Chicken Enchiladas

November 2, 2016April 25, 2018 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

Every time I ask my kids for dinner ideas when I’m writing the monthly menu ‘enchiladas!!’ is the first thing Harry shouts at me 🙂 I honestly can’t keep up with how many he wants to eat!

Everyone else agrees with him, so they are a regular feature on our menu.

As with most of our Mexican inspired food, these are not very authentic…But they are very yummy so I hope your family enjoys them as much as ours.

Please see below the recipe for our vegan alternative

About 1kg chicken thighs (or you can use a whole chicken)
2 tbsp Mexican seasoning
2 heaped cups Salsa
1 tbsp tomato paste
Tortillas of choice (check out our masa ones here)
Cheese, that fits your diet (we do dairy and bio cheese), grated.
OPTIONAL: 1 large carrot, 1 large zucchini and 1 tin kidney beans.

Place chicken into the slow cooker, sprinkle over seasoning and half of the salsa.

Finely grate the veg if you are using them and then blend together with the drained and rinsed kidney beans. Add to the slow cooker and stir though well.

Place lid on slow cooker and cook on high for 4.5 hours, or 8 hours on low.

Remove and discard the skin of the chicken (if using a whole chicken) then shred the meat.

To the juices, veggies and salsa in the cooker, add in the paste and whisk to combine. Remove about 1/3 of this sauce and keep aside (for topping the tortillas later).

Then return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker and fold through the remaining sauce.

Place spoons of the chicken in the tortillas, then roll.

20180425_161808 — These ones have the added veggies and are made with seeded whole grain wraps.

Fill your baking tray with the filled and rolled tortillas, then cover with the rest of the salsa and veggie mix and sprinkle with cheese.

20161102_153056 — These are plain white tortillas without the added veggies …. They were added as a Mexican bean side salad instead!

Bake in a preheated moderate oven for about 25 minutes, until cheese is melted and the tortillas are golden.

If you’re a fan of the shredded chicken and the flavour of the meal, but would prefer a lighter option without the cheese and tortillas, then it is delicious and refreshing served with my Mexican Bean Salad.

And, if like my husband, you are a fan, go ahead and add a dollop of either dairy or soy based sour cream (it’s not my thing so I always forget it – much to his disappointment!)

To make our vegan version of these enchiladas we leave out the chicken and instead add in a large can of mixed beans and another can of kidney beans. The dish then needs to be cooked for only 3 hours on high or about 5 on low. Top with your favourite vegan cheese. I’m looking forward to experimenting with jackfruit here as another alternative too and will update the recipe when I do!

Enjoy 🙂

Spinach and Basil Pesto

October 31, 2016January 2, 2020 ~ desertcook ~ 1 Comment

Pesto is such a yummy addition to so many meals, but with pine nuts and parmesan being a standard in most recipes, it’s normally not an option for us.

But this year my both my basil and my spinach are growing great guns so I was inspired to make a pesto that would use our fresh produce and be safe.

1 packed cup fresh basil leaves
1 packed cup fresh spinach leaves
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp pink salt flakes
Juice of half a lemon
1/4 cup pepitas (50g)
1/4 cup sunflower seeds (40g)
1/4 cup hemp seeds (40g)
50g extra virgin olive oil

Dry fry the seeds in a hot frying pan. Keep a close eye on them, stirring regularly, as it only takes a couple of minutes for them to go golden brown.

Add all ingredients, except the olive oil to your blender/processor/thermal cooker and process until quite fine (speed 8, 6 secs, scrape down and repeat).

Process again as you slowly drizzle the oil through the top opening of the machine (speed 4). Process until oil is well combined.

Use immediately or freeze in ice cubes for future use. Makes about 1 cup.

Some ideas for use:

Rub onto chicken pieces or salmon before baking
Add in a handful of sun-dried tomatoes at the processing stage and stir through pasta (Especially awesome if you top with some crispy bacon and home made garlic croutons!)
Fold through some cream cheese (soy based or dairy) or a ripe, mashed avocado as a great dip.
If you enjoy the Parmesan flavour that a lot of pesto has, add in a tbsp of Nutritional Yeast

Enjoy 🙂

Strawberry, apple and chia jam

October 15, 2016October 17, 2016 ~ desertcook ~ 1 Comment

Yesterday I did our markets shopping was seriously delighted to find a tray of strawberries for $8.

15 punnets of those bad boys – that’s a lot of berries!

We have several punnets in the fridge, I hulled 6 punnets and froze them for smoothies and baking and use another punnet in my morning muffins …. and there was still more.

So … jam it is – why not get a head start on teacher’s Christmas gifts?!

I’ve never made a preserved jam in my Bellini (Thermal Cooker before) so this was my first go …. and it so very easy!!

Now – this is lower in added sugar than most jams, and it is unrefined sugar – but it is still a lot of sugar… so, you know – be sensible 😉

600g punnet strawberries, hulled
400g sugar of choice (I used coconut sugar)
the juice of 1 lemon
1 green apple, chopped (skin on)
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 tbsp chia seeds

Place the strawberries in the bottom on the machine, then add all the other ingredients, except the chia seeds.

Set the machine to 100C, Speed 2 for 15 minutes.

Then turn the temp up to ST (Steam Temp), but the speed down to 1 for a further 15 minutes.

Add in the chia seeds and and cook on ST, Speed 2 for a further 8 mins.

Check that it is ready (Check out these tips from Taste on checking for setting point)

Pour into hot sterilised jars and seal.

*If you don’t have a thermal cooking machine, check out my Mulberry jam post for a traditional jam making method*

Enjoy!!

Salmon and Zucchini Tart

September 22, 2016September 20, 2016 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

A long time ago (and it may as well have been in a galaxy far far away!!), before kids and before food allergies, Libby made us a delicious salmon tart. Goodness it was wonderful but since it was full of sour cream and egg whites it has been off our menu for 8 years.

Then I made some Pumpkin Tarts for my Mum’s birthday and the filling for them gave me an idea!!!

So I set to work to try and re-create Lib’s amazing Salmon Tart and we ate the results tonight. Result – amazing!!!!!! The texture and flavour were SO similar and everyone loved it (well, ok, except my little miss … but … really, if I only cooked what she loved, we’d live on sausages!). Peter ate seconds and thirds, Harry gave it 99%, Will licked his plate clean and asked for it in his lunchbox and George demolished it (but to be fair, he does that with almost everything).

I’m so excited to have little versions of these that I made with the left overs for lunch tomorrow!

300g silken tofu (medium firm)
3 tbsp hummus
2 tsbp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp pink salt
few grinds of black pepper
1 tsp fresh chopped dill
1 tbsp rinsed and chopped capers
400g tin of salmon, skinned and boned
small zucchini, grated and squeezed of its liquid
1/3 cup aquafaba (liquid drained from a can of chick peas)
1 sheet of shortcrust pastry*

*today I made a spelt pastry by pulsing together 200g flour, 1/2 tsp pink salt and 120g cold vegan butter into a crumb. Bring it together to a disc, cover and place in the fridge for half an hour. Roll out to dish shape/size on a floured surface and then blind bake in a moderate oven for 20 minutes.

Remove the tofu from it’s package, drain and pat dry.

Into your blender/food processor/thermal cooker place the tofu, hummus, nutritional yeast and salt. Process until smooth (Speed 4, 20 seconds).

Add in the salmon, dill, pepper and capers. Process until smooth (Speed 4, 20 seconds).

Pour into a large bowl and stir through the zucchini.

In a stand mixer place the aquafaba in a small, clean bowl and mix on highest speed for about 4-5 minutes or until you get soft peaks (not as stiff as for a meringue).

Tip the whipped aquafaba into the salmon mix and gently fold through until incorporated – go gently, you don’t want to lose all of that lightness.

Pour the salmon mix into the blind-baked pastry and return to the preheated oven for 35 minutes.

The filling will still be quite soft on removing from the oven, but will firm up more as it cools.

Slice and serve with salad or veg.

It does well being reheated and last a couple of day in an air tight container in the fridge.

Enjoy!!

Roast pumpkin tarts

September 20, 2016June 15, 2021 ~ desertcook ~ 4 Comments

My wonderful mum – who has been the inspiration for much of my baking, and certainly gave me her love of cooking – recently turned 60.

vickis-high-tea-078 — With my Mum, my Nanna and my little miss – all frocked up to celebrate.

She had a most delightful High Tea at her home to celebrate and I was asked to do the baking for those with special needs. So much fun to make little treats!

One of the ‘normal’ foods that was served was quiche. Quiche is delicious, no question, but normally full of gluten, egg and dairy – So I came up with my version and it was really well received …. even my carnivorous husband who knew what was in them!

The filling for the tart was based on this one from Minimalist Baker.

2 handfuls of diced pumpkin
garlic olive oil
1 tsp fresh, chopped rosemary
1/2 tsp pink salt
a few grinds of black pepper.

Preheat your oven to 200C, brush the pumpkin with the oil and sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper.

Bake for about 40 minutes or until golden and roasted.

2 sheets ready bought puff pastry (that fits your diet)
300g silken tofu (medium firm)
3 tbsp hummus
2 tsbp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp pink salt

Remove the tofu from its package, drain and pat dry.

Into your blender/food processor/thermal cooker place the tofu, hummus, nutritional yeast and salt. Process until smooth (Speed 4, 20 seconds)

Cut the pasty and place into greased muffin tins.

Spoon the tofu mixture into the pastry cases.

Top with pumpkin, pressing it down into the mix, and add some pine nuts if your diet allows.

Place into a preheated moderate oven and bake for about 25 minutes.

Serve warm or cool. These also reheat well and will last 2-3 days in an airtight container in the fridge.

You can make a bigger version too – blind bake your pastry in a pie dish, add in your desired veggies (I added spinach to this version) and then top with the tofu mix.

Enjoy!

Coffee (and chocolate) Syrup

September 2, 2016December 20, 2024 ~ desertcook ~ 1 Comment

One year for Christmas when my brother and I were about 10 and 12, Mum and Dad gave us joint presents. A milkshake maker, an air popped popcorn maker and a recipe book for kids.

What an awesome summer that was – we ate a lot, and we ate well!!

20… ahem… something years later, the popcorn maker still features regularly, now for my children. In fact we used it today for our Friday movie 🙂

I’m not sure what happened to the milkshake maker.

I suspect the recipe book is still hidden in my Mum’s recipe cupboard … But I really don’t need it anymore, since the ice coffee recipe from it is firmly cemented in my brain (along with the reminder inscribed on the inside from Mum to clean up after we cooked!!). I would make it for mum ready when she got home from work on a really hot summer’s day. Or at the weekends when my parents had been hard at work in the garden.

Now it is my husband who is the fan… and Will requests it in decaf form!! We’ve cut back the sugar and converted it to an unrefined form.

See below the recipe for a chocolate syrup.

1.5 cups Instant coffee (whichever brand you enjoy, but it must be instant)
2.5 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1.5 cups boiling water

Mix together all ingredients into a large saucepan and bring to a simmer.

Simmer gently, stirring regularly, for about 10-12 minutes. (Or 100C, speed 2 for about 12-14 mins).

Pour into glass jars and seal.

To use the syrup mix a tablespoon or two with a glass of cold milk of your choice and some ice blocks blocks in a blender/Nutribullet/food processor/thermal cooker.

It is certainly a much cheaper option to make this at home if you are a regular buyer of the in store or cafe variety!.

If you like different flavoured coffees you can replace the vanilla with an essence of that flavour (hazelnut is particularly nice!).

During my university years I became (just slightly) coffee reliant and one of my very favourite drinks was a (large, eek!)’Very Vanilla Chiller’ from a certain popular coffee chain. There’s no way I could drink one now without feeling ill, but I have discovered that this syrup together with a handful of ice blocks and very cold unsweetened vanilla almond milk, makes a very close approximation!! Yum!

You can also use a splash of this syrup in plain buttercream icing to turn into into coffee icing for Banana cakes etc.

To make a chocolate version of this syrup follow the same method, but use:

1 cups Cocoa
2.5 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1.5 cups boiling water

This version is great mixed with ice blocks and milk of choice for milkshakes or stirred through hot milk for decadent hot chocolate … make sure you add some mini marshmallows 😉

Enjoy 🙂

Choc Chip Cookies

August 30, 2016June 29, 2021 ~ desertcook ~ 1 Comment

Together with the apple crumble that I’ve posted about before, these cookies (in their original form) were sustenance for my husband during exam time at uni … and he says, convinced him to marry me!

I remember making these as a ten year old for my younger brother and eating them together, while they were still warm, over school holiday movies. I must have made a hundred batches of them over the last 20 years! So the other day when my crook William asked if we could make cookies for afternoon tea, I decided to update these to make them safe for our family, and to add a few more nutrients than your standard cookie … and they are now as popular with my kids as they were with my husband, and my brother and I decades ago!

Please see below the recipe for the coeliac friendly version

120g vegan butter at room temperature
50g sunflower seed butter (or nut butter)
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour (half wholemeal)
1/3 cup almond/seed meal (OR use and extra 1/3 cup flour here)
1/3 cup rolled oats
1 tsp GF baking powder
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
pinch salt flakes
1 egg OR 1 egg of egg replacement
4 squares of dark chocolate, roughly chopped (about 40g) OR choc chips

In your blender/food processor/nutribullet/thermal cooker place the oats, baking powder, salt & sugar. Blitz to a fine flour (speed 8, 10 secs). You can skip this step if you’re happy with whole oats in your cookie.

Add in the flour and mix to combine (speed 4, 6 secs).

Add in the butter, seed butter, vanilla and egg then pulse a few times to roughly combine before processing to a dough (speed 4, 8secs, scrape down and repeat if required)

Fold through the chocolate. (Speed 4, 6 seconds)

To make a coeliac friendly version: This is one of those times when you can do a straight swap for a GF flour mix for the wheat flour. Replace the oats with shredded coconut.

Form a teaspoon full into a ball and spoon onto a lined baking tray, allowing space to spread. Press down gently.

Cook in a preheated moderate oven for about 13-15 minutes.

They will be very soft when you remove them from the oven. Allow to cool on the tray for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. They will be crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside.

Makes about 20.

Lasts for a few days in an airtight container…. if you’re lucky!

Not a fan of choc chip? Weird, but ok! Use sultanas instead!

Enjoy 🙂

Self Saucing Chocolate pudding

August 12, 2016June 24, 2024 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

This warm gooey pudding seems to be a bit of an Aussie ‘classic’ for dessert, and one I have enjoyed at my Mother-in-law’s home many times. But my little miss has always missed out … until now.

“Pleeeeeeease can we make cake for dessert?!”.

Well, it’s Friday – sure! 5 minutes to whip it up and it baked while we ate our dinner. Yummo!! One happy little girl … who wants the left overs in her lunchbox … um, maybe not flossy-dot!

Pudding:

80g neutral tasting oil (I’ve used rice bran or melted Nuttelex)
100g sugar (increase to 130g if you are a sweet tooth)
3/4 cup SR flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 tsp baking powder
130g milk of choice
2 tbsp cocoa
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp aquafaba (liquid drained from a can of chick peas) OR 1 whole egg.
Optional: handful finely chopped dark chocolate or choc chip of choice

Sauce:

2 tbsp cocoa
2 tbsp sugar
350ml boiling water

In a large mixing bowl, use a whisk to mix together the flour, nut meal, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cocoa.

In a smaller bowl whisk together the milk, oil, egg/aquafaba and vanilla.

Add the wet mix to the dry and whisk together until well combined. Stir in the chocolate peices if using.

Pour into a greased baking dish.

Mix together the cocoa and sugar for the sauce and sprinkle it evenly over the top of the cake batter.

Pour the boiling water evenly over the top of cake, but do not mix it.

Place the dish into a preheated moderate oven for about 30-35 minutes or until the cake is well risen.

Oops – forgot to take a pic before we dug in!

Serve warm, on its own, or with a little ice-cream of choice.

Serves 6-8

Want it gluten free? use 160g of a good all purpose GF SR mix (I like Bob’s Red Mill) with 1 tsp of psyllium, and increase the milk to 150ml.

Want it nut free? Replace the almond meal with another 1/4 cup of SR flour and omit the baking powder

Need it for a bigger crowd? The recipe doubles perfectly.

Enjoy 🙂

Spiced Apricot Muffins

June 17, 2016June 22, 2016 ~ desertcook ~ 3 Comments

These little delights are a bit of a twist on my Spiced Plum Cake.

So easy to make and speedy to get in the oven, the kids love them … and I might be quite partial to one with an afternoon cuppa too!

225g stewed/tinned apricots (drained from their juices) – this is about 8 whole fresh fruit
50g Nuttelex/vegan butter/tasteless coconut oil, melted
160g milk of choice
1 medium overripe banana
4 tbsp honey (use rice malt or maple syrup for the vegan version)
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
2 cups spelt flour (i do half whomeal and half white) OR 1 1/2 cups GF flour mix plus 1/4 cup almond/seed meal
2.5 tsp GF baking powder
pinch Himilayan salt
1 tbsp coconut sugar

Into your blender/processor/nutribullet/thermo cooker place the apricots, banana, Nuttelex, vanilla, milk and syrup. Blitz until smooth (Speed 7, 10 seconds)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking powder, salt, spices and flour (and almond/seed meal if using).

Add the dry mix to the wet and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat). Don’t over beat. I often just tip the wet mix into the bowl with the flour mix and combine by hand.

Pour into a lined muffin tin and sprinkle with coconut sugar.

Place into preheated moderate oven and bake for about 18 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Makes about 20 and they freeze and defrost well.

Enjoy 🙂

Gingernut Biscuits

June 15, 2016June 14, 2016 ~ desertcook ~ 4 Comments

I grew up dunking hard gingernut biscuits in hot drinks … Ultimate comfort food!

When William was really little and we’d go to visit his grandparents, he’d want to copy us and ‘dunk’ too. We found a pretty decent substitute in the Leda brand of gingernut … But they have a lot of sugar and they are quite expensive… And on the whole I always prefer to make my own if at all possible.

20160614_151104 — He’s still a keen dunker!

So I’ve been playing around with a ginger bikkie to dunk into our afternoon cuppa … And this seems to be the winner!!

1 1/4 cup spelt flour OR 1 cup plain GF flour mix plus 1/2 tsp psyllium
1 tsp GF baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
80g coconut sugar
Pinch pink salt
2 heaped tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
60g nuttelex/vegan butter, room temperature
30g maple syrup
3 tbsp aquafaba (liquid drained from a can of chick peas)

Place all dry ingredients in a bowl and use a whisk to combine evenly (speed 4, 10 seconds)

Add in the Nuttelex, syrup and aquafaba and use a wooden spoon to mix well and bring together to a stiff dough (speed 4, 8 seconds, scrape down and repeat).

Make small balls of the mixture (about 1 teaspoon full). Place on to a lined baking tray and press down gently.

Place into a preheated 150 C oven and bake for 20-25 minutes.

The bikkies will still be slightly soft when you remove them from the oven but will harden on cooling. Leave on the tray for 10 mins before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.