Slow Cooker Chili

 This chili is great!  Thick and hearty and extremely tasty.  And best of all, it's easy!  I served it with baked potatoes, but you could also serve with corn bread or rice.


Slow Cooker Chili 
Serves 4 – 6

• 1 kg mince beef 
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 chopped red capsicum 
• 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 or 2 (400g) cans kidney beans, undrained
• 2 (400g) cans Mexican-style stewed tomatoes with jalapeño peppers and spices, undrained
• 6 oz. (340 g) tomato paste
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What you do:
Cook the beef in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until brown, stirring to crumble. Add chopped onion and the next 6 ingredients (onion through garlic), and cook for 5 – 7 minutes or until onion is tender. Place meat mixture in an electric slow cooker, and stir in beans, tomatoes, and tomato paste.
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Cover with lid, and cook on low-heat setting for 4 hours. Spoon into bowls; sprinkle with cheese and sour cream.

Note: The chili can be made on the stovetop if you don’t have a slow cooker. After adding the beans and the tomatoes, bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, partially covered, 1 1/2 hours.


Recipe Source: slightly adapted from Amy Bites

Baked Oatmeal

I love this baked oatmeal.  My 2-year-old loves it too.  He walks around asking for "more baked oatmeal" all day long!  I've made it with quick oats and regular rolled oats and I think I actually prefer the quick oats version.  You can use any fruit you want, I just use what I happen to have on hand.


Baked Oatmeal
Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups fruit (blueberries, peaches, banana)
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2  large eggs 
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• ¾ cups butter, divided (56g and 113g)
• 2 cups rolled oats (I used quick oats and it was great)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 
• ¼ teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoons salt
• 4 Tbsp.  brown sugar

What you do:

Preheat oven to 350° F (180 C).

Melt butter; pour 1/4 cup into the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish. Sprinkle fruit and 2 Tbsp of brown sugar on top of the butter. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together the milk, honey, eggs, remaining butter and vanilla.  In a large bowl, whisk together oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well.  Pour over the fruit and smooth the top. Sprinkle with remaining 2 Tbsp. of brown sugar.

Bake at 350°F for 40 to 50 minutes (20 min if you used quick oats), or until browned on top and fruit is bubbly. Allow to cool slightly. Serve with milk or cream. I topped it with a dollop of vanilla yogurt and it was fantastic!

Recipe Source: slightly adapted from Becky Bakes

Slow Cooker Asian Chicken

 This recipe is from my sister.  It was AWESOME! It seems like it's not enough sauce, but trust me, it's plenty of sauce!  Serve with white rice and steamed broccoli. 

Ingredients:

• 1 3-4lb whole chicken
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup firmly packed lite brown sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup sherry or apple juice
• 1 tbsp ketchup
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 green onions, halved + trimmed
• 1 clove garlic, pressed

What you do:

Wash/dry chicken, remove giblets, neck, + excess fat. Put chicken in slow cooker breast side up.

In bowl combine: everything I said above. Pour over chicken, cover and cook on high for 3.5-4.5 hrs.

Remove chicken.

Remove and discard onions. Add 2 tbsp cornstarch abd 1 tbsp water to sauce. Stir over heat. Toast 2 tbsp of sesame seeds and serve on top of chicken and white rice with a side of broccoli.

Recipe Source: My sister

Burger Patty Melts & Special Sauce

Ok, these burgers are awesome.  They are basically a combo of a grilled cheese sandwich and a hamburger.  The sauce is simply divine! Served this with my Cajun French Fries and baked corn on the cob.  Now, if you are doubling the amount of beef, then I wouldn't necessarily double all the other ingredients.  I got 700 g of beef last time and doubled the ingredients and it was a bit oniony, so I may just stick to the original amounts next time. 

Burger Ingredients:

• 1 pound (~450 g) 85% lean ground beef
• 1 medium yellow onion grated
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• butter
• wholemeal bread (or gluten-free bread)
• slices of cheese

 What you do:

In a medium bowl, combine the meat, grated onion, egg, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Form into 6 thin patties.

Heat a bit of olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the patties for about 3 minutes per side, or until browned. Remove from the pan and place on paper towels to drain. Set aside. Drain the grease from the skillet.

Spread the butter on one side of each slice of bread. Place butter side down in the skillet. Top each with a slice of cheese and a burger patty. Top with the remaining cheese, if desired, and a final slice of bread, butter side up.

Cook for about 2 minutes per side, or until golden brown. Remove from the heat and serve with special sauce (recipe below).

Recipe Source: Serious Eats

Burger Sauce

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• small squirt of mustard 
• 1/2 teaspoon sweet pickle relish
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

*Mix all sauce ingredients together. set aside. 

Recipe Source: Unknown

Nutella Cuppy Cakes (only 3 ingredients!)

Ummm, what?!? Only THREE ingredients for these yummy bites of goodness! So easy and quick! Top with whipped cream and you have yourself the perfect little dessert!  I also made some for my hubby with gluten-free flour and he said they were good too. They are best straight out of the oven, but you can also pop them in the microwave the next day for like 10 seconds and they are still quite good. 

Nutella Cuppy Cakes
Yields 12 mini muffins

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Nutella spread
• 1 large egg
• 5 tablespoons all purpose flour

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees (180 C). Line a 12-cup mini muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
2. Put the Nutella and egg in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth and well blended. Add the flour and whisk until blended.
3. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins (about 3/4 full).
4. Bake until a pick comes out with wet, gooey crumbs, 11 to 12 minutes. Let them cool for at least 5 minutes. Serve immediately or cover and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Recipe Source:  Yadira's Crafty Adventures

Pumpkin Apple Spice Muffins

 These are some great muffins!  I made them for the mothers in my toddler's play group and they were well-liked by all.  The only place you can get canned pumpkin in Australia is to order it from USA Foods, a store in Melbourne that stocks American food. 

Pumpkin Apple Spice Muffins
Yield: 2 dozen

Ingredients:

• 1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice**
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice**
• 3 tablespoons sugar

What you do:
Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture.

Combine pumpkin, butter, and eggs in another bowl and add to dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened.

Fold in chopped apple and spoon into greased muffin pans, filling two-thirds full.

Combine 3 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice; sprinkle evenly over muffins. Bake at 350 degrees (180 C) for 20 minutes. Remove from pans immediately, and cool on wire racks.

**Mel's tip: if you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, use the following combination: 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ginger and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg and 1/8 teaspoon cloves. Mix together and woila! – you have the equivalent of 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (and it is much cheaper than buying it premade).

Recipe Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe 

Baked Cajun Fries

These baked fries are pretty awesome.  Crispy, tasty, yum!!  They make an excellent side dish for things like sloppy joes and sticky chicken legs.  This particular night I served them with ribs, which I didn't really care for so I won't be including that recipe on this blog.

Baked Cajun Fries
Makes enough for 2-3 people to have as a side dish for dinner 

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons Paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• a few shakes of cayenne 
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil
• 4 regular potatoes

What you do: 

1. Preheat oven to 230 C (450 F)
2. Slice potatoes into thirds and then slice each portion into 3 or 4 wedges.  
3. Mix the spices and olive oil together in a bowl, add the potatoes and coat thoroughly.
4. Spread out into a single layer onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  They will get crispier if you have more space between them. 
5. Bake for 30 minutes or until done. You could even put them under the broiler for the last few minutes if you like.  ENJOY!