This is an easy dinner recipe that you can prepare beforehand. All the ingredients marinate in the fridge in a freezer bag. Feel free to omit the peppers and chilli if no one eats them. My kids are fussy eaters and we often make this with just the chicken. Gradually introduce the spice elements to the dish to build up your child’s palate. Remember to allow enough chicken to create a ‘wrap’ for your packed lunch the next day. This is based on four chicken breasts, if using more chicken breasts remember to increase your marinade too!

• 4 skinless chicken breasts cut into strips
• 1 onion finely sliced
• 1 red pepper finely sliced (optional)
• 1 red chilli finely sliced (optional)

 Marinade

• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• A generous pinch salt and pepper
• 2 garlic cloves (cheat by using the jar of prepared garlic – 1 teaspoon)
• A generous slug of Olive oil
• Juice of one lime (Cheat by using bottled lime juice)
• 4-5 drops of Tabasco (optional)

Simply place everything in a plastic freezer bag. Seal the top and massage the contents so everything gets covered with the marinade. Allow to marinade for at least 1 hour or while you are prepping the tortillas! When you are ready to cook them, simply tip all the ingredients into a wok or large frying pan and stir fry until the chicken is cooked and no longer pink on the inside. Internal temperature using a digital thermometer is 83C.

 Homemade Flour Tortillas

You will never eat shop bought tortillas again after tasting these!

• 3 cups/ 375grams flour
• 1teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup/ 80ml sunflower oil
• 1 cup/ 240ml warm water

In a stand mixer and the in ingredients and mix well until you have a stiff dough. Place the dough onto a floured surface and divide into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place in a bowl Cover with a tea towel and allow to rest for 15 minutes. You can freeze the balls at this point. Heat a frying pan on a medium high heat. When ready to cook roll each dough ball into a round disc. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Cook each tortilla on the dry pan for about 30- 40 seconds until the bottom has a few pale spots, flip and cook the other side. I set up alongside the hob so while one tortilla is cooking I roll out the next one. Keep the tortilla warm in a lidded Pyrex dish or even a clean tea towel. You can also freeze cooled, cooked tortillas!

I haven’t cooked these tortillas as gluten free but as the surface area is so small I would imagine that you won’t have the usual problem of cracking. Make sure to use Xanthan gum.

Serve your fajitas with sour cream, cheese, salsa and my Guacamole for kids.

 Guacamole for Kids

• 2 ripe avocados
• Juice of ½ lime
• 1 clove garlic minced
• Pinch Salt
• Mash the flesh of the avocado until smooth. Add lime and garlic and mix. Add salt to taste.

Develop your kids palate for spice gradually. To begin maybe just add lime to the avocado and gradually add garlic and salt as they get used to it. Make sure to finely mince the garlic so that you don’t create a lumpy guacamole.

This is Sarah Donaldson’s delicious muffin recipe which she gave me when we last visited New Zealand.  It is an easy recipe; just add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix!  You don’t even need an electric mixer so get your children involved and you will find that they like to eat something that they have helped make. They can also be made Gluten Free!  I used fresh raspberries and blueberries but you can also used canned berries or frozen!  My son Seán won’t eat berries but he scoffed one of these for his lunch today, he calls them lipstick muffins, “because it’s all pink inside when I bite into them.”

• 425grams/3 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 112grams/½ cup sugar
• 75grams/½ cup semi sweet choc chips 53% cocoa solids (optional)
• 2 eggs
• 350mls/1 ½ cups milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 100gram/4 ounces / 7 tablespoons butter melted and cooled
• 1 can of berries drained or 150grams of your favourite fresh berries

Crumble/ Streusel topping optional

• ½ cup flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 50g / 2 ounces/ 3 ½ tablespoons butter

Method

Melt the butter and set aside to cool. Measure out the milk, add the vanilla and eggs and whisk with a fork to break up the eggs. In a bowl measure out the flour, baking powder and sugar and mix. Add the liquid to the flour as well as the berries and melted butter. If you are using chocolate add it also at this point. Stir the mixture to incorporate the flour. Don’t over mix or your muffins will be tough.

If you are using the crumble/ streusel topping, mix the three ingredients together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Use approximately a tablespoon of the topping for each muffin. Sprinkle it on the batter and lightly press it in.

You don’t have to use muffin cases for these but use spray oil or butter to grease the muffin tins well. I used a scoop to distribute the batter in the pans, be generous as you want to create a ‘muffin top’. Bake for about 25minutes at 180C/350F until the tops of the muffins are golden and spring back when gently pressed. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely.

Cheat by weighing out the dry ingredients and leave cling filmed overnight. Measure out the liquids and keep it covered in the fridge. That way in the morning all you have to do is melt the butter and you could have warm muffins for breakfast. You can also freeze these muffins and you always have a fresh muffin for the lunch box.

Make these gluten free by substituting the flour and baking powder with a GF variety. I like Dove’s Farm brand. Remember to include ¼ teaspoon of Xanthum gum.

This is a fabulous recipe that my Kiwi mother in law Lizette, who is a great baker, gave to me. These cookies have no egg hence why there is a lot of baking powder in the recipe. If you use plain flour increase this to 3 teaspoons. These cookies will stay fresh for a week in an airtight tin but I doubt you will have them that long!  The oven temperature is very low it is not a typo! They are great if you have a child who is allergic to eggs. You can also make these gluten free and they taste just as good.

• 170 grams/ 6oz/ ¾ cup butter
• 3 tablespoons condensed milk
• 85grams/3oz/ 1/3 cup sugar
• 255grams/9oz/ 2 cups self raising flour
• 2 teasp baking powder
• 175 grams / 6oz/ 1 cup chocolate chips

Method:

Cream butter condensed milk and sugar together. Add flour, baking powder and choc chips to make a stiff dough.

Break off walnut sized pieced of dough and roll into balls. Place onto a greased tray at least one inch apart and flatten each ball

Bake in a low oven 120C (fan) 250F for 25min until pale but just turning brown around edges

Make these gluten free by substituting the flour and baking powder with a GF variety. I like Dove’s Farm brand. Remember to include ¼ teaspoon of Xanthum gum. They won’t stay as crisp as long as the non GF ones though.

This dough is very versatile; add the following to the basic dough for a different result:

White choc chips and lemon zest

White choc chips and dried cranberries

Dark choc chips and orange zest

Dried blueberries and lemon zest

1teasp of ground ginger and Chopped Stem ginger

Finish off your evening with these delicious chocolate puddings. The centre is a soft molten and glossy texture and they are ready in 20 minutes!  I served a gluten free version of these for Christmas day topped with homemade vanilla ice cream. A big success!

• 112 grams/ ½ cup / 4 ounces butter
• 120 grams/ 4 ounces semi sweet chocolate (approx 53% cocoa solids)
• 43 grams/ 1 ½ ounces milk chocolate
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract don’t use essence it doesn’t give the same flavour.
• 112 grams/ ½ cup sugar
• 40 grams/ ¼ cup plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 100grams ½ cup semi sweet chocolate chip (do not melt)
• 50g /¼ cup fudge pieces (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180C (Fan) / 350F

 Method

Melt the butter and first two lots of chocolate in a microwave in 30 seconds blasts. Make sure you stir between each blast. Set aside and let cool for 15 minutes.

In a large bowl stir together the eggs, vanilla and sugar with a whisk. Stir the chocolate mixture into the eggs mixture until well combined.

In another bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, remaining 100grams / ½ cup chocolate chips and fudge pieces if you are using them. Fold this into the chocolate mix.

Scoop the batter into your ramekins until they are ¾ full as shown in the photo below.

 

Place on a baking sheet and cook for 20 – 22 minutes. The centre should be still soft. These will continue to cook when you take them out so don’t overcook them.

Make these gluten free by substituting the flour and baking powder with a GF variety. I like Dove’s Farm brand. Remember to include ¼ teaspoon of Xanthum gum. The fudge pieces may not be gluten free but these puddings taste just as good without them.

I wanted to share a couple of recipes to celebrate Twelfth Night or as it’s commonly known here in Ireland, Little Women’s Christmas, with this Creamy Chicken Korma before we explore further Lunch box ideas. This recipe is from an old friend Sue Keen whose curry nights are legendary. I’ve tweaked it a little bit since I’ve been making it but it’s still delicious.It is also totally Gluten Free. Enjoy!

•  For the Sauce
• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
• 1 large onion coarsely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoons grated ginger (you can buy this already grated in a jar!)
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 tablespoons garam masala
• ½ teaspoons ground turmeric
• ½ teaspoon of ground chilli powder (I use the Schwartz hot variety but use more or less depending     on your spice palate)
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 2 heaped tbsp ground almonds

For the chicken

• Allow 2 breasts per person
• 2 tablespoons yogurt
• Juice of half a lemon
• ½ teasp ground chilli powder

Method

Cut the chicken into pieces, and place in an oven proof dish. Add the yogurt, lemon juice and chilli powder and mix to ensure the all the chicken is covered. If you are using a large quantity of chicken just increase the quantity of yogurt. Leave to marinade for an hour or overnight. When the sauce is made, cook off the chicken at 180C/350F in a fan oven for about 25 minutes. The internal temperature should be 83C / 181F when it is cooked.

Fry off the onion in the oil for about a minute, then add the garlic and ginger and continue to cook over a medium heat until the onion is soft and glossy. I like a smooth sauce so I puree the onion mix at this point with a wand so it resembles baby food! If you forget and do it later the spices will stain your utensils. I learned this the hard way! Next add your spices and salt and cook them off continuously stirring in case they burn. Now add the coconut milk and bring up to the boil to dissolve any coconut that may have solidified in the can. Finally sprinkle on the ground almonds and stir well.

This quantity of sauce makes enough for 6 servings; I freeze the sauce I don’t need in bags so I don’t have to make sauce from scratch each time we decide to have curry.

When your chicken is cooked add it to the hot sauce and mix so that each piece is coated. I don’t normally use the juices from the chicken unless the sauce is quite thick. Sprinkle with chopped coriander/cilantro if you like. Serve with boiled rice. Enjoy!