SS Blog Challenge #1

My new year's resolution was to take part in the SS Blog Challenges. Well it's February and I'm just beginning...better lat than never!

This week's blog challenge: RECIPE! We all dig out special recipes during the holidays - some that we ONLY use at holiday time. Why do we make those dishes every year? Where did the recipe originate? Does someone request it? Would it just NOT be the holidays without it? What memories of this recipe do you have from your childhood?

Christmas every year as a child we had White Christmas and Rum Balls.

White Christmas from Australia

3 cups rice bubbles
1 cup mixed fruit
1 cup dessicated coconut
1 cup dry powdered milk
3/4 cup of sifted icing
sugar
225 grams colpha
vanilla essence

1. Put 3 cups of rice bubbles, 1 cup of mixed fruit, dessicated coconut, dry powdered milk and 3/4 sifted icing sugar in a bowl.

2. Melt 225 grams copha in saucepan. Add copha to dry ingredients in bowl - mix well.

3. Press mixture firmly into a biscuit tray. Set in a refrigerator. Cut into squares.

I make neither for my family, although I do love to eat the Rum Balls that my mum still makes!
We have our own tradition of Ginger Bread houses. We began the tradition in 2004 after tasting our Canberra neighbours, Malcom, Rodney, Bonny and Alison's gingerbread house. We thought it was a fantastic idea - but being our first time, we cheated and looked around until we found a house to buy, rather than making one...but all we could find was this litte tree. None the less - a new tradition began. Christmas 2004...
We usually make our own Gingerbread House or houses - depending on how many we need. They were a hit at the class parties in 2005 and we made our first one for my CM Xmas in July workshop. In 2006, when we were in Adelaide in a tent we bought another tree as it was a bit hard to bake in the caravan park!! Below are some of the houses we made in 2005. We also made some mini houses as Christmas Gifts, with pink and green icing. They were hard to make so we are sticking to white!

Then there are the stock recipes that we ALWAYS keep ingredients on hand for. What's one of yours? What's your family's favorite dish? What do you ALWAYS make when you have company for dinner? Are you known for a certain recipe that people always request? This week, tell us about the recipe(s) that invoke special memories for you.

My favourite biscuits are "Lady Alice Biscuits" they are custard based and melt in your mouth. These were an old recipe of my mum's.
Andrew's favourite dessert, "Alice's Apple Squares" is from his mum's recipe book, my favourite version is apple and rhubarb.
We don't have people over for dinner often, but when we do it's usually a barbecue. My favourite salad is the Crunchy Noodle Asian Salad.
When I was growing up we didn't have lots of money and "KiSiMin" was often on the menu. It was always a two night dish and it was always MUCH tastier the second time around.

Ki Si Min

Ki si Min (fast and yummy)

mince meat

cabbage

onion

curry powder

mixed frozen vegetables

chicken soup in a can

You use as much as you want but for say 7 people l use:

600 grams of mince

1/4 cabbage

1 onion

curry powder to taste

saucepan lot of frozen vegies (l use lots cause love me vegies)

2 tins of soup (you can use one but l like mine creamy)

Chop onion and saute in pan with some butter till translucent, add curry powder to cover. Add mince and stir till browned. Slice cabbage thinly and add to mixture, cook vegies and add to mixture also. When all mixed together and cabbage has softened add the tins of soup and mix well and heat through. YUMMMMMY and l might add l add extra curry powder to taste when thats done.

Quick easy and tastes better than it sounds very cheap to make too.