Daisy Chains and Picnics

This was my first time making a meal with plant based meat. Darren has cooked a few vegan meals mostly at his girlfriends house as she is vegan and when she brought her own vegan roast on Christmas day, we cooked it on the BBQ for her, but it wasn't our cup of tea, not enough flavour for our liking. I have tried ready made tofu sausages a while back but didn't like them, yet again, not much flavour, so when I saw this plant based mince reduced at the supermarket I thought I would give it a try with various herbs and spices. As per usual, it was just a case of tasting as I added the ingredients until I got what I thought was tasty and what my family would like. Ingredients 1 Tbsp olive oil I onion, finely diced 1/2 red capsicum, diced 2 garlic cloves, minced 100 g mushrooms, sliced 50 g sun dried tomatoes, finely chopped  salt and black pepper vegan mince 400 g tin diced tomatoes 150 ml red wine 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 2 tbsp tomato puree 1 tbsp dried mixed Italian herbs 1 tb...

The lemon gives these a delicious tangy flavour with the slight peppery taste of  lime pepper. Ingredients 8 chicken drumsticks 1 lemon, juiced and zested 2 tsp lime juice 1/4 cup olive oil 2 tsp lime pepper 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp salt 1 tsp ground paprika 1 tsp dried oregano Method 1.  Place chicken in a large ziplock bag. 2. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Pour over chicken, seal the bag, squeezing as much air out as possible. Massage marinade into the chicken. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or longer if possible. 3.  Before cooking, allow chicken to come to room temperature ( about 15 minutes). Preheat oven to 200°C fan. Line a baking tray with foil, arrange chicken in a single layer onto the lined tray. Cook, uncovered for 20 minutes, turn chicken and cook for a further 15-20 minutes or until the chicken reaches the proper temperature and is cooked through. Ideal for a main dish or make them ah...

A quick and easy recipe for mac and cheese. Made in a mug in the microwave with little preparation. Jodie loves mac & cheese so this is perfect for her to make for herself at lunch time either at home or work. The water may overflow so place the mug on a microwave safe bowl to catch the water, if it does overflow check the water level to make sure it hasn't dried up. Note: cooking times may vary depending on the microwave. Ingredients for one 70 g macaroni pasta `1/2 cup water tiny pinch salt 1 tbsp milk 20-30 g grated cheese Method 1.  Put macaroni, water and salt into a large microwave safe mug. Microwave on full power for 1-2 minutes. Remove and stir. Return to microwave for a further 2-4 minutes, stir again. Cook for a further 2-4 minutes, add more water if needed. 2.  Remove from microwave, drain (if necessary), add milk and cheese, stir to combine, season to taste. Return to microwave and heat through or until cheese is...

The other day was cold and I just fancied some tomato soup. I didn't have any tinned tomato soup but I did have a couple of tins of plum tomatoes in the cupboard and some cherry tomatoes in the fridge. This recipe is so easy and deliciously tangy, I spiced it up a bit with some diced pickled jalapenos but if you are not keen on spice, omit these. I used my multi cooker (which I love) on the soup setting but it is just as easy to cook on the stove. Ingredients 2 tsp olive oil 1/2 onion, chopped 2 spring onions, chopped 100g cherry tomatoes 2 cloves garlic, chopped 2 tbsp diced pickled Jalapenos (optional) 1/2 cup frozen carrots 2 x 400g tin plum tomatoes 3 cups veg or chicken stock 1 bay leaf 1 sprig fresh rosemary 1/2 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp garlic salt splash Worcestershire sauce Method 1.  Heat oil in a soup pot over a medium heat or turn multi cooker on to cook. Once oil is heated, add onion, spring onion, cherry tomat...

Mum sent through a recipe for a sugar-free loaf that she thought Cerys would enjoy. I adapted it slightly using the ingredients that I had in my cupboard but I will post the original recipe below as I want to make it again using what the ingredients she used. It is easy enough to replace ingredients with what you have, for example try different flour like coconut, add prunes or figs. It was a delicious moist loaf that is ideal for breakfast or a snack, Cerys thoroughly enjoyed it. Ingredients 2 cups pitted dates 1 cup white S.R flour 1 cup wholemeal S.R flour 1 tbsp cacao powder 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda 1 tbsp baking powder 3 eggs 1 cup olive or vegetable oil 2 tsp vanilla extract (optional) 1/2 cup mixed nuts 1/2 cup mixed seeds 2 tbsp ginger powder (optional) Method 1.  Place dates in a bowl, sprinkle with 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda, cover with boiling water, leave for at least 1 hour, longer if possible. Once softened blend to make a puree. 2.  Meanwhile, preheat oven to 18...

During the Covid-19 lockdown there was a few recipe sharing going on around social media so people could try the foods they missed at home.  This one is for scones served at the Queen's Garden Party, she allowed her pastry chefs to share the recipe for everyone to enjoy. The recipe is for fruit scones but I omitted the fruit as my kids prefer plain scones. They turned out really tasty although I have had a better rise with other scone recipes, maybe I was doing something wrong, I will certainly try these again. Ingredients 500 g plain flour 28 g baking powder 94 g cold butter, chopped 86 g sugar 2 eggs 140 ml buttermilk 100 g sultanas (cover in hot water and leave to soak for 30 minutes) Method 1.  Mix the flour, baking powder, butter and sugar together in a bowl until a crumb is formed. 2.  In a separate bowl, whisk eggs and buttermilk together. 3.  Add the liquid to the crumb mixture. Mix the dough until it is smooth. 5.  If using, add the sultanas and mix unt...

Doesn't sound exciting or even appetising, but trust me, this soup is tasty. I made this using leftovers in the fridge. I had bought a whole lettuce for our burgers a couple of days ago, it was quite a big lettuce so not much was used and everyone was getting fed up of having a couple of lettuce leaves with every meal. Soup always goes down well, especially on colder days so I thought I would try a lettuce soup. Ingredients 1 onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tbsp butter 1 tbsp olive oil 3/4 tsp ground coriander 1/4 tsp black pepper 1 medium potato, peeled, chopped 1 whole lettuce, washed & coarsely chopped 4 cups vegetable stock Method 1.  Heat butter and oil in a heavy based pan over a low/medium heat. Add onion and garlic, stirring until translucent and softened, approx 5 minutes. Add coriander and pepper, cook, stirring for a further 1 minute. 2.  Add potato, lettuce and stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to a simme...

It has been nice to get out and about again now that the Covid-19 restrictions have relaxed and things are gradually getting back to normal. Saturday we dropped Cerys off at work, came home and had breakfast then went to the tip shops as there were some items we were looking for that might just turn up in the tip shops. Then we went to Rosny for a look around the charity shops before heading in to town to collect Cerys from work. We were a little early so decided to park at Brooke Street Pier and go for a quiet drink at The Glass House, it was great to actually sit somewhere and chill with a nice cool glass of wine. Sunday was spent tidying the garden and taking rubbish to the tip.

HAPPY SWEET 16 CERYS 🎈🎉 It is hard to believe that Cerys turned 16 yesterday!!. Her birthday cake request this year was a Freddo frog ice cream cake, so that is what she got. As it was Monday both Scott and Jodie were working, it was the start of the school holidays so Cerys was off, she opened her cards and gifts in the morning as she was working from 2.45 pm - 6 pm. She got a big box of British sweets from Caroline to represent her 'sweet' 16, it was fun looking through the sweets that we knew from back home. From Darren Happy 16th birthday to our beautiful, brave girl. We are beyond proud of how far you have come these past 20 months. People and situations have not been kind to you to say the least! but you are coming out the other side and are returning back to your sweet self again and to see you smile and hear you laugh once more is truly the greatest gift anyone could ever give me. You have a family who absolutely adore you, never forget that 💟. Hope all your dreams ...