Hand made drawstring bag for storage of various items...

I made this drawstring bag out of a hideous old skirt and scraps of red fabric from a pillowcase I made ages ago. I'm trying to use up lots of my scraps :) Mainly because I don't have enough room to store it all! This bag could be used to store said scraps of fabric, knitting needles (I'm sure I've got hundreds of them laying somewhere...), as a pyjama bag...the list goes on. If I'd made it slightly bigger it could be a handy book bag for when I borrow out millions of textbooks from my school library...well, there's still more of that hideous skirt to use so maybe I just will.

I haven't been posting much new food lately because it hasn't been made...I've just been making old staple recipes over again. We've used up our money this week! Lots of lentil stews and the like. Easy stuff that doesn't require me to buy anything!

Next week Nadine is working lots of mornings so she shall be cooking often! I'm looking forward to whatever interesting things she finds/comes up with.

Recycled newspaper seedling pots!

I found this great idea a little while ago.

We get hideous amounts of junk mail (granted, most of it is shiny horrible catalogues which you shouldn't use) but there's always a 'newspaper' or news-like catalouge, which are just fine.

You can make little seedling pots out of sheets of newspapers, and then just plant the whole thing right in the ground! It biodegrades quickly and the plants grows up happily. The same thing can be done with toilet rolls which are plentiful. Everyone uses toilet paper.

With the toilet roll pots, I bent over the edges at the bottom to make it a smaller hole, and put in some kitty litter (we put used stuff under the stairs/in garden. It's compostable) for drianage at the bottom before putting in potting mix. Plant you seedling and away you go!

In there is also an empty (washed) container of nuttelex margarine. We may as well use them too...I pounched about 5 holes in the bottom with scissors for drainage. Drainage is very important.

And to think I was thinking about buying up some plastic seedling tubes! Shocker. Ha.

Anyway, the above picture are my cpasicum seedlings that I've pricked out so far. The toilet rolls are in the tupperware container to help them stay upright. I intend on filling up the window box tray with the newspaper pots (also to help them stand up).

The only disadvantage that matters is that you can't just leave it out in the rain...they'd disintegrate way too quickly. So I've just put them under the eaves where the rain doesn't fall, and then I can control the water that goes on them :)

I'm surprised I got such a good success rate with my capsicum seeds, especially considering it was just a regular conventional supermarket capsicum. Hopefully some of them continue on their merry way.

Spaghetti Puttanesca

Spaghetti Puttanesca

Serves 2 (or 3)

Ingredients

1 tsp dried thyme

1 large red onion, chopped

2 med tomatoes, chopped

5 cloves garlic, chopped

dollop of chili sauce

1 tbsp capers in vinegar

100g low fat semi dried tomatoes (the kind you get in water, not oil)

About 1/2 cup of pitted kalamata olives

Splash of red wine

Cooked spaghetti for 2

Method:

Lightly fry onion first. Then add everything else and cook while pasta is cooking.

Serve!

Pretty simple :)

Bits and pieces...

Spring has sprung and hs brought with it many many little capsicum seedlings...My radishes are powering on and most of my beans have sprouted! It's all very exciting. I sowed some tomato seeds the other day so I'm waiting for them to pop up too. Yay for fresh home grown produce!

Nadine made dinner the other night - Shepards Pie from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch. It's a pretty awesome recipe...

Nadine bought me a tea-sub when I was sick...It's a freaking sub marine tea infuser!!!!

Tonight's dinner was this Millet Garden Medley. Pretty delicious and very cheap! Made about 6 large/ 8 regular sized servings. That's like, a whole week!

I also sewed a skirt! From an actual pattern! (Never done that before.) It's pretty good. Fits just right :)

Sushi!

Been very uninspired the last few days as I have somehow got a stupid head cold! It's nearly over though, so I'll be able to make actual food again :) Oh, and go to school.

I decided to make some sushi tonight to use up some of the produce in the fridge (it really didn't end up using much at all!!!)

In the rolls are a mix of: organic cucumber from the market, organic carrot from the supermarket, organic avocado, conventional lettuce and spring onion.

The sauce is a mix of: soy sauce, really hot chilli sauce, sesame oil, sesame seeds and the chopped white parts of the spring onions.

It was a bit of effort to go into when sick but I really wanted to make them. Unfortunately the avocado is a bit past it...

Today is father's day here in Australia. I decided to make little chocolate thingees :) I may or may not post the recipe, maybe later :) They are rich and delicious, anyway.

Roasted Beetroot Risotto with Strawberry Cashew Thingee

I made a roasted beetroot risotto for dinner from Vegan Italiano. It was really quite good! You gotta love beetroot though, good thing I do :)

For dessert I made a strawberry cashew thing...I was intending to make a raw cheesecake type thing but I didn't put a base on it so I hesitate to call it that :P

Strawberry Cashew Thingee

Makes 2

Ingredients:

1/2 cup raw unsalted cashew nuts, soaked in warm water all day or overnight

About 5 large strawberries, washed trimmed and chopped up

3 tbsp coconut oil

Method:

Put it all in a blender and whiz whiz whiz until it's as smooth as it will go! This took a little while in my blender. Pour it into mini tart pans (I bought some little tart pans with removeable bottoms as a present for myself a little while ago to make this delicious looking dessert. Which I did and it was divine!) The ones with removeable bottoms are best as it may stick...It shouldn't though. I lined mine with baking paper but I don't think it was really necessary. Put the pans in the coldest part of your fridge and leave to set - mine didn't take long, but I didnt count...I made them a few hours before dinner.

I served it with a strawberry sauce - just chopped up some strawberries and cooked them down until they were mushy. :)

I used very very overripe strawberries - Nadine brought some home cheap from work. They were a little too ripe to eat plain so I decided this would do them justice. I am going to freeze the leftover strawberry sauce to use another time.

Cashew based desserts are so rich and filling, you feel like you are being quite unhhealthy while eating them :) They are quite fattening so eat in moderation...these will be putting me well on my way to a bit of weight gain haha. It's probabaly a good thing I can't afford nuts too often!

Stop wasting those vegetables you forget you had..

What do you do when there's a 1/4 cauliflower starting to go grey on the edges in your fruit drawer?

Make soup!

Cauliflower Soup
Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/4 cauliflower, any yucky bits trimmed off and chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 small onion, sliced
small handful of cashew nuts (optional - I just have some)
2 cups chicken stock (I use Massel Chicken Style)
Spoonful of chilli sauce (to taste(
Pepper (to taste)
About 1 tsp each of ground cumin and turmeric
1/2 red capsicum (or whatever colour you like) diced
Handful of frozen peas

Spring onions for garnish

Method:

Fry onion, garlic, cashews and cauliflower in a tiny bit of oil until it starts to soften. Add capsicum, spices and a little bit of stock (about 1 cup). Cook for a little while.

Transfer into a blender. Blend until desired consistency is reached.

Put it back into the saucepan and slowly heat back up. Put peas in around here. Add more stock until it gets to desired thickness.

Serve with garlic bread and garnish with spring onion!

Yum :) That's what we did for lunch today. It would work with any vegetable-on-the-way-out really. You can always cook up the vegetable and freeze it, to use later on. It should keep for a few months.

Anyway, we may soon be able to add another kitty to our little family!

(This is Bob)

I am now employed! Granted I don't start work until my school holidays, but that little bit of extra money I'll be earning will be enough to help care for another cat. We just want our Bob to have a friend :)

(Though I caught her beating up the neighbour's kitten the other day. A KITTEN! Mean bitch. :P we will have to introduce them slowly I think.)