Hi everyone! It’s New Years Eve eve! What in the actual fuck. 2015 must hold the record for the most insanely quick blink-and-you-miss-it year on record right? So much happened for us this year and there were many events which delineated the year for me and …
If you’r a long-time reader you’ve probably got a fairly good idea about what kind of kid Nixon is. I mean he has his own hashtag……..#nonixonno…….says it all really lol. He’s my big-little-guy with a huge personality and an even bigger appetite for fun and …
Ok. Lets just start by saying I had NO idea what to expect when I was asked to get on board with De’Longhi and create some (hopefully?!) delicious and inspiring content around their new Multifry Multicooker.
The name is what threw me off. This fabulous piece of Italian tech – which will never leave our bench-top again – is not a fryer in any traditional sense and is SO much more than that. For me it’s definitively a Multicooker, a genius kitchen appliance that I think will become a household staple in years to come.
Things have been literally insane in our household over the past month. Dave’s had a massive project on at work and things here at The Best Nest have been out of control busy. Anything that can help us to minimise stress and maximise our time over the next few weeks until Christmas is being embraced with open arms! Dave and I have used the Multifry Multicooker every day for the past 3 weeks and it’s been a welcome addition to the kitchen. It’s so versatile, economical in terms of time and power and helps us whip up family-friendly meals that are both easy and delicious. We are both IN LOVE……..with our new kitchen spaceship lol.
So, to show you the varied ways we use our new kitchen BFF, I’ve decided to highlight 5 different dishes we cooked over 5 days in our De’Longhi Multifry.
Enjoy!
Lord I love eggs. Quiche and frittata are two of my go-to quick meal faves. They are almost fail-proof and are packed with protein which keeps the boys fuller for longer. This recipe is insanely good. Like, this is the BEST quiche I’ve ever made. You’ll love it too I guarantee it!
Line the bottom of the De’Longhi Multifry bowl with baking paper. Defrost the pastry sheets, combine into a ball and roll out on a floured surface to cover the bottom of the De’Longhi Multfry bowl so the edges stand up about 5cm. Add the chopped bacon, mushrooms and salt and pepper. Whisk eggs and milk then pour over the bacon mixture. Arrange the capsicum and brie slices on the top.
Close the lid, select the OVEN program, set power level 2 at 35 minutes and press start. After 20 minutes rotate the quiche 180 degrees using the greaseproof paper and finish the cooking time.
Serve with a green salad and pesto or chutney.
Risotto is my favourite rice dish but it is time consuming and can easily go wrong. This was our first time attempting risotto in the Multifry and we were blown away – absolute perfection! Creamy and perfectly balanced, I will never make risotto on the stove again, using the Multifry was way too easy.
1 tablespoon olive oil (Level 5 on the Multifry oil dispenser)
1 small onion chopped
2 celery stalks chopped
1 carrot diced
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup sliced button mushrroms
1 cup dried Porcini mushrooms – rehydrated
Salt and pepper to taste.
Add oil, onion, celery and carrot to the De’Longhi Multifry. Turn dial to rice/casserole setting, power level 4 for 35 minutes.
After 5 minutes add chicken stock, wine, rice and mushrooms. That’s it! Enjoy your perfect risotto garnished with chives – we had spring onions lol.
The old family pizza quandary; I can’t stand Hawaiian pizza – or pineapple on pizza in general – and that’s the kids fave. Cook once and eat twice by making a half & half pizza.
We used our own dough recipe which has been our family standard for years now; this is another tried and true recipe which thankfully required no adaptation to work beautifully in the Multifry!
Add liquid after mixing dry ingredients. This amount of dough will make two pizza bases.
Remove the paddle and oil the base of the Multifry bowl. Roll the dough over the bottom of the base and spoon on your pizza sauce of choice. Close the lid, select the PIZZA program at power level 2, set for 30 minutes and press start.
After 15 minutes apply your toppings. We used pepperoni and cheddar cheese across the whole pizza and added feta and sundried tomatoes on the ‘adult’ side.
The non-stick surface is amazing, the pizza slid out of the pan easily with a fish slice underneath to support it.
Ethan, Dave and I all play touch on Thursday nights. It’s hectic to say the least. We usually eat up at the Rugby Club whilst Mum watches Nixie at home. Look I’m not organic, free-range, raw, gluten-free Mum – sometimes the kids eat frozen chips and fish, it’s true lol.
Cooking frozen convenience food is another area in which the De’Longhi Multifry excels. You don’t have to wait for the Multifry to heat up saving at least 10 minutes of cooking time. Perfect for those evenings when kids need to eat – fast! We all get caught out, and I always make sure I’ve got some quick dinners in the freezer for those crazy days when we just can’t get a ‘from scratch’ meal on the table.
I popped the paddle in the bowl, added the frozen chips, selected the POTATOES program on level 3 and pressed start. After 12 minutes I added a piece of Sealord frozen hoki.
That’s it.
Dinner ready, perfectly crispy with no added oil.
We are not the family that has dessert every night following dinner. Heck, we’re not the family that has dessert ever lol. But I love to bake cakes and they are also mega easy to whip up in the Multifry – I’ve made two cakes so far and they’ve both turned out perfectly. The first was my Nana’s traditional Banana Cake (recipe here). This required no adaptation to use in the De’Longhi Multifry other than doubling the recipe as the cooking bowl is quite large.
The second cake – Canned Peach Cake – is a recipe from De’Longhi’s Multifry App which is available free from Google Play or the App Store. In this instance I used canned peaches but will be making this moist cake again throughout the summer when Golden Queen peaches are in season. Can. Not. Wait!
This is the very last gift guide for 2015 which means two things; Santa is very, very close It’s time to wrap gifts! I know some of you are last minute shoppers, some totally thrive on it. A good friend of mine is notorious for doing …
To be honest, my Christmas mojo totally needed a big fat injection of Festive Spirit this year. December has arrived in all of it’s red-velveted glory but my head was still back in September. Where oh where did spring go? One thing that never fails …
I wish I was one of those water chugging babes that effortlessly put back a couple of litres a day……but I’m not.
To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m only drinking a couple of litres a week right now. That’s freaking horrible! No wonder I’m feeling so tired and generally under-the-weather in what is without doubt the busiest month of the year for me right now – as I’m sure it is for many of you too.
Forget the traditional, wanton new Year’s resolutions, I actually have to implement some serious change come January 1st as I can’t keep living at break-neck speed, scraping through each day by the skin of my teeth, barely remembering important appointments, meetings and family commitments. I’ve got to slow down, figure out a work schedule that actually works (!) and start taking better care of myself and my amazing family. Increasing my water intake is at the top of my list.
5 reasons why we need to stay hydrated;
These reasons don’t just apply to me but to our whole family. Nix has a surgically shortened bowel so hydration is super-important for him and Ethan is 11 so makes a point of forgetting anything that is remotely good for him lol.
SodaStream makes water more exciting for both Ethan and I. I love using it to make sparkling water – adding freshly squeezed lemon is the perfect pick-me-up to keep on my desk while I’m writing, or as a base for a refreshing summer cocktail (also whilst I’m writing lol). I love being able to eliminate sugary soft drinks but still be prepared with a classic mixer when we entertain.
How ironic that the final Christmas Gift Guide I put together is for women like myself, maybe Mum’s, often the member of the family that is overlooked until the last minute, partner/husband frantically rushing to the mall on one of the final shopping days before …
Hosting a Gingerbread House Decorating Party was not part of my Christmas Agenda this year (I don’t actually have one, BELIEVE ME!). But, Someone shared a Pinterest Perfect Pin of such a party on Pop Roc Parties super special Facebook Group and many of us …
Kids and tech. Tech and kids. Screen time. Devices. Inside/outside.
I can honestly say, the battle for playtime wages constantly in our house, and it’s an undisputed Battle Royale which I’m sure is playing out in most homes around New Zealand.
Truth: Our two year old Nixon tells me to put my phone in my pocket.
Therein lies the problem (no pockets! Joking lol) and also the solution.
Like every facet of life, the desire to be constantly connected and the ever present smartphone in many parents hands has set a precedent that our kids are all to eager to follow.
The buck stops with us because recent research suggests some alarming trends – over 80% of Kiwi children are spending more than two hours a day in front of a screen during the week, with even more doing the same on the weekend. This is Ethan. And potentially Nixon if we don’t make some changes.
I’ve thought about this a lot, and in our family it’s not going to be that difficult to turn the (digital) tide. It’s going to require commitment from Dave and I but not in the way one might think – no tantrums, raging, slamming of doors, no changing of wifi codes – this would work instantly, but not in the way I want to.
Read on.
I’m pretty sure as parents we know that, especially with younger kids, the easiest and most desirable play option is free and easily accessible – kids just want to play with YOU, their parents. 
So, I figure, (and we’re are trying to implement this in our house right now) place yourself outside, or wherever it is you want your kids to play, wait for them to notice you (they will come trust me!) and simply say YES.
‘Can I play with water?’ which let’s face it, in my house means mud manufacturing. ‘YES! Go for it, mud washes off after all’.
‘Can I go eeling?‘. This also means mud, often more mud than after a rugby game, but, ‘HECK YES! GO forth and catch-and-release those eels!’ ::::::shivers::::
‘Can you jump on the tramp with me?‘. Potential loss of bladder control in this scenario, but again, washing clothes hasn’t killed me so far, ‘YES! Mummy loves jumping on the tramp, I can peek over all of the neighbours fences!’.
You get the picture? Go and they will follow, do and they will emulate. Take your little sponges outside and watch them soak up what you’re doing. Get a small bucket and bowl and start collecting twigs, flowers, petals and just sit on the grass at home or in a park and make patterns, take some string and make little teepees out of sticks for their mini-character toys………the possibilities are endless and the benefits are undisputed.
Persil has partnered with the AUT Human Potential Centre to understand the State of Play in New Zealand. It’s their view that unless we let Kiwi kids indulge in unstructured free play we deprive them of the chance to really develop their independence, creativity and a good sense of judgment when it comes to taking risks. This may well mean that we erode the qualities that we Kiwis have become known for; ingenuity, resilience and inventiveness.
Getting back to Real Play need not be a massive family transition. Don’t overthink it, just get down to your kids level and get your hands dirty.
The nationwide State of Play Survey asked over 2,000 Kiwi parents about their perceptions of children’s independent movement, and how they feel about a less structured and more traditional approach to play. Our friends at Persil feel passionate about helping kiwis make positive changes in their kids daily lives so have put together some fab tips and tricks to help us all incorporate more Real Play into our daily lives. Find out more here > visit http://persil.co.nz/
It’s one of the defining catch-cries of modern kids, one that seems to defy age, gender and geographical constraints. Whatever it is that kids are doing and enjoying, they always want 5 more minutes of it. Enough is never enough, ‘done’ infrequently means ‘I’m actually …