Kolokythokeftedes, Sadza ne Nyama & Chocolate Parfait

My friends, Kelly and Darren, came for dinner the other night and they brought their beautiful baby Connie who is my God Daughter.  :-)  Kelly made a special request for Sadza ne Nyama so I made it for her.

I made them Kolokythokeftedes for starters, Sadza ne Nyama for the main course and Chocolate Parfait for pudding.

Kolokythokeftedes with hummous

Sadza

Nyama



Sadza ne Nyama



Strawberries

Chocolate Parfait, Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce

Rasta Pasta

My son loves Levi Roots' Reggae Reggae sauce so when I saw this "Rasta Pasta" I knew I had to make it for him.  It's really easy to make and it tastes quite fruity.

Ingredients:

2 x Tablespoons oil
1 x Packet Chicken Breasts (about 4 breasts), sliced
1 x Jar Rasta Pasta
1/2 packet Penne Pasta, cooked

Method:

Heat the oil in a pan
Add the chicken and cook for about 6 minutes or until done
Add the jar of Rasta Pasta sauce and cook for a further 5 minutes
Remove from the heat and stir in the already cooked pasta
Serve.

Levi Roots' Rasta Pasta



Add the sauce to the chicken



Penne with Bacon, Tomato & Spinach

I needed something quick and easy to make for my son for dinner so I decided to make this pasta dish.  It's really simple to make and it tastes delicious.

Ingredients:

2 x Tablespoons oil
1 x Onion, diced
1 x Tablespoon Garlic, Crushed
1 x Teaspoon Sugar
2 x Tablespoons mixed herbs
1 x Packet Bacon, sliced
1 x Can Chopped tomatoes
1/2 packet Penne Pasta, cooked
50g Spinached, chopped
Crumbled Feta Cheese

Method:

Fry the bacon for about 4 minutes.
Add the onion, garlic and herbs and cook for a further minute or until soft.
Add the can of Tomatoes.
Add the teaspoon of sugar.
Bring to the boil and then reduce heat.
Allow to simmer for about 5 minutes.
Keep a little of the spinach and feta aside.
Add the already cooked pasta, spinach and feta and stir well.
Remove from heat and transfer to a pyrex dish.
Sprinkle with remaining spinach and feta and serve.
Enjoy!

The Bacon and Tomato base

Ready to serve

So sorry....

I'm sorry I haven't blogged in ages but things are really busy with my new job.  I promise to start blogging again soon.  In the meantime I leave you with a few of my favourite recipes.

Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

Mexican Mince

Marinara Meatballs

Beer Can Chicken - take 2

I made Beer Can Chicken for the second time.  I really like it.  The chicken is so moist and delicious.  I used a different marinade this time but it worked just as well.

Ingredients:

1 x whole chicken, cleaned

1 x beer (of your choice – I used Carlsberg)

For the marinade:

1 x chicken stock cube

4 x tablespoons oil

1 x tablespoon garlic, diced

1 x tablespoon mixed herbs, dried

Method:

Mix all the marinade ingredients together

Rub into chicken

Open the beer

Open up the chicken and place the can of beer inside the cavity.

Cook in a pre-heated oven for 1.5 hours (depending on the size of the chicken)

Please note:

Be careful when removing the beer can from the chicken as it will be very hot.

I turned the chicken onto it’s side and pulled the can out.

Pour any remaining beer into the roasting dish and make a delicious gravy.

Marinated

Beer can in place

Add left over lager to make a delicious gravy

done

Minty Lamb Chops

There are so many different variations to home made mint sauce but this one has to be my favourite.  It's easy to make and it's delicious.  I hope you will like it as much as I do.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

 
4 Lamb Chops
2 tablespoons fresh mint, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Pinch cayenne pepper
1 clove garlic, minced

Method:

Mix all the ingredients, apart from the lamb chops, together.
Coat the lamb chops in the marinade and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Place a knob of butter into a sauce pan.
Add the lamb chops and cook for 1 minute on each side.
Transfer to a baking dish and place in a preheated oven for about 8 mins or until done.

Serve with roast tomatoes, salad and baby potatoes.

Home made Veggie Juice & Smoothies

Ready to Rock and Roll

In an attempt to lose weight, I have started drinking home made smoothies and veggie juice.  I have had a juicer for a couple of years but never really used it much.  I must say that I love my veggie juice now.  It's divine.  Below are some of the smoothies and juices I have been making.

My Juicer

Strawberry, Banana, Yoghurt, Milk and Flax Seed Smoothie

Banana, Yoghurt, Milk and Flax Seed Smoothie

Getting ready to juice

The result

Getting ready

The result

Getting Ready

The Result

Banana & Mango Bread

I decided to make my Noo’s some Banana Bread earlier today.  I also had a couple of over ripe Mangos and, instead of throwing them out, I decided to use them aswell.  I think they worked well together and the Mango made it really moist which was nice. 

Recipe and Pictures by Amanzi-Fundu

Ingredients:

125g Margarine

1 x Cup sugar

2 x Eggs

2 x Banana’s, mashed (Over ripe)

2 x Mango’s, mashed

1 x Teaspoon Vanilla Essence

2 x cups Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

1 x Teaspoon Bi-carb of Soda

Method:

Cream the butter and sugar.

Add the eggs one at a time.

Add the banana, Mango  and vanilla

Fold in the dry ingredients

Bake at 180 for 45 mins.

Mashed Mango and Mashed Banana

Creamed Butter, Sugar and Eggs

Add the Mango, Banana and Flour

Ready to bake

Ta-da..!

Cinnamon Swirls

I love cinnamon swirls and sometimes buy them when I go to Morrison’s.  I saw this recipe on one of the blogs that I follow and decided to make them.  I was surprised by how easy they are to make and they tasted delicious.  Will definitely be making them again.

Original recipe by “For the love of cooking”  Adapted recipe and pictures by Amanzi-Fundu

Ingredients – for the roll:

1 x Cup Milk, Warm

1 x Egg

¼ Cup Butter, Melted

3 x Tablespoons Water, Warm

1 x Teaspoon Vanilla Essence

3 ½ Cups Flour

½ Teaspoon Salt

3 x Tablespoons Sugar

Ingredients – for the filling:

1 x Cup Brown Sugar

2 x Tablespoons Cinnamon

3 x Tablespoons Butter

Ingredients – for the glaze:

¾ Cup Sugar

½ Teaspoon Vanilla Essence

3 – 4 Teaspoons Milk

Method:

Combine the milk, egg, butter, water and vanilla together.

Mix the flour, salt and sugar together and stir in the milk mixture above to form a dough.

Knead the dough for about 20 mins and set aside.

Make the filling by combining all the filling ingredients together.

Roll the dough out to form a rectangle shape.

Spoon the filling over the dough.

Gently roll the dough as tightly as you can.

Use a piece of string to cut into pieces.

Put on a greased baking dish and bake in a preheated oven for 15/20 mins.

Make the glaze by mixing all the glaze ingredients together.

Take the swirls out of the oven and pour the glaze over.

Enjoy!

Dough rolled out... not quite a rectangle

Add the filling

Roll

Cut using string

Cut using string

Place on a greased baking tray (Leave spaces as they expand)

Bake

Add Glaze



Our last get together..

I invited some of my friends over for lunch as a last get together before the baby arrives.

I made the following:

Starter

Home made Marinara Meatballs with Garlic Bread

Main Course

Steak, Egg and Chicken Tikka Masala

Pudding

Maltezer Chocolate Mousse

Other

Salad

Home made salad dressing

* I was planning on making Steak, Egg and Chips for the main course but it didn't quite work out that way.. lol.  Below are some pics although the quality isn't very good because I used my phone.




Marinara Sauce



Home made Meatballs



Home made Meatballs





Meatballs with the Marinara sauce and Mozarella



Salad



Steak, Egg and Chicken... strange.



Chocolate Mousse