LUNCHBOX LEGEND: No-bake chewy blueberry coconut muesli bars

It's been a crazy week, we are in Sydney and if you've not seen in the news, this superstorm has certainly been disruptive.  We're on our third day with limited power - no washing machine, dishwasher and no oven.  We have enough power to run our fridge the past two days and some TVs as well so it could be worse.  Luckily we also have gas - so hot showers and gas cooktops are a blessing.

I  have been left with a limited lunchbox stash though so had to get creative.  No-bake-type creative.  I could have made LCMs but because it's so wet and damp thought that might not be a good idea.

So I went looking for a chewy muesli bar and I tweaked a recipe and got these and I have to say, they are the best muesli bars I've ever made.  Not only are they delicious but the recipe is super easy and it makes 18 bars.  I kinda want to make more today, and I might if I have time.

Now the recipe calls for light corn syrup.  If you can't access this - just use 1/3 cup glucose syrup and make up the rest of what would have been 1/2 cup with water, no drama.  You can get glucose syrup readily from the supermarket if they don't have light corn syrup.

You don't need to use blueberries either -  use choc-chips, sultanas, dried apricots, currants or goji berries or even funfetti/sprinkles if you're feeling a little crazy.

All up they take about an hour but  half of that you're waiting for them to set, so very quick!  Give them a go - you won't regret it!

Ingredients:
125 gr butter
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
1 3/4 cups rice bubbles
1/4 cup dried blueberries

Method:
Line a baking tray (mine here is 43cm x 28cm (or 17 x 11 inches)) with aluminium foil.

Place butter, corn syrup, sugars and vanilla extract in a saucepan and place on stove over medium-high heat.

While your wet mixture is heating up - prepare your dry ingredients by combining them in a bowl.  These are the blueberries I used.

Give your wet ingredients a stir, and when it starts to bubble up like this, it's ready to pour into your dry ingredients.

Get ready with a spoon.

Pour in your wet ingredients gradually and stir as you go.

It should be moist all over.  Quickly move this into your prepared tray.

Spread out evenly with a piece of baking paper as the mixture will be hot and sticky.

Compact the mixture buy rolling a small rolling pin or glass over the top to ensure it meshes together well and the surface is even.

Leave it to set for about 30 minutes then turn upside down onto a chopping board. Peel off the foil and then cut into bars or squares, depending what you prefer.  This made 18 bars for me.

They have a lovely texture and are sweet without being sickly.

Cut up baking paper and roll into individualwrapped pieces.  They fit perfectly into a tupperware mini-rectangle size 2 if you have one.

Happy Bastille Day with Double-decker Croque Madames

These are little pieces of heaven and I must thank the French wholeheartedly for inventing the croque Madame (or Monsieur - if you want to omit the egg).  It's the perfect thing for a cold day and takes about 30-40 minutes to make from start to table and are great for breakfast, lunch or dinner. You can make one or six (or more!) it doesn't really add a lot of time to the overall timeline.   You can pick up every ingredient at a deli - and if you're like me you could spend a good hour just looking at the fabulous things in the deli.

When we were in Paris in January you can imagine, after a long day of walking these were just the ticket and my Olivia has asked me a few times for the 'Fancy cheese toasties we had in France'.  I like using unsliced bread and have the toast nice and thick, but you can use regular bread too.

Give them a try because it's cold or because it's Bastille Day today or just because you damned-well-feel-like it!

Ingredients: (makes 6)

1 loaf rye sour dough bread (or any uncut loaf you like)

Bechamel sauce - I made mine in the thermomix but use this recipe if you don't have one

100g gruyere cheese, grated (you can find this in supermarkets or delicatessens) - it's about 1.5 cups grated

60g parmesan cheese (1/2 cup grated)

100g leg ham

4 tb dijon mustard

50g butter

2 tsp olive oil

6 eggs

Method:

Make your bechamel and then add 1 cup of your gruyere and all your parmesan and mix well

When melted though, set aside.

Put your oven on grill.

Cut your bread in thick slices - I cut mine about an inch thick.

Put 1/2 of your bread on a baking tray and grill on one side until golden brown.  Butter it.

Then turn it over to have the uncooked side up and .add your mustard

On top of your mustard add ham and couple of spoonfuls of your bechamel, then sprinkle with little more gruyere. (about 1/2 what you have left), Then give it a good pepper.

Put your other bread on top and then grill again, take it out then pour the rest of your bechamel on top.   Try to stop salivating.

Lastly sprinkle the last of your gruyere and pop under the grill again.

Whilst that's grilling add your butter and oil and heat up on your frypan until sizzling.  Add your eggs and fry them sunny side up.

Keep an eye on your griller, you should take them out when they are starting to gold-up on top.

Get a egg flip and transfer on to your plate, and top with egg.. devour!

Can you believe she ate all of this!?  I was kind of hoping she would leave me some leftovers!.. Que sera sera!

Make it for dessert tonight - easy peasy peach cobbler

This is a brilliant recipe because you can make it from pantry and fridge ingredients.  Having tinned fruit in your pantry is a lifesaver for when you feel like something sweet and can't be bothered making anything too laborious after a long day.  Sometimes just some tinned peaches with icecream can make me incredibly happy!   Peach cobbler is a winter dessert for me that just screams 'too easy'.  No mixers, no creaming, it's literally in the oven in 5 minutes after deciding you want to have it.  

You can use any fruit you like for this one - I love it with bananas too, or pears.. if you're doing it with pears, mix in some chocolate chips... you'll thank me later!

Ingredients:

80g butter

1 cup plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

3/4 cup caster sugar

1 egg

2/3 cup milk

small tin sliced peaches

Method:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees c.  Place butter in the bottom of your baking dish and pop into the oven whilst it heats, it should melt in about 5minutes.

Whilst your doing that - combine flour,egg, baking powder, sugar and milk in a jug.

 Mix with a fork for a minute or so it will easily become a batter.

Take your tin of melted butter out of the oven and pour your batter over.  DO NOT MIX.  Place fruit on top. Again, do not mix!

Place in the oven, it will smell amazing within 5 minutes...

Bake for about 30 minutes until it's golden brown on top.  YUM!

Serve by itself, or with custard or cream...

It's pudding-y custard-y in the middle and crispy on the sides.. gotta love that!

Quickie Cheesecake cups

Hello everyone !

Oh it feels lovely to be blogging!  Whilst I've been away I've been busy racking up the frequent flyer points, working ridiculous amounts of hours and some days feels like I'm running backwards.  My trips home have been rushed and spent catching up on 'to-do-lists' and trying to see my Nan, my bestie and of course fit in a bit of frills and hubby time.  

At present, I'm back in Manila after three weeks home (but working) but this time I have bought the family with me, and we've been catching the sights, and the shopping and of course the food!

On one of my fly by nighters trips home, I made these easy-peasy quickie cheesecake cups - I had my Nan over for lunch and managed to cater the whole thing including dessert in an hour!  Pretty impressive I think!  Mine are pretty plain and adapted from a recipe of Nigella Lawson, but there's nothing stopping you from pimping them up a bit and adding some melted chocolate or even some finely chopped chocolate bar of your choice... or just your favourite fruit.. the fun is in the details I say!

Ingredients
Base
12 Anzac biscuits crushed, or processed in the food processor
2 tb butter, melted
1 tsp golden syrup

Filling
150mls cream
2 tb caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
zest and juice of 1 lemon
150g cream cheese


Optional
Berries for top


Method:
Melt the butter, add the golden syrup.   Mix through the crushed biscuits and press into the bottom of your cups or glasses with the back of a spoon.  I stack my cups up on each other to push it down, and then store in the refrigerator whilst I get busy with the filling..

Whip the cream until it forms stiff peaks.  Add sugar, vanilla, lemon juice and zest and cream cheese.  Continue to whip until smooth.

Pour the cream cheese mixture over the biscuit bases.

  Sprinkle with your berries and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving... if you can wait that long!

How good is that!!?

If I have time for these, so do you!  How would you 'pimp' them?

Quick and Healthy: Ten minute beef tortilla

I've had a craving for these for oh-so-long.  I make this quite simplified and healthier version of a quesadilla - it takes no time and it's a great lunch or even an easy-peasy-can't-be-bothered-dinner.  You can mix up your ingredients - used diced chicken thighs or even turkey mince if you like.... or even drained tinned tuna or salmon.  I like to use corn tortilla but again, if you want, use another flatbread, you can.  Get creative, involve the kids, make an assembly line - make it a Friday night fun feast!

Enjoy!

Ingredients: (per tortilla stack)
2 corn tortillas
1/2 cup lean minced beef
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 cup grated tasty cheese
1 medium tomato, diced
1 stalk continental parsley, roughly chopped



Method:
Heat up a frypan around the size of your tortilla to a medium heat.   Add your beef and sprinkle the paprika and a tsp water, mix it around until beef is completely brown.  Move beef into a bowl and set aside.

Place your first tortilla in the frypan, and turn down to medium-low heat setting..

Sprinkle 1/2 of grated cheese on the bottom, then layer your beef. Add the rest of cheese on top.

Pile your tomato and parsley on top.

Place your other tortilla on top,  With a egg flip, place underneath the bottom tortilla and flip over.

Put some pressure on top of your tortilla - you can do this by pressing down with your hand or your egg flip or you could get really 'technical' or 'lazy' and cover a small brick in 2 layers of aluminium foil and put that on top for about 3-4 minutes.

Then transfer across to cutting board and cut in quarters.

Feel virtuous and try to stop at one....

Have a lovely weekend all - what have you got planned?