Beef Slow Cooker Chow Mein

Ingredients:

1 nice cut of steak
1 onion diced
1 carrot diced
2 stalks celery diced
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chilli flakes
4 cups shredded wombok or cabbage
soy sauce to taste
4-5 cups chicken stock
2 cups of your favourite kind of rice (I used white long grain this time)

Method:

1. Put a good 2-3 tblsp of good quality olive oil in a frypan and bring to a nice sizzling heat. Reduce heat a little and lightly brown your steak on both sides, remove & set aside.
2. In same pan add chopped garlic gloves, tumeric, coriander, cumin & chilli flakes & stir around in olive oil (do not allow to burn at all).
3. Quickly add the onion and stir constantly for a minute or two.
4. Then add carrots & celery and stir again for 3-4 minutes.
5. Remove from stove and tip into your slow cooker.
6. Slice all of your steak into strips.
7. Pour about 1 tblsp oil into pan and bring to heat.
8. Brown steak strips, picking up all the lovely flavour from the spices previously in the pan.
9. Add steak to slow cooker & stir into vegies.
10. Place shredded wombok over the top of the meat & vegies.
11. Pour about 1-2 tblsp soy sauce and 3 cups of chicken stock over everything in the slow cooker.
12. Set slow cooker to High for about 4 hours. (check after 2 hours and give it a stir).
13. After 4 hours, add the Rice and about 2 more cups of stock (if needed).
14. Let cook for another 1-2 hours, checking on regularly and stirring when necessary.
15. Serve when liquid has been absorbed into rice and rice is cooked.
16. Serve in a bowl with a little drizzle of soy sauce to taste


Megs Notes:

Use 1 nice piece of steak - ask your local butcher for something that would be nice in a slow cooker. Can't remember the exact cut my butcher gave me, but it was a lovely marbled piece and was so tender after being cooked for so long.

Cake - Eggless Apple Torte

Ingredients

Cake Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Plain Flour
1/2 cup Oil
1 cup Sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bi-carb soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup water (1/4 cup of this water can be substituted for lemon juice

1 cored apple cut in fine slices with apple skin left on.

Sprinkle ingredients:
1/4 cup Sugar (white or raw)
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Allspice

Method:

1. Place all dry cake ingredients into a bowl
2. Add water and mix in, then add oil and mix well.
3. Get cake tin ready - Take half of your thinly sliced apple pieces and arrange around the bottom of the tin forming a circle. Place 2 pieces of apple in the centre to cover the hole left.
4. Pour cake batter over the apple
5. Take the remainding half of apple and arrange on the top of the cake in a circle, including the hole in the middle.
6. Make up your sprinkle mix with sugar & spices together and sprinkle all of this mix over the top of the apple.
7. Bake in Oven at 200 degrees for 30 minutes, then take out and place a couple of shave pieces of butter on top of the cake.
8. Reduce oven to 180 degrees and bake for a further 20-30 minutes.
9. Take out of oven and serve.

Megs Notes:

This is the first Eggless cake I've made (that I can remember! lol) and to be quite honest, I really didn't think it would turn out well. I was fully expecting a disaster! But I was pleasantly suprised. I have to be honest and say that the base recipe is one I found online, but I have made a few changes, including adding the apple and sugar 'n spice sprinkle on top, which I think really made this cake!

This Apple Torte is perfect served as soon as it comes out of the oven, hot with Vanilla Icecream on the top.

Is also lovely cold the next day with a nice cup of tea!