I’m a Woolies girl myself, and I’m not a fan of Curtis Stone, but this recipe looked easy, cheap and tasty, so I visited Coles, grabbed the Curtis Stone recipe booklet at the front door and bought the ingredients.  Well, it wasn’t under $10 because I bought a bigger package of ground beef (the leftovers I would freeze for later use).  I wasn’t very interested in the cost, however, as I was more interested in how easy it would be, and whether my kids would like it or not!

I started cooking when I got home from the shops and I found the preparation was quite easy and relatively quick, just what I was after.  The sauce cooks up nice, thick and fragrant.  I love the chunky mushrooms and carrots.

The taste was so-so.  Oh, it was good, definitely, but it just seemed to be lacking a little bit of flavor, like it could have used more seasoning (which would have been my fault for not using more) or more basil.  I don’t know, I’m not a cook – I’m a baker!

My kids didn’t like it very well.  They ate about half of their serve and left it.  My 2-year-old son hated the carrots and mushrooms, and my 4-year-old daughter would only eat the mushrooms if I told her they were actually little bits of fish (what??).  Well, she has an aversion to mushrooms, as one morning during a playgroup outing to the playground she picked a wild mushroom out of the ground and ate a piece of it.  I was horrified and worried she would get really sick (or worse), but she was just fine.  We must have worried her too much by telling her to never eat mushrooms that she sees on the ground, because now she won’t any mushrooms at all!

Anyway, I would definitely recommend this meal, and I probably will make it again, chunks of fish and all!  If you read the comments on the recipe page from Coles you’ll find some tips on how to make this pasta dish a little bit better, including adding an extra can of tomatoes or even a couple tablespoons of tomato paste.

Fettuccine Bolognese
Adapted from Curtis Stone
Serves 4 generously

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
250g Portobello mushrooms, sliced
500g  beef mince
400g whole peeled Italian tomatoes
350g fettuccine pasta
1 cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese, finely grated, to serve

Method
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large frying pan. Add the beef mince, season with salt and pepper and stir to break up the lumps. Cook for 5-7 mins over high heat until browned. Add the onion and cook for 2 mins then add the garlic, carrots and mushrooms, cook for 2 mins until just softened. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 30 mins.

Cook the fettuccine according to packet directions.

Toss fettuccine with sauce in fettuccine cooking pan. Mix in basil. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

To get back in the swing of things, I have a sort of Japanese-theme for this post.  We’ll start off with teriyaki beef sushi.  If you read my new “About” page, you will learn that sushi is my ultimate favorite food.  I love sushi with raw salmon the best, but this recipe that I found in the March 2010 issue of Australia’s Recipes + is pretty good too.

I’m really sorry for the poor quality of the photo.  The sun had already set and lighting was dim in the house.  I keep saying it’s time to make my own lightbox, but haven’t gotten around to that yet.

Anyway, what we have here is a thinly sliced expensive rump steak that has been stir-fried in a teriyaki marinade sauce and sprinkled in sesame seeds, matchstick carrots and cucumbers, seasoned sushi rice, all wrapped up into a seaweed cone.  It tastes great, but I think it tastes better completely chilled straight from the refrigerator, rather than eating it straight away.

My notes on this recipe for the sushi; I didn’t use all the sushi seasoning called for in the recipe.  I did not use peanut and sesame oils, I just used regular vegetable oil.  I also used a teriyaki marinade sauce instead of plain teriyaki sauce.  And it took a few tries before I finally was able to roll the seaweed into something that actually resembled a cone!

For dessert, let’s talk meringues.  I’ll start at the beginning.  I was just simply browsing my local newsagency and admiring the food magazines.  delicious. is one of my favorites, but it’s a rather expensive magazine and the food is slightly more upscale than what I’m used to making.  I hadn’t planned on buying this magazine, but a recipe inside caught my eye.  It was a pistachio meringue with green tea cream.  You know how much I love green tea.  I bought the magazine simply because of this one recipe, it looked brilliant and, well, delicious.

My pistachio meringue with green tea cream?  Nowhere near as marvelous-looking as the one in the magazine (and the dim lighting problem again).  I think I beat the egg whites too long, so it might have ended up a bit dry.  I’m not sure, I haven’t made a real meringue before.

In the end, it didn’t matter how long I beat the egg whites because this dessert was one of the best foods I have ever put in my mouth.  The taste sent me to a whole other world where only it and I existed.  Simply amazing.

I’ll have to make these again, but be a bit more careful with my egg whites.

Beef Teriyaki Sushi
Makes 8 cones
Adapted from Recipes + magazine, Marsh 2010 issue

Ingredients
1 cup sushi rice, uncooked (or use medium-grain rice)
1/4 cup sushi seasoning
2 teaspoons peanut oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
500g beef rump steak, trimmed, thinly sliced
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
2 teaspoons sesame seeds, toasted
4 nori sheets, halved
1 medium carrot, cut into matchsticks
1 medium cucumber, cut into matchsticks
Wasabi paste and pickled ginger to serve, optional

Method
Rinse rice in cold water; drain well.  Place in a heavy-based medium saucepan with 1 cup water.  Bring to the boil, stirring occasionally.  Reduce heat to very low; cover tightly.  Simmer for 12 minutes.  Remove pan from heat; stand, covered for 10 minutes.

Spread rice in a large baking dish.  Sprinkle with sushi seasoning.  Using a flat spoon or spatula, slice through rice to coat grains evenly.  Fan rice to cool quickly.  Cover with a damp tea-towel.

Meanwhile, heat oils in a large frying pan over moderately high heat.  Add beef; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until seared.  Add sauce; cook and stir for 1 minute or until sauce has almost evaporated.  Set aside to cool.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

To make a cone: using slightly damp hands, place a nori rectangle on a flat surface.  Using a wet spoon, spread 2 tablespoons rice over half the sheet.  Top with a little carrot, cucumber and beef mixture diagonally across the rice (don’t overfill).  Roll sheet from the filled side on a diagonal to shape cone.  Serve with wasabi and pickled ginger.

Pistachio Meringues With Green Tea Cream
Makes 8 meringues
Adapted from delicious. magazine, April 2010 issue

Ingredients
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
4 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup (75g) unsalted pistachios, finely chopped
300ml thickened cream
2 tablespoons icing sugar mixture
1 1/2 – 2 teaspoons matcha (green tea powder)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method
Preheat oven to 100C and line a baking tray with baking paper.  Place sugar in a stainless steel bowl and heat in the oven for 8-10 minutes until quite warm to touch.

Whisk egg whites in a clean, dry electric mixer on medium speed for 3-5 miutes until frothy.  Increase speed to medium-high, sprinkle in cream of tartar and gradually add sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, allowing 2-3 minutes between each addition.  Return sugar to oven to keep warm.  The meringue is ready when it is stiff and glossy (about 10-12 minutes).

Dab a little meringue under the corners of the baking paper to stick it down onto the tray.  Use a large spoon to dollop some of the meringue onto the tray (about the size of an apple), repeat to form 8-10 meringues.  Sprinkle with pistachios and bake for 2-2 1/2 hours until they’re dry and sound hollow if lightly tapped on the base.

When they are ready, remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Once cool, store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

When you’re ready to serve, beat cream, icing sugar and green tea with electric beaters to soft peaks.  Carefully slice the meringues in half using a sharp serrated knife.  Dollop tea cream onto the base of each meringue, sit lids on top and serve.

In The New Classics cookbook is a variety of recipes, some of which you’ll find on Martha’s website, including the one I’m going to show you today.  I’ve copied quite a few recipes that I hope to share with you, actually!

Today’s recipe from The New Classics cookbook is chicken wraps with mango, basil and mint.  This one was the first recipe that stood out at me while skimming the book.  It sounded very interesting, and on top of that I just love wrap sandwiches!

These are quite easy to make, and while doing so you’ll find that these wraps have an intriguing combinations of flavors.  The chicken is baked in a rub that includes garlic, shallot, fresh basil, salt, pepper and cinnamon.  Yes, that was cinnamon!  It works though, this chicken tastes amazing.

To accompany the chicken, you’ll be making a mango dressing.  This includes mango, of course, but also more shallot, lime juice and cayenne pepper.

Assembly is easy.  Spread the mango dressing on the bread, layer with chicken, mango slices and a few leaves of basil and mint.   Wrap and enjoy!  I preferred this cold, but they most definitely can be eaten while warm.

Okay, my main problem with these is that there isn’t enough filling.  I followed the recipe exactly, but ended up with having to use just two slices of chicken, two slices of mango, and only about a tablespoon of mango dressing per wrap.  If I were to make these again, I would definitely be using more, and bigger mangos and more chicken so I could fill the wraps more.

Chicken Wraps With Mango, Basil, and Mint
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics
Recipe also available on marthastewart.com
Makes 4 wraps

Ingredients:
For The Chicken
1 garlic clove
1/2 shallot
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Freshly ground pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 12 ounces total)

For The Dressing
1/2 shallot
1/2 mango, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
Pinch of cayenne pepper

Assembly
4 lavash breads (3 1/2 ounces each)
1/2 mango, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick spears
8 fresh basil leaves
8 fresh mint leaves

Method
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make the chicken: Finely chop garlic and shallot in a food processor. Add basil and oil, and process until mixture forms a coarse paste. Stir in salt and cinnamon, and season with pepper. Make a few shallow 1/2-inch slits on both sides of chicken; rub all over with the basil mixture. Place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake chicken until cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely, then shred into small pieces; set aside.

Make the dressing: Finely chop shallot in the clean bowl of the food processor. Add mango, and process until smooth. Add the lime juice and cayenne, and process until combined.

Assemble wraps: Spread about 1/4 cup mango dressing in center of each lavash. Top with chicken, mango, and herbs. Roll up diagonally to form a cone. Wraps can be refrigerated, wrapped in parchment and plastic, up to 4 hours.

I try to feed my kids healthy foods, but there are those evenings when there’s only time for a frozen pizza, or French fries, or chicken nuggets.  And of course, if I’ve made cupcakes we’ll have those for dessert.  I always feel guilty about it, but if I look over the course of a week or so I realize that they’ve gotten plenty of other healthy lunches and dinners and I don’t feel so bad.  Besides, I’m a firm believer in having a treat every so often!

When it comes to fruits and vegetables, my kids prefer them raw.  If I’ve taken the time to cook any vegetables, they’ll usually always think it’s disgusting.  So you’ll find a lot of chopped cucumber, celery, carrots, apples, etc. in the refrigerator along with various dips such as hummus, or avocado.  Most of the time I remind myself to not waste time cooking the vegetables, but sometimes I’ll find a recipe that just looks too interesting to pass up.

If you live here in Sydney, you may have seen an ad on the TV recently sponsored by Woolworth’s.  In the ad, Annette cooks a special, quick and healthy dish for children called Orange Pasta.  Annette juliennes some carrots and cooks them with diced tomatoes and some onions and serves plates of this Orange Pasta with shredded cheese and parsley.  Apparently, her children don’t realize that the “pasta” is actually julienned carrots.

I thought it would probably be easy for my kids to distinguish between regular pasta and carrots and that they wouldn’t eat this Orange Pasta, but I thought it looked interesting and that I’d give it a try.

The preparation was quick and easy and the cooking time was next to nothing.  The hardest part is chopping the carrots into matchstick pieces, but it’s easy if you’ve got the proper tools, such as a julienne peeler.

Here are my notes from the recipe:  I found that I needed to cook the carrots a bit longer than 1 minute to cook them properly and to soften them just a bit; I used half of a red onion instead of a whole one; I used extra virgin coconut oil instead of olive oil; I used Parmesan cheese instead of cheddar cheese.

My conclusion is that this is an excellent vegetable dish.  I’d like to use it as a side dish sometime, but it would make a great main dish for a child who actually liked it.  My 4-year-old daughter took a couple of bites but decided she didn’t like it at all.  And I just didn’t even bother trying with my 2-year-old son!

Orange Pasta
Adapted from Woolworth’s
Serves 2

Ingredients
3 medium carrots
3 tbs olive oil
1/2 red onion, diced
200g can diced Italian tomatoes
1 small clove garlic, chopped
salt and pepper, optional
fresh parsley, chopped to serve
shredded Parmesan cheese to serve

Method
Wash the carrots well, then peel them into long thin strips.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan on medium-high. Add onion and garlic and allow to soften.

Add carrot strips and toss them continually for a minute or until just cooked. Stir in chopped tomatoes and season if desired.

Remove the pan from the heat and serve with a sprinkling of tasty cheese and chopped parsley.

They taste great, like a crispy garlic bread.  They’d be perfect for appetizers, a snack or a side dish.

Parmesan Knots
Adapted from Taste of Home magazine, August/September 2009
Makes 2 1/2 dozen

Ingredients
1 tube (12oz) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1/4 cup canola oil
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

Method
Cut each biscuit into thirds.  Roll each piece into a 3-inch rope and tie into a knot; tuck ends under.  Place 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet.  Bake at 400F for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.  In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients; add the warm knots and gently toss to coat.

The only thing I did differently in making these was that I used olive oil intead of canola oil to toss the knots with.

I did want to update here with a recipe for tomato relish.  This is something I’ve been interested in trying since I heard Gordon Ramsay mention it a few months ago on one of his shows.  I searched for a recipe, found one I liked the sound of from Bobby Flay, then adapted it to my own tastes.

Making this was so easy; it came together really quickly.  It would be the absolute perfect addition to hamburgers, but we used it on hot dogs!

Tomato Relish
Adapted from Bobby Flay
Makes about 3/4 cup

Ingredients
1 medium ripe tomato, diced
1 1/2 tablespoons red onion, finely diced
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method
Combine all ingredients in a bowl; serve at room temperature.

See, it couldn’t possibly be any easier than that!  :)

I did have to make a substitution to this, however.  My store must have been out of Italian sausage, one of the main ingredients to this recipe.  So I used regular ground beef and while cooking it I added an Italian spice blend.  I’m sure I’ll be making this again sometime, and I will try to find Italian sausage next time!

My entire family loved this, even my 2-year-old son.  It makes a great family dinner when served with a nice fresh salad.  We had a salad of lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes and green olives.

The sauce this recipe makes tastes great, and would be nice to use as a regular spaghetti sauce.  I might try this sometime!

The original recipe in the magazine made two full 13×9-inch baking dishes of this casserole, but I divided everything in half (or close to half) when I made this for just one baking dish, and I have posted the recipe for just one baking dish below.

Penne & Sausage Casserole
Adapted from Taste of Home magazine, June & July 2009

Ingredients
3/4 pound uncooked penne pasta
1/2 pound Italian sausage
1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
3/4 cup dry red wine or beef broth, divided
1 can (14.5 ounces) stewed tomatoes, chopped
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1/2 cup beef broth
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded fontina cheese
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Minced fresh parsley

Method
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain and set aside.

In the same pan, saute mushrooms and onion in oil until tender. Add garlic and oregano; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in 1/2 cup wine (or beef broth). Bring to a boil; cook until liquid is reduced by half. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, sausage and remaining wine (or beef broth). Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Drain pasta. Spread about 1/4 cup sauce in a greased 13×9-inch baking dish. Spread half of the pasta on top of the sauce. Top with about 1 1/4 cups sauce and 1/2 cup of each cheese. Repeat the layers once more.

Cover and bake at 350F for 25 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly and cheese is melted. Sprinkle with parsley if desired.

Because I’m pregnant, I wanted to stay away from raw fish, so I made vegetarian sushi.  I was really surprised at how easy it was to make the sushi.  I’m definitely going to be making my own again, and soon!

To help guide me, I had this 5-star recipe from Recipezaar and this beginner sushi tutorial from And Then I Do The Dishes printed out.

So basically what I have done with my sushi is thinly slice seedless cucumbers and carrots, which was actually the hardest part of making my sushi!  To make it easier, see if you can find matchstick carrots in the produce section of your store, or maybe even grated carrots.  The cucumbers weren’t so difficult.  I also sliced the avocado and extra firm tofu a bit thicker.

Rolling the sushi took a little practice – my first roll didn’t turn out so well, but the second looked better.  I think I overstuffed my sushi a bit, because the seaweed started to rip in some places!  I don’t have a bamboo sushi mat, but I do have silicone pot holders/hot plates, so I used one of those.  It’s about a 6-inch square mat, and it worked really well.

I spread about 1 cup of sushi rice on top of a sheet of nori.  You’ll need to have a bowl of water right next to you to dip your fingers into as you spread the rice evenly on top of the nori, otherwise you’ll end up with the rice stuck to you instead of the nori!  After spreading the rice, I placed the tofu, cucumbers, carrots and avocado in a line down the center of the rice.  Then I started rolling.  Like I said, that takes a little bit of practice, but after the first roll I pretty much got the hang of it.

If you are interested in making your own sushi, I highly recommend doing so.  It’s really not as difficult as you might think.  The post at And Then I Do The Dishes really helped me out with this, so have a read over that, print it out and get to work!  :)

These were actually much easier to make than I thought they would be, and they tasted so nice!  I left out the chopped green chilies in the white sauce, but if I had to do it over, I think I’d add them after all to give it a bit of extra flavor.

Baked Chimichangas
Adapted from Taste of Home
Serves 6

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
1 cup salsa
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
6 flour tortillas (10 inches), warmed
3/4 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup fat-free half-and-half
1 can (4 ounces ) chopped green chilies

Method
In a large nonstick skillet, simmer the chicken, salsa, onion, cumin and oregano until heated through and most of the liquid is evaporated.  Place 1/2 cup down the center of each tortilla; top with 2 tablespoons cheese.

Fold sides and ends over filling; roll up.  Place seam side down in a 13x9x2-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Bake, uncovered, at 425F for 15 minutes or until browned.

In a saucepan, heat broth, bouillon and pepper until bouillon is dissolved.  Combine flour and half-and-half until smooth; stir into broth.  Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.  Stir in chilies; heat through.  Cut chimichangas in half; top with sauce.

The “recipe” is posted at the link above to Not Without Salt, but you’ll see it’s not exactly a recipe.  It basically says to throw together broccoli, oil, garlic, lemon juice and puree!  It doesn’t give amounts of anything, so it’s pretty much open to your tastes.

What you do is you steam some broccoli.  You then saute it in dark green olive oil (I don’t have any of this, so I used regular olive oil) along with two minced cloves of garlic until the garlic is soft.  Put this into a blender along with pepper, salt, the juice of half a lemon, more olive oil and puree it.

I have no idea what consistency pesto should be – should it be runny or thick?  Mine came out a bit thick, and I used it on spaghetti.

I really need to work on my spaghetti plating skills!  But anyhow, I really liked this.  I did something sneaky for the kids though.  I made them spaghetti as well, but knowing that they wouldn’t eat green spaghetti, I mixed the rest of the broccoli pesto into regular red spaghetti sauce and they had no idea they were eating broccoli – they loved it!