The Crazy Kitchen: August 2011

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Thursday 25 August 2011

Easy Peasy Beany Chilli

I love my slow cooker but I usually forget about dinner until past lunchtime, by which time it's too late to start cooking in a slow cooker.


But when I'm organised I like to make a veggie chilli (just don't tell the husband that it's got no meat in....).


It's a very easy recipe, I just chop & throw in the pot, I don't bother with the 'frying off' as that just creates more washing up and the whole point of a slow cooker, in my opinion, is the beauty of 'one pot/less washing up' cooking. Since receiving my Cryotex knives it has made the whole chopping process a lot quicker and easier.


Here's my recipe - you can adjust the intensity of the chilli by adding more chilli flakes or chilli powder or leaving it out completely if you like a mild chilli - the cayenne pepper adds enough spice for some.


Ingredients


1 Onion - chopped
2 Small Carrots - chopped
1 Courgette - chopped
1 Small Butternut squash (approx 450g) - chopped
2 Garlic Cloves - chopped or crushed
290g Can Chilli Beans (in the chilli sauce)
400g Can Chickpeas
400g Baked Beans
1/2 Pint boiling water
1 tsp Paprika
1tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/2 tsp Crushed Chilli Flakes




Throw in the slow cooked, give it a mix and turn onto high and leave for around 4 hours before turning down to low for a further 2 hours or until you are ready to eat it.


And as if it didn't have enough veg in already, I added a couple of scoops of Kidz 5 a day to give it a richer flavour.....and to ensure that we all get our 5 a day!


Serve with Baked Potato/Rice and Cheese, or in a bowl with some crusty bread....



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Sunday 7 August 2011

Magic Cookie Bars

I came across this recipe around 10 years ago whilst living in the US and adapted it from the '7 layer magic cookie bar' recipe that it once was.


Everyone seems to love these, and they are very moreish, which is one of the reasons why I don't make them very often, usually just at Christmas. It's such a simple recipe which is made up of layers, as the original name suggests. No mixing is required, just a but of crushing and chopping.


I made them to take to a tweetup today at the lovely Julia's (A Wannabie Foodie) - but sadly we never made it as Jack is unwell. Oh well, all the more for me!


Ingredients


115g butter
125g Digestive biscuits, crushed
397g can of condensed milk
100g milk chocolate chips
100g white chocolate chips
100g salted peanuts, chopped




Pre-heat the over to 160 degrees C.


Lightly grease (or use cooking spray) a 13 x 9 " baking pan or baking dish.


Melt the butter in the pan in the oven.


Pour the crushed biscuits evenly over the melted butter.


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Melted butter and crushed digestive biscuits


Pour the condensed milk evenly over the layer of biscuits.


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Condensed milk

Layer evenly with the remaining ingredients.


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white & milk chocolate chips

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chopped nuts

Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes, until lightly golden.


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Don't worry about those bubbly bits around the edge - they are the best bits - gooey & chewy!


Loosen from the sides of the pan whilst still warm and press down with the back of a fork. Allow to cool in the pan and cut into bars. You may need to firm them up in the fridge before removing from the pan.




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