Earth Babies Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Recipes’

What is your fall-back sure-fire get the kids to eat recipe?
email it to us at admin@earthbabies.co.za and stand a chance to win Enchantrix bubble bath for the kids.

This is a favourite meal for Yvonne’s (Concious Living) children.

Bacon & Vegetable Quiche

2 Tbsp butter/marg/oil
1 packet bacon (250g) rindless, chopped
1 large onion
1 cup spinach, torn/shredded
1 cup baby marrows, chopped (Yvonne suggests grating it)
1 cup carrots, grated
1/2 cup flour
5 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup cheese, grated
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 cup milk
Dash of cayenne pepper (optional)

Heat up oil in large pot to very high heat.

Add chopped bacon on onion, fry until browned.

Add spinach, marrows and carrots, stir fry for 2 minutes only to develop flavour.

Remove pot from heat!

Add flour and mix in well.

Add all remaining ingrediants and mix well.

Pour into large glass dish (bear in mind that it will rise slightly due to baking powder) and bake in oven preheated to 190deg C for +/- 35 minutes (or until browned on top)

What is your fall-back sure-fire get the kids to eat recipe?
email it to us at admin@earthbabies.co.za and stand a chance to win Enchantrix bubble bath for the kids.

Mine is a tupperware quiche recipe. We make it with tuna mayonnaise -plain and simple. We generally eat it with sweet potato or butternut and something green (cucumber is their favourite salad item and one they will ALWAYS eat). I added a simple shortcrust crust to the original recipe and I have also gotten lazy in the prep where i mix all the filling ingredients together with a fork – without the cheese, pour it into the pastry base and then top with cheese. The kids like it this way as then the egg custard is not a separate layer. When I am patient enough to handle the mess, they will help me prepare it.
(this was tonights supper and though I did take a pic to share the camera batteries have died on me – so no pics today)

Quick to make, really yummy and you can get creative (my favourite ‘big peoples’ version was bacon, roasted butternut, feta and mushroom). I am sharing the recipe as I originally wrote it down (plus the crust option).

Quick Shake Savoury Tart

Be creative with filling, mix and match or just plain all is good!
Filling ideas:
- 1 cup pineapple, 1 tin tuna
- 1 tin tuna, mayonnaise, feta & chopped peppers
- 1 cup Bacon (viennas, ham), 150g mushrooms, 1 onion (chopped and fried)
- asparagus salad cuts
- 175g spinach (cooked & chopped), 25ml grated onion
- sweetcorn (makes for a yummy sweetcorn bake with braai)

PREHEAT OVEN TO 180C

A. Crust:
Note: can be made without a crust
1 part butter
1 part flour
(eg 200g butter / 200ml flour)
3 ml salt
Place flour and marge (firm) in a bowl add salt .
Rub together with finger tips till it forms crumbs (looks like lumpy breadcrumbs)
Grease a pie dish (lemon meringue dish)
Place mix in dish and press roughly into base of dish

B. Filling:
Place filling ingredients over crust base.
Sprinkle 1 cup grated cheese over top
Pour egg custard over the top

C. Egg custard:
150ml milk
30ml flour
3ml salt
2ml seasoning
2 large eggs
5ml mustard (optional)

Place all ingredients in a shaker and shake
Pour over filling.
Place in oven for 30 minutes
Makes enough for a 4-6 meal servings (with salad or vegetables)

Not sure if I am a cheap skate, frugal or practical but I often end up rather making my own things than buying so thought i would share some of the winners in our home.

home made playdough

Long lasting Play dough
Kids of all ages never tire of playing with clay – there are some fantastic products on the market but they are pricey so if like me they are only bought as a treat then this recipe may come in handy.

1 cup flour
½ cup salt
1 cup water
1 Tsp oil
2 tsp cream of tartar
food colouring

Stir all ingredients together and cook over a medium/high heat for 5 minutes or until right consistency (comes away from the sides of pan and form a ball).
Store in an airtight container or plastic bag.

Girl blowing bubbles

Bubble Recipe
The other thing that children never tire of is Bubbles – though with little ones they invariably spill most of the contents on the floor. This mix makes a large amount and is relatively cheap in comparison

1/2 cup of dishwashing liquid (good quality)
5 cups water (preferably soft water – if in a hard water area maybe use distilled or bottled water)
2 tablespoons glycerine (available at the pharmacy or supermarket)

Mix the ingredients together very carefully, so that you they don’t get too bubbly. Pour into storage containers and, if possible, leave overnight.

Bubble wands can be recycled from previous bought batches of bubbles (I save them), or make from wire, pipe cleaners (they do get soggy though), make a loop with your finger and thumb (messy but fun and effective), a straw makes teeny little bubbles.

Jake Long by Sheldene

Paper dolls
Remember how much fun we used to have with these! Why not reintroduce the idea to your little ones.
Barbie Doll
Variety of links for boys and girls

Face Paints
for my daughters 2nd birthday I had a face painting party – the kids LOVED it. It was messy and not so pretty by our standards but they had fun, painted themselves with such care and thought they were works of art.

Option 1:
(I made this recipe – I used Nivea cold cream but think plain aqueous would work as well and be more spreadable and much more economical)
1 tsp. Corn flour (Maizena)
½ tsp. Cold cream
½ tsp. Water
Food coloring (variety of colors)

NB. make the night before so the mixture can absorb and settle!
- Mix together corn flour and cream until well blended.
- Add water and stir. (the mixture looks a little curdled at this stage but by letting it stand the moisture in the cream absorbs the cornflour and settles to make a smooth paste).
- Divide into even amounts for colouring leave 1 white and add food colouring one drop at a time to the others until you get the desired colour.

Option 2 : (Not tested)

3 tblsps. Cornflour
1 tblsp. Flour
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
½ tsp. Liquid food colouring

Mix cornflour and flour together in a bowl. Gradually stir in corn syrup and water until smooth. Divide mixture into individual containers as needed and tint each one with the food colouring of your choice. Leave one batch untinted.

While reading about all things healthy and always being on the look out for stuff to try I came across Kefir. I started asking around at health shops and trying to see if I could find anyone that had some to share but most people did not even know what I was talking about. Quite by chance I asked at one health shop after I had almost given up hope of finding any and not only did the lady know what I was talking about she had a number of where I could get some from.

So if after reading this you like the idea of kefir and want try it please feel free to contact me and I will happily share mine with you. Once your own batch starts to grow be sure to share it with others.

So what is it and why should you try get your hands on some.

What is Kefir?

Kefir is a fermented milk drink. The word kefir is said to have originated from the Turkish word “Keif” which means “good feeling”.
Kefir Grains are white or cream coloured grains that look a bit like cauliflower florets and they ferment milk. This grain is a like culture of more than 30 microflora that form grains or cauliflower-like structures in the milk. As they ferment the milk they grow creating new grains. Real kefir from live culture is an endlessly self-propagating process. So as your grains multipy you will have enough to share with others.

Microorganisms present in the grains include lactic acid bacteria, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lb delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus, Lb helveticus, Lb casei subsp. pseudoplantarum and Lb brevis, a variety of yeasts, such as Kluyveromyces, Torulopsis, and Saccharomyces, acetic acid bacteria among others. They give kefir excellent keeping qualities by keeping putrifying bacteria that might otherwise colonise the milk at bay. They’ve been shown to inhibit both salmonella and E. Coli in laboratory tests.

Kefir and Health

Okay so this is the why part, why would you want to get some of these little grains to ferment your milk?

Kefir helps restore the balance in gut flora and has many reputed health benefits. It has antibiotic and antifungal properties. It has been used to help in many conditions including metabolic disorders, atherosclerosis, allergies, tuberculosis, cancer, poor digestion, candidiasis, osteoporosis, hypertension, HIV and heart disease. While it might seem strange to drink something with yeast in for a condition like candidiasis it helps restore natural balance, the micro elements kill of the Candida Albicans.

In addition to beneficial bacteria and yeast, kefir contains many vitamins, minerals, amino acids and enzymes. Particularly calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, B2 and B12, vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin D. Tryptophan, one of the essential amino acids abundant in kefir, is well known for its relaxing effect on the nervous system. Because kefir also has an abundance of calcium and magnesium, also important minerals for a healthy nervous system, kefir in the diet can have a particularly calming effect on the nerves.

Even many lactose intolerant people can tolerate Kefir as long as it is raw and not cooked, and it is usually of great benefit to them.

Research into Kefir:

www.torontoadvisors.com

www.nourishkefir.co.uk

How to make it:

www.seedsofhealth.co.uk