Mega Meal Prep: Moroccan Spice Chickpea Bowls

Hello!  Welcome to the last mega meal prep blog in the series.

I am finishing up on a really flexible, really delicious (if not really spicy) dish, that can be served any number of ways.

For this one, we simply prepped the chickpea section as per the below instructions & then did everything else to order.  You can serve anything with it at all, but we have suggested one really yummy option for you here.

Enjoy!

Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Bowl | Serves 12

Ingredients to meal prep ahead of time:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 brown onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp cumin
2 tbsp chilli powder
2 tsp tumeric
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp sea salt
Cinnamon & cayenne pepper to taste
4 cans chickpeas
4 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes

Ingredients to serve later:
Cucumbers
Couscous
Mint, parsley, coriander
Yoghurt or hummus
Olive oil
Lemon juice
Toasted pita wedges

Method:
Step one: heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.
Step two: add the onion; sauté until soft.
Step three: add the garlic, spices, salt, and chickpeas – stir until very fragrant, then add the tomatoes (undrained) and simmer for 20 minutes
Step four: cool before portioning & freeze

With the above ingredients, you would then need to cook the couscous, chop the cucumbers & herbs before arranging all of the ingredients in a bowl to eat.

_______________________________________________

That's it!

Another meal prepping series over.  We are anticipating August for the next big cook so watch this space.

Also check out our NEW meal prepping venture - Shitload of Food.

With so many people asking us to help them do what we do, we thought the best way to do that would be to start a little business - so definitely keep your eye out for that as we start to roll that out.

In the meantime, you can follow us on socials to keep updated!
Facebook @shitloadoffood
Insta @shitloadof_food
Twitter @shitloadofood
Pintrest

See you soon!
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Chicken Spring Rolls

Hellooo!

I hope you all had a great week.

We're getting close to the end of the recipes for this meal prep series!  Today, we tackle how to make your own spring rolls.

We opted to make quite large chicken spring rolls this time, which are perfect as a lunch, but you can go for any filling & size you like when you make these.

This is definitely one to get creative with your fillings - there are so many great spring rolls recipes out there.

Chicken Spring Rolls | Makes 24

Ingredients
2 tbsp. crushed garlic
4 tsp. minced fresh ginger
2 tsp. sesame oil
2 tbsp. olive oil
1kg chicken mince
2 cup finely shredded green cabbage
4 spring onions
2 cups enoki mushrooms
4 tbsp. hoisin sauce
24 square spring roll wrappers

Method

Step one: put the garlic & ginger in the sesame & olive oils in large fry pan & cook over set a medium ­low heat.
Step two: add the chicken mince to the pan & fully cook. Add the mushrooms to the pan & cook until just wilted.
Step three: remove the pan from the heat & drain out any liquid. Stir in the green cabbage, spring onions & hoisin sauce until thoroughly combined. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl & let it cool.
Step four: this is where we assemble the spring rolls!  We found it easiest to take one spring roll pastry sheet at a time, keeping the others under a damp tea towel to stop them drying out.
Place 3 to 4 tablespoons of the chicken mixture in the centre of the pastry. Fold the 2 opposite corners into the middle, then roll the wrapper around the mixture.. Wet the last corner before finishing the roll, so the corner seals the spring roll shut.
Step five: freeze the spring rolls at this stage & then cook (either in an oven or deep fryer) when you are ready to eat them!

If you're like me, a visual of what you are supposed to do is sometimes helpful - writing the assembly of these spring rolls was hard!  We tackled video for the first time with this one - hopefully this helps!

Little pro tip: we actually weighed our spring rolls out, so they were all the same size.  Obviously, not required, but super helpful when portioning out meals.  For guidance, ours were 65 - 75g each.

How do we feel about video instructions? :)

See you next week!
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Apple Pie Bites

Hellooo!

We're taking a break from the huge dinner recipes for a little dessert we have made a couple of times now - apple pie bites.

So simple & so delicious!

Apple pie bites

¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp nutmeg
3 tbsp butter
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored & sliced into 8
4 sheets frozen puff pastry

Method

Step one: in a small bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon & nutmeg. Set aside.
Step two: melt butter and toss apple slices in butter.  Set aside.
Step three: cut your puff pastry sheets into 4 pieces (I recommend doing this one at a time)
Step four: put a teaspoon of the sugar mixture onto each puff pastry square.
Step five: place 1 apple slice on the sugar & fold into a triangle
Step six: freeze at this stage, or bake for 10 - 12 minutes until golden brown to enjoy immediately.

Such an easy, delightful snack, or dessert!
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Mongolian Beef

Hellooo!

Today we turn our attention to a new recipe - Mongolian Beef.

For this one, we made the decision to try out the fast slow cooker, made by Breville.  I do not regret this decision!  Gorgeous, tender beef in a delicious sauce, in under 1 hour - yes please!

I don't appear to have a photo of this dish, so here's a picture of our meal prep at the end haha.

We might be getting better at documenting our cooking, but we are still not 100%!

Mongolian Beef | serves 12

Ingredients
2kg flank steak
¾ cup corn starch
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 tsp crushed garlic
2 cups soy sauce
2 cups water
2 cups brown sugar
3 cup grated carrots

Method
Step one: cut flank steak into thin strips. Coat steak in corn starch.
Step two: add olive oil, minced garlic, soy sauce, water, brown sugar & carrots to slow cooker. Stir ingredients. Add coated flank steak & stir again until coated in the sauce.
Step three: cook for high 2-3 hours or on low 4-5 hours until beef is tender.

This recipe is for a slow cooker; if you want to give the fast slow cooker a try, follow the same steps as above, but put the ingredients in the fast slow cooker & set to the correct setting as per the instructions.  The cycle goes for about 45 minutes, plus 10 minutes to depressurise at the end.

Serve over rice with spring onions - so good!
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Beef Ragu

Hellooo!

This Sunday, we turn to an old faithful: our beef ragu.

I don't even use a recipe for this one anymore - definitely one of my intuitive cooks, where I just kinda add whatever feels right.

This is such a rich beef dish, so good for a warm, hearty meal.

It actually interests me how Tara & I eat this one.

I see it as an Italian dish & serve with pasta, parmesan & garlic bread.

Tara eats hers with rice.

Works both ways & is so yummy!

This photo actually doesn't do the ragu justice - it is in the pot bottom left... which is a 16L pot.  That's not a normal size pot to have lying around the house hahaha.

Ragu | Serves 32… ish

Ingredients
4kg chuck steak, cut into cubes
Olive oil
Rosemary & thyme
4 brown onions
16 garlic cloves
8 carrots
6 celery sticks
1 bottle red wine
12 cans chopped tomatoes
1L beef stock
1 tsp salt & freshly ground black pepper

Method
Step one: heat oil in your large pot of choice.  Add in the onions & garlic.
Step two: add in the steak & brown
Step three: use the wine to deglaze the pan, then add in all other ingredients
Step four: bring to the boil, then reduce heat to the lowest option & leave to simmer for 8 - 12 hours (the longer the better).  Be sure to stir occasionally.

This is definitely a recipe to put on at the start of the day & leave to develop for as long as possible.  Which is actually a great tip for any rich. tomato based sauce :)

Which do you prefer for this recipe - pasta or rice?
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Tortellini Two Ways

Hellooo!

How are you guys doing?

This week, you are being treated to 2 different recipes in 1!

We have used fresh tortellini in meal prep recipes before & it has worked quite well, so we thought we would do 2 recipes using this time around.

One thing I will say before I begin.  The flavours of these recipes are great, but we made a critical error in cooking the pasta too much before freezing them.

The texture when we reheat these dishes is all wrong (Mack doesn't like them at all because of the texture & Tim has taken to frying the pasta off to make them less soggy haha).  I think we either need to not add the pasta until we serve, or throw the pasta in & immediately take the dish off the heat to cool so the pasta doesn't overcook.

Regardless, these two recipes have delicious flavours - enjoy!

RECIPE 1

Tortellini Primavera | Serves 16

Ingredients
8 cups filled tortellini (we used beef this time)
4 zucchini, diced
4 yellow squash, diced
4 cup of diced carrots
2 broccoli head, cut into pieces
2 large jars pasta sauce (yes we cheated for this one)
4 cups water
8 tablespoons dried basil & thyme

Method

Step one: add all ingredients except pasta to a pot.
Step two: cover & cook over medium heat for 20 minutes or until veggies are soft. Stir occasionally.
Step three: add the tortellini to the pot & take immediately off the heat.

To serve, defrost & heat, then sprinkle with parmesan.  Also tastes great with a salad or garlic bread.


RECIPE 2

Garlic, Chicken & Veggie Pasta | Serves 16

Ingredients
Olive oil
1.5kg chicken breast, diced
8 carrots, sliced
4 zucchini, sliced
4 yellow squash, sliced
6 cups kale, chopped (*note: we totally forgot to put this into ours!)
8 cloves garlic, crushed
600g pasta (we used filled tortellini)
Oregano, salt, pepper

Method

Step one: heat a pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium-high heat.
Step two: add in diced chicken breast, followed salt, pepper & oregano. Cook until no longer pink. Remove chicken from pan.
Step three: add carrots & sauté for 2-3 minutes until tender.
Step four: add in zucchini & yellow squash, & sauté until they become slightly translucent.
Step five: add in the kale & some more olive oil, salt & pepper.  Sauté until kale begins to wilt then add the garlic.
Step six: put the tortellini & chicken into the pan & mix.

We added a splash of chicken stock into this one for a bit more sauce.

This one also is great served with garlic bread.

Which one is your favourite?
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Vegan Chilli

Hellooo!

Another week, another meal prep recipe.

This week, we head to a vegan recipe I found when I was meal prepping for my then pregnant sister last year.  It's healthy, it's delicious, it's vegan... & if you add as much chilli as we did, it's really spicy!

This one is so good to eat in so many different ways.

Use it as a nacho mix.  Wrap it up to make a burrito.  Top with avocado & sour cream & eat it as a burrito bowl.  You can also top it with chicken if you don't want to have a vegan meal.  Super flexible!

And these are just the options I have tried so far.

Vegan Chilli | Serves 12

Ingredients
2 cup quinoa, uncooked
2 cans black beans
2 cans whole kernel corn
2 large cans crushed tomatoes
2 large sweet potato, peeled & diced
4 cups vegetable stock
1 large red onion, finely diced
6 tablespoons chilli powder
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika

Method
Step one: place all the ingredients in a slow cooker & give it a good stir.
Step two: cover and cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 - 8 hours (until quinoa & sweet potatoes are cooked).

Optional toppings to serve this one with include:
Fresh coriander
Greek yoghurt
Avocado
Sour cream
Chicken
Paprika

How do you eat yours?

See you next week.
Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Chicken & Chorizo Risotto

Hellooo!

Another beautiful Sunday morning, another crazy meal prep day recipe!

This week, we have another delight for your oven.

Tara found this recipe on Pintrest; original is here.

Aside from doubling the recipe to make more of it, I actually followed this one almost to the letter.  I wasn't sure how much I trusted the oven to cook a risotto nicely; usually a risotto needs a lot of love & a lot of stirring.

But this works!  & it's really yummy!

Oven Baked Chicken & Chorizo Risotto | Serves 12

Ingredients
4 teaspoons olive oil
1kg chicken thigh fillets, cut into chunks
4 chorizo sausages, sliced
2 large onions, finely chopped
3 cups Arborio rice
6 cloves garlic, crushed
750g Napoletana Sauce
6 cups chicken stock
2 cups white wine
ground black pepper
2 cups frozen peas
200g marinated char-grilled capsicum, cut into strips
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve

Method

Step one: heat oil in a large flameproof casserole dish (we cooked in a frypan & added to 2 casserole dishes) over a high heat. Add chicken & brown.  Remove chicken.

Step two: add chorizo to pan. Cook, then remove.  Add onion & cook until translucent, then add the rice & garlic.

Step three: stir in the sauce, stock, wine, seasoning, chicken & chorizo, then bring to the boil.

Step four: transfer to a casserole dish (if you weren't already cooking in one) then cover & bake for 15 minutes.

Step five: stir, then bake for 10 minutes more

Step six: Stir again, adding in the peas & capsicum, then bake for 5 minutes (*note: we did not add the capsicum here; we topped with this later, because Mack doesn't like them).

Step seven: allow to cool, then stir through parmesan to finish

Another absolutely delicious meal to come home to!

Until next week.

Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Chicken & Mushroom Rice

Hellooo!

Welcome back to another meal prep blog.  I hope you're all going well!

This week, we head to a recipe we discovered recently on Pintrest.  We were looking for something we could make in the oven, as well as something we had never made before.

This is the original post can be found here.

I took this recipe, doubled it... & then totally ignored the steps to freeze the ingredients before baking to order haha.

Here is how we did it.

First, we mixed white rice with black rice, along with all of the spices.

We topped this with the veggies.

Lay the chicken thighs on top of the rice & veggie base.

Rub the marinade on the chicken.

After that, pour the stock over everything & bake!

Oven Baked Chicken & Mushroom Rice | Serves 12

Ingredients
1 chopped onion
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 stalks celery, chopped
1kg chicken thighs (about 8 large)
1 cup marinade (I used 2 tbsp Dijon mustard mixed with olive oil & garlic)
4 cups brown rice
1 cup black rice (wild rice also works)
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoons dried thyme
1 litre low-sodium chicken broth (note I did not double this ingredient!)
Salt & pepper

Method

Step one: mix the rice & spices together in an oven safe tray

Step two: spread the onions, celery & mushrooms out over the rice

Step three: arrange the chicken on top of the base, then spread your marinade over the chicken.  Season.

Step four: pour the stock over everything.  I actually didn't double the original recipe on the stock to 2 litres out of necessity... because my oven tray wasn't big enough haha.  But it actually didn't need it.

Step five: cover with foil & bake in the oven at 180 degrees for about one hour.

Step six: uncover the dish & return to the oven for a further 30 - 45 minutes, until the rice is soft, the liquid is absorbed & the chicken is cooked.

Step seven: leave to cool fully before portioning

This one is so delicious - definitely one of my favourites from this round of prepping!

See you next week!

Hx

Mega Meal Prep: Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

Hellooo!

Happy Sunday :)

The first recipe is our butter chicken recipe.

We have made this one before, but not for a while.  I think the last time we made butter chicken, we incorrectly 'doubled' the recipe & the sauce to chicken ratio was all out haha.  I'm not sure where we got this recipe from... I imagine we found it on Pintrest.

We cooked this one in Tara's slow cooker.  It's one that you can pop on the stove, so it's really great for browning meats first.

This is the only picture I have of it... haha.  Even though I don't have a finished pic, this still looks delicious.

Slow Cooker Butter Chicken | Serves 16

Ingredients

· 80g butter
· 4 tablespoons (80ml) vegetable oil
· 8 large skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
· 2 onion, diced
· 6 cloves garlic, minced
· 4 teaspoons curry powder
· 2 tablespoon Indian curry paste
· 4 teaspoons tandoori masala
· 2 teaspoon garam masala
· 280g tomato paste
· 30 green cardamom pods
· 2 x 400ml tin coconut milk
· 2 cup plain yoghurt
· salt to taste

Method

Step One: Melt the butter & vegetable oil in a large frypan (or in your stove safe slow cooker) over medium heat. 

Step two: Stir in the chicken, onion & garlic. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent.

Step three: Stir in the curry powder, curry paste, tandoori masala, garam masala & tomato paste until no lumps of tomato paste remain. 

Step four: Pour into a slow cooker & stir in the cardamom pods, coconut milk & yoghurt. Season to taste with salt.
Step five: Cook on high 4 to 6 hours, or on low 6 to 8 hours

Step six: Put your slow cooker back on the stove (or transfer into a pan) to reduce the sauce to your desired consistency.  This is a new step we added because the sauce just wasn't thickening up in the slow cooker

Step seven: remove the cardamon pods before portioning

*Pro Tip: tie your cardamon pods to string so that they are easy to remove at the end!

We serve ours with rice & naan bread - give it a try, you won't regret it!

Hx

Mega Meal Prep: An Intro

Hellooo!

How is everyone going?

Last year, you might remember the giant meal prepping Tara & I did?  If not, check out the blog here.  Essentially, for the last 3 years, Tara & I have meal prepped together, to save time & money, whilst also ensuring we eat a healthy meal for lunch or dinner each day.  Even when Tara moved to Melbourne, we still kept it up!  Which is insane, I know.  But it is so good!

Our last cooking day was in January of this year so, yep, that's right, another meal prepping series is coming your way.

This cook was actually the biggest one to date!

Last time, we made 312 portions of food - so 78 days worth of food for 4 people... which actually fed Mack & I for 6 months (factoring in eating out, takeaway, camping & other days we were out of the house).  I literally didn't cook between March & September 2018!

This time...  well... perhaps we went a little overboard...  Haha.  We made 93 days worth of food for 4 people.  That's 372 portions of food.  If we were cooking for 1, we would not have to cook for more than 1 year.  Outrageous!!!

This cook almost found max capacity of my freezer!

Now, last time, I went through how the weekend looked for us & our processes, so I'm not going to talk about that again, because we have a pretty good routine & we did it basically the same again!

Below is the list I curated last time, of the things we have learnt from our time meal prepping:

- set timers for each of your slow cookers!
- use ziplock bags (or vacuum bags) where possible to save space in the freezer
- clean as you go
- make some kind of plan at the beginning of the day of what order you will make the recipes in
- have labels ready to go for the Tupperware/bags - you think you will remember what everything is, but I promise you you won't always be able to tell what it is once it's frozen.
- MAKE SURE YOU ACTUALLY EAT FOOD!

What is interesting to me is that, this time, we didn't set timers & we didn't have a plan at the start of the day of what to do first.  But everything went super smoothly.  I can only put this down to experience!  Tara & I have such a great rhythm when we meal prep together & I think a lot of the processes are second nature now.  That being said, I would still recommend doing these things haha.

A few new things for this time around.

1. Why on earth were we spending money buying label tape for a label maker when we could have been using a roll of masking tape & a Sharpie this whole time.  Seriously.  Haha.

2. I curated our shopping list on a Google doc for Tara to take shopping before our weekend began (when we go to Melbourne, she shops, when we cook in Sydney, I do it).  Turns out a consolidated list is much easier than 16 different recipes & adding things up on the fly.  Who knew.  #amateurs hahaha

3. We dabbled in the idea of filming our cooking days.  Now.  I am no video editor.  But I do think that vlogging our meal prepping & starting a YouTube channel could be a thing for us.  We filmed a couple of things this time around just to test the water... I didn't hate it, but we definitely need practice haha.  Also... this was our tripod...

4. A fast slow cooker (Choice review) is a game changer.  I bought one of these for Mack's parents for Christmas last year & I borrowed it for the weekend.  So impressed.  We whipped up some Mongolian beef in one hour. ONE.  A recipe that took upwards of 4 hours to make previously.  I am aware that pressure cooking is different & results in different food qualities than slow cooking, but the difference with this was so minimal, I don't think it matters at all.

So.

What did we make this time around?

We made 16 different recipes.

Some of them we have made before, some were new to us.  I have linked the ones you have seen before below; the rest will follow, every week Sunday 9am (AEST) :)

Lamb Rogan Josh
Butter chicken
Mongolian beef
Vegan chilli
Minestrone soup (note: we put the pasta in before freezing this time... it might have been a mistake)
Chicken & mushroom rice
Chicken & chorizo risotto
Roast veggie bowls
Chicken spring rolls
Garlic, chicken & veggie pasta
Tortellini primavera
Beef ragu
Moroccan spiced chickpea bowl
Chicken schnitzel (was also supposed to be veal but I forgot to add veal to the shopping list...)
Marinated chickens
Pulled pork
Apple pie bites (such a delicious snack!)

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And that's it!  Welcome to another little insight into the crazy that is our meal prepping system.

Before I go.

Something that comes up every time we cook like this is people asking us to teach them how to do it.  I love that.  But I think that is hard to grasp just how much of a system we have in place.  This isn't normal cooking, it's a lifestyle.  One which I love to share with other people because it literally changed my life.

This outrageous cook sparked a conversation of just how we would like to share our prepping world with everyone.

We have narrowed it down to a few things (that's not really narrowing it down is it...):

- a YouTube channel (which I already talked about)

- A meal prepping app (there are already lots of these, but none do what we do...)

- A website (this is probably the pre-cursor to an app if I'm honest, based on the tech skills Tara & I have)

- Sessions & workshops (wouldn't it be cool if we could make a business doing this?)

I think all of them are awesome ideas.  They all just require a lot of time & energy & patience to set up.  So keep your eyes peeled for some of these ventures!

In the meantime, Sunday 9am, Sydney time.  Recipes from this year's first meal prep.

See you there!

Hx

Recipe Repost: Nigella's Beef & Aubergine Fatteh

I don't generally watch Masterchef - to be honest, it really annoys me at the best of times!  But when this season brought Gordon Ramsey on, I couldn't resist tuning in.

Of course, after watching those few episodes, I got sucked in, and started watching other episodes too.  Dammit reality TV. Haha.

On one of the episodes, Nigella Lawson did a masterclass, where she made what is essentially Middle Eastern nachos.  And they are delicious.

I didn't think Mack would be into the eggplant (the aubergine... we call them eggplants), but he loved it!  It went down so well, I couldn't help but share.  Would highly recommend trying out this recipe :)

You could probably make the eggplant-beef mixture and freeze it, meal prep style.

The original recipe, along with lots of other Nigella creations, can be found in Nigella's book: At My Table.

The version we made is below :)

Nigella's Beef & Aubergine Fatteh     |     Serves 4 

Ingredients:

2 Lebanese flat breads, cut into triangles

500g Greek yoghurt
Half a lemon, juiced
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
1-2 tsp sea salt

45ml regular olive oil
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 aubergine (eggplant), cut into small cubes
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp paprika
1-2 tsp sea salt
500g minced beef

Method:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 200°C. Spread the bread triangles out onto a large baking sheet and toast for 10–15 minutes, or until they are crisp.

Step 2: Beat the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic and salt together in a heatproof bowl that will later sit over a saucepan.

Step 3: Warm the oil and cook the onion, stirring occasionally, over a medium-low heat.  Add the eggplant, stir, and cook for around 10 minutes (until the eggplant is soft).

Step 4: Stir in the cumin, coriander, paprika and sea salt, and the mince, and stir until the meat is cooked through.

Step 5: Warm the yoghurt mixture in a double boiler, and whip it slightly with a fork.

Step 6: Assemble and enjoy immediately! Arrange the chips, top with the mince and cover with the yoghurt mixture.

Nigella also topped with pomegranate seeds, toasted pine nuts and shredded mint leaves - we just didn't have any of this to hand at 10pm on a Friday night!

Give it a try - I'm sure you'll love it :)

Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Slow Cooker Sweet Potato & Cauliflower Stew

This is a recipe that will be a wild card when we around to eating it - I'm not sure that Mack is going to love it.  But when we were making it, it really smelled and looked delicious.  Only time will tell.

For now, here's the recipe!

And yes - we definitely pushed the friendship on the capacity of the slow cooker.  You aren't actually meant to do this so I would stir a little more often if you do!  This is a 5 litre slow cooker, so next time I would either half the recipe, or use a 7 litre instead :).

Slow Cooker Sweet Potato & Cauliflower Stew     |      Portions: 20
Ingredients
- 4 cups red lentils (soaked overnight)
- 2 tsp. coconut oil
- 3 tbsp. minced ginger
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- half of a large head of cauliflower, roughly chopped (about 4 cups)
- 1 large sweet potato, chopped
- 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 tsp. chilli flakes
- 2 cans coconut milk
- 2 cans chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp. curry powder
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. black mustard seeds
- 1 tsp. tumeric
- salt & pepper
- 1.5 litres vegetable broth

Method
Step 1: add all ingredients to to slowcooker
Step 2: cook on high for 3 hours, stirring regularly. (set a timer!)
Step 3: cool before portioning

If you are going to eat it straight away, I would go for some crusty bread.

This one, like all of my slow cooker recipes, is so super easy!

And that's a wrap on Meal Prep: Extreme Edition!  I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have.

There will be a little break whilst I roadtrip Tasmania now, and then I will dig out some more meal prep recipes that we have  made previously and share those too.

See you in July! :)
Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Tortellini Sausage Stew

Another recipe in the mix that doesn't involve a slow cooker!

This one we found on Pintrest (I think) on one of our very first cooking days, and we had forgotten about until now.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Tortellini Sausage Stew     |     Portions: 12

Ingredients

- 1 kg Italian sausage

- 2 brown onion, diced

- 6 cloves garlic, minced

- 2 cans diced/whole tomatoes

- 1 litre vegetable stock

- 600g fresh tortellini (we used a roast veggie filling)

- 4 cups baby spinach

- Salt & pepper

Method

Step 1: Saute the onions in a large pan until soft

Step 2: remove the skin from the sausages and crumble the mince into the pan, and cook with garlic until the sausage is browned

Step 3: Stir in the tomatoes, stock and seasoning, and bring to the boil, and then reduce to the lowest heat and simmer for 45 minutes

Step 4: Add the tortellini and spinach, and cook until the pasta is cooked

Step 5: cool before portioning, or serve immediately with parmesan

Usually, I would say always cook the pasta fresh when you are ready to eat, but this dish freezes really well.

Join me next week for my version of lamb rogan josh.

Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Chicken Soup

I went to a wedding in January, and the wedding favour was a recipe book with the couple's family favourites and the stories behind them.  Probably the most amazing favour I have ever seen at a wedding - so beautiful.  Anyway.

This soup was in there, and it is so delicious.  Enjoy!

Jess & Josh's Chicken Soup     |     Portions: 20

Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 brown onions, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
- 2 whole chickens
- 4 celery sticks, sliced
- 8 carrots, sliced
- 1 cup peas
- 2 litres water
- Chilli flakes, salt & pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp. soy sauce

Method
Step 1: Heat the oil in a large soup pan, and cook onion, garlic and ginger until soft
Step 2: Add celery, carrots & chicken cover entirely with water
Step 3: Bring to the boil, and then turn it down to the lowest heat and simmer for an hour.  Skim the surface occasionally as it simmers
Step 4: Leave to cool overnight
Step 5: Remove and discard the fat from the liquid, and then de-bone the chicken, shredding it into small pieces
Step 6: Bring the stock to the boil, then simmer with the peas and chicken for a couple of minutes
Step 7: Remove from heat, stir through soy sauce and seasoning and leave to cool

We portioned this into 400g portions, and then to reheat, I put it in a pot with half a cup of water and brought it to the boil.. I then simply served with toast.

That's it!

Join me next Wednesday for a tortellini sausage stew.
Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Slow Cooker Apple Rice Pudding

Mixing up the meal prepping by adding in a breakfast item!

We weren't really sure how this one was going to go - it didn't look all that great, but it tastes really yummy :)

I don't have any pics of this one... consider this a short and sweet recipe post.

Slow Cooker Apple Rice Pudding    |     Portions: 12

Ingredients
- 5 apples, peeled and sliced
- 1.5 cups brown rice
- 1 tbsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
- 2 cans coconut cream
- 200ml milk (sub for coconut milk if you want this to be vegan)
- 4 cups water
- 50g brown sugar

Method
Step 1: layer the ingredients into the slow cooker - half the apples, then rice, then spices and sugar, then all of the lquids, then the remaining apple
Step 2: cook on low for 5 hours, and then turn the slow cooker off, and leave to cool over night (it absorbs all the liquids)
Step 3: portion into 200g portions, and enjoy for breakfast

You might need to add some liquids to serve to make it a touch less thick.

I am really not sure how this would freeze - I kept mine in the fridge and enjoyed it straight away.

Next up: a delicious chicken soup!
Hx

My Top 10 Delicious Chicken Marinades

Welcome to another week of Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - it's just not written in the title because it got way too long haha!

We started making chicken marinades a few cooking days ago, when we were looking for something fresh, and not slow cooked and frozen.  Just to mix it up!  They are a huge hit, and so so flexible when it comes to changing up the meals a bit too.

I typically wrap my chicken portions in tin foil and put them in the oven for 30 minutes.  I then have par boiled potatoes roasting in the same tray, just not inside the foil, getting all crispy in that same 30 minutes.  So good.  You can also pan fry them and make chicken burgers, which is also super yummy.  And the cool thing is every time you cook one it tastes different, because there are so many different flavours.

So let's get started.

Whilst we only made 7 different marinades on the latest cooking day, I have 3 other yummy options from other cooking days that I will definitely be making again.

We bag our chicken in 300g portions... which when you realise that we made 28 days (56 portions) worth of chicken marinades, means that we had to purchase 8.5kg of chicken breast!!!

The method is so simple:
- slice up the many kilos of chicken
 - mix all of the ingredients together
- weigh out the chicken into 1.2kg portions and place in the marinade (8 portions per marinade)
- leave for a couple of hours, and then portion into ziplock bags

Oh.  And if I could recommend one thing, it would be to label the ziplock bags beforehand (NOT after!).

My Top 10 Delicious Chicken Marinades     |     Portions (per recipe): 8

1. Sweet chilli chicken
- 6 tbsp. sweet chilli sauce
- 3 tbsp. soy sauce

2. Honey garlic chicken
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tbsp. soy sauce
- 4 tbsp. honey
- 2 cloves garlic, minced

3. Lemon ginger chicken
- 2 lemons, juiced
- rind of the lemons
- 2 tsp. crushed ginger
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- chilli flakes, to taste

4. Peri Peri chicken
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp. paprika
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- salt and chilli flakes to taste

5. Tandoori chicken
- 1 jar Tandoori paste
- 2 tbsp. olive oil

6. Apple mustard chicken
- 1 cup apple juice
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup whole grain mustard
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar

7. Soy chicken
- 1 cup soy sauce
- 1.5 cups brown sugar
- 3/4 cup white vinegar
- 2 cups olive oil

8. Lemon mustard chicken
- 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard

9. Lime coriander chicken
- 2- 4 limes, juiced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- a small bunch of coriander, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup olive oil

10. Jerk chicken
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp. nutmeg
- 1 tsp. dried thyme
- 2 tsp. all spice
- 1.5 tsp. salt
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 2 tsp. lime juice
- 2 tbsp. olive oil

Which one is your favourite?
Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Veggie Bowls

I don't know where this recipe came from (chances are Tara found it on Pintrest somewhere), but is a really healthy, really filling and really yummy dinner or lunch option, especially if you are trying to eat a little less meat.

Mack isn't a huge fan of a lot of veggies, so of the 2 options I list below, we actually made a combo version for him with the veggies he does like.

These recipes stand alone as a delicious meal, but you could also use the veggies as part of a salad, or you could add some chicken or something also if you wanted to.

I actually just realised when I started typing this that I have absolutely no idea how much of everything we used on the day!  What is listed below is the recipe we worked from, which I have doubled.  But I think we used way more because we have 16 portions, not 8... but then does this mean 8 of each or 8 in total?  Who knows.  Anyway.

I find if I take recipes from the internet for meal prepping, I usually double them or even triple sometimes to get more portions.  You can do that with this one here, but definitely don't do it with all of my other ones (because if you do, you'll be looking at like 30 or 40 portions... which we did once with lasagne... we don't make lasagne anymore hahaha).

Veggie Bowls    |    Portions: we made 16, but I think this makes 8 :)

VB1: Chickpea & Veggie Bowl
- 1 very large sweet potato, cut into large chunks
- 400g Brussel sprouts, halved
- 2 capsicums, any colour you like, chopped (these are peppers in the UK)
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- Olive oil, salt & pepper
- Paprika to taste

VB2: Roasted Veggie Bowl
- 4 carrots, sliced
- 1 large broccoli
- 2 capsicums, any colour you like, chopped
- Half a red cabbage, sliced (the size of red cabbage varies hugely, so make a judgement call here)
- 400g sugar snap peas, ends cut off
- Olive oil, salt & pepper
- Garlic powder & onion power to taste

Method
Step 1: prep all of the veggies for both recipes
Step 2: spread them out onto a baking sheet - make sure they are quite spread out.  We needed abuot 2 - 3 trays for each for ours
Step 3: roast each tray for around 15 minutes; we found the first recipe took around 30 minutes, with the second recipe only takes 10 - 15 minutes.  Keep an eye on them!
Step 4: allow to cool and then portion

To serve, cook some rice or quinoa to go with them - we didn't prep this in advance, only when we were ready to eat them.

Mack's veggie bowl has carrots, cabbage, Brussel spouts, onions and chickpeas in his, with paprika, olive oil and some chilli flakes, which sounds equally delicious to me :)

The original recipe comes with some sauces to go with the veggies.  Neither of them are something Mack and I would really enjoy, so I just served mine with a little soy sauce on its own, but Tara likes them.  We didn't make them on the meal prep day -  you would make them to serve.

To go with Veggie Bowl 1:
- 75g plain Greek yoghurt
- 2 tbsp. lime juice
0 1 tbsp. fresh coriander, chopped

And to go with Veggie Bowl 2:
- 60ml soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp. fresh ginger
- 1 tsp. garlic, minced

And that's it - super healthy and super yummy!

Join me next Wednesday for all of our chicken marinades :)
Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Pork Bolognese

That's right - a double blog for this week!

Beef bolognese is my favourite - I just think it's so delicious.  And when you have a fussy eater in the house, it becomes such a staple.

The below version of spag bol is an adaptation of a quick meal recipe that came from Hello Fresh.  I think I am going to talk about meal delivery services separately another time, but I have tried Hello Fresh once, and this was one of the recipes that was in there.

The original recipe was a little... bland?  Under developed maybe?  Perhaps I am just super spoilt from having always enjoyed a slow cooked rich bolognese sauce!  Who knows.

This is my version of a Pork Bolognese :)

Pork Bolognese     |     Portions: 16

Ingredients
- 1kg pork mince
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red onion, diced
- 3 zucchinis, sliced
- 2 x 600ml jars passata (usually can be found with the tinned tomatoes, and is basically a puree)
- 400g baby spinach
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
- Chilli flakes (to taste)
- Olive oil, salt & pepper

Method
Step 1: heat oil in the pan and brown the mince
Step 2: add garlic, onion and zucchini and cook for a few minutes (the original recipe also added fennel seeds, but I don't think they really did all that much - maybe if you crushed and pan roasted them first?)
Step 3: add the passata, balsamic vinegar and sugar, and then season with chilli, salt & pepper
Step 4: cook on the lowest heat possible, until most of the liquid has dissolved (we probably left this one on for around 4 - 5 hours)
Step 5: once you remove heat, stir through the baby spinach, and then leave to cool

We had this one simmering away next to the spaghetti bolognese, stirring occasionally, during our meal prep day.

To serve, I cooked up some spaghetti, and topped with parmesan cheese :)

Of course, all of my recipes can also be eaten straight away!  This one is perfect for that if you have a dinner party for 16 people haha.  You can also scale it down, but this is what I do when I am prepping for the next 3 months.

Join me next time for a delicious veggie bowl recipe Tara introduced me to.
Hx

Meal Prep: Extreme Edition - Spaghetti Bolognese

As a classic family favourite, there a thousands of recipes out there for spag bol!  This recipe is just  another one to add to that list - I haven't ever used a recipe for this, I just wing it every time, so I have some variations.

There is nothing I can say about this recipe that hasn't said before.  Spag bol is a favourite, and always will be.  For my version, I will say this - cook it for ages.  Like 8 - 10 hours ages.  Just try it, patiently waiting and stirring - you'll thank me later!

A friend in the UK recently asked me for meal prepping tips, and I sent her my blog so far and all of my recipes.  To this, she said 'but I don't have a slow cooker - what do I do then?'.  I think this is something I will cover in a separate post - the what to do when you don't have a slow cooker, and how to still make my yummy slow cooker recipes without one.

This is the first recipe in the series that doesn't involve a slow cooker :).

Hannah's Spaghetti Bolognese     |     Portions: 24

Ingredients
(the must haves)
- 2kg beef mince
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 brown onion, diced
- 4 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 litre beef stock
- 4 tins diced/whole tomatoes (it is possible I might have used 5 or 6 - it's up to you!)
- olive oil, salt, pepper

(the optionals)
Red wine (just a splash)
Carrots
Celery
Mushrooms

Method:
Step 1: Heat oil in a large stock pot (mine is 9 litres), and brown the mince
Step 2: Add the garlic and onion, and cook, whilst stirring, for a couple of minutes
(optional) Step 3: Deglaze the pan withe red wine, and cook until the wine has completely reduced
Step 4: Add the tomato paste, stock and tinned tomatoes and stir
(optional) Step 5: Add in all desired vegetables
Step 6: Cook on the lowest heat possible for as long as possible, stirring occasionally

On the last cooking day, we cooked this for about 8 hours, stirring every hour or so - it is done when the liquid has pretty much all reduced and you are left with a super thick, rich sauce.

I prefer to make mine with all of the optionals - red wine makes it even richer, and the veggies are a nice addition to a good meal.  Last time, we made it with only the must haves, as Tara wanted to have this recipe a bit more flexible than just as a spag bol.

I enjoy this recipe (either just with the must haves, or with the optionals as well) with pasta, and then topped with parmesan.  Tara also enjoys the must haves as a topping to a baked potato.

My boy enjoys it any which way, as long as he can add some sriracha sauce for spice! :)

I hope you enjoy my version of a classic dish.

Join me next week for another delicious meal!
Hx