Recipe Blocks

Do you have a tired neck?

2010-09-23T00:05:00.000-07:00

Here is a tip to help a stiff and tired neck. Roll up a towel and place it across your back (approx shoulder blade area). Lie down on the floor with it still across your back. Hold this position for at least 1 minute. Move the towel either up or down (find your sore bits!) and hold this position for another minute. This will give your upper back a nice stretch.

2010-09-07T17:32:00.000-07:00

SPRING GARDEN

I have Colour coded the vegies and their Harvesting times so you can pick them out more easily. I have listed the Temperate Climate below if you want to see a planting schedule for other climates please look in the back of the book or at the Autumn Garden Entry.

TIP - for frost sensitive plants try to plant them in beds under eaves the frost does not settle well there.

Happy Planting!!!

Kerrie

in a Temperate climate

In the Spring, it is time to plant:

Asparagus Harvest 24 months

Basil Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Beetroot Harvest Dec

Broccoli Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Cabbage Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Capsicum Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Carrot Harvest Jan

Celery Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Chilli Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Chives Harvest Dec

Climbing Beans Harvest Dec (sow after frost)

Coriander Harvest in Nov

Cucumber Harvest Dec

Dill Harvest Dec

Eggplant Harvest Jan in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Leeks Harvest Jan in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Lettuce Harvest from Dec

Mint Harvest Dec in seed trays then plant in 4 to 6 wks

Oregano Harvest in Nov

Parsley Harvest Dec

Peas Harvest Dec

Potatoes Harvest Feb

Pumpkin Harvest Jan (Frost Tender)

Rocket Harvest in Nov

Shallots Harvest Jan

Silverbeet Harvest Dec

Snow Peas Harvest Jan

Spring Onions Harvest Dec

Sweet Corn Harvest Jan

Zucchini Harvest in Nov

Spring is in the Air!

2010-09-05T15:41:00.000-07:00

After having a house full of guests on a bleak and wet Fathers Day, I wake today to see the sun shining. Grrr....! Spring is finally here which means I have to have a serious think about starting my summer vegie garden. It is time to use the winter vegies up and capsicum is one of my favourites. Eating vegies that are in season is a great tip to save money. Stephen and I love the "Stuffed Capsicums" recipe (page 167) and the "Sausage Pasta Bake" (pg 98) is a favourite with the kids. Happy Cooking! Clare

Goodbye Sarah

2010-06-07T21:27:00.001-07:00

Sarah has sadly left us to move onto new things and spend more time with her family. We are sorry to see her go....

2010-04-05T06:43:00.000-07:00

AUTUMN GARDEN

Autumn is the time of preparation leading into winter. The soil may need aerating, garden beds rotated, general tidy up and planning.

A word on rotating and resting garden beds

We rotate to prevent disease and to allow the soil to recover and replenish nutrients. Keep it simple, have one empty garden bed at any time so you can always have one resting. There is a natural turning round between warm and cool season vegies in Australia, which assists with this. When your garden bed has been emptied aerate the soil by using a fork and add in organic material.

A good recipe for Autumn cooking as the cold nights start is the Blue cheese, chicken and leek pie

Planting vegies from the book

Autumn Vegies for planting are:

Growing vegies is one of the most satisfying things you can do. If you have children it can be especially satisfying. You can also save a lot of money too, break off the lettuce leaves you need and let the plant continue to grow.

The Herb Garden - Autumn Planting

Thyme – you can grow this perennial herb in full sun as a ground cover or garden boarder. Thyme can be used fresh or dried.

Coriander – full sun for this herb.

Parsley – It likes full sun or partial shade, can be used dried or fresh.

Chives – They like full sun or partial shade and are great in a pot. Chives are great for those to grow who believe they kill everything; they are tough.

Mint – Great in a pot and prefers shade. Try making tea straight from some leaves!

Garlic – You can grow from cloves

Oregano – Needs to be in full sun and kept moist. Use fresh or dried.

Fit for Life!

2010-04-03T19:28:00.000-07:00

Last week I was lucky enough to be given a 4kg organicaly grown pumpkin. After roasting it in the oven (in its skin!) I turned it into the most delicious soup. It was promptly poured into my muffin trays and frozen into snack size portions. Quick to freeze, easy to heat and portion controlled. Another healthy meal idea! I love soup......bring on winter. Clare :)

Membership Prize Winner

2010-03-18T22:47:00.001-07:00

Congratualtions to Larraine Pope. Her name was randomly selected from our membership database and she has won a hamper full of goodies. Pictured is Larraine's husband Denis collecting her prize. Well done Larraine!

Manningham Cooking Demo Snaps

2010-03-17T04:50:00.000-07:00

Cooking Demonstration

2010-03-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at our cooking demonstration as part of the Healthy Lifestyle Week. The classes were held over two Saturdays and we had a fantastic attendance. Thank you to all of you who came and participated. Kerrie has some photo's to share and will download them soon.

I just wanted to pass on a couple of great tips I learnt from people who attended. The first is that Nicola potatoes have the lowest GI of all white potatoes. We all know that low GI is great for a healthy diet!

Another interesting conversation I had with someone was about kidney beans. We include them in the meat sauce of the Nacho's recipe (which was demonstrated) and she felt her children wouldn't eat them. So we agreed to both try a new way next time. Mash them up with a fork and mix them in. Hidden from sight but retain the flavour. Great advice!

Manningham Healthy Lifestyle Week 25th February 2010

2010-03-02T16:02:00.000-08:00

The Manningham Healthy Lifestyle week was launched on Thursday 25th February. It is local council initiative that involves a week long campaign of informative sessions on living a healthier lifestyle. It was launched with a Healthy Families Expo & Parenting Seminar by Dr Rick Jarman. It was a great night with plenty of tips learnt along the way.

For Recipe Blocks this event has been a great forum to present the healthy aspects of book;

low salt recipes
plenty of fresh ingredients
portion control
low fat options
promoting organic or self grown ingredients
exercise tips

Recipe Blocks is also having two Cooking Demonstrations. We had our first one last Saturday which went really well. We had over 40 people attend and the feedback was very positive. We have our next Demonstration on Saturday 6th March.

Radio Interview in Adelaide

2010-02-15T15:49:00.000-08:00

I was lucky enough to be invited onto Gabrielle Overton's talk back radio show on 5aa in Adelaide last weekend. My first time on radio so I was a little nervous! Gabrielle was very generous and gave me an entire hour to talk about Recipe Blocks and to speak to callers. A full hour to talk about how good Recipe Blocks is - I was in heaven! We plan to link the interview to our website soon so you can all have a listen.

Healthy Eating Tip

2010-02-01T19:32:00.000-08:00

I heard a great idea this morning when having coffee with a friend. Tired of throwing out fruit close to its use by date she now uses her silicon muffin trays to freeze the fruit. She says it works a treat for strawberries, mangoes, what ever you have. Great for the summer fruits now in season. The blocks of frozen fruit are great to use in smoothies, home made ice cream or simply on their own for dessert. Minimise waste and save money!

First Prize winner!

2010-01-20T03:50:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Our First Prize winner was Fiona Milner of QLD! Congratulations.

Fiona had this to say about about her experience of making Recipe Blocks...

"Recipe

blocks really works for me because my daughter normally turns her nose up at vegies and red meat and recipe blocks includes such a variety of options that there is always something that will tempt her. She also really likes the texture of the meals which is something I have struggled with when feeding her red meat."

Thanks to SMASH for providing this fantastic cooler lunch box.

Stay tuned for more to come.

Kerrie

Xmas Time!

2009-12-23T13:38:00.000-08:00

We had our final meeting with Guy our business mentor today. We found him from the Small Business Mentoring Service in Vermont and he has been a great support to Mums on a Mission.

Merry Christmas to you all. Have a safe and happy holidays and see you all in 2010.

Clare and Kerrie xx

My sisters Baby Shower

2009-12-04T19:05:00.000-08:00

My sister Viv is 8 months pregnant and yesterday I attended her baby shower. I was able to give her the perfect gift - a freezer full of pre made (with love!) Recipe Blocks. With 3 children under the age of 5 she is going to need all the help she can get!!

28/7/09 The Books Arrive!!!

2009-11-10T19:29:00.000-08:00

Well this our big moment...the books being delivered from Black Rainbow Printing, It was hard to believe that the day had finally come. This was the first time we had seen the finished product. It was great!!

Stephen unloading the van

Sarah in the foreground Clare and Rory at the back packing

Rory looking after my little Clare

Antonio Market 29/10/09

2009-11-10T19:12:00.001-08:00

Checking out the market scene. We have had a bit of fun going to a couple of school markets, they're great but the trick is not to go looking at all the other stands before the market kicks off. I love them and they really have some things to buy - I always need a friend to stick close by.

Our display

Me ready to talk blocks!!

Little Ella helping out at the market cute huh

Speak soon Kerrie

Demonstration Tudor Village 13/8/09

2009-11-10T19:06:00.000-08:00

On the 13/8/09 we had a fun doing a demo at Tudor Village in Lilydale, here are some photos of Clare and Sarah in action. It was a great turn out and a go start to the fundraising campagne.

Clare and Sarah working magic in the kitchen

Chicken Leek and Potato Pie ...yum

2009-10-30T05:44:00.001-07:00

Hi all, my first time blogging so I feel a bit nervous as I am a talkative extravert, comfortable with the face to face so this is a new experience – so here I go…Our launch was great, we had so much support from family, frie

nds and sponsors:BAREFOOT Magazine, GLAD, live it homewares, Organic Empire and SPC.

People really enjoyed themselves, as I did once the

speeches were over. The venue was great, we were able to have children with us without missing out on space comfortable for adults. We self catered too we really wanted to have great food and drinks. I’m still eating cheesecake, it took a while to hit the right recipes and size, with that I made twice as many as we needed.

Rachel Watts one of the editors from BAREFOOT magazine, (www.barefootmagazine.com.au) launched our book. Rachel spoke beautifully weaving in the importance of preparing food thoughtfully and with love. She highlighted how difficult it can be to do this when we all lead such busy lives.

It was great to see others getting excited about the book, it is a little anxiety provoking self publishing so it really affirming. My 90 year old Great Aunty ‘Flossie’ bought nine! She gave them to all her grand children and daughter.

It was also good to be able to thank people publicly. Clare and I may have written the book but for me without Stephen Pope, my parents, Rachel Watts and my long suffering friends I need to reintroduce myself too this would have happened. Most importantly Clare my dear friend and Sarah who joined us and generously shared the benefit of her skills.

Well enough for now, below are some photos of the launch, hope you enjoy them, thanks to Joseph for taking the time to help us capture our launch, the photos are great!

Kerrie

Rachel Watts launching Recipe Blocks

Rachel and Anna Editors from Barefoot Magazine

Christine from Love to Cambodia

Wendy from Love to Cambodia and Nurses Heart

Aunty Flossie
The kids having fun in the play area

Setting up for the main event

Yummy food

Authors having a moment

Clare saying her bit

Sarah, MS too!

Book sales!!
More food and drinks

Having fun

Stroller parking

Urban Life, a great place for an event!

Exciting news

2009-10-28T14:51:00.000-07:00

We have just had some exciting news. Mums on a Mission has been selected to speak at a forum as part of the Business Mums Network. We have 20 minutes to show case our business at their public speaking forum. The event is on Wednesday Novemember 18th, 12.30pm start at the Lillydale Lake Community Room. Costs $10 and all are welcome!

THE STORY SO FAR......

2009-10-07T16:16:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the heart & soul of Recipe Blocks. This is a story about two best friends who had a dream and actually did something about it...Mums on a Mission. This is the reason I got involved and the reason I continue to believe in Recipe Blocks.

We are having our official Launch this Saturday (10th October 2009) at the Urban Life Cafe, so I am flat chat getting everything organised. Next week, I will take you on the journey so far.....

Take Care, Sarah