In the kitchen......

It’s school holiday time here at the moment and the combination of 3 hungry kids, no shops close by and it being too hot to play outside means we all spend lots of time in the kitchen. Now I am not much of a chef and my husband did not marry me for my cooking that’s for sure (I have actually set a toaster on fire making toast) but I have had to learn and improve over time. I am lucky that my husband is awesome and likes cooking so we get to share kitchen duties. Over the last few weeks I have had some kitchen successes so I thought I’d share them.

For Christmas I was given (or may have requested) the CWA cookbook. I had read a review on it and now I am a ‘Country Woman’ I thought it would be handy.... and it is. It has lots of basics and heaps of recipes that use few ingredients and lots of pantry staples.

 But the best part is the cakes and sweet section. Now is the time to confess....I have a sweet tooth, but I love eating healthy food, confusing I know... so I am always looking for easy recipes that satisfy the sweet craving while not being too bad for me or the kids. Our favourite so far is Kim's Chocolate Cake, only a few ingredients and I have halved the sugar to ¾  cup and it has worked perfectly every time.

 I have used this recipe to make a cake, added coconut and sultanas (on separate occasions) for muffins and made cake pops with it, and it is so easy to make and delicious.

The second recipe that we have tried recently and loved is a recipe for Quinoa burgers. Now Quinoa is pretty new in at our house and I have only used it a few times, but this recipe will become a staple because (drum roll please)..... Everyone ate it!! I have another confession I am a partial vegetarian (I only eat chicken and fish) and I live in a house filled with carnivores especially Miss 7. So when I find a recipe we all eat for dinner the heavens open and angels sing. This recipe was easy to make, the burgers stayed together and it made 14 burgers more than enough for leftovers for lunch the next day. I put the burgers in the fridge for 30 mins prior to cooking because the mixture was quite moist and I think this helped keep them together, but they are great, and easy. The Quinoa burger recipe is from here: http://eatingwelllivingthin.wordpress.com/2010/11/01/love-my-quinoa-burger/

Our Quinoa Burgers

Quinoa Burgers from the website

I hope that these recipes work as well for others as they did for me, food is such an important part of our lives and I am starting to actually enjoy spending time in the kitchen (just don’t let my husband know). When I am cooking it is the one time our active Master 2 will sit still and help me out with the taste testing. It is lovely watching the girls becoming more independent as they can do more cooking themselves. Spending family time in the kitchen has become a big part of ‘these beautiful days’.... Enjoy.