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Showing posts from February, 2014

Building on Recipes: Pulled Pork Sliders

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'Building on recipes' basically means you have to use one of my other recipes to make this one... So go to my  Pulled Pork recipe, make that bad boy up and then come back to this recipe and give it a go. You won't be disappointed! I could use a lot of adjectives here, but really you just gotta try this... It's pulled pork, apple slaw and BBQ sauce on a toasted brioche roll, all of those things make my heart sing (or maybe its angina from all the bacon and pork I seem to eat? HAHA! No but seriously..?) You will need... 1 quantity of Pulled pork   <- I normally get about 8-10 generous serves out of a 2kg pork shoulder. 1/4 wombok cabbage 1/4 red cabbage 2 large granny smith apples 2 large carrots 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar 2/3 cup of coleslaw salad dressing (more or less depending on how saucy you like it) salt and pepper 8 small brioche rolls smokey BBQ sauce (I bought mine but if you want to make yours, here's a recipe-  http://www.jamieoliver.co

Tips and Tricks of the Trade #10 - HERBS

If you're unsure as to what herbs go with what foods, there's an easy system that is frequently used for different types of herbs; You have WOODY herbs, these tend to have a heartier flavour and are resilient to high cooking temperatures- rosemary, thyme, sage, lavender and oregano. Typically these herbs have a stalk that is covered in bark and is inedible, for example rosemary which has small leaves that need to be picked before adding to a dish. Although don't be afraid to use the stalks from these plants as they still impart flavour to dishes, just as long as you remove them before serving the food. The other type of herbs are HERBACEOUS (or soft herbs as I like to call them). They generally have soft green stalks like parsley, coriander and dill, that are edible, and delicate leaves that are equally as good raw (if not better) then they are when cooked. So to decide whether a herb is better suited to a certain dish I usually go by; WOODY- Suited best to meat a

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Muffins

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For those of you who have never heard of Reese's peanut butter cups, they are a chocolate treat filled with peanut butter. If you've somehow never been lucky enough to try this combination then you should give it a go- the contrast of sweet chocolate paired with salty peanut butter is really a match made in heaven. We get the minis which are bite-sized and you can literally sit there and devour 10 without noticing (my husband has eaten a kilo and a half of them in just over a week- thanks to Costco bulk buying) You will need... (12 muffins) 2 cups self raising flour 1/4 cup good-quality Dutch cocoa 3/4 cup of caster sugar 1 egg 1/2 cup vegetable oil 180ml milk (about 3/4 cup) 12 mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, taken out of their wrapping Method... 1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius, line a 12-hole muffin tray with patty pans, or grease with butter or non-stick spray 2. Sift the flour with the cocoa, then add all the ingredients together in one go (the

Ooops!

I know I've been a bit slack this year with my posts, I've been super busy with doing a course (Training and Assessing if anyone is wondering), and the new year at work has been totally insane! I've been working like a powerhouse to make sure I'm super organised for the next 3 months so I can cope with my extra workload. On top of all that I've dedicated a lot of time to the preparation and organisation of one of my closest friends hens weekend (which is interstate mind you). It's going to be awesome! So needless to say I haven't had too much time to get on here and have a good crack at posting more recipes, not to mention actually having the time to cook new and exciting dishes. I've still been making a conscious effort to eat better though which isn't really paying off because I don't really exercise, but I guess I have been feeling a bit more energetic (except for today because I didn't sleep enough and it's rainy and miserable whi

Awesome Juice

I didn't take a pic of this because it was a gross brown colour. But it tastes amazing so I thought I'd share it. You will need... (For one person) 2 royal gala apples, cored, skin still on 1 small celery stick (I used a 4 inch thin piece) 80gr or so of peeled pineapple 1/2 a lime, skin removed 2cm knob of ginger, peeled 1 carrot, ends removed (not peeled unless its home grown and covered in dirt) 1 decent handful of Kale, washed Needless to say, there's not much to the method of this one, just throw it all in the juicer. I would recommend having a few ice cubes with it to keep it chilled. Also, for those who cringe at the thought of savoury juices, I was one of those people! I never really wanted to try celery in a drink, it just sounds wrong! But this has such a crisp, refreshing flavour and the sweetness of the apples, pineapples and carrot tend to balance out the cruciferous-taste of the kale and the savoury flavour of the celery.

Banana Blueberry Almond Milk Smoothie

This is a great, hearty start to the day! It's got some good stuff in it, like Almond Milk which is a dairy substitute. It's great if you're watching out for your cholesterol and want to stay away from lactose, and is enriched with plenty of  fibre, vitamin E, magnesium, selenium, manganese, zinc, potassium, iron, phosphorus, tryptophan, copper, and calcium. So yeah, pretty good for you. Then you've got banana which is also a great source of potassium which is great for your heart and circulation (get leg cramps? You may need to eat more potassium-rich foods!) and blueberries which are full of antioxidants, vitamin C and fibre. Enough blabbing, here's the recipe- You will need... 1 large over-ripe banana 1/2 cup frozen blueberries (use fresh if you prefer) 1 1/2 cups almond milk 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp honey (optional) Throw all the ingredients in a blender, and process until smooth. If you like it super cold, crush some ice in there too. Altern

Tomato Baked Eggs

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I first saw a version of this recipe on an episode of Nigellissima , in which she so aptly named them 'Eggs in Purgatory' . It's a very basic, peasant-style dish, but is absolutely delicious and perfect for a warming snack or as an easy, no-fuss dinner. This recipe works best if you bake it in individual earthenware ramekins, as it yields a warm and wonderfully rustic flare. But if you don't have those, you can just as easily bake it in the skillet or pan you use to cook the tomato sauce in- as long as it doesn't have plastic handles! You will need (for 4 serves) 1 tin organic peeled and diced Italian tomatoes 2 cloves garlic 1 small brown onion 3 sprigs fresh oregano salt and pepper 1/2 tsp dried chili flakes (if you desire extra spice, by all means use more, or use fresh chilli if you wish) 1 tbs olive oil 4 large free-range eggs (the fresher the better) freshly grated parmesan cracked pepper to serve crusty Italian bread to serve Method... 1.

Baked Chicken Nuggets

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This is a great, simple recipe for all ages. It's a little bit Southern-inspired, with chicken soaked in buttermilk and crumbed using Kellogg's Corn Flake crumbs . The cornflake crumbs make the nuggets extra crispy and flavoursome and gluten-free if you use a flour-substitute in the crumbing process. It goes beautifully with a homemade BBQ sauce, one I'd recommend is Jamie Oliver's Epic BBQ sauce , but if you're in a rush then I like to use Fountain Smokey BBQ sauce. Look at those golden beauties! You will need... (4 small serves or 2 large) 300g chicken breast fillets (or thigh if you prefer) ½ cup buttermilk ½ cup cornflake crumbs ½ teaspoon smoked paprika ½ teaspoon garlic salt ¼ teaspoon dried mixed herbs ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper ½ cup plain flour 2 eggs Olive oil cooking spray Barbecue sauce, to serve Method... Begin a day ahead, cut the chicken into 3-4cm pieces and place in a large glass or c