Friday, February 24, 2012
FlogYoBlog Friday: The Nomophobia Edition
Hey Flogstars,
I'm jittery. And it's nothing to do with spending a night in a repulsive holiday home with a mouse infestation.
It's because up here, I have no phone coverage. Nothing, nada, zip, zilch, zero (have you noticed that N and Z completely steal all the words meaning nothing? Letter hogs!!!).
I have Nomophobia. It sounds like the fear of yummy things, but it's not... it's the fear of being without your phone. Dun dun DUUUUUN!
Whilst I do actually have my phone with me, I have no signal because my provider don't have any towers up this way. I could use another tower but the 4S doesn't let you turn off 3G - first world problems, right? Hey, after spending a night inhaling mouse shit, I'm allowed to be a bit shirty, gimme a break.
What makes it so much worse is that I have people emailing and tweeting me saying "Did you get my text?". Nooooo I didn't! What did you say? Was it important? Was it funny? Please don't think I'm ignoring you!!! Don't leeeeaaaaveeeeee meeeeeeeee!!!. Or *ahem* you know, something like that.
Do you have Nomophobia? Will a bit of a Flog help???
I'm jittery. And it's nothing to do with spending a night in a repulsive holiday home with a mouse infestation.
It's because up here, I have no phone coverage. Nothing, nada, zip, zilch, zero (have you noticed that N and Z completely steal all the words meaning nothing? Letter hogs!!!).
I have Nomophobia. It sounds like the fear of yummy things, but it's not... it's the fear of being without your phone. Dun dun DUUUUUN!
Whilst I do actually have my phone with me, I have no signal because my provider don't have any towers up this way. I could use another tower but the 4S doesn't let you turn off 3G - first world problems, right? Hey, after spending a night inhaling mouse shit, I'm allowed to be a bit shirty, gimme a break.
What makes it so much worse is that I have people emailing and tweeting me saying "Did you get my text?". Nooooo I didn't! What did you say? Was it important? Was it funny? Please don't think I'm ignoring you!!! Don't leeeeaaaaveeeeee meeeeeeeee!!!. Or *ahem* you know, something like that.
Do you have Nomophobia? Will a bit of a Flog help???
How to FlogYoBlog
- Follow Where's My Glow?
- Bow down at the alter of Mummy Time; Blog-goddess, all round groovy gal and creator of FYBF
- Grab the FYBF button and post it on your sidebar or in the post you're linking up
- Link in your favourite/best post from the week (don't just put your homepage URL)
- Follow at least 1 linkyer/blogger then be nice and spread the comment love
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Super Easy Creamy Chicken Riga-Tricky
See, I was offered the chance to win sponsorship to BlogHer by whipping up some recipes using the new Kellogg's All Bran Fibre Toppers, so I've jumped at the chance. The opportunity to win a trip to New York to attend BlogHer by writing about some recipes I've created using a product that adds fibre plus vitamins and minerals to your diet? I CAN DO THAT! I'm a crunchy mama, this stuff is right up my alley and since I'm loving experimenting with cooking lately, it seems like this competition was made for me. You can check out all the recipes submitted by searching the #AllBran hashtag on twitter.
So back to my recipe - what do you serve for dinner when you want a home cooked meal but are too tired to put in much effort beyond a bit of grabbing things out the pantry and stirring? Chicken Riga-Tricky!
This is one of those great dishes that is so simple because it's based on pantry staples and whatever veggies you happen to have on hand. It's also great to make at the end of the week to get clear out all the veggies that are almost passed their prime in the fridge so that you don't throw it all out and waste it.
Tricky loves this stuff and it's on pretty high rotation at our place! Because it freezes so well, I always make a large batch and divide it up for Map Guy's lunches and last week made up a batch for my friend who has just had a new baby. Plus it only uses one pot and and one pan so it's definitely a winner!
Creamy Chicken Riga-Tricky
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| Can't really see the Fibre Toppers - they are in there though! |
Ingredients (serves 6)
- 500g chicken, diced
- 500g rigatoni
- 1 onion, chopped
- 150g spinach
- 5 mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 zucchini, sliced
- 1 jar of pasta sauce
- 1/2 tub of reduced fat cream cheese
- 1/2 cup of Kellogg's All Bran Fibre Toppers (which contains 33% of your daily fibre requirement!)
- 1 teaspoon of chilli (optional)
- Prepare pasta according to directions and set aside - don't overcook it or it will be Chicken Riga-Flatty
- Cook onion and chicken in a large fry pan until well browned
- Add mushrooms and zucchini, fry gently for two minutes
- Pour the entire jar of pasta sauce and stir until well coated
- Add handfuls of spinach allowing it to wilt - if you put it all in at once it will go every or *ahem* so I've heard
- Stir in the cream cheese allowing it to melt and turn the sauce from a bright red to a creamy orange
- If you're going to add chilli, do it now! I like mine to have a nice kick
- Add in your Fibre Toppers now so they retain some of their crunch, if you do it too early they'll dissolve a bit and won't be visible in your photo (d'oh!) but you'll still get the nutritional value from them so don't panic
- Combine the sauce and the rigatoni, stir through and serve as is or with shaved Parmesan on top
**For a lower fat version you can just leave out the cream cheese and throw in a few olives**
Click here to see a nutritional panel I created for this meal - I should get points for the effort of making one of these panels, right??
This is NOT a sponsored post, but it is a competition entry for Kellogg's to win sponsorship to BlogHer
Click here to see a nutritional panel I created for this meal - I should get points for the effort of making one of these panels, right??
This is NOT a sponsored post, but it is a competition entry for Kellogg's to win sponsorship to BlogHer
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Fabulous Focaccia
I tend to only bake sweet things so figured it was about time I gave something savoury a whirl, and I was so happy with the result that I think this will become a standard brunch around these parts - well, if I ever had people over for brunch that is.
I raided the cupboard and used what I already had on hand and threw it all in to see what would happen - which for a control freak like me is really strange, but seems to be working well so far!
Tomato, Red Onion & Thyme Focaccia
Olive, Fetta & Cumin Focaccia
Focaccia Ingredients (makes 2 focaccia)
- 2 tsp dried yeast
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- 1 3/4 cups warm water
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 3/4 cups bakers flour (or plain flour)
- 1/4 cup gluten flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp dried aniseed (optional)
- 1/2 cup of Kellogg's All Bran Fibre Toppers (1/2 cup contains 25% of your daily iron and folate, and 33% of your daily fibre requirement)
- 1/2 tomato, sliced
- 1/4 red onion, sliced
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme (1 tsp if fresh)
- 4 kalamatta olives, sliced
- 25g fetta (I prefer to crumble it, but only had the harder stuff to slice)
- 1/4 tsp dried cumin
- Combine yeast, sugar and 1/2 cup of warm water and allow it to bubble up before adding the oil and remaining water, set aside
- Sift both flours in to a large mixing bowl, add in aniseed and Fibre Toppers and make sure it's well combined
- Add the yeast mix to the flour mix and stir with a wooden spoon until you get a dough - it will be really sticky
- Cover with a damp teatowel and allow to rest for an hour in a warm place (I always use the back seat of my car!)
- Dough should double in size and will still be extremely sticky so use well floured hands (or a bit of melted copha) to halve the mixture and place on to lined baking trays, shaping as you go, but not too much - keep it rustic
- Brush with a little extra virgin olive oil and place sliced tomato, onion and thyme on one, and fetta, olives and cumin on the other
- Allow to sit for a further 15 minutes (which I *ahem* kinda forgot to do but they still worked out, phew!)
- Bake at 220C for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown
- When cooked, allow to cool for a few minutes on a wire rack to prevent the bottom going soggy and voila!
The Fibre Toppers and aniseed can be seen scattered throughout the dough
I served thin slices of both of these before a pasta dish (come back tomorrow for that one) in place of garlic bread as a healthier option. You could serve it with dip for a brunch, but there is enough flavour packed in to these that you really don't need anything else with them!
So I guess I should have a brunch now, yes? Who's coming?
Click here to see a nutritional panel I created for the base focaccia minus toppings - see that? I can make nutritional panels now!!!
This is NOT a sponsored post, but it is a competition entry for Kellogg's to win
sponsorship to BlogHer - I'll tell you about it tomorrow!
Monday, February 20, 2012
Holiday Home Hell
Map Guy decided he wanted to stay in a beach shack for a week for his birthday. A week away from the world where my main decision was beach or nap? Hrmmm, lemme think. Hells yes!
A bloke at his work rents out his house in Jurien Bay, about two hours north of Perth. A holiday house where you have to bring your own linen and food but cutlery and crockery is provided. I can manage that.
The problems started as soon as we arrived today. We’d asked if we could take our dog and the bloke said sure thing. Now I don’t know about you, but when someone says that yes, the property allows dogs, it does tend to make me think that the property is actually suitable for dogs.
Nup.
We get here to find there is no fucking fence. Are you kidding me? We can bring our dog but you have a giant open yard. Gee, thanks for letting us know.
A quick trip to the hardware store for bright orange plastic fencing and yellow star pickets and now the house looks like a cross between a danger zone and roadworks. All I need is for the bloke next door to lean on the fence with a smoke and a stop go lollipop and you could hardly tell the difference.
So we grab our stuff and head on inside to find, even after a day of cleaning (my inlaws got there the day before) the place is utterly repulsive. Um, I thought this was a holiday house?? Apparently we’re the first people to use it as such – it’s normally a place where they stay when they come up on fishing weekends. A bunch of blokes + fishing + beer = vomitus.
I cannot describe how disgusting this place is… it is covered in mouse poo. On the floor, on the beds, all through the shower, all over the plates, pots, pans and cutlery. Even after a day of being aired out, it stinks like mouse wee – I didn’t even know what mouse wee smelled like until today! The grime on the floor is so thick that you must wear your shoes at all times – you could try to clean it – we did – but there is no point. Years of neglect mean the filth is practically stuck down. I have visions of CSI people coming here and finding all sorts of nasty shit.
I opened the oven door and quickly closed it. I’m pretty sure there is something living in there. There is a lot of fur, so maybe it’s a rogue possum? I’d guess it’s a mid 90s model and I don’t think it’s ever been cleaned. How am I meant to cook this week? The whole point of getting a holiday house rather than a hotel was because it would be a home away from home.
And now, that night has fallen? There are flying bugs and cockroaches coming out of every nook.
I’m not sure what I was expecting. Not the Hilton, but at least something that doesn’t leave your feet black after walking across the room. Something where I don’t feel the need to dip my entire body in bleach after being inside for 10 minutes. Something that, oh, I dunno, isn’t a biological fucking hazard.
I just want to cry. But, seeing as my inlaws are sitting right next to me, and I will no doubt hyperventilate if I break the flood gates, I will keep it together and instead scull my wine. Because we all know that being shit faced is way classier than red nosed, snotty, ugly crying.
At this point I’m not really sure what is going to happen. A beautiful, generous friend, who’s family also has a house up here has offered it to us, free of charge, to save our little holiday - I just have to convince the others, who are quite used to camping and roughing it, that we need to leave. I’m overwhelmed by the generosity of my friend, who even started a #saveglowsholiday hash tag… but tonight? Tonight I have to put my sheets on the crusty mouse poo mattress and cry in to my pillow.
To be continued… unless the mice eat me in the middle of the night.
A bloke at his work rents out his house in Jurien Bay, about two hours north of Perth. A holiday house where you have to bring your own linen and food but cutlery and crockery is provided. I can manage that.
The problems started as soon as we arrived today. We’d asked if we could take our dog and the bloke said sure thing. Now I don’t know about you, but when someone says that yes, the property allows dogs, it does tend to make me think that the property is actually suitable for dogs.
Nup.
We get here to find there is no fucking fence. Are you kidding me? We can bring our dog but you have a giant open yard. Gee, thanks for letting us know.
A quick trip to the hardware store for bright orange plastic fencing and yellow star pickets and now the house looks like a cross between a danger zone and roadworks. All I need is for the bloke next door to lean on the fence with a smoke and a stop go lollipop and you could hardly tell the difference.
So we grab our stuff and head on inside to find, even after a day of cleaning (my inlaws got there the day before) the place is utterly repulsive. Um, I thought this was a holiday house?? Apparently we’re the first people to use it as such – it’s normally a place where they stay when they come up on fishing weekends. A bunch of blokes + fishing + beer = vomitus.
I cannot describe how disgusting this place is… it is covered in mouse poo. On the floor, on the beds, all through the shower, all over the plates, pots, pans and cutlery. Even after a day of being aired out, it stinks like mouse wee – I didn’t even know what mouse wee smelled like until today! The grime on the floor is so thick that you must wear your shoes at all times – you could try to clean it – we did – but there is no point. Years of neglect mean the filth is practically stuck down. I have visions of CSI people coming here and finding all sorts of nasty shit.
 |
| Window sill in our bedroom - that's all mouse shit |
 |
| Shitty cutlery... literally |
 |
| The white stuff is all furry - so maybe an albino rogue possum |
I’m not sure what I was expecting. Not the Hilton, but at least something that doesn’t leave your feet black after walking across the room. Something where I don’t feel the need to dip my entire body in bleach after being inside for 10 minutes. Something that, oh, I dunno, isn’t a biological fucking hazard.
 |
| Luckily |
At this point I’m not really sure what is going to happen. A beautiful, generous friend, who’s family also has a house up here has offered it to us, free of charge, to save our little holiday - I just have to convince the others, who are quite used to camping and roughing it, that we need to leave. I’m overwhelmed by the generosity of my friend, who even started a #saveglowsholiday hash tag… but tonight? Tonight I have to put my sheets on the crusty mouse poo mattress and cry in to my pillow.
To be continued… unless the mice eat me in the middle of the night.
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