Caitriona Redmond: Deals on suncream and easy snacks for children

Summery stew: hearty fare that suits the temperature

Now that secondary schools are finished for the school year (unless you’ve an exam student) I’ve welcomed a space invader to the home. This 6-foot still-a-child has the run of the house and the kitchen is his personal snack pantry. Despite his height, he likes to eat like a hobbit; this morning the first breakfast started at 6am because he woke early hungry, then there’s elevenses, lunch, afternoon snacks, and dinner. At least when the secondary students were in school eating was more structured but now I need to budget more so that there are healthy snacks available and he doesn’t go hungry. It’s a proven fact that my working space will get invaded more frequently if he’s feeling peckish.

A whole sliced pan is a liability because it’s delectable toast material and if I leave it unattended half a loaf will disappear like a Turlough in the middle of summer. In the warmer weather sliced bread tends to go off much quicker so I half each loaf once bought and freeze them. At least that way the bread lasts a little longer and hungry teenagers have to wait for the bread to defrost, by which time they might have eaten a banana instead.

Have you ever heard of ‘ants on a log’? It’s a very American snack made by filling celery sticks with cream cheese and topped with raisins. It is healthy with the inclusion of protein and vegetables/fruit but there is no hope that I would get any of my children to eat this culinary delight. In the spirit of ants on a log, however, I am spreading peanut butter on crackers and the kids top this with raisins instead.

The absolute favourite recipe at home this week is homemade hummus which I am delighted to say the space invader can now make themselves. The recipe is below and if you discover the secret to getting a teenager to make hummus and clean up after themselves I’ll gratefully accept your sage advice!

Meal Deals

For the first time since I started tracking this basket, Lidl is the cheapest supermarket this week at €17.56. The basket price ranges considerably though with the most expensive basket costing €21.13.

As the weather gets warmer and hopefully we get many more dry days it’s time to think about dining outdoors again. Dunnes Stores have two selected picnic items for €4; these include Irish pork and black pudding sausage rolls plus tomato and bell pepper falafels. There’s plenty on offer to choose from for the omnivores and plant-based eaters in your household.

The Cien range of suncream is back in Lidl with prices starting from €1.99. I’ve used this suncream range before and found it worked perfectly and it’s a very budget-friendly way to keep your skin protected.

It's the best time of year for ice cream.

Normally Ben & Jerry’s ice cream would cost a whopping €7.45 per tub but selected flavours are half price in Tesco until the end of the month for €3.72. If that’s too expensive for your pocket, Tesco’s own brand tubs of vanilla ice cream are also half-price for €1.39. Scoop between 2 digestive biscuits for a budget ice cream sandwich.

Summery Chicken Broth

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

"If you're not a fan of broth, this recipe doubles up perfectly well as a vegetable salad, so you can dress it with some mayonnaise or salad dressing instead."

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 1 hours 20 mins

Cooking Time

 30 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 50 mins

Course

 Starter

Cuisine

 English

Ingredients

• 2 chicken fillets

• 2 lemons

• 1 sprig fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried rosemary

• 12 new baby potatoes

• 2 carrots

• 1 small turnip

• 1 medium beetroot

• 1 handful fresh broadbeans

• 4 radishes

• 3 scallions/spring onions

• chive flowers to decorate

• 250ml chicken stock

Method

1. Take your chicken fillets and rosemary then put them into the large bowl.

2. Cut the lemons in half & squeeze their juice directly into the bowl on top of the chicken, stir, then cover and leave to 1 side.

3. Fill the pot with water, place the baby potatoes inside and bring to the boil. Once boiling turn down to a simmer for 8 minutes.

4. Meanwhile peel your root vegetables (carrot & turnip) then cut into small squares. You can slice if you like but make sure that they are all equal size.

5. Using the other chopping board, do the same with the beetroot. Once finished with the beetroot leave it to 1 side and wash your knife!

6. Your potatoes should be ready by now so drain the pot and put the potatoes on the plate to cool a bit.

7. Refill the pot with water and the broadbeans. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 4 minutes.

8. Drain the pot and cool the broad beans before podding them to remove the tough outer skin.

9. Refill the pot with water and the chopped root vegetables. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 4 minutes.

10. After 4 minutes, drain and leave to cool on the plate.

11. Spray the griddle pan with oil and put on a medium setting to heat up.

12. Wash and dry the pot.

13. Fill the pot with the stock then place on a low heat to warm through.

14. Open the freezer bag and shake the chicken fillets to get rid of any excess lemon juice which would burn on the griddle.

15. Place the chicken on the griddle one by one.

16. Start chopping the "raw" salad vegetables (radishes & spring onions).

17. Cook the chicken for 7 minutes on each side, then check to see that they are cooked through. If not, cook for longer. Check by cutting them in half - it doesn't make a difference as this is how you serve it.

18. Serve the broth by arranging your vegetables in the bowl, then pour the warm stock over, with the chicken on top.

Hummus

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

"Personally, I like my hummus bursting with fresh lemon juice flavour. If you haven’t come across tahini before it is ground sesame seed paste and easily found in jars most ethnic food stores."

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 9 mins

Total Time

 19 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 Middle-Eastern

Ingredients

• 1 large (400g before draining) tin of cooked chickpeas

• 100ml of tahini

• 4 large garlic cloves peeled and crushed

• Juice of 3 lemons (you can also use the peel if you wish)

• Olive Oil (no exact measurement as it’s added only if you want to)

• Salt & pepper to taste

Method

1. Drain the chickpeas.

2. Put the chickpeas, tahini, garlic & lemon juice into the food processor and blend until it has the consistency you like. I like mine a bit chunky but smooth is fine too.

3. If your mixture is a little too stiff or claggy and you intend to eat it the same day you are making the hummus then add 2 tablespoons of warm water or warm the drained water from the tin of chickpeas and add to the processer.

4. If you would like to keep the hummus overnight then add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil then pulse the hummus until it is well mixed.

5. Store in a well sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days if you have added olive oil by pouring a further 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top of the hummus which keeps it fresh, if not eat within 8 hours of preparing.