So here we are in wet, wet Sydney. Rain is such a novelty for us Melbournites. Courtesy of the Bread Winner’s company, we have free use of a simply divine 3 bedroom apartment right on the Harbour. The apartment is bigger than our house. I could happily sit on the couch for a week just looking out the window at the water. There is heaps of food and drink here but we figure that’s not really for our use. Handy for the odd spice or drop of oil though. We’re having a quiet day today to recover from the big drive yesterday so I’m doing a bunch of cooking today that will just have to be reheated to be eaten. Nice for days when we’re out and about.

So my mission is to create a meal plan and shopping list that will allow for no waste and minimum work. Because it’s a fact of life that Mum’s holidaying still have to cook and clean. It needn’t be overbearing though.

I was originally going to do this as one mega post but it was rapidly turning into what Stephen Fry would call a ‘blessay’. So I’ll post day by day.

So my shopping list;
1 free range chicken
750g free range bacon
4 spanish rissoles (found a great butcher!)
5 beef and feta sausages
loaf of bread
packet of mountain bread
tomatoes
cucumber
rocket
2 red onions
3 avocado
8 small potatoes
1 red capsicum
bananas
kiwi fruit
grapes
2 lemons
dry biscuits
a couple of dips
a couple of nice cheeses
a big chunk of cheddar for the ankle biters
1 dozen organic eggs
butter
hot salami
free range ham
tin lentils
tin borlotti beans
pasta
Bulgarian feta
parmesan
cream
cream cheese
balsamic dressing
caesar dressing
ice cream (well it is a holiday after all)

Note to Self: Do not let Bread Winner come to supermarket again. He released the Lil Miss from the trolley and I ended up buying an extra packet of tea bags. Everything else she threw in I noticed and removed before the checkout.

Meal Plan Day One
Breakfast – bircher muesli cobbled together out of things found in the apartment and prepared the evening before upon arrival
Lunch – mountain bread wraps with an assortment of salad, cream cheese, dips, salami and ham
Dinner – Roast Chicken with oven baked chips and green salad

Roast Chicken with Oven Baked Chips and Green Salad
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons Portuguese spice blend (no idea what’s in it but I found it in the pantry)
1 chicken, split up the middle.
3 large potatoes
Combine all marinade ingredients well, pour over chicken and roast at 160 degrees for 1 1/2 – 2 hours depending on the size of the chicken. Baste periodically.
To make the chips, I just cut the potatoes into wedges, toss in oil and sea salt and bake until golden.
No instructions necessary to make a green salad I hope!
I’m hoping no one is too hungry tonight as I’m expecting to get at least two dinners and a lunch or maybe three dinners out of the chook.