Utterly Scrummy Food For Families

My Cake Decorating Adventures

2012-03-03T18:22:00.000Z

I've been taking classes in cake decorating which will earn me a PME diploma in approximately 3 Mondays time. My Mum, who is the bestest in the world, paid for me to take the classes as a bt of time out just for me. I cannot thank her enough! I have thoroughly enjoyed the classes and am now able to decorate cakes that people are willing to pay for.

When I was little I used to walk past Decor Cakes in Otahuhu on the way to Kindergarten and back. Mum and I could never walk past without me watching the ladies in the window decorating cakes. I was fascinated! When I got married my wedding cake was made and decorated by Decor Cakes, and the business is still going strong today, it was founded in 1965. I always said that I would love to be able to decorate cakes properly. I have now achieved that goal thanks to Mum, for her generosity paying for my courses, and also to my tutor Scott from Authentic Cakes in Cambridge.

Scott is amazing! He has the patience of a saint, demonstrates techniques really clearly, answers all our questions - no matter how daft they are, makes a fab cuppa and is a lovely bloke to have a natter to. He has taught me so much and I've gone from being a complete novice at cake decorating to being able to produce some decent cakes.

Our first sugarpaste course which lasted 5 weeks (5 hours each Monday) taught us how to produce cakes like these:

The Royal Icing module really tested my patience and we made an Engagement Cake complete with run outs and icing swans to top the cake:

Our final module is flowers and I'm thoroughly enjoying it! We made pulled flowers the first week and last week made lillies and poppies:

I'm not sure which flowers we're going to be creating this week. However, I'm sure I will be amazed at how learning a few techniques helps me to create something fab. Scott is a proper legend!

Using the techniques I've learned so far on the PME courses I've made a few more cake creations:

I took this to the Ladies Christmas Craft Afternoon at my Church

I made an edible bouquet for a friend who needed cheering up

My first ever paid for cake that wasn't made for a friend!

Birthday cake for the daughter of a friend from Church

If you get the opportunity to learn how to decorate cakes then do, it is SO much fun! I will miss my Monday course sessions as it is my time for me to escape the world and enjoy learning how to use sugarpaste, flower paste and royal icing to create lovely cakes and indulge in some cake creativity.

My 8yo's birthday is in March and my 11yo's birthday is in April and of course they want me to make their cakes. My 8yo wants a flower fairies cake, with sugarpaste fairies on it. OMGness! I'm slightly worried about how I will manage to make them LOL My 11yo is undecided but wants something to do with princesses. I guess it's my penance for taking time out to learn how to decorate cakes *sigh* I shall post pics of the cakes, if they are any good, once I've made them.

Our Family Meal Plan for this week 05/03 - £63

2012-03-02T20:13:00.000Z

Our Meal Plan this includes some Change4Life Supermeals (which I blogged about here), and also some M Saver Recipes (which I blogged about here). A huge thank you to Morrisons and Change4Life for giving me permission to blog their recipes and use their photos. It has made compiling the Meal Plan for this week much easier than usual.

As always I will be baking all our own bread, flatbreads, crumpets and pancakes. I may whip up a banana cake or two as I have quite a few over-ripe bananas in the freezer that I was given.

The cost of the 44 items on this weeks Shopping List was £63.08 at Asda when I ordered online today (Friday 02/03). As always I used My Supermarket to compare the cost of my shop and it would've cost and £76.64 at Sainsbury's £79.99 at Tesco.

Pasta with Vegetables in a Herb Sauce – Change4Life Supermeal

250g dried pasta shapes whatever shape you like
1 tsp vegetable oil
5 spring onions trimmed and chopped
300g broccoli broken into small florets
1 pepper, any colour deseeded and chopped
75g frozen peas defrosted
3 handfuls cherry tomatoes halved
200g lower fat soft cheese with garlic and herbs
50ml semi-skimmed milk
1 lemon (a teaspoon of the finely grated zest)

Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water for 10-12 minutes, or according to the instructions on the
packet, until just tender.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan or wok, brushing it over the surface. Add the spring onions, sugarsnap peas or green beans, broccoli and red or yellow pepper and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes, or until softened. Stir in the peas and tomatoes, then turn off the heat.

Drain the cooked pasta, reserving 2 tablespoons of the cooking water. Return this cooking liquid to the saucepan and add the soft cheese, milk and lemon zest. Heat, stirring with a whisk, until the sauce is hot and smooth.

Roast Chicken Dinner

Roast chicken with roast potatoes, carrots and parsnips served with sweetcorn and peas.

Slow Cooker Pork Casserole

1 Tblsp olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and diced
1 Tblsp grated fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 tablespoon crushed coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
600g pork pieces or steaks cut into cubes
1/2 cup pitted dates, chopped in half
1 x 400g tin apricot slices in juice
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
250ml reduced salt chicken stock
Hnadful each of frozen peas and corn

Heat olive oil in a large heavy-based lidded saucepan and stir fry the onion, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, coriander seeds and cumin seeds until the onion has softened. Add the pork and stir fry to brown it ready for the slow cooker. Transfer everything to your slow cooker or a large lidded saucepan. Add the dates, apricots, tomatoes and stock then stir well to combine everything. Cook in slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours or bring the casserole to the boil in a large lidded saucepan and then simmer, with the lid on, for 2 1/2 hours. Add the frozen peas and corn to the casserole at the end of the cooking time and allow them to heat through before you serve it. You can serve this casserole with mash, rice or couscous.

Salmon and Pesto Fishcakes – M Savers Recipe

1 packet of smoked salmon trimmings
600g large potatoes
50g from 1 jar of pesto
100g breadcrumbs
300g carrots
300g frozen peas

Dice the potatoes and cook in a pan of boiling water until soft. Drain well and mash until smooth, then leave to cool. Finely chop the salmon trimmings and mix into the cooled mash potato along with the pesto. Shape the mix into four fish cakes. Coat each fish cake in a little flour, dip into a beaten egg and coat in the breadcrumbs.

Fry the fish cakes in a little oil for 2 minutes on each side. Then, place on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 10 minutes at 175C. Cut the carrots into pieces and cook in boiling water for five minutes. Add the frozen peas and cook for a further three minutes. Serve the fish cakes with the peas and carrots.

Photo courtesy of Morrisons

Pork Chops with Caramelised Apples, Parsnip Mash and Honey Glazed Carrots – M Savers Recipe

800g pork chops
1 apple
300g large potatoes
250g parsnips
250g carrots
50g honey

Dice the potatoes and parsnips and cook in boiling water until tender. Trim the excess fat off the pork chops and place under a pre-heated grill for five to six minutes on each side. Remove the core from the apple and cut into wedges. Cook the wedges in a frying pan for five minutes in a drizzle of oil. Cook the carrots in boiling water until tender and finish in a frying pan with a little honey until they are glazed. Serve the chops with the parsnip mash and glazed carrots.

Beef and Vegetable Stir Fry with Noodles – M Savers Recipe

400g stir fry beef
1 or 2 packets stir fry vegetable mix
1 packet oriental noodles

Fry the beef over a high heat for two minutes. Remove from the pan and keep warm. Get the pan hot again, then add the stir fry vegetable mix and cook for two minutes. Stir the beef through the vegetables and serve with the oriental noodles which have been cooked in a pan for five minutes.

Photo courtesy of Morrisons

Baked Macaroni Cheese with Tomatoes - Change4Life Supermeal

400g pasta
50g low-fat spread
1 small onion finely chopped
50g plain flour
600ml semi-skimmed milk
100g reduced fat mature Cheddar cheese grated
1 tsp English mustard
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 tomatoes sliced

Preheat the oven to 190°, fan 170°C, gas mark 5.

Cook the macaroni in a large saucepan of boiling water for 8-10 minutes, or according to the instructions on the packet, until tender.

Meanwhile, melt the low-fat spread in a large saucepan and cook the onion for 3-4 minutes until softened, but not brown. Remove from the heat and stir in the flour. Return to the heat and cook gently for about 1 minute, stirring, until the mixture has a texture like sand.

Remove from the heat and add the milk a little at a time, stirring well to mix together. Then return to the
heat, stirring all the time, until the sauce is thick and smooth. At this point, remove from the heat and add
about two-thirds of the cheese and the mustard. Season with pepper.

Drain the cooked pasta well and return it to the saucepan. Stir in the hot cheese sauce. Tip the mixture into a baking dish which can hold about 1.2 litres, or use individual serving dishes. Top with the sliced
tomatoes and sprinkle the left-over cheese on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until piping hot, then serve.

Lunches

Weekday lunchboxes for adults will probably be leftovers and will contain a pot of yoghurt, a slice of date loaf, an apple or satsuma, cucumber/carrot sticks. Kids lunchboxes will contain either a cheese and homemade chutney sandwich and a pot of yoghurt, a slice of date loaf, an apple or satsuma, cucumber/carrot sticks or the recipes below with the fruit, yoghurt, etc.

Quick Chicken Couscous – Change4Life Supermeal

200g couscous
450ml reduced salt vegetable or chicken stock
250g leftover roast chicken torn into pieces
100g sweetcorn
2 tomatoes chopped
¼ cucumber chopped
1 tbsp lemon (just a squeeze will do)
1 pinch ground black pepper

Put the couscous into a large mixing bowl and cover with the hot stock. Leave for 10-15 minutes to swell and cool, then stir with a fork to fluff up the grains.

Add the chicken, sweetcorn, tomatoes and cucumber. Season with a squeeze of lemon juice and some ground black pepper. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Tasty Chicken Wraps – Change4Life Supermeal

4 soft flour tortillas
4 tbsp lower fat soft cheese
4 tbsp low-fat natural yoghurt
120g skinless, boneless leftover roast chicken chopped
100g sweetcorn
¼ cucumber
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 handfuls lettuce leaves

Lay out the wraps or tortillas on a clean work surface. Put the soft cheese and yoghurt in a bowl and mix together until smooth. Add the chicken, sweetcorn and cucumber. Season with some pepper, then mix well. Spread an equal amount over each wrap, then top with the lettuce. Roll up each wrap tightly, slice in half, then wrap in cling film. Keep cool until ready to serve.

Homemade Pizza

Vegetable Frittata

1 pepper, diced
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 onion, diced
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 carrots, peeled and cut into small chunks
8 eggs
300g frozen vegetables, I used peas and corn

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6.

Simmer the potatoes and carrots in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes, then drain and leave to cool slightly before slicing thinly.

Meanwhile, put a 25cm non-stick ovenproof frying pan on the hob over a moderate heat. Saute the onion, pepper and garlic in a little oil for about 5 minutes until the onion and pepper has softened.

Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl and the softened onion, pepper and garlic. Carefully fold in the potatoes, carrot and frozen vegetables. Pour the frittata mixture back into the frying pan and cook over a low-medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until it has cooked through and is set.

Breakfasts

Weekday breakfasts will be muesli or wheat cereal with milk and chopped banana or toast with spread and a banana. I’ve bought some Philadelphia Light with Cadburys Chocolate that we can have on pancakes or with toast for weekend breakfasts as a treat.

Treats

Date Loaf

1 cup chopped dates
3/4 cup light soft brown sugar
20g butter, plus extra to serve
250ml boiling water
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour

Preheat oven to 190C or 170C fan. Lightly grease and line base and sides of a 14 x 21cm loaf tin.

Place dates, sugar and butter in a large saucepan. Stir in boiling water and boil on high heat for 2 minutes. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.

Stir in bicarbonate of soda. Fold through beaten egg and flour. Spoon into prepared loaf tin and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool and serve sliced with butter or store in an airtight container.

Baked Apples

5 apples
1 cup mixed dried fruit, eg sultanas, dates, apricots
1 Tblsp brown sugar
1 Tblsp butter, melted
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup (125ml) water

Preheat oven to 180C.

Core the apples, but leave the base intact to hold in the filling. If you want to you can score a line through the apple skin all the way around the apple, about half way up, this will help stop the apples from splitting in the oven. Mix the dried fruit, brown sugar, melted butter and cinnamon together in a bowl. Carefully spoon the dried fruit mixture into the apples. Put the apples in a baking dish with the water. Bake for about 35 minutes or until the apples are soft.

Rice Pudding

600ml milk
65g long grain white rice
pinch of salt
50g white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
100g dates (optional)

In a medium sized, heavy bottomed saucepan combine the milk and rice with a pinch of salt. Place saucepan over a fairly high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice is tender. This usually takes about 25 minutes. Stir the milk mixture frequently using a heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon to stop the rice from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.

When the rice is tender (al dente) take the saucepan off the heat and sugar, vanilla extract, and ground cinnamon. Mix well to combine. Return the saucepan to the heat and cook until the rice pudding thickens, this should take about 5 - 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the sultanas if you are using them. Spoon the pudding into a bowl to cool and cover with clingfilm to stop a skin forming. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days. To make this into more of a Mullerice type treat add some jam or golden syrup to swirl through the rice pudding. You could also add dried apricots or sultanas instead of dates if you have some in your store cupboard.

Homemade Muesli Bars

1 x 397g tin of condensed milk
500g muesli or 250g rolled oats, 200g mixed seeds, 50g chopped nuts
100g sultanas or dried apricots

Preheat your oven to 130C/Gas Mark 1/2 and lightly oil a large baking tin. Mine measures 23cm x 33cm x 4cm.

Mix the dry ingredients and fruit together until well combined. Warm the condensed milk in a pan then mix with all the other ingredients and use a spatula to make sure everything is well coated.

Press the mixture into the tin and level the surface. The mixture is really sticky so you might want to wet your hands or lightly oil them so that you don't end up a sticky mess.

Bake the muesli bars for 1 hour then set aside for 15 minutes to cool slightly. Cut into bars and store in an airtight container.

Shopping List

Cost of 44 items was £63.08 from Asda online shopping on 04/03/12.

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Chosen by You Wheat Bisks (24x18g) £1.00 was £1.24
1x ASDA Smartprice Swiss Style Muesli (1Kg) 98p
1x ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg) 60p
1x ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA Smartprice Pasta Shapes (500g) 30p
1x ASDA Wholefoods Couscous (1Kg) £1.00
1x ASDA Wholefoods Bread Brown Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x ASDA Green Pesto Sauce (190g) £1.19
1x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 33p
1x ASDA Chosen by You Apricot Halves in Syrup (411g) 68p

Dairy and Eggs
6x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x Carnation Sweetened Condensed Milk (397g) £1.44
1x ASDA Low Fat Strawberry Yogurt (6x125g) £1.00 was £1.12
2x The Happy Egg Co. Free Range Large Eggs (6) £1.90 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA English Mild Cheddar (400g) £2.48 any 2 FOR £4.00
1x ASDA English Medium Cheddar (400g) £2.48 any 2 FOR £4.00
1x ASDA Low Fat Autumn Fruit Yogurts (6x125g) £1.00 was £1.12
1x ASDA Garlic and Herb Soft Cheese (250g) 90p
1x Philadelphia Light with Cadburys Chocolate (160g) £1.00 was £1.62

Meat, Fish and Poultry
1x ASDA Smartprice Smoked Salmon Trimmings (120g) 98p
1x ASDA Whole Chicken (1.45Kg) £4.53 any 2 FOR £7.00
1x ASDA Diced Pork (600g) £4.00 any 2 FOR £7.00
1x ASDA Pork Rib Steak (850g) £4.00 any 2 FOR £7.00
1x ASDA Beef Stir Fry (400g) £4.00 any 2 FOR £7.00

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Chosen by You Pitted Dried Dates (500g) £1.20
1x ASDA Round Lettuce 59p
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
3 ASDA Broccoli by Weight (100g) 19.7p
20 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
2x ASDA White Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.35 any 2 FOR £2.00
5 ASDA Tomatoes by Weight (100g) 19.9p
2x ASDA Whole Cucumber £1.00
1x ASDA Parsnips (500g) 50p
1x ASDA Cherry Tomatoes (400g) £1.20
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.57
1x ASDA Spring Onions 70p
1x ASDA Fresh Tastes Mushroom Stir Fry (355g) £1.00 any 3 FOR £2.50
2x ASDA Mandarins (700g) £1.25 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Crunchy Stir Fry (250g) £1.00 any 3 FOR £2.50

Frozen
1x ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (907g) 94p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peas (1Kg) 93p

Ready Meals
1x ASDA Fresh Free Range Egg Noodles (410g) £1.00 any 3 FOR £2.50

Why not cook Welsh Lamb on St David's Day

2012-03-01T09:54:00.000Z

What better way to celebrate the ‘feast day’ of St David, the patron Saint of Wales, than with one of its most famous exports, Welsh Lamb?

The high quality of the meat and its mouth-watering flavour has been created through the dedication and hard work of generations of Welsh farmers. Their high standards, good practices and animal husbandry are recognised by the PGI badge of authenticity, while the environment of lush pastures, herbs and heather are perfect for the Welsh lambs to graze on, and gives the meat its distinctive flavour.

Welsh Lamb and Rosemary Stuffed Leeks - Recipe courtesy of Welsh Lamb

225g (8oz) lean Welsh lamb mince
3 large leeks, washed and cut into 5cm/2" pieces and remove tough outer layers
5ml (1 tsp) vegetable oil
1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves removed and finely chopped
5ml (1 tsp) dried cumin
5ml (1 tsp) cumin seeds
150ml (¼pt) lamb stock
15ml (1 tbsp) tomato purée
200ml approx small can chopped tomatoes (or ½ a large can)

Take each leek piece and using the end of a wooden spoon push out the light coloured centre layers of the leek, leaving a small area in the centre of the leek for stuffing.

Reserve the leek layers and finely chop. Place the whole leek pieces ‘end on' into a deep gratin type dish and prepare the mince mixture. Heat the oil in a large pan and add the lamb mince and brown.

Finely chop the centre of the leeks and add to the mince, alongwith the rosemary, cumin and cumin seeds, and the cook for 1-2 minutes. Add stock, purée and canned tomatoes. Bring to the boil.

Carefully spoon the mince mixture into the leek centres (you may need to push it down using the end of a wooden spoon). Any remaining mince mixture can be spooned around the edge of the dish. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes - remove and check that outer layers of leek are tender (some ‘tougher' leeks may need slightly longer cooking). Serve the lamb dish with spiced rice and extra green vegetables.

Photo courtesy of Welsh Lamb

You can also find Welsh Lamb recipes on their website and contact them via Twitter and Facebook.

Change 4 Life Supermeals

2012-02-29T14:41:00.000Z

Change4Life Supermeals is a nation-wide campaign to help us all plan affordable healthier meals, with recipes created by TV chef Ainsley Harriott, which was launched in January.

Change4Life’s Supermeals campaign distributed 100,000 copies of a brand new cookbook which contains a month’s worth of popular, healthy recipes all for under £5.

I will be including some of the recipes in our Family Meal Plan this coming week. There is a Change4Life You Tube Channel which has videos of all the recipes as well as a great website that supports the campaign where you can find all the recipes and formulate your own meal plan complete with shopping list. You can pick which meals you would like to make for the week and the website puts them all into a PDF document for you to download, which also includes all the recipes and a handy shopping list. Kids (or adults) can even make their own cookbook.

There's even a tool to help you make sure that your family gets their 5 a day by analysing your meal plan and adding up all the servings of fruit and vegetables contained within it. There are also loads of tips and tricks to get us all to eat healthier meals and also portion guides which not only help if you're watching your weight, but also cuts down on food waste.

Here's one of the tasty recipes from the Supermeals campaign:

Creamy Pasta with Chicken and Peas

350g dried pasta shapes
175g frozen peas
175g cooked chicken chopped into cubes
1 tbsp horseradish
1 tbsp creme fraiche
1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
1 pinch ground black pepper
1 pinch salt

Bring a large pan of water to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and the pasta. Stir once and cook for 10-12 minutes, or according to the instructions on the packet, until the pasta is cooked but still slightly firm in the middle.

About 2 or 3 minutes before the pasta is done, add the peas to the pan. Drain the mixture in a colander, then return to the pan. Add the chicken, horseradish mixture and parsley.

Stir well to combine and season with pepper. Put the pan over a gentle heat until everything is just warmed through, then serve in bowls.

Photo courtesy of Change4Life

You can also check out Change4Life on Twitter and Facebook.

Great with a cuppa Chocolate Slice

2012-02-29T13:01:00.001Z

I love making this as a treat to have with a cuppa, especially if I have friends around. It makes a great addition to a hamper of homemade treats should you want to make one as a gift for someone special. You can buy a cheap packet of biscuits or use some that you have made that are past their best or been bashed about in the biscuit tin. Ginger biscuits give an interesting flavour too, for a change.

225g dark chocolate
115g butter
1 tin (397g) sweetened condensed milk
1 packet (250g) plain sweet biscuits, crushed into small pieces
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup raisins or sultanas
200g white chocolate

Put the dark chocolate, butter and condensed milk into a large saucepan and gently heat until everything has melted and combined. Add the crushed biscuits, dried apricots and raisins then mix well. Pour into a 20 cm x 30 cm slice tin lined with non-stick baking paper.

Chill in the fridge until firm. Once the slice has set, gently melt the white chcolate and spread it all over the top of the slice. Chill in the fridge once again and mark into squares when the white chocolate is firm but not hard. Slice in to squares and then store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Morrisons M Savers range - Save money on your shopping!

2012-02-28T16:52:00.000Z

I recently attended an event organised by Morrisons to launch their new MSavers range. For those of you unfamiliar with Morrisons, it's the UK's fourth largest food retailer with 476 stores and their business is mainly food and groceries - bascially the weekly shop. Unlike some other supermarket chains, they source and process most of the fresh food that they sell though their own manufacturing facilities. They also only sell 100% British fresh beef, lamb, pork and poultry.

It was a fab event, we were able to chat to representatives from Morrisons, a chef who works at their Head Office creating delicious recipes for customers to try and also Sarah Willingham, a very lovely and glamourous money saving guru who has 4 children under 5 - so she knows what it's like to be a busy Mum.

We were able to get stuck in and cook some of the great recipes that Morrisons have devised to help families eat well and save money at the same time. There's no excuse not to be able to create simple meals that are tasty, nutritious and kind on the wallet. Find the recipes and more information about the M Savers range at www.morrisons.co.uk/msavers.

We all got to make one recipe each and then taste them all, they were delicious!

Here's one of the recipes that was cooked, and taste tested, at the event:

Spagetti and Meatballs - Cost of 4 large portions £2.32

This dish was delicious and would feed at least 5 people generously! It fed 5 bloggers generously and we are a rather hungry bunch LOL

400g of minced beef (from an 800g pack) £1.20
350g onions 30p
100g fresh breadcrumbs 10p
5g dried mixed herbs 19p
1 tin tomatoes 38p
1 pack spaghetti 350g for 15p

Finely dice the onion and fry half in a pan with a little oil until soft. Add 3g of the dried herbs and set aside to cool.

In a separate pan, fry the remaining onion and dried herbs in a little oil for five minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer for five minutes.

Mix the cooled onion with the minced beef and breadcrumbs and form into small balls. Fry the meatballs in a pan over a moderate heat until browned all over. Add the tomato sauce and simmer for five minutes.

Cook the spaghetti in boiling water for 8-10 minutes, drain well and serve topped with the meatballs in tomato sauce.

Photo courtesy of Morrisons

Sarah Willingham, money saving guru who attended the event, has some top tips for people shopping with their food spend in mind, her top tips are:

• Make sure you always go armed with a shopping list. Don’t be tempted to buy things 'on offer' that you simply won't use or don't need.

• Don't forget to look up and down when browsing the aisles so you can get a clear picture of all product options – don’t just go for the nearest product at eye level.

• Never go shopping on an empty stomach! Sounds obvious but many of us do and you end up buying more, or purchasing things that you don’t need.

• Be aware of the supermarket layout: offers are often to be had at the end of the aisles, but sometimes you can seek out bargains elsewhere. And don’t be tempted by impulse buys at the checkout!

So pop along to Morrisons and check out the MSavers range and the fab recipe cards instore. You can also find Morrisons on Facebook.

Our Family Meal Plan for this week 27/02 - £60

2012-02-25T19:23:00.001Z

I’m a rather weary Meal Planner this week. Yes dear readers, there are times when even I get rather tired of the seemingly relentless task of cooking for our family. I am sure every domestic god or goddess and clever culinary cutie (not that I am either of these) has times when they just can’t be bothered.

It took me a couple of days to sort out this meal plan when it usually takes me either an afternoon or an evening. Motivation, patience, energy and creativity were all in very short supply so please bear with me if this plan is not particularly exciting or as frugal as usual.

In spite of being rather jaded this week, I will not only be baking our own bread, I shall be baking English Muffins and Bagels. Nothing like extra work and baking challenges to get my Meal Planning and cooking mojo back. Yeah right! LOL

This weeks Meal Plan is slightly less expensive despite the fact we’re having friends around for Saturday lunch and also on a Friday after school I look after 3 delightful girls (who are friends with my girls) and have also allowed for extra baking and snacks then too.

The cost of the 44 items on this weeks Shopping List was £60.09 at Asda when I ordered online yesterday (Friday 24/02). As always I used My Supermarket to compare the cost of my shop and it would've cost £66.69 at Tesco and £75.27 at Sainsbury's.

Dinners

Bean and Veg Burgers with Wedges – Meatfree Monday

This recipe is from the Morrisons M-Savers event that I attended in London last Tuesday. I shall be blogging about the event, and more of the recipes, later on in the week.

1 tin kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 onion, finely diced
1 pepper, finely diced
1 tsp chilli powder
100g fresh breadcrumbs
about 500g potatoes, for the wedges

Sauté the onion and pepper in a little oil for a couple of minutes until it softens then leave to cool for a bit. Mash the kidney beans with a potato masher, leave it a little lumpy – not too smooth. Add the cooled sautéed pepper and onion along with the breadcrumbs to the kidney beans and mix everything together thoroughly. Shape into 5 burgers and fry in a little oil for a couple of minutes on each side, until they’re golden brown. Then put them in the oven at 180C for about 10 minutes until completely cooked through.

Wash the potatoes and cut them into wedges, not too thick. Put a little oil on your hands and rub the wedges so that they get lightly coated in the oil. To cook the wedges, bake them in the oven for about 25 minutes at 180C.

Serve the burgers in buns with tomato, lettuce and mayo. I sometimes sprinkle a little paprika and/or chilli powder over the wedges to give them a little more flavour.

Photo courtesy of Morrisons

Baked Fish with White Beans - Tuesday

2 tsp olive oil
2 large leeks, trimmed and thinly sliced
30ml water
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1 x 400g tin cannellini beans, drained, rinsed
1 handful each of frozen sweetcorn and peas
5 sprigs fresh thyme
5 thick white fish fillets
1 lemon, washed and thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 200°C. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the leeks and water. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until the leeks are soft. Transfer to a shallow ovenproof baking dish.

Add the tin of tomatoes, drained tin of cannellini beans, frozen corn and peas to the baking dish. Stir to combine everything. Arrange the sprigs of thyme and fish fillets on top of the vegetables. Put the slices of lemon on top of the fish and sprinkle over some freshly ground pepper. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. Remove the thyme sprigs before you serve the dish.

Mushroom and Bacon Risotto - Wednesday

1.5 litres vegetable stock
1 Tblsp olive oil
1onion, finely chopped
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 pepper, finely diced
300g mushrooms, sliced
200g bacon, rind removed and chopped finely
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
Handful or 2 of frozen peas

Heat the stock in a saucepan and keep it simmering until you need to use it.

Heat the oil in a heavy-based pan. Add the onion, pepper, garlic, mushrooms and bacon. Cook for 3 - 5 minutes until the onion and pepper has softened and the mushrooms and bacon are cooked. Add the rice and stir for 1-2 minutes to coat with oil.

Add some hot stock, about a cup at a time. Stir with a wooden spoon to prevent the rice sticking to the pan as it absorbs the liquid. Continue adding more stock, stirring occasionally, until it has all been absorbed. After about 20 minutes or so the rice will be cooked and creamy. If not, add more stock and continue the stirring and heating process until the rice is cooked. Add a handful of frozen peas and cook for a couple of minutes to heat them through then serve the risotto.

Quick Fish Chowder - Thursday

1 Tblsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 pepper, diced
100g bacon, rind removed and finely diced
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
2 potatoes, washed and cut in 1cm cubes
1 carrot, scrubbed then finely diced
625ml cups milk
1 tsp garlic salt
1 handful frozen corn
500g fish fillets, cubed
1 Tblsp chopped fresh dill or 1 tsp dried dill
1 Tblsp cornflour
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the oil in a large pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and pepper and cook until they soften. Add the bacon, celery, potatoes and carrot to the pan and cook, stirring frequently to stop them browning, for about 5 minutes.

Add 500ml of milk and the garlic salt to the pan. Bring to a simmer and then simmer for 10 minutes, or until the potato is just tender. Add the fish,corn and dill.

Mix the remaining milk with the cornflour and add to the pot. Bring the chowder to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 7 - 10 minutes, or until the fish is cooked.

Season to taste with salt and pepper then ladle into large bowls. Serve with crusty bread rolls.

Meatloaf – Friday

This isn't one of those meatloaves that look and taste like a brick. It's moist and flavoursome, you can serve it hot or cold with salads or cooked vegetables, and it’s fab in packed lunches the next day. I cheat by using supermarket or butchers sausages that are already flavoured. You can get some great ones that are around 95% meat so not full of loads of undesirable ingredients to fill them out.

2 garlic cloves, crushed
450g beef mince
400g sausage meat (I use flavoured sausages with 95% meat)
2 carrots, peeled and grated
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp salt
black pepper to taste

If you're not using flavoured sausages then add:
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp dried mixed herbs
1 handful chopped fresh parsley

Topping
1/3 cup rolled oats
2 Tblsp light soft brown sugar, firmly packed
1/3 cup tomato sauce/ketchup

Preheat oven to 190°C/170°C fan-forced. Grease a 7cm deep, 10cm x 22cm (base) loaf tin.

Put the garlic, mince, sausage meat, egg, onion, grated carrot and any herbs or flavourings you want to use, into a large bowl. Thoroughly combine everything using your hands to really squish it all together to that it's really well blended. Press the mixture firmly into the loaf tin and level the top. Combine the topping ingredients and then spread it evenly over the meatloaf. Cover with foil then bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 30 minutes or until juices run clear when you test it with skewer. I usually serve this with cooked mixed vegetables and mashed potato.

Nan’s Sausage Casserole - Saturday

400g good quality sausages
1 tsp oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 celery sticks, finely sliced
2 carrots, finely sliced
3 apples, peeled and diced
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
250 ml beef stock
1 tsp cornflour

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Slice the sausages into 1 inch/ 2.5cm chunks. Heat the oil in a frying pan and brown the onions, garlic and sausages. Mix the beef stock and cornflour together.

Put the browned sausages, onion, garlic, carrots, apples, tinned tomatoes and herbs in an ovenproof dish. Pour the stock over and mix everything together well. Cover the dish with a lid or kitchen foil and bake for 40 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. I usually serve this with mashed potato and cooked mixed vegetables.

Family Sized Mince Pie - Sunday

450 g beef mince
1 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
200g mushrooms, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely diced
2 stalks celery, finely sliced
1 handful parsley, finely chopped
1 Tblsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 Tblsp mustard
2 Tblsp tomato paste
1 Tblsp Worcestershire sauce
300ml beef stock
Handful each of frozen peas and corn
1 sheet puff pastry

Heat a good splash of olive oil in a large frying-pan that has a lid. Fry the onion and garlic until soft. Add the vegetables and herbs and fry until they are just starting to soften.

Add the mince and brown it whilst breaking it up. Once the mince has browned and no pink patches remain, add the mustard, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and a few grinds of black pepper.

Add the beef stock and allow the mince to simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes. Add the frozen peas and corn and simmer for a further 5 minutes. You may need to add a little extra water. Stir the mince occasionally. Taste and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour the pie filling into an ovenproof dish and allow to cool.

Preheat your oven to 180 °C.

Lay the pastry over the pie filling, crimp the edges, and make little cuts with a sharp knife to let steam escape during cooking. Brush the pastry with a little milk to glaze it and then bake the pie for around 30–40 minutes until the pastry is golden. I usually serve this with mashed potatoes.

Lunches

Adults lunches will probably be leftovers, as usual. Our 3 daughters are back on packed lunches and will be having falafels with yoghurt dip and crudites or vegetable fritters. All lunches will have an apple and/or mandarin and either a cookie, muffin or tart for afters.

Falafels with Yoghurt Dip

I was given this recipe by one of the of the Mums at school and it's now a firm favourite in our house. The falafel can be eaten as a lunch in a wrap with salad, taken on a picnic or served as a weeknight dinner with couscous and salad leaves. The falafels can be frozen for up to 6 months in an airtight container. Great for make-ahead lunchbox treats or emergency dinners.

2 (400g) tins of chick peas
1 onion, very finely chopped or grated
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp ground cumin
4-6 Tblsp plain flour
Salt and pepper
Oil for frying

Put the chickpeas in a bowl with the very finely chopped onion, crushed garlic gloves, cumin, ground coriander, salt and pepper. Use a potato masher or pestle and mortar to lightly mash the mixture until it begins to stick together. You can quickly pulse it in a food processor but don't be too over enthusiastic, you don't want a mushy puree.

Take walnut-sized blobs of mixture and and shape them into small flat rounds about 1/2 and inch thick. Roll the falafel in the flour ensuring they are well coated. Chill them for 15-30 minutes, this makes them much easier to work with. Heat some oil, about 1 inch deep, in a frying pan. When it's hot add a few falafels and cook over a medium heat for about 5-6 minutes, turning them frequently. Carefully take them out of the oil and drain well on kitchen paper.

To use the falafels from frozen: Put them on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper and warm in the oven at 180°C/(350°F)/Gas Mark 4 for about 10 minutes or until piping hot.

Serve with a dip and crudités, in a wrap with salad leaves, or as a dinner/lunch with couscous salad.

Yoghurt Dip with Mint and Cucumber

150ml natural yoghurt
2 Tblsp mayonnaise
Juice of 1/2 a lime or lemon
1 small or 1/2 a large cucumber, thickly grated then drained on kitchen roll
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 Tblsp chopped fresh mint leaves
Pinch of salt

Put the yoghurt, mayonnaise and lime/lemon juice in a bowl and whisk together well with a fork. Add the drained cucumber, garlic and chopped fresh mint leaves. Mix together well and, if you think it needs it, add a pinch of salt.

Cover the dip with clingfilm and leave in it the fridge for at least 1 hour to allow the flavours to mingle before you serve it.

Vegetable Fritters

2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 cup self-raising flour
400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
400g can corn kernels, drained
1 carrot, scrubbed and grated
4 spring onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs such as parsley, chives, basil
oil to grease frying pan

Put the eggs and milk in a large mixing bowl and whisk until well combined. Sift flour into egg mixture, whisking well to remove any lumps.

Add chickpeas, vegetables and herbs. Mix until well combined. Spray a large frying pan with oil and put onto a medium heat. Scoop ¼-cupfuls of batter into the pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until golden. Repeat with the remaining batter to make approximately 12 fritters. Serve hot or cold.

Vegetable Pasta Bake – Saturday Lunch

500g pasta
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 onion, diced
1 pepper, diced
1 courgette, diced
200g mushrooms, finely chopped
1x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
1 ball mozzarella cheese

Chop all the vegetables into a 1cm dice and sauté them in a little oil until they start to soften. Add the tin of tomatoes and dried mixed herbs. Let the sauce simmer whilst you cook the pasta according to packet instructions.

Drain the pasta and mix thoroughly with the sauce before putting into an ovenproof dish. Chop or rip the mozzarella into small pieces and scatter it all over the top of the pasta. Bake at 180C for about 15 – 20 minutes.

Breakfasts

Breakfasts will be toasted muffins or bagels with spread and a banana for afters or porridge with sultanas and chopped banana. The muffins and bagels will be baked throughout the week and stored or frozen until needed.

English Muffins

25g butter
180ml boiling water
125ml milk
1 Tbsp instant yeast
2 tsp sugar
350-420g plain flour
1 tsp salt

Measure the butter into a large bowl. Pour the boiling water over the butter, then add the cold milk. Sprinkle over the yeast and sugar then stir until the yeast has dissolved. Leave this mixture to stand in a warm place for 5-10 minutes until the surface bubbles. Add 350g of flour and 1 tsp of salt and beat to mix thoroughly. Leave to stand in a warm place until the dough mixture doubles in size. This should take about 30 minutes.

Stir the mixture until it returns to its original size, then turn the mixture onto a well floured board. Add just enough extra flour so you can work with the dough without it sticking. Keeping the dough very soft, adding as little flour as possible. Cut the dough into eight pieces and roll them into balls. Put each ball of dough onto it’s own piece of greased non-stick cooking paper or lightly oiled clingfilm and leave to rise in a warm place for 15 20 minutes, until light and puffy.

Carefully put the muffins, paper side up and top side down, into a frying pan on a moderate heat and lift off the clingfilm or paper. Cook the muffins for about 2 minutes, then carefully turn over. Cook the second side for 5-7 minutes, turn again and cook for a further 5 minutes. This bit is a little faffy but makes sure the muffins have even sized cooked surfaces which makes them easier to toast later on.

Put the cooked muffins on to a rack to cool completely and then store them in the fridge or freeze them for later.

Before you eat the muffins, brown each side under the grill then split them and eat them hot with your favourite sweet or savoury topping. Alternatively, split the muffins, then brown them in a toaster.

Bagels

3 tsp instant yeast
310ml lukewarm water
2 Tbsp honey
1½ tsp salt
1 cup wholemeal bread flour
2 cups white bread flour

Measure the first five ingredients into a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Cover and leave for 15 minutes or longer in a warm place.

Stir in the white bread flour, then add extra flour or water if necessary, until you have a dough just firm enough to knead.

Knead the dough thoroughly, using the dough hook of an electric mixer or kneading by hand on a lightly floured surface for 10 minutes, until you have a soft dough which is smooth and springs back when pressed gently.

Turn the dough in 2-3 teaspoons of oil in bowl, cover with cling film and leave in a warm place for 30 minutes.

Knead the dough on a lightly floured work surface for a minute or two then cut it into 8 equal pieces. Roll each into a snake 26cm-28cm long. Dampen the ends with water and press them together firmly, forming the classic bagel shape. Place the rings on individual squares of baking paper and leave in a warm place for 10-15 minutes.

During the proving time bring a large pan containing water 10cm deep to a simmer. Carefully lower 2 or 3 bagels at a time into the boiling water, then lift away the paper, and cook for 30-45 seconds per side, turning carefully once. Drain the bagels on kitchen towels then put them on a large baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper – make sure you leave some space for them to spread.

Brush as far down the sides of the bagels as you can with egg glaze (mix 1free range egg with 1Tbsp water and ½ tsp sugar) and sprinkle with poppy seeds or sesame seeds.

Bake at 220C for 10 -12 minutes until they’re evenly browned. Cool on a rack and serve warm or toasted, within 24 hours of making them. You can freeze the bagels in an airtight container once they’re cold.

Cinnamon and Dried Fruit Bagels

Measure the bagel ingredients (from the plain bagel recipe) into a mixing bowl and add ½ cup packed brown sugar, 1 tablespoon each of cinnamon and mixed spice, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Mix and knead the same as the plain bagel recipe. Knead until smooth and then knead through the fruit.

Treats

Sweet Tarts

For the pastry:

225g plain flour
115g butter
1 tsp white sugar
1 egg yolk
1 – 2 Tblsp cold water

Sift the flour into a bowl and rub the butter into the flour until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and then use a knife to mix in the egg yolk. Add the water, a little at a time, stirring it together with a knife until the mixture comes together into and you can form a ball of dough with your hands.

Wrap the pastry in cling film and refrigerate it for 30 minutes. This allows the pastry to rest and makes it much easier to work with and roll out.

Preheat your oven to 200C/Gas Mark 6. Dust the work surface and rolling pin with plain flour and roll out the pastry to about the thickness of a £1 coin. Using a small round cutter, cut circles of pastry big enough to line the holes of a mini muffin tin.

Re-roll any trimmings and cut out more circles of pastry until it has all been used. Bake the mini tart cases for about 5 – 7 minutes until they are a pale golden colour. Fill with jam or lemon curd and bake for another 5 minutes or so.

Remove from the oven and leave them to cool in the tin for a few minutes before carefully removing them from the tin to finish cooling completely on a wire rack.

Energy Boost Muffins

2 cups plain flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1/4 cup oil
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup sultanas
1/2 cup grated unpeeled apple
3/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line each hole of a 12 muffin tin with a paper case.

Stir all the ingredients together, until just combines. Spoon into the prepared muffin tin and bake 15 – 20 minutes until well risen, and golden brown. Cool the muffins in the tin for 2 – 3 minutes in the muffin tins before gently transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sultana and Oat Biscuits

1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
125g butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 ½ cups rolled oats
2 ½ cups plain flour
1 cup sultanas or raisins

Preheat your oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Beat the sugar, eggs, butter and vanilla together until creamy with a mixer or by hand. Mix in the rolled oats and flour. Gently mix in the sultanas or raisins.

Put teaspoonfuls of mixture on to the lined baking tray, leaving room between the biscuits for them to spread. Flatten the biscuits a little with a floured fork. Bake the biscuits for 20 – 25 minutes until they are golden brown. Cool the biscuits on a wire rack and store them in an airtight container.

Apple and Sultana Swirls

2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp mixed spice
60g chilled butter, cubed
125ml milk
1/3 cup sultanas
1 large apple, peeled and cored then grated

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a baking tray non-stick baking paper or grease it lightly with melted butter.

Put the flour, sugar and mixed spice into a large bowl. Rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre and add the milk and sultanas. Use a bread and butter knife mix everything together until the mixture just comes together. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead for a couple of minutes until the dough is fairly smooth.

Use a lightly floured rolling pin to roll out the dough into a 25cm x 30cm (10 inch x 12 inch) rectangle. Sprinkle over the grated apple. Starting from the long side, roll the dough up firmly to form a log. Cut crossways into twelve 2cm thick slices. Put the slices cut side up onto the prepared baking try.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. I sometimes ice these with some vanilla flavoured glace icing.

Lemon Drizzle Cake or Plain Sponge Loaf

This is one of my husbands favourites and about the only cake he'll eat that isn't chocolate cake LOL It is so quick and easy to whizz up in my mixer. I call it my 2, 2, 2, 3 lemon cake because that's how I remember the recipe. If you don't want to make a lemon drizzle cake, or don't have any lemons, then all is not lost! Just leave out the zest and don't make the drizzle. This loaf cake tastes fab plain, either dusted with icing sugar or with some buttercream icing. Give it a whirl!

200g softened butter
200g caster sugar
200g self raising flour
3 free range eggs
finely grated zest of 1 lemon, give it a good wash first to get rid of any wax/grease

Lemon Drizzle:

Juice of the zested lemon
about 50g of sugar, add 5g more if you used a rather large lemon

Preheat your oven to 170C/325F/Gas Mark 3. Line a loaf tin with non stick baking paper or one of the precut liners you can buy. My loaf tin is 22cm x 11cm.

I usually have my Kenwood Mixer on minimum speed then on 1 speed at the most. You don't want to beat the mixture too roughly.

Cream the butter and sugar then add the lemon zest and give it a beat for another minute. Add the eggs one at a time with about 1/3 of the flour each time, beat for a bout 1 minute or so for each egg and flour addition.

Scrape down the sides of the mixer and beat for another 30 seconds or so. Spoon the mixture into the loaf tin and bake for about 40 minutes. Test the cake with a skewer inserted into the centre. If the skewer comes out clean then the cake is cooked. If not, I turn the oven heat down 10C and put it back in for 5 minutes before checking again with a skewer.

Once the cake is cooked, take it out of the oven and make the lemon drizzle.

Mix the lemon juice and sugar together until they are well combined but don't dissolve the sugar. Prick the cake all over with the cake tester skewer and slowly spoon over the lemon drizzle.

Leave to cool in the in for about 30 minutes then cool on a wire rack, right side up of course.

Shopping List

43 items cost £60.09 from Asda on 24/02/12.

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Smartprice Porridge Oats (1Kg) 75p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (1Kg) 99p
1x ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg) 60p
2x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Arborio Risotto Rice (500g) 99p
1x ASDA Smartprice Pasta Shapes (500g) 30p
1x ASDA Ready Rolled Puff Pastry (375g) £1.25
1x ASDA Wholefoods Bread Brown Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10

Tins, Jars and Cooking
4x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 33p
1x ASDA Cannellini Beans in Water (300g) 58p
1x ASDA Smartprice Red Kidney Beans in Water (400g) 18p
1x ASDA Good for you! Mayonnaise (250ml) 48p
5x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p

Dairy and Eggs
4x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
2x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
1x ASDA Smartprice Low Fat Natural Yogurt (500g) 55p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mozzarella (125g) 44p
1x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
1x ASDA Smartprice Sultanas (500g) 84p
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
20 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
5 ASDA Courgettes by Weight (100g) 19p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.29
7 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
2x ASDA White Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.35 any 2 FOR £2.00
5 ASDA Tomatoes by Weight (100g) 19.9p
1x ASDA Whole Cucumber £1.00
1x ASDA Round Lettuce 57p
1x ASDA Celery 89p
1x ASDA Trimmed Leeks (500g) £1.00
1x ASDA Garlic Loose 30p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.57
1x ASDA Spring Onions 70p
1x ASDA Mandarins (700g) £1.25 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Unwaxed Lemons (5) £1.37 any 2 FOR £2.00

Frozen
1x ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (907g) 94p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peas (1Kg) 93p
1x ASDA Pollock Fillets (1Kg) £4.00

Meat, Fish and Poultry
2x ASDA Extra Special Pork and Leek Sausages (6 per pack - 454g) £2.68 any 2 FOR £4.00
2x ASDA Smartprice Smoked Back Bacon (312g) £1.63
1x ASDA British Beef Mince (900g) £3.75

Feeding your family in the car

2012-02-24T13:15:00.001Z

**This is a guest post**

Travelling in the car with children can be a nightmare, but there is little doubt that having hungry children makes the whole situation much worse. If you get a chance to stop on the way to eat then that’s great, but getting them to eat a healthy meal on the move is a challenge most parents dread.

If you don’t want to end up with hyperactive children, tomato sauce smeared all over the interior of the car, or two week old cheese under the car mats, take a look at our list of tips.

Food ideas

Dips, sauces or anything that can be smeared is generally a no-no, unless you are willing to clean your car interior afterwards. Try and go for ‘finger food’, such as sausages, chicken sticks, chunks of cheese, sticks of carrot or celery – anything that doesn’t need a knife and fork and that isn’t messy. This doesn’t need to be unhealthy, processed food which will only make them hyperactive or ill – a little basic preparation can result in some scrumptious home-made finger food that you’ll all enjoy.

Crackers and oatcakes make a great alternative to crisps, and several places sell them individually wrapped in crisp-type packets. Plain old digestives are also relatively low in sugar and can be used as a treat alternative to chocolate – but provide a plastic plate to catch any crumbs!

Fruit can be great to pick at along the way, and you can cut it up and stick it in a plastic box in advance to avoid any mess. Apple slices, clementine segments and grapes are all healthy, tasty and relatively mess-free.

If you haven’t got time to prepare a fruit salad, dried fruit can be a good alternative. Raisins, banana slices and dried apricots are all sweet, tasty and far healthier than sweets. Put some in resealable bags for a great sweet alternative.

Avoid sugary drinks and go for flavoured water or squash if they dislike plain water. Putting it in a sports bottle with a non-drip lid helps to avoid any soggy accidents.

Many yoghurts and fromage frais now come in ‘pouches’ – perfect for eating on the go! This avoids the need for a spoon, saving on mess and keeping the yoghurt cooler for longer.

If you can get them to sleep then this is surely a godsend, so warm drinks can be handy. Packing hot milk or Horlicks in a thermos is a good option. A tip is to pour it out into a toddler bottle before handing it over. This may seem insulting to your older child, but the handles can make it easier to hold (although you want it to be warm – not hot) and the spout stops any spillage.

Their favourite cereal, without milk, can make for a fun snack. Put some into a Tupperware box before you leave – but reserve it as a special treat, as you don’t want the sugar to make them hyperactive!

Remember:

Don’t feed them large amounts in one go, but ration food out over the course of the journey. This prevents overeating and feeling sick, and also avoids ending up with hyperactive children. It also helps to break up the monotony of the journey.

Travel sickness can be a real pain and many children suffer from it. To avoid this try to steer clear of fatty or spicy foods, and stick to something relatively dry and plain. If you can, avoid feeding them at all until you get there, or just give them enough to keep them going.

Keeping your family fed whilst on the road can make for a smoother journey, and so can having the right car insurance cover.

**This is a guest post by Sainsbury's Finance**

Foodcycle - A fun and tasty way to cut food waste

2012-02-22T13:47:00.000Z

Did you know that . . . .

An estimated 400,000 tonnes of surplus food can be reclaimed each year from the food retailer industry to be made into healthy and nutritious meals.

There are 4 million people affected by food poverty in the UK. BAPEN estimates that malnutrition costs the NHS £13 billion each and every year.

How does FoodCycle help?

FoodCycle raises awareness of food waste and food poverty by empowering local communities to set up groups of volunteers that collect surplus produce locally and prepare nutritious meals in unused professional kitchen spaces. These delicious meals are then served to those in need in the community. The food is offered to anyone and everyone who comes along, a £2 donation is welcome from those who can afford it, which is incredibly good value for a 3 course lunch.

There happens to be a FoodCycle in Cambridge so of course I went along one Saturday morning to help out.

EVERY Saturday at 12.30pm Cambridge FoodCycle serves a tasty 3 course lunch made from reclaimed food surplus at St Pauls Church in Cambridge. The meals are cooked with love by volunteers for people affected by food poverty, and anyone who cares about food waste, who want to come along for a delicious and cheap lunch.

I had such a fab time! There were 3 huge tables of food for us to prepare and cook. Caz the leader of the cooking team said that they cannot always take all the food available to them as there is only so much they can carry and cook. Food is collected on a Friday evening from a local supermarket and other suppliers (thanks Neil) and prepared and cooked the next morning. There was SO much food that would normally go to waste! This was food from one day of the week, and there was loads more that they couldn't utilise, I can only imagine the massive amount of food from the rest of the week that is normally wasted as there is seemingly no way for it to be utilised.

It is scandalous that there are people in food poverty and yet there is decent food that is thrown away. What a huge waste of resources! I was completely gobsmacked at the amount of delicious food the team was able to produce from the donated food.

Here are some of the dishes that were prepared and served:

Starter: Caramelised Onion and Brussel Sprout Soup

Main Course

The main course was Pasta in a creamy Courgette, Pepper and Mushroom Sauce with Carrots and Parsnips roasted in Clementine Juice and a Root Vegetable Bake with Greens Sauteed in Butter and with Garlic.

Banana Cake

Roasted Clementines drizzled with Golden Syrup

There was also an enormous bowl of Cherry Tomato, Pepper and Lettuce Salad, enough for at least 60 people to have as a Main Course and an Apple and Plum Crumble that was prepared as well as a vast quantity of fresh Fruit Salad. All from food that would normally be thrown away!

I cannot recommend volunteering for your local FoodCycle highly enough. It was such a fab experience! Now don't panic if your culinary skills aren't the best. It's a very supportive team and if you can chop and peel, that's half the battle won LOL There's one team that does the cooking and a second team to help serve, clear away and wash the dishes afterwards. It's very well organised and relies on volunteers to help with each stage of the process.

If you want to volunteer, take a look and see if there is a FoodCycle near you.

If you live near Cambridge and want to help out at St Pauls on a Saturday morning then you can find Cambridge FoodCycle on Twitter and Facebook.

Choose Free Range Eggs on Pancake Day and Every Day!

2012-02-20T21:32:00.001Z

I'm a great fan of chooks. They are so cute and they lay delicious eggs for us to eat and bake with, what's not to like?! We had a pet rooster and hen in NZ, they were loads of fun and we loved them a lot.

I always buy free range eggs. I know that they are sometimes more expensive but I prefer to buy free range eggs knowing that the hens laying eggs for us to eat have a happy life doing what chooks like to do, pottering and flapping about, scratching away at the ground and exploring, just being generally lovely and chook-like. LOL

Tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day. Most people will be buying eggs for their pancakes and the RSPCA, and I, are encouraging you to look for eggs labelled Freedom Food, Free Range, Organic or Barn. I'm personally not a fan of Barn eggs, but they're cage free so better than caged, but I personally prefer free range.

This is really important because some eggs still come from hens kept in cages which don't allow hens to move around freely or carry out all their natural behaviours properly.

Barren ‘conventional’ battery cages have been banned in the EU but so-called ‘enriched’ battery cages are still allowed.

Enriched battery cages give hens a nesting, scratching and perching area and a little more usable space, but shockingly this still amounts to little more than an A4 sheet of paper sized space per bird. That is an awfully small amount of space, barely enough to turn around let alone flap their wings a bit.

This is why the RSPCA and I think it’s so important to check that you’re buying cage-free eggs. Yes I am harping and nagging, but it's something I feel passionate about. I'm very fond of chooks!

And consumers need to be on their guard. It’s not just boxes of eggs that might be from caged hens, oh no, they’re also used as an ingredient in products such as pancake batter mixes, ready-made pancakes, cake mixes, mayonnaise, ready made cakes and quiches. It’s important to read the ingredients list on ready-made products to check any eggs used in are is cage-free.

It's not that hard to buy premade foods that contain Free Range Eggs instead of caged eggs. All Marks and Spencer products, all Waitrose, Co-Op and Sainsbury's own brand products, Tesco ‘Finest’ range, Asda ‘Extra Special’ range and Morrisons 'The Best' range all contain only Free Range eggs.

Apparently, Free Range Eggs are starting to outsell caged eggs for the first time. This is great news. It means people are voting with their wallets to buy eggs laid by hens who are kept under better conditions. If consumers continue shopping wisely and choosing not to buy caged eggs then they will eventually disappear due to lack of demand. That would be a brilliant result!

If you would like more information about the RSPCA’s campaign and how to spot cage-free versus Free Range eggs check out their website. The RSPCA have also produced a poster, as illustrated below to help interpret and decipher labelling to make sure you're buying non-caged eggs. If you would like one of your own click here.

Chocolate and Berry Pancakes with Chocolate Sauce

2012-02-20T09:38:00.000Z

It's pancake day tomorrow and we don't normally have time to make them on a school morning so I serve them for pudding instead. Here's our favourite pudding pancake recipe, you can leave the berries out if you don't have any or use fresh berries instead of frozen ones.

2 cups self-raising flour

1/4 cup plain flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

3 Tblsp light soft brown sugar

550ml milk

80g butter, melted and cooled

1 free range egg, beaten

300g frozen berries, thawed (optional)

Extra melted butter

Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, to serve

Chocolate Sauce:

200g plain chocolate, broken up

250ml whipping cream

2 Tblsp light soft brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Sift the flours, cocoa and sugar into a large bowl. Add the milk, cooled melted butter and beaten egg. Whisk until well combined. Gently stir in the defrosted berries so they don't break up too much.

Put a frying pan over a medium heat and add a little butter. Once the butter is foaming, add 1/3 cup of mixture to each pan. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until bubbles appear on the surface. Carefully turn the pancakes over and cook for a further minute or two.

Transfer the cooked pancakes to a plate and wrap them loosely in a clean tea towel to keep them warm. Cook the rest of the pancakes, greasing the frying pan lightly between each batch. If you find the pan is getting too hot, reduce the heat slightly as you don't want to risk them being a little too well-done ;oP

To make the chocolate sauce, put the chocolate, cream, sugar and vanilla into a small saucepan. Stir over low heat until the chocolate has melted. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the sauce reduces and thickens. If you want to be really posh, pour the sauce into a heatproof jug and set aside. I just pour it over each plate of pancakes straight from the saucepan, it saves washing up a jug.

To serve the pancakes, put them on to individual plates and pour over the chocolate sauce. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Who doesn’t like saving a few pennies, especially on energy bills?!

2012-02-18T14:54:00.000Z

E.ON have a fab campaign running at the moment called Energy Fit. By answering a few questions about your home and energy use, you can receive individually tailored recommendations on what you can do to become more energy efficient and as a result make savings on your energy bills. The survey results can be saved and specific energy saving goals selected so that you can monitor your progress and stay on track.

Also, anyone who completes the survey can also calculate their households Energy Fitness Indicator (EFI), which is a tool developed by E.ON to help people visualise their energy usage and the improvements that they can make. Perfect for seeing what you need to do at a glance, and getting kids involved in helping to save energy too. The tool also enables you to track your progress, or even to compare savings with your friends and family. Nothing like a little healthy competition to encourage you to make extra progress ;o)

Check out the Energy Fit webpage to find out more about how you can save money on your energy costs.

To help you cut down on energy use in the kitchen, E.ON have teamed up with the rather delicious Simon Rimmer to show you how you can cook delicious one-pot meals. One pot meals are fab because they not only save on energy use whilst you’re cooking; they also save on washing up too. Brilliant!

Simon has created five mouth-watering ‘energy fit’ dishes, which are simple to make and taste absolutely delicious:

Lamb and Potato Hot Pot

Chorizo, Chicken and Chick Pea Casserole

Monkfish and Potato

Green Thai Prawn Curry

Chinese Duck Cottage Pie

To download all the recipes and find out more about E.ON’s collaboration with Simon check out their Energy Fit Cooking Page.

You can also find clips of the lovely Simon making each of the above dishes on the E.ON’s You Tube Channel. Why don’t you give them a go, the recipes are tasty and will save you money on your energy costs – what’s not to like?

My favourite recipe is Thai Prawn Curry:

But wait, there’s more!

We all like a giveaway, so E.ON are giving tweeps the chance to win a copy of Simon Rimmer’s new cookbook along with a signed photo plus a Le Creuset starter set.

To enter the competition you’ll need to follow E.ON on Twitter and tweet a picture of you enjoying your one-pot meal including the hashtags #energyfit and #eon in your tweet.

The competition winner will be selected at random from all entries received via Twitter on 24 February 2012. Don’t forget to check out the terms and conditions of the competition.

**This is a sponsored post**

Our Family Meal Plan for this week 20/02 - £50

2012-02-17T20:49:00.000Z

I've got a busy week ahead this week. My cake decorating course starts back on Monday so for the next 5 Mondays I will need a low faff dinner because I’ll be knackered. I’m in London on Tuesday evening at an event so hubby will need something that can be reheated as he doesn’t usually cook and his skills in the kitchen are pretty minimal.

I’m also in London again on Wednesday and may or may not be home in time to cook dinner. That’s 3 nights this week where we will need low faff meals. I’ve also decided that our girls will have school dinners this week so have reduced the Shopping List accordingly to cover the cost of school dinners.

The cost of the 36 items on this weeks Shopping List was £49.92 at Asda when I ordered online today (Friday 17/03). As always I used My Supermarket to compare the cost of my shop and it would've cost £64.50 at Sainsburys and £65.55 at Tesco.

As usual I will be baking all of our bread, rolls, bagels, etc. Even though I will be out of the house 3 days in a row I can still bake what we need and freeze it for later in the week.

Dinners

Slow Cooker Beef Casserole – Monday and Tuesday

This is a fab, low faff warming stew that is cooked in a slow cooker. It makes enough to serve us 5 generously for 2 nights. Great for nights when I need a dinner that is guaranteed to be eaten without fuss. This casserole is perfect for that. It tastes even better the second night. Sometimes I freeze the other portion but more often than not I just serve it the next night with different vegetables on the side. You can add other chopped root vegetables to the casseroles if you want, such as potatoes, parsnip. pumpkin, sweet potato, etc.

1kg beef braising/stewing steak cut into chunks

1 tsp ground ginger

1 onion, sliced

2 sticks of celery, finely sliced

2 x 400g cans of chopped tomatoes or cherry tomatoes

2 x 400g cans of kidney beans, drained and well rinsed

2 peppers, roughly diced (any colour will do)

3 carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks

2 bay leaves

2 Tblsp brown sugar

2 Tblsp red wine vinegar

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 Tblsp Worcestershire sauce

If you have time, brown the meat in a non-stick pan, use a little oil if necessary.

Put the beef and everything else in the slow cooker. Stir well and cook for 7-8 hours on low, or 4 hours on high. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. If the casserole needs thickening, stir 2 Tbsp cornflour mixed to a paste with 2 Tbsp water into it. Serve with mash and greens or mixed vegetables.

Hotdogs and Salad – Wednesday

Cook 5 good quality pork sausages and serve each sausage in a wholemeal bun topped with homemade tomato salsa accompanied by a side salad.

Vegetable Bake - Thursday

3 cups seasonal vegetables (I used finely chopped onion, pepper and mushrooms, grated carrot and courgette)
1 handful grated tasty cheese
4 eggs
150ml milk
½ cup self raising flour or ½ cup plain flour and ½ tsp baking powder
freshly ground black pepper

If you don’t have self raising flour, use standard flour with ½ tsp of baking powder added. Cut a selection of vegetables in to small chunks or grate them. Put them in a well greased or lined 20 x 25cm baking dish. Sprinkle the cheese over the vegetables.

Lightly beat the eggs and milk together then sprinkle in the self raising flour. Mix well to make sure there are no lumps. Pour the beaten egg over the vegetables. Bake at 200C for 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the egg has set. Serve with your favourite chutney or relish and a side salad.

Homemade Pizza - Friday

2 cups wholemeal flour

2 tsp baking powder

4 tablespoons butter

125ml milk

2 Tblsp tomato paste mixed with 4 Tblsp water

2 cups toppings (we usually use onion, pepper, courgette, mushrooms and sometimes sweetcorn)

1 handful grated cheese

Sieve flour and baking powder. Rub butter into the flour until the mixture is like coarse breadcrumbs.

Add the milk and mix until a stiff dough forms (add more flour or milk if necessary). Turn out onto a floured board and knead lightly.

Roll out into a circle or rectangle transfer to a greased oven tray.

Scatter over your choice of toppings. Sprinkle over some grated cheese.

Cook at 200ºC for 20 minutes.

Sausages, Potato Wedges and Mixed Vegetables - Saturday

1kg potatoes,cut into wedges
6 pork sausages
400g frozen mixed vegetables

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6. Spread the wedge out on a non-stick baking tray, in a single layer. Drizzle the potato wedges with some olive oil and season. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes until brown and crisp.

Put the sausages in a baking dish and cook in the oven for last 20 minutes of wedges cooking time. Served with cooked mixed vegetables.

Slow Cooker Vege Stew - Sunday

2 onions, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 pepper, diced
1 Tblsp oil
2 tsp cumin
2 x 400g tins chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
500ml tomato passata
2 handfuls of sliced mushrooms
1 large carrot, peeled and finely sliced
1 small sweet potato, cut into small dice
2 tsp dried oregano
250ml red wine
500ml vegetable stock

Soften the onions, pepper and garlic in a little oil then stir in the cumin and cook for about a minute until fragrant. Put in the slow cooker with all the other ingredients. Stir well. Cook on low for 3 hours. Season to taste before serving with crusty bread.

Lunches and Treats

With no kids lunches to make this week adult lunches will be Savoury Swirls with a couple of pieces of fruit and some vege sticks. Low faff, tasty and moderately healthy too.

Savoury Swirls

300g self-raising flour
50g chilled butter, finely chopped or grated
185ml milk
2 Tbsp tomato paste
a couple of mushrooms, finely chopped
1 pepper, finely chopped
50g grated Cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Sift the flour into a large bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. If you grate the butter this process will happen much quicker. Make a well in the flour and then add the milk. Stir the mixture well with a wooden spoon until it forms a soft dough. Turn the soft dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it gently until it becomes smooth.

Lightly dust a rolling pin with flour and roll out the dough to a 12 inch (30cm) square. Spread the dough square with the tomato paste, leaving a 1 inch (2.5cm) border. Top the tomato paste with the finely chopped mushroom and pepper. Starting from the side nearest to you, roll the dough up firmly to form a tight log. Cut the log crossways into 12 even slices. Put the slices cut-side up on the lined baking tray.

Sprinkle the swirls evenly with grated Cheddar cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack and then back into lunchboxes or serve with a salad or crudites and dip.

Hokey Pokey Biscuits

These are a kiwi classic! Great biscuit tin fillers that always go down well. Perfect for lunchbox treats, coffee mornings and when friends come around for a cuppa.

125g butter
½ cup sugar
1 Tblsp golden syrup
1 Tblsp milk
1½ cups flour
1 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Combine the butter, sugar, golden syrup and milk in a saucepan stirring constantly. Heat until the butter is melted and the mixture is nearly boiling.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool to lukewarm.

Sift the flour and the baking soda together and add them to the cooled mixture. Stir the ingredients well to make sure they are thoroughly combined.

Roll tablespoons of the mixture into balls and put them on an oven tray lined with non-stick baking paper, then flatten the balls gently with a floured fork.

Bake the biscuits for 15-20 minutes or until they are golden brown. Cool on the trays and then once they have cooled completely, store in an airtight container.

Paul Hollywood’s Iced Fingers

Store Cupboard Soup - Saturday

This is a really useful recipe when your cupboards and fridge are nearly bare and money is tight. I can usually find all the ingredients to make it in my pantry or they can be bought really cheaply from the supermarket. It's a filling lunch or dinner that is really easy to prepare and can be on the table within 15 minutes.

½ Tbsp oil
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes
1 tin (425g) beans, drained (e.g. mixed beans, butter beans, haricot beans or chickpeas)
1 large tin (400g) sweetcorn, drained or 2 handfuls frozen mixed vegetables
4 large mushrooms, thinly sliced (optional)
1 pepper, diced (red, orange or yellow)

Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan and sweat the onions until soft and transparent. Add the diced pepper and mushrooms and cook gently until softened.

Add the tin of chopped tomatoes, drained tin of mixed beans and sweetcorn or a couple of handfuls of frozen mixed vegetables. Cook for another 5 - 10 minutes until everything is well heated through then serve.

I usually serve this with bread rolls or baked potatoes. You could also serve this over thick wholemeal toast, cooked rice, cooked pasta or baked sweet potatoes/potatoes.

Salmon Patties - Sunday

500g baking potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1 courgette, grated
1 carrot, grated
425g can salmon in spring water, drained
olive oil spray
salt and pepper, to taste

Pre-heat oven to 220 C. Put the prepared potatoes into a saucepan of cold water and bring to the boil. Cook for 10 minutes or until soft then drain and mash.

Add the grated courgette and carrot, drained salmon and salt and pepper to the mashed potato and mix until well combined. Form into small patties, spray with oil and bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Serve with salad.

Any leftover patties can be bagged up and frozen for later use. They also taste great on sandwiches with tomato chutney.

Breakfasts

Weekday breakfasts will be cereal with milk and chopped banana or toast with spread and a banana.

Fruit Bread – Weekend Breakfasts

2 tsp mixed spice
3 1/4 cups plain flour
2 tsp instant dried yeast
1/4 cup sugar
375ml (1 1/2 cups) warm water
2 cups of mixed dried fruit
1 Tblsp milk
1 Tblsp each cinnamon and sugar mixed together

Sift mixed spice and 3 cups flour into a bowl. Stir in yeast and sugar. Make a well in the centre. Add water then mix to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Add remaining flour. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. I use my stand mixer to knead my bread if I'm not in the mood to knead it by hand.

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. I leave my dough in the stand mixer, with the plastic shield on it the dough proves quite happily. Grease a 6cm-deep, 9cm x 19cm loaf tin.

Using your fist, punch the dough down. Knead until smooth. I just knead the dough a little in my stand mixer. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface. Gradually knead in the dried fruit. Again, I just use my stand mixer. Shape then put in to the prepared loaf tin. Cover with lightly greased cling film and set aside in a warm place for 15 minutes or until the dough rises to the top of the tin.

Meanwhile, your preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Once the dough has risen, brush the top of it with milk. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 10 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 170°C/150°C fan-forced. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and hollow when tapped on top. Stand in tin for 5 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve with butter and jam.

Shopping List

Cost of 36 items = £49.92 from Asda online, ordered on 17/02.

Packets and Cereals
2x ASDA Wheat Bisks (24x18g) £1.00 was £1.24
2x ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg) 60p
1x ASDA Wholemeal Plain Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 64p

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x ASDA Wild Pacific Pink Salmon (418g) £1.57
5x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 42p
2x ASDA Smartprice Red Kidney Beans in Water (400g) 18p
1x ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (326g) 37p
2x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p
1x ASDA Double Concentrated Tomato Puree (200g) 48p
1x ASDA Mexican Style Bean Mix in Water (400g) 53p
1x ASDA Passata (500g) 38p

Frozen
1x ASDA Freshly Frozen Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) £1.18

Dairy and Eggs
1x ASDA Fresh Whipping Cream (300ml) £1.08
4x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
1x The Lake District Cheese Co. Mature Cheddar (400g) £2.00 was £3.98
1x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
1x ASDA Conference Pears (800g) £1.00 was £1.60
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
10 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
5 ASDA Courgettes by Weight (100g) 16p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.29
7 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
2 ASDA Sweet Potatoes by Weight (100g) 12.8p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
1x ASDA Cherry Tomatoes (400g) £1.00
1x ASDA Baking Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.75
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.57
1x ASDA Great Stuff Satsumas (500g) £1.00 was £1.30

Meat, Fish and Poultry
2x ASDA Extra Special Pork Sausages (6 per pack - 454g) £2.68 any 2 FOR £4.00
2x ASDA British Beef Stewing Steak (571g) £4.00 any 2 FOR £7.00

Drinks
1x La Comida Red Wine (250ml) £1.47 any 3 FOR £4.00

Carrot and Coriander Soup - Sort of

2012-02-15T15:13:00.000Z

We have been the house of lurgy this week and sore throats are making eating an uncomfortable process. Therefore I decided to make soup for lunch today. My 3 girls are at that delightful stage where they are feeling a little better but not well enough to go out and do things. You know the stage where they delight in torturing each other and find new and inventive ways to wind each other up? Yup, that stage! GRRRRRR!

So as an antidote to all the whinging and bickering I got them to help make the soup. They could ecercise their frustrations on vegetables instead of each other. LOL

The recipe for Carrot and Coriander Soup in our Meal Plan this week was as follows:
1 large onion, diced

1 large sweet potato

500g carrots

1 Tblsp ground coriander

400ml milk

1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in 400ml boiling water

1 Tblsp vegetable oil

Ground black pepper and salt to taste

Peel and chop the sweet potato and carrots into smallish chunks. Saute the onion in the oil for a couple of minutes until it’s softened. Add the ground coriander and stir for 1 more minute. Put the carrots and sweet potatoes into the saucepan and add the stock and milk.

Bring everything to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. When the vegetables are tender blend the soup with a stick blender until smooth and then serve with homemade bread rolls.

So how/what did we do?

I substituted the onion for a couple of leeks, added a parsnip but kept the rest of the recipe the same. My 11yo was in charge of stirring the soup as she admits she likes stirring (ain't that the truth!). I blended the soup and the end with my trusty stick blender, because I LOVE power tools, especially in the kitchen LOL

Sauteing the vegetables and adding the ground coriander

Simmering the soup

Blending the soup, I love power tools LOL

Our delicious soup!

Apologies for the quality of the photos, I took them on my phone whilst we were cooking. The soup freezes well too and, because we made plenty, I will be giving some to a couple of people in our street who will appreciate a free, wholesome meal.

Top Tips for Thrifty Cooking

2012-02-15T11:06:00.000Z

Love your leftovers

Make leftover rice into rice patties. Combine the leftover rice with fresh herbs, a little grated cheese and an egg to bind everything together. Shape into patties and cook in a moderate pan, or in the oven. I serve these with a drizzle of sweet chilli sauce or some relish/chutney and a salad.

You can also use leftover rice in Fried Rice dishes, in fact it is preferable to use leftover rice as it holds its shape better. Steam some frozen mixed vegetables and stir fry with leftover rice and meat until everything is piping hot, add a dash of soy sauce and you’ve got dinner in no time.

Leftover cooked pasta or noodles can be made into a frittata the same as leftover potatoes and other vegetables. To make a frittata, combine pasta/noodles with eggs and add herbs and some leftover roast or deli meat. You can make Mini Frittatas for lunchboxes or a large one for lunch or dinner. Simply mix everything together and then cook in an ovenproof frying pan over a low-medium heat for 8-10 minutes, then transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes at 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6.until it has cooked through and is set. Serve with tasty relish and a big salad.

All those packets of leftover dried pasta that are different shapes can be broken up so they are more or less the same size, cook it and serve with loads of pasta sauce or put it in a minestrone soup.

Use up leftover hard cheese and stale bread by whizzing up in a blender or food processor to make cheesy crumbs. This makes a tasty topping for cottage pies, fish pies or other savoury bakes – as well as a delicious coating for fish or homemade chicken nuggets.

Leftover cooked potato can be used in frittatas, to make homemade gnocchi, fishcakes or bubble & squeak. To make bubble and squeak, fry finely chopped onion and garlic in a pan, add some finely chopped chilli if you like, leftover sausages or a little bacon, add chopped or mashed potatoes and any other leftover vegetables you have, and fresh spinach if you fancy some greens. Cook until it forms a golden crust on the bottom, then serve sliced into wedges with ketchup, chilli sauce or brown sauce and a salad.

You can use leftover meat sauces, casseroles and tomato-based pasta sauces as fillings for pastry parcels, calzone, crepes, and as a delicious topping for baked potatoes.

Leftover sausages can be cut into chunks and added to bean stew, risotto or pasta sauce. Use as a pizza topping, in bubble & squeak, or make mini toads in the hole using muffin tins.

Leftover cooked meat can be added to soups, a risotto, pasta sauce; used as a pizza topping or even as a quiche filling. You can also use cooked meat in quick pasta dishes or pasta bakes.

Leftover cooked vegetables are really versatile. You can add them to pasta sauces, use them as quiche fillings, pizza toppings, or use them to make fritters, a frittata, omelettes or risotto;

Leftover cooked pulses or beans are a great way to bulk out soups or casseroles to make them go further. Whizz them up with spices to make a dip or sandwich spread; or add to a salad for added protein.

For more recipes, ideas and suggestions about how to Love Your Leftovers go to the Love Food Hate Waste website. It's fab! You can also show your support for them by dowloading code for a sidebar button linking to their site, like I have.

Make the most of what you buy

Buy a bigger packet of mince, if it is cheaper, and either make a huge batch of simmered mince to use many ways or package the raw mince into small packs and make several dinners out of it such as, meatballs, burger patties, Bolognese sauce, stir fries and many others. Bulk out meatballs and burger patties using breadcrumbs or cooked rice.

Instead of buying chicken breasts for one meal, buy a whole chicken and spread it over several meals. Serve roast chicken with vegetables for the first dinner, then use leftover cooked chicken to make a chicken stir fry, wraps, creamy chicken pasta or chicken and leek pie with either mash or pastry topping. You can also use some leftover cooked chicken with stock (homemade or from stock cubes) to make a delicious soup. Bring the stock to the boil and add finely chopped chilli, ginger, garlic, a dash of soy sauce and either a can of sweetcorn or some frozen mixed vegetables. Then add leftover chicken, heat through before serving in bowls topped with some chopped fresh coriander.

Make sure food is stored correctly and that you keep an eye on what needs using up first, this should cut down on wastage. If you are freezing leftovers, or cooking in bulk to use later, make you package meals properly and that they are clearly dated and labelled, you want to avoid unidentified frozen object issues.

My Must Have Food Staples

In the pantry:

Rice

Use in a risotto or oven-baked pilaf, serve as a side dish with curry, meatballs, chilli, or stew. You can also use rice to make rice pudding.

Pulses and legumes, including baked beans

Pulses and legumes are in the class of vegetables that includes beans, peas, lentils and chickpeas. Curries, dhals and stews made with lentils are cheap and healthy. You can also use lentils or beans to bulk out meat dishes and casseroles. Chickpeas can be used to make falafels or hummus, and are great in salads too. Baked beans are a cheap and filling meal on their own or on toast, as a filling for toasted sandwiches or a topping for baked potatoes.

Dried Pasta

Great for quick dinners and lunches, you can add a tin of tomatoes, tin of fish and some fresh herbs to cooked pasta for a super quick dinner. Who doesn’t like Spaghetti Bolognese (meat or vegetable) or Macaroni Cheese? Pasta salads are a great lunchbox filler or weekend lunch and you can flavour them whichever way you like.

Tinned fish

You can use tinned fish as a sandwich filler, in salads, to make fish cakes or fast pasta dishes when you need a quick and low faff dinner, or for fish pie if you need a cheap and filling dinner.

Tinned Tomatoes

There are so many dishes that can be whipped up using tinned tomatoes. You can make soups, pasta sauce, add to stews for extra flavour, mix with herbs and heat to use as a topping for baked potatoes or homemade pizza, the list is almost endless.

Porridge Oats

You can use oats for much more than just porridge and flapjacks. Oats can be added to Bolognese to bulk it out as the oats take on the flavour of the Bolognese and soften so you can’t tell they are in there. Oats can of course be used for fruit crumble toppings or soaked in milk and used to bulk out a meatloaf or meatballs.

Flour and Yeast

If you don’t bake regularly then only buy a small amount of flour as it can go off. I always have cornflour available to bake shortbread and also use as a thickening agent for casseroles. Plain flour can be used to bake cakes, biscuits, scones bread, and make homemade gnocchi. If you have plain flour but need self raising flour, just add 2 tsp of baking powder per cup of plain flour.

Herbs and spices

I always have salt, black pepper, mixed herbs, curry powder, cumin, coriander, chilli flakes/powder, paprika, turmeric, oregano, rosemary, thyme, cinnamon, ginger, and mixed spice.

In the freezer:

Frozen Mixed Vegetables

These are cheap and so useful to have on hand as a side dish or an easy way to add vegetables to casseroles, pasta bakes, omelettes, frittatas, add to cheese sauce to make vegetable parcels (using puff pastry) or liven up macaroni cheese.

Frozen Berries

I freeze berries that I forage in the summer to use in the winter and you can also buy frozen berries fairly cheaply on offer in the supermarket. I use frozen berries to make smoothies, instant ice-cream (add frozen berries to a little yoghurt and whizz up for an instant dessert), fruit compote to have with crepes, pancakes or to fill puff pastry squares and make turnovers. Add frozen berries when you are cooking porridge to liven it up and add an extra vitamin boost.

Puff Pastry

This is super versatile for both sweet and savoury dishes. You can use puff pastry to top a casserole to transform it into a pie, make leftover casserole into pasties, make vegetable parcels, fruit turnovers, savoury pinwheels for lunchbox snacks, and even a cheats pizza base.

In the fridge:

Eggs

You can use eggs in so many ways besides boiled, poached or fried. Frittatas and omelettes are a brilliant for quick meals and can also make the most of leftovers. Eggs are also used in baking, to make pasta, and of course in homemade custard.

Cheese

Cheese is of course useful as a topping for pasta bakes, pies, tarts and quiches, added to savoury baking and of course is a vital ingredient in Macaroni Cheese. It’s also great as a lunchbox sandwich filling with relish or chutney, in toasted sandwiches or as a topping for baked potatoes.

Milk

Of course milk is useful to drink, make porridge and have with cereal, but it’s also useful when making mash, in baking and to make custard.

Seasonal Fruit and Vegetables

If you eat produce that is in season produce it should be cheapest, freshest and tastiest. Combine fresh vegetables with the staples listed above to make soup, curries, frittata, pizza, pasta bakes, quiches, tarts, stews, etc. Use vegetables to make meals go further and increase the ratio of vegetables to meat.

Fresh fruit is the perfect snack and lunchbox staple. You can also use fruit to make smoothies, compote, crumbles, turnovers, and sorbet.

There are also loads of fab money saving ideas in the Thrifty Families Blogging Carnival which is a collaboration between Becky from Baby Budgeting, Jen from The Madhouse and A Thrifty Mum, and Cass from Frugal Family. Jen and Cass also blog at Frugalicious Food. Pop over to their blogs and check them out.

What are your top tips for thrifty cooking and what ingredients do you always have on hand for a quick meal? Leave a comment and let me know, we can all help each other save money and waste less food.

ActionAid - What they do and how you can help

2012-02-15T10:16:00.002Z

A little while ago I attended the ActionAid UK Bloggers Tea Party Event. ActionAid is one of the UK’s largest international development charities helping poor children, families and communities in over 40 of the world’s poorest countries. I attended the event because I wanted to raise awareness about the fabulous work they do and also encourage those of us who can spare a few pennies to sponsor a child or hold a fundraising event to benefit those in other countries who are much less fortunate than us.

My children get tired of me banging on about how privileged we are, despite not having a lavish lifestyle. I want to explore ways that I can educate them about how rich and full their lives are compared with others around the world. There is a brilliant Schools Section on the ActionAid website which will help me to do just that, and I have been ~~nagging everyone who will listen~~ lobbying my daughters school to use the resources as well.

At the Tea Party I listened to the talks and chatted to other bloggers whilst trying not to cry at the desperate conditions people deal with every day of their lives. I know there is a point where people get hardened to these images and don't give because they think most of the money is spent on admin and maybe not on those to need it. We’re much more likely to support a charity if we see where the money is going, and the real individuals it is benefiting.

We listened to a talk by Lynn and Spencer, a couple who don’t blog at all, who sponsor a 13 year old boy called Malafani in Lesotho. They had visited his village in Lesotho and were amazed by the welcome they received from those with so little and how basic facilities actually were. The villagers offered them a feast and villagers came from miles around to meet Lynn and Spencer. Their slide show and commentary of the trip they made personalised the whole process of child sponsorship. Lynn and Spencer also made a 20 minute film which they showed to the primary school class that their daughter teaches. The village school that Malafani attends is at the top of an enormous hill, it snows there in winter too. We were shown how far the children have to travel up the steep incline to their school and it is a real hike! The school, which is only one tiny room, caters for 90 children ranging in age from 5 to 15. Even though the people in the village had very little, they were being helped to improve facilities using money donated by Lynn and Spencer, along with other ActionAid sponsors, to make their lives better. ActionAid doesn't decide how the village should spend the money it receives, each village has a meeting and they prioritise their own needs - such as moving a school from the top of a mountain to the bottom.

If you sponsor a child with ActionAid, the money doesn’t just go to that child, it goes to that child’s community. You receive pictures and letters from that child which show the genuine benefits that your money and ActionAid’s hard work bring to that community. The "it just goes into a corporate black hole" cop out doesn't stack up when you can see water supplies being established by building wells that will allow gardens to be sewn and harvested, schools to be built and supplied with materials, and the community that you are contributing to improving before your eyes.

So what can you do?! You can sponsor a child, get in touch with ActionAid on Twitter, Facebook or via their website. You could hold a fundraising event, perhaps a morning or afternoon tea, to benefit ActionAid or lobby your childs school to sponsor a school or child elsewhere in the world through ActionAid.

Photo courtesy of ActionAid

Forman & Field - Delicious Hampers!

2012-02-12T07:23:00.001Z

I was recently sent, for the purposes of review, a hamper of Forman & Field goodies to try. Despite this being a family food blog, I do sometimes have some rather more expensive gourmet foodie tastes so I jumped at the chance to sample some gourmet treats. Who wouldn't?!

Forman & Field which launched in 2002, is a fine food mail order company specialising in fresh traditional British produce from small independent producers. They share their premises in East London with their parent company, H. Forman & Son, which is a 100 year old family business supplying smoked salmon, caviar and other smoked and fresh fish to the world's leading hotels and finest restaurants.

They very posh indeed!

Their produce is divine, so decadent and delicious! There is no way I would use them for my weekly shop, unless I won a significant amount on the lottery, but for special occasions and gifts they are a food lovers delight.

I especially like the look of the Cheese Hampers - along with most of the other hampers!

So if you want an extra special present for someone who likes fine food then look no further than Forman & Field.

Photo courtesy of Forman & Field

Our Meal Plan for Half Term Week 13/02 - £70

2012-02-11T11:37:00.003Z

This is our Meal Plan for Half Term Week. In theory our Meal Plan shouldn't cost much more than usual but with outings planned, visitors coming for lunch or afternoon tea, us taking baking to friends when we visit, and 3 children who love to bake, holiday Meal Plans are inevitably slightly more expensive than usual. I have included extras such as butter, icing sugar, cocoa, light soft brown sugar and extra flour for baking and bread making.

This Meal Plan cost £70.21 from Asda online today, and I used My Supermarket to check which supermarket was the cheapest to purchase my trolley of 43 items of groceries from. The same trolley of groceries would've cost £82.99 at Tesco and £92.90 at Sainsburys.

The plan for this week includes quite a bit of baking, lunches that are easy to make and filling as well as being portable should we have outings planned. As usual I will be baking all our own bread, fruit bread, rolls, etc. I will have extra help making them this week as my 3 girls are all keen bread bakers. The art of cleaning up, washing dishes and the importance of hygiene are key skills that all 3 girls have learnt along with baking techniques so my kitchen is cleaned by them, properly and thoroughly, before and after every baking session. Oh yes, they are VERY well trained! ;o)

Dinners

Ham, Chips and Mixed Vegetables - Monday

I'll be roasting a large gammon joint and we'll have some for dinner and the rest will be used in various recipes for lunches throughout the week. I will, as always, make my own oven baked chips and cook some frozen mixed vegetables to have on the side.

One Pot Mince in a Hurry - Tuesday

450g beef mince
1 onion, peeled and diced
1 pepper, deseeded and diced
2 sticks celery, finely sliced
2 Tbsp oil
2 tsp Vegemite (or Marmite)
1 Tbsp flour
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
375ml water
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
3 cups frozen mixed vegetables

Cook the onion, pepper, celery and beef mince in the oil in a large saucepan for 5 minutes until the onion has softened and the mince has browned. Break up the mince with a spoon as it browns.

Mix together the Vegemite, flour, tins of tomatoes and water and pour it all over mince. Stir in the sweet potato, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the sweet potato is almost cooked. Add the frozen mixed vegetables and stir to mix them through. Cover and simmer for a further 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste then serve with a homemade wholemeal roll to soak up the sauce.

Macaroni Cheese - Wednesday

I make my own cheese sauce from a roux base and add sauteed onion, garlic, pepper and mushrooms for extra flavour. I sometimes add a handful or two of frozen mixed vegetables towards the end of the pasta cooking time to bulk out the meal and add more vegetables to what can sometimes be a slightly stodgy meal.

Sausages, Mixed Vegetables and Mash - Thursday

Nothing fancy here, just grilled sausages, cooked mixed vegetables and mashed potato. You could make some gravey to have with it if you like but my family like some homemade tomato relish with the sausages for extra flavour.

Vegetable Curry - Friday

500g pumpkin, peeled and diced
2 Tblsp oil
1 onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp garam masala
1 can of coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon chilli powder (optional)
2 handfuls of frozen mixed vegetables

Put the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion, garlic and spices. Add the coconut milk and chopped pumpkin. Bring everything to the boil and then lower the heat so the curry can simmer until pumpkin is only just tender. Add a couple of handfuls of frozen mixed vegetables and simmer for another 5 minutes or so until the vegetables are heated through and the sauce has reduced. Serve with rice and homemade naan breads.

Sausage Casserole - Saturday

1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 celery sticks, thinly sliced
1 pepper, deseeded and diced
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 x 300g tin chilli beans
2 Tblsp tomato paste
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables

Add onion and garlic to pan, cook on medium heat for a few minutes. Add the sliced celery and pepper and stir-fry for another 2 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, chilli beans and tomato paste. Simmer for around 10 minutes, or until celery is soft. Return sausages to pan, add the frozen mixed vegetables and heat for a further 5 minutes. Serve with rice or mashed potato. I’ll be serving mine with rice.

Meatballs in Tomato Sauce - Sunday

450g beef mince
1 large free range egg
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1 large handful each fresh parsley and basil, finely chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp paprika

Tomato sauce:
1 onion, finely diced
1 pepper, finely diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
125ml beef stock
1 tsp of dried rosemary and basil or 2 tsp dried mixed herbs

Make the tomato sauce first. The longer it has to simmer, the better it will taste. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large saucepan and gently sauté the onion, pepper and garlic together until onion has softened and is transparent. Add all of the remaining sauce ingredients and bring everything to a gentle boil. Turn the heat down so that the sauce can simmer gently, uncovered, for at least 15 minutes until it thickens.

While sauce is simmering, thoroughly mix together all the ingredients for the meatballs in a large bowl. Once everything has been thoroughly combined take 1 Tblsp of mixture and shape into a meatball, continue until all the mixture has been used.

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large frying-pan. Brown the meatballs all over and then put them into the sauce to cook for around 15 – 20 minutes until they are properly cooked through.

Cook the spaghetti according to packet instructions add the frozen mixed vegetables for the last 5 minutes of pasta cooking time. Serve the meatballs and tomato sauce with spaghetti and mixed vegetables.

Half Term Week Lunches

Homemade Hummus

200g dry chickpeas or 2 x 425g cans cooked chickpeas
60ml lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2-3 Tblsp tahini paste
1-2 Tblsp olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Put the dry chickpeas into a large saucepan. Cover with plenty of cold water and let them sit overnight to swell and double in size.

The next day, drain off the water and thoroughly rinse them. Add about 2 litres of fresh cold water, bring it to the boil then turn down the heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. The chickpeas should have a soft, creamy texture. Drain the cooked chickpeas and then rinse them in cold water.

If you’re using tinned chickpeas, rinse them twice in cold water and drain them well before using.

Put chickpeas, lemon juice, garlic and tahini into a food processor (or put into a bowl if using a stick blender). Process briefly; add olive oil and seasoning to taste. Mix to a semi soft texture. Cover and keep in the fridge, it keeps for 2 – 3 days.

I usually serve crudités with the hummus as a side dish or a great tummy filler if we are out and about.

Mini Frittatas

Savoury Bread Cases

These tasty morsels are great for kids parties as well as lunches and packed lunches. You can vary the fillings according to your needs and tastes. Tuna or salmon and cream cheese works well. You can serve them hot or cold. I’ve made them using fruit bread and chocolate spread topped with fresh fruit or filled with berry compote with a dollop of mascarpone on the top.

Sliced bread
Oil (for greasing miffin tins)

Grease muffin tins with a little cooking oil. Roll slices of bread slightly to flatten them a little and then line the muffin cases with the bread slices. Bake at 190C for 10 minutes until crisp and lightly golden. Fill with hot filling and serve.

Ham and Sweetcorn Corn Filling

1 small onion, finely chopped
1 pepper, finely diced
2 tsp oil
1 (310 g) can creamy sweet corn
2 thick slices of ham
1 Tblsp chopped fresh parsley

Heat oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion and pepper until the onion has softened and is transparent. Add the tin of creamy sweetcorn. Chop ham into small cubes and add to the frying pan with the fresh parsley. Heat until bubbling. Fill bread cases and serve.

Ham, Cheese and Tomato or Vegemite Cheese and Tomato Toasted Sandwiches

Homemade Pizza or Calzone

Pizza Rolls

Carrot and Coriander Soup

1 large onion, diced
1 large sweet potato
500g carrots
1 Tblsp dried coriander
400ml milk
1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in 400ml boiling water
1 Tblsp vegetable oil
Ground black pepper

Peel and chop the sweet potato and carrots into smallish chunks. Saute the onion in the oil for a couple of minutes until it’s softened. Add the ground coriander and stir for 1 more minute. Put the carrots and sweet potatoes into the saucepan and add the stock and milk.

Bring everything to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. When the vegetables are tender blend the soup with a stick blender until smooth and then serve with homemade bread rolls.

Breakfasts

Breakfasts will be porridge with sliced banana, eggy bread or toast with spread. We might have crumpets or pancakes on the weekend but during the week breakfasts will be fairly simple so we can get on with our day, especially if we have an outing planned. At some point during the week I have promised that we will have Floating Bread which is a favourite treat of mine from my childhood.

Treats and Snacks

Chocolate Peppermint Slice

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups light soft brown sugar
1 cup desiccated coconut (optional)
3 cups cornflakes or crushed Weetabix
250g butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract

Peppermint Icing
1 1/2 cups icing sugar
1 Tblsp butter, melted
Hot water
Peppermint extract, to taste

Chocolate Icing
1 1/2 cups icing sugar
2 Tblsp cocoa powder
1 Tblsp butter, melted
Hot water

Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a bowl. Stir in the brown sugar, coconut (if you are using it) and cornflakes or Weetabix, and make a well in the centre.

Stir the melted butter and vanilla extract into the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Press the mixture into a lined 33cm x 23cm slice tin. I use a potato masher to make sure it’s well pressed down and even.

Bake at 180°C for 25 minutes. Cool 15 - 20 minutes before icing the base with peppermint icing. Set aside in the fridge for 30 minutes until the icing has set.

Carefully spread over the chocolate icing and allow to set. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container.

To make the peppermint icing:
Sift icing sugar into a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and enough hot water to make a thick icing. Flavour with peppermint extract.

To make the chocolate icing:
Sift icing sugar and cocoa powder into a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and enough hot water to make a thick icing.

Blondies

100g butter, softened but not melted
1¼ cups light soft brown sugar
1 Tblsp golden syrup
1 Tblsp vanilla essence
2 large free range eggs
1 cup plain flour, sifted

Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Grease and line a 23cm square cake tin.

In a large mixing bowl cream the butter, brown sugar, golden syrup and vanilla extract, beating until the mixture is fluffy.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold the flour into the creamed mixture. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow the blondies to cool in the tin for 20 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into small squares to serve. Keep your blondies in the fridge.

Ginger Cake

100 grams butter
½ cup light brown sugar
1 large free range egg, beaten
½ cup golden syrup
½ cup milk
1½ cups plain flour
1 tsp mixed spice
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and beat well to thoroughly combine. Gradually mix in the golden syrup and milk.

Sift the flour, mixed spice, ginger and baking soda together and carefully fold them into the butter mixture. Spoon into a 20 cm square cake tin lined with non-stick baking paper or well greased.

Bake at 180C for 35 minutes or until the ginger cake springs back when lightly pressed in the centre. Leave to cool in the tin for about 20 minutes before turning out onto a cake rack to cool completely.

Easy Tea Cake/Bread

This is a fab recipe if you feel like cake but have run out of eggs. It keeps well in a tin and is great warm straight from the oven with custard. Not that I'm admitting to anything.

1 cup sultanas or raisins
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp cinnamon
25g butter
1 cup hot strong tea (without milk)
1 cup light soft brown sugar, firmly packed
2 or 2 1/4 cups self raising flour

Measure the sultanas, mixed spice, cinnamon and butter in to a medium sized bowl. Pour hot recently made tea over them and leave them to stand until the mixture is cold. It may look as attractive as a mud pie the kids make in the garden, but rest assured it smells much better than that, and will taste fab when it's cooked.

When the mixture is cold, add the brown sugar and self raising flour. If you use 2 cups of flour the tea bread will be more cake-like, whereas if you use 2 1/4 cups of flour the tea bread will be more bread like. Mix gently until just combined, don't overmix or the tea bread will be tough.

Line a 20cm cake tin, or a 23cm x 12cm loaf tin with baking paper and pour the mixture evenly in to it. Bake at 180C for 35-45 minutes in the cake tin, or 1 hour in the loaf tin, until a skewer pushed in to the middle comes out clean.

When cold store in an airtight container. It's best left for 24 hours, wrapped in clingfilm, before cutting and eating it but that hardly ever happens in our house.

Scones

200g self raising flour
50g butter
125ml milk

Preheat oven to 220C or gas mark 7.

Sieve the flour into the mixing bowl. Rub the butter in to the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.

Stir in any extra ingredients such as raisins/dates or cheese/herbs, if you want to. Gradually stir in the milk to form a soft dough. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface until it is about 2cm thick.

Cut the dough into rounds or squares and put onto a baking sheet lined with non-stick baking paper. Collect any dough trimmings together, roll them out and cut them out again.You should be able to make around 10 scones from this recipe.

Brush the scones with a little milk and bake for 10-12 minutes, until the scones have risen and turned golden.

Shopping List

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Smartprice Cornflakes (750g) 46p
1x ASDA Smartprice Porridge Oats (1Kg) 75p
1x ASDA Smartprice Spaghetti (500g) 25p
1x Silver Spoon Icing Sugar (500g) £1.09
1x ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg) 60p
2x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (500g) 71p
1x Silver Spoon Soft Light Brown Sugar (1Kg) £1.88
1x ASDA Smartprice Golden Syrup (680g) £1.08
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA Smartprice Pasta Shapes (500g) 30p
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 64p
2x ASDA Wholefoods Bread Brown Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10
1x ASDA Organic Chick Peas (500g) 78p

Tins, Jars and Cooking
5x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 42p
1x ASDA Chilli Beans (290g) 54p
3x ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (326g) 37p
1x King Fisher Coconut Milk (400ml) £1.00

Dairy and Eggs
6x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
2x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
2x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50
1x ASDA English Medium Cheddar (400g) £2.48 any 2 FOR £4.00
1x ASDA Chosen by You English Mature Cheddar (400g) £2.48 any 2 FOR £4.00

Drinks
1x Cadbury Bournville Cocoa Fairtrade (250g) £2.00

Fruit and Vegetables
2x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
3x ASDA Lemons Loose 30p
20 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.29
10 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
2x ASDA White Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.35 any 2 FOR £2.00
7 ASDA Butternut Squash by Weight (100g) 9.7p
10 ASDA Sweet Potatoes by Weight (100g) 11.1p
2x ASDA Whole Cucumber 80p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.57

Meat, Fish and Poultry
2x ASDA Extra Special Pork Sausages (6 per pack - 454g) £2.68 any 2 FOR £4.00
15 ASDA Smartprice Gammon Joint by Weight (100g) 37.8p
1x ASDA British Beef Mince (900g) £3.75 any 3 FOR £10.00

Ready Meals
1x Macedonian Tahini Sesame Paste (300g) £1.98

Frozen
4x Birds Eye Field Fresh Peas Carrots & Beans (480g) 50p

Spicy Apple or Pear Cake

2012-02-07T17:27:00.000Z

I really hate wasting food, it's not only a waste of resources but money too, and that really annoys me. I try to make use of any leftovers we might have and also use up any fresh fruit and vegetable that are getting past their best. I had some pears in the fruit bowl that were getting a little over ripe and needed using up asap. I decided to make a spicy pear cake using the recipe that I normally put apples in. It is rather tasty and great with a cuppa!

1 cup sugar

1 large free range egg

2 large apples or pears

100g butter, melted and cooled

1 cup plain flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp mixed spice

1 tsp baking soda

Preheat your oven to 180C and line a 20cm round or square cake tin with non-stick baking paper.

Beat the egg and sugar together until well combined. Gradually add the melted butter and ensure it is mixed in thoroughly. Peel and chop the apples or pears in to small chunks and stir through the mixture. Sift the flour, spices and baking soda over the top and fold in until thoroughly combined.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 45 minutes, sometimes longer depending on the size of your tin. Test the cake is cooked by inserting a skewer into the centre. If it comes out crumb free then the cake is cooked. The cake should also spring back when lightly pressed in the middle.

Leave the cake in the tin for about 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool. This is fab with a little cream on the side, or served warm for pudding with custard.

Hotel Chocolat Valentines Giveaway Winner

2012-02-06T22:43:00.000Z

Photo courtesy of Hotel Chocolat

The winner of the Hotel Chocolat Valentines Hamper Giveaway who will receive a delicious Be Mine Hamper is:

Comment number 7 which was made by: The author of The Boy and Me blog.

Thank you to all those who entered this giveaway.

Our Meal Plan For This Week - 06/02

2012-02-03T22:30:00.000Z

This is the Meal Plan my family will be following this week. It cost £62.85 from Asda online today, and I used My Supermarket to check which supermarket was the cheapest to purchase my trolley of groceries from. The same trolley of groceries would've cost £72.65 at Tesco and £82.54 at Sainsburys.

As always, I bake all our bread and rolls myself so have included the cost of flour and yeast instead of premade loaves of bread and bread rolls. This plan will feed my family of 5 all our meals for an entire week. My 11yo eats the same portion size my husband, despite being reed thin, so the plan could be for 3 adults and 2 children - or 2 adults and 2 older children.

I am not a nutritionist or dietitian so see a professional if you want a calorie controlled, super nutritious Meal Plan suitable for specific dietary needs. I'm a Mum and wife who uses Meal Plans to try and manage our grocery spending whilst giving my family decent quality, tasty, and healthy food - with the occasional homemade treat.

Our Meal Plan this week is not particularly complicated or adventurous. It will be a busy week with some evenings when we have school events, etc going on so I need quick and easy meals that I know the family will eat without any fuss. I hope you enjoy our Meal Plan for this week as much as we hopefully will.

Dinners

Vegetable Nachos - Monday

1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
2 x 400g tins chilli beans
1 can whole corn kernels, drained
1 large packet tortillas
1 cup grated cheese

Preheat oven to 200°C

Put a non-stick fry pan onto a moderate heat, add a little oil and saute the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes or until the onion softens.

Stir in the chilli beans, corn and tinned chopped tomatoes. Bring mixture to the boil then reduce the heat to a simmer.  Simmer the mixture uncovered, for 15 minutes or until the mixture has thickened. Stir occasionally so the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom of the fryingpan.

Cut the tortillas in to triangles, put them on a lightly greased oven tray and cook for 5 minutes or so until they are crisp.  To serve, divide the homemade tortilla chips amongst plates and pour the thickened bean mixture over the top.  Sprinkle with grated cheese which will melt with the heat of the bean mixture.

Mince and Pasta Bake - Tuesday

350g lean beef mince
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic diced
1 pepper, deseeded and diced
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp mixed herbs
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tblsp Tomato paste
1/2 beef stock cube
1 Tblsp sugar
1 Tblsp corn flour
1 Tblsp water
300g dried pasta
1 Tblsp butter or oil
1 heaped Tblsp plain flour
250ml milk
1/2 cup grated cheese

Brown the mince in a frying pan over a miderately high heat. Add the chopped onion, crushed garlic and diced pepper and continue cooking until the vegetables have softened. Pour in the chopped tomatoes, add the tomato paste, herbs, 1/2 a stock cube, sugar and Worcestershire sauce then simmer for 10-15 minutes. While the sauce is simmering cook the pasta in boiling salted water according to the packet instructions and make the cheese sauce.

Melt the butter or oil is a small saucepan, turn the heat to low and stir in the flour. Mix well and then, using a whisk, gradually add the milk.  Add the milk a little at a time, stirring continuously, to create a smooth and lump free sauce. When all the milk has been added swap the whisk for a wooden spoon and stir the sauce continuously until it begins to thicken. Do not allow it to boil! When the sauce will coat the back of a spoon, stir in the grated cheese, mix well and set aside.

Drain the pasta and stir it into the meat sauce. Put the pasta and meat sauce mixture into a large ovenproof dish and smooth the top. Spoon the cheese sauce over the top and grill or bake until the top is golden.

Vegetable Fritters - Wednesday

2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups grated courgette, or 1 tin of whole kernel corn, drained
1 Tblsp fresh mint, finely chopped (optional)
125ml cup milk
125g grated cheddar cheese
1 Tblsp vegetable oil

Beat the eggs with about half of the milk.  Stir in the flour and grated courgette (or corn) and mint. Add more milk, if necessary. If the mixture is too runny, add a little more flour.

Heat the oil in a non-stick pan. Put spoonfuls of the mixture into pan to form fritters. I usually cook about 3 in the pan at once. Once the mixture bubbles, turn the fritter over and cook the other side until golden.

Put the cooked fritters on a kitchen towel and keep warm in the oven until the whole batch has been made.

I serve these with homemade potato wedges and homemeade tomato chutney or tomato salsa.

Chunky Minestrone with Homemade Meatballs - Thursday

350 g beef mince
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 carrots, roughly chopped
2 stalks celery, finely sliced
2 small courgettes, roughly chopped
400 g can chopped tomatoes
2 Tblsp tomato paste
1 Litre of beef stock
400g tin cannellini beans, drained
400g tin kidney beans, drained
300g dried pasta
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
1 handful fresh basil leaves (optional)

In a large saucepan, gently fry the onion and garlic over a low heat until the onion is transparent. Add the  carrots, celery, courgettes, and any other veggies you have on hand that need using up. Make sure that the vegetables are all cut to the same size so that they cook evenly. Cook the vegetables over a medium heat until the carrots start to soften.

Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Add cannellini beans, half the can of kidney beans and pasta and simmer gently for at least 20 minutes or until the pasta has softened.

While soup is simmering, make tiny meatballs. Mix the beef mince with the dried mixed herbs, a good pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Each meatball should be about a heaped teaspoon.  This may seem really small but it means the mince goes much further and the meatballs won't break up in the minestrone, they'll also cook really quickly too.

Fry the meatballs in a little olive oil until they're lightly browned all over. When pasta has softened add the meatballs and fresh basil (if you're using it) and stir them through. Simmer the Minestrone for another 5-10 minutes then serve.

Mixed Vegetable Frittata - Friday

3 Tblsp oil
300g pumpkin, peeled and diced
300g potato, peeled and diced
6 eggs
Handful or two of frozen mixed vegetables
Salt and pepper to season

Heat oil in a non-stick frying pan (about 24cm diameter). Add the potatoes and pumpkin to the fryingpan and cook over a moderate heat for about 10 minutes or until they're tender. Add the frozen mixed vegetables and cook for a couple of minutes to warm them through.

Beat the eggs and seasoning together in a bowl. Pour over the potato and vegetable mixture and cook without stirring over a low heat for 5 to 8 minutes or until the egg has set.

Once the egg has set, sprinkle grated cheese over the top and put the fryingpan under the grill until the cheese has melted and bubbles.  I serve this with homemade tomato chutney and a simple side salad.

Slow Cooker Beef Casserole – Saturday, and as pasties on Sunday

1 kg casserole beef
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 peppers, deseeded and diced
2 carrots, diced
2 celerly sticks, finely sliced
2 Tblsp plain flour
2 Tblsp tomato paste
250ml beef stock
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 Tblsp dried oregano
400g can cannellini beans, well drained

Cut the casserole beef into 2.5cm-3cm pieces and season the beef with salt and pepper. If you have time, brown the meat in a frying pan over a high heat and then transfer to the slow cooker.

Scatter the onion, garlic, peppers, diced carrot and sliced celery over the beef.  Stir the flour, tomato paste, beef stock and dried oregano together to make a smooth paste and pour over the beef. Add the chopped tomatoes, stir well and put the lid on the slow cooker.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-5 hours. Add the cannellini beans, stir to mix through and allow to heat through for about 10 minutes before you serve the casserole.  I usually serve this with mashed potatoes.

To make pasties, make sure the sauce of the casserole is nice and thick. Cut squares from puff pastry rolled out to the thickness of a £1 coin. Put a few tablespoonfuls of the casserole into the middle of each square then draw up the pastry around the filling and crimp to seal. Bake in an oven preheated to 200C for about 20 minutes until the pastry is golden and cooked.

Lunches

Weekday Lunches

Leftovers or Tuna, Mayo and Sweetcorn Sandwiches or Savoury Pastry Swirls with carrot and cucumber sticks and an apple.

Savoury Pastry Swirls

These are a delicious lunchbox treat, picnic lunch or tummy filler for after school guests. They can be frozen so are a great standby to have lurking in your freezer. You can alter the fillings to suit your taste, budget or occasion so they are very versatile.

2 sheets frozen pre-rolled flaky puff pastry, thawed
2 Tblsp tomato sauce, chutney or relish
1 cup grated Mature Cheddar cheese
2 Tblsp chopped fresh flatleaf parsley

Other filling suggestions: – well drained sauteed onion and pepper, chopped ham, crispy bacon, sliced salami or chorizo instead of the bacon, finely sliced mushrooms, pesto, drained and chopped roasted peppers or olive slices.

Join the 2 sheets of pastry together by brushing the edges with a little water and crimping with a fork to make a very large rectangle. You need to make sure it's a really secure join. Brush the pastry with tomato sauce/relish/chutney and then sprinkle with the cheese and whatever other fillings you are using. Sprinkle with the chopped fresh herbs.

Tightly roll the pastry up from the short side, a bit like making sushi, and secure the edge so it won't unroll. To get a good secure seal, wet the edge of the pastry and use a fork to crimp edge of the pastry to the rest of the roll. Wrap each of the rolls in clingfilm and chill them in the fridge for at least an hour, this makes them much easier to handle. The rolls can also be frozen at this stage for up to a month.

To cook the rolls, preheat your oven to 200°C. Line two oven trays with non-stick baking paper and spray well with cooking spray.

Slice the rolls (this can be done even if they're still frozen) into 1/2 cm slices and lay them flat on the trays. Leave room for them to spread. Bake the pastry swirls for 10 – 15 minutes until they are puffed up and golden. Take the trays out of the oven, turn the pinwheels over and bake them for another 5 minutes to make sure they're evenly brown. Cool them on a wire rack and serve them warm or leave them to cool and pack in lunchboxes or take them on a picnic.

Weekend Lunches

Baked Beans on toast

Twice Baked Potatoes

Breakfasts

Weekday breakfasts will be Weetabix/Porridge and milk with a banana or toast with spread and a banana.

Weekend Breakfasts

Eggs and Soldiers

Pancakes

Treats and Puddings

Chelsea Buns

225g strong white bread flour
25g caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt
25g softened butter – for the dough
1 1/2 tsp fast action dried yeast
1 free range egg, beaten
90ml warm milk
25g butter, softened – for the filling
65g light muscovado sugar
120g dried fruit

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast into a mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the softened butter, egg and milk. Mix to make a soft dough. Knead until smooth, which takes about 10 minutes by hand. Once the dough is smooth, put it into a lightly greased bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave to prove until it has doubled in size.

If like me you have a stand mixer, just bung everything in and knead it with the dough hook attachment for about 5- 7 minutes on a low speed. Then cover the dough and leave it to prove until doubled in size. Again I do this in my stand mixer as it has a splashguard thingy that seals the top of the bowl and provides the perfect cosy place for the dough to rise.

Once the dough has proved, roll it out on a floured work surface. You will need to roll it out into a rectangle shape about 30 cm x 20 cm. Spread the softened butter as evenly as you can over the dough. Sprinkle the sugar and the dried fruit on top, and gently press them it into the butter.

Roll up the dough starting with the longest side. Seal the edge by gently rubbing the edge of the dough into the roll. Turn the roll over so that the seal is underneath and cut the roll into about 8 - 10 evenly sized buns.

Put the buns, cut side down, onto a lightly greased and lined oven tray (or use a 20cm cake tin) and leave to prove until the dough has doubled in size once again. If you use a cake tin they will all join together into one big Chelsea bun muddle. If you prefer them separate then use the oven tray method. Bake at 180C for about 15 - 20 minutes.

Once the buns are cooked, leave them to cool on a wire rack, and eat them as soon as you like. You can even slather them with a little icing if you want a real sugar rush LOL

Spiced Apple Muffins

3 cups flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
¾ cup sugar
1 tsp each ginger and mixed spice
375ml milk
1 cup finely diced peeled apple
2 free range eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup sultanas or dried fruit (optional)
100g butter, melted and cooled

Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Grease 16-18 standard muffin tin holes or line them with paper cases.

Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and spices into a bowl and make a well in the centre.

Beat together the milk, apple, eggs, butter and vanilla extract. Fold into the dry ingredients, adding the sultanas or dried fruit, if you're using them.

Three-quarters fill the muffin cases bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until well risen, golden and cooked through.

Remove the muffins from the oven and serve warm or leave to cool and pack into lunchboxes.

I will probably also make some Rice Pudding for puddings and a crumble using cooked apple or frozen berries from the depths of the freezer.

Rice Pudding (Lunchbox treat or pudding)

600ml whole milk
65g long grain white rice
pinch of salt
50g white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
50g sultanas (optional)

In a medium sized, heavy bottomed saucepan combine the milk and rice with a pinch of salt. Place saucepan over a fairly high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice is tender. This usually takes about 25 minutes. Stir the milk mixture frequently using a heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon to stop the rice from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.

When the rice is tender (al dente) take the saucepan off the heat and sugar, vanilla extract, and ground cinnamon. Mix well to combine. Return the saucepan to the heat and cook until the rice pudding thickens, this should take about 5 - 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the sultanas if you are using them. Spoon the pudding into a bowl to cool and cover with clingfilm to stop a skin forming. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days. To make this into more of a Mullerice type treat add some jam or golden syrup to swirl through the rice pudding. You could also add dried apricots or dates instead of sultanas if you have some in your store cupboard.

Berry Crumble

500g mixed frozen berries or sliced fresh apple
1/4 cup caster sugar

Topping:
1/3 cup brown or white sugar
1/2 cup self-raising flour or 1/2 cup plain flour and 1tsp baking powder
1/3 cup rolled oats
1 tsp ground cinnamon
60g butter, diced or grated

Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly grease a 1 litre capacity ovenproof dish.

To make the crumble topping combine sugar, flour, oats and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub the in butter until totally combined. If you grate the butter in to the bowl, this process takes next to no time at all.

Mix the berries and sugar together thoroughly in a bowl then put them in the bottom of the ovenproof dish. Evenly sprinkle the crumble mixture over the top. Put the overnproof dish in to the oven, on a baking tray, and bake for about half an hour or until the crumble topping is golden. Serve with ice-cream and/or custard.

Leftover crumble makes a fab lunchbox treat, especially for grown ups with access to a microwave and a small pot of custard. Not that I'm admitting to anything! LOL

Shopping List

39 items. £62.85

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Scottish Porridge Oats (500g) 55p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (1Kg) 99p
2x ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg) 60p
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
2x ASDA Smartprice Pasta Shapes (500g) 30p
2x ASDA Ready to Roll Puff Pastry (500g) £1.00
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 64p
1x ASDA Wholefoods Bread Brown Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10
1x Sunnybisk Wheat Biscuits (48 per pack - 864g) £1.68

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x Branston Baked Beans in Tomato Sauce (4x410g) £1.00 was £1.50
7x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 42p
2x ASDA Cannellini Beans in Water (300g) 58p
2x ASDA Chilli Beans (290g) 54p
2x ASDA Smartprice Red Kidney Beans in Water (400g) 19p
3x ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (326g) 39p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mayonnaise (500ml) 48p
1x ASDA Double Concentrated Tomato Puree (200g) 48p
1x The Reel Fish Co Pole & Line Tuna Chunks in Spring Water (3x185g) £3.49 was £4.29

Frozen
2x ASDA Freshly Frozen Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) £1.00
2x ASDA Diced Casserole Beef (454g) £2.00 was £2.50

Dairy and Eggs
6x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
2x Cathedral City Extra Mature Cheddar (350g) £2.00 was £4.38
2x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
20 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
10 ASDA Courgettes by Weight (100g) 16p
8 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
2x ASDA White Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.35 any 2 FOR £2.00
4 ASDA Butternut Squash by Weight (100g) 9.7p
2x ASDA Whole Cucumber 80p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
2x ASDA Garlic Loose 30p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.47

Bakery
1x ASDA Plain Tortillas (10) £1.10

Meat, Fish and Poultry
1x ASDA Lean Beef Mince (700g) £4.00

Chicken Soup - Flu Soother

2012-02-02T19:42:00.000Z

1 chicken carcass or use the left over carcass from roast chicken

1 bulb of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

1 large onion, sliced

pearl barley soup mix

3 carrots, grated

4 stalks of celery, finely chopped

Sprig of parsley, chopped

Salt to taste

In a large saucepan cover the carcass with 8 cups of cold water. Add the garlic cloves and onion and bring to a boil. Gently simmer for 30-45 minutes. Skim off any foam that forms on the surface with a spoon or small sieve otherwise the bitter foam can boil back into the soup and taint the flavour.

Use tongs to remove the carcass into a colander. Return to the heat and add the soup mix or pasta, vegetables, and chopped parsley. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until the soup mix or pasta is cooked and the vegetables are tender. Adjust the seasoning to taste.

Meanwhile, remove any remaining meat from the chicken carcass and add to the soup. Serve hot with crusty bread rolls.

Bakers Pantry Biscuit Club

2012-02-01T14:37:00.001Z

Today has been a particularly rough day. I'm stuck at home with a sick 8yo, eldest child has sprained her ankle doing PE at High School, 5yo will need to be picked up from school by someone other than me, and it's colder outside than our freezer. Just as I had got off the phone arranging for a friend to pick up 5yo, booked a taxi to bring my 11yo home, seen to gastrobug ridden 8yo and collapsed in a heap on the couch, the doorbell rang. Despite my muttering of expletives and hopes that the visitor wasn't a certain variation of religious caller or door-to-door salesperson, I was pleasantly surprised that it was neither of those.

In fact it was a lovely DHL Courier driver delivering these goodies:

My Bakers Pantry Hamper

I had been sent a delicious selection of biscuits from Bakers Pantry to try. Oh how I needed a little afternoon pick me up! You can get a taste of these delicious biscuits too, read on to find out how.

Rumour has it I am somewhat of a baking legend *cough* but even I can't be bothered baking sometimes (yes, really!) and not everyone else is a frequent baker like I am. Sometimes you just want delicious biscuits without having to bake your own, or want to send some as a treat to a loved one. This is where Bakers Pantry comes in. Bakers Pantry is a new website which offers a unique monthly Biscuit Club to subscribers.

You can buy a monthly subscription for yourself or a gift subscription as a present for someone else. Each month subscribers are sent a selection of delicious biscuits to try, you can cancel your subscription at any time, not that you would want to. A hamper of tasty biscuits delivered to your door each month, great to keep or give away, what's not to like?!

If you're lucky, you might win some of these fabulous biscuits. Bakers Pantry will be giving away 15 x 1 month subscriptions to the Biscuit Club over 5 days, on their website, starting on 6th February.

You can also get in touch with Bakers Pantry via Twitter and their Facebook Page. There's a handy Newsletter you can sign up for too, great for keeping up to date with special offers and competitions.

I highly recommend their biscuits, they are delicious *wipes crumbs from mouth* and great with a cuppa.

Disclosure: I was sent a selection of biscuits by Bakers Pantry to try for free. My opinions are my own and were not influenced by the consumption of free biscuits.

Lightly Spiced Fruit Loaf - Great with a cuppa!

2012-01-31T14:52:00.000Z

First of all you'll need to indulge me a little whilst I say Hello and give big hugs to Rachel, Natallie, Nwabisa, Lucy, Abi, Sue, both Ruths, Christian, Elizabeth, Debbie, Amanada (in Wales), and the other members of my amazing Friday Group that I may have forgotten. Love ya ladies!

Anyway, on to the recipe. This recipe is perfect for a shared morning or afternoon tea. It reminds me of my Friday Group - it's traditional with a twist, warm and spicy, somewhat fruity, sweet enough but not OTT, comforting, easy to make, never fails to cheer you up, and great with a cuppa LOL

This recipe is a fab way to use up dried fruit you may have left over from Christmas baking, is really cheap, and really easy to make.

Makes 2 loaves, because 1 isn't emough and it's good to share ;oP

500ml water

500g dried fruit (I used a mixture of sultanas, apricots, cranberries and dates)

50g butter

1½ cups sugar

2 heaped Tblsp golden syrup

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp mixed spice

1 free range egg, beaten

3 cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Preheat your oven on to 170°C.

Measure the water into a fairly large saucepan and put it over a moderate heat, before you add the dried fruit and other ingredients.

I normally add the sugar and syrup to the water and stir it until the sugar has dissolved. Then I add the weighed fruit, butter, salt and spices and give it a good mix. Bring the mixture to a simmer and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Take the saucepan off the heat and cool the mixture to room temperature in a sink of cold water. Stir the mixture occasionally as it cools.

Whilst the mixture cools measure the flour, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder into a large bowl and mix well. Line two loaf tins that can each hold 1 litre (4 cups) of water with non-stick baking paper or bought premade liners.

When the boiled mixture is at room temperature, stir in the beaten egg, then add the liquid mixture to the flour mixture, all at once. Gently fold everything together until there are no more streaks of flour left. Don't beat the mixture or the loaves will the tough and look like a mountain range.
Spoon the mixture into the loaf tins and level the top. Bake for 45 - 60 minutes or until the centre of the loaf springs back when pressed gently, and a skewer comes out clean. Leave the loaves to cool on a rack. You can eat the loaves warm or cold. If you want to keep them for a couple of days (WHY?!) then keep them in the fridge or freeze them in airtight plastic bags to eat later.

Apologies for the photo, was taken on my phone just before school run LOL

I shall now get ready to be ambushed on the school run!

I completed the "Shake Up Your Wake Up Challenge"

2012-01-29T21:05:00.000Z

I must confess that I normally struggle to have breakfast before leaving the house in the mornings. I of course make sure that my 3 daughters and my husband have a good breakfast and some fruit to fuel their morning but I usually eat a banana or apple on the school run and then sneak a cuppa and breakfast when I get back from the school run.

However, I was lucky enough to be sent a hamper of breakfast goodies to help me get through the Shake Up Your Wake Up Challenge. There are loads of delicious breakfast recipes on their website to inspire you to eat a healthier and more filling breakfast to set you up for the day.

I did manage to eat breakfast before leaving the house every day for the whole 5 days. I tended to have wholemeal toast with vegemite or Breakfast Bars with a piece of fruit as they were easy to eat and fit in with the morning routine.

Having breakfast earlier gave me more energy and I was less fuzzy headed and better able to cope with the ~~sometimes hellish~~ joys of the school run. Will I carry on eating breakfast before the school run everyday? I will try my best as it did make me feel better and is a much better example to my children than eating on the run. I proved to myself that I can do it if I make the effort so will need to carry on making that effort.

Check out the Shake Up Youe Wake Up website they have 5 different Breakfast Planners for Mums and Free Resources to help inform you and your children about the importance of breakfast and help with healthy and tasty breakfast recipe choices.

You can also follow them on Twitter or check out their Facebook page.

I was sent the hamper of goodies in the photograph free of charge to help with the Shake Up Your Wake Up Challenge. All views expressed are my own and were not influenced by the provision of free food.

Our Family Meal Plan For This Week - 30/01

2012-01-27T21:27:00.001Z

This is the Meal Plan that my family will be following this week. It cost £62.77 from Asda online today, and I used My Supermarket to check which supermarket was the cheapest to purchase my trolley of groceries from. The same trolley of groceries would've cost £73.40 at Tesco and £82.39 at Sainsburys.

As always, I bake all our bread and rolls myself so have included the cost of flour and yeast instead of premade loaves of bread and bread rolls. This plan will feed my family of 5, all our meals, for an entire week. My 11yo eats the same portion size my husband, despite being reed thin, so the plan could be for 3 adults and 2 children - or 2 adults and 2 older children.

Please note: I am not a nutritionist or dietitian. See a professional if you want a calorie controlled, super nutritious Meal Plan suitable for specific dietary needs. I'm a Mum and wife who uses Meal Plans to try and manage our grocery spending whilst giving my family decent quality, tasty, and healthy food - with the occasional homemade treat.

Vegetable and Lentil Soup – Meatfree Monday

1 onion, finely diced
2 celery sticks, finely sliced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 swede, peeled and diced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 Tblsp ground cumin
115g (1/2 cup) red lentils
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1.25 Litres (5 cups) vegetable stock

Put a large saucepan on the hob over a medium heat. Sauté the vegetables and garlic in a little oil until they begin to soften. Add the cumin and cook for a minute until fragrant. Add all the rest of the ingredients to the saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender.

If I can be bothered I whizz up the soup a little with a stick blender. I serve this with cheese on toast or crusty bread rolls.

Creamy Bacon and Vegetable Pasta - Tuesday

500g spaghetti
300g unsmoked back bacon
400g frozen chopped spinach
Handful or 2 of frozen mixed vegetables
300ml pot crème fraîche

Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil, add the spaghetti and cook following pack instructions. When the spaghetti has about 3 minutes left to cook toss in a handful or two of frozen mixed vegetables.

Meanwhile, in a deep frying pan, fry the bacon until the fat starts to run and then add the garlic, fry until the bacon is lightly golden. Add the chopped spinach and 2 tablespoons of water, then cover and cook until the spinach has defrosted.

Remove the lid, stir everything together, season to taste, then cook for a further 2-3 minutes.

Drain the spaghetti and vegetables and add to the bacon and spinach mixture with the crème fraîche. Stir to thoroughly combine and serve immediately.

Spicy Rice with Chickpeas and Spinach - Wednesday

This is a quick, healthy and delicious family dinner for a Meatfree Monday. My daughters like it with some poppadoms on the side and mango chutney. Give it a go, it works well as a side dish too.

1 ½ cups basmati or long grain rice
1 Tblsp olive oil
3 carrots, roughly diced
1 pepper, roughly diced
1 leek, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Handful of raisins or sultanas
1 tsp turmeric
2 tsp mild curry powder
400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
400ml vegetable stock, made with 1 stock cube
300ml water
200g spinach (fresh or frozen)
2 Tblsp chopped fresh coriander leaves
2 Tblsp chopped fresh mint leaves
Natural yogurt and more chopped fresh coriander leaves to serve

Put the rice in a sieve and rinse it under cold running water until the water runs clear. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the roughly diced carrots, pepper, leek, garlic, raisins/sultanas and spices. Cook, stirring it occasionally for about 8 – 10 minutes or until the vegetables, especially the carrots, are tender.

Once the vegetables are tender add the chickpeas, rice, stock, and water. Bring everything to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook everything with the lid on the saucepan for 12 minutes.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and put the spinach over the top of the rice. Replace the lid on the saucepan and stand for 8 minutes. Uncover the saucepan again and add the chopped fresh herbs. Stir everything together until well combined. Serve topped with some yoghurt, chopped fresh herbs and the remaining almonds.

Spicy Sausage Hotpot - Thursday

450g pack good quality sausages
1 Tblsp oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 carrots, diced
1 leek, sliced
1 pepper, diced
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1 tin chilli beans
2 cups/handfuls frozen mixed vegetables

Grill or bake the sausages until they are cooked. Leave to cool for a few minutes and then slice into pieces around 2cm thick. Set aside.

Add oil, onion and garlic to a saucepan over a medium heat. Cook for a few minutes then add the carrots, leek and pepper. Sauté for another couple of minutes. Add the tinned tomatoes and chilli beans. Simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the carrots are tender. Add the sausages to the saucepan with the frozen mixed vegetables. Cook for a final 5 minutes. Serve with cooked rice or mashed potato/sweet potato.

Fish Pie – Friday

1 onion, finely chopped
1 pepper, diced
1 clove of garlic, crushed
600ml water
1 vegetable or fish stock cube
1 tsp mild curry powder
200g rice
1 large tin of tuna or salmon in spring water (drained)
4 hard-boiled eggs, cut into quarters
100g grated cheese
5 potatoes, cooked and mashed
400g mixed vegetables to serve

Preheat oven to 180C. Sauté onion, pepper and garlic in oil. Mix water, stock cube and curry powder then add to onion, pepper and garlic mixture. Add rice, stirring occasionally until rice has cooked through. Season. Pour in fish and mix until combined. Put the mixture in a casserole dish. Cover with the egg quarters and spread over the mashed potato. Groove the mash with a fork. Sprinkle over the cheese and put in the oven for around 15 - 20 minutes until the cheese has melted and the fie pie is piping hot. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes before serving.

Vegetable Lasagne - Saturday

2 or 3 cubes of frozen spinach
300g mushrooms
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tsp dried oregano or a handful of fresh oregano
salt and pepper, to taste
200ml milk
100g cheddar cheese)
2 tsp plain flour
6-8 sheets dried lasagne
1 tsp olive oil

Turn the oven on to 180C/Gas Mark 4. Put the oil into a saucepan on a moderate heat, add the crushed garlic, chopped onion and sliced mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the tin of chopped tomatoes, a good grind of pepper and either fresh or dried herbs. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the frozen spinach and cook for another 5 – 7 minutes until well heated through.

Whilst the tomato and vegetable sauce is cooking, make the cheese sauce. Grate the cheese. Put the flour into a saucepan and stir in a little milk, about 1 Tblsp, until you have a smooth paste. Pour in the rest of the milk and stir well.

Put the saucepan onto the hob on a moderate heat, stirring constantly so the sauce will thicken without going lumpy. When the sauce is thick and smooth, take it off the heat and stir in the grated cheese until it melts.

When the tomato and vegetable sauce and the cheese sauce are both ready, layer up the lasagne into a rectangular ovenproof dish. First, put a thin layer of tomato and vegetable sauce in the bottom of the dish, then a layer of lasagne sheets and repeat until all the tomato and vegetable sauce has been used up. Finish with a sheet of lasagne and top with the cheese sauce. Grate a little extra cheese over the top if you want to.

Bake the lasagne in the oven for 45 minutes until the cheese sauce has started to brown a little. Serve with a side salad or cooked mixed vegetables.

Toad in the Hole - Sunday

125g plain flour
2 free range eggs
150ml milk
450g pack good quality sausages

For the gravy:
2 Tblsp oil
1 Tblsp plain flour
1 onion, peeled diced
300ml vegetable stock
Serve with 500g frozen mixed vegetables, cooked of course.

Preheat the oven to 220C/ 200C fan/Gas Mark 7. Make the batter by mixing the flour with the eggs and milk.

Put 1 tablespoon oil in a roasting tin and heat in the oven for 1 minute. Brown the sausages in the oven for 10 - 15 minutes. Pour over the batter and arrange the sausages. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes.

If you want to make your own gravy, heat 2 Tblsp of oil in a pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 10 minutes, until soft and golden. Stir in 1 Tblsp flour and cook for about a minute. Remove from the heat and stir/whisk in the stock. Return to the heat and bring to the boil, stirring constantly until the gravy has thickened. Stir in 1 tsp of mustard then serve.

Lunches

Sandwiches/rolls/wraps: either cheese and chutney, ham and chutney, or egg – all with lettuce included and cucumber sticks as well. All packed lunches will have a small pot of yoghurt and either a pear or an apple.

Mixed Bean Salad – Weekday Lunches

Cover the Salad Bean Mix in plenty of cold water and soak for 8-12 hours, I soak the beans overnight. Rinse the beans thoroughly in plenty of cold water and put them into a large saucepan. Cover the beans with plenty of fresh water. Bring to the boil then boil for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat and simmer for 90 minutes. Drain well and then the beans are ready to be used.

500g cooked mixed beans
300g can sweetcorn
3 sticks celery, finely sliced

Dressing:
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 tsp chopped fresh chives
2 Tblsp chopped fresh parsley
2 Tblsp lemon juice
5 Tblsp olive oil

Mix the beans, drained can of sweetcorn and celery together in a bowl. Set aside and make the dressing

Squeeze the lemon juice into a mug and add the olive oil, chives, parsley and garlic. Whisk with a fork to thoroughly combine. Alternatively, put everything in a jar with a lid and shake until thoroughly mixed.

Pour the dressing over the salad and mix through so that everything is well combined. Put into containers and then into lunchboxes.

Weekend Lunches:

Homemade Pizzas - Saturday

Baked potatoes with baked beans and cheese - Sunday

Breakfasts

Weekdays breakfasts will be either cornflakes/porridge with milk and a banana or toast and spread (jam, honey or vegemite) and a banana.

Bacon butties – Saturday

Toasted Tea Cakes (recipe by The Pink Whisk) – Sunday

Treats

Afgans

200g butter
25g cocoa
75g sugar
50g cornflakes
175g flour

Preheat oven to 180C and line a couple of baking trays with non-stick baking paper.

Soften butter then add sugar and beat to a creamy light fluffy consistency. Sift in the flour and cocoa, then pour in the cornflakes. Mix well to combine. Put spoonfuls on a greased oven tray, flatten gently with a floured fork, and bake for about 15 minutes. When cold, ice with chocolate icing.

Oven Baked Doughnuts

My daughters love these donuts and they're easy to make, especially with loads of kids about as there's no deep frying involved. They taste delicious and my daughters friends like them as a treat when they come over to play, I get nagged for them a lot! I usually either make them quickly in my stand mixer or get my daughters and their friends to help knead the dough.

250ml (1 cup) semi skimmed milk
50g butter, melted
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/2 tsp instant dried yeast
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon or mixed spice if you want a stronger spice flavour

Put the milk in a heatproof, microwave-safe jug. Microwave on medium (70%) for 30 seconds or until heated through (do not allow to boil) then stir in 1 tablespoon of butter.

Sift the flour into a bowl then stir in the yeast, 1/4 cup of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon or mixed spice. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Add the milk and butter mixture. Mix to form a soft dough then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. I usually make the dough in my stand mixer and knead the dough with the dough hook for about 5 - 7 minutes until it's smooth and elastic.

Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl to rise. Cover the bowl with cling film. Set aside in a warm place for about an hour or until the dough has doubled in size. I usually leave the dough to prove in my stand mixer as it has a plastic guard on the top that seals the bowl so is a perfect place for the dough to rise.

Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Using your fist, punch the dough down then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough until it's smooth. I usually knead it for about 1 minute or so in my stand mixer. Once you're ready to shape the dough, press it out until it's about 2.5cm or 1 inch thick. Using a 6.5cm round cutter, or a wine glass, cut 12 circles from the dough. Using a 2.5cm round cutter, cut little circles from the centre of each large circle. Roll the off cuts together to make more doughnuts.

Put the doughnuts 2 inches apart on the prepared tray. Cover with lightly greased clingfilm. Set the doughnuts aside in a warm place for 30 minutes or until they've doubled in size again.

While the doughnuts are rising on the baking tray, preheat your oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Cook the doughnuts for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Combine the remaining sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Brush the doughnuts with the remaining melted butter. Dip the doughnuts in the cinnamon sugar mixture, shaking off any excess. Serve warm or put in luncboxes for a lunchtime treat.

Chocolate Anzac Slice

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup plain flour, sifted
1 cup caster sugar
1 cup desiccated coconut
25g butter, chopped
1 Tblsp golden syrup
2 Tblsp boiling water
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/3 cup raisins
200g dark chocolate, melted

Preheat oven to 160°C. Lightly grease an 18 x 28cm swiss roll tin. Line the baking tin with non-stick baking paper, with a decent overhang above the top of the tin.

In a bowl, combine the oats, flour, sugar and coconut. In a small saucepan, combine butter and golden syrup. Stir over low heat for 2-3 minutes until melted.

In a small jug, combine the boiling water and bicarbonate of soda. Quickly pour this into the butter mixture and then into the dry ingredients. Mix in the raisins.

Press the mixture very firmly into the prepared tin using a fork or potato masher. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden. Cool in the tin.

Melt the dark chocolate then spread it over the cooled mixture and chill until set. Using a hot knife, cut the slab into squares. Store in an airtight container.

Shopping List

Cost of 45 items from Asda: £62.77

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Smartprice Cornflakes (750g) 46p
1x ASDA Smartprice Porridge Oats (1Kg) 75p
1x ASDA Smartprice Spaghetti (500g) 25p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (1Kg) 99p
1x ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg) 60p
1x ASDA Wholemeal Plain Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA Smartprice Lasagne Sheets (250g) 39p
1x Great Scot Red Split Lentils (500g) 98p any 2 FOR £1.50
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 64p
1x Great Scot Salad Bean Mix (500g) 98p any 2 FOR £1.50

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x Branston Baked Beans in Tomato Sauce (4x410g) £1.00 was £1.50
1x ASDA Wild Pacific Pink Salmon (418g) £1.57
5x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 38p
1x ASDA Chilli Beans (290g) 54p
1x ASDA Naturally Sweet Sweetcorn in Water (326g) 48p
1x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p

Frozen
1x ASDA Chopped Spinach Leaves (1Kg) £1.00
2x ASDA Freshly Frozen Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) £1.00

Dairy and Eggs
1x ASDA Crème Fraîche (300ml) £1.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
2x ASDA Low Fat Strawberry Yogurt (6x125g) £1.12
4x Marybelle Fresh Semi Skimmed Milk (2L) £1.25 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50
2x ASDA English Medium Cheddar (400g) £2.48 any 2 FOR £4.00
3x ASDA Low Fat Autumn Fruit Yogurts (6x125g) £1.12

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
2x ASDA Conference Pears (800g) £1.00
15 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
10 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.35
7 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
3 ASDA Swede by Weight (100g) 8.5p
2x ASDA Whole Cucumber 80p
2x ASDA Round Lettuce 57p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
1x ASDA Trimmed Leeks (500g) £1.00 was £2.00
2x ASDA Garlic Loose 30p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.47
2x Albert Bartlett Rooster Potatoes (2Kg) £1.00 was £1.97

Meat, Fish and Poultry
5 ASDA Deli Carved Ham by Weight (100g) 75p
2x ASDA Extra Special Pork Sausages (6 per pack - 454g) £2.00 was £2.38
2x ASDA Smartprice Unsmoked Middle Bacon (350g) £1.68

Frugal Fruit Puddings

2012-01-27T14:38:00.000Z

I do like a good pud, great for cold nights in Winter when we're all feeling rather dreary. I like rich, elaborate puddings but can't be bothered faffing most of the time. I want to feed myself and my family a decent pud that won't cost much, has a bit of fruit in it, and doesn't take forever to prepare. Here are a couple of my favourite puds, both can easily be doubled. You could also adapt the crumble to be gluten free, just use ordinary flour and gluten free cereals.

Tinned Fruit crumble - Serves 4

2 tins of sliced fruit in juice (I usually use pears or peaches)

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup muesli

1/2 cup wholemeal flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 Tblsp butter

Preheat oven to 180C.

Drain most of the juice (I drain it into cups for the kids to drink) from the tinned fruit but save 2 - 3 tablespoons. Put the drained tinned fruit into a baking dish. Sprinkle over the reserved juice, cinnamon and ground ginger.

Mix the rolled oats, flour, muesli and brown sugar in a bowl until well combined. Rub in the butter with your fingertips. The mixture will become lumpy and crumbly. Sprinkle the topping over the fruit.

Bake for 25 minutes or until crisp and golden. I normally serve this with homemade custard or s drizzle of cream.

Baked Apples - Serves 6

6 apples

1 cup mixed dried fruit, eg sultanas, dates, apricots

1 Tblsp brown sugar

1 Tblsp butter, melted

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup (125ml) water

Preheat oven to 180C.

Core the apples, but leave the base intact to hold in the filling. If you want to you can score a line through the apple skin all the way around the apple, about half way up, this will help stop the apples from splitting in the oven. Mix the dried fruit, brown sugar, melted butter and cinnamon together in a bowl. Carefully spoon the dried fruit mixture into the apples. Put the apples in a baking dish with the water. Bake for about 35 minutes or until the apples are soft.

Sainsbury's 5 for £20 Meal Plan is Back - and I've done my own 5 for £18.33 Meal Plan

2012-01-24T21:00:00.001Z

This month Sainsbury’s is launching a new online meal plan to provide a family of four with five meals for £20. Following the previous success of Feed your Family for £50, and other plans this has the added advantage that customers can click on the ingredients needed and send them straight to their online basket. The weekly meal plan will be available online at www.sainsburys-live-well-for-less.co.uk/meal-planning from 25th January featuring five mid-week evening meal suggestions and recipes including: Creamy pork with mash, Turkey chilli with rice and Cheesy jacket potatoes with bacon and pepper ratatouille.

Annie Denny, Special Diets and Health Manager at Sainsbury’s said: “The menu ensures the recipes include 1 to 2 portions of your recommended five a day with all ingredients meeting our high quality standards including British Turkey and Pork. We've chosen simple, everyday items to make balanced and flavoursome mid week meals for four people at just £20.”

Check out the Sainsbury's 5 for £20 Meal Plan, great if you can't/don't/won't Meal Plan but still want to save some pennies.

The Meal Plan promotion runs from 25th January-14th February and the menu consists of:

Monday - Cheesy Jacket Potatoes with Bacon and Pepper ratatouille
Tuesday - Creamy pork and mash
Wednesday - Simple Sausage Supper
Thursday - Tomato and Broccoli Risotto
Friday - Turkey Chilli with Rice

And . . . . . .Now for my turn!

Every week so far this year I have blogged Our Family Meal Plans and thought I would rise to the challenge and see if I could do 5 dinners for cheaper than the Sainsburys Meal Plan. I also thought the Sainsburys Meal Plan didn't have as many vegetarian meals as I would like. I'm sure Sainsbury's have have spent weeks formulating their Meal Plan. I formulated mine in 2 hours on a Tuesday evening LOL.

And guess what?! I succeeded in creating a cheaper Meal Plan, using My Supermarket as usual, and the following 5 meals that would feed my family of 5 cost a total of £18.33 at Asda, £20.64 at Tesco and £22.66 at Sainsbury's. The cost of the Sainsbury's Meal Plan is usually formulated using products on offer at the time the plan is launched, this was the case for their Feed your Family for £50 plans. My plan isn't dependent on offers, in fact, it probably could be cheaper if I had've selected cheaper (lower quality) sausages. I am not promoting or advocating the use of any specific supermarket. I'm just stating how much the Shopping List for my Meal Plan cost at various supermarkets. My Shopping List is at the bottom of this post after the recipes.

Vegetable and Lentil Soup

I love this soup, so warming and tasty on cold winter nights. It is really filling and a great low cost dinner. It also freezes well and is fab for lunches too.
1 onion, finely diced
2 celery sticks, finely sliced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 swede, peeled and diced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 Tblsp ground cumin
115g (1/2 cup) red lentils
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1.25 Litres (5 cups) vegetable stock

Put a large saucepan on the hob over a medium heat. Sauté the vegetables and garlic in a little oil until they begin to soften. Add the cumin and cook for a minute until fragrant. Add all the rest of the ingredients to the saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender.

If I can be bothered I whizz up the soup a little with a stick blender. I serve this with cheese on toast or crusty bread rolls.

Creamy Bacon and Vegetable Pasta

I can have this dinner on the table in under 20 minutes from whine to dine LOL Great for those nights when you are really tired or really busy with a low tolerance for faffy dinners.
500g spaghetti
200g unsmoked back bacon
350g frozen chopped spinach
Handful or 2 of frozen mixed vegetables
300ml pot crème fraîche

Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil, add the spaghetti and cook following pack instructions. When the spaghetti has about 3 minutes left to cook toss in a handful or two of frozen mixed vegetables.

Meanwhile, in a deep frying pan, fry the bacon until the fat starts to run and then add the garlic, fry until the bacon is lightly golden. Add the chopped spinach and 2 tablespoons of water, then cover and cook until the spinach has defrosted.

Remove the lid, stir everything together, season to taste, then cook for a further 2-3 minutes.

Drain the spaghetti and vegetables and add to the bacon and spinach mixture with the crème fraîche. Stir to thoroughly combine and serve immediately.

Spicy Rice with Chickpeas and Spinach

This is a quick, healthy and delicious family dinner for a Meatfree Monday or any day of the week. My daughters like it with some poppadoms on the side and mango chutney. Give it a go, it works well as a side dish too.

1 ½ cups basmati or long grain rice
1 Tblsp olive oil
3 carrots, roughly diced
1 pepper, roughly diced
1 leek, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ tsp turmeric
2 tsp mild curry powder
400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
400ml vegetable stock, made with 1 stock cube
300ml water
200g spinach (fresh or frozen)
2 Tblsp chopped fresh coriander leaves
2 Tblsp chopped fresh mint leaves
Natural yogurt and more chopped fresh coriander leaves to serve

Put the rice in a sieve and rinse it under cold running water until the water runs clear. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the roughly diced carrots, pepper, leek, garlic, raisins/sultanas and spices. Cook, stirring it occasionally for about 8 – 10 minutes or until the vegetables, especially the carrots, are tender.

Once the vegetables are tender add the chickpeas, rice, stock, and water. Bring everything to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook everything with the lid on the saucepan for 12 minutes.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and put the spinach over the top of the rice. Replace the lid on the saucepan and stand for 8 minutes. Uncover the saucepan again and add the chopped fresh herbs. Stir everything together until well combined. Serve topped with some yoghurt, chopped fresh herbs.

Lentil Bolognese

This is so versatile! It can be served with pasta, baked potatoes, polenta or homemade gnocchi. Freezes well and if you really have to you could add some beef mince or soy mince to bulk it out more.
1 cup red lentils, uncooked
2 Tblsp oil
1 onion, diced
1 pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
2 Tblsp tomato paste
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp dried mixed herbs
salt and pepper to taste

pasta and 2 handfuls of frozen mixed vegetables (cooked), to serve.

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Pour in the lentils and stir them around to make sure they don’t stick to the bottom of the saucepan. Boil the lentils for 8-10 minutes or until soft.

Heat the oil in a medium pan and sauté the pepper, onion and garlic until softened. Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and herbs, then stir in the lentils. Season with salt and pepper to taste and simmer for 15 – 20 minutes until the flavours develop.

Serve with pasta cooked according to packet instructions. When the pasta has about 3 minutes left to cook toss in a handful or two of frozen mixed vegetables.

Spicy Sausage Hotpot

This recipe makes a pack of sausages go a long way. You can use whatever vegetables you have available and also use vegetarian sausages if you like. It's a recipe that can be easily bulked out if you have unexpected dinner guests.

450g pack good quality sausages
1 Tblsp oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 carrots, diced
1 leek, sliced
1 pepper, diced
400g tin chopped tomatoes
2 tins chilli beans
2 cups/handfuls frozen mixed vegetables
4 baking potatoes, cooked and mashed - to serve

Grill or bake the sausages until they are cooked. Leave to cool for a few minutes and then slice into pieces around 2cm thick. Set aside.

Add oil, onion and garlic to a saucepan over a medium heat. Cook for a few minutes then add the carrots, leek and pepper. Sauté for another couple of minutes. Add the tinned tomatoes and chilli beans. Simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the carrots are tender. Add the sausages to the saucepan with the frozen mixed vegetables. Cook for a final 5 minutes. Serve with cooked rice or mashed potato/sweet potato.

Shopping List

Cost of 21 items. £18.33

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Smartprice Spaghetti (500g) 25p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA Smartprice Pasta Shapes (500g) 30p
1x Great Scot Red Split Lentils (500g) £1.10

Frozen
1x ASDA Chopped Spinach Leaves (1Kg) £1.00
1x ASDA Freshly Frozen Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) £1.00

Tins, Jars and Cooking
5x ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g) 38p
2x ASDA Chilli Beans (290g) 68p
1x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p

Dairy and Eggs
1x ASDA Crème Fraîche (300ml) £1.00

Meat, Fish and Poultry
1x ASDA Extra Special Pork Sausages (6 per pack - 454g) £2.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Unsmoked Middle Bacon (350g) £1.68

Fruit and Vegetables
5 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
5 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
3 ASDA Swede by Weight (100g) 8.5p
1x ASDA Baking Potatoes (4) 60p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
1x ASDA Trimmed Leeks (500g) £1.00
1x ASDA Garlic Loose 30p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.47

Bakery
1x ASDA Cheese Topped Baguette 40p

So what do you think? Do you like both Meal Plans, will you try any of the meals or entire Meal Plans? Do you think that supermarket produced Meal Plans are helpful and a good idea? Let me know!

McCain Ready Baked Jacket Potatoes - Review

2012-01-23T14:34:00.000Z

Last week I was sent some McCain Ready Baked Jacket Potatoes to review. According to McCain "The Ready Baked Jacket is bought part-baked and drizzled in sunflower oil and it is these two elements that give it the texture of a traditional spud in the oven."

Erm, OK then! Being rather curious to taste these new fangled baked spuds I jumped at the chance to try some for free. They were sent to me in a special 'keep things frozen' box with some cute microwave oven mits and loads of recipes I could try if I wanted to.

However, I wanted to taste the spud without faffing about and disguising the flavour so I could tell exactly what it was really like.

The McCain Ready Baked Jacket Potatoes come in a 2 pack for £1.29 or a 4 pack for £1.99. Not particularly cheap, you could get 2.5kg of baking potatoes from the supermarket for £1 on offer last week.

They're easy to prepare, you just take them out of the freezer, liberate them from the packaging and microwave them. It took 7 minutes for 2 potatoes cooked at the same time.

The potatoes are already cut slightly so I just cut them a little deeper and tucked in. I ended up adding a sprinkling of cheese after the first couple of bites because my spud just wasn't the same without it. LOL

So what did hubby and I think of them? Well, they tasted fab and fluffy on the inside - pretty good but not quite as delicious as totally oven cooked jacket potatoes. However the skin was floppy, not crisp and not that great at all to be honest. The potato skin had the colour of an oven baked jacket potato but I was disappointed there was no crispy skin and not quite the depth of flavour that oven baked spuds have.

I quite often make my own convenient baked potatoes by baking them in advance, freezing them and then whipping them out to microwave when we need them. I'm sure some people will buy them who want a quick dinner or lunch on the run but probably won't be us buying them.

Overall Verdict:

McCain have produced a fairly decent microwave baked spud but the skin lets it down. The skin was softer and saggier than a traditionally baked potato and consequently didn’t have the depth of flavour you get when a baked potato is fresh from the oven.

The inside of the spud was lovely but they are expensive and I can't say that I would buy them for our family. They're expensive for what they are and I can't bear not having a crispy skin on my baked potatoes. However, if you’re stuck at home or work, with minutes to spare and only a microwave to hand, they’re worth a try. Much better than some of the dire, cremated and tasteless baked potatoes that I have had the misfortune to purchase from High Street chains cafes.

Here's one of the recipes I was sent with the McCain Ready Baked Jacket Potatoes:

Cheesy Stuffed McCain Ready Baked Jackets with Ham

Serves: 2

Preparation and cooking time: 10 minutes or less

2 McCain Ready Baked Jacket Potatoes

3 or 4 spring onions, sliced

75g cooked ham, diced

50g grated mature Cheddar

50g soft cheese

Follow the instructions on the pack to cook the McCain Ready Baked Jackets. Then cut in half and allow to cool.

Scoop the flesh from the cooked potato and mix with the ham, cheese and spring onions. Use the mixture to refill the potato skins then you could grill the four halves until golden and crisp. Serve with side salad.

Tip: This is a great recipe for using up leftover cheese, so experiment with your favourites. Blue cheese or Parmesan are great options.

I was sent, for the purposes of this review, a frozen delivery of the McCain Jacket Potatoes which retail at £1.29 for a twin pack and £1.99 for a 4 pack.

Hotel Chocolat Valentines Giveaway! - Now Closed

2012-01-21T22:46:00.001Z

Valentine's Day is rapidly approaching (Tuesday 14th February) and Hotel Chocolat have a fantastic range of Valentines Day Gifts that can be ordered online and delivered to your Valentine's door. Who said being romantic was difficult!

I was sent The Be Mine Collection to try and OMGness the chocolates were divine! My husband is a chocaholic and he taste tested the contents of the box, occasionally sharing some with me. I don't blame him for scoffing most of them though, the chocolates are very hard to resist. The contents of the Hamper were so delicious that there are barely enough polite words for how good they tasted.

In the interests of spreading some love, and chocolate, about for Valentines Day I requested another Be Mine Collection, worth £30 to giveaway to my fab blog readers.

According to the Hotel Chocolat website, the Be Mine Collection contains " the smoochiest chocolate goodies specially chosen for the dreamiest night in – with mellow vanilla truffles, engraved chocolate sweetheart, creamy raspberry chocolate slab, melt-away caramel buttons and more."

Photo courtesy of Hotel Chocolat

The contents of the hamper are: A 70% Dark Chocolate Heart, A box of 6 Praline Hearts, 6 Vanilla Truffles, A Raspberry Riot 100g Slab, A bag of Caramel Chocolate Buttons, A Milk Chocolate Heart Lick.

To enter, leave a comment telling me which item from the Hotel Chocolat Valentines Range you would most like to receive this year, and why - please paste a link to the product in your comment.

For a second chance to win please tweet this post using the tweet button below and comment telling me you have done so and your twitter username.

This giveaway is open to all readers over 18 with a UK mailing address. The winner will be chosen using an online randomiser and announced in a subsequent blog post. You need to leave either an e-mail address or twitter name in your comment so that I can contact you if you're the lucky winner.

Competition will close at 10pm on Monday 6th February 2012. Winner will be notified on Tuesday 7th February 2012. Should the winner fail to reply to notifications that they have won within 3 days, the giveaway shall be redrawn using an online randomiser.

Very best of luck everyone!

Our Family Meal Plan for This Week - 23/01

2012-01-21T10:55:00.001Z

This is the Meal Plan my family will be following this week. It cost £62.30 from Asda online today, and I used My Supermarket to check which supermarket was the cheapest to purchase my trolley of groceries from. The same trolley of groceries would've cost £72.97 at Tesco and £73.80 at Sainsburys.

As always, I bake all our bread and rolls myself so have included the cost of flour and yeast instead of premade loaves of bread and bread rolls. This plan will feed my family of 5, all our meals, for an entire week. My 11yo eats the same portion size my husband, despite being reed thin, so the plan could be for 3 adults and 2 children - or 2 adults and 2 older children.

I am not a nutritionist or dietitian so see a professional if you want a calorie controlled, super nutritious Meal Plan suitable for specific dietary needs. I'm a Mum and wife who uses Meal Plans to try and manage our grocery spending whilst giving my family decent quality, tasty, and healthy food - with the occasional homemade treat.

Dinners

Vegetable Pasta Bake – Meatfree Monday

This recipe is cheap, filling and tasty. Just what you need when feeding a crowd. I usually serve it with a side salad or some steamed greens. I add a handful of frozen peas and sweetcorn or mixed vegetables to up the amount of vegetables, you could add some wilted spinach if you wanted to.

500g bag pasta

50g butter, plus a little extra

1 pepper, diced

200g small mushrooms, halved or larger mushrooms sliced

small bunch spring onions, finely sliced

50g plain flour

500ml milk

1 large handful of frozen sweetcorn

1 large handful of frozen peas

150g mature cheddar, grated

Cook the pasta according to pack instructions, or al dente to your liking. Drain the pasta well. Heat up your oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6, and then melt a little butter in a large saucepan. Fry the mushrooms and pepper for a couple of minutes, then scoop out and set aside. Use some paper towel to wipe out the pan.

Melt the remaining butter in the pan, stir in the flour for a minute or two, and then gradually stir in the milk until you have a lump-free sauce. Increase the heat and bubble the sauce, stirring for a few minutes to thicken. Turn off the heat, stir in the sweetcorn, peas and most of the cheese, then season to taste.

Tip the pasta, pepper and mushrooms into a large ovenproof dish, then pour over the sauce and mix well in the dish. Scatter over the remaining cheese and spring onions, then bake for 10 - 15 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and golden brown on top.

Salmon and Rice Bake

1 onion, diced

400g can chopped tomatoes

2 tsp dried mixed herbs

1 pepper, diced

1 1/2 cups long grain rice

500ml cups water

1 handful or two of frozen sweetcorn or peas

1 large tin of salmon, I used approx 400g tin

Preheat oven to 180°C. Chop the onion and pepper.

Put the onion, pepper, chopped tomatoes, mixed herbs, frozen vegetables, water and rice into an ovenproof baking dish and stir well to thoroughly combine. Cover with foil or a lid and bake for 40-45 minutes, until the rice is cooked.

Use a fork to fluff up the rice, season to taste, then stir through the salmon and drained tin of corn. Let stand for 5 minutes or so to heat through. Serve.

Slow Cooker Beef Casserole – Wednesday and Thursday

This is a fab, low faff warming stew that is cooked in a slow cooker. It makes enough to serve us 5 generously for 2 nights. Great for nights when I need a dinner that is guaranteed to be eaten without fuss. This casserole is perfect for that. It tastes even better the second night. Sometimes I freeze the other portion but more often than not I just serve it the next night with different vegetables on the side. You can add other chopped root vegetables to the casseroles if you want, such as potatoes, parsnip. pumpkin, sweet potato, etc.

1kg beef braising/stewing steak cut into chunks

1 tsp ground ginger

1 onion, sliced

2 sticks of celery, finely sliced

2 x 400g cans of chopped tomatoes or cherry tomatoes

2 x 400g cans of kidney beans, drained and well rinsed

2 peppers, roughly diced (any colour will do)

3 carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks

2 bay leaves

2 Tblsp brown sugar

2 Tblsp red wine vinegar

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 Tblsp Worcestershire sauce

If you have time, brown the meat in a non-stick pan, use a little oil if necessary.

Put the beef and everything else in the slow cooker. Stir well and cook for 7-8 hours on low, or 4 hours on high. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. If the casserole needs thickening, stir 2 Tbsp cornflour mixed to a paste with 2 Tbsp water into it. Serve with mash and greens or mixed vegetables.

Quick Vegetable Curry - Friday

Cooked rice, to serve

1 Tblsp olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 pepper, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground turmeric

300g pumpkin or butternut squash, cut into 1 inch dice

2 large potatoes, peeled and diced (same size as the pumpkin)

400g can chopped tomatoes

400g can lentils, drained

Heat oil in a large frying pan. Soften the onion and pepper in the oil and then add the garlic, cook for a couple of minutes. Add the cumin and turmeric, cook them for about a minute or until they are fragrant. Add the pumpkin, potatoes and chopped tomatoes to the pan and mix everything together well. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes then add the lentils and cook for a further 5 minutes until the pumpkin and potato are cooked. Serve with rice.

Roast Chicken and Vegetables - Saturday

I prefer to buy free range chicken, it is more expensive but I make it stretch to at least a couple of meals so it’s worth getting a decent chook. Roast chicken with roast potatoes, sweet potatoes and pumpkin with mixed vegetables on the side. Cook a few extra roast vegetables for Sunday lunch frittata. I usually also make use of the chicken bones to make my own stock for soup or risotto.

Sweet and Sour Chicken and Vegetables – Sunday

1-2 tbsp oil

400g leftover roast chicken

1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger

500g sliced fresh vegetables (celery, peppers, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms)

1/2 cup water

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1/4 cup vinegar (rice-wine vinegar or malt vinegar)

2 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp cornflour mixed to a paste with 2 Tbsp water.

Freshly ground black pepper.

Heat oil in a wok or large heavy frying pan and stir fry the ginger for a minute before adding the vegetables and water to help steam and cook them.

When the vegetables have almost cooked to your liking, add the brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and chicken to the pan. Simmer gently to warm through. Thicken the sauce with the cornflour and water mixture if necessary. Season to taste and serve on rice or noodles. This week we’re having it with rice.

Lunches

As usual lunches for adults will be leftovers or the same as what the children are having. Packed lunches will have an apple and either a pear or satsuma and a small portion of flavoured yoghurt with whatever else is for lunch that day. I will also put in a muffin or a couple of Anzac biscuits as a treat.

Super Quick Couscous and Chickpea Salad for Lunchboxes

This is a fab salad to put in lunchboxes and can even be made in the morning before rushing off to work. It's also a quick fix salad if you're having a BBQ or picnic. You could add tinned tuna or salmon, leftover cooked chicken or ham if you want it to be more substantial. It's a great midweek dinner side dish if we're having sausages (meat or vegetable) or grilled fish. This salad will be made twice this week and will feed all 5 of us for those days packed lunches.

3/4 cup couscous

3/4 cup boiling water

1 tin of chickpeas, well drained

juice and zest of 1 lemon

2 Tblsp olive oil

2 cups salad greens or lettuce (roughly 2 large handfuls)

2 Tblsp mixed seeds and chopped dried fruit (apricots, dates, raisins)

Pour the boiling water over the couscous in a heatproof bowl. Cover the bowl with a plate or clingfilm and set aside for 5 minutes while you chop up the other ingredients and open the tin of chickpeas.

After 5 minutes, fluff the couscous with a fork, add all the other ingredients and toss well to thoroughly combine. That's all there is to it! Pack it into lunchbox containers, refrigerate until needed or serve immediately.

I’ll also be making a batch of these for the rest of our lunches for the week:

Calzone

You can use whatever filling you like with these versatile bread parcels, just make sure the filling isn't too wet. Leftover Bolognese or casserole/stew from dinner also works well if the sauce is nice and thick. They're great for using up lefover cooked vegetables too, just mix with some diluted tomato paste, a crushed clove of garlic and some grated cheese. I usually double or treble this mixture depending on how many hungry mouths there are to feed.

7g sachet instant dried yeast

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon caster sugar

3/4 cup warm water

2 cups plain flour

2 tsp dried mixed herbs (optional)

2 1/2 Tblsp olive oil

250g thinly-sliced ham (optional)

1 onion, finely diced

1 pepper, finely diced

200g mushrooms, sliced

100g cheddar cheese, grated

1 small bunch spinach, shredded

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons salt

Combine yeast, salt, sugar and warm water in a jug. Stir with a fork to mix it well. Cover with clingfilm and set it aside in a warm place for 5 minutes or until bubbles form on surface. Sift flour into a large bowl. Add the yeast mixture, the dried mixed herbs and 2 tablespoons of oil. Mix it all together to form a soft dough.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Put the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover it with clingfilm. Set aside in a warm place until doubled in size.

I do the mixing, kneading and proving in my stand mixer. It's loads quicker and I can get on with other things whilst it does the job for me.

Preheat your oven to 220°C. Brush a large baking tray with the remaining oil. Knock the dough back and then knead it gently on a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough into 4 pieces. Knead each piece into a ball and then roll out each ball into a 10 inch (25cm diameter) circle.

Arrange a some of the filling over half of each round, leaving a 1 inch (2.5cm) border around the edge. Brush the edge with water. Fold the dough over to enclose the filling and firmly press the edges together to seal each round.

Put the calzones on the oiled baking tray. Brush the tops with egg which gives them a nice glazed top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper if you want to. Bake the calzone for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden and crisp. Serve hot or cold.

Vegetable Fritters with homemade salsa – Saturday Lunch

The “Whatever You've Got” Fritter Recipe

This is one of my favourite basic recipes for lunch, after school snacks or a super quick dinner served with salad. You can make the fritters either sweet or savoury using "whatever" is available. We’ll be having corn fritters with homemade tomato salsa and salad.

1 cup “whatever” filling you like (banana, diced apple, sweetcorn, grated vegetables, leftover ham - not all together!)

1 cup plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg, lightly beaten

about 200ml milk

Sift the dry ingredients in to a bowl then add egg and enough milk to make a smooth batter. Stir in 'whatever' filling you like.

Brown in a pan with sizzling butter. Banana or apple fritters are great for a breakfast treat. Savoury fritters can be served a salad for lunch or dinner.

Leftover Roast Vegetable Frittata – Sunday Lunch

1 pepper, diced

1 onion, diced

8 eggs

1 handful frozen peas

1 handful frozen sweetcorn

1 or 2 cups leftover roast vegetables, chopped

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6.

Put a 25cm non-stick ovenproof frying pan on the hob over a moderate heat. Add a little oil to the pan and sauté the onion and pepper until softened.

Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl and the softened onion and pepper. Carefully fold in the leftover roast vegetables and frozen vegetables. Pour the frittata mixture back into the frying pan and cook over a low-medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until it has cooked through and is set. Serve with salad.

Breakfasts

Weekday breakfasts will either be porridge with chopped banana or toast with spread (jam, honey, peanut butter) and a banana.

Lovely Crumpets (A Fab Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall Recipe) - Sunday Breakfast

This is the recipe that I always use to make crumpets. The recipe is so easy to whip up on a weekend morning and never fails to deliver a delicious, wholesome and comforting breakfast.

You can find this recipe and other fab Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall recipes for breakfast treats from an article in the Guardian here.

450g plain white flour

350ml warm milk

350ml warm water (approximately)

5g powdered dried yeast

10g salt

1 tsp baking powder

A little sunflower or vegetable oil

In a bowl, whisk the flour, milk, water and yeast into a rather runny batter the consistency of single cream. Cover with cling-film and leave for an hour until really bubbly.

Heat a heavy-based frying pan or flat griddle over a medium-high heat. Whisk the salt and baking powder into the batter. Lightly grease the crumpet rings and pan. Put one ring in the pan, fill to just below the top – the batter should stay in the ring and lots of holes should appear on the surface after a minute or two. (If it dribbles out underneath, it is too thin, so whisk a little more flour into your batter mix. If lots of holes don't form, it's too thick, so whisk in some water.)

Assuming your test crumpet is OK, after five minutes or so, when the surface is just set, flip it over, ring and all. (If the cooked base seems too dark, turn down the heat.) Cook for two to three minutes, until golden on the other side. Repeat with the remaining batter in batches. Butter and eat at once, or cool on a wire rack for toasting later.

A pikelet variation: If you don't have rings, whisk an extra 50g flour into the batter, to stiffen it, dollop spoonfuls into a greased, warmed pan and cook for a couple of minutes a side.

Pikelets/Pancakes

300g self raising flour

2 eggs

50g sugar

375ml milk

Mix all the ingredients together well and then cook ladlefuls of mixture in a greased frying pan over a moderate heat. Serve with chopped bananas and drizzle with golden syrup, spread with jam or brushed with lemon juice and sprinkled with sugar.

Treats

Lemon Muffins

These usually get eaten in no time at all so I normally make a double batch. They're fab for cake stalls, shared morning teas, a treat with a cuppa or in lunchboxes. You can leave off the topping if you want but it makes the muffins taste even better, like mini lemon drizzle cakes.
2 cups self raising flour

¾ cup sugar

75g butter

250ml milk

1 egg

zest of 1 large or 2 small lemons

Topping:

¼ cup lemon juice

¼ cup sugar

Preheat your oven to 200C

Mix the flour and sugar together in a bowl. Melt the butter, add the milk, egg and lemon zest. Beat well to combine, Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Mix gently but thoroughly and divide evenly between lined muffin tins. Bake at 2000C for 10 minutes. Check the muffins are cooked, if not put them back in the oven for a couple of minutes more.

As soon as the muffins are out of the oven, mix together the topping ingredients and spoon over the muffins whilst they are still hot. Leave in the muffin tins for 5 minutes or so, then remove them to cool on a rack.

Anzac Biscuits

My girls love these biscuits and I've been making them since I was a child. My 8yo can whip up a batch by herself, although I do watch her carefully around the hot oven. They are great with a cuppa and a good energy boosting snack in lunchboxes or after school for both adults and children.

1 cup flour

pinch of salt

1 cup sugar

1 cup rolled oats

125g butter

1 Tblsp golden syrup

1 tsp baking soda

2 Tblsp boiling water

Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Line 2 baking trays with non stick baking paper.

Put the flour, pinch of salt, sugar, and rolled oats into a bowl and mix them together thoroughly. Make a well in the dry ingredients.

Melt the butter and golden syrup together in a saucepan. Once the butter has melted and is well combined with the golden syrup, dissolve the baking soda in the boiling water then quickly add to the melted butter mixture. Pour it all into the well you made in the dry ingredients. Mix everything together until well combined.

Roll tablespoonfuls of the mixture into balls and put onto the prepared trays, leave room for the biscuits to spread. Flatten them with a floured fork.

Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes until the biscuits have flattened out and have become a reddish-brown colour.

Carefully transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool. They will crisp up as they cool. Once the biscuits are cold, store them in an airtight container.

Shopping List

44 items. £62.30

Packets and Cereals
2x ASDA Smartprice Porridge Oats (1Kg) 75p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (1Kg) 92p
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA Smartprice Pasta Shapes (500g) 25p
1x ASDA Wholefoods Cous Cous (500g) 68p
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 64p
1x ASDA Wholefoods Bread Brown Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x ASDA Wild Pacific Pink Salmon (418g) £1.57
3x Napolina Chopped Tomatoes in Tomato Juice (400g) 50p was £1.00
1x ASDA Naturally Sweet Sweetcorn in Water (326g) 43p
2x ASDA Smartprice Red Kidney Beans in Water (400g) 24p
2x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p
1x ASDA Green Lentils in Water (400g) 47p

Dairy and Eggs
6x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50
1x ASDA Chosen by You English Mature Cheddar (400g) £2.00 was £2.48
2x ASDA Low Fat Toffee Yogurt (450g) 50p
2x ASDA Strawberry and Wholegrain Yogurt Fat Free (450g) 50p

Meat, Fish and Poultry
3 ASDA Deli Carved Ham by Weight (100g) 75p
2x ASDA British Diced Beef Casserole (505g) £4.00 any 2 FOR £7.00
18 ASDA Free Range Whole Chicken by Weight (100g) 45.8p

Fruit and Vegetables
1 ASDA Ginger by Weight (100g) 21.1p
1x ASDA Conference Pears (800g) £1.00
1x ASDA Baby Spinach (180g) £1.00
15 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
3 ASDA White Cabbage by Weight (100g) 8.9p
10 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.35
2x ASDA White Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.35 any 2 FOR £2.00
5 ASDA Tomatoes by Weight (100g) 19.9p
7 ASDA Butternut Squash by Weight (100g) 9.7p
6 ASDA Sweet Potatoes by Weight (100g) 11.1p
2x ASDA Round Lettuce 57p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.47
1x ASDA Spring Onions 70p
1x ASDA Fruit & Seed Mix (100g) 67p
1x ASDA Unwaxed Lemons (5) £1.37 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Great Stuff Satsumas (500g) £1.20 any 2 FOR £2.00

Frozen
1x ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (907g) 94p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peas (907g) 85p

Dumplings in Syrup

2012-01-20T07:29:00.000Z

In our house we love a good pud. This one is an occasional treat because it is isn't a particularly healthy dessert. Everything in moderation though! LOL My Nan used to make this for me when I was a girl so it always reminds me of her when I make it. It's cheap to make and filling too. You don't have to serve this with bananas, you could use drained tinned fruit or cooked apple slices. You could double the recipe and serve it without fruit, whatever suits you.

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour

2 Tblsp caster sugar

2 Tblsp butter

1 free range egg

about 6 Tblsp milk

1 or 2 bananas, sliced

Sauce

1 1/2 cups water

6 Tblsp honey or golden syrup

1 Tblsp butter

1 Tblsp brown sugar

Sift the flour and caster sugar into a bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Make a well in the middle and then add the beaten egg and milk. Mix quickly to form a dough.

Put a large saucepan onto a moderate heat and put all the sauce ingredients in to it. Bring everything to the boil.

Make 10 dumplings out of the dough and put them into the boiling syrup. Cover with the saucepan lid, lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes without lifting the lid off.

Serve with chopped banana and cream or yoghurt.

Anchor Butter is bringing back Elevenses! - Giveaway Now Closed

2012-01-19T07:38:00.000Z

Elevenses seems to have been forgotten and been lost in the general rushing around that is a fact of life for most of us. Anchor want to inspire people who feel the need to have a nice little sit, with a cup of tea and a snack, at around 11 o’clock.

I find that a biscuit or two, or perhaps a little slice of cake at this time of day is just what’s needed to recharge and round off the morning nicely.

Anchor want people to embrace this mid morning snack, in all its glory and want you to join them! To help bring Elevenses back Anchor would like to offer all the readers of Utterly Scrummy Food For Families the chance to win a full set of Anchor memorabilia! That’s a butter dish, a pair of egg cups, a cake stand, a cake tin, a tea towel, an apron and a toy van!

To enter all you have to do is leave a comment below to tell Anchor and I what your favourite elevenses snack is. Please leave your email address or twitter name in your comment so I can contact you if you win.

For a bonus entry you can tweet "I want to bring back #Elevenses and win goodies with @Anchor_dairy and @utterlyscrummy http://bit.ly/AevdsW." Remember to leave a second comment if you tweet the giveaway otherwise your extra entry won’t be counted. The competition closes at 10pm on 18 January 2012 and the winner will be notified on 19th January.

In the meantime, why not hop over to Anchor’s Facebook and Twitter for a chat about all things cake and Elevenses.

To help inspire you to bake some treats for Elevenses you can check out these posts on my blog that are my favourite Elevenses treats:

Quick and Easy Banana Cake

Gingernuts

Lemon Drizzle Cake or Plain Sponge Loaf

Quick and Easy Chocolate Loaf

Peanut Butter and Choc Chip Biscuits

These biscuits are SO easy to make and contain no flour so may be suitable for Coeliacs, check the peanut butter to make sure there's no wheat or gluten in it. These are my favourite emergency biscuit when there is little time to whip up something delicious but I NEED something tasty with a cuppa. *Wipes crumbs from chin* These disappear in seconds whenever I take them to coffee mornings or on the school run. Make sure there is nobody with a nut allergy about though when you are enjoying these, keep everyone safe.

1 cup peanut butter

3/4 cup caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Beat the peanut butter and sugar together in a bowl. Mix in the beaten egg thoroughly, then mix in the chocolate chips. The mixture will be quite stiff. I usually use my hand held electric mixer.

Roll tablespoonfuls into balls and put on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Flatten firmly with a fork.

Bake at 180C for 15-18 minutes until the biscuits are cooked and lightly browned. Transfer to a cake rack to cool and then keep in an airtight container.

THE WINNER OF THE GIVEAWAY WAS DRAWN USING A RANDOM NUMBER GENERATOR:

The 11th comment was made my Clare Trevor, congratulations!

I shall be in touch so the PR can send you your prize.

Thank you to all those who entered the giveaway.

Slow Cooker Pea and Ham Soup

2012-01-17T17:59:00.000Z

I love this soup, it's really cheap to make and a really tasty Winter warmer when the weather outside is really cold. It's great for lunches or dinner and so easy to prepare in the slow cooker.

1 large ham or bacon hock

1 large onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 carrots, diced

2 sticks celery, diced

3 bay leaves

500g yellow or green split peas

1.5 litres water

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Put all the ingredients into the slow cooker, add the water last. Put the lid on and cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-10 hours, until the peas are very soft and the ham falls off the bone. Take the ham bone out of the slow cooker. Take any remaining meat and fat and fat off the bone. Throw away that fat, roughly chop the ham and put it back in to the soup.

Season to taste and serve with crusty bread.

Our Family Weekly Meal Plan - 16/01

2012-01-14T20:38:00.000Z

This is the Meal Plan that my family will be following this week. It cost £61.49 from Asda online today, and I used My Supermarket to check which supermarket was the cheapest to purchase my trolley of groceries from. The same trolley of groceries would've cost £71.31 at Tesco and £77.78 at Sainsburys.

I bake all our bread and rolls myself so have included the cost of flour and yeast instead of premade loaves of bread and bread rolls. This plan will feed my family of 5, all our meals, for an entire week. My 11yo eats the same portion size my husband, despite being reed thin, so the plan could be for 3 adults and 2 children - or 2 adults and 2 older children.

Simmered Mince Many Ways – Cook this Sunday Afternoon

This is my basic simmered mince recipe that I can transform into loads of different meals and can feed us well for several dinners and a lunch or two. It makes 1kg of mince stretch a long way and is great if you are counting pennies after an expensive Christmas or are starting to use Meal Plans to cut your household spending.

3 Tbsp oil

3 onions, finely chopped

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3 large carrots, peeled and chopped into smallish chunks

3 celery sticks, finely sliced

2 peppers, chopped into smallish chunks

2 tsp dried mixed herbs

1 kg beef mince

2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

1 Tblsp Worcestershire sauce

3 beef stock cubes dissolved in 1 litre of boiling water

Heat half of the oil in a large pan over a high heat. Add the onions, garlic, herbs, carrot, celery and pepper. Sweat until softened. Put into your slow cooker. If you're not using a slow cooker, just take the pan off the heat and set it aside.

Brown the mince in a large pan over a medium heat, about a third at a time. Fry until there are no pink bits left. Don't brown all the mince at once or you will crowd the pan and it will take longer to brown. Put the browned mince in your slow cooker. If you aren't using a slow cooker, add the vegetables you sweated off earlier to the mince at this point.

Add the tinned tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce and stock to the mince and vegetable mixture, either in your slow cooker or in a large saucepan on the hob, mix until well combined.

Either simmer uncovered on the hob for one hour until the volume of liquid has reduced slightly and the sauce has thickened or cook in your slow cooker for 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low. You can thicken the sauce with a little cornflour mixed with cold water then stirred into the sauce.

Dinners

Cottage Pie - Monday

Spoon about a third of the above mince mixture into a baking dish, top with about 750g mashed potato and bake at 190C/375F/Gas 5 for 30 minutes, until bubbling and golden-brown on top. Serve with mixed vegetables or peas.

Chilli Con Carne - Tuesday

Use 1/3 of the simmered mince mixture and stir a tin of kidney beans in chilli sauce, or a tin of kidney beans and enough chilli powder to suit your taste, into a third of the mince mixture and warm through. Serve with rice or tortillas topped with little soured cream.

Spaghetti Bolognese - Wednesday

1 pack bacon lardons or 4 rashers finely chopped

4 cloves of garlic, crushed

300ml red wine

2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

1 beef stock cube

300ml boiling water

1/3 batch of simmered mince (recipe above)

500g dried spaghetti

Heat a saucepan and add the lardons, let the fat run out and then sauté the garlic for a couple of minutes. Drain off as much oil as you can and then add the red wine. Boil the wine until it has reduced to about 2 Tblsp of liquid and then add the tinned tomatoes, braised mince and stock.

Simmer for 45 minutes - 1 hour or until the mince has thickened to Bolognese sauce consistency. Whilst the mince is thickening, cook your spaghetti according to the instructions on the pack. Check the mince mixture for seasoning then serve over cooked spaghetti. Top with grated parmesan if you want.

Bacon and Vegetable Bake – Thursday

350g (6 slices) thickly sliced bread, crusts removed

4 bacon rashers, chopped

120g grated cheddar cheese

2 peppers, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

handful or two of frozen mixed vegetables

6 large free range eggs

500ml milk

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce or dried mixed herbs

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Cut the bread into cubes. Put the bread in a 1.5-litre/6-cup capacity oven-proof dish.

Add the bacon and onion to a non-stick frying pan and cook, stirring it around, until the onion has softened and the bacon has browned. Drain the bacon on absorbent paper. Sprinkle the cheese, bacon and pepper over the bread in the ovenproof dish then sprinkle over the frozen mixed vegetables.

Whisk the eggs in a large jug with a fork until well combined. Add the milk and Worcestershire sauce or dried mixed herbs, then season with salt and pepper before whisking everything again until well combined. Pour over bread mixture in the dish.

Bake for about 35 minutes or until the egg looks set. Serve with a salad.

Hotdogs and Salad – Friday

Cook 5 good quality pork sausages and serve each sausage into a wholemeal bun topped with homemade tomato salsa accompanied by a side salad.

Vegetable Frittata - Saturday

1 pepper, diced

2 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

10 eggs

300g frozen mixed vegetables

500g pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6.

Simmer the potatoes and pumpkin in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes, then drain and leave to cool slightly before slicing thinly.

Meanwhile, put a 25cm non-stick ovenproof frying pan on the hob over a moderate heat. Sauté the onion, pepper and garlic in a little oil for about 5 minutes until the onion and pepper has softened.

Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl and the softened onion, pepper and garlic. Carefully fold in the potatoes, pumpkin and frozen mixed vegetables. Pour the frittata mixture back into the frying pan and cook over a low-medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until it has cooked through and is set.

Sausage and Lentil Bake - Sunday

5 good quality pork sausages

2 celery sticks, cut into small chunks

4 carrots, peeled cut into small chunks

1 onion, cut into wedges

1 pepper, deseeded sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 vegetable stock cube

500ml boiling water

1 tsp Dijon mustard

410g tin green lentils, drained & rinsed

Preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas Mark 6. Put the sausages in an ovenproof baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes before adding all the vegetables and garlic. Return to the oven to cook for 10 minutes.

Mix the stock cube with the boiling water and mustard then pour over the sausages and vegetables along with the lentils. Stir everything together. Cover with foil and cook for 20 minutes, taking the foil off for the final 10 minutes. Serve with mixed vegetables.

Lunches

Weekday lunches will be egg, sweetcorn and mayo sandwiches or falafel with herb and yoghurt dip. All packed lunches will have an apple, carrot and cucumber sticks and a cookie/flapjack in them. Adults will have leftovers of previous nights dinner or same packed lunch as children.

Easy Mini Falafel with Yoghurt Dip

I was given this recipe by one of the of the Mums at school and it's now a firm favourite in our house. The falafel can be eaten as a lunch in a wrap with salad, taken on a picnic or served as a weeknight dinner with couscous and salad leaves. The falafels are also freezable for up to 6 months in an airtight container. Great for make-ahead lunchbox treats or emergency dinners.

2 (400g) tins of chick peas

1 large onion, very finely chopped or grated

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tsp ground cumin

4-6 Tblsp plain flour

Salt and pepper

Oil for frying

Put the chickpeas in a bowl with the very finely chopped onion, crushed garlic gloves, cumin, ground coriander, salt and pepper. Use a potato masher or pestle and mortar to lightly mash the mixture until it begins to stick together. You can quickly pulse it in a food processor but don't be too over enthusiastic, you don't want a mushy puree.

Take walnut-sized blobs of mixture and and shape them into small flat rounds about 1/2 and inch thick. Roll the falafel in the flour ensuring they are well coated. Chill them for 15-30 minutes, this makes them much easier to work with. Heat some oil, about 1 inch deep, in a frying pan. When it's hot add a few falafels and cook over a medium heat for about 5-6 minutes, turning them frequently. Carefully take them out of the oil and drain well on kitchen paper.

To use the falafels from frozen: Put them on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper and warm in the oven at 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 for about 10 minutes or until piping hot.

Serve with a dip and crudités, in a wrap with salad leaves, or as a dinner/lunch with couscous salad.

Yoghurt and Herb Dip

150ml natural yoghurt

2 Tblsp mayonnaise

2 Tblsp chopped fresh mint or flat leaf parsley leaves

Pinch of salt

Put the yoghurt, mayonnaise in a bowl and whisk together well with a fork. Add the chopped fresh mint or parsley. Mix together well and, if you think it needs it, add a pinch of salt.

Cover the dip with clingfilm and leave in it the fridge for at least 1 hour to allow the flavours to mingle before you serve it.

Savoury Bacon and Cabbage Swirls - Saturday

These are quick and easy to make, perfect for an easy weekend lunch or after school snack.

Make up a basic scone recipe:

3 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper

25g butter

About 1 cup/250ml milk

1 Tblsp chopped fresh coriander

Sift dry ingredients together then rub in butter. Mix in chopped coriander and enough milk to make a soft dough. Knead onto a lightly floured board and roll out to about 1cm deep. Cover and set aside.

Filling:

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 Tblsp freshly chopped parsley and coriander

Olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cups finely sliced green cabbage

4 rashers of bacon finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 230C

Heat a little oil in a large frying pan. fry the onion until it begins to soften before adding the chopped bacon, coriander seeds, salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes. Then add the finely chopped cabbage and fresh coriander to the pan. Fry until soft. You might need to add a little water to keep the filling it moist as it cooks in the pan. The filling should take around 5 minutes to cook. Once cooked make sure it is drained really well.

Spread the cabbage mix filling on top of the scone dough, and then roll up to form a log. Use a sharp knife to cut into 2cm wide slice. Put the slices cut side up onto a baking paper lined tray and bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown and well risen.

Serve hot with home made onion marmalade or tomato chutney

Twice Baked Potatoes – Sunday

Sufficient large potatoes to allow one or two halves per person, scrubbed well until clean

Milk

Butter, if you want

Selection of additions: grated cheese, leftover shredded chicken, diced ham or cooked bacon, tinned tuna, chopped spring onion or chives, corn kernels, baked beans, whatever you have available and is to your taste.

Wrap the cleaned potatoes in foil and bake at 180C for about one hour or until a skewer or knife goes in easily. Take the potatoes out of the oven and allow to cool. If necessary, you can refrigerate them until later at this point.

When you are ready to carry on with the recipe, halve the potatoes lengthwise and scoop out the cooked flesh. Be careful not to puncture the skin and leave enough potato on the skin to form a bowl for the fillings.

Mash the scooped potato and add any fillings you like, then season to taste. Gently spoon the mixture back into the shells of the potatoes, piling it up generously. Sprinkle grated cheese on the top if you like.

Return the potatoes to the oven and bake at 180C for a further 30 minutes or until golden brown and well heated through.

You can serve the stuffed potatoes as a dinner with salad, on their own as a lunch, or as a side dish.

Breakfasts

Weekday breakfast will be cereal or porridge with a sliced banana. Weekend breakfasts are as follows:

Savoury Eggy Bread – Saturday

5 Eggs 

5 Tbsp Milk  

Pinch of cinnamon 

1-2 Tblsp Butter

10 - 12 thick slices of bread

Pinch of salt and grind of pepper

Mix 5 eggs and 5 tablespoons of milk in a bowl with a pinch salt and a grind of pepper until well combined.

Cut 10 - 12 thick slices of bread, you can then cut them in half or quarters if you want to. Heat a little butter in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat.

Dip the bread into the egg and milk mixture. Coat both sides well.

Put the coated bread into the frying pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. You should be able to cook 2 to 4 pieces at a time depending on the size of your frying pan.

Repeat with the remaining slices of bread (add a little more of the margarine if needed between batches) until they have all been cooked. Serve while they are nice and hot.

Homemade Fruit Bread - Sunday

2 tsp mixed spice

3 1/4 cups plain flour

2 tsp instant dried yeast

1/4 cup sugar

375ml (1 1/2 cups) warm water

2 cups of mixed dried fruit

1 Tblsp milk

1 Tblsp each cinnamon and sugar mixed together

Sift mixed spice and 3 cups flour into a bowl. Stir in yeast and sugar. Make a well in the centre. Add water then mix to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Add remaining flour. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. I use my stand mixer to knead my bread if I'm not in the mood to knead it by hand.

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. I leave my dough in the stand mixer, with the plastic shield on it the dough proves quite happily. Grease a 6cm-deep, 9cm x 19cm loaf tin.

Using your fist, punch the dough down. Knead until smooth. I just knead a little in my stand mixer. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface. Gradually knead in the dried fruit. Again, I just use my stand mixer. Shape then put in to the prepared loaf tin. Cover with lightly greased cling film and set aside in a warm place for 15 minutes or until the dough rises to the top of the tin.

Meanwhile, your preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Once the dough has risen, brush the top of it with milk. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 10 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 170°C/150°C fan-forced. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and hollow when tapped on top. Stand in tin for 5 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve with butter and jam.

Snacks and Treats

Flapjacks

225g butter

170g sugar

340g porridge oats

3 Tbsp golden syrup

100g sultanas or mixed fruit

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Line a 28cm x 18cm x 3cm or 11in x 7in x 1.2in baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Gently heat the butter and golden syrup in a large saucepan on the hob until the butter has melted, stir well to mix. Don't let it boil!

Once the butter has melted take the saucepan off the heat and add the oats, sugar, sultanas and pinch of salt. Thorough mix everything until well combined and the oats are completely covered by the butter mixture.

Put the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth evenly into the corners. Bake in the oven for approximatly 15minutes, turn the tin around and bake for another 5 minutes until golden brown.

Once cooked remove the baking tray from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. With a bread and butter knife lightly mark out about 16 pieces before the flapjack completely sets. Cut up into pieces when completely cold.

Peanut Butter and Choc Chip Biscuits (I'll make 2 batches)

1 cup peanut butter

3/4 cup caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Beat the peanut butter and sugar together in a bowl. Mix in the beaten egg thoroughly, then mix in the chocolate chips. The mixture will be quite stiff. I usually use my hand held electric mixer.

Roll tablespoonfuls into balls and put on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Flatten firmly with a fork.

Bake at 180C for 15-18 minutes until the biscuits are cooked and lightly browned. Transfer to a cake rack to cool and then keep in an airtight container.

Rice Pudding (Lunchbox treat, afterschool snack or pudding)

600ml milk

65g long grain white rice

pinch of salt

50g white sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

50g sultanas or mixed fruit (optional)

In a medium sized, heavy bottomed saucepan combine the milk and rice with a pinch of salt. Place saucepan over a fairly high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice is tender. This usually takes about 25 minutes. Stir the milk mixture frequently using a heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon to stop the rice from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.

When the rice is tender (al dente) take the saucepan off the heat and sugar, vanilla extract, and ground cinnamon. Mix well to combine. Return the saucepan to the heat and cook until the rice pudding thickens, this should take about 5 - 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the sultanas if you are using them. Spoon the pudding into a bowl to cool and cover with clingfilm to stop a skin forming. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days. To make this into more of a Mullerice type treat add some jam or golden syrup to swirl through the rice pudding. You could also add dried apricots or dates instead of sultanas if you have some in your store cupboard.

Shopping List

Cost of 40 items was £61.49 from ASDA on 14/01/12.

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Smartprice Porridge Oats (1Kg) 75p
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (500g) 61p
1x ASDA Plain Chocolate Drops (100g) 55p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 64p
2x ASDA Wholefoods Bread Brown Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10
1x Sunnybisk Wheat Biscuits (48 per pack - 864g) £1.59

Frozen
1x ASDA Freshly Frozen Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) £1.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Peas (907g) 85p

Tins, Jars and Cooking
4x Napolina Chopped Tomatoes in Tomato Juice (400g) 50p was £1.00
3x ASDA Naturally Sweet Sweetcorn in Water (326g) 43p
1x ASDA Good for you! Mayonnaise (500ml) 79p
2x ASDA Smartprice Crunchy Peanut Butter (340g) 92p
2x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p
1x ASDA Green Lentils in Water (400g) 47p
1x ASDA Red Kidney Beans in Water (400g) 42p

Dairy and Eggs
6x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
1x ASDA Smartprice Low Fat Natural Yogurt (500g) 55p
2x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00 was £2.50
2x ASDA English Medium Cheddar (400g) £2.00 was £2.48

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
1x ASDA Salad Tomatoes (750g) £1.57
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
3 ASDA White Cabbage by Weight (100g) 8.9p
20 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.35
10 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
5 ASDA Butternut Squash by Weight (100g) 7.5p
2x ASDA Whole Cucumber 80p
3x ASDA Round Lettuce 57p
1x ASDA Celery 83p
2x ASDA Baking Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.00
3x ASDA Garlic Loose 30p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.47

Meat, Fish and Poultry
1x ASDA Unsmoked Back Bacon Thick Cut (12 per pack - 530g) £4.00 any 3 FOR £10.00
1x ASDA Extra Special Pork Sausages (10 per pack - 756g) £3.90 any 3 FOR £10.00
1x ASDA British Beef Mince (900g) £3.75 any 3 FOR £10.00

Lemon Drizzle Cake or Plain Sponge Loaf

2012-01-12T08:30:00.000Z

This is one of my husbands favourites and about the only cake he'll eat that isn't chocolate cake LOL It is so quick and easy to whizz up in my mixer. I call it my 2, 2, 2, 3 lemon cake because that's how I remember the recipe. If you don't want to make a lemon drizzle cake, or don't have any lemons, then all is not lost! Just leave out the zest and don't make the drizzle. This loaf cake tastes fab plain, either dusted with icing sugar or with some buttercream icing. Give it a whirl!

200g softened butter

200g caster sugar

200g self raising flour

3 free range eggs

finely grated zest of 1 lemon, give it a good wash first to get rid of any wax/grease

Lemon Drizzle:

Juice of the zested lemon

about 50g of sugar, add 5g more if you used a rather large lemon

Preheat your oven to 170C/325F/Gas Mark 3. Line a loaf tin with non stick baking paper or one of the precut liners you can buy. My loaf tin is 22cm x 11cm.

I usually have my Kenwood Mixer on minimum speed then on 1 speed at the most. You don't want to beat the mixture too roughly.

Cream the butter and sugar then add the lemon zest and give it a beat for another minute. Add the eggs one at a time with about 1/3 of the flour each time, beat for a bout 1 minute or so for each egg and flour addition.

Scrape down the sides of the mixer and beat for another 30 seconds or so. Spoon the mixture into the loaf tin and bake for about 40 minutes. Test the cake with a skewer inserted into the centre. If the skewer comes out clean then the cake is cooked. If not, I turn the oven heat down 10C and put it back in for 5 minutes before checking again with a skewer.

Once the cake is cooked, take it out of the oven and make the lemon drizzle.

Mix the lemon juice and sugar together until they are well combined but don't dissolve the sugar. Prick the cake all over with the cake tester skewer and slowly spoon over the lemon drizzle.

Leave to cool in the in for about 30 minutes then cool on a wire rack, right side up of course.

Quick and Easy Chocolate Loaf

2012-01-11T21:01:00.000Z

I made this cake because my neighbours asked me to bake one for their shared morning tea at work tomorrow. I couldn't be bothered baking brownies so I made this chocolate loaf instead.

175g softened butter

175g soft dark brown sugar

1 Tblsp golden syrup

150g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

25g cocoa powder

3 free range eggs

Icing:

100g butter, melted

4 Tblsp cocoa powder

4 Tblsp milk

250g icing sugar

Preheat your oven to 170C/325F/Gas Mark 3. Line a loaf tin, mine is 22cm x 11cm.

Cream the butter and sugar together until they are light and fluffy. Whilst that is whizzing in the mixer put the flour, cocoa and baking powder into a small bowl and mix them together with a fork.

Add the golden syrup to the creamed butter and sugar mixture and beat in for a minute. Add the eggs one at a time with a third of the flour mixture, beating in well each time. I usually run my mixer for about 1 minute for each egg and flour addition.

Scrape down the sides of the mixer and give it a final 1 mintue burst then spoon the cake mixture into the lined loaf tin.

Bake for about 45 minutes until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. If there are still crumbs on the skewer I turn the oven down by 10C and out it back in the oven for about 5 minutes. Then check again with a clean skewer and it should be cooked.

I left the loaf to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes then turned it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Icing:

I melted the butter in the microwave, added the cocoa powder and mixed thoroughly. I then added the icing sugar and milk and mixed everything together well with a fork. I then switched to my hand held electric beater and gave it a 2 minute beat with those to get rid of any lumps and make it nice and thick.

Cut the loaf in half and spread the icing over the middle, then replace the top half. Spread the icing liberally over the top (and sides if you want) of the cake. You can top with some grated chocolate if you want a proper chocolate overload.

Cake with icing on top and in the middle

Howver, after deliberating, I decided to spread the icing all over the sides of the cake to completely cover it in icing

Vegetable Soup with Dumplings

2012-01-11T19:11:00.000Z

This is such a comforting soup for lunch or dinner. I use whatever vegetables I have available and it's also a great way to use up leftover mashed potato.

1 Tblsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 Tblsp paprika

2 potatoes, peeled and chopped into chunks

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

200g beans, cut into 2cm lengths or a handful of frozen peas

400g cooked red kidney beans (I usually use a tin of beans, drained and rinsed)

500ml (2 cups) vegetable stock

3 large kale leaves, finely chopped

Potato dumplings

1 cup mashed potatoes or sweet potatoes

1/4 cup plain flour

1 free range egg

Optional extras for the dumplings:

1/3 cup chopped spring onions

3 Tblsp chopped flat-leaf parsley

To make the dumplings, put all the ingredients intp a bowl, season well with salt and pepper, then use a fork to combine them. Set aside whilst you make the soup.

Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion for 2-3 minutes or until golden then add the crushed garlic and paprika, stir about for 30 seconds before adding the potato, carrot and flat beans (if you are using them). Cook for 5 minutes, then add the kidney beans and stock. Stir well, bring to the boil then turn the heat down and smmer for 15 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender. If you are using frozen peas add them now with the kale and leave to stand for 5 minutes so the residual heat in the soup cooks them.

Roll sponfuls of dumpling dough into balls, then cook in a pan of boiling salted water for 10 minutes. I usually get about 12 dumplings out of the mixture.

Ladle the soup into bowls, add a few dumplings to each bowl and serve.

Double Chocolate Self-saucing Pudding

2012-01-10T16:13:00.000Z

This is a quick and tasty pudding that my family really enjoy as an occasional treat. It's fairly versatile, use whatever chocolate you have available or leave out the chunks of chocolate. Give it a whirl when you need a chocolate fix for pudding.

75g butter, diced

160ml milk

1 1/4 cups caster sugar

1 cup self-raising flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

100g white, milk or dark chocolate roughly chopped into chunks

375ml cups boiling water

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Lightly grease an 8 cup-capacity ovenproof dish.

Put butter, milk and 3/4 cup sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter has melted. Sift flour and 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder into a heatproof bowl. Make a well in centre. Add the butter mixture. Stir gently to combine. Spread into your prepared dish. Press chocolate chunks into the mixture. Put the dish on a baking tray.

Sift the remaining cocoa powder over the pudding mixture in the dish. Sprinkle over the remaining sugar. Pour boiling water, over the back of a large spoon, over the top of the mixture. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the top has set. Stand for 5 minutes. Then serve with ice-cream or cream.

Our Family Meal Plan for This Week

2012-01-08T11:29:00.000Z

This is the Meal Plan that my family will be following this week. It cost £63.05 from Asda online today, and I used My Supermarket to check which supermarket was the cheapest to purchase my trolley of groceries from. The same trolley of groceries would've cost £78.14 at Tesco and £80.97 at Sainsburys.

Dinners

Easy Mince Bake - Monday

500g lean beef mince

1/3 cup porridge oats

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp mixed herbs

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

125ml beef stock ( I use ½ a stock cube)

4 Tblsp tomato paste mixed with 4 Tblsp water

150g mushrooms, sliced

1 pepper, finely chopped

1 large handful grated tasty cheese

400g frozen mixed vegetables

Soak the rolled oats in the beef stock for 10 minutes. Mix together the mince, soaked rolled oats and beef stock, crushed garlic, dried herbs, paprika, salt and pepper with the stock. Press into a 20cm square baking dish or lined cake tin. Use a spoon to smooth down the mince, leaving a slightly raised rim.

Spread the tomato paste mixture over the mince then scatter over the mushrooms, pepper, and cheese. Bake at 190°C for 35-40 minutes. Serve with cooked mixed vegetables.

Vegetable Bake - Tuesday

3 cups seasonal vegetables (I used finely chopped onion, pepper and mushrooms, grated carrot and courgette)

1 handful grated tasty cheese

4 eggs

150ml milk

½ cup self raising flour

freshly ground black pepper

If you don’t have self raising flour, use standard flour with ½ tsp of baking powder added. Cut a selection of vegetables in to small chunks or grate them. Put them in a well greased or lined 20 x 25cm baking dish. Sprinkle the cheese over the vegetables.

Lightly beat the eggs and milk together then sprinkle in the self raising flour. Mix well to make sure there are no lumps. Pour the beaten egg over the vegetables. Bake at 200C for 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the egg has set. Serve with your favourite chutney or relish and a side salad.

Sausage Hotpot - Wednesday (Adadpted from this recipe)

6 pork sausages

1 large onion, diced

2 carrots, roughly chopped

2 sweet potatoes, roughly chopped

250g pack vegetable soup mix

1 vegetable stock cube

1 litre boiling water

Preheat the oven to 180°C/ fan 160°C/ gas 4.

In a large, flameproof casserole dish, heat the olive oil and fry the sausages, until browned. Remove the sausages from the dish and set aside.

Add the onion to the dish and fry until soft. Now add to the chopped root vegetables to the casserole dish. Stir well and add the vegetable soup mix and 1 litre of stock, made using the stock cube. Season well and cook over a high heat for 5 minutes.

Return the sausages to the casserole dish, transfer to the oven and cook for 1 hour, then serve with steamed cauliflower and broccoli.

Tuna Patties - Thursday

500g baking potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 courgette, grated

1 carrot, grated

425g can tuna in spring water, drained

olive oil spray

salt and pepper, to taste

Pre-heat oven to 220 C. Place potatoes in a saucepan of cold water and bring to the boil. Cook for 10 minutes or until soft then drain and mash.

Add grated courgette and carrot, drained tuna and salt and pepper to mashed potato and mix well.

Form into small patties, spray with oil and bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Serve with salad.

Any leftover patties can be bagged up and frozen for later use. They also taste great on sandwiches with tomato chutney.

Homemade Pizza - Friday

2 cups wholemeal flour

2 tsp baking powder

4 tablespoons butter

125ml milk

2 Tblsp tomato paste mixed with 4 Tblsp water

2 cups toppings

1 handful grated cheese

Sieve flour and baking powder.

Rub butter into the flour until the mixture is like coarse breadcrumbs.

Add the milk and mix until a stiff dough forms (add more flour or milk if necessary).

Turn out onto a floured board and knead lightly.

Roll out into a circle or rectangle. Put on a greased oven tray.

Scatter over your choice of toppings.

Sprinkle over some grated cheese.

Cook at 200ºC for 20 minutes.

Sausages, Potato Wedges and Mixed Vegetables - Saturday

1kg potatoes,cut into wedges

6 pork sausages

400g frozen mixed vegetables

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6. Spread the wedge out on a non-stick baking tray, in a single layer. Drizzle the potato wedges with some olive oil and season. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes until brown and crisp.

Put the sausages in a baking dish and cook in the oven for last 20 minutes of wedges cooking time. Served with cooked mixed vegetables.

Chicken Casserole - Sunday (Adadpted from this recipe)

8 chicken drumsticks

2 onions, peeled & sliced

1 clove garlic, crushed

250g vegetable soup mix

2 carrots, roughly chopped

2 sweet potatoes, roughly chopped

1 chicken stock cube

1 litre boiling water

Preheat the oven to 180°C/ fan 160°C/ gas 4. Remove the skin from the chicken drumsticks.

In a large, flameproof casserole dish, heat the olive oil and fry the drumsticks until browned. Scatter the onions and garlic over the drumsticks, and cook until they have also browned.

Add the chopped root vegetables, vegetable soup mix and 1 litre of stock, made using the stock cube. Season well and cook over a high heat for 5 minutes.

Transfer to the oven and bake for 45 minutes, then serve with steamed cauliflower and broccoli.

Breakfasts, Snacks and Treats

Breaktast on weekdays is either porridge or Weetabix with a chopped banana or sultanas. However, on the weekend I either make pancakes or crumpets as a treat and the other weekend morning we have toast and soliders or homemade fruitbread toast with our favourite spread.

Pikelets/Pancakes - Sunday Breakfast

300g self raising flour, or plain flour with 4 tsp baking powder added

2 eggs

50g sugar

375ml milk

Mix all the ingredients together well and then cook ladlefuls of mixture in a greased fryingpan over a moderate heat. Serve with chopped bananas and drizzle with golden syrup, spread with jam or brushed with lemon juice and sprinkled with sugar.

Flapjacks

225g butter

170g sugar

340g porridge oats

pinch of salt

3 Tbsp golden syrup

100g sultanas or mixed dried fruit

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Line a 28cm x 18cm x 3cm or 11in x 7in x 1.2in baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Gently heat the butter and golden syrup in a large saucepan on the hob until the butter has melted, stir well to mix. Don't let it boil!

Once the butter has melted take the saucepan off the heat and add the oats, sugar, sultanas and pinch of salt. Thorough mix everything until well combined and the oats are completely covered by the butter mixture.

Put the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth evenly into the corners. Bake in the oven for approximatly 15minutes, turn the tin around and bake for another 5 minutes until golden brown.

Once cooked remove the baking tray from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. With a bread and butter knife lightly mark out about 16 pieces before the flapjack completely sets. Cut up into pieces when completely cold.

Fruit Bread

2 tsp mixed spice

3 1/4 cups plain flour

2 tsp instant dried yeast

1/4 cup sugar

375ml (1 1/2 cups) warm water

2 cups of mixed dried fruit

1 Tblsp milk

1 Tblsp each cinnamon and sugar mixed together

Sift mixed spice and 3 cups flour into a bowl. Stir in yeast and sugar. Make a well in the centre. Add water then mix to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Add remaining flour. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. I use my stand mixer to knead my bread if I'm not in the mood to knead it by hand.

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. I leave my dough in the stand mixer, with the plastic shield on it the dough proves quite happily. Grease a 6cm-deep, 9cm x 19cm loaf tin.

Using your fist, punch the dough down. Knead until smooth. I just knead a little in my stand mixer. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface. Gradually knead in the dried fruit. Again, I just use my stand mixer. Shape then put in to the prepared loaf tin. Cover with lightly greased cling film and set aside in a warm place for 15 minutes or until the dough rises to the top of the tin.

Meanwhile, your preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Once the dough has risen, brush the top of it with milk. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 10 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 170°C/150°C fan-forced. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and hollow when tapped on top. Stand in tin for 5 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve with butter and jam.

Lunches

The packed lunches this week will be Pizza Swirls or slices of Vegemite Pull Apart Loaf with crudites, yoghurt dip, cherry tomatoes, a satsuma, an apple and a piece of flapjack. Adults will have leftovers from the previous nights dinner and some fruit or the same packed lunches as the children. On Thursday adults will have Tuna Salad to use up the leftover tinned tuna that wasn't used in the Tuna Patties recipe.

Yoghurt Dip with Herbs

100ml natural yoghurt

3 Tblsp mayonnaise

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 Tblsp chopped fresh herbs

Pinch of salt

Put the yoghurt, mayonnaise and lemon juice in a bowl and whisk together well with a fork. Add the garlic and chopped fresh herbs. Mix together well and, if you think it needs it, add a pinch of salt.

Cover the dip with clingfilm and leave in it the fridge for at least 1 hour to allow the flavours to mingle before you serve it.

Lunchbox Pizza Swirls - Weekday Lunches

I regularly make these as an alternative to sandwiches for school and work lunchboxes. They're also great for picnics, after school snacks or weekend lunches. I sometimes add some grated courgette or carrot. Experiment with fillings and use what you think will taste good and have lurking in the fridge or pantry. It's a really easy recipe that's cheap and filling which makes it a perfect snack for hollow legged teenagers. Give it a go!

300g (2 cups) self-raising flour

50g chilled butter, finely chopped or grated

185ml (3/4 cup) milk

1 Tblsp tomato paste mixed with 1 Tblsp water

50g ham, finely chopped (optional)

2 or 3 small mushrooms, finely chopped

1 pepper, finely chopped

40g (1/2 cup) grated Cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Sift the flour into a large bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. If you grate the butter this process happens much quicker. Make a well in the flour and then add the milk. Stir the mixture well with a wooden spoon until it forms a soft dough. Turn the soft dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it gently until it becomes smooth.

Lightly dust a rolling pin with flour and roll out the dough to a 12 inch (30cm) square. Spread the dough square with the tomato paste, leaving a 1 inch (2.5cm) border. Top the tomato paste with the finely chopped ham, mushroom and pepper. Starting from the side nearest to you, roll the dough up firmly to form a tight log. Cut the log crossways into 12 even slices. Put the slices cut-side up on the lined baking tray.

Sprinkle the swirls evenly with grated Cheddar cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack and then pack into lunchboxes or serve with a salad or crudites and dip.

Cheesy Vegemite Pull-apart Loaf - Weekday Lunches

I sometimes make this with tomato paste sprinkled with 1 tsp of mixed herbs instead of Vegemite it's just as tasty. In fact you could probably use chutney and cheddar or pesto and parmesan if you wanted to. My girls love this as a weekend lunch or picnic snack. You could use marmite if you had to, we much prefer Vegemite in our house though.

2 cups self-raising flour

30g butter, chilled, chopped

3/4 cup semi skimmed milk

1 tablespoon Vegemite

3/4 cup grated mature Cheddar cheese

milk, to glaze

Preheat oven to 220°C/200°C fan-forced. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Sift flour into a bowl. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre and add the milk. Using a flat-bladed knife, stir until mixture the forms a soft dough, adding a little more milk if necessary. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until smooth (don't over-knead).

Roll out to a 30cm x 20cm rectangle. Spread Vegemite over the dough, leaving a 1cm strip along 1 long side. Sprinkle cheese over the Vegemite and roll up firmly. Transfer to the lined baking tray with the seam-side underneath.

Using scissors or a very sharp knife, cut into top of dough at 1 inch intervals without cutting all the way through. Pull slices to the left and right. Brush with milk and sprinkle with a little extra cheese. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden. Great for a lunchbox treat instead of sandwiches, with salad for a weekend lunch at home or as a picnic lunch.

Store Cupboard Soup - Saturday Lunch

This is a really useful recipe when your cupboards and fridge are nearly bare and money is tight. I can usually find all the ingredients to make it in my pantry or they can be bought really cheaply from the supermarket. It's a filling lunch or dinner that is really easy to prepare and can be on the table within 15 minutes.

½ Tbsp oil

1 large onion, roughly chopped

1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes

1 tin (425g) beans, drained (e.g. mixed beans, butter beans, haricot beans or chickpeas)

1 large tin (400g) sweetcorn, drained or 2 handfuls frozen mixed vegetables

4 large mushrooms, thinly sliced (optional)

1 pepper, diced (red, orange or yellow)

Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan and sweat the onions until soft and transparent. Add the diced pepper and mushrooms and cook gently until softened.

Add the tin of chopped tomatoes, drained tin of mixed beans and sweetcorn or a couple of handfuls of frozen mixed vegetables. Cook for another 5 - 10 minutes until everything is well heated through then serve.

I usually serve this with bread rolls or baked potatoes. You could also serve this over thick wholemeal toast, cooked rice, cooked pasta or baked sweet potatoes/potatoes.

Vegetable Frittata - Sunday Lunch

This meal is handy for using up any vegetables that you have left before the start of the new week. Make sure you precook any root vegetables that you are adding to the frittata.

1 pepper, diced

2 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

8 eggs

300g frozen mixed vegetables

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ fan 180°C/ gas 6.

Simmer the potatoes in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes, then drain and leave to cool slightly before slicing thinly.

Meanwhile, put a 25cm non-stick ovenproof frying pan on the hob over a moderate heat. Saute the onion, pepper and garlic in a little oil for about 5 minutes until the onion and pepper has softened.

Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl and the softened onion, pepper and garlic. Carefully fold in the potatoes, pumpkin and frozen mixed vegetables. Pour the frittata mixture back into the frying pan and cook over a low-medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until it has cooked through and is set.

Shopping List

40 items. £63.05

Packets and Cereals
1x ASDA Smartprice Porridge Oats (1Kg) 75p
1x ASDA Wholemeal Plain Flour (1.5Kg) £1.10
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
2x ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (500g) 61p
1x ASDA Smartprice Golden Syrup (680g) 77p
1x Great Scot Vegetable Broth Mix (500g) 68p
1x ASDA East Bake Yeast (42g) 58p
1x Sunnybisk Wheat Biscuits (48 per pack - 864g) £1.59

Dairy and Eggs
1x Onken Biopot Natural Set Yogurt (500g) £1.10
6x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.18 any 2 FOR £2.00
2x ASDA Smartprice Salted Butter (250g) £1.19
1x ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15) £2.00
2x ASDA English Medium Cheddar (400g) £2.00 was £2.48

Frozen
2x ASDA Freshly Frozen Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) £1.00

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x Napolina Chopped Tomatoes in Tomato Juice (400g) 50p was £1.00
1x ASDA Good for you! Mayonnaise (250ml) 48p
2x ASDA Double Concentrated Tomato Puree (200g) 48p
1x ASDA Mexican Style Bean Mix in Water (400g) 53p
1x The Reel Fish Co Pole & Line Tuna Chunks in Spring Water (3x185g) £4.29

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Fruit (500g) 64p
2x ASDA Broccoli & Cauliflower Florets (400g) £1.25 2 FOR £2.00
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) 10p
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) 6.8p
15 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 8p
7 ASDA Courgettes by Weight (100g) 16p
1x ASDA Smartprice Mushrooms (750g) £1.35
10 ASDA Onions by Weight (100g) 7.6p
5 ASDA Tomatoes by Weight (100g) 19.9p
10 ASDA Sweet Potatoes by Weight (100g) 11.1p
2x ASDA Whole Cucumber 80p
2x ASDA Round Lettuce 57p
1x ASDA Cherry Tomatoes (400g) £1.00
2x ASDA Baking Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.00
2x ASDA Garlic Loose 22p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.47
2x ASDA Easy Peel Satsumas (700g) £1.16 any 2 FOR £2.00

Meat and Poultry
2x ASDA Extra Special Pork Sausages (6 per pack - 454g) £2.00 was £2.38
1x ASDA British Beef Mince (500g) £2.00
1x Banham Poultry Chicken Drumsticks (1Kg) £2.98

Quick and Easy Recipes Using Frozen Berries

2012-01-06T13:50:00.001Z

I nearly always have frozen berries in my freezer, whether they are foraged berries I've gathered over the summer, or bought on offer at the supermarket. They are SO versatile and useful for adding fruit to baking, making breakfast a little more interesting, or for whipping up a quick dessert. I've also discovered that if you add frozen berries to low fat yoghurt and stir them in well, it freezes the yoghurt and coats the berries making it taste like icecream. A fab low fat and tasty dessert, without the guilt. If however you want something a little more decadent and comforting, I've included my favourite dessert recipes using frozen berries below.

Mixed Berry Compote

500g frozen mixed berries

1/4 cup caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Put the berries and sugar in a saucepan over low heat. Stir to combine thoroughly. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or until the berries have just softened. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in vanilla extract. Cool completely. Serve with pancakes, eggy bread, crumpets or porridge. Stir through plain yoghurt for a tasty and relatively healthy snack. You can also use this compote cold to pour over a pavlova/meringues or to make turnovers, see recipe below.

Super Quick Berry Turnovers

4 sheets ready-rolled puff pastry, partially thawed

2 cups berry compote (thicken with a little cornflour and water if too runny)

2 Tblsp demerara/raw sugar

1 Tblsp milk

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper. If you can be bothered, use a plate as a template and cut two 14cm circles from each pastry sheet. If not, then cut each sheet of pastry in half and use those for rectangular turnovers.

Put 1/4 cup of compote over 1 half of each pastry circle/rectangle, leaving a 1cm border. Fold over the other half of the pastry to enclose the filling. Press around the edges with a fork to seal the turnovers and then put them on the lined baking trays.

Again, if you can be bothered, brush some milk over the tops of the turnovers and sprinkle with a little raw sugar. Bake for 10 minutes, swap trays around in the oven, then bake for another 10 minutes or until the pastry is all puffed and golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool for a few minutes, then serve. We have ours with icecream or custard. The leftover turnovers, if there are any, make a great lunchbox treat.

Berry Crumble

500g mixed frozen berries

1/4 cup caster sugar

Topping

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup self-raising flour

1/3 cup rolled oats

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

60g butter, diced or grated

Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly grease a 1 litre capacity ovenproof dish.

To make the crumble topping combine sugar, flour, oats and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub the in butter until totally combined. If you grate the butter in to the bowl, this process takes next to no time at all.

Mix the berries and sugar together thoroughly in a bowl then put them in the bottom of the ovenproof dish. Evenly sprinkle the crumble mixture over the top. Put the overnproof dish in to the oven, on a baking tray, and bake for about half an hour or until the crumble topping is golden. Serve with ice-cream and/or custard.

Leftover crumble makes a fab lunchbox treat, especially for grown ups with access to a microwave and a small pot of custard. Not that I'm admitting to anything! LOL

Shake Up Your Wake Up - Breakfast Challenge

2012-01-04T07:49:00.000Z

Do you find yourself struggling for time in the morning and skipping the most important meal of the day - breakfast? Well, you are not alone, in fact alarmingly one in three mums regularly skip breakfast and a staggering one in six adults never eat breakfast.

On average, mums have nine tasks to do every morning before leaving the house[i] so it is no wonder that breakfast often gets missed. But it shouldn’t! Breakfast should be a vital part of your morning routine as it benefits your mood, physical and mental performance, weight and health. In other words, starting the day with breakfast can help make you healthier and happier![ii]

I am one of those mums who regularly skip breakfast. *hangs head in shame* If I'm lucky I'll have time to eat a banana or apple before I leave home, or scoff it down on the school run. I want to make time for breakfast so am taking part in the Shake Up Your Wake Up Challenge.

The Shake Up Your Wake Up campaign have teamed up with mum of three Melinda Messenger to challenge you to eat a healthy breakfast for five days during Farmhouse Breakfast Week (22 - 28 January 2012).

You can visit www.shakeupyourwakeup.com/challenge from November 2011 and pledge to take part in the challenge. All registrations received before Sunday 22 January will be entered into a prize draw for a chance to win one of twenty copies of Melinda Messenger’s Family Cookbook. The challenge itself runs from Monday 23 – Friday 27 January and we will be providing daily breakfast ideas to help you. At the end of the week, simply tell us what you ate each day and how it made you feel (e.g. did you have more energy, did you snack less and did you feel happier?). Don’t forget you could win £1,000 in holiday vouchers, so register now!

There's loads of ideas and support for those taking part in the challenge on the Shake Up Your Wake Up on Facebook

You'll also find loads of delicious recipes to help you make breakfast tastier and more appealing on the Shake Up Your Wake Up website.

_____________________________________________________________________

[i] Mumsnet Survey for HGCA, Dec 2010

[ii] Studies show that adults who ate breakfast tended to work faster, made fewer mistakes in logic tests and had better memory recall compared with breakfast skippers. Study by Cognitive Drug Research, in conjunction with HGCA 2004.
Studies carried out at the University of Bristol examined the breakfast habits of 126 volunteers between the ages of 20 and 79 and assessed their mental health, found that those who ate breakfast everyday were less depressed, less emotionally distressed and had lower perceived levels of stress compared with those who skipped the first meal of the day. Smith 1998
Studies have also shown eating breakfast to be associated with better school performance and attendance among children (e.g. Rampersaud et al. 2005). Rampersaud GC, Pereira MA, Girard BL et al. (2005) Breakfast habits, nutritional status, body weight and academic performance in children and adolescents. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 105: 743–60.
A study of 13-20 year old students in Germany found that male students reported feeling more positive after consuming breakfast, compared with the fasting condition. Widenhorn-Müller K, Hille K, Klenk J, Weiland U. Influence of having breakfast on cognitive performance and mood in 13- to 20-year-old high school students: results of a crossover trial. Pediatrics. 2008 Aug; 122(2):279-84

Floating Bread (Fried Maori Bread)

2012-01-03T20:56:00.000Z

This recipe is my paternal Nan's. It instantly transports me back to my childhood in her kitchen during holidays with loads of other cousins about. With many mouths to feed this was a cheap treat for us all. Be careful making this with children about, keep them out of the kitchen if you can as it involves a pot of hot oil.

5 cups plain white flour

5 tsp baking powder

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp salt

1½ cups (375ml) lukewarm water

Cooking Oil

An electric frying pan or a deep saucepan

Put all the dry ingredients into a bowl and mix together. Make a well in the centre and gradually add the water. Stir together with a knife. When the mixture starts looking like dough tip it onto a floured bench.

Knead the dough just a little until it develops a smooth texture. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about 6cm. Cut into 2 cm thick squares, pricking each one with a fork.

Heat a pot of oil till very hot and add the dough pieces, turning as they brown. Remove from the oil and drain on kitchen roll.

Eat with lots of jam and/or Golden Syrup. Fried bread can be made in bulk, cooled and stored in an airtight container and is perfect for parties and picnics.

Rolled Oats Biscuits

2012-01-02T08:46:00.000Z

These biscuits are made at least once a week in our house. My girls love them as a snack and they are great with a cuppa, put in lunchboxes, or as an afterschool snack. They are so quick and easy to make. You could add some raisins or chocolate chips too if you wanted to.

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground ginger

180g butter

1 cup sugar

2 cups rolled oats

½ tsp baking soda

¼ cup milk

Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Grease or line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Sift the flour, baking powder and ginger. Soften the butter then cream the butter and sugar in a cake mixer, beat well for about 5 minutes. Add the flour and rolled oats, fold these in by hand.

Dissolve the baking soda in the milk, then mix thoroughly into mixture. Roll spoonfuls into walnut-size pieces, put on your prepared tray, and press down slightly with your hand or a floured fork.

Bake at 180ºC for 15 minutes.