Tuesday 13 May 2014

Easy ways to support good causes

Supporting Good Causes

A non-food post, but I just wanted to share some easy ways to support good causes financially without costing you a penny!


everyclick

Use everyclick for your ordinary internet searches (it's powered by Yahoo) and each one you make will raise a small amount for your nominated good cause (there are over 200,000 to choose from), whether it is a small local charity to a national organisation. You can track your contribution and it's quite satisfying to see it add up!

(If it's a small organisation, it may be worth checking that they know about everyclick to access the funds raised for them!)

www.everyclick.com


freerice

Freerice supports the United Nations World Food Programme.

Choose your quiz subject (for example vocab, languages, countries, flags, chemistry, famous paintings, landmarks...) and for each question you get right, grains of rice are donated to help end hunger.

You can track your contribution  - you see a bowl fill up for each session, or your all time contribution if you register.

I often play this when half watching tv, and my daughter quite enjoys it too - educational, worthy and a computer game!



lendwithcare

Lendwithcare is an initiative from CARE International UK, an aid and development organisation.

You can support an entrepeneur in the developing world with a mico-loan for their business Choose who you support from their profiles from a range of countries and businesses (for example food production, agriculture...)

Although this one isn't quite  no-cost as you need to make a loan of at least £15, I am including it since you can have it repaid if you don't want to keep loaning it back out to others (through recycling I have made loans totalling about six times the value of the amount I have originally contributed)

www.lendwithcare.org

You might also be interested in Something for Nothing

For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas



Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )

Thursday 24 April 2014

Chilli Beef Stew

A spicy stew that makes a nice change from chilli with mince

Chilli Beef Stew

Serves four

Gently heat a tiny drop of oil and dot of butter/spread in a heavy casserole pan that will go in the oven (if you don't have one, use an ordinary pan and transfer it into a oven dish later or just do on the hob) and lightly brown 1lb of stewing/casserole/shin beef.

Add some crushed cloves of garlic (I usually use about half a bulb) and a couple of onions (I usually chop finely to disappear into the sauce) and soften for a few minutes.

Add (according to how hot you want it to be) a total of three teaspoons of cayenne pepper/paprika (I usually use one-and-a-half teaspoons of each and that is quite spicy), stir through then add a tin of chopped tomatoes, a large pinch of oregano, some black pepper, about a tablespoon of vinegar, about a tablespoon of tomato puree and then add some water (about three-quarters of the empty tin of tomatoes).

(If you like you can add chopped peppers with the onions, or kidney beans when cooking)

Bring it to the boil and let it simmer for about half an hour, before putting it in the oven for a couple of hours, about 130c/GM3.

If you are making it in advance, you can either put it straight in the oven and then just reheat tomorrow, or switch it off and do in oven tomorrow. (Or you can leave the oven off all together and just leave it on a very low heat with the lid on for a couple of hours, stirring every 15-20 mins.)

This is really nice with baked potatoes, crusty bread, garlic bread, pasta or rice.


You might also like

Beef in Beer

Chicken and Bacon Casserole

Loaded Skins


Stuffed Peppers



teaspoon = 5ml
tablespoon = 15ml
1lb is about 450-500g


For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas




Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )

Monday 7 April 2014

Chilli Prawn Curry

Curry quicker than a takeaway 


Chilli Prawn Curry

Serves four. Lovely with rice or naan bread and natural yoghurt

Chop an onion, a bunch of spring onions, crush three or four cloves of garlic and finely chop one or two green chillies (I usually stick my hand in a sandwich bag, cut the stalk off, cut in half lengthways, scrape the seeds out and then use a rocker-chopper (mezzaluna) to chop without getting covered).

Gently soften for about three minutes in a tiny amount of oil in a big pan, stirring (I use a wok for this).


Add 1tsp turmeric, 1tsp cumin, 1tsp ground coriander and 1.5 tsps of curry powder (I usually use Schawartz 'mild') and cook gently, stirring for a minute then add a tin of (chopped) tomatoes and 1/4 pint of water. Bring to the boil then simmer for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is reduced down to thicker than before you added the water (I wouldn't recommend trying to save time by leaving the water out and missing out the simmering, as the spices will taste gritty and the flavour won't be quite right either).


Add about 1lb of prawns (I usually use half and half big and small prawns, frozen defrosted) and a handful of chopped fresh coriander and gently heat through for three or four minutes. (Try not to have the prawns too wet or the sauce will go too sloppy and the prawns will boil tough if you try to reduce it back down. Also bear in mind frozen prawns can be a bit salty, so you probably won't need to add any salt to the sauce)


Serve with some natural yoghurt for people to stir in to taste.


(If you want to use cream, rather than serve with yoghurt, add about 1/4 pint after you have reduced it and before you add the prawns and fresh coriander, simmering for about five minutes first.)





You might also like:

Things to have with poppadoms


Chicken Kebabs


Spicy Prawn Salad



1tsp = 5ml

1/4 pint = 150mls

1lb = about 450g





For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas





Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )

Sunday 6 April 2014

Very Chocolatey Easter Nests

Just in case Easter isn't chocolately enough...


Easter Nests

Melt cooking chocolate and add cornflakes/rice crispies/coco pops in the usual way. Line a plastic mixing bowl with cling film and spoon the chocolate mix in up the sides to make a nest or basket. Once it's set, lift out and peel off cling film (if it sticks in bowl, you can loosen it by quickly plunging the outside of the bowl into warm water). Fill with more chocolate treats - mini eggs are good!


Other things to do with kids


For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas




Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )

Monday 10 March 2014

Spicy Chicken Drumsticks

With a similar heat to tandoori, plain old chicken drumsticks taste amazing!




Spicy Chicken Drumsticks

This marinade will cover about a kilo of chicken drumsticks or thighs (3-4 people)

Mix 2 tsps cumin, 2 tsps paprika, 0.5 - 1 tsp cayenne pepper, 2 tsps turmeric, 1 tsp black pepper and a pinch of salt. Add 3 cloves of well crushed garlic and 4 tbsps of lemon juice and mix into a paste to rub over the chicken pieces.

I cut into each drumstick before I rub the marinade in, one cut in the side that will be down in the roasting tin and two on top to really get the flavour right through the chicken. For thighs I cut either side of the bone underneath and two slits across the top. It's up to you whether you leave the skin on (it will still go crispy if you do). 

Ideally leave it to marinate for 2-3 hours then roast for about 40 mins at 200c/GM 7 (pour off any fat and liquid after about 20 minutes)

(The poured-off liquid and any excess marinade is nice heated up and thickened with a little bit of cornflower as a sauce to go with)

This goes well with Potato Wedges or Mushroom Rice


You might also like Chicken Kebabs or BBQ marinade for ribs


1 tsp = 5ml
1 tbsp = 15ml


For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas




Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )

Sunday 9 March 2014

Cooking with Kids

Fun/easy things to make with kids (will be added to as I find/remember things : )


Cinder Toffee
http://www.mumsnet.com/food/recipe/1645-Cinder-toffee

No Whisk Microwave 5 minute Meringues
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcer2xUwX8Y&noredirect=1

Fudge
http://fudgerecipes.co.uk/condensed-milk-fudge.html
Don't start timing it cooking until it is melted and make sure it bubbles gently for a good ten minutes. If it doesn't set, you can scrape it back into the pan and heat it some more (you can micowave it gently to get it to pour).


Chocolate Mug Cake
(You wouldn't serve it to Mary Berry, but it's not bad for just throwing some stuff into a mug and microwaving...)

Mix 2 tbsp of flour (add half a tsp of baking powder if using plain flour), 2 tbsp of cocoa powder, tbsp of sugar in a large mug. Add 2 tbsp milk, 2 tbsp of oil and an egg white. Mix making sure you get all the dry stuff out of the corners mixed in. Microwave on high for 3 mins. Fun to watch it through the window as it looms up over the top of the mug! (From a Blue Peter recipe that no longer appears on their website, slightly adapted by me for if using plain flour not self-raising)


Separating an egg using a plastic bottle
Crack egg into bowl. Get a small clean plastic bottle. Squeeze it slightly, gently put the top of the bottle on the egg yolk and  then unsqueeze. The yolk should suck intact into the bottle!
http://www.flixxy.com/how-to-separate-eggs-using-a-plastic-bottle.htm


Glow-in-the-dark Jelly
If you dissolve jelly cubes in half the quantity of boiling water, then top up using tonic water (containing quinine), it will glow under a UV light once set : )


Easter Baskets/Nests
Melt cooking chocolate and add cornflakes/rice crispies/coco pops in the usual way. Line a plastic mixing bowl with cling film and spoon the chocolate mix in up the sides to make a nest or basket. Once it's set, lift out and peel off cling film (if it sticks in bowl, you can loosen it by quickly plunging the outside of the bowl into warm water). Fill with more chocolate treats - mini eggs are good!


Winter Scene
(Unless you are incredibly quick, you will need to do this a bit at a time and keep sticking it back in the freezer. Use the lid of a plastic box as a base, so you can use the box upside-down as a lid. How big a funnel is entirely your choice - it's nice to have a small one each, or you can do one big one to share. Trees are less fiddly than snowmen to make!)

Snowmen - Fill a funnel with white ice cream to shape the body. Use a round measuring spoon to shape a white ice cream head. Snap a Matchmaker for arms. Use cake decorating sprinkly stuff for the face and buttons (or you can finely slice a Matchmaker). Cut the corners off an After-Eight into a circle to make the brim of a hat and squish the off-cuts up to make the rest of it. Strawberry laces can be plaited or finger-knitted into a scarf.

Trees - Fill a funnel with mint choc chip to make a tree. Decorate using cake decorating sprinkly stuff, strawberry laces are good as tinsel, white chocolate buttons with sprinkles on can go on top as stars

Reindeer Hand Biscuits
http://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/graham-campbells-reindeer-hand-cookies.html 
(you can do these any time of year, varying the decorations to other animals)

(Other wintry/Christmas things to do with kids here: http://tyne-teas.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/seasonal-things-for-kids.html)


Making Butter in a Jar
If you have some leftover double-cream, put it into a clean jar and shake. About five seconds after you think nothing is happening and that you will just give up (in reality just a minute or two!), it will suddenly go into a big ball of butter in liquid. Pour the liquid off and shake a bit more to get some more liquid out. Either repeat this again, or put the butter in a bowl and prod at it with the back of a spoon to squish more liquid out. You now have unsalted butter.


'Homemade' Oatmeal Soap
http://www.allfreecrafts.com/bath-and-body/soaps/soap/ 


Spaghetti and Hotdogs
http://veryculinary.com/2011/10/27/threaded-spaghetti-hot-dog-bites  
(we put four half strands through each quarter and call them octodogs)

For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas




Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )

Cooking Quirks

A collection of links that have made me smile 
more to be added as I come across them : )

Theseus's recipe:
http://notalwaysfriendly.com/a-recipe-for-disaster/34252

How not to cook spaghetti:
http://metro.co.uk/2012/07/10/two-men-set-flat-on-fire-after-cooking-tin-of-spaghetti-on-top-of-toaster-3372714/

Not so much stealth veg as deceitful:
http://notalwaysrelated.com/not-just-the-cake-thats-lying/30256

70s and 80s foods
http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/lifestyle/nostalgia/you-grow-up-70s-80s-7201567

An interesting way to peel spuds!
http://t.co/xt1yG5hjXp

Quick way to peel apples
http://www.thepoke.co.uk/2014/09/05/how-to-peel-apples/


Tetris Cheese Sarnie
http://t.co/ySNCA22QAj

For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas




Please visit my Intro post for more about my blog and me - I hope you enjoy my recipes : )