Chicken Dinner in a Hurry !

I don't know about you, but I am constantly disappointed with take-away food ! For me I find it actually quicker and easier to either, whip up something at home from scratch. Or, do a half take-away half home cooked meal. On our way home from the Italian Shoe Fair, on a buying trip, this week, we discussed getting take-away. We were exhausted after four days of buying shoes for the Australian 2012 summer season. With my natural adversity to take-out, I suggested we grab a cooked chicken and add the vegetables at home. I find this works well for me, because I have young children and surprisingly, it is more time efficient. Instead of sitting at the take-away restaurant waiting for my order, trying to amuse the kids, because they are super tired after vacation care. I can already be home, with kids in the shower, while I am whipping up something yummy. Occasionally with a small wine in hand, all is happy in the house! With this in mind I decided to share what I made.

I call it "Chicken Dinner in a Hurry".

As I mentioned we collected a chicken, from Red Rooster (quick, cheap and easy)

 Next, I just grabbed whatever baking vegetables I had in the crisper, this time it was sweet potato, potato, carrots and pumpkin. I chopped these into "quick" baking sizes, with the oven ready on 200 degrees Celsius. Just quickly peel and cut, should take around 5 mins. Then blast the little buggers while you check on the kids.

I find when I use "Carotino" it gives everything a great colour and it is healthy and great for cooking anything. I love oil, so I probably add too much! This is the benefit of cooking at home, you know whats in the food and you can add as much or as little oil and other ingredients as you like.

 I also love greens and I go nuts for nuts, so I grabbed what I had, which was some spinach and zucchini, some tired tomatoes, an half an onion. Chop chop chop, messy don't be fussy, you are in a hurry. Chuck in some oil, garlic and get the onions going. I am checking on the kids while these are heating up and changing into something more comfortable

(and maybe pouring one more mouthful of wine)

Stir in the Zucchini when the onion has started cooking, then add three dollops of a pesto mix preferably capsicum or sun dried tomato. Stir through, when the pan is really hot and about to burn add some water, it helps steam the veggies without the need to add more oil and helps cooking faster.

This time I added a packet of pre-browned almonds. I got these from Aldi, along with the pesto jar (I always have these things as staples in my pantry) cheap cheap and yummy. In the last 5 mins of the veges cooking and setting the table, just bang the chicken in the oven to give it a re-heat.

Serve and you are done !! The kids love it and there are heaps of veggies in the meal.

Hope you enjoy, I have heaps more of these quick cook meals, so I will keep sharing - whether you like it or not - hehe xx

Coke vers Pepsi - The Great Debate

Firstly and straight up I have to say I am a Coke lover, and no diet Coke for me. I want the real sugar stuff,  full strength is the only thing I will have. I would rather go without or reduce my intake than to drink a diet copy !

Same goes for Pepsi, I can not stand that fake sugar after taste !! So I just don't go there. I also think Coke is much classier than Pepsi, if that's possible? Most Pepsi drinkers I have met are total Pepsi drinkers, and like me, will not opt for any other cola.

I especially do not like it when I go to a food supplier that only has Pepsi for sale. In these instances I don't get a drink, I get my meal and then either have water or look for another store nearby if I really need a Coke. I sound like and addict, but I really don't drink that much Coke, maybe two a week. When I do, I have to have "the real thing" , because Coke, "add's life", and you "can't beat the feeling". Ok I'm stopping - "Make it real" - heheh, couldn't help myself.

What do you think, Coke or Pepsi ? What's your poison ?

New Years Resolution - Plan plan plan !

This year I am actually making a New Years resolution, which I dont normally do. I'm not really one to take part in such folly, however, this resolution is more of an experiment. I am about to embark on plannning out the next 12 months personally and for the business. So this means I will be locking in days and dates, events and appointments.
I believe, that if I do this, the year will be much less stressful, and of course more organised and professional. The proof will be in the pudding or Christmas Pudding - because I will find out the full outcome of this experiment at the end of the year, when 2012's Christmas will be a breeze - because I'm so organised !!

To achieve this goal I will also be syncing all our phone calenders, work diaries and calenders and texting friends with these dates as well. I think I am going to be super annoying and quite possibly not very flexible, but I will be organised. I will keep you updated as I travel through the year. Big breath - off I go xx

Aldi - You have to love it !

Yes, I am an Aldi lover, for a couple of years now, it did take some time though! In the beginning I was not very trusting of this new comer on the block. The old saying - You get what you pay for, came to mind several times, as I trawled the store that fateful first day. But I soon found that there was very little to disappoint me, except that I can't do an entire grocery shop here. A couple of my close friends "Get" my Aldi crush. However, most of my other friends, who haven't fallen for the addictive Aldi as yet, just don't understand. It's now a running joke when I offer a delicious morsels of food on my platters, or I get super excited about another cosmetic purchase. When they ask I just say "Aldi" ! More often than not, they say, "wow", I really do have to check it out. Anyway, the reason I decided to write about this ongoing love affair with Aldi, is that I found this, today:

Lacura French Manicure Set - $7.99. So I bought one for my Mum as well (of course).

3 Nail varnishes, 1 nail pencil, 2 rosewood sticks, 1 nail file, 1 toe separator, 100 nail forms in each pack.

I am not showing you my first attempt at application, I am useless because I don't let the polish dry and then I bump it. You simply can not bump any stage of a french manicure - Yuuuk! So I will do a post in my updates page once I get it down pat. I think it's going to look great - hehe.

 Tel me, what are your thoughts and experiences with Aldi - are you a lover ?

Book review - A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

I am starting with this book for my first book review, because of the timing (being Christmas and all) and also because I just finished reading it.
I really loved it, and, because I'm a sook I did have a cry at the end. I am sure you are all familiar with this story and like me, have probably all seen a couple of different versions of it represented in film, but have not yet read the book. Do yourself a favour, grab it and read it ! Its not long and even with the old English expressions, which at times are frustrating and need to be re-read, its actually an easy read.

I will get a bit serious for a minute, this book is a nice kick up the butt (especially in the wake of the economic crisis) to make us think about curving our greedy ways. To make ourselves remember whats important, and that maybe, because we forget whats important, might be why we are in this mess in the world at the moment!

Anyway, so, what did I like about it ?

I found Dickens style of writing a pleasure to read. I loved his description of inanimate objects, the way he gave them a human persona -

"The ancient tower of a church. whose gruff old bell was always peeping slily down at Scrooge out of a Gothic window in the wall, became invisible, and struck the hours and quarters in the clouds, with tremulous vibrations afterwards as if its teeth were chattering in its frozen head up there."

and
"They  were a gloomy suite of rooms, in a lowering pile of building up a yard, where it had so little business to be, that one could scarcely help fancying it must have run there when it was a young house, playing hide-and-seek with other houses, and forgotten the way out again."
There are lots more of these examples, I really loved that about the book. However, it's the message of the book that  makes it so special and timeless. This message hasn't change over times, I guess its the "human
factor" that so many of us forget to think of others in a generous manner. And even though this book doesn't talk about the death of Christ, I think it has a truly Christian message. One of tolerance, giving, forgiveness, love and HOPE. Christmas,  is that once a year we are made (no matter what your belief) to think of those around us, to take time out for one another. This book makes you think that it shouldn't just be once a year that we make such effort for each other but this ethos should be part of our every day.

""It is required of every man," the Ghost returned, "that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellowmen,and travel far and wide, and if that spirit goes not forth in life, it is condemned to do so after death. It is doomed to wander through the world--oh, woe is me!-- and witness what it cannot share, but might have shared on earth, and turned to happiness!"
Make the most of your every day and do good.
I think that we were put here, with all the capabilities we have, to do good and be grateful for what we have been given - the ability to look after and provide for ourselves and those that are truly in need of help.  Like when Jacob said:
"Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. " He should not have gotten distracted by his trade or earnings, even though they are important they are not everything.
I could go on and on - but one of my favourite quotes from Scrooge was :
"...I do confess, to have had the lightest licence of a child, and yet to have been man enough to know its value."
and this
""...for it is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child himself."

So I give it a big fat 10.

Tomato Relish, thanks to Ronan

Well Hi again, as I mentioned in the previous Blog we had picked a bucket of tomatoes from the garden, and Ronan made (with a little help from Mum) a tomato relish.
The recipe we used was a "whatever we have in the house" recipe. Using ingredients that could be used to make a tomato relish, without going out shopping.
We used:

Small bucket of baby roma tomatoes (picked from the garden)

Some brown sugar, what was left of a Spanish onion, about 3/4, some Italian white wine vinegar (I'm not big on measuring), sprig of Rosemary (picked from the garden), garlic, mustard, all spice and seasoning

Roughly chop the tomatoes (we want a chunky relish)

Chop, chop, chop

and more chopping !

Mummy did the onions

Peeling the Rosemary off the sprig

Scrape ingredients into the Le Creuset - of course !

Stir onion gently until almost clear, then add brown sugar, let cook for a while until dissolved. Then add all the rest of the ingredients - I used about two tablespoons of vinegar and the same of brown sugar and then heaps of garlic.

Bring to boil, then turn down to simmer, for around an hour or so, you can tell buy how it looks and tastes when its finished.

Reducing nicely, just a bit longer

Ready to jar up into some washed out, left over pesto jars we had

Finished product!

You could wash the labels off these and decorate with fabric and ties. They would make great gifts.

Ronan - "Junior Master Chef "- very proud of his work.

Verdict:

Tasted this so far with eggs on toast for breakfast, mmmmm. Then I had it with spinach and ricotta triangles, yummmy. Next time we will add chilli to it, for Mum and Dad.

Vege Garden and bling shoes.

Just over a year ago my amazing husband told me he was going to build a little vegetable garden in the back yard, I thought this was a great idea. I expected to come down from working in the house to find a nice little turned and planted patch. With some key items we use regularly, something small and easy to tend to (because I knew that would be my job). To my pleasant surprise I found a masterpiece that measured about 14 foot by 20 foot !! Well it flourished, as you can see in these old pictures, this was our first crop !!!

We used most of what grew, but it was all new to both of us and at the end of these crops we changed our strategy. Well, we actually let it rest for a while and then started over again. We now grow the following items and they also flourish: snow peas, coriander, spinach, bok choy, silver beet, rocket, corn and lettuce. I love just being able to pop down the back yard to cut off some fresh greens etc to add to our meals. He has also recently been testing some brewing herbs like mints and lemon grasses to have as tea, they taste amazing! Our most recent addition was some comfrey, research needs to be done on how to use this one.

A recent post in the "Diary of a Shoe lover" Blog, I wrote about the use of my old shoes as House Shoes. I really do wear these as my garden shoes, and now my chick feeding shoes.

After planting all the seedlings mentioned above, we had a tomato plant grow up by itself (above left), it just kept growing and growing and growing. It also produced lots of what we eventually worked out must be a miniature roma tomato plant. They are delicious, and we have harvested about 10 kilos from this one plant! Its at the end of its life, hopefully we can grow some vines off the seeds. Well, I am about to go and make a tomato relish with the last bucket load of them, fun fun. Actually I thin I will get Ronan to make it.

Talk soon x

Waiter, I think there's a chicken in my salad !!!!