Hot Chocolate Anyone ?

[Shaz51]

Sounds like a good afternoon @Former-Member xx

don't think your new dietician would approve....-- ha ha i don`t think soo

Hello @Appleblossom 

[Former-Member]

@Shaz51

Takes a lot of work to maintain my figure and I enjoy every mouthful ...

Cooked an Indian lentil stew (Dahl) for lunch today along with cauliflower which I roasted in a bit of olive oil with Moroccan spice on it, tossed in a can of chick peas close to the end of cooking time. This can be served with a sauce made from plain yoghurt with chopped coriander stirred through. Got the cauliflower recipe from a supermarket magazine.

Love cooking, would like to try new recipes more often.

[Smc]

@Former-Member- Love dahl! My recipe varies each time depending on whim and available veggies. Sometimes red lentils, sometimes green, sometimes a bit of each. 

My favourite source of new recipes (apart from the internet) is a stash of second hand Gourmet Traveller magazines. I look through them to find some that feature ingredients I can easily get. Venison and caviar are not often on our shopping list (venison rarely if it happens to be marked down, caviar never... don't like the stuff) but being keen on growing food plants, we've sometimes got a glut of fennel bulbs, or Jerusalem artichokes, or rose petals, or slightly more common produce like peaches or plums. It's great being able to pull out a mag with a "feature article" on any of the above and have half a dozen or more recipe ideas in front of me. And then they've also got recipes that are interesting twists that use pantry staples. Sometimes it's not what you've got, it's the way you use it?

[Former-Member]

@Smc
Certainly is the way you use ingredients. Simple and fresh is good, chefs seem to know just the right herbs and spices that lift a dish. I am better with a recipe, feel no shame but do envy those who can throw things together or can pick an ingredient that would lift a dish.

[Appleblossom]

I never felt comfortable without recipes .. took a while

just time in the kitchen ... and tasting the proceeds ... I guess

Yum

[Smc]

@Appleblossom@Former-Member... I've been a recipe experimenter for as long as I can remember.  I do use a recipe if it's something unfamiiar, but even then if I'm missing an ingredient, I'll see if I can find a suitable substitute. I occasionally get flops, but not too often. Hassle with that is, it's harder to hand over cooking duties to hubby or offspring. I don't have too many options that are made up of measurable, standard ingredients. While I was away at my parents' house for the last week, the two "kids" still at home made a decent stab at meals... yay! (The 19 y.o. made a pretty decent tuna mornay one night and fried rice for another. The 12 y.o. made her specialty noodles with tuna, vegs and pineapple. Uni student style cooking, but she's getting in young enough that she should have progressed to better things by the time she's 18. )

[Former-Member]

I suffer through Mr Darcy's meals during the week, he is slowly getting better but it is hit and miss (uses pre packed sauces) ...

[Smc]

At least he's giving it a shot. 🙂

[Former-Member]

@Former-Member No, we hadn't. Nice to meet you 🙂

[Former-Member]

True @Smc
Am grateful Mr Darcy does give cooking a go, I don't push or complain, just encourage. He does try ...