Raspberry Cranberry Iced Tea

I'm not a tea drinker at all! I like drinks that say they are tea but taste NOTHING like tea, well unless its cold and the fake stuff.

I don't always want sodas. 

I do like fruit cold teas...well not actual teas. I just like when it has tea in the name.

So when they say oh we have a lovely blackberry tea that is made here...Im like hummm NOPE! 

I want the fake stuff! 

We do like Raspberry Ice flavoured drinks.

In fact when I'm in the US its always at the top of my list to make sure I get. 

Then this summer I was given a Yeti cup....I LOVE my Yeti cup. Really I do.

It's just awesome! 

For somebody like myself who doesn't drink hot drinks and who loves ice cold drinks...just perfect 

So you know E I blame you for my love of both Raspberry Ice and my Yeti! 

Well since I got my Yeti I have been visiting Starbucks and spending far too much money on a cold drink.
I would say I might have a little problem with how much I love these drinks (Hibiscus tea lemonade and it is actually tea I believe)
If  I added up what I've spent I'm on them sure I could have have booked a holiday for a family of 4 ... only joking but your getting my drift!
So I came up with this drink...tastes NOTHING like the original drink I'd mentioned

This drink is so much cheaper and tastes great

I make this up in the night and next morning nice cold drink.
Yeti filled with ice, great start to my day :)

So it costs me €4.65 for a venti sized Starbucks drink ~ 24 oz

making it at home less than €1 for 56 oz

No it doesnt taste ANYTHING like the Hibiscus tea Lemonade but I actually prefer my drink...Seriously I do ;)

What you'll need

Water ~ 4-5 cups

tea bags ~ 3 ( I used Raspberry white tea)

cranberry light ~ 2 cups

lemon juice ~ juice of one whole lemon

Boil the water

juice the lemons 

in a jug add the tea bags

pour the boiling water onto the teabags

add the lemon juice

when cooled slightly add the cranberry juice 

leave in the fridge 

serve over ice

Enjoy!

                    Thai Chicken Slurry 

This recipe is soooooo easy and can be changed into a soup.
it's quick and very easy and sooo tasty!
its not spicy! seriously not spicy at all...I wouldn't be eating it if it was
if you would like it spicy, just add more paste

It can be thrown together quickly and bonus that I always seem to have these ingredients.

I have tried making the paste myself, but I'll be honest I have never quite gotten it right. Always something not quite right. So know I buy the paste.

TH and I were talking about this for dinner and I said not sure what it is...this recipe is not a soup and not really a what we would call a curry consistency. So he said call it Thai slurry ;)
   You could make this into a soup by adding water or chicken.

I don't use oil in this dish nor dairy
My dish is gluten free, but it depends on the paste you use.

Normally I would serve this over rice noodles, TS prefers rice and I forgot to make the rice noodles for myself.
Today time just got away from me....

What you'll need

Chicken breast/thighs  ~ I used 8 thighs
mushrooms ~ 250g
green beans ~ 200g
coconut milk ~ 1 can
red Thai paste ~ 1 tablespoon
salt to taste

In a pan of water cook the green beans

cut the chicken into pieces

in a pan add the red paste and chicken.
mix well coating all the chicken.
cook until the chicken starts to turn colour
add the coconut milk and stir in
break up the mushrooms and add them also and mix in
simmer the chicken and sauce on a low heat until chicken and mushrooms cooked through

When the green beans are cooked, add the beans

serve over rice or rice noodles

Enjoy!

                  Chicken and wild rice 
                            Slow cooked GF

I might have mentioned before that I love soup.
There is nothing like a good hearty soup on a cold day!
Especially when your not feeling well, a nice hot bowl of soup is perfect in my book!

I wanted quick and easy...so it was a throw it all in the crockpot/slow-cooker type of day.

With so many things I needed to do today this was going to perfect...Shame I never got around to completing one job on my list...well apart from making the soup.

This is great because its Gluten free, I made it with lactose free milk (lactose free milk tastes exactly the same) No added butter or oils, so a win win really!

***
The lactose free milk is not soy milk or nut milk but actual lactose free
***

What you'll need

chicken ~ 500g/1/2 kg
long grain/wild rice mix ~ 1 cup (don't use the par cooked variety)
chopped onion ~ 1 cup
chopped carrot ~ 1 cup
chopped celery ~ 1/2 cup
garlic ~ 2 cloves (sliced)
Bayleaf
ground Coriander ~ 1 teaspoon
smoked paprika ~ 1 teaspoon
dried thyme ~ 1 teaspoon
dried parsley ~ 1 teaspoon
dried sage ~ 1 teaspoon
dried rosemary ~ 1 teaspoon
salt ~ 1/2 teaspoon
ground black pepper ~ 1/2 teaspoon
chicken stock ~ 8 cups
milk ~ 1 1/2 cups warmed (I used lactose free)

in the crockpot add the chicken, rice and all the veggies, bayleaf, sliced garlic and herbs and spices
pour in the chicken stock and mix.
cook for 3 hours on high


After 2 1/2 hours, remove the chicken and bayleaf, also remove some liquid form the pot
warm the milk, enough to just warm up
add the liquid to the warmed milk and mix
add the milk and liquid mix back to the crockpot/slow cooker and mix well

shred the chicken

stir the chicken back into the crockpot

Enjoy!