Taaaaddddaaaaaaa..........Yep he's back!

After an enforced absence mainly due to study, marriage, workload (yep got a job) and general tardiness I thought I had better make an appearance on this most helpful of forums.

Can I just say in my defence that whilst I haven't been posting I have been a prolific 'lurker'. I still find this forum a source of huge direction, help and more often than not inspiration as to "what are we doing for dinner tonight"

Well, where to start?

The wife and I have managed to see out our first year of wedded bliss, no seriously it has been FANTASTIC. I really am the 'lucky one'. She is quite literally the best thing to have happened to me  . Neither of us can believe that our first year has come and gone with such speed. I guess it is very true that "Time waits for no man" or should that be person in this PC world? Either way you get the point.

We have been lucky in so far as I have managed to get employment in my chosen new career - no it isn't as well paid as what I could earn if I chose to don a suit and return to the city but then I wouldn't be able to play in helicopters in the most amazing part of SE Queensland - STUNNING part of the world! All said and done, we aren't doing it so tough if honest. We have a great place in a really convenient and central part of Brissy (next to the Storey Bridge) and we have a Thermomix so all things considered.....WINNING!

We have had multiple visits from friends and family. I am convinced that they come up for the weather and the great meals that the wife and I concoct from the TMX / BBQ or a combination of both - well, there are always empty plates and practically nothing left over for me to take to work the next day so it can't be that bad........right? In fact, we have been visited most recently by both sides of the family. Mine have literally just returned to the UK and we were lucky enough to have MiL up at the same time. I am incredibly lucky as I actually get on with and indeed like my MiL (rather fond of actually!!!) and it would appear as though she doesn't mind me either (pheeeewwww!!) We had a fantastic Anzac weekend whereby I managed to drag the entire tribe out to dawn service ahead of me marching through the city. I have to say you guys and girls (Aussies) certainly do Anzac day very (VERY!!!!!) well. I must admit I think it gets a better attendance / turn out than Remembrance Day (not easy for me to admit!  ).

Anyway, I digress. I guess I should post pictures like I promised.....all that time ago.

For those interested, we were incredibly fortunate in so far as MiL has a house on the NSW S Coast and we got married there. When I say it is on the beach I do mean it is on the beach......with the exception of some grass, a few trees and the obligatory sand there is NOTHING else. Very Very lucky indeed (for us).

Hope you are all well and apologies again for being so absent!

TTFN

RC (and Mrs)

Hey everyone,

As some of you have already read the first 24hrs in 'The Land Down Under' were nothing but eventful for RC and his well travelled Thermie friend. I am normally an unflappable sort of chap (IMHO) however a non working Thermie at the point of unpacking had me in a bit of a tailspin. MrsRC2B hadn't even used the kitchen tool of awesomeness and it was looking like she might have to wait a little bit longer until she too had that moment of 'culinary clarity' that is seemingly still reserved for the knowledgable minority (Thermie owners!). As I mentioned in my closing comments on my Thermie distress call post the team here in Brisbane are nothing short of fantastic. The end result was a working Thermie, not just working but working without a plug adapter - this was good news as it meant that MrsRC2B could begin her transition from Baking genius to Thermie Goddess! And so the events of the weekend unfolded thus;

Friday night.

After a day in the office MrsRC2B was keen to get stuck into the Thermie and its culinary capabilities. It is interesting to see the differences in recipes that we are naturally drawn to. MrsRC2B is more inclined to seek out breads and deserts whereas I am more of a savoury person so between to pair of us we can pretty much do 4 courses in an evening......hhhmmm I can see a few more trips to the gym at this rate. As I have already mentioned, portion control isn't a strong suit of mine especially as I was brought up on the notion of 'eat all your dinner otherwise you are getting it for breakfast!' 
Most of the evening was spent flicking through the Australian EDC and Quirky Cooking. We both liked QC as we have a certain member of the family that can be challenging to cook for so this looks like a great book for the 'caring but blasé' approach along the lines of.....'Oh it was nothing honestly as we cook this sort of thing all the time', knowing damn well that the person in question will absolutely enjoy the offering!

Saturday Afternoon.

After walking around the Food and Wine expo in Brissy we came home to get stuck in. MrsRC2B was literally itching to get her sticky mitts on Thermie. The recipe of indoctrination was none other than the Sausage Buns as there was a pastry / dough element that naturally caught my Fiancées eye and we just so happened to have some sausages that needed using up. Naturally I HAD to use the BBQ that has been dormant since I packed it up when flying back to the UK in July. Winner all round I would say. 
Completely unperturbed and with the minimum of explanation MrsRC2B 'cracked on', pulling out the necessary ingredients and even went as far as getting the weighing scales out, Oh the innocence of it!  After a brief 'show and tell' of the scales function she was once again twisting, pressing, ooooooohhhhing and aaaahhhhhing as Thermie walked its way around the kitchen top doing its doughball shuffle! 2.5mins of kneading later and MrsRC2B is dubiously yet pleasantly surprised at the mass of perfectly kneaded sticky dough that is now plopped into the awaiting oiled mixing bowl already prepared for proving.
The dough was fantastic in its behaviour, it did exactly as it was supposed to do......it quietly got on with its proving and doubling in size. I am sure that the Brisbane climate had something to do with it, I am however more certain that the Brisbane climate is something that I am going to have to 'learn' to get used to........between the high 20's temperature and the jet lag I was considerably less active than the dough!
First proving complete and the cooked and cooled sausages awaiting it was on to phase two. MrsRC2B was in her element dividing up the dough and then kneading and doing the necessary for the second proving ahead of rolling out the divided 'buns'. I must confess that I was completely oblivious to the efforts involved with great sausages rolls. All this waiting for dough to prove etc. I guess that is why I waited to attempt anything 'bread like', well other than the banana loafs that I made but I guess they don't count.
After the proving had finished for the second time we had 8 softball sized bun shapes that were ready for rolling out and wrapping around the awaiting sausages. It was at this point that we were both convinced we had either too much dough or not enough sausages........quick thinking was required to ensure we wasted nothing. We both came to incredibly similar solutions almost immediately. Use the remainder of the dough for a 'pull apart'. Decision made, complete the sausage buns first so that they could have their final proving ahead of cooking and then we would use the remainder of the dough to make a miniature veggie mite (still have my reservations about this when compared to its Northern Hemisphere cousin!) and cheese pull apart. MrsRC2B was clearly in her element as she was spreading and sprinkling and wrapping and packing whilst I was flagging on the sofa and complaining about how long it was taking to get a sausage roll...... 

Well, I can say that the final products were absolutely worth waiting for. I was going to put up a couple of pictures of MrsRC2Bs perfectly formed buns after proving, but thought that I might get the wrong sort of reaction from the forum moderators so I have opted for the safe option and posted pictures of the pre and post cooking sausage buns and a quick pic of the pull apart. I know that its not exactly rocket science but I can assure you that the veggie mite and cheese mixture 'rocks!'.

I will post later about the efforts of sunday, needless to say that Thermie was busy busy busy and it would appear as though MrsRC2B is absolutely a convert of this culinary tool of brilliance.

Please excuse the poor pictures but I was trying to compress them so that I could get all 4 up.

TTFN everyone

RC

Copying over from the Introduction thread - if you try it, I hope you enjoy it.

Red lentil, butternut and coconut curry.

Serves 4.

1tbsp vegetable oil (I used rapeseed)
2 onions (I used red onions)
2 green chillies (ermmm I used green ones)
100g fresh root ginger
coriander
200g baby leaf greens
1tbsp mild curry powder (I had to use medium as that was all we had)
150g split red lentils
500ml coconut water
250ml water
500g butternut squash

First off I should point out that this recipe is NOT mine, but one that I took from the September issue of Waitrose Kitchen magazine (I hope this doesn't cause any issues! Apologies in advance if it does).

The above ingredients were introduced into the TMX in the following fashion / way. (I have tried to emulate the writing style of other helpful recipes on here and clearly this is what transpired for me. Those in the know, more experience will probably adapt accordingly, specifically chopping times and speeds! 

1) Onions, Chillies, Ginger in the TMX Speed 7, 10 seconds - OMG.........what have I done? There is just his colourful finely chopped but oh so fragrant mess all up the sides of the mixing bowl. I think less speed and time will probably suffice next time.

2) Oil into the mixer (clearly after scraping down the sides to ensure it actually sautés 'something') - 6mins, reverse 3, 100deg.

3) Coriander, curry powder (see the note above about the 'heat' of the powder. I used medium and it turned out just fine but I like hot food - suggestion is adjust to personal taste.) 3mins reverse speed 3 100deg.

4) Add the coconut water, water, lentils and the butterfly attachment. 30mins, reverse 2, 80degs (measuring cup removed but basket to prevent any splatters). Again, this duration and heat will be dependant upon how you all like your lentils. I personally prefer a little bite to mine and not a stodgy mess. Its up to you  Grin

5) Add the butternut squash (carefully to avoid hot splash back)12mins, reverse 2, 80degs - See the above note about personal preference.

6) Right at the end, add the light greens (spinach) 2mins, reverse 2, 100deg.

nb - There are clearly a couple of things that you can do to amend this to your choice etc. I am thinking of using a hotter chilli the next time we make it and using less powder but that is just me. If you like a creamier texture then I would use some coconut milk in addition to the coconut water or one could always add a touch of cream, creme fraiche etc it is totally up to the individual.


TTFN

RC