Snags & Rice & Salad

just what it says ... pork & fennel sausages from fancy butcher (sausage shop) at market. Brown rice. Cos lettuce salad and tomato, cucumber + olive salad. Caramelised onion.

Result: 4

Preparation: what preparation? allow 30 mins to cook snags.

Chicken Bake

Leftover roast or BBQ chicken pieces
Broccoli, capsicum, leek, mushrooms, spinach, all cooked.
White sauce with cheese and a bit of seeded mustard.
Pasta.

Mix up and bake for half an hour at 160 fan bake.

Result: 3

Preparation: easy but time-consuming, huge mess ... good way to use up chicken though, and portable.

Lamb casserole

Diced lamb, sliced onion - browned in frypan.

Add to casserole dish: meat, onion, diced sweet potato, diced zucchini, diced carrot. Bayleaf, cinnamon stick, powdered coriander, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, preserved lemon.

Pour over chicken stock ice cubes melted in boiling water plus a bit of passata plus a bit of salt.

Cook for about 1 1/2 hours at 160 degrees. Take lid off towards end to thicken a bit.

Result: 3.5

Preparation: really quick, but need to do ahead

Asparagus and Pumpkin Pasta

Asparagus, blanched for 2 mins.
Pumpkin, sliced very thinly and fried gently to cook.
Diced tomato.
Sliced marinated (or fresh) capsicum.
Sliced red onion.
Fresh basil.

Fry onion and add cinzano and chicken stock and 1/3 of basil. Add some water too. Add rest of ingredients except asparagus and cook for a few minutes, then add sour cream. Finally add asparagus. Serve with pasta and parmesan.'

Result: 4.5

Preparation: minimal washing up, quick and easy. Well under half an hour.

Roast Chicken with Smen

Fresh chicken, size 17 (or maybe smaller).

Chopped lemon inside. Melt ghee and add olive oil, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, oregano, powdered ginger. Smear over chicken. Wrap tightly in gladwrap. Put in fridge for 2 hours.

Roast in oven on fan grill 180 with probe on 83. Approx 1 hr to cook.

Serve with salad or rice or cous cous.

Result: 5

Preparation: a bit messy in the ghee handling (which can be done at lunchtime) but minimal work all up.

Lamb Pizza

Minced lamb, red onion, garlic, parsley, cayenne pepper, allspice. Fry this up all together.

Pizza base - Mr Pitta. Lamb mix on base, top with steamed spinach, roasted & peeled red capsicum, grilled zucchini, mushrooms, topped with feta. Bake for 15 mins at 200 fan bake. Squeeze over lemon juice.

Result: 4

Preparation: lots of different messy bits!

Salad Nicoise

(kind of from the red AWW book)

Lettuce, tin of tuna, olives, basil, capers, hard boiled eggs, green beans (blanched), asparagus (blanched), tomato, red onion.

Dressing: olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, sugar.

Serve with crusty bread.

Result: 4.5

Preparation: a bit to chop but little to cook. Good for a hot night.

Thai beef salad

not a particularly authentic salad, but what we had in the house ...

Marinate beef strips in red curry paste, lime juice and dark soy, for a few hours.
Shredded lettuce, sliced capsicum, halved cherry tomatoes, julienned cucumber, sliced spring onion. Fry chopped peanuts and then meat. Dressing: lime juice, light soy, sweet chilli, sesame oil, palm sugar.

Result: 4.5

Preparation: quick and do-ahead

Mango Chicken

2 mangoes, diced chicken thighs, red capsicum, red onion, fresh kaffir lime, lime juice, coconut milk, tsp penang curry paste, spring onion. Serve with rice and microwaved green veges. Would be good with fresh coriander too.

Result: 5

Preparation: less than half an hour

Asparagus Omelette

4 eggs, lightly beaten with a bit of water.
Fresh asparagus, steamed for 2 mins in microwave.
Chopped tomato and spring onion. Grated cheese.

Result: 3

Preparation: well under half an hour

Sang Choi Bao with Chicken

Chicken mince, add dry sherry and dark soy, leave to marinate a few minutes.
Finely dice mushrooms, spring onion and ginger (and water chestnuts if there are any). Fry up the lot and add a bit of light soy and some sesame oil. Thicken with cornflour. Serve with steamed bok choy, rice and lettuce leaves, and plum sauce warmed with a bit of soy.

Result: 5 - YUMMO

Preparation: in less than half an hour!!!

Baked Vegetables

Baked fennel (boiled first)
Whole sweet potatoes, scrubbed, salted and baked
Scallopped potatoes (rub dish with garlic, thinly slice potatoes and onion, heat milk in saucepan with grated nutmeg, pour over spuds, top with grated cheese)
Crusty bread

Result: 3

Preparation: quick and easy, but need to allow at least an hour for the sweet potato to cook.

Lamb Kebab Plate

Start with roast lamb leftovers. Chop into large cubes and fry lightly to brown and heat through. Serve with brown rice, shredded lettuce, tomato and tzatsiki.

Result: 4.5

Preparation: about 5 minutes!

Lamb Roast with Tzatsiki

Marinate 1.2kg boned lamb leg in garlic, oregano and lemon juice. Roll and tie. Par-boil veges. Place on oven griller tray on a rack. Poke in meat probe. Bake (from cold) in oven at 180 degrees on fan-grill for approx 1 hr, with meat probe set to 65 degrees, turning 3 times. Rest for 10 minutes before cutting. Serve with tzatsiki (yoghurt, lemon juice, cucumber).

Result: 5 - sensational

Preparation: easy, and most of the work is done earlier in the day.

(also great done with the bone still in - cook to 70 degrees)

Ham and Asparagus Pasta Sauce

Ham, asparagus, mushrooms, onion, chicken stock, sour cream, cinzano, pepper, cayenne pepper, parsley.

Result: 4 - especially with asparagus in season

Preparation: in less time than it took to cook pasta!

Asparagus pasta sauce

Boil water for pasta & cook asparagus for 2 mins, then rinse in cold water to stop cooking.

Fry up onion, mushroom and capsicum. Add Cinzano and chicken stock and salt and pepper. Add spinach and sour cream. Near end, add asparagus. Serve with pasta and parmesan.

Result: 3

Preparation: very quick

Moussaka

Lamb mince, passata, onion, rosemary, capsicum, cooked in frypan.
Thinly sliced potatoes, cooked in microwave.
Eggplant, thinly sliced and cooked in grill.
Spinach leaves, washed.

Stack up in baking dish and top with cheese. Bake for about 40 mins.

Result: 4.5

Preparation: lots of different bits but fairly quick.

Note: can also be done quicker by using frozen spinach and frying the eggplant in the pan first. Add a white sauce of sour cream, grated cheese and water for extra yumminess.