Recipe Share - Quickie Cupcakes (thanks Ikea!)

Quickie Cupcakes
Ingredients:

• 2 cups Self-raising Flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup caster sugar
• 125 grams unsalted butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• ¾ cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 200℃
Line cupcake trays with liners
Sift flour sugar and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer, add butter, eggs, milk and vanilla.
Beat slowly for 1 minute. Increase speed and beat for two minutes.
Spoon batter into pre-prepared liners.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Top with your favourite icing.

(Serves 24)

Variations:
Add 1/4 cup of cocoa powder to dry ingredients
Fold in 1/2 cup of chocolate chips or sultanas before spooning into liners

Download recipe.

I am going to admit to something somewhat embarrassing. I quite literally made these cupcakes tday just so I could try out these that I picked up from Ikea on the weekend:

From Life

From Life

Sad? Maybe. Obsessive? Definitely! And it turns out they were super fun! You can fill the liners basically to the top, and the little recesses in the man stop the batter from spreading out. That means it goes up and you get these sky-high little tops!

I also picked up these while I was there:

From Life

From Life

From Life

From Life

And the whole trip cost me less than $70! Loving Ikea!!!

Recipe Share - Slow Cooker Osso Bucco

I know a lot of people prefer to just throw everything into the slow cooker with out "pre-browning". But the sight of anaemic, grey looking meat is a real turnoff for me. And it's not just the colour that is improved with this step, there is an added depth and richness of flavour that you just don't get without a little time in the frying pan first.

Osso Bucco is the meat from the shin of the animal (not the tail as many have been lead to believe). As the shin muscles are used a lot in a cow's lifetime, Osso Bucco MUST be slow cooked. But you do get  great big marrow bone right smack in the centre of the cut. So what does this mean? Cooked slowly in a casserole the meat is oh so tender, and the marrow adds a velvety richness to the gravy. Yum :)

Photo from Entice Magazine

Slow Cooker Osso Bucco
Original Recipe Source: Entice Magazine
Ingredients:

• 2 kg osso bucco, (6-8 pieces)
• t tablespoon Welly Boot Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 small carrot, finely diced
• 2 sticks celery, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon plain flour
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1 bay leaf (optional)
• ½ cup white wine
• ½ cup tomato puree

Lemon and parsley garnish

• 1 clove garlic, very finely grated
• 2 lemons, zest only
• handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Directions:
1. Season the osso bucco with salt and pepper. Heat a large frypan over a medium-high heat, add a dash of oil. Brown the osso bucco in 2 or 3 batches, adding a little more oil as required. Remove each batch and place in slow cooker dish.

2. Reduce heat in the pan, add a little oil, and the diced onion, carrot and celery, and cook for 1–2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Sprinkle in flour and stir until the vegetables are coated. Gradually pour in the combined wine, puree and stock. Stir until the mixture boils, add bay leaf and then pour over the osso bucco. Cover and cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 6-8hours until the osso bucco is very tender. Sprinkle with the lemon and parsley garnish to serve.

To make lemon and parsley garnish: Combine all ingredients and season with freshly ground salt and pepper.

Cooktop method: Place the browned osso buco and other ingredients in a heavy based pot. Partially cover and keep heat low. Stir occasionally and add water if needed during the cooking time to keep ingredients well covered. Simmer until the meat is very tender.

(Serves 6)

Cooks Notes

• Don’t rush the initial stage of browning the meat. This will make your casserole rich in colour and flavour. Brown the meat in small batches over a medium-high heat.

• Simmer the casserole gently and taste it to see if it’s ready. Stir occasionally and adjust the heat as it cooks if needed. When it’s done the meat should be tender enough to fall apart easily with a fork.

• Use the juices from the pot as a base for a rich gravy. Melt 2-3 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan, add the same amount of plain flour and stir briskly with a wooden spoon until it becomes a paste. Gradually add 1 1/2 cups of the pot juices, little by little, stirring well after each addition to avoid lumps. bring to the boil, reduce heat then simmer until desired thickness has been reached. NB omit lemon and parsley garnish.

• A casserole will keep for up to 2 to 3 days in the refrigerator. Casseroles should be refrigerated immediately after the steam from cooking has evaporated. Place the hot casserole into a shallow container, and then into the fridge so it cools quickly. Do not leave it to cool completely on the bench. To serve bring it slowly to the boil over a medium heat, reduce heat and simmer for about 3 minutes, or until the meat and sauce are both thoroughly hot.

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Recipe Share - Fettuccine Carbonara with Homemade Pasta

If you read this post you will know that I am the proud owner of a new pasta machine. However, my first attempt was rubbish! I have found a new recipe (on the back of the 00 flour box!) and picked up a few tips along the way. And now SUCCESS :) And you don't even need a pasta machine. As long as you have a rolling pin that will allow you to get the dough thin enough, you should be fine!

From Food

Why buy it when you can make it yourself and it tastes this good!

Homemade Pasta
Ingredients:

• 250 grams Pasta & Noodle Plain Flour (TIPO 00)
•  Pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon Welly Boot Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 egg
• 3 egg yolks

Directions:
1. Place the flour and salt on a chopping board, make a well in the centre. Beat the eggs and egg yolks, place with olive oil in the well. Gradually work the flour from the sides and knead to form a dough
2. Knead dough for one minute. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours (what!? see tip below)
3. Cut dough into four pieces and roll through a pasta machine OR roll out into thin sheets
4. Use pasta sheets for lasagne or cannelloni, or any other filled pasta OR cut into noodles
5. Cooked filled pasta or noodles in boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes until cooked through

(Serves 4)

COOKS TIPS
Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours!? I just chuck it in the freezer for as many minutes as I can spare. Usually while listening to the kids' reading, supervising homework or just getting on with preparing whatever sauce I want to accompany my pasta. That tends to be long enough.

Try lightly dusting the dough with a little flour as you go through the pasta machine process. Lay the noodles out in a single layer on your benchtop while you are working. This will stop them all sticking together, and as long as you are cooking them straight away, they shouldn't dry out too much.

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Fettuccine Carbonara
Ingredients:

• 400 grams Fettuccine
• 6 rashers bacon, cut into thin strips
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 10 button mushrooms, thickly sliced
• 4 egg yolks
• ½ cup cream
• ½ cup parmesan
• sea salt and cracked pepper
• 2 tbl chopped flat leaf parsley

Directions:
Cook the pasta until al dente. Keep warm. Must be kept warm as the heat from the pasta will cook the egg in the sauce.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a frying pan over medium heat. Cook the bacon, mushrooms and green onions for 3-4 minutes until bacon is crisp and golden.

Place egg yolks, cream, parmesan, salt and pepper in bowl and whisk well to combine.

Toss the egg mixture through the hot pasta, coating well, then toss with bacon mixture and parsley and serve immediately.

(Serves 4)

COOKS TIPS
It pays to reserve a little pasta water, as this sauce can tend to be a bit thick. If needed, add just a couple of tablespoons at a time to the "sauced" pasta before adding the bacon mix until you get a consistency you like.

Great recipe from Donna Hay, though the mushrooms are our family's own addition.

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Buzz and Bloom Projects to Share

It has just dawned on me that I haven't revealed any of my Buzz and Bloom DT stuff on my own blog! I haven't even loaded up any sneak peeks of my latest work. What a slacker! So here are a few bits and pieces.

King of My Heart

From Scrapping Stuff

Personality Plus

From Scrapping Stuff

Country Girl

From Scrapping Stuff

Summer Fun

From Scrapping Stuff

And now some sneak  peaks of what will be coming up this month

From Scrapping Stuff

From Scrapping Stuff

From Scrapping Stuff

From Scrapping Stuff

Thanks for stopping by, and don't forget to check out the Buzz and Bloom Blog for more reveals and work from the super talented girls on the DT.

Recipe Share - Chicken Tenderloin Milanese

Or crumbed chicken LOL

First, the bread crumbs

Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
A fantastic way of using up all those scraps of bread. And so yummy on chicken, lamb, crusts for casseroles etc.
Ingredients:

• Leftover bread slices
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley, finely grated
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder

Directions:
Save leftover bread and dry it (either out on your counter or in the oven at
250F for about 15 minutes) until completely dry and crisp.

Using your food processor, blender, or by rolling with a rolling pin between
sheets of waxed paper, make fine bread crumbs. Save these crumbs. They are
useful in a wide variety of ways.

When you have an ample supply, take out 2 cups and mix with the remaining
ingredients noted above.

Store in an airtight container in your refrigerator and use within 2 months.

Download Printable Version

From Food

Chicken Tenderloin Milanese
Ingredients:

• 1 ½ lbs. Chicken Tenderloins, pounded 1 1/2 cm thick
• ½ cup plain (all-purpose) flour
• ½ teaspoon salt, plus extra for seasoning
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
• ⅓ cup Welly Boot Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 5 cups Salad Leaves
• 1 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• Parmesan
• Lemon wedges

Directions:
Place the tenderloins between two sheets of grease proof paper. Using a meat tenderizer or a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan, pound the chicken until about 1 1/2 cm thick.

From Food

Combine the flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Place the eggs in a second medium bowl. Place the bread crumbs in a third medium bowl. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour and shake off any excess flour. Dip the chicken into the eggs and then into the bread crumbs to coat.

From Food

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the chicken, in batches, until golden brown and cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes on each side, adding more oil, if needed. Remove from the skillet and drain on paper towels.

Arrange the salad leaves on a large serving platter and top with the tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Arrange the chicken on top of the tomatoes. Using a vegetable peeler, shave the Parmesan over the chicken. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.

(Serves 4-6)

The original recipe called for Turkey, but as it is not always easy to get here in Australia, I have substituted chicken ternderloins.

Now tell me that doesn't look way better than what you get out of box in the freezer! And for my friends with more than two children and may be concerned about the time involved, how much fun would it be to get the kids in on the assembly line LOL

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