Miss Kitty Bakes: Slow cooked lemon and garlic chicken

When I think of winter, I think of long slow braises and soft unctuous roasts that spend hours and hours in the oven. We spend a lot of time with the oven on in this house - the benefits of which are twofold: 1. we get lovely, yet easy food and 2. it keeps the kitchen snug and warm.


This delicious Nigella Lawson dish is no exception: minimal fuss, high reward for effort and a lovely warm kitchen to boot. And it reheats very well so you can spread the three minutes worth of effort over two meals. It seriously can't get much better than that!

We sometimes make this with a whole chicken cut into pieces, or marylands, or chicken thigh pieces on the bone. It's a very forgiving dish. And a delicious one. It's a winter staple in this house. Give it a go!

Nigella Lawson's Slow Roasted Lemon and Garlic Chicken
(From Nigella.com)

1 chicken (approx. 2.25kg / 4½lbs) cut into 10 pieces

1 bulb of garlic (separated into unpeeled cloves)

2 unwaxed lemons (cut into chunky eighths)

1 handful fresh thyme

3 tablespoons olive oil

150 ml white wine

Black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 160°C/gas mark 3/325ºF.

Put the chicken pieces into a roasting tin and add the garlic cloves, lemon chunks and the thyme; just roughly pull the leaves off the stalks, leaving some intact for strewing over later. Add the oil and using your hands mix everything together, then spread the mixture out, making sure all the chicken pieces are skin side up.

Sprinkle over the white wine and grind on some pepper, then cover tightly with foil and put in the oven to cook, at flavour-intensifyingly low heat, for 2 hours.

Remove the foil from the roasting tin, and turn up the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6/400ºF. Cook the uncovered chicken for another 30-45 minutes, by which time the skin on the meat will have turned golden brown and the lemons will have begun to scorch and caramelise at the edges.

Serve the chicken straight from the roasting tin strewn with your remaining thyme alongside yummy roasted potatoes and a green salad.

Georgie: on eating

It's been a while since you have had a Georgie focused post, so I thought I would give you a round up on what she loves and doesn't like when it comes to that subject that seems to obsess most mothers (after sleeping, that is): food.

I always assumed I wouldn't have a fussy child when it comes to food. Neither my husband nor I are particularly fussy. We eat reasonably well. When she turned 4 months old, we started her off on purees but moved to baby led weaning when she was about 6 months old and decided she didn't like purees any more. We have had mixed results. There is no denying that Georgie is a reasonably fussy eater. 

If you listen to Georgie, Vegetables are the Devil's Work. Enemy #1 is peas. Georgie won't touch anything that has touched peas (more on that below). Pumpkin, potatoes and sweet potatoes follow closely in succession (maybe it was ODing on orange food when she was little?). Salad vegetables are also verboten as are broccoli, beans and broccolini. The few vegetables she does eat are zucchini (surprisingly), carrot and corn. And cooked tomatoes (like in pasta sauce). Mum is getting very good at smuggling veggies into things. My "tomato" pasta sauce contains pumpkin, carrots, zucchini, onion and just enough tomato to make it look red enough to pass for tomatoes.

In terms of protein, Georgie is a bit of a champion. Salmon, tuna, flathead, whitebait are all favourites. Lamb chops and slow roasted lamb always go down a treat. Sausages, home made chicken nuggets, mince... She loves houmous, which is great. Sometimes I wonder if we aren't raising a toddler who has popped herself on the Atkins Diet. Her favourite protein is Pig: ham, proscuitto, bacon. Love it!

She is also a bit of a dairy fiend: cheese and yoghurt are both staples. She is quite fussy about brands - she loves the 5AM pouches of yoghurt (hates spooning it) and Mainland Tasty is her favourite cheese. She is not a fan of kids singles or plastic cheese. Milk still presents problems - she reacts badly to it, no matter what we try: Organic, lactose free, skim, full fat.... We are going to try rice or almond milk next but to be honest she doesn't seem to bother with it. She's more than happy on just a little bit of toddler formula, but if we stopped, I don't think she would miss it.

On carbohydrates, she is a bit hit and miss. She loves Pasta. Wholemeal, penne, butterflies.... You name it, she hoovers it. Rice is great, except for risotto. Eggs and crumpets also seem to be winners. When we go out, she'll eat fried rice at Chinese (even the peas, despite the at home aversion!). Bread? Well, sometimes. It you make her a sandwich, she will eat what's inside and give you back the bread. Toast is a bit more successful. She likes muesli but not porridge. Muffins, yes. We try and stuff as many nutrients into home made muffins as possible. The combinations can get a bit weird - the latest batch is carrot, banana and zucchini, but she seems to like them and that's all that matters. She doesn't have much of a sweet tooth - she's not really interested in cake, but does have a fondness for the occasional "cookie" which can encompass anything from a rice cracker to a shortbread or marie biscuit.She doesn't eat lollies or chocolate and she doesn't drink juice.

Our one great success has been with fruit. She eats a very wide variety, which is great: mandarins, bananas, strawberries, kiwi fruit, blueberries (or booberries as they are called here), raspberries, apples, pears.... Most things she will try at least once before making a decision, unless they are green :)

Over the last few months I have really started to obsess over what she will - or rather, won't - eat. I worry about her getting enough nutrients. I worry about her using food as a weapon, that mealtimes will become battlefields. But the more I speak to other mummies, the more I realise she is completely normal. All kids do this. It's the start of their independence: deciding what they do and don't like to eat. Making first choices for themselves.

I have come to realise that the problem is really with me - and my reactions to her defiance. Having to cook four different dishes for dinner (as well as a different main meal for the adults, because Mr K isn't a fan of eating corn, pasta and ham for dinner 3 nights a week) before she finds something she really does like or will eat can be a bit soul destroying and you do get stuck in a bit of a rut. Protein and pasta is our staple when all else fails and we have it more than I would like. New things are approached with a bit of trepidation, mostly on my part. I still think she is too young to understand the repercussions of not eating her dinner so I do tend to fill her up on banana, yoghurt and cheese if I don't think she has eaten enough for her main meal.

At the end of the day, I am coming around to the idea that she is one of those kids who just eats when she is hungry and she favours plain food over adventurous eating. If she's not hungry, nothing will tempt her. She is happy, more than active enough for her age (one might say very active) and thriving. More often than not, she sleeps well. She is amongst the tallest of her peers. If all of that means she doesn't eat her peas then I will settle for my happy, well adjusted child over a pea eating one.

Kitty x

Miss Kitty Bakes: Sour cream and lemon cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

Recently a very good friend of mine, The Floury Baker, had a birthday. She is an absolutely awesome chick who has her hands full with two gorgeous yet spunky kids under the age of two. Now, I complain about having no time to myself but she really has no time, yet she juggles mummyhood, baking and a blog with aplomb.

I made these cupcakes for her - she had a bit of a crap week and I wanted to give her a bit of a pick me up for her birthday. They were delicious and I hope they did the trick in lifting collective spirits. The sunny happy zesty lemon yellow certainly made my day and I will make these babies again and again. The sour cream gives the cake a delightful delectable softness yet the crumb remains moist and delicious.They are super easy to make and will have your friends oohing and aahing about your baking prowess.

Lemon sour cream cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
(Original recipe from SBS Food)

Cake:
125 g soft butter
220 g (1 cup) caster sugar
Zest of one lemon
3 medium eggs
2 tbsp lemon juice
150 g (1 cup) plain flour
60 g (1/3 cup) self-raising flour
100 g sour cream

Preheat oven to 180C. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with patty cases. Fancy ones, if you have them.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape bowl down to make sure all the butter has been incorporated. Add lemon zest, then add eggs one by one, fully incorporating each one before adding the next. Stir through lemon juice. The mixture may look a bit curdled at this point, but press on.

Sift flours together and fold in carefully, alternating with sour cream. Mix to incorporate well.

Spoon into patty cases. Try not to eat too much of the batter - it really is delicious. Bake the cakes for 20 minutes. Test the cakes are done by inserting a skewer. If it comes out clean the cakes are ready; if it doesn’t, cook for a further few minutes and test again.

Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then remove cakes from tin and place on a rack, ready for icing. 

Frosting:
40g soft butter
125g cream cheese
Zest of one lemon
1 tbslp lemon juice
3 cups sifted icing sugar

Combine all ingredients until smooth and spread or pipe on cooled cupcakes. Makes enough for 24 cupcakes, but you know you'll make these again. Keeps covered in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Oh Hai! There you are!

Hi everyone,

Apologies for the lack of communication over the past few weeks. It's been a bit manic over at Maison du Kitty. Babies (well, a rather large toddler) and varying degrees of sickness around the traps have translated into not a lot of time for Kitty and no time for blog. The time that has been left (oh, about 4 seconds a day) has been spent comfort baking (don't you just love winter?) and filling my freezer like no-one's business.

I am hoping to get back on the wagon shortly, and thank you to all those kind souls who have sent both virtual and real shout outs to check on our well being. We are all fine, just stretched. I think we all go through phases like this, and in my particular case, I had started to wonder if I had run out of things to say. But alas, no, just time in which to say them.

I also have an exciting new project that I am spending most of my free time working on. Hopefully it will debut early next year but I will keep you well informed in the interim and hopefully over the next few weeks/months I will have more exciting news on the work front to share. It's certainly something I have been thinking about for some time and finally have the courage to do. Or at least start. Keep your fingers and toes crossed for me.

More later, but in the interim, I promise to update with fun things like baking a little more frequently.

Kitty xx

Miss Kitty Bakes: pumpkin, leek and feta pie with olive oil pastry

It's been a bit of a tough fortnight in the Kitty house - we have all been laid up with colds and it has hit some (me) harder than others (Georgie and Mr K). As a result, I have really felt like food that is full of goodness and supremely tasty (to make up for my loss of tastebuds).

I first saw this recipe last week and was intrigued. The only pumpkin pies I have ever had the pleasure of eating have been sweet rather than savory. And then there's the issue of Mr K believing a meal is not a meal without meat. Despite these challenges I pressed on, convincing him to try and give it a go.

I will say, it is a bit of a time investment, but it's definitely worth the effort. The pastry is vegan (shhhhh!! Don't tell Mr K!!) containing just flour, water, olive oil and salt. Very easy to make and easy to work with. Once cooked, it is firm in texture with no butter to shorten the pastry and is more reminiscent of a bread casing than traditional pastry. The filling takes a bit more time to prepare but it's definitely delicious. The combination of the leeks, pumpkin and cheese make for a yummy flavour combination and the addition of walnuts give it a welcome crunch.

Mr K has agreed to trial one meat free day a week, so long as we keep eating vegetarian meals as good at this one. The challenge is now on! Having said that, we did have to eat steak tonight for dinner... But no matter, we start small and work from there!!

Pumpkin, leek and feta pie with olive oil pastry

(Recipe from Karen Martini on GoodFood.com.au)

Short olive-oil pastry

500g plain flour

½ tsp salt

60ml extra virgin olive oil

250ml cold water

Pie Filling

1.5kg kent (jap) pumpkin, seeded, peeled and cut in 2cm dice

Salt flakes

Freshly ground black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

Knob of butter

2 leeks, white part only, finely sliced

5 eggs

60g grana padano parmesan, grated (the original recipe called for 120g but I felt half the amount was more than sufficient)

200g feta

4 gratings nutmeg

1 tsp ground cinnamon

A handful walnuts, toasted and roughlychopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 165 degrees fan-forced, 185 degrees conventional.

2. To make the pastry, whiz the flour and salt in a food processor. Drizzle in the oil, then add 250ml of cold water while processing until a ball forms.

3. Tip onto a floured surface and knead briefly until you have a smooth ball. Rest in the fridge for an hour, wrapped in cling film.

4. Season the pumpkin with salt and pepper, toss in oil and roast until well cooked and the flesh has dried out and concentrated, about 30-40 minutes — the pumpkin should not colour too much. Leave to cool.

5. While the pumpkin cooks, melt the butter in a small pan and sweat the leeks until softened.

6. In a food processor, add half the pumpkin, four of the eggs, the parmesan, half the feta, the nutmeg and cinnamon. Puree until smooth. Season if necessary.

7. Raise oven temperature to 170 degrees fan-forced, 190 degrees conventional.

8. Grease a 30cm pie dish and line the base with baking paper. Roll out the whole round of pastry into a large even circle, allowing enough so that the edges can be folded over to form a lid (this doesn't need to cover the whole of the filling, but allow some to fold on top). Lay into the dish.

9. Pour in the pumpkin puree and distribute evenly. Press the remaining pumpkin pieces into the puree, then spread over the leeks, sprinkle over the remaining feta and scatter the walnuts on top. Pull the edges of the pastry in to form a lid, working around the pie, pleating the pastry to form a petal-like pattern, leaving a hole in the centre of the pie. Beat the remaining egg and glaze the pastry.

10. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until golden brown. Remove and leave to cool. The pie can be eaten warm or cold, but we preferred it warm, served with a rocket and cucumber salad. The pie served a very hungry man and his wife for dinner and then two subsequent lunches.

Miss Kitty Goes: Aloha Hawai'i!

We have just arrived home after a marvellous holiday in Hawai'i. It was as beautiful as you can only imagine. Warm sunny days, frangipani scented balmy evenings. Spectacular.

There were some lovely views from our balcony on Maui:

A couple of encounters with local wildlife:

Some spectacularly good umbrella drinks:

Some absolutely excellent food:

Dinner at Town restaurant, Honolulu

Lunch at Leoda's Kitchen on Maui

Pies like only Americans can do them:

Many brilliant sunsets:

A spot or two of shopping:

And one very happy baby:

All in all, a pretty excellent holiday! 

We stayed at the Honua Kai Resort on Maui and at the Hilton Hawaiian Village on Oahu. Both hotels were fab: very family friendly, great facilities, excellent views. Hawaii is also wonderful for kids - the beaches are amazing,  and the pace is nice and slow. Perfect for relaxing and enjoying yourself.

We hope to go back very soon. Well, as soon as we are up for the flight again!

Kitty x

Miss Kitty Bakes: Zucchini, pea, feta and mint fritters

Mr Kitty is in the US at the moment for work. He is a meat lover (read: carnivore) so whenever he is away - which is not often - I use the time to have a little bit of a meat detox. A state of semi-Vegetarianism, if you will.

One of the first things I saw when I woke up yesterday morning was a lovely picture on my instagram feed of Horrypop's delicious breakfast. With no bacon loving husband (although, give me some credit - bacon is basically the reason I am not Vegetarian) to cater to, I thought I would give something like this a whirl.

Making the recipe up as I went along, they ended up being a bit of a smash hit. So much so I ate them again for dinner with a lovely green salad. Delicious.

And Little G? Well, she liked them, until she encountered a pea and all bets were off. Peas are the devil's work, according to Georgie...

Miss Kitty's zucchini, pea, feta and mint fritters

2-3 medium zucchini

1/2 cup frozen peas

75g (1/2 cup) self-raising flour

70g feta, crumbled

1 spring onion, ends trimmed, thinly sliced

1 egg, whisked

¼ cup milk

¼ cup mint, shredded

Zest of half a lemon

1 tsp salt

 Freshly ground pepper

4 tsp olive oil

Trim the ends from zucchini and coarsely grate. Place in a colander and squeeze out as much excess moisture as possible. Cook peas in boiling water for 4 minutes and drain. Transfer peas and zucchini to a bowl. Stir in self-raising flour, spring onion, egg, milk, mint, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Gently fold through crumbled feta.

Heat 2 tsp olive oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Drop four 2-tablespoonful measures of zucchini mixture into pan. Cook for 1 1/2 minutes each side or until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel. Repeat with 2 tsp olive oil and remaining zucchini mixture.