Easy kid’s curry puff

These have become one of my kids’ favourite after school lunch. It all started with me telling them to hurry up. “Can you chop chop, curry pok!” They found it very funny and I explained how my uncles used to call curry puff ‘curry pok’. That spiked their interest in eating curry puff, but since they find the curry puffs sold outside too spicy, I decided to make my own.

Here’s my simplified version of yummy child-friendly curry puff.

Crispy on the outside

I use whatever ingredients I have on hand, which works out well as the kids get surprised by what these puffs hold inside. Some of the fillings I’ve used are:

  • Chicken
  • Minced meat
  • Mushroom
  • Potatoes
  • Carrots
  • Peas
  • Hard boiled egg
Quick and easy

Since I am such a terrible cook, I have resorted to relying on ready made products where possible. I have given up slogging over the stove only to serve unappetising dishes which the kids don’t enjoy. I’ve learnt to be realistic! Instead, I sprinkle some chia seeds and wheatgerm into the sauce for added nutrients.

  1. Chop up ingredients into cubes and cook in a pot.
  2. Add Japanese curry powder with sufficient water to create a thick sauce.
  3. Let it cool.
  4. Cut puff pastry sheets into circles. I find the pastry a little too thick and will roll it out to thin it. Sprinkle some flour on the workbench to prevent sticking.
  5. Fill with meat and fold over.
  6. Use a fork to press the sides down.
  7. Bake in oven until golden brown.
  8. That’s it!
Hope your kids enjoy it as much as mine do.

Sane tip: Puff pastry can be found in the frozen section of the supermarket. They come in either the square sheets or in a block where you need to roll it out yourself. I find that both works. Japanese curry powder is under the Japanese section. I got them from NTUC finest / Cold Storage.

Save tip: You can make the pastry yourself. I tried, but it takes up too much time and turns out not even half as good as the store bought ones.

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~

Easy Sun-dried tomato pasta

Found this super easy pasta recipe which I whipped up for #1 when she got home from school.

Simple yet looks good!

INGREDIENTS:

Pasta of your choice
Sun-dried tomatoes (straight from a jar)
Black olives (from most supermarkets or speciality stores)
Feta cheese
Balsamic vinegar
Flaxseed oil (I got a bottle of flaxseed oil as it has more anti-oxidants than olive oil. #1 and #3 need to keep their immunity up these next few months before their PSLE & ‘O’s)

Gourmet lunch from a jar

Boil the pasta as per normal, top with tomatoes, olives and cheese. Drizzle with vinegar and oil. Ready to serve!

#1 loves such atas food… but not the other kids. They prefer the usual tomato or cream based ones. So I do this for her on days when she’s back at an odd hour of lunch at 4pm when the rest have already eaten.

Sane tip: Really easy to make.

Save tip: The cost of the ingredients is equivalent to one plate at a restaurant, but here I can make her 4 servings!


~ mummy wee – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~

Salmon and sweet potato salad

Ever since #1 asked for a healthier diet and requested more salads, I’ve been making them regularly and now I’ve finally gotten the hang of it. You would think it’s pretty hard to go wrong with salads, but there were times when she even refused to eat my salads. Yup, it was that bad. Now, I’m proud to say that I can toss one up within 15 minutes!

Salmon and sweet potato salad

I concocted this one with fresh vegetables which I had on hand.

INGREDIENTS:

Raw salmon cut into strips
Sweet potato cut into cubes
Tomato cut into wedges
Japanese cucumber sliced thinly
Lettuce shredded
Large onion cut into rings

DRESSING:

Flaxseed oil (provides omega-3)
Balsamic vinegar (improves the immune system and is a great substitute for salad dressings)
A sprinkle of chia seeds (wonderful anti-oxidant)
A sprinkle of wheatgerm (powerhouse of nutrients)
Garlic & herb seasoning

Salad dressing

Sane tip: I’m so happy that I can fix her good and healthy salads which she enjoys. And the more she tells me that they’re yummy, the more I’m motivated to make them. Reminds me how important it is to encourage others, especially our kids.

Save tip: Almost restaurant standard, huh 😉

For a Mango tropical salad recipe, click here.

Linking up with:
www.ajugglingmom.com



~ mummy wee – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~

Spaghetti in sausage

#2 came across this innovative recipe and decided to surprise her siblings with it. It’s really very simple to do. 

Step 1: Cook the sausages.
Step 2: Cut them up into small pieces.
Step 3: Poke about 6-10 strands of spaghetti into each sausage.

Make sure the sausage is in the middle of the strand

Step 4: Prepare a pot of boiling water. Add some salt.
Step 5: Put the spaghetti into the water and cook for about 10-15 minutes.
Step 6: Remove the spaghetti and drain.
Step 7: Ready to serve!

Quick and easy meal

The cool thing is that it’s very easy for the kids to eat as they just need to poke their fork into the sausage and the spaghetti will follow.

Easy to eat too!

Sane tip: The kids would be happy to help out with this one. You can be sure that there will be no spaghetti left at the end of the meal! Great for parties too.

Save tip: Quick, easy and cheap to make. Enjoy!



~  mummy wee – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore  ~

New Year’s Day home-cooked lunch

We started off the year with a beautiful salad which was so appealing to look at and yummy to eat. Here’s the recipe!

Tropical salad

1 packet of mixed salad leaves (eg. baby spinach or rocket)
1 large mango
1 apple
1 avocado
A handful of cherry tomatoes
A handful of cranberries
A handful of pine nuts

Dressing:
2 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoon of honey

Chop everything up, mix the dressing and toss everything together. Easy!

#2 made some Salami and Cheese rolls from scratch. Click here for the recipe of the dough. After rolling the dough out into thin layers, she cut them into squares and topped them with salami and mozzarella cheese. They were baked in the oven at 200C for 20 minutes.

Salami and cheese rolls

We had a simple but delicious lunch to mark the start of a new year and after that, the kids settled down to prepare for the new school year.

First lunch of 2014!

Sane tip: I am looking forward to the 5 of them going back to school. So nice to have my mornings free to do what I need to do, what I like to do, and to be able to spend more time with Kate.

Save tip: A gourmet meal at home on a budget!




~   mummy wee – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore  ~

Duck and Sweet potato Salad

#1 asked if we could have healthier meals and I made this salad for her dinner. She reached home at 8pm as she had band CCA so I just made a portion for her. I’m so proud of myself because I’m a really bad cook and it’s not often I get complimented for my cooking. Ok I know it’s just salad, but even my salads have gone wrong in the past. Just last week, after my 3rd failed attempt at making hor fun, #4 pleaded with me to never cook hor fun again. So let me share with you this really simple salad recipe which #1 enjoyed.

Duck and Sweet Potato salad

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

A few pieces of cooked duck breast
1 tsp butter
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp water
1 sprig of thyme
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
A bit of black pepper
100g butterhead lettuce
4 large cherry tomatoes
50g sweet potato (steamed and cubed)
A handful of basil leaves

1. Heat a pan and add the butter. When it bubbles, add the thyme, honey and water. Add the duck and mix well. Remove from pan.

2. Mix the lemon juice, olive oil and pepper (which would be the dressing).

3. Arrange lettuce on a plate and drizzle the dressing over it. Arrange tomatoes, sweet potato and duck around the salad and garnish with basil leaves. That’s it!

4. I sprinkled a handful of chia seeds on top. I love adding chia seeds into their food as it’s a great way to up their Omega-3, iron, calcium and fibre intake.

Sane tip: Salads are easy to make and can be whipped up in 15 minutes.

Save tip: You can replace the duck with any other meat or leftovers.

~   mummywee – parenting 6 kids in Singapore without going mad or broke  ~

Ham in the middle

#2 found this recipe online and prepared this for our breakfast. Fun to make and yummy to eat.
Try it!

She also wrote this post.

Ingredients:
Bread
Ham
Cheese
Egg

1) Cut a square out of the bread
2) Flatten the inner square
3) Break the egg into a bowl
4) Cut a piece of ham to fit the hole

5) Put oil in a pan and spread it around.

6) Put the outer square of bread into the pan

7) Pour the egg into the hole in the bread.

8) Put the ham onto the egg before it solidifies entirely

9) Place the cheese on top of the ham

10) After roughly a minute, put the inner square of bread into the hole and press it down so that it does not bulge out

11) After twenty seconds, flip the bread

12) After a minute, you can serve. It should be golden brown

13) Enjoy your breakfast!

Sane tip: It’s great when your kids can cook. It not only makes them independent, but it’s a life skill. It’s really wonderful when your kids can cook a proper meal for you 🙂

Save tip: They love eating this for weekend breakfasts. Besides, it’s cheap and yummy!

~  mummywee – parenting 6 kids without going mad or broke  ~

DIY Pizza

#2 invited her friends over for a study date and she made pizza for lunch. This recipe is take from “Cooking for Kids made easy” and the chef used to cook for Her Majesty the Queen! It is not hard to do but takes a lot of effort. It’s best you make this with your child on a nice relaxing weekend. Or if you are game for a bit of a mess (read: a big mess, you can have a DIY pizza birthday party for your child! It won’t cost much and they’ll have lots of fun) Do allocate about 4 hours before you can eat your pizza as you have to wait a long time for the yeast to rise. It usually takes #2 about 3-4 hours to make this pizza, depending on how many helpers she has!


Ingredients (serves 5 people)

Pizza dough
200ml warm water
1/2 teaspoon salt
7g dried yeast (baking section of supermarket)
1 teaspoon caster sugar
375g plain flour
2 tablespoons olive oil

Tomato sauce
1 onion
1 clove of garlic
4 ripe tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
20g caster sugar
50g tomato puree

(we doubled the above ingredients as we had 10 people eating)

Toppings (of your choice)
We used:
200g sliced ham
4 sausages
1 packet bacon
1 packet salami
1 can of button mushroom

1) Put the warm water in a jug and add the salt, dried yeast and sugar

2) Whisk thoroughly to dissolve the yeast
3) Cover the jug with cling film and put in a warm place to prove – it will froth up and a foam will form on top of the yeast mixture. It will take about 15 minutes to prove.

2) Crush the garlic and remove the skin. Chop it finely
3) Peel the onion and chop it finely

4) Half the tomatoes, then quarter them. Cut them into small chunks. 
5) After 15 minutes, remove the jug from the warm place and take off the cling wrap. There should be foam on top.
6) Put the flour in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the middle of the flour

7) Carefully pour in the yeast mixture
8) Add the olive oil
9) Mix it with your hands until it comes together

10) Turn the dough onto a clean work surface
11) Knead the dough continuously for about 5 minutes until it is smooth and firm
12) It may be a little tiring but keep going! You are doing great!
13) The dough should be firm and smooth.
14) Make it into a ball shape
15) Sprinkle a bit of flour into a large, clean mixing bowl

16) Put the dough into the bowl and press it down gently
17) Cover the bowl with cling wrap and leave it in a warm place to prove for an hour
18) It should rise and double in size

19) Drizzle the olive oil in a saucepan on medium heat
20) Add the garlic and onion and fry for a couple of minutes until translucent
21) Add the caster sugar
22) Add the chopped tomatoes
23) Add the tomato puree and stir well
24) Put the lid on and let the tomatoes simmer for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally until the sauce thickens

25) Turn off the heat and pour the sauce into a blender

26) Hold a tea towel over the top to prevent the sauce from splashing out
27) Blend until smooth
28) Put it aside (any left overs can be kept in the fridge for 4 days and used in pasta dishes)

29) After an hour, remove the dough from the warm place and take off the cling wrap
30) Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and press it down to get some of the air out
31) Turn it out onto a floured work surface
32) Knead the dough for 30 seconds to knock the air out
33) Cut into a few pieces and roll them out separately into large circles
34) Sprinkle more flour if your dough is sticking onto the work surface
35) Roll it out as thin as you can
(this time, her dough didn’t turn out very well as she did not have enough time to wait and she proved the yeast in the oven at 115C which is too hot)

36) Put each pizza base on a baking paper and add toppings of your choice. Finish off with mozzarella cheese

Her friends arrived in time to help roll out the dough

37) Cook the pizza in a pre-heated oven at 200C for about 15 minutes

It should be crispy and golden brown on the top

Looks ugly but it’s really yummy!

By the time lunch was ready, everyone was starving and every time a piping hot pizza came out of the oven it was gobbled up in minutes!

Sane tip: Depending on how many people the child is cooking for (and the age of the child), they may run out of steam half way through. Do anticipate this and be prepared to help out or take over. Most of the time and effort actually comes from making the dough. For a simpler alternative (which is what I do if it was a weekday meal) I will use those ready made bases like Pita base or other alternatives which you can find at the bread section and just add the toppings.

Save tip: It is cheaper than eating at a pizza restaurant.. and it definitely tastes better!

~   mummywee – parenting 6 kids without going mad or broke  ~