Nakano Seasoned Rice Vinegar - Giveaway! *closed*

Nakano is introducing a line of seasoned rice vinegar. The new seasoned flavors include red pepper, pesto, balsamic blend, Italian herb, and the roasted garlic flavor that they sent me (along with a $50 gift card) to try the product and share it with you.

Rice vinegar is wonderful for adding a light flavor to your favorite foods with out adding fat or a lot of calories. It is also gluten free. I used the Roasted Garlic vinegar I was sent to make Summer Garden Chicken. I simply splashed it over the meat and veggies for a delicious subtle garlic flavor.

Find more great recipes and serving suggestions at their website. The Baked Goat Cheese with Tangy Pesto Spinach is something that I want to try. It would be especially good if I made my own goat cheese. (It is on the to do list.)

THE GIVEAWAY
Want to give Nakana Seasoned Rice Vinegar a try? Enter to win! The prize package includes a $25 gift card, 1 bottle of seasoned vinegar, and a coupon and recipe booklet. Do one, two, or three of the following for your chance to win. Just please be sure to leave a separate comment here for each of the options you choose.

1.      Sign up for the NAKANO SPLASH Recipe Club to receive a free monthly e-newsletter featuring great recipes and tips.


2.      NAKANO is on Facebook! Become a fan.

3.      Visit the NAKANO website then come back and tell us what your favorite Splash tip is.


A winner will be picked this Friday, September third. Good luck!

Spicy Pickled Green Beans

First time pickling green beans, over here. I think it went well...I guess we'll find out in a few months! My in laws are on vacation and told me I could harvest in the garden. I'd wanted to try simple green bean canning and since my beans are coming to an end, I'm jumping at the chance to pick some of their green beans!

Are you pickling/canning/putting anything up this year?

Spicy Pickled Green Beans
Food.com
Makes 4 pints

3 pounds green beans
4 long thin red chilies (use gloves when handling!)
3 large garlic cloves
1 tablespoon peppercorns
1/4 cup fresh dill
2 1/2 cups water
2 1/2 cups white vinegar
1/4 cup salt

Trim and remove string from green beans. Cut to fit into jars. Prepare jars, rings and lids for canning.

Bring water, vinegar and salt to the boil.

Fill each jar with beans until they are snug. Insert chilies and garlic. Divide peppercorns amongst jars. Divide dill amongst jars. Ladle the boiled pickling liquid into the jars leaving headspace. Wipe rims of jars, apply lid and screw on rings. Process in boiling water bath for 12 minutes.

Remove carefully and allow to cool to room temperature. During this cooling time, you'll hear quiet pops letting you know your jars have sealed. If by the next day, some of the jars haven't sealed, you can store in refrigerator to be eaten as soon as possible. Allow the sealed jars to sit at least one month in a cool, dark place before opening.

MIFS #182 - It is Thursday????

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

Apologies for the late carnival, and for my lack of contribution. This summer has taken a toll on me. Honestly, I did not even realize it was carnival day until about five minutes. So carry on with out me while I try to get it together here.


Stephanie is a mom, homeschooler, homesteader in the hills of West Virginia. Find more of her adventures at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood.

LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!

Carnival Guidelines:

Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.


Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Devil's Food Cupcakes with Espresso Meringue

Serve these delicious little grownup cupcakes at your next dinner party.  They look beautiful on a buffet!

Use your mini-muffin tins.  You can find the little silver wrappers where cake decorating supplies are sold.

     Ingredients

CUPCAKES

    Vegetable oil spray

    4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped

    1/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for sprinkling

    1 1/4 cups boiling water

    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

    1 teaspoon baking soda

    1/4 teaspoon salt

    2 sticks unsalted butter ( 1/2 pound), softened

    1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar

    3 large eggs

    1/2 cup buttermilk

    1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

     

ESPRESSO MERINGUE

    3 large egg white

    1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

    1 teaspoon instant espresso, plus more for sprinkling

     

directions

1.     MAKE THE CUPCAKES: Preheat the oven to 325°. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. Lightly spray the paper liners with vegetable oil spray. In a small bowl, mix the chocolate and 1/4 cup of cocoa. Add the boiling water and let melt, then whisk until smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, buttermilk and vanilla, then slowly beat in the dry ingredients and the chocolate mixture in 3 alternating batches.

2.     Fill the muffin cups three-fourths full with the batter. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, shifting the pans halfway through, until the cupcakes are springy and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cupcakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then unmold them and transfer to a rack to cool completely.

3.     MEANWHILE, MAKE THE ESPRESSO MERINGUE: Mix the egg whites, confectioners’ sugar and 1 teaspoon of espresso in a medium stainless steel bowl. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and heat the whites, whisking constantly, until hot to the touch (165°). Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a whisk and beat at high speed until the meringue is stiff and glossy, about 5 minutes; if using a handheld mixer, beat for about 8 minutes.

4.     Scoop half of the espresso meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a large (3/4-inch) plain tip and pipe the meringue onto half of the cupcakes. Repeat with the remaining espresso meringue and cupcakes. Lightly sprinkle the meringue with cocoa and espresso powder and serve.

MAKE AHEAD The frosted devil’s food cupcakes can be kept in an airtight container overnight.

Espresso Chocolate Jam Birthday Cupcakes

Hubby’s birthday was last week! Sadly he was on the road an unable to be here on his big day but we celebrated over the past weekend. Hubby loves peanut butter cups. Something about the combination of chocolate and peanut butter puts him in a heavenly place. For the past several years I’ve tried to incorporate his love of peanut butter and chocolate into his birthday cake. Last year’s attempt was very good but the cake was so heavy and rich. I had to swig down a whole glass of milk to cut the richness of just a small slice. Maybe it was a little too rich! This year I wanted a lighter airier version!

Time with hubby is precious since we only spend a few days together every two weeks so I cheated! I used a box mix and store bought frosting to jump start the baking process but I added my own twist. You can easily use a few of my tricks to add a little extra umph to your baked goodies regardless if you use store bought mix or if you make it from scratch!

• Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate cake mix
• Betty Crocker Whipped Cream Cheese frosting
• Strawberry jam or preserves

Prepare cupcakes per package directions EXCEPT substitute water for super concentrated brewed coffee (cooled) or simply dissolve 2 tablespoons of instant coffee into the water. All the cupcakes to cool completely!

Using a knife or small circular cookie cutter, cut a circle shape in the top of the cupcakes. Using a fork, gently insert into the side of a circle and pop out the middle section of the cupcake and set aside. Drop at least a teaspoon of jam or preserves in the middle of each cupcake replacing the the cupcake centers on top of the jam.

Pipe whipped cream cheese frosting on top allow to set and serve. You can also mix 1 part of creamy peanut butter with 2 or 3 parts whipped cream cheese frosting and pipe onto cupcakes. (Tip: I used a simple plastic sandwich bag with the corner snipped off to pipe the frosting.)

The coffee flavor offers a nice subtle complimentary flavor to the chocolate cake. Of course, if you wanted a stronger coffee taste to the cake, you can always make the coffee stronger before adding it to your cake mix. Ultimately, the cupcakes were a hit. I made several with jam filled centers, some with just plain cream cheese frosting, and others with a peanut butter cream cheese frosting. This is on the “definitely to repeat” list!

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. She loves to cook, craft and blog. Soon she’ll be going back to school for a new adventure in Graphic Design. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

MIFS #181 - -Who says you can't wipe your face on your shirt?

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

This a post originally appeared on my blog 12/09. 
We made the switch to cloth napkins some time ago. I found some nice napkins in a clearance aisle and bought those for our dining room napkins. For the kitchen we used old baby washcloths and cut up towels. I prefer cloth napkins to paper, and love not having to buy paper napkins all the time.

Those original kitchen napkins have gotten a lot of use. It was time for something different.

My husband had several dress shirts that had various stains or small rips making them unsuitable to wear to work. I had them in a pile, not quite sure what to do with them. Then it occurred to me that they would make good napkins. I broke out the scissors and the sewing machine and got to work.

The first step was to cut up the shirt. I wasn't worried about exact measurements for these napkins. I cut squares that are roughly 10x10 inches.

Next I ironed the squares, and folded the sides over about a 1/4 inch and ironed the fold. Then it was simply a matter of sewing the folds. I used a zigzag stitch to sew it all up.


With use, I have noticed some fraying. To prevent this, I should have made my zig zag right on the edge, or folded and sewn the edges over a second time. The fraying is minimal, and it really doesn't bother me that much for these everyday use napkins, though.




The final product. Sixteen napkins were made from two shirts in a couple of hours.

I enjoy using cloth napkins. They work better, and save us money. Making them from old shirts makes them practically free. It also is a source of great amusement for my kids sitting around the lunch table. They find it hilarious that they get to wipe their face on daddy's shirt.



Stephanie is a mom, homeschooler, homesteader in the hills of West Virginia. Find more of her adventures at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood.

LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!

Carnival Guidelines:

Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.


Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Vanilla Sugar

This is a simple one but oh so good and frugal too!

Have you ever splurged and bought those expensive vanilla beans?  Sometimes your dessert is so special that it seems worth it.  Once you're done with that fancy dessert you're left with an expensive vanilla bean to throw in the trash.  It seems so wasteful but what else are you going to do with it?  That's easy, make vanilla sugar!

Make sure the vanilla bean is clean and dry.  Break it into several pieces of about 1" long.  Find a cute little container (or a small plastic bowl) and fill it with a cup or two of granulated sugar.  Insert the bits of vanilla beans, mix and put the lid on.  In two or three weeks open the lid and take a whiff.  If you like vanilla, you won't smell anything better!

Use your vanilla sugar to enhance the flavor of other foods.  Sprinkle it across sugar cookies or french toast or use it to make sugared nuts.  Have fun with it!  You'll feel better knowing that you extended the life of an expensive ingredient and created something delicious!

In a decorative jar the vanilla sugar makes a great gift!

Easy Apple Raisin Crisp

I’m going to be honest, I stole tried this recipe from Food Network’s Sunny Anderson when I had the four fellas here this summer. We had an abundance of apples and this made for a fantastically easy and fast dessert! Just about any firm apple works even though she recommends Fuji or McIntosh apples. The kids loved (LOVED) ‘em and i can’t believe it was so simple to make.

I wonder if it would be too indulgent to enjoy for breakfast one day???

Ingredients

• 2 apples (recommended: Fuji or McIntosh)
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup strawberry jam, jelly or preserves
• 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons butter, cold and diced
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 cup oats, uncooked
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Pinch salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut each apple in half along its equator. Using a melon baller or spoon, cut out the core, creating a rounded hole. Rub apple with lemon juice to prevent browning. Place 1 tablespoon of jam into each hole and top with a few raisins.

Topping: in a small bowl mix together dry ingredients plus the cold butter. It’s faster and easier if you do this with your hands. Press the mixture on the top of each apple. Be careful not to press too hard or the jam will squirt out. Place in a baking dish filled with about a 1/4-inch of water. Bake until top is golden brown and apple is tender, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Here is a link to Sunny’s original baked apple recipe.

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

*Be sure to check out how you can win a $25 Sam’s Club Gift card – it ends Wednesday!

Who would like to win a $60 voucher from www.cookware.com?

You?  Head on over to Frills in the Hills - there's a special giveaway just for the USA & Canada residents!  You can enter DAILY too!  Ends Friday 10am New York Time, 7am LA time...

See you there!

Roasted Applesauce

Ok yes. It's only August. Not even halfway through August yet. Not really *fresh* apple season yet - I know, I know! Bookmark this post for fall though; trust me, you want to!

Transparent apples are coming into season now however and earlier this week my Dad was given a whole lot of them. He asked me if I'd like to do something with them. A pie (hint hint) or something. Of course I said yes and after baking three little six inch pies absolutely crammed with apples, I still had six pounds left over.

I'd seen this roasted applesauce from Martha Stewart oh goodness, a while back now, and had bookmarked it to try this apple season. Thought I'd give it a trial test run with the remaining transparents, as I'd learned they do in fact make great pies and applesauce.

Well. Let's just put it this way. I doubt I'll be making applesauce in any other way, ever again. This recipe makes such a creamy, flavorful and rich applesauce! So good. And after digging around the interwebs, I learned that I could in fact can applesauce in a hot water bath so that it is shelf stable rather than taking up room in my freezer. Double win!

I had six pounds so I doubled the recipe and it turned out beautifully.

A note - if you do not own a food mill, simply chop the apples roughly as I did, then press through a large mesh strainer to remove seeds/peels/cores.

Here's the recipe:

Roasted Applesauce
Makes 8 - 1/2 cup servings
Martha Stewart

1/4 cup water
6 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
pinch coarse salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 pounds small assorted apples such as Gala, McIntosh or Fuji (about 10)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
pinch ground cloves

Preheat oven to 425F. Combine water, sugar, lemon juice and salt in a 9x13 dish.

Scatter butter pieces over the mixture and top with whole apples. Roast until apples are very soft, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Working in small batches, send the apple mixture through a food mill to remove peels and seeds.

Stir in spices. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled. Can be refrigerated in airtight container for up to 5 days.

Carnival #180 - Pickled Pepper Rings

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

The hot banana peppers are looking good in the garden this year. They are big, and they are hot. Just the way we like them. The easiest way to preserve hot peppers is by pickling them.

I love having pickled hot peppers on hand to add to Mexican dishes, put on a pizza, or give a sandwich some zip.

Preparing the Peppers
It is a good idea to wear rubber gloves when working with hot peppers. Wash peppers. Discard stems. Cut in 1/2 inch thick rings. You can remove the seeds if you wish, but I leave them.


Pickling juice (enough for about a dozen large banana peppers to yield about 5 pints of pickled peppers)
6 C white vinegar
2 C water
4 cloves of garlic, crushed

Combine ingredients and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and gently boil about five minutes. Strain to remove the garlic. Keep liquid hot.

Pack pepper rings into hot jars leaving at least 1/2 inch headspace. Cover with hot juice. Wipe rim and screw lid on to finger tip tight. Boiling water process (be sure water is covering the jars) for 10 minutes (don't start timing until water is back to a boil.) Wait five minutes. Remove jars to cool. Refrigerate any unsealed jars.

TIPS
If you only have a few peppers to pickle, you can skip the boiling water bath, and just store your pickled peppers in the refrigerator.

You can use many varieties of peppers with this recipe, or even mix your peppers.

LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!

Carnival Guidelines:

Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.


Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Fennel, Avocado and Mint Salad with Pistachio Caper Dressing

Are you trapped in the heatwave that is the southeast this summer?  Or is it this hot everywhere?  It's brutal here and all I can think of is salad!  Try this crunchy, zesty one for a complete change of taste!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice (about 1 1/2 lemons)
• Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Heaping 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup drained capers in brine, minced
• 1/2 cup pistachio oil, or other nutty oil such as pumpkinseed
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup minced red onion (about 1/2 small onion)
• 1 medium fennel bulb, halved lengthwise, cored, and very thinly sliced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 3 medium ripe Hass avocados
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, chopped

Instructions

1. Place sun-dried tomatoes in a small bowl. Bring a small pot of water to a boil and pour over the tomatoes so that they are completely submerged. Allow to soak for 1 hour, then drain and slice into 1/8-inch-thick strips.
2. To make the pistachio-caper vinaigrette, combine the lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper, and capers in a small bowl. Slowly add the pistachio oil and olive oil, pouring them in a thin stream while whisking constantly to emulsify them. Stir in the onion.
3. Combine the sliced fennel and sun-dried tomato slices in a mixing bowl, and toss with the pistachio-caper vinaigrette.
4. Halve the avocados lengthwise and remove the pits. Peel each half and place it cut-side down on the cutting board. Slice the avocados into very thin, lengthwise strips.
5. If you’re pressed for time, you can toss all the ingredients together and serve in a salad bowl. For a prettier presentation, layer the avocado slices in a medium bowl, followed by a layer of the fennel salad mixture, and finally some of the fresh herbs. Repeat until all ingredients are stacked in the bowl, ending with a layer of fennel and herbs, about 4 layers of each ingredient total.
6. Let salad sit for half an hour at room temperature to allow the flavors to combine, then scoop onto plates.

Craisin Chocolate Chunk Cookies

We were introduced to craisin chocolate chunk cookies at The Pacific Cookie Co. during out trip to Santa Cruz, CA last month. My mother completely fell in love with them, but knew she would need to create a copycat recipe of her own since she would be leaving California soon. She did, immediately upon returning home, and here it is...

Craisin Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients:
2 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups chocolate chunks (or about one and a half packages)
1 cup craisins
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Directions:

Step 1: In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients with a whisk.

Step 2: In a large bowl, combine softened butter and sugars by hand until smooth and creamy. To this mixture, add eggs and vanilla.

Step 3: Pour flour mixture into sugar mixture and mix by hand until smooth.

Step 4: Add craisins, nuts and chocolate chunks to dough and stir until combined.

Step 5: On a greased cookie sheet, drop 1 inch balls about 2 inches apart, and bake at 375 degrees F for 7 to 9 minutes, or until very lightly browned.

Enjoy!

Carnival #179 - Banana "Ice Cream"

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

A few weeks ago I found myself with an excess of bananas. Normally if I have too many bananas I will freeze a few to use for baking at a later date. The trouble this time is I already had quite a few frozen for baking, andI had a lot of bananas that need to be used. Luckily, my sister-in-law had a wonderful idea.

She told me that you could make an ice cream like treat from frozen bananas. I'm always up for ice cream. So she peeled a couple dozen bananas, stuck them in a freezer bag, and put them in the freezer.

Awhile later I pulled them out, broke them into pieces, and let the food processor do all the work. I did add a little bit of milk because the bananas were so thick my food processor was having a hard time mixing it.

The result? Creamy, cold, and delicious. And any leftovers keep well in a container in the freezer. For some ideas for variations of this simple and delicious dessert, check out the comments section in Step-by-Step Instructions for One Ingredient Ice Cream.



LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!
Carnival Guidelines:

Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.

Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Olive Oil Poaching

 Olive oil poaching may seem like a complicated preparation fit for expensive entrees at fancy restaurants.  In fact it’s an easy way to compliment the delicate flavor of fresh seafood.  It does use a lot of olive oil but the oil can be strained and re-used.   Use regular olive oil, not extra virgin!

The main consideration in olive oil poaching is the temperature of the oil.  If you’re not careful you’ll go from poaching to deep fat frying in the blink of an eye.  I always use a candy thermometer to check my oil temp.  If it gets too hot before you’re ready to add the fish, take your pan off the heat and wait until it cools down.

You can poach in a frying pan or a saucepan.  Choose a pan with a surface area similar in size to what you’re trying to poach.  Deeper sides and a smaller base will require less oil.  Measure the depth of your piece of fish at its thickest point and add that much oil to your pan.  Don’t worry, when you add your filet it will displace enough oil to submerge the fish.

Heat the oil gently on medium-low heat until it registers 150 – 200 degrees on your thermometer.  Add your fish.  It should not sputter, pop or sizzle.  If it does, you’re frying not poaching!  Immediately pull your fish out, remove your pan from the heat and let it cool before trying again.

The amount of time it takes to poach your fish will depend on the thickness of the filet.  Your fish should be firm, moist and flake easily when it is done.  The piece in the above picture took less than five minutes to poach through.  Better to undercook it than overcook it.  Pull it out and check it.  If it’s not done you can always slip it back into the oil.  If you overcook it there’s not much you can do except make fish patties!

I used this method recently when I received some halibut from my homeowners.  They’d caught it offshore Homer, Alaska, and had it express mailed to Tennessee to put in their freezer.  The filets had been individually packaged and frozen and they generously urged me to help myself to a package.  I was thrilled to be eating it the day after it had been caught so far away!

Olive oil poaching is the perfect way to pay homage to a beautiful piece of fresh-caught fish.  The halibut came out with just the lightest taste of olive oil and was arguably the best tasting thing I’ve made in a long time.  I topped it with some fresh basil, garlic, feta pesto and a side of sauted, herbed winter squash.  Fresh fish, olive oil and herbs from the garden; a perfect triumvirate of flavors!

Add olive oil poaching to your arsenal of culinary techniques.  It’s easier than you think!

Have you been to ikea?

Us Aussies love Ikea - unfortunately it's only in a few capital cities here in Australia but fortunately it's not that far from us.  I find it nearly impossible not to spend more than I budgeted, and my hubby now says when we do walk through the doors of the store: 'Remember if you buy it, you're putting it together'.

It doesn't stop me from batting my eyelashes when we return home though!  Nothing like being optimistic.

Anyways, if you haven't been to ikea, they sell food also - and the frozen swedish meatballs are fantastic.  I used to say I would go there for the meatballs alone, but since discovering this recipe, I no longer need to make the trip!  I can make them at home for at least half the price!

The meatball mix I made below, makes my family two meals - roughly 60 meatballs.  These freeze well so I figured why not make two lots... I'd also use this quantity if serving them as canapes.  you could serve it with the sauce as a dipping sauce.


Ingredients:
meatballs
500 grams beef mince
500 grams pork mince
3 potatoes, peeled, boiled, and mashed
1 medium onion, finely diced
1 cup breadcrumbs, lightly toasted (or make breadcrumbs from toast!)
2 eggs
3/4 cup cream
salt and pepper


sauce/gravy
1tsp beef stock powder
200ml water
100ml cream
splash of soy sauce
pepper
2 tb cornflour


Method:
Mix all meatball ingredients together in bowl.  Mix thoroughly at first with a spoon, then when liquid is evenly distributed, mix it up with your hands!

Heat about 3 tb butter in a frypan, when hot, add walnut-sized meatballs and fry for about 2-3 minutes and turn over gently.  Transfer to baking tray, add butter to frypan as required, and repeat until all done!

Then make your sauce!
Basically combine water, cream, stock powder, soy sauce and pepper, sprinkle cornflour on top and whisk over medium heat until smooth

Allow to simmer and thicken.

Pour over your meatballs, or in bowl to dip if serving as canapes


You can find more step-by-step cooking from scratch posts and much more at my blog, Frills in the Hills - the fabulous life of our family of five - the fun, the food and the frugality.  Now also tragically on facebook and twitter...