Positive Life NSW

Ampy and Benji
We fell in love with our first dog Ampy when we first laid eyes on him at ‘Monica’s’ foster dog outlet at Alexandria. We went to ‘Pet Barn’ (where we discovered Ampy) a couple of months ago to get some kibble. As we came out of the store, I said to David we should have a quick look at the dogs - a hard thing to resist at the best of times.

The foster parents were packing up, but opened one of the carry cages for us. Out jumped this skinny Jack Russell tricolour, with huge paws, turned-down ears and dirty fur. He came straight up to me and crawled right into my lap, then walked his way up my chest and placed his head on my shoulder. As if that wasn’t enough, he then got down and rolled onto his back for a belly scratch. Well, that was pretty well it. David and I didn’t say anything to one another about it that day, but the next day he asked me if we were ready to get a second dog- as if the question even needed to be asked. I said yes, and we got online to ‘Monica’s’ to find out about the dog we had encountered outside the pet store. It turned out that he was online, and his name was Bungee. Fortunately, he hadn’t been abused, but had been neglected. We contacted ‘Monica’, and later that week we were on our way to Ingleside to meet him again, with Ampy in tow to see how they interacted. It all seemed to go well, so we paid for him and said that we would pick him up the following week.

As soon as we arrived back from Melbourne we headed out to Ingleside to collect him. It was when we got all his papers that we realised just what the poor bugger had been through. He had been literally starved, and when ‘Monica’ got him he had serious skin infections, his teeth were in bad nick, he was very skinny and his fur was a mess. Monica got him back to good health, though he was still on the lean side. Anyway, we got him home, gave him a bath to get rid of the kennel smell and he has settled in nicely. His name has been changed to Benji - we figured one dog with an odd name was enough. He is the exact opposite of Ampy, who is a cross-bred Jack Russell, and very laidback and serious. Benji on the other hand is a bundle of energy, and is a pure Jack Russell - always looking for trouble. Between the two of them there is not much bed left, and we still have the occasional nightly spat over food, but apart from that they seem to get on well - who really knows with dogs?

Despite our concerns, we really love having the two dogs, and the two contrasting personalities. I can guarantee you that my days are never boring!

Now, some easy to make winter comfort food recipes.

Beef Casserole

This recipe came from a booklet I picked up from the supermarket called ‘Bliss’. It is so delicious that we make it every other week, and get two feeds out of it.

1kg casserole beef cut into 2cm dice
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
3 tablespoons plain flour
Salt and pepper
3 cups beef stock
Big splash Worcestershire Sauce
Big splash soy sauce
3 sprgs thyme
2-3 bay leaves

Preheat oven to 180°C.
Brown beef in oil over high heat in a fry pan, in batches. Place into large casserole dish (with lid). Add some more oil to the pan, and place onions and carrots into fry pan and cook for 3-4 minutes until starting to colour. Sprinkle flour over, and stir through. Add stock, thyme, bay leaves, Worcestershire Sauce, soy sauce, salt and pepper and bring to the boil, stirring, until thickened. Pour into the casserole dish, and mix through the meat. Cover, and cook in oven 2½ hours. It should be thick and meaty.

We eat it with mashed potatoes one night and with rice two nights later. It matures beautifully over a couple of days. You can add things like red wine or a tin of tomatoes to the basic mix - just cut back the stock accordingly. You can also vary the vegetables, or add peas 3-4 minutes before you remove it from the oven. The aroma fills the house and it is a great comfort food.

Quick Self-Saucing Chocolate Pudding

Self-saucing puddings are so winter!

60g butter
½ cup milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup caster sugar
1 cup self-raising flour
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder, extra
2 cups boiling water

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease 6 cup ovenproof dish.
Melt butter with milk in medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Stir in extract and caster sugar, then sift flour and cocoa. Spread mixture into dish. Sift brown sugar and extra cocoa over mixture. Gently pour boiling water over mixture. Bake pudding, uncovered, about 40 minutes or until centre is firm. Stand 5 minutes before serving.

Toasted Reuben Sandwich

This classic and tasty sandwich is quick to make with a sandwich press.

Russian dressing:
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 teaspoon tomato sauce
2 teaspoons horseradish cream (Supermarket, where chutneys etc are)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Mix all ingredients together and set aside.

8 slices rye bread
16 thin slices Swiss cheese
½ cup firmly packed sauerkraut (squeeze thoroughly to get rid of juice)
250g shaved corn beef

Preheat sandwich press. Top 4 slices of bread with half the cheese, sauerkraut, dressing, beef, remaining cheese. Top with remaining bread. Cook sandwiches in sandwich press about 5 minutes or until browned lightly.

Barbequed Spinach & Mozarella Pizza

200g English spinach leaves
2 round pita bread
240g fresh ricotta
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind
2 teaspoons lemon thyme leaves
6 bocconcini, halved
8 slices pancetta
Rocket leaves, to serve

Place spinach in a medium bowl and cover with boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain. Squeeze out any excess water using absorbent paper, then roughly chop. Spread pita bread with ricotta, and top with spinach leaves, lemon rind, thyme, bocconcini and pancetta. Preheat char-grill pan or barbeque to medium and place the pizza on the cooking surface. Close the lid of the barbeque, or place a lid over the pan and cook for 5 minutes or until the base is golden and the cheese is melted. Top with rocket.
Serves 2

Pork & Sweet Potato red Curry

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1½ tablespoons Thai red curry paste
1 onion, cut into wedges
2 teaspoons grated ginger
250g kumera, thinly sliced
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup chicken stock
350g pork fillet, sliced thinly
½ cup basil leaves
½ cup coriander leaves

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add curry paste and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add onion and ginger and cook for 2 minutes. Add kumera, coconut milk and stock and simmer for 8 minutes, or until the potato is just soft. Add pork to pan and cook for 4 minutes or until cooked through. Spoon the curry into serving bowls and top with basil and coriander.
Serves 2

Cheat’s Sticky Toffee Pudding

100g dates, chopped
⅔ cup boiling water
¼ teaspoon bicarb soda
30g butter, softened
½ cup brown sugar
1 egg
⅔ cup self-raising flour
Thick cream or ice cream, and extra brown sugar to serve

Preheat oven to 180°C. Place dates, boiling water and bicarb soda in a heatproof bowl and set aside for 10 minutes. Process the date mixture until smooth. Add butter, sugar, egg and flour, and process until smooth. Pour mixture into well-greased 1-cup ovenproof bowls or small pudding bowls and place on a baking tray. Bake for 25 minutes or until puddings are cooked when tested with skewer or by finger-press test. Invert puddings onto serving plates and serve with thick cream, sprinkled with brown sugar.
Serves 4

ALDERMAN providore - www.aldermanprovidore.com.au