Collect an assortment of 10 recipes I want to try and make these by the end of 2012.

I made this with the beetroot that I harvested from my vege garden. I edited the recipe considerably using ingredients at hand. For example, I did not have smoked ham so I used champagne ham instead and lessened the amount of cheese and butter to make it more healthy! I didn’t take any shots of the end result but I did take a snap of the beetroot before I boiled them.

I didn’t really set out to make this as part of this goal but the result was interesting so will post here anyway!

I had soy milk left over from the last rice crust quiche I made so had to somehow use that up as well as other veges that were left over in the fridge and we had more asparagus! (It’s in season where I live.)

It’s the first time I’ve ever cooked pasta sauce with soy milk. I also bought a new packet of nutritional yeast for the quiche recipe so had plenty of that to substitute for the cheese to make the sauce extra creamy without milk or cream :-)

It was surprisingly tasty but I would definitely add the nutritional yeast while I’m cooking the sauce, not after I’ve put the pasta and sauce together because it doesn’t mix well this way! And I forgot to add the garlic back in after I’d taken it out of the oil so it will not burn while all the rest of the veges are cooking.

I have definitely been experimenting with ingredients for this and the quiche recipe! This is the better one out of the two for sure.

I made this last night but because I was in such a hurry to bake it and then eat it, I did not get a chance to take a photo! Never mind!

I put a lot of effort into it but sadly, it did not turn out as great as I thought it would!

Will make the following improvements for next time – use a smaller baking tray. Do not push the rice crust to the top edge of tray if it is not going to be topped with fillings up to that point. Otherwise the rice will get too hard. Use a circular plate and maybe make extra tofu mixture incase there is not enough.

I learnt a lot though! May try it again as look for alternative recipes which are similar.

After a bit of research this morning, I decided to cook these instead for tonight. It still uses the rice crust recipe which is I think my main area of interest in these recipes.

http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2008/03/asparagus-and-mushroom-quiche-with.html

I want to try this recipe next:

http://www.grouprecipes.com/75172/zucchini-tomato-quiche-with-rice-crust.html

But I would prefer to have use my own tomato and zucchini out of my own vege garden when they have grown early next year. But that’s a bit of time still to wait so maybe I will just go and buy the ingredients from the supermarket.

A friend made me a dish similar to this and it was so delicious! The rice crust was nice and light. Can’t wait to cook this on Sunday :-)

I made these according to “The Big Book of Noodles” by Vatcharin Bhumichitr which I got out of the library a few weeks ago.

It was the first time I made this kind of Vietnamese noodle broth from scratch so it was a satisfying learning experience.

I also learnt how to boil (simmer) chicken so I’m sure that would come very handy in the future! I don’t think I had the right type of noodles for this particular dish so next time I think I would definitely pick rice noodles.

My family really appreciates the different tastes I bring onto the table since I’ve started to cook – getting positive feedback is always encouraging :-)

Only three more dishes to go before this goal is completed! WOOHOO.

I made these for the second time with my bf last night. Turned out a treat :-) things to remember for next time are to use the right side of the spring roll paper (apparently using the wrong side will cause the appearance of bubbles on the paper once in oil) and to make them smaller. The recipe is suppose to make between 35-40 rolls. We made 32 and they definitely expand in size when you cook them so something to remember for next time! And to spread the mixture generously when closing the wrap so that it does not curl up when cooking!

No photo :-(

This recipe is from the same one as the Ranger Cookies.
http://iamafoodblog.com/vietnamese-spring-roll-recipe/

Have just taken these out of the oven now. Haven’t tasted them just yet but looks alright!

I used this recipe. I absolutely love this blog… It has been so helpful in regards to this goal because everything looks so delicious!

http://iamafoodblog.com/ranger-cookie-recipe/

Came across this recipe whilst looking for something to cook for lunch with ingredients in the pantry:

http://foodwishes.blogspot.co.nz/2011/03/creamy-tomato-tuna-penne-pasta-and.html

I didn’t have many of the exact ingredients listed on the blog so I made do with my own substitutes e.g. tuna in olive oil – I used a can of tuna with three tablespoons of olive oil, oregano – added a sprinkle of Italian herbs, cream tomato – used a can of diced tomatos with half cup of cream (next time I think I’ll use 1/4 or 1/3). I think I got a bit carried away with the anchovy but overall the result was delicious! I didn’t set out to work on this goal as I began thinking about what to cook for lunch so I’m very satisfied :-)

I recently acquired a recipe book called Breakfast by G.D. Powell. I got this out of the library a few years ago and thought the recipes looked delicious so I was delighted when I came across it at the discount section at a bookstore.

I love ordering hash browns whether it’s at a local American style breakfast diner or at McDonalds but what put me off was the amount of oil you had to use to fry these potato goodies. The recipe in this book is no different as it asks for a large pan to be filled 2 centimeters deep in olive oil. There was no way I was going to use this much olive oil for anything so I created a smaller pool instead only cooking one or two tablespoons full at a time.

To cut the story short, I still found the hash browns to be quite oily so I am determined to find a healthier alternative recipe for hash browns! I also realize that the ‘10 recipes I want to try’ don’t always have to have successful outcomes. The most important thing here is that I try them out :-)