It wasn’t until Lou Robbie had her first child that she really realised how fortunate she was being able to cook. Having learned basic cooking skills, she was more than capable of feeding the family real, affordable, wholesome homemade food.
She attended catering
college and cooked as a professional chef for many years.
Many of her
friends with very successful careers were struggling while she could easily
whip up purées, finger foods and ‘weaning dinners’ from scratch. Lou had an
irresistible urge to help others to find the confidence to do the same. She
grew up in rural Ireland in the 80’s, one of six children in a typical
household. The weekly menu was predictable, there was always fish on Friday’s
and a roast dinner on Sunday.
Her mum
made brown bread, apple tarts, sponge cakes…Treats like chocolate were rare
enough and school lunch was always a cheese or ham and cheese sandwich on white
bread.
In her 20’s
she donned her backpack and headed off to see the world. During her travels in
Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, she was exposed to a whole new world of
exciting flavours.
When the
pandemic hit, she, like so many others, found herself trapped at home, cooking just
for her family. She started to share tips and recipes online, the response was
phenomenal. In 2021, Little Lou Cooks was born to give online cooking classes
to both adults and children.
It gathered
momentum fast, thousands of parents wanted to swap shop-bought meals for
healthier, homemade food that they could make in advance and perhaps freeze.
A video of
batch baking homemade snacks suitable for freezing for her kids’ school lunches
went viral and now Lou has over 1 million followers across her social media
platforms. The feedback she gets from grateful parents is touching and inspired
her to write MAKE AND FREEZE.
Here’s just
one from Jennifer…
‘Hi there!
I just wanted to say thanks for your school lunchbox recipes and the stew one
too! We’re all well fed here today. The kids help bake over midterm, so we have
lovely family time too. I was buying flapjacks and pancakes, but now we’re
stocked for a few weeks of delicious homemade snacks and I know exactly what’s
in them!’
There are lots
more which shows how this book has helped to change so many people’s lives.
Chapters
include hearty energy packed breakfasts, savoury and sweet lunchboxes, slow
cooked dinners, air fryer (as you know I’m not a fan, but many are). Family
pies, stews, weekday and weekend favourites, bread and sneaky sweet stuff…
All homely
and delicious with lots of clever tips and riffs on favourite dishes. This
may well be the book you wished you had years ago.
All recipes are from Make
& Freeze Cookbook by Lou Robbie published by Michael Joseph (Penguin Random
House UK)
Nut Free Energy Balls
There are some recipes in this book that were stepping-stones to get to where I am today! In November 2023 I shared a montage reel of me making snacks for the lunchbox. That reel was a viral hit and brought me a huge number of new followers. These energy balls played a starring role, and they have been made for thousands of kids’ lunchboxes across the world! So cool to see.
Makes 12
Storage:
Keep these in the fridge for up to 7 days.
To Freeze:
Freeze in a labelled ziplock bag for up to 3 months.
To Defrost:
Defrost in an airtight container on the worktop overnight.
TIP: To change up the flavour, add ½ teaspoon of orange zest to the blended mix.
Ingredients
115g pitted dates
40g rolled oats
60g mixed seeds
20g desiccated coconut, plus 20g extra to finish
1 tbsp cocoa powder
Method
Put the dates into a bowl, cover with boiling water, leave to soften for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, blend the oats, seeds, coconut and cocoa powder in a processor – the texture should be coarse and not too fine.
Drain the dates and add them to the blender, then blend until it looks like a thick paste. If it looks dry and won’t clump, add a dash of boiled water and blend again.
Roll the mixture into balls, big or small – whichever you prefer.
To finish, pour the extra desiccated coconut into a wide bowl. Lightly wet your hands to help the coconut stick, then roll the balls again and toss them in the coconut. Put the balls into a container and pop them into the fridge to firm up.
‘Cowboy Supper’ Sausage & Bean Casserole
This a hearty, tasty and comforting dish, ideal for the cowboys and cowgirls in your life! Beans and sausages are the perfect pair for a tasty midweek supper, and it’s also a budget-friendly meal if you’re trying to keep food costs low. Imagine a cold wintry Wednesday when it’s damp and dreary and everyone’s coming home to a warm house with a cosy fire. The first smell they get as they open the door is this comforting slow-cooker casserole . . . perfect.
Serves 4
Storage:
Once
cooked and cooled, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3
days.
To Freeze:
To save space in your freezer, portion the cooked and cooled bean casserole and freeze in labelled ziplock bags for up to 3 months.
To Defrost:
Defrost overnight in the fridge. Reheat in a pot or in the microwave until piping hot.
Ingredients
1-2 tbsp cooking oil
6 sausages, cut into quarters (450g)
2 onions, finely chopped
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 bay leaf
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato purée
600ml hot beef stock
1 x 400g tin of cannellini beans, drained
chopped fresh parsley, to serve
Method
Heat the oil in a frying pan and brown the sausages all over, then put them into the slow cooker. This step is important because the sausages won’t brown in the slow cooker. If you have time, brown the onions in the frying pan too, as this will give a better flavour to the finished dish.
Add all the rest of the ingredients except the cannellini beans and parsley to the slow cooker and cook either on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 hours.
Add the drained beans 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Serve
with crusty bread and a sprinkling of fresh parsley.
Creamy Garlic & Lemon Chicken with Buttery Mash and Veg
To me this is pure comfort food, and it makes a great Sunday family dinner without any of the fuss. Lemon chicken reminds me of a weekend we once had in Paris, before we had kids. I ordered it in a little restaurant in St Michel, and it was served with boiled potatoes and green beans, cooked with few ingredients but full of flavour. I love to cook dishes for my family that I’ve had on my travels. It always evokes lovely memories and interesting conversations with the kids.
Serves 4
Storage:
Once cooked and cooled, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
To Freeze:
To save space in your freezer, portion the cooked and cooled chicken and sauce and freeze in labelled ziplock bags for up to 3 months.
To Defrost:
Defrost overnight in the fridge. Reheat in a pan or in the microwave until piping hot.
Ingredients
4 chicken breasts
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp oregano oil, for cooking
zest and juice of 1 lemon
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
100ml hot chicken stock (use ½ a stock cube)
2 tbsp cornflour
½ tsp Dijon mustard
250ml double cream
To Serve
mashed potato
green beans
carrots
lemon wedges
chopped fresh parsley
Method
Warm a large frying pan on a medium heat. Season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper and oregano, add some oil to the pan, and sear for about 5 minutes, until brown all over. Put the chicken breasts into the slow cooker, add the lemon juice, lemon zest and garlic, and pour in the chicken stock. Cook on low for 4 hours, or on high for 2 hours.
After the cooking time, remove the chicken breasts to a plate and cover to keep warm.
Make a paste by mixing the cornflour, mustard and a tablespoon of water in a small bowl and pour this into a small pot. Put 2 ladles of the juices from the slow cooker into the pot of paste and whisk on a medium heat for a few minutes to cook out the cornflour, then add the cream and the rest of the juices and let it bubble and cook for a few minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed, then pour back into the slow cooker and put the chicken back too for a final 10 mins.
Serve with creamy mashed potato, green beans and carrots. Garnish with a lemon wedge and a sprinkle of chopped parsley.