BBQ Chicken Skewers

follow recipe from "Cooking Moroccan" book for spiced grilled chicken, but with chicken thighs instead of whole chicken, and thread onto skewers. Basically just marinate in cayenne pepper, cumin, smoky paprika, black pepper, salt, garlic, saffron, lemon juice and olive oil. Cook on the BBQ.

Result: 5. Best BBQ chicken skewers ever.
Preparation: dead easy, marinate ahead of time.

"Paella", somewhat ...

Follow recipe from AWW "Cook" book for Paella, but ignore whatever you like ... probably best to have at least one of the meat components (we had chorizo).

To make up for missing ingredients, add vegetables - zucchini and carrot. Would be better with capsicum rather than without, and with sweet paprika rather than kashmiri chilli. And also probably better without 3/4 of a cup of chardonnay which wasn't in the recipe and didn't really help. Still, Caitlin ate 3 peas so there must be something good about it.

Result: 3, with potential for more ...
Preparation: easy and not too much attention required, but takes about 50 mins all up.

Pork Sausage and Capsicum Stew

From Cam's Greek cooking course:
- 4 Pork, Chilli and Garlic sausages from High St butcher, sliced in 3cm lengths
- 2 green capsicum, sliced
- tin tomatoes

Lightly fry the sausage in a saucepan. Add the other ingredients and cook with lid on for about 20 mins until sausage is cooked. Serve with risoni pasta.

Result: 4.5
Preparation: about 5 mins, then eat 20 mins after that.

Salmon Cutlets with Penang Curry Sauce

1x400g salmon cutlet. Clean after rubbing rock salt on it. Put on a plate in the wok with spring onion and fresh kaffir lime leaves under and on top. Steam gently for 20 mins.

In separate small frypan, make sauce. Fry coriander root and onion in coconut cream. Add curry paste (1/3 tin of penang). Add coconut milk and chicken stock. Add 2 tsp sugar and 1 tsp fish sauce and 1 tsp lime juice. Cook for a bit to cook the onion. Chuck in some green beans, cook gently for 2 mins.

Pour sauce over fish. Serve with rice, coriander and spring onion. Fish serves 2. Could also add extra veges on the side like bok choy.

Result: 5
Preparation: really quick and easy, and low mess.

Can also be done with green curry, and better if salmon is cooked for 15 mins not 20. Result: 5.5.

Tomato & Cannellini Bean stew

Fry up: sliced onion, crushed garlic and cubes of eggplant. Add cinzano, chicken stock, water and salt. Add chopped tomatoes, passata and drained tin of cannellini beans. Cook for about 10 mins. Serve with buttered bread.

Result: 5 for lunch
Preparation: very quick and easy

Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni

Make a basic tomato sauce.

Wash and chop spinach. Mix in bowl with fresh ricotta, grated cheese, 1 egg, salt, pepper and breadcrumbs.

Cook 4 lasagne sheets (lasagna that needs pre-cooking) for about 5 mins. Run under cold water. Put some tomato sauce on base of oven dish. Form 4 logs from ricotta mixture and wrap with lasagne sheets. Top with more tomato sauce and some parmesan cheese. Cook at 160 degrees fan bake for about 30 mins.

Result: 4.5. Yum and good presentation too. Excellent to prepare ahead.
Preparation: lasagna is a bit fiddly, but otherwise it's very easy, especially if the sauce is used for something else too.

Lamb Chops with Salsa

Lamb chops, fan grill in oven 190 degrees for 20 mins (for quite well done, try 15 mins next time). Also cook corn in oven at same time.

Make a salsa with red and green capsicum, spring onion, coriander, cucumber and tomato. Sauced with vinegar and sugar and lime juice and tabasco.

Serve with burritos and jar of salsa dip.

Result: 3 - a bit random ...
Preparation: quick and easy.