Bits of Carey

Happy New year to you all! Well it’s the start of a brand new year with so many exciting possibilities and things to look forward to. I tell this to myself every morning when I have to crawl out of bed away from hubby and my other man, Charlie – the siamese prince. What a wonderful breakaway it has been…batteries are recharged and I’m ready to go go go!

The first thing that comes to mind for this year is a healthier version of a classic breakfast I prepared during the hols. We had fry ups practically every morning, so this was a welcomed relief! So easy and delicious!

For your New year brekkie, you will need:

Turkey rashers – they are smoked and look just like back bacon! So lean, you will need a little oil to fry these. I enjoy them, they are tasty and it’s a nice change from bacon. I got these rashers at Spar.

Soft poached eggs – bring a pot of water to the boil and add a tablespoon of vinegar – no salt. Make a whirlpool in the water and break an fresh egg into the centre, guiding with a spoon gently. Boil for 3 minutes.

Ripe tomatoes - halved and lightly fried in the same pan as the rashers. Season with salt, pepper and dried mixed herbs.

Chicken liver pate – so delicious – eaten in moderation of course! Easier than frying up some chicken livers too!

Smooth cottage cheese - a tasty alternative to butter

Grated mature cheddar - sorry, can’t do without that!

Sour dough ciabatta - toasted

Onion marmalade – not on the pic, but it is vital! Woolies has a good one, or make your own.

Ok, I’m hungry now! First a sarmie, then off to read some of your yummy blogs that I’ve missed so much!

On friday, we got home from work, only to find that Thelma, our domestic assistant, rearranged our bedroom! First of all I don’t know how she did it – being so tiny and all, and secondly, I don’t know where she found the time?! I mean, she comes once a week, which means she has loads of washing, ironing and cleaning to do! She always does little things like this, she’s also a perfectionist of note, she does not like things to be off centre, the couch needs to be exactly in line with the tv, the glasses need to be perfectly alligned and so on… So we love it when Thelma comes and does her magic every week! Saturday’s are complete bliss for us, no cleaning, spotless house and to top it off, the way she rearranged the bed to face the patio door is very feng shui “ek se”, I don’t know why we didn’t think of that in the first place? So we woke up rested and it felt like we were in a holiday home. Weird, I know, but change really is as good as a holiday! This just illustrates how life just goes on and we don’t notice things around us, then a simple change is made that makes all the difference in your everyday life! Thanks Thelma, we love you! If I could afford it, I’d have you everyday!!

Back to food…

We wanted something quick, light and substantial for brekkie on Saturday morning and this is what I made…

 Gorgeous grilled CHEESE toasts!

Toast slices of seed bread, top each slice with a small handful of grated mature cheddar and 2 -3 slices of ripe tomato, cover with some grated mozzarella and pop under the grill until golden, gooey and melty! Top with a dollop of cream cheese and season with freshly ground salt and pepper.

Try replacing the cheddar with gruyere…nom nom nom!

P.s Due to the rainy weather, we did not “toboggin” – I don’t know if I was relieved or disappointed! ha ha!

Anyhoo, here’s to another week!

C xx

Just recently, I had my first successful attempt at poaching an egg in boiling water. I don’t know why it took me so long to try it again, I suppose I was afraid I would have a repeat of disintergrated eggs and heart palpitations! The other day, I realised the last time I did it, I added salt to the water(which apparently breaks down the egg) and I didn’t use enough acid. So now I know for sure that you DO NOT add salt and you add 3 table spoons of vinegar per litre of water. So this weekend, with my new found egg poaching confidence, I decided to make healthy Bacon and Egg Sarmies, and might I just say, I will never go back to a fried egg again!

I started off laying some back bacon onto a baking tray and popped that under the grill, turned once.

So I prepared the boiling water as explained above, made a little whirl pool, then plopped the eggs one by one into the centre and left it there to cook for about a minute and a half(I like the yolk runny!). Not more than two eggs if it is a small pot, you don’t want to lower the temperature of the water, also you don’t want one giant poached egg!

I placed the grilled bacon on toasted Low GI bread and topped with the gorgeous beauties and covered it all with slices of cheddar cheese. Don’t forget the freshly milled pepper and Maldon salt!

Pop under the grill to melt the cheese a bit

And look at that! Serve with some fresh peppery rocket and mini rosa tomatoes.

Now cut into the yolk! ooooooh…..sumptuous, absolutely sumptuous! Serve with freshly squeezed O.J.

Have a good week all!

C xx