Baked Potato

Potato washed and cut halfway down diagonally
Little water to steam in microwave for however long your microwave cooks potatoes with lid on ( i used a glass pyrex dish with a lid)

When ready place in a bowl with foil underneath and add your toppings.

Toppings:
Mozzarella cheese grated
Lurpak butter
Spring onions (not dark part) diced up
Tomato with basil leaves (fresh) chopped up
Sour cream with chives
grated carrot
Steamed broccoli
a little egg beaten

Then place the potato with the foil into the oven on a tray and leave the foil open a little and cook for around 10 minutes on 180 degrees celcius.

Delicious meal which the kids will love !

Avocado with sour cream chicken sandwiches

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Serves : 1

2 small chicken tenderloins or fillets cut thin
1 small handful of bread crumbs
1 egg beaten in a small bowl
shake of pepper and salt
little pinch of dried chilli (if desired)
1/2 avocado cut lengthwise
premium sour cream ( i also added a little old el paso sour cream seasoning to it)
2 slices of fresh sandwich bread

Place the chicken into the egg mix and roll about, then transfer to the crumb mix with salt and pepper.

Then place coated fillets into a fry pan with a little olive oil.  Cook on low heat until cooked completely. If you prefer a little heat add a little chilli.

Prepare bread with avocado as pictured below

Then you can add a little sour cream if you like and once the fillets are cooked place on top of avocado and sour cream.

Place another slice of bread on top and cut diagonally both ways and serve.

Kids really loved this sandwich and it can be let to cool in fridge and eaten cold (eat within 2 days if chicken is fresh not frozen)

Atlantic Salmon with cauliflower puree, beetroot crush and radish

Serves 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes

2 pieces of fresh Atlantic Salmon cut in half
Salt and pepper
olive oil
1/2 yellow cauliflower (or any colour you can get)
1 tablespoon of lurpak butter
1/2 cup of Mixed fresh salad sprouts
1 large radish sliced thinly
Few thin slices of a quality aged cheese for each plate
1 beetroot (organic) peeled and chopped up

Prepare the fish with salt and pepper on top and place onto a cast iron baker slightly oiled. Place in griller on around 180 degrees celcius (quite hot).

Prepare the cauliflower by steaming it in a pyrex dish with lid in the microwave with butter.  When ready puree down into a mash consistency and place into a small pastry bag or similar with wide tip and place in long dobs on the plate.  Place the radish next to each dob maybe 3 or 4 spots around the sides. Then place the cheese on top of the radish.

Then place the beetroot into the pyrex and steam same way and do exactly the same preparation as the cauliflower. Place one or two spots onto the plate around the radish.

Place sprouts around plate.

When the fish is ready take out from oven and place on centre of the plate with the and serve with fresh ciabatta.

Very tasty!

Zucchini rice and vegetable boats

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time : 20 minutes

Makes 4 boats

2 large zucchini
30g onion diced
handful of broccoli florets chopped
50 g pumpkin diced
50g carrot diced
1/2 cup long grain white rice
1 cup of Chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste
Provolone Dolche cheese grated fine for sprinkling
Sunflower seeds (if you like)


Turn on oven fan forced on 170 degrees celcius.  Place a baking dish in oven


Slice the zucchinis in half and scoop out the flesh in the centre (discard as it tends to make the rice bitter). Set the zucchinis on some foil which can be transferred to oven when ready to bake.

Place the diced carrot, broccoli florets, onion, garlic and pumpkin in a small pan with olive oil.  Cook gently for around 10 minutes til soft and set aside.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Place chicken stock in saucepan and cook the rice in it for ten minutes.  Drain in small and set aside in bowl with lid covering.

After drained place the rice into the vegetable mix and blend in with wooden spoon.

Place some pepper on the boats and then place mix into boats using a teaspoon and add grated cheese over the top of each.

Salt and pepper the top and bake in oven on foil for around 15 minutes or until browned.

Top with some sunflower seeds if you like them.

Serve with crusty bread

Red Lentil and Vegetable soup (easy)

Cooking Time: 30 minutes with preparation
Serves approx 2 large bowls or four small

1/2 cup red lentils
4 - 5 cups of boiling water (small saucepan just below the top)
2 massell chicken stock cubes
1 carrot diced
1 celery stick diced
A few tiny florets of broccoli
Handful of diced pumpkin
1 small sprinkle of chopped chives
1 small sprinkle of cumin spice
1 teaspoon of butter (lurpak)
salt and pepper to taste
sprinkle of grana padano


Place all in your saucepan and boil for around 20 minutes and taste to test salt and pepper additions.


Top with grana padano cheese.

Serve with crusty bread or some corn thins with butter

Beef Rissoles with pumpkin

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 7 to 10 minutes

Makes around 15 - 20 small rissoles

1/4 diced pumpkin
olive oil
1/4 red onion
250g beef mince
4 heaped tablespoons of krummies (bread crumbs)
1 egg slightly beaten in a cup
shake of salt and pepper
1/4 garlic clove chopped finely
shake of worcestershire sauce
handful of italian parsley chopped up fine



Steam the pumpkin so it is soft in microwave pyrex dish with lid or equivalent.  Set aside.

Cook onion and garlic in a small fry pan with oil until opaque. Set aside.

Shake the worcestershire sauce into the beef in a large mixing bowl and add the salt and pepper, parsley, egg, cooked onion and garlic and krummies. Blend with either wooden spoon or your clean hands until mixed through evenly.  Adjust if too wet with krummies or too dry with more egg.

Add the pumpkin carefully so it doesn't mash up and stir through gently.  Then form little rissoles to fry in pan.

Serve with home made mashed potato! Delicious!!!!!    ( will blog my mashed potato soon!)

Enjoy!!

Chicken Nuggets home style oven baked

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 5 -8 minutes

4 Skinless chicken fillets
sprinkle of Italian herbs (thyme,oregano is perfect)
1 cup of breadcrumbs
50g butter melted
shake of salt and pepper
(if you like a little heat in the ones for the adults add a little dried chilli flakes)

Place the herbs, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix through.

Chop the chicken into 1 1/2 inch size bites.

Place the butter into a saucepan and melt. Set aside.

 Each nugget is to be dropped into the butter then into the crumb mix.

Place the coated chicken nuggets onto a oven dish lined with baking paper and cook for approx 25 minutes on 180 degrees celsius. Or you can fry these in oil if you prefer.

Serve these with either vegetables or rice.

Vegetable soup

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour - 2 hours simmering

Classic home made with lots of flavour! Kids loved this one


2 garlic cloves crushed slightly
olive oil
6 rounds of white end of leek chopped
500ml quality vegetable stock and 200ml water
1 potatoes peeled and diced
1 carrot peeled and diced
1/4 pumpkin peeled and diced
1 zuccini diced
2 sticks celery diced
1 small amount of chilli for taste (fresh preferred around 2 little chopped pieces)
shake of oregano
1 tablespoon of quality butter (lurpak type)


Place the leek,garlic and oil in large soup pot and cook slightly then add the stock and water.  Add all the vegetables and herbs etc.  Keep water covering all the ingredients.  Cook low heat simmering for approx 1 1/2 to 2 hours .  Cool slightly and use a hand blender if you have one to break the soup down slightly so it has a little fine bit of fine vegetable as well if you like.

Can be served next day and will actually taste even better.  Enjoy with crusty bread or even some sausages to accompany it.

Lamb pie

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Serves one (adjust ingredients to how many people you are serving)


This little pie i made on its own as a test for my kids and they loved them so its a great idea for kids meals and if you cant get them to eat veggies you can add whatever you like and see if they like it this style.


Ramekin dish for the pie/s


A piece of puff pastry 


3 lamb back straps diced  (3 make one little pie in a larger size ramekin bowl)
1/4 cup onion finely chopped
1 clove garlic crushed
1/4 cup of sugo (tomato passata)
1/4 of a beef stock cube ( in the passata above)
1/2 teaspoon of cornflower
shake of salt and pepper
shake of Moroccan spice (if desired)
diced corn was added for my kids in this idea



Place your onion in some olive oil in a saucepan and cook for a little while until soft.  Then add the garlic and stir in the lamb meat.  Cook around 5 minutes until browning then add your remaining ingredients.  Simmer this collection for around 10 minutes stirring occasionally.  This will create a gorgeous gravy and once the liquid slightly evaporates you will have some amazing pie contents.

Place your ramekin face down onto the puff pastry to get the lid imprint for your pie lid.  Then cut this out and place aside.

Once the meat looks ready remove the garlic clove if you can find it and  place the meat mix  into the ramekin and place puff pastry on top and slightly brush with egg for a beautiful brown pastry puff glow.

Cook the pie in the oven at around 180 degrees for around 25 minutes.

Vegetable Stirfry with Mushrooms, snowpeas, baby buk choy and leek

Serves: 4

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 5 minutes with a hot fry pan

Olive oil for the fry pan

250g mushrooms

1 baby buk choy leaves

100g snow peas ends cut off

4 finely cut rounds of the white end of a leek

salt and pepper to taste

Very easy to make as a meal or side dish.  This has amazing flavour.  The freshness of ingredients is what makes this dish special.

Place the leek in some oil in a fry pan big enough to fit all ingredients.  Then add as leek cooks the rest of the ingredients and cook with a reasonable amount of heat until mushrooms start to slightly brown.

If you like this with meat serve with chicken tenderloins crumbed or even some lamb cutlets.

Enjoy.

Beef and cashew stirfry with rice vermicelli

Beef and cashew stirfry with rice vermicelli

Serves 4

Preparation and cooking time: 15 minutes

300g beef strips (use porterhouse steak or fillet steak quality meat)

Olive oil for frypan

garlic clove whole

250g Rice vermicelli

Buk Choy baby (leaves)

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 cup snow peas cleaned and ends cut off

Shake of oyster sauce (to suit your desired strength)

Shake of soy sauce (to suit your desired strength)

handful of cashews

Sesame seeds to garnish

Place the olive oil and garlic in frypan and cook meat until cooked (not too long).  Throw out the garlic and then place the buk choy,mushrooms,snow peas, cashews and add the sauces to your preferred flavor and cook very fast on high heat until wilted (should take around 5-7 minutes). 

While this is cooking and you are turning it over, place the vermicelli into another pot of boiling water and cook for around 5 minutes then sit for 3 more. Drain. 

Place the vermicelli into individual bowls and then place the meat and vegetables over the top. 

Serve with sesame seeds

Potato beetles with bacon and cheese

Potato beetles with bacon and Cheese

Serves: 6

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 1 hour

6 medium size potatoes

3 rashers of bacon or 1 cup of diced bacon

Salt and pepper

Chicken Stock (enough to go halfway up the baker you use)

Mozzarella cheese 2/3 cup for topping the potatoes

Preheat oven to around 170 degrees celcius.  Place a large baker dish on your benchtop and butter its base slightly.  Add some crushed garlic or you can chop up a clove finely and spread on buttered base.

Peel the potatoes and using a knife slice the base off the potato to steady it.  Then make deep parallel cuts across it reaching almost to the bottom.  The potato should hold together like a book.

Place a few small pieces of bacon between each potato slice.  Salt and pepper them slightly. 

Pour the chicken stock around the potatoes so it is only halfway (no more than halfway).

Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes .  Open oven after this time and place the cheese over them and bake for another 30 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and soft when a knife is placed into one.

Serve with coleslaw or spring onions chopped.



Easy Roasted Vegetables

Easy Roasted Vegetables

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 5 min (approx) microwave, 25 minutes in oven at 180 degrees celsius

Use vegetables you prefer but i have used the following:

1 zucchini

1 large potato

2 brussell sprouts

two twigs of fresh rosemary

a shake of good quality olive oil

salt and pepper to your preferred taste

This is great for fussy eaters if they do not normally eat their vegetables. Its very tasty with the fresh garden herb rosemary and a splash of a good quality olive oil.  I prefer to use Cobram Estate extra virgin olive oil (Australian made).

Peel potato and cut up the various vegetables into pieces.  Place in a microwave pyrex with a tablespoon of water then place lid on and cook as per your microwave instructions for fresh vegetables.   

When ready take the vegetables out of pyrex and place into a cast iron oven baker.  Then sprinkle your olive oil and fresh rosemary over the vegetables.  Cook in oven for approx 25 minutes at 180 degrees celsius.

The vegetables can be served with other side dish ideas in my listing.  This meal the kids wanted to eat little ravioli (Latina), little pies and home style chips (side dish listing see for more).