Frugal Meal

It seems that every time i visit the supermarket ,prices are going up up up , its becoming annoying really , so we have to make meals stretch , i can make a 350g pk of mince stretch two meals to feed a family of 6 , how ...bye adding plenty of vegetables most of what are grown in our own vegetable garden , you can add almost anything you want to this dish and it taste Delicious

                                         RECIPE

                               350g of mince  browned in the pan oil drained off.
                               1 tin of red kidney beans drained and rinsed
                               1 tin of any other beans drained and rinsed
                               2or3 carrots finely chopped
                               1 tin of tomatoes
                               1or 2 cups of corn

                               1 or 2 onions finely chopped

                               1or 2 capsicums finely chopped

                               1or2 zucchini's finely chopped

                               1 sachet of taco seasoning

                                once mince is browned add onions , then other vegetables

                                cook for a few minutes then add taco seasoning, beans and tomatoes

                                stir then simmer for 10 minutes with lid on pan ,

                                make white sauce using natural yogurt about 2 cups maby a bit more

                                grate some cheese in to it and add 1 egg mix together, instead of pasta sheets

                                i use pitta or flat bread i layer some mince and yogurt then the pitta bread so on then

                                put the rest of the yogurt sauce on top sprinkle a little cheese and bake!!

There is always half the mince mixture left over i pop that in to the deep freeze and get it out for another quick meal!!

Lentil Pattie's

With summer just around the corner and these beautiful warm spring days , we have been eating a lot of fresh healthy salads and feeling so much better for it to , I'm so looking forward to all our fresh vegetables growing in the garden there really is nothing better than growing and eating your own fresh produce...

Over the last few weeks we have been decluttering and spring cleaning , i had no idea how much of a hoarder i was lol well not any more i recon iv donated half a house full away to charity and WOW does it feel good.

Until next time here is a recipe for some healthy lentil patties they are really yummy.......Heidi xx

                               LENTIL PATTIE"S

400g cooked brown lentils

1/4 cup multigrain dry bread crumbs

2Tbs of fresh parsley

1 egg lightly whisked

pepper

a good splash of soy sauce

1/4 of green capsicum finely chopped

1 carrot grated

mix all together and cook in a non stick pan with a drizzle of olive oil , you could add anything to these !!!

Spiced banana loaf

                                               Spiced banana loaf

                                                1cup sifted plain flour
                                                1cup unsifted wholemeal flour
                                                2 TBS sugar
                                                2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
                                                1 tsp ground cinnamon
                                                1 tsp ground nutmeg
                                                1/4cup unsalted butter
                                                1cup mashed banana's

                                                1/2 cup milk or butter milk

                                                1 large egg lightly beaten

                                                1 tsp vanilla essence
set oven at 180c - mix all dry ingredients in a bowl, then melt butter pour in to a bowl with the mashed banana and milk , egg and vanilla and mix well , pour in to dry ingredients and fold to it is just combined spoon in to lined tin and bake for 50 minutes, i always double the recipe and freeze 1 loaf.. enjoy :-)

Cookies For a cold wet day !

Oh boy is it cold tonight freezing it's been one of those days were the cold goes right thro to your bones brrrrrr ..... so i needed some comfort food for afternoon tea and a steaming cup of coffee to go with them yes one of these just doesn't do it ya need 2 ...or 3 ;-o  lol

RECIPE..

1 cup self raising flour

1/2 choc bits

1/2 cup roasted peanuts unsalted

1/2 cup caster sugar

2TBS butter

1/4 cup peanut butter
1 egg lightly beaten
sift flour and ass other dry ingredients then make well in center
melt butter and peanut butter over low heat add to dry ingredients followed bye the
egg mix well , put teaspoon fulls on to lined baking sheet bake in moderate oven for 20 minutes or so ,enjoy :-)

TASTY BARBECUE SAUCE

IV been picking a hand full of tomato's every couple of days not really enough to do a great deal with

but still enough for salads and what not , tonight for dinner i made some Barbecue sauce or relish all i know is that it taste Delicious we had it with home made potato wedges and meat and veg Patty's yum !! thumbs up bye all so it's a winner!

Recipe.....

2TBS butter

1 onion finely chopped

2 garlic cloves crushed

500g fresh tomato's peeled and chopped  or 400g tin of chopped tomato's

1TBS brown sugar
1tsp hot chili sauce or a few chili flakes or fresh chili the choice is yours :-)

1TSP of capers

2 gherkins chopped up

salt and pepper to taste

fry onion and garlic in butter until onion takes on that darkish brown look about 10 minutes

add Tomatoes ,brown sugar, chili ,capers and gherkins,a sprinkle on salt and pepper

and simmer until it thickens about 15 to 20 minutes yum enjoy..

Vegetable muffins

What a great Saturday lunch quick and simple !

 RECIPE !!!
13/4 cups of plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbs sugar

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 cup melted butter

1 cup milk

1 egg beaten

and any cheese,bacon or ham, veg grated or cut up fine can go in to these

add it all to sifted dry ingredient mix well then add wet ingredient and just combine together

then grease a muffin tin and bake at 200c for about 15 minutes depending on your oven and size of muffin tin

these make a great lunch box treat for kids lunch boxes to :-)

Quick simple frugal meal..

This quick stir fry is a favourite at the moment with the children more so with my little helper who is 3 years old she wont eat vegetables on there own unless its a corn cob ...but put them in a stir fry or any other way that looks interesting and she will eat it and with stir Fry's using chop sticks adds to the fun lol

Crunchy Topped Apple cake ..

RECIPE

    Cake

2 cups of self-raising flour

1/2 cup wholemeal flour

1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg grated
1 cup sugar
185g Butter melted
1/2 cup water
3 eggs lightly whisked
4 small to medium apples peeled and sliced
place whole meal flour in bowl ,sift other dry ingredients
then add wet ingredients mix then add apples put in to greased tin
              TOPPING
60g melted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg grated
pour over cake mixture , then bake at 180c for 11/4 hours ... yum
as you can tell the picture is only part of the cake lets just say bye the time the hungry tribe
had finished this was put away for afternoon tea tomorrow (if it last that long ;-) the smell that was coming
out of my kitchen was just pure delight !!!

PLUM SPONGE..

RECIPE!!!!

55g soft butter

55g brown sugar

1 egg

55g flour

1 tsp baking powder

900g stewed plums

cream butter and sugar together,then add egg mix well

Add sifted flour and baking powder fold in spread out on top of

plums and bake at 200c for about 40 minutes ...enjoy :-)

Christmas Shortbread

RECIPE.

250g soft butter

1/4 cup caster sugar

1 3/4 cups of plain flour

1/4 cup rice flour

1 tsp vanilla essence

dash of milk if need

beat butter and sugar add vanilla beat again to blended,sift in dry ingredients with a pinch of salt fold in

put mixture in to piping bag or roll in to small balls the choice is yours bake in moderate oven of about 160c to 180 c depends on your oven .....enjoy :-)

lemon cordial.

with summer in the air ..it was time to make some lemon cordial, so i raided the lemon tree they were a bit on the small side I'm not sure how long the tree has been in the ground for it was here when we moved in a few years back , as was the nectarines and apple tree's though i think i will get a few more fruit tree's and put in some were a bit less wet the ones here were planted down the back at the bottom of a hill were it's always wet i think that could be half the problem with poor quality fruit ..

RECIPE
equal part water and sugar
boil to sugar is dissolved
then add it to lemon juice that you have squeezed
i done 3 cups sugar and 3 cups water and added 10 small to medium lemons
but i guess its up to ones own taste buds , and i also put a touch of lemon zest to !
let get cool then pour in to bottles and store in fridge for about a month if it last that long :-)

cup cakes..

yes please say my grubby little helper ...lol she made a right mess of her singlet why decorating cup cakes today ..but oh such fun even if it meant a second bath when she was done ;-) it don't take much to please little ones they love to help ..hmmm if only teenagers were as keen !!!

RECIPE!

1/4 1b butter

2 large cups,s.r.flour

1/2 cup milk

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream butter and sugar add one egg at a time beating well

add flour milk and vanilla

spoon in to paper containers

cook at 180c

for 10 minutes

ice and enjoy ;-)

CHEESE BISCUITS

4 oz butter

6 oz s.r flour
4 oz grated cheese
cayenne pepper to taste
coconut

melt butter ,add cheese. sift flour and peeper together and add to mixture.

form into small balls, roll in coconut.

put on lined baking tray and bake at 180 c  for about 20 minutes until golden brown. enjoy

Old favourite !

This chocolate fudge cake is a favourite from my child hood days it's the best iv baked many different recipes over the years but i keep coming back to this one :-) needless to say my little helper also loves to bake hmmm I'll let the photos i took tell the story of what happens when my back is turned ;-)

                                                        yum!!!
                         
                                              CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE !!!!
1 cup sr flour
3 TBS coco
3/4 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
4oz butter
mix all dry ingrediance together then add ,melted butter,milk,eggs give a mix i do it all with a woodenspoon
put in to greased cake tin and bake at 180c for 40 minutes give or take ,depends on your oven ....enjoy :-)

Lental patties

Iv been a bit slack with penny pinching the last few weeks so i need to get back on track and make a few cut backs be more mindful i guess and the best way for me to cut back is to make sure I'm cooking good healthy meals from scratch ,it's way cheaper and taste a whole lot better ,, here is a recipe for lentil patties they are really good !!
1 cup cooked lentils (cooled)
1 large onion chopped
1 bunch of parsley
2tbs soy sauce
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup of cooked brown,or white rice
1 grated carrot
1 egg
mix all ingredients well then roll in flour and fry in a little olive oil or veg oil :-) enjoy

Homemade Crumpets

saturday morning and what is nicer than some homemade crumpets for breaky yummo!!

this is my little helper she loves to help mumma cook :-) these crumpets are so easy to make and the taste is just nothing like you can buy at the shops..they really are worth making .. i will post the recipe i always make a double batch of these one lot is just never enough lol..

 

1 heap tsp of yeast

300mls warm water

225g plain flour

1 tsp salt

mix a few spoons of warm water with the yeast then set aside...

put flour and salt and water in a bowl and whisk untill it is smooth but pourable

tip in yeast mixture and give another quick whisk ..

cover with tea towl and leave till it doubles or about a hour or so 

put a tsp of butter in your pan on low to med heat and dollop 

spoon fulls in cook untill it looks a little dry on top then flip and cook for further 2 minutes

enjoy!!