Crumbed Eggplant with Chilli Tomato Jam and Bakers Delight Chia Bread

Ah chia. You and I meet again.

I've just spent the last 10 minutes searching YouTube for the clip I will forever think of every time I hear the word. Sadly it must be such a random part of the Wayne's World movie that nobody's put it up for my enjoyment! Anyway, Benjamin Kane is flicking through the TV channels, and after the clapping lamp ad, he flicks to this:



So I'm constantly singing in my head "clap on, clap off, the clapper! ch-ch-ch-chia!" And it will not go away.

'90s movie obsessions aside, the kind people over at Baker's Delight sent me some of their new chia bread to try recently, and once I stopped singing the song and explaining to the courier why he was delivering bread to me, I ripped a piece out and buttered it. Forget about the fact I actually had to cook with it

Bakers Delight has the BEST white sliced.

Anyway, I'm a huge fan of chia - as I mention in this post where I make banana chia muffins. Sadly, I'd have to sell Veggie Baby in order to fund one banana these days so I've had to use different ingredients in them.

With the suggestion that I might like to make an Australian recipe from the bread, I immediately had two ideas:

Little Aussie kid toast rusks! A smidgen of Vegemite, a sprinkle of cheese on the wholemeal chia bread, and into a low oven until they're hard. NOM. 

And the rest of the bread I left out overnight (covered) until it dried, then whizzed them in the food processor to make breadcrumbs. I then egged and crumbed eggplant slices and baked them at 180C for about 20-30 minutes until crispy on the outside and cooked through. then I smothered them in homemade chilli-tomato jam.

I normally add spices and things to my breadcrumbs, but I left these plain so as not to compete with the jam. To be honest, the breadcrumbs didn't really need it. I especially like the extra crunch from the chia seeds, that pop a little when you bite into them. Delicious and healthy... oh chia is there anything you can't do?

Thanks to Baker's Delight, I'm giving away three prize packs that include a packet of chia seeds, a $5 voucher to try their bread, and a medium-sized chia-branded singlet. Just leave a comment below and tell me what Aussie recipe would you have made? 

The giveaway is open to Australian residents only, and will end at 5pm on Tuesday October 18. Random.org will be used to choose three winners, who will be notified by email, so make sure I can contact you somehow!

And for those playing along at home:

b  Chilli-Tomato Jam    b

Ingredients
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1cm fresh ginger, grated
1 red chili, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
salt and pepper

Directions:
1. Saute the onion, garlic and ginger over low-medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the chili and saute 1 minute.

3. Add tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper and bring to the boil.

4. Reduce heat and let simmer about 20-30 minutes, long enough to get thick and jammy. Oh man, it's good!

You can read more about the history of the chia seed, the Kimberley region in which it is grown, and chia farming here.

Disclosure: I was given two loaves of bread to try and the giveaway stuff for you guyses. That's all, folks!

BB Cream by Garnier

When I hear of a company that strives to make its impact on the environment a more conscious one, I'm impressed. I love that they're willing to make changes to their traditional ways of doing things in favour of more enlightened ways. As Oprah says, when you know better, you do better!

I was recently sent Garnier's newest product to try (and give away to you guys, stay tuned!) and despite the description of it being "miracle!", "skin perfector!" and "all-in-one solution!", I was struck more by the sincere effort to which Garnier has gone in order to bring about products that use renewable, raw materials and that aren't tested on animals. They recycle 91% of their waste and have a ton of tips on how you can recycle yours.

They even wanted me to recycle the "with compliments" slip on the front of the box. I like this - it was prettier to leave it off, but they made it big and bold. 

 So I was wary of the BB (Blemish Balm) Perfector cream... I have freckles thanks to a lifetime in the Queensland sun (and genetics, yay), and uneven skin tone, what with pregnancy and a love of sunscreen, which makes my face white and the rest of my body olive. White with freckles. Sigh.

Given that it says "one product to correct, protect and unify skin complexion with instant and lasting results", I just didn't think it would work, as "natural coverage" and "lightweight and breatheable formula"s usually lead people to ask if I'm sick, or telling me I look tired.

However.

It is more than just a tinted moisturiser, with its mineral pigments creating more coverage. I'm told it can also be a base for regular foundation, etc, but as a new mama I'm kind of looking more for something that I can throw on and it will do about five things at once.

Miracle skin perfector is supposed to :

1 - Hydrate for 24 hours - I definitely felt soft and non-dry. Bonus.

2 -  Even skin tone - I found that rubbing it on like a moisturiser and then going over my trouble spots with it like a concealer actually made a difference. I used the darker one over my cheeks like blush for a little glow and it added extra coverage. I actually would have left the house looking like that and all I had on was moisturiser! I honestly was surprised.

3 - Correct blemishes - luckily I don't have any.

4 - Boost healthy glow - I did feel hydrated and a little tanned, and I like the dewy effect it has on my skin. Normally this wigs me out, as I look shiny, but this didn't have that effect.

5 - SPF 15 protection - I think this should be in all makeup.

So here is my big mug with the cream applied how I described above. Nothing else. I actually don't mind it... I hate wearing a ton of makeup that makes me look awful close-up, but I can't stand leaving the house au naturel.

You do have to wash your hands after using, unlike regular tinted moisturisers, as the pigment is more foundation-like, but I found that to be something I was willing to live with seeing as I had way more time on my hands (ahem) using only the one product.

Now for the fun part... Thanks to the kind folks at Garnier, I've got 10 (yes, 10) packs of both the dark and the light creams to give away. 


Just leave a comment and tell me - what would you do with the extra time you have on your hands with your morning face routine shortened?


Entries close September 30 at 10am. Winners will be chosen by Random.org and notified by email.


Open to Australian postal addresses only, sorry :(

If you miss out on my giveaway, you can buy the cream for $13.99 at Priceline and supermarkets.
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Bitesize Treats iPhone app: a review

It's no secret that I'm into cute. Frills, flounces, buttons and bows, if it's pink and dainty, I find it irresistible.

Same goes for small versions of things - babies, kittens, miniature ornaments and cocktail food. Why have a slice of quiche when you can have a mini-quiche with a baby tomato on top? WHY?

When asked to review this adorable app, I said yes in about negative 2.3 seconds. For many reasons.

1. Bitesize Treats. Treats. Bitesize. Sold!

2. It is based on the Hardie Grant bestselling book Bitesize: 50 Macarons, Cakepops and Cute Things. (Cute Things... #winning)

3. I had just upgraded to an iPhone 4 and I was interested to see how this would work.

4. I am an iPhone app freak. I have pages and pages of them which I refuse to put into folders, because I love them all and want to look at them. They're organised in groups, but I won't hide them. The icons themselves are cute! 

5. I am a cooking app conoisseur. The flour stuck in my earpiece and random greasy butter smears all over my phone are testament to my new-found addiction to recipes on-the-go.

6. I love reading. It's a rare day indeed that I do a straight review, but I am happy to promote books, reading and cooking. To anyone. Anytime.

Macarons! Cake Pops! Cupcakes, oh my!

I have to say, I wanted to make just about everything as soon as I opened the app. That right there is a good sign.

The photography and food styling is gorgeous... everything looked so enticing.

Ok, back up - what? Blueberry mojito? In popsicle form? Genius. When the weather is warmer these will be the first on my to-do list. Mama needs a summer treat. Anyone wanna join me?

I've never made churros before - I suck at piping and I don't deep-fry anything, really. Except pickles. Everyone should make an exception for deep-fried pickles. And anyhow, I cheat and shallow-fry, which I'm fairly sure can't be done with churros. However - chili chocolate sauce should never be overlooked in such a manner. And I like that I can favourite this recipe and make the sauce for something else.

The ingredients tab of each recipe are helpfully accompanied by a plus sign, which when clicked, will add the ingredient to the shopping list section of the app. 

The method tab also has boxes for you to check when you have completed a step. When I was younger, I read a tip that if you put all your ingredients on the left side of your bench, when you're done with it you move it to the right side, so you always know where you're up to. Being able to check off as I go, even though the recipe is on my phone, is incredibly handy for me as I've now got to abandon recipes partway through to prop up a slumping Veggie Baby, or stop the cat trying to sit on her head, or collect her if she's woken early from her nap. I'm likely to forget my own name these days, so having this as an option is a winner.

The shopping list function is exceedingly useful, as I take my phone everywhere, including the supermarket. I love that its organised either by aisle (dried herbs and spices/packaged goods etc) or by recipe. Once you have put the item into your cart, you check the box and the item moves to the bottom of the list. No more confusion and getting home to find you missed the ginger because it was sandwiched in between the celery and vanilla extract on your list and once you collected them you stopped looking at that section.

 And if that wasn't enough, there is even an oven timer, which is great for busy and/or forgetful people like me. Who cook by instinct and only remember something in the oven because all of a sudden it kinda smells like chocolate brownies with a tinge of burning.

The app is available from iTunes, and is priced at $4.49. For more information, you can go here.

If you want a blueberry mojito popsicle, you can come to my house.

*I was given a free app to review. That's all, folks!