Gingerbread Trifle

I hope you all had a very joyful and tasty Christmas.

Today I'm going to do a recipe review. I got a notion, this happens frequently and even though the question "are you pregnant?" follows, the answer is always no. I just get these notions!. Anyhow back to the notion. I wanted to make Trifle as one of my Christmas desserts. Call it a little nostalgia for something British but I really didn't want the traditional British Trifle of Lady Fingers, Custard, Jelly, Fruit and Cream. So to the internet I went. 

Gingerbread Trifle

I found a recipe for Gingerbread Trifle on Familyfun.go.com, which looked amazing. The link is here:

Family Fun Gingerbread Trifle

All the layers sounded delicious and were home made: gingerbread, custard, raspberries and whipped cream.

I was so impressed with the custard recipe and especially proud of myself after I made custard from scratch for the first time and it was so yummy! I feel an Apple and Blackberry Crumble will have to be made this weekend to go with the custard.

The gingerbread was wonderful and could very well stand alone as a bread, it was the perfect density for a trifle and didn't get soggy. 

My only complaint was the raspberry layer, I think pureeing the raspberries and straining to remove any seeds and adding the right amount of sugar to remove the tart taste would be an improvement. It seemed to bring the whole dessert down.

With the improvements to the raspberry layer this is a delicious, impressive dessert. And you really do need to use a trifle bowl to make it, which mine was purchased last minute from Walmart for $6.47 plus tax and it really doesn't look that cheap either. You can also get some mini trifle dishes and make individual servings, perfect for afternoon teas or to help when you serve the trifle, a little less messy option!

Not a bad ending to my first Trifle, I'm thinking something with strawberries for my next attempt!

Sugar Cookies

 I had some little elves in the kitchen last night. A sugar rush before bed is not the best idea! The youngest proved to be a master in cookie thief!

Sugar cookies are so much fun, you can really have some fun with them.

You can use the following recipe or any sugar cookie recipe and use some themed cutters. It is really important to follow all the steps! The dough needs to rest in the fridge and you can make it a few days before you need the cookies. The step to freeze the cookies is really vital to helping the cookies retain their shape. The best baking tip I've heard in a long time is lining your cookie sheet with parchment paper, it makes clean up so much easier! 

Sugar Cookies

Makes about 18 -24 4-inch cookies

Ingredients:

4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup (2 sticks) / 8 oz unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp pure vanilla extract.

Directions:

1. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.

2. Using an electric mixer, put butter and sugar in a bowl with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy.

3. Mix in eggs and vanilla.

4. Reduce speed to low. Gradually mix in flour mixture.

5. Divide dough in half; flatten each half into a disk and wrap individually in plastic wrap.

6. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour but ideally overnight.

7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

8. Remove one disk from the fridge and allow to sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes.

9. Roll out the dough until 1/4 inch thick.

10. Cut out the cookies, re-rolling the scraps and repeat with the remaining disk.

11. Transfer to a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and place cookies in the freezer for about 15 minutes, until very firm.

12. Remove the baking sheet from freezer and transfer shapes to oven. I have 2 cookie sheets and I switch the cookies on the parchment paper that way I'm not putting a hot cookie sheet in the freezer or a cold one in the oven. Again the parchment paper is genius. 

13. Bake, switching positions of sheets and rotating halfway through, until edges turn golden, 15 - 18 minutes.

14. Let cool on wire racks.

15. Decorate with royal icing, sprinkles or buttercream.

Coconut Ice Squares & Snowballs.

It's the most wonderful time of the year!!!!!

It's no secret I LOVE Christmas, the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ our Saviour. The world becomes more magical and festivities are abounding, with home cooking taking center stage. And yummy goodies are a special treat.

So I have officially begun my Christmas baking, and I'm going to try and post as many of the recipes as possible to help inspire you!!!!

So get us started I'm turning to a real British tradition, Coconut Ice Squares. I'm also including a variation of it, due to the fact I messed up the first batch, Coconut Ice Snowballs. These are really quick and easy treats to make and your kids might really enjoy getting involved. The best part is that if you store them in an airtight container the will keep for up to a month. You don't need to stick to the traditional white and pink colour for the coconut ice squares, you can go festive crazy and use red and green, or whatever colour works for you.

COCONUT ICE SQUARES

Makes about 32 pieces

Ingredients:

1/2 cup / 100g sweetened condensed milk

2 1/2 cups / 250g powdered sugar, sifted

1 1/2 cups / 200g coconut flakes

No taste red food coloring, optional

Directions:

1. Mix together the condensed milk and powdered sugar in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. The mix will get very stiff but make sure its all combined. (Just think all those calories you are burning stirring it will mean you can have a few extra pieces!!!)

2. Add the coconut to the mix and make sure it's well combined. I usually get my hands into the mix at this point, it's a little easier.

3. Split the mix into two and set one half aside. Leave the remaining half in the bowl and add a few drops of the food coloring and knead until combined.

4. Dust a board with powdered sugar, then shape each half into a smooth rectangle shape, placing one on top of the other.

5. Roll the mix until you have a rectangle about 1 - 1 1/4 inches thick. You will want to reshape it with your hands as you roll to ensure it keeps the rectangle shape.

6. Leave uncovered for at least 3 hours or ideally overnight to set.

7. Cut into squares with a sharp night. I usually put each square in a small cupcake wrapper.

COCONUT ICE SNOWBALLS

Makes about 24 snowballs

Ingredients:

3/4 cup / 150g sweetened condensed milk

2 1/2 cups / 250g powdered sugar, sifted, plus 1/4 cup / 25g for coating

1 1/2 cups / 200g coconut flakes, 1/2 cup / 70g for coating

Directions:

1. Mix together the condensed milk and 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. The mix will get very stiff but make sure its all combined. (Just think all those calories you are burning stirring it will mean you can have a few extra pieces!!!)

2. Add the 1 1/2 cups coconut to the mix and make sure it's well combined. I usually get my hands into the mix at this point, it's a little easier.

3. In a small bowl mix the remaining 1/4 cup of powdered sugar and coconut.

4. Take a tablespoonful of the mix and roll it into a ball, roll the ball in the coconut/sugar mix. If the coating isn't sticking use wet hands to roll the balls.

5. Place the balls in a cupcake wrapper or container and allow to sit uncovered for 3 hours or overnight. Store in airtight contaner

Christmas Afternoon Tea

One of the events I look forward to at Christmas time is the Afternoon Tea my friend Laura, her mother and sister host. It feels like a real treat in the middle of a busy time.

Drinking tea is like a national past time in Ireland and Afternoon Tea as an event has its roots in British culture. It really is a lost custom. It's much more than tea, sandwiches and pastries it's an opportunity to take a relaxing break and enjoy some wonderful company. I can certainly say that today's Tea was all that. The teas and foods were exceptional.

Some brief highlights were:

A selection of tea sandwiches: chicken salad, pimento, cucumber and strawberry cream cheese (more about that one later)

Lemon poppy-seed, pecan and lemon pistachio scones

Lime and lemon curd

Gingersnap cookies, shortbread, brownie/peppermint thumb nail cookies

Rum cake

Tea selection included:

Glad Tidings, Blackberry Sage, Harrods Strawberry tea, Apple cider tea, and a few others.

Now as I mentioned Laura makes the most amazing Strawberry Cream cheese tea sandwiches! They are so simple, mix some cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla, spread it on bread, top with sliced strawberries and add another slice of bread. Remove the crusts and cut into tea sandwich size and oh my goodness pure delight! Who knew that three of my favorite things could be combined in such an delicious way!

It was a wonderful afternoon with the fellowship of some very amazing woman. I think we all need to make a little more time for Afternoon Tea. I am adding it to my New Year's resolution list!

Guacamole!!!

I thought I'd post a nice healthy quick snack recipe and nothing fits the criteria like homemade guacamole. This is so simple but so delicious! Trust me there will be no leftovers!!!! And you are probably wondering how that fits with Irish/Cajun cooking, well it's GREEN!!!!

Ingredients:

4 large ripe avocados

1 tablespoon of finely chopped red onion

2 Roma tomato, deseeded and finely chopped

A few drops of fresh squeezed lime juice

Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Spoon out flesh of avocados into a bowl.

2. Add the chopped red onion and chopped roma tomato. You can adjust the amount of both depending on your tastes, my husband isn't big on raw tomatoes so I only put one.

3. Squeeze a few drops of the lime juice into the bowl and add some salt & pepper to your taste preference.

Doesn't it look yummy!

4. Depending on your preference you can leave it chunky, or you can get a hand blender (a handy kitchen to own and very affordable) and blend the mix until you have the consistency you like, we like it creamy!

And voila!

Yummy homemade guacamole and ready as quickly as it takes to chop the ingredient!

Chocolate Cupcakes

I love cupcakes! They are the perfect little cake all to yourself. Plus I love chocolate!!!! So here is the perfect combination of two of my favorite things.

I think the trick to these is that you use melted chocolate not cocoa powder. My son who will not eat any sort of cake ate 3 in one sitting without frosting!

I've included my vanilla buttercream recipe, which is so wonderful, it really reminds me of ice cream. The recipe makes about 36 - 40 cupcakes.

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cups cake flour (this is really important because cake flour is lighter than all-purpose flour. It's easily found in most grocery stores, I use the Swann Cake flour)

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

6 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled to room temperature (it's really important you let if cool before you putting in the mix)

4 extra-large eggs

1 T (tablespoon) plus 1 tsp (teaspoon) pure vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream

1 cup water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Line 36 standard muffin cups with cupcake liners.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Quick tip if you toss it all in the bowl and use a hand whisk you don't need to worry about sieving the flour, you break up the lumps with the whisk.

4. Using your electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

5. Add the chocolate, again let the chocolate cool to room temperature, and beat on medium speed until well combined, about 2 minutes.

6. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition.

7. Add the sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined.

8. Turn the mixer to low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with 1 cup of water and beginning and ending with flour, beating until just combined.

9. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full with batter.

10. Transfer to the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the muffin pan and bake for a further 10 minutes, make sure that a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

11. Allow to cool before frosting.

Vanilla Buttercream

This recipe makes enough for about 30 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

6 - 8 cups confectioners' sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth and creamy about 3 minutes.

2. Turn the mixer to low speed and add 6 cups of sugar, milk and vanilla; mix until light and fluffy.

3. Continue to add the remaining sugar until you reach the desired consistency.

Construction Birthday Party!

My oldest son turns 4 today! I can't believe how quickly time has flown.

Kids birthday parties are so much, a lot of work and with a little creativity can be wonderful. I loved looking back at my baby pictures to my 1st birthday and see the AMAZING pink palace birthday cake my mother made and decorated for me from scratch by herself. She out did herself the year my brother wanted cowboys and Indians and she made this awesome chocolate fort. There seems to some special about the little details that made the birthday all the more special.

So when I found out I was expected my first I went and took 2 Wilton Cake Decorating classes. I was determined to give my children that same magical experience. Trust me I will not have my own Ace of Cakes kinda show anytime soon. I get frustrated with details and perfection. Butter cream and I have a love hate relationship and I guess I didn't play with play dough enough as a child to be good with fondant! But I am blessed with an amazing friend that has an amazing touch with butter cream and can make it look fondant, together we make a great team. I'll post a few of our cakes soon.

Anyhow I have always LOVED cupcakes. The perfect portion, your very own little cake to enjoy. When it comes to kids birthday parties they are perfect, you don't have the hassle of cutting a cake and they are just simply cute! So after much debate and trying to figure out what sort of cake do to, as much as I would have loved to have done a 3D bulldozer cake, we just didn't think that would be structurally sound and I'm kind of a stickler for the cake actually tasting good and the two don't always go well together.

So I made chocolate cupcakes with vanilla frosting. I found the cupcake stand at the party store in the perfect black color and took caution tape to jazz it up a little.

The top cupcake had the 4 candle and then 4 cupcakes with construction cones. The rest of the cupcakes had yellow hard hat picks.

I'll share my cupcake recipe in the next post because it is delicious and my son who refuses to eat cake of any kind actually ate 3 without frosting. The frosting recipe is addictive, it reminds me more of ice cream than butter cream, as my friend's husband will attest to!!!!

As for the menu, the party was between 3 - 5pm so I did snack food. A veggie tray, some fruit (had to do something healthy to counter all the sugar!), chips and dip, Dorritos, Cheezits, tool shaped cookies, Rice Krispie Treats and my sons favorite candy worms.

I also put a pot of chili on the stove because the LSU SEC Championship game was on at the same time so I figured we'd need some post-party/game food.

Decorations wise I had so much fun everything was construction/Caterpillar orientated as per my sons request! I wanted to do something unusual to serve the food so I went to Lowes and Home Depot.

I found quart and gallon size empty paint cans and printed out a cover for them.

I put the tool cookies in my sons tool box.

I used a metal roller paint tray to put the chips and dip.

My friend found some construction themed plates, napkins and cups for $1 each at a party store back in the summer, we knew then we were doing this, so a little forethought and you can find bargains!

But I have to say the best part was the inflatable hammers I found on Oriental Trading Company's website. We adults had a blast with those too. Each child got a cloth Home Depot tool belt and a yellow hard hat (again from Oriental Trading). A big pile of sand in the back yard, some little construction toys and shovels and they kids had a blast. I must thank LSU for the free entertainment for the adults and GEAUX TIGERS, they won!!!!!

For favors I used brown lunch bags and placed a tool bath squirt, tool bubbles, construction stationary set, tool cookie and some fruit snacks.

The whole thing didn't cost too much, no more than renting a party place and it really didn't require too much time to throw it all together.

It was a wonderful event and my son enjoyed it so much. I can't thank my friend Marti enough for her help brain storming and getting it all together.

Baked Ham

I LOVE baked ham, if I had to choose between turkey and ham, ham would win everytime.

So I did promise a secret ingredient that has an Irish touch...

GUINNESS!

OK so you are wondering what on earth is she going to do with the Guinness, well the night before the big meal I place the ham in a big pot and pour a few bottles of Guinness over the ham. Then turn the heat on the stove to medium and let the ham boil in the Guinness turning it over after an hour and cook for a further hour. When it has cooled place it in the fridge.

If you want to save time the next day place it in the roast pan you will use and wrap in foil. When it's time to put the ham in the oven I just pour a healthy helping of honey over and cook it according the type of ham it is.

The Guinness adds an extra flavor and anyone that has tried it love it. It's been a tradition in my family and the smell takes me back to Christmas Eve as a child sneaking into the kitchen to see if my parents were in bed so I could see my presents. So for me aside from the smell of a live Christmas tree nothing screams the holidays like the ham on the stove boiling in Guinness!

Thanksgiving Menu!

Thursday is Thanksgiving, my ninth. I think it's such a wonderful holiday, because it's simply about giving thanks for all our blessings.

Of course it's a big cooking day, this is one of the few occasions throughout the year that we get to really be extravagant. It's days like this that the Martha Stewart comes out in me and if I was unrestrained would probably have the whole decorating, matching tableware, fine details going on.

So what's on the menu at my house?

Roast Turkey

Roast Ham

Homemade gravy

Roast Potatoes

Green Bean Casserole

Sweet Potato Casserole

Cauliflower Au Gratin

Bread Stuffing

Steamed carrots and Brussel sprouts

Bread

Pecan Pie

Mini Butterscotch Pies

Fresh Fruit Salad

OK yes this is probably extreme but it's THANKSGIVING and I want to spoil my men! Now cooking such a big meal is intimidating and timing is a fine art to work out. The first Thanksgiving I cooked was a disaster. The Sweet Potato Casserole recipe I used called for orange juice and well it would have been better called Orange Casserole because orange was all you could taste.

If you join us and I say we're eating at noon, expect to eat at 1pm. This year I'm planning to be finished by 11am so that we can eat at noon because without fail I always seem to be an hour late.

This year I'm going to do as much as possible on Wednesday, like make the casseroles and pop them in the fridge, that's the wonderful part of casseroles. So with that said, I'm going to share 2 of my casserole dishes, Green Bean Casserole and Cauliflower Au Gratin. I hated cauliflower growing up but have come to love it as an adult and this casserole is so rich and delicious. It does call for Gruyere cheese which is a little more expensive but again it's Thanksgiving so a little luxury added to your dishes is wonderful. White Cheddar or regular cheddar can easily be used.

GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE

2 (10.75oz) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup

3/4 cup milk

1 (2.8 oz) can French Fried Onions

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

32 oz green beans, cooked (I boil mine with a healthy sprinkling of Tony's Cajun Seasoning)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

2. In a small saucepan, combine mushroom soup, milk and cheddar cheese. Mix together over low heat until melted.

3. Mix in the cooked green beans and pour into a greased casserole dish and top with French fried onions.

4. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes.

Make Ahead: You can make the dish up without adding french fried onions on top and either refrigerate or freeze, just add to cooking time to ensure fully cooked through.

CAULIFLOWER AU GRATIN

1 (3lb) head cauliflower, cut into large florets

4 T (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, divided

3 T all-purpose flour

2 cups hot milk

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup freshly grated Gruyere, divided

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1/4 cup fresh bread crumbs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Steam the cauliflower florets until tender but still firm, drain.

3. Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons (T) butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes.

4. Pour the hot milk into the butter mixture and stir until it comes to a boil. Boil, whisking constantly, for 1 minute, or until thickened.

5. Off the heat, add 1 tsp of salt, the pepper, 1/2 cup of the Gruyere and the Parmesan.

6. Pour a 1/3 of the sauce on the bottom of a 8 x 11 x 2 baking dish. Place the drained cauliflower on top and then spread the rest of the sauce evenly on top.

7. Combine the bread crumbs and the remaining 1/4 cup of Gruyere and sprinkle on top.

8. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and drizzle over the gratin. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

9. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes, until the top is browned.

MAKE AHEAD: You can construct the casserole up to the end of step 6 and refrigerate. Then complete the remaining steps when you are ready to cook, just add a little extra time to ensure full cooking.

I'll be sharing my Baked Ham recipe tomorrow with it's secret ingredient and Irish touch!

Beef & Pepper Stir Fry

I thought for the first recipe I'd share a quick and easy dish for all the busy mothers. This is Chinese fast food home style! It's one of my favorite go to recipes for busy nights.

I think the best thing to own is a wok or good skillet! Either will work with this.

Go ahead and do ALL your preparations BEFORE you start cooking, once you start it's really quick! It probably takes longer to cook the rice and cut up the ingredients that the actual cooking.

Ingredients:

3 Tbsp cornstarch, divided

6 Tbsp dry sherry, divided

6 Tbsp soy sauce, divided

1 garlic clove, minced

1/8 - 1/4 tsp of ground red pepper (adjust to taste we like things spicy at our house)

1 lb top sirloin, thinly sliced into ¼ inch strips

½ cup water

2 Tbsp good quality refined peanut oil (I use Spectrum, it's a little more expensive but when it comes to taste you need it).

1 green bell pepper, cut into strips

1 sweet red bell pepper, cut into strips

Hot cooked rice

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine 1 Tbsp cornstarch, 2 Tbsp sherry, 2 Tbsp soy sauce, garlic and ground red pepper.

2. Add beef and toss to coat; put in fridge for 10 – 15 minutes or longer.

3. In a small bowl, combine water with remaining cornstarch, sherry and soy sauce; set aside.

4. In a wok or skillet, heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium-high.

5. Add green and red peppers; stir fry for 1 minute or until crisp-tender. Remove peppers to a platter.

6. Add remaining oil and the beef to the pan; stir-fry for 1 – 2 minutes or until beef is no longer pink. Remove to platter.

7. Return peppers to pan.

8. Stir cornstarch mixture and add to pan; bring to the boil, stirring constantly until thickened.

9. Cook 1 minute longer.

10. Serve immediately over hot rice.

MAKE AHEAD TIP: you can actually cut the beef and mix it with the marinate and freeze it, then take it out of the freezer when you are ready to cook and throw it in the wok. I tried cutting and freezing the peppers too but they become soggy and not crisp but it will work, it's all down to taste.

You can cut all the ingredients in the morning ahead of time and stick them in the fridge and just pop them in the wok when it's dinner time!

HEALTHY TIP: Peppers are high in vitamin C and actually I think it's higher than an orange so this is a great dish during cold and flu season to give the family's immune system a boost!

I promise I'll try and start posting pictures of the dishes in future!

Welcome!

Hi I'm Lesley. I am a stay-at-home mother to 2 wonderful boys.

When I got married 8 years ago and took on the 'housewife' role I had to quickly learn the art of delicious home cooking. My local library became my best-friend and I'm pretty sure I've checked out every cookbook at one point or another. I have filled notebooks with pages of recipe ideas as well as numerous word documents. I have a wonderful, patient husband who has been my guinea pig and he has had to endure ALOT!!!!! I think the 'worst' offering put on a plate was a Chicken Ranch Orzo dish from a Betty Crocker cookbook, it was horrible, but the worse part was my in-laws stopped by to visit just as I was serving it, major embarrassment as his mother is a great cook and even though she worked she put a hot cooked meal on the table every night. By the way Betty Crocker recipes have been banned, too many short cuts and if you want it to taste good you are going to have put in a little effort in most cases! There have been other lessons like 'Spice-control' that I will share along the way.

I was born and raised in Northern Ireland, UK and now live in Louisiana, USA. I grew up in the country and have wonderful memories of the coal burning aga stove that we cooked on. Homemade scones and soda farls, stews and roasts. I don't actually remember shopping at a 'grocery store' until my teens, we got our meat from the butcher, fruit and vegetables were home grown or bought from local farmers or the little store in my home town. I'm so thankful that Banbridge, my hometown, still has the same butcher, bakeries (that have the most delicious pastries), green grocer and all the other little shops. It has big chain supermarkets but somehow they have managed to co-exist which now a days seems to be rare!

Louisiana is my adopted home and I love it here. My taste in food has changed because of my introduction to Cajun food! With a bounty of seafood that is beyond delicious and fused cooking techniques that although require patience are well worth the hard work, never mind the SPICES!!!! Chicken and Sausage Gumbo is my new comfort food!! And Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning is a stable in my kitchen, I wonder how I survived the first 25 years of my life without a little dash here and there!

I have developed a calender spreadsheet so I can plan my meals out for the month and make sure that, even though we may eat a dish 2 nights in a row, we only do it once a month. Variety is spice of life (after Tony's!) and it helps keep things interesting. I will be sharing my calender and how I do my planning. I'm a light weight couponer (in other words you won't see me on Extreme Couponing anytime soon but when I find them on the products I use, I use them.) I don't save millions a year nor do I do a $300 grocery shop for $30 but I try to save what I can when I can. Plus monthly planning means (in theory as my husband is convinced I live at Target and Winn Dixie!) that you don't have to make as many trips to the store. I like to use fresh ingredients and that means that at least once a week I'm going to have to make trip. It also removes the need for that 'what should I cook for dinner tonight?' question. Like I said I will go into this at a later date!

Back in 2007 I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) which is a pre-diabetic condition. I did get pregnant soon after and haven't really approached a complete diet overhaul, which I know is only a matter of time before I have to. However I did try to adopt principle number one in the diet plan NO MORE PROCESSED FOOD! Oh how it has taken over our diets! So I started making changes like instead of using the Jambalaya box mix and adding chicken I learnt how to make it from scratch and although it requires a little more work it so well worth the effort. I'll share that one at a later date!!!! I do still have a few 'cheats' like using jarred spaghetti sauce, I haven't braved that one yet, maybe come tomato season next year that and canning can be an experiment!

So with all that said my style is traditional cooking, from fresh ingredients, from scratch with as little processed food as possible, with a little Cajun spice. I'll be sharing many of my experiments, because I am still very much a work in progress and by no means am I an 'expert'. I'm just a busy mother who wants to put healthy home cooked meals on the table every night.

I hope you enjoy the blog!