Tag: recipes

{Spencer Cooks} Muah Chee

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I was always someone who loved snacking. Afternoon tea times are a time of the day I look forward to as I get to sit down, have a hot cuppa and something savoury or sweet to just fill my tummy before dinner. There are lots of small snacks that is easily attainable back in Singapore. However, it is a little more difficult to find it here.

So when I chanced upon a Muah Chee recipe, I HAD TO make it! It was the perfect snack for a Sunday afternoon. Muah Chee is a snack that we usually can get from night markets or hawker stalls. Small pieces of glutinous rice balls rolled in a sugar, peanut and/ or black & white sesame mixture! Every bite satisfies both the sweet and savoury craving to be honest! Which is why I love them!

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I couldn’t quite believe how quick and easy it was to make this in the Thermomix. Everything was done and ready to be enjoyed in 20 mins! And I can’t really put the joys of being able to make something from scratch in the comfort of my own home in words! So I will let the pictures do the talking! hehe

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Little nuggets of deliciousness wrapped in a sugary peanut, white and black sesame mixture! SO SO GOOD!

Here’s the recipe for the muah chee. For those who have been craving like me, and to those who’s never tried it before. Please do give it a go! You won’t regret it!

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Muah Chee 

150g roasted peanut (without skin)

30g toasted white sesame

30g toasted black sesame

40g coconut sugar

120g glutinous rice flour

180g water

2 tbs olive oil

1000g water, for steaming

Steps :

In the TM bowl, add the peanuts, half the amount of white & black sesame, and sugar. Chop for 5secs/ Speed 8.

Pour the mixture into a bowl and mix the rest of the sesame seeds. Set aside.

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In the TM bowl, add the glutinous rice flour, water and oil and mix for 1 min/ Speed 6. You should get a smooth flour mixture.

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Pour into a shallow bowl and place the bowl into the Varoma deep tray. Place 1000g of water into the TM bowl and place the Varoma deep tray on top of the lid. Steam the mixture for 15mins/ Varoma/ Speed 3.

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Once steamed, use a teaspoon, scoop and cut into pieces and toss into the peanut & sesame seed mixture. Make sure the glutinous rice balls are coated well.

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Serve and enjoy immediately!

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Hope you will give this a go and let me know what you think! I am salivating just looking at the pictures! Think I will have to make it again this weekend! hehe Have an awesome weekend everyone!

Remember to always cook and bake with love!

Raspberry & Lemon Shortcakes

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Baking has always been something I love doing. Especially to bake for people I love and just being able to see the smiles on their faces after they take a bite, warms my heart. So I try to bake something whenever I have the time and especially when there are special occasions or during the festive seasons! The house always smells the best during festive seasons, right? hehe

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I am always excited to try new products in the market, and when I was asked to try the new Anchor Cream range, I immediately said yes! The new Anchor Cream range is made with 100% Australian dairy (only the best across 34 dairy farms across Victoria) and have a few innovative features that would be helpful when cooking.

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It comes with a screw top lid which would help with easy storage and less messy drips & leaks! Also, the side of the bottle has measurement markers  that would help you with more precise pouring and easy measurements! Less wastage as you don’t have to pour into a measuring cup and also less to wash! WIN!

There’s 3 types of creams in this range which would suit every occasion of cooking or baking – thickened cream, thickened light cream and pure cream! They come in unique size bottles, with exact one cup (250ml) or 2 cups (500ml) which would help when following a recipe, hassle free!

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Walking the aisles of the supermarket, I was thinking about what I could make with these beautiful creams and found these huge, fresh and beautiful raspberries! So I decided to make some raspberry and lemon shortcakes!

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This recipe uses the pure cream in the shortcake and also the whipped thickened cream sandwiched in the middle. So it was a perfect recipe in my books! Hope you will enjoy it too!

Raspberry & Lemon Shortcake (Adapted from Raspberri Cupcakes)

2 cups plain flour

1 tbs baking powder

2 tbs packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

115g cold butter, cubed

3/4 cup pure cream

1 lemon

2 punnets of fresh raspberries

1/2 tbs packed brown sugar

1 tbs honey

1/2 cup thickened cream

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Steps :

1) Preheat the oven to 210 degrees celcius. In a large bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and cold butter. Using the tip of your fingers, rub the butter into the flour mixture until a sandy mixture is achieved. Don’t worry if there are still a few lumps of butter.

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2) Slowly add the pure cream into the mixture and using a spatula, mix the cream until the dry mixture is just moistened.

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3) Zest the lemon. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and add the lemon zest. Lightly knead the dough till it comes together.

4) Pat the dough till about 1 1/2cm thick and using a 6cm scone cutter, cut the dough into the 7/8 portions. Place them on a lined baking tray and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the tops are browned.

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5) Transfer them to a wired rack to cool.

I made the shortcakes two different ways. One with just the fresh raspberry as it is, and one with a tangy raspberry coolie almost. I liked both, but the coolie gave it a very refreshing touch and the tanginess made you go back for more! So try both, or either (whichever you prefer!) and would love to hear what you think about them!

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6) To make the raspberry coolie : In a small pot, place 1 punnet of raspberries, brown sugar, juice of 1/2 lemon and honey. On a low heat, stir the mixture till the raspberries are about to break down. Remove from heat and sit it in a bowl of ice water (to cool it completely before platting). This could be done a day before, keeping it in a jar in the fridge.

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7) In a medium bowl, place the thickened cream and vanilla bean paste and whisk till stiff.

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8) To serve : Cut the shortcake into half and place the whipped vanilla cream onto the top and place the fresh raspberries or raspberry coolie, serving with the other half placed on top. Best served immediately!

Enjoy! (:

Have a great week ahead everyone! It’s the season to be jolly, so go grab yourself some of the Anchor Cream and make this for the festive season! hehe

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Remember to always bake and cook with love! xx

PS: Do note that the Anchor Cream range is only exclusively available at Woolworths Nationwide!

PPS : Thank you KeepLeft PR for the opportunity to try out the Anchor Cream range. All thoughts and opinions are based on my own experience. Thank you again for this wonderfully opportunity!

Food For Families Campaign

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The Wesley Mission Victoria is holding it’s 24th annual flagship appeal to help Melbourne families that are in crisis. They help by providing nutritional food and household essentials during Christmas and throughout the year!

I’m happy to be part of this meaningful campaign and we should all try to do a little bit for those in need. Pay It Forward if you will! So what can you do? There are a few ways which you can go about helping out in this campaign!

  • You can register to receive a donation box for your workplace, school or community group. Your participant pack, including box/es is delivered and collected by a Wesley volunteer before Christmas. 
  •  Items that are most popular with families that visit the Wesley pantry include ready to eat meals, pasta/noodles and sauces, cereal, baby food and UHT milk. A full list of items is available on our website.
  •  If you are unable to contribute to a collection, you can also help by making a donation. Visit wesley.org.au.
  • Monetary donations are used to purchase fresh and frozen foods, including fruit and vegetables, to supplement the donated non-perishable food supplies.

If you want to know more please don’t hesitate to jump onto wesley.org.au for more information about the appeal and the different ways you can get involved!

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As a new mum, it is always a joy to see the little man enjoy his food, and I wish that every mum/parent could do the same!

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With your donations (be it food or money), you will ensure that families experiencing tough times can put food on the table this Christmas and throughout 2016!

The Wesley Mission Victoria is aiming to collect 30 tonnes of non-perishable goods to distribute to the crisis centres nation-wide! And you will be surprised to know that you can cook nourishing meals from non-perishable food items alone!

I was lucky to receive the recipe from the ambassador of Wesley Mission Australia and ex-Masterchef 2015 contestant, Sara Oteri! Of course, I’m going to share with you one of them that I am going to try it for myself! Sounds too yummy to give it a miss, plus it’s always been something I want to try and make for breakfast!

Overnight Oats (Soaked Muesli) (Recipe by Sara Oteri)

Ingredients:

OATS

2 cups Oats

2 cups Soy milk or long life milk

2-4 tbsp honey

¼ cup passionfruit pulp

5- 10 prunes roughly chopped

Mixed seeds

TOPPING

Desiccated coconut

Tinned peaches (or any tinned fruit of your choice)

MuesliING

Steps :

  1. Put all the ingredients to make the muesli into a bowl, mix well, then leave covered in the fridge overnight.
  2. In the morning you should wake to a beautiful soaked muesli with just the right amount of moisture. If for whatever reason it’s too dry for your liking, simply incorporate a touch more milk.
  3. Finish with coconut flakes and some tinned peaches or any fresh fruit/frozen berries you have lying around.

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Easy, simple and nutritional! Best way to start your morning. So hop onto the website and help in any way you can! This would ensure that everyone can start their morning right and bright!

P.S. Thank you for this opportunity Wesley Mission Victoria, to help those people in need. This is something, indeed, really close to my heart and a campaign I really believe in.

Photo credits – Wesley Mission Victoria 

{Spencer Cooks} Gula Melaka Kaya

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For those who follow me on Instagram (@lianneelow) you would know I have a new baby. A machine baby haha My dearest mr has got me the dream machine of my life – A thermomix! I was so so excited when I placed my order and couldn’t wait for it to arrive! I have to admit, I’ve always wanted one. But gave it a pass cos of two main reasons – 1) the cost and 2) I already have a whole range of machines in my small kitchen. But having it for the past 2 weeks, I think I can now sell my other machines (besides my kitchenaid hehe)!

Spencer

So everyone, meet Spencer! (: Don’t ask me how I came up with the name. It just came to me when I got it. So Spencer it is! I’ve not stopped using it since it arrived! And don’t you worry, I will be sharing the recipes I’ve tried (and some original recipes, hooray!) with all of you! hehe

The very first thing I’ve made is  recipe I’ve been wanting to make for ages. I kept it in my “in case I get a thermomix folder” haha Gula Melaka Kaya (Coconut jam)! YUM! Living in Singapore, our breakfast staple is hot and crispy kaya toast with a cup of hot tea/coffee, with a side of half-boiled eggs! Seriously the best start to the day! So I was really excited to make it so we could have that in Melbourne too!

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Lochlan was super lucky and loved to get some delicious soft and fluffy piggy buns from The Bakeanista (check her blog out! She makes the most amazing bread!) and I too had some with the kaya that I made! Perfect combination! Mmmmmm (:

So here is the recipe for the Gula Melaka Kaya that Spencer made!

{Spencer Cooks} Gula Melaka Kaya (Coconut Custard Jam, Recipe from Thermomix Recipe Community)

250g Gula Meleka

3 egg yolks, large

1 whole egg

250g coconut cream (I used Kara carton)

3 fresh pandan leaves, tied into a knot

Steps :

Milling the gula melaka

1) Break the gula melaka into ice-cubed sized pieces before putting them into the thermomix. Mill the gula melaka, speed 10/10secs.

Milled gula melaka

2) Add egg yolks and egg, mix speed 3 until the sugar has dissolved. Using the spatula, scrape the base to make sure all the sugar has dissolved.

Add the egg and egg yolks

3) Cook for 10 mins/90 degrees/Speed 3.

4) Add coconut cream and pandan knot into the mixture, cook for 45 minutes/100 degrees/reverse/Speed 3. Leaving the MC out allowing the steam through.

Adding coconut cream and pandan knot

5) Check the consistency of the kaya, it should be thick, glossy and smooth. If it’s not thicken, repeat step 4 for another 10 minutes. Allow it to cool then place into glass jars/jam jars and keeps well  in the fridge for 2-3 weeks!

Kaya ready!

I was surprised that it wasn’t the deep dark brown kaya I was looking for. But it was still thick, glossy and absolutely delicious! I have also collected more kaya recipes and will be trying them again soon! So stay tuned for the comparison!

Piggy currant bun

Remember to have it with some toast/bun and a cup of hot coffee/tea! (:

Have a great Hump Day everyone and remember to always cook and bake with love!

Savoury Oats with a Twist!

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I’ve got a new obsession. Savoury oats! All along, I’ve been having my oats with honey, fruits and even with the addition of Milo (OMG it’s super good haha) but I’ve been trying to see if there are other ways to cook oats and make the little man like it as well!

So i found the recipe from Martha Stewart and I just had to try it out. It had the ingredients that Lochlan loved – cheese & egg – so it must be a winner, right? RIGHT! hehe He absolutely loved it and could finish it all. Of course, his egg was cooked through and I kept mine runny, cause it adds a sauce to the oats, and it’s just absolutely delicious!

Savoury oats

So using Martha Stewart’s recipe as the base, I did added more savoury ingredients that I thought would pump it up! And this morning, I made a winner. With the addition of crispy bacon bits! I mean, how can I not? Bacon makes everything yummier right? ABSOLUTELY! hehe

So here’s the recipe for my favourite version of the savoury oats. You can pretty much add your favourite ingredients and it would taste yummy! hehe

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Savoury Oats with Sunnyside Up, Bacon & Cheese (Adapted from Martha Stewart, Recipe for 2 adults, 1 toddler)

1 cup quick oats (I used Macro Quick Oats)

3-4 large eggs (depends on how many eggs each person eats)

3-4 tbs shredded cheddar cheese

1-2 slices of bacon, chopped finely

1-2 tbs chopped chives

1-2 tbs fried scallions

Maggi seasoning (Optional, for adults)

Tamari (Optional, for toddlers)

Steps :

1) In a medium size pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add the quick oats and simmer till oats are tender, about 5 minutes.

2) While thats cooking, heat a frying pan and fry the bacon bits till crispy. Pour onto a kitchen towel to absorb the oil. Then using the same pan, fry the eggs on a low heat, till all the egg whites are cooked, leaving the yolk runny. For toddlers, flip the egg and cook the yolk through.

3) To serve : Pour the oats into 3 bowls, top with the shredded cheese, then sprinkle some bacon. Top with the sunny side up egg and season with a few drops of maggi seasoning/ tamari. Then sprinkle a bit more bacon, chopped chives and fried scallions. ENJOY!

Savoury oats with runny yolk egg

Let me know what your favourite combinations are! Would definitely like to give them a go (:

Remember to always bake and cook with love! Till the next post, xx!

Banana Cake with Oats & Chia Seeds

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Banana Cake with Oats & Chia Seeds

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now, you would know how much of a banana cake/bread fan I am. I love everything about it. I love to bake it, I love to eat it and I definitely love the smell of it. Just something about the soft, moist cake that is yummy to eat whether its hot out of the oven, or after it’s been sitting on the table for a while.

Plus, who could resist having one after it’s aroma filling the whole house? Just makes me smile thinking about it! So to this date, my favourite banana cake/bread recipe is the one with the nutella swirls. Because honestly, banana and nutella, match made in heaven! But having a toddler, I am always in search of recipes that include healthier ingredients, which would give us a more nutritious result!

So when I saw this recipe on The Domestic Goddess Wannabe, I knew I had to give it a shot and see what he thinks about it. And the result? Lochlan LOVED it! He kept coming back for me and when I gave him a piece to hold, he held on to it tightly, taking the smallest bites, so he could enjoy it for a longer time. YAY!

And I mean, I super love his chubby chub hands! hehe

This cake totally reminded me of the old school banana cakes I had when I was a kid. It was soft, moist and the flavour of the banana was the right level of intensity – STRONG. hehe Just the way I love it!

Banana Cake with Oats & Chia Seeds (Closely adapted from The Domestic Goddess Wannabe)

2 large overripe bananas, mashed

1 egg

120g unsalted butter, melted (You could use olive oil)

3/4 cup soy milk

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

1 1/2 cup plain flour

80g caster sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/8 cup chia seeds

Steps :

1) Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius. Spray a mini loaves tin with olive oil spray to make sure it’s well coated.

2) In a bowl, add the mashed bananas, soy milk, the egg, vanilla bean paste and melted butter. Mix till well combined.

3) In another bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, oats and chia seeds. Using a whisk, mix till the ingredients are well combined.

4) Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir till just incorporated. Careful not to over mix, as you don’t want a tough cake!

5) Fill the mini loaves till 3/4 full and bake in the oven for 15-20 mins (checking at 15 minutes with a toothpick, if it comes out dry means it’s done!). Cool it in the tin for 5 mins before turning them out onto a cooling rack.

Enjoy as is or with a hot cup of tea/coffee (or milk for the little kiddos)!

Remember to always bake or cook with love! Have a great week ahead, xx

Toddler Eats : Sugarless Carrot Banana Mini Loaves

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I’ve always wanted to bake something that Lochlan can enjoy for morning tea and I came across this recipe that was perfect. No sugar, and just the natural sweetness from the wholesome ingredients of the loaves!

Enjoying the loaf

I have to admit, I was a little nervous before giving the loaf to the little munchkin, cause I wasn’t sure if he would like it. But thankfully he quite enjoyed it and ate half go the loaf! (:

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I was really happy with the texture of the loaves too! It was fluffy and light but still moist! Just the way a good loaf should be. Perfect with a cup of hot tea, or a cup of warm milk (for the bub!) Of course if you had extra time and some cream cheese sitting in your fridge, you could always whip some cream cheese frosting for yourself and indulge! hehe

So here’s the recipe for these deliciousness! Hope you and your kiddos would enjoy it as much as we did!

Sugarless Carrot Banana Mini Loaves (Closely adapted to Easy Toddler Meals)

Ingredients :

1 large carrot, finely grated

2 large bananas (or 3 medium bananas), mashed

1 egg

3 tbs coconut oil

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

1/4 cup greek yogurt

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

Steps :

1) Preheat your oven to 170 degrees celcius. Spray some coconut oil/ olive oil into the mini loaf tin, to make sure it’s well coated. Set aside.

2) In a large bowl, mix the grated carrot, mashed banana, greek yogurt, coconut oil, egg and vanilla bean paste till well combined.

3) In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients.

4) Pour the dry ingredients into the wet mixture and stir till well combined. Scoop the mixture into the prepared mini loaf tin and bake for 13-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the loaf.

Loaves all baked and ready!

5) Allow it to cool for 10 mins in the tin, then remove.

Lochlan analysing the loaf

Enjoy it with your kiddos!

Remember to always cook and bake with love! xx

Toddler Eats : Cheesy Chicken & Veggies Meatballs

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Now that Lochlan has turned one (where did time go??), I’m trying to wean him from purees and introduce chunkier food, to encourage him to chew. Don’t get me wrong, he knows how to chew. But just prefers the purees cause he could finish it much quicker. haha So this marks the start to my new series of Toddler Eats! Hopefully it will be helpful to mummies out there who also want to try different foods and make them from their kitchen when time permits!

I decided to try making something I thought he might like! I mean, who doesn’t enjoy a good meatball? Especially with the addition of cheeeeese! These are quick and easy and you could have it on its own or mix it with pasta and some homemade tomato sauce and viola! Meatball pasta!

Meatball pasta

Lochlan’s Verdict : 2 1/2 meatballs (together with other food for dinner and strawberries for dessert hehe). I think thats a not too bad start!

 With the addition of cheese, you don’t even need to add salt to it. So it’s perfect even for babies from 10 months! Especially if you wanna do Baby-Led-Weaning. hehe Perfect finger food! These are not just for your little ones at home, the mr and I enjoyed it too!

So here’s the recipe, do give it a shot and let me know what u or your kiddos think!

Cheesy Chicken & Veggies Meatballs (A Food Made With Love Original Recipe)

Ingredients : Makes 24-26 meatballs

250g mince chicken (or meat of your choice)

2 stalks of spring onions, finely sliced

1 small carrot, grated

1/4 apple, grated

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1/2 zucchini, grated

2-3 florets of broccoli, finely chopped

50g cheddar cheese, grated

1 egg

Ground black pepper, to season

Ingredients

(I’ve got a double yolk! Lucky me! hehe)

Steps :

1) Preheat your oven to 170 degrees celcius. Spray/Oil a baking tray/ casserole dish and set it one side.

2) Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl until well combined.

Mixed till well combined

3) Using a tablespoon, roll the mixture into balls. Do note that the mixture will be a bit wet and sticky. Wetting your hands might help in the rolling process.

Rolled out

4) Place the meatballs onto the baking dish, and bake for 12-15 mins, until the meatballs are cooked through and/or slightly browned.

All baked

5) Serve as is or you could cook it in a homemade tomato sauce and toss it through some cooked pasta for a variety!

Enjoy!

P.S : You don’t have to grate the vegetables if you’re cooking for yourself or older kids and want more texture. Just finely diced them and it would be as delicious! Also you could always change the types of vegetables in the meatballs, find a combination that wins the most votes in your house! (:

Have a lovely weekend everyone! Remember to always cook and bake with love!

Till the next post, xx !

Chicken Tagine – MealDish

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Good evening dear readers! So sorry for the hiatus! It’s been a busy few months with Baby Ho’s grandparents (both paternal and maternal) and uncle & aunty coming to visit him consecutively! So I haven’t had the chance to sit down and churn posts out! But I will be doing it whenever I can, I promise!

So a few months back, I was introduced to MealDish. A website that aims to help people eat healthier, eat fresh, whilst minimising food waste and saving them time and money. This was absolutely perfect for me, especially since I can only get down to cooking with Baby Ho is asleep!

So off I went to the website and it’s so simple to use and follow!

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You just have to choose what you like, the number of recipes you want and then click the number of people you’re cooking for and get a meal plan! As easy as that!

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If you have any particular cuisine you would like to try, or specific ingredients to exclude or you have intolerances, there are options for you to tick too! So it’s really for everyone. I did different options and there are heaps of recipes to choose from. They even suggests side dishes that would go perfectly with the recipe you decide to cook that day. Sounds good, no?

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So I decided to just go with the quick option and choose the type of protein I wanted to cook with – Chicken! These were the 5 options I was given, and straight away I was drawn to the chicken tagine recipe, especially cause my beautiful tagine has been sitting on the shelf ever since I made my Moroccan meatballs one and half year ago! haha So it was time to get it on the stove again.

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If you’re a person who loves order and likes to get everything ready before you cook, Mealdish is definitely for you. The recipe comes with ‘Preparation Steps’ so that you have everything ready to go when you start cooking, missing nothing out! This cuts your cooking time and dinner will be on the table, pipping hot, in no time!

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Of course, there’s ‘Cooking Steps’ which are clear and easy to follow. What’s best about this website is that they have a ‘Shopping List’ tailored to the number of people you are cooking for. So there’s no waste and you just buy what is needed!

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Chicken Tagine

The results were as good as I thought it would be! The Mr loved it and even though I made enough for 4 people, we only had a serve left! What’s best is, this recipe had both protein and vegetables rolled into one! So we only needed that one dish for dinner. Paired with toasted Turkish bread – Dinner was ready within an hour!

So if you are looking for inspirations to cook your family or even just yourself something delicious, and want something quick and easy, hop onto the MealDish website and you will definitely find something you fancy!

Here’s the ingredients used for this dish. The steps are as described in the ‘Cooking Steps’ above! Or you could always just head to the website and search for the recipe to get the ingredient amounts tailored to the number of people you are cooking for!

Ingredients :

(For 4 people)

3/4 Onion whole

4 Garlic cloves

1 1/4 Celery stick

3/4 can tinned tomato

200g Pumpkin

2 tsp Coriander

3/4 tsp Ground Ginger

3/4 Cinnamon Stick

1/4 Lemon

1/4 cup apricot (I used raisins)

3/4 cup Chicken stock

8 Chicken drumstick

3/4 cup couscous

2 tbs fresh coriander

Chicken Tagine

Have a great rest of the day and hope you all will have an awesome hot dinner tonight since it’s freezing here in Melbourne!

Till the next post, remember to always cook and bake with love! xx

Ratatouille & A Good Food and Wine Tickets Giveaway!

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Ratatouille

I’ve always wanted to give this a try. Ever since I watched the little rat who could cook this dish perfectly in Ratatouille! The vibrant colours just catches my eye instantly, and I think it’s such a celebratory dish – A celebration of colours!

Also, it was my brother’s birthday and I just wanted to cook him something special! Of course, I didn’t only cook him one dish, I made 4! haha This dish pairs perfectly with seafood, so I made some white wine and cream mussels, homemade garlic bread and mushroom risotto! Mmmm!

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mushroom risotto

Don’t you love just cooking for people you love? It’s seriously something I love to do. And seeing their reaction when they take the first bite, it’s worth all the time and effort!

Ratatouille

Making the ratatouille was so much fun! One reason was that I got to play with the mandolin. Slicing those vegetables into the same thickness couldn’t be any easier! Fastest prep ever! haha So if you would like to impress your guest the next time u cook for them, I highly recommend making them ratatouille! My family loved how it looked, and enjoyed every single bite!

Ratatouille

Ratatouille (Adapted from The Walsh Cookbook)

Ingredients : 

1 medium green zucchini

1 medium yellow zucchini

1 eggplant (preferably the thin ones)

1 red capsicum

1 yellow/green capsicum

3 tomatoes

1 red onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 can of tomato puree

1 tsp red chilli flakes

1 tsp italian herbs/ mixed herbs

1 tsp salt

2 tbs olive oil

Parmesan cheese

Steps :

1) Preheat oven to 170 degrees celcius. Try to get the vegetables around the same size, so that they would look neater in your dish! Slice all the vegetables using a mandolin and set aside.

2) Heat a cast iron pot (or any pot that can be used in an oven) over a medium-high flame. Add the olive oil, garlic and onion and sauté till fragrant, careful not to burn them, as they will have a bitter after taste. Add in the tomato puree, salt, herbs & chilli flakes, and allow it to simmer for 5 mins.

3) Carefully arrange the vegetables, alternating the slices of zucchini, eggplant, capsicum and tomato. Continue laying them till you fill your dish and cover with a baking paper to allow it to steam and cook, keeping all the juices in. Bake for 45 mins.

Covered with baking paper

4) Remove the baking paper and sprinkle the parmesan cheese over the top and serve!

How easy is that? And I can promise you that everyone will definitely enjoy this! So definitely give it a try when you can!

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Okie. So now… time for the GIVEAWAY!

GFWS Citi_Logo 2015-02

So everyone knows the one event I look forward to every year is no doubt the Melbourne Good Food and Wine Show. Endless food & wine, beautiful produce and you get to meet your favourite chefs!

Good Food Theatre

This year, I am lucky enough to be given 2 double passes to giveaway to my readers! Whoopeedoo! What’s more exciting is that this year, Ainsley Harriott will be there for all 4 days of the show (5-8 June), along with Miguel Maestre & Alastair McLeod! So you definitely don’t want to miss the show this year! I can still remember when the Mr bought me tickets to a Private Dining session with Manu Feildel 3 years ago! Definitely a dream come true and an experience I will never forget!

How do you win those tickets? Easy!

  • Leave a comment and share with me the favourite dish you love to cook for your loved ones for a special occasion!
  • This giveaway is only open to Australian residents! (Sorry international readers!)
  • Please join me on my journey! Follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter! Let me know once you have followed me!
  • You may re-enter daily! One entry a day! (Oh yeah!)
  • Winners will be announced on the 29th of April, 10pm.
  • Winners will be picked via random.org and notified on this blog post and via email.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s go!

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WINNERS!

Congratulations to Good Food Good Karma and Ross! Here’s what they said :


 Comment Number 8 Winner 1 - Number 8

Comment number 6 Winner 2 - Number 6

Salmon and roast! Two delicious things I too would cook for loved ones at a special occasion! Congrats again and I will be in contact with you soon, through email! Thanks everyone for participating!

Disclaimer : The tickets were given in compliments of Red Agency and I wasn’t paid to run this giveaway.