Claire Gourley does not do complicated but she does plenty of eating.
That is why the 16-year-old Bethlehem College student has come up with her own cookbook, designed to target teenagers who also love good food but would prefer to be in and out of the kitchen as quickly as possible.
"I would
never consider myself a chef but a few years ago we talked about going to university and cooking for myself there and I thought 'that's going to be hard'," Claire told the Bay of Plenty Times.
Enter the creation of Who's Cooking Tonight? A cookbook written by a teen "for teens", which was launched nationwide yesterday.
"A lot of people of this generation are growing up buying takeaways because it's cheaper and faster but it's nowhere near as healthy for them," Claire said.
While this book has nutritional recipes, they are not "in your face healthy". The book was made in collaboration with Claire's mother Glenda and nothing is in there that the teenager does not like personally - favourites include the "gorgeous" chilli chicken.
If a recipe was too hard to follow, it went out the window.
"I don't do complicated," she said.
"Most cookbooks are written by adults for adults, they're dull and boring.
"I'm all for having a bit of fun - so I've put recipes together in a way that kids our age think. Some are total classics, others a bit more out there."
Teens might already be familiar with Claire, who has made regular television cooking appearances on Studio 2 and The Erin Simpson Show.
For more information go to www.itsmyturntocooktonight.com and www.teachchildrentocook.com.
Claire's recipe for "GORGEOUS" CHILLI CHICKEN:
What you need:
400g skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thigh fillets
1/2 cup sweet chilli sauce
1/4 cup water
4 baking potatoes
spray oil
watercress, rocket or mesclun leaves to serve
"You can slap this meal together in five minutes - can't get any better than that!"
To bake the chicken:
Trim any visible fat from the chicken. Place the chicken, sweet chilli sauce and water in a baking dish. Mix until the chicken is well coated. Bake at 180C for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown.
To bake the potatoes:
Cut the potatoes in half. Using a sharp knife, cut a cross on the skin side of each potato half. Spray the cut surface with oil and bake with the chicken.
(If you want to be clever you could do smiley faces or initials on the potatoes.)
Serve with a generous handful of greens.
Teen shares her recipes for success (+ recipe)
Claire Gourley does not do complicated but she does plenty of eating.
That is why the 16-year-old Bethlehem College student has come up with her own cookbook, designed to target teenagers who also love good food but would prefer to be in and out of the kitchen as quickly as possible.
"I would
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