What are your easiest, tastiest meals - quick to prepare when you can't think of anything!!
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No worries, @Romla - looking forward to see a pic of the results!
If you use an empty tin (both ends cut off) just make sure it is bone dry & you also dip it into flour before cutting the scones. There is a bit of 'throw away' with that method tho - cutting them into squares works just as well with no throw outs!
With the Lamb shanks, with the meat falling off the bone - you could strip the meat off the bones & just make it into a casserole instead if it is the 'look of it' that could put the kids off - or do they not like casseroles at all? The flavour is just lovely!!1 -
Hi @Romla, I definitely don’t profess to be an expert but irrelevant of which recipe you use my mum (who was a fabulous cook) always made great fluffy, high rising scones. Her secrets, bring the dough together but make sure not to over work it or they won’t rise as well or be as fluffy. Next, when mixing the liquid into the crumbly mixture use a knife, not sure why but her mother taught her this step and it always seemed to work. My own step, I don’t use anything fancy like lemonade or buttermilk, just plain simple water but I make sure it’s ice cold. I live in the tropics and find this makes a lighter scone??? Final hint my mum gave me was to place the scones as close to each other, they need to be touching on the baking tray and lightly brushed with milk. So many recipes these days don’t have the old fashioned hints with them that our mums passed on from their mums. Don’t know if any of this will help but wish you the best of luck. We’ll wait for photos of your success.
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@arpie and @Piccme Thankyou both for your help .Will let you know how we get on.My kids @ arpie don’t like red meat and at times I feel if I eat much more chicken I will cluck. We manage meat/fish only when they are out basically.Next year when year 12 is over it is time they made their own meals.
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Easy Peasy Chicken Curry
1 bbq chicken , cut up into small pieces ,bones removed
1 tablespoon curry powder
1onion sliced
1 tin Campbell's condensed chicken soup
1 cup milk
1 tin pineapple pieces drained
Fry onions in butter until transparent
Add curry powder , stir for a few minutes
Add chicken soup , milk , chicken & pineapple
simmer for a short while , serve with rice & papadams
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@piccme My Mum's scones were always high and fluffy, too. I've never been able to replicate them (of course, I was too cool to learn how to make them) but she always used a knife as well. And the prep was so quick - seemed to take longer to clean the flour off the table than it did to get the scones in the oven.1
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My sons in their twenties will still avoid veges and just go for the meats. I do a pasta thing, big pot of pasta spirals, toss in a bag of frozen veg, add any sort of meats (diced bacon, raw or cooked diced sausages, any diced meat really). Bring to the boil, turn it off and leave it sit 10 mins or so to work its magic. Drain, stir in pasta sauce bottle (yeah the whole thing). While its all still fairly hot, stir thru grated cheese. Wash up is 4 plates, a saucepan, a grater and cutlery. Very easy, everyone's full as and very little nibbling later.
At xmas time we got an air fryer. Not sure why they call it a fryer as its really only a mini fan forced oven but whatever. I have been cutting up pumpkin and choko small and throwing that in the fryer for about 20 mins. (veg seem to take longer than meats). It comes out like oven roasted and I didn't need to waste 15 minutes preheating to cook. No turning, just wait for the timer alarm and its ready. It even turns itself off which is great for chemo brainers like me.2 -
Chuck a whole heap of vegies into a RISOTTO pan - yeah, you do need to add some cream and parmesan at the end but it is over a huge pot !
The only thing is, use a heavy based pan - then you can leave it to do its thing, just checking when adding the warm stock each 1/4 hour or so.3 -
Cooking for one can be a pain. The bloody mess eclipses the pleasure. If I want a quick meal a serve of precooked brown rice with quinoa --yes, I know it's more expensive than cooking your own, but who can cook that small a serve and it's another pot. A tin of tuna, some beans and broccoli and either oyster sauce and ginger, or a dollop of cream cheese and chutney. Zap it for two minutes. One bowl, no left overs. A sufficient amount of protein and fibre. Maybe too much salt or sugar, depending on your choice of condiment.
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When I was kicked out of home at age 19 - I basically survived on Spaghetti Bolognese - I'd make up a massive pot & it would last me all week (and it NEVER went 'off'.) Sometimes I'd have it for breakfast, lunch & dinner! I LOVE IT!! I STILL love it! If I wanted to make it go further, I'd add a can of kidney beans & some chilli & call it chilli con carne & serve it with nachos instead of spaghetti! When I cooked the spaghetti & added the mince, I would just eat it out of the pan!! LOL.
Keith also makes up a packet of Pasta Sauce & adds some veggies like broccoli and then chucks in a tin of Tuna or salmon ..... so it pays to make the pasta a little 'thicker' than normal to allow for the juice from the Tuna/Salmon.
And here Julie Goodwin's Impossible Quiche (it looks identical to the one I used to do 30 years ago!) - a winner for a Lucky Dip evening or lunch - or for unexpected guests. You don't even have to precook the bacon!! I used to squeeze some of the liquid out of the zucchini tho .... and I grated the onion too ..... just peel it & leave the 'roots on' to hold it.
And another Julie Goodwin recipe - a lovely Potato Bake (I had it today at a girlfriend's place, with lunch!) It tastes even nicer the next day too - so make double the quantity 
I've used undiluted cream of chicken (or chicken & corn) soup instead of the cream, between layers of potato & onion & finishing it with more soup & cheese on top! ALSO very nice - and EASY!!
hehe .... if a cake recipe says 'Cream the Butter & Sugar' - I turn the page! 2 -
@arpie just had the best afternoon tea with our neighbors- the scones were perfect - light and fluffy.Highly recommend the recipe given above for lemonade scones . Took photos on my phone to upload now trying to figure how to upload to the iPad - may need the techno twins help but coming soon Many , many thanks arpie - the neighbors even took the recipe !3
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WOOHOOO! ! AWESOME!! SUCCESS! Well done, @Romla
AND with cream & strawberry jam!
Did you use a knife to mix it??
And you DON'T taste the lemonade, apparently, which is incredible!
I might even have to give it a go myself! LOL I know a lot of campers use this recipe as it is just SO easy!0 -
Oh yes we used a knife , plus lowered temperature 30 degrees. They were brilliant tasting with ease of baking a bonus . I think they will be a firm favourite from now on.1
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Continental Pasta and sauce has online recipes using these products as a base which are great when time or inclination poor. They even have ones for their rice packets.1
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Yep, we've used 'packet Risotto' & added a HEAP of veggies to them once the Risotto is about 'half cooked' with the lid on - just whack all the chopped up veg on top & it steams the veg (best not to overcook them.) Then, just pour some Soy sauce on it to serve .... YUMMY - and also great leftovers!
SO many 'easy options' if you give them a go. I ALWAYS try & do a 2nd meal at the same time, so I don't have to cook from scratch the next night! 1
