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Saturday, November 07, 2009
It's FINALLY here people!
Ben and Jerry's opened this week in Manly! I've been twice already and it's just as chunky, teeth achingly sweet and delicious as I remember. Go people, go as soon as you can!
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- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Jamie Oliver's Sticky Chicken
Has anyone else made this? It's all over the blogasphere - if you haven't make sure you do. My Mom introduced me to this recipe a while ago and I finally made it again tonight.
The picture isn't prettybut it's a really tasty, satisfying meal. I served it with garlic spinach - a lovely healthy meal.
The recipe is here
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The picture isn't prettybut it's a really tasty, satisfying meal. I served it with garlic spinach - a lovely healthy meal.
The recipe is here
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Baking with the little man
My little man is really into cooking. At 17 months he loves standing on a chair in the kitchen with his Dad helping make omlettes. He's very good at stirring but can't be trusted with grated cheese.
I've been dying to do some baking with him - I've ordered some awesome cookie cutters and as soon as they arrive we are going to make some very cute gingerbread.
Today however we made cheese biscuits from one of my baby cookbooks. 'A' helped me roll out the dough and place the cutters. He would then lick each cutout and place it on the tray. These biscuits are ALL his!
The recipe is easy and the biscuits have a good cheese flavour but are a little tougher than others I've had -I think this is due in part to the wholemeal flour and partly to some very enthusiastic rolling! I might try them with half white flour next time. Little A liked them though.
Cheese Men - recipe adapted from Feed Me! by Gerri Dawes
50g chilled butter
50g grated cheese
100g wholemeal flour
1 egg yolk
Scant tsp of mustard
2-3 tsp of milk if needed
Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs
Add the cheese, mustard and egg. Start to draw the mixture together - add milk if necessary to firm a dough.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30 mins.
Roll out, cut into shapes and bake for 10 mins in a moderate oven.
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I've been dying to do some baking with him - I've ordered some awesome cookie cutters and as soon as they arrive we are going to make some very cute gingerbread.
Today however we made cheese biscuits from one of my baby cookbooks. 'A' helped me roll out the dough and place the cutters. He would then lick each cutout and place it on the tray. These biscuits are ALL his!
The recipe is easy and the biscuits have a good cheese flavour but are a little tougher than others I've had -I think this is due in part to the wholemeal flour and partly to some very enthusiastic rolling! I might try them with half white flour next time. Little A liked them though.
Cheese Men - recipe adapted from Feed Me! by Gerri Dawes
50g chilled butter
50g grated cheese
100g wholemeal flour
1 egg yolk
Scant tsp of mustard
2-3 tsp of milk if needed
Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs
Add the cheese, mustard and egg. Start to draw the mixture together - add milk if necessary to firm a dough.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30 mins.
Roll out, cut into shapes and bake for 10 mins in a moderate oven.
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Sunday, October 11, 2009
Fun supermarket find
Cranberry juice jelly anyone? Or ....ginger beer?
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- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
CHEESE!
Looong time between posts again people, sorry about that. I am going to try and remedy that. I've been cooking loads recently just not with my camera around or with the stamina after the meal to tell you about it.
Had to tell you about this though - I made cheese. Real honest to goodness yummy cheese. Mexican cheese.
My Mexican obession has continued unabated over the past year - we eat it at least weekly at the moment. I'm getting pretty good at substituting what I can find locally for the hard to find ingredients and have found sources for just about everything else (god bless the Internet and international shipping)
Mexican cheeses have been more difficult - we've more often than not just skipped them or used sour cream.
Last week Homesick Texan blogged about making queso fresco and I just had to give it a go.
It's ridiculously easy - heat full cream milk to about 90 degrees C or less technically till just before it boils and then add lime juice or vinegar to make curds. I used 2 litres of milk and 1/4 cup of white vinegar. Once the curds have seperated pour the whole lot into a colander lines with muslin. Salt generously and drain for a few hours.
The result is a mild, crumbly cheese that is great on enchiladas or toast with tomatoes. For more detailed instructions head over to Lisa's blog http://homesicktexan.blogspot.com/
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Had to tell you about this though - I made cheese. Real honest to goodness yummy cheese. Mexican cheese.
My Mexican obession has continued unabated over the past year - we eat it at least weekly at the moment. I'm getting pretty good at substituting what I can find locally for the hard to find ingredients and have found sources for just about everything else (god bless the Internet and international shipping)
Mexican cheeses have been more difficult - we've more often than not just skipped them or used sour cream.
Last week Homesick Texan blogged about making queso fresco and I just had to give it a go.
It's ridiculously easy - heat full cream milk to about 90 degrees C or less technically till just before it boils and then add lime juice or vinegar to make curds. I used 2 litres of milk and 1/4 cup of white vinegar. Once the curds have seperated pour the whole lot into a colander lines with muslin. Salt generously and drain for a few hours.
The result is a mild, crumbly cheese that is great on enchiladas or toast with tomatoes. For more detailed instructions head over to Lisa's blog http://homesicktexan.blogspot.com/
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Friday, July 24, 2009
Apps for food lovers!
I recently got myself a shiny new iphone (finally!) and am totally in love! I've been boring friends, family and colleagues with my raptures of joy so I won't bore you with the details, except to say I'm more organised, entertained and eating better than I did B.i. (before iphone)
I regularly use Epicurious for interesting ideas and recipes - it's very US-centric but I really like the reviews of each recipe. I have found some great recipes that are in regular rotation at my house. The free app from their website is a cut-down version but it's great - easy to search and save recipes and perfect for when I'm on the bus home trying to decide what's for dinner.
It has a tricky little function where if you turn the phone on its side it separates into 3 tabs - main (photo and description), ingredients, and preparation so when you've got the phone in the kitchen cooking you don't need to scroll through each stage - just tap! It also doesn't go into powersave mode when its in this function. Tricky.
Dinner tonight was Epicurious inspired - pasta with pumpkin, blue cheese and pecans. We are still trying to eat less meat so I substituted sweet roasted pumpkin for the chicken and used pecans as that's hat I had on hand.
I roasted cubes of pumpkin (about 1/2 a butternut), olive oil, fresh rosemary and pecans till the pumpkin was soft and just a little brown
Cook the pasta till al dente and drain. In the same saucepan I browned a small onion (diced) and then put the pasta back in, added a handful of rocket and 100g of crumbled blue cheese. Mix well so that the cheese melts and then serve topped with the pumkin mix.
It was good - I might even try it with the chicken next time
What apps are you using for cooking?
I regularly use Epicurious for interesting ideas and recipes - it's very US-centric but I really like the reviews of each recipe. I have found some great recipes that are in regular rotation at my house. The free app from their website is a cut-down version but it's great - easy to search and save recipes and perfect for when I'm on the bus home trying to decide what's for dinner.
It has a tricky little function where if you turn the phone on its side it separates into 3 tabs - main (photo and description), ingredients, and preparation so when you've got the phone in the kitchen cooking you don't need to scroll through each stage - just tap! It also doesn't go into powersave mode when its in this function. Tricky.
Dinner tonight was Epicurious inspired - pasta with pumpkin, blue cheese and pecans. We are still trying to eat less meat so I substituted sweet roasted pumpkin for the chicken and used pecans as that's hat I had on hand.
I roasted cubes of pumpkin (about 1/2 a butternut), olive oil, fresh rosemary and pecans till the pumpkin was soft and just a little brown
.
Cook the pasta till al dente and drain. In the same saucepan I browned a small onion (diced) and then put the pasta back in, added a handful of rocket and 100g of crumbled blue cheese. Mix well so that the cheese melts and then serve topped with the pumkin mix.
It was good - I might even try it with the chicken next time
What apps are you using for cooking?
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Please support my Half Marathon attempt and vital cancer research!
Hi everyone,
In a moment of madness a few weeks ago I put my hand up for the half marathon in the Sydney Running Festival which runs on September 20. I've just finished my second week of a 14 week training program with Can Too. I completed 8kms today - I've still got a long way to go but I'm determined to cross the finish line.
Can Too is a fantastic organisation that trains people like me for events to raise vital funds for Cure Cancer Australia so that they can provide grants to local scientists pursuing breakthrough cancer research here in Australia.
I’m asking you to sponsor my Half Marathon attempt to raise funds for this vital cancer research. My goal is to raise $2,000.
In a moment of madness a few weeks ago I put my hand up for the half marathon in the Sydney Running Festival which runs on September 20. I've just finished my second week of a 14 week training program with Can Too. I completed 8kms today - I've still got a long way to go but I'm determined to cross the finish line.
Can Too is a fantastic organisation that trains people like me for events to raise vital funds for Cure Cancer Australia so that they can provide grants to local scientists pursuing breakthrough cancer research here in Australia.
I’m asking you to sponsor my Half Marathon attempt to raise funds for this vital cancer research. My goal is to raise $2,000.
It’s easy to donate and it’s tax deductible. Just follow these simple steps:
- Go to www.cantoo.org.au
- On the menu bar click on Sponsor a Participant.
- On the drop down menu click on Online Sponsorship.
- Enter the surname of the participant you wish to sponsor (HAZELL). Click on Search.
- Tick the name of the person you wish to sponsor (Georgia Hazell) and enter your sponsorship amount (enter the amount in figures only i.e. 50.00).
- Click on Add Sponsorship.
- Enter your details. Click Submit.
After you’ve made your donation, you’ll receive an automatic notification via email that the sponsorship has been received along with a tax deductible receipt.
Thank you so much in advance for your support and generosity! I’ll let you know how I'm progressing and if/how I survive the day of madness!
Georgia
About Can Too
Can Too have trained more than 1,700 people while raising over $3,000,000 for cancer research since its inception in 2005. This has enabled 33 brilliant young researchers to strive for a cure!
About Cure Cancer Australia
Since 1967, Cure Cancer Australia have provided an essential link between the community and young Australian research scientists working in all areas of cancer at the start of their careers. Funding more research grants each year enables Australia’s brightest researchers to secure further funding, build on their ideas and continue their vital work in Australia. Thanks to the generosity of the community, Cure Cancer Australia’s mission is possible: to find a cure by supporting young scientists to deliver breakthrough cancer research.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Happy Birthday!
My little man turned one recently - I can't believe how quickly the last year has gone! From my little squidgy baby to a walking tornado of blond hair and giggles. We decided to throw a small party for him and my sister and I spent a lovely couple of hours baking a cake.
If you grew up in Australia in the 80's the preparations for your birthday would probably have included several hours poring over the Women's Weekly Children's Birthday Cake book. The agonizing decisions - the beautiful butterfly or the pink number seven! What about the candy castle?
The cake itself was simple - an orange scented butter cake, covered with a thick layer of butter icing. The most time consuming part was putting the smarties on - the smarties were distinctly less vividly coloured and glossy than I remembered from my childhood but the effect was still fun
We also made chocolate crackles to complete the nostalgia trip - they were as popular at my office the next day as they were at the birthday party. Happy birthday little man! What cake shall we do next year?
If you grew up in Australia in the 80's the preparations for your birthday would probably have included several hours poring over the Women's Weekly Children's Birthday Cake book. The agonizing decisions - the beautiful butterfly or the pink number seven! What about the candy castle?
When the little man was born I bought a copy of the original 80's version from Ebay - it's has dated a little but my sister and I had a lovely afternoon deciding which cake to cook. We eventually decided on the classic number one - yellow butter icing and smarties.
The cake itself was simple - an orange scented butter cake, covered with a thick layer of butter icing. The most time consuming part was putting the smarties on - the smarties were distinctly less vividly coloured and glossy than I remembered from my childhood but the effect was still fun
We also made chocolate crackles to complete the nostalgia trip - they were as popular at my office the next day as they were at the birthday party. Happy birthday little man! What cake shall we do next year?
Monday, March 09, 2009
A road trip to Victoria
The family and I have just arrived home from a road trip to Victoria - 2 weeks of exploring, camping (pretty challenging with a 9 month old!) and eating. We caught up with family and friends and generally had a great holiday. Apart from a roast we cooked with my sister in Melbourne we ate pretty standard camping fare although there were some spectacular food highlights when we ate out.
On the Mornington Peninsula we went wine tasting and ate lunch at a couple of the local wineries. We had a lovely Italian meal at the restaurant attached to T'Gallant winery - it was lovely place to sit and overlook the vines with a glass of wine and some food.
We also had a great French meal at La Petanque. No photos due the time spent trying to wrangle a small child into to his highchair and keep him there - it required 2 pairs of hands and G had to relinquish a fairly large portion of his pork belly and parsnip mash to a hungry little mouth!
After a weekend in Melbourne with my sister we drove further south to the Great Ocean Road and stayed in Lorne for a few days. It drizzled pretty much everyday we were there but we braved the weather and took a day trip to the Gentle Annie Berry farm.
On the Mornington Peninsula we went wine tasting and ate lunch at a couple of the local wineries. We had a lovely Italian meal at the restaurant attached to T'Gallant winery - it was lovely place to sit and overlook the vines with a glass of wine and some food.
We also had a great French meal at La Petanque. No photos due the time spent trying to wrangle a small child into to his highchair and keep him there - it required 2 pairs of hands and G had to relinquish a fairly large portion of his pork belly and parsnip mash to a hungry little mouth!
After a weekend in Melbourne with my sister we drove further south to the Great Ocean Road and stayed in Lorne for a few days. It drizzled pretty much everyday we were there but we braved the weather and took a day trip to the Gentle Annie Berry farm.
This was a great day - the farm is a family run affair and has a cafe and produce store. After paying for a "Gobbler's pass" we were let loose on the berries to pick and eat to our hearts desire.
We picked (read ate) our way through several varieies of strawberries and rasberries, thornless blackberries and nashi - we even managed to pick enough to fill a small punnet and then retired to the cafe to eat pie. Bliss..... if you are down that way I highly reccomend a trip to Gentle Annie farm.
We picked (read ate) our way through several varieies of strawberries and rasberries, thornless blackberries and nashi - we even managed to pick enough to fill a small punnet and then retired to the cafe to eat pie. Bliss..... if you are down that way I highly reccomend a trip to Gentle Annie farm.
Sunday, February 08, 2009
Soba salad with miso dressing
This recipe came via Kate at Veggie Friendly - it's filling, flexible and the dressing is to die for. On a whim I bought a shiso plant from the Japanese supermarket and then realised I haven't really cooked with shiso before. A quick search brought this recipe up and it's a keeper.
Soba salad with miso dressing
200g soba
mixed salad leaves
steamed green vegetables (broccoli, snow peas, beans etc)
Marinated tofu
300g firm tofu
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup boiling water
1 clove garlic
1 tsp grated ginger
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp Chinese 5 spice
1/2 tsp ground chilli
For the dressing
1 dessert spoon sesame oil
1 dessert spoon rice wine vinegar
2 dessert spoons tamari
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup light miso stock
Make up the marinade and slice the tofu into thick slices. Marinate the tofu for at least 30 mins.
Boil the soba according the packet directions - drain and rinse with cold water.
Steam the green vegetables till cooked but still crisp.
Make up the dressing by mixing all the ingredients - for the light miso stock I used a good teaspoon of miso in a 1/4 cup of hot water with 1/2 a teaspoon of dashi stock powder.
Grill the tofu till heated through and then assemble the salad together and mix the dressing through
.
We are looking forward to more interesting vege meals - is anyone knows any good cookbooks or sites for new recipes all suggestions will be gratefully received!
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