Posted by NinaLaZina under
Tasty Recipes
Sadly, I have neglected my blog recently. I come back to it with renewed vigour and to enjoy the fun of writing and interacting with the blogging community.
Spaghetti Bolognese is one of my favourite dishes because it is quick to prepare, nutritional and tasty. Here is a quick, tasty and inexpensive recipe to kick-off January 2013; the beginning of the year is a good time to save money and claw back the excess spent over the holiday period!
Spaghetti Bolognese:
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 carrot
2 tbsp of tomato purée
2 celery stalks
2 garlic cloves
450g/lb lean mince meat steak
225g smoked bacon
Can of chopped tomatoes
2 tsp of dried mixed herbs
pinch of sugar
12oz of wholemeal spaghettti
shavings of Parmesan cheese
Spaghetti Bolonese Sauce:
Peel and chop celery, carrot, garlic and onions.
Sauté the beef and bacon for 10 minutes. Add the chopped celery, carrot, onions, garlic and cook until all is soft and the meat has turned brown.
Add the tomatoes and tomato purée , mixed herbs, seasoning to taste and a pinch of sugar. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Pastas:
In a large pan, of salted boiling water, add the pasta. Follow the instructions on the package for the best cooking time. Drain well and then plate up.
Add your sauce and shavings of Parmesan cheese.
Enjoy your delicious meal.
Posted by NinaLaZina under
Multiplication Worksheet
Parents not schools boost exam success, study suggests
By Judith BurnsEducation reporter, BBC News
Supportive parents are key to good exam results says a new study
Posted by NinaLaZina under
Tasty Recipes
Grilled chicken
Grilling can be a fun, family activity during weekends. Spend your lazy afternoons in your garden, and take out those grillers for a grilled chicken for your dinner.Learning how to grill is not as hard as you would see on television. All you need is the proper temperature for your griller especially if you are using an electric grill. Nevertheless, if you have the conventional griller, try to find some dried wood or charcoal. Ignite the coals or wood by placing crumpled papers below each coal and then set the papers on fire. Do not pour gasoline on the coals or dried wood. The smoke coming from the coals will give a gasoline-like aroma to your grilled meat. These are your best weapons in grilling.
Choose the best part of the chicken. I usually use chicken thighs and legs since they are the fattiest parts of the chicken. These parts will yield a juicy, barbecued chicken. Although these may sound unhealthy, the taste is incredibly delicious. Some would still prefer grilling chicken breasts with the skins on.
Before you start grilling your chicken, do not forget to marinate them at least overnight. Yes, overnight. This is because the longer you marinade your meat, the better absorption of flavors happens. I prefer to use store-bought marinades as these save much preparation time in the kitchen. The downside of most ready-made marinades is their high sodium content. But if you have time, you can make your own marinade from scratch. In the recipe below, the marinade and the chicken were simmered together to speed up the process of grilling and also to let the flavors marry together. I like Asian-style marinades such as this:
Recipe for grilled chicken;
For every kilo of chicken:½ cup light soy sauce (available in the Asian section of grocery stores)2-3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice4 tablespoons brown sugar
1 medium stalk of lemon grass (pounded)
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)
Combine all the above ingredients in a heavy skillet and let it boil for two minutes. Add in the chicken and simmer for another five minutes. Drain the chicken in a colander and reserve the marinade for basting during grilling. Basting is necessary so that the chicken won’t dry out. The marinade can also be made as a sauce by making a basic roux. This is simply done by placing a tablespoon of butter on a non-stick pan and let it cook for minutes. Pour over the marinade and whisk until the sauce thickens. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings accordingly.
You can also opt to make a dry, rub marinade. This dry rub is comprised of herbs and spices and a little oil. For chicken, dried or fresh tarragon and rosemary blends together very well. If you want a spicier, grilled chicken, add a pinch of chili powder and cayenne pepper. There are limitless marinades for grilled chicken. A little imagination and creativity are the keys. Make sure that when grilling the chicken, never let the flame flare up. This will result in burnt chicken. This does not appeal both to the eyes and to the palate. If this occurs, sprinkle a little water over the flame. Some also like their grillers to be covered during the grilling process.
Personally, I liked mine uncovered. There is just something about the smoke which is, for me, the essence of grilling. Grilled foods are best served warm, right off the grill with some salads or other vegetables of your choice.
Posted by NinaLaZina under
Tasty Recipes
Pancakes are a lovely treat for the entire family. Nothing smells better than the aroma of freshly made pancakes drenched in golden syrup or served with fruit. However, this treat is often a foregone memory for many due to milk intolerance. This pancake recipe comes to the rescue. It does not contain any milk but is just as delicious. Try this one out on the family today and see what they think. If you have problems making pancakes, don’t worry this is a simple and tasty recipe for all. This is a very light pancake, more like French crepes.
Ingredients:
Makes 8 small or 4 large pancakes.
Vanilla extract
8oz of self-raising flour
1 pint of water
2 eggs – take out the eyes of the eggs, this will make your pancake less eggy
1 large table spoon of butter.
A non – stick frying pan. If your pan is a little worn, it is best to purchase a new pan as otherwise the pancakes will stick to the pan. Keep your new pan especially for pancakes!
1 table spoon of sugar – optional
Instructions:
- Sieve the flour into a bowl
- Crack open the eggs and remove the eye
- Whisk the egg together and add half teaspoon of vanilla essence or more depending on the taste you want
- Make a well in the middle of the flour and add water, sugar and egg gradually with a folk whisk it in from the sides
- When all the batter is mixed well – has the consistency of thin cream
- Melt the butter in the frying pan, once melted pour into a saucer
- Add one tablespoon of melted butter to batter and whisk batter – this will help to stop the pancake sticking
- Use the rest of the butter to grease the frying pan before making each pancake
- Make sure the frying pan is hot
- Use a soup ladle and ladled about two tablespoons of batter this into the frying pan, ensuring you tilt the batter all around the pan. Adjust the heat if you need to
- When you see bubbles forming and the underside is brown flip or use a spatula to turn the pancake over – about half a minute
- Slide the pancake onto a plate
Here are a few ideas what to serve your pancake with :
Fruit ( See this recipe for fruit sauce for pancakes)
Syrup
Lemon and sugar
Posted by NinaLaZina under
active,
Health and Fitness
Teaching Children the Importance of Activity for its own Sake
If there is one thing that can be said of parenting in the 21st century, it’s that it is more focused and specialized than ever before. Parents are now inundated with information on different parenting styles. Instead of emphasizing one style over another, I’m going to focus on one value that all too often gets lost when parents adhere to a specific parenting approach—and that’s teaching children to love any given activity for its own sake.
You may be thinking that loving something for its own sake is something that comes naturally to children, and you would be right. But we parents, who are so obsessed over results and correct parenting, often get in the way and inadvertently teach children that no activity is worth doing unless it produces some sort of quantifiable award or serves as a means to an end. Continue reading this entry…
