Lemon Goodness

The main part of this meal (the Paprika & Lemon Baked Chicken) was planned for Saturday night dinner but sadly the chicken wings hadn't defrosted (even after a whole day & night in the fridge). So it wound up being a Sunday night dinner and it was fantastic. I paired it with lemon green beans and pearl couscous, so there's three recipes with this post.

Paprika & Lemon Baked Chicken 

The full recipe is available on the taste website: click here. I made the following changes:

• Substituted the chicken thighs for 1kg chicken wings
• Doubled the paprika
• Lemon olive oil
• No onions (still hating them while pregnant)
• Dried oregano (I just sprinkled it over and I don't think I used 1/4 cup)
• Dried chilli flakes (again just sprinkled over & didn't measure)
• Only used 1tbsp brown sugar
• Squirted some bottled lemon juice into the sauce as well (I'm slightly obsessed with lemons if this post doesn't already demonstrate that!)

Lemon Green Beans (adapted from Kayotic Kitchen)

Ingredients

• Frozen green beans (I just guesstimated enough for 2 of us but there was probably enough for 4 small serves)
• 1tsp minced garlic
• 2tbsp lemon juice
• 1tbsp white wine vinegar
• 3tbsp lemon olive oil
• 1/2tsp dried oregano
• 1/2tsp dried parsley
• 1tbsp lemon pepper

Method

1. Throw the frozen green beans in a microwave safe container (with lid). Mix up all the other ingredients and pour over the green beans. Put in the microwave (covered) for 5-6mins. Voila it's done. 
2. You can save the liquid and then pour it over the pearl couscous if you choose to have couscous with it. 

Pearl CousCous

Method

1. Heat lemon olive oil in small saucepan and add 2 cups of stock (I used vegetable), bring to boil.
2. Add the pearl couscous and mix then add whatever seasoning you want, I added a bit of dried parsley and some lemon pepper. Cook for 8-10mins on a simmer.
3. Pour the green bean liquid in while there's still about 2-3mins cooking time left.
4. Once done (there shouldn't be any liquid left) it's ready to go. 

There was lots of yummy sauce left with the chicken so I poured that over the chicken and couscous once I'd plated the whole thing up. All of it worked really well together and I'll definitely be making it again. It's also nice to have another side to add to my repertoire seeing as I'm in love with green beans at the moment. The whole meal was also relatively cheap (especially if you have most of the items in your cupboard).

The whole meal probably took about 40mins to cook but in total I'd give yourself an hour if not a little longer.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

This was delicious (and yet another recipe sourced from the Pioneer Woman). I've always been a fan of pasta with lots of sauce but I've never really gone the tomatoey route. If you look in my cupboard you'll see a few big jars of tomato based pestos but check out how many basil ones there are in my fridge - that's my weakness and my favourite as well! But on with this yummy pasta which is neither basil nor tomato related but a great throw it all in the pan dish (and relatively cheap too). Now this served 2 but with lots of leftovers, most of my recipes could feed 4 people I reckon because I like to make sure we have food for lunch the following day.

Ingredients

• Chicken thighs or breasts (2-3 - enough to feed who you want to feed)
• Pasta (any type & again enough to feed who you want to feed, I generally use 2/3 of a bag)
• 3tsp Cajun seasoning (or in my case Cayenne Pepper)
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 2tbsp butter
• 1 red capsicum (sliced & diced)
• 1 green capsicum (sliced & diced)
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 1 can diced tomatoes (but you can use real tomatoes)
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup cream (I used the Philly Cooking Cream)
• Chopped parsley to serve
• Lemon pepper, salt... to season if you want

Method

1. Cook pasta according to packet directions.
2. Cut up the chicken and sprinkle with Cajun seasoning (1.5tsp is recommended but go with what you want). Heat 1tbsp of oil & 1tbsp of butter in a non-stick pan and start to cook chicken (let it brown on one side before turning). Once the chicken is browned on both sides (usually 1 minute on high heat) put on a clean plate and cover with alfoil. If you have a lot of chicken don't over load the pan and do it in batches.

3. Add remaining oil and butter to pan (don't clean it in between) and once heated add the capsicum & garlic and sprinkle with cajun seasoning (you can add some salt if you want). Cook over a very high heat, you want the capsicum to go a little black, for at least a minute stirring gently and then add your tomatoes. If you used canned tomatoes then cook these down a bit due to the juice in the can. Once that's all cooked through put the vegetables in a bowl off to one side.

4. Still have the pan over a high heat and add the wine and chicken stock. Cook for 3-5 minutes and scrape the bottom of the pan to get all the good bits floating around. Reduce the heat to medium-low (this is where my stove sucks and I wish it wasn't electric!) and pour in/dollop in the cream stirring constantly. Once the sauce has thickened have a taste (best part!) and add any extra seasoning you think it may need - this is usually where I add more cayenne pepper & lemon pepper - if you like spice you want this sauce to be spicy so keep adding away.

5. Add the chicken and veggies back to the pan (including all the juices from the plate/bowl - can't forget those goodies). Stir & cook until it all starts bubbling away and then add the pasta and make sure you cover it in the sauce/chicken/veggies. Once it's all heated through you're ready to go. Serve with chopped parsley.

As with any recipe the more often you do this one the quicker it is to make. I'd say you're looking at 20mins prep time (with all the chopping) and about 20mins cooking time (factoring in your pasta...).

Whoops

 

Ok so I haven't been very good with this blog. I've got a few restaurant reviews up my sleeve (including Rockpool at Burswood) and lots of recipes. Including 'my best dessert yet' - courtesy of my Mother-in-Law a Caramel Apple Cheesecake.

With Bubs due on Monday I might go a bit quiet again (for obvious reasons!) but I'll try and get back into the swing of things and have more posts for you all. In the meantime I hope you've been enjoying yummy food and life has been treating you well.

Review: Soda Cafe - North Beach

 

Andreas and I went for a drive along the coast a couple of weekends ago when the weather was perfect. Being pregnant I kept changing my mind about where we wanted to eat (I'm sure Andreas was ready to kill me!). We decided on The Wild Fig but luckily it was too busy and we u-turned back to a cafe I'd seen called Soda Cafe. It didn't really look like much from the road but in this case looks were definitely deceiving.

It looked more like a restaurant than a cafe and the prices did reflect this, not that I would consider what we ate to be overpriced but it wasn't the cheapest spot to go for lunch. When we got there it was pretty busy and the only spot they had was a table in the sun (yes please!).

Now forgive me because this was a couple of weeks ago and pregnancy brain is finally starting to get the better of me - 'the videos are in the dishwasher' is just one of the funnies that's come out of my mouth. The reason I'm asking for forgiveness is that I can't really recall what the names of the dishes were or the costs. (ok I've now uncovered the menu on their website so you can check that out...pregnant brain strikes again)

What I did like about the menu was that you could nominate a main size or entree size. Suprisingly this pregnant lady has been going for smaller servings lately (I've finally learnt that my eyes are too big for my stomach!). I order the squid and Andreas ordered the burger. My squid came with a corn salsa, fried jalepenos (oh my god I could have eaten an entire bowl of them they were that good) and sour cream. I finished the entire meal which rarely happens (especially if a salad type thing is involved). Andreas' burger came with chips, yummy, and whilst he wasn't 'raving' about the meal like me he did enjoy it. I ordered an iced-coffee which has become my beverage of choice and it was pretty strong but I enjoyed it. I can't really remember much about it so it obviously wasn't amazing but the meal definitely stood out.

So if you're looking for a yummy place to eat, great service (the waitresses were great, attentive without being pushy) a good view and don't mind spending a little extra I highly recommend the Soda Cafe.

Exotic Sides

Peas are my 'something green', seeing as I'm always trying to get more veggies on our plate at dinner time. Unfortunately there are only so many peas you can heat up in the microwave and throw on the plate before you get bored so I turned to the good ol' internet to solve the problem. And solve the problem it did (plus added some extra greens in the form of spinach as well). In stepped the Vegeta website, because it was a side I didn't go as snap happy as I usually do so please appreciate the end result! This accompanied a steak and some yummy (if not very well done) potatoes.

Ingredients

• Enough peas and spinach for however many people you need to feed (keep in mind the spinach will wilt)
• 1tbsp butter
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp lemon rind
• 2 tsp fresh mint
• 2 tsp vegetable stock powder
• 50ml water (the recipe also suggested adding 30ml sherry too but I don't have that in the house!)

Method

1. Cook peas (follow instructions on back of packet) - unless you're really gourmet in which case why are you reading this blog!
2. Melt the butter in a large pan (over medium heat) and throw in all the other ingredients (except the water) - stir them all together.
3. Add the water and simmer for 10mins . Just before the end add the peas and stir.

This was definitely a yummy surprise in our house and I'd highly recommend it if you're looking for something to jazz up your sides. It's also pretty handy because most people will usually have most of the ingredients in their cupboards and if not it'd be easy to make substitutions.

Review: Posh Pizza, Bicton

I thought I'd add some reviews in amongst the recipes and 'life' posts. I think it's nice to find out which places people are eating at and if it's worth handing over your well deserved moolah.

In the case of Posh Pizza it's definitely worth it. Saturdays have officially been declared a 'kitchen-free zone' in our house which means we'll either be gobbling up a take-away meal (and in this case Andreas will use the kitchen because he's a sucker for utensils, I on the other-hand am a pig haha) or dining out.

Now Posh Pizza is the perfect place for me because I am a pizza snob! I will shout that from rooftops because I think places like Dominoes and Pizza Hut etc... are disgusting. Sure they're a cheap option if you're having a big party or if you're hungover but I'd rather chip in some extra $$$ to eat something enjoyable.

They have shrunk their menu (which was unfortunate because some of the pizzas they used to have I would've loved to try) but it still contains really yummy pizza and on Saturday we settled on the oldie but goodie 'Hawaiian'. Andreas was concerned when he opened the box because it looked like a plain cheese pizza (he HATES cheese) but I pointed that they'd just put a lot of YUMMY cheese over the toppings and there definitely was enough ham and pineapple. I thought it tasted amazing, Andreas was on the fence but that didn't stop him from eating the majority of it.

It is still a staple takeaway option in our house - when I can let myself not think of all the calories and I recommend you check them out if you're in the area.

Not Father's Day Pancakes

Sunday was Father's Day (here in Australia at least) - with my Dad down south, Hubby's dad in America and Pecan still in my belly (and staying that way until mid November little Miss or Mister!) we didn't do a special breakfast on Sunday. Instead I switched it up and cooked pancakes on Saturday because what else do you do when you wake up at 630am!?

I got this recipe off www.taste.com.au specifically: 

They were thick because of the self-raising flour and if you prefer thinner pancakes I'd use plain flour (all purpose) but I'm starting to enjoy the thicker American style of pancakes so I went with the self-raising. Also take note that you need to let the batter rest in the fridge for 30 minutes! This fed the two of us well (or 2.5 I should say), I'd double if you're planning on cooking for more than 2 hungry people.

Ingredients

• 2 cups Self-Raising Flour
• Pinch of Salt
• 2 cups Milk (+ extra if required)
• 2 eggs
• 60g melted butter + extra 'grease' butter

Extras to Serve:

• Strawberries
• Maple Syrup
• Sugar
• Lemon

 

Method

1. Sift flour & salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre (why does this remind me of childhood cooking!).
2. Whisk together milk & eggs. Add the milk mixture to the bowl (pouring into the well) and whisk constantly until a smooth batter forms.
3. Stir in the butter. Cover and put in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.
4. Heat a large frypan over medium heat. Add a little bit of the 'grease' butter. Pour 1/3 cup of the mixture into the pan - or alternatively do what I did and pour in what you think is good!
5. Cook for 2-3 minutes (and don't worry the first one is always a dud) or until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip and then cook for 1-2 minutes
6. Transfer to a plate and cover with a tea-towel to keep warm. Repeat the above mentioned steps whilst your fellow pancake comrade or comrades set an awesome table for you!

pH Risotto

Yes a little bit of a geeky title but I am married to an awesome nerd!

This risotto dish has been adapted from a recipe out of one of my Mum's amazing Italian cookbook's (I'll post the title here later). It always reminds me of family and definitely not of our 'catch and kill your own' nights - I'll save that for another post ha-ha.

This was an after work cook-up so there aren't as many photos and I did forget to get a photo of all the ingredients WHOOPS!

Ingredients

• 6tbsp butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 cups boiling chicken stock
• 2/3 cup white wine
• 1.5 cups arborio rice
• 2 cups frozen peas
• 1+ cups spinach (as much as you want remember it will wilt)
• Ham (I used 2 of those sandwhich packs which resulted in a lot of ham so you could probably just use 1 large pack)

Method

1. Melt 4tbsp butter until foaming in a large pan and then add the onion stirring for roughly 3 minutes. (Make sure you've got your stock simmering away at this point!)

2. Add the rice and keep stirring until the grains start to burst then add the white wine. Stir until the wine is almost gone and then commence pouring the stock in little by little.*** Also add salt & pepper to taste.

3. Add frozen peas and spinach towards the end.

4. When the peas are pretty much done add the ham and remaining butter.

5. Serve with parmesan if like me you have a cheese hater in the family otherwise stir the parmesan in when you're putting in the ham and butter!

Serves 4 (or 2 people with lots of leftovers). It provided me with dinner and then lunch for the next 2 days which I always like.

***this is where I get angry at the book what is a little?! I wouldn't recommend just using a ladle which I did because it took me over an hour to cook this and after a long day at work that's not fun. I'd do 1/2 cup if not a full cup but entirely up to you and how much you love slaving over an oven.

Chuck in the Cheese Muffins

Due to the amazing weather in Perth yesterday a picnic was called for and with my group of uni girlfriends, aka Team Awesome, we headed off to Burswood to enjoy the sun. (Sadly a massive group of people with annoying party whistles had the same idea and if any of the food had been bad I'm pretty sure we would've thrown it at them!)

I volunteered myself for savouries as Miss S & Miss B are the baking goddesses of our group. We had a wonderful array of home made goodies ranging from quiches made by Miss K (the picnic planner) to old English scones (Miss S) with jam & cream of course and finally to-die-for macaroons made by Miss B. I truly to hope that S&B open up a little shop one day because the rest of the world is missing out, plus I'd gladly put my hand up to work there!

So because I usually bake I was at a bit of a loss as to what I should cook. I was contemplating going with fritters but I just couldn't find a recipe that jumped out at me :( So instead I thought I'd try my hand at savoury muffins. Enter 'Super Easy Cheese Muffins' courtesy of ChocolateSuze. I've posted my recipe below (and renamed them) with a few variations.

Ingredients

•  2 cups Plain Flour (all-purpose flour)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 egg (lightly beaten)
• 1 1/4 cup milk + extra if required (which I needed after mixing it)
• 1 cup grated cheese (I used Mersey Valley flavoured with basil & garlic)
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1/2 cup sundried tomatoes (chopped)
• 1tbsp black pepper
• 1tsp cayenne seasoning

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C and line a muffin tray with patty cases. I used a large 12x muffin tray and had enough left over to also make a small loaf in a loaf tin.

2. Chuck all your ingredients into a bowl (or you're KitchenAid & set it on 2/4 for a little bit but not too long) stir all ingredients together. If it gets to dry, like mine, add extra milk. Make sure you don't excessively stir it or the muffins won't be very nice at the end.

3. Spoon them out into the patty cases (if you're lucky enough to own more than 1 muffin tray I'd suggest using 2) and then put it in the oven. If you're making large muffins I'd suggest 20mins, I think I did mine for about 25mins but just keep an eye on them and when they're golden brown take them out.

4. Slather them with butter and gobble them up! Or you can eat them cold but I reckon warm with butter would be yummiest.

 

Triple C Soup

If you have never heard of the Pioneer Woman you are missing out. Her recipes are literally to die for (I mean that and you'll see why when I list the ingredients!). This has become the staple meal in our house and I always try and make sure I have the ingredients in the kitchen. I have made a few adaptations though and if you're looking for it on her website it's Chicken Rice Soup. It does take awhile to whip up but it's definitely worth it and once you've cooked it enough that prep time will go down. This is also the only thing I've cooked that Hubby has ever been ok with eating for leftovers.

Ingredients

• 1 packet of chicken thighs (or more depending on how many people you're feeding)
• 1 packet of Pearl CousCous
• 5 chicken stock cubes
• 1.5 cups chicken stock
• 8 cups water
• 1 small onion (finely diced)
• 1 large green capsicum (a green pepper) again finely chopped/diced
• Half a bunch of celery stalks diced into small pieces
• 6tbsp butter
• 4tbsp plain flour (all-purpose flour)

Method

1. Put chicken in large saucepan and cover with water and liquid stock. Add stock cubes and bring to boil. Reduce to medium heat and cook for 20 minutes (or until chicken is cooked through).
2. Take the chicken out and leave them to cool, then cut/shread into bite size pieces.
3. Chop the vegetables.
4. Melt 4 tbsp of butter in a pan and then add the flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until thickened and then add to broth. Stir the heck out of that thing and just keep going so you don't wind up with lumpy yucky flour stuff throughout.
5. Add couscous to liquid and stir. Meanwhile clean the pan and melt 3tbsp butter then add your veggies. Stir it all together and then add the chicken. Cook the chicken and veggies for 2 minutes and then add to broth.
6. Make sure the couscous is cooked (at least 8 minutes) and then serve it up in big bowls.

Lemon Coconut Slice

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3tsp lemon rind
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups Caster Sugar
• 250g butter
• 1 cup dessicated coconut
• 1 1/2 cup plain flour (all purpose flour) 

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180C and line (& grease) a 20x30cm cake tin (mine was 30x30cm and they were pretty thick).
2. Melt butter in a medium/large saucepan over medium heat. Once butter is melted remove from heat. Stir in the sugar (it'll be pretty thick!).
3. Add eggs, one at a time and stir until thick and glossy.
4. Sift flour over the mixture and stir until well combined. Then stir in the coconut, lemon rind and lemon juice (ps I added an extra 1/2tsp of rind). Spread the mixture over the tin.
5. Cook for 30 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Take out of the oven and cool in the pan. Once cooled flick onto a wire rack (let it cool more) and then cut into pieces.

I took this to work and everyone gobbled it up. I guess I shouldn't have made a diabetes joke because low and behold I got called in by my midwives to do a follow up glucose test later this week!

*courtesy of www.taste.com.au*

Welcome

AKA the Introduction.

After being unable to cook for the majority of my pregnancy, I'm finally feeling ready to get back in there. Following my little sister's foray into the world of blogging (check her out - Beauty Down Under) I've decided to keep a virtual record of my cooking triumphs and tragedies (with a bit of baby baking thrown into the mix as well).

Before I get started with any recipes I figured I'd give a little bit of background on myself.

1. I work fulltime in internal recruitment to keep my Hubby in the lap of luxury (at least until October!).

2. My husband is Danish which inspired the blog title and we've been together for over 6 years.

3. We're expecting our first child in November whose womb nickname is Pecan (don't worry we're not sticking our child with that moniker).

4. My red Kitchen-Aid, known as Betty, was a wedding gift from my in-laws.

5. I'm a quarter of a century old and still suck at riding a bike but thankfully this blog has nothing to do with that!