So back into it today. Time to restock.
Chilli Con Carne, a staple in our house as it pads out cheap mince with kidney beans, has been made and frozen. Pizza bases are next on the to do list. With the breadmaker of course. Then if time permits some wraps and pita pockets will also be made and frozen.
I did manage some cinnamon scrolls last weekend. A couple for a lazy Sunday with the paper and a coffee (home made of course) and the rest are frozen. I freeze them before their second rise. Then it's just a matter of taking them out Sat night and leaving them on the bench to defrost and rise. Sunday morning they just go straight in the oven.
Hummus will also be quickly whipped up. It doesn't have a long shelf life but with two active kids it's a great snack with some carrot sticks. I also make a lamb pita pocket with it.
We've had a crack at home made curries over the winter using spice packs from the supermarket. You provide all ingredients and follow the recipe on the pack adding spices as instructed. It's not the cheapest of dinners but compared to bought curry it is much cheaper, plus you get more, plus it tastes as good as the best takeaway curry I've ever had (thank you Sigdi in Devonport) and you can control the fat content by adding slimmers yoghurt or lite cream. Of course it also makes a small bit of meat stretch much further.
The last few weekends in Auckland have been typical for early spring. 2 days of rain after 5 working days of sun. Not too much of an issue so far as I like to plant seedlings rather than seeds. So I have a few more weeks before the capsicum and zucchini need to go in. I should be planting out broad beans and peas now (they're already late) but that requires breaking more soil and I have not been up to that lately. I'll also plant carrots and parsnip from seeds next weekend and some kale (seedlings) and maybe some broccoli. The garlic and onions are still growing happily in their little garden. The red onions have started to get red at the base of their stalks which is very exciting :)
Christmas is fast approaching. Not sure how we're going to approach that this year. I would do home made if I was at all talented but I think a better approach is to make a list and work out a budget. Sadly my old present list was in my old phone which met its end earlier this year thanks to husband and an errant cup of tea.
