Thai Chicken Salad

This is a great kiwi version of Thai for those who only just like Thai (like me).

Chicken marinade

1/4 C oil
1 Tb rice vinegar
1/4 C sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
Fresh coriander leaves chopped
1 lime, juiced
salt and pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts sliced into pieces
Leave for as long as 4 hours. I only had time for about 1 hour. And the chicken was super tender.

The Salad Dressing

1/4 C rice vinegar
1/4 C sweet thai chili sauce (although I am a sooky and I only added 1/2 this so adjust to your taste)
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp sugar
Salt and pepper

Salad

Red cabbage sliced finely
Celery sliced finely
Grated carrot
More coriander leaves chopped
Cucumber chopped into small pieces
Capsicum sliced thinly then cut into small pieces
Mango chopped ( I used tinned because its out of season)
Spring onion sliced thickly
Snow pea shoots

Dress the salad with the salad dressing and put onto serving plates

Cook the chicken in a hot frying pan

Leave to cool slightly

Slice and place on top of salad

Drizzle with peanut sauce (I used de Siam Peanut and Coconut Satay Sauce)

You can make your own peanut sauce just google recipes, I split the last one I made and wasted my last bit of peanut butter. Let me know in the comments below if you have a fail proof delicous not too thick peanut sauce please and thank you.

You can also add cashews or peanuts, crispy fried noodles and a wedge of lime

You can also add thai basil and/or mint leaves to the salad too.

BBQ Meatloaf

How good does this look!! BBQ meatloaf.  It is delicous.  The BBQ sauce has an odd assortment of ingredients that you just have to trust like lemon juice, coffee....
Thank you Claire for this recipe.

The Facebook Group NZ Mummies in the Kitchen has brought us back together after all these years and we now have our families and share a love of cooking.
                       

                          

• 500gm sausage meat
• 500gm mince
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 2 onions
• 2 tsp curry powder
• salt
• pepper
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 water

• Sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup worchester sauce
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• 30gms butter
• 2 tbsp lemon juice

1. Combine all ingredients till well mixed and smooth.
2. With wet hands shape into a loaf in oven dish.
3. Cook for 30 mins at about 180c.
4. Pour over sauce and cook for another 45 mins, basting frequently

Sauce
Combine all ingredients, bring to boil, simmer for 5 mins.

Quiches and Date and Walnut Loaf

Grandma's Bottomless Quiche
Beat 4eggs, 2 cups milk, S&P. Add 2cups grated cheese (tasty is tastiest). Stir in 1/2cup bran flakes (baking bran not breakfast cereal) and 3/4cup flour. Weird mix but okay.

Add whatever you got on hand - onion, courgettes, ham, bacon, toms, mushies, leek, salmon, tuna, asparagus, corn, spinach. Bake Mod oven til set and lightly brown on top. About 25mins.

Roast Vege Quiche

Leftover roast veges- I used potatoes, red onion, and capsicum

Feta

Bacon or ham (optional)

Handful of grated tasty cheese

Cherry Tomatoes

6 eggs (depending on the size of dish being used, you only want just enough liqud to come up to veges)

Cream or milk

S&P

Savoury Short ready rolled pastry

I blind baked the pastry first with tinfoil and rice or about 8 minutes.

Then added veges and some fresh thyme sprigs on top.

Whisk together the eggs and cream and S&P

Bake for about 20 minutes on 190C keep an eye on the mixture to see if it is cooked.  Leave to set for about 20 minutes before serving.

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We deserved a cooked lunch after prepping the front garden ready for river stones and plants.  

It's now all finished

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We also had Date and Walnut Loaf which was delicous

2 Cups plain flour and 3tsps BP instead of SR Flour

Tip- leave the date and butter mixture to cool to luke warm before adding flour. 

Claire's Best Chicken

Crockpot Cashew Chicken
with Slaw
Make some 2 min noodles. I used the ones that have all the little seasoning and sauce packets in it. Drain some of the water and spoon some sauce from the crock pot through. I added a bit of the seasoning and tasted until I liked it. You want enough so there is a bit of dressing through the coleslaw. Let it cool a little before mixing through coleslaw. For the coleslaw I used cabbage, carrot, capsicum, courgette, spring onion and sesame seeds. I also sprinkled some crispy onion on top from the noodles.

Good Old Fashioned Boiled Mince

There has to be a better sounding name. Perhaps we will call it Savoury Mince. It might not sound very Master Chef but it's a good nourishing winter staple. Beautiful on toast the next day or with some flaky pastry and sprinkle of cheese - ta da Kiwi favourite mince and cheese pie. But best of all yours will be be the best "Ladies a plate please" if you make little flaky pastry savouries with their lids just popping up like gentlemen tipping their top hats. So for Boiled, oops I mean Savoury Mince and sorry measurements are not too accurate, it's one of those things you just wing it. 
In a pot cover 500gms mince with water. Add 1 or 2 onions finely chopped, white or red(depending on size and your family preference). Add diced or grated carrot. Season with S&P. Bring to the boil, (sorry it will look and smell a little 'grey' at this stage) I like to stir and break up mince so no lumps. Lower heat to simmer for 20ish mins. Sometime during that time I add a good splash or 2 of tomato sauce, a slug of worcesteshire and a teaspoon-ish of one of the Mites (Mar or Vege). Continue to simmer, At this stage I add maybe 1/2cup frozen peas, make sure it comes back to simmer. Now the secret ingredient - a packet of Maggi Oxtail Soup. (you know the dry stuff like onion soup for dip) Just stir that through for colour and flavour, this will also thicken a little. Then take off the heat and sprinkle in maybe 2 tblsp of flour to thicken. You can adjust this if it still seems a little runny. Careful with the flour, too much and it will be 'claggy' and not very appetising. Return to the heat for 4-5minutes to cook the flour and voila delicious Savoury Mince.
You can add any veges really. Froz Mixed, grated courgette, corn, whatever you think your family will. Add frozen veges towards end of cooking. Anything you want to hide, cut up small and add at beginning it will go stealth in the boiling process.

Mild Lamb Koftas and Tabouli

Dad and I have very different tastes, I can't handle a pinch of chili, I can barely even handle garlic.  My tongue and taste buds are a bit woosy.

Before you start soak the skewers in some cold water

Lamb Koftas:
Lamb mince
1 tsp of cumin
1 tsp of thyme
Chili powder (I chicken out at this point and show the chili powder box to the bowl and maybe a couple of bits float over into the bowl)
S & P
You can add parsley, coriander, lemon zest, garlic  (I haven't perfected this recipe yet)

Mix with your hands (clean hands aye), make a long sausage shape around a skewer, not too fat or they take too long to cook.
Little splash of olive oil in a frying pan, fry for a few minutes, roll over, fry for a few minutes, roll over...  until cooked through.

Tabouli:
Couscous- use the instructions on the box
Add cubed cucumber, tomato, mint leaves, lemon zest and lemon juice

Yoghurt Dressing:
Greek yoghurt, lemon juice, lots of mint leaves.

Serve with pita pockets, grated carrot and shredded lettuce.

YUMMO