Mediterranean Tuna and Rice Bake

I'm tired. Easy meals are super high on my priority list right now, but they can't just be easy, they have to be easy, nutritious, tasty and economical too! I don't ask for much hey....

This recipe here is all of the above. The other thing I love about this dish is that it is comforting and delicious straight out of the oven, but equally (if not more) tasty when served cold the next day. That versatility, plus the fact it is beyond easy to put together, make this a must cook summer meal. 

You will need: 

1.5 cups cooked long-grain white rice

2 x 185g tins of tuna (I use John West Oven Dried Tomato and Basil, but I think it would also be nice with a Lemon Pepper flavoured tuna as well)
3/4 cup grated cheddar (plus extra to top)
100g semi-dried tomatoes, coarsely chopped
100g fetta, crumbled
1 large zucchini, grated
2 tbspn fresh basil, finely chopped
3 eggs, lightly whisked
Salt and Pepper to season

Pre-heat oven to 180C

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.

Spoon into a greased and lined loaf tin and top with extra grated cheese.

Bake for around 40-50 mins - it will be puffed and golden when done and if you stick a knife in the middle, it should be reasonable firm and not 'eggy.' Remove from the oven and allow to sit in the pan for 5-10 mins - it will firm up a little more as it cools.

Remove from the pan, slice and serve with salad (or cool completely and wrap up for lunchboxes!)

Enjoy!

Mrs B xx

Lemon Chicken - the lighter way!

My god....can I just start off by saying thank crikey it's Friday! This morning started off fairly slow at work....slow to the point where I was concerned the day was going to drag....however the universe heard my call (possibly a little too clearly) and things got very hectic very quick! My brain hurts, I'm tired, I'm hungry, I would like something alcoholic, possibly combined with ice cream and hot chips whilst getting a nice relaxing massage. But let's be honest...that's not going to happen...and it would also most likely be nothing like it is in my imagination...so instead I made this lemon chicken, now I'm sitting down in my pjs, with my feet up, drinking a cold midori and lemonade sharing the recipe with you, and there is ice cream in the freezer and macaroons in the cupboard so it's not all bad.

OH asked me to make chinese lemon chicken earlier in the week and I thought it sounded like a great idea, but all the recipes I could find involved deep frying the chicken and that just didn't work for me. So we made some slight adjustments and this is what we ended up with.......


Lemon Chicken
500g diced chicken breast
2 tbspns plain flour
salt and pepper
1 tbspn cornflour
1 tbspn cold water
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tbspn honey
Fried or Steamed Rice to serve

Combine the chicken, plain flour, salt and pepper in a freezer bag. Give it a good shake to coat the chicken.

In a greased fry pan over medium high heat, cook the chicken until a light golden colour.

Whilst the chicken is cooking, combine the cornflour and cold water in a jug and stir to form a paste. Add the lemon juice, stock and honey. Heat the mixture in the microwave for 40 seconds and stir to combine. You may want to season with salt and pepper. Let the mixture sit and cool whilst the chicken is cooking.

Once the chicken has is nearly done, pour the sauce into the pan and stir to coat chicken. Cook for 3-4 mins. Once the chicken is cooked remove the pan from the heat. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. Serve with fried rice, steamed rice or steamed vegies :)

I hope you have all had a great week and have fantastic things planned for you weekends :) I am making orange (the colour, not the fruit or the flavour or even the town!) themed cupcakes for a little boy's birthday tomorrow afternoon and I have been asked to make a Lego cake for another little boy's birthday next week! And did I mention I think I have found a new car?? Definetly some exciting times ahead!! Stay tuned for photos, updates, ramblings and the occasional recipe!!

Em x

Some Weekend Treats :)

So what does one do on a cold long weekend? One bakes of course!!


These lil babies were for OH's lunches, but they would be awesome desserts....some chocolate self saucing pudding topped with some creamy strawberry rice...the combination is decadent but so very good!!

Then we got invited round to OH's step mother's for dinner and because I believe it is rude to show up empty handed we made these lil strawberry swirl cheesecakes :)


You will need:
500g cream cheese
2/3 cup caster sugar
3 eggs
1 tspn vanilla essence
strawberry topping
2/3 cup sour cream
100g white chocolate melted
1 pkt butternut snap biscuits

Pre-heat your oven to 135C and line 2 x 12 cup muffin trays with muffin / cupcake cases. Place a butternut snap biscuit in the bottom of each case.

In the bowl of an electric mixer combine cream cheese and caster sugar. Gradually add eggs and vanilla.

Then add around 1/4 cup of strawberry topping and the sour cream. Beat until well combined. Pour in the melted white chocolate and continue beating.

Pour mixture into cases, you will only need to fill them about 3/4 as they will rise. Once this is done, squirt a small amount of strawberry topping onto each cheesecake. With a skewer gently swirl it through the mixture.

Bake for 20-25 mins and then refrigerate for 4 hours.

These are so delicious, OH refused to let me take them all to the dinner because he wanted to keep some for himself!!

And last but not least, some savoury goodness! We were in Melbourne last week and when we got home we needed a quick and easy dinner...like these Sauteed Mushrooms on Toast


For enough to serve two people you will need:
250g mushrooms sliced
1 tspn smoked paprika
1 tspn smoked bbq seasoning
250g cherry tomatoes halved
200g cottage cheese
*We had this with 1/2 a loaf of Tigger bread but you could use any thick crusty bread

Combine the cottage cheese with the smoked bbq seasoning and place in the fridge.

In a frying pan over medium heat, cook the mushrooms and paprika with a tspn of butter for 6-8 mins or until golden. Add the cherry tomatoes and cook for a further 6-8 mins until the tomatoes have broken down. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with cottage cheese mix and crusty bread :)

This was such a yummy dinner, a great combination and so easy!!

Hope you are all having a fantastic weekend :)

Em x

Women's Weekly Recipe Card File Challenge!

A few weeks ago my Mum was clearing out her recipe books and offered me her Women's Weekly Card File. I can't tell you how happy I was, I remember playing with this when I was little, pulling out all the cards, looking at the pictures and putting them all back in the wrong order! My Mum has had this card file since 1973 and she collected all the cards in it during some promotion that Women's Weekly held but only ever made the Pumpkin Scone recipe from it (and I have to say they are damn good pumpkin scones) so I think she was happy to pass it onto someone who was a) very excited about it and b) would put it to good use. So when Mum and Dad came for tea on Tuesday night I had to cook something from the card file!


Italian Rice Slice

Base - 30g butter
1 onion diced
1 cup brown rice
1 egg lightly beaten
3 cups water

Combine the rice and water and cook in the microwave or on the stove for 30-40 mins (or until soft)

Melt the butter in a frypan over medium heat and cook onion until soft and golden.

Once rice is cooked, stir through onion and egg.

Press into the base of 4 individual ramekins or one big baking dish.

Filling - 60g butter
1 red and 1 green capsicum diced
200g sliced button mushrooms
1 onion diced
3 tomatoes finely chopped
1 tspn crushed wet basil

In the fry pan you just used for the base, melt butter and add onion.

Cook until golden and soft. Add remaining vegetables and basil. Cook for around 10 mins or until vegetables are tender.

Arrange vegetables over your rice base.

Topping - 40g butter
1/4 cup plain flour
1 cup milk
1 egg lightly beaten
60g light shredded pizza cheese
.5 tspn crushed wet basil

Melt butter in a saucepan. Remove pan from heat and add flour. Stir until smooth. Return to heat, stirring constantly for 2 mins.

Remove from heat and gradually add milk. Stir until smooth. Return to heat, stirring until mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat and add beaten egg, cheese and basil. Stir until cheese melts (this will require some muscle power!).

Pour mixture over vegetables and bake in oven at 160C for around 40 mins or until topping is golden and set.


Ohhhhhhhhhhh my god, how awesome was this! I know it seems a bit fiddly with having to prepare 3 different layers but honestly, try it, you won't regret it! The cheese sauce was devine, the vegetables had so much flavour and the brown rice base just pulled it altogether beautifully. Definetly a keeper!

There are so many fantastic recipes in there, Mum and Dad have set me a challenge to try and cook them all so I'm going to aim for at least one dish a week and see how we go!

Em x

Beefy Spanish Rice

This is my favourite favourite favourite (did I mention it's my favourite?) rice recipe, it is packed with flavour and absolutely delicious and best of all, it's so quick and easy to prepare! The portugese seasoning gives it some spice with a hint of lemon and the combination of juicy tomatoes, crisp capsicums and red onion is just spot on! We get 3 serves out of this recipe, although the third serve usually disappears before the end of the night!


All you need is

500g beef mince
1 red and 1 green capsicum diced
1 red onion diced
3 tomatoes diced
2.5 cups of cooked rice
2-3 tspns portugese seasoning

In a fry pan over medium heat combine the mince, capsicum and onion and cook until mince is browned.

Add portugese seasoning to taste and cook for 2-3 mins or until fragrant.

Add tomatoes and rice and stir to combine. Let it cook for around 3-4 mins to heat the rice and tomatoes through and voila! How easy is that! Perfect for a mid week meal when you don't have time to cook!

Happy Wednesday!!

Em x