Seville orange marmalade

There is a bit of history behind this cooking adventure.  Friends once planted a Seville Orange tree on their farm for my Dad (who was an avid jam and marmalade maker).  Unfortunately Dad has passed away and ironically (maybe?) the tree gave a bumper crop this year.  I was ceremoniously provided with some of the special fruit, but it meant I had to give making marmalade a crack!  I decided not to use Dad's recipe but try something different and after a bit of online research selected a recipe from The Cottage Smallholder blog.  I'm proud to say the lemons were also a gift from a friend and the jars from my mum, so other than the 2kg of sugar and plenty of time they turned out to be some pretty budget friendly jars of marmalade.  I was so excited Thursday morning to wake to find the jars had set perfectly.  And my end product looks almost identical to the jars pictured on their blog.

Back on track and a new plan for the fortnight

So after my much-to-be-desired planning efforts of the past month I think I managed to get back on track today. I spent $144 over the last week and stuck the the plan fairly well.  Today I even browsed some cook books and magazines for inspiration and came up with the following:

Wednesday -  catching up on making Pip's devilled chops recipe

Thursday – Mexican pizza

Friday – Bacon and leek quiche

Saturday - Butter chicken and rice (I will be trying a Curry Traders spice pack)

Sunday –Leftovers

Monday –Spaghetti and meatballs

Tuesday –Tacos

Wednesday –Massaman curry (raviolli for the kids) - I am going to try a new recipe this week

Thursday - Leftovers

Friday -Chicken enchiladas and rice

Saturday –Marinated chicken and vegetables

Sunday – Sausages, potato bake and veg

Monday – Leftovers

Tuesday – Chicken cacciatore risotto

Apple and oat muffins

I fancied a bit of kitchen therapy this afternoon and found this Apple and Oat Muffins recipe.  It ticked all the boxes as far as I am concerned: reasonably good/healthy(ish) ingredients; quick to make; and potentially super yummy.  I was surprised that it honestly only took 5 minutes to prepare (just whack it all in the mix master).  The bit that took the longest was scraping out the last of the Jalna Vanilla Yoghurt I was using (If you haven't eaten this before, put it on the shopping list).  I made smaller muffins so reduced the cooking time a little.

Only problem? Rejected by Master 6 due to the "skin" inside.  Next time, I'll grate the apple and mix it in with everything else.

Blog roll?

Hot shopping tip , I learned this interesting little snippet last night from a lady very knowledgeable about such things and with some industry knowledge.  Apparently you should never pay more than 26c per roll of toilet paper (the nice/premium style type).

Do you have any shopping tips you can share?

The latest menu plan

After another week of no planning, I have had enough!  My head hurts way too much when I have to think each day about what is going to be for dinner.  I haven't done a proper shop but have planned for the next week based on my existing freezer and pantry stock.  Hopefully I get my fruit and veg order in time and it can help make it a little more exciting.

Wednesday - chicken stirfry with rice noodles (picture below)

Thursday – baked lamb chops, lemon risotto and peas

Friday – devilled chops, mashed potato and vegetables

Saturday - steak and home made chips with salad

Sunday – eating out with friends

Monday – roast chicken and vegetables

Tuesday – curried sausages and vegetables

Pip's chocloate cake and Chicken Master Blaster

Finally got to spend some time in the kitchen again this weekend.  Whipped up a gluten free version of my easy lemon meringue pie for a lunch with friends.  To make this recipe gluten free you need 1 1/2 boxes of the Freelicious tea biscuits. 

I also cooked a recommendation from my lovely friend Kynwyn:  Nick's Chicken Master Blaster. It was really yummy even though I accidentally left out the mustard.  The kids did eat it, but it was a bit of a struggle.  Someone complained that it contained salad (shallots) - I mean really boys!  Leftovers for the adults tonight, while we watch the huge TV line up of The Block then Underbelly.  Not to mention I have a bottle of my favourite wine The Rolling Sauvignon Blanc Semillon.

On top of all that I managed to whip up Pip's easy chocolate cake recipe (sans icing).  Took me ages to make as I was gas-bagging to a friend at the same time.  But it worked out nicely.  I used a ring tin (because my round cake tins were buried too far in the cupboard for my liking).  I probably should have lined the base because ring tins are always harder to get the cake out of.

Just a little hiccup

Well it is Friday night already and you have probably noticed I have failed to tally last fortnight's expenses or publish the next menu plan.  To be honest, I have sort of lost control.  This week just flew by and for one reason or another I haven't really had much time to myself.  I hope this might make you feel better?  People often comment that they wonder how I "manage everything" and I always find it quite funny, because I never really feel like I am "managing" much at all.

On a positive note, there has been no meal plan and very little blogging BUT I would say the whole family have had a good week.  No real arguments or toddler melt downs, other than the usual homework tensions.  No fights about dinner either....  you see I implemented a new rewards chart system.  You need to eat up your dinner without fuss Monday to Friday or there is no DS or Wii on the weekend.  Worked a treat for two weeks so far, lets see how long it lasts.

Anyway, stay tuned because over the weekend I need to make some marmalade, and also need to whip up some baked goodies.  A few of you have sent through a few slice and cake recipes recently and I am looking forward to trying some of them.... stay tuned!