Lime and Chilli Chicken Burgers

A few weeks ago at work I was given a bag of small limes and told to 'bake my little heart out' with them....now to me that was a great idea, I had never cooked with fresh limes before and immediately buried myself in recipes trying to figure out what to create....I even asked OH what he would like me to make with them as he loves lime flavoured meals....minor detail that the bag of 'limes' turned out to be dwarf lemons...I soldiered on with the sweet dishes I wanted to make but I thought for OH's savoury dish I better get an actual lime as Lemon and Chilli Chicken Burgers just didn't have the same ring to it!

Anyway, these burgers were super easy, full of flavour and relatively healthy! I think they would make fantastic kebabs or meatloaf as well but even just serving the burgers in rolls with fresh salad would be a simple and delicious meal.


Lime and Chilli Chicken Burgers
500g chicken breast
2 tspn crushed ginger
2 tspn crushed garlic
1 tbspn soy sauce
1 tbspn brown sugar
1 tspn crushed chilli
Juice from 2 small limes

Pre-heat oven to about 180C.

Now all I did was put all the ingredients into the food processor and give them a good whizz. Once they were well and truly processed I just shaped them into patties
and placed them on a lined oven tray. Bake for 20-25mins or until golden.

Serve with salad and fresh rolls or steamed vegies.

A quick and easy mid-week meal that will have people believing you spent hours preparing it and in total dis-belief when they find out it took all of 5 minutes!

Happy Wednesday!

Em x

RSPCA Cupcake Day 2011

Today was a pretty special day, not only was it the 2011 RSPCA Cupcake Day which meant a big morning tea at work to raise money....but it was also the day that the craft group at work were decorating cupcakes for their craft activity and donating the proceeds to the RSPCA. You know, raising the money for the RSPCA gives me that wamr fuzzy feeling but watching the craft group decorating their cupcakes this morning just took that to a whole new level....see for yourself...

And everyone was so proud of their creations....



And just goes to show....you're never too old to lick the spoon!!


I still haven't stopped smiling, definitely one of the best things I've been involved in....put smiles on people's faces and raised money for a good cause :)

Happy Cupcake Day!!

Em x

What a week.....

Well this week has been an interesting one....

There have been big things going on at work and I have been baking for at least 2-3 hours a night to clear my head at the end of some very long days....

But let's not dwell on that....let me show you what has been good this week....

OH brought me some gorgeous flowers :)


Mum and Dad cooked us this very tasty baked brie in a white wine sauce and served with fresh crusty bread :)


And my book arrived!!! For my one year blogging anniversary I decided to buy myself a book....and not just any old book, but my book! I used www.blog2print.com to turn my blog into a hardcover book and it finally arrived yesterday morning and as soon as the post lady was out of ear shot there was lots of singing and dancing and squealing! It's so much cooler then I could have imagined and a great record of not only the last 12 months of my life but all my recipes etc....did I mention it's really really cool? I just like the idea that even though I have the only copy, it's a printed version of my blog, my recipes and my life that I can sit on the book shelf and pass onto my kids one day :) It's definitely something I'm going to do every year as a little treat for myself :)


It's now Sunday afternoon and I am exhausted. On Friday night I went out to dinner with some ladies from work to a restaurant called Me-Wah that does fantastic chinese food....I was so impressed I'm taking OH and his Mother back tonight!

Then yesterday OH and I went for a ride on the bikes, it's been a few weeks since I have taken my bike out so I was abit concerned I would have forgotten everything but we decided it was about time I hit the road for real so I rode all by myself up and around the roads in our area with cars and everything! It was the first time I had ridden on a proper road and it was very exciting and more dancing, squealing and general excitement ensued when we got home! Then we went to visit OH's grandfather, had an awesome ham salad roll for lunch and went to watch some of OH's friends play footy. It was bloody cold but I was rugged up to the eye balls and for the first time in a long time, I even had a can of beam....I mean we were at the footy so it was only fair! Then OH and I went and got some pizza (I was really lashing out today huh!) and went home to curl up and watch a movie.

This morning we had a leisurely sleep in and brekkie in bed and that was pretty much where the relaxating ended! Tomorrow is the actual RSPCA Cupcake Day so I had to make some food for a fundraiser morning tea at work...sounds easy hey? Well for this I did some mini cupcakes, some lemon tarts, some mini quiches and some home made chocolates....simple....but I also had to make 120 cupcakes for the craft group at work. I work in an organisation that does community care for the elderly and disabled and we also have a day centre where there are music groups and craft groups and all sorts of activities for people to come and enjoy. Tomorrow there is a craft group and because it's Cupcake Day they are going to decorate cupcakes for their activity. So I am providing the cupcakes, the frosting and the decorations and they are donating the proceeds from the group to the RSPCA which is fantastic :) It meant a hell of alot of baking today and right now I feel slightly unwell, exhausted and like I never want to bake ever again, but it's so worth it :)

Anyway, I better be off, have to straighten my hair / get the cupcake batter out of it, before we go out for dinner! I'll post photos of the morning tea and the craft group decorating their cupcakes tomorrow!!

Hope you all had a fantastic weekend :)

Em x

Blueberry Pikelets

I think I mentioned the other day that I was given a heap of recipe books from my Nan? Well over the last week or two I have slowly been going through them and it’s like being drawn into a whole other world. Sometimes I swear I was born in the wrong era. Looking through these books at the old fashioned desserts, the classic recipes, the baking, it just blows my mind and at the same time it makes me sad. I have nothing against people using packet mixes and short cuts in recipes because there never seems to be enough time to do anything these days, but the idea that some of that classic cooking and old fashioned baking will slowly start to disappear does make me sad. I think there is nothing better than a house filled with the smells of freshly baked biscuits and cakes, the look on people’s faces when you present them with an impressive looking dessert and knowing you made it from scratch, the sounds of people happily devouring a bowl of something that you know is filled with fresh flavours and real hearty cooking, knowing that your loved ones lunch boxes are filled with goodies from your own kitchen.....

I know I take short cuts sometimes, but I prefer not to and when I have a little one, I can’t wait to pass it all on to them....

And one of my favourite old fashioned classics is the humble pikelet. This recipe came about because I made some traditional pikelets for OH’s lunches and they looked so good I made some more with blueberries for our dessert that week. If you would prefer the traditional version, just omit the blueberries, simple!


Blueberry Pikelets

2 cups plain flour
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tspn vanilla essence
½ cup caster sugar
200g frozen blueberries

Combine the milk, eggs, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Beat well.
Gradually add the flour and stir until combined.
Stir through the frozen blueberries. Stir until they are just mixed in. If you get too excited your pikelet mixture will turn blue....but then again blue pikelets would be pretty cool...mine had a slight purple tinge and it just adds to that whole blueberry feel ....so stir away!!

Now I cheat and cook mine in the pancake maker lol but you can melt some butter in a fry pan and add heaped teaspoons of your mixture. Once bubbles start to appear on the surface flip them over and cook the other side for a few seconds. They really don’t take long to cook at all.

With pikelets it is almost mandatory that you have some of them fresh out of the pan....some cold with jam and cream....and some piled high with ice cream, maple syrup, whipped cream and some leftover blueberries for dessert!!


The other great thing about pikelets is they will last for ages in the fridge or the freezer so whip up a big batch, let the kids take them in their lunch boxes, enjoy one with a cuppa when you get a quiet moment or whip them out when guests drop over for dessert....although they are that good you may not want to share!

Happy Wednesday!

Em xx

Two of my favourite things.....

Shoes and Baking!

What could be better then combining shoes and baking?

I mean you could bake yourself a pair of shoes...but I'm really not sure how you would go wearing them....

Or you could bake yourself a cake...with a shoe theme....and serve it to all your friends? Doesn't that sound like a much better option?


Lemon Yoghurt Cake
¾ cup of vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 tbspn finely grated lemon rind
2 tbspn lemon juice
1 cup thick natural yoghurt
1.5 cups caster sugar
2 cups self raising flour

Pre-heat oven to 180C
Combine the oil, eggs, lemon rind, lemon juice, yoghurt and sugar in a bowl and stir to combine.
Add the flour and mix with an electric mixer until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a greased and lined tin and bake for 35 mins or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

This cake was beautifully moist and it was dense, yet light enough to just melt in your mouth with that beautiful lemon flavour.

And what better way to complete your cake then with this lemon and blueberry buttercream....believe me it is out of this world!

Lemon and Blueberry Buttercream Frosting
250g softened butter
3-4 cups icing sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup fresh blueberries, pureed with 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1-3 tablespoons very cold milk (add until you reach desired consistency)

Cook the blueberries with the lemon juice in the microwave for 30-40 seconds or until they are nice and mushy.
In the bowl of an electric mixer add the butter, icing sugar, vanilla and blueberries. Mix well.
Add the milk and some more icing sugar if the mixture is not thick enough.
Continue beating and adding icing sugar until the desired consistency is reached.
You also might want to add more lemon juice / blueberries depending on your tastes


The combination of the fluffy frosting bursting with real fruit flavours and the melt in your mouth lemon cake was unreal, it disappeared in minutes at work today and to be honest I lost count of how many slices I had!

So enjoy your weekend, bake a cake, buy some new shoes, do something just because it makes you smile :)

Em x

A non-food related post??

That is practically un-heard of around here!!

But I thought I would give you a break from the recipes and the cooking and baking (although believe me there is still plenty of that going on!) and show you what else I do when I am not in the kitchen.

I love to relax with a good book.

I love to curl up with a hot cup of tea / coffee and watch trashy TV.

I love to pour over recipes trying to decide what to make next.

I love going out for dinner and trying new things and discovering new places.

I love to get out and about with my partner, visit quiet little cafes, go to markets and just generally explore the state I live in.

I love going out for brekkie / brunch with my friends and having some girl time.

I also love to make jewellery, I have done so for years and years. Every piece I make is unique because I will never make two the same and as much as I would love to keep them all, I would need a room just for my earrings so a few years ago I started my own little side business called The Gothic Playground and started selling on Ebay, Etsy and at local car shows and markets. Unfortunately it's not quite enough to let me leave my day job just yet, but I love it all the same. So here is a sneak peak at some of the items I have been making over the last few days....










If you want to see the full range you can like The Gothic Playground on facebook or just contact me through here :)

Happy Wednesday!!

Em x

Lemon Pasta Bake

Continuing with our mozarella theme for the week, last night OH and I attempted something slightly out of the box for us....Lemon Pasta Bake....now this may seem completely normal to most of you....lemons, cheese, pasta, spinach, fresh herbs, what is not to love? But for us, lemon flavouring is usually reserved for cheesecakes and curds and butter...not for savoury meals, but we thought what the hell....you need to live in the fast lane occsionally right?!


Lemon Pasta Bake

250g pasta
1 tspn crushed garlic
500g extra light ricottoa
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
200g mozarella shredded plus extra for serving
80g parmesan cheese, grated, plus more for serving
80g baby spinach leaves
200g sliced button mushrooms
Zest from one lemon
1.5 tbspn lemon juice
Salt and Pepper
2 tablespoons fresh thyme or a combination of herbs

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Preheat oven to 180C.

In a large bowl combine the ricotta, egg, milk, baking soda, mozarella and parmesan. Then stir in the mushrooms, spinach, lemon zest, juice, salt, pepper, garlic and herbs.

Stir in pasta and pour into a casserole dish. Sprinkle the top with remaining mozzarella and parmesan and season with a generous sprinkle of cracked pepper.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is nice and golden.

To start with I was very unsure of the lemon flavour, but the herbs really off-set it beautifully and this is quite a nice dish!

Just goes to show it always pays to try something new!

Em x

Serves 4