'Bliss Balls' (Thermomix version)

Good afternoon friends! I hope this finds you well! We are all well here, it has been a huge 2 weeks for my family. The big girls went back to school and the twins (3yrs old) started Preschool for the very first time (just 2 days a week)! The loved it! When we went to pick them up they were oh so cute! Miss 3 ran to me for huge hugs and Master 3 slumped his shoulders and burst into tears because he wasn’t ready to go home yet!

My cuties….love that the bags are almost as big as them!



Hubby and I went to Adelaide Friday -Sunday to visit my best friend who only 2 weeks before that had her very first bubba! Wow it was hot 41-45 degrees in the time we were there! Such a dry heat too. We got to have a lot of bubba cuddles and on the Sunday before we left we did a little sight seeing around the City – including going to Church in one of the most beautiful buildings. It was a wonderful weekend, we are so blessed to have great friends to look after the 4 kids back here at home so we could have that quality time with our friends. 

Hubby with our friends at one of the beautiful Churches in Adelaide

Having bubba cuddles …. she is so precious!

Our flight home …. was a beautiful sight being above the clouds …. my big girls loved seeing the photos I took from the plane!

As you would know by now I am the proud owner of a Thermomix. I am enjoying getting to know my machine and learning and playing and seeing all it can do. I am thoroughly impressed with how quickly it cooks, how much I am cooking and how little time I am spending in the kitchen now! 

I am happy to be sharing with you today my converted Bliss Balls recipe for your Thermomix – if you don’t have a Thermomix you might like to follow this link for my recipe. “Date Balls – 3 recipes” 

‘Bliss Balls’

200g Pepitas OR Macadamias (you can use nuts of your choice)
200g Medjool Dates
20g drinking chocolate or cacao (this can be found in many brands additive free)

Place Pepitas OR Macadamias into the TMX and blitz for 10 seconds on speed 8 for Pepitas OR 20 seconds for Macadamias.
Add medjool dates and drinking chocolate or cacao and blitz for 1 minute on speed 9. 
Roll into balls and refrigerate for 1 hour before enjoying. 

My kids have the pepita ones for school morning tea as they are a nut free zone !

(note: get creative with these ingredients – there are so many different options you can use depending on your diet needs and taste buds, this is a basic version which we love as its so quick and easy)

Enjoy and have a wonderful week!

Take Care of You,
Collette x 

'Bliss Balls' (Thermomix version)

Honey and Ginger Chicken (Thermomix)

Good afternoon friends! I hope this finds you well. 

I posted this family friendly Thermomix recipe on Facebook last night that I created for dinner (I was going to do chunkier chicken but Miss 9 asked for ‘shredded chicken’) and thought I would post it here on my blog incase you missed it on FB and also so you can save it and find it easier. 

I am enjoying playing with my TMX at dinner times but haven’t had much time to play during the days as my due to work commitments and Miss 3 has been unwell and not moving far from my arms …. hubby is home on the weekend and Miss 3 is feeling better now so I look forward to having a good play then …. even going to attempt some bread! Wish me luck!

I hope you love this recipe as much as we did …. I have to be honest and say I am impressed that I can get a dinner on the table under 20 minutes like this and I don’t have to be at the stove the whole time…..

Honey and Ginger Chicken

25g ginger

2 cloves garlic

1 brown onion – peeled and quartered

100g honey

5g olive oil

good pinch salt and pepper
120g carrots  thinly sliced (approx. 2 carrots)

750g chicken breast fillets diced 3cm x 3cm
½ handful of baby spinach (didn’t weigh it)

120g zucchini thinly sliced (approx. 1 zucchini)

100g diced cauliflower

handful of raw cashews

Place ginger, garlic and onion into the bowl and chop 10 seconds / speed 6.

Add honey, oil and salt and pepper and heat 3 minutes / 100c / speed 2.

Add carrots and chicken and cook for 10 minutes / reverse / 100c / speed 1.

Add baby spinach, zucchini and cauliflower and cook for a further 3 minutes / reverse / 100c / speed 1.

Serve immediately and lastly sprinkle with raw cashews.

Have  a fabulous weekend and I would dearly love to hear from you when you cook any of my new TMX recipes!

Take Care of You,
Collette x 

New product for sale on my online store! Healthy snack labels! Perfect for school and preschool!

Honey and Ginger Chicken (Thermomix)

Pumpkin and Bone Broth Soup (Thermomix)

Good afternoon friends! I hope this finds you well. 

I am excited to say that yesterday my very first Thermomix arrived! It was something that I was happy to not have for so long – I had seen it many times in actions and always convinced myself I didn’t need it …. until my food processor started to play up and I also realised the benefits of making my owns flours etc …. so I bit the bullet, had a demo, hubby was convinced and bought it!

Already I am thoroughly impressed with the speed of it, the ease of it and the vast variety of what I can do with it in such a short time. I am enjoying learning and playing and I am extremely grateful that my consultant Jane was truly so experienced and in love with hers that after she delivered it, I felt confidant to cook (and create) my first meal. A simple chicken and veg dish and cauliflower rice (I will share the recipe soon, I just need to work a little on it as the chicken shredded a bit too much) … before that I made custard, ice cream and then once the kids were in bed I made bliss balls for school!
The kids were super excited! My twins (3yrs) had never had custard before and LOVED it!

This morning I made CADA for the Kids for Breakfast and even boiled the eggs in it for the kids lunch (I KNOW I could do this on the stove top but as I say, I am enjoying playing with it). 

Miss 3 is unwell at the moment after waking up at 10pm with temps, lethargy and a cold and this morning she asked for more custard so I made that again and then decided to make some pumpkin soup for her using some of the Chicken bone broth I had in the freezer …. she is normally such a great eater but isn’t wanting anything at the moment so anything I can get into her is good. She had a mouthful or two of the custard – sprinkled with berry choc chunk from Superfoods for Kidz – and the same of the Soup ….. her twin brother and I enjoyed our normal size portions!

I know it’s a basic recipe but sometimes these are great and needed on busy nights ….and besides that, it is SUPER good for you having the bone broth in it …. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did …..

Pumpkin and Bone Broth Soup (Thermomix recipe)

400g pumpkin – peeled and diced

110g carrots – (this was 2 carrots for me) peeled and diced

500g chicken bone broth

1 tspn vegetable stock concentrate (TMX recipe)

Place prepared pumpkin and carrot into the bowl and chop 10 seconds / speed 6. Scrape down the sides.

Add the bone broth and stock concentrate and cook for 20 minutes / 100c / speed 1.

Once that is finished blend for 45 seconds / speed 5.

Enjoy!

I always love hearing from you when you make my recipes – but would REALLY love to hear from you with these Thermomix ones so I can learn what you do and don’t like!

Take Care of You,
Collette x 

Pumpkin and Bone Broth Soup (Thermomix)

"Zipzicles" Ice block pouches - Pack of 12

NEW! Zipzicles! Reusable Ice block pouches – perfect to make ADDITIVE FREE Ice blocks for your little ones – you will know exactly what is going in them and they will never know the difference!

ONLY $8.95 for a pack of 12 

BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: If you would like to purchase Zipzicles ONLY – you DO NOT have to pay $10 postage that is set on my website. Please email me at info@cutoutthecrap.com.au BEFORE purchasing and I can talk to you about CHEAPER postage. If you purchase these ONLY and contact me after I CAN NOT issue a refund. 

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• Reusable icy pole pouches, simply wash them out, refill and freeze


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"Zipzicles" Ice block pouches - Pack of 12

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