Potjiekos is a traditional South African dish where meat, vegetables and rice or “sous kluitjies” is added to a cast iron pot and nothing gets mixed in between adding all the ingredients. At the bottom goes the meat and some coke and wine and salt and pepper and herbs and spices. It’s cooked over a…
Hook Line Sinker Restuarant
After our trip at Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium we went to Hook Line Sinker Restuarant for some brunch. It is situated in Mission Bay, Auckland. I would highly recommend this restaurant as it’s got the most delicious fish and chips and is affordable too! The fish was melt in the mouth and batter crispy…
Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium
Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium is situated in Auckland, New Zealand. There are over 1500 animals and the viewings of the sea life, is viewed by curved tunnels. Conveyor belts are also used to move people through the viewing areas. We saw from small nemo fish to big fish and sharks to a giant squid…
Hot Water Beach
Hot water beach is situated 136 kilometers from Pukekohe driving by car. And 173 kilometers from Auckland driving by car. It is 51 kilometers from Coromandel Town. Driving to Coromandel Town the road is very curvy making sharp turns going up the mountain and driving the pass which states the limit of driving 100km/hour. It’s…
Partner for Life
Let me tell you a funny story, me and my husband were together in High School and I always would hear the girls talking in our Grade how smart he is and that they like him. I secretly had a crush on him but we were more of acquaintances than friends. We needed to grow…
1st Birthday Party Planning Tips
As a new mother with lots to learn and experience, planning our daughters 1st Birthday Party was exciting but also I didn’t know where to begin first. 1. Set a Budget For starters set a budget out on what you want to spend on decorations, a cake or cupcakes or both the food and then…
Rock Cookies
These rock cookies bring back so many memories. I just love these, it is a very traditional South-African favorite! The recipe is not my own, it’s Cecilia Bedser’s Recipe from Food Lovers Recipes. I only used 3 cups of oatmeal. Rock Cookies These cookies are not baked. Work quickly when you scoop into pans. This…
Melt in the Mouth Chocolate Cake
I came up with this recipe when I did not want to ice the whole cake and just use caramel and cream for one of my husbands birthday. There was none left that is a good sign. Its simple, easy and straightforward and super delicious. Ingredients for the Chocolate Cake: 3 Cups Flour 320ml Castor…
KeriKeri Roadtrip
It was a lovely sunny Sunday morning when me and my husband decided to go to KeriKeri to visit some of our friends. We should have gotten up earlier as it’s quite a distance to KeriKeri. The drive is about 3 hours and 30 minutes so we actually should have been on the road by…
Vegetable Curry Stew with Rice
Ingredients: 1 and a 1/2 Cups Rice cooked, drained and set aside 500g Stewing Beef cut into blocks and fat and bones removed 2 Onions Made finely in a processor 3 Tomatoes Made finely in a processor 3 Carrots Made finely in a processor 1 Cup White Wine 1 Cup Beef Stock 1 Cup Frozen…
Devilled Eggs
In a pot wait for the water to boil then add three eggs. Let the eggs boil for 5-7 minutes until the egg yolk is hard. Remove the shell of the eggs and cut the eggs in halves. Remove the egg yolks of the eggs and place in a mixing bowl. Add the coarse salt…
Thank you
Today I just want to say thank you to each and everyone that follows my blog via email and WordPress. And also my wonderful husband and supportive friends and family. Ten years ago I just finished High School, I still didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, if I was gone live…
Different Types of Icing
Buttercream Icing: The most well known icing we get is buttercream icing. This icing is made of butter, vanilla essence, icing and if you would like to add some milk as well. Royal Icing: Then we get royal icing, this icing sets more quickly because of the egg whites. It makes cakes have a more…
Lemon & Origanum Roasted Chicken Drumsticks
Ingredients: 6 Chicken Drumsticks 1 Cup of Lemon Juice 4 leaves of the origanum on each drumstick Oil for coating Coarse Salt & Pepper Method: Put the oven on 180Degrees Celsius. In a roasting pan coat the chicken drumsticks with oil and lemon juice. Turn each one over on each side and put some coarse…
Rainbow Cake with White Royal Icing
Ingredients for the cake: 1Kg Vanilla Cake Mix 9 Eggs 100ml Oil 450ml Water 5ml Vanilla Essence 6 Different Colours of Gel food colouring: Violet/Purple Blue Yellow Orange Red Leavy Green Ingredients for the Royal White Icing: 6 Egg Whites 750g White Icing 2 Teaspoons Glycerine Method: To start of mix in the eggs and…
Muang Thai Restaurant
Me and my husband visited this restaurant a few weeks ago, and we received amazing service, amazing food and it’s affordable too! We ordered the macadamia chicken, it had the right amount of sweetness and flavour balance. This restaurant is situated in Pukekohe and it is very popular among the locals, each time I walked…
Caramel Mint Tart with Butterscotch Caramel Topping
For the crust: 1 cup of flour 1/4 castor sugar 60ml cup butter + 60ml melted butter 1 tsp baking powder pinch of salt Put the oven on 170 Degrees Celsius. Rub the flour and 60ml butter till it forms breadcrumbs. Add all the other ingredients( including the 60ml melted butter) and mix well. Spray…
Chicken Wrap Dinner
Me and my husband love making wraps with a meat as base and using fresh ingredients and adding any sauce you want like mayonnaise and sweet chilli sauce. This was our Sunday dinner and it took us 15-20 minutes to fry the chicken in the pan with some salt and pepper in olive oil and…
Giapo Ice Cream Shop
If there is ons shop you must visit when coming to Auckland, New Zealand it’s Giapo! The chocolate evolution is to die for! They have the best ice cream. The staff is so friendly and helpful and you just feel right at home when entering their shop. They are situated in Gore Street in central…
Beef Curry with Coconut Rice
Ingredients: 2 Beef porterhouse steaks thinly sliced and fat removed 3 Carrots peeled and cut into pieces 1 Big potato peeled and cut into small blocks. 1/2 Cup Frozen Beans 1/2 Cup Frozen Corn 2 and a 1/2 Tablespoons Curry Powder of your choice 1 Teaspoon Bisto of your choice mixed in half a cup…
Cornwall Park
We recently visited Cornwall Park, what a lovely park the grass is green and lushes there are walking trails and a Creamery and Bistro. We went there after the food show and we enjoyed it alot. We seen dogs and lots of parents with small babies and children. We saw old people walking and relaxing…
Chocolate, Strawberry & Lemon Birthday Cake with Fondant Icing & Flowers
For my 26th Birthday I did not want to bake the normal chocolate birthday cake I wanted to do something different and use fondant icing as well. Lots of people don’t like fondant icing but it was worth a try. Everyone enjoyed it alot and I enjoyed decorating my birthday cake, it took lots of…
Rainbow Cheesecake
Ingredients for the Base 1 Packet of Vanilla Biscuits 120ml butter melted Ingredients for cheesecake mixture: 500g Full Fat Cream Cheese 500ml Fresh Cream whipped 160ml Castor Sugar 5ml Vanilla essence 70ml Lemon Juice The colours: purple, blue, green, yellow, orange and red (gel food colouring) Method for the Base: Put the tennis biscuits in…
One Pot Curry Chicken Stew
In a pan add some olive oil and add two chopped up onions, 1 chopped spring onion, 1 chopped green pepper, one chopped radish and 5mushrooms chopped up. Add some coarse salt and pepper and herbs and spices and let it brown. Add 3 boneless and skinless chicken thighs in the pan, sprinkle some tumeric…
Chicken Fried Rice (Mealtime)
Funny story, what does a mom do that’s out of ideas of what to cook when all the other stuff is outdated?! You go on the app store and press in meal planner, what comes up the first app is mealtime! Lifesaver! I can’t compliment this app enough! I am learning new things and tweaking…
Rump Steak Skewers
Me and my husband love making skewers! We used a smoke bbq marinate to just coat the rump steak blocks. And fry them on the gas bbq. It’s quite simple, simply cut up between 500-800g rump steak into chunky blocks. Cut up one yellow capsicum and one onion as well as a few mushrooms. Take…
Koeksisters made with Butter (Recipe Updated)
Sift together 230ml flour, 11ml baking powder, and 1ml salt. Rub in 12 and 1/2 ml unsalted butter at room temperature. Add 200ml fresh milk and knee the dough till the dough becomes elastic like. Cover with cling wrap and set aside to rest at room temperature for 3 hrs and 30 minutes. In a…
Sticky Chicken Udon Noodles
Me and my husband came across the udon noodles and since tasting it we love it! Take 4 already cooked chicken drumsticks and remove the meat from the bone. In a pan add some olive oil and add one onion chopped, let it fry till brown. Add one spring onion and green capsicum. Add the…
Friends
If you find a handful of friends who is there for you in the hard and good times, count your blessings twice! If they are there in every season of your life be thankful for them. In today’s unrealistic standards and expectations it’s extra hard to find true friends. Yes the world have become so…
Genuineness
Today I just want to say thank you to our friends here in Auckland which made our journey just a pure joy. To find genuine authentic people in today’s world is so scarce and we are so grateful. More than a year ago we met Tim and Amy and they are the most kind hearted…
Koeksisters made with Butter
Sift together 230ml flour, 11ml baking powder, and 1ml salt. Rub in 12 and 1/2 ml unsalted butter at room temperature. Add 200ml fresh milk and knee the dough till the dough becomes elastic like. Cover with cling wrap and set aside. In a pot add 600ml White sugar and 250ml water. Let it boil…
THE PERFECT CHEESECAKE
As a self taught homecook and baker, I have practiced and perfected my recipes. I must say from all of them, this one is by far the WINNER!!! The crust is perfect. I made my cheesecake in a foil tart pan and when I took it out of the fridge, I could just remove it…
Chicken Stew with Dark Soy Sauce
It is really getting cold now, with windy, rainy days and we can feel that the seasons are changing. I made this heart warming stew for me and my husband yesterday evening and all the flavours worked so well together! It’s a yummy recipe for the cold winter nights, and the superior dark soy sauce…
SUPER DELICIOUS SCONES Recipe by Food in a minute
I have made so many scone recipes and nothing comes close to this one! In the recipe they use self raising flour, but I used what I had in my pantry that is normal flour and just added baking powder. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do! My one friend made them and…
Vetkoek with Curry Mince
Vetkoek Dough: 6 Cups of flour 60ml Instant Active Dry Yeast pinch of salt 40ml white sugar 1/2 Cup – 1 Cup Lukewarm Water In a mixing bowl add all the dry ingredients and mix well with a wooden spoon. Put the oven on 70Degrees Celsius. While mixing add the lukewarm water till dough is…
Lemon Meringue Cheesecake
It’s funny how new ideas comes to light… Look I have searched high and low for a recipe like this! There is none on google and also not this concept! Yes, it’s a brand new one, the meringue has too many sugar in, but a victory in itself. The meringue is not overly sweet and…
Every step in your journey will lead you to your destiny & where you are meant to be
Photo: From the Movie of Clara Like the stars in the universe our future is already planned out. Every choice you make will eventually lead you where you need to be. You will go through hardships, trials and the joys of life, and will eventually discover your life’s purpose. If you realise that what you…
Pink Velvet Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream
Take 150g unsalted butter at room temperature and add 250ml of sugar. Mix in the electric standing mixer till it forms a creamy texture. Add three eggs, one egg at a time and the texture is curled don’t worry it’s normal. Add 5ml vanilla essence and mix till just mixed. Sift together 2 and a…
Lemon & Caramel Buttercream
Ingredients: 1 and 1/2 Cup Icing Sugar 25ml Butter at room temperature 2 Tbs Lemon Juice 10ml Caramel 10ml Shortening 5ml Vanilla Essence Method: In a mixing bowl add the butter, lemon juice and sugar. Add the vanilla essence and mix well. Add the caramel and shortening while mixing. The buttercream texture must be creamy…
Microwave Milktart
Crust: 2 cups flour 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup butter(I used margarine as we did not have butter) 1 egg 1 tsp baking powder pinch of salt Put the oven on 170 Degrees Celsius. Rub flour and butter together to form breadcrumbs. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and add the beaten egg, mix…
Life Itself
Life is so fragile, we don’t realise it. Life can be ripped from you in an instant, and we tend to take it for granted. I am so sad of what happens in Christchurch, those people did not deserve any of it. They was just going about their everyday life, and their lives were taken…
Caramel & Chocolate Cheesecake with Chocolate Mousse Topping
Take two packets of oreo biscuits, remove the whites and place in a food processor till crumbs form. Add 30ml melted butter into the food processor while mixing, so that the oreos and butter are well mixed. Take a spring form cake pan and cover the bottom with baking paper. Spray and cook the rest…
Chicken Dumplings
First time making these and they are delicious! You can make any filling you like, these are the ones I used. My own recipe 🙂 In the food processor add two cups of flour and a pinch of salt. While mixing add 150ml of Lukewarm water, until the dough loses around the edges of the…
Winter Warmer Hot Chocolate
Autumn is slowly approaching New-Zealand shores. With the cold starting to creep in, I made this hot chocolate for me and my husband yesterday evening. My husband really enjoyed it. Here is the recipe. Take two packets of swiss miss hot chocolate and while mixing add the boiling water up until the jug is 400ml…
Four Seasons Bacon Pizza
Me and my husband love making pizza! It’s a family tradition that his father and mother taught him! My husband taught me and we love homemade pizza. This is simply delicious, easy, fresh and healthy! Pizza Topping: 1 Bag of Bacon sliced into pieces 1 red capsicum chopped 1 yellow capsicum chopped 1 onion chopped…
Pukekohe Overload
This past weekend me and my husband and our daughter, attended the Pukekohe Show! Wow what an experience! We had so much fun! We saw everything you can see on a farm, from cows to alpacas to the biggest pumpkin weighing a whopping 74kg! There was so much sweets and delights and the people is…
Coconut, Brownie & Chocolate Balls
This year for Valentines Day I decided to make some sweet treats! Recipe is after the photo! Very simple and easy! Take one can of condensedmilk and mix it with 3 cups of shredded coconut. Roll into balls on baking paper and place in the fridge overnight to set. Take any brownies left over and…
Creamy Mashed Potatoes
Me and my husband have made mashed potatoes lots of different ways! This one is the best and you will never make mash potatoes differently! It’s delicious, straight forward and easy! 4 Potatoes peeled and cut into blocks. Place them in a pot of water till covered and add some salt. Place on the stove…
Lush Cosmetics
I have heard about Lush when I searched on Instagram just as a randomly search, no intend to look for anything specific. A year ago me and my husband landed in NZ. I told him about it and started searching for a nearby shop. I discovered one in Auckland city central. I had to grab…
