Orange and yoghurt quickie

Image 1: Orange and yoghurt quickie

Food synopsis: Soft and moist, flavoured with fresh oranges, this springy slab of quick bread is topped with a layer of fresh oranges and a lightly brushed sugary glaze. Perfect afternoon accompaniment to a homely mug of tea or quick morning snack.

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Simple story to this no recipe experiment once again. Had 1 kg worth of overdue yoghurt sitting in the fridge. It was only slightly overdue (it was 'best before' so it doesn't really count...) only by 8 days.

Mum was already baking a cake in the oven with the timer set for 50 mins, so I thought - might as well make the most out of the electricity (the carbon tax makes use electricity much more efficiently nowadays) and time and whip up something quick with this over-due yoghurt and have it out the oven the same time as the cake. So I decided on making this.

Dinner: Rice and vegetables

Image 1: Short grain rice and boiled vegetables with olive oil and soy sauce

Due to the lack of ingredients at home and motivation to cook something more. I actually had double the amount of vegetables seen here. Ate the first half whilst waiting for the rice to cook. Only have 1 pot to cook in.

Roast chicken drumsticks & butternut squash

Image 1: Roast chicken drumsticks with butternut squash

Food synopsis: Dry heat applied to chicken drumsticks massaged and marinaded with Italian herbs, freshly ground black peppercorns with a hint of lemon and olive oil.

The chicken flesh is steaming with juicy goodness, semi-encased by crispy skin which really shouldn't be eaten if you're looking after your health.

The pumpkin has that slightly dehydrated and shriveled look. But one bite through the crispy caramel skin reveal so tender  orange flesh soaked with the lemon and juices from the bottom of the pan.
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My first roast, prepared without help from those more experienced at cooking than myself.

Mini pizza scroll (tangzhong method)

Image 1: Mini pizza scrolls with tomato, onion and cheese

Food synopsis: A rolled ball of soft bread, intertwined with freshly diced tomato, onion and a sprinkling of cheese on top.


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It's definitely not the best looking, but the bite-sized flavours that reminded me a bit of  fresh, thick-based pizza, and the cheesy scrolls I used to get at Brumby's at South Yarra for a breakfast on the way to school.

It's quite clear from the photo that this was me experimenting with bread dough, made using the tangzhong method. This was the second time I was making bread using the this method. The first time worked out really well; I couldn't believe how soft and bouncy the bread was even after a day sitting on the counter!. Usually when I've

Honey and Almond Slice

Image 1: Cubes of Honey and almond slice with mandarin

Food Synopsis: Honey and almond slice is a very simple cake made of honey and almond meal. It is dense and sweet, can be eaten straight from the fridge, at room temperature or warmed in the microwave. Whilst most cakes become more stale with time, the flavour of this one improves significantly. The cake becomes more moist the longer it sits in the fridge, probably due to the high concentration of simple sugars in the cake. These simple sugars, being polar molecules, attract moisture from the air, bringing it into the cake and making the cake more moist as time goes by.

In the freshly baked product, there is a crunch to  the edges, but as you bite in, the soft, nutty flavour of the cake is so delicious that the burn from the hot, sweet honey doesn't prevent you from taking the next bite. 

Dinner: salmon, chicken satay, pumpkin

Image 1: (Clockwise from top left) Stir-fried bok choi, satay chicken, steamed butternut pumpkin, white rice and pan-fried salmon

Thai black sticky black rice and adzuki (red) bean pancakes

Image 1: Thai black sticky black rice and adzuki (red) bean pancakes

Sweetcorn and zucchini mini muffins

Image 1: Sweetcorn and zucchini mini muffins

Dinner: Spicy black bean beef and tofu

Image 1: Spicy black bean beef and tofu with rice

Dinner: Fried rice and GL veg

Image 1: Egg fried rice with mixed frozen vegetables and stir-fry bok choy

Dinner: Fried rice and pineapple salad

Image 1: Egg fried rice with frozen mixed vegetables and pineapple and capsicum salad

Classic night of cleaning up left over rice and food getting a bit old in the fridge.

Dinner: Beef rice noodle soup

Image 1: Beef rice noodle soup with extra veges

Dinner: Omelette

Image 1: Plain egg omelette, bok choi, green tea and white rice

Dinner: Pasta shells with salad

Image 1: Cucumber, tomato and corn salad with pasta shells and tomato

I don't know what sort of cuisine to call this.

It is Chinese? Italian? "Modern Australian" (Whatever that means)? Or "home brand"?

Ideas most welcome.

Chickpea curry filo pastries

Image 1: Chickpea curry filo pastries

Pan fried salmon with rice and stirfry zucchini

Image 1: Stir fry zucchini with garlic, pan fried salmon fillets and plain white rice

Another typical dinner: Carbs, protein and vegetables washed down with hot liquid (tea). Not eaten all in the one night, there's enough protein there for 3 serves!

Fat black cat cookies

Image 1: Fat black cat cookies (Milo powder, lemon icing)

Lemon curd cookies

Image 1: Lemon curd cookies

Corn and zucchini quick bread

Image 1: Corn and Zucchini quick bread

Food synopsis: A bite-sized savoury, wholemeal quick bread.


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Living by yourself isn't an easy thing to do. For example, judging the amount of food to buy and cook.

A colleague brought in her home-grown zucchinis, and one ended up in my fridge at home. On top of my usual fortnightly food shopping, this was another case where I had one zucchini too many and just had to find some way of using it up!

So, getting out my experimenting cap on, this is what I made with 1/2 a large zucchini, some left-over canned corn and a basic quick bread recipe.

Zucchini and onion omelette with rice and veg

Image 1: Zucchini and onion omelette, rice and left over zucchini and onion