Kid Friendly Baked Buffalo Wings

I thought I’d won the lottery the day I saw 5 kilos of chicken wings at the supermarket marked down to only a couple of dollars. Even though they’re a lot of bone, they’re really tasty and this kid friendly baked Buffalo Wings recipe is a great way to serve them the whole family will love.

I’ve had the ‘real’ thing both here in Australia and in the US but I’m the only one who loves the heat from a traditional Buffalo hot sauce. I had to come up with something tasty that wouldn’t be so spicy.

The wings were intact so I set about splitting them into thirds. The dogs got the tips so they thought it was Christmas. They’re really easy to cut up. It’s just a matter of bending back the wing and cutting through the skin.

Next, in a plastic bag, combine flour, paprika, salt and pepper.

Throw the chicken wings into the bag and coat well with the flour mixture.

Place the wings on an oven tray lined with baking paper and bake for approximately 20 minutes in a 180 deg C oven. (You could also put the wings on a rack to allow any fat to drip away.)

I could’ve taken these a bit further because I do prefer them well done and really crispy but they were still crispy just a little pale.

The next thing is to make your Buffalo sauce. You’ll find all of these ingredients in your pantry and there’s no spicy ingredients whatsoever. If you do like it spicy, by all means add your hot sauce at this stage. 

After you’ve made your sauce, pour over the baked wings and serve.

I served mine with a side of sour cream but you could make a traditional Blue Cheese dip to serve with them or a Ranch dressing. Whatever you like really. They were perfect for a cold night and there was plenty of finger lickin’ going on.

Recipe

• chicken wings
• plain flour
• 1 tbs paprika
• salt & pepper

Buffalo Sauce:

• 125gm butter, melted
• 1 1/2 tbs white vinegar
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce (ketchup)
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• salt & pepper

1. In a plastic bag, combine flour, paprika, salt and pepper and add wings ensuring they are coated well with flour.
2. Place chicken wings on an oven tray lined with baking paper and bake for approximately 20 minutes in a 180 deg C oven.
3. For the sauce, combine all ingredients and pour over the hot, baked wings.
4. Serve with sour cream, Ranch or Blue Cheese dressing.

NB: You could use this Buffalo sauce with any part of the chicken.

Roasted Sweet Potato & Feta Tarts

I love using stuff up. Is that weird? I love the challenge of trying to come up with something a little different from the norm that’s tasty and I have all the ingredients for. Winter is definitely upon us and a warm lunch is always welcome. I have anything for lunch but if my husband happens to be home, I’ll go to a bit of extra effort. I had 2 small sweet potatoes in the vegetable crisper and the tiniest bit of feta cheese left in the fridge so that’s how these Roast Sweet Potato & Feta Tarts came about.

I was prompted to roast the sweet potato because I already had the oven on baking muffins or cookies for the kids. That’s probably the reason why I decided on these tarts. You know, “make hay while the sun shines”? I cut them in small-ish chunks and tossed in a little extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast until tender.

I only ever use 2 eggs when I make these tarts. I bulk out the egg mixture with whatever cream like ingredient I have. It could be cream cheese, yoghurt, sour cream or even milk but in this case I had a tiny bit of Greek yoghurt left, maybe about 1/2 cup. Beat the eggs, mix through the yoghurt and add a little salt and pepper. This is when you could add other herbs or spices if you like.

While the sweet potato was roasting you could prepare the pans. I love these semi circle type pans. They are just perfect for tart shells, cakes or biscuits you want to turn into cases. I just spray with a little oil spray to stop the pastry sticking.

Cut out the pastry using a pastry cutter and press into the pan. (I always, always have ready made puff pastry in the freezer. It’s so handy to make these kind of dishes at the last minute.)

Pop in the roasted sweet potato and chopped feta. You could add a sprinkling of cheese but I didn’t feel like adding it on this particular occasion so left it off. Pour over the beaten egg and yoghurt mixture and place in a 180 deg C oven for approximately 20 minutes or until egg mixture has set.

And done. I could’ve baked these a little more but I’ve been having trouble with my oven lately where it burns everything on the bottom. That’s why they’re not so golden on top but they were cooked and the egg was set.

I drizzled a little balsamic glaze over the top and served with a side salad. Really scrummy and an alternative to a boring old sandwich for lunch. If you’re ever roasting vegetables for your evening meal, keep a few aside and pop in the freezer so you can make this recipe even quicker. If you don’t have feta cheese, don’t worry. Just leave it out or use plain cheddar, parmesan or any other cheese you have.

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Roasted Sweet Potato & Feta Tarts

A quick lunch time treat or snack, these roasted sweet potato and feta tarts are so quick and easy to put together.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 18

Author Anne

Ingredients

• 2 small or 1 large sweet potato diced
• salt & pepper
• extra virgin olive oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup Greek yoghurt sour cream, cream or milk
• 1/2 cup feta cheese chopped into small pieces or crumbled
• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180 deg C.
2. Roast sweet potato, which has been tossed in extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper, for approximately 20 minutes or until tender.
3. Prepare pastry cases but cutting rounds of puff pastry using a pastry cutter and place in a suitable pan which has been spray with oil spray.
4. Beat eggs and mix in Greek yoghurt (or other ingredient you use).
5. Season with salt and pepper and add other herbs or spices, if required.
6. Place pieces of sweet potato into each tart shell along with a couple pieces of feta cheese.
7. Pour egg mixture into each tart shell.
8. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until egg has set.

Recipe Notes

Drizzle with balsamic glaze (optional).
Serve with a side salad for a meal or on their own for a snack.
Pumpkin is a perfect substitute for the sweet potato.

 

Baked Caramel Cheesecake Squares

My baking mojo is back. Well it never really left. It was just a waste of time (and extra calories for me). My son loves my baking and will eat anything. So does my husband, when I put it on a plate for him and hand it to him. He just forgets it’s there and doesn’t it eat. My daughter? Well, no worry about her eating anything I bake. She’ll think I’m trying to poison her with hidden fruit or vegetables, bless her. I’m working at my children’s school canteen now and we like to stop for a cuppa in the morning and what better way to enjoy a cuppa then with a baked Caramel Cheesecake Square. 

I think from not baking so much now, I’ve lost track of exactly what’s in my pantry and I thought I had powdered gelatin in the cupboard, but oh no. No running down the shop to buy it. I just thought how am I going to get this ‘supposedly’ no bake cheesecake to set. I had eggs so decided to bake it instead. Oh, and I only had a little bit of cream cheese but I did have Greek yoghurt, which I substituted for the cream cheese. It turned out really lovely and not so sweet. 

The base was made http://dolphin70.aqbsoft.com/Paulsen_75 with us Aussie’s favourite cheesecake base cookie, the Butternut Snap and melted butter. Once the biscuit crumbs and melted butter has been combined, I pressed into a slice pan and set in the fridge until the filling was prepared. I find if I make a cheesecake in a pan instead of a springform pan, I can cut it into smaller squares. (That doesn’t stop me from having a couple of portions though!)

This recipe uses the ready made caramel Top’n’Fill, which, heaven forbid, I did happen to have in the pantry plus cream cheese, Greek yoghurt and only a little bit of sugar.

Mix all the filling ingredients well and pour onto the set base and bake in a moderate oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Allow to cool and cut into squares. This was well received by the girls in the school canteen, my husband, my son and surprise, surprise, my daughter too. No fruit or vegetables were harmed in the making of this cheesecake so she was happy. You could top these with whipped cream as well for a bit of extra decadence but I don’t think it needs it. Oh, and cut into small squares (but you’re entitled to have at least a couple at a time).

 

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Baked Caramel Cheesecake Squares

A baked caramel cheesecake, made into squares substituting some of the cream cheese with Greek yoghurt.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 24

Author Anne

Ingredients

• 250 gm packet of biscuits blitzed into crumbs (I used Butternut Snap Cookies)
• 125 gm butter melted
• 395 gm can Caramel Top'n'Go
• 250 gm cream cheese
• 250 ml Greek yoghurt
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg beaten
• 3 tbs plain flour

Instructions

1. Mix the biscuit crumbs and melted butter and press into a slice pan, approx 20x25cm.
2. Place in the refrigerator to set.
3. Mix well together caramel Top'n'Go, cream cheese, Greek yoghurt, vanilla, sugar, beaten egg and flour.
4. Pour onto set biscuit base.
5. Bake in a 160 deg C oven for approx 30 minutes, checking if just set. If not, return to oven for 10 minutes at a time until just set.
6. Allow to cool and cut into small squares.

Recipe Notes

Can be topped with whipped cream to serve.
Can also be topped with sliced banana and whipped cream for a Banoffee Pie style Cheesecake.

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

My husband and I like to enjoy a date night at least once a fortnight. Sometimes we might go out to see a movie, go for a walk or just stay in and watch TV. We sometimes, but very rarely eat out. We just can’t see the value in it. We have a couple favourite places we go to that offer great value meals for great prices but when it comes down to it, I’d rather cook at home and enjoy a little splurge on grocery items we normally wouldn’t buy.

Just recently we took the two children out to a chain restaurant where the children ate free on this particular night. For two steak and rib dinners it still cost us $80 and it wasn’t that good. In fact, it was pretty terrible. The worst part about it was I was cringing at just how much food I could buy for $80. We put it down to experience and won’t be going there again. 

So, for one of our recent date nights I spent $13 on eye fillet steak for two, $1.75 for prawns and used everything else I had on hand to create a “Surf’n’Turf” meal at home. It was fantastic. I’d hate to think how much we’d have to pay if we ate this meal out at a restaurant. I had plenty of sweet potato in the fridge so decided to try making them into Hasselback potatoes. I’ve done normal potatoes quite often this way but never sweet potatoes. Here in Australia they are also sometimes called “Opera House” potatoes, for obvious reasons.

They are pretty easy to make. Give them a good wash, removing any soil or grit. Slice not quite all the way down through the sweet potato at about every 5mm (approx 1/8″).

Give them a good sprinkling of salt and pepper and a drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Spread liberally with butter and bake until golden and cooked through. A great alternative to normal potatoes and crunchy on the outside and soft and sweet on the inside.

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Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

A different way to serve the humble sweet potatoe. Crunchy on the outside and soft and sweet on the inside.

Prep Time 5 hours

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Author Anne

Ingredients

• sweet potatoes
• extra virgin olive oil
• salt & pepper
• butter

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 170 deg C (375 deg F).
2. Thoroughly wash sweet potatoes.
3. Slice through sweet potatoes at approximately 5mm (1/8") intervals, not cutting all the way through the potato.
4. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and a little extra virgin olive oil.
5. Spread liberally with butter and bake until golden and cooked through (approximately 25 minutes).

 

Mini Date Loaves

I’ve been to my fair share of fetes, bake sales and markets and one of the first things I go for, besides fudge of course, is a date loaf. I don’t normally have dates in my pantry. Occasionally I’ll buy them but they’ll stay in there forever, unused. The trouble also with buying a whole ‘normal’ sized date loaf is that I’m usually the only one that eats it and even though I can cut it into slices and freeze it, it won’t get eaten for such a long time and I’ll forget about it. And also, how much date loaf can a girl really eat on her own? I wanted to contribute to my children’s school fete and decided to make smaller, individual date loaves using my mini loaf pan.

Dates do last a long time in the pantry. They are so sweet and add a nearly caramel-like consistency and taste to baked goods. Some people like them, some people don’t. I do but in saying that I only like them used in sweet baked goods. I don’t like using dried fruit in savoury dishes.

This recipe is very, very easy and it’s probably the one I’d use if I were to make individual Sticky Date Puddings. I’d probably use a Texas muffin sized pan.

Don’t even get me started on the batter. It smells absolutely gorgeous and I have to try hard to resist not eating it all before being baked. This is such an easy recipe and makes a lovely light cake. This recipe deserves a place at any good bake sale as well as in lunch boxes or served for morning or afternoon tea.

 
Don’t forget the butter!

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Mini Date Loaves

A smaller version of the Date Loaf, beautifully moist and a lovely light cake. Can be made as a whole loaf or in muffin pans for Sticky Date Pudding.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 8

Author Anne

Ingredients

• 1 cup dates chopped
• 1 cup brown sugar lightly packed
• 60 g butter
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 3/4 cup self-raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tsp vanilla essence

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 170 deg C (375 deg F).
2. Mix chopped dates and sugar in a bowl and then add butter.
3. Pour in boiling water, stirring until butter has melted completely.
4. Add flour and then bicarbonate of soda, mixing well.
5. Add vanilla.
6. Bake in a greased (or lined) mini loaf pan approximately 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Recipe Notes

Suitable to freeze.
Can be made as a whole loaf.
Can be made in a Texas muffin pan and served with Caramel Sauce for a Sticky Date Pudding.

Baked churros

I’m not one much for food trends and tend to make do with what I have. If I don’t have an ingredient for a particular recipe, I’ll substitute or not make it at all. Churros seem to be the ‘new kid on the block’ with every cafe selling them and churro vendors appearing at theme parks and markets. I’ve tried them once or twice and to me, they’re just a different shaped doughnut. There is quite a bit of history to them. Some say they originated in China of all places, where the Portugese tasted this originally salty pasty, and then going on to recreate it with sugar. Spanish shepherds then cooked the tasty snack while out herding sheep with nothing but flour, water, oil and an open fire. And so the churro began. 

I’ve got no intentions of heading out to buy any special equipment to make them or even try to make them as per the recipe. Instead, for our lazy Sunday morning brunch, I had planned to make French toast with a block loaf I had which wasn’t fresh anymore. I wondered if I cut the loaf into thick slices and then ‘sticks’, could I create something like a churro and so my version of a Baked Churro was born.

You could use any leftover bread, bread rolls or bread sticks. I found the block loaf was perfect to cut the big chunks of bread suitable for dipping and then baking. I just cut off the crusts.

I was going to fry them in an oil/butter combination but then thought about just dipping them lightly into this mixture of melted butter, beaten eggs, brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon, put them on a rack https://talsona.com/people/brobby-paulsen/ over a baking pan and bake them, which turned out the best way. (I did just over bake them slightly and some were a little burnt on the edges but still tasted okay.)

You only need to quickly turn them in the butter mixture as you don’t want the bread soaking up too much of the liquid. I had 15 bread sticks and it was just enough mixture.

To accompany the ‘churros’, I had a bit of dark chocolate left in the pantry and I just broke it up and microwaved it in 30 second bursts until it was melted. I also served a small bowl of golden syrup. (I didn’t have any maple syrup.)

After they came out of the oven, I rolled them in a white sugar/cinnamon mix. The whole house smelled gorgeous with a buttery cinnamon smell wafting through. 

They were demolished by the kids. Even Miss Fuss Pot gobbled them up. Now that’s saying something. A definite keeper for a Sunday morning brunch or afternoon snack.

Baked Churros

• day old bread, cut into sticks (or bread rolls, bread sticks)
• 125gm butter, melted
• 1 tbs brown sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• extra cinnamon and white sugar for rolling

1. Preheat oven to 170 deg C.
2. Mix melted butter, brown sugar, beaten eggs, cinnamon and vanilla extract.
3. Dip bread sticks into butter mixture lightly and place on a wire rack over a baking pan.
4. Bake for approximately 10 mins in oven or until golden brown.
5. Roll in cinnamon/sugar mixture.
6. Serve with melted chocolate and/or maple or golden syrup.

(PS You’ll have to excuse my photos. They really don’t do the recipe justice. I took these quickly with my mobile phone which doesn’t have a very good camera and I’m a dodgy photographer anyway!)

Baked Thai Chicken Wings

Nothing like picking up a couple of kilos of marked down chicken wings from the supermarket, especially when you’ve been craving some sweet, spicy, finger-lickin’ wings. I was in the right place at the right time on this particular day. I think they were only about $2 for the 2 kilos (4.4 lbs). They were just what the doctor ordered on this summery, hot day and the leftovers kept well in the freezer for another quick meal.

I cut the chicken wing into thirds and kept the wing tips for the dogs. I laid them all out in a plastic dish suitable for marinating.

The marinade consisted of some basic pantry staples which was shaken (not stirred hehe) and poured over the chicken wings and left to marinate overnight ensuring I flipped the container and shook the wings around a bit.

I placed the marinated wings on a wire rack to allow excess fat to drip away from the wings.

They came out lovely and golden with a slight burn on the edge for crispiness from the brown sugar I added to the marinade.

Served with a sprinkling of fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves and a side of sweet chilli sauce, they were lip smackin’ good and a change from the usual honey/soy combination I usually do.

Baked Thai Chicken Wings

• 2 tbs soy sauce
• 2 tbs sweet chilli sauce
• 2 tbs lime juice
• 1 tbs sesame oil
• 1 tbs garlic powder
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup olive oil

1. Add ingredients to a jar and shake well (or whisk well in a jug).
2. Pour marinade over chicken wings and allow to marinate for at least 2 hours (overnight is better).
3. Place chicken wings on a wire rack and back for approx 25 mins in a 180 deg C oven or until golden brown and cooked.
4. Serve with sweet chilli sauce or soy sauce for dipping and a sprinkling of fresh coriander (cilantro) for garnish.
5. Great for a snack, light lunch or serve with rice and vegetables for a main meal.
6. Suitable to freeze.