Marmalade Chicken

Now, I don’t know about your house but in mine we seem to have a never ending drawer full of jars of jam and spreads with just dregs in them!

This is my way of using up the marmalade, simple, effective and rather tasty.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients 

1kg skinless chicken breasts or thighs, diced

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons orange marmalade 

2 tablespoons wholegrain mustard

250mls chicken stock

Method

Heat the oil in a large oven proof frying pan, once hot add the chicken and season well.

Once the chicken is sealed, add the marmalade, mustard and stock. Cover and bring to the boil, simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade while the chicken simmers.

Now uncover th chicken and slide the pan into the hot oven, bake for 10 minutes and then gently shake the pan to cover the chicken in the pan juices.

Repeat this another couple of times over twenty minutes. The pan juices will have reduced and the chicken darkened.

Serve while hot or warm, pouring the pan juices over the chicken.

Taco Coleslaw

I’ve found that the best way to get raw vegetables into the boys is make them an essential component of their tacos!

We have this coleslaw with most of our tacos, fajitas and burritos. Due to the creamy dressing I tend not to have sour cream as well, another incentive to get the boys to eat veg and not just meat and sour cream!

We love dill so there is a fair whack of it in this salad but cut it back if you aren’t a fan. I do deseeded the pickled chillis but if you love spicy food, leave them in.

Serves 6-8.

Ingredients

1/4 large white cabbage, very finely sliced

2 large carrots, peeled and julienned

25g fresh chives, snipped

25g dill, fronds picked and roughly chopped

2 pickled jalapeños, deseeded and finely diced

DRESSING

130mls mayonnaise

100mls sour cream

1 lime, juiced

Salt and pepper

Method

Combine the dressing ingredients.

Pour over the slaw ingredients and mix well, I use my hands.

Allow to sit for 30 minutes if you have time and then serve.

Red Chilli Rice

I love this rice for popping into burritos along with what we call taco coleslaw.

Apart from being a gorgeous colour, this rice has bags of flavour and can really stand alone if you are having it as a side dish.

Leftovers reheat well and I send the boys to school with rice filled wraps too, anything to fill them up!

Serves 6-8.

Ingredients

1 x 400g tin crushed tomatoes

1 small onion, peeled and quartered

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 chipotle chilli in Adobe sauce

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried dill tips

1 lime, juiced

75g butter or oil

400g basmati rice

750mls water

Method

Combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, chipotle chilli, oregano, dill, lime juice and salt in a food processor and whizz to make a loose paste.

Heat the butter in a pan that you will use to cook the rice.

Pour in the tomato paste and simmer gently for 30mins until dark and thickened.

Add the rice to the pan and cook for 1 minute and then add the water, stir, cover and bring up to the boil.

Simmer for 18 minutes, turn the heat off but leave the lid on.

After 10 minute rest, remove the lid, stir the rice and serve.

Baked Beans With Chorizo

As the weather cools down in Western Australia I can’t help going back to comfort slow cooking.

I used to always make baked beans with pork belly or bacon but these days, with the boys happy eating spicier food and enormous quantities of it, I’ve started using chorizo.

It’s best to use a chorizo that you have already tasted, cooked, so you can fiddle with the recipe, you may need more garlic etc. The chorizo I get here if beautifully smoky so I don’t need to add much to make a delicious dinner, served on toasted gluten free bread with avocado and a fried egg on top, heaven!

Serves 6-8 depending on sides.

Ingredients

1 large onion, finely diced

A splash of oil

300g chorizo, skin removed and diced finely, 2mm

2 x 400g tins cannelini beans

1 x 400g tomato pulp or finely chopped tomatoes

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees centigrade.

Heat the oil in a large oven proof pan over a medium heat.

Add the onion and cook until soft.

Turn the heat up to high and add the chorizo, cook for 5-7 minutes until the chorizo has released all of its fat and is crispy get up.

Now add the remaining ingredients.

Bring up to the boil and place in the oven for 90 minutes.

Check and if too thick add a little water, season if needed and serve.

Coconut and Cranberry Balls

In the days before healthy bliss balls, I can remember my Mum making a version of these, raisins instead of cranberries and dipped in chocolate. 

This recipe makes 25 balls. They are small but trust me, you don’t want them too big, these are rich sweeties!

Ingredients

110g butter

150g icing sugar

80g desiccated coconut

130g cranberries

25g 70% coco solids chocolate

Method

In a food processor, cream the butter and sugar.

Add the cranberries and coconut and pulse until combined.

Form into balls and place, spaced out, on a piece of baking parchment.

Now melt the chocolate, I cheat and melt it carefully in the microwave.

Take teaspoons of the chocolate and drizzle over the balls.

Allow to cool and then store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Swedish Meatballs With Gravy

The challenge was set by my youngest son to come up with a gluten free meatball just like Ikea’s and apparently these are winners. To make them completely authentic I serve them with mashed potato, some green Veg and a dollop of Ikea’s finest lingonberry jam!

The quantity is big but I always think that when you are going to the effort to make meatballs you should always make extra for the freezer, your hands are dirty anyway!

This recipe makes 90 meatballs with sauce and that’s enough to feed 18!!!!!

Freeze the excess in foil trays or ziplock bags with the sauce on them for a quick defrost and bake dinner another night.

Ingredients

MEATBALLS

1kg minced beef

1kg minced pork

150mls milk

60g fresh gluten free breadcrumbs

2 onions, peeled and grated

2 teaspoon dried thyme, ground in a mortar and pestle

3 teaspoons salt

Freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons oil

GRAVY

100g butter

6 tablespoons gluten free plain flour

1 tablespoon tomato paste

500mls red wine

1.5 litres beef stock

50mls gluten free Worcestershire sauce

275mls cream

Salt and pepper

Method

Combine the beef, pork, milk, breadcrumbs, onion, thyme, salt and pepper. Use your hands to ensure that it is totally mixed.

Set aside in the fridge for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Centigrade. Line two baking trays with baking parchment.

Form the meat into small balls, set aside on a third baking tray.

Heat a large frying pan, I use a 32cm pan, this is a BIG quantity, over a high heat, add the oil and once hot start frying the meatballs in batches. Cook until coloured all over and then using a slotted spoon, remove and pop them onto the prepared baking trays lined with baking parchment.

Once all of the meatballs are sealed and on the trays slide into the oven and bake for 10 minutes until cooked through.

While the meatballs are cooking make the gravy.

Add the butter to the frying pan, once melted add the flour and tomato paste, cook over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, scraping all the yummy bits off the bottom of the pan.

Now add the wine and stock, whisk over a medium heat for 7 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce and cream, heat through.

Remove the meatballs from the oven and either add them to the gravy or place in a serving dish and pour over the gravy. Serve hot.

 At this stage I use foil trays for the meatballs going in the freezer, pour over the gravy, chill and freeze.

Gluten Free Donuts

Unfortunately, these don’t last long in our house!

Quick to make, baked not fried and leftovers, if you have any, freeze well.

Makes 18 donuts.

Ingredients

75g Greek yogurt

3 eggs, beaten

125mls oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

110g gluten free plain flour

80g ground almonds/ almond meal

2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder

200g caster sugar

Icing sugar to dust

Method

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Centigrade.

Butter the donut tins very well.

Combine the yogurt, eggs, oil and vanilla

In a large bowl, combine the flour, almond meal, baking powder and sugar.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold in.

Pour the batter into an icing bag or a large plastic bag. If using a bag, cut the corner off to create a piping bag.

Squeeze the batter out into each individual ring, no more than a third filled.

Bake in the oven for 13-15 minutes.

Allow to cool a little in the tin before tipping out onto a baking rack.

Dust with a little icing sugar and serve.