Wow. I have almost posted more today than I have in the past two months combined!
Anyway, earlier in the year I found a bunch of recipes and prepped, then freezed, a bunch of meals. One of those was a Mexican chicken soup. I finally cooked it up about a month ago, and no word of a lie, it was the best thing I have ever had! I was on the cusp of getting sick, in the middle of submitting like, four assignments, that were all due within five days of each other, and just wanted something easy. Ended up with SO MUCH MORE!!!
Ever since, I have been trawling the internet, trying to find the recipe... Well, today, I did it. I stumbled across an old bookmark that I had copy/pasted into a document after prepping all those meals, but then forgot about. It is quite the occasion!!!! I'm going to make it again, because it's amazing. But I'm also going to put it here so I can easily share it with everyone I know, and also so I never lose the recipe again. ;)
The recipe can be found here.
Enjoy!
- L. x
Monday, 13 June 2016
Single parent, uni student, special needs child... I'm tired of labels.
I have noticed something these past couple of months. Older people seem to thoroughly enjoy labeling every aspect of their lives. Especially older people at university.
Being a mature student, I tended to gravitate toward a couple of older students, which is to be expected. I probably would have dropped out of uni if I'd been surrounded entirely by kids fresh out of high school. They can be a little .......distracting.
One thing I was not expecting, was to be more irritated by older students than younger students! I know mature students tend to get a bit of a reputation from the younger kids, but I thought it was just kids being, well, kids. I didn't put a lot of credibility into it. Until I started university, this time around. Sure, older students tend to be more open to expressing themselves during tutorials, etc., but that is something that comes with age, and isn't necessarily a bad thing. Well, I don't think it is. I was prone to voicing my thoughts during many tutorials, although I did often wait to see if anyone else was going to say something before I opened my mouth. I even encouraged younger students, on more than one occasion! However, what I found, that may tie in with this observation, along with the 'reputation' of mature age students, is that older people go on tangents! They take things off topic, and then go on and on AND ON about it, thus wasting perfectly good tutorial time!! This time is precious, and I seriously do not appreciate it being wasted by pretentious older people who think they are better than everyone else!
The thing that made this worse was that I apparently don't look even remotely close to my age. As such, I had more than one older student talk down to me, like I was a piece of unwanted gum on the bottom of her shoe. EXCUSE ME, LADY. Why are you better than me, or any other student at this university? We all went through the same application process, have to endure the same grueling readings and assignments, and all qualify with the same degree - if you happen to be studying the same course, anyway. Like seriously, you're too old to be this immature. Stop it now, before you further ruin the reputation of mature age students worldwide.
And to the younger university students: I apologise. I swear, we are not all that bad! Some of us are helpful, friendly, and maybe even awesome individuals. We just have the added advantage of living away from home, having a fridge full of food, and most of us have money in the bank. That doesn't mean you can monopolise us, but it also doesn't mean we cannot be friends with each other. Who knows? We may come in handy one day. ;)
Okay, that will do. This is so much longer, and rantier, than I expected it to be, and I digressed more than a little! :P
Peace out.
- L. x
Being a mature student, I tended to gravitate toward a couple of older students, which is to be expected. I probably would have dropped out of uni if I'd been surrounded entirely by kids fresh out of high school. They can be a little .......distracting.
One thing I was not expecting, was to be more irritated by older students than younger students! I know mature students tend to get a bit of a reputation from the younger kids, but I thought it was just kids being, well, kids. I didn't put a lot of credibility into it. Until I started university, this time around. Sure, older students tend to be more open to expressing themselves during tutorials, etc., but that is something that comes with age, and isn't necessarily a bad thing. Well, I don't think it is. I was prone to voicing my thoughts during many tutorials, although I did often wait to see if anyone else was going to say something before I opened my mouth. I even encouraged younger students, on more than one occasion! However, what I found, that may tie in with this observation, along with the 'reputation' of mature age students, is that older people go on tangents! They take things off topic, and then go on and on AND ON about it, thus wasting perfectly good tutorial time!! This time is precious, and I seriously do not appreciate it being wasted by pretentious older people who think they are better than everyone else!
The thing that made this worse was that I apparently don't look even remotely close to my age. As such, I had more than one older student talk down to me, like I was a piece of unwanted gum on the bottom of her shoe. EXCUSE ME, LADY. Why are you better than me, or any other student at this university? We all went through the same application process, have to endure the same grueling readings and assignments, and all qualify with the same degree - if you happen to be studying the same course, anyway. Like seriously, you're too old to be this immature. Stop it now, before you further ruin the reputation of mature age students worldwide.
And to the younger university students: I apologise. I swear, we are not all that bad! Some of us are helpful, friendly, and maybe even awesome individuals. We just have the added advantage of living away from home, having a fridge full of food, and most of us have money in the bank. That doesn't mean you can monopolise us, but it also doesn't mean we cannot be friends with each other. Who knows? We may come in handy one day. ;)
Okay, that will do. This is so much longer, and rantier, than I expected it to be, and I digressed more than a little! :P
Peace out.
- L. x
Lamb Casserole
So in winter, I love lamb. I also love my slow cooker. And casseroles. Hearty casseroles, full of root vegetables and tasty meat. YUM.
Who am I kidding?? I love most of those things year round!
Anyway, I finally put together a lamb slow cooker dish that didn't leave an icky taste in my mouth! It is a culmination of several recipes, with the best bits from each pulled out and stuck to something new. It's fantastic. Much like myself. :)
Without further adieu, I give you this recipe! Ta-daaaaaaa!
(Gee, I'm so intelligent. Look how many big words I can use now. LOL.)
INGREDIENTS:
1kg (approx) lamb, diced. I used forequarter chops, because they're cheap, and cheap is best in slow cooked meals. But whatever. I'm not your boss.
2 brown onions, diced
3-4 cloves garlic (it's winter, and garlic is great for the immune system!)
4 large potatoes, or 7-8 baby potatoes, diced
1 gold sweet potato, diced (aim for 2cm cubes with the potatoes)
3/4 cup green lentils, rinsed and drained
1 cup salt-reduced chicken stock
1 cup red wine (I use cab sav, but mostly because I like it on its own)
2 tbspn tomato paste
1 tspn rosemary
1 tspn oregano
2 bay leaves
Salt & pepper, to taste
METHOD:
Spray inner bowl of slow cooker with oil. In a frying pan over medium heat, soften onion and garlic with a little olive oil, then throw in oregano and rosemary until fragrant. Place in slow cooker, then throw in lamb until lightly browned, and place that in the slow cooker, along with remaining ingredients. Stir to combine, then cook on high for one hour, before turning to low for six hours (approximately - can go over if needed).
If you are a scentsy fanatic like myself, turn it off for the day and allow yourself to be surrounded by the glorious aromas coming from your slow cooker!
Serve with fresh, buttered bread, steamed greens and leftover wine, or however you prefer. ;)
Enjoy!
- L. x 
Who am I kidding?? I love most of those things year round!
Anyway, I finally put together a lamb slow cooker dish that didn't leave an icky taste in my mouth! It is a culmination of several recipes, with the best bits from each pulled out and stuck to something new. It's fantastic. Much like myself. :)
Without further adieu, I give you this recipe! Ta-daaaaaaa!
(Gee, I'm so intelligent. Look how many big words I can use now. LOL.)
INGREDIENTS:
1kg (approx) lamb, diced. I used forequarter chops, because they're cheap, and cheap is best in slow cooked meals. But whatever. I'm not your boss.
2 brown onions, diced
3-4 cloves garlic (it's winter, and garlic is great for the immune system!)
4 large potatoes, or 7-8 baby potatoes, diced
1 gold sweet potato, diced (aim for 2cm cubes with the potatoes)
3/4 cup green lentils, rinsed and drained
1 cup salt-reduced chicken stock
1 cup red wine (I use cab sav, but mostly because I like it on its own)
2 tbspn tomato paste
1 tspn rosemary
1 tspn oregano
2 bay leaves
Salt & pepper, to taste
METHOD:
Spray inner bowl of slow cooker with oil. In a frying pan over medium heat, soften onion and garlic with a little olive oil, then throw in oregano and rosemary until fragrant. Place in slow cooker, then throw in lamb until lightly browned, and place that in the slow cooker, along with remaining ingredients. Stir to combine, then cook on high for one hour, before turning to low for six hours (approximately - can go over if needed).
If you are a scentsy fanatic like myself, turn it off for the day and allow yourself to be surrounded by the glorious aromas coming from your slow cooker!
Serve with fresh, buttered bread, steamed greens and leftover wine, or however you prefer. ;)
Enjoy!
- L. x
Monday, 6 June 2016
Silverside.... Mmmm.
So prior to like, February this year, I had NEVER cooked silverside before! It was a task I left to my dad and grandma, as they do it well.
Then I decided it was a yummy, cheap meat option, and Spawn needed to experience it. So I asked my dad how to make it, then tweaked his recipe, because tweaking is what I do, LOL.
Anyway, it took a few attempts, but I finally nailed it! YAY! I put my recipes here not just as a service to whomever may read this, but also so I can easily find my recipes at a later date.
INGREDIENTS:
1 corned beef/silverside (I usually get one around 1kg as there's just two of us, but whatever size works. You don't need to change the recipe for a bigger cut)
1 brown onion, studded with 6 cloves
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped in half
2 bay leaves
1 tspn peppercorns
1 tbspn apple cider vinegar
Optional: cabbage
METHOD:
Put beef into a large saucepan and cover with hot water. Bring to the boil, then drain and wipe out pan before putting beef back into pan, along with enough water to cover the meat plus 5cm, and all other ingredients. Simmer, partially covered, for two hours or until meat is tender (this is where size will come into play).
Once cooked, strain 2 cups of the water into a jug for the sauce, and if cooking cabbage, keep the rest of the water to cook cabbage in. Allow beef to rest while making the white sauce, then slice and serve. Leftovers are great in sandwiches!
White Sauce
INGREDIENTS:
30g butter
45g plain flour
2 cups of beef cooking liquid
1/4 cup cream
1 tbspn dijon mustard
METHOD:
Combine the butter and flour in a small-medium pan to make a roux, then slowly whisk in the water and stir until it begins to thicken (to desired consistency) and boil. Stir in the cream and mustard then remove from heat. Wella!
As an aside, this dish goes well with cauliflower cheese along with steamed green vegetables and cabbage.
Enjoy!
- L. x
Then I decided it was a yummy, cheap meat option, and Spawn needed to experience it. So I asked my dad how to make it, then tweaked his recipe, because tweaking is what I do, LOL.
Anyway, it took a few attempts, but I finally nailed it! YAY! I put my recipes here not just as a service to whomever may read this, but also so I can easily find my recipes at a later date.
INGREDIENTS:
1 corned beef/silverside (I usually get one around 1kg as there's just two of us, but whatever size works. You don't need to change the recipe for a bigger cut)
1 brown onion, studded with 6 cloves
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped in half
2 bay leaves
1 tspn peppercorns
1 tbspn apple cider vinegar
Optional: cabbage
METHOD:
Put beef into a large saucepan and cover with hot water. Bring to the boil, then drain and wipe out pan before putting beef back into pan, along with enough water to cover the meat plus 5cm, and all other ingredients. Simmer, partially covered, for two hours or until meat is tender (this is where size will come into play).
Once cooked, strain 2 cups of the water into a jug for the sauce, and if cooking cabbage, keep the rest of the water to cook cabbage in. Allow beef to rest while making the white sauce, then slice and serve. Leftovers are great in sandwiches!
White Sauce
INGREDIENTS:
30g butter
45g plain flour
2 cups of beef cooking liquid
1/4 cup cream
1 tbspn dijon mustard
METHOD:
Combine the butter and flour in a small-medium pan to make a roux, then slowly whisk in the water and stir until it begins to thicken (to desired consistency) and boil. Stir in the cream and mustard then remove from heat. Wella!
As an aside, this dish goes well with cauliflower cheese along with steamed green vegetables and cabbage.
Enjoy!
- L. x
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