2 simple salads.

I loved One Mother Hen's easy looking Watermelon salad from last week so I have decided to share 2 of my favourite easy salad recipes.

First up Mango and Bacon Salad. This was made by a mum at my mums group who stole it off someone else!!  It is so yummy and easy.

1 bag baby spinach
1 mango
some bacon- for us I use 6 pieces of shortcut bacon
4-5 spring onions

Fry or bbq bacon- I like mine extra crispy!!  I divide the baby spinach onto separate plates, cut all the flesh off the mango (try and cut mango over the plates so the juice goes over the spinach like a dressing.  Cut up cooked bacon and spring onions and mix with the salad. 

This has not got a dressing as such just the juice of the mango but works really well with sweet chili sauce. 
See easy!!

Changs Noodle Salad

Ingredients:

• ½ -1 Chinese Cabbage, or ¼ savoy cabbage (shredded finely)
• 6 Green Onion (chopped 5mm length)
• 100g Lightly roasted slivered Almonds or Pinenuts
• 1 pkt Chang’s Fried Noodles 100g (Original or Onion Flavoured)

Dressing:

• ¼ cup White Vinegar
• 1/4 cup Castor Sugar
• 1 tblsp Chang’s Soy Sauce
• 2 tsp Chang’s sesame oil (Optional)
• ½ cup Olive Oil

Method:

Mix all the ingredients of the Dressing in a bowl. Stir well until sugar is dissolved. Combine the Cabbage, chopped Green Onions and almonds in a salad bowl. Add dressing and mix well. Just before serving add the noodles and toss thoroughly.

You can buy the dressing premade which I now do as we eat this salad at least twice a week!!  Mine looks nothing like the picture as I am hopeless at shredding the cabbage!!  I also make this with baby spinach or the pre chopped bags of stir fry vegies if I can't get a small enough cabbage.  It is a good one to take as a "take a plate" as you can prepare all the salad ingredients and just add the dressing when you are about to serve it.

Linking up for some open slather with the fab One Mother Hen

Readers Choice- My Christmas Menu or my dream Christmas day

I do not remember a Christmas where there was not some kind of controversy.  Growing up Christmas was always at our place.  Mum would always cook a massive hot lunch which was fine as we lived in England and various family members would come over depending on who was around etc.  Then we moved here and mum still continues to cook a hot lunch even though it is summer which honestly drives me nuts.  More of my opinions on the topic of Christmas and the cooking of a lunch can be found here!!

 Christmas got a lot quieter as we do not have much family here.  Then I met the HOTH and the joys of dividing Christmas began.  Plus I worked Christmas morning for a lot of years as well so the last 10 odd years have become a living nightmare.  One year we made 4 stops and every year seem to spend half the day in the car. 

Then the kids came along and everyone has to see the kids and we made the decision to only see one side of the family on Christmas day and then swap the next year which worked well in theory but in practise was not a viable option.  The guilt factor from both sides is enough to do my head in.  So for many years I have dreamt of a Christmas day just for us and here it is.

• Wake up around 7am ish.  Open pressies.  Let kids play with the pressies.
• Walk down the road and get some fresh bread rolls, come back and have ham and egg rolls.
• More playing with pressies.  Maybe a quick trip to the park if there are bikes, scooters or footballs involved.
• Head down to the beach with an esky of food for a few hours of fun.
• Come home and Nana naps for all
• Wake up feeling fabulous
• Between 4pm and 6pm have visitors.  Fire up the bbq, make a couple of easy salads and kick back with a few cold bevvies.
• All visitors to be gone by 7pm, kids to bed not long after, more quiet cold bevvies reflecting on how great our day was.

The last few years the reality has been the exact opposite.  We spend Christmas day rushing around like blue assed flies and this year is going to be absolutely no different.  I have come to terms with the fact Christmas is what it is but it still irritates the hell out of me.  Add in potentially having Christmas interstate next year with my family and all the logistics that entails and its no wonder I become a cranky grinch at this time of year!!

Back to the topic of the menu my dream would be something like this

• Ham and egg rolls for breakie
• Ham and salad rolls for lunch
• Bbq something maybe prawns, snags and homemade chicken kebabs
• One Mother Hen's watermelon salad, my mango and bacon salad and a noodle salad. (recipes for these will be up on Monday)!!
• Christmas pudding.  I will try my hand at making one one year!!
• Chocolate truffles
• Key Lime Pie depending on how much time is available the day before to prepare stuff!!

I would love to know what other people do for Christmas and whats on your menu.  If you are a blogger you can link up with Musings of the Misguided and share your menu that way or feel free to comment with whats on your table this year!!

Turkey at Christmas, yes or no?! Or lets make Christmas in July a public holiday!!

Personally I don't like turkey!!  I will eat it at Christmas and even then its just a small piece!!  I don't even like roast pork!!  I would be more than happy to eat just Christmas pudding and cake!!  However a Christmas ham is a must there is no argument there!!

My other major issue with all these foods is this.  ITS TOO HOT FOR THE OVEN!!!  I vote Christmas in July is made a public holiday rather than the June long weekend and that Christmas for real is bbq and salad only!!  With the exception of a potato bake!!

The trouble with this is the older generations is they are "traditional" and set in their ways.  Both sides of our families are like this and it drives me nut!! 

 Here are my arguments for Christmas in July-

• July is cold so having the oven on is like having extra heating
• July would be a better time for a public holiday as it spaces them out a little bit more
• Having a bbq may involve the menfolk more.  Let them feel special and show off their master bbq skills.
• Or make them get off their butts rather than sit there drinking while the women do the majority of the work!!
• It could be nice to see people more than once a year.  Depending on the people!!

So there you have it lets make Christmas in July a public Australian holiday. 

To get back to the original question- apparently it is compulsory to have turkey at Christmas but I say why not chicken!!  Do people even like turkey or has it become such a tradition that people just buy one and serve it without even thinking about it?  Would the world end if there was no turkey served? 

Great topic Mums Take Five!! 

My world famous mashed potato bake!!

On Saturday I put the call out for a readers choice blog topic.  Which I will be making a regular feature on a Thursday from now on!!  Anyway the topic was paperwork/budgeting.  I hate filing etc my idea of paperwork is shove it all in a folder.  Not the best system in the world!!  However budgeting is something I am fairly good at.  So I wrote this little pearler on budgeting for the party season.  I promised to put up my world famous potato bake recipe so here it is!!

Potatoes-  I use about 1 medium potato per person and a couple of extra!!  2kgs for 8 people?
A couple of cloves of garlic
1 bunch of spring onions-  if I am making a mega size I would use 2
Grated cheese- lots of it!!
shredded ham- about 300grams again depending on the size!!

Boil and mash potatoes.  I chuck the garlic in and boil with the potatoes.
I mash mine with grated cheese, butter and milk or cream/sour cream.  It can be a little sloppy as it is going in the oven!! 
Mix in spring onions and half the ham.
Put in a baking dish and sprinkle with more cheese and the rest of the ham.
Whack it in the oven until cheese is melted.

I have made this so many times I have lost count!!  It really is easy!!  I like how it can be varied for different amounts of servings, just use less potatoes!!  If I am making a big one or feeling lazy I buy a foil tray from the junk shop!!  Also a big or longer tray is good as everyone likes the topping!!

Also when it comes time to partay I refuse to spend the whole time in the kitchen!!  I am happy to have everything prepared so I do not spend the whole time in the kitchen and this potato bake can be made hours in advance and just have the cheese and ham added when it goes in the oven!!

Linking up with One Mother Hen for some open slather on a Monday!!

Any other budgeting tips or "take a plate" suggestions are most welcome!!

Love this song!!  It reminds me of summer!!  Not sure on the film clip though definately one for the guys!! 

Key lime pie

From The Australian Women's Weekly, Feb 07

Serving size: Serves 8
Cuisine type: American
Cooking time: Less than 60 minutes
Special options: Heart friendly, Kid friendly, Low Carb, Low cholesterol, Low fat
Course: Dessert
Favourite flavours: Cakes/baking

INGREDIENTS

An American favourite from Florida, this recipe traditionally uses Key limes.

150g Granita biscuits
80g butter, melted
4 egg yolks
400g can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon finely grated lime rind
½ cup (125ml) lime juice
300ml thickened cream, whipped

METHOD

Preheat oven to moderate (180°C/160°C fan-forced).


Process biscuits until fine. Transfer to a bowl; stir in butter. Press mixture
over base and side of a 23cm pie plate. Place plate on oven tray and bake for 10 minutes or until browned lightly. Cool.

Beat egg yolks in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
On low speed, add condensed milk, rind and juice.

Pour the mixture into prepared crust. Bake for about 12 minutes or until just set. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until required. Remove pie from refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.

Cut pie into wedges. Serve with whipped cream and extra lime rind,
if desired.


Suitable to freeze. Butter suitable to microwave.

http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/food/cookbooks/790475/key-lime-pie

Yes I did just steal this recipe but it is way too good not to share!!  If someone invites me for a bbq this is what I am bringing!!

I am not a cook in fact I despise recipes that are complicated or have a lot of ingredients or use multiple machines which I do not own but this is an exception.  I bring out the 30 year old mixer and use my blender for the crumbs although a processor is on my hit list of appliances to own. 

This is so easy and tastes divine.  I use ginger nut bickies as the lime and ginger really go well together.  I use the whole pack of bickies and a little more butter.  I cook the base for slightly less time than they say or it can become very crunchy and I do not worry about the cream.  I usually just serve it with ice cream or some thickened cream!!

Make it and enjoy!!