Colleen’s Chicken and almonds

“You'd try to be strategic on which was the biggest piece, which had the best choc-to-caramel ratio or if you were an "edge" or a "middle" kind of person”.

Growing up, my sister and I had two grandmothers. Our Mum’s Mum, and our Dad’s mum. However, we also had another person who we called ‘Ma’. This came about from spending so much time with her grandkids that we simply had no choice but to call her Ma. As 5 or 6-year-olds, if you hear your best friends calling someone ‘Ma’, chances are you're going to call them the same. Fast forward a couple of decades and we are still calling her that. Because the thought of now calling her ‘Mrs Lancaster’ seems so very strange. So, she will forever be Ma to me.

I started Recipes on Paper after both of my grandmothers had passed, so it was a no brainer to have Ma on the top of my list of people to pinch a recipe from - I mean, showcase! (wink wink). And here she is, the beautiful, Colleen Lancaster.

Words from Zac and Jemma - Ma’s (actual) Grandkids. 

Zac.

I remember Christmas school holidays at Lennox Head, a mixture of tea tree lake, sand and saltwater dripping from swimmers and rushing back in time for morning tea. There was always a big selection of biscuits and desserts, but everyone went for the choc caramel slice. You'd try to be strategic on which was the biggest piece, which had the best choc-to-caramel ratio or if you were an "edge" or a "middle" kind of person.

Jemma.

Passing down of recipes is the passing down of memories and a gift to be able to make more memories. 

I remember sitting at the wooden dinner table to the side of the kitchen in Ma and Pa's old farmhouse surrounded by cane fields and a huge Jacaranda near the big shed. Ma would always have some sweet slices made for us. Coconut ice, caramel slice and my favourite, rocky road. Familiar, sweet, comfortable. No fancy platter or garnishes were needed. Tupperware containers opened – and left opened – because, who were we kidding, they wouldn't be there for much longer. I would normally survey the pile of rocky road to assess which had the most amount of jelly snake pieces in it before selecting my treasure. I still can’t make or eat rocky road without thinking of Ma. I’m sure my cousins have similar memories. Thinking back, I'm sure she made other savoury dishes and mountains of meals for us all, but its the slices that are the most vibrant in my childhood memories at the farm. 

Each Christmas I (begrudgingly) encourage my children to 'help' me make cookies and slices for the neighbours, (knowing that I can do it in half the time by myself). They crack eggs, sift flour, steal butter, melt chocolate, and mix those spoons so wildly that there is batter on our ceiling. They love it and I know they will remember fun times like those. They are important to me.

So while I remember with joy Pa's bone crushing hugs and quote his rhymes in my head every single time I see a pelican, I will continue to search out Ma's rocky road hopefully for years to come. And maybe this Christmas we will add an extra lot of snakes into the rocky road.

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COLLEENS CHICKEN AND ALMONDS

“The recipe for the chicken and almonds came into the range as the children got older. I originally got it from a magazine I think, and a friend and I made it for a get together we were having and as everybody liked it, it became a favourite.”- Colleen

Ma gave me the choice of 4 recipes to showcase. And honestly, I could have used them all. I thought maybe I should showcase one of her slice or biscuit recipes seeing as her grandkids have such fond memories of them. But after I heard the story behind this recipe, I simply had to make this one. 

As you’ve just heard from Ma, she found this recipe in a magazine and it quickly became a favourite (if you make it, you will know why!). But what she didn’t say was that she and her friends would make this recipe for community functions, weddings, and parties. Why? Because back in the day it just wasn’t an option to have parties catered for. So, the Mum’s of St Joseph’s would pool their delicious recipes and make them to feed big gatherings (after they had been tested on their own kids, of course). 

I absolutely love the image of Ma and her friends getting together to cater for events and I sit here picturing myself doing the same with my friends (although the thought of catering for a big group stresses me out! – well done, Ma!). I think that’s why I love this recipe and story. It catered (literally!) for a time when you just had to do things a little differently. And oh, how I wish I had been a guest at one of those gatherings.

Ingredients 

• 3 carrots chopped

• 4 sticks celery chopped

• 2 brown onions

• 3 cups chopped roast or steamed chicken

• 2 tablespoons oil

Sauce 

• 3 cups chicken stock

• 2 tablespoons cornflour to thicken

• Soy sauce to taste

• 1 cup almonds

Method  

• Put oil in a frypan and toss in all vegetables and stir for approx. 5 minutes.

• Add chicken and stir.

• To make the sauce, add cornflour to the stock and whisk until dissolved then add to chicken and vegetables. Stir until sauce becomes thick.

• Add soy sauce to taste.

• To make the almonds, put oil in a frypan (very hot!) and brown very quickly. Approx. 3 seconds. Add to mixture.

• Serve with white rice.