rocky road, our version

2 bags of chocolate chips
1 cup of rice krispies
1/2 cup small mashmallows
handful of craisins
handful of M&M's even better if you have the flaovoured kind (cherry flavour was the best I ever used)
small amount of broken pretzels

melt the choclate in a mircowavable dish
when all melted add the krispies and stir well making sure all krispies are coated
add the rest of the ingredients and mix together.
spread mixture out onto waxed paper to set
place in the fridge until complete set.
When set remove from fridge and paper and break into smaller pieces.

curry chicken mango roll ups

2 chicken breast
mayo
1 1/2 tbs curry powder
mango chutney
dash onion powder
soft tortilla

warm the tortillas

cook the chicken breast in the mircowave until cook right through
chop the chicken really small.( I use a kitchen chopper)
add the mayo to the chicken - not to much because you dont want it sloppy just spreadable
add the curry powder, onion powder and about 3/4 tablespoon of mango chutney
Mix well and then spread over the tortilla and roll.
cut into small bite size portions.

No cheese stuffed mushrooms

Because my husband does not eat cheese of any kind I sometimes find it hard to find recipes for him. So I tend to find recipes and replace LOTS of things.

Large package of button mushrooms
1 slice of bread in the food processor made into crumbs
5/6 large cloves of garlic
Dash of paprika
Little pinch of chili flakes
Dash onion powder
Spray oil

Clean Mushrooms and remove stalks
Make breadcrumbs , when bread crumbs are made add the garlic to processor and blitz garlic and other seasoning to the breadcrumb mixture

Fill the mushrooms with mixture
Place onto an oven proof tray spray with oil and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes

Easy meatballs in a cranberry and ketchup sauce

We had guests over and I did a buffet help yourself type food.
I added the meatballs to the menu at the end as I wanted something hot served.
They were a hit!

Meatball
2lb of ground meat (I used 1/2 turkey 1/2 pork)
Generous shake of onion powder
Generous shake of paprika
1/2 amount of a whisked egg (one whole egg is to much)
2 dessert spoons of corn meal


Sauce
1 can of whole cranberries
1 1/2 cups of ketchup
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
Dash of cayenne pepper

Small amount of oil for frying


Mix all of the meatball ingredient together making sure that mixture is not too wet
Roll into balls I find I can make about 40 ish with this mixture.
In a frying pan heat the oil and fry the meatballs have slightly browned on the outside.
In a crockpot add all the ingredients for the sauce.
Mix together. Add meatballs and stir so all the meatballs are coated. Cook on low for about 4 hours.

Chicken in red wine served with plain white rice

I used skinless and boneless chicken thighs

4/5 chicken thighs
1 cup red wine
1/4cup ketchup
1/4cup BBQ sauce
Packet brown gravy mix
Cup of baby carrots
Cup of baby onions
Cup of frozen peas
Dash of smoked paprika
Webbers kickin chicken
Water

Place wine, brown gravymix, ketchup, BBQ sauce, smoked paprika and kickin chicken in a Dutch oven or casserole dish.
Mix everything together until well mixed. Add chicken carrots and onions.
Again everything together until all coated
I covered with foil and baked at 250 f or 120 c for around 2 1/2 hours.
Remove from over add peas and about s cup of water.
Return to oven for a further 20 minutes.

I would normally cook something like this in the crockpot, but as today was cold I wanted the smells of cooking and the nice warm kitchen to go with it lol

Next time I will add mushrooms and white pepper

Herb Salad and chicken roll up

Herb salad and chicken roll up

I had left over chicken which had been stripped from a chicken and I had frozen it last week.

O
Tonight for dinner I wanted something light. This was not a heavy dinner,  but I was more than full after wards,

The lovely fresh herbs with the little bit of balsamic really brought this to life.

Bunch of curly parsley

Bunch of Italian parsley

Bunch of coriander/cilantro

Red onion fine chopped

Cherry tomatoes chopped

1 teaspoon of olive oil

1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar

Cooked stripped chicken

Soft tortillas

Spray oil

Seasoning (I used salt seasoning)

Finely cut up all the herbs, onion and tomatoes. Add oil and vinegar and mix well

Heat the cooked chicken up in the pan with a little bit of spray oil and seasoning salt

Prepare tortillas

Then lay salad on top of tortillas and then add the chicken and roll up.

Pumpkin and feta bake and Baby roast potatoes

Pumpkin and feta bake

1 green squash/pumpkin cut into chunks seeds removed and with skin still on
garlic and herb
olive oil
Marinated feta cheese in oil, in a jar

I dont use measurements on every recipes I use what I can get and I know what I can use.
Also what is enough for MY FAMILY

Place pumpkin skin side down add garlic and herb seasoning to the orange fresh ( i only use a sprinkle)
rubber the olive oil into the pumpkin and bake until soft.
Then scoop the flesh from the skin into a mixing bowl and then add at least 2 desset spoons of the marinated feta and the flavoured oil in comes with.
Mix together well and then bake in an oven proof dish warmed through.
I normally add potatoes with this when mixing when I dont have another pumpkin.

Baby potatoes roasted

Baby potatoes, skins on, washed and dried
oil
seasoning...I use onion power

miz oil and seasoning over the potaotes (NOT TO MUCH OIL JUST A TOUCH..A LITTLE GOES A LONG WAY)
Bake in the oven at 375 degrees until cooked through

Mashed potato Salad and Simple Cod

Mashed potato salad

This was made by mistake….

I had cleaned, cubed and boiled some potatoes but noticed they had pretty much gone to mush….(we can only get one type of potato here it seems)

But I have no spare potatoes or anything to replace the part of a dinner…so Mashed potato salad was found.

6/7 potatoes washed and cut in cubes

½ cup mayo

1 tsp of milk

Chicken stock cube

I red onion chopped in to small pieces

Garlic herb seasoning (good shake)

Pepper (good shake)

Cook potatoes and add the chicken stock cube to the potatoes…cook until potatoes are breaking up.

In a bowl mix mayo and milk until mayo is smooth and creamy

Add season….drain potatoes and let cool for a few minutes.

Add the potatoes to the mayo mix….add the red onion and still everything in together.

It will start to look like mashed potatoes…

I severed when this was still warm.

Simple cod fillets

 4 Cod, boned and skinned filets

Butter ¼ cup

Ground sage,

Pepper,

Place cod in oven proof dish…(I lay foil on the bottom of mine)

Melt butter add the ground sage and pepper.

Brush cod with butter mix.

Make sure bother sides are cooked well

Bake in the oven at 350 ℉/ 180 °C for around 20 minutes…(that’s how long mine took to cook)

Rice dish One

1 chicken breast (cut into small pieces)

½- 1 cup cooked rice

½ red onion

½ cup of peas

½ carrot cut into match sticks size pieces

½ roasted red pepper- SEE MY WAY

1 tbsp soya sauce

Dash garlic salt

Pinch pepper

½ tbsp Bacon bacon/veg oil

Water

Heat the bacon fat/oil, cook the onions until soft, and add the carrots and chicken. Add the soya sauce and peas. Add the red pepper, garlic salt and pepper, Add a little bit of water and then add cooked rice. Mix together, dish and serve

This serves one

MY WAY (I wash, cut into ¼‘s and hold over the gas ring until black all over the outside. Dip into iced water and wipe away blackened skin)

Rice dish two

Smoked sausage (I slice at an angle)

3 cups of cooked rice,

1 cup chopped fresh mushrooms

1 onion chopped

1 cup peas

Good dash of seasoning salt

Roasted yellow pepper

1/3 cup of chicken stock/stock cube in water

Oil/dripping

Heat oil/dripping, cook onions until soft add mushrooms and peas. Add the sausage and heat through. Add the chicken stock and rice and mix well

Cola slow cooked beef

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 spaghetti sauce mix

1 large onion diced

1 cup of coke

1 Teaspoon of garlic salt mix

2 teaspoon of oil

Beef (amount for your family)

To a Crock pot/slow cooker add the can of tomatoes including juice. Add the coke, spaghetti mix, onion and garlic salt.

In a pan heat oil and sear the beef on all sides.

Place in Crock pot and cook on low for 7-8 hours.  

Tasty Tatters

5/6 potatoes washed and dried then cubed and dried again....(place on tea towel and pat dry and shake as much moisture out as possible)
1 tbsp of oil
good dash of onion powder
good dash of garlic salt

Preheat oven
line an oven tray with parchment paper

In a bowel Mix oil, potatoes and seasoning ( you can you any seasoning.i.e celery salt, paprika, seasoning salt)
place potatoes on parchment paper and cook at 370/400 degrees until soft and browned..normally around 30 minutes

Bread Machine Pita breads

1cup, plus 2 Tablespoons warm water

3 cups of flour….(I use all purpose)

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 ½ tsp sugar

1 ¼ tsp yeast

Put water and oil in bread machine; add the flour, salt, sugar and yeast .Select the dough setting/cycle on the bread machine Turn the kneaded dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 8 pieces. Form each piece into a ball, tucking edges under. Cover and let dough rest about 10 minutes. With a rolling pin roll each piece from the center to the edge, into a 6- to 7-inch circle. Cover dough with a towel and let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Place 2-3 pitas on a rack, (I use the grill/broiler top) and place directly on oven rack. Bake for 4-5 minutes until puffed and golden. Remove from oven and immediately cover with a damp kitchen towel until soft. Stovies

Stovies to me is a hearty Scottish filling meal, which is also a comfort food. This is NOT the prettiest dish, but very tasty 5/6 potatoes sliced Left over roast beef, chopped up 1 onion - diced 1 - 2 cup left over gravy/1 - 2 cup of beef stock…can you more, depend on how moist you want the dish 1 table spoon of beef dripping/ or oil Salt and pepper Par boil the potatoes Fry the onions in the dripping/oil until they are soft, add the chopped up beef. Add the par boiled slice potatoes and add gravy/beef stock. Leave to simmer for around 30-40 minutes…until cooked all through and liquid has be absorbed Give a really good mix and serve. I use leftover gravy as well as stock

Tangy pork, Almond milk and my version of a pancake

Well I did manage to make at least dishes from scratch last week so I am pretty pleased with myself.

Over the weekend we just hung out and ate out. I did cook last night (Sunday) we had breakfast for dinner, nothing from scratch though.

Tangy Pork

Pork tenderloin (I think around 1 ½ - 2 lbs)

1 large onion sliced

1 cup of hot water

¼ cup of sugar

2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon of ketchup/Tomato sauce

2 tablespoons of soya sauce

½ teaspoon of ground pepper

A pinch of salt

Slice onions and place on the bottom of the Crockpot/slow cooker

Place tenderloin on top of the onions.

Mix all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Pour mix over the tenderloin and cook on low for around 5-6 hours

Almond milk

2/3 of a cup of raw almonds

2 /3 of a cup of water

4 cups of water

In a bowl add the almonds and the 2/3 of a cup of water and leave for a couple of hours.

The Almonds will swell (when swollen they make about a cup of almonds)

Drain away excess water.

Place almonds in a blender and add 4 cups of water and blitz until as smooth as you can get the mixture.

Sieve the mixture into a glass container. (I use a cheese cloth as well as the sieve)

Refrigerate

I use the almond milk on my breakfast oatmeal. I heat it up as I would normal milk.

It does not last very long may be 3-4 days max!

Wendy’s sort of pancakes

1 cup of all purpose/plain flour

2 eggs

½ cup of milk

½ cup of water

Pinch of salt

2 tablespoons of melted butter

Mix all the ingredients together until smooth.

Pour small amounts into a very hot griddle/frying pan.

Cook each side for a couple of minutes

These don’t come out like a big fluffy pancake nor are they crepes.

They can be quiet dense but my family love them with chocolate chips added

Bourbon Chicken and Cinnamon Rolls

Today I managed to make 3 recipes even though the 3rd one does not really count as the Sausage roll ingredients were pre-brought and I just throw them together, even though hardly any effort they were made with lots of love...and the knowledge they would be wolfed down as soon as my guys got home.

Bourbon Chicken

3-4 boneless chicken breasts

1-2 tablespoons of oil

1 garlic clove (crushed/minced)

¼ teaspoon of fresh ginger (grated)

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 /4 brown sugar

1 cup of apple juice                                                        

2 tablespoons Ketchup (tomato sauce)

1 tablespoon of cider vinegar

½ cup water                                                               

1/4 cup of soy sauce

Heat oil in a skillet

Add all the ingredients expect chicken.

In a separate pan cook the chicken until cooked through and browned brown

Add chicken to the sauce and bring to a boil

Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes

Bourbon Chicken

 

Cinnamon rolls (I use my bread machine for the dough)

1 /2 cup of water                                                       

1 /2 cup of milk

2 table spoons of butter

3/4 teaspoon salt                                                             

3 cups of all purpose flour

¼ cup of white sugar

1 egg

3 table spoons of butter (melted)

3 – 4 table spoons of cinnamon

Shake of ground nutmeg

1 cup of confectioners’ sugar (powdered)

1 ½ tablespoons of melted butter

1 /4 vanilla extract

1 ½ tablespoons of milk

In a sauce pan add the milk, water and butter and until very warm but NOT boiling.

Pour mixture into bread maker and then add the flour, sugar, salt, yeast and the egg.

(I but the sugar in one corner, salt in the other and yeast in the middle and then I add the egg at the VERY last minute!)

Turn machine onto the dough cycle.

When the cycle is finished flour a surface lightly. Roll the dough out into a rectangle.

With the melted butter, add the cinnamon (add as much cinnamon as YOU like)

Brush the butter mix onto the dough. Sprinkle some ground nutmeg onto the dough also.

Roll the dough length ways. Trim the ends of the dough, and then cut the dough into equal size pieces

(The recipe says 12 I make 14-16)

Put in a baking tray cover with a tea-towel and leave for 30-45 minutes to rise (hopefully they double in size)

Place in a preheated oven and cook at 350 ℉ / 190 °C for about 20- 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Melt butter, add to powdered sugar milk and vanilla and mix well. Pour over the rolls when rolls have cooled slightly.

*** My oven temps have changed greatly it seems with each oven in each country.

Currently the oven I have, when cooking the rolls it about 22 minutes



Cinnamon Rolls



I also made sausage rolls today but have no REAL recipe for these.

Also it feels a bit of a cheat – I buy the pastry which is a flakey butter pastry.

Then to the sausage meat I add so extra seasoning i.e. ground pepper, and onion powder.



Sausage Rolls



Mix all together and then place into the pastry and roll. Trim ends place in an oven tray and use a egg wash (whisked egg) wash each sausage roll piece. Cook until golden brown….Around 25 minutes at 350 ℉/ 180 °C 

Tomato Soup, Parsley Salad, Dr.Pepper Pork and Whole sliced potatoes

Tomato Soup

3 cups chopped tomatoes

½ finely diced onion

1 tablespoon of dried basil

1 clove minced garlic

1 tablespoon of sugar

Drizzle of olive oil

Drizzle of balsamic vinegar

4 cups of water

1 chicken stock cube

Place all ingredients into an oven proof dish except the water and stock cube and mix well.

Cook in oven for around 1-1/2 hour at around 250℉/130 °C

Dissolve stock cube into water

Blend tomato mixture with 1 cup of the water. Blend until very smooth.

Sieve the mixture so smooth into a saucepan and add the dissolved chicken cube and water to the tomato mix and stir until all mixed well

When I made this today I had ½ a red pepper left in the fridge so I also added that and a carrot to the dish when roasting the tomato mixture

Parsley salad

1 bunch of curly parsley wash well and chopped finely

½ red onion finely diced

1 carrot peeled and finely diced

2 largish tomatoes deseeded and finely chopped

½ cucumber deseeded and finely chopped

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

½ tablespoon white wine vinegar

Good pinch of black pepper

Mix well all the ingredients together, refrigerate and serve with chip or as a side dish

Dr. Pepper Pork (all ingredient measurements are for my family size )

3 loin pork chops

½ can of Dr. Pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Pinch of black pepper

Marinate pork in Dr. Pepper for 2 hours

Take 1/8^th cup of the Dr. Pepper and add the oil and pepper and bake until golden brown

You will need to turn the pork half way through the cooking time

Whole Slice potatoes

4 potatoes, peeled

1 teaspoon of melted butter

1/8 teaspoon of minced garlic

After peeling potatoes, slice a small piece off the bottom so the potatoes sits flat

Cut through the bottom from the top to almost the bottom from left to right. Be very careful not to cut right the way through. Brush the melted garlic better over the potatoes and between the slices

Place on parchment paper in an oven tray and back until golden brown.

Note: my potatoes took around 30 minutes to cook right the way through