First week back from school holidays, getting back into semblance of a routine has meant less time to blog. This week is marked by food highs, one thermomix food fail( didn’t follow the recipe ) and some reliable basic recipe standards. The reliable standards were smoothies, milkshakes, pizza bread, porridge, shortbread ( a new recipe  I tried from the community, had 81 top ratings  and was great ) link below http://www.recipecommunity.com.au/baking-sweet-recipes/grandmas-shortbread/45249, Masterchef chocolate brownie (recipe community), wholemeal bread rolls using soft butter rolls as a base,KFC chicken recipe(road to loving my Thermomix recipe)  minestrone soup,

yummy leek and potato soup,  mashed potatoes , steamed potatoes, chinese style stir fried vegetables; one of our favourite Thermomix recipes and our favourite stir fry to make. Simple  and cooks in 7 minutes. I usually use a kg of fresh vegetables and cook for 9 minutes and it’s done, set and forget, tip into thermomserver to keep warm, stays crunchy for ages,  love it!

The Thermomix guided mash potatoes are super smooth, tasty and super easy to prepare. Simply put on the all ingredients, no water required, and set to cook. Lastly whip for a minute and that’s perfect mash potato every time.

Breakfast is a breeze using guided recipes for crepes, American pancakes, pikelets, poached eggs, waffles and the loveliest creamiest porridge you could imagine. Honestly, the guided porridge is really really good, ready in 11 minutes no stirring, husbands favourite! It serves up a generous 5-6 people and topped with fresh fruit, cinnamon  and maple syrup or honey, it’s incredible …. Husband keeps saying “wow” and “people would pay $15 for this at a cafe.”    We used to microwave porridge but this is 1000% better. Miss 8 favourite breakfast is now Thermomix porridge.

Poached eggs using the guided recipe is messy and only allows for 2-3 eggs at a time. Our favourite go to recipe is sous vide poached eggs link below

http://www.recipecommunity.com.au/basics-recipes/perfectly-poached-eggs/126178.

The amazing thing about these poached eggs is you place the eggs with shell on into the steamer basket, and cook  between 11-12.5 minutes at 70C.  We set 12.5 minutes and use between 3 and 6 eggs depending on who wants eggs  . It does take a little experimentation with timing to produce your preferred balance of cooked white and yolk but it’s super cool to watch everyone crack their eggs and watch the egg slide out whole. Note the eggs have to be cold from fridge and you can add boiling water to the TM bowl and wait for the temperature to reach 70C before putting the eggs in and setting the temperature to remain at 70C for the duration of the cook time.

The Thermomix recipe fail this week was a seafood  paella ( forgot to add the key spice saffron), that looked quite uninspiring but was eaten all the same . It didn’t have the lovely yellow colour and flavour but was edible.  This week, I  cooked pork and apple  casserole with the pressure cooker and a chicken and leek pot in the oven just so I didn’t forget some old familiars. Definately enjoyed dusting off the pressure cooker.  Haven’t yet converted these to Thermomix recipes, maybe later.

Friday lunch was a  Thermomix high…. A pot luck paleo lunch. My friends Steph and Fran prepared some amazing dishes with the help of their thermomixes and all using paleo recipes.  On the table is the yummy  satay chicken ( Pete Evans Family Food) fabulous Thermomix fish cakes , healthy Thermomix Beetroot salad, crunchy seed crackers with cashew cream dip ( Pete Evans Family Food) and the most refreshing cocktail, coconut water with ginger, mango, and mint. (Pete Evans Family Food)

We traded recipes, thernomix tips and officially geeked out on Thermomix recipes and cooking! The food was exciting and inspiring. Can’t wait to do it again.

And the finale for the week was dinner cooked by Miss 14. While I took Miss 8 to ballet, Miss 14 prepared Chilli con carne (guided recipe)  guacamole (guided recipe ) with corn chips for dinner. The guided chilli con carne was  awesome, so flavoursome with a spice base of cinnamon, coriander seeds, and cumin, she used trimmed rump steak pre minced in the Thermomix  …( we like less fat in the mince)

What a treat, dinner done by lovely daughter, dessert done, glass of wine for mum … Friday night is pretty perfect!