Category: Cooking

My tips and recipes for the cook who wants to feed their family real food.

Frugal Flapjacks (cereal bars – not pancakes) Recipe

When I was back in Scotland this summer I rediscovered several things I had completely forgotten about. One of these things was, oh joy, Flapjacks. Flapjacks are not, as in the US, pancakes, but rather a gooey cereal bar consisting mostly of butter and golden syrup and oats, cut into squares and served almost anywhere… Continue reading Frugal Flapjacks (cereal bars – not pancakes) Recipe

Fun Food For Kids – Dinner Bricks

I like to feed my kids real food as much as possible – rather than something processed and canned and overpriced — so I like to cook for them. Back when they were babies I cooked everything for them. But when they were hungry, there was no time for  waiting around for chopping, steaming, pureeing. One… Continue reading Fun Food For Kids – Dinner Bricks

Best Chocolate Buttercream Icing EVER

(as defined by my seven year-old son, so you know it’s good!) This is a delicious, rich dark chocolate butter-cream frosting recipe, with hints of orange. Perfect for icing an 9×13 cake or 8″ or 9″ round layer cake. Rich and chocolatey. No eggs in the mixture, but firm enough to spread.  Substitute vanilla essence… Continue reading Best Chocolate Buttercream Icing EVER

Better Breakfasts – Southwestern Scrambled Eggs

Heat your butter (or wimpy non-fat cooking spray) in your frying-pan/skillet of choice. I use a small, thin non-stick omlette pan. Medium heat, don’t let the butter burn.

Pour in your scrambled egg. Allow to cook for a minute, until you can see that it’s starting to firm up at the edges.

Turn the heat up and stir like crazy until the egg is mostly cooked, but still looks kinda moist.

Toss in the spinach, stir until it starts to wilt…

Feed Four in the Family — Overlapping Meals

With me trying to eat healthily and watch my portions, Kev eating low-carb and the boys being 6 and 4, feeding the whole family can get a bit complex. Especially when everyone wants to eat exactly when they’re hungry, not a moment before or after. I know I shouldn’t do it, but last night I… Continue reading Feed Four in the Family — Overlapping Meals

Love

Round, frozen, hard, white. Watery now, shedding your ice. Patting, drying, there-there. (Heating butter, adding garlic, a dash of oil.) Take a teriyaki bath, there you go. Scrubba dubba. Time to come out now! Lift you, Sea Scallops, gently out of your tub. Thrust you into the searing, flashing, firework pan. Scorch your edges. Throw… Continue reading Love

Brie, Ham, Tomato, Basil – Super Supper

OK, so I’m watching my portions but I worked hard today and hadn’t eaten much so i decided to have a little supper. Two small slices of bread, some thinly-sliced Brie, two slices of shaved ham, and a couple of cherry tomatoes, topped with some basil harvested from the garden in the summer and frozen.… Continue reading Brie, Ham, Tomato, Basil – Super Supper