Navigating through ‘food, faff and family life’ is definitely a recipe many of us follow every day. Tuck into this fun family-friendly cookbook and there won’t be too many leftovers.
With more than 70 recipes to choose from in Anna’s Family Kitchen, it’s all about working smarter not harder to create easy, delicious dishes every day for the whole family.
Anna Stanford is a self-taught cook and mother of three who started Anna’s Family Kitchen four years ago as a passionate hobby, creating healthy, wholesome recipes for her family and friends and now with a loyal and substantial following on social media.
Designed for busy families, Anna transforms the mundane chore of cooking every day into an enjoyable experience, whilst creating dishes that kids will love. Her cookbook showcases the reality of family life, and how to achieve fun and easy mealtimes that aren’t all-consuming.
The recipes cover all aspects of everyday challenges faced in the kitchen and how to navigate them through meal planning, creating delicious dishes for every occasion and time limit whilst offering useful hints and tips to save money, batch cook ahead of time and utilise your freezer to make sure there’s no leftovers or wasted food.
Here we have chosen three taste-sensation dishes that will be sure to win over all the family, young and old.
Hoisin Chicken
This crowd pleaser is a perfect alternative to hoisin duck (and much easier to make and a lot cheaper).
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Serves: 4-6
INGREDIENTS
8-10 chicken thighs, skin on and bone in
Mini wraps or Chinese pancakes
1 cucumber, cut into batons
Spring onions, shredded
For the hoisin sauce
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp rice wine
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 clove of garlic, crushed
½ tsp Chinese five spice
¼ tsp chilli flakes (optional)
15ml water
METHOD
Blitz all the hoisin sauce ingredients together in a blender. Set half aside and pour the rest over the chicken thighs in a roasting tray. Cook the chicken in the oven at 180-200°c fan for 25 minutes.
Turn the chicken thighs over, making sure they are completely coated in the sauce, then arrange them skin side up and return to the oven for 25 more minutes.
Pull the chicken apart using two forks and serve with the wraps or pancakes, cucumber batons, shredded spring onion and the remaining hoisin sauce.
Top tip: The sauce can be made ahead in a large batch, then refrigerated or frozen.
Loaded Nachos
VEGETARIAN OPTION
Designed for a light lunch or snack, this is one dish the kids will love (and may even love making with you).
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4
INGREDIENTS
8 tortilla wraps
195g tinned unsweetened or frozen sweetcorn
400g tinned black beans, drained
300g mixed tomatoes, roughly chopped
100g grated cheddar
2 jarred red peppers, sliced
1-2 chillies, deseeded and sliced
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1-2 limes, juiced
Bunch of coriander, leaves picked
METHOD
Start by cutting the tortilla wraps into triangles using scissors. Cut each wrap in half, then in half again and in half again. Line a large baking or roasting tray with baking parchment and add the tortilla triangles in one layer.
Bake the tortillas for 5 minutes in a 180°c fan oven. Move them around and bake for a couple more minutes so that they’re all toasted and have just a bit of colour.
Layer the tortilla chips with the black beans, tomatoes, sweetcorn, cheddar and peppers on the baking tray. Ideally, you’ll have about 3 layers. Finish with some cheddar and sliced chillies on top.
Bake the nachos for 10 minutes, then add the avocado on top. Squeeze over the lime juice and scatter with coriander leaves to serve.
Top tip: Try layering these nachos with cooked diced chicken or chilli
Stroganoff
Bringing back some 1970s nostalgia, stroganoff is making a comeback. Whether it’s mushroom, beef or chicken, it is a quick and easy dish to make and oh so decadent.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4
Chicken or Beef Stroganoff
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp olive oil
500g chicken breasts OR fillet steak, cut into strips
1 tbsp seasoned flour
1 tsp paprika
1 onion, sliced
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tsp Dijon mustard
200g chestnut mushrooms, halved
200ml chicken or beef stock
4 tbsp soured cream
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley and chives, to serve
METHOD
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a pan. Toss the chicken or steak in the flour and paprika, then add to the pan. Colour for 5 minutes then remove from the pan and set aside.
Cook the onion and garlic in the same pan, allowing them to colour for a couple of minutes before adding the mustard and mushrooms. Cook for a further 2 minutes then add the stock. Let it bubble and reduce for a minute.
Return the chicken or beef to the pan and stir through the soured cream. Finish with the fresh parsley and chives.
Mushroom Stroganoff (vegetarian)
INGREDIENTS
3 tbsp coconut or olive oil
2 onions, sliced
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1kg chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped
Salt and pepper
800ml coconut milk
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp paprika
1 lemon, juiced
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley and chives, to serve
METHOD
Heat a large casserole and add the oil, onions, garlic and mushrooms. Season well with salt and pepper. Cook on a medium heat for 5-10 minutes, stirring every minute or so.
Add the coconut milk, mustard, paprika and lemon juice. Stir and cook on a medium heat for a further 20 minutes until the sauce thickens and reduces by half. Finish with the fresh parsley and chives.
Anna’s Family Kitchen retails at £25.
Available at select bookshops, Amazon and via annasfamilykitchen.com
————————————————————————————————————
SPRING GIVEAWAY!
We are thrilled to be able to offer one lucky winner this wonderful cookbook and a full year of
Wildflower Magazine delivered directly to their door.
This prize includes:
~ A copy of Anna’s Family Kitchen cookbook
~ Four issues of Wildflower Magazine starting from Summer 2023
To be in for a chance to win this wonderful prize, all you need to do is:
~ Go to our Instagram page @wildflowermagazine
~ Like the competition post and tag someone you’d like to cook with
~ Follow @wildflowermagazine and @annasfamilykitchen
~ Enter as many times as you wish, one tag = one entry
The winner will be selected at random and contacted by 20th March 2023.
Good luck!
