Easy Sunday: Hearty Chicken and Barley Soup

I'm running out of time to do stodgy winter warmers (hopefully I am, anyway - are you coming Spring? Well, are you?) Here's a delicious chicken and barley soup that won't fail to warm the cockles of your hearties. I simply adore barley and when I make this I usually add more than the recipe calls for (along with zucchini, of course... you could throw a couple of those in here too if you like).  This recipe was an award winner for a reader over at Australian Women's Weekly and you'll soon taste why.

Hearty Chicken and Barley Soup

1 cup barley

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
1 large leek, chopped
3 sticks celery, trimmed, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 large parsnip, chopped
1 small sweet potato, chopped
2 medium  potatoes, chopped
1 medium swede, chopped (leave out if you can't get it, or substitute zucchini...)
8 cups salt-reduced chicken stock (like most things, it tastes better with the non-salt reduced version...)
4 cups water
4 chicken thigh fillets, chopped finely
½ cup coarsely chopped parsley

Place the barley in a large bowl. Cover with cold water, stand for 4 hours or overnight.


Heat oil in a large stockpot; cook onion, leek, celery and carrot, stirring, until softened. Add remaining vegetables, stock and water then bring to the boil. Add chicken and drained barley, simmer, loosely covered, about 1½ hours or until thickened.

Just before serving, season the soup with salt and pepper and stir in parsley.

Suitable to freeze.

Enjoy!

Easy Sunday: Scrummy Sausage Rolls

I always do my 'Easy Sunday' post in advance (which helps to keep Sundays nice and easy!) I hope you don't mind. This Sunday you will find me on a picnic rug having afternoon tea at one of my favourite Sydney spots, overlooking Middle Harbour. Here in Maxabellaland, we love, love, love a picnic, but we find afternoon or morning tea picnics easier while The Badoo still needs a lunchtime sleep (hopefully for the term of her natural life). I may or may not be making these delicious sausage rolls to take along - mainly because they are quite substantial and I begin Phase 139 of my 20 Year Diet today. Rest assured, even if I don't make them for today, I will wish that I had made them. For whenever they come out, the party goes 'yay!'

Scrummy Sausage Rolls

1kg chicken mince (can substitute pork or beef for a different flavour)

2 cups fresh breadcrumbs (made from day-old bread, I generally use wholemeal)
1 cup finely grated carrot
1 cup finely grated zucchini
1 chicken stock cube, finely crumbled
1 egg, lightly whisked
2 tbs finely chopped fresh sage
2 tbs finely chopped parsley
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
Puff pastry sheets (I just use the packet stuff... of course)
1 egg, lightly whisked, extra
1 tbs sesame seeds

1. Preheat oven to 220°C. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.


2 Combine the mince, breadcrumbs, carrot, zuchinni, egg, stock cube, parsley and sage in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
Cut sheet of puff pastry into two halves. Spoon length of mince along one half about 2/3rds down. Roll to enclose and form a log. Cut it crossways into 4 smaller rolls. Place rolls on the lined tray. Repeat with remaining mince mixture and pastry until no more mince is left. Brush the top of each sausage roll with the extra egg and sprinkle evenly with sesame seeds.

Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden and the mince is cooked though. Serve immediately (with tomato sauce!)

Note: this recipe is in party quantities and makes about 30 sausage rolls... but I will not judge.

[Image: this batch was made for Maxi-Taxi's Monster Party; recipe my own]

Easy Sunday: Acceptable Broccoli, Zucchini and Bacon Pasta Bake

I'm breaking my sweet Sundays and going savoury. I feel the need to share some of my standby Monday / Tuesday meals. On M/T I leave food in the fridge for Annabelle, our M/T nanny, to reheat for the Tsunamis' dining pleasure. So it needs to not dry out, be safe to reheat and it needs to be food that they'll eat without fussing.  This pasta bake ticks all the boxes. It's the only food Maxi-Taxi will eat that has 'green bits' in it and not spend hours sitting there picking out minute bits of vegetable that are not actually visible to the naked eye.

Acceptable Broccoli, Zucchini and Bacon Pasta Bake

300g wholemeal pasta spirals
60g butter
1/4 cup wholemeal plain flour
450ml reduced-fat milk
1 reduced-salt chicken stock cube
2 tsp olive oil
4 short cut bacon rashers, chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large head broccoli
2 grated zucchinis
1 1/2 cups grated tasty cheese
Wholemeal breadcrumbs
Butter


• Preheat oven to 180°C.

• Cook the pasta, drain.

• Melt butter in a heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour. Cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until mixture is bubbling. Remove from heat. Slowly add milk, stirring until mixture is smooth. Return to heat. Melt the stock cube in a little boiling water and add to mixture. Cook, stirring, for 10 minutes or until mixture comes to the boil. Add 1 cup cheese and stir through.

• Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the bacon, onion and garlic and cook, until soft and lightly caramelised.

• Break the broccoli into small florets. Add grated zucchini. Cook in the microwave until soft. Use a fork to mash. Place in ovenproof dish.

• Add pasta, bacon, onion, garlic, zucchini and broccoli and mix together. Pour the cheesy sauce over and mix well. Sprinkle ½ cup cheese on top. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over top and dot with small dobs of butter. Bake about 30 minutes until golden.

Enjoy!

[Image by Louise Lister from Taste ; recipe my own]

Easy Sunday: Ravishing Raspberry and White Choc Muffins

Another classic this week. I've been making these babies for a long time from a torn piece of A4 paper with scribbles, but I think the recipe might have been a Nigella that I adapted to reduce the enormous butter quantity (yes, definitely a Nigella!). I do the wholemeal flour option to try to kid myself that I feed my children healthfully, but they are definitely nicer with 100% of the white stuff (don't tell the tsunamis!). I often skip the chocolate and substitute more raspberries and a cup of pureed zucchini. Weird, but it works!

Ravishing Raspberry and White Chocolate Muffins

300g plain flour (I use 100g plain white and 200g plain wholemeal)

2 tsp baking powder

150g caster sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

225ml milk (or buttermilk)

50g butter

approx. 100g raspberries

approx. 110g white chocolate

Publish Post

1. Pre-heat oven to 200^oC. Grease and line a 12 hole muffin tray.

2. Half the raspberries and chop chocolate into large chunks. Keep it chunky as the end result is yummier.

3. Sift flour and baking powder into large bowl.

4. Stir sugar into flour mixture.

5. Melt the butter (I do it in the microwave on half power for about 50 secs)

6. In separate bowl crack the egg, whisk in the vanilla extract, milk and melted butter.

7. Stir the liquid mixture into the dry mixture. Don't over stir, just bring it all together.

8. Smash the raspberries a fair bit (injects flavour throughout the whole muffin) and then add to the bowl along with the white chocolate.  Fold through.

9. Scoop into muffin tray. I tend to make bigger muffins so I only make 9.

10. Into the oven for approx 30-35 minutes or until muffins start to golden on top.

11.Best enjoyed warm, however careful that the chocolate isn't too hot for little mouths. You can also freeze these little bundles of lunchbox yum.


Enjoy!

Easy Sunday: Self-Saucy Puds

I promised this indulgent, easy recipe on Friday... try it if you daaaaaare. Do not, I repeat, do not get your weight watchers points book out for this one.

Bill Granger's Chocolate Self-Saucing Puddings

For the pudding

1 cup plain flour
A pinch of salt
1/2 cup caster sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 cup milk
90g unsalted butter, melted
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the topping
1 cup soft brown sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 cup boiling water


Make the pudding
Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).

Sift the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and cocoa powder into a bowl. Add the milk, butter, egg and vanilla extract and mix with beaters until combined. Pour into four 1-cup greased pudding molds.


Make the topping
Stir the brown sugar and cocoa powder in a bowl to combine, then sprinkle it over the pudding batter. Pour boiling water carefully over the puddings, then bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Serve with thick cream (lite of course!)

Enjoy!

Easy Sunday: Beyond Beautiful Banana Bread

I don't know when the baking thing snuck up on me. I used to admire my clever sister who could whip up friands and brownies at a moment's notice and think "I could never do that". Packet cakes I could manage, anything "from scratch" I thought was beyond me.

Which is why I was surprised that my answer to Capper's question of "What's your 3 favourite things to do besides play with me?" was "writing and gardening... and baking". Baking, really? Well... yes!  I've been a happy little baker for well over a year now. There's this thing called a recipe, you see. And if you follow it religiously (and then get to know the particular foibles of your oven...), out come the baked goods, yum, yum, yum. I love trying out different recipes for classics, finding my very favourite and sticking with it (hence my previous postings for the ultimate apple teacake, ultimate scones and ultimate muesli bars...)

Try this one from delicious. magazine on for size...

Beyond Beautiful Banana Bread

1 1/2 cups (225g) plain flour

1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (110g) caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/3 cup (80ml) sunflower oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, mashed  (if your children are anything like the Tsunamis and detest 'bits' you'll want to spend a fair bit of time going over the banana with a fork...)
65g pecans or walnuts, roughly chopped


• Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line the base of a 900ml loaf pan (test the size by filling the pan with water and then pouring it into a measuring jug.)

• Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, sugar and salt into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the egg, oil and vanilla.

• Add to the dry ingredients with banana and pecan and fold until just combined - do not overmix.

• Place into the loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then remove, and slice thickly. Serve spread with butter and drizzled with honey.


[Image by Mark Roper]

Easy Sunday: Crumby Apple Teacake

LOML is the ultimate present giver. Christmas, Birthdays, Anniversaries, Justbecauses, you name it and I'm being indulged in loveliness. I madly drop hints all year, of course, but there is always a little surprise or two that just make me go 'wow'.  Little gifts so perfectly me that it brings a tear to my eye. I've also been whisked off for weekends, topped up with luxury knickers and indulged in hot stone massages. One year it was a little note offering me a cleaner for a year (turned out me plus cleaner equals disaster, but more on this in a later post.) LOML's track record was flawless.

It all came undone with the Australian Family Favourites Cookbook (AFFC).

I'm spoilt, I know. But the AFFC was not a mother's day present. It wasn't even a birthday present. It was a present for our 7th wedding anniversary and it made me go 'hurumph'. To me, that cookbook represented the abrupt halt of wooing. Suddenly, I was just the wife who cooked (presumably family favourites). I was so disappointed. Do you know what I mean?

Needless to say, LOML was back in fine form for our 8th wedding anniversary this year and the AFFC has become, well, a favourite. It's just the handiest cookbook ever. All the stuff you remember your mum making is in it plus most of the staples of today's kitchen. Pizza, Sausage Hotpot, Chinese Noodles, Meat Loaf, Butter Chicken, Nicoise Salad. It would have made the ultimate mother's day present.

Here's the Apple Teacake recipe from the book. It's dead easy and so divine. The yoghurt makes it moist and fool-proof. Crumbs is what's left every time.

Crumby Apple Teacake

130g unsalted butter, chopped
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
3/4 cup vanilla-flavoured yoghurt
1 granny-smith apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground sugar
20g extra butter
1/4 cup extra caster sugar

Preheat oven to 180 C. Grease a deep 20cm round cake tin and line the base with baking paper.

Beat 130g butter and 3/4 cup caster sugar until light and creamy.

Gradually add the egg, beating well after each addition until combined. Add the vanilla extract. Fold in the flour, then the yoghurt and stir until smooth. Spoon the mixture into the tin and smooth the surface.

Arrange the apple slices over the mixture in a circular pattern starting from the centre. Mix the cinnamon and 1/4 cup extra caster sugar together and sprinkle over the top. Melt the 20g extra butter and drizzle over the top.

Bake for 1 hour (here the recipe mentions the clean skewer thing but I don't own a metal skewer so I don't bother.) Leave in the tin for 30 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool.

Delish!

Easy Sunday: Delish Ricotta Pancakes

Is there anything more scrummy than Sunday brunch and Sunday papers?

Just typing the combination makes me drool with longing. Back in the day, LOML and I had Sunday brunch every single week. Wherever we found ourselves (we did a lot of travel in our junior burger years) (warning: I use parentheses A LOT in this post) (even more than usual), we'd find the right cafe (nothing fancy with the eggs, everything fancy with the bread), select the right table (window, large enough for papers, no drafts) and order much the same thing. Sunday brunch is not for trial and error! Cosy food, cosy cafe and Sunday paper walls neatly tucking us into our own little world.

These days Sunday brunch involves a favourite child-tolerant (there isn't an eating establishment on earth without golden arches that is truly 'child-friendly') outdoor deli-cafe and three crazed Tsunamis running around high on life and banana bread. There is always some kind of epic spill involving 2 waiters, 38 napkins and a change of clothes (generally the waiters'). You can also guarantee that someone will insist on bringing their dog to the cafe, sending Maxi-Taxi screaming from the venue with a screech so terrifying that the majority of patrons prepare to evacuate due to fire.

So, you know, we tend to eat in.

Ricotta Pancakes with yoghurt, banana and honey

1 cup (150g) self-raising flour (Wholemeal also works great!)
1 tsp bicarb of soda
Pinch of salt
2 tbs (40g) caster sugar
125g fresh ricotta
1 cup (250ml) skim milk (Buttermilk also yummy here.)
1 egg, beaten
25g unsalted butter, melted
1/2 lemon, rind grated, juiced (In all honesty, our lemon tree is such a dud that I usually leave out the lemons. They are missed, but only fleetingly.)
Oil spray, to fry
Sliced bananas, yoghurt and honey, to serve

Sift flour, soda and salt into a bowl and stir in sugar. In a separate bowl, combine the ricotta, milk, egg, melted butter, lemon rind and juice. Beat well until smooth. Gradually whisk this into the dry ingredients to form a smooooooooth batter.

Heat a heavy based, non-stick frypan, spray lightly with oil spray and pour in batter to form a 12cm pancake. Cook over medium heat until bubbles appear on the surface (about 3 mins), flip and cook for another 1-2 mins.

Keep warm while you cook the remaining pancakes. Makes about 8.

Serve hot with spoonful of yoghurt, banana slices and generous drizzle of honey. Yummo. The kids will love this one too.

Kids, what kids?

[Recipe: taste.com.au]
[Important note: my pancakes generally look not-a-patch on the Luke Burgess photo above. Nor does my photography.]

Easy Sunday: Super scrummy muesli bars

Cappers, The Badoo, LOML and I are in love with these little bars of happiness. I can't say I managed to persuade Maxi-Taxi to love something so healthy (it's got 'green bits in it'). But next time I'll probably leave out the pepitas and add more oats and tanis and hopefully that'll win him over.

Homemade museli bars

1 cup rolled oats (use the 'quick' chopped up variety so the bars aren't jawbreakers)
1 cup desiccated coconut
3/4 cup wheatgerm
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup sunflower kernels
1/2 cup pepitas
1 cup sultanas
125g butter
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup brown sugar

Lightly grease and line 3cm deep 16cm x 28cm baking pan with baking paper.

Toast oats, coconut, wheatgerm, sesame seeds, sunflower kernels and pumpkin seeds in a frying pan over medium heat, stirring for 8 - 10 minutes until golden. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool. Once cool, stir in sultanas.

Cook butter, honey and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring for 3 -4 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer on low. Simmer without stirring for around 7 minutes. (Here the recipe called for some complicated thing involving small balls forming when you drop a little of the mixture in ice-cold water, but I didn't bother.)

Add caramel mix to dry ingredients and stir until combined.

Spoon mixture into pan and use a large metal spoon to press down firmly. Press and press and then press some more. Allow to cool and then unlike in the photo above, I cut them into 3cm by 1.5cm little bars, wrap each in al foil and then into an airtight container. They keep for over a week this way and I can't see any reason why you couldn't freeze any extras.

Recipe is adapted from one at taste.com.au and I used the photo from there by Steve Brown as for the life of me I can't find my camera (cue panic!).

Easy Sunday: Afternoon tea delight

The Badoo's Birthday afternoon tea. I've never hosted an AT before but I highly recommend it. Yummy things to bake and yummy friends to bake them for.

It was wet outside, but we were cosy and content by the fire (note artful picture of kindling above.) The Tsunamis and their friendly Cyclones went nuts in the bedrooms (why oh why do they have to get EVERY toy they've EVER owned out of EVERY cupboard when the Cyclones come over?). Lots of fun stuff to tidy up later.

 

For godsake, it's a SHOE birthday cake, okay?

Zia knows her niece so well. Sparkle shoes. Matching. The Badoo is in heaven (wore them to bed last night.)

My first ever batch of scones. I always thought scones were beyond me (they give ribbons for good ones at the CWA), but I found the simplest recipe for Lemonade Scones and I highly recommend you give them a go. Delish.

Easy-Peasy Lemonade Scones

2 cups self-raising flour, sifted

1/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup thick cream
1/2 cup lemonade
2 tbs milk

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Lightly grease a baking tray.


Place the flour, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl.

Add the cream and lemonade and mix to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured workbench and knead lightly until combined. Don't knead too much - the less handling you do with scone dough, the better.

Press the dough flat with your hands to a thickness of about 2cm. Use a 6cm round cutter to cut out 8 scones, place on baking tray so they are almost touching and brush the tops with a little milk.

You can reform the remaining dough and cut another couple of rounds. Then, in the interests of not wasting precious lemonade scone dough, I make a 'runt' scone with any remaining dough (omit the runt if you're baking for the CWA.) Bake for 10-15 minutes until lightly browned. Serve warm with your favourite jam. And butter. And chantilly cream now that I think about it...

Choc Chip Heaven

 

My 'Sydney Food' (Bill Granger) recipe book falls open to page 11. It's the home of the ULTIMATE Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. I'm not sure where you stand on Aussies calling biscuits 'cookies' but these babies ain't no biscuit.  They're lush, chocolatey, melty, chewy cookies. I hope Bill won't mind me sharing his divine recipe (I noticed that there are many, many other postings of it all over the 'net so I don't feel so bad). I've added my very helpful commentary. The bad cookie photography is all my own.

Bill Granger's Chocolate Chip Cookies

125 g. (4 oz.) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/4 cups tightly packed brown sugar (don't substitute whitey sugar as brown is the key to the divineness, me thinks)

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 ½ cups plain flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

a pinch of salt
1½ cups of chocolate bits (but, you know, the more the merrier!)


Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F). Put the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat until light and creamy. Beat and beat and beat because the lighter and creamier, the better the cookie. Stir in the vanilla and egg. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and mix until just combined - this will seem like way too much flour, but just keep folding and folding, it will all come together. Fold through chocolate chips.

Place spoonfuls of cookie mixture on a lightly greased then lined baking tray, allowing room for spreading. Bill says to cook for 15-20 minutes, until they turn pale gold, but (depending on oven hotness) I say cook for no more than 11 mintues so you get the light crunch on the outside with the doughy, softy yummo on the inside. Experiment to see what you like best.

Allow to cool on the tray for 5 minutes before putting cookies on a wire rack to cool further. Makes about 16, depending on how big you go! Will keep in an airtight container for a week.

I made a double batch yesterday (that's Cappers devouring the wooden spoon in the photo above). Cook half right now and then roll the rest of the dough into a cylinder shape, wrap it in baking paper then cling film and then put it in the freezer to keep for up to a month. When it's time for cooking, just slice the dough, put on the baking tray and into the oven for 14 minutes instead of 11.

OMG, I need to go and eat a CCC immediately!