Claire K Creations

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Spicy sweet potato wedges

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When I don't have a side dish planned for dinner I nearly always fall back on what I've been eating my whole life - plain broccoli, beans, carrot or corn (or a combination) steamed or some sort of potato. I had to spice up my sides, literally, for Thanksgiving on the weekend and decided it […]

Beef and potato pasties with hot water pastry

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  The other day I mentioned that I'm not really big on sleeping in anymore. Since I wrote that, my body has decided to prove the point and has woken me up at 5am nearly every morning this week. I really see why everyone wants daylight saving here so badly. At 5am the sun is […]

Apple and parmesan crisps

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I am very excited to be heading off to the Good Food and Wine show today. I have tickets to see Manu and George and Gary. I spent the day in bed with a stomach bug yesterday and still not feeling tops today so sadly there will be no food tasting for me :-(. Our […]

Raspberry ricotta low-calorie muffins

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Did you have a win on the Melbourne Cup yesterday? I didn't. I thought that between all the sweeps and $1 bets I had that I might have won something but sadly no. I did see a lady who might have had too big a celebration yesterday. She was walking down Racecourse Road (next to […]

How to organise magazine clippings

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How to organise magazine clippings I subscribe to a few too many magazines. I can't help it I just love food mags. One of my favourite weekend morning activities is sitting with a pot of tea and the latest foodie inspiration. The only problem with this obsession is the space the magazines take up. I […]

Happy Birthday Will & Happy haunted Halloween!

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Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat. I have no idea where that came from but that's what I woke up with in my head this morning and it has been playing non-stop ever since. While my days of trick-or-treating have passed, I still like to get into the Halloween […]

Halloumi-crumbed chicken breast

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Yes another post about halloumi but stay with me on this one you won't regret it. When I'm not buying at the markets, I try to buy most of my meat from Super Butcher. It's a warehouse-style butcher that sells to the public at wholesale prices. You need to be a bit tough to go […]

The secret to weight loss

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Reading The Sunday Mail on the weekend I noticed an alarming trend. I counted at least 5 different advertisements for quick-fix weight loss products. One says that exercise won't make you thin, another claims if you drink it for a few weeks you'll look like a supermodel (I might exaggerate a little). The other one […]

I saw the Queen!

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Yesterday, I had the royal privililge of seeing Her Majesty the Queen before she departed for her cruise down the Brisbane River. All I can say is wow. I wasn't really thinking too much about it until the motorcade came into view. Then my heart started racing. I was going to see the Queen! She […]

Classic tomato pasta sauce - gifts from my kitchen

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Can you believe Christmas is only 9 weeks away? I swear it was 12 weeks then I blinked and 3 weeks had disappeared. Every year I say I'll be organised and not even have to think about presents cause they'll all be planned out, wrapped and ready before the sleigh bells start to jingle in […]

Lamb ragu in the Breville Flavour Maker slow cooker

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It's no secret that I love my slow cooker. What's not to love? You throw all the ingredients in it, flick a switch and hours later you return to a hot, cooked dinner without hours slaving over the stove. The only thing that I didn't like about my slow cooker, was having to seal meats […]

Homemade ricotta - so easy!

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I'm a big fan of making everyday food items from scratch. A lot of the time it saves money, you know what's going into it and it often tastes better than the store-bought version. So far I have made Greek yoghurt, butter, labne cheese, tortillas and naan bread and my latest creation is homemade ricotta. […]

Pink vanilla butter cake

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On this day, one year ago, I wrote my very first post. I can't believe how fast the year has gone and that I have written oh-so-many words. What I have discovered, is that writing for my blog, making recipes for my blog, taking photos for my blog and researching and everything else I do, […]

Cheesy broccoli bake - low calorie

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I've been heavily into my veges lately. I don't know if it's my body subtly trying to rid itself of a little winter coat or just that they're so delicious at the moment. Ricotta is another thing I can't get enough of ever since I realised I wasn't actually allergic to it. This recipe combines […]

Low calorie berry muffins

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I love a low-fat, low calorie treat that tastes like is should be naughty and these muffins most definitely fit the bill. Using fresh in-season berries, these muffins will satisfy your sweet tooth without the guilt. Like quite a few deliciously light recipes I find, this one was from Gina's Skinny Recipes. The scent of […]

Barbecued pork fillet with Vietnamese caramel sauce

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Ever since I baked coconut bread, my first Bill Granger recipe, a few months ago, I've enjoyed trying quite a few of his recipes and was lucky enough to dine at his restaurant Bills a few weeks ago. My latest 'Bill' dinner was his Barbecued pork fillet with Vietnamese caramel sauce which I found in […]

Crispy roasted chickpea nibbles

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For as long as I can remember, my family has had 'cocktail hour.' It's not necessarily a time for martinis and olives but more of a pre-dinner nibbles and drink. Try as I might to avoid it, my body is build to require a nice little snack around 6pm. As you can imagine, this can […]

Tiramisu inspired Birthday cake

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Today is my friend's Birthday and of course I jumped at the chance to make her Birthday cake. This cake was inspired by one I saw at Sodapop Design a little while ago. I made a chocolate mudcake and covered it in white buttercream icing. I then, very gently pressed sponge finger biscuits (you can […]

Creamy corn soup - a low-calorie warmer

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For the last week I have been strolling around in skirts and sundresses and welcoming the warmer weather. Yesterday, the weather decided it doesn't like the look of my winter white legs and brought in a cold chill. We've regressed back to August temperatures here in Brisbane so I thought it was the perfect opportunity […]

Engagement party cake

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We had a very special occasion on Saturday night - our engagement party! We celebrated the night at Manx restaurant at Portside. It was a wonderful night with family and friends and fabulous food and drinks. My only complaint was that it went way too fast. We couldn't have had such a special occasion without […]

Black magic chocolate cake

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When I was little, my friend's mum used to make the most delicious chocolate cake. It was a Betty Crocker packet mix. I'm usually not a fan of packet mixes. They always seem to have a bit of a strange aftertaste that home-baked never does. Betty Crocker devil's food cake however is the exception to […]

Super-quick vegetarian pasta

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My apologies for the terrible photo. I whipped this dish up last night based on some dying veges I had in the fridge and didn't expect it to be so tasty (I take a photo of everything I make just in case it's one to share). It was so easy to make and you could […]

Spotty cookie pops

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There seems to be a bit of a trend at the moment towards putting things on sticks. Cake Pops, lolly-pop like cakes are 'popping' up everywhere and so I decided to jump on board with a cookie on a stick. They're so much more fun to eat than a regular cookie and make a great […]

Lemon cream cheese cake

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I am rather inspired by lemons at the moment. Yellow brings such happy thoughts and feelings and to me, lemon provides these feelings in edible form. I have a bag of fresh lemons in the my kitchen at the moment, a gift from my mum's aunt so when mum asked me to bake and afternoon […]

Speedy Asian chicken parcels - dinner in 25 minutes

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After reading last week one of the main reasons people cook the same meal week in week out (I know I keep going on about it) is lack of time, I thought I would share a few of my super quick go-to meals. Last night I got home at 7.15pm and at 7.40pm I was […]

Armenian nutmeg cake

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  I really enjoy a good afternoon tea cake. One of my favourites is the original cinnamon tea cake, the first cake I ever baked. Armenian cake reminds me a little of tea cake. It's dense and tasty and nicely spiced with nutmeg. The crust on the bottom of the cake adds a little something […]

Ham and Gruyere thumbprints

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My mum and aunt, my aunt especially, are always asking me to find new recipes that they can prepare ahead of time and freeze. The latest request was for an easy, tasty recipe that could be served before a dinner or lunch party. I flicked through a few of my many recipe books but didn't […]

Low calorie green chicken curry

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I read today on twitter that 51% of Australians only know how to cook five different meals. I personally couldn't imagine eating the same thing for dinner every week. I hope that my blog has expanded some people's repertoires. It has definitely expanded mine. My recipe book was also added to when I was introduced […]

Raspberry and lemon macarons

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Happy spring! What  beautiful day we woke up to this morning. I hope it's an indication of the rest of the season. It's no secret that I love macarons. Ever since I tried them in Paris last year I buy one whenever I see them. I have since tried to make them at home quite […]

Almond and cinnamon coffee cake

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It's been such strange weather in the last week. On Friday it was sunny and really quite warm but Brisbanites awoke on Saturday to grey skies, rain and a dropping temperature. Sunday brought sun and yesterday was positively warm but today is back to grey and chilly. My  aunt arrived from Spain on Saturday, the […]

Dining out in Shanghai

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I wasn't sure what to expect of Shanghai. Knowing nothing about the city except its massive population, the only things I did expect were for it to be a bit chaotic and very very busy. I was right with my prediction of mild chaos, their roads are rather different to ours. I nearly got run […]

Zucchini, eggplant and mushroom lasagna - low calorie recipe

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I love having friends over. Not only to socialise and catch up but because it gives me a chance to try another recipe from my massive and ever-growing 'to try' list. I make new recipes for the two of us all the time but having a few people means you can go all out. This […]

Orange and almond syrup cakes

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These tasty little delights were  present for my grandma. The original recipe uses lemon zest and juice but I think orange and almond are a perfect combination. They're very quick to whip up for an afternoon treat and I think they'd be just as good warm as after cooling. I was in a bit of […]

Our engagement story

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When I shared my engagement news a few weeks ago there were several requests for the details. It's taken me a little while (being engaged is rather time-consuming!) but here you go for anyone who is interested. A few weeks ago I was in Fiji with my family celebrating dad's 60th Birthday. I was away […]

Chorizo chicken with risoni

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Dinner that's ready in 25 minutes (including preparation) and tastes amazing... this recipe is a winner. It's based on a recipe my friend Alana gave me a few years ago that was out of an IGA catalogue. It combines a taste of Spain with a hint of Italy bringing back the flavours of my European […]

Raspberry squares

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I tend to get a little bit obsessed with things. When I'm really into a certain food I can't get enough of it. At the moment, haloumi is my savoury addiction - I buy it every week and order it everywhere - I'm on a little quest to find my favourite. I might share the […]

Happy Birthday Busta! A doggy Birthday cake

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Today is Busta's 6th Birthday. One thing our Busta (ok really he's my sister's dog but I love him just as much!) loves is eating (see he must have learned that from me) so of course I had to bake him a cake for his Birthday. He eats practically anything so this carrot and peanut […]

Strawberry and honey muffins

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When I saw this recipe was called 'happy muffins,' I was a little hesitant. Why 'happy' I wondered? Apparently, honey has calming properties and strawberries were once thought to attract prosperity and harmony. Calm, prosperity and harmony = happy! These muffins are also full of fiber, taste amazing (and smell fantastic while they bake) and […]