Lets go fly a kite!

On Sunday, we went to the annual Redcliffe Kite Festival. We go to this fabulous event every year.

The super sized kites are amazing!

The girls {and myself!} love the food!

The rides are the girls favourite thing to do!

I have some exciting things in store for my blog & all of the fabulous followers of this blog. The photo’s in this post have been digitally scrapbooked using My Memories Suite Digital scrapbook software. It is a fabulous program that can be found HERE. I have been lucky enough to have been given a special code that is just for my blog readers so that you can receive $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - $20 value!

The code that you use is

                          STMMMS53960

It really is a fantastic program & you download it straight to your computer so no waiting for it to be posted!

Later this week I will show you a little more on what you can do with this fabulous program & will even be giving one lucky reader the chance to win this scrapbooking software!

That is right!

You could have the chance to win this awesome prize!

If you are anything like me, you have a million & one photo’s on your computer, phone, camera, memory card & on countless USB sticks. Here is you chance to be able to get those pics looking fantastic & ready view. You can share them via email, on your digital photo frame, screensaver, print them to make your own photo book, view them on your iPod, make a movie to send to family & friend’s….the list is endless!

Pan fried fish with aioli and a simple salad with herb dressing

My last recipe in the Gourmet Garden blog off/ cook off is a very fast & easy to make dinner.

Pan fried fish with aioli & a simple salad with herb dressing.

To start with, you need to make the aioli.

You will need

1 teaspoon of Gourmet Garden Garlic

2 egg yolks

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon of Dijon Mustard

2/3 cup of olive oil

In a food processor, blend garlic, egg yolks, lemon juice & Dijon mustard to form a paste.

Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while the motor is running.

Put it in the fridge while you make the rest of the dinner.

Make a simple salad using whatever is in your fridge. I used lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, carrot & Dutch Gouda cheese.

Make a simple dressing using

1/3 cup of olive oil

1 teaspoon of Gourmet garden Basil

I teaspoon of Gourmet Garden Coriander

1/2 teaspoon of Gourmet Garden Thyme

Mix well.

Pour it over the salad & coat all the ingredients with the dressing.

Then comes the fish.

I used Dory for this recipe.

In a container, coat the fish fillet with plain flour.

Cook in a pan on a medium to high heat with a little flavoured butter & olive oil.

Cook for 1 minute on each side.

Serve on a plate with the salad & aioli.

Crunchy coated prawns with Thai dipping sauce

My next recipe in the Gourmet Garden blog off/cook off would have do be my fave!

It is Crunch Coated Prawns with Thai Dipping Sauce

It is the dipping sauce that really makes this dish so delicious!

And it is the

 

Gourmet Garden Thai Seasoning

that makes this quick & easy.

You need

500g of green prawns

I cup of bread crumbs (make your own, they taste better!)

1 egg

a little milk

2 teaspoons of Gourmet Garden Thai Seasoning

juice of 1 large lime (around 1/3 of a cup)

2 teaspoons of brown sugar

2 teaspoons of fish sauce

Make the dipping sauce by mixing the Thai seasoning, lime, brown sugar & fish sauce. Set aside.

Now on to the prawns.

First, take the shells of the prawns & make the bread crumbs (blitz in a food processor)

Make an egg wash with the egg & milk. Set up a production line.

Prawns, egg wash, bread crumbs & a plate to put the prawns on.

Dip the prawns into the egg was, then the bread crumbs & place them on the plate.

Cook in a fry pan on medium to high heat in about 1/2cm of olive oil.

Cook for 1 minute on each side or until crispy & golden

Drain on a paper towel then  serve with the dipping sauce.

This is a quick, easy & very tasty dish. You could serve this as an entree or a main. I must confess that no one else in my house eats seafood so I had the pleasure of eating this all to myself!

Add a “zing” to your vegies!

We eat a lot of green vegies in our household. The girls love them. Yes, my girls really do love them. Georgia even eats fresh beans straight from the fridge. I love my greens too but sometimes I want to give them that little something extra.

Here is a way to give your vegies a zing!

Thai butter!

All you need is

Gourmet Gardens Thai Seasoning

& some margarine.

Mix 1/4 cup of margarine with 1 teaspoon of Thai Seasoning

Cook your greens. You can steam them or boil them. I par boiled mine tonight.

Drain the water off.

To your vegies (still in the saucepan) add a teaspoon of flavoured butter for each serving.

Cook over a medium heat for 1 minute. Shake the pan or stir the vegies as they are cooking.

Serve.

This are so delicious!

Some days

I have made this perfect little cocoon for my family. Our home is our sanctuary. We are free to be who we want to be with no outside distractions. Our home really feels like a home. It is not just a house. It is filled with the smell of flowers in the garden, scented oils in the lounge room, fabric softener fills the air in the bedrooms & the laundry. Everything in our home is comfy & cosy. There are photo’s, shells, paintings & handmade ornaments all through out.

It is our home, it is our safe place.

Now, I feel as though my home is not so calm & tranquil.

Outside influences have disrupted our sanctuary.

Cyber harassment is now part of our lives & it can never be undone.

I can not go into all the details, this is not the place, it is not the time. Things are still going on.

What I want you to do is check your kids social media.

If you do not have access, make them give you their passwords. It is not snooping, it is not an invasion of privacy………It is being a great parent.

Do you know what your kids are writing?

Do you know what other kids are writing to your kids?

I am not just talking about bullying.

There is a lot of other things that go on online than just bullying.

I have always know the passwords, I have the emails linked to my emails, I have done all the right things.

It does not stop others from doing the wrong thing but I am protecting my children to the best of my ability.

I was able to be the protector. I always will be. My kids know that.

People may say that kids should not be on the internet but how can you not let them when it is part of the school requirements. To think that you will never let your kids on the internet is a fantasy. They have to do their homework, they have to do school work. Some schools now even require students to have a laptop. The government is handing out laptops.

Because some other parents are not checking their kids messages, emails & social media, my family & other families just like ours have been shattered by the words that are typed.

I am not pointing the finger at anyone.

What I want to do is raise awareness.

When was the last time you checked what your kids are typing while online?

Blue Cheese dipping sauce. Gourmet Garden cook off

This week I am participating in the Gourmet Garden Blog off/Cook off contest. I received a cooler bag full of Gourmet Gardens herbs & spices tubes.

These are awesome because they are so convenient. I do have my own vegie & herb patch but some times it has been completely empty because I use them all so much! I love garlic but I hate the smell of garlic so to have it in a sealed tube all crushed & ready to go is simply brilliant as I can not stand the smell of garlic on my hands.

So my first recipe in the Blog off/cook off is a really simple

Blue cheese dipping sauce.

It is also great as a salad dressing.

I had it with beer battered potato wedges, steak & pan fried mushrooms on the weekend & it was amazing!

All you need is

1/4 cup of sour cream

1/4 cup of mayonnaise

80g of blue cheese

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

1 teaspoon of Gourmet gardens garlic

Put all the ingredients in a bowl & blitz with a hand blender until smooth

Serve in a small bowl for each person as there will be fights over this dipping sauce!

I did make a second batch & had it the next day to dip my fresh beans into.

You could use it as a salad dressing as well. Just make up a salad with lettuce, tomatoes, a chopped up boiled egg & some croutons. Pour this sauce all over & mix well.

Easy lemon cake slice

After making Dot's easy apple slice, I started thinking of other recipes that I could come up with using a packet cake mix as the base.

Hello Easy lemon cake slice!

Ingredients

1 packet vanilla cake mix (I used a Coles brand packet)

1 cup desiccated coconut

1/2 cup of butter, melted

1/4 cup of lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon

icing sugar for topping

Mix together the cake mix, coconut, melted butter, lemon juice & zest.

Press into a lined square cake tin.

cook for 30 mins on 175 degrees Celsius

Sift icing sugar over the top while still warm.

Slice into squares & serve

This is best eaten on the day you make it.

You spin me right round cake stand. Quick and easy

How awesome is this cake stand?

Pretty awesome if you ask me!

It was so easy & quick to make. If you have some old records & a 2 tier cake stand, then you can probably make this in seconds!

You need the centre piece from the cake stand to be in 2 parts so you can do this..

This would be perfect at a fancy dress rock star party or just to use at your next dinner party as a conversation starter.

The wheels keep turning

Things around here have been pretty good lately.

Mr P & I seem to be back on track. The girls are really stepping up & helping around the house. Life has been really good. Mr P has been home a lot. He has even had a few weeks where he has done a lot of local work. Last week he was gone for 7 days. That shook me a little after having him home for so long. Now, he has gone again & this time will be the longest in months. There is no return date, it will be weeks maybe even longer, until I see him again. I know that I have to get over it, I have to daughters to look after.

{that is not Kiara’s normal photo pose, she was having a moment of madness!}

but some days just suck.

In my email inbox this morning, I read this,

May 9, 2012

"We don't have a lot of control in life, but we really do have control over the objects in our homes. So when the world is spinning too fast and you feel completely crazed, just get the things around you settled."

—  Peri Wolfman

 

That is what I have been doing without even realising. I have been cleaning like a mad woman, sewing from my incredibly large fabric stash, making a million & 1 things from the overflowing craft cupboard & cooking so I can use up my stock pile of cooking ingredients. I have been so busy that I am not sleeping. At 11pm last night, I was rearranging the pots & pans cupboard. I get these serious bouts of insomnia where I just can’t sleep so I clean, I organise & I make.

Then there are the low moments, when the house is quiet & I have time to think. That is the time when I start to think of what I am missing out on with Mr P away so much. Then it starts again. I have to clean & make so that I don’t have time to dwell on things.

 

What do you do when your world is spinning out of control & you need to bring yourself back down to earth?

Dying paper doilies

By now, you all must have realised that I love doilies. I have pictures up the top on the banner of this page, down the side as blog buttons & my house is full of them. I love to dye them all fantastic bright & funky colours. I have just dyed my first batch of paper doilies!

I love them!

It was so super easy. You just need food colouring, water, gloves & a shallow dish that is a little bigger than your doily.

The brighter you make the colour, the better your doily will look.

Just put the food colouring & some water (about 1cm deep) in the shallow dish & mix well.

Make sure you use gloves other wise you will end up covered in food colouring!

Dip the doily into the colour & gently push it down so it is all covered.

Place the doily gently onto a tray that is covered with a paper towel. Let sit for 10 seconds then carefully urn it over just to soak up any excess water.

Place on a cookie cooling rack until completely dry.

Make sure you have a baking tray under the racks to catch any excess dye.

These beautiful paper doilies are going to come in handing for so many uses!

The possibilities are endless!

For more doily dying ideas, check out these previous posts…

A dyed doily t-shirt

Shabby chic doily bunting

Wordless Wednesday, the week that was.

Linking up at My little drummer boys for Wordless Wednesday