Day five: Bread and more

November 30, 2014September 9, 2015 ~ nzthermomixmum

Used another recipe community recipe for everyday white bread, personally I prefer grain bread but my daughters like white. Again easy to add the ingredients, didn’t use the bread improver as I have no idea what that is. While dough rising I made another tuna salad from recipe community.

This tuna vegetable salad from the recipe community had an Asian flavour dressing using garlic, ginger, soy sauce, orange juice, and toasted sesame seeds, absolutely fabulous and ready in seconds.

Picture from community page, better presentation

If I was serving up for guests, I would leave a little chunkier and arrange the orange slices prettily like the picture but I just love the fact we are eating raw broccoli and more servings of vegetables in one meal, enough leftover for my lunch tomorrow too. Finding the self clean a breeze, blitz 5 secs speed5, then same in reverse, then same forward, a couple of turbo boosts for extra energy seems to work great for wet ingredients. Dough mixture left in TM bowl require a bit more of a soak but no harder than cleaning a food processor blade.

Next want to try some biscuits, I usually make biscuits once a week and have my own favourite recipes that I’ll convert but will try a guided recipe from the chip this time. Chocolate chip cookie mix ready in the time it takes to warm the oven.

Bread is out of the oven. I won’t be putting Bakers Delight out of business yet. It’s slightly dense but will be fine toasted. The 5 star ratings and 224 comments on the community page have made me expect a light fluffy loaf. Maybe the bread improver is important. And I read one member kneaded 10 mins instead of 6 mins. I’m going to try it again with improver and longer kneading and rising in a warmer place. Watch this space.

The picture in the community page looks like this below. I will not give up until I get mine the same. Apparently the dough can be used to make fab bread rolls too, maybe my bread maker will be kept a little longer.

Pic of white bread loaf from the recipe community page

Now what’s for dinner, my youngest has always wanted me to make butter chicken so I’m going to try out the guided recipe for butter chicken. It’s so easy and convenient following the touchscreen recipe instructions.

Also used the guided recipe for Chinese style vegetables. The TM blitzes garlic and ginger then sautés onion, chuck in chopped veges and soy sauce and seven minutes later, we have perfectly cooked vegetables that still have crunch factor and on top of this the machine turns itself off so I could fold clothes and leave the kitchen. I’m not a butter chicken expert but it’s a great family meal that everyone enjoys. Miss 8 says the “butter chicken the best food in the world”! It’s so satisfying when everyone likes the food you’re cooking. And I know the dish was made with only pure natural ingredients, milled and roasted seeds, real herbs, no additives or preservatives.

Day Four: Saturday, more time to play with the TM

November 29, 2014September 9, 2015 ~ nzthermomixmum

So excited to have more time to test the thermomix today. First breakfast, chose easy waffles from recipe community, plus fruit smoothie of course. Talk about easy peasy, the hardest part is measuring the ingredients into the bowl. Seconds later a smooth batter ready to pour into the waffle iron. Kids love the waffles and berry smoothie of course.

Next decided to make chicken stock, just added chicken, root veges, herbs, wine and salt into the TM, cooked and puréed in the TM. Made a huge amount of chicken stock paste 500g ( 1 Tb makes 500ml of chicken stock) , the accountant in me wants to calculate the cost savings already, not to mention the benefit of knowing that the stock made from is pure natural fresh ingredients, no msg or additives.

For lunch the kids wanted to try pizza, so we made the dough which makes two large pizzas. Only two minutes kneading by the TM and the dough is one ready to prove, too easy. The hardest thing is adding in the ingredients! .

Next, lemonade using the guided recipe. Just seconds and two whole lemons including the skin, caster sugar and water. Kids and I love the lemonade, it’s better than the homemade lemon cordial we make. Husband makes the comment that this is better than any cafe bought lemonade he’s ever tasted. He’s already thinking about cost saving too and smiling! A whole jug from two lemons from our garden, no mess no squeezing, no pulp, just blitz a few seconds.

Next we tried guided fruity dream recipe ( soft serve ice cream) raspberries, sugar and an egg white made a “Mr whippy” ice cream. The kids loved it. Although I will substitute sugar with a banana next time or halve the sugar. Was a tad sweet for my taste buds!

And just to give the TM a rest we made a soup using chicken stock made in TM the old fashion way on the stove in a pot. It’s funny but we feel energised, wonder if it’s the quality of the food ?

Verdict after day four:

Love the ease of use, one bowl no other dishes or equipment needed, integrated scales, self clean, touchscreen guided recipes, turns itself off when cooking finished, recipes seem to be very well tested and can’t wait to work my way through more of the basic cookbook. Haven’t even used the multi level steam cooking yet. Potential is incredible. Love it so far! Who doesn’t need a kitchen helper like this. The breakfasts are better than cafe food!

Ps went to Milly’s Kitchen to buy loaf tins and it was satisfying to see a huge billboard in the front of the store showing all the Kitchenaid equipment all just for $3500, about three machines plus accessories. If I was starting again, I’d only buy the thermomix.

Day Three: Inspired after looking at TM recipes through the night

November 29, 2014September 9, 2015 ~ nzthermomixmum

One of the reasons why I was convinced the TM was the way to go, is the well established recipe community. Any recipe you could possibly want to try can be searched on the community pages along with user star ratings and comments. I found this apple and blueberry pancake recipe. Literally seconds later after adding the ingredients in the TM, we have the pancake batter ready to cook. This along with linseed sunflower and chia berry smoothie gives us a healthy serve of fruit to start the day. I made myself a green smoothie from whole unpeeled apple, cucumber, spinach, mint and l.s.c seed mix.

Green smoothie ingredients — Green smoothie ingredient

Daughter made the best focaccia bread, the dough was done in the machine in two minutes, and after months of skepticism about the thermomix that mum had been talking about, she suddenly saw how incredible this piece of equipment could be.

Also made the coleslaw from the recipe chip and was so easy, just chucked in cabbage apple onion and mayonnaise, blitz a few seconds and hey presto it’s done, no pic taken, forgotten in all the excitement.

Verdict after Day three:

Even with dough kneading in the bowl, we could still use the self cleaning option and so very little extra dishes to get done. Super fast and like having a extra pair of hands in the kitchen. It’s potential is enormous. I actually felt guilty buying a loaf of bread from the supermarket but only because I realised we didn’t own any bread loaf tins to bake the bread in. The potential to mill own grains and understand exactly what is in our food will change our diet for the better.

Only negative was the butterfly whisk was a little hard to insert properly when make the fruity dream soft serve ice cream. But that’s more user familiarity than design issue. You needed to insert and twist to lock under the blades.

Day Two: busy workday need dinner fast

November 29, 2014September 9, 2015 ~ nzthermomixmum

Used the guided recipe to make mash potato for shepherds pie. Just put in peeled potatoes, butter, milk and to cook 20 mins then whisked for 10 seconds. Amazing! Lovely creamy mash potato. Whilst this cooked in the TM I pan fryed the mince and vegetable base. There is a recipe for the mince in the TM but I used my own today. My girls said best “mash potato ever”.

Verdict after term day two:

The guided recipe chip is so easy to use, I can see my daughters loving this feature. The spring salad made yesterday was eaten in husbands lunchbox and my lunch too. Fantastic!

Cinnamon buns

November 26, 2014September 9, 2015 ~ nzthermomixmum

Can't believe it only 2 minutes to knead in the thermomix. The kids will be happy to see these work ! — Can’t believe it only 2 minutes to knead in the thermomix. The kids will be happy to see these work !

I converted an Annabel Langbein recipe for the thermomix. So easy in minutes the dough was ready for rising and the finished product even better than hand kneaded dough.

The kids devoured one side before I could take a picture ! The texture was so soft and stayed this way the next day for school lunchboxes.

Verdict after day one:

The blitzing function is incredibly fast, loved being able to produce such a healthy tasty salad in seconds. The weighing and kneading function for bread making super fast. And the machine self cleans, wow!

Time to try it out

November 26, 2014September 9, 2015 ~ nzthermomixmum

Brocoli carrot apple and nut yum — Spring cleansing salad yummy

After all the safety instructions and a run through of all the significant features, Nicola ( our TM consultant ) shows me how to make vegetable stock, so easy and fast. Then I’m on my own. What shall I try first. I picked a salad from the thermomix recipe community page. A spring cleansing salad. Mmmm, raw broccoli, carrot and apple. Here it is minutes later. Lunch done!