New Blog

Hi everyone (or anyone? Does anyone even read this blog?):

Since my recipes are just too good not to share with the world, I have started a new recipe blog where I will take my own pictures and take a bit more seriously than this one.  (This one is basically just my online recipe book). 

So, head on over to Mama's Home Cafe and cook some fantastic recipes!

Corn potato chowder

Made this tonight and it was great! At first it was only so-so, but with a the few changes reflected below, it's now a stellar dish. Mark loved it as well.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 stalk celery, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• pinch cayenne pepper
• 4 cups water (or chicken stock)
• 3 small red potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch dice
• 3 cups frozen sweet corn kernels
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• freshly ground black pepper

1. In a stockpot or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, garlic, salt and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes or until the onion and celery begin to soften. 
2. Add potatoes then water to pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Partially cover and simmer gently for about 15 minutes or until potatoes are completely soft.Add corn and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in milk and cream and heat very gently for 1 minute more. Puree with stick blender to your desired thickness. You can add a tablespoon of corn starch if you like.
3.  Season with pepper and cayenne, ladle into bowls, serve with crusty bread.

3 ingredients nutella cuppy cakes

UMM WOW! Seriously, only 3 ingredients? So easy! And quick! Top with whipped cream and you have yourself the perfect dessert! Found here. 

Ingredients:

   -1/2 cup Nutella spread
   -1 large egg
   -5 tablespoons all purpose flour

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees (180 C). Line a 12-cup mini muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
2. Put the Nutella and egg in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth and well blended. Add the flour and whisk until blended.
3. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins (about 3/4 full).
4. Bake until a pick comes out with wet, gooey crumbs, 11 to 12 minutes. Let them cool for at least 5 minutes. Serve immediately or cover and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Chocolate Pudding/Custard

This was pretty good. I probably will make this again.  http://www.themeaningofpie.com/2011/08/cold-chocolate-custard-with-whipped-cream/

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

These were great! Will definitely make again! Found here.

For the enchilada sauce:
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 onion, minced
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
3 tbsp. chili powder (I only used about 1 T and that was enough!)
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. sugar
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
3/4 cup water

Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering.  Add the onion and salt, cook until softened, 5 minutes.  Stir in the chili powder, garlic, cumin, and sugar.  Cook until fragrant.  Add in the tomato sauce and water and bring to a simmer.  Cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.  Season to taste.

For the enchiladas:
3 cups cooked chicken, shredded or diced
1 (225g) package cream cheese, cut into cubes
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced, more to garnish
1 (400g) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 batch enchilada sauce, divided
4 cups shredded cheese (cheddar and Monterrey Jack work well), divided
flour tortillas

1.  Preheat oven to 200 degrees.  Heat a medium saucepan over medium low heat.  Add in cream cheese and stir to melt.  Stir in green onions, 2 cups shredded cheese, and drained black beans.  Stir to combine and heat through, about 3 minutes. Stir in chicken and black olives and remove from heat.  Add in 1 cup of enchilada sauce, stir to combine.
2.  Heat tortillas in microwave, a few seconds at a time, so that they are soft and pliable.  Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray (I used a baking sheet).  Spread 1/4 of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of the pan.  Spoon 1/4-1/3 cup chicken mixture into the center of a warm tortilla and roll tightly.  Place in pan seam side down.  Continue with remaining tortillas until pan is full.  Pour 1 cup enchilada sauce over the prepared tortillas.  Top with remaining 2 cups shredded cheese.
3.  Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.

oven baked fish fingers

Will definitely be making these again! It got Henry to eat salmon! He loved them! Found here.

Ingredients:
380g skinless fish fillets (such as sole, flounder, tilapia or other firm white fish... I used salmon and it was good)
5 tbsp plain flour
1 large egg, beaten
20g dried breadcrumbs (normal)
20g panko breadcrumbs (Japanese breadcrumbs)
20g Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp paprika
Pinch of salt
Dash of freshly ground black pepper


What you do:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C.
2. Pat the fish dry with paper towels and cut into strips (1/2 inch thick x ¾ inch width). Season with salt and pepper.
3. Set up your assemble line. Get ready with 3 bowls (even plates or small pan sheets are possible) which are large enough for coating the strips.
4. The first one is for flour.
5. The second one (preferably use bowl) is for egg. Crack an egg and whisk well. You may want to add a little bit (eg ¼ tsp) of milk or water to dilute the beaten egg.
6. The third one is for breadcrumb mixture. Mix breadcrumbs, Parmersan cheese, paprika, garlic powder and black pepper together.
7. Toss each strip in the flour and shake off any excess. To minimize any messiness, continue for the remaining strips before moving on to the next step.
8. Next, dip the strip into the egg mixture and allow extra egg liquid to drip back into the bowl.
9. Then coat the strip with the breadcrumb mixture. Slightly press the strip into the crumbs to make sure it is well coated. Let it stand for 5-10 minutes. It will help the coating adhere to the strip better.
10. Prepare a baking sheet (I lined it with non-stick parchment paper but it’s optional). Brush/ spray some oil on the sheet/paper.
11. Arrange strips in a single layer on the prepared baking tray. Drizzle or spray some oil over the strips.
12. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the crumbs are golden brown and the fish is cooked through (eg flakes easily). Turning halfway through. Adjust the baking time according to the thickness of your fillet. Do not overcook the fish as it will be dry and hard.
13. Transfer to serving plates and allow it to cool a little before serving.
14. Best to dip in some sauce such as ketchup, sweet chilli sauce or tartar sauce.

Roast chicken with caramelized shallots

This was a really quick and easy weeknight chicken dinner. Will definitely make again. Really packed with flavour. Served with green beans and some spanish potatoes (I didn't like the recipe I used, so I will need to find another one for next time).  Found here.

Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 4 large shallots, peeled and minced
• 8 pieces bone-in, skin-on chicken (I used boneless skinless chicken breasts) 
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• Minced fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425˚ F (220 C).  In a baking dish large enough to hold all the chicken pieces in a single layer, combine the olive oil, vinegar, soy sauce and shallots; whisk to combine.  Toss the chicken in the mixture, coating with shallots.   Season with salt and pepper.  Place the chicken pieces in the pan so they are skin-side up.
2. Bake for 10 minutes, until the chicken pieces begin to brown on top.  Turn the pieces of chicken over and spoon some of the juices and shallots over the top.  Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the shallots are caramelized.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle lightly with fresh parsley.

zucchini fritters

henry liked this: http://fullmeasureofhappiness.com/2011/08/03/zucchini-fritters/

chicken pot pie crepes

WOW! These are the best ever! Found here.  Will definitely make again. Perfect lunch.

Crepes:

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup ricotta
• 4 tablespoons flour
• Pinch of salt
• 3 tablespoons milk

1. In a medium bowl beat the Ricotta with the eggs. Beat in the flour, salt, and milk. Allow to sit for 15 minutes.
2. Heat an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Coat with vegetable cooking spray when hot. Pour in 2 tablespoons of batter and swirl the pan to coat the entire surface in a thin layer. Allow to cook, without turning, until completely done. The top should be no longer shiny and when you touch it it’s not wet. The bottom will be have a very slight golden color. If it’s too dark, lower the heat.

(These can be impossible to flip and they don’t need to be, so don’t try if you don’t want to.  I do sometimes to get the same color on each side, but they are done when it’s dry on the top.) Gently loosen the edges with a spatula and slide out of the pan onto a plate. Very lightly spray the top with vegetable spray – this way you can stack them on top of each other.
Lightly coat the pan with cooking spray before each crepe. Proceed with above directions until batter is gone. Allow the crepes to cool to room temperature and then wrap the plate tightly with plastic wrap. These keep well in the fridge – unfilled – for several days.
.
Filling:

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup finely diced celery
• 1/2 cup finely diced, or shredded carrots
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon sage
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Dash grated fresh nutmeg
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 3/4 cup half & half
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 2 cups diced or shredded, cooked chicken

1. Melt butter over medium-low heat. Add onion, celery, and carrots, and slowly cook until soft, about 5-7 minutes. 
2. Stir in flour and cook for one minute. 
3. Add salt, pepper, sage, thyme, sugar, and nutmeg. 
4. Whisk in chicken broth and cream. Cook until bubbly and boil for one minute, stirring constantly. 
5. Remove from heat and stir in peas and chicken. Cook for one minute to heat through. Makes twelve 1-crepe servings.

Slow cooker garlic chicken

This was fantastic! The garlic gravy was great! Served with asparagus and sweet potato bake.  This would also be good with mashed potatoes.  Found here.

Ingredients:

• 1 3-4 pound chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 heads garlic, unpeeled, separated into cloves
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 

What you do:

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.  Heat the oil in a large skillet, over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken and cook, until well browned on all sides, about 8 to 10 minutes.  Transfer the chicken to a slow cooker.
2. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat in the pan.  Add the garlic cloves and sauté them over medium high heat until lightly browned (about 2 to 3 minutes).  Pour in the wine to deglaze the pan, using a wooden spoon to stir and scrape all the brown bits from the bottom.
3. Pour the garlic mixture over the chicken and sprinkle the thyme over all.  Cover and cook until the chicken is tender—for 3 hours on the low heat setting. Transfer the chicken to a platter and cover it with aluminum foil to keep it warm.  
4. Set a fine mesh sieve over a saucepan, pour all the sauce from the cooker through, and press with the wooden spoon to push as much of the liquid and the pulp through as possible.  Then bring the mixture to a simmer on the stove and season it to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve the chicken either topped with the sauce or with the sauce on the side.

Tomato Sauce with Pumpkin

Henry liked this: http://www.thelittleteochew.com/2011/02/tomato-pasta-sauce-with-pumpkin.html

chocolate mug cake

I've tried several different mug cake recipes and this one is the winner. So moist! The other ones use cocoa powder and this one uses chocolate chips, which I think makes the difference. Found here.

Ingredients:

• 50g dark chocolate
• 3 tablespoons butter (43 g)
• 4 tablespoons plain flour
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons milk

What you do:

1. Melt the butter and chocolate in a double boiler. Set aside to cool.
2. Add flour, ground cinnamon and sugar to a small mixing bowl, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and mix well. Add the melted chocolate and mix again.
3. Pour the mixture into a large microwavable coffee mug. Microwave for 2 minutes on medium, 1 minute on high. It should be cooked (skewer test comes out with moist crumbs), but still a lil moist. Remember, it will continue to cook while standing.
4. Allow to cool a little, give yourself a pat on the back, and indulge!

Slow Cooker Sticky Chicken Legs

Yum! So good! Definitely will make again! Served with potato skins and green beans. Recipe from here.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 4 garlic cloves, miced
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 12-14 chicken legs
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup tomato paste

what you do:

1. Add 1/4 cup of the brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce, the ginger, garlic and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper to a bowl (you may have to double this if it's not enough). Transfer the mixture to your slow cooker then add the legs and toss to coat them with the paste.
2. Cook on low until the chicken is tender, 3-4 hours (I did high for 1 hr and low for 2-3).  Transfer the wings to a large bowl, leaving as much of the liquid behind as possible and discarding it when all of the wings have been removed.  Let the wings cool for about 20 minutes.  (At this point you can put the cooled wings in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.) 
3. Preheat your broiler and position one of the oven racks about 10-12 inches from the broiler.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, then place a wire rack inside the baking sheet.  Spray the rack well with nonstick cooking spray. 
4. In a medium bowl, whisk the water, tomato paste, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, remaining 3 tablespoons soy sauce, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper.  Add half of this sauce to the bowl with the wings and gently toss to coat.  Place the wings on the rack, skin side up. Broil until the wings are lightly charred, about 10-15 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven and flip the wings over.  Brush the remaining sauce over them and return them to the oven.  Broil for another 3 minutes, or until the sauce caramelizes.

Mexican Rice

ingredients:

• 1 cup of long grain white rice
• 2 cups of low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• 1/4 cup of tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• Salt to taste

 what you do:

1. In a medium-sized pot, add rice and chicken broth. Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir. Cover the pot, lower the heat to low and simmer until done. 
2. While the rice is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook the onions in the hot oil until translucent and starting to brown. 
3. Add the garlic to the skillet and cook for one minute, stirring constantly. 
4. Stir in the tomato paste and cumin and cook for another minute or two. 
5. Mix in hot, cooked rice until well combined. Season to taste with salt. Serve immediately.

Honey Lemon Slow Cooker Chicken

 This was good. Will definitely make again.  Very easy! Serve with rice and asparagus. From here.

Ingredients:

• handful of fresh thyme leaves
• A couple of sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 1/2 lemons
• 2 heads of garlic peeled and and separated into cloves
• 2 medium onions
• sea salt
• fresh pepper
• 1/4 cup of honey
• 1/4 cup of chicken stock

For the sauce:

• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/4 cup of cold water

1.  Rinse and dry your chicken.  Rub the chicken with olive oil and season with sea salt and fresh pepper.   Get a fry pan, drizzle with some more olive oil and let it get really hot (somewhere between medium and high).  Fry chicken on both sides to get a nice golden colour all over the chicken. 
2. Put half an onion inside the cavity of the chicken as well as half a lemon and 6 garlic cloves whole.
3. Cut up an onion on the thicker side as well as one lemon.  Take a whole head of garlic and remove the skin but leave the garlic whole.  Get a handful of fresh thyme.  
4. Put the sliced onion on the bottom of the crock pot.  Add the chicken to the crock pot breast side up.  Sprinkle the chicken with the thyme.  Cover the chicken with more onion slices, lemon slices and garlic.  
5. Finally, pour 1/4 cup of honey all over the top of the chicken and 1/4 of chicken stock to the bottom of the crock pot.  Cook  on high for 1 hour then turn to low for 4-5 more hours.  When there is one hour of cooking left add rosemary to the crock pot-just throw it in there.
6. When chicken is done strain the juice into a pot and add a mixture of 2 tbsp of cornstarch with 1/4 of cold water.  Bring the strained juices to a boil and add the cornstarch a bit at a time until your desired thickness.  Pour this over the chicken before serving. 

Crepes

Here is my go to recipe for crepes:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 large egg

3 Tbsp. sugar

1 cup milk

 

 

Banana Bread/Cake

This will definitely be my go to recipe for banana cake from now on.  It's simple, moist, and very tasty.  Awesome.  From here.

Serves 1 x 20cm round cake or 1 x 30cm oblong fluted cake
The recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 24cm round cake tin.


Ingredients

• 125 grams unsalted butter, softened
• 125 grams sugar
• 2 medium bananas, very ripe
• 2 eggs (about 60g each)
• 125 grams plain flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

•  icing sugar, nutella, or whipped cream for serving

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.  Line a 20cm round cake tin with baking paper. 
2. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy and the sugar has dissolved.  Cut the bananas into a few pieces and add to the butter and sugar and beat until the banana is fully incorporated into the batter.  Add the eggs and beat well.
3. Sift together the flour and baking powder and add to the batter, beating until the batter is light and fluffy.  Scoop the batter into the prepared cake tin and level the top.
4. Bake at 180°C/350°F for about 45 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  When cooked, remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.  When cool, remove carefully from the tin.
5. Dust with icing sugar to serve. Or serve with whipped cream or nutella

Burger Patty Melts & Special Sauce

Oh man, awesome. Definitely making again. Served this with my Cajun French Fries and some salad (would have been good with corn on the cob too). Burgers from here.  Sauce from here.

Burger Ingredients:

• 1 pound (~450 g) 85% lean ground beef
• 1 medium yellow onion grated
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• butter
• wholemeal bread
• slices of cheese

 What you do:

1. In a medium bowl, combine the meat, grated onion, egg, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Form into 6 thin patties.
2. Heat a bit of olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the patties for about 3 minutes per side, or until browned. Remove from the pan and place on paper towels to drain. Set aside. Drain the grease from the skillet.
3. Spread the butter on one side of each slice of bread. Place butter side down in the skillet. Top each with a slice of cheese and a burger patty. Top with the remaining cheese, if desired, and a final slice of bread, butter side up.
4. Cook for about 2 minutes per side, or until golden brown. Remove from the heat and serve with special sauce (recipe below).

Burger Sauce

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• small squirt of mustard 
• 1/2 teaspoon sweet pickle relish
• 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

*Mix all sauce ingredients together. set aside.

 

Hasselback Baked Potatoes

 Mark loved these. He said it was the best thing he's ever eaten. Needless to say, these will be made again! Recipe from here.

INGREDIENTS

4 medium Potatoes, cleaned & leave skins on
4 cloves of Garlic, sliced thin
3 tablespoons of Olive Oil
pinch of Salt
pinch of Black Pepper
pinch of Smoked Paprika
1 ounce shaved Parmesan Cheese (have some additional for sprinkling as a garnish)
sour cream for garnish

METHOD

Pre heat oven to 425˚F (220 C) with rack in the middle of the oven. Lay potatoes flat on cutting board and starting from one end of the potato, make slits about 3-4mm apart. Cut to about 1/4 inch from the base of the potato. Be careful not to slice all the way through. The potato will fan out a bit as it bakes.

Combine olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, smoked paprika and parmesan cheese in a small bowl. Carefully insert pinches of this mixture in between the slits of the potatoes. Rub the outsides of the potatoes with residual oil. Arrange potatoes on baking sheet and bake for about 40-45 minutes. The inside should be cooked through and the outside of the potato should be a bit crispy. Garnish with additional salt, smoked paprika, pepper, parmesan and sour cream.

Crispy Oven Chicken

This was good! The chicken was perfect! Next time I will make a few changes, reflected below in the recipe.  Original recipe found here.

Ingredients

• Mixed legs & thighs of chicken
• New potatoes
• Shallots or small onions
• Few sprigs of Thyme
• Rosemary 
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup chicken Stock
• 1/2 cup white wine

For the Chicken Seasoning

• Garlic Powder (approx 2 tsp)
• Celery Salt (approx 2 tsp)
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Corn flour to coat the chicken

What you do:

• Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C
• Coat the chicken in the seasoning ingredients then add a light coating of corn flour. Dust off the excess.
• In a frying pan heat the olive oil and butter and fry the chicken until golden on both sides.
• Put the potatoes and onions to your baking dish and season with salt, pepper, and rosemary.
• Add the chicken on top (we leave the chicken sitting on the potatoes to remain crisp). Pour off some of the frying oil and butter on top of the chicken and potatoes.
• Place in a hot oven (200 degrees) for 10 minutes to crisp up
• Mix the stock and white wine and add to the oven dish (half cover the potatoes/chicken).
• Add fresh thyme (or rosemary) and place back into the oven.
• Reduce the heat to 180 degrees and allow to cook/reduce for about 30-35 minutes or until the chicken has cooked.
• To serve we removed the ingredients and mixed in a little cream into the remaining gravy, then poured over the chicken