Chicken, Feta & Pomegranate Salad

My friend Ruth introduced me to this delicious salad and I love love love it!  If you haven't tried pomegranate before - do it.  Those little bursts of sweetness are amazing and a perfect mix with the chicken and feta.  The crunch of the nuts makes for another texture - you could also use almonds instead.

The best bit about this - it takes 10 minutes max to prepare!  How's that for a weeknight win?!?  And just 280 calories per serve.

Make it soon while it's still Summer - and get all the fresh ingredients from Charlie's Fruit Market!

Ingredients (serves 4)
50g baby spinach
300g barbecue chicken, chopped (or use poached chicken breast)
100g feta cheese, crumbled
50g walnuts, chopped
Seeds of 1 pomegranate (see tip below)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Method
Toss all ingredients together and drizzle with balsamic.

Tip:  the easiest way to remove pomegranate seeds (thanks Masterchef!) - slice in half along the width and hold it in one hand, with the cut side down, over a medium bowl.  Take a spoon with your other hand and bang the pomegranate with the back of the spoon.  All the little arils just fall out into the bowl :-)

Caramelized Onion & Mozzarella Gozleme

I've previously posted this gozleme recipe here, but I have a new, delicious flavour to share!  I got the inspiration from seeing them sold at some markets recently and it didn't disappoint!  A perfect weekend meal to share with friends :-)

I've halved the original recipe here - it still makes 4 good-sized gozleme. Experiment with your own flavours and let me know!  The picture above is the caramel used onion as well as the spinach & feta - made, of course, with the freshest ingredients from Charlie's Fruit Market.

Ingredients
Olive oil spray
2 large onions, sliced
3 cloves black garlic, sliced (see footnote*)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
250g self-raising flour
200g Greek yoghurt
100g mozzarella cheese, grated

Method
Heat a frying pan over medium heat and spray with oil.  Add onion and garlic and cook stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes until quite soft and brown.  Add spices and cook for one minute.  Add vinegar and cook for about another 10 minutes, until dark and soft.

Meantime, make the dough:  mix the flour and yoghurt together.  Knead for 2-3 minutes on a floured surface.  Break into 4 equal pieces and roll into balls.  Use a rolling pin to roll into 25cm circles.  Spread onion mixture evenly onto half of each circle and sprinkle with mozzarella.  Fold over and press edges together.  Spray both sides with oil.

Preheat frying pan to medium.  Cook gozleme for a few minutes each side, until brown and "eyes" appear.  Slice and serve.

*Black garlic is an amazing product I'd never even heard of, until introduced to it by Charlie's Fruit Market.  It is similar to regular garlic, but has a much milder, sweeter taste.  It is also softer.  It's perfect for adding that extra flavour, without the strong hit of garlic or the after taste.  Give it a go!

An exciting new partnership!

I'm SO excited to announce a partnership my little old blog is starting with Charlie's Fruit Market!

For all the Brisbane/South-East Queensland readers, they are based at Everton Park and have a fantastic store with great quality produce.  They have started advertising on 96five, the radio station I work for, and are on board with Mums in the Kitchen to bring you more easy, healthy, tasty, quick and family-friendly recipes.

They do next-day delivery to the whole region and are a wonderful family-owned business.

Check out their website here and their Facebook page here - make sure you "like" it, because they are always doing giveaways of wonderful produce and vouchers.

So stay tuned for some exciting new recipes, made with the freshest & tastiest ingredients from Charlie's! xo

Play Dough #2 (no cream of tartar)

A couple of weeks ago, I promised Little Miss we would play with play dough - then realised we had none on hand.  That's not really a problem, considering it's so easy make (I've previously shared a recipe here) - but this time, I realised I had no cream of tartar!  So I did a little search and found this recipe - it turned out great - crisis averted!

Ingredients
1 cup plain flour
1/4 cup salt
3 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice
2 Tablespoons of oil
1/2 cup of boiling water
Food colouring

Method
Mix the dry ingredients together.

Combine boiling water with vinegar, oil and food colouring.

Pour into the dry ingredients and mix until it forms a playdough texture.

Spinach & Feta Muffins

I adapted this one from www.taste.com.au and really liked this recipe.  You could add other herbs/spices - chilli flakes would be nice if it's not for the kids.  It's nice to have a savoury alternative to the usual sweet baking, and they're a great lunchbox option too.

Ingredients
25g unsalted butter
200ml milk
100g baby spinach leaves (or 100g frozen spinach, thawed)
1 2/3 cup (250g) plain flour
1 tbs baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 teaspoons dried herbs (I used basil & oregano)

1/2 teaspoon paprika
2/3 cup (50g) finely grated parmesan or tasty cheese
1 egg
100g danish feta, crumbled
cherry tomatoes (optional)

Method
Preheat oven to 190°C. Lightly grease 8 holes of a muffin pan. Heat butter and milk in a pan over medium heat. Add the spinach and stir for 1 minute until wilted. Remove from heat, cool slightly, then blend until smooth.

Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl, along with herbs and spices. Add parmesan, egg and spinach mixture. Crumble in cheese, then stir gently until just combined. Fill pans with mixture. If using tomatoes, prick several times, then place one in centre of each muffin. 

Bake for 20 minutes or until muffins are risen and cooked through. Turn out onto a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm.

Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Brownies

I know there are plenty of you out there with food intolerances/allergies, so here's one for everyone!  You wouldn't even know these don't have gluten or dairy - they are delicious and super easy to make.  Slightly adapted from a Super Food Ideas recipe.

Ingredients
1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup self-raising gluten-free flour (I used Orgran brand)
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
150g nuttelex, melted

Method
Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 4cm-deep, 20cm x 30cm (base) slab pan. Line with baking paper, allowing a 2cm overhang at both long ends.

Sift flours, baking powder and cocoa into a large bowl. Add sugar. Stir to combine. Make a well in the centre. Add eggs and melted butter to flour mixture. Using a metal spoon, mix until just smooth.

Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out with crumbs clinging.

Remove from oven. Allow to cool in pan. Lift from pan. Cut into squares.

Chickpea, Pumpkin & Feta Salad

Super easy, super tasty, quick, cheap & healthy - this one ticks all the boxes!

Ingredients (serves 4)
500g pumpkin, cubed
1 red onion, chopped
olive oil spray
1/2 tablespoon Moroccan seasoning
400g can chickpeas
200g low-fat feta

Method
Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius.

Spread pumpkin and onion on a lined oven tray and spray with olive oil.  Sprinkle with seasoning.

Bake for about 30 minutes, until tender and golden.

Combine chickpeas, feta with pumpkin & onion.  Serve.

Red Velvet Cake

My wonderful husband Dean is celebrating his birthday today - coinciding with Valentine's Day.  What better excuse to get the apron on and get baking!  We had a family celebration on the weekend, where I made him a novelty cake (I'll share that one soon!), but I wanted to make a special treat that he could take to work today.  I couldn't go past a gorgeous, rich, Red Velvet Cake.

I've previously made Red Velvet Cupcakes (recipe here), but looked around a bit to see if it was much different to making a full cake.  It's basically the same, but I did use a slightly different recipe, which I found at this gorgeous little blog here.

I actually make one whole cake (rather than splitting into two tins) and just cut it after it had been baked.  The cream cheese icing is a must - it is so creamy and delicious!  The template I used on top came from the latest Good Taste Magazine - I just sifted plain cocoa powder over the top.

This is an indulgence that's totally worth it!  Enjoy!

Ingredients
2 ½ cups sifted plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
30ml red food colouring (Queen’s Pillar Box Red is great!)
115g unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ cups caster sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda
250g cream cheese, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups icing sugar, sifted

Method
Preheat oven to 180C. Grease two 22cm cake tins with softened butter and line base and sides with baking paper.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a smaller bowl, mix food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste without lumps and set aside.

In a large bowl, using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as you go.

Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beat well, then beat in half of the buttermilk. Beat in another third of flour mixture, then second half of buttermilk. End with the last third of the flour mixture, beat until well combined, making sure to scrape down the bowl with a spatula.

In a deep, small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda (it will bubble and fizz). Add vinegar mixture to the cake batter and stir through quickly until combined.

Divide the batter equally between the two tins – I weighed the cake tins using my scales, to make sure the batter split was equal. Place tins in your preheated oven. Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, rotating tins halfway through.

The cakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool the cake in their tins on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Unmould the cake, place it top side down on the wire rack, and allow to cool completely before icing.

To ice:  Layer the two halves of cake with some icing in between.  Spread remaining icing on top and decorate as desired.

Valentine's Day Biscuits

The kids and I whipped up these cute little biscuits to take to Mainly Music this week.  We also packaged some up to give to their Nanas for Valentine's Day.

They are made using my old faithful Spice Biscuits recipe, originally found here - I always get comments about what a delicious biscuit they are!

I used Pillar Box Red colouring for the icing and I love how they turned out.

Give a sweet treat to your sweet heart tomorrow!

Ingredients:125g butter, softened
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup golden syrup
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1/2 teaspoon ground clove

Icing
1 egg white, beaten lightly
1 1/2 cups icing sugar
2 teaspoons plain flour
2 teaspoons lemon juice (approx)
food colouring


Method:
Beat butter, sugar and egg with electric mixer until combined.  Stir in syrup and sifted dry ingredients, in two batches.

Knead dough until smoothe, then roll out between sheets of baking paper until 5mm thick.  Pop in the fridge for about half an hour. 

Cut shapes from dough and place on trays lined with baking paper.  Bake for about 15 minutes, at 150 degrees or 130 degrees fan-forced.

Cool on trays or a wire rack.  Spread with icing and set at room temperature.

Icing: 
Place egg white in small bowl, stir in half the sifted icing sugar; add remaining sifted icing sugar, flour and enough juice to make a thick spreadable icing.  Tint icing with colouring.

More Kids Food Ideas

Sometimes the presentation can make a big difference!  There's nothing ground-breaking about these snacks, but they look bright and fun in Tupperware sandwich keepers, with silicone cupcake moulds!

I've posted previously about sometimes getting stuck in a lunch rut when it comes to feeding the kids.  Here's some of my ideas here.

So I've put together a few more that might help give you a bit of inspiration.

These mini pizza cups are so easy!  Just flatten some bread with a rolling pin, chop of the crusts and press it into a muffin pan.  Put in some fillings - these ones are salami, tomato, cheese and corn - and bake for about 10 minutes in a moderate oven.  Other fillings could be ham, egg, tuna, capsicum, peas, grated carrot, or mushroom.

Make this mini sandwich scrolls by chopping off the crusts, flattening the bread and spreading with topping.  I used cooked chicken, mayonnaise and corn.  Roll up then cut into pieces.

Don't waste the crusts!  I just sprinkled over some grated cheese and melted it in the microwave - called them cheese sticks and they were gone in no time!

Carrot & Apricot Cakes

My mum made these for a recent family dinner and they were so good I begged her for the recipe - which she'd gotten from the side of the Coles brand SR flour packet!  They are just delicious - check out the tips at the bottom for some other variations :-)

Ingredients

2 cups self-raising flour

2 cups grated carrot

1 cup caster sugar

1 cup flaked almonds (3/4 cup crushed or chopped, 1/4 cup whole for decoration, toasted)

1/2 cup dried apricot, chopped, plus 1/3 cup chopped for decoration

3 extra large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

3/4 cup oil (vegetable, sunflower or light olive)

Icing

250g lite cream cheese, softened

25g butter, softened

2/3 cup icing sugar, sifted

2 teaspoons orange juice

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius/160 degrees fan-forced.

Combine flour, carrot, sugar, almond and apricots.  In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients.  Pour onto dry ingredients and mix until combined.

Spoon mixture into regular muffin pan, lined with paper cases.  Bake for 15-20 minutes, until puffed and golden.  Remove and cool.

For icing: beat cream cheese and butter in a small bowl until smooth.  Beat in icing sugar and oragne juice.  Spread icing over muffins and top with extra toasted almonds and apricot.

Tip: you can substitute sultanas for the apricots, or cinnamon, mixed spice or finely grated orange rind for the vanilla.  Any nuts can be used in place of the almonds.

Caramel Mudcake

This is a deliciously indulgent cake - perfect as a dessert or rich alternative to a standard cake.  I love caramel, so I really enjoyed it - thanks to www.taste.com.au for the recipe.  This picture is actually used in a published ebook novel, called "8 Slices of Cake", co-authored by an old school friend - so there's your trivia for the day!  If you want to check it out, here's the link!

Ingredients
Melted butter, to grease
200g butter, cubed
200g white chocolate, chopped
200g (1 cup, firmly packed) dark brown sugar
180ml (3/4 cup) hot water
1 tbs golden syrup
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs, at room temperature
150g (1 cup) plain flour
150g (1 cup) self-raising flour

Icing

125g butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

1/2 tablespoon golden syrup

Preheat oven to 160°C. Brush a round 22cm (base measurement) cake pan with melted butter. Line base and side with non-stick baking paper.

Place butter, chocolate, sugar, water, golden syrup and vanilla essence in a heavy-based saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat with a wooden spoon for 5 mins or until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Set aside for 20 mins to cool.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift combined flours over chocolate mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined.

Pour mixture into pan and bake in preheated oven for 50-60 mins or until a skewer comes out almost clean. Stand cake for 20 mins before turning onto a wire rack to cool.

Meanwhile, make icing: beat butter in a medium bowl until light and fluffy.  Add half the icing sugar and beat until well combined.  Add the golden syrup and beat.  Add remaining icing sugar and beat again.

Cut cake in half horizontally.  Spread middle with icing.  Top the the rest of the cake and ice on top.  Serve.

Little Mr having a turn at stirring...

...and not happy when it's big sister's turn!

Chewy Cereal Slice

Ingredients
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
125g butter
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup rice bubbles
4 weet-bix, crashend
1 cup desiccated coconut
1/2 cup dried fruit (I used sultanas - apricots would also be nice)
1/4 cup sesame seeds

Method
Combine brown sugar, honey, peanut butter and butter in a saucepan.  Bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

In a bowl, combine remaining ingredients and mix well.  Add wet ingredients from the saucepan and mix well.

Put into a slice pan lined with baking paper.  Press down firmly with the base of a flat-bottomed glass.

Refrigerate for about an hour.  Slice and serve.

One Ingredient Ice Cream

I saw this recipe on Facebook and knew I just had to try it!  It really is so simple and you WILL be amazed!!!  The original recipe is found here at The Kitchn - check it out for more delicious varieties!  The one pictured is Peanut Butter & Honey - wow!  The kids loved it (as did the husband!) and I'll definitely be experimenting with more flavours.

Ingredients
Banana

Method
Take one or more ripe bananas.  Peel, then chop into chunks.  Put in a container then freeze.

Once frozen, place banana in a food processor.  Process until smooth and creamy.  Add flavours if desired (eg peanut butter & honey, nutella, spices, cocoa).  Serve.

Beef with Thai Sweet Basil

I had a bit of a craving for some good Thai, so found this recipe in a book I have called "A Little Taste of Thailand".  I really loved it and was amazed at how quick and easy it was.  It was actually quicker to make than it would've been to order from our local Thai takeaway, and just as delicious.  I was very disappointed that the basil I bought earlier in the week was slimy and yuck by the time I made this, so I used coriander instead, which was still delicious - but I know the basil would be extra nice!  You could easily serve it with rice, but we had it as is and it was more than filling enough - and just 235 calories per serve!

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 tablespoon fish sauce

3 tablespoons oyster sauce

4 tablespoons vegetable stock

1/2 teaspoon sugar

olive oil sprays

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 bird's eye chillies, lightly crushed with the side of a cleaver

500g beef, finely sliced

1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges

200g green beans, trimmed

1/2 red capsicum, sliced

2 handfuls of Thai sweet basil leaves

Method

Mix the fish sauce, oyster sauce, stock and sugar in a small bowl.

Spray the oil in the wok and stir-fry half the garlic over a medium heat until light brown.  Add half the crushed chillies and half the meat and stir-fry over a high heat for 2-3 minutes or until the meat is cooked.  Remove from the wok and repeat with the remaining garlic, chillies and meat.  Return all the meat to the wok.

Add the onion and the fish sauce mixture and stir-fry for another minute.

Add the basil leaves and stir-fry until the basil begins to wilt.  Serve.

Rice Bubble and Sultana Biscuits

It's been a wild week of weather for Queensland - I know in my local area, many homes have been affected by floodwaters and the clean-up will be massive.  As a mum with small kids, it's easy to feel like there's nothing much you can really do - we can't just don the gum boots and shovels and get out there with the "Mud Army".  But there is something we can do - Baked Relief!

This is an amazing movement started after the 2011 by Danielle Crismani.  Essentially, it's all about getting food out to the flood victims and amazing teams of volunteers, who are working tirelessly to get our city (and state) back on track.

This whole situation has been a bit hard for my almost-three-year-old to get her head around.  But to actually get her involved in the process and explain what we were doing, has really given her a lot more understanding.  She loved taking the biscuits down to our local drop-off point and was really proud of being able to help.

Here's a perfect Baked Relief recipe (taken from www.bestrecipes.com.au) - super quick, easy, great for the kids to help out, and a great little energy-boosting snack for all the hard-working flood recovery crews.

Keep up the great work everyone!  And hear our radio chat about Baked Relief below :-)

Ingredients
1 cup self-raising flour
1 cup Rice Bubbles
1 cup coconut
½ cup sultanas
¾ cup caster sugar
125 g butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten

Method
Place flour, Rice Bubbles, coconut, sultanas and sugar in a bowl.  Stir in butter and egg, mix well.

Roll level tablespoonfuls of mixture into balls.  Place about 6 cm apart on lightly greased trays.  Flatten biscuits slightly with a fork.

Bake at 180°C for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.


Here's Liam & Robbie's verdict on the Baked Relief bikkies...

Damper

I have really fond memories of eating damper around the campfire while camping as a kid - so I was really excited to try this out for Barbecue Week!  I did some comparing of recipes and realised if I was going to do it on the barbecue, I'd need one with a hood - but I don't!  So, this version is cooked in the oven.  Another great idea is to twist "snakes" of dough around sticks and cook it over an open fire - yum!  My personal preference for damper is to serve warm with lashings of butter & golden syrup - but you could just as easily have it savoury with Vegemite (how Aussie is that?!?), cheese, or basically any sandwich topping!  My Aunty gave me this recipe and I love it!

Ingredients
2 cups self-raising flour
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon salt
50g butter
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup water

Method
Preheat oven to 180°C.

Mix together the dry ingredients.

Melt butter in saucepan and add milk and water (do not boil).  This could also be done in the microwave.

Add the liquid to the flour and mix well.

Knead for 5 minutes.

Shape into a flattened ball and place on a lined baking tray or in a cake tin (I used my silicone Kugelhopf and loved the shape!)

Bake for 40 minutes.

Barbecued Cajun Chicken Wraps

This recipe was based from one on the packet of McCormick's Cajun Spice - I altered it a bit and it was a huge hit with the family!  I did find the Cajun a bit too spicy for the kids, so I just cooked their chicken plain on a separate part of the barbecue.  You could always make up your own Cajun spice too!  Cooking the chicken on the barbie gave it the most divine flavour - and boring old mushrooms & onions come up tasting amazing too!  I love this one!

Ingredients
500g chicken tenderloins (or breast, cut into thick strips)
Cajun spice mix (depending on how you like it, use as little as 1 teaspoon or as much as 2 tablespoons!)
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 brown onion, sliced
olive oil spray
1 cob corn
4 multigrain wraps
1 cup baby spinach
1/2 cucumber, sliced
1 tablespoon mayonnaise

Method
Mix chicken with a spray of oil, spice mix, mushrooms and brown onion in a bowl.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat barbecue to medium.  Cook chicken mix until browned, and vegetables are soft.  Grill the corn cob.  When cool enough to handle, remove kernels from cob.

Lay out wraps and top with spinach, cucumber and mayo.  Sprinkle with corn kernels then add cooked chicken mixture.  Wrap up and serve.

Vegetarian Rissoles

When we talk about the traditional Aussie Barbecue, we'd always first think of meat.  But, vegetarians don't have to miss out!  Here's some easy and tasty meatless rissoles - not only are they super-healthy (about 220 calories per serve), but they are so cheap to make (less than $5 for 4 serves!)  My one-year-old devoured these in no time - win!  You can mix it up with spices and flavours too.  Give them a go!

Ingredients
500g sweet potato
400g tin lentils or chickpeas
2 teaspoons dried herbs
1/2 tablespoon tomato or barbecue sauce
1 egg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
olive oil spray

Method
Peel and chop sweet potato and steam (on the stovetop or in microwave) until soft.  Mash.

Process lentils or chickpeas until soft.  Mix with sweet potato, along with herbs, sauce, egg and breadcrumbs.

Form into 12 patties and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Heat a barbecue or frying pan over medium heat and spray with oil.

Cook rissoles until browned.  Serve with salad.

Rissoles

Rissoles are a barbecue staple - they are delicious, well-loved by kids & adults, cheap to make and there is so much variety in what you can put in them!  Make these your own by experimenting with the spices, or you can easily use chicken or lamb mince, or perhaps add some grated veges.

Perfect with a side salad and a big squeeze of tomato sauce!

Ingredients
500 beef mince
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 egg
1 tablespoon herbs/spices of your choice (eg Moroccan season, Italian herbs - I used 1 sachet McCormick's Beef Kofta spice mix)

Method
Mix ingredients together in a bowl.

Shape into patties.  If possible refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Cook on a barbecue on medium heat until browned and cooked through.