A big fave in our family are frozen yoghurt drops (or pieces).
Master & Miss Chief think they're getting frozen sweets and I'm happy they're not being filled with sugar.
So very easy, all you need is some yoghurt or fromage frais, a freezer, and a tray or plate that can be frozen.
The first time I did this I used a plastic plate and dolloped bits of yoghurt onto it so they were more like drops, this time I used a plastic tray and poured the yoghurt in.
Then I spread it out a bit so it was fairly flat and put it in the freezer.
Voila! Frozen yoghurt. I broke it up into pieces and put it in a lidded tub in the freezer. I'd like to tell you how long it would last for but in this house that equals 10 minutes after I open the tub!
Things like this that make the children happy and make me feel like I'm doing a good job are important, sometimes you need the boost.
Master Chief wanted to make Gingerbread Men. This seemed like a really good plan until I realised a vital flaw - I don't have any person shaped cutters. I rummaged around in the baking drawer, discarding square and round cutters and managed to unearth an elephant shaped cutter. With some trepidation I suggested we could make gingerbread elephants.... to my delight this suggestion was met with approval from the world's harshest judges - my children.
So gingerbread elephants it was. Master Chief helped me weigh and measure the ingredients while Miss Chief had an almighty tantrum because I wouldn't let her put her hand in the toaster (yes, we're going through that stage!)
We used a recipe that I found in an old book of my Mother's, unusually I didn't have to make any substitutions as I had all the ingredients.
Ingredients
350g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
125g butter
175g light soft brown sugar
1 egg
4 tbsp golden syrup
Method
Sieve the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon together into a bowl.
Add the butter and mix until it looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar.
Lightly beat the egg and golden syrup together (don't worry, it will work even though it seems that the golden syrup will never leave the sides of the bowl when you first put it in).
Add this to the flour mixture and mix it until the whole thing clumps together and looks like a proper dough.
Tip the dough out, knead it briefly until it's smooth.
Wrap the dough in clingfim
and leave to chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
Roll the dough out to a half centimetre thickness on a lightly (or thickly if you're Master Chief!) floured surface.
Using cutters, cut out the gingerbread elephant shapes and place on the baking tray, leaving a gap between them.
I would recommend leaving a bit more of a gap than I have here as my elephants got very friendly with each other in the oven!
Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden-brown.
Leave on the tray for 10 minutes and then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.
They were delicious, and the first ones didn't even get decorated before they were devoured.
Maybe I'll buy some people shaped cutters too, but our elephants looked really cute.
I've had a good few days, been making some decisions about life (the universe & everything). I don't want to miss out on my babies while they're so small, I want to be there for them, I want to be at the school gates when Master Chief finishes school. I've been running around trying to sort out breakfast club and after school club for him and what I want to do is be there to pick him up myself. I've got a lot of thinking to do but I had my first session with a counsellor today and it's helped to clarify some things in my mind.
I'll keep you posted.
It was hammering down with rain today and it seemed like it was one of those rainy autumn days again. So, the slow cooker made another appearance. Beef stew this time.
It was one of those "what have I got in the fridge/larder" dinners. On this occasion I had beef, tinned tomatoes and mushrooms. I also had half a tin of baked beans from Miss Chief's lunch of beans on toast so I thought I'd chuck them in too - it worked well!
This is the final result and it was devoured by Mr Chief, and also explored with interest by Master and Miss Chief.
Ingredients
Beef, cut into bite sized pieces
Mushrooms (I had huge ones so I just quartered them)
1 tin of tomatoes (I used chopped toms)
Baked beans (as said, it was what was left over)
Plain four
Paprika
Garlic (crushed or cut into small pieces)
What to do
Mix the flour in a bowl with some paprika (or any other herbs or spices you fancy using) and then mix the beef in until it seems coated.
Fry the beef in a frying pan for a few minutes to seal it and then bung it in the slow cooker.
Add the tin of tomatoes, the mushrooms, the beans and the garlic. Cook on low for 6 - 8 hours (depending on your cooker).
I served it with mashed potatoes which worked well. You could add any vegetables that you have, it'll work well but obviously taste different.
This dinner was made while I was at home, as I've recently been signed off sick due to what the doctor calls stress - I call it exhaustion but it's still being looked at. Basically, I'm having a really hard time dealing with the constant rushing around that comes with two jobs and tow children - it's really tough at the moment. I know there are people out there who are dealing with so much more and that makes me reluctant to face it but it would seem that I am suffering from some sort of burnout.
I plan on writing about this honestly while sharing time saving, realistic recipes that I am serving to a very real family, I hope that it might help someone and who knows? That someone might even be me.
A quick and easy lunch/supper (which Mr Chief thinks is weird but I love) is my Poor Man's Eggs Mornay. Eggs Mornay is a spin on Eggs Benedict using Mornay sauce (a cheese sauce) instead of Hollandaise.
I don't use Mornay sauce - I use a cheese triangle. Classy huh? To be exact, I use a Laughing Cow Extra Light cheese triangle. They're only 19 calories each and if you ignore the fact that I slathered my toast with butter then it's low cal, right?
It's so easy, especially as I've got those rubber egg poacher things (I've never got the hang of the swirly water technique).
One point to remember is to oil the poachers (otherwise the egg doesn't come out and it all goes a bit wrong). I use spray oil because I find it easier to coat the inside. Get a pan of water boiling and then crack the eggs into the poachers and lower them gently into the water. You don't want the water to be boiling too vigorously or the egg poachers will get flooded. You'll know when the eggs are done as the white will turn from clear to, well, white. While the eggs are cooking you can make the toast. Upturn the poached eggs onto the toast and then you can add the cheese. If you want to go for presentation (ie if you're making these for someone else!) then you could mash the cheese up a bit an dollop if on top of the eggs - as you can see, I went for the "balance the triangle precariously on top" method.
It may look a little odd but I assure you it's delicious.
I made this for myself and found that I was swatting the kids off my plate - maybe I'll make it for them too!
