Scrappie

Are you a foodie? I'm a scrappie.

[somethingsomething28]

3. Rocket and feta salad with Vegemite naan

Ingredients:

I really wish I had taken a photo of these ingredients in their raw states to illustrate how scrappy they were but because it’s too late, I simply can’t.

Rocket

Cherry tomatoes (do not use the ones that are wet on the outside)

Half an avocado (cut off the brown outer ring where the avocado has been cut already until it becomes the familiar nutty green colour)

Feta

Naan (frozen again)

Butter

Vegemite

Left over shell pasta in tomato sauce (heat up in microwave oven if you have one)

Imagination

For me, each day is a day where I can be grateful for the beautiful country where I live and eat my scrappie tucker. I’m not sure how I feel about Australia day because it means so many things to so many people, and I just hope that one day we will all be able to share a loving scrap with one another.

I share with you my Aussie scrappie exclusive. What makes it especially Australian is so many things, which I summarise below:

It has Vegemite in it which puts a rose in every cheek and helps us all to be happy little Vegemites.

It is beautiful and diverse. Maybe even a little bit enticingly dangerous, just like our local flora, fauna, and the scapes of our great southern land.

It is nourishing for my soul and I feel proud to share it with others.

What I did to make this high koala-ty two courses was put the pasta in a shallow bowl and then put all of the ingredients on top of it, doing the feta bit last for a cheesy, salty kick, and decoration. I then combined the naan, butter and Vegemite in a welcoming, multicultural way because it works well.

I rate this meal 10 crumbs. I feel like this meal is very special because I can just hear each ingredient saying to the other, We are one. But we are many. And from all the lands on earth we come. We’ll share a dream. And sing with one voice. I am, you are, we are Australian.

See you round like a rissole XO

[somethingsomething28]

Scrappie tips for the festive season

We wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year! Is what I would be saying, if it were still that time of year.

I was meant to publish some festive season tips to help you out before the mad cooking rush of the holidays. Since I didn’t, I am posting it now in advance of the next big event in the calendar, Valentines day.

With the romance to kick off in only a months’ time, are you feeling a little stumped on what you might cook for a loved one? A potential, future loved one? Or even yourself perhaps? GOOD. You should love yourself.

Stress less. I share with you below some really great scrappie tips that will be sure to cast a love spell over your dining compadres. You may find them a little … saucy.

Use sauce on most things In this era where we are constantly caught up in the rat race of life, always on the lookout for greater efficiency gains, sauce is a really quick and easy way to make things taste … how do you say … vraiment très délicieux, with minimal fuss, and the best part is that you can usually find them in most kitchen pantries. Sauce is a bit of a personal choice so it’s always good to stick to the classics for the entry level scrappie. These include thangs like tomato sauce, BBQ sauce, sweet chilli sauce (a personal non-fave, yuck), HP sauce, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and so forth. I like to use sauce liberally, but again, you should always use a mix of your instinct and professional judgement when you have the bottle in hand. Remember, a good host always keeps their company in mind, so maybe even leave some on the side and make a casual offer of “Would you like any sauce on that?”  *!*!* Bonus tip *!*!* Sometimes, pubs and other restaurants leave little single serve sauce sachets on the table. Help yourself, and why not put some in your bag or pockets for next time?

Why not try other condiments? Once you are comfortable with basic sauce, don’t lose any momentum and try out other condiments immediately. Depending on your kitchen you are likely to find some mustard(s), mayonnaise, various chutney(ies), tobasco, and if you are lucky, Sriracha and Wasabi. The latter three condies listed above are sure to get things hot and heated around the table and if things go well, maybe even get you a second date. OHH LA LA!!

Order in Sometimes, in most cases, getting someone else to make your food for you is 100% a good decision. Here is a favourite little shortcut for a variety of eateries who offer a delivery service around Sydney. I usually search through all of these and then just walk down the road to the Chinese on the corner. There is no stress, worry or pressure with anything, AND do you know what the best part is? Take away leftovers make the perfect day after scrap! So with the hour you have just gained back by delegating the cooking duties, take your time to work on the ambiance. Light candles, put out some potpourri, et cetera. 

Let us close with a prayer for Saint Valentine: Cupid, draw back your bow, and let your scrappies flow. Straight to my lovers heart for me. Nobody but me.

Now go sauce and be merry XO

[somethingsomething28]

2. Quorn chicken fillet on naan

Ingredients

Naan bread

Lettuce or other leaf

Quorn* chicken fillet

Mustard

Na, na na na naa, na na na naa, na na naa, na na naa, na na na naan.

You would never guess, but this meal actually took about half an hour to make because the quorn fillet and naan bread were both frozen and I had to use the grill to cook them.

Freezing stuff is a very handy technique for preserving scraps. What I did first, was put the quorn fillet in the grill for about 8 minutes. Then I turned it over for an even cook-through for another 8 minutes. When I had about 4 minutes left on the clock, I put in the naan as it would take a less amount to time to cook. For a balanced meal, I added some lettuce and topped it off with some hot English mustard.

I rate this meal 7 crumbs. The taste was good, and who doesn't enjoy using a frozen naan for a sandwich, but it just took a bit longer to make than I would have liked. 

Party tip: Pressed for time when you're keen to impress a guest? Try adding a glass of wine to give that extra little something to your meal. It only takes 10 seconds!

See you spoon! XO

*Quorn is a brand of food that makes decent meat substitutes in a variety of formats.

[somethingsomething28]

1. Broccoli and mushroom

Ingredients:

Some left-over broccoli

Some button mushrooms (at least one day overdue)

Today, I only had some broccoli and old mushrooms in the fridge so I had to get ultra creative with them. As you can see from the picture, I had to have two separate hot plates going at once, really challenging my ability to multi-task as both head and sous chef at the same time. I had one hot plate on full ball to boil the broccoli, and another to pan fry the mushrooms.

Lucky for me, broccoli is very healthy, just packed full of nutrients, and is good for a variety of health reasons. And a double strike of lucky for me, there are many healthy benefits to eating mushrooms also. Think the luck stops there? Think again, I love both broccoli and mushrooms, so this meal was actually a real gourmet treat for me.

I rate this meal 6 crumbs. Although I was completely full up upon finishing it, the food went cold by the end and I was really glad the meal was over when I finished eating it. 

Tip for next time: I will try adding some salt and pepper to taste.

See you plater X

[somethingsomething28]

Scraps are good, too.

Why, hello there. And welcome to the first entry of my even firster blog.

As my attention continues to be directed (voluntarily or otherwise) at images of lovely plates with fancy victuals atop throughout the feeds of social media, I made the decision to create a blog dedicated to my meals, most of which are:

scraps.

Deliciously scrappie, if I may.

#Foodporn? 

F.O.

While I admire those who are gifted with the virtues of patience, creativity and the ability to handle the heat in the kitchen, my personal experiences in the kitch have forced me to confront the inadequacies of my culinary skills, in gastronomic proportions, and accept that any meal I prepare will be considered by most to be ugly. Not right to serve on a plate, and in some occasions, unfit for human consumption.

Recent blood tests confirm my status of good health across all dimensions of blood count, sugar levels, iron levels, protein and cholesterol. These test results suggest that my scrappie diet adequately nourishes my adult body, and for those who are familiar with my active lifestyle, I receive your gasps with eager anticipation as you begin to wonder how a scrappie diet such as mine can enable and sustain a lifestyle as demanding as any Grandmother Bucket.

For my audience, I hope that my blog is met with your flavour, I mean favour, and I hope that I can in some small way inspire you all to pick up a scrap and enjoy it for what it isn’t.

But what is a scrap?, you may ask. They are simply a few things:

1. A result of my grocery no buy 2. A result of my lack of cook good 3. Good enough

Get your napkins on

Let us now embark on a journey together, and enjoy the humble scrap which like most things in life, could be better, could be worse, but it will do.

Namaste.

It is now 7 January 2015, approximately fourteen months since the inception of this blog. During these months fourteen, I have discovered that I do not confine my scrappie approach to just cooking. It is in fact a methodology, a wider framework for my everyday lifestyle.

In the fourteen months past, I have posted a total of zero blog entries so I attempt for a second time, the launch of my blog Scrappies.

Understand that due to the lapse in time, many entries will be written retrospectively as I recollect memos, photos and memories of my scrappie meals. And for this I beg your pardon, dear reader, for inconsistencies and misalignment betwixt my meals with euclidean space and time. But who believes in that stuff anyway? Once again, welcome and bon appetit X