home stuff/moaning about mother

Things are feeling more and more settled.  All of our units are tenanted (yay!) so we don’t even have to think about them.  Our house is slowly (very slowly) getting back to a habitable state.  For example, I have an oven!!  It’s not installed; it’s currently sitting on the floor in the family room.  But at least it’s in the house.  If I’m lucky, and play my cards right, SO may even install it sometime today.

The laundry situation is under control, the bathrooms have been cleaned, and the sheets on the bed are fresh.  The kitchen is also reasonably neat and tidy.  All in all, it’s starting to feel more like a home, and less like a dump we have to live in for protection from the elements.

There are other signs life is becoming more calm and regular, such as my increased interest in cooking.

recipe: arrabiata sauce

I made this the other night.  I gave it a go because not only is it low GI, but it’s also vegetarian.  In my experience, arrabiata contains hot Italian sausage.  Now, I adore Italian sausage; but it’s a highly processed meat, which contains a lot of fat.  So when I saw this recipe, I was intrigued enough to give it a go.  (Of course if you wanted to, you could include the sausage.)

Link:  Arrabiata sauce, from Taste.com.au.

Taste:  Fantastic.  Absolutely had the authentic taste of a beautiful traditional arrabiata.  One thing to note – I only used one red chilli, about 10cms long, as SO isn’t able to eat really hot food.  It was still hot, but not unbearably so.  Next time I make this I’ll do the same.

Difficulty: Very easy.

Approximate cost of ingredients:  I didn’t keep details, but this would have cost no more than about $5, including the pasta I cooked to go with it.  It will do us for two dinners (ie. it serves four people).  Very cheap.

Quickness or otherwise:  Very quick.  Took about 20 minutes from start to finish.

Other comments:  We both really enjoyed this one.  Delicious.  SO didn’t even complain much about the fact it was a vegetarian recipe.

Overall:  Brilliant recipe.  Loved this one.

Score: 9.5/10.  Quick, easy, few ingredients which are easy to source.  This one is a definite keeper.

recipe: beef and borlotti bean stew

I made this recipe last night, for dinner.  Yes, two new recipes in one day – this is a record for me!  I’ll have to make sure to edit this post to include how good it tastes as leftovers, when we eat the rest tomorrow night.  Generally a nice, easy recipe that tasted good.  Would work well as comfort food in winter.  I’ll be making this one again.

Link:  Beef and borlotti bean stew, from Taste.com.au.

Taste:  Delicious.  The beans were a bit…. crunchy?  Just a bit.  This is despite the fact I put them in boiled water twice, rather than the once indicated in the recipe.  However, the red wine and beef stock gravy was delicious, and it all tasted good.  I’d cook this one again on its taste.

Difficulty: Easy.  All you need to be able to do is brown meat and simmer stuff.  Even I could manage this on the first try.

Approximate cost of ingredients:  $21.50.  However, it makes a lot, and I extended it by serving steamed vegies alongside.  It will do us for two dinners (and SO is a big eater).

Quickness or otherwise:  Slow.  It took me nearly two hours, including the vegies, dishing up process etc.  However, it looks after itself most of the time, so ideal for a weekend when you’re doing other things, or maybe even in the slow cooker.

Other comments: SO liked this.  It took us both a bit of getting used to, with the beans being a bit on the crunchy side, but it wasn’t unpleasant, just unexpected.  (They weren’t undercooked, they just weren’t mushy.)

Overall:  Recommended if you have the time.  Maybe not something to try after a long day at work.

Score:  7.5/10.  I’d say more, but it did take a while to cook.

recipe: apricot and muesli sesame balls

Welcome to my recipe review of the apricot balls!  I thought that I’d start to do this in a more organised fashion.  That is, actually outline what I did and didn’t like about recipes I try (whether they’re low GI or otherwise).

Link:  Apricot and muesli sesame balls, from Taste.com.au.

Taste:  Holy cardamom, Batman!  This spice was overwhelming.  I would strongly recommend either cutting it out altogether, or only adding a pinch, rather than the 1/8 teaspoon specified in the recipe.  It was clear that apricots were in there somewhere, but the strength of the cardamom essentially ruined the subtlety of the other flavours.  Very disappointing.

I also added a tablespoon of raw sugar and a dribble of golden syrup, so the recipe was amended on the sweet side (not that you could tell over the cardamom).

Difficulty:  Easy.  I made a number of mistakes (I prefer to call them ‘deviations from the recipe’) which the recipe accommodated.  These included:

• adding the hot apricot mix in with the rest, without letting it cool;
• over-grinding the muesli into a fine powder;
• not processing the whole lot together – I just did the muesli, then mixed in the apricot mix really well.

The mix held together well and appears to be relatively flexible in terms of ingredients, quantities, etc.

Approximate cost of ingredients:  $6.70.

Quickness or otherwise:  Eh, it was a little bit fiddly.  The main time consumers were chopping the apricots before boiling them, and then rolling the mix into balls, then in the sesame seeds.  And those little seeds got everywhere.  There are still some in my laptop (yes, I know, I know, bad me.)

Other comments:  While the recipe is ‘low GI’, you only need three to make up 1,000 kjs.  That’s not a lot.  SO could inhale three without even tasting them.  I could make three ‘do’ for a snack, but a 1,000 kj snack is relatively heavy on the calories (to mix my references) for not a whole lot of quantity.

Also, the recipe doesn’t state how to store them.  I’ve put them in a tupperware container and into the fridge, but I think that’s a glaring ommission.

I’d strongly recommend using disposable gloves when you get to the ball-rolling stage (or the kneading stage, which I omitted), unless you like ending up with incredibly sticky, orange hands.

Overall:  Very disappointing that the cardamom was so out of proportion.  Otherwise, it appears to be a reliable and adaptable recipe.  I’ll post an update when I’ve made it without the cardamom.

Score:  2/10.