Tuesday tip: Economical activities

Sometimes, it actually works out better to outsource some of your activities. Yes that's right, it sometimes is more economical to pay someone else to do your jobs!

Let me explain. If you can find someone to do your ironing for say, $15 an hour and you need two hours worth of ironing done, isn't it worth it for your time and sanity (not to mention time that you could spend with the family) to outsource this task? Would you get more than $30 worth of happiness, sanity and down time from it? I know I would!!

Things to consider:

• What is your hourly rate of pay? Could you earn more in two hours doing your own job vs doing the outsourcing task? If you could, it is better economy to outsource it!
• Will you save time and sanity? Why do something you dislike intensely if you can outsource it and save the effort?
• Does it free up some time that you could put to better use? Spending time with the kids/other half/pets or having some valuable personal time?

Jobs that you might consider outsourcing:

• Cleaning
• Ironing
• Shopping
• Gardening
• Childcare

Head over to With a Fork to read about outsourcing food shopping with a food box delivery service. If it sounds like your kind of thing and you want to try it, there is a discount code for your first box!

Do you outsource tasks? What works for your household?

Recipe: Berry Blast Ice Pops

Fantastic to keep in the fridge during the hot summer days. My Little man would come home from daycare on hot days and would do anything for a berry ice pop. They also look so cool in their bands of yellow and red. Get creative and layer the colours for more interesting effects.

Ingredients (serves 5 | makes 5 ice pops)

• 1/2 cup Full Cream milk
• 1/4 cup Yogurt
• 1 Banana
• 1 handful mixed berries (blueberries/ raspberries/ black berries)

Method

1. Mix Milk and Yogurt and split in 2 cups
2. Add banana to one cup, Add Berries to the other cup and whip till smooth
3. Fill in Ice Pop mould half full with Banana and milk mixture, freeze for above an hour.
4. Fill the rest of the ice pop mould with berries and milk mixture, freeze overnight and enjoy whenever the kids want a nice healthy snack.

Recipe: Apple, Bacon and Maple Muffins

In our house we love bacon. I think the kids get it especially strongly from their American Daddy.

One day while being stuck under 2 sleeping kids I had the inspiration for trying out Bacon and Apples together in a muffin. My testers really loved the result but a couple of days after, my husband comes up to me and says... you know those apple and bacon muffins you made.... would it still work if you added maple syrup into it. I just had to try it and after a few measurement trials I think the recipe below perfectly balances the salty sweet and crisp flavours that is Apple Bacon and Maple Muffins,

Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Tuesday tip - Make your own buttermilk

In an effort to blog more regularly, we are introducing a weekly post segment, where we will share a life hack style tip every Tuesday. It could be about anything - eco tips, financial tips, cooking tips, something crafty, or maybe even a crazy good sale we've come across. The point is, it will be something fantastic that we think needs sharing.

Feel free to add your own tips in the comments or even let us know suggestions for future Tuesday tips!

Without further ado, the first tip for 2015:

Making your own buttermilk

Buttermilk is one of those ingredients that I use rarely, and don't tend to have on hand for the rare recipe that requires it. No problem though! You can make your own buttermilk from regular milk - just add 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and let it stand for 5 minutes or so.  The neat thing is that this tip works in other milk types as well, so you can make soy buttermilk!

Note that the milk will curdle a little. That's part of the process, and you use the curds in your cooking as well. No need to skim them off at all.

Do you use buttermilk? What are your favourite buttermilk recipes?

Animal Veggie Cakes

These ironically named veggie cakes may or may not contain any animals at all but it may be a good way to get kids to eat their veggies if they look like animals.

The little man had a play date yesterday and I had some free time in the morning so I thought I'd knock up some Animal Veggie cakes for him and his little friends.

Ordinarily these are super easy to make and considering I was juggling playing host to a lovely mum of a 4 year old and twin 3 year olds, my own 2 and a half year old little miss 5 week old and a temperamental oven, I suppose I should be glad that they didn't come out too badly. It only really goes to show that you really can't mess up this recipe even with the odds stacked against you. 

The best thing is that these little patties can be knocked up ahead of time and popped into the oven for 10-15 mins before serving. 

Soup weather

Is it soup weather where you are? Here in Brisbane, it's been grey and miserable which is just perfect for whipping up a batch of easy-peasy potato and leek soup.

We love soup in our house - it's quick, easy, nourishing and really just screams out comfort food. Just quietly, it's also a bit of a hit with toddlers (Ellie likes to add her own garnishes to her bowl for extra flourish).

Potato and leek soup

Well, what are you waiting for? Head on over to WithAFork to see how to create a potato and leek bowl of yum.

What's your winter comfort food?

The 'Town Bike' Slice

Let's be honest here, with a name like the town bike slice, how could I not want to make this as soon as I saw it pop up on a newsletter from Stay at Home Mum? I was especially tickled with the explanation for the name of the slice: "Because it’s cheap, easy and everyone can enjoy it!"

It really was easy too. This was whipped up while small miss was busy playing with her balloon balls. No need to mix or stir this recipe, it's as easy as measuring out a cup of each of the ingredients, layering then baking. My kind of recipe! It's not really very infant/toddler friendly, but mums need a few mum-friendly indulgences every now and then right?

Chocolate chips (I used a mix of dark and milk). Coconut. Nuts (I used peanuts and almonds). Rice bubbles. All topped with a can of condensed milk then baked until golden brown and gooey (about 20 minutes at 180 degrees).

Here's a tip: allow it to cool completely before slicing, otherwise it will be a terrible mess!

I'll be honest. Upon first taste, I wasn't sure this slice was for me. It was too gooey to take anywhere so my plans of taking it to work to share were shelved as it really needs to be stored in the fridge and eaten straight away while cold. I also thought it was too sweet. BUT! It grew on me. I froze a few pieces and they were delicious, perfect for an after dinner snack or when I wanted something sweet to chew on. I think the sweetness mellowed a bit too.

So, I might give it another go. Maybe play with the ingredients a little, try corn flakes instead of rice bubbles, add some fruit it to give the illusion of a healthy treat.  Might also be a bit of a winner to take to some of the upcoming Christmas parties....

Do you have a recipe that hits the sweet spot?

Broccoli and cheese soup (with hidden vegetables)

Inspired by the1337mum's easy recipes, I decided to take a leaf out of her (recipe) book when I needed to create dinner last night for the small miss from a few wilted vegetables and pantry staples. I came up with a healthier version of a broccoli and cheese soup.
 
Broccoli and cheese soup with extra hidden vegetables

 

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 carrot, diced

2 heads broccoli, chopped (don’t waste it, I also chopped up the peeled stems)

2 tablespoons vegetable stock powder

3 cups water (more or less depending on how thick you like your soup)

handful tasty cheese

• Add the onion and garlic to a saucepan with a little olive oil. Fry until fragrant.
• Add the chopped carrot and broccoli, stock powder and water. Let it boil, and then cook until vegetables are soft (about 10 minutes).
• Take off the heat and blend. I used a stick blender until I was happy with the texture. I then added a handful of tasty cheese and stirred it in. No need to have it on the stove, the residual heat will melt the cheese. Season to taste.

I served the small miss’s with some rice I had already cooked in the fridge. It must have been a hit… she grabbed the spoon from my hand (evidently I wasn’t shovelling food fast enough for her taste) and proceeded to feed herself. She’s never done that before, so I was most impressed. The ever hopeful hounds circled below her feet in anticipation of the inevitable fallout.

 

 

I was quite impressed: I used up some vegetables that needed using, and created a tasty and fairly healthy meal with not much at all. Win!

 

When your cupboard takes inspiration from old Mother Hubbard, what are your go to recipes?

Quick and easy lunches. Cauliflower soup and Chinese Chicken Porridge

I've gotten pretty good at planning dinners thanks to an idea I've stole from Ms Fork when saw it on her fridge. But somehow lunches still sometimes get away from me. I mean they show up all unexpectedly in the middle of the day when people are busy doing stuff. Also we had a massive weekend last week and didn't get a chance to do a proper grocery shop so or fridge and pantry is not nearly as conducive to options as I'd like.

As a result I've had to develop a repertoire of easy meals that don't require that I have much in the fridge to prepare. 

Here are 2 I've whipped up over the last couple of days.

Meatloaf Cupcakes

Food should be fun. Both to look at and to eat. Most days I don't have a lot of time to make fun foods but I managed to get half a day to myself recently and decided to try an idea that I've been toying with for a while.

Meatloaf cupcakes!!!

I've now made these twice and they seem to be a big hit with Hubby and The Little Man (who loves traditional cupcakes more than any kid should). Also note I never use the same recipe for anything twice in a row. I'm more a "use what I can find in the fridge" cook. So consider this recipe more as a guide and feel free to modify as necessary. Recipe makes 12 cupcakes in a regular sized muffin tray.

Ingredients for the Cupcakes:

• 1kg of Mince Meat (I used 500g Pork and 500g beef)
• Worchestershire Sauce
• 1 tablespoon of tomato sauce
• 1 Red Capsicum
• 1 Onion
• 1 Handful of chopped mushrooms
• 2 Eggs
• 1.5 cups of Rolled Oats (Or breadcrumbs but I found oats give a better texture. The home brand cheap stuff works well in this recipe)
• Handful of Parsley
• Generous pinch of rosemary
• Salt and Pepper

Ingredients for the Frosting:

• 1kg of Potatoes (the kinds that are good for creamy mash)
• 1 cup of shredded cheese
• 25-100g of butter (Ok the more the better but I feel guilty so I usually just use 25-50g but always wish I added more.
• 1/2 cup of cream or milk
• 1 Teaspoon of minced garlic
• Pinch of salt
• Generous sprinkling of  chopped dill and paprika (I add this at the end so it look like sprinkles on the cupcake frosting)

Method:

Potatoes first because you want to give them time to cool before piping onto the cupcakes.

Steam or boil peeled potatoes. I prefer to steam because it takes less water and therefore comes to a boil faster and I'm quite impatient to wait for water to boil. Also you don't risk scalding yourself when you try and tip out a pot of boiling water to get at the potatoes. 

Mash and whisk potatoes with all the other frosting ingredients except the dill and paprika (while warm) to make cheesy creamy mash potatoes. Put aside to cool.

Mix all the cupcake ingredients in a large bowl. You can use a spoon but it would take forever. It is much faster (and way more fun) to use your hands and get into it. Make sure all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed up.

Grab a good handful and roll into a ball. Remember unlike normal cupcakes these don't rise in the baking so make the top nice and round to get a muffin top and press it into the muffin tray to get the base shape. 

Bake in the oven for 20 mins at about 120-150 degrees until top browns. Stick a skewer into it to make sure it's cooked through. Remove from muffin tray and 

Spoon frosting into a piping bag (I don't own one so I used a Ziploc sandwich bag and snipped the end off).   Pipe frosting on top of the cupcakes. Sprinkle dill and paprika over the top of the frosting to look like sprinkles and then top with a cherry tomato. Other modifications can be to swirl barbecue sauce or caramel balsamic over the top like chocolate sauce or tomato sauce tastes pretty good too.

This isn't the first time I have ventured into the whimsical world of meaty desserts. Whilst at university I was tasked with bringing a dessert to a meatlovers fiesta where the one rule is that every dish had to have meat as the major ingredient. I found a recipe for  Chocolate beef brownies for people with nut allergies to simulate a walnut brownie. It was a big hit. 

Anyway I hope some of you get a chance to try this recipe. I'm trying to plan a upside down meal where the Entree looks like the main and the Main looks like a dessert and the Dessert looks like an Entree, but I'm still stuck for an idea of what Entree looks like a Main. I've got an idea for a Dessert that looks like Sausages (Baked fruit pudding) and Mash (Apple puree) but I haven't had the chance to try it yet.

Anyone have ideas for crazy reversed meals? I'd love to hear your ideas. 

Leftover Quiche

When cooking for a toddler it is very hard to figure out how much he or she is going to consume for that meal. Some days the little man picks at his food for a few mins before seeing how many times he can hit the dog with carefully aimed spoonfuls of whatever I've slaved in the kitchen to make for him.

For the last few days, The Little Man has been going through, what we think (hope), is a growth spurt. He's eating everything and anything you put in front of him. And when he's done he looks up with those big brown serious eyes and says "More, more, more, more?" (currently his favorite and most reliable word-meaning association).

So this weekend I've made some little snack sized quiches to tide him over between meals so he's not filling up on baby crackers and bananas.