Author: Meatballs and Muffins
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Roasted Cauliflower Soup
When I walk into my greengrocer during the cold winter months, and see heads of beautiful bright white cauliflower encased in tender green leaves on the shelf, I get the undeniable urge to make a pot of silky Roasted Cauliflower Soup. Roasting the cauliflower transforms it from a delicate, mild to a more robust earthy…
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Baked Seafood in a Spiced Sauce
This dish reminds me of summer; warm, colourful and fragrant, which is exactly what I need to get through the bleak months of winter. The spices add such a delicious depth of flavour to this dish, that your mouth will water even while its baking, let alone when you serve it up! Add a crisp…
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Polenta and Mushroom Bites
I made these Polenta and Mushroom Bites as a pre-dinner snack last Sunday using some beautiful pine mushrooms I found at my green grocer. Pine mushrooms are very delicious, but hard to get and, at $24kg, I almost had to mortgage my house to buy them. I must say though, they were worth every dollar!…
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Breakfast Egg Cups
Do you love eggs and bacon for breakfast, but don’t like the idea of having to slave over a hot frypan to make them? I guess you could go out to a cafe to eat them, but that means having to get out of your PJs and who wants to do that early on a…
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Corn Fritters with Spicy Salsa
Are you looking for a quick and versatile healthy snack that your children will love and your guests will enjoy with pre-dinner drinks? How about these Corn Fritters?Served on their own, these fluffy, cheesy Corn Fritters make a great snack that kids will love. I know because, like most toddlers, my little grandson is a fussy…
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Maria’s Yemista
A while back, I posted my recipe for my GREEK YEMISTA (or stuffed capsicums & tomatoes) which is a delicious vegetarian dish with fresh fragrant herbs, pinenuts and tiny sweet currents. Now I have another version to share with you. This is one my mum used to make that I loved as a child. Yemista was a…
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Cacao Hazelnut Bliss Balls
Just when you thought I’m done sharing flavour combinations for bliss balls…SURPRISE… I have a new one for you – Cacao & Hazelnuts – and they are heavenly!These Cacao Hazelnut Bliss Balls are so delicious that you’ll not want to share them but, I must warn you, they are a little bit naughty because they have Nutella…
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Sweet Potato & Quinoa Cups
What’s not to love about these Sweet Potato and Quinoa Cups! They are sweet and savoury, soft and crispy, all at the same time. The flavour and texture combination makes these savoury cups very delicious and the ingredients make them a really healthy snack, hot or cold 🙂 I especially love the creamy tangy flavour of …
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Seeds & Sesame Crackers
One on my favourite ways to spend time with family and friends is to have a glass of wine with dips, cheese and crackers and these seeded crackers are a real ‘cracker‘, pardon the pun! I came up with these deliciously healthy crackers one day when I needed some GF crackers for Sunday family dinner.…
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What’s better than baking ‘koulourakia’ for Greek Easter?
It’s definitely baking koulourakia with my grandson P! There is nothing that gives me more joy in my life than spending time with my family and, in particular, spending every Thursday looking after my grandson P. Yesterday was no exception and it was so much fun! Watching P rolling the dough with such a determined look…
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Greek Lentil Soup
With winter on the way, I can’t help but think about delicious warm soups and Greek lentil soup, or fakes, (pronounced far-kes) is the quintessential Greek winter soup. It’s hearty, delicious, and very nutritious! This is no ordinary soup! Eating fakes on a cold winter’s day, is like wrapping yourself with a cosy warm blanket.…
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Cabbage & Potato Bake
Cabbage and Potato Bake would have to be my family’s favourite vegetable dish. It’s a dish they wouldn’t get sick of, even if I made it every week for Sunday dinner! This cabbage and potato bake is one of those comfort foods that people crave for on a dreary cold winter’s day, because eating it makes…
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Velvety Chocolate Mouse
Chocolate Mousse is one of the very first desserts I ever made using a recipe from my Women’s Weekly Recipe Card Collection – OMG, am I really that old! If you were born after the 1970’s, then you probably have no idea about what I am taking about, but let me tell you, back then, the…
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Choc Dipped Oat Cookies
Do you like Anzac Cookies, but wish they were a little more exciting? Well I do, so I decided to try jooshing them up a little and came up with these Choc Dipped Oat Cookies? These Choc Dipped Oat Cookies are my “naughty but nice” version of the Anzac Cookies. If you’re thinking you shouldn’t have…
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Raspberry Ripple & Coconut Cheesecake
Picture this…creamy, smooth, light cheesecake, rippled with delicious sweet raspberries and topped with crispy coconut flakes toasted to perfection, sitting on a coconut biscuit base. Doesn’t that sound sensational? Wouldn’t you love to have a piece? Well then…here it is! My Raspberry Ripple & Coconut Cheesecake!I will confess that even I found it difficult to resist…
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Sugar Challenge Week 6 – Chocolate Cookies
Six weeks ago I decided to challenge myself to replace highly processed, refined sugar with healthier alternatives in everything I cook. Now that I’ve come to the end of my 6 week commitment, I wanted to share with you what I have learned along the way and leave you with a final delicious (refined sugar…
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Kakavia (Greek Fisherman’s Soup)
It’s been a long time since I last cooked Kakavia, or Greek Fishermans Soup, and a recent dinner with a beautiful family who are in our circle of closest friends, reminded me how delicious this soup is so I wanted to share it with you, but we’ll get to the recipe later. Although the soup we…
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Healthier Anzac Cookies
With Anzac Day around the corner, I thought I’d share my healthier version of Anzac Cookies. Anzac cookies have long been associated with the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) established in World War I. These biscuits were sent by wives and women’s groups to soldiers fighting overseas because the ingredients last and the biscuits kept well…
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What goes great with falafel? Tabbouleh of course!
Since I posted my FALFEL recipe, I’ve been looking for a great tabbouleh recipe to make for our Sunday family dinner, but found most I came across used bulgar wheat. Now, if you follow my blog, you will probably know that Sunday dinner at our place is usually a gluten free meal and, if you’re…
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Cacao Chip Cookies – the healthier option
Who doesn’t love choc chip cookies – right? The delicious little chunks of sweet chocolate embedded in the soft buttery cookie is a taste hard to beat. I especially love eating them while they are still quite warm and the chocolate oozes out when I break one in half – YUM! But…and there is a big…
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Sugar Challenge Week 6 – Healthy Muesli Cookies
It’s now week 6 of my challenge to replace white sugar with healthier alternatives in my cooking and this week it’s all about creating healthier cookies! So stick with me and I’ll tell you all about it. Now, like most young parents these days, my son and his wife are very careful about what they…
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Lunchbox Friendly Bliss Balls – 2 more flavours
Hi and welcome back! This morning I was pinged by Instagram that thesmallthing.com.au had mentioned meatballsandmuffins.com in a post about making the bliss balls I’ve shared over the past few weeks (thank you Krystina) and, that got me wondering if others have tried making any of them. So I thought I’d ask you and, if…
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One Pot Fragrant Chicken Stew
I love my One Pot Fragrant Chicken Stew even in Summer for two reasons. Firstly, the vegetables used in this dish are my favourite summer vegetables. They add so much flavour, sweetness and delightful colour to this dish – they make it look so appetising. Oh, and did I mention how good the aroma from the vegetables…
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Sugar Challenge Week 4 – Lunchbox Friendly Bliss Balls
This is a special post for Krystina from thesmallthing.com.au, a fabulous children’s decorator and stylist who does amazing work – just check out her website and you’ll see what I mean. Krystina wrote a comment on my Instagram post for RASPBERRY BLAST BLISS BALLS last week and asked if I could create some “lunchbox friendly”…
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Sugar Challenge Week 3 – Raspberry Blast Bliss Balls
Hey there! Thanks for checking in on my progress. I am really happy to report that I am going great guns with my self-inflicted challenge to replace white sugar with healthier alternatives! And do you know what I am finding? The more I stick to this challenge, the more I realise it’s not that hard…
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Falafel – crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside – perfect!
Have you eaten homemade falafels? If you love chickpeas and haven’t ever made your own falafels, you are truly missing out! I promise you, that once you make them at home, you will never again want to eat store-bought falafels. Not only do they taste fantastic when they are just cooked, but they are incredibly easy…
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Gojis, Nuts & Seeds Protein Balls
If you’ve been following Meatballs and Muffins the past couple of weeks, then you’ve probably read my other posts on healthy balls and bars I’ve been creating. If you haven’t, then just scroll the HOME page and you’ll easily find then. This is a new combination I came up with yesterday that I really liked…
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Blackberry & Coconut Muffins
Well hello and thanks for visiting! Now, I’m sure you’ve had a busy day and deserve a break, so why don’t you kick off your shoes, make yourself a coffee or tea, then let’s sit down and talk Blackberry and Coconut Muffins.I really wish you could have one of these Blackberry and Coconut muffins RIGHT NOW with…
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Sugar Challenge Week 2 – Choc-Hazelnut Raspberry Tart
It’s been almost two weeks since I started my sugar challenge and I can honestly say that I have not used any refined sugar in my cooking during that time. Not only have I not used refined sugar, but I have also managed to reduce the amount of sugar I eat overall and that’s got…
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2018 Sunday dinners started with Paella
Last Sunday was officially our first family dinner for 2018. It was the first time we could all get together since Christmas day, so you can imagine how excited I was! Not only was I excited about having my family together, I was super excited because I would get to use the Christmas gift I…
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Sugar Challenge Day 6 – Peanut Butter & Cocoa Bliss Balls
Today is Day 6 of my personal challenge to replace refined white sugar with healthier alternatives in the food I cook. It’s been an interesting challenge so far and in the process I’ve gone a bit mad on making healthy bars and little balls of yumminess. Well, the fact is that I can’t help myself…
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Agh!…What to cook for dinner tonight?
How about a quick and easy, but oh so very delicious Thai Beef Salad? The question of ‘what to cook for dinner‘ is one that many mothers agonise over every day. This is especially true for working mums – I know because I am one of them, but it doesn’t have to be so difficult.…
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Sugar Challenge Day 3 – Apricot & Vanilla Protein Balls
It’s still early days, but I’m pleased to say my challenge to replace refined sugar with healthier options in the food I cook is going great so far! Well … the fact that I haven’t actually “cooked” any sweets yet may have something to do with that 😮 But, I have been doing some research and…
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Dates & Coconut Energy Balls
My husband called me from work yesterday and said “Can we eat something light for dinner tonight? I’m feeling really uncomfortable and I’ve reached my limit, so you have to stop me from eating bread and sweets”. “That’s easy!” I replied, “Just don’t buy any of that stuff when you do the shopping!” Realistically, I…
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Chocolate Espresso Mousse
Hi reader, welcome back! If you’ve been following my posts, you’d know how much I looooove smooth creamy chocolate mousse. Well, now I have another flavour to share with you – Chocolate Espresso Mousse, which I made quite by accident one day. So what happened on this particular day, was that I was running really…
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Aromatic Greek Octopus Salad
Welcome to 2018! Before we get on the subject of the Aromatic Greek Octopus Salad, I’d just like to say HAPPY NEW YEAR and I hope you had a lovely Christmas. My resolution for 2018 is “to live a fuller life”. I’m not sure what that means yet, but I’ll let you know once I’ve worked…
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Chewy Fruit & Nut Bars
Have you used Amaranth grains to cook with? If so, how do you use it and what do you think about it?Recently, I came across a packet of Amaranth grains that my daughter-in-law gave me some time ago. It’s been sitting in my pantry for ages mainly because I wasn’t sure what to do with…
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Chicken Caesar Salad
Chicken Caesar Salad would have to be one of my all-time favourite salads. It has everything I need and want for a delicious hearty lunch or light healthy dinner when I’m not so hungry. Although it’s a little more work, I make my own croutons and dressing from scratch because it makes all the difference…
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Just follow the recipe!
When you have more than one female in the same kitchen at the same time, there’s bound to be fireworks. That’s exactly what happened when two cooks decided to bake a Greek New Year’s cake.They agreed to use a recipe one of them found online because “it looks good”, but when they started making it,…
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Baklava – nutty, sweet & very delicious
It’s been a few years since I hosted Christmas, so I’m pretty excited about hosting this year. My youngest son said that I’ve gone over the top and a bit crazy with my decorations, but I can’t help myself – I just love Christmas! I’ve decided to cook mostly Greek dishes for our family Christmas…
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Let Christmas Begin!
Christmas means many things to many people. To me, Christmas is a time to rejoice and be thankful for all I have been blessed with. It’s a time to be grateful that I am alive and can spend time with my amazing family. Christmas is a time to put aside differences and celebrate all that…
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Berry Nutty Smoothie
Summer berries make the most delicious smoothies. I love the combination of raspberries, blueberries and blackberries any time of the day, but especially after a pilates workout when my body is screaming for something refreshing and nutritious and this Berry Nutty Smoothie does it for me! I know you’ll love this smoothie because, not only…
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Summer Fruit Salad
If you read my last post, then you’ll know this is the Summer Fruit Salad that I promised to share with you. It’s topped with Greek yoghurt, a sprinkling of toasted muesli and a drizzle of honey. It’s so simple it’s almost embarrassing, but if you’re after something refreshing, delicious and very nutritious, then this is…
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No Fuss White Chocolate and Raspberry Muffins
Hello, thanks for popping by! Summer has arrived and that means beautiful sweet RASPBERRIES and lots of them – yay! Right now, raspberries are plump, sweet and juicy, making them ideal to eat in all sorts of ways. One crowd pleaser that I’d like to share with you are my NO FUSS WHITE CHOCOLATE AND…
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Yemista – Summer on a Plate
Also known as Tomatoes & Capsicums Stuffed with Rice & Herbs Yemista is one of the most traditional of Greek dishes made all over Greece, but there are many variations depending on the region. This version is one of my favourites.To me, Yemista is summer on a plate! The vibrant colours of the vegetables drizzled with a little extra virgin…
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Cranberries and White Chocolate Cookies
These Cranberries and White Chocolate cookies are buttery and delicious. They have fruit and 2 cups of rolled oats in them, which makes them almost healthy, so you won’t feel too guilty eating them. This is a recipe I found in the Bill Granger Holiday Cookbook, but I have made them a little less sweet. Wrap them up in cellophane…
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Chocolate Hazelnut Minicakes
I made these little beauties for dessert at yesterday’s Sunday family dinner and let me tell you, one each was definitely not enough because, I’m sure you’ve worked out by now, my entire family is obsessed with anything chocolate. These Chocolate Hazelnut Minicakes are so deliciously scrumptious, they are impossible to resist. They are flourless…
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Roast Chicken with Fragrant Brown Rice Stuffing
Roast chicken has always been a favourite dish in my household. In fact, when my boys where teenagers, I would have to roast 2 large chickens because 1 was never enough and, even then, I’d have to choose my piece quickly or I’d end up with the carcass to eat. I have yet to come…
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Reliving a Special Day
We were all super excited about getting together for our family dinner last Sunday, not because of the food – but, because we would get to see the photos from Michael and Cath’s wedding back in July. Finally, after what seemed forever, the photos arrived and we couldn’t wait to see them. So after finishing…
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Slow Cooked Aromatic Beef
If there is one dish I really crave for during the bleak, cold days of winter, it would have to be warm comfort food like this flavoursome and fragrant Slow Cooked Aromatic Beef stew. This Slow Cooked Aromatic Beef recipe is so easy to make and one that will satisfy your hunger and nourish your…
Meatballs and Muffins 