Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Hearty Chicken & Veg soup (sorry no picture)

This one is for Mel. It's a very basic, cheap and nutritious chicken and veg soup that can really be made to everyone's taste.

Ingredients

2lt chicken stock
1cup diced potato
1 med diced carrot
I small diced zucchini
1 med brown onion diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 long red chilli (seeds removed and sliced)
1/2 cup dried soup mix
1/2 cup soup pasta
2 stalks celery diced
500gm free range chicken fillets (skinless)

1. brown onion in a little olive oil.
2. add all veg and garlic and heat through a little.
3. add stock and bring to the boil
4. Add chicken and the dried soup mix and cook for 10 mins then remove with a slotted spoon or tongs and shred with forks.
5. Add the chicken back to the pot and bring back to the boil. Add the pasta and simmer till all vegies and pasta are tender.
6. serve, seasoned with cracked black pepper and perhaps some crusty bread.

Notes: I use salt reduced stock, anywhere between 1.5 and 2lt depending on how soupy I want it. You can use whatever veg you like. I have tried this with various spices and herbs but prefer it without any. The original recipe also called for some lemon juice, sometimes I add it, sometimes I don't. Make the clove of garlic a good one ;)

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Quinoa Breaky.


Quinoa Breaky.(serves 1)

130gm cooked Quinoa
1/2 cup skinny milk
Cinnamon
Vanilla extract
3-4 dried prunes
1 pce dried pear
1 Banana mashed


1. Place Quinoa, milk, Cinnamon, vanilla and dried fruit in a small saucepan and bring to the boil stirring occasionally then turn down heat and simmer stirring until the milk is absorbed and the quinoa is to your prefered consistancy.


2. Stir though mashed banana and bung the lot into a bowl.


3. Enjoy.


*Honey can be added if you need extra sweetness but I find the fruit makes it sweet enough. Experiment with different fruits and add nuts and seeds.

* to cook Quinoa my preferred method is to wash 1 cup quinoa well, rubbing it between my fingers to make sure it's really well scrubbed. I change the water a few times then leave it to soak for about 30mins. Then I bung it in the rice cooker with 2 cups of water and let the rice cooker do the rest for me. I store it in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week.


*Nutritional info per serve
Cals - 379
kjs - 1587
fat - 2.9
sat fat - .1
Protein - 12.8
Carb - 73.9
Sugar - 37.6
Fibre - 7.9
Sodium - 94mg

*worked out using calorie king.

Saturday, February 06, 2010

Banana & Oat Muffins



* 2 cups (260gm) wholemeal SR flour
*1tsp ground cinnamon
*1/2 tsp bi-carb soda
*1 cup (100gm) rolled oats)
*1/2 cup (100gm) brown sugar
*2 whole eggs
*3/4 cup (185gm) low fat passionfruit yogurt
*1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable or canola oil
* 2 bananas mashed (250gm)


1. Preheat oven to 200deg and bung some paper muffin cases in a 12cup muffin tin

2. Sift flour, cinnamon and soda into a bowl. Empty flour husks from sifter back into the bowl along with the oats and sugar, stir to combine

3. Whisk eggs, oil and yogurt. Add the mashed banana and stir until combined. Pour into the dry ingredients and gently mix with a wooden spoon until just combined.

4. Spoon even amounts into the muffin tray and bake for 20mins or until golden and cooked through.


*I used the devondale dairy thick and creamy vine passionfruit yogurt, anything yogurt would work.

*Nutritional Info per muffin
Cals - 229
KJ's - 960
Total fat - 6.8
Sat fat - 1.5
Protein - 5.7
Carbs - 34.9
Sugar - 14.4
Fibre - 3.9
Sodium - 225

*worked out by using calorie king.



Saturday, December 19, 2009

A summary of Anna and Ryan 2009.......

..........In photos of course.

Anna blog

Ryan Blog 2009


A collection of some of my fav portraits from this year.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Foreground, Middleground & Background.

Man it has been a while since I posted.....I know.

So much has been happening, I have been counting cals, exercising and losing weight and finally back to my pre-Ryan size pretty much. I have not picked up the camera much, but have had some wonderful wins at Camera club.

I have so many photos to share on here, a special family members wedding, my babies growing up, my hair all chopped off and some special trophies.....however at the end of this rather busy day it all seems to be too much effort and I can't be bothered. I hope that I can update my blog properly one day.

The main thing I wanted to blog about tonight was a "special moment" today. Other photographers will appreciate this. A perfect "foreground, middleground and background". The only thing missing was the blissful sound of the shutter on my camera.

Foreground: The outer edges of our Xmas tree, silver and purple decorations and simple clear fairylights.

Middleground: Anna and Ryan playing with Anna's Disney princess cards in the theater room in front of the window, the evening light creating a stunning halo around them.

Background: Cam "rolling" the cricket pitch outside the theater room. The enthusiasm amuses me.

I was kicking back at the kitchen table when I saw this and was mesmorised, too scared to go get the camera incase I missed the moment so I decided to enjoy it without the capture.

After being exposed to some rather depressing crap on the internet lately it was a welcome uplifting moment that I really really appreciated, and on that note I might go and watch a Jane Austen movie in bed while Cam watches the cricket.

Jodi, if you read this I hope you and your lovely new husband enjoyed your honeymoon in Australias most beautiful state. I hope you are both well. I also hope you guys loved Port Arthur as much as we did. I also hope you got to see Richmond, the Richmond Jail was especially interesting.

I really have so much more to post about and so many photos to share but really where do I start? I have been so slack I am so behind. Best I leave it till after Xmas.....then after the New Year.....Then after a special family visit LOL. Perhaps I will catch up before the busy April B'day Rush.

Friday, August 21, 2009

My poor neglected blog.

I do love my blog dearly but I have once again neglected it! I am a poohead I know. Anyway it has been a busy few months since Ryan's B'day. I have had alot of work to finish, I have been to see Eskimo Joe live in Melbourne with my Awesome neighbour Sarah, I have been away on an awesome girls weekend with my PH family, a very special friend announced her pregnancy and my #1 cousin got engaged which means a trip to QLD for me at the end of the year. I have taken up running again only to slack off AGAIN!

The main thing keeping me busy here though is the kids. They are growing so fast, as are their attitudes. We had a mini photo session yesterday, a good opportunity for me to update the blog and profile pics.



Poor Ryan has inherited my crap eyes, one of them being smaller and a different shape to the other.
Mum and Dad recon Anna has inherrited my temper and gift of the gab.

I have fallen in love with Eskimo Joe (Thanks Sarah) and listen to them most days if I can LOL. The concert was awesome, I actually wore the dress I am wearing in my photos here (yes it's a dress not a shirt) and some awesome new boots I got. I'd not slept the night before the concert, I was bloated like nothing else and my chin had errupted with the worlds hugest breakout......everything was against me....but with some good underwear and a LOT of makeup I got myself out the door, even thoguh at the time I didn't feel like it, and boy am I glad I did. There is nothing like a good live band....NOTHING! Looking forward to the next time.

I am still going to camera club but have missed a few nights this year. I have missed my last two judgings and am yet to find out how I went. I have heard whispers of a first place though which is awesome.

Well....It's that time of night....time to put the apron on and cook dinner.


Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Our baby boy turns TWO!!!

Can you believe it? Our baby boy turned two today! We had a great day, it started off with pressies after breaky. He got a Tonka truck off Anna and a tool bench and drill off us. I then whipped up a quick batch of cup cakes then we all headed off to Rain Hayne and Shine farm in Balnaring. Ryan loves chickens and took a liking to one in particular, he was chasing it saying "pat pat pat" so I tried to catch it for him....however I am terrified of fowl, they creep me out and I chicked out (LOL, get it....chickened) anyway I chickened out everytime I got close.

Ryan had a great time....Anna not so much, she was scared of everything and complained the whole time. I did a bit of complaining myself, there was poo everywhere at the farm and I got some on my camera bag and it STINKS.....Not happy.

AFter Ryan's nap we took the traditional family "birth time" photo then we did the "cake" we did not go all out for Ryan's cake, we decided to do it cheap and just go with cupcakes. Infact.....I am so tight that I only decorated 4 of them then froze the rest for a future Mum's Group LOL. Nevermind....he loved it. That's it...we had a family afternoon tea on Sunday to celebtrate his B'day so we kept today very low key and just to the four of us. It was great.

Of course I have a few pics to share. OMG I have not blogged about our holiday.....crikey I had better get some sample boards done up of that so I can blog all the photos. Watch this space.



The B'day Cupcakes.



Blowing out the candles and stuffing his face.
P.s......Hi Jodi XXXXXXXXXXX