Pasta with Chickpeas

Taken from Family Circle's Fast Kids' Food

Ready to eat in 30 minutes

Serves 6

3 cups (270g) spiral pasta

1 tablespoon oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 x 425gm cans crushed tomatoes

1 tablespoon tomato paste

425 gm can chickpeas, drained

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs

2 teaspoons sugar

1 cup (125gm) finely grated cheese

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the pasta according to the manufacturer's instructions. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, chickpeas, Italian herbs and sugar. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Preheat the grill.

Return the pasta to the pan, then add the tomato mixture and stir to combine.

Transfer the mixture to a large shallow baking dish or six individual baking dishes, and sprinkle with the cheese. Cook under the grill until the cheese is just melted and bubbling. Serve with some steamed green vegetables.

Nutrition per serve

Protein 15g; Fat 10g;

Carbohydrate 45 g;

Dietary Fibre 7.5 g;

Cholesterol 20mg;

1495 kj (355 cal)

Note: Borlotti or butter beans can be substituted for chickpeas if preferred.

Tonight is the first time I have tried this recipe. Having not tasted chickpeas before, I was a bit wary to give it a try. Surprisingly my son actually ate it all except for a couple of chickpeas left in the bottom of his bowl. I did add 2 teaspoons Vegeta and some breadcumbs with the cheese. Quite tasty.

xTania

Cornflake Biscuits

An old time favourite

Cornflake Biscuits

4oz butter

1 egg

1 cup SR Flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup sultanas or currants

cornflakes (I used crunchy nut cornflakes)

Cream butter and sugar till light. Add egg and beat well, fold in sifted flour and fruit. Roll balls into crushed cornflakes. Put on oven tray and bake in moderate oven until golden.

Goog's track, Mt Finke, Goog's lake

This is Goog.

He pushed the track through dense scrub and big sandhills from his farming property at Kalambi through to the north. This track has become popular with the tourists but is four wheel drive only.

(sorry for the sideways views of some of these photos, thanks to blogger)

Goog's plaque at Goog's Lake

Sideways view of memorial plaque of Goog's son Dinger. This is placed beside his father's plaque. Dinger was killed in a car accident in 1993.

Money tree near the plaques. Tourists and visitors bang money into the tree trunk.

The coins can be seen if you look hard.

The result of an extremely rough ride and somebody leaving the top of the barbeque sauce bottle too loose. Whoops!

Scramble eggs anyone?

Goog's Lake campsite.

Goog's Lake, it has no water but is one of the many salt lakes scattered throughout South Australia.

Driving the track.... Very, very rough,
and very good fun.

Wild daisies...

More of Goog's track.....

Wild peach (quandong)

Wildflowers

Whoa, camel footprint near our camp. We never saw any camels in our travels but there was plenty of evidence that they are there.

Following along...

Goog's track....

Wild shrub in flower...

We crossed this salt lake on the way to Mt Finke...

Mount Finke....and wildflowers

Some of us climbed Mt Finke, but I was not one of them.

(will post more photos from the top of the mount when I retrieve them from hubby's camera).

We had mobile reception at Mount Finke, so we sent some messages off and made phone calls to family.

The wild flowers were just lovely...

Have a nice day,

xTania

Gawler Ranges and Googs track Pt3

Sturt's desert pea in it's natural environment

Just couldn't resist this early morning photo shoot.

The "Love Shack!"

Kangaroos in the early morning light...

Old stock yards seemed to be still used...

So primitive and rustic...

Station homestead...

Skull tanks...

Gorgeous everlastings with their faces toward the sun...

Looking a lot like a fried egg...

Just so we know where we are.... and where we are going...

Long dry dusty roads...

More everlastings...

Lonely little daisy...

Flowering wild scrub...

Old "Tarcoola"

Some more dainty daisies...

After a little detour (or was that lost) we finally got to our destination.

After a long day we arrive at the beginning of Goog's track where we camped another night, this time it wasn't so cold and we slept on our swags in the back of our 4WD. A lot more comfortable than on the ground.

Have a great day,

xTania

Recipes, garden and unexpected visitor

Tuna Fettuccine

250g fettuccine egg noodles

450g can tuna, drained

1 large onion, finely chopped

90g butter, melted

300ml carton light cream

2 tablespoons tomato paste

pepper to taste

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Cook noodles in 3 litres of boing water for approximately nine minutes.

Melt butter in pan. Add onion and drained tuna, and stir over medium heat until onion is just tender.

Stir in cream, tomato paste, season with pepper.

Bring sauce to boil, remove from heat immediately.

Stir in chopped parsley.

Spoon sauce over cooked, drained fettuccine noodles.

The elephant tongues are huge this year, due to the extra rain.



The Freesia's have a lot of flowers.

And so has the stock, this plant had only a couple of flowers last year.

Lady Flo's Easy Chocolate Cake

1 cup SR flour

1 cup castor sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 tablespoons cocoa

3 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup milk

2 eggs

Mix all ingredients in a bowl for 4 minutes. Pour mixture into a well greased 20cm cake tin. Bake in a moderate oven (180C-200C) for 45 minutes.

(I added a little oil to this mix for extra moisture)

We had an unusual visitor to our back yard a couple of days ago. It was a very friendly magpie which we believe to be a pet of our neighbours. Cheeky thing made friends with hubby, who had the food, took a mouthful and then flew home.

Take care,

xTania