I love it!!!
I got my turbo chef the other day. My infared + Halogen heating benchtop oven thing. You can find them at the Danoz website for those interested in checking it out.
Thus far I think it's marvelous! Crumbed fish has never been so good in the oven... My chicken was perfect! Moist, crunchy skin but no oil... Chips are crunchy, pizza is excellent. Truly I am more than impressed thus far.
I got it on Friday and have used it every day... I think it may well be my most used appliance of all. The quality of the food is really fantastic and I have literally added no extra fat to anything. I am going to try baking in it at some point... And looking forward to making my BBQ ribs some time this week.
Quick recipe of the week.
Lightly cook an onion. Add meat removed from roast chicken, add a tin of tomatos and season to taste. Server with pasta and sprinkle on some paremsan cheese. Done!
Great served with some nice bread... A nice blob of sourcream goes well on top too.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Vegetarian pasta
Quick, simple, tasty.
I was in a hurry to put together a quick meal and pasta is always a hit. I didn't have time to defrost mince so I just went vegetarian.
Simple.
In a pan heat up some oil (I use my garlic oil but not necessary as there is a bit more garlic added at the end).
Dice and fry an onion.
Add 1 tin of peeled, diced tomatos.
I use the every day spice mix from Aldi but you can use any seasoning you like. A little extra salt can be useful if using a multi spice mix though, but that depends on your taste.
At the end add a clove of crushed garlic. Now I know this is something you normally do at the start but I learned a little trick the other day for a bit of a flavour kick. If you add cooked garlic to start with, add a bit of uncooked at the end and let simmer for a few minutes. Also good with parsley.
Cook your paster, simmer sauce. Serve!
I add parmesan cheese of course and I love it with a bit of light sour cream. I found with the sour cream it tastes almost like my really nice beef bolognaise sauce as well.
You can add extra vegies by grating in carrot and finely chopped capsicum. Other hidden vegies would be things like cauli flower finles chopped or pureed and anything else that is red or white.
I was in a hurry to put together a quick meal and pasta is always a hit. I didn't have time to defrost mince so I just went vegetarian.
Simple.
In a pan heat up some oil (I use my garlic oil but not necessary as there is a bit more garlic added at the end).
Dice and fry an onion.
Add 1 tin of peeled, diced tomatos.
I use the every day spice mix from Aldi but you can use any seasoning you like. A little extra salt can be useful if using a multi spice mix though, but that depends on your taste.
At the end add a clove of crushed garlic. Now I know this is something you normally do at the start but I learned a little trick the other day for a bit of a flavour kick. If you add cooked garlic to start with, add a bit of uncooked at the end and let simmer for a few minutes. Also good with parsley.
Cook your paster, simmer sauce. Serve!
I add parmesan cheese of course and I love it with a bit of light sour cream. I found with the sour cream it tastes almost like my really nice beef bolognaise sauce as well.
You can add extra vegies by grating in carrot and finely chopped capsicum. Other hidden vegies would be things like cauli flower finles chopped or pureed and anything else that is red or white.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Sausages...
Ok, so I am not one who cooks with sausages very often as I am not keen on the fat content. But today I was wondering what to make for dinner and realised that I had left out the frozen vegies which I had taken out when I was making lunch and they had completely defrosted. Obviously I had to use them right away but didn't really want to just heat them up and put them on the side of something else.
I browsed through my freezer and came across a packet of tomato and onion sausages I picked up only a few days ago for $2.00. Woolworths had a whole selection of sausages reduced for quick sale so I picked up these for the freezer and a pack of reduced fat ones which I cooked for lunch the next day. The low fat ones were only $3 which is pretty good really.
Looking out for cheap sausages and picking up a few packs when you find them can be an excellent money saver and a great ingredient for a quick meal. Or if you know you're having a BBQ some time soon grab a few packs and defrost them on the day of the BBQ. They will still fry up marvelously and taste fantastic.
But back to the sausages. One of my favourite things to do with sausages is curried sausages. This is not actually a particularly low fat meal (actually it's pretty disgustingly fatty when made a particular way) but served on rice with vegies... Brilliant! I shall share 2 ways of doing this. One is healthier than the other.
This is using uncooked sausages but it's also a great way to prepare some precooked sausages, especially if you've had a BBQ and are left with a mountain of leftovers.
First of all cut up your sausages into bite size pieces and fry them until they are about half cooked, making sure you stir them around a bit.
For a lower fat option, transfer sausages to some paper towel and allowe excess fat to drain off and remove as much fat from the pan as possible. This can be skipped if you prefer the more rich version.
For the lower fat version:
Pour enough water on the sausages to just cover them. Add some seasing and allow to simmer for a minute or 2.
Add some gravy mix or thicken the traditional way. Whilst I usually make everything from scratch, gravy mix is actually a fantastic way to keep some recipes a bit lower in calories. I only ever use the Gravox Brown Onion thought as the others leave a slightly odd taste. Some things you can afford to be choosy.
At this stage I add the curry. I use Keens Curry Powder which comes in a little orange plastic container. For this type of curry it's perfect (and also for curried eggs) as it's milder. I don't think this recipe should be burning hot, just with a bit of spice.
Throw in the vegies of your choice. In this case I used carrots, broccoli, cauli flower and green beans (the frozen vegies that were left out). They were defrosted to start with but if you add them earlier you can let them defrost in the sauce.
Allow to simmer on low heat for about 5 - 10 minutes. Once it's done I like to add a little light sour cream but you can add full fat or even a bit of normal thickened cream. That is optional though, depending on what you're after.
For the full fat version, instead of adding water to the half cooked sausages you can add cream, with a little water. Low fat cream works too. Add your seasoning, curry and defrosted vegies at this stage and let simmer until the sauce reduces and thickens.
This meal is best served with rice but works with potatos too. You can also decrease portion size by having a side of salad too, to cut down the fat.
I browsed through my freezer and came across a packet of tomato and onion sausages I picked up only a few days ago for $2.00. Woolworths had a whole selection of sausages reduced for quick sale so I picked up these for the freezer and a pack of reduced fat ones which I cooked for lunch the next day. The low fat ones were only $3 which is pretty good really.
Looking out for cheap sausages and picking up a few packs when you find them can be an excellent money saver and a great ingredient for a quick meal. Or if you know you're having a BBQ some time soon grab a few packs and defrost them on the day of the BBQ. They will still fry up marvelously and taste fantastic.
But back to the sausages. One of my favourite things to do with sausages is curried sausages. This is not actually a particularly low fat meal (actually it's pretty disgustingly fatty when made a particular way) but served on rice with vegies... Brilliant! I shall share 2 ways of doing this. One is healthier than the other.
This is using uncooked sausages but it's also a great way to prepare some precooked sausages, especially if you've had a BBQ and are left with a mountain of leftovers.
First of all cut up your sausages into bite size pieces and fry them until they are about half cooked, making sure you stir them around a bit.
For a lower fat option, transfer sausages to some paper towel and allowe excess fat to drain off and remove as much fat from the pan as possible. This can be skipped if you prefer the more rich version.
For the lower fat version:
Pour enough water on the sausages to just cover them. Add some seasing and allow to simmer for a minute or 2.
Add some gravy mix or thicken the traditional way. Whilst I usually make everything from scratch, gravy mix is actually a fantastic way to keep some recipes a bit lower in calories. I only ever use the Gravox Brown Onion thought as the others leave a slightly odd taste. Some things you can afford to be choosy.
At this stage I add the curry. I use Keens Curry Powder which comes in a little orange plastic container. For this type of curry it's perfect (and also for curried eggs) as it's milder. I don't think this recipe should be burning hot, just with a bit of spice.
Throw in the vegies of your choice. In this case I used carrots, broccoli, cauli flower and green beans (the frozen vegies that were left out). They were defrosted to start with but if you add them earlier you can let them defrost in the sauce.
Allow to simmer on low heat for about 5 - 10 minutes. Once it's done I like to add a little light sour cream but you can add full fat or even a bit of normal thickened cream. That is optional though, depending on what you're after.
For the full fat version, instead of adding water to the half cooked sausages you can add cream, with a little water. Low fat cream works too. Add your seasoning, curry and defrosted vegies at this stage and let simmer until the sauce reduces and thickens.
This meal is best served with rice but works with potatos too. You can also decrease portion size by having a side of salad too, to cut down the fat.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Coming soon to a Nutshell near you!
Turbo Chef Oven!!
OK, I don't watch Informercials normally but I happened across this not so long ago and instantly wanted one. I sat there for half an hour watching Mr T of all people promoting this product. Tacky as it is with all the staged oooh and aaaahs coming from the audience, I was hooked.
Some of you might have seen similar products. Bench top ovens that work by circulating air etc. designed to cook faster. Well this is the step up from what you can buy in shops. It cooks by combining air circulation with infared and halogen. A whole chicken can take something like 30 minutes and you can cook your vegies at the same time. It can do pizza, cakes, work as a grill, bake bread and much more! The fat drains off to a catchment below and it's also self cleaning...
So will it be as good as it sounds? In about 10 days I should receive mine and I will tell you. Ok it's not the cheapest appliance in the world and technically I am putting off getting my nice new mixer but if it's good it will save time and money in the long run.
Of course the bastards advertise it at $200 + $30 postage... You order and then it says "Would you like to upgrate to platinum?"... Ok, you get fan speeds and a digital controller!!! Sure why not...
"Would you like the 4 piece kit that comes with the pizza tray, breakfast rack, grilling tray and something else that I can't recall?"...
"Well yes of course I would. With0ut those things all I have is a glorified microwave without a turntble (though it doesn't cook using microwaves, just to compare the concept".
"Would you like the extension so you can cook chickens, cakes, have more than one layer blah blah blah".
"Yes... I guess I would as I plan to use this quite a bit"...
"Would you like fast delivery for just an extra $10 so you can get it in a few days rather than a months time"...
"Sure, why not".
"You can get a free slicing set worth $50 and you only have to pay $15 extra for postage!!!"
"No, I will pass on the slicer... the grand total has already reached $330 as it is..."
It had better be worth it!
OK, I don't watch Informercials normally but I happened across this not so long ago and instantly wanted one. I sat there for half an hour watching Mr T of all people promoting this product. Tacky as it is with all the staged oooh and aaaahs coming from the audience, I was hooked.
Some of you might have seen similar products. Bench top ovens that work by circulating air etc. designed to cook faster. Well this is the step up from what you can buy in shops. It cooks by combining air circulation with infared and halogen. A whole chicken can take something like 30 minutes and you can cook your vegies at the same time. It can do pizza, cakes, work as a grill, bake bread and much more! The fat drains off to a catchment below and it's also self cleaning...
So will it be as good as it sounds? In about 10 days I should receive mine and I will tell you. Ok it's not the cheapest appliance in the world and technically I am putting off getting my nice new mixer but if it's good it will save time and money in the long run.
Of course the bastards advertise it at $200 + $30 postage... You order and then it says "Would you like to upgrate to platinum?"... Ok, you get fan speeds and a digital controller!!! Sure why not...
"Would you like the 4 piece kit that comes with the pizza tray, breakfast rack, grilling tray and something else that I can't recall?"...
"Well yes of course I would. With0ut those things all I have is a glorified microwave without a turntble (though it doesn't cook using microwaves, just to compare the concept".
"Would you like the extension so you can cook chickens, cakes, have more than one layer blah blah blah".
"Yes... I guess I would as I plan to use this quite a bit"...
"Would you like fast delivery for just an extra $10 so you can get it in a few days rather than a months time"...
"Sure, why not".
"You can get a free slicing set worth $50 and you only have to pay $15 extra for postage!!!"
"No, I will pass on the slicer... the grand total has already reached $330 as it is..."
It had better be worth it!
Product Review - Sorbies Nappies
So what's the verdict so far? Well I can't see myself spending the extra money on these. The night ones do seem alright but really Babylove does exactly the same job.
I have found that the day nappies seem a little more prone to leaking, though I admit we've had a few leaks with the Babylove and Woolworths brand as well. The patterns are bright and cute and I do like the quilted effect on the inside of the nappy but they are not as flexible as many other brands. The tabs don't stretch as far.
I think it may be time to move up to the next size. I might buy a pack next time in the size up and see how we go.
He is a walker now after all but I am pretty sure he's only just hit the 10kg mark. I will find out when I get his needles done soon but we shall see.
I have used Babylove for the last year without complaint. I won't be changing as it's not worth the extra money. A 114 box of Babylove costs $36 so it works out to be about 32c per nappy. Less than 2 packs of Sorbies on special.
I have found that the day nappies seem a little more prone to leaking, though I admit we've had a few leaks with the Babylove and Woolworths brand as well. The patterns are bright and cute and I do like the quilted effect on the inside of the nappy but they are not as flexible as many other brands. The tabs don't stretch as far.
I think it may be time to move up to the next size. I might buy a pack next time in the size up and see how we go.
He is a walker now after all but I am pretty sure he's only just hit the 10kg mark. I will find out when I get his needles done soon but we shall see.
I have used Babylove for the last year without complaint. I won't be changing as it's not worth the extra money. A 114 box of Babylove costs $36 so it works out to be about 32c per nappy. Less than 2 packs of Sorbies on special.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Sorbies Nappies
Just a quick one for those with babies in nappies. If you want to try them out, Coles has the packs of 30 on special for $10. 23 day and 7 night nappies.
Works out to be about 33c per nappy which is OK and if you use less because the night ones last longer it could be worth while to get them when they are on special etc. I bought 2 packs. Will let you know how they are.
Works out to be about 33c per nappy which is OK and if you use less because the night ones last longer it could be worth while to get them when they are on special etc. I bought 2 packs. Will let you know how they are.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
The Quickest Ice Cream Ever
I was looking for vegan friendly recipes as I was hosting a dinner where one guest was vegan and came across this fantastic recipe for coconut ice cream. It's cheap, quick and can be made with 2 ingredients!
So, the actual recipe as found:
Coconut milk ice cream
Ingredients:
· 4 cups unsweetened coconut milk
· 1/2 cup superfine sugar or granulated sugar, or to taste
· 1/4 teaspoon coconut extract, optional
· 1 1/4 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
· 1/4 cup toasted coconut, optional
Preparation:
Combine the coconut milk and sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the extract and the coconut flakes. Chill in the freezer, stirring occasionally until hardened, or prepare in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions. Top with toasted coconut before serving.
So my way:
So, the actual recipe as found:
Coconut milk ice cream
Ingredients:
· 4 cups unsweetened coconut milk
· 1/2 cup superfine sugar or granulated sugar, or to taste
· 1/4 teaspoon coconut extract, optional
· 1 1/4 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
· 1/4 cup toasted coconut, optional
Preparation:
Combine the coconut milk and sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the extract and the coconut flakes. Chill in the freezer, stirring occasionally until hardened, or prepare in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions. Top with toasted coconut before serving.
So my way:
- 2 tins of coconut milk or if you want a bit more creamy texture use 1 tin coconut milk, one of coc0nut cream. You could use light as well though I have not tried it yet.
- Half a cup of sugar
Mix ingredients in a pot and allow to sit for a few minutes over a low heat so the sugar can dissolve. Place in fridge and allow to cool completely and then pour into ice cream maker according to the machines directions. If you don't have an ice cream maker you can just put it in the freezer and stir maybe once an hour until it's frozen.
That's it.
You can add the extra coconut if you like but I prefer it without the texture. It's quick, simple and absolutely delicious!
Instead of sugar I often use a product called Xylitol. It's a sugar alternative, completely natural and chemical free and has no fat, no carbs, no nothing. I found it when doing the atkins diet and it saved my life! You can use as much as you like without affecting your carb counting at all. And it looks and tastes much like sugar as well without that after taste you get with the artificial sweeteners. It's a 1:1 conversion though I find you can use less Xylitol as it's sweeter than sugar.
If you're diet conscious and avoiding sugar I strongly recommend you look into this product. It's not cheap but can go a long way. I pay about $18 for a 750g bag at the health shop.
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