Mango & Coconut Paneer

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Recently there seems to be cookery going on all around me. Not in real-life™ you understand, that would involve more effort than reheating something from the freezer.

Now I've resisted taking part too much because I am neither a Nigella or a Fanny (steady on), but I'm getting swept along with the tide. With the onset of Autumn and the swiftly arriving Winter, I feel the need for home-cooked goodness.

 Without much further ado, I present to you (fitting into the theme of spices for the Recipe Shed):

Mango & Coconut Paneer

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbspmango chutney
  • paneer – cut into cubes
  • baby carrots
  • broccoli
  • sweet potato
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp each of paprika, chilli powder and coriander
  • coconut milk
  • basmati rice

 1. Prep baby carrots, small florets of broccoli and cubes of sweet potato. Par-boil for 10 minutes.

 2. Mix together 4 tablespoons of olive oil, a teaspoon each of paprika, chilli powder and coriander. Cube the paneer and marinade for ten-twenty minutes.

 3. Pour the paneer mixture into a hot frying pan and cook on a medium heat until the paneer is brown and crispy on all sides.

 4. Add the par-boiled vegetables and lightly fry. Spoon in 2 tablespoons of mango chutney and simmer on a low heat. Pour in half a can of coconut milk and reduce down.

 5. Meanwhile, open a packet of Tilda Basmati rice (because I am incapable of cooking rice without it turning to sticky stodge!) and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes. The rice will be light, fluffy and actually be separate grains of rice (as opposed to when I cook rice and it ends up in one mass). Why would go to all that effort when this is perfect?

 6. Spoon the rice into a mould, press down and carefully remove. Serve the paneer immediately.

YUM!

—

Recipe Shed

I was provided with the Tilda Basmati Rice for the purpose of review, my opinion is honest. I decided to kill two birds with one stone, and Keith didn't mind.

Baker Man, Baker Man

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The Boy and Me (I never tire of that little joke) have made crispie cakes a few times now, but we're yet to make proper cakes with icky stuff that could go all wrong and everything. That was until Sunday when I decided to take the bull by the horn and just do it. Spurred on by the 'I Love Cake' linky over on Mummy Mishaps, with Jenny having thrown the gauntlet down, I went for it.

Therefore, I present you with our simple cupcake recipe. Please bear with us, one of us is a complete novice, and the other can't stand the sight of eggs.

1. 4oz of self-raising flour, butter, caster sugar, 2 eggs and half a bar of white chocolate roughly chopped.

2. Add the butter and sugar and mix together. We used a balloon whisk.

3. Add the eggs and mix together. If it starts to curdle, add a small amount of flour. If you're two, try not to pour a third of the egg mix over the counter top as your mummy will feel sick having to clean it up.

4. Add the remainder of the flour and mix together. Then gently stir in the white chocolate.

5. Set out the cake cases into the baking tray.

6. Spoon the mixture into the cake cases. Get your mummy to help with this because it's very twikky to do!

7. Sit and watch the cakes cooking in the very hot oven for 12 minutes at 180°C.

8. If you get bored, because 12 minutes is a long time, then make the buttercream. Sift 9oz of icing sugar into a bowl and all over the work surface. Add to this some softened butter, the other half a bar of white chocolate which your mummy had melted, and some blue food colouring because you're two and you can. Mix together really well.

9. While the cakes are cooking, do the washing up. Every good cook does this, except that Gordon Ramsey fellow.

10. When the cakes are cool, spread the now green buttercream all over them and place rocket sugarcraft decorations on top. Try not to eat more than half of them because otherwise your mummy will have to open another packet!

The finished product: White chocolate cupcakes!

Not bad for our first attempt!

I'm linking this up to Mummy Mishaps 'I Love Cake' linky. Click on the badge below to go and check out the other entries!

I Love Cake

Boxing Clever

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Last night on twitter, I was chatting with some lovely folk about how our children, as all children do, prefer to play with a large cardboard box than the toys that were inside it. We shared a few pictures back and forth through twitpic, and I realised that actually there was a wealth of ideas for the brown cuboids.

However, when it comes to making something from it, the only thing that springs to my mind is a house.

I know that's what I seem to repeatedly make for The Boy, as he is yet to come out with ideas himself other than a boat for Mr. Meerkat. Although possibly even at two, he could be construed as having more imagination that his mother.

Boxes are such a brilliant resource to stimulate imagination, and in this modern time of plastic play it is essential to teach the next generation about reusing and recycling.

But most of all, it's fun!

I'd like you to link up with your posts or pictures of what you and your children have made with cardboard boxes. Have a nose at the other ideas, see what else you can come up with. The linky (thanks to Maggy) is open until the end of October.

No Child Is Born To Die

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When I stepped into the world of blogging nine months ago I could never have known what I was entering. Blogging is a community; parent blogging in Britain is even more so. I quickly discovered favourites and followed their blogs religiously. One of those is the amazing Christine from Thinly Spread. Initially the appeal was the fact that she, like me, is a primary school teacher by trade. I hankered after her Swallows and Amazons lifestyle. Then I realised that she is a strong and determined woman who will not stop until she's made a change.

A real change. Something that will mean that children stop dying before they have had a chance to live.

Several months ago, Chris went out to Mozambique with Save the Children UK to follow the Cold Trail, the route a vaccine takes from storage in the city to administration in a village hundreds of miles away. This trip was to show how essential the basic vaccines that we take for granted, must be given to the children in other countries who so desperately need them. It spearheaded a campaign to get the developing world to fund these vaccines. And it worked!

But now Chris and the voiceless need our help again, and who are we to refuse?

Can you imagine not having access to a healthcare worker? None at all? In Britain we moan that we have to wait for a week for a doctor's appointment, but what if you had to walk for that week to see the doctor? If you had to carry your child, who was so weak from illness, every step of the way? And what if when you got to the nurse or doctor it was too late?

On Tuesday Chris will attend the UN General Assembly in New York. She's going to pressure David Cameron to play his full part in solving the health worker crisis. She's done it before and she can do it again. We can help her.

This e-petition from Save The Children aims to have 60,000 signatures by that time. 42, 080 people have signed up so far. Please sign here.

Michelle from Mummy From The Heart and Gemma from Hello, It's Gemma have a blog-hop to help raise awareness of the need for healthcare workers. "Write your 100 words about a great health professional you have encountered in your life."

Here goes:

Two anaesthetists, two midwives, three nurses, a senior registrar, a consultant and a paediatrician ensured the safe, but traumatic birth of The Boy. His shoulder was stuck in my pubic bone and he couldn’t be delivered of his own volition. Twelve hours later, a paediatrician put him on an IV drip for an infection. At three weeks old, a First-Response paramedic brought him around from unconsciousness. Three doctors and four nurses were waiting for our ambulance attended by the two paramedics. I am alive because of them. My son is alive because of them. No Child is Born to Die.

I tag the following bloggers:

Please either write the 100 words and link up to the blog-hop below. If you do nothing else, please sign the petition!

Gender or Species?

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Mr. TheBoyandMe and The Boy are having a chat.

Mr.TBAM: Is mummy a boy or a girl?

The Boy: Her is a girl.

Mr. TBAM: What about daddy?

The Boy: You is a girl.

Mr. TBAM: No I'm a boy.

The Boy: No, I am a boy! You is a girl!

Mr. TBAM: I'm sure I used to be a boy. What about Nana?

The Boy: Her is a girl.

Mr. TBAM: What about Grandad?

The Boy: I don't know.

Mr. TBAM: Have a guess.

The Boy: He is a camel!

ShowOff ShowCase: The One That Should Have Done Better

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There's always one post that we've written that we were proud of, that we put the final punctuation mark to and thought "yep, that's a good one! They're going to love it!"

And then either no bugger read it, or, like I've had before, about 50 people read it but no-one commented!

I used to think it was the stats that counted, but I've recently realised that it's the comments; they confirm that your writing is decent and that your readers find your ramblings enjoyable.

Hence this linky to help other ShowOff the posts that were underappreciated. This weekend, I'd like you to help those posts to hold their heads up high! Brush them off, stick my badge at the bottom of the post and show them off for everyone to see. Don't be ashamed of them, help them shout at everyone: I SHOULD HAVE DONE BETTER!

ShowOff ShowCase

The A-Z of Me

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The lovely Lauren from Real Housewife of Suffolk County has created a meme along with her hubby designed to show off titbits of information about ourselves. I've been tagged a couple of times which means I can no longer avoid it.

  • ANORAK…Do you have a sad side?

Yes, thanks. It might involve Science Fiction, it might not.

  • BODY…What physical attribute would you most like to change?

My stomach and hips. Way too fat.

  • CELEBRITY…Which one would you most like to date and why?

Gary Barlow might well be my favourite at the moment. If you have to ask then you are clearly not watching X-Factor at the moment. I'm rather fond of Orlando Bloom as well.

  • DEBUT …Tell us about your first ever blog post. What made you start blogging?

MammyWoo and The_Moiderer. They told me that I should do it. Blame them.

  • ERROR …What’s been your biggest regret? 

I have few regrets, one of my favourite quotes is "I would rather regret the things that I have done than the things that I have not" (Lucille Ball). I do wish we hadn't spent the money we did before having The Boy, that's basically my only regret.

  • FUNNY – who’s making you laugh?

My husband is the funniest adult I know, quite honestly.

  • GRAND…If we gave you one right now what would you spend it on?

I'd put it in the bank for the next baby.

  • HOLIDAY… What’s your favourite destination?  

Just the one? Barcelona.

  • IRRITATE… What’s your most annoying habit? 

Over-reacting.

  • JOKER…Whats your favourite joke {the one that makes you laugh everytime you hear it}?

God, I'm rubbish at jokes.

How do you fit 4 elephants in a mini? 2 in the front and 2 in the back.

How do you fit 4 giraffes in a mini? You can't, the elephants are in it.

  • KENNEL… Do you have any pets? 

We had fish before The Boy was born but I couldn't handle cleaning their poo up as well as a newborn's.

  • LOVE…Are you single, married, engaged, living with a long term partner? 

I'm two months away from my tenth wedding anniversary!

  • MEAL… Whats your ultimate starter, main and dessert?

Deep fried brie and cranberry sauce

Quattro Formaggi pizza

Profiteroles

  • NOW…If you could be anywhere right now where would you be and who with?

A sandy beach with the sun shining down and a gentle breeze blowing while Mr. TheBoyandMe and The Boy build a sandcastle.

  • OFF DUTY…What do you do in your spare time? 

Play with The Boy and go on twitter. Way too much!

  • PROUD MOMENTS …What are you most proud of? 

The Boy.

  • QUEASY …What turns your stomach?

Meat and fish.

  • RELAX…How do you relax? 

See the aforementioned twitter.

  • SONG…Whats yur favourite song of all time? 

'Footloose' by Kenny Loggins.

  • TIME …If you could go back in time and relive it again, when would you choose? 

I wouldn't. You can't go back, the past is another country.

  • UNKNOWN…Tell us something about yourself that no one else knows? 

Nope, there's a reason why no-one else knows it.

  • VOCAL…. Who is your favourite artist? 

That's quite hard. I'd probably go with Mr. Barlow again.

  • WORK….. What is your dream job, and are you doing it now? 

No I most certainly am not. This used to be it but not anymore. I'd love a craft shop or to be a party organiser.

  • XRAY…Any broken bones?

Only my little toe on my right foot.

  • YIKES…What’s been your most embarrassing moment? 

Quite a hard one, I'm sure there are some but bearing in mind my previous quote about regrets I'm not sure any are monumentally horrendous.

  • ZOO…. If you were an animal, which one would you be?

Giraffe, because they're lush and can have their heads up above all the chaos going on below.

I'm going to tag:

Here's the blank form for anyone who wants to play along.

More On Monday: Muddy Puddles

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Traditionally, I've used the 'More on Monday' blog-title to explain my Silent Sunday. However, today I'm using it because I had difficulty choosing a picture for my Silent Sunday and therefore I want to share the other photographs.

On Saturday we went to a local country park with lakes and woodland. We went equipped with The Boy's special George muddy puddles wellies and my camera. The Boy, and the mud, did not disappoint. I have decided that I love this time of year with an infant: it's a whole new world to explore of treasures from the trees, sounds echoing around the woodland with a little red nose from the bite in the air.

Autumn is way more exciting than Summer!

This is the photograph that Mr. TheBoyandMe wanted me to use as my Silent Sunday.

After we'd finished jumping in muddy puddles (he was saturated, I need to look out the waterproof all-in-one suit), we went and explored the wooded areas, including a rather fabulous looking tree-trunk.

And then daddy and The Boy pretended to be aeroplanes.

I seriously love this photo because of the way that The Boy is looking at his daddy, sheer adoration.

—

I am linking this up to CoombeMill's Country Kids linky

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Farm Holidays Cornwall

Ten Years On

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I've been teaching for ten years. Ten long years. And although I'm not happy in my profession at the moment, in the blink of an eye I am back in my classroom of my first teaching post. I can remember many things about that first week teaching; the sheer panic of being responsible for a class of thirty children, every single child's face and name, and the tree outside my classroom window.

And standing in the staffroom at the end of my fifth day of teaching and the cleaners asking if we'd heard the news.

It really didn't mean much to me. I knew that the Twin Towers existed and I knew that they were famous. That was it. I was only 24 and about to get married. I was fresh to the adult world; naive to world politics and current affairs. I remember thinking, "Well this must have been an accident, why would anyone do that on purpose?" and I went to finish marking the Maths and English books like a good teacher.

It wasn't until I got home, looked at my (then) fiance's face and turned on the news, that I started to understand. To understand that there is evil in the world; that a group of people would really sacrifice the lives of thousands of people in order to make a point.

The sight of the second plane crashing will stay with me forever. Even thinking about it now, the sickness is there. The image of those people jumping from the windows. I turned from the television and asked why didn't they just go down the stairs. My future husband looked at me and explained gently that they couldn't, they were trapped. That's the moment when I realised the horror.

To then find out that the Pentagon had also been attacked was just astounding, and really brought home the severity of the operation. But the one that seems to shock everybody to the core is United Airlines Flight 93. The choice that those brave souls made is testamount to the good in every human being on this planet. That at heart, humankind cannot allow evil to prevail.

On this day, the 10th anniversary of that fateful day, I intend to remember.

To remember the victims of the Twin Towers, of the Pentagon, of the four planes. Their families. But also to remember all the brave men and women who have fought to bring humanity back to this world, so that my child can grow up knowing the goodness in the human race.

Nature's Treasures

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A few week's ago, I made a treasure, sensory box for The Boy and he has thoroughly enjoyed exploring all the different colours and textures in it. Following last week's successful trip to the park where we found some amazing gems. We collected the larger, more round items up into his little shopping bag, and stuck the collection of leaves onto a recycled nature board.

It took The Boy a little time to understand that we were looking for different types of leaves; not as complicated as the species of tree, just colours and shapes. When we compared them after, he was able to distinguish the different shapes, but with the subtle shades in the Autumnal colours he found it quite tricky to distinguish the differences. He liked feeling them though and using the words 'scrunchy' and 'smooth'.

He has been a boy obsessed this week. The treasure box has had to come down at every opportunity. Throughout the week, I've had to remove certain mouldy parts but it has continued to serve him as a great source of enjoyment and fun. Of course, I've taken the opportunity to guide him. Of course I have: I'm a teacher!

He's sorted, counted, ordered, described.

But more importantly, he's had fun!

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