Category Archives: Freezer Friendly

Aug7

Thai Chicken and Corn Cakes

Posted on August 7, 2012 by foodthatserves

I made this modified Ainsley Harriott recipe for the first time last night and everyone loved it. The kids devoured these yummy Thai chicken and corn cakes and I loved them not just for taste but also for simplicity: everything just goes in the food processor for blitzing. And it was so affordable: the total cost being less than $10 (and it made 20 rissole sized cakes which is two dinners worth in this house). Next time I make hot finger food I’m going to roll them into little balls to dip in its sauce using a toothpick for a yummy starter. These Thai chicken and corn cakes are freezer friendly, which makes this recipe my new favourite.

3 skinless chicken breasts or 5 thighs (approximately 750g)
1 egg
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp Thai red curry paste
50g breadcrumbs
1 x 400g tin corn kernels, drained
half bunch fresh coriander leaves
4 spring onions, sliced
2 tbsp sesame or peanut oil

sweet chilli sauce

4 tabs sweet chilli sauce
1 teasp soy sauce
1 teasp fish sauce
5cm piece cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely chopped (optional)

Roughly chop the chicken breasts and put all ingredients (minus the oil and sauce ingredients) together in the bowl of a food processor. Process until combined evenly, though ingredients should still be visibly distinct to the eye.
With wet hands, pat mixture into 20 rissole sized cakes and pan fry on each side for 3-5 minutes, in a very hot fry pan using sesame or peanut oil.
If desired, combine sauce ingredients in a dish (though sweet chilli sauce straight from the bottle is great with this dish too).
Serve with mashed potato and steamed vegetables or a salad of asian greens. Makes 20 cakes, and serves 6+ adults.

Jul23

Cottage Pie with Cheesy Mash Crust

Posted on July 23, 2012 by foodthatserves

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I have always loved a good Cottage Pie and so have my family. It’s just so warming to eat and very easy to make. Every time I cook this, the kids devour the lot and it’s one of my favourites because it can be made en masse for the freezer or for a crowd of people if necessary. After our first child was born a lovely friend made us two of these to get us through those first newborn weeks – one for dinner that night and one for our freezer. She delivered them in oven-ready disposable foil trays and since then I have copied her serving idea stacks of times. If you’re keen to make this for a crowd (such as for a camp or church dinner), you might find it easy to use some of those massive disposable oven trays from the BBQ section of the supermarket. Using the quantities provided below this meal will cost you less than $13 and will easily feed 6 (maybe more).

For Mince Mixture

1kg beef mince
2 lugs of olive oil
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 sticks of celery, trimmed and diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
100g bacon, thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
3 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked or 1 tablespoon dried from pantry
1 x 400g can of diced tomatoes
3/4 cup frozen peas (if desired)
250ml beef stock
1/2 cup red wine (if you have it)
2 tablespoons corn flour

For Cheesy Mash Crust

1kg potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2 knobs of butter
a few dashes of milk
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (or tasty if that’s all you’ve got)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large pan (such as casserole pan, electric frypan or large stovetop frypan), add a little olive oil and cook the bacon on high heat until cooked and coloured. Add onion and mince and cook until everything is browned. Drain off any fat or liquid that results by elevating one end of the pan and decanting with a small cup or large spoon.
Reduce the heat to low and add celery, carrot, garlic, thyme, tinned tomatoes, peas, beef stock and red wine. Allow the mixture to simmer for half an hour.
While mince mixture is simmering, peel and slice potatoes, and boil covered with water until very soft and ready for mashing. Drain, add butter and milk until potato is a yummy mash. Add grated parmesan and season with salt and pepper.
In a cup, mix corn flour with 1/4 cup water and add to mince mixture to thicken. Allow mince to thicken by turning up the heat for just a minute or two.
Transfer mince mixture to a making dish. Top with potato and parmesan mash using a fork to give the potato a rough, textured finish. Bake in a hot oven of 220 degrees for 10 mins or until golden brown. Serve alone or with fresh crusty bread.

Jul10

Slow Cooker Satay

Posted on July 10, 2012 by foodthatserves

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Here’s another slow cooker recipe to get you through the winter months. Our family really enjoyed this because the sauce isn’t too spicy, yet it has a definite satay flavour. This satay sauce can be used with your choice of beef or chicken such as drum sticks or diced thigh fillets. Doubling this recipe will almost fill a 5.5L slow cooker and will provide you with extra meals for no extra hassle. After researching my local area, I found that Coles had the best price for chuck steak ($8 per kilo), though I have seen it cheaper on special at various places. Quantities given below serve 6+ people and costs around $12 to make.

1kg diced beef (chuck or rump works best)
1 large onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into half moon shapes
1 400g can lite coconut cream
1 tab ground cumin
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp coriander flakes (or fresh if you have it)
2 tabs soy sauce
2 tabs lime juice (I use squeezie from the fridge)
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp ground ginger
250 grams good quality peanut butter, (homebrand won’t do in this case!)
salt and pepper to taste

Place beef or chicken in the slow cooker along with the onions, carrots, spices, lime juice, garlic and peanut butter. Mix well to coat the meat in the flavours.
Pour coconut cream over the seasoned meat and again, mix well.
Cook on low for 8 hours. Check the flavour and season according to taste with salt and pepper. Serve on rice or mashed potato with steamed snow peas, broccoli and capsicum.

Jul9

Women’s Weekly Family Chocolate Cake

Posted on July 9, 2012 by foodthatserves

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Years ago, my friend Amy made this cake for one of her children’s birthdays while I was at her house for a cuppa. She baked and I watched from the breakfast bar while sipping tea – one of my favourite things to do with friends, whether I’m the one cooking or watching! I took the recipe home that day and have been making it ever since. This moist and chocolatey cake is so fudgey and the cake itself is absolutely as good as the frosting! It makes a whopping great big slab, baked in a roasting dish. Terrific for large crowds or dividing up for a multitude of school lunches, this one freezes fabulously.

2 cups (500ml) water
3 cups (660g) caster sugar
250g butter, chopped
1/3 cup (35g) cocoa powder, sifted
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda, sifted
3 cups (450g) self-raising flour
4 eggs, beaten lightly
90g butter
1/3 cup (80ml) water
½ cup (110g) caster sugar
1½ cups (240g) icing sugar mixture
1/3 cup (35g) cocoa powder

Preheat oven to moderate. Grease deep 26.5cm x 33cm (14 cup/3.5 litres) baking dish: line base with baking paper.
Combine the water, sugar, butter and combined sifted cocoa powder and soda in medium saucepan; stir over heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil then reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to large bowl; cool to room temperature.
Add flour and egg to bowl; beat with electric mixer until mixture is smooth and changed to a paler colour. Pour mixture into prepared dish.
Bake cake in moderate oven about 50 minutes. Stand cake in baking dish 10 minutes, before turning onto wire rack; turn cake top-side up to cool. Spread cold cake with fudge frosting.

Fudge frosting:

Combine butter, water and caster sugar in small saucepan; stir over heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Sift icing sugar and cocoa powder into small bowl then gradually stir in hot butter mixture. Cover; refrigerate about 20 minutes or until frosting thickens. Beat with wooden spoon until spreadable.

TIP: Choose a perfectly level-bottomed baking dish; one made from cast aluminium is the best choice, but almost any type will work. If the cake appears to be cooking too quickly in the corners of the pan, reduce oven temperature to moderately slow; this will increase cooking time by up to 15 minutes.

Jun26

Blueberry Muffins 2 Ways

Posted on June 26, 2012 by foodthatserves

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Above: Original Blueberry Muffins

Below: Sugar Free Blueberry Muffins

I have been using this Blueberry Muffin recipe by Nigella Lawson for years as my basic muffin recipe, morphing the flavours to suit what is desired – raspberry and white chocolate, chocolate chip and berry flavoured. Recently I’ve needed to modify it to be made on Stevia rather than sugar and it still works quite well. Below you’ll find the original recipe and the version of it I use when making them sugar free. Please don’t go to the shop to buy buttermilk, I’ve only ever used the yoghurt and milk replacement and it work fine. These are fast to make and will cost you no more than $3-4 depending on your choice of filling.

75g unsalted butter,
200g plain flour
½ tsp bicarb of soda
2 tsp baking powder
75g caster sugar
Pinch of salt
200ml buttermilk (or 100g yoghurt and 100ml milk)
1 large egg
200g blueberries (I often use less to reduce cost)
12 hole muffin tray lined with 12 paper cases

Preheat oven to 200C/gas mark 6.
Melt the butter and set aside to cool a little.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl and in a measuring jug beat together the buttermilk (or yoghurt and milk), egg and melted butter.
Using a wooden spoon and a light hand, pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix gently to combine. Don’t worry about lumps, the important thing is the mixture isn’t over-worked.
Fold in the blueberries, again keeping mixing to a minimum.
Spoon into the muffin cases and bake for 20 minutes, by which time the muffins should be risen, golden and firm on top.

For sugar free blueberry muffins: increase flour to 300g and replace sugar for 40g granulated Stevia.

Jun25

Banana Bread (with no added sugar)

Posted on June 25, 2012 by foodthatserves

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Having had some requests for some sugar free recipes, I thought I’d share this one. I make this modified banana bread (originally another Nigella recipe) in muffin sizes for my kids lunches all the time and the best part is I know that the only sugar in it comes from the bananas themselves. This recipe calls for stevia instead of sugar and you can buy it in a variety of granulated brands in the sugar aisle next to the artificial sweeteners. The exciting thing about stevia is that it’s totally natural so there’s no bad after taste and it’s also much sweeter than sugar so you really only need 1/4 of the amount you might normally use when baking with sugar.

250g plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
125g unsalted butter, melted
50-75g stevia (add enough to suit your desire for ‘sweetness’)
2 large eggs
4 small, very ripe bananas (about 300g weighed without skin), mashed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
23 x 13 x 7cm loaf tin, buttered and floured or with a paper insert

Preheat the oven to 170ºC/gas mark 3 and get started on the rest. Put the flour, baking powder, bicarb and salt in a medium-sized bowl and, using your hands or a wooden spoon, combine well.
In a large bowl, mix the melted butter and stevia and beat until blended. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the mashed bananas. Then, with your wooden spoon, stir in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture, a third at a time, stirring well after each bit. Scrape into the loaf tin and bake in the middle of the oven for 1-11/4 hours. When it’s ready, an inserted toothpick or fine skewer should come out cleanish. Leave in the tin on a rack to cool, and eat thickly or thinly sliced, as you prefer.

Jun24

Donna Hay’s Pumpkin, Ricotta and Basil Lasagne

Posted on June 24, 2012 by foodthatserves

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Yesterday I was the grateful recipient of a ‘day off’ by myself. My husband ordered me to ‘go to a cafe and read a book’ which I readily agreed was a wonderful way to use some of the day. Beforehand, I found a copy of Donna Hay’s No Time To Cook, and having used it a number of times, sat down to read it like a novel, page by page. By the end I was inspired by a number of the recipes, especially this one. Normally a yummy vegetarian dish, I knew my husband would prefer it with the addition of mince, and the result was a less stodgy and much healthier lasagne. With 750g of mince added to the passata sauce this dish costs around $16 and around $11 if you keep it vegetarian. Serves 10.

1.2kg ricotta (buy it from the deli, not the fridge section, much cheaper!)
160g grated parmesan
6 tbsp chopped chives (if you have it)
8 tbsp shredded basil (if you have it)
1 rounded tbsp finely grated lemon rind
sea salt and cracked black pepper

4 tbsp coarsely chopped oregano leaves (if you have it)
1.25 litres tomato passata
450g-600g lasagne sheets
1.5kg pumpkin peeled, seeded and sliced thinly (2-3mm)
100g grated mozzarella

Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
Combine ricotta, half the grated parmesan, chives, basil, lemon rind, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix well. Stir oregano into passata.
Place a layer of lasagne sheets into the base of a greased 20cm x 35cm baking dish (about 7cm deep, 3.5-4 litre capacity). Top with a third of the pumpkin and spoon over a third of the passata mixture. Top with a third of the ricotta mixture and another layer of lasagne sheets. Repeat layers, ending with a layer of lasagne sheets and the remaining ricotta mixture.
Sprinkle with mozzarella and the remaining parmesan, cover with aluminium foil and bake for 1½ hours.

Jun23

Jodi’s Mum’s Lemon Tea Cake

Posted on June 23, 2012 by foodthatserves

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The lemon tree out the side of my house has been bursting with lemons for the last few weeks and I’ve been racking my brain to find ways to use them up. I’m really not the most sentimental of people but I quite like it that the variety of lemon my tree brings forth is a ‘Meyer’ lemon – my maiden name. According to my grandmother, one of our long lost relatives first propagated it and it’s now one of the most readily available varieties. So I was excited when my friend Jodi emailed me her mother’s recipe for Lemon Tea Cake. When I made this ridiculously easy cake, I so enjoyed the neatness of it all – using all the lemon’s rind and juice with no wastage. This cake will set you back no more than 20 minutes and $3. Thanks for sharing, Jodi.

1 1/2 cups self raising flour
1 cup sugar plus 1/4 cup extra
1/2 teaspoon salt
120g butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 180 degrees (170 fan forced). Grease and line a 20cm round, ring or loaf tin.
In a medium sized bowl, sift flour, add sugar and salt. Rub in butter. (This is done easily if you grate butter cold, straight from the fridge.)
Combine beaten eggs and milk and stir into mixture. Fold in lemon rind.
Pour into the tin and bake for about 50mins, but start checking earlier with a skewer.
Mix juice of lemon and 1/4 cup sugar and remove cake from the oven. Immediately spoon lemon juice/sugar mixture over cake and allow to soak into the cake.
Leave in tin to cool. Serve by itself or with cream and ice cream for dessert.

Jun14

Chocolate Fudge Slice with Caramello Chocolate

Posted on June 14, 2012 by foodthatserves

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A number of years ago my friend Kara gave me this divine recipe and since then it’s been one of my favourites for when I need to quickly make a morning or afternoon tea or a fast dessert. The consistency of the slice is nice and chewy with the oozing Caramello chocolate randomly permeating the mixture. It’s a fast melt and mix recipe which will take you no more than 10 minutes to mix and pop into the oven. One of the things I love most about this recipe is it’s versatility – my friend Nicole makes it with white chocolate chunks and it’s easy to substitute the Caramello for whatever chocolate you prefer. If you buy your chocolate on special and use home brand condensed milk, this yummy option will cost less than $6 to make. Finally, consider using it as a desert serving up a square for each person with a scoop of ice cream. Serves 24+

1 cup self raising flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup coconut
2 heaped tabs cocoa
125g butter, melted
400g can condensed milk
1 family size block Cadbury Caramello chocolate (replace with whatever you fancy)

Grease and line a rectangular 16x26cm slice tin with baking paper. Preheat oven to 180 degrees (fan-forced 170 deg).
In a large mixing bowl combine all the ingredients (except chocolate), press into slice tin. Break chocolate into individual squares and press them randomly and firmly into the mixture in the tin.
Bake for 20-25 mins, but start checking early. The slice should be rise back after a light touch but still be a little wobbly and soft when it comes out of the oven. It will continue to cook as it cools.

Jun8

Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff

Posted on June 8, 2012 by foodthatserves

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Beef Stroganoff is a winter staple in our house. It’s a great choice for warming up on a cold night and it’s the sort of dish that stretches easily to accommodate others at the last minute. The recipe that follows started out as a Woman’s Weekly recipe from the 80’s but has morphed over the years into something that works in the slow cooker and takes my family’s tastebuds into account (we like it quite tomatoey). Please know that this recipe copes well with the addition of veggies such as carrots and green beans, which stretches it even further and improves the nutritional value – simply throw them in the slow cooker about an hour before serving. If you don’t have a slow cooker or need to make this in the late afternoon, simply halve the amount of beef stock and cook the whole thing in an electric frypan. The only catch is, that you will need to let it simmer away for no less than 1 hour to ensure the beef is nice and tender. Finally, a couple of comments about slow cookers: remember the versatility of using a slow cooker. I’ve often made this recipe after dinner when there’s less disruption and let the stroganoff cook overnight on low. In the morning it’s ready to divide up and freeze, refrigerate until dinner time or even give away to someone who needs it. Also, it’s important to know that getting something like this going in the slow cooker can take a good half an hour (though, that’s all it will require of you), so consider increasing the quantities to completely fill it – providing you with lots of meals for the future and the most economical use of your time. Doubling this recipe completely fills a 5.5L cooker. With the quantities listed below this dish will cost under $15 and serves 8.

1kg beef – rump (dearer) or chuck (cheaper) steak, diced or cut into thin strips
3/4 brown paper bag mushrooms, peeled and quartered
2 onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
half cup plain flour or cornflour
olive oil for browning
2 cups beef stock
half a large jar tomato paste
half cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

1. Toss strips of beef in flour and brown in a frypan on very high heat, a little at a time until the whole batch has been browned.

2. Add sliced onions, garlic, mushrooms, stock, tomato paste and stir well. Allow to simmer for a few hours or put it all in the slow cooker on LOW for around 8 hours.

3. Just before serving, stir through the sour cream and serve on either rice or fettacine.