Pulled pork recipe (slow cooker)

I have been searching for a good pulled pork recipe for many many months but every recipe I found had elements that didn't appeal to me.  I wanted 2 things - tasty and easy!

Finally I found a recipe that was both of these things and received rave reviews.  I adapted it slightly and the result was lovely.  I might try a gravy version next.

Enjoy,
Amanda

Recipe adapted from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/92462/slow-cooker-texas-pulled-pork/

SLOW COOKED PULLED PORK 

• Spray oil
• 1 large onion
• Pork shoulder roast - approx 1.8kgs
• 1 cup smokey BBQ sauce
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup sugar - I used raw sugar
• 1 Tbspn worcestershire sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme

1. Spray base of slow cooker with oil.

2. Dice onion and place in bottom of slow cooker.

3. Place pork in slow cooker - fatty side up.

4. In a jug, add BBQ sauce, vinegar, stock, sugar, worcestershire sauce, garlic and thyme. Stir and pour into slow cooker.

5. Cook on low for 10 hrs or until meat is falling apart. Try not to remove the lid during cooking time.

6. Remove pork from cooker.  Remove excess fat.  Shred pork with a fork and place back into the slow cooker to soak up some juices.  Serve on fresh roll.

Vegetable stock paste - NO THERMOMIX REQUIRED!

I am sure that you have heard many of those who own a Thermomix rave about the awesome vegetable stock paste that you can make and how much flavour it has.  Now... I have a Thermomix and do love making the stock paste but out of interest, I tried to make it the conventional way and even though it wasn't the same as the TMX version, it was still fantastic and tasted exactly the same.

I have recently been on holidays in North Qld and whilst at my parents place, my mum and I decided to try to recreate the vege stock paste without the TMX.  The concentrated paste is additive and preservative free and is packed full of flavour from the vegetables.

It is absolutely perfect to use in any recipe that needs chicken or vegetable stock.  I even use it in place of beef stock.

It is a very simple recipe to make but it does take a little longer using this method.  It doesn't take too much time and effort though and the paste goes a long way and can be stored in your fridge for months.

To make 1 cup of vegetable stock - just add 1 Tbspn of paste to 1 cup of water.

Just because you don't have a Thermomix, doesn't mean you can't enjoy flavoursome meals using the vege stock paste.

Enjoy,
Amanda

Vegetable stock paste

- 2 sticks of celery
- 2 carrots
- 1 onion
- 1 tomato
- 1 zucchini
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 bunch parsley
- 1 Tbspn oil
- 150g rock salt

1. Roughly dice all vegetables and place in a food processor with garlic and parsley.  Process until chopped into very small pieces.  Depending on the size of your food processor, this may need to be done in 2 batches.  You can also use other vegetables you have on hand such as broccoli, cauli, spinach etc.

2. Tip the processed contents into a saucepan and add oil and rock salt.  Cook on the stovetop on medium/high heat for 20 mins.  Set aside to cool.


                                       


3. Pour back into food processor/blender and puree until smooth.  I couldn't get it as smooth in the food processor than I can in the TMX but the flavour is still there even though the consistency is a little different.

Store in a jar in the fridge for up to 3 months.  Use 1 Tbspn to 1 cup of water.

Chewy chocolate slice

Finally, this recipe worked!  I have made a few 'chewy' chocolate slices now and none of them have turned out chewy but were instead dry and crumbly.  With the addition of rolled oats, this slice is chewy and delicious and extremely easy to make.

CHEWY CHOCOLATE SLICE


Ingredients:

• 125g butter, melted
• 3/4 cup caster sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 Tbspn cocoa
• 2 Tbspn hot water
• 1 cup plain flour
• 1/3 cup self raising flour
• 1 cup rolled oats

Icing

• 1 cup icing sugar
• 2 Tbspn cocoa
• 2 Tbspn hot water

1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees celcius (fan forced).  Line a slice tin (18cm x 28cm) with baking paper. 

2. In a large bowl, whisk butter and sugar together.  

3. Add egg, cocoa & 2 Tbspn hot water and whisk until very well combined. 

4. Add plain flour self-raising flour.  Stir to combine.  

5. Add oats and stir through.  Pour into tin and press down evenly.

6. Bake in oven for 20 mins.

7. While the slice is baking, make the icing.  Add all ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.  When slice is removed from the oven, spread the icing over it immediately so it melts across the whole slice.  Refrigerate to set then cut into slices and watch it disappear!

 

Banana cake with coffee cream

Bananas are plentiful at the moment and I have a bench full that are getting very ripe, very quickly. This recipe is very moist and quite different to my banana bread recipe which is much more dense.  I am not a coffee drinker but I think a milk coffee icing goes perfectly with this cake.

Enjoy,
Amanda

Banana cake with coffee cream

• 125g butter, softened
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 large bananas (mashed)
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 3/4 cups self-raising flour

Coffee cream

• 1 tsp instant coffee granules
• 1 1/2 Tbspn boiling water
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1 Tbspn butter, softened

• 1/4 cup toasted coconut (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Grease a 20cm round cake tin.

2. In a small bowl, beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.

3. Add eggs and beat well.

4. Add milk and bananas and beat until combined.

5. Sift in bi-carb and flour and fold through.

6. Pour into cake tin and bake for 40 - 45 mins or until cooked through.  If cake is browning too quickly, cover with a sheet of baking paper to prevent the top from burning.

7. Remove from oven and leave in tin for 5 mins.  Turn out onto wire rack to cool.

Icing

8.  Dissolve coffee in boiling water.  Add to a small bowl with icing sugar and butter.  Beat until smooth.  Spread over cake and top with toasted coconut.

Rissoles

Rissoles is a classic Aussie meal but this recipe is from my Italian Nunna.  It was a tough job nailing her down and committing her to a recipe as she normally cooks by sight and feel with no measurements.

She uses a few slices of bread, soaked in water and this is what gives the rissoles their moist centre.   If you can't be bothered with this step, just substitute in a cup of breadcrumbs instead which is what I do sometimes.

They are delicious and would also be great cooked as meatballs and served with spaghetti and a tomato based sauce.

I hope you enjoy them,
Amanda

Rissoles

• 2 slices of bread (or 1 cup breadcrumbs)
• 1kg lean beef mince
• 2 eggs
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 onion, very finely chopped
• 1 tsp chopped parsley
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
• ¼ cup tomato sauce
• ½ tsp salt
• ¾ cup finely grated cheese
• spray oil for cooking

1. In a small bowl, place 2 slices of bread. Cover with water & let the bread soak.

2. In a separate large bowl, place all remaining ingredients.

3. Squeeze water from the bread. Break bread up into small pieces & add to the meat

mixture.

4. Using both hands, mix the mince & bread mixture together until well combined.

5. Form into patties & refrigerate or freeze until required.

Cooking

Spray the base of a large frypan with oil. Over medium to high heat, fry the rissoles for

approx. 5 mins on each side or until cooked through. Cooking time will vary depending

on the size of the rissoles. Be gentle when turning as they may break apart.

Choc chip muffins

You don't need any fancy equipment for this recipe - no thermomix, no electric mixer - just a large bowl and whisk. They only take a few minutes to make and taste delicious! Great for lunchboxes or to keep in the freezer for emergencies.

Enjoy
Amanda
(Simple home cook)

Choc chip muffins

• 125g butter
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 Tbspn honey
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups self-raising flour
• 3/4 cup choc chips

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Liine a 12 muffin pan with cases.  I ran out of cases so I just cut up some baking paper into squares and pushed them into the muffin pan instead.

2. In a large microwave bowl, add butter.  Microwave until melted.

3. Add egg, milk & honey.  Whisk until combined.

4. Add sugar & flour and mix well.

5. Add choc chips and stir through.

6. Spoon evenly into cases and bake in oven for 18 mins or until cooked through.

Quick chicken curry - 5 min prep!

This is one of my favourite quick and easy meals.  It takes only 5 mins to throw it all in the slow cooker and it can sit there and cook away and make my house smell amazing!  Tastes great served on rice or cauliflower fried rice (http://asimplehomecook.blogspot.com.au/2015/01/cauliflower-fried-rice.html)

Enjoy,

Amanda

Quick chicken curry - 5 min prep!

• 1kg chicken thigh fillets
• 1/2 cup curry paste - you can use korma, red or whatever you like. 
• 2 tsp sugar
• 400g tin diced tomatoes
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 120g pkt baby spinach
• 3/4 cup sour cream

1. Add chicken into slow cooker.

2. In a jug, mix curry paste with tomatoes, sugar and stock.  Stir to combine and pour into slow cooker. 

3. Add spinach leave & stir through.

4. Cook on low for 5 hrs or high for 3.5 hrs or until chicken is cooked and tender.

5. Just prior to serving, stir in sour cream.  

Homemade crackers

I know crackers are very cheap to buy but there something great about being able to make your own and knowing what is in them.  Today I gave them a go and was pleasantly surprised with how easy and delicious they were.  They reminded me a lot like the crusty pastry of a good meat pie so I might need to try and turn this into a pie pastry one day but for now I am content with using this recipe for crackers.  Before baking, I dusted them with chicken stock powder which made them taste great but you can also use salt and pepper, herbs or whatever you like.

Enjoy
Amanda xx

HOMEMADE CRACKERS

• 2 cups plain flour (300g)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 100g butter, cold and diced
• 6 Tbspn hot tap water
• Chicken stock powder

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. 

2. In a food processor, add butter, sugar, salt, baking powder and butter.  Pulse (or turbo if you have a Thermomix) until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 

3.  With the food processor running, gradually add water until the mixture forms a smooth dough.  

4. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and bring together with your hands. Cut dough in half into 2 balls.

5. On a sheet of baking paper, generously dust with flour and roll out the dough as thinly as possible.  Using a sharp knife, cut into squares.  Prick each square a few times with a fork. Repeat process with remaining half of dough.  You should end up with 2 large trays of crackers.

6. At this stage, you can lightly sprinkle the crackers with chicken stock powder. This step is optional.  You could also sprinkle with salt and pepper if you prefer.

7. Bake for 10 mins or until golden.  The crackers on the outside of the tray will cook faster so remove them from the oven once they are golden. Continue to bake the remaining crackers until they are all cooked through and crunchy.  

8. Once cool, store in airtight container.

Homemade hot cross buns

These come with a warning on a few levels:

• They taste amazing so be careful you don't eat the whole tray!

• They take a lot of effort and patience to make - much, much more than simply picking up a packet from a supermarket.

• I wouldn't call them 'simple' to make and wouldn't usually post a recipe with this much effort but since it is Easter, many of us are wanting to do something special and this recipe is exactly that, special!

• If you are going to try it - you MUST use 'bakers flour' - not plain flour.  I have made this rookie error a few times because I was just being stubborn but don't waste your time with plain flour - they don't turn out any where near as good. 

I certainly don't blame you if you look at this recipe and think "NO WAY"  but I just wanted to try it and judging by the comments on my earlier post, some of you may want to as well. 

I found this recipe on the Thermomix recipe community website and adapted it to try and cut down a few steps.  (http://www.recipecommunity.com.au/baking-sweet-recipes/best-hot-cross-buns-light-fluffy/152095)

I have included both TMX and non-TMX versions depending on what equipment you have at home. 

Happy Easter and goodluck!!

Amanda xx

INGREDIENTS

Dough

• 4 tsp dry/instant yeast
• 620 g bakers flour - not ordinary plain flour
• 50 g sugar
• 380 g milk
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp mixed spice
• 60 g Butter
• 1 egg
• 250 g sultanas

Paste for Crosses

• 90 g bakers or plain flour
• 100 g water
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Glaze

• 2 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp sugar

THE THERMOMIX WAY

1.  Add milk and yeast into TMX bowl and heat for 3 mins, 37 degrees, speed 1. 

2.  Add in all other dough ingredients (excl sultanas) and mix for 15 seconds, speed 7. 

3. Knead for 2 mins.

4. Add sultanas and knead for a further minute. 

5. Place in a large bowl, cover and allow to sit somewhere warm for 1 hr or until doubled in size. 

6. Once risen, punch dough down then turn out onto a floured surface and knead with your hands for a few minutes to bring it all together. 

7. Divide dough into approx 18 small balls and place close together on a lined oven tray.

8. Set aside for approx 20 mins and allow buns to rise.

9. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C.  You can now pipe the crosses onto the buns or skip this step altogether.  To make the crosses, mix together flour, water, salt and oil.  Mix for 30 seconds, speed 4. Scoop into a zip lock bag and snip off the end.  Pipe the crosses onto the buns. 

10.  Place in preheated oven for 20 mins or until golden and cooked through. If you feel they are browning a little too quickly, cover the top with baking paper. 

11.  Remove from the oven and make the glaze.  Add water and sugar into TMX and cook 2 mins, 100 degrees, speed 4.   Brush buns with hot syrup. 

AND FINALLY.... EAT!

THE NON-THERMOMIX WAY

I will be honest when I say that I haven't tried this method yet.  I have just converted the TMX version for all of you who don't have one.  The process is the same but you need to use your microwave and electric mixer instead. 

1. Warm the milk in the microwave for 2 mins.  Pour into a large mixing bowl.  Add yeast.  Whisk until combined. 

2.  Add in all other dough ingredients (excl sultanas) and mix together using the dough hooks of your electric mixer. Knead until it is a smooth dough consistency.

3.  Add sultanas and continue to knead until sultanas are incorporated into the dough. 

4.  Cover and set aside somewhere warm for 1 hr or until doubled in size. 

5. Once risen, punch dough down then turn out onto a floured surface and knead with your hands for a few minutes to bring it all together. 

6. Divide dough into approx 18 small balls and place close together on a lined oven tray.

7. Set aside for approx 20 mins and allow buns to rise.

9. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C.  You can now pipe the crosses onto the buns or skip this step altogether.  To make the crosses, mix together flour, water, salt and oil in a bowl.  Whisk until it forms a smooth paste. Scoop into a zip lock bag and snip off the end.  Pipe the crosses onto the buns. 

10.  Place in preheated oven for 20 mins or until golden and cooked through. If you feel they are browning a little too quickly, cover the top with baking paper. 

11.  Remove from the oven and make the glaze.  Add water and sugar into a small bowl and stir to combine. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir until the sugar has dissolved. You may need to microwave again.  Brush buns with hot syrup. 

AND FINALLY.... EAT!

Banana & maple syrup bread

Afternoon tea is ready!! It is as easy as throwing everything in one bowl and beating. It is similar to my banana bread recipe but the added maple syrup gives it a lovely taste.

It is perfect for school lunches as it is a little firmer than a cake and will hold together nicely while your kids thrash it around in their bags.

Enjoy,
Amanda

BANANA & MAPLE SYRUP BREAD

• 125g butter, softened
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 2 lge bananas, mashed (1 cup)
• 2 ½ cups self-raising flour
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda 

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Line loaf tin (approx. 15cm x 25cm) with baking paper.

2. In a large bowl, combine butter, sugar & maple syrup. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth.

3. Add eggs & beat.

4. Add banana, flour & bicarb soda. Beat until well combined. 

5. Pour into loaf tin and bake for 1 hour or until cooked through. Check if centre is cooked by inserting skewer. If it comes out clean, the cake is cooked.

Strawberry pavlova roll

If you are planning something special this weekend, why not try this - Strawberry Pavlova Roll.  It is easier than it looks and tastes amazing. Best of all you can make it ahead of time so you only need to slice and eat when it is time for dessert.

Enjoy,
Amanda xx

STRAWBERRY PAVLOVA ROLL

• 4 egg whites
• ¾ cup caster sugar
• 1 tsp vinegar
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1 tsp vanilla essence (or 1/2 tsp vanilla extract)
• 300ml thickened cream
• 250g strawberries, chopped
• 1 passionfruit 

1. Preheat oven to 175oC. Line a swiss roll tin (22cm x 32cm) or similar size baking tray with baking paper.

2. In a large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly add sugar & continue beating until mixture is smooth & glossy & all sugar is dissolved.

3. Fold through vinegar, cornflour & vanilla.

4. Pour into lined tin & spread out evenly. Bake in preheated oven for 15 mins.

5. Allow to cool completely in tin before turning out onto a sheet of baking paper sprinkled with caster sugar.

6. Whip cream. Spread over meringue & cover with chopped strawberries (reserving some to decorate the top of the roll).

7. Roll up from the long side & place on a plate, still covered with baking paper. Can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours before serving.

8. Top with extra cream, strawberries & passionfruit just prior to serving.

Apple crumble cake

This recipe was an experiment when I was working on my second cookbook (which isn't published yet) and it turned out to be one of my favourite cakes, especially with vanilla custard poured over it.  It is like an apple tea cake with a delicious crumble topping.  Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee for that afternoon break.

Enjoy!
Amanda xx

APPLE CRUMBLE CAKE

Cake
100g butter, softened
½ cup caster sugar
1 egg
1 cup self-raising flour
1/3  cup milk
3 granny smith apples

Crumble
50g chilled butter, chopped
½ cup flour (self-raising or plain)
½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
½ tsp cinnamon


Preheat oven to 180oC. Grease a 20cm cake tin.

In a large bowl, add cake ingredients; butter, caster sugar, egg, self-raising flour & milk.

Peel & core apples.  Slice into pieces approx. ½ cm thick. Lay on top of cake batter.

In a bowl, add crumble ingredients; chilled butter & flour.  Rub together with fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.

Add sugar & cinnamon & stir to combine.  Sprinkle over the top of the cake.

Bake in preheated oven for 40 mins or until   cooked through.

Paleo Pumpkin Soup

My husband is trialing a new diet so tonight I jumped on board and we all ate the same thing - Pumpkin Soup.  It is the same as the recipe from my cookbook except that I left out adding the milk at the end of cooking time.  The beauty of the recipe is that is tastes delicious and only uses 4 ingredients.

Quick, easy, cheap & very healthy - what more could you want!!

I hope your family love it!
Amanda

Paleo Pumpkin Soup

• 1.4 kg Jap or Kent pumpkin (peeled & chopped)
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 1 large onion, diced
• 150g bacon pieces

1) In a large saucepan over high heat, add pumpkin & chicken stock. Bring to the boil then reduce to medium heat and let the pumpkin boil away.

2) In a large microwave bowl, add onion & bacon.  Cover with plastic wrap &              microwave on high for 2 mins.  Stir, then microwave for a further 2 mins.

3) Add onion & bacon mixture to the boiling pumpkin & stir through.  When pumpkin is soft, use a stick mixer and blend up the contents of the saucepan until smooth.  If too thick, add more water. 

5) Serve immediately or cover & refrigerate until required.  Reheat in                           microwave or on stove top.

FREEZING - pumpkin soup can be stored in airtight container & frozen for up to 6 months.   Thaw in fridge & reheat in microwave or over stove top. 

Homemade Vanilla Custard

I love homemade vanilla custard and yes... I have a thermomix to do it for me but I wanted to show you that it is so easy to make at home without a thermomix.  With minimal ingredients and only 15 mins, the end result is a beautiful custard that you can eat warm or cold poured over your favourite treat.  My favourite would have to be vanilla custard poured over sliced banana - YUM!!

Enjoy,
Amanda

HOMEMADE VANILLA CUSTARD
15 mins from start to finish

• 2 eggs
• 3 cups milk
• 3 Tbspn cornflour
• 3 Tbspn raw sugar (or any sugar you prefer)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

1. In a saucepan, add eggs, milk and cornflour.  Whisk together until smooth.

2. Over high heat, whisk the mixture until it starts to heat up.  Once the temp of the milk increases and the mixture starts to thicken, reduce to low/med heat and whisk until thick & creamy. This will take approx 7 mins. 

3. Remove from heat & whisk in sugar and vanilla.  Add extra sugar if you like it sweeter. 

4. Eat warm or place into a bowl & refrigerate until cold. To stop a skin from forming over the top, cover with cling wrap & let the cling wrap sit on the surface of the custard as show in the picture below.  When you remove from the fridge, it will be thick so you will need to give it a good whisk to remove any lumps & make it smooth & creamy.

Sugar free chocolate cupcakes

This is a new one for me that I have adapted from a Paleo recipe. They turned out fantastic which is great considering they have no butter and sugar - my main staples for a cupcake recipe. 

I substituted some ingredients for those that are readily available to everyone to make a simple recipe with ingredients in your pantry. 

I hope you enjoy them as much as my children did today.  I did drizzled them with chocolate icing though...

Enjoy,

Amanda

Sugar free chocolate cupcakes

• 1 ½ cups self raising flour
• ½ cup cocoa
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ cup coconut oil, melted
• 4 eggs
• ½ cup honey
• ½ cup hot water

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Line a 12 capacity cupcake tin with cases.

Step 2 - In a large bowl, sift flour, cocoa & baking powder.  Add coconut oil, egg, honey and hot water.  Beat with an electric mixer until very well combined.  The mixture will appear quite runny.

Step 3 - Pour the mixture into a jug.  This makes it easier to pour into the cupcakes.  Fill each case to ¾ full.  

Step 4 - Bake in preheated oven for 16 - 18 mins or until cooked through. 

Steak, onion & tomato pie

This is an easy pie recipe which can be thrown together before you head out for the day.  I make the filling in the slow cooker and it is ready to put into a pie by late afternoon.  Tonight, I couldn't be bothered turning it into a pie so the filling went straight from the slow cooker onto the plates and it was still a hit with my family.  An extremely simple yet tasty meal served with a plate of veges.

Enjoy
Amanda xx

Steak, onion and tomato pie

• 2 Tbspn flour
• 1kg chuck steak
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 400g tin tomatoes
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 ½Tbspn balsamic vinegar
• ½ cup beef stock
• Salt & pepper
• 2 Tbspn gravy powder

1. Add flour into bottom of slow cooker.

2. Dice steak into small pieces & add into slow cooker.  Toss to coat the meat in flour.

3. Add onion, tomatoes, thyme, vinegar & stock. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

4. Cook on high for 4 ½ hrs or low for 7 hrs or until meat is tender. At the end of cooking time, add gravy powder & stir until mixture thickens slightly.

5. Preheat oven to 200oC.

6. Transfer meat mixture from slow cooker into small dishes or one large dish.  Top with mashed potato (recipe below).

7. Bake in preheated oven for 20 mins or until the top has browned.


 Mashed potato:

3 large potatoes, peeled
¾ cup milk
1 ½ Tbspn butter


Dice potatoes into pieces approx. 1 ½ cm.  Boil in salted water until potatoes are tender.  Drain.  Add milk & butter & mash until smooth.

Gingerbread cakes

What a great combination of gingerbread biscuits and cake - gingerbread cakes.  Why not!!
They are delicious on their own but even better with lemon icing drizzled over them. They keep well in the freezer and can be popped into lunchboxes frozen as they will be thawed by lunch time and of course....perfect with a cup of tea.

Enjoy
Amanda

GINGERBREAD CAKES

• 125g butter, chopped
• ½ cup brown sugar, packed
• ½ cup maple/golden syrup
• ½ cup milk
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ cups self-raising flour, sifted
• 1 Tbspn ground ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Icing

• 1 cup icing sugar, sifted
• 1 Tbspn lemon juice
• 1 tsp water

Preheat oven to 160°C. Grease 12 muffin pan or line with cases.

In a large saucepan, add butter, sugar, maple syrup & milk. Stir over medium heat until ingredients are combined & sugar is dissolved.

Remove from heat & stir in bicarb soda.  Set aside to cool for 5 mins.

Add eggs & whisk until combined.

Sift in flour, ginger & cinnamon & whisk until smooth. Spoon into muffin cases & bake in preheated oven for 18 mins. Remove from oven & transfer to wire rack to cool.

Icing

Add icing sugar, lemon juice & water into a bowl & stir until smooth.  Drizzle over cakes & let sit for 10 mins to allow icing to set.

Trail mix bars

I experimented with these a few weeks ago and they turned out great!  My kids loved them as did others who tried them so I'd say that it is a winner for the school lunch box.  You could substitute the butter for peanut butter if you are making it for a home snack but for school lunch boxes - stick with ordinary butter.

Enjoy,
Amanda

Trail mix bars

• 100g butter
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 2 cups puffed rice
• 1 cup sultanas
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (85g)
• 1/2 cup bran cereal

Line a slice tin (18cm x 28cm) with baking paper.  Preheat oven to 180 degrees. 

In a saucepan, add butter and honey.  Melt over high heat then reduce the heat and allow to gentle boil for 2 mins.

In a large bowl, add sunflower seeds, puffed rice, sultanas, choc chips and bran cereal.  

Pour over butter and honey mix and stir to combine. Press down firmly.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 mins.  Remove from oven and refrigerate to set.  Cut into bars and keep in an airtight container in the fridge. 

Coconut chicken noodles

This is a great weeknight meal that features in my cookbook 'Food before 5'.  I love that it only takes about 25 mins from start to finish and is a healthy and delicious meal that can be tailored to suit your taste.  Use vegetables that are in season or replace the rice vermicelli noodles with your favourite type.  I have also made it with singapore noodles and rice stick noodles which both turn out well.

Enjoy,
Amanda

Chicken Coconut Noodles

• spray oil
• 500g chicken breast fillets, diced
• 2 tsp green curry paste
• 400ml tin light coconut milk
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 2 carrots, peeled & sliced
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 1/2 red capsicum, sliced
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 150g rice vermicelli noodles

1)   Spray the base of a large pot with oil.  Over high heat, brown the chicken.

2)    Stir in curry paste.  Add coconut milk & chicken stock.  

3)    Add veges and stir. Cover & cook over medium heat until veges are almost tender.

4)   Add noodles & cook for a few mins (or until soft).                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Absolutely delish & only 25 mins from start to finish!!  

Tonight I made it with rice stick noodles