Kitchen Therapy

Tag Archives: food


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Chicken with Peppers

 
I made this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe last week!
I was so impressed with myself!
(I usually complete the recipes on the day they are due!)
And boy was I glad I did this one early!
Today, Friday, is the last day of school for Term 3 in New South Wales, Australia.
The kids now have two weeks off, before going back for one last term of school for 2012.

We live across the road from the school…

 

I took this photo of the school from our driveway.

So after hanging out on the oval for a while after school, all the boys head to our place!
Hot, sweaty and dirty from playing sports.
Thirsty and hungry.
They take over the house.
And there’s never less than 5 of them.

 

It’s become a Friday thing.
And to be honest… I enjoy it.
They leave a trail of grass, dirt and food scraps behind them, but it’s nothing a quick vacuum and mop can’t fix!

Today, being the last day of school, meant most of us mum’s also stayed back at the school, chatting while the kids played. So if I didn’t complete this recipe last week, I would have written it off today and missed out.

And what a shame that would have been!

This dish was delicious!

The whole family loved it!

 

I will definitely be making this again… and again… and again…

It’s not often a dish comes along that we all love.

I am looking forward to reading what the rest of the French Fridays with Dorie group thought of this one!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Spiced Poached Apples

I wasn’t sure about this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe.
Apples poached in water with honey, sugar, lemon juice, orange juice, star anise and a cinnamon quill?

Surprisingly I had everything I needed at home.
Add to this, the simplicity of the recipe and I knew I had no excuse!

Once I started cooking, the fragrance of the spices and apples filled the house.
I was hooked!
I decided on the spot to make Vanilla Rice Pudding from a Donna Hay recipe I had used in the past.
I put 1 cup aborio rice in a pan with 4 cups milk, 1/2 cup caster sugar and seeds from one vanilla pod.
I brought it all to a boil then reduced the heat, covered it and cooked it for  about 20 minutes.
I was stirring and checking until the last 5 minutes.
For some reason I chose this moment to call a hotel in Adelaide to check on rates for a holiday we are planning in January. My brain struggles focusing for extended periods of time on one task!
I totally forgot about the rice and it turned out drier than I hoped for but I followed a tip I had read from Joy the Baker and added extra milk and stirred it through! Thank you Joy the Baker! It tasted amazing!

The next morning I sent everyone off to school and I remembered my poached apples!
I put them on top of a bowl of yoghurt and sat in the warm sun on the back porch.
I have to say while my husband loved them with the rice custard, I fell in love with the apple and yoghurt combo!

I still have some left…

I love knowing I can just pull them out of the fridge and add them to whatever takes my fancy!

I am looking forward to seeing how the rest of the French Fridays with Dorie group enjoyed this week’s recipe!


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Freshwater Beach, Cappuccino and Orange Butter Drops with Coconut

It’s spring!
The weather is warming up, the days are getting longer and everything looks so vibrant and colourful.
Feels like all my senses are coming alive.
The jasmine that covers our fence is in full bloom.
Each time I step outside I can smell it. 
Hanging out the laundry has suddenly become a pleasant experience!

The track leading to Manly beach goes right past our house.
I walk it regularly. 
But suddenly it’s so alive!
The scenery I’ve taken for granted all winter has me slowing down to take it all in.

I walked to Manly and then continued on to Freshwater beach this weekend.
I stopped for a cappuccino at the kiosk attached to the very popular Pilu restaurant (upper right hand pic below) while I waited for my husband and kids to meet me.
They made my cappuccino with real chocolate flakes! 
How decadent!
(the little bit I actually got to taste was amazing!)
A perfect way to finish my walk!

The spring light and sunshine had me inspired.
After a leisurely lunch at Dee Why beach I couldn’t wait to get home and make these Orange Butter Drops with Shredded Coconut from my latest crush, my One Girl Cookies cookbook.
I’ve had my eye on these cookies for a while now and today was the perfect day to make these little bursts of sunshine!
My little monkey and I made these in no time and my friend arrived as I pulled them out of the oven.
We sat around the kitchen bench dipping them into the orange and cream cheese glaze, then the coconut and then straight into our mouths!
They were incredibly pretty to look at and tasted delicious!

ORANGE BUTTER DROPS with Shredded Coconut
(One Girl Cookies)

3 /4 cup granulated sugar
grated zest of one orange
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1. Put the granulated sugar and the orange zest in a medium bowl. Using both hands, rub the sugar into the orange zest. Put the mixture in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and add the flour and salt. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds.

2. With the mixer running on low speed, gradually add the pieces of butter. When the mixture begins to look like crumbs, add the vanilla. Gradually add 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese. When the dough starts to clump together, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead it by hand for a few seconds until it is fully combined.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F or 180 degrees C.

4. Scoop out a small round of dough, about 1 1/2 tablespoons in size. Roll the scoop into a ball, place it on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and gently press the ball. Repeat, leaving 1 inch between cookies. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, or until golden around the edges. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

5. Prepare the glaze: In the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the remaining 1 tablespoon cream cheese, the orange juice, and the confectioner’s sugar. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2 more minutes. The glaze should be as thick as glue.

6. Spread the coconut on a plate. Dip the top of each cookie into the glaze, dip into the shredded coconut (I used dessicated coconut), and let set for 20 minutes.


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What Can You Do With Left Over Egg Yolks? Creme Brulee!

My daughter turned 15 the day she left for ski camp.
We had a dinner the night before to celebrate.
I asked her “what cake would you like me to make?”
She said “Pavlova!”
We adore pavlova in our family.
I usually make a 12 egg white pavlova and there’s never any left over for the next day.
We had a great dinner and the next morning we dropped her off at school at 6am.
She spent her birthday on a 6 hour bus ride to the snow with her friends.

I was so excited to have her back a week later, I made another pavlova to welcome her home!

I was telling my friend I was making another pavlova and she said, “You make a lot of pavlova’s! What do you do with all the egg yolks?”
Innocent enough, right?
I stared at her blankly… the egg yolks?
I’ve always thrown them out without a second thought.
Her question caught me off guard.
It made me look at my habits.
Suddenly all I could hear going through my head was Maya Angelou’s famous quote:

“When you know better, you do better.” 

My blissful ignorance was shattered and I had to change my wasteful ways.
So I turned to Google.
And Google led me straight to Creme Brulee.

I had never, ever made creme brulee or custard of any sort from scratch.
The first thing I did was go out and get myself a blow torch (which I had secretly been coveting for some time.)

Next I opened Dorie Greenspan’s book ‘Around My French Table’ and hoped there’d be a recipe in there for creme brulee. I figured one day the recipe would come up with the French Fridays with Dorie Group and I would be prepared ahead of time! A first for me!
Dorie did have a recipe for creme brulee! Yay!
However my smug happiness was short lived!
The French Fridays with Dorie group had already completed this recipe… last year!

I decided to put this week’s scheduled recipe on hold as my daughter was bringing a bunch of friends over after school and I was making her a third pavlova, one to share with her friends!

I then proudly used the left over egg yolks to make Dorie Greenspan’s creme brulee!

The girls devoured the pavlova as soon as they walked in the door.
There was 7 of them and the pavlova didn’t stand a chance!

After dinner I pulled out the creme brulee and we all stood around the kitchen bench talking about boys and taking turns melting the sugar on top.
The girls loved it!
I could not believe how delicious it was!
I SMS’d my friend and proudly told her I used the egg yolks to make creme brulee and thanked her for bringing something so incredibly easy to make and delicious into my life!

I can’t wait to check out this week’s recipeFrench Fridays with Dorie group, but I have to say I am so glad I caught up on a recipe I had missed. A recipe that will now be made every time I make a pavlova!


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Apple Upside Down Chiffon Cake

I really enjoyed making this week’s Tuesdays With Dorie: Baking with Julia recipe.

Life is usually chaotic.
Running from place to place.
Rushing through as many things as possible.
Thinking about what needs to be done next.

My 15 year old daughter came home from a week at the snow…
So a week’s worth of washing is what needs to be done next!
(And fixing a washing machine that broke the night she arrived home!)

Grand finals week…
So extra training sessions, gifts for coaches and managers, end of season get togethers were next!

My friend’s 50th birthday…
What to wear? Buy something new or grab something from the closet? What present to give? Working out what time I will realistically be able to get to party as the kids need to be fed and showered and ready for bed to make life easy for their grandparents who will be at home with them before I even think abut getting myself ready is next!

It’s all little things.
There’s just a never ending stream of ‘little things’!
And planning for ‘what’s next’ takes up a lot of ‘what’s actually happening now’ time!

I decided I didn’t want to rush through another recipe (or life!)
So every time I had a few moments to myself, instead of planning for what’s next, I decided to get familiar with this week’s recipe.
I read the entire recipe, from beginning to end. I read all the incredibly useful comments under the P&Q section. I took on board all the advice and experiences that other group members generously took the time to share. I found this invaluable.
I got my baking tins out and since I didn’t have a 10-inch pan I decided to use my 8-inch tube pan and used the excess mixture to make another 6-inch Apple Upside-Down Chiffon Cake (I even googled the volume of different pans to help me make this decision!)
I also googled upside down chiffon cakes to decide on a topping. The original recipe uses nectarines which are not in season here in Sydney, so I decided on Granny Smith apples.

This cake turned out amazing.
We had a BBQ for Father’s Day and this cake was the perfect ending to an amazing spring day.
(I gave the 6 inch version to my mum to take home in the pan so I have no photo!)

This cake wasn’t a chore.
It wasn’t another recipe to rush through.
It was a delightful break from the constant chatter of my monkey brain.
It reminded me why I started this blog and joined these wonderful groups.

Marlise of The Double Trouble Kitchen and Susan of The Little French Bakery are this week’s hosts and have the full recipe on their websites if you are interested in having a look…

 


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Zucchini Vermicelli with Cucumber and Lemon

 

It’s Father’s Day in Australia the first Sunday of every September.
I spent the day madly shopping for presents.
(I have a terrible habit of leaving everything till the last minute).

I couldn’t imagine going home and cooking.
I honestly gave up any hope of completing this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe.
I was tired and truth be told… it wasn’t a recipe that appealed to me in any way!

 

Raw zucchini? Umm… no thanks.
If I saw this on dish on a menu, I would skim right over it!

I decided I would stop by the Foodhall at David Jones (it’s pretty fancy in there) and splurge on dinner.
I couldn’t go past the Chunky Beef Pie by Simmone Logue Fine Food Company.

 

 

Pies are about as Aussie as you can get.
But I’ve always struggled with what to serve alongside a meat pie (other than tomato sauce that is!)
I felt I needed to serve it with a salad, I don’t know why, maybe it’s a mum thing?
You know, making sure the kids get their vegetables and stuff…
But a salad doesn’t really go with a meat pie.
(It’s just my opinion!)

Then it occurred to me, Dorie’s zucchini salad wasn’t your typical salad…
I started to toy with the idea of serving it alongside the pie.
I started to get excited!
Imagine finding a salad that would go with a meat pie!

 

This salad is very easy to make.
The zucchini was meant to be cut into long thin strips that resemble tagliatelle.
I just couldn’t imagine eating wide strips of raw zucchini!
So I used my magic slicing machine (that’s what I call this contraption cos I don’t know it’s real name! Sorry!) to cut my zucchini into thin spaghetti shaped strips.
Obstacle overcome!
I was feeling pretty happy with myself! (Yes it really is the little things!)

 

This salad tasted great on it’s own and went surprisingly well with the pie.
The acidity from the lemon complimented the chunky beef filling in an oddly similar way to our traditional side of tomato sauce!
I was surprised!
And very, very pleased with myself!
(Honestly you’d think I had just invented the meat pie itself!)

The salad also tasted good on it’s own, I’d make it again, probably with grilled chicken next time!

The recipe has been published on Bon Appetit if you’d like to see it for yourself!
And to see more reviews and thoughts on this dish, head over to French Fridays with Dorie.

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Banana Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins

Winter is on it’s way out here in Sydney.
The days are getting longer and the temperatures are starting to average in the 20’s (degrees celsius that is).


I’m looking forward to summer fruits.
Peaches, nectarines and sweet juicy mangoes.
In the meantime, I’ve been using up left over bananas any chance I get to make banana bread.

I’ve experimented with recipes from Joy the Baker Cookbook, The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook, Home Baked Comfort William Sonoma and the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook to name just a few.

 

What can I say… we’ve eaten our way through a lot of banana bread!
We’ve had heated debates about which one is the best, we all have a favourite.
I’ve even gone as far as making each version a variety of ways, with nuts, with choc-chips, with both and even with bourbon (thanks to Joy the Baker)!

I’m going to go off an a tangent here so bear with me… I do have an important point!

Lately I’ve found myself with the usual crazy schedule of kid related events, like the book parade at my son’s school.

 

However, in addition to all the running around I’ve also had a string of frequent visitors stopping by for cups of tea and coffee! And because I’ve been running around more than usual, I’ve taken to stopping by a cupcake bakery store that’s just opened at our mall to grab something sweet for my guests and I to share while we chat!

Aren’t they just soooo pretty!

Now these are tasty cupcakes. Some more than others. But tasty nevertheless!

 

But as I was chatting away I couldn’t help but think how much I’d prefer to be eating the Banana Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins that I had made the night before.

I went through a phase of making these on a very regular basis a few months ago, my daughter took them to school and she and her friends were absolutely obsessed with these and kept asking me to make more!

 

They come from one of my most flicked through books, Baked ‘New Frontiers in Baking’ by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito.

I cannot recommend these enough…

 

BANANA ESPRESSO CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS 

 

1 1/2 cups mashed, very ripe bananas (about 4 medium bananas)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup whole milk
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder (sometimes I put up to 3 teaspoons, other times I just leave it out)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips (I use Cadbury Baking Chips and I can’t help wonder if this is what takes them to the next level irresistibility!)

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (or 180 degrees Celsius).
Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, stir together the bananas, sugars, butter, milk and egg.

In a another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, instant espresso powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the well and stir until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Fill each cup about three-quarters full. Bake in the centre of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the centre of a muffin comes out clean.

Move the muffin pan to a cooling rack, and let cool for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove the muffins from the pan and let them finish cooling on the cooling rack.

 

Muffins can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

These are honestly amazing!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Popovers – TWD: Baking with Julia

I lost track of time and realised my only opportunity to make this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia recipe was going to be Monday morning, before school. Definitely not an ideal time!

I read the recipe and realised all I had to do was put some flour, milk, eggs, a little bit of melted butter and a touch of salt in a blender and process! Once I wrapped my head around what I needed to do to make this happen, I was ready! I could actually pull this off!

I made these in my mini muffin pan and they were soooo cute!

Popovers are not Aussie thing (or at least I don’t think so!).
I’m glad I made them, they’re ridiculously cute!
But I don’t really “get” them.
They tasted a bit eggy and custardy inside.
I liked the crispy exterior.
I tried them with butter, honey and even jam.
They were ok… But I just didn’t ‘get’ them… I’m not even sure what I mean by that!!!
The kids tried them, one wrinkled her nose and the other said he’d rather eat his Weet-Bix.

I’m glad I made them but I don’t think I’ll be making them again.
Despite their cuteness!

I’m keen to check out what the rest of the TWD group thought!

If you’d like to try them for yourself Paula of Vintage Kitchen Notes and Amy of Bake with Amy are this week’s hosts and have the recipe posted on their sites.


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Donna Hay’s Ham, Cheddar and Leek Pie with Cafe Style Grated Carrot Salad

Winter sports are winding up here in Australia, with semi finals and finals either already played or being played on upcoming weekends. Last week was busy with both school and weekend sports being played in extremely unpleasant conditions! It was freezing cold, windy and rainy!

My son’s (last kid on the right!) school soccer team won another badge to sew on their shorts!
(The rain and wind came in wild spurts during the game, then a brief flash of sunlight came out while I took this photo. Within minutes we were all running to our cars as the rain poured down on us again!)
The following day his weekend soccer team played in more rain and wind to secure a place in the semi finals.

My daughter’s netball team also secured a spot in the semi finals on the same day (she’s fourth from the right). The horrible weather forgotten after a close win!

Oh, I forgot the long, long day at the state futsal championships …

Between trips to training sessions and games (and parties, sleepovers, get togethers and so on)
I would pick up one of my beloved cookbooks and longingly, lovingly caress the pages.
Seriously, I did that.
Making a mental list of what I would make as soon as I had the time gave me butterflies.
These stolen moments of pleasure fed me.
So while I dreamed of spending hours playing in the kitchen.
I was relieved to see that this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe was a quick and simple cafe style grated carrot salad.
I served this salad with Donna Hay’s equally quick and easy Ham, Leek and Cheddar ‘Impossible’ Pie.

The saltiness of the pie contrasted beautifully with the sweetness of the carrot side salad.

I made Dorie’s carrot salad with all the extra options. I added the raisins, walnuts and parsley.
My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed it! It was simple, light and delicious. Just what we needed!

I made a greek salad for the kids (it was too long a week to be fighting over what sort of salad would have raisins and nuts in it!). However they asked if they could add the vinaigrette to the greek salad! A compromise was reached and we were all happy!

To check out what the rest of the French Fridays with Dorie group thought of this carrot salad, click here!

 

Donna Hay’s Ham, Leek and Cheddar ‘Impossible’ Pie
from her annual kid’s issue, number 9
(I made double the recipe)

1 tbsp olive oil
2 leeks, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
sea salt and cracked black pepper
3 eggs
1/2 cup self raising flour sifted
1 1/2 cups milk
150g double smoked ham, shredded
1 cup grated cheddar

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius.
2. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the leek and garlic and cook 5-7 minutes until golden and softened. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and set aside.
3. Place the eggs and flour in a bowl and whisk well to combine.
4. Gradually add the milk and whisk to combine.
5. Place the leek, ham and cheese in a lightly greased 24 cm round ovenproof  baking dish.
6. Pour over the milk mixture, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cover loosely with aluminium foil.
7. Cook for 30 minutes, uncover and cook for a further 30-35 minutes or until cooked through.


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Apple Galette and Redemption

Last week I decided Blueberry Pie was going to bring me unparallelled blissful happiness! 
(remember?!)
Well… it didn’t.
I begrudgingly knew that life didn’t work that way.
I’ve even read all the research that clearly states that all the stuff we think will make us happy such as money, posessions, social status and blueberry pie…
(yes, pie is a legitimate category!)
((ok, maybe I made that last bit up, but it should be up there with the rest!))
… they don’t necessarily lead to happiness.

So this week I was prepared.
I wasn’t going to let any doe-eyed Kristen Stewart, gazing longingly at me from the supermarket magazine stands, foil my galette!

I turned my back on scientific research (and logic of any kind) last week and there were consequences! I wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice (at least not in such a short time!)

So what does psychological research on happiness tell us?

Finding joy in the present moment increases life satisfaction.

So this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie recipe was approached with curiosity, openness and independent of judgement or expectations.

Disappointment was not an option under these circumstances!

I also decided to work with the seasons rather than against them, so I used apples to make my galette since it’s winter here in Australia.

The result was pure delight and delicious pleasure!

The recipe is incredible easy and can be found by visiting Lisa at Tomato Thymes in the Kitchen or Andrea at The Kitchen Lioness!