Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs

Good afternoon! How are you this wet and windy Wednesday before Christmas?

I have just got back from a fun lunch with one of my best friends, we exchanged gifts and had a good catchup! She is one of those friends who completely knows me and the fabulous presents she gave me (more about those at the weekend) are perfect! I am so excited! 

Now I am home, warm and dry, sat next to the tree with calming music in the background feeling very chilled!

I am at home now and last night I cooked this dish for my parents. I adapted it slightly as we had no lemon, so I substituted a lime, and d'you know what? It actually 100% made the dish! Don't you just love it when that happens! So I am sharing with you my lime version of these yummy baked chicken meatballs.

Taste - ****

Speed - ****

Repeat - Yes

Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs
serves 4
adapted from Good Food magazine January 2013
1 shallot, roughly chopped
1 large spring onion, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
4 chicken breasts, roughly chunked
Zest and juice of one lime
200g basmati rice
300g spring greens, chopped
120ml Teriyaki marinade sauce

1. Add shallot, spring onion and carrot in the food processor and blitz until finely chopped
2. Add the chicken, lime zest and juice and season, blitz until minced
3. Oil your hands and then form the meat into small balls (I made 32), arrange on baking sheets lined with baking parchment.
4. Bake at 180C for 10-15 minutes. They will be cooked through but not browned.
5. Meanwhile, cook rice in boiling water, adding spring greens for last 4-5 minutes until wilted
6. Pour sauce into a pan, and heat gently. Add meatballs to coat with sauce.
7. Drain rice and divide between plates, top with 8 meatballs each.

I hope your preparations are going well...less than 1 week until the big day!

Love Rebecca

Ratatouille Pizza

Have you heard of 'Pure Wow'? It is a lifestyle email service that sends recipes, fashion, culture and so many more things! They have sent me some great recipes and this was one of them. A delicious vegan pizza full of yummy vegetables ... I swear you won't even miss the cheese!

It takes quite a bit of effort but I truly believe that it is worth it! First make the dough and leave it to rise then get started on the vegetables, while they are grilling, make the tomato sauce and salad before putting it all together!

Speed - *
Taste - ******* (many, many stars)
Repeat - YES!

Pizza Dough
adapted from Jamie Oliver
500g wholemeal bread flour
1/2 tsp salt
7g sachet of dried yeast
1/2 tbsp caster sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
325ml lukewarm water

1. In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients
2. Add oil and stir in some of the water, combine
3. Keep adding water until combined and knead for 5-10 minutes into a springy pizza dough.
4. Cover with lightly oiled cling film and put in a warm place for one hour or until the dough has doubled in size


Ratatouille Pizza
adapted from Pure Wow

2 handfuls cherry tomatoes
Olive Oil
1 small aubergine, sliced into 2cm strips
1/2 butternut squash, sliced into 2cm strips
1 courgette, quartered length ways
3 tsp basil leaves
1 small garlic cloves
1/2 tsp thyme leaves
1 tsp mint leaves, finely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 220C. Toss cherry tomatoes with 1 1/2 tsp of olive oil, and roast until cooked through - 15-20 minutes, set aside
2. Turn on grill to high. In a large bowl, combine aubergine, squash and courgette with 1tsp olive oil, 2 tsp basil, garlic and thyme
2. In batches, grill the aubergine, squash and courgette until grill marks appear (5-10 minutes on each side)
3.  When grilled and cooled slightly, chop into bite sized chunks. Combine grilled vegetables with tomatoes and the remaining 2 tsp basil, and the mint
4. Roll out dough to fit a rectangular baking tray (about 25 x 40 cm) and brush both side with olive oil. Line tray with baking parchment, and lay the dough on to baking parchment
5. Put the baking tray under the grill and grill for 3-4 minutes until crisp and lightly charred
6. Flip the dough and spread with tomato sauce. Top with all the reserved vegetables
7. Return to the grill for 5-8 minutes until the vegetables are warmed
8. Top with fennel salad (see below) and serve


Tomato Sauce
adapted from Jamie Oliver
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
Clove of garlic
Small handful of basil leaves

1. Fry garlic in a little oil until starting to brown
2. Add tomatoes and basil
3. Simmer until reduced slightly


Fennel Salad
adapted from Pure Wow
2 large handfuls of rocket
1/2 fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
Juice of 1/2 lemon

1. Toss all the ingredients together in a bowl

Enjoy!

Love Rebecca

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No Oven? No Problem! A Collection of Slowcooker and Microwave Recipes

You might have noticed that I haven't posted any recipes these last couple of weeks. Well we have had our kitchen redone so we had no oven and no hob which has made cooking a challenge and we had to rely on the microwave, slowcooker and BBQ. With the help of pinterest I found some great recipes that I will share and review with you today!

Microwave Squash Risotto

BBC Good Food

We really enjoyed this. It was easy and I was surprised at how the rice cooked just as if we had done it on the hob. The only thing I would change would be to reduce the amount of sage as the flavour was quite overpowering!

Slow Cooker Jambalaya

from American Family

This was probably my favourite recipe we made! Delicious flavour of jambalaya, packed with veg, chorizo and prawns. The rice cooked really well and I would definitely make this one again!

Slow Cooker Sesame Ginger Chicken

from Keeping Up With The Joneses

This was refreshingly flavoursome slowcooker dish and i was impressed that the chicken was not dry but instead moist and yummy! The ginger and spring onions created a delicious dish!

Microwave Sweet Potato

from BBC Good Food

I liked this meal - it is minimal effort and the result is very tasty. Simple and quick after work dinner - the only bit that takes any time is cooking the potatoes!

Slow Cooker Enchiladas

from Taste of Home

This was another one of my favourites! I love the taste of cooked wraps and although you don't get the crisp crunchy bits you get if they are cooked in the oven, these still tasted great! One tip - follow the instructions and don't put a tortilla layer on the bottom - mine stuck majorly! Other than that it was yummy!

Slow Cooker Pasta

from Becoming Betty

Again, another slow cooker meal that I really enjoyed! I was a little skeptical about whether the pasta would cook but it did and the pockets of mozzarella were sooo good!

So there you have it...we managed to survive 2 weeks without a functioning kitchen and although I NEVER want to do that again - we made it through without ordering takeout or eating out once and have gained some great recipes!

I am so happy now that our kitchen is finished - I think I was having baking withdrawal!

What is your favourite slow cooker meal?

Love Rebecca

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