I Learned the Truth at Seventeen

This week we took on the grand task of creating Killer Jerk Chicken, Rice & Beans, Refreshing Chopped Salad and Chargrilled Corn. When I saw the list for this week’s meal I was honestly so excited. I have always stuck pretty firmly in the Italian and Australasian styles of cooking, occasionally venturing out into the French and other-Euro styles for special occasions. But this is something really different. I don’t even know what to classify it as. African? Jamaican? Someone-made-this-up-out-of-boredom-ian? (Seriously though, if someone knows, please leave a comment!) Whatever it is, its good!

The shopping list was pretty friendly this week, on both the shopper and the pursestrings. The only items we had trouble with were the rum and the black beans. The rum because we had to buy a new bottle (which took the formerly friendly shopping cost to an unattractive new height) and the black beans because for some reason they are impossible to find around here! After much scouring and searching through supermarket and fresh food market shelves, I eventually tracked down a bag in an asian grocers. The issue then became that the ‘Product of Canada’ had instructions written entirely in Korean, and I therefore had no idea if I was meant to rinse them, soak them, or just hurl them into the pot. Not having any idea what to do, I hurled them into the pot. And we ended up with blackened rice that was full of uncooked beans. So.... best you google what to do before you make this part of the dish. I am obviously going to be of no help here!

The chicken was a rather pleasant surprise, and absolutely the star of this dish. I was a bit dubious of the sauce at first, I just wasn’t sure how all the flavours were going to work together. If you check out the ingredient list it is a bit of a wierd mix – rum, vinegar, spring onions, chilli, etc. But somehow it all comes together and works beautifully. The chicken is really flavoursome, it is tender and really juicy and delightfully easy to put together!

The salad and corn are somewhat basic – but sometimes it is really nice to have that in a dish. I am a big fan of whole foods and to have two elements to this meal consist of vegies and very little seasoning was really nice. It lets the veg speak for itself – most foods are delicious just the way that they are when they come out of the ground or off the tree, so in amongst all of the mixed up flavours of the rice and chicken it is really nice to have some gentle, stabilizing items that just balance the whole thing out.

And of course, the guests make the meal special. This week we entertained my parents, which is always really lovely. I love to cook for my parents and share a really good meal with them – they were responsible for feeding me for years and years (and to be honest, they often still are. When I swing by for our weekly family dinner or just can’t be bothered to cook, or I’m sick and just need my mum’s soup or bikkies to get me through). It is nice to do something nice for them, even if it only is to make a meal now and then. I’m glad that they appreciate good food the way that I do because it always make challenge nights so enjoyable – they understand what goes into cooking meals like this and they love to try new things.

So next week looks absolutely delicious, but unfortunately not very nut-allergy-friendly. I am not sure what I’m going to do about the blog for next week, given that I won’t be able to eat the food and probably shouldn’t be standing over the cooking steams and fumes either. I am toying with the idea of having a guest blogger – Dear Housemate! – or possibly just watching the whole thing happen from the other side of the room and then writing a really dark, gothic piece about my jealousy of people who can eat nuts without dying and my absolute hunger for satay sauce. No decisions made as yet, but one way or another there will be a post here next week for Chicken Skewers, Amazing Satay Sauce, Fiery Noodle Salad and Fruit & Mint Sugar.

Til next time – Bon Appetit!

Sixteen Candles

This week's dish was nothing short of amazing. I know that every week I write a somewhat positive review of what we've cooked and enjoyed for challenge night, but I can't help that these meals keep blowing my mind each week! This time around we enjoyed a serve of Tray-Baked Chicken, Squashed Potatoes, Creamed Spinach and chased it all with Strawberry Slushies. If you're looking to try a 30 minute meal but can't quite decide which one to go for - make it this one. It will not disappoint.

I decided to tackle the potatoes first - they're notorious for not cooking through as fast as you need them to and in the interest of keeping challenge night as peaceful and enjoyable as possible, I got them started way earlier than it needed to be. This ended up being a really good idea because, as expected, the potatoes took twice as long to cook while boiling than the recipe called for. In the end, they came up amazing. They were crispy on the outside and then soft and well cooked on the inside. The flavours of the herbs and garlic worked perfectly too, so the smell of them cooking was driving me nuts!

The spinach was out of this world - I'm a big fan of spinach anyway and while I usually avoid creamy and cheesy foods, this dish was really light and completely enjoyable. I can't even put the flavours into words, it was just so so so good! I think if you've got bratty kids who aren't too keen on the idea of spinach (and lets be honest...most kids are brats about spinach) then you should definitely consider putting this down in front of them. The smell alone will draw them in and one mouthful is enough to convert anyone to the green side. Trust me. Its delicious.

The chicken...oh the chicken. As if it isn't good enough on its own, you get to wrap it in bacon! Bacon!! This is basically every fat kid's dream...and mine. If you're not keen on the idea of mixed meats, you best reconsider. It isn't the healthiest item on the menu by a long shot - theres a whole lot of butter and olive oil involved in the cooking process. But if, like me, you use these meals as a treat and indulge in them in moderation then I don't think you'll mind it. Especially because anything cooked in butter is destined to be amazing. The lemon and tomatoes in the roasting tray add fresh flavour and give a bit of extra moisture as well.

And then there is the slushie - I loved it. It is so refreshing and light and the perfect complement to the meal. It is ridiculously easy to make, super light on calories and it looks really impressive if you dress it up nicely in a tumbler, like I did. We decided to add a splash of firewater to the mix just to make things interesting. I would recommend this for the grownups! I will absolutely be making this again next time we have a girls night or a summer bbq.

All in all, I can't complain about this meal. I wouldn't change a single thing, and neither would anyone else who was sitting at the table. It looks delicious, it smells delicious, it tastes delicious - what more could you possibly ask for? We had more than enough vegies to go around, so if you wanted to feed more than four people you could easily add some extra chicken to the recipe and make some more of the slushie. As I mentioned above, if you have been wanting to try a recipe but haven't worked up the courage, go for this one. It is inexpensive, takes very little technical skill to put together and you end up with an impressive feast that will get absolutely demolished by your guests. Go for it!

Next week's dishes look great too - Killer Jerk Chicken, Rice & Beans, Refreshing Chopped Salad and Chargrilled Corn. Oooh, and the recipe says you should serve it with beer too. Yay!

But, until then.... Bon Appetit!

Fifteen

Fifteen! Get it? Like the restaurant! ... Told you it was a good one!

This week we faced the challenge of Mustard Chicken, Quik Dauphinoise, Greens and Black Forest Affogato. To sum it up in a single word - delicious. When I was explaining this week's meal to a colleague ("mustard chicken with some yummy greans and a potato bake-style dish, oooh and black forest affogato for dessert!" I said excitedly, expecting she would be at least mildly impressed and perhaps drool just a little bit) she responded "oh, so like pub food then?". Obviously I did not explain myself very well. This meal is way beyond pub food and your average mustard chicken with creamy sauce. This meal is SO much better than that! We enjoyed the company of my sister and her boyfriend, which is always so good because we are all only a few years apart in age and get along really well. I love having them over for tea! That, and she thinks our cooking is so good that she went and bought her own copy of 30 Minute Meals. (You can thank me later, Jamie).

Now. Reasons this is so much better than pub food! For starters, this one could easily have been completed at the 30 minute mark, had I the inclination or the need to do so. Instead I followed the current routine of casually putting everything together over the course of at least an hour, so as to enjoy as much of the cooking experience as possible (and enjoy a sneaky wine or two before the guests arrive). Secondly, you get a good serving of protein, of veg, of carbs, and despite the cream and other fats you do actually walk away feeling as though you've had a slightly naughty but somewhat balanced meal. Afterall, you ate you greens.

The chicken was actually really fun to cook - just standing by the stove and smelling the deliciousness was probably my favourite part. When you first start cooking you get the smells of mustard and rosemary mingling with the chicken, and then the further you progress the more amazing it smells - the wine, the garlic, the leek... it basically turns into the greatest smelling frying pan full of food ever. When you serve it up it doesn't look nearly as pretty as the pictures in the book (but let's be honest, without the magic of Instagram almost none of it would!) but it tastes just as good as it smells. The leek makes a really yummy addition to the chicken and there's honestly not a bad word I could say about this entire portion of the meal!

Add to that the delicious smells wafting out of the oven from the potatoes. I faced a bit of a dilemma this afternoon - I didn't have a roasting pan that was both stove and oven appropriate. Instead I opted to just increase the cooking time and leave the whole thing in the oven. I had it in for about 45 mins but it just wasn't the right consistency. I think there was probably a little too much water in it when I made it and the stovetop cooking would have helped with that. But aside from being a little bit soupy it was actually really tasty. I think I'll experiment a little more with this one til I can get it perfect because it was yummy - in fact we caught our guests sneaking extra bits of it out of the tray in the kitchen before they left.

The greens were a really nice surprise - they were easily put together once all of the chopping was sorted (thank you Dear Housemate!) and pretty much just had to boil down a little before being mixed up and thrown together with some olive oil and lemon juice. Fresh, light, nutritious, great colouring and so so good for you!! Eat your greens people!!

And then dessert... I'm a big fan of affogato. I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out as I am used to the coffee/liquer/ice cream combo you get at most cafe's, but you really haven't had affogato until you've tried it this way. The crushed up bikkies and the cherries give it a little bit of substance, so it does feel more like a dessert than a beverage. You only need the littlest bit of coffee on it so you don't suffer from a night-time caffeine hit that threatens to have you more wired than a nerd's gaming den and the bitterness of the coffee helps to take down some of the sweet flavours from the ice cream, cherries and biscuits. And my teacups got used again - yay! They feel less and less like an impulsive waste of a purchase everytime I use them.

So that's it! I honestly cannot say a bad word about any of it - and neither could the guests. My sister doesn't like coffee so she skipped that part, but ate the rest of the dessert and loved it. Everything else got devoured - all but one servings worth of food which will be carefully delivered to a very lucky colleague of Dear Housemate, as per the usual agreement. Aside from investing in a stove use roasting dish I can't say I would tackle tonight any differently, it was just good from start to finish!

Next week is Tray Baked Chicken, Squashed Potatoes, Creamed Spinach and Strawberry Slushie. I can't wait, it all looks and sounds so delicious.

Til then - Bon Appetit!

Fourteen...Bottles of Beer on the Wall?

Ok, clearly should have thought through my delightful little play on words for every heading of my blogs... It's a lot harder than it looks. Even the google machine failed to come up with anything cool for the number fourteen. I've got a good one for next week though, promise!

This week we enjoyed Chicken Pie, French-Style Peas, Sweet Carrot Smash and a dessert of Berries, Shortbread and Chantilly Cream. While the dishes sound absolutely delicious (and -spoiler alert!- they are, it seems like this was a week that was doomed to fail, as plenty had been going wrong outside of the Jamie challenge. Cancelled appointments, illness and a strangely forebodeing case of poor cognitive ability (pretty much entirely on my part for all three points) left us wondering if we'd be able to get away with this weeks meal.

The guest list changed for this week a few times, because although many had expressed a deep desire to taste the almight chicken pie, few remembered to keep it in their schedules. So we were graced with the presence of my mother and my sister, both of whom I believe (or should hope) were delighted by what Dear Housemate and I had managed to whip up, despite all bad omens and experiences in the lead up to the big night. I would rate the meal itself as one of the healthier ones we have seen so far - theres a good presence of vegies and fruit, very little sugar and far less oils/fats than we have become accustomed to throughout Jamie Challenges. All of Jamie's meals focus on using a lot of whole foods and fresh ingredients - which I love - but this meal in particular made the health nut in me happy.

Let's start with the pie - it was delicious. I had asked Dear Housemate to take the lead on cooking this week as I have been fairly under the weather (about five and a half feet under, if you were judging by my general appearance and physical ability about this time yesterday). I hovered a bit and offered my ever-so-helpful suggestions but Dear Housemate was the one driving the bus. And once again, despite being nervous about contributing to a food poisoning crisis (or a 'salmon moose' situation, for all of you Python fans out there) she pulled off a totally scrummy chicken pie! In terms of ingredients, it is not a particularly expensive complicated dish to get together, although I would recommend anyone out there without a pastry brush to invest in one soon. Probably a lot more effective than trying to smear egg over a pie case with a fork... I imagine. Egg-smearing issues aside, this one came up great. It was filling and warming and delicious.

The veg was interesting. For starters, cooking lettuce is not something that would have ever occurred to me. Yes, you can cook cabbage and spinach and other leafy type foods so it shouldn't be all that suprising to me. But it is. Lettuce is the lovely crunch in your caesar salad, or the ingredient that makes your steak sandwich 'healthy', or the bit that most people ignore on the corner of their plate when they eat at a restaurant. It just isn't the ingredient you find cooked, floating in amongst your peas (delicious as it happened to be with all that yummy stock and butter binding them together). And the carrots last night suffered a little bit of performance anxiety, refusing to soften to a mashable state. But the good news is that we have actually cheated and made them before, and I can tell you now that the mash is delicious!

Dessert was interesting also - out of all the individual dishes last night it was the most troublesome. For starters, Elderflower Cordial is not readily available here. I don't know about the UK or Europe, but in Australia you have to source such ingredients out at a deli or fancy market and unfortunately we had neither the time, nor the inclination to do so. We decided to soldier on without it and hit our next road block with the berries - they're basically out of season now and if you do manage to find a decent punnet they tend to be in the $10+ range. So we went with frozen berries that thawed out while we cooked. The final road block was the cream - I don't even really know what went wrong with it, but it turned to butter before we could figure it out. Thankfully we had plenty of Creme Frache left from the chicken pie recipe and just used that on the side of the berries with some shortbread bikkies.

So at the end of another week, we find ourselves well-fed and contented. Next week looks like a real winner - Mustard Chicken, Quick Dauphinoise, Greens and Black Forrest Affogato. (Affogato!! Yum!!!). I aim to be fighting fit again by next week and take that one on so it looks even better than the photos!

Til then - Bon Appetit!