-5 hours on high or 8-9 hours on low
4. Mix the cornflour with 1/4 cup of cold water and use to thicken the dish to desired consistency.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste

Slow Cooked Satay Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 kilo chicken breast or thigh fillets
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 heaped tablespoons peanut butter
• 5 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon sweet chilli sauce
• 3/4 cup coconut milk
• 3 teaspoons cornflower (optional)
• steamed rice and seasonal vegetables* to serve

Method

1. Cut chicken into strips.
2. Peel and crush garlic.
3. Place in the slow cooker with peanut butter, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce, sweet chilli sauce and coconut milk. Stir to combine
4. Place lid on cooker and cook for 3 hours on high
5. If necessary, mix the cornflower with 2 tablespoons of cold water to a paste and use to thicken the dish. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Vegetables can also be added to the sauce – such as carrots, potato, celery, peas, etc.

Chicken Tomato Medley

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts, diced
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• 3 tomatoes, diced
• 2 carrots sliced
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1/2 chopped zucchini
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 small tin Coles Smartbuy Tomato Paste
• Ground pepper

Method

1. Defrost chicken in the microwave
2. Chop & prepare garlic, tomatoes, carrots, onion and zucchini in a bowl
3. Heat a non stick saucepan. Use spray oil if you must use oil
4. Add diced chicken and fry until chicken is cooked on the outside
5. Add rest of vegetables and stir for about 3-5 minutes
6. Open and add small tin Coles Smartbuy Tomato Paste. Stir until all is mixed through.
7. Pour in 1 cup of chicken stock, and mix ingredients for a further 5 – 10 minutes
8. Season with ground pepper. Once vegetables are tender and chicken is cooked through, remove from heat.

Serves 4


Serving Suggestion: We ate this accompanied by diced boiled potato and steamed pak choy

Taste Rating: 3.5/5 – would definitely make this one again, quick and easy and Soong enjoyed it!

Health Rating: 282 calories / 1179 kilojoules not including side of potato or pak choy

Potato & Leek Soup

 

Unlike most of the recipes I have been posting, this beauty really is a family heirloom. Passed down from Mum to me (over the phone as I stood facing a bag of potatoes wondering what to do with my life…), I now hold the secret that is our family potato soup like a baton, ready to pass it onto the next generation.

Sorry Mum, I’ve adapted this slightly. It was a mistake the first time I forgot to add cream, then I enjoyed it so much I just never bothered putting it in again

Ingredients

• 4-5 potatoes
• 1 leek
• 2 cups of water approx
• 2 tsp chicken stock powder
• Optional: add in 1 cup cream

Method

1. Peel and chop potatoes and place in a saucepan
2. Slice stalk of leek thinly. Each slice should be about 1cm or less width
3. Add in a saucepan with water and chicken stock
4. Boil until potatoes are soft
5. Blend together with a stab blender
6. Serve while hot

It shouldn’t take you too long to do.

Serves 4
 
Taste Rating: 3.5/5 – It’s always been a classic and always been a staple in my home

Health Rating: 137 calories / 573 kilojoules

Simple Cream Pasta with Chicken

 

 I let Soong pick this one for dinner. His first reaction when we made it was “Wow, is that all?” It was quick and simple to make and probably a good dish to whip up after a long day at work.

This is another Donna Hay The Instant Cook recipe. She includes three variations at the bottom of this recipe, so we chose to make the Chicken & Pine Nuts version.

Ingredients for Chicken Variation – Serves 4

• 400g spaghetti (or tagliatelle – which is flat and wide pasta)
• 1 cup light cream
• 2 tsp grated lemon rind
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped basil leaves
• cracked black pepper
• grated Parmesan cheese to serve
• 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
• 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

Method

1. Cook spaghetti in salted water. Once cooked, drain and return to the pan.
2. Add cream, lemon rind and juice, Parmesan, basil and pepper. Toss to combine
3. Toss 2 cups cooked shredded chicken and 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts through before serving

Salmon Variation: Don’t include chicken or pine nuts. Use 100 g baby spinach leaves and 100 g chopped smoked salmon instead.

Prosciutto and egg variation: Don’t include chicken, pine nuts or lemon rind. Replace basil with flat leaf parsley and stir through 3 egg yolks. Top with shreds of prosciutto to serve.

Was a quick meal, perfect for a night when I want to make something that seems fancy before rushing off to do other things. It was pretty average other wise. I enjoyed it, but I’ve had better as well.

Recipe says it serves 4, but they would be huge servings. We managed to have second helpings and fully pack two containers. I would say you could get six servings out of this meal.

Taste Rating: 2.5/5

Health Rating: 437 calories / 1,828 kilojoules per serve – I’ve calculated extra Parmesan cheese to serve in the calorie count as well.

Strawberry Smoothie

Ingredients

• 1/2 punnet of fresh strawberries
• ice
• 200 ml skim milk

Method

1. Place the strawberries and ice in a blender and blend till smooth.
2. Add milk and blend once more. This should make it slightly creamier.
3. Sweeten to taste. I added 1 tsp of sugar to sweeten.

For a thicker, creamier and unhealthier dose of strawberry smoothie, use ice cream instead of milk and blend. My friend also recommends the use of yoghurt for a great breakfast treat.
For decoration, slice two remaining strawberries and stick onto the rim of the glass.
Health Rating: 100 calories / 418 kilojoules

Crispy Sardines

This recipe comes from the Summer section ofSeasons, so it’s light and tasty and I can imagine eating it with a fresh salad, sitting on a balcony enjoying the sunshine. However, being the middle of winter, we enjoyed this meal with boiled potatoes and steamed baby bok choy safe and warm inside.
Ingredients

4 tins of sardines in springwater (1 can per person is a good ratio)

1/4 cup lemon rind (we didn’t use this, we only used a little)

a dash of olive oil

1 tbsp chopped mint leaves

sea salt & cracked black pepper

baby bok choy 

Method

1. Open and drain sardines.
2. Place sardines, lemon rind, olive oil, mint leaves, salt and pepper in a bowl. Toss to coat.
3. Set sardines aside to marinate for 30 minutes. We left them about 10 minutes and they were fine.
4. Heat a non-stick frying pan over high heat and cook the sardines until crispy.
5. When sardines are almost done, slice and add the bok choy on top to steam.

Serves well with chopped up boiled potatoes.

Serves 4

Taste Rating: 4 / 5
Health Rating: 141 calories /589 kilojoules per serve. 259 calories / 1083 kilojoules including potato.

Alison's Chicken Soup

I could often smell chicken soup from across the office. Always envious of how wonderful Alison’s lunches were, particularly on chicken soup day, I emailed her and asked for her recipe.
With all credit going to Alison, I present “Alison’s Chicken Soup”!

Ingredients

• 1 leek
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 carrots, diced
• 3 potatoes, diced
• 1 parsnip, diced
• 1 swede, diced
• 1 stick celery, diced
• 2 zucchini
• 1L Chicken stock
• 1 1/2 cups shredded chicken

You can use a soup mix from a veggie shop or supermarket, the pre-packed veggies ready to use in a soup. It can be cheaper and you don’t have to purchase each veggie. Aldi often has good ones.

Method

1. Fry off leek and garlic in olive oil till soft
2. Add hard veggies (everything apart from celery and zucchini) and mix with leek etc.
3. Add chicken stock and bring to the boil.
4. Simmer until veggies are almost soft.
5. Add the softer veggies (zucchini and celery) and cook until soft.
6. Blend the soup, add salt and pepper to taste and then stir the shredded chicken through.

This is my new soup - previously I would NOT have blended the veggies and would have added 1/2 cup barley to it so it’s a chunky veggie, chicken and barley soup. Still good, just tried something different!

Green Vegetable Stir-fry

This one also comes from Donna Hay’s The Instant Cook
 
Ingredients

• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp crushed garlic
• 2 tsp grated ginger
• 350g broccoli, sliced
• 150g green beans
• 2 bok choy (the recipe says quartered, but Soong and I couldn’t figure out how to do that so we just chopped them up!)
• 100g snow peas
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup Chinese Cooking Wine (bought from the Asian section of Coles)

Method:

1. Chop up all the vegetables!
2. Heat a wok over high heat.
3. Add oils, garlic and ginger. Cook for 30 seconds
4. Add vegetables and cook for 3 minutes or till tender
5. Add hoisin and wine and cook for 1 min
6. Serve immediately with steamed rice.

Serves 4

Recipe suggests you can also add fried tofu, but I think tofu is gross and stinky.

Health Rating: 108 calories / 451 kilojoules

Honey Mustard Beef Stir-fry

Another recipe adapted from Donna Hay’s The Instant Cook.

I swapped Dijon mustard with wholegrain as I already had wholegrain in the fridge. The sauce had a wonderful flavor, and complimented the meat nicely. I added red capsicum for colour and used broccoli instead of green beans.


Ingredients

• 650g rump steak
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 2 tsp crushed garlic
• 1/2 large onion, chopped into large pieces
• 1/3 cup wholegrain mustard
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 head of broccoli chopped
• 1 red capsicum

Method

1. Cut steak into thin slices. Discard all fat
2. Add the oil, garlic and onions into a very hot frying pan. Cook for two minutes
3. Add beef and cook for 4 minutes or until browned
4. Add mustard, honey and vegetables and toss to coat
5. Cook for another 2 – 3 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
6. Serve with steamed rice. Serves 4

Health Rating: 339 calories / 1 418 kj per serve

Soy Chicken & Rice

This recipe is from Donna Hay’s The Instant Cook. Of course, as any home kitchen cook does, I adapt recipes with what’s available in my cupboard and without what I’ve forgotten to buy! This is my adaptation of Donna Hay’s recipe:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 2/3 cup chinese cooking wine (you can buy this from an Asian grocery or from the Asian section in some Coles)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp grated ginger (I used crushed ginger instead)
• 4 chicken breasts
• 2 cups of Jasmine rice
• 3 green/spring onions (shallots)

Methods

1. Set the rice to cook in a rice cooker.
2. Place soy, chinese cooking wine, sugar and ginger into a frying pan over high heat and bring to the boil.
3. Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutess each side. (Do not worry if the chicken is not fully cooked, we will be cooking it more later. Also, I cut the chicken in half to help it cook quicker)
4. Place the chicken back into the pan and cover. Leave to simmer for 4-5 minutes. The sauce should turn syrupy in this time. Just be careful not to let it burn.
5. Chop up the green onions into small pieces.
6. Serve the chicken and rice in a bowl. Pour some sauce from the pan over the chicken and sprinkle with shallots.

I also served this with a side of broccoli and carrots as there are no vegetables in this dish

Health Rating: 590 calories per serve / 2 468 kilojoules per serve

Creamy Chicken Pasta

Ingredients

• Shell pasta (approx. 2 to 3 cups cooked)
• Diced cooked chicken (approx. 1 whole chicken)
• 1 onion finely diced
• 1 green capsicum diced
• 1 red capsicum diced
• 4 sticks celery sliced
• ½ cup Mayonnaise
• ½ cup plain flour
• 1 can cream of chicken soup Campbell’s
• 2 cups milk
• 2 tablespoons butter

Method

1.  Saute onion, celery, capsicum in butter until slightly soft
2. Remove from heat and add flour and mix well
3. Add mayonnaise, soup and milk and mix well. Return to heat and bring to boil, boil until thickens.
4. Add chicken and shell pasta and stir through, serve immediately.

Hints:

• These measurements are indicative only, this is one of these old family favourites that I just judge as I go along, so if too thick add extra milk to thin to a nice creamy mixture
• I use Heinz Salad cream, but you can use any mayonnaise – the variety will alter the final flavour
• You can use any soup, but I always use Campbell’s as it has a good flavour and consistency.
• Don’t know if this freezes or not, though I wouldn’t think it would be successful given the ingredients used – if need to freeze give it a go and then let me know how you went.
• This is another recipe that calls for a whole cooked chicken, I like to buy them when on special, boil them and then remove the cooked meat and freeze to use as needed, and also freeze the chicken stock for use in soups and other recipes.
• This is one of those recipes that you can stretch if feeding more than planned for, just add extra veges and pasta, if no extra veges just add extra pasta to stretch it – still tastes yummy!

Mediterranean Salad

Ingredients

• Cos lettuce
• Cherry or grape tomatoes
• Sun dried tomatoes
• Capers
• Olives
• Avocado
• Lebanese cucumber
• Olive oil
• Rice wine vinegar

Method

1. Wash lettuce, cucumber, tomato and chop to desired size
2. Line plate or bowl with lettuce
3. Then place all other ingredients on top
4. Sprinkle with olive oil and vinegar
5. You can add shaved parmesan cheese or meat such as chicken, chorizo sausage, salami or tuna to make a complete meal.

Banana Citrus Cake with Orange Syrup

This one is a real family favourite!

It is essential to use over-ripe bananas for this recipe . If your bananas are getting too ripe and you don’t have time to bake, put them in the freezer, then thaw and use as normal for this recipe.

Ingredients

• 185g butter
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups self-raising flour
• ½ teaspoon bi-carb
• 3 medium bananas
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• ¼ cup orange juice freshly squeezed

Orange Syrup

• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ cup strained freshly squeezed orange juice

Method

1.  Cream butter and sugar in a small bowl with electric mixder until light and fluffy
2. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition
3. Process or blend bananas, lemon and orange juices until smooth and liquefied
4. Stir sifted flour and soda and banana mixture into creamed mixture
5. Pour into well-greased and lightly floured 20cm baba or ring tin. Bake in moderate oven for approx. 40 minutes, stand 5 minutes, invert tin onto wire rack and stand further 10 minutes before removing tin.
6. Place cake over tray, while hot pur orange syrup evenly over cake
7. Orange syrup: combine sugar, water and orange juice in pan, bring to boil, use while hot.

Handy Hints:

• I leave cake in tin and pour hot syrup onto cake directly from oven, and leave to cool in cake tin.
• This cake is excellent to freeze – so always make doube and freeze one for later.