Happy Easter!

I hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend! This week was a sad occassion, we lost a very special lady in our lives but now she is at peace. She will be extremely missed. Over the past few days we have had a lot of family time and it has been so good to have our home full, we have laughed and cried and eaten so much food! Golly there was a lot of food! And now we all try to get back into some sort of normalcy (not sure if that is a word?!) that is once the kids have made the most of all the chocolate the Easter Bunny has left them! Gosh they were spoilt!

Miss A woke up this morning super excited! The Easter Bunny had left a bucket with some tiny eggs and a note beside her bed. She was so excited she had to wake her brother up and start hunting!

Meanwhile, I went on an Easter Hunt of my own, at the Farmers Market! I feel sluggish and blergh after an unsettled week, not eating the nutritious meals that I should be, so with a list of foods given to me by a good friend, I am going to get back on track with a 7 day detox. Check out my basket....

I also stocked up on frozen berries before the Olde Berry Farm closes for the season.

DINNER: KUMARA & SAUSAGE MEATLOAF

400 g sausage meat
400 g beef mince
1/2 onion, peeled and finely diced
1 t crushed garlic
1 egg, beaten
1 T each: dried breadcrumbs, chopped parsley
1 1/2 cups cooked mashed kumara
salt and pepper
1/4 c grated cheese

Preheat oven to 180oC and line loaf pan with baking paper.
In a large bowl, combine the sausage meat, mince, onion, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, parsley and half a cup of mashed kumara.  Mix to combine well and season to taste.

Pack firmly into loaf tin and smooth top. Bake for 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and top meatloaf with remaining kumara. Sprinkle with cheese and cook for a further 15 minutes. Serve with salad and tomato chutney.

* Can be made into mini loaves using smaller tins and cooking for slightly less after kumara is put on top

RECIPE FROM THE FOOD MAGAZINE

DINNER: THAI PORK MINCE ON RICE NOODLES

1 teaspoon oil
1 red onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 T each: finely chopped lemongrass, grated fresh ginger
1 long red chilli, finely chopped
400 g lean pork mince
2 t each: mild curry paste, fish sauce, brown sugar
2 T lime juice
1 lebanese cucumber, deseeded and chopped
1/2 c Asian herbs, eg Thai basil or basil leaves, coriander leaves, mint
4 t sweet chilli sauce

Heat the oil in frying pan. Add the red onion, garlic, lemongrass, ginger and chilli and stirfry over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes, or until the onion is soft.

Increase the heat to med-high, add the pork mince and cook for a further 3-4 minutes or until brown.

Add the curry paste, fish sauce, brown suar and lime juice and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the rice noodles according to the packet instructions. Drain and divide the noodles between 4 serving bowls.

Top the noodles with pork mix, cucumber and herbs.  Drizzle with sweet chilli sauce.

HEALTH FACTS
ENERGY: 200kcal/serve
FAT: 3g/serve

Recipe from THE FOODTOWN MAGAZINE

HELLO!!!!

Well, it has been a while! I haven't even managed to do the photo a day challenge! Not one single day! It has been a busy month but I am at home today with Master K who isn't feeling very well, so as I sit here eating my lunch I will be posting a few recipes I have tried out and loved!

MARCH Photo a Day Challenge