Cauliflower pie

As I mentioned here, I have been having a lot of fun with our weekly vegetable boxes from Aussie Farmers Direct.

I am, however, falling behind in blogging about the dishes we have created, as this was one of the dishes I made from our first box.

The inspiration?

A beautiful head of cauliflower.

Boiled, processed…

Then jazzed up with a few extra ingredients.

To create a simple yet tasty cauliflower pie.

I served this as a dinner ‘side’ for a couple nights, but it also made a rather tasty ‘heat and eat’ lunch too.

Perfect for when you have a grizzly bub in one hand, and a tummy that is crying out for food.

Showcasing one of my favourite vegetables too!

Cauliflower pie

• 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
• 3 potatoes, cooked and mashed
• 1/2 cup light sour cream
• 2 tsp Chinese five spice
• Salt & pepper
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan
• 1 tbs olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Lightly grease a pie dish.
2. Boil cauliflower for 5 minutes, drain, then process until smooth.
3. In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower, potato, sour cream and Chinese five spice,  and season to taste.
4. Spread into the prepared dish. Sprinkle with parmesan and drizzle with olive oil.
5. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

What about you? Are you a fan of cauliflower?

Sweet times

What a wonderful wonderful weekend we have just had. Sunshine, laughs, good food, great company….

What more could a gal want??

With my best friend and her husband in town, we wasted no time in brunching our way through the weekend…

Chatting over coffees, lingering over lunch, indulging in some lovely red wine with dinner.

And generally catching up on life.

Saving room for some delightful desserts, of course, along the way…

The big difference from our previous catch ups was most certainly that we had the little miss in tow. She seemed to love being out and about – taking in all the new sights, sounds and smells.

Although it was perhaps a little too much for her at times…

Yup - fast asleep at the breakfast table! Be-still my heart.

What about you? Are you a fan of brunch??

5 things Friday

1. This week, I made a dish at the request of Mr BBB, that used these ingredients….

Any guesses? I am sure our dentist would love it….

2. Owing to the little munchkin, who loves to take her short morning nap nestled into my chest, I have become relatively speedy at one handed typing. Speedy, not accurate, so I apologise for any typos!

3. After a not so healthy dinner (see item 1) I am pleased to report that the rest of our meals were a lot less sugar-loaded.

4. I am starting to get my running ‘itch’ back, but for now, I have only been able to get out once, maybe twice per week (and some weeks not at all). Last weekend we got creative and Mr BBB and I headed out for another family ‘circuit’ session, and although we covered around 3km each over the course of the session, (broken into laps) I am keen to start increasing mileage.

So, until the little Miss is big enough to go in the jogging stroller – this dreadmill-hating-outdoor-running-lover is seriously contemplating hiring a dreadmill. Pigs really must fly eh?!

5. This weekend we have more visitors – with my best buddy from Melbourne arriving! I see lots of lazy brunches in our future

GF chicken snitzel with carrot swede salad

We are in full blown sleep regression (?) here, with Miss C waking every 2 hours over the last few nights. A result of the two teeth that have sprouted perhaps?

All I know is that I am one sleepy lady at the moment. A sleepy lady who is crazy busy at work too.

Ahh when it rains it pours eh?

At least there have been some tasty meals to look forward to at the end of the day. Including this one, inspired by the carrots and couple swedes that arrived in our Aussie Farmers Direct vegetable box a little while ago.

(Swedes are also known as rutabagas I think….)

Initially I was going to roast them, but decided to do something a little different. And with the help of ginger, GF soy sauce and some sesame oil…

We soon had ourselves an Asian-style carrot and swede salad.

Warmed in a pan, with a cup of frozen peas for some green.

And our salad was done.

For protein, we ‘breaded’ some thin chicken schnitzels with polenta (using this technique but without the parsley and lemon zest).

And what a meal it made!

I really enjoyed the crunch of the salad, which had soaked up the lovely ginger / sesame / soy flavours.

While the schnitzel itself was also a nice GF take on an old classic.

What about you? How do you like to cook swedes?

Aussie Farmers Direct

With time being in relatively short supply of late, I’ve been openly looking for inspiration when it comes to our meals. I’ve also been looking for convenience, while trying to keep healthy dinners on the menu.

I tried both Woolworths and Coles online shopping, but wasn’t taken by either of them (their produce was just ‘so 'so’ and I found a lot of their products were more expensive online than in my local store…weird).

I then heard about Aussie Farmers Direct, a company through which I could arrange a weekly produce delivery directly to my door.

Healthy? Yes.

Good inspiration for meals? Yes.

So recently I signed up for their vegetable box to come once a week (because although we may not each as much fruit as I would like, we certainly go through vegetables like there is no tomorrow).

Two weeks in – and I have been so very pleased thus far.

(Week 1)

(Week 2)

It is actually a little like a weekly surprise gift – as before it is delivered – I never quite know what we will get. Last week we got some gorgeous silverbeet, for example, which I had never cooked with before – but is now my new favourite!

It has also encouraged me to get creative in the kitchen, and I have had a lot of fun planning our dinners around the produce received. I’ll blog about these dishes, but for now, here is a sneak peek…

(Polenta chicken schnitzel with swede / carrot salad)

(Cauliflower pie)

(Buttery orange maple parsnips)

(My favourite meal of late – warm silverbeet, bean and chorizo salad)

While the quality of the produce stays good, I have no doubts that we will continue this delivery. So far it all been really fresh and lovely (aside from one questionable leek), and with another delivery due today- I’m already excited!

*nb – This was not in anyway a sponsored post. I just want to share with you my experiences of the deliveries thus far.

What about you? Do you get produce or grocery deliveries?

Quinoa Paella

Remember when I went to Sydney for a little cook off? Well I just realised that I never shared my cook off dish with you…

On the menu? A quinoa paella.

So very simple to make, yet packed with protein and flavour.

My original dish used red and green capsicums, but I had none on hand the other night, so this version had carrots and broccoli instead.

The other flavours were pretty much the same. GG parsley, garlic and chilli, tomato paste, saffron, water and quinoa.

Combined with grilled chicken, and allowed to simmer until the quinoa had soaked up all the liquid.

Finished with some frozen peas and prawns, and cooked for another 5 minutes or so.

Finished with a sprinkle of fresh parsley and lemon wedges,  and this quinoa paella was done.

The added bonus being that there is no need for serving dishes.

Just take the entire frypan to the table…

And dig in!

Quinoa Paella (serves 4) * the original version

• olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 green capsicum, diced
• 1 red capsicum, diced
• 2 tbs GG garlic paste
• 2 tbs GG mild chilli
• 1 tbs GG parsley paste
• 2 tbs tomato paste
• Pinch Saffron
• 1.5 cups white quinoa
• 3 cups water
• 2 chicken thigh fillets – skin off, sliced
• 16 x frozen  raw prawn cutlets (ie. head off & deveined / but tails on)
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• Bunch of fresh flat leaf parsley

1. Heat a splash of olive oil in a large frypan. Add the onion, capsicum,  herb and tomato pastes. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the vegetables are starting to soften.
2. Add the chicken, and cook until lightly browned.
3. Add the saffron, quinoa and water, and stir to combine. Cover and simmer gently for 12 – 14 minutes, or until the quinoa is cooked.
4. Add the prawns and peas. Cover and continue cooking for a further 5 minutes,
5. Remove from the heat, and stir. Sprinkle with chopped flat leaf parsley, and serve with the lemon wedges.

What about you? Are you a paella fan?

A day in the life with a 4 month old

A lot has changed since my last “Day in the Life” post – when C was 6 weeks old. Yet, so much has also stayed the same.

The biggest change would be that I have returned to work part time, working from home around 20 hours each week.

The change has brought with it many lessons in time management, although I feel as if C and I are finding our groove and settling into a fairly good daily routine. Slowly but surely.

Of course there are some days where the ‘normal’ is anything but ‘normal’, but here is an insight into what our days generally look like at the moment.  I am sure there are things I forgot to include (like snacks etc) but you get the idea…

6.30am – Mr BBB and I both get up. He heads to the shower, and I head into my ‘office’ to get a solid hour of work done. Mr BBB leaves for work around 7.15am, then it is just us girls for the rest of the day.

7.30am – I go in and wake Charlotte up (although she is usually stirring by this stage). I have to share with you the smiley face that normally greets me each morning, as it never fails to put a smile on my face too!

7.30am -  9.00am – For the next hour and half, we set about accomplishing our morning routine. I make our bed…

while Charlotte has some tummy time…

Then it is into her nursery for a nappy change and feed…

And we spend the next hour playing, and I have breakfast.

Normally its nothing too fancy – just a bowl of GF muesli, some fruit and a cup of tea.

9.00am – C starts looking a little tired, so she generally takes a short 30 minute nap whilst snuggled on my chest. I use this time to continue working, catching up on blogs and / or preparing a blog post.

9.30am – 11.00am - C is awake, and we have more tummy and play time…

Then I put her in her swing (which now lives in our bathroom) while I have a shower.

Showered and dressed, I put a load of laundry and dishes on.

11.00am – When Charlotte is due for another nap, I bundle her up in the pram and head out. Most days we will walk to the local shops and pick up any groceries we need. Other days we will take a drive if we have errands to run.

She normally sleeps for around 40 – 60 minutes after she has nodded off.

12.30pm – Home again, and its time for lunch for both of us.

I have been fairly lazy with lunches recently, tending to eat leftovers from the previous nights’ dinner or make a quick sandwich.  Washed down with a cup of tea or coffee, and a big glass of water.

1.30pm – Nap time. This time, I swaddle, and put C in her bassinet. This leaves my hands free to get back into the office for another hour or two of work – depending on how long she naps for.

3.00pm – Charlotte wakes, has a feed, and we have a bit of playtime together.

Then starts our afternoon adventures.

During the afternoon, I generally start to get dinner ready, and C is generally quite happy to sit back and watch.

With dinner bubbling away slowly on the stove, and under the watchful eye of C, I unpack the dishwasher, fold the dry laundry (with assistance)..

And hang out the wet washing.

If I can, I also like to fit in some exercise during the afternoon too. Once a week my mother in law or niece comes around for a couple of hours, and I have been trying to use this time to fit in a short run. Otherwise, I will do some upper or lower body sets using free weights a few times a week (something I have just started).

4.15pm – If all is well, C will take another short nap in the late afternoon. Recently she has been fighting these naps (despite being so much happier if she takes one), and if it gets to 5.00pm and she hasn't fallen asleep, I tend to give up.

6.00pm – This evening period is still C’s most fussiest, so we spend much of the late afternoon playing, generally trying to keep her distracted and happy, until her Dad walks in the door from work.

(Including impromptu photo shoots)

C instantly lights up the moment Mr BBB arrives home, and they waste no time in having some daddy / daughter play until it is time to start what has become our standard bedtime routine.

6.30pm – We bath C together every night, which is something that she seems to really like.

She loves these bath rings, in particular, and will look around for them as soon as she is placed into the bath!

6.45pm – With C washed and dried, we swaddle her and I give her as big a feed as she will take. Usually she will drift off to sleep after 10 – 15 minutes of feeding, and I transfer her to her bassinet. We aim to have this done by 7pm – or shortly thereafter.

7.10pm – With C in bed, we finish putting together our dinner (which is usually mostly prepared from the afternoon).

On this occasion it was corned beef, with a potato we had roasting in the oven for an hour or so (started just before bath time) and some steamed greens.

7.30pm – With dinner done, and the dishes washed, I head back into the office for a few more hours of work. If I have not had the chance to do much throughout the day, I might need to spend 2 hours in here. Or, if C has slept well throughout the day, I might not have to spend much extra time working at all.

9.15pm – Around this time, C will wake for a feed, which I do in our dimly lit bedroom. This usually only takes 5 minutes or so, and she will fall straight back to sleep.

9.30pm – 7.30am - While C was sleeping for good long periods overnight a while ago, this has all changed again. Over the last few weeks, she has been waking up at least 3 times – usually around midnight, 2.30am and 5.30am. While I am grateful that she generally re-settles quickly after a feed at these times, I am starting to feel as if my sleep bank is fast running out! Every night is a new adventure, although I would be lying if I said that I didn’t hope she starts to sleep for longer stretches again soon.

So there you have it – a day in our life! Who knows what the next few months will bring?