inner pickle

nutso

 

It was Henry's first day back at school today and Tilly announced it would be her special day too. To qualify, it had to involve: making gingerbread men, picking flowers, painting a rainbow, and peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. 

I've been feeling a bit guilty about my middle child this week. There's been a lot of requests for craft and a story here and there and play-with-me's that have gone unrequited. 

What the heck. The washing, the cleaning, the tidying up - it'll all still be there tomorrow. Why not have a day painting rainbows. 

We flew through the list up until I discovered we were out of peanut butter. I usually make our own (have you tried it? dead easy and DELICIOUS.) And I had a few different nuts I wanted to try out. 

So we made peanut, almond and brazil nut butter. PAB butter. No, not very catchy. Yummy though. 

 

Here's how it goes. 

 

Peanut, Almond and Brazil Nut Butter

Ingredients:

1 cup natural peanuts

½ cup raw almonds

½ cup raw brazil nuts

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp peanut oil

Method:

Roast all the nuts either in a dry heavy based fry pan or in the oven for 5 minutes or until golden. We used peanut kernels today which had a husk - we got most (OK, some) of the husks off after they'd cooled down but got bored and just threw them in, husks and all. More fibre.

Put the nuts and the salt into a food processor and process for at least five minutes. It's clattering and loud and noisy but it takes at least this long for the oils to start coming out of the nuts and the mix to start clumping. 

Then slowly add your peanut oil - you might not need 2 whole tbsp. We like ours really spreadable, but you don't have to use oil at all if you like it thickish. 

That's it. 

 

Tilly likes hers on sandwiches. 

I think it's gorgeous on hot toast. 

 

I could pretend we ate these nicely at the table. With placemats. Maybe even napery.

We didn't.

Another essential Tilly-declared element to a special day? A tent in the middle of the kitchen. 

Happy days. 

xxx

quick and easy Frittata recipe

I wonder what your go-to recipes are? 

Mine all changed when I gradually turned vegetarian during pregnancy and found I just couldn't  serve up sausages or spaghetti bolognaise or steamed chicken, which the kids would always eat. 

We've expanded our repertoire and I now have a good handful of dinners I know the kids will eat without argument. You know, the dinner you want to make after you've had a run of meals where all the small people are sitting around saying "I'm not a fan of this." (My Mum taught them this last time she stayed, after some small person looked at their dinner plate and said "I hate this". It's a much better put down, I find!)

On the go-to list we have lentil bolognese, pumpkin soup and pasta baked in béchamel with grated carrot and zucchini. They love bean nachos, bean-based shepherds pie, different types of risotto and homemade pizzas. 

I love a quick egg-based dinner. Frittata, omelette, scrambled eggs, boiled eggs with toast soldiers. Only one smallie likes eggs - Henry doesn't 'do' eggs. Shame. 

Nonetheless, last night was a go-to dinner: cauliflower soup. And for those who like eggs: frittata. Super quick and totally delicious. 

Frittata

Ingredients:

4 eggs

half cup milk

half cup grated cheese

1 onion, finely chopped

3 medium potatoes

handful of cherry tomatos, halved

bunch of asparagus

salt and pepper

 

Method:

In a bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and cheese. Add the onion. 

Peel, slice and cook your potatoes (I steam mine). 

Pour the egg mix into a greased baking dish and lay the cooked potatoes on top. Place the tomoatos over the top and lie the asparagus on top too. Season. 

Cook in a moderate oven (180C) for about 20 mins or until golden and set firm. 

 

Do you have dinners that there are no arguments about at your place?

(We should start a database!)

xxx 

 

P.S. The comments yesterday were (again) the best thing about the post. So many thoughtful ideas - if you haven't read them, go back! You are the most intelligent and interesting readers out there. Thank you. xx

weekendiness

Saturday brunch: homemade grainy toast with grilled haloumi, eggplant and field mushrooms with coriander.

So delicious.

See, you don't need bacon! (Can someone tell Henry?)

Have a wonderful weekend, gorgeous people. 

xxx

Roast tomato and rocket quiche recipe

Do you eat your leftover quiche warm or cold? I like it warm. Adam likes it cold. This one I'm pretty happy with so thought you might like it too!

INGREDIENTS

2 cups plain flour

125g butter, chopped

3 eggs yolks

3 tblsp water

4 large tomatos

4 (more) eggs

2 tblsp ricotta

1½ cups rocket

½ a leek

handful of fresh basil

pinch salt

½ cup milk

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

For the pastry:

Process the flour, butter and a pinch of salt until fine crumbs form. Add yolks and water and process until it comes together. Knead till smooth then wrap in cling wrap and pop into fridge for 10 mins.

Then roll out on a floured surface and line a quiche flan tin (ideally with a removable base).  Trim edges and put back into fridge for half an hour (if you have the time. It'll be OK if you don't & put the filling in straight away. Just better if refrigerated.)

For the filling:

Cut your tomatoes in half, sprinkle with salt and drizzle with olive oil and roast for 15 mins in a moderate oven. Take out and let them cool a bit.

In a bowl mix with a fork the four eggs with the ricotta, rocket, leek (finely chopped), basil, salt and milk.

Place the tomatoes in the bottom of the pastry. Pour over the rest of the mix. Sprinkle cheese over the top and bake for approx 30 mins on 190 degrees or until golden and cooked.

Very good the following day (warm or cold, whatever you like.)

Have a lovely weekend!

xxx

beans, beans, good for your heart

I'll slow down on the you-have-to-try-this-food-from-scratch! business soon I promise.

I don't have that many new ideas.

I'm just a hungry pregnant lady at present. That's my excuse. 

So: baked beans!

What kid doesn't love baked beans? Well actually I didn't. I don't think I even tried them till I was about 19 and at university and when baked beans and two minute noodles seemed to be adequate nutrition. In total. Maybe with vegemite toast as a back up. Been there, anyone?

Anyway, I now love them. The smallies love them. So I make them. Here's my recipe:

Homemade Baked Beans

INGREDIENTS

375g (approx) of dried beans. Navy beans best (also sold as Great Northern Beans here in Australia), cannelini beans good too - this is what I used this time (photo) as I hadn't been to my awesome Italian grocer who stocks big bags of dry navy beans. 

2 finely diced onions

6 tomatoes, pureed in blender

2 tsp Dijon mustard

3 tsp tomato paste

1 tbsp brown sugar

METHOD

Soak your beans overnight then rinse and cook for about 30 minutes on the stove, covered with fresh water.

Saute onion in a little oil in a heavy based saucepan then add your tomatoes, mustard, tomato paste and brown sugar. Cook for a minute then add in the beans and put a lid on it and cook it (on low) for about another 40 minutes. 

Loving the beans. 

Hope you're having a good week? 

xxx

day off

Yesterday, in fact. Usually a work day but had a scheduled physiotherapist appointment so worked today instead. So, a day off! Henry at school and Tilly at daycare. Deeeeep exhalation of breath. 

And off to Spotlight to see if I could track down more of that lovely bird fabric in Tilly's skirt... nope, sold out. But they think they'll get more in and if they do I'm going in for all of us!!!

Anyway, found a few other treats (have I just outed myself as a TOTAL dork? a day off and I'm happily wandering around a budget fabric shop?)

 That top one is a gorgeous muslin, I'm thinking baby wraps...

 

And the bright stripes is a soft, soft flannel, for PJ pants for Miss Tilly...

Ooh and some ric rac, maybe for the bottom of the next skirt...

And these are going to become number 20 on my left-hand-side new things list!

And one of the most lovely things about a day off? A slow, relaxed lunch. Although I'm quite fond of the work lunch, wandering around with my fabulous work buddies searching out sandwiches and stir-fries. But at home, alone, it's very peaceful. A good moment for these:

Corn cakes with sweet chilli, tomato and avocado salsa.

I didn't make these specially, just for myself. I had the mix from dinner two nights before.

In my corn cakes, if anyone wants to know:

2 cups plain flour

1 dessertspoon baking powder

2 eggs

1 cups milk

1 tblsp melted butter

1 chopped red capsicum

2/3 cup sliced spring onions

1/2 cup fresh chopped basil and coriander

corn off 4 freshly cooked cobs 

Mix it all up. Whack them in a frypan. Serve with sweet chilli sauce and a bit of salad.

So fresh and yummy.  

This recipe is a mashed version of Bill Granger's corn fritters (a tad too frittery for me) and my favorite Nigella flapjack recipe.  

It was such a relaxing day I somehow managed to end up with a migraine. And of course no medication for a pregnant lady. Pretty happy about that really. 

Anyway, got a bit of relaxed and therapeutic knitting done before the headache hit, which I'll share over the weekend. 

Hope you had a wonderful week and have a fun long weekend planned if you are an Australian celebrating ANZAC day. 

See you over the weekend!

xxx

the fun police

Something my friend Estelle wrote in my comments on an earlier post today made me stop and think: am I a Food Nazi? 

Estelle was commenting on the effect of food colouring on the output of children (oh yes, in so many ways), and I was thinking about Henry's birthday in August.

We went to a children's birthday party recently that had lots of great kid-friendly food, mostly home made, but the little bit of sugar that was there was leapt upon and the kids predictably went a little bit crazy.

I had blithely promised myself that we'd have a sugar/additive free party when Henry's comes around. Will his friends ever come back, do you think? 

I should mention too, the chocolate slice (previous post) is of course not recommended for children! I've boxed the remainder of mine up to take to work (to send my workmates into a sugar coma) and Henry and Tilly got puny 1cm squares today as a highly negotiated reward for not tearing the doctors surgery apart after hanging out in the waiting room for about 50 minutes again. 

(Trip for Tilly this time. Ear infection. Lovely. Lets talk more about food.)

Anyway, I'm prepared to be unpopular.

The only way you'll get your kids to eat lots of fresh fruit and snack on quiche is to offer it to them, and not offer them too many alternatives. Of course they'll choose a pretzel over a carrot. I would too. 

It becomes harder when you're out though, right? I have been known to remove seaweed crackers from my children's hands on the way to their mouths (they're full of MSG.) Definite Food Nazi tendencies.

I reckon just offer them as much fantastic food as you can. This is my strategy anyway. If you teach them to love food that looks good, smells good, feels good, and tastes like real food, that's probably the best you can do.  

Here's one. Quiche. Lovely for lunch, delightful for dinner, awesome in a lunchbox.

First: pastry. I know the sheets of pastry you can buy are pretty good. But the pastry you make yourself is much much better.

One thing Nigella (as in, Lawson) does really well is pastry.

Here's her shortcrust which I made yesterday for the base. It sounds like a faff, and it obviously takes longer than defrosting a sheet of Pampas, but damn it tastes good.

Pastry (from How to Be A Domestic Goddess):

250g plain flour (she suggests Italian 00)

125g cold unsalted butter, cubed

2 egg yolks

2 tblsp iced weater

1 heaped tsp salt

1 tblsp caster sugar

Put flour and butter on a dish and put into freezer for 10 mins. Stir together yolks, water & salt in a cup and put cup into fridge. When time's up, tip the flour & butter into your food processor, add the sugar and pulse to combine. You want a soft crumbly mass. Bind with the yolks, water & salt and when it looks like on the verge of coming together tip the pastry out and wodge together with your hands. ('Wodge' is such a Nigella word. I'm sure she made it up.) Wrap in clingwrap and put in fridge to rest. 

I let it rest about 15 mins then rolled mine out, spread it over my quiche tin, and then blind baked it on 180 deg for about 15 mins.

For my quiche filling I used:

1 onion, finely chopped

250g rindless bacon finely chopped

10 free range eggs

3 tblsp cream

salt & pepper

big handful fresh chopped basil

Fry the onion in a little olive oil in a pan until translucent. Add the bacon and stir until cooked. 

In a bowl beat your eggs and the cream together well. Add the seasoning, the herbs and the onion and bacon. 

Pour into your blind baked pastry and cook for about 25 mins at 180 deg. 

Good stuff.

xxx