Thursday, November 14, 2013

rainy days: entertaining kids for free

We have a week or so of rainy days ahead of us. It's an idea to have a few rainy day activities that require little preparation and cost because if your family is like mine cabin fever sets in within a day or two!

Bake: We created this recipe and made these  'Coconut Rough' biscuits. Any food processor will do or you can get that elbow grease going! They don't have to be eaten all at once either. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Or you could make
* muffins; or
*lemon meringue pie;
*pikelets;
*peanut butter and carob biscuits;
* a rainbow cake;
* a pear and ginger holiday cake;
* a black magic cherry cake;
* a Persian love cake;
* a decadent strawberry and hazelnut torte;
 and, it doesn't have to be Easter to make hot cross buns;



Cook: You've got to eat and there's nothing like feeling productive on a rainy day! My kids love helping me in the kitchen. They love being given a job to do. Rainy days tend to lead in to cold, wet nights. Why don't you get in early, put the oven on low in the morning and create a good slow cooked dinner you can all share at night after it's been filling the house with gorgeous aromas throughout the day?!


Here are a few recipe ideas for the slow cooker.
* Lamb with Ottolenghi's cous cous.
* Slow cooked lamb shanks in red wine.
* This chicken tagine recipe can be slow cooked in an oven at 120ºc for 4-8 hours.
* Moussaka (requires a bit of preparation).
* Chuck a whole bunch of vegetables in an oven proof pot and your favourite herbs and spices, a bit of water and you'll have a yummy vego stew.
* Use your favourite curry ingredients to make a slow cooked curry.

Slow cooked lamb shanks in red wine

Have a tea party: Make some 'tea' (herbal is better for kids) or hot chocolates for everyone and lay a rug or towel down. Share morning or afternoon tea and snacks on the rug together.

Play dress ups: If you don't have a dedicated dress-up box kids LOVE trying on Mummy and Daddy's clothes and shoes and pretending to be Mummy 'making dinner, reading a book, brushing child's hair' or Daddy 'going to work, mowing the lawn, doing the dishes.'

Declutter: I spent a rainy morning going through all my kids' toys and books and managed to fill the bot of our car with things we can live without. I'll deliver these to an op-shop with the hope that they can be used by somebody and the op-shop can make a few extra dollars for families less fortunate, especially leading up to Christmas. 

Old games: Have you, like me, got a few puzzles and games that the kids haven't looked at in a while? These rainy days are perfect for getting out old toys and the bonus is that they should be entertained for a while.


Draw: You only need some paper or card, pencils or textas and a bit of creativity. In my experience kids love to free draw i.e. draw whatever they like, but if you've all got cabin fever a bit of directed drawing might do the trick. For example try doing still life drawings with household objects. There's no reason why you can't get the paints out and paint under a covered area too.


Make play dough: Do you have flour, water, salt and food colouring? There are dozens of play dough recipes online but I like the cooked play dough recipes. I once read that a few drops of peppermint oil gives play dough longevity. Even if this isn't true it makes it smell good!

Dance: Get some music on and have a good ol' fashioned dance. It's good exercise and I guarantee you'll all have smiles on your faces dancing around the loungeroom!

Make books: Take photos and print them out or have a child draw the illustrations in books about themselves. These books have a simple, repetitive structure which is great for pre-readers or those children who are beginning to read. These books give value to the child's world ad experiences.

Examples of books include:
* This is me. This is my Mummy and Daddy. This is my sister/brother. This is my pet. This is where I live. 
* This is me. (insert names of family members) This is my Daddy. This is my Mummy. This is my grandfather/grandmother. This is my cousin. This is my aunty. This is my family.
* I am (insert child's name). I like (example) dinosaurs. I like my blankies (or comforter). I like bush walking (insert verb here and as many pages as needed e.g. swimming, reading, running, climbing, cooking, talking, drawing, eating, camping, circus tricks.)

If in doubt play Lego (or Duplo for littlies): We don't have a mountain of Lego but you can make a lot from a little and you can pull it apart and make more things.

Share the love: Chances are that if you're getting cabin fever so are your friends. You can rotate between houses so that all the toys are pulled out in every house and muddy footprints are spread through everyone's hallways only one person has to host each day. It also means that there are 'new' toys at each house.

Read: I've written about my favourites books here if you need inspiration. Some children can sit for an hour listening to an adult reading to them. Some children like reading on their own and some seem to have little interest in sitting still to read but I've found that the more you read with children, the more they want to read! Grab a stack of picture books (from home or the local library) and have a reading hour. You can explain that everyone is having reading time (and a read the newspaper or a magazine yourself) or you can grab a book that requires an adult to read it. Today I began reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl to the kids. We've seen the original movie but there's nothing like a book!


Craft activities: You only need to type "kids craft" into Pinterest (or click here) and hundreds of ideas come up. There are so many crafty ideas that can come from everyday household objects too. What about sponge painting, making collages from old magazines, using cartons and boxes from your recycling to make a castle or a robot? The list of ideas is endless!

AND WHEN THE SUN PEEKS THROUGH THE CLOUDS....

Jump in muddy puddles: get your wet-weather gear on and make Peppa Pig proud. The kids will love this and you can warm up afterwards with a bubble bath!

Chalk drawings: As a child (or an adult) it feels as though there's nothing more rebellious than graffiti'ing the front steps. Sidwalk chalk (available from toy stores, craft shops and $2 stores) is perfect for scrawling the driveway and better still, the rain will wash it away! We have this great book,Chalk the Block with loads of chalkie ideas.

Hopscotch: Following on from chalk drawings use chalk to draw up a hopscotch design. Here are the rules for Classic Hopscotch.

Have you got other ideas for activities with kids on rainy days? I'd love to hear your suggestions!

Miss May Blossom 
http://www.facebook.com/MissMayBlossom

Monday, November 11, 2013

eveleigh farmers markets: a foodie's paradise

I'm a sucker for a fresh produce market. I love the hustle and bustle vibe, the conversations between customers and stall holders and the dedication of producers to get themselves to the markets at the crack of dawn. Most of all I love great produce and inspiration for how to prepare and eat it!

Some months ago I declared I was taking the Saturday morning off to get myself to Eveleigh Markets, a place I'd been wanting to visit for some time. My market companion was busy on the day but I wasn't deterred and went alone. What I found when I arrived was a marketplace buzzing with activity and thriving on a community atmosphere.

Unlike many market visits before, I remembered to take my wheelie crate (a legacy of my early teaching days) and a cane basket, both of which were full to the brim on departure.



I was SO pleased to see the South Coast Cheese stall from Tilba at Eveleigh. Only a few weeks before I'd visited their shopfront in Tilba Tilba on a trip to the part of the south coast we call home. I also discovered that these guys supply their milk to shops around Sydney for purchase! Win!

In my mind Eveleigh Markets s synonymous with the chef Kylie Kwong. And she was there, with her crew, steaming up a dumpling storm. I'd only just eaten breakfast and couldn't even find a tiny excuse in my belly to try one of her dishes. You can't have everything at once! That would be gluttony!



After a couple of hours (and a good coffee), many conversations and more purchases, I emerged from the old train shed with my haul, raring to cook! After a conversation with The Talking Cookbook (aka Barbara Sweeny) and food scholar John Newton I was in no doubt that I'd boil the artichokes and serve them with a homemade aioli and a glass of good wine. The rest I'd just have to wait and see what came to mind. On the way out I ran in to the local member Tania Plibersek who was chatting to people about the upcoming federal election. We got chatting but mostly about how to eat artichoke. She is every bit as charming, unpretentious and clever as she comes across through the media.



I can hardly believe how disappointed we were with the artichoke (after all that!). It wasn't the youngest specimen so I might try again with another, more succulent one another time. Lunch, however, was a hit. I made a puff pastry pie crust then cut slices of pumpkin with a mandolin. Blind baked the base then added fetta, pumpkin, kale and an eggy/milky mixture. This was simple and delicious!



I'll visit the markets again sometime on another self-declared day off! I'd better leave room for Kylie's dumplings!

Miss May Blossom
http://www.facebook.com/MissMayBlossom

Thursday, November 7, 2013

lamb slow cooker and Ottolenghi's cous cous

Tonight we had a simple and delicious meal. It was simple in that is was dead easy to prepare. (The photos are particularly bad. I was too focused on eating it!)

Preheat the oven 120ºc. In an ovenproof pot place:

3 large organic carrots, diced
400g lamb back strap, diced
10 fresh roma tomatoes, diced
400g tinned chickpeas
Handful parsley 
150ml water
1 cinnamon stick, 
1 tspn ground coriander
1 tspn ground cumin
Pepper and salt, to taste

Cook for at least 5 hours. 

I served the lamb with the recipe for Ottolenghi's cous cous but I added these to the cous cous:

a handful mint
a handful parsley
a handful each of almonds (broken with a mortar and pestle)
a small handful sultanas
and a sprinkling of pine nuts.



Tuesday, November 5, 2013

za'atar


Until a few months ago I hadn't heard of za'atar. Like when you buy a new car and you suddenly see 'them' everywhere I have been spotting it in recipes and restaurants.

Za'atar isn't dissimilar to dukkah. It's a blend of spices and herbs and sesame seeds.

A friend took me to the most incredible supermarket - and by supermarket I do not mean like the big two supermarkets. This compared to no other I've seen - in Northcote, Melbourne. Terra Madre stocks the most extensive range I've seen of quality and organic products - at prices that are, in some cases, less than the big two. I was in heaven!

I wanted to grab a couple of things- cacao beans and sumac. Sumac is a vital ingredient for za'atar and it's a very easy recipe - and good for entertaining.

Za'atar

ingredients

1/4 cup sesame seeds
20g cumin seeds

10g thyme, dried
10g oregano, dried
20g sumac

method

Dry roast the sesame seeds in a medium-hot frying pan for a few minutes until the sesame just start to change in colour. Place in the TM with the remaining ingredients. Process until all ingredients (except the sesame seeds) are consistent in size (about 10 secs/speed 10).

Za'atar is best served with fresh Italian bread and good quality extra virgin olive oil and in perfect for entertaining. Store in a dry airtight container.

Friday, November 1, 2013

my own enchanted broccoli forest

basic soil mix + chook poo + straw + guinea pig poo

These flowers are almost ready to eat...




Two weeks on...

I'm pretty pleased with my broccoli harvest this morning! There's a good three meals here. These were grown from seedlings and now we can use the space in the garden for something else!

We ate these florets in three meals:

* accompanying a beautiful baked barramundi (Jamie Oliver rock salt style) and a huge salad. We shared this meal with 'climate refugees' who escaped Sydney's Blue Mountains during a week of property and life threatening bush fires. Fortunately their home was spared and they were able to return home a couple of days later. We spent a lovely evening eating and drinking and distracting them from the fires which was the upside!

* in a true (lazy) meat and three veg style with mashed potato, organic sausages. Oh - make that meat and two veg. Not an ideal meal.

* steamed on top of a huge tuna salad mountain!