Daisy Chains and Picnics

“Try the grey stuff, it’s delicious! Don’t believe me? Ask the dishes!”   During the coronavirus quarantine lot's of foodie places have been sharing certain recipes, and I was delighted to come across some Disney shared recipes, I will certainly be trying a good few of them.                  This first one is for a dessert called Grey Stuff which comes from the Beauty and the Beast film..'try the grey stuff, it's delicious", which is available at the Be Our Guest restaurant. It is an Oreo filled whipped vanilla and chocolate dessert topped with sprinkles that has a delicious creamy almost butterscotch flavour to it. It calls for 8 oz cool whip which is not available here in Australia, so I tried it with whipped cream stabelized with icing sugar to make it stiffer, for every one cup of whipping cream add 3 tbsp icing sugar, start by whipping the cream with a whisk attachment, then slowly add the icing sugar, co...

Oh my word, this was absolutely delicious. I really hadn't though about battering salmon as we adore it simply shallow fried or barbecued, I thought it would spoil the taste of the salmon. I managed to get some salmon fillets on offer and came across a packet of beer batter mix in my cupboard so decided to take the plunge and beer batter the salmon, it did not disappoint. The salmon was still tasty and tender but with a delicious crunch of batter. I used a packet mix of beer batter but it is just as easy to make your own, I have included a recipe for homemade beer batter below. Make sure the beer or soda water is well chilled, the colder the better, this gives it delicious crispiness. Ingredients 500 g salmon fillets, boneless, skinless 200 ml beer or soda water, chilled 160 g packet beer batter mix oil for deep frying Method 1.  Cut salmon into approximately 2 x 1 inch chunks. 2.  Add enough oil to a heavy based saucepan o...

I had some leftover custard and slightly over ripe strawberries sitting in the fridge and was trying to think of a way to use them up, I didn't want to make a dessert as the girls still have a lot of treats from Easter. My girls love smoothies and milkshakes so decided to combine the two and make a delicious thick shake that I just knew would be inhaled!! Ingredients 8-10 ripe strawberries, hulled 1 1/2 cups vanilla custard 1/2 cup milk Method Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Totally easy with 100% success rate 😜

I found this recipe and tips  here  (photo sourced from same website) Best Beer Batter Recipe: How to Make It & 6 Must Know Tip Learning how to make the best beer batter recipe is very rewarding, but getting it spot on requires more than just a great recipe. There are 6 critical things needed to make the best beer batter. Before I jump into these, rest assured there is an awesome beer batter recipe below. So what are the 6 most important things when making beer batter? They're simple, and once you know them you'll never forget them. Guaranteed to make you look like a master chef and impress friends and family! So here they are: 1. Only Use a Cold Beer Some beer batter recipes will say to add ice or place the beer batter in the fridge to 'rest' for 30 minutes. Forget it! Adding ice will water down your batter and refrigerating the beer batter just takes time. Simply start with a cold beer and you'll be one step ahead. Two more reasons...

A Mexican twist to liven up mashed potatoes. Combine creamy mash with tangy, creamy avocado salsa for a deliciously different taste explosion! These went down a treat, Scott is not a huge mashed potato fan, he usually leaves some on his plate no matter how much I give him! but he totally loved these...success!!! Ingredients 850 g potatoes (suitable for mash) 1 tbsp butter 3 tbsp milk 1/4 tsp dried parsley 1/4 tsp dried oregano 1/8 tsp garlic powder 1 avocado, diced 2 spring onions, finely chopped 1/2 small red capsicum, finely chopped 1 small red chilli, seeded, chopped 1/2 lime, juiced 1/3 cup pale ale 2 tbsp sour cream Method 1.  Peel potatoes and cut into cubes. Place in a medium pan of salted water. Bring to boil. Cook until tender. 2.  Meanwhile, combine avocado, spring onion, capsicum, chilli and lime juice in a bowl, season to taste. 3.  Drain potatoes in a colander. Return to pan and dry over heat. Return to ...

This recipe came about from leftovers I had from tea the night before. I wasn't sure how fried onions would taste in a potato salad but it turned out to be delicious, it was even tasty cold next day. Ingredients 250 g baby potatoes, quartered 1 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, chopped 150 g diced bacon bits 4-5 tbsp mayonnaise 1 tbsp roasted sesame dressing Method 1.  Cook potatoes in salted water until tender. Drain. Place in a large serving bowl. 2.  Heat oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Gently fry onions until tender. Add bacon bits, continue to fry until onions & bacon are browned. 3.  Add onions and bacon to potatoes and stir to combine. Allow to cool until warm. Add mayonnaise & sesame dressing, gently toss until well combined. Enjoy

Ok, this may or may not be classed as a chowder, but it is something like it. I had some seafood in the freezer to use up and decided to make a chowder or stew, whatever you want to call it with what I had. Any kind of seafood can be added, try scallops, crab meat, clams, salmon, haddock or oysters if you want to be posh! Basically a thickened creamy soup, chowder can be served as a starter or a main meal.  I used a marinara mix as it has a great selection of seafood in it and it is easy to find and relatively cheap to buy. Ingredients 3 tbsp butter 1 onion, diced 1 carrot, diced 1/8 tsp dried thyme 3 tbsp plain flour 350 g potatoes, peeled,                       roughly chopped    150 g sweet potato, peeled,                     roughly chopped 3 cups fish stock 3/4 cup tin corn kernels, drained 300 g marina...

These tasty and refreshing cucumber and mint sandwiches are perfect for a hot summers day lunch, filled with thinly sliced cucumber and finely chopped fresh mint they are also perfect for a tea party. There is no need for specific ingredient amounts I just make as much or as little as I need. I find that using a soft white bread makes them deliciously delicate but other types bread can be used. Ingredients sliced white bread thinly sliced cucumber rounds fresh mint, finely chopped spreadable butter salt and pepper to taste Method 1.  Peel and thinly slice cucumber. Place the slices between 2 sheets of paper towels in a colander. Allow liquid to drain for around 10 minutes. Pat dry. 2.  Spread slices of bread with softened butter. Arrange 2 layers of cucumber on the bottom slice of bread, top with a sprinkle of finely chopped mint, season with salt and pepper, top with another slice of buttered bread. Press lightly with palm of ha...

Trying to keep the kids occupied during quarantine?, get them into the kitchen to help you bake. These moist cupcakes are perfect for an afternoon treat. Ingredients for mixture one 1 cup cola drink 125  g unsalted butter 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1/4 cup powdered cocoa 14 marshmallows Ingredients for mixture two 2 cups plain flour 1 3/4 cups sugar 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp vanilla essence 1 cup plain yoghurt 2 eggs, beaten Method 1.  Pre-heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. 2.  (Mixture one). In a medium pan mix the cola, butter, vegetable oil and cocoa powder. Bring to the boil, remove from heat, add marshmallows. Place lid on saucepan and leave until marshmallows begin to melt. 3.  (Mixture two). In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar and baking powder. Add yoghurt, eggs and vanilla. Mix well to combine. 4.  Combine mixture one in with mixture two in the mixin...

HAPPY EASTER 🥚🐰 As the entire world is in lockdown just now due to covid-19 there is not much happening for Easter, well nothing at all, all the usual activities surrounding Easter have been cancelled so there are no egg hunts or egg rolling unless you are doing in your own house!, the churches are closed so no service, which really doesn't bother us as we don't do the whole Easter thing, we still do an egg hunt around the house for the girls and I managed to get the Easter eggs half price so that was a win 👍. Scott and I spent most of good Friday in the garden so I just made finger foods for tea. Saturday the girls were working and we had to go and collect some things that had to be put to the tip. When we got home I prepared the pork shoulder for the smoker tomorrow, then went to collect the girls from work. Evening we took some fun photos with bunny ears and watched a movie. Easter Sunday the girls did their usual egg hunt around the hous...