Healthy crispy butternut chips

These take a little bit of effort and time but are well worth it! i love how nummy they taste and you can try different root vegetables for different flavours and tastes. I used a butternut this time.


Simply take a butternut and peel off the skin then using a vegetable peeler or a very sharp knife peel longish thin flat chips to make crisps.

Heat up a pot of oil (i used sun flower oil) on the stove and fry the butternut in batches. *Watch that it doesn't burn* as it can be orange the one minute and brown/black the next.






Take out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel lined in a bowl.

season with salt and serve - THEY WON'T LAST LONG!

mushy spoonfuls of warm, comforting soul food with cheese

Creamy mushroom pasta - that just says it ALL! i love pasta and mushrooms and cheese and cream. so i decided to combine them all to make something that really makes me happy and comforted. so here goes:

1) boil taglietelle until tender ( i use rice pasta - on an anti wheat eating plan)
2) while pasta is boiling, finely chop 2 onions and fry till light brown in a large frying pan or wok
3) add chopped up mushrooms (+/- 250g or punnet)
4) cook mushrooms through then add a tub of cream (250ml) and stir
5) add some nice cheddar or parmesan to taste and lightly simmer
6) add 1/3 to half a packet instant mushroom soup powder or some spices of your choice and some salt
7) simmer and stir to let flavours develop
8) slowly spoon pasta into pan and mix in thoroughly till pasta is well coated
9) serve in deep bowls seasoned with salt and pepper and some grated parmesan or cheese of choice

enjoy - you'll want seconds :)

quick suppers - the story of my life, well at the moment...

So life is busy busy busy... Today i had my usual walk on the beach to start the day :) yippee for me being healthy then i rushed home after a quick cup with my mom and dad at the local coffee joint. changed from Walking shoes and gear into clothes that are decent to be seeing out for non-athletic activities. Rushed over to a coffee appointment at friends then straight off to fetch my daughter from school. Off to the local mall to pick up wrapping paper for the party my daughter is attending. Home to wrap party present and get daughter dressed for dress-up party. she went as a lady-bird. then sit at party for roughly 1 and a half to 2 hours talking to other moms. rush home get changed into prettier clothes and wash hair to go out with the husband to watch GI JOE and then come straight back to relieve babysitting granny and make supper for my husband and me.... by now it is 8 - 8.30 pm and i really don't want to do something long and hard when i am tired so todays quick meal was:

Creamy scrambled eggs with mushrooms and fried baby tomatoes
1) Start off by putting 8 - 10 small cocktail tomatoes into a heated and oiled pan and fry on low heat with a little salt and a tiny amount of sugar until tender and the skin is braking and half coming off then put then in a bowl
2) now chop mushrooms and put in the same pan and fry lightly with salt and garlic and herb spice then add them to the tomatoes in the bowl to sit
3) break 4 eggs in a jug add a little bit of milk and some salt and mix with a fork until the whole mixture is yellow then put in pan and randomly stor on low heat every few minutes.
once cooked through.
Serve Egg on plates with mushrooms and tomatoes and some sliced avo and toast

enjoy!

Fish & Chips, fast mash and Salad

so life has been really busy and when life is busy i tend to look for quick easy food - things that i can just grab and go :) one little place i found awhile back and have since been visiting when i'm in a rush for food is a cute little fish and chip shop at kalk bay harbour called lucky fish and chip. They have the freshest fish (for my husband and daughter) that has just come off the boats and lovely big portions of nice crispy chips yum yum, i'm drooling just thinking about it.

So now you now why there haven't been any posts for recipes and food cause not much cooking has been happening in our house - but we haven't only been eat fish and chips. I've been grabbing quick stuff like mashed potatoes and salad. peel potatoes, cut into chunks and place in pot with water and salt to boil away while i chop up some cucumber, tomatoes, feta and avo. then drain off potatoes which should be soft and mash with milk and some grated cheese :) and waalaa you have some healthy relativly quick food :)

it's the little extras that count - pumpkin seeds

Have you ever noticed those extra flavors that just seem to turn a dish from OK to wow! or from nice to pure comfort food and you can't seem to stop eating!!!

Well i decided to do a write up on one of the little bits of greatness that just adds that little something extra to my dishes :) what is it you may ask??? it is a very small thing and often over looked called the pumpkin seed. Most people are probably thinking please and rolling their eyes... you probably think it should be something great like garlic or Parmesan cheese or olives - you know something great!

But in all seriousness the pumpkin seed is very healthy for you and has mounds of flavour once toasted in the oven. Although you can eat them raw the flavour turns nutty once toasted. and just adds that punch.
My favorite thing to do is toast them in the oven with a spoon full of honey - stirring occasionally and watching like a hawk that they don't burn.

Add to salads or Garnish soups. Especially good added to biscuit mixes or health bars and lovely mixed with dried raisins and eaten as a snack.

CRUNCHIES / HEALTH BARS: Raisins, cherries and all things nummy

Healthy Crunchies - or health Bars
generally i use gluten/wheat free flour in all my recipes but feel free to put normal baking flour (wheat) if you prefer

1 Cup Flour
1 Cup rolled oats
2 thirds of a cup desiccated coconut
2 thirds of a cup brown sugar
125g butter
2 Tablespoons honey
1 Tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup sunflower seeds toasted
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds toasted
10 glace cherries roughly chopped
2/3 cup of raisins
1/3 to 1/2 cup almonds chopped up roughly

Turn on oven to 150/160 celcius. Mix together the oats, flour, sugar and coconut in a bowl. In a small saucepan put the butter, honey and water and heat slowly until all melted but not bubbling to much. Take off the heat and add the bicarb to the saucepan. stir and mix in till it is frothy then add to the flour and oat mixture. Mix thoroughly and then add the rest of the ingredients. Mix and push into a well greased baking tray and bake in the oven for 20 - 30 min.
keep checking after 20 min and take put when it is nicely browned and slightly firm when pressed on top.

let cool till luke warm then cut and remove from tray. Let cool totally before putting in a sealed container.

Enjoy with a cup of tea or pop in your childs lunch box for a nice healthy treat or snack. They won't last long :) you'll be putting on the oven to bake somemore again soon

my new foodie blog :)

so i decided to start a food blog - with ideas, recipes and restaurants and all things food related.
so some info about my food tastes and life style: i try to cook from scratch and use natural or organic ingredients. doesn't mean you have to, you can just buy whatever takes your fancy and replace organic for everyday grocery store items.

I hate seafood and so fish and there friends are a BIG no no. they make me ill when i eat them so the chances of you finding a fishy dish on here is very slim.

But my husband loves fish and sushi so there maybe a mention of it.

what else i have a little girl so things tend to be pretty and pink when somethings are baked - but not always :)

ok so hope that explains a little

Betty Bake