Stuffed Potatoes With Hidden Veggies

Sometimes I like to jazz up the humble potato by stuffing it myself, it saves the boys arguing about their preferred fillings as everyone loves these and I can sneak some extra vegetables into them!

Serves 6-8.

Ingredients

6 large potatoes, baked with skins on

20g butter

1 large onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 medium carrots, grated

75g grated cheese, Parmesan or something with a strong flavour

2 teaspoons finely chopped parsley

salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Centigrade.

Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut in half and carefully scoop out the cooked potato keeping the skin intact. Place the skins on a lined baking sheet and the cooked potato into a bowl. Mash lightly with a fork.

In a frying pan, heat the butter and add the onion, cook for 10 minutes over medium heat then add the garlic and carrot and cook for a further 3 minutes. Tip the onion mix into the potato.

Add the cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Mix well.

Take spoonfuls of the stuffing and fill the skins.

Slide the potatoes back into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden.

 

 

 

Slow Roast Lamb With Ancho Chilli And Garlic Marinade

Spring is finally here in Western Australia and lamb is back on the menu!

This is a great recipe of you are feeding people who aren’t too keen on chilli, bags of flavour and not too spicy. It is also slow cooked so, ideal if you are entertaining as you really have very little to do once the lamb is in the oven.

It can easily feed a bigger crowd, just add more side dishes but the leftovers are divine too, I’ll share my Mexican Stir Fried Rice recipe soon using leftovers from this lamb!

I serve this with steamed rice, fresh salsa, salad, guacamole, tostades and refried beans, that way everyone can have as little or as much as they like!

Serves 10.

2.5kg leg of lamb

3 red onions, peeled and sliced into 1cm rings

3 dried ancho chillies

3 tablespoons cider vinegar

200mls water, just under boiling point

8 garlic cloves

2 tablespoons ground cumin

2 tablespoons ground coriander

1 tablespoon salt

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1.5 litres chicken stock

Method

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Centigrade. Line the base of a roasting tin with the onion rings to create  a rack to keep the meat off the base, initially.

Prepare the marinade now. Place the chillies in a heat proof bowl, add the nearly boiled water and cider vinegar. Set aside for 15 minutes.

Once the chillies have soaked, carefully lift them from the water, remove the stem and seeds and return to the water. Now add all of the remaining ingredients except the onions, lamb and stock.

Using a stick blender, whizz the marinade to a thick paste.

Take the leg of lamb, using a sharp knife, stab it multiple times to at least 5cm at its thickest part.

Pour the marinade over and push it down into the cuts, make sure all of the meat is covered, underside too.

Lay the lamb onto the bed of onion rings, pour the chicken stock around the lamb, seal completely with foil and slide into the oven.

Bake for 6 hours, turn the oven up to 200 degrees Centigrade, spoon off as much of the fat as you can and return the lamb to the oven to crisp up a little, around 30 minute

Now, using tongs, pull off large chunks of meat and drop them into the pan juices, as you come across the bones remove them all. You should now have a pan of meat, juices and onions, I give this a gentle stir and then serve.

 

Meatballs With Cranberries

These little gems lend themselves to filling flat breads with hummus, salad and yogurt or skewered with fancy cocktail sticks as a party nibble.

Younger children love them too as the cranberries and glaze add a lovely sweetness that most children adore and as a mum I love the sneaky vegetables!

Makes 32, serves 6.

Ingredients

500g minced beef

180g carrots, peeled and grated

300g courgette/zucchini, grated

4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1 egg, beaten

4 teaspoons ground cumin

3 teaspoons ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground all spice

1/2 teaspoon chilli powder

1 teaspoon sumac

100g dried cranberries

salt to taste

2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

4 tablespoons tomato ketchup

Method

Combine all of the ingredients except the molasses, vinegar and ketchup.

Using your hands mix the ingredients very well.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade, line a baking tray with baking parchment.

Heat a large frying pan over medium to high heat, add a little oil.

Form the meat mix into small balls,  I get around 32 balls.

Add one third of the balls to the hot pan and cook, just to seal and colour a little. Remove the meatballs and place them on the prepared baking tray.

Continue and seal the remaining balls. Place them all on the baking tray.

In a small bowl, combine the molasses, vinegar and ketchup. Spoon this over the meatballs, making sure each one has a coating of glaze.

Slide the tray into the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Baked Teriyaki Chicken

 

Teriyaki chicken can be a bit of a minefield when you have to be gluten free so this is my easy homemade version that the boys love!

Gluten free, dairy free and egg free doesnt mean flavour free!

Serves 8.

Ingredients

1.2kgs skinless chicken thighs, 1-2 cm diced

6 tablespoons gluten free soy sauce

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon sake

thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated

2 teaspoons brown sugar

2-3 teaspoons sesame seeds

Method

In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients except the sesame seeds.

Allow to marinade for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 210 degrees Centigrade.

Line the base of a roasting tin with baking parchment.

Tip the chicken and marinade in and bake for 30 minutes, stir and return to the oven, bake for a further 15-20 minutes, stirring regularly until the marinade has completely evaporated and the chicken is sticky.

Sprinkle over the sesame seeds and serve.