Savoury Muffins

Good Afternoon friends! I hope this finds you well. The time has come that some are happy and cheering about and others are crying about! Yes….it’s ‘Back to School’ …. my 2 eldest girls don’t go back until tomorrow (Wednesday) and my babies (twins – Master and Miss 3) venture off to their very first schooling adventure and leaving me when they start Pre-School 2 days a week the week after. I am all organised, everything is labeled and the kids are excited!

I did a little bit of baking this morning ….. some yummy healthy homemade LCM bars from Naughty Naturopath Mum for morning teas …. then some Savoury Muffins for lunches …. I had to make 2 batches of the muffins as they only make ten and with the 4 kids, 7 of them went when they were just out of the oven! I hope you love them as much as they did!

Savoury Muffins

1 ½ cups rice flour

1 zucchini (150g) grated

1 carrot (120g) grated

3 eggs

¼ cup fresh orange juice

2 tblspns fresh chives – finely chopped

1 tblspn orange zest

1 tblspn honey

1 tspn baking powder

pinch salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 180c and place 10 patty cases into a muffin tray.

Place all the ingredients into a large bowl and combine thoroughly.

Place even amounts of mixture into the patty cases.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Allow to cool slightly before enjoying!

Perfect for school lunch!

Options:

• Add 3/4 cup grated cheese to the mix if your diet allows


• Add diced ham or bacon to the mix


• Add chia seeds to the mix


• Sprinkle tops of muffins with pumpkin seeds before cooking


• Use flour of your choice

Wishing you and your children a happy, relaxed and tear-free back to school experience!

Take Care of You,

Collette x 

Instagram: collette_cutoutthecrap

Savoury Muffins

How I pack our daily lunch box….

Good Morning friends, I hope this finds you all well. Can you believe that Christmas has whizzed past us? New Years Eve is long gone and the Christmas School holidays have only days left?….Geez I feel old sometimes when life just seems to fly by….do you remember how slow, days and years would go when you were a kid?…..Anyway, as back to school approaches, it’s time to head out and buy kids stationary, new shoes and bags, uniforms, lunch boxes and of course plan to get organised for the hectic mornings that school mornings are, by getting your head around it all. For me, it helps when I have LISTS!

I am excited about the day I have planned for my COTC Facebook page today….a post EVERY HOUR on the hour to do with “back to school’ – free recipes, give-aways and useful tips and info ….. I hope you are ready for a wonderful day!

Here are a few of my tips, they may or may not work for you but I always like sharing and hopefully helping with new ideas!

* To save rushing of a morning, I try and get what I can done the night before.

* When ‘menu planning’, I plan for lunch also. Things like cooking chicken drumsticks or boiling eggs every other day for school lunches. If it’s on your  ’meal planner’ it will remind you and help with being organised.

* My eldest girls at school like to help when they can, so, inside my pantry I have a few lists – the first one is what I like them to have in their school lunch box – this especially helps my Miss 9 to be ‘clear’ on what she needs each day (she has a personality that works better with a list rather than words sometimes!)

Please remember that this is what “I” like (those of you that know me, know I don’t have an issue with my kids fruit intake) so feel free to create a list that suits your needs.
Fruit Break: 1 serve fruit or veg (the veg is normally carrot, celery or cucumber sticks)
Recess / Morning Tea: 1 serve fruit or veg and 1 ‘treat’ (more on this ‘treat’ part to follow)
Lunch: 1 serve lunch

Friday only: 1 x yummy earth lollypop with lunch

School lunch lists inside my pantry (as well as calendar, birthday calendar and shopping list!)

I know this might seem basic but it works well for us – and if for some reason hubby or someone else had to pack my kids lunch box they would know what I like them to have!

* My other lists are food ideas – once again another basic idea that we find extremely helpful.

Recess / Morning Tea TREAT: Bliss Balls, Homemade cake, biscuits, slice, muffin, Pikelets. Popcorn, Dehydrated chips (homemade). Snack box (sultanas, pretzels, rice crackers, pumpkin seeds, raw chocolate). Superfood for Kidz bar.

Lunch ideas: Leftovers ( I try and make extra to have leftovers handy as often as I can). Salad box (boiled chicken, chicken drumsticks or egg and salad finger food : cherry tomatoes, capsicum, cucumber, celery, carrot, mushrooms, sugar snap peas, olives, cheese). Sushi. Rice paper rolls. Wraps (boiled egg diced, egg and mayo, curry and egg or chicken with salad). Quiche. Frittata. Homemade pizza. Mini Meatloaves. Quinoa Muffins. Pumpkin Muffins. Fried Rice. Pasta Salad. Fritters. Scrolls. Container (don’t forget a spoon). Tuna and mayo – with crackers / veg sticks. Curried egg – with crackers / veg sticks. Dip (Avocado, hommus, pumpkin, feta are my kids favourites) with crackers / veg sticks. Yoghurt with stewed fruit and seeds.

My children are not huge sandwich fans and never have been, which I am ok with, as I don’t think our bodies are designed to eat large amounts of wheat, intolerances or not. They request leftovers, dips, chicken and veg most days for lunch. Also, PLEASE keep in mind that my children have no food allergies so these lists ARE additive free but not 100% gluten and dairy free.

Feel free to add to this list of ideas in the comments below and don’t forget to hang around my Facebook page today so you don’t miss out on all the back to school info….I think you will be slightly bombarded with info but I am hoping you will love me for it!

Take Care of You,
Collette x

How I pack our daily lunch box….

Back to School SALE

Good afternoon friends!

We are on the count down until school goes back – part of me will be sad as I love the days with all 4 of my children, sleep ins, no rushing…. and all that! On the same hand though school holidays is chaos and no routine and I find myself more exhausted than ever! Either way, reality hits and they have to go back….even my twins Master and Miss 3 start preschool for the first time ever this year! (only two days a week though!) 

For those that have been around for a while you will know that I don’t do SALES often – generally before Christmas and for Back to School only ….. so here we are ….. two great packs to help you get inspired and motivated and ready for the school year ahead!

These packs are available through my online store only for the month of January or until all sold out – so don’t miss out!

Take Care of You,

Collette x 

Back to School SALE

Apple and Carrot Loaf

Good Afternoon! How are you all? I am really well although I have been a little bit quiet here in the COTC world of blogging – like everyone, this time of the year is full on and something had to give,  so for a few weeks it has been my blogs…..however, I have so much to catch you up on, including our weekend away in Sydney without the 4 kids, my twins 3rd birthday, Christmas and a few recipes I have created the past few weeks ….today I am happy to share with you a beautiful recipe I tweaked from a favourite recipe by The gorgeous Gina Rose from Nourished Naturally by Gina Rose.

On top of my family being additive free and refined sugar free my Miss 9 is gluten free and grain free at the moment – she misses bread terribly but she only has to be gluten and grain free for another 6 months or so, so it’s really not that bad. I was so excited when Gina told me about her Pumpkin Bread Recipe and it has become a favourite that I know we will continue making even when Miss 9 is allowed to eat everything again!

As I love juices and have them regularly I thought I would give this recipe a go – with a few personal touches – with the leftover apple and carrot pulp that I had. Here is my recipe….I hope you love it….

Apple and Carrot loaf

1 cup of apple and carrot pulp (leftover from your juice)
2 eggs
2 tblspns honey
1/4 cup macadamia oil or sunflower oil
1 tspn cinnamon
1 tspn nutmeg
1/2 tspn bicarb soda + 2 tspns lemon juice
2 cups almond meal
1/2 cup walnuts – roughly chopped

Preheat your oven to 170 C and line a loaf tin with baking paper. 

Combine all the ingredients except for the walnuts into a large bowl and mix thoroughly. 

Pour mixture into the prepared loaf tin and sprinkle evenly with the walnuts. 

Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes. Remove from oven, cover with foil then bake for a further 10-20 minutes (until thoroughly cooked and skewer is clean).

Allow to cool slightly before slicing and enjoying! 

Enjoy warm or cold for any meal! 

I wish you  a safe New Year and I look forward to connecting more with you all in a wonderful 2014!

Take Care of You,
Collette x 

 

Apple and Carrot Loaf

Good Morning! I hope this finds you well…..with Summer brings BBQ’s and Picnics, so I thought it was time I shared with you a favourite picnic meal for us….only this weekend just gone  we took this to our Church Christmas Carols….this is the ‘standard’ recipe I use but as I always say, get creative and feel free to swap ingredients for those that suit your diet needs and taste buds….enjoy!

salad in a jar

makes 4 serves

2 chicken breast fillets

4 tspns oil of choice

4 tspns maple syrup

a few drops of sesame oil

1 lime – thinly sliced

coriander and dill – roughly shredded

2 carrots – grated

4 tblspns pistachios

½ large beetroot – grated

baby spinach

Roughly dice chicken breast fillets. Place in a saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil. Simmer for approximately 15 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Drain well and allow to cool. Once the chicken is cooled, shred the chicken roughly (if your diet allows you could always cheat and use a bbq chicken instead).

In the bottom of each glass jar place 1 tspn oil, 1 tspn maple syrup, 2 drops of sesame oil and 1 piece of lime.

Add some cooled shredded chicken, then a good pinch of coriander and dill. Continue to layer with salad ingredients, grated carrot, pistachios, grated beetroot and pack down firmly with baby spinach.

You can get creative and use salad ingredients, herbs and nuts of your choice. The kids love eating salad like this on a picnic. You can eat it however you like, for me, once I eat the baby spinach layer on the top, I dig in and mix the rest of the ingredients around….hubby eats his one layer at a time.

Note: just don’t forget to pack forks!

I prepare all the ingredients in advance & make a production line putting the salad jars together!

I hope you have a wonderful week….I am on the countdown here, only 3 days left of the big girls school….I LOVE school holidays!

Take Care of You,
Collette x 

Salad in a Jar!

Good Afternoon! I hope this finds you well….can you believe it is only 12 more sleeps until Christmas….which means only 10 more sleeps until my twins turn 3 and a double birthday party is happening…..I feel ‘kind of’ organised, but getting 100% organised with gifts and food the menu is my plan for this weekend. Are you all ready to go? 

Yesterday we said farewell to Bekah (hubby’s cousin) who was with us for 3 months from Texas, America. It is crazy that the time really just flew. The big girls were so sad yesterday and Miss 9 couldn’t compose herself to even go to school. The twins had a cute conversation between themselves…Master almost 3 said “Bekah gone to America” …. Miss almost 3 replied with “she be back 1 minute” ….. hubby and I of course had heavy hearts also, as our home and lives have been filled with her vibrance and everything seemed so quiet. We all knew it was short term though and Bekah has family eagerly waiting her arrival at home for her and our lives will quickly get back to ‘normal’ (whatever that may be!). Thank goodness for technology these days, with Facebook and Skype there is not excuse  not to keep in touch! We were blessed to have the quality time with Bekah and many happy memories were made….finishing off with a fun surprise “Aussie” party the night before she left! 

I have a lovely recipe to share with you today…I find frittatas such a filling  and satisfying lunch and the kids love it so much too! Since creating this recipe we have had it twice for dinner also served with a side salad and the kids even had it for breakfast! I hope you love it as much as we do…..

sweet potato frittata

600g sweet potato – peeled and grated

6 eggs

2 x zucchini (approx. 300g) – grated

½ green apple – peeled and grated and excess juice squeezed out

½ bunch fresh chives – finely chopped

½ bunch fresh parsley – roughly shredded

pinch salt

¼ cup pepitas

Preheat oven to 200c and line a lasagne dish with baking paper.

Place the peeled and grated sweet potato into a medium bowl and cover with boiling water. Stand for 10 minutes then drain well.

In a large bowl place the 6 eggs and whisk well. Add the prepared sweet potato, zucchini, apple, chives, parsley and salt. Mix well.

Pour egg mixture into the lined lasagne dish and sprinkle evenly with pepitas. Cook for 30-35 minutes.

Serve as is or with a salad on the side or make it a little fancier by topping it with smoked salmon, feta or a dollop of homemade mayonnaise – YUM!

Enjoy! 

On a side note, it seems that my Facebook posts are only getting seen by 1%-10% at best which makes me sad to think that all my hard work is being missed! To make sure you don’t miss out on my recipes, please head to the homepage of my website and pop in your details so you can get these blogs sent straight to your email address. 

Have the most beautiful weekend and chat again next week!

Take Care of You,

Collette x

sweet potato frittata

Good evening! I hope this finds you all well. I am EXHAUSTED! With the help of Bekah I stayed up late last night putting together Christmas orders that rushed in the last few days….my gosh it excites me SO much thinking of how many of you are giving or getting “Cut out the Crap” books for Christmas!

My Miss 9 is on a Gluten and Grain free diet at the moment and is missing bread terribly. I made these last week and she loved them. She especially loved them warmed slightly in the oven for breakfast with a dollop of butter or ricotta! One morning she even had one cut up with Smoked Salmon on it — spoilt I know!
They are quite heavy (so don’t expect them to be all light and fluffy) and not overly sweet so they are a good bread / muffin replacement. A good one to feed hungry tummies of a morning! I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

 

lemon and coconut muffins

4 eggs

¼ cup maple syrup

¼ cup sunflower oil (or macadamia oil)

½ cup coconut flour – sifted

½ cup desiccated coconut

rind of ½ large lemon

½ tspn baking powder

Preheat oven  to 180c and line a muffin tray with 8 paper cases.

In a medium bowl place the eggs, maple syrup and oil – beat well with an electric hand blender.

Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Place even amounts into the paper cases – the mixture will be quite thick.

 Bake in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes (depending on your oven)

Allow to cool on a wire rack. Enjoy warm or cool. 

Have a lovely evening and I look forward to chatting again soon!

Take Care of You,

Collette x 

 

lemon and coconut muffins