Sausage Plait for the Whole Family

The sausage plait; grown up big brother to the sausage roll, ideal for changeable summers like these; equally at home served hot with vegetables or cold with a salad or in a lunch box.  The ultimate "what on earth is the weather doing?" food.

The good thing about this recipe is it has some sneaky hidden vegetables too which are not only your fussy child insurance policy but also helps make the recipe more thrifty.

I used the herbs which are growing in my garden and so far not completely destroyed by slugs.  Just use what you have or fancy.

Goats Cheese and Walnut Salad for Grown Ups

This is only for adults or at least kids old enough to eat whole nuts.  I make no apology for making a recipe which is not suitable for preschoolers as this is a genuine start to end 10 minute dish.

When you've just had a bath meltdown, a reading meltdown, a bed meltdown, sometimes you want to cook something quick for the adults.  It's great to have a healthy recipe up your sleeve as it's easy for quick = trash when you're a busy mum.

I've been making this recipe for maybe six years but until today it had not occurred to me to blog it.

Tempura for the whole family

Ok, I have to 'fess up, I've not tried my son with this yet but I have absolutely no doubt that he will LOVE tempura.  He loves spice, his favourite foods are prawns and mushrooms.  What's not to like?

That said, this isn't the healthiest, it is deep fried but most kids do need calories so that's not necessarily a disaster.  It can also be a great way to get reluctant vegetable eaters to give them a go.  You don't have to go with the dips I've suggested, perhaps if your kids aren't into all that spice you could mix some sweet chilli sauce with ketchup?

Anyway, here is the recipe.  A word of warning, make this when you have another responsible adult in the house.  This is absolutely not the thing to make with a toddler clinging onto your ankles!  Frying can be very dangerous.  Never leave it unattended.

Wish me luck!

Today is the awards ceremony for the Brilliance in Blogging awards and I am a finalist in the "Tasty" category.  I'm nervous, excited, thrilled, terrified!  Despite appearances having been in two local newspapers and on a BBC radio station in the last couple of weeks, I am incredibly shy but being passionate about what I do, I have taken the plunge moved out of my comfort zone and gone for it.  I never thought my little blog and recipes would be so successful!

Mussel and Broccoli Pasta for Toddlers and Adults

I'm imagining at the title of this recipe a lot of parents getting weirded out.  I am perfectly serious.  This is a toddler friendly mussel recipe.

I'd been mulling over cooking mussels for my son for a while, after all, they fit into what I consider to be a good food to eat; delicious, cheap, easy, quick and full of lovely stuff.

Meatballs for babies, toddlers and adults

Meatballs are a fantastic kids food and a great way to hide some vegetables for the reluctant vegetable eater.  There's no getting away from mess with meatballs, especially with babies but they are great finger foods if you're feeling brave!

The observant will notice I've posted a meatball recipe before but I've improved the flavour, changed it and made it easier.  The old one was a labour of love taking about 3 hours from start to finish (including making the sauce) but this is easier, nearer an hours commitment and requires no blender to make which is great considering my blender has gone to silicon heaven.  What with no decent camera this week either I'm not doing well on the electrical front!

Herb Crusted Salmon for Toddlers and Adults

I was thinking when shopping today how people would happily feed a toddler fish fingers but would consider this kind of dish to be too 'adult' for them.  Apart from the herbs, what's the difference?  The joy with this is not only is it really easy to make but also it's freshly made and free from anything artificial.

Sugar Free Carrot, Sultana and Apple Cake for Babies and Toddlers

This is my first attempt at a sugar free 'large' round cake.  Generally I have stuck to smaller cakes, easier to freeze and reheat etc.  There was something which made me want to give it a go and to be honest I pretty much made this up as I went along.  The results though were pretty good if I say so myself.  Much lighter than a carrot cake and although it is missing out on some of that fabulous flavour you get from good unrefined sugar; it's a different result but no worse for it, light and fruity and most importantly a hit with my son.

Thank you kind readers!

Well it's 9 days away from the Britmums Brilliance in Blogging (BiBs) finals.  Ooh I'm nervous but so excited.  I mean, how cool is this?

This last week has been a roller coaster.  I've been featured in my local newspaper and on the radio about making the final of the BiBs.  There's another article on a local newspaper website which will be in the paper tomorrow.  My blog has been circulated around a few different food companies with positive feedback.  What a crazy life I'm leading right now!  I've never been in so much demand!

The first newspaper photo.  As a friend said "I see you went for the 'Oh hi!  I'm just baking these, why don't you try one?' look."  Nice to see my friends are keeping me grounded!  

Little Gold Men! (Or cheese biscuits) for babies, toddlers and adults

Well it's now less than two weeks away from the BiB (Brilliance in Blogging) finals and yay, yay, yay, I've found a way that I can attend!  I'm so excited!  Obviously if I win it will be 100 times better to collect the trophy in person (and yes, there is a trophy!  How exciting is that?)  The best thing is I've found my passion in life with my blog which is the best prize of all.

So in honour of making it this far, and so I'm not going to be too disappointed if I don't get a little golden man for my kitchen, here is a recipe for lots of tasty, cheesy golden men!

Sugar Free Fruity Jellies for the whole family

I refuse to believe that summer will not arrive.  In the meantime, I'm sticking my head in the sand and cooking summery foods with the hope I will soon feel more positive about the whole thing.

Before I had my son, I occasionally used to make a jelly recipe with prosecco and fruit.  Obviously the wine is off the menu for him but it got me thinking, why not make something similar with fruit juice?  A word of warning.  My son initially thought this was very odd.  In fact, his response was very similar to Gareth from the office.

Anyway, once he'd got past being freaked out by the fact there were THINGS in his jelly and that NORMALLY DOESN'T HAPPEN!  He then tasted it.  Before we knew it, the jelly was all gone.

Stick to your ribs chicken soup for babies, toddlers and adults

Why is it I keep wanting soup?  It's June!  Maybe it's the dreary weather.  Well this soup will warm the cockles and cheer up the drizzliest of days.

Well things could not be any less dreary in the Mamacook household!  Not only have I recently been in my local paper but I was on our local radio station today talking about the Britmums Brilliance in Blogging awards!  The lovely Holly Bell (who you may know from the Great British Bake Off or her blog recipes from a normal mum) interviewed me about my blog and made the whole, frankly terrifying experience a lot less stressful.

Anyway, back to normality and the recipe!

Bombay potatoes for the Whole Family

I came up with this as the oven was on, I was thinking about what to cook us for lunch, didn't feel like a sandwich and this popped into my head.

I probably would have added a little mango chutney if there had been any in the cupboard.  It was good, I'm not totally convinced of the wisdom of eating carbs with carbs, feel like a snooze now but that's no bad thing as my son has a sleep after lunch.

Sugar Free Very Berry Tarts for Toddlers and the Whole Family

Regular readers will know that I have been nominated for a Britmums Brilliance in Blogging award and I have made the final.  Yesterday a local paper contacted me to do a story about it.  It feels strange and humbling to think how far my blog has come.  A friend of mine said to me once that you should do what you're passionate about with passion and it will be successful.  This is just my hobby, I do it for the love of it and the love of cooking.  It feels amazing to be recognised in this way so thank you everyone who reads and I hope I continue to come up with ideas you like to make and thank you Britmums.

I came up with the idea for these tarts while trying to think of something visually impressive but not loaded with sugar.  Although I am a little more lenient than I used to be, there's no need to fill up kids with sugar and artificial colourings, they don't need it and if proper food looks good, why would they want it?

These tarts are easy to make, no added refined sugars and would be great as part of a party menu.