Fish Pie

Following a weekend of fishing we had the not so unpleasant conundrum of finding different ways of cooking up all of our spoils without resorting to the freezer . . . and after a meal or two of fish with a side of chips or salad it is always nice to try something different. 

Fish pie seems to be one of those dishes everyone's Mum used to cook up for them, but noone wants to cook for themselves! Why not? It is real easy, and a great way to cram in the veges too! Super healthy comfort food? Yes please.

Ingredients:
Fish! (I had about two cups of fresh snapper)
And then basically as many different veges as you have on hand
I used:
1 carrot, grated
1 zuchinni, grated
3 tomatoes
1 cup spinach
4 spring onions
And of course, potatoes!

 

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees and put potatoes on the boil for mashing. While you are waiting chop up / grate all of the veges before mixing in with the fish in your chosen baking dish. Season and squeeze over a little lemon juice.

Mash your potatoes (I always use a dash of milk) and spread over the veges, sprinkle with cheese. Bake for about 40 minutes. 

Enjoy. Good idea to wait for it to cool down so you don't burn your mouth off like my Husband! 

 

Smoothie Club

Pretty exciting . . . Kimmithgone has announced a date for the next Smoothie Club, Monday  March 10, 2014 @ The Local, 324 Maunganui Road, The Mount. Special workshop for making nut milks for smoothie bases. Details available here 

Exciting!

Little things . . .

Happy 2014! Wow. 
So having taken a pretty good break from blogging I am back. It has been a little over a year so a wee while . . . 

While I was stopped blogging I noticed a big change in my habits / way of looking at things. The whole point of this blog was to give me an outlet for sharing the little things in life worth pausing and taking note of (without inundating my family and friends via facebook!). So I am excited about being back up and running. 

It has already been a big year and it is only just beginning!! 

I have lots of ideas for Little Things posts including my current health kick and the little things I have been experimenting with to try to make a big difference to my health and well-being. These raw protein balls are the shiz. Sweet enough for a treat, healthy enough for a pre or post workout snack. And easy peasy!

Ingredients:

1 cup of dates 

2 scoops protein powder (I used vanilla but chocolate would work too)

Half cup of almonds

2 T raw cacao powder 

1 t mesquite powder

1 T coconut + about half a cup for coating

The only prep required is to soak the dates for approx fifteen minutes in warm water to soften them, before chucking everything in the food processor for a minute or so. The end product is pretty sticky! Roll about a tablespoon of the mixture into a ball before rolling in coconut to coat. Refrigerate for an hour ( I couldn't wait and did nom on one straight away). 

These are so easy, and delicious! They keep for about a week in the fridge, these will not last that long anyway! You can mix up the ingredients so easily, can't wait to try a cranberry version of these. 

Amazeballs.

Whittaker's White Raspberry Chocolate

I love chocolate! 

And I do (kind of) recognise that there is nothing particularly special in this statement . . . after all, does not everybody love chocolate? 

However, I maintain that my relationship with chocolate is a special one. Chocolate has been by my side as long as I can remember. It has been with me through the good times and the bad. Chocolate has the ability to accentuate a fantastic day or alternately brighten a bad one.

And so over the years chocolate has been both my very best friend and (at times) my worst enemy - as I do find it hard to stop . . . struggling to maintain my self control at times!

Lucky for me my chocolate tastes have matured over time and I have narrowly avoided becoming the size of a house by learning that the best way to enjoy chocolate is in small doses . . . savoured . . . everything in moderation and all that.

Oops! That all went out the window the day I set eyes on the newest addition to the Whittaker's chocolate range, White Raspberry chocolate:

Because it is absolutely delicious . . . rich, decadent, creamy deliciousness! And all for a good cause - the New Zealand Breast Cancer Society is receiving a 20 cent donation for every block sold. 

And no, I was not out of control, I did share . . . and it was savoured, and savoured, and savoured some more. Till all that was left . . . 

. . . was the evidence!

If you haven't already tried it, I would strongly suggest that you do so. In fact, I might go so far as to insist. I can assure you, you will be left with the satisfaction of having enjoyed the taste of something truly divine. 

Whittaker's White Raspberry chocolate is available nationwide in 250g blocks, at the same price as the rest of the Whittaker's 250g range. And as you too will be supporting charity with every block you buy, why not enjoy generously, throwing moderation out the window. You know you want to!

BBQ! + blue cheese and mushroom sauce

Yesssss! Finally it is BBQ season, such a treat!

I am loving daylight savings, more time in the evenings for getting out and about, in particular chilling out while dining alfresco style on the deck. After a long winter of inactivity the BBQ has finally made its seasonal debut . . .

This recipe is for steak served with blue cheese and mushroom sauce and is pretty simple to put together considering how spectacular it tastes.

Ingredients:  (enough for four servings)

100 grams Blue cheese

100 ml Cooking cream

Small onion, chopped

Half a dozen chopped button mushrooms 

This sauce doesn't take too long to make - approximately five minutes - which is perfect considering that's about how much time it took for my Husband to perfectly cook scotch fillet steaks on the BBQ!

In a food processor blitz the blue cheese and cooking cream until smooth:

Meanwhile, in a pan brown the onion and mushrooms:

Add the blue cheese mix to the pan, stir through and heat slightly 

(takes about ten seconds!)

Serve.

See? Simple! But absolutely delicious.

 

This sauce is so versatile - you can easily change up the amount of cheese / mushrooms / cream depending on the amount of sauce you want and what you are doing with it - you don't need a lot for this dish, but you may want more if you were to use it as a pasta sauce.

In the spirit of a good old BBQ this was served with a couple of salad sides - coleslaw and a bean salad. YUM!

Lazy Sunday at the Mount

Had a lovely day wandering about the Mount today - with both the Little Big Markets and the busking festival going on it was a pretty busy day in Mt Maunganui!

Very pleased with my purchases form the Little Big Markets - including a few tasty cupcakes for afternoon tea:

Passionfruit:

And lemon curd, yum! :

Before a potter down the Mainstreet to check out the busking festival and a quick bite and cider in the sun at Astrolabe. I couldn't resist a plate of the blue cheese wontons from the small plates menu, served with a berry sauce - this was my favorite from a platter I dined on last time I visited!

Awesome way to spend the afternoon . . . feels like it is just about time to get ready to herald in the start of summer!  

Providores

Urban Food Store

19a Pacific Avenue 

Mount Maunganui

This is my new favourite brunch spot in the Bay. All of the food is absolutely delicious, including an awesome all day breakfast menu with a focus on free range and organic ingredients. Oh, and dare I mention the amazing array of baked goods and sweet treats on offer?

To celebrate the first day of spring we made an effort to get out and about in the sunshine, with a bite to eat prior to circumnavigation of the Mount.

I enjoyed a steak and merlot pie while my Husband chowed on a venison and blue cheese pie. And yes, both were just as delicious as they sound!! If you fancy yourself any kind of pie connoisseur and haven't had a chance to sample the gourmet pies on offer at Providores then you really must, post haste. 

Well worth the trip out to the Mount, our visits have become a quick weekend ritual as the food never disappoints!