Weekly Highlights & some NEWS!

(Ummm, no, this isn't the recipe for my Cherry Delight 'Cheese'cake, so sorry. I just thought the photo might get your attention.) :D

Hello everyone. I know, my Weekly Highlights are very late, but I have an excuse!

I'm not sure if you've noticed that I've been a little bit absent from my blog and Facebook page lately. Well, there's a good reason for that. I promise it's not because I've been lazing around the house in my PJ's all day eating dulce de leche on fresh strawberries (as much as I've wanted to). It's just that I've been madly recipe testing and writing out recipes for the last couple of weeks because ... I have a publisher for my COOKBOOK!!!! EEEEK!!! (A bit exciting!!) Yes, a really real printed book, complete with really real photographers and stylists and all that fun stuff!

And along with a publisher comes DEADLINES and SECRETS and eating, sleeping and breathing RECIPES! And as much as I'd love to, I'm afraid I can't share the recipe for my cherry 'cheese'cake yet, because I need it for my book. You do understand, don't you? I'll try not to tease you with any more photos that do not have recipes attached, okay? (Although now and then I might post a sneaky one on Instagram, so if you want to see some sneak previews that's the place to look.) :)

So although I haven't had as much time to chat, there were still quite a few subjects discussed on my Facebook page this past week. Here's the main ones, to keep you all up to date.


FOOD

My big girl turned 16 last week (yes, I'm feeling old!). She wasn't interested in going out for dinner or having a party, she just wanted a big, family, Mexican fajita feast with a cherry cheesecake to finish it off. So that's what we did...

Fajitas with the lot!

Spelt tortillas, Mexican rice (mum's recipe - another option is my Mexican Quinoa), marinated fajita beef & chicken, sauteed red peppers (capsicums) and onions, guacamole, and my dairy free sour cream. So good.

Oh, and some smoky chipotle chilli sauce to top it off. Woweee, love that stuff!

(Do you like my cow apron? Lol!)

Mmmmm... fajitas!

What healthy treats would you cook for a 16th birthday party? Here's some reader's ideas.

Coconut Caramel Custard: In case you missed this, I posted this quick and easy recipe on the blog last week. Warning: dangerously addictive!

Pandan leaves: Ever see 'pandan leaves' in an Asian recipe and wonder where to get them, how to use them, whether you can grow them yourself, and what to substitute for them if they're nowhere to be found? Wonder no more, answers here!

Date loaf/cake recipes: Do you have a favourite date loaf or cake you like to make? Here's some readers' favourites.

Grapefruit recipes: It's grapefruit season, our fruit basket is overflowing with them! Need some ideas?

Travelling with Thermomix: A reader asked for simple Thermomix meal ideas that don't need heaps of pantry stuff, as she wanted to take her Thermomix with them on holiday. With a 2 year old and a 7 month old, it's a lot easier to 'eat in' than 'out', and the room they were to stay in only had coffee/tea making facilities. Here's some ideas readers suggested for travel meals.

7 Ingredient challenge: A desperate plea for a quick dessert idea using the 7 ingredients available brought out some very creative suggestions!

Vegan dinners: Recipes and ideas for a meat free meal.

Traditional afternoon tea ideas: Except they need to be gluten, dairy, sugar, and soy free! No problem.

Free-from birthday cake! A reader needs a recipe for a birthday cake that's gluten, dairy and soy free - preferably something rich and decadent.

Passionfruit recipes: Ideas for using up all those passionfruits that are falling off the vine! (At least here in FNQ, anyway!)

Paleo and nightshade-free food: A reader needs some ideas for paleo meals/food that are also free from potatoes, tomatoes, chillies, eggplants, capsicum and most legumes. Some great ideas here.

Lactation biscuit recipe: Have you heard of these? I hadn't! Basically it's a biscuit containing ingredients that help with lactation. Lots of other ideas for helping to increase breastmilk production here too.

Soup weather: What soups are you making on these wintery evenings?

And just a quick tip for when you make your tortillas or wraps - this is how thin you want to roll them, then cook them quickly in a really hot, dry frypan so they don't dry out. Make sure you keep them wrapped up in a clean tea towel while you cook them, so they stay warm and soft. Enjoy!

AND MORE...

Boosting your immune system: A reader asked for help for immune boosting ideas, as her husband has Ross River Fever.

Making soaps in your Thermomix - yes or no? Some great ideas and discussions here.

New Thermomix Blog & FB Page! If you need some help meal planning with your new Thermomix, Thermonerd may be the blog for you. Being a work-at-home mum of a little boy and twin baby girls means this busy lady HAS to plan ahead to keep up! Meal planning is definitely the way to go for helping with time management and budgeting... if you haven't tried it, you should.

By the way, there's lots of menu plans on my blog, as well as some here on my Facebook page!

Favourite Thermomix recipe books: What's your fave?

What the rural life is really like. I loved reading this blog post by Rural Miss and seeing her beautiful photos. Have you thanked a farmer today?

So now I'd better get back to my recipe writing...

I might have to get Mr I to do a guest post for me this week, so my blog doesn't look so neglected. :D

Have a great week!

Coconut Caramel Custard

Coconut caramel custard with bananas & macadamias

A reader told me the other day that she had been searching everywhere for my coconut caramel custard recipe on Facebook but couldn't find it... Well, we can't have that! This is so yummy (and quick and easy) that it really needs to be on my blog so it's easier to find.

When I shared this on my Facebook page back in May, it got 164 shares and 466 likes and 136 comments. Yep, I think you really should try it.

So here it is... no need to say too much, except don't blame me when you get up in the middle of the night to polish off the leftovers, okay? ;)

Just pop all the ingredients into the Thermomix bowl and cook for 7 mins/90C/speed 4.

- 500g coconut milk (or 250g thick coconut cream + 250g water)
- 60g coconut sugar (or Rapadura)
- 1 large tsp vanilla bean paste
- 2 Tbsp butter or ghee (optional, but awesome)
- 20-30g arrowroot starch (depending how thick you like it)
- 1/4 tsp Himalayan or sea salt
- 2 eggs

For an egg free version, just leave out the eggs and increase the starch/cornflour to 50-60g.

P.S. This custard is dangerously good on brownies. Just saying.

Weekly Highlights... and a Giveaway!

A bit of randomness to end the week... :D

Mine started with cooking all day for two days at the Atherton Show (lots of fun! but exhausting...)

Then along came a nasty bout of the flu (kids and mum and hubby looked after me very well - plenty of chicken soup and tea brought to me in bed, AND Mr I's newest invention, Lime and Coconut Custard with walnuts)...

When Mr I served this up to his big brother, Mr S was heard to comment, "DUDE!! You're the best cook EVER!! Pity we don't have any licorice to go in it though..." Ummm, lime and coconut custard with walnuts and licorice? That's even a little too quirky for me! :D

And then a massive day of cooking today with a friend, to make up for all the days of being in bed! :) (Can you believe, I was so focused on cooking I didn't take any photos?? I think the flu has damaged my brain...)

But I DO remember that I tried out Nutra Organics Coco Biotics Superfood Bars and they are truly delicious, very good for you, and I think you really should ALL try them! So guess what? I have some to give away! Actually, I have a VALUE PACK of three boxes of bars to give away - three different types! In this value pack you will find a bar to make everyone in the family happy. And the best bit is - there are no nasties. :) (Click on links below to see ingredients for each bar)

WIN!!

The Cocobiotics Bar helps to enhance gut health and digestive balance; it contains multi strain fermented probiotics and organic fibre rich coconut.

The Super Greens and Reds Bar is a nutrient dense multivitamin energy bar packed with essential vitamins and minerals, alkalising greens, antioxidant rich reds, and probiotics. (Click on link to see ingredients)

The Berry Choc Chunk Lunchbox Bar is a favourite with our kids (although the Cocobiotics bar may have just taken its' place!), and they would never know by the taste that it's packed with phytonutrients, bioflavinoids, omegas, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other good-for-you stuff. (Click on link to see ingredients) 

To WIN this great value pack, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post saying that you'd love to try these superfood energy bars. Prize winner will be drawn next Friday night 

(19th July) at 7pm by random drawing, and announced on the blog. Winner will be notified by email, and bars posted to them at no expense to the winner.

And the winner is... comment no. 151: Amber B!

*     *     *     *     *

So how was your week?

Here's what was happening on the Quirky Cooking Facebook Page this week...

FOOD

Mr I's Lime & Coconut Custard recipe - it really is yum!! Link to recipe here.

Great Gluten Free Facebook pages & sites: lots of GF inspiration here.

How to steam bread rolls in the Varoma while cooking soup in the bowl: if you have a Thermomix and haven't tried this, you really should!

Craving bread but it doesn't agree with you? Ideas for bread free satisfaction here!

Healthy School Breakfasts: This question was asked this week on my page, with lots of great answers:

"My husband works at a primary school where there are really big issues with nutrition. Most of the kids don't have breakfast and those that do are seen eating fruit loops and the like. They run a breakfast club where all that is on offer is white toast with nutrient void spreads. The tuck shop is full of hotdogs, potato gems, "chicken" nuggets etc. They have big issues with concentration and behaviour (no wonder, right?!)

Can you think of any good breakfast ideas that could be made (I have a Thermomix) in bulk without too much expense for these kids at the breakfast club? I've thought of wholefood pancakes or chocolate whole food milkshakes? Would be great to get the kids to see that healthy food can be yummy, and to see if they feel better that day too!"

Gluten free, additive free ideas for snacks & lunches: for those not used to cooking gluten free - ideas here.

Pandan leaves: where to get them, how to use them, here.

AND JUST FOR FUN...

So I have been absent a lot on the blog and Facebook, with all my busy-ness and sickness, but I just wanted you to know, I've still been thinking of you...

Hee hee!

Weekly Highlights

This week has been super busy, and although some of you may think I'm Super Woman and keep up with everything effortlessly, I'm not, and I don't. In fact, today I feel a bit like my little nephew after a hard day of being Super Man...

(Isn't he just too cute?)

Yep. That's me right there.

This week has been: school holidays and lots of kids coming and going; an exciting project I'm working on (which I'll tell you about soon); lots of cooking (mostly for the exciting project); wrapping up loose ends with my job (I'm scaling down there - can't do everything!); sight seeing tours with a visitor from overseas; a birthday party with a bunch of noisy boys (plus a few girls who don't like to miss out on nerf wars and messy fun, ie. my 16 yr old and her friends); plus everything else. Result: exhausted 'super woman' with saggy muscles. Lol.

So here's a quick update, with the highlights from our discussions on the Quirky Cooking Facebook page...

I bumbled my way through the boys' birthday BBQ on Thursday. I'm not great at organising amazing kids' parties. I'd rather just supply some food and let them entertain themselves by running around outside, so a BBQ at the lake seemed like the easiest option. Sadly, the weather turned bad so we arrived at the lake, took one look at the wet and windy BBQ 'shelter', then turned around and drove back to town. Thankfully my lovely friend Giselle was happy for a party of 14 boys (plus a few girls) to descend upon her home and run around crazy in her yard, so a fun time was had by all despite the rain.

Of course, being a country kids' birthday party, it included things like an 'epic' nerf war (I borrowed that word from Mr I, who seems to say it a lot), bushwalking to a waterfall, throwing rocks into a volcanic crater, and eating sausages and fried onions in bread with plenty of tomato sauce. No lollies at this party, or party games or party bags - but I'm pretty sure they all had a good time. :)

I managed to get a birthday cake made before dashing out the door in the morning - another Zebra cake (Mr I's request), but with a few changes to make it healthier and yummier. The kids loved it. It's a bit messier than my last one as I was in a hurry, but I really don't think the kids noticed.

It's funny how we mums sometimes think that if we don't do everything 'just right' the world will fall apart. I'm always reminding myself that there are more important things to worry about in life than whether a cake is beautifully decorated, or a party is perfectly organised. Sure, if you can do it and enjoy it, that's great! But getting stressed out over things like that just spoils the fun. So we had a slap dash, informal party, and a fun day was had by all. 

Here's what's been happening on my Quirky Cooking Facebook page this past week... 

FOOD

Pear recipes: This 'Whole Poached Pear Cake' was being tested and tweaked this week in my kitchen. I'm working on a dairy free, grain free version, and although it's not quite there yet, it still tasted delicious! What are you favourite pear recipes? Try some of these out.

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake: the lovely girls from Confetti Mag shared my cake recipe on their blog - check out the recipe here, and make sure you subscribe to their beautiful online magazine!

I'm also working on a recipe for a gluten free, dairy free shortcrust pastry... lots of pies being cooked here lately! (No one's complaining.) No recipe yet, all part of the 'project'.

Weird breakfasts: I explain why I eat weird things for breakfast, like chicken soup and fried rice, here.

How to make soft eggs, poached in the shell: too easy, very quick, and delicious! Photo and recipe here.

Don't have time for a 'proper' breakfast? My quick protein smoothie recipe.

A very interesting version of my Creamy Chicken & Brown Rice Soup: You know that soup that everyone's making? Well, you may not want to make it like this. Then again, maybe you will, just for fun!! :D

15 foods that can be regrown from scraps: great tips from Mrs Happy Homemaker

Favourite thermomix chicken recipes: Got chicken? Try these!

Trout recipes: some tips and recipes for cooking trout here.

Homemade two minute noodle seasoning mix: healthier versions you can make yourself!

Healthier biscuits to replace Tiny Teddies: some great ideas here for little homemade bikkies for kids, without the nasties.

10 reasons to make your own bone broth: check out this article by Alexx Stuart - I call bone broth 'liquid gold'. 

How to dry ripe olives: tips for drying and perserving olives here.

How to make dairy free dulce de leche with honey to sweeten: a reader's tip!

Homemade fruit chutney: readers' favourite recipes here.

Chilli jam recipes: find some recipes and links here.

Fig jam recipes: made with dried figs - ideas here.

Pickles: I also made pickled cucumber slices this week, so if you're wanting to try them yourself, the recipe is here - first half of recipe is in the comment on the photo, second half of recipe in the last comment on the photo. (These are not sweet pickles, they're the salty, vinegarry type.)

HEALTH

Homemade face masks: no need to spend big bucks on fancy schmancy facial treatments! Try these homemade face mask recipes!

10 reasons you should be using coconut oil: here's why I love coconut oil...

Why sugar makes us sleepy and protein wakes us up: ...and this is why I eat protein at breakfast time!

A reader's experience: how a mum got her daughter have more energy by giving her a protein breakfast before school! Her story here.

Sucrase Isomaltase Deficiency: a disorder that affects a persons ability to breakdown sucrose (fruit/table sugar) and maltose (grain sugar). Donna asked for some recipe ideas, in particular snacks & lunch box treats, for her 5 year old with SID - here's the answers and ideas that were shared.

AND OTHER STUFF

French Rules for Feeding Children: the French are known for having children who will eat all sorts of things - fussy eaters are just about unheard of! Here's some tips for developing great little eaters.

Nut milk bags: what do you use to strain your nut milk? Reader's tips and favourite brands.

How do you store recipes you find online? Here's readers' favourite ways to keep track of recipes they want to make.


Have a great week everyone!

Miss C and Shadow have the right idea...