The InTolerant Chef

Oven Roasted Ratatouille

2012-01-27T13:43:00.000+11:00

Have you seen the kids movie Ratatouille?

Its one of my favourites, it's about love of family, friends, food, and belief in self. What's not to love, right?

Whoever wrote this movie must have spent some time researching a commercial kitchen, the way the chefs work together, the way they move, the setup, and if you look closely you'll even see burns and nicks on the hands and wrists of the chefs as well. Very convincing- even if the idea of a cooking rat isn't!

As a matter of fact, the only food I will give a rat would be some baits chucked in the ceiling! Our neighbour has bird aviaries and we have had a few issues with scrabbling sounds in the ceiling lately... I hope it's a possum!

Any way,

Ratatouille is also a very delicious vegetable dish, traditionally from France where it's served as a lovely vegetable stew of eggplant (aubergine), capsicum (bell pepper), zucchini (courgette), onions in a herbed tomato (to-may-to) base.

There are a couple of versions around, with some people stewing it all together at once, some sauteing some of the vegetables separately, and some layering the vegetables in a pretty design then baking them.

That's all very well, but I don't like veggies all squished together, or all stewed together where the flavour just amalgamates into one homogeneous taste. I like my veggies to stand alone, bound together lightly with a combining sauce while they still retain their stuctual integrity.

Not too fussy, am I?

I came up with this version of a classic when I was working in a huge commercial kitchen. I needed to make vast quantities quickly and easily while striving to keep flavour and freshness for a day or two before serving, then keeping the dish attractive in a chafing-dish for an hour while serving.

Not to fussy either, hey?

Of course by far the easiest way would be to chuck everything in a big pan and cook it. But that just wasn't right. All the veggies cook at their own pace, and by the time one was cooked others would be mush. There had to be a better way.

Thus I came up with my Oven Roasted Ratatouille. I think it looks better, holds better, and even tastes better too! But don't tell Remy or Linguine on me, promise?

Oven Roasted Ratatouille

Eggplant
Zucchini
Red Capsicum
Onion
Garlic
Tomatoes
Olive oil
Tuscan Seasoning

Sauce
Tomato- canned, paste or pasatta
Red Wine Vinegar
Splash of Wine

Cut all the fresh veggies into similar sized chunks. The size should depend on how long you wish to bake them, and how big a piece you can fit comfortably into your mouth! I took the opportunity to use up a heap of my threatening-to-take-over-the-yard cherry tomatoes, so I cut the veggies to match. Don't forget the cubes will shrink down while roasting so don't get too carried away!

Drizzle with olive oil and liberally dust with Tuscan Seasoning. Of course feel free to use beautiful fresh herbs, but this is one of my secret shortcuts that I learnt in a not-too-fancy commercial kitchen that works out fine in this recipe.

Bake the little veggies at about 180* until tender, timing depends on the size of your veggies. The eggplant cooks fastest, the onion takes the longest- you don't want it raw. The tomatoes will collapse beautifully becoming rich and condensed, yumm..

While the veggies are cooking, make the sauce.

You don't want a lot of sauce. The veggies- especially the tomatoes, will bring a lot of juice of their own, and you don't want them to drown.
Pop the tinned tomatoes/ pasassata, or some tomato paste in a pan big enough for all the veggies, with a good splash of wine (any colour- I had a pink open so it's what I chose) and a smaller splash of red wine vinegar. You want a sweet but tangy flavour going on.

Bring it to the boil to pull the flavours together.

One of the good things with this dish is that you can pre-make the veggies and sauce to this point, them let them sit in the fridge for a day or two until needed.

Otherwise....
Pop the veggies into the sauce and stir through to combine and heat evenly.

Taste for seasoning, the Tuscan Seasoning mix has salt and sugar in it plus the herbs, so it's definitely a case of taste-as-you-go.

Serve as a side dish, wrapped in a crepe, or as a lovely vegetarian meal.

So Dear Readers, what's your favourite children's movie?

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Son In Law Eggs

2012-01-20T17:16:00.000+11:00

I've been meaning to make these for a while now.

The idea of crisp, crunchy eggs paired with a sticky caramel sauce called to me and excited my imagination. I get like that sometimes, and when it happens it is very hard to resist the urge to create it straight away, regardless of ingredients or ability.

Lucky for me these ingredients are pantry staples in our home, and its a very easy recipe to make-despite the fact peeling eggs with one hand is nigh impossible and took a couple of hours!

There's a bit of a mystery surrounding the origin of this recipe. I certainly don't know which, if any, is correct. I'll leave it up to you to decide Dear Reader.

One version claims that Mother-In-Law came to visit unexpectedly, and wife being out, the burden of cooking dinner fell upon unhappy Son-In-Law. Panicing and throwing whatever was available into a pot, he busied himself with the rice, catching the sauce ingredients just on the verge of ruin. With courage born of despair, he served the rice and burnt sauce over the eggs, and thus a legend was created.

The other version paints a very different picture.
Hearing rumours of unpleasant and unacceptable behaviour in her Son-In-Law, Mother-In-Law came to visit. Offering to make dinner and give her long suffering daughter a break, she created a dish with hidden meaning. Excited by the smells of a delicious dinner, cranky Son-In-Law sat down for once in a good mood, only to be confronted by what looked like a very personal part of the male anatomy staring up at him from his plate.
With a wicked grin, she suggested that he treat his wife- her daughter, with a bit more consideration, or next time she visited, she would be frying and slicing very different ingredients...

Son In Law Eggs

2 Eggs Each

For Serving

Steamed Rice
Deep Fried Shallots
Chopped Fresh Coriander and Mint
Wedge of Lime
Chili Caramel Sauce

1/2 cup Water
1/4 cup Palm Sugar
1 tablespoon Tamarind Paste
1 Long Red Chili

Boil eggs to medium. I tried to have soft boiled, but they were just impossible to peel. Ultimitely you want lovely molten centres, but do what you have to do. By the way, older eggs are much easier to peel than fresh.

For the Chilli Caramel Sauce, place the water and sugar in a small saucepan, along with the finely sliced chilli and tamarind.

Boil until the sugar is dissolved and the sauce has thickened and caramelised gently.

Pull off the heat and stir in the lime juice and fish sauce.

While the sauce is cooking, get started on the eggs.

Once they are peeled, make sure they are quite dry then roll them carefully into an inch or so of hot vegetable oil and fry until golden brown and with a crispy skin.
I have seen these made by sliding a raw egg directly into a wok of hot oil, allowing the whites to instantly bubble and crisp, but leaving the yolk lovely and runny. I look forward to trying them this way when I've recovered a bit more dexterity and mobility, but considered in the case of hot oil that discretion is the better part of valour :)

Cut the now crispy eggs into halves so as to to alarm your diners, or Son-In-Law, and arrange on a bed of steamed rice then drizzle heavily with delicious sauce and pile on fried shallots.

Served with a wedge of lime and a generous side of mixed corriander and mint to tone down the buzz of the chilli, this is an amazing dish with all the crunch, heat, sweet, sour, salty, fresh zing you should expect from Thai cuisine.

I loved every bite.

It's one of my new favourites and would be perfect for lunch, brunch, dinner, supper, or just a snack. I hope you give it a try and love it as much as I do.

So Dear Readers, which version of the story do you think is the true one, and who is the Real Hero?

Bebek Betutu, Balinese Duck

2012-01-13T13:10:00.000+11:00

My local supermarket trialled a few gourmet items over Christmas.

An influx of hams and smoked chicken was only to be expected, as was a million types of cheese, but the one item I wasn't expecting at our little shop was fresh duck.

Lucky for me, no one else was expecting duck there either, so I was able to buy my little friend here for only $10 instead of about $25. Lucky duck me, and lucky ducky as I decided to give it an Indonesian spice paste treatment and turn it into Bebek Betutu, a yummy Balinese recipe that combines the very best tropical flavours with the savory delicacy of the meat into a rare treat indeed.

Regular Readers may know that I love South East Asian flavours. Fire and heat, fresh and zingy, light and sweet all at once! Thai food is my favorite, and Vietnamese, but Indonesian is catching up fast. I actually have quite a few Indonesian/ Balinese cookbooks and checked them all for this recipe, but ultimately I'm going with the recipe from the Food Safari cookbook, companion to the TV show of the same name on SBS, as it straddled the fine line between totally traditional and doable at home with a good market nearby.

This dish can be cooked in a covered BBQ, or in the oven as I did.

There is a long list of ingredients here, but don't be put off, none of them are terribly expensive, most are available in small quantities, and any not used are able to be frozen. I have quite a stash of frozen bits and pieces in my freezer all in little zippy bags, they last well, grate from fozen and still taste good a couple of months later too.

Bebek Betutu/Balinese Spiced Duck

1 duck
1 cm sliced tumeric
200 grm blanched shredded spinach
1 cinnamon stick
Banana leaves if possible, or baking paper instead

Spice Paste

10 shallots or 2 medium onions
1 head of garlic
4 candle nuts (yes, I have those in the freezer too)
Or macadamia nuts will do
1 cm piece galangal
1 cm piece ginger
1 cm piece tumeric
3 red chillies
1 stem lemongrass(I used 4)
1 tab palm sugar
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp coriander seeds
3 tab lime juice
3 kaffir lime leaves
2 tab peanut oil
2 tab water, if needed
3 tsp salt

Preheat BBQ or oven to 160*

For the spice paste, peel and chop where necessary, then place all ingredients for the seasoning paste into a strong blender and blend to a chunky paste.

Mix half the paste with the spinach. For recipes like this I use frozen spinach. Its already washed and chopped, just defrost and squeeze out any excess liquid.

Wash the duck inside and out with tumeric infused water, then stuff spinach spice paste and cinnamon stick into cavity.
(That photo was NOT a good look, thank me for sparing you!)

Rub the rest of the duck with the reserved spice paste, patting it on thickly to coat.

Wrap the duck well in banana leaves or baking paper. I just don't like foil directly touching the meat, somethings it can react with ingredients leaving a funny taste. Now Wrap the wrapped duck well in foil to seal in any cooking juices. Put the little ducky parcel on an oven tray or in a large pot as I did.

Cook the duck at 160* for 2 hours, then drop the temperature to 120* and cook for a further 2 hours.

Take your ducky dinner from the oven and drain any yummy juices into a pan. Simmer until slightly reduced, I also freshened it up with a squeeze of lime once off the heat. Serve alongside duck.

Not too hard at all now was it? Once that paste was done you could just ignore it, for four whole hours, perfect for entertaining!

I served the duck with some yellow rice. A bit of grated ginger, garlic and tumeric,a stem of lemongrass, a pandan leaf, and a couple of kaffir lime leaves- all left from the spice paste ingredients or my freezer stash- chucked in the rice cooker with some rinsed rice, coconut milk and a good pinch of salt.

The duck meat is so tender it just falls off the bone. It steams away happily swimming in spice infused juices. Not tough or stringy,juuuust right. Mmmmmmmmm.....

Delicious!

So Dear Readers, what's your favourite cuisine, and why?

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Pappadam Chicken Stacks

2012-01-06T23:45:00.000+11:00

Continuing my series of food-that-can-be-made-with-half-an-arm, is this yummy fun pappadam stack.

All you need to do is stir, press, and get someone else to slice, how easy is that?

I don't know about other countries or cultures, but here in Australia, BBQ chickens are the ultimate meal-to-grab-on-the-way-home-in-a-hurry type of food. Hot, brown, affordable, smelling delicious, they are great with salad, veggies, or even cold on a sandwich the next day. Sold at most takeaway joints, and all Coles and Woollies, it's practically a comfort food, and I'd venture to say, almost a fixture of many weekly meals.

Today I'm going for the posh version of takeaway chook, and making mine slightly more interesting, for that typically middle class trick of pretending something is more exotic than it is by adding a foreign ingredient.

You can be the judge of how successful this trick is.

Pappadam Chicken Stacks

BBQ Chicken
Pappadams
Mango Chutney
Lactose Free Plain Yogurt
Pinch of good quality curry powder
Fresh Mango
Coriander

Did you know you can puff Pappadams in the microwave?

It's so easy! Just place 3 or4 on the plate, then program the microwave on high for about30 seconds. Your microwave might need a little more or less time, but it's easy to figure out.

Mix equal quantities of mango chutney and pain yogurt, add the pinch of curry powder and adjust according to your taste.

Cut nice thin slices of fresh mango. Fresh nectarine is nice here too.

Slice thin pieces off your BBQ Chicken, I prefer the thighs myself as they're always juicy and full of flavor.

All these steps can be done ahead of time, but don't assemble until just before serving or the Pappadams will go soggy.

Place a little splodge of yogurt mixture on the base of the plate to secure a Pappadam.

Put a bigger splodge of yogurt on top of the Pappadam then drape some mango slices over.

Another tiny splodge to hold the next layer in place, and start over again with another Pappadam.

A decent spoon of yogurt, then some lovely slices of chicken, and another tiny splodge of yogurt.

Another Pappadam, a spoonful of yogurt and some more mango, then garnish w with coriander- I forgot to buy any, so had to make do with flowers and micro parsley from the garden instead.

A nice little salad on the side and a little splodge of chutney for color, and you have a cute little luncheon that makes the old cooked chook fit for a princess, or coffee with the girls, at least!

So Dear Readers, are you a fan of the old cooked chook? And do you have any secrets for jazzing one up for company?

Summer Pudding

2011-12-30T21:24:00.000+11:00

How did your Christmas go, dear Readers?

Was it chestnuts roasting on an open fire?

Or throwing another shrimp on the barbie?

Well, after days of feasting, its time to let my days be merry and lite, and enjoy something a little less rich but no less yummy than the traditional pudding served this time of year- bring on beautiful berry Summer Pudding.

Summer pudding is a traditional British dessert, first served as a health food in health spas in the 1800's. Much lighter than thick rich pastry, it originally combined slices of bread and lashings of fresh raspberries and red currants so I guess that qualifies it as health food, well at least if its gluten free for me that is.

The berries are either macerated overnight in sugar to get their ruby juices flowing, or heated gently without cooking to achieve the same liquid love.

Thinish slices of bread are then dipped in the juices,kinda like sponge fingers for tiramisu, then used to line a basin to create a shell for the berries.
A bit of squishing overnight transforms soggy bread into berrylicious bounty, fit to serve to those you love, and I promise they will never guess that its "health food".

I've decided to up the ante with my pudding though. Forced to use frozen ones as my berry bushes are still a bit immature, I've added a little extra zing with the addition of Chambord, a delicious black raspberry liquor, and a good dollop of leftover Christmas cranberry jelly to tap into the tartness normally supplied by the red currants. I also sneak in my secret weapon of a tablespoon of arrowroot to ensure my pudding holds together when turned out, instead of tumbling into a delicious but embarrassing mess.

This is another no real cooking, no real measuring recipe. The amounts you need are really dependant on the size of the basin you use. Play it by ear, and just add more as needed.

Summer Berry Pudding

Fresh or frozen berries, enough to well fill your chosen basin

Loaf of nice gluten free bread, whole not sliced

Couple of tablespoons castor sugar

One good tablespoon cranberry jelly

One good tablespoon Chambord

One tablespoon arrowroot powder

One tablespoon water

Place berries, sugar, cranberry sauce and liquor into a saucepan. Heat gently until the berries soften just a little and the juices and sauce meld together into lush loveliness.

Strain the berries thoroughly but without squishing then, keeping all the juices.

Mix the hot juices with the blended arrowroot and water and it will thicken just a little.

Carefully remove the crusts from the load of bread. Make sure you keep these so you can freeze them and use them as crumbs later.

Slice into about half cm slices, but be careful as you know how crumbly gluten free bread can be. Cut a nice round to sit in the top of your basin, then slice the rest of the bread in half into little soldiers.

Line your basin with cooking wrap, I used a freezer bag, try and have it long enough to hang over the edge a little.

Starting with the round bit, dip each piece of bread into the pretty purpliness that is the berry juice, generously soaking them. Line the basin with upright strips. Try and keep your pieces tightly together, but patch with scrappy bits as needed.

Spoon all the berries into the bread lined basin, then top with more bits of soaked bread to cover
Pour any remaining juices over your pudding.

Pull the wrap over the pudding, covering well. Place a heavy weight on your pudding to compress it and make it set firmly.
Leave overnight in the refrigerator.

Un-weigh and uncover the top of your pudding, then carefully invert it onto your serving dish.

Decorate with a few extra berries and maybe some mint leaves for color, then drizzle with any extra juice collected in the plate or left in the bowl.

Cut into nice big wedges and serve with some thick lactose free cream for extra extravagance.

Yummm... Perfect with a nice chilled glass of bubbles, on a hot sticky summers night.

So Dear Readers, do you enjoy a traditional pudding, out would you give something lighter a try?

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Our Upside Down Christmas

2011-12-24T21:40:00.000+11:00

Christmas has been turned on its head this year at our house!

Normally we are quite a traditional family when it comes to division of labour during the holidays, (which usually means Mummy does it all!) but this time around, Dad and the kiddies are struggling through, and I get to sit back and watch.

We have continued the topsy turvey theme through even with our Christmas tree.
I've had my eye on this lovely for a while now, and this year the temptation proved too hard to resist and I gave in. Isn't it a beauty?

The genius of this style is that all the decorations hang freely without knocking into each other or scrunching up unattractively,they can be themselves in all their glittery beauty.

If you are a regular visitor to my blog, you may have noticed that I like things organized and just-so. That extends to my celebrations as well.

My two trees have very distinctive colour schemes, with the "Normal" one in deep reds and golds with a bit of a victorian vibe, while the "Topsy Turvey" one is in tones of gingerbread bronze and old gold and more of a botanical feel going on.

Don't worry though, littlej has a small tree of her own for all her favourites that she can decorate the way she wants without me butting in.

We normally take about a week to do the trees. Putting them up and lights is the first step, then we proceed to layer on the decorations over the next few days until we're happy with it .

I think the end result is well worth the hassle, don't you?

Well, Lovelies, I hope you and your loved ones have a very wonderful, very blessed, and very Merry Christmas. Love to you all, Rebecca, The InTolerant Chef x

Turkish delight chocolate bark

2011-12-17T12:57:00.001+11:00

Kitchen Zen - Can you imagine the sound of one arm cooking?

Well, half an arm anyway...

Welcome to a new blog, one for gluten free, lactose free and arm free cooking!

Thankyou Dear Readers for all your kind words and well wishes lovelies, and to answer some of the questions I've received, here's a quick update so far:

Round one of surgery was quite successful, with my biceps tendon newly relocated, bones shaved and squidgy bits removed .
I seem to be held together with fishing line stitches, staples, bruises and lots of morphine.
My arm is permanently strapped around my torso for the next few weeks(who needs a bra anyway),
Late night television is actually better than daytime television viewing,
Sleeping while fully upright is actually possible,
Typing is only possible with the fantastic 'Swype' app,
And Christmas dinner this year will probably be something out of a can- if someone else opens it for me.

So for a bit of seasonal cheer, and because chocolate makes everything better,

with the help of my lovely sister who's watching over me for a few days, we put together a yummy Turkish Delight chocolate Bark.

This recipe requires no actual cooking or measuring, just a bit of chopping and lots of spoon licking.

Dark chocolate, I normally use70% Lindt as its lactose free, but todays was just dark
Rose Turkish delight
Pistachio nuts
Dried cherries
Dried rose petals

Roughly chop the Turkish delight and nuts into smallish pieces

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or by pulsing in the microwave for 30 second intervals.

Spread the chocolate evenly and fairly thinly over the base of a lined oven tray

Quickly but artistically sprinkle over the nuts, petals, cherries and Turkish delight.

If this is a bit to tricky to manage while slinged and splinted, scatter them on carefully over the chocolate, then pop the tray in a slightly warm oven to keep the chocolate oozie and soft while the pretty bits settle in.

Let the chocolate bark set until nice and hard, then break into nice big shards for packaging up for gifts or consuming immediately, Yumm...

So my Dear Readers, are you on track for Christmas next weekend?

Secret Ingredient Cake

2011-12-11T22:31:00.001+11:00

I admit to hiding the odd vegetable in my cooking.

My BigJ is not a fan of the humble veggie, sticking to a few firm favourites and surreptitiously slipping me his veggies under the table when we eat out. I don't mind, I love veggies, but I do draw the line when he tries to snaffle all the meat when we eat Asian, leaving me just the half cooked onion wedges and capsicum at the bottom of the dish.

I feel a perverse style of pleasure therefore, in feeding him as many vegetables as I can without him knowing. My excuse is that it's for his own good, but really, it's just so I win.

Don't judge me.

Recently on holiday, my wonderful mother bought out a fantastic chocolate cake she had made, wisely allowing us to enjoy it's light, moist texture and washing it down with cups of tea, before informing us that it was made with Beans. Kidney Beans to be exact.

I was very happy.

Even BigJ had admitted how much he had enjoyed his morning tea, so he couldn't take it back. But he examined every bite carefully for the rest of our holiday :)

This recipe comes from a Cooking Club my mother belongs to in Queensland. Despite the hidden beans, this is certainly not a health food, containing more than it's own fair share of fat and sugar- of course this means plenty of flavour too.

1 tin of Kidney Beans- rinsed well and drained
5 Eggs
180g Brown Sugar
125g Butter
70g Cocoa Powder
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
2 Tablespoons Coffee Powder dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Bicarb Soda

Puree the beans with the coffee, vanilla, and 2 of the eggs

Cream the butter and sugar

Add in the eggs and beat well

Put into the mix the bean puree, cocoa, baking powder and soda
Mix until smooth and well combined

Put into a prepared cake tin- a loaf tin would be the best, as you will see mine turned out a bit flat- and bake in a moderate oven for about 40 minutes.

Cool in the pan to keep moist

This was my solution to the flat big cake- making cute smaller cakes that are more in proportion.

Looky looky what I found at the supermarket:

Yes it's gluten free and appears to dairy free as well! I know it's cheating, but sometimes we're in a hurry, aren't we? I decided to give it a go.

To be perfectly honest, the cake doesn't need frosting at all. It's just s moist and perfect the way it is- almost mud cake moist, but still light enough to eat a whole slice (or two) at once.

I snuck this cake in as a dessert for my last dinner party, never letting on the secret ingredient until after it was eaten. It was a complete success, with the secret ingredient a real talking point as well. Just what you want for mingling!

So Dear Reader, do you hide vegetables in your cooking, or do your family love them enough on their own merits?

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Some News

2011-12-06T14:46:00.000+11:00

You've all heard that saying before surely? "I can do that with one arm tied behind my back!" - meaning something super easy, a no-brainer, no effort required.

Well, let me tell you.... IT'S HARDER THAN IT LOOKS!!!
Especially as I have both out of action at once..

Do you remember my dedicated Readers, back in April I had a couple of days off with concussion? I had a nasty fall at work in the kitchen. I slipped backwards down a slope (to a drain) and fell directly on my right shoulder/upper back, followed by my head- hard enough to send my glasses flying meters away across the room. Now to be honest, it must have looked hilarious to everyone else in the kitchen, but to give them credit, nobody laughed!

Well, after all sorts of physio and ultrasounds/xrays/MRIs ,blah blah blah, off to surgery I go. I have some general repairs of tendon tears and other nasty issues that need sorting out. The surgeon will know more once she's in there and has a good rummage around.

The Good News- is that it's all fixable with a positive long term outcome.

The Bad News- is that my right shoulder/arm will be completely out of action for a while.

The Worst News- is I'm right handed.

The Even More Annoying News- is that my left hand/wrist is already pretty tired of being the new right arm (I've been waiting 8 months for surgery), and may need surgery of it's own next. It's currently strapped into a half-cast style brace, which looks terribly impressive teamed with my right arm sling and right hand brace, and drawing plenty of curious looks and questions. This means that both arms are pretty much out-of-action for the time being.
The surgeon did try to persuade me to have both operated on at the same time, but that was just too much to handle without a live in maid, chef, or bidet. At least this way I have a tiny bit of mobility (and dignity)

My problem is this: I need to come up with a good background story. I did try saying I did the damage juggling cats, but usually say it was a cooking experiment gone terribly wrong.

I don't mind a challenge actually. They can be quite fun and you learn a lot along the way, but I admit this isn't one I would have picked for myself, it doesn't sound much fun but I bet there'll be a steep learning curve!
We will all need patience :)

So Dear Readers, I ask for your indulgence over the next couple of months. My typing may be a little off, my photos worse than usual, and the cooking may be a bit 'interesting'. I will do my best, I always say - Don't let the Gluten get you down, now I'm adjusting my attitude and won't let this get me down either. (well, not all the time anyway!)

If you happen to have any good tips or tricks that I could use I would be really grateful for your input. You can just add a comment, or email me if you like. I'd also be interested in any new 'Cover Story' you can think up, after all, I deserve to get some fun out of this don't I?

Isn't that a cool photo up top by Erik Johansson? He does some great photo shop manipulations, check out his site.

Thanks Sweeties, I'll let you know how it goes.

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Turkey and Cranberry Meatballs with Cranberry Port Sauce

2011-12-01T12:17:00.000+11:00

Christmas Nibbles

I know, I know, I'm quite late with this post, aren't I Dear Readers?

Please accept my apologies, but you see, I was whipped away by my beautiful parents to a few days in the Hunter Valley. Poor me :)

We had such a lovely time hanging out, trying wines, and just relaxing, that the lack of good Internet connection wasn't really as big a deal as it would otherwise have been, so if I haven't been visiting your blogs lately, I haven't stopped loving you, I just couldn't get onto you.

I promise I'll make up for my tardy behaviour with a post on a great organic vineyard soon, OK?

Anyway....

I'm not too fond of raw onion. One of my shoulder-shudder meals is when I get offered rissoles/hamburgers with chunks of uncooked onion in them. The meat may be lovely and moist, light and delicious, but the raw acidity of the onion overpowers it all, and gives me indigestion for hours, Yuck!

This of course, could be overcome by cooking out the onion and garlic first, but most folks are in a hurry, and in a commercial kitchen time is of the essence as well.

This is the time of year of School Formals (Proms), Office Christmas Parties, Cocktail Parties and sometimes all in the one night. This is also when I break out my secret ingredient for adding flavour without risking horrible raw tasting bits, and shaving many precious minutes of prep time..... Powdered Herbs.

You don't need to tell me that fresh is best- I'm already there people, but just sometimes these can be a clever chefs best friend, and if they're good quality they taste really good too.

Being Christmas and all, I just had to make one of my favourite seasonal recipes using the classics of Turkey and Cranberries. A perfect match. Make these tiny and bite sized, add a cocktail stick, and you have perfect nibbles to have with drinks, or make them larger for a Christmas Burger beyond compare!

Turkey and Cranberry Meatballs

500g Turkey Mince
2/3 cup dried Cranberries
1/4 cup gluten free flour
1/3 cup chopped fresh Sage
1 egg
1 Tab. Cranberry Sauce
1 Tab. Onion Powder
1 Tab. Celery Salt
2 tsp. Garlic Powder

Cranberry Port Sauce

1/2 cup Cranberry Sauce
1/2 cup Red Wine
1/4 cup Port

Finely chop the sage, and roughly chop the cranberries

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and mix thoroughly with your hands for the best result

Form into little balls with wet hands to stop the mix sticking all over you

Place on a lined baking tray and pop into a preheated 180* oven for just 15 minutes, but check after 10 minutes in case yours are smaller than mine

Meanwhile, bring all the sauce ingredients to the boil, stir and simmer for a few minutes until it is glossy and just slightly reduced

Serve the Turkey Cranberry Meatballs with Cranberry Port Sauce and cocktail sticks to avoid messy fingers. Yumm...

So Dear Readers, do you like raw onion, or do you prefer yours cooked?

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Gingerbread Waffles

2011-11-22T23:00:00.000+11:00

Today I felt like eating a penguin.

A warmly spiced yummy penguin to be precise.

Promise not to laugh?

This is my waffle maker, Woddles.
He's so very cute, but not very grown-up really.

I would probably never have blogged with him, but I was cruising some of my bloggy buddies when I read about Gingerbread Waffles on Heidi's blog http://applesundermybed.blogspot.com/2011/11/sunday-breakfast-of-gingerbread-waffles.html and they just sounded too good to resist. As I don't live anywhere near this particular cafe, I had to come up with my own gingery version to satisfy my cravings for sweetness.

Gingerbread is the flavour of Christmas to me, I'm usually up to my elbows in orders for gluten-free gingerbread shapes and houses and making sticky dark gingerbread cakes for the cafes at this time of year, so these waffles sounded perfect for a cool rainy day with carols playing happily in the background.

I don't know if mine were as good as the others, but they tasted pretty fine to me, and they sure beat them out with the cuteness factor.

1 cup SR Gluten free flour
1 Egg- separated
1/3 cup lactose free Milk
1/4 cup Treacle
1 Tbsp Oil

1 good teaspoon ground Ginger
1 good teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1 pinch ground Cloves
1 pinch Salt

Mix together the flour and spices.

Add in the egg yolk, milk, treacle and oil, and mix well. You might need to add in an extra tablespoon of milk if your mixture is very stiff.

Beat the egg white until nice firm,

then fold carefully through the other batter.

Spoon into your preheated waffle maker of choice- I know not all of you are lucky enough to have your own Woddles, and cook until lovely and brown and crisp.

Serve still warm, with the little penguin bellies filled with awesome Lactose-free Ice Cream, and drizzled with ginger sauce.

This was my lunch today- don't judge me, we all need to eat- and it was delicious!

So Dear Readers, who do you get inspiration from? And would you eat a penguin if you were hungry enough?

Seasonal Cheer

2011-11-16T06:49:00.000+11:00

I really enjoy a grown-up Gin and Tonic.

It's just so elegant, the slight tartness and bitterness reflecting perhaps a jaded, though slightly more sophisticated and realistic view of the world, than the vodka cruisers of our adolescence.

On our anniversary, BigJ and I enjoyed a fantastic degustation menu at one of our favourite swanky restaurants. Now the oysters were great, the pork belly melted in our mouths, but the thing that I actually loved the most was a tiny scoop of sorbet served as a palate cleanser between courses. Maybe because it was such a yummy combination of flavours- Cranberry, Lime and Gin. The tartness and bitterness contrasting beautifully with the sweet iciness to freshen up our mouths, I promised myself I would recreate this icy alchemy at home.

There are a few secrets to a good sorbet.

You want a nice soft scoopable mix. The bigger chunky style ice crystal mix ix a granita, and doesn't have the same silkiness in your mouth that melts away quickly on your tongue

One tip is AIR. The more air you can incorporate into your mix the better. The mix will be light and fluffy and dissolve faster. You can achieve this by either churning your mix in an ice cream machine that constantly beats the mix as it freezes, or by pulling the mix out of the freezer a couple of time during the freezing process to whizz around in a blender or food processor, even just a good whisk will do.

The second tip is SOFTENING the ice crystals by including some glucose or alcohol, or both. These help stop the mix freezing too hard as both don't freeze easily themselves.

And lastly, SWEETENING. Freezing depresses the sweetness of things. There are probably very interesting scientific reasons behind this, but you just need to know to up the sweetness by about a third. Don't be off put when you taste the mix before freezing it, it really does need that extra sugar to be palatable.

Cranberry Lime and Gin Sorbet

1 3/4 cup Cranberry juice
(thanks to Christie's comp. over at FigandCherry)
1/8 cup Gin
1/8 cup Lime juice

Sugar Syrup
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup liquid glucose

1. Make the sugar syrup by combining the 3 ingredients in a saucepan over high heat and bringing to the boil. Boil for about 30 seconds, or until the mix no longer looks cloudy in the pan. Cool thoroughly.

2. Combine the Cranberry juice, gin and lime juice. (I know it's bottled, but I can't squeeze fresh ones with my hands in splints) Mix the two together.

3. Pour the cold mix into an ice cream churner and follow manufacturers instructions, OR put the bowl in the freezer, and popping the semi-frozen slush into a blender or food processor a couple of times as it freezes.

4. Use a warm spoon to scoop lovely little balls of sorbet and serve in between courses at your Christmas get-together, or as a substitute for a Gin and Tonic before dinner.

That's about the extent of my sorbet wisdom, except to tell you that this recipe is really quite yummy indeed, so I hope you give it a try!

Just don't forget that the alcohol is still all there, it hasn't been cooked out, so watch it and don't offer any to the designated driver at your soiree.

So Dear Readers, what's your favorite Grown-Up drink of choice?

.

Lamafel

2011-11-10T22:10:00.000+11:00

Almost Vegetarian.

There is no way my husband is satisfied sitting down to a dinner without meat. My Dad is the same- he is even suspicious of minced meat, he likes something he can sink his teeth into.

I'm definitely a meat eater too. I blame my blood type for this, apparently I'm one of the hunters more than one of the gathers, according to a book I read. But I do need to watch my iron intake and levels thanks to an inherited gene, and discovered after participating in a high-protein diet that I quite enjoyed actually, until having to have blood taken to bring my iron levels back down to normal.

So I compromise with a bit of clever cheffing, hidden vegetables in most dishes, and meals where I cut down on the meat content sneakily- thus Lamafels were born.

A typical Falafel is made from ground chickpeas and/or broad beans mixed with delicious spices, shaped into balls then fried to a crunchy golden deliciousness. My Lamafels, are a bit different, but just as delicious- trust me.

This is also a great meal for when you're in a hurry, or can't be bothered going to too much effort to get dinner on the table. Most of it can be cheated with by buying the main components pre-made. Of course I would never do that, and spent hours chopping and preparing despite my temporary handicap of having both arms out of action! :)

This cooks in maybe 2 minutes, 3 tops, and each person can add their own salad and spreads before rolling their Lamafel into a Takeaway style wrap and coming back for more. You can also shape them into patties, but they're just not as cute!

1 200g packet gluten free Falafel Mix
500g minced Lamb
100ml Water
Gluten free Wraps
Hummus
Tzatziki- Lactose free
Lettuce- shredded
Tomatoes- thinly sliced
Cucumber- thinly sliced

1. Make the falafel mix according to the packet instructions.

2. Add in the minced lamb and water, and squish well together with your hands to really mix evenly with no clumps.

3. On one side of a gf wrap, spread a thin layer of meat mixture, stopping about 2cms from edge to allow for folding and wrapping.

4. Heat and oil a flat based frypan. (It helps if you make sure the wrap fits in the frypan before you start) Swirl the oil up the sides of the pan, this mixture really sticks otherwise.
Place the wrap meat-side down in pan and cook for just a minute or so, it really shouldn't take too long at all and you don't want it to turn to sawdust.

Flip the wrap over and heat the other side through as well.

5. Now it's time to work quickly while the wrap is warm and pliable, before it cools down and turns crispy.

Spread with some hummus or tzatziki - or both,I won't judge, and pop on some tomatoes, cucumber and lettuce.

6. Roll the wrap firmly, tucking in the ends so no filling dribbles down your favourite shirt.

Bite into your delicious Lamafel pretending it's full of meat, or just chickpeas, depending on your preference, and enjoy a meal that is prepared in minutes, cooks in minutes, and devoured just as quickly. Yumm...

So Dear Readers, do your meals rely mainly on meat, or are you a veggie lover too?

.

Petite Panettone

2011-11-04T23:34:00.000+11:00

Well it might only be November, but Christmas comes early to my house!

Christmas carols are on a 5 hour repeat on the stereo, decorations are coming out of storage, and baking is starting now to stock the pantry and get a head start before the hot weather hits.
I've also progressed to a half-cast on my left arm, allowing no thumb movement, and might-just might, get in for surgery on my right arm before Christmas, so I thought I'd better get going while I can.

Panettone is a sweet fat cylinder of yumminess, made with a bread style dough with raisins and orange peel for flavouring. Originally from Italy, they're a traditional Christmas bread and seem to pop up in Deli's everywhere this time of year. The ones I've dealt with in the past, seem very dry and are usually imported, so I guess they come with lots of Frequent Flyer points and are a bit jet-lagged by the time they get to me.

I'm veering from tradition a bit today by using some gorgeous glace oranges I bought on special, along with honey, saffron, and a splash of Cointreau just because I feel like it and the flavours go so well together.

This recipe can be frozen for 2 months, so making it now is just right for Christmas- if I can stop nibbling it that is :)

You will need to allow a couple of hours for this recipe, there's a couple of periods required for the yeast to work. Fill in this time usefully with wrapping presents, humming carols, or decking the halls.

2 eggs+ 1 yolk
1 tsp Cointreau/vanilla
500g gluten free flour
14g dried yeast (2 foil packets)
100g castor sugar
1 tab honey
250-350 ml warmed lactose free milk
200g softened butter
100g glace oranges/ mixed peel
120g raisins
Pinch of saffron

Soak the saffron in about a teaspoon of warm water for a few minutes to release it's colour and flavour.

Mix the flour, sugar and yeast into a large bowl.

Whisk together the eggs, milk, Cointreau, honey and saffron, then stir into the flour mixture. A nice moist soft dough is what you want here so add the milk carefully as gfree flours can really be tricky with the way they absorb liquid.

Cover the bowl loosely, and place in a warm spot for an hour for the yeast to prove. the mixture should pretty much double in size.

Once ready, punch the dough down and add in the butter and fruit.

Knead them in lightly, trying not to use much extra flour. I used my mixer and dough hooks to get a lovely, silky smooth dough, very easy!

Split the dough between 10 large muffin tins. I used cylinders to maintain the traditional shape, but you can use Texas muffin tins instead. I left some plain - but well greased, and lined the others with muffin papers just so I could see which I preferred when it comes to gift making.

Pop them back in a warm place for another 1/2 hour to rise again.

Bake at about 190*c for 20-25mins until a lovely golden colour.

While they're still hot from the oven, brush the tops with a bit of extra Cointreau and sprinkle on some castor sugar.

Now I do have to say... these were the best Panettone I've ever had! Rich and buttery, citrusy and sweet with just a lovely hint of honey in the background, fantastic! I guess eating one fresh from the oven is a far cry from the cardboard boxed imported models you get at the supermarket, with a whole less food miles too. If you like panettone, you just have to give these a try.

If you can refrain from eating these little lovelies straight away, wrap them well individually in cling wrap and freeze them until Christmas. Yummm...

So Dear Readers,
has Christmas started at your home yet?

Shortbread

2011-10-31T21:39:00.000+11:00

As promised last week, here's a rich buttery shortbread recipe- just right for dipping soldiers, or for scoffing in the afternoon with a cup of Earl Grey.

Shortbread is a lovely easy biscuit to make, with only 3 ingredients : Butter, Sugar and Flour. How simple is that? Just about everyone has these ingredients in their pantry, right?

This time of year, there's tins of shortbread all through the shops for Christmas- but trust me, it's so much nicer to make your own.

Crisp and crumbly, rich and buttery... mmmmmm.....

1/3 cup Castor Sugar
250g Butter at room temperature
2 1/2 cup Gluten free Flour

Either:
Pop everything into a food processor and pulse quickly until a ball forms
Or
Using your finger tips, mix the butter, sugar and flour together until it looks like little breadcrumbs.

Pull it together into a ball, and gently knead it together until it comes together smoothly and cleanly.

Roll the dough out gently if you want to cut out shapes

OR
Pat into a flat disc and dock with a fork.

Mark out wedges with a knife, then pinch the edges together to make a pretty pattern.

Sprinkle with castor sugar for a bit of pretty glittery sweetness.

Place in a pre heated 160*c oven for about 15-20 mins for shapes, or about 40 mins for the round. The dough will be a lovely golden sandy colour, but still very soft.

Leave on the tray for a few minutes, then if you want nice clean wedges, cut through the previously marked lines with a sharp knife. (A secret tip for clean cut shapes is to recut them straight from the oven if they've gone a bit wonky or swelled a little in baking- but don't tell anyone, OK?)

Leave on the tray to cool completely.

Serve when you want something nice and rich, perhaps a bit Christmassy, but watch out for crumbs!

So my Dear Readers,

do you buy tins of shortbread at Christmas time, or will you make your own?

.

Egg and Soldiers

2011-10-24T19:01:00.000+11:00

My Dad is a Military Man.

He started off in cadets as a school boy, served his country at war, and retired young as a Colonel to take up Gentleman Farming.

Dad is also a traditional man. Dad did everything outside the home- gardening, growing amazing vegetables, mowing, handyman, even BBQ'ing but rarely anything inside like cooking.

Whenever my Mum was ill, and us kiddies were left to Dads tender mercies, he would invariably fall back on his military roots. You remember MASH, don't you, well remember the chow line? That was our house.
Dad would fire up the electric fry pan, throw in some dripping, rummage through any leftovers in the fridge, chop up lots of cabbage and garlic and fry it all up together.
There would be a stack of plates by his side, the cutlery drawer pulled out, and us kids would line up and file past as Dad ladled a big splat of dinner on our plates.

Dad did have a few more culinary secrets up his sleeve though,- Cockies Joy, Vegemite mixed through mashed potatoes, Chapattis on the BBQ... and Egg with Soldiers.
A perfectly boiled egg with runny yolk and little strips of crisp toast to pull dipping from it's depths and gobbled up in our PJ's before bed. Mmmmmm....
This is a much better food memory of my Dad, than the infamous 'Squish my pills up on a gherkin to get me to eat them' Incident, which got messy- very messy.

This is a twist on the traditional Egg and Soldiers- not for Breakfast, not for Supper, but for Dessert. Yes, Dessert.
A rich and creamy Creme Brulee with shortbread Soldiers, served in the eggshell for fun.

To make the little emptied eggs, crack them very carefully, or use an Egg Topper Tool to make a clean crack around the rim of the egg. Empty the egg and separate as usual. Rinse the shell carefully but don't worry too much as it's going to be baked in the oven.

3 Egg Yolks
50 gr Sugar
250 ml Lactose Free Cream
Vanilla

Place the cram and vanilla in a saucepan on medium heat and bring to the boil, turn the heat down low and simmer for a few minutes to let the vanilla infuse.

Meanwhile beat the eggs and sugar until the sugar is dissolved and they are light and fluffy.

Slowly while beating all the time, pour the hot cream onto the egg mixture. Don't pour too quickly, or stop beating or you'll end up with sweetened scrambled eggs- yuck!

Pour the mix back into the saucepan and heat very gently until the mixture just coats the back of a spoon.

Pour the mix carefully into 6 1/2 cup ramekins, or some cute little emptied eggs.

Place the vessels into a baking tray with a folded kitchen cloth on the base. Make sure the sides of the tray reach to at least 2/3 of their height. The cloth is just to insulate the bottom of the ramekins so they bake evenly, otherwise the metal base heats quicker than the sides once filled with water. For the eggies, I just left them on in their cardboard carton sides as it just happens to be the perfect size for them- go figure!

Fill the baking tray with hot water from the kettle to come halfway up the sides of the smaller containers. The easiest way to do this is to place the tray in the oven FIRST, then moving quickly, pour in the water then shut the door. You can certainly pour the water in elsewhere, but then you run the risk of splashing it into the brulee mix and it not setting well, so why run the risk? The water is to give the little lovelies a nice, gentle bath, without a blast of heat, so they bake slowly and set nicely. Make sure you use hot water, otherwise you'll be waiting hours for the water to heat enough in the oven to start cooking the creme brulees. Trust me, I learnt the hard way.

Bake for about 30 mins at 160*c or until just set but with a soft wobble in the middle. The little eggies take from 15 minutes, but you'll need to keep a close eye on them so they don't overcook, or you'll have the equivalent of hard boiled instead of soft boiled yolks.

When they're done, pull the tray out and let them cool enough to pop into the fridge to cool and set.

Sprinkle the tops with a thin even layer of castor sugar. I prefer to build up my layer of toffee gradually rather than try and melt a thick layer that would be easy to burn before it melted. Use a culinary blow torch to caramelise the sugar so it melts to a crisp layer of toffee.

Pop them back in the fridge for a bit to set again. I never like to rush and serve them straight away, as once I got a creme brulee that had a warm liquidy layer under the toffee that wasn't very nice at all. Just give them a little bit to settle back down.

Serve in an egg cup with little shortbread soldiers on the side for dipping. If you don't have a cute little cutter, just make them into fingers like toast ( Shortbread Recipe coming next post ) Cracking through the crisp toffee is just like cracking the top off the egg with a spoon, but much more satisfying!
Otherwise serve in the ramekin with a spoon, still yummy, but not as cute.

So Dear Readers, so you like cute food and what's your favourite childhood food memory?

Florentines

2011-10-17T22:58:00.000+11:00

I was in the mood for crunch.

Not the savoury crunch of potato chips, or the virtuous crunch of healthy nuts, but something sweet and delicious that I could whip up in a hurry.

I've been thinking of making Florentines for a while now. Do you know those little biscuits- dried fruit and nuts, wavy chocolate patterned bottom, and usually popular around Christmas time? Yep, that's the one.

I've seen all types of these little babies, from fancy-pantsy artisan ones made with flaked nuts and expensive glace fruits baked into flat lacy discs, to big fat ones kinda like rock-cakes full of cornflakes and sultanas. I wanted a nice, family friendly, cheapish type version that was (of course) gluten and lactose free, so I fiddled around with a few and came up with my own version that I'm quite happy with, and they taste good too!

100grm Butter
1/2 cup Castor Sugar
1/2 cup Gluten free Flour
2/3 cup Flaked Almonds
2/3 cup Gluten free Cornflakes
2/3 cup Sultanas
2/3 cup Glace Cherries

Heat the butter and sugar together in a saucepan until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved.

Add in the flour and stir it through thoroughly.

Add in the nuts, fruits and cornflakes,

and mix it all together until they're all coated.

Traditionally the mix would be placed on greased trays with room for spreading, but to make them tidy you have to tidy them up after baking so they are a nice uniform shape. I decided to make it easy for myself by placing spoonfuls in well greased patty cases instead to see what would happen.

Bake for 12- 15 minutes at 180* until a nice light golden colour, they will still be really soft, then let them cool in the pans.

Now, the issue I had with this is that even though I greased the pans, the little suckers stuck fast. The butter and sugar mix caramelises beautifully when baked, giving the Florentines their lovely crunch. I had to stick the pans back in the warm oven for about a minute so they would soften down enough to be able to loosen them with a spoon. Bugger.

I tossed a bit of leftover mix into a silicon patty pan to see if that was a bit better, and they were great! I let them cool totally in the pans and when they were done they just popped right out no problem. That's the secret!

For presentation if you're just making a few, cooking them flat on the tray would definitely look the best, but for bulk lots (or OCD tidy types) this method in the silicon works like a dream- I'll leave the decision up to you, but I like tidy every time!

Traditionally these little biscuits have their bases dipped in chocolate and a wavy patten marked on. I did a few just to show you how pretty they look, but really they're plenty sweet without it.

Easy to make, easy to up-market by just swapping out fancier glace fruits and other nuts for the cornflakes, and way too easy to eat! I think Florentines are a great biscuit for something a bit different from the everyday. The only downside is they're probably a bit better suited to coffee than tea.

So Dear Readers, are you a coffee or tea type of person?

Sweet Apple Quinoa Compote

2011-10-11T23:43:00.000+11:00

I love cookbooks.

Google is fine for some things, but there's just nothing like holding something concrete in your hands and flicking through the pages.
I have books from all cuisines and disciplines, from Commercial Catering to Kiddies parties, and of course I'm always interested in Gluten Free cooking.

I found this little book at the Newsagent down the road for less than $10, and flicked through it to see if anything caught my eye. I hate it when a gluten-free book cops out and is just about plain meat and veg recipes without straying from the beaten path and exploring some 'real' gluten free cooking with baking and desserts as well.
This book ticks all the boxes. Great breakfasts, lunches and snacks with a comprehensive introduction on Coeliac disease and Gluten InTolerance as well.

I was really taken with the recipe for Quinoa Compote, no gluten, no dairy, not even any sugar! Simply letting dried fruits stew down with the grain to create a Cosy Compote of Culinary Complexity.

Quinoa is available everywhere nowadays. I got mine from handy-dandy Woolies for quite a reasonable price, same with the juice and fruits. Of course you could use organic, or unpasteurised, but I usually like to keep the main recipe simple with ingredients that are easy to buy at any supermarket.
My little cheffy twist is with accessorising the meal. I used a Dutch apple syrup made from concentrated apple juice and sugarbeet that I got at the Deli to drizzle on top for a bit of extra yum, and some lactose free fresh cream for smoothing it all out nicely, and a few shaved almonds for crunch. You could use a bit of honey, or syrup, or even brown sugar, and some plain lactose free yogurt would add a nice tartness.

Sweet Quinoa Fruit Compote

500 grm dried fruit, roughly chopped
I used a mix of dates, raisins, pears and peaches
1/2 cup Quinoa
3 cups unsweetened Apple Juice
1 1/2 cups water
1 cinnamon stick
teaspoon Orange Blossom Water, or zest of an orange

First of all, wash the quinoa. When I first tried this new food the taste really put me off.

Quinoa is naturally coated with a substance called Saponin that is unpleasantly bitter and kind of musty tasting, but it can easily be washed off in warm water for a minute or so making the experience so much better. It took me long time to get over that first taste, and it wasn't until I heard about this tip that I was prepared to get the packet from the back of the cupboard and try my luck again.

Place the apple juice, cinnamon stick and orange zest or blossom water in a saucepan and bring it to the boil.

Add the rinsed quinoa, dried fruit and water, and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the quinoa is soft and translucent.
I usually don't cook it this long, as I like the slight nuttiness and texture, but I figured I'd try it out and it worked great.

Serve hot or warm.
I preferred mine warm, but I think it would even be nice cold.

What a great breakfast, full of fibre, protein, vegan and even delicious to boot. I would happily serve this up in my Cafe on the regular menu, but why not try it yourself at home next weekend with a great coffee or tea and a leisurely read of the paper.

So Dear Readers, is Breakfast your favourite meal of the day?

Mulberries and Mulling it Over

2011-10-06T15:19:00.000+11:00

Ooops, slight issue with photos today Lovelies- sorry about that! Just use your imagination to fill in the blanks :)

My Dad has a big mulberry tree in his goat pen. It's kept nicely trimmed from the ground up by the goats, but when the fruit are ripe, it's a race to beat the parrots to them each day.

I was just talking to my sister about mulberries this morning. I was lamenting the fact that I couldn't find any here at home, when I stumbled across some punnets at our local markets. Talk about cooking karma!

I snaffled some straight away... then wondered what on earth to do with them.

I didn't want to go broke buying enough to make jam or a pie, so looked around for inspiration.

As I let my eye roam over the fresh spring goodies, I noticed there were shades of purple everywhere! Huge purple cabbages with crinkly leaves, eggplants of all different shapes and sizes, artichokes with dusky edges, tall spears of asparagus with tips of green and mauve, and even pure purple potatoes!

It was a sign.

No sweet berry recipe this time, instead a Mauve Mulberry Medley of savoriness in a Marvellous sauce.

Mulberries aren't as sweet as blackberries, or quite as earthy in their flavour. They have a slight mild acidity that's nice for a change, but feel free to use blackberries if you can't get hold of any mulberries.

I want to play with this today. It's got a few techniques, and is quite cheffy, so please indulge me as I get it out my system for a while. I'll explain out the sauce , but I'm just going to give the basic outline for the rest of the plate. You should be able to make a puree and cook a steak, and if you don't- well just come along for the ride instead!

For veggies I chose those pretty little asparagus spears, and some gorgeous little baby artichokes.

I needed to ground the dish a little on the plate, usually I'd go a starch, but thought the creaminess of a cauliflower puree would work just as well.

The crowning glory of cheffiness for this dish is going to be purple potato crisps. Sticking up on top as more of a garnish than anything else, just 'cause they're pretty and purple too.

I needed to pick a protein first, I could have gone with venison or kangaroo, but opted instead for a nice piece of fillet steak. I picked a nice big piece, but for smaller portions I cut the meat in two and tied it with string to keep a nice round shape.

Steak should never be cooked straight from the fridge. It needs to come up to about room temperature first, it will cook more evenly as the heat penetrates the steak better when it doesn't have a freezing cold core. Even if you like your steak rare you don't want it seared on the outside, but cold in the middle. The fibres are nice and relaxed as well, not all tight, and I find the juices settle better during the resting time before serving.

Rub your room temperature steak with some high-smoke-point oil and season well with salt. Don't use olive oil for frying as it smokes really quickly, and I want a good sear.
Have a fry pan heating, you want it nice and hot. Cast iron is great for this, whether a griddle pan or not, or a metal pan that can go in the oven is good if you like your steak more well done. The reason for this is so you can pop the steak in the oven to keep cooking through gently once you've got a nice crust going over the flame. Cook steak until done to your liking. Don't forget to take off the string- I left it on BigJ's steak, and he had to pull it out of his mouth- a real restaurant NoNo!

Make a cauliflower puree by steaming it so it goes nice and soft, but not soggy. Puree really well with cream, and season with salt and white pepper to avoid little black flecks spoiling the look.It should be lovely and silky smooth.

The lovely fresh asparagus won't take much cooking at all. We want a nice crunch not flaccid limp veggies.

The little artichokes I used are immature ones that came as a bonus when I bought the full sized beauties on lovely long stems.

They don't need to be mucked around with much, just give them a basic clean up by pulling off the outer leaves, cutting off the top third, them steam them with the asparagus until softened.

Peel the purple potatoes and slice very, very thinly. A mandolin is great for this and nice and quick too. Fry them in about an inch of oil until nice an d crispy just like a 'real' potato crisp. Pull them out, season with salt, and drain on a rack.

Now the Mulberry sauce.

Start with 1 1/2 cups of good quality beef stock and reduce it down by about a quarter by boiling.

Add in a chopped shallot, 1/2 cup of port, a splash of balsamic vinegar -I just happen to have some Mulberry balsamic sitting in my pantry!, a good handful of mulberries, and reduce down by another third or so, squishing the berries now and then to release the juices.

Once the sauce is nice a syrupy, strain trough a fine sieve, mashing down to extract all the mulberry flavour. Put it back in a clean saucepan and taste for seasoning.

It should be tart but slightly sweet, with some acidity to it as well. If the flavour needs a bit of a lift, you could stir through a teaspoon of cranberry or redcurrant jelly to add a bit more sweetness.

Put it back on the heat and pop in a good spoonful of butter.

Stir or whisk through thoroughly to make the sauce rich and thicken it slightly. Add in a few more mulberries whole, we don't want to really cook them, but just heat through gently and keep their shape. Keep warm on a low heat.

OK. After all that, we're ready to plate up at last!

Put a puddle of puree in the centre of your plate/ bowl. We want it to be a bit wider than the size of the steak.

Place the steak on top gently, nestling it into the cauliflower.

Ring the steak with the asparagus spears or balance the asparagus leaning across the steak at an angle- very artistic.

Place the artichokes to the side

Drizzle the sauce over the steak, or around it, just be sure not to swamp the plate. The creamy cauliflower will be spoiled if it's covered.

Get your purple potato chips and stand them on top of the steak as a garnish. Use the sauce to help stick them on.

Get the whole mulberries from the sauce and place them with or between the chips for the final flourish of fanciness.

Whew! Thanks for sticking with me so far.

In a commercial kitchen, all this would be prepped far in advance. The steak would be ready trimmed and tied, the veggies would be prepped and pre-blanched, the chips would be ready to pop in the oil last minute, and the sauce would be ready to just finish off with the butter and whole berries while the steak finished cooking.
Doing it all from scratch is a lot of work, and I'll be suitably impressed if you're brave enough to go through with it all at once. It only took me about 1/2 an hour from start to finish, not bad for a meal for three- but then, I'm used to the fiddly bits!

All that's left now is to sit down and enjoy the fruits of your labour. I hope you enjoy it, and decide it was all worth while after all.

So Dear Readers, do you like mulberries,

and would you use them for savoury or sweet?

Sweet Pea Soup For Spring

2011-09-30T22:15:00.000+10:00

Spring, what Spring?

That's the feeling here in cold, cloudy Canberra at the moment.

Our long awaited long-weekend promises wind, rain and sundry other nasties instead of soft Spring sunshine and open windows. Sigh...

To combat the blues that the weather is bringing, I decided to cook some greens to lift my spirits and remind me that Spring is really here.

Fresh little peas and crisp, sweet lettuce are some of the delights of the season. It's a bit early still in my garden, but the local markets are bursting at the seams with fresh veggies just waiting to be consumed by healthy appetites.

In a brave move away from stick-to-your-ribs hearty winter meals, I decided to go with a soup I first made for one of my apprenticeship exams, Fresh Pea and Lettuce Soup. Lovely and light, soft and silky, fresh and fabulous! The perfect light lunch or first course for a Spring feast.

Now, don't screw up your nose at cooked lettuce. Just because you haven't tried it before doesn't mean it isn't any good. Trust me. There are references to lettuce soup in ancient Roman cookbooks, and even Escoffier included several recipes in his repertoire. So with a pedigree like that, you might want to be brave and give it a go yourself.

Fresh Pea and Lettuce Soup

500g fresh garden peas
(or you can use frozen, just don't tell anyone)
Half a head of lettuce
1 white onion
500ml chicken stock
100-250ml lactose free cream
Few stems of mint
salt
1/2 - 1 tsp white castor sugar

Chop the white onion quite small, and sweat it down in a splash of oil or butter. You don't want to brown it at all, just cook it down slowly to soften it and bring out the natural sweetness. When it's about halfway done I like to pop in a couple of stems of mint and let them wilt down too as they release their flavour. Pull out the stems before the next step.

Pour in the stock, bring to the simmer, then add in the peas. The tender peas shouldn't really need cooking, just heating all the way through. Try not to let them boil away as we want to keep a vibrant flavour and colour.

Once well heated, take it off the heat and add in the shredded lettuce and stir it through. The heat in the stock and peas will quickly wilt the lettuce down. Pop in a dozen or so mint leaves, and the cream - starting with a small amount.

Blend the soup thoroughly. You want a soft silky texture, not gritty from unmashed pea skins. Add in more cream as needed to get a nice light soup.

Taste for seasoning. You'll certainly need the salt to carry the flavours, you might need a pinch or so of sugar to boost the natural sweetness, and if necessary, you could add a tiny splash of WHITE balsamic for a bit of sweet acidity. If this is served cold, you'll need to taste it again after chilling as flavours tend to dampen in the fridge.

I also made some prosciutto shards by baking some slices in the oven until crisp and earthshatteringly crunchy, and some parmesan crisps by piling finely grated shreds onto a baking sheet and baking until just starting to melt together. Just for some gratuitous foodie bling.

I love this soup cold, but it's lovely warm too. Not hot, just nicely warm- the way the sun should be at this time of year. Gentle and mild, like the flavours of the lettuce and peas smoothed out with cream.

A big, thick Winter soup is usually served in a big, thick bowl- but this is a light, fresh Spring soup so I served it in a glass to reflect that - and to thumb my nose at the sleet outside!

So, my Dearest Readers,

have you ever eaten cooked lettuce, and how are you spending your long weekend?

Macaroons Not Macarons!

2011-09-25T19:48:00.000+10:00

You say Po-tay-to, I say Po-tar-to...

or in this case,
Macaroons, Macarons

One is a biscuit made of egg whites and almond meal, shaped into discs that have a hard shell and sandwiched together with a soft flavoured centre. This is a Macaron:

And one is typically made of sweetened coconut mixed with egg white, with a moist chewy middle.
This is the one I grew up calling a Macaroon, and I have to say that pastry chef extraordinaire Adriano Zumbo, agrees with me. Perhaps it's an Aussie thing?

Both are delicious, but while the Macaron is notoriously hard to master, the Macaroon is virtually idiot-proof. Perhaps this is the reason why we Aussies love it so much? :)

There is no sifting, no weighing, nothing harder than separating a couple of eggs- and if you accidentally do get a speck of yolk in, they won't even care! Just lots of easy, yummy promises that the Macaroon is happy to deliver.

Macaroons are often unflavoured, allowing the sweet coconut to be the star, but I have a bit of a soft spot for Cherry Ripe chocolate bars and this is a great less fattening way of getting a fix without blowing it.

Feel free to mix up the flavourings around a bit, I've used just dried apricots before with no chocolate and they were lovely as well.

Cherry Ripe Macaroons

Basic Recipe:
2 1/2 cups of Desiccated Coconut
2 Egg whites
1/2 cup of Castor Sugar

Extra Flavourings:
I chose glace cherries, and some dark chocolate for dipping the bottoms ( 70* is generally lactose free)

Whisk the egg whites up just a little to break them up

Toss in everything else

Use your hand to mix, mix, mix.
You might think it will never be enough liquid to bind the whole lot, but it really is- just be patient! Mix it around and soon you'll be able to squish a handful of the mix together and it will keep it's shape and squish marks.

Roll or mound the mix firmly into about 12 little biscuits.

I tend to shape my lovelies very firmly, as I need conformity for cafe sales, and it's easier to use a mould than to mess about weighing each one. If you like you could add an extra egg white and just sort of scoop a pile on the baking sheet a bit more organically, I won't judge you for this, but it's hard to break an OCD style habit!

Bake at 180* for 10-12 minutes.
They will get a light browning on the edges, but still be slightly soft.

Let them cool for about 5 minutes on the tray before moving them onto a cooling rack

Melt the chocolate, and dip the bottom of each macaroon into it, wiping off the excess. Turn them upside down to set, then dig in and enjoy!

Little mounds of more-ish-ness, still moist and tender in the middle but nice and firm on the outside with just a hint of oven tan. Yummm...

I'm always surprised how easy and yummy these little biscuits turn out.

Really, just 3 basic ingredients, minimum kitchen skills and you can pump out enough for a bake sale or school fete in about half an hour.
Just promise me one thing... don't tell anyone how simple these beauties are, OK? Somethings need to be kept between friends.

So, my Dearest Readers,

would you say Macaroon or Macaron?

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

2011-09-20T14:40:00.002+10:00

Do you happen to know Newtons Second Law?

I was recently asked to explain this law by littlej, who is a very bright bunny indeed. Never one to admit defeat (or failings) I replied "Never Eat More Than You Can Lift" For this attempt I received a raised eyebrow, and one of THOSE looks that only a young girl can direct at her mother. Thinking this was the end of it, I thought no more about the conversation until confronted with an indignant child, with a detailed project sheet all about Newton and Rocketry. Apparently littlej had checked my answer with her science teacher- and she hadn't been impressed either.

Ungraciously declining my offer of help, little went on to receive an A for her assignment. She is doing amazingly well at school actually, and she and her school team have just won the state final of a very prestigious academic competition. This means she'll be travelling interstate to compete against teams from all of Australia and the Pacific region- and that we're fundraising like mad to support them.

Anyway, to celebrate her achievement, littlej requested one of her favorite meals 'That Lemony Chicken Thing' You can see why we are so proud, she articulates beautifully :) So to prove that I do know quite a bit about food science at least, last night I cooked up littlej's Winner Winner Chicken Dinner with Lemons,Olive and Rosemary for tea.

I'm not giving exact measurements for this recipe, it sort of grows organically depending on your families taste preferences. Mine loooves the sweet puckeriness of lemon, and the slight salty bitterness of the olives, so I add quite a lot. Your fanmily might like a bit less, that's OK too.

1 chicken, or a selection of chicken portions would be fine

A couple of fresh Lemons for slicing, and one for squeezing

A bunch of Rosemary

Some nice waxy Potatoes

Mixed Olives- I prefer the milder green ones for this, but littlejs likes black

Fresh Garlic Cloves

Oil

A glug of nice White Wine

Don't add salt, as the olives leach salt as they cook

My first job was to chop the chicken up into serving portions. This was a pretty small chicken so I just went for quartering it. O f course I could have left it whole, but I wanted it to cook fairly quickly tonight.

The easiest way to do this is to use kitchen shears or strong scissors.
Place the chicken breast side down on a cutting board with the chickens tail facing you.

Find the backbone, and cut alongside of it, across the ribs, all the way to the end.

Do this again on the other side, and you can open out your flat chicken and use the bone for making stock or feed it to your dog.

Cut through the side of the chicken diagonally between the top end of the drumstick and the ribs, all the way across.

Do the same for the other half, and you have two nice portions of breast with wing, and two nice sections of thigh with the drummie.

Slice the potatoes length ways into nice thick wedges.

Same with the lemons.

Peel the garlic cloves- as many as you want.

Put the olives, potatoes, lemons, garlic, chicken and rosemary into a baking dish.

Drizzle over some oil - I was lucky enough to have some rosemary infused oil,

squeeze in the lemon juice and pour in the glug of white wine, then scrunch everything up together to mix the flavours around. You can leave it like this to marinate for a while to let the flavours infuse.

Cover the pan with a lid or some foil, and bake for about 1/2 in a moderately hot oven. This will allow the liquid to start steaming the potatoes and give them a good headstart without drying out the chicken with dry heat.

Pull the lid or foil off, toss everything around to mix well with the pan juices, then bake until the chicken is golden brown and is cooked through.

Serve this up with some greens for colour and a bit of freshness, and drizzle with any remaining pan juices.

This is very yummy. The lemon bakes down and becomes very sweet and almost jammy,but still tart; the garlic mellows, sweetens and softens so it can be squished and spread on the chicken or potatoes; the waxy potatoes hold their shape beautifully but still soak up some of the sweet, salty juices, and the chicken skin browns up for a satisfying crunch of texture.

A great meal that's easy(especially if you you use pre cut portions)yummy, and is cooked in one pan for less washing up. That's certainly worth celebrating even without winning first prize in a competition. Don't you think so?

So my Dearest Readers,

what do you like to celebrate, and were you a good student at school?

.

A Bit Of Fluff

2011-09-15T15:50:00.001+10:00

This has got to be one of the cheapest treats you could possibly make, ever.

So easy, so cheap, no cooking, no fat but so very delicious! Just the thing when you're running short on cash but want to make a something just a bit special.

When I was younger, my big sister would make marshmallows, flavoured with peppermint and rolled in coconut. I wanted to capture this in a dessert that was just as light and fluffy, but a bit more exciting, so decided to go with a mousse with some fruit marbled through to look nice when cut and served.

200 g Castor Sugar (67.6 cents)

100 g gelatin (35.6 cents)

1 1/2 cups boiling water

Flavourings of choice

Icing Sugar for dusting

This rounds out to be a grand total of $1.03 for the lot. Of course you add flavourings, but you usually have some kind of essence or flavour in the pantry, don't you? Or is that just me? Anyway, a little bottle of concentrated flavour is still very inexpensive, so I stick to my guns of saying this is a fun, cheap dessert, that you can tart up as much as you like.

Line a slice tray with baking paper and dust liberally with sifted icing sugar.

Pour the boiling water over the gelatin, and whisk it to get rid of any lumps.
Add in the castor sugar and whisk again until it's all dissolved.

Let it cool down, then pour it into a stand mixer and whisk until it's light and fluffy, and at least 5 times fluffier. This took my mixer about 10 minutes or so.

Add in your preferred flavouring. I choose raspberry essence, supplemented with frozen raspberries for added yumm.

Pour the mass of fluffiness into the pan, and smooth the top.

Place in the fridge to set firmly.

Cut the marshmallow into nice slabs with a wet knife, being very careful not to mess it up with your fingers.

Sprinkle the top with icing sugar, and eat immediately. Enjoy these for a light dessert, or whenever they take your fancy!

This style of marshmallow mousse is not a keeper. It's best used in a day or so, and always kept in the fridge.

So light and fluffy that it just disappears... like a dream of Summer dissolving in your mouth...

So my Favorite Readers, do you have a favourite budget recipe or two?

Strawberry Shortcake

2011-09-10T15:52:00.000+10:00

Don't you love it when the new season produce hits the markets?

Well, I know I do anyway. We're so lucky in Australia to have such a diversity of climate that we have a huge variety of goodies available at any one time. But, while it's all very well to have access to strawberries in the middle of winter, they're very expensive and like tomatoes, lack the fragrance and beauty that a kiss of the sun wakes in their souls.

Strawberries are beautifully Queensland fresh at the moment with the new season berries pretty good at $8 kg and so very sweet that I really feel the need to show them off.

I thought about a pavlova, pastries, jam, but finally came around to Strawberry Shortcake.

I love shortbread, and first considered layering discs of this with the berries, but decided not to mess to much with a classic and went for the more traditional shortcake instead.

According to Wikipedia, 'Shortbread is different from shortcake, which can be similar to shortbread, but which can be made using vegetable fat instead of butter and always uses a chemical leavening agent such as baking powder, which gives it a different texture.'

Does that confuse you as much as it confused me?

Basically it means that shortcake is more of a scone-type consistency than a biscuity/cookie type crunch. Easy Peasy.

Shortcake should always be layered with billowy clouds of softly whipped cream, and of course lashings of strawberries gently oozing their pretty pink juices to soak into the shortcake for the perfect spring experience.

Strawberry Shortcake

1 cup GF plain flour
50g Castor sugar
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Bicarb Soda
55g Butter
1 Egg
1/4 cup Lactose free Milk
Squeeze of Lemon juice

Punnet of Strawberries
Castor Sugar
Lactose free Cream (or cream, mascapone, yogurt etc.)

First things first, we want to get the strawberries going:

Roughly chop the berries and mix with a good handful of sugar. I won't tell you how much to use, because you should do it to taste, but you need enough to lightly coat the berries to draw out the juices.

You can also add in some extra flavourings now if you like- some scraped vanilla seeds, or even a quick splash of balsamic or raspberry balsamic would work really well.
Set aside the berries for an hour or so. The sugar will sweeten and draw out the juices of the berries almost creating a perfect strawberry sauce, yummm...

For the Shortcake:

Mix the milk and lemon juice together to acidulate it. You could use buttermilk instead, but I've not found a lactose free one before, so this will do the trick.

Place the dry ingredients together in a bowl, and mix together.

Rub the butter in with your fingertips until it looks nice and crumby.
(I had to use the mixer as my arms are partly out of action)

Mix the egg and milk mix together, then add into the flour combo and bring it together into a soft ball of dough.

Pat it out nice and thickly and either use a cutter or split it into 4 even pieces.

Brush the tops with milk, or water and sprinkle liberally with extra castor sugar.

Pop on a lined tray and into a pre heated 200*c oven for 10-12 minutes.
Allow to cool down.

Bringing it all together:

Beat the cream (or alternative) with some extra castor sugar until it's softly peaking, you can add in some vanilla too if you like.

Lightly crush the strawberries- I used a potato masher. We don't want a paste, just a rough smashing so the berries will mix through the cream nicely and not slip out of the shortcake the way they would if they were just sliced.

Gently fold the cream and berries together- spoon the berries out carefully leaving the juice behind, or it will thin the cream to much. We're looking for a lovely marbled effect with chunks of berries still intact.

Cut the shortcakes in half with a serrated knife.

Spoon a generous helping of berry cream onto the bottom half of the cake, then place the top half of the cake back on top.

Put a little pile of berries in the middle to look pretty, and spoon over some of the yummy strawberry juices.

Serve straight away, as it's not something that improves with time- and anyway, they're so pretty you won't be able to resist anyway!

These would be great for a BBQ, after a lunch or for afternoon tea. If I wanted them for dessert for a Spring Dinner, I would probably make thin discs of shortbread instead because I think the rich buttery crunch would be more elegant and provide a better contrast of textures. Just a more refined version of the shortcake is all.

littlej wolfed down my most photogenic example within minutes, so I guess that's a certain seal of approval from my family, and she can hardly wait for our own strawberries to fruit. The only problem is picking them before the dog sniffs them out and steals them all for himself!

So my Dear Readers, so you have any sweet treats growing in your garden, and do you have to fight anyone else for them like us?

.

Pao De Queijo

2011-09-06T17:48:00.000+10:00

What's Pao De Queijo you ask?

Well, it's a recipe I've meaning to make for a while now, and was finally spurred into action by the latest 'Feast' magazine.
Feast magazine is one of the latest foodie/cooking magazines, released by SBS, and with the by-line 'Experiencing life through food'. They have only been going for 2 months, but I like them so far and am enjoying the international focus you would expect from multicultural SBS.

But I still haven't explained Pao De Queijo, have I?
Well it's a Brazilian cheese bread recipe that's naturally gluten free! And yummy as well, win-win. They're little baked buns that are usually eaten for breakfast or as snack food during the day. They're sold at street vendors, bakeries are even sold as pre-packaged mixes like cake mixes from supermarkets.

The bread is based on Tapioca flour. Now, you know I like to keep my recipe mostly accessible with mainstream supermarket ingredients, so don't worry, you can find Tapioca flour at most Woolies and Coles in the Asian food section for just a couple of dollars, or at any Asian grocery store.

The other main ingredient is cheese, but as we can't get original Brazilian, it can be successfully substituted with aged Parmesan, which is extremely low in lactose, so perfect for me too.

The recipe I used from Feast Magazine is under the heading- My Neighbours Kitchen, and is by Clara Luboss who was lucky enough to have had these made for her by her grandmother, and has had the recipe passed on to her through her mother, so you just know it must be good and has stood the test of time and hungry families! These are always the best ones, finely tuned to be whipped up in a hurry and served to your harshest critics indeed. She states that this is a twist on the traditional recipe, which is usually a much firmer dough and is rolled into balls before being baked. I don't know about you, but a recipe that is prepared in just one bowl, and is ready in 20 mins, sounds like a twist that works for me!

Pao De Queijo

450 g Tapioca Flour
250 ml lactose free milk
250 ml vegetable oil
120 g grated aged Parmesan Cheese
3 eggs
1 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients until smooth. It's recommended to use a blender, but just make sure it's lovely and smooth.

Tapioca is a very, very fine starch even more so that cornflour, so be careful not to turn the machine on in a hurry and have it waft all over the kitchen dusting all surfaces liberally! Not that that's ever happened to me, of course :)

Spray two standard muffin/cupcake pans with oil, and fill them 3/4 full with the batter. I made a half quantity of the batter, and found it filled one cupcake tray perfectly. The author recommends the full recipe will fill 15 holes, so she must be a bit more generous than I.

Bake for 20 minutes, in a 180*c oven, or until golden and puffy, and cooked through.

Serve warm.

Now these were lovely! They practically jumped out of the pan when cooking, and had developed some interesting designs as they puffed up.

The inside was a loose web of stretchy holes that reminded me of a lovely fresh yeasty bread, and the cheese gave it a nice flavour and added some chewiness to the crust as well.
I certainly don't think it would be traditional, but next time I make these, I'd love to add some garlic in the mix as well, and even some fresh finely chopped parsley or chives too. The lightness and puffiness of these little buns is glorious, and would be a nice change from savory scones for an afternoon tea.

Clara Luboss claimed that she was a lucky child, and I certainly think she was. With a wealth of her grandmothers recipes like this behind her, and the opportunity to share them with the rest of us through Feast Magazine, I think we are too.

So my Dear Readers, have you a favourite recipe passed down from your Grandmother?

Apple and Almond Cakes

2011-09-01T14:38:00.064+10:00

Happy Spring Dear Readers!

I love the warmer weather, opening all the windows to flush any wintery funk from the house and letting in the sweet scent of blossoms wafting on the breeze!
Where I live we have blossom trees everywhere, pink and white puffs that look delicate enough to blow away with a breath. Blossoms make me think of apple trees, apple trees make me think of apples, and apples make me think of... Apple Cakes of course!

This is a nice dense cake with the addition of almond meal, that's hearty enough to be served as a pudding, but not stick-to-the-ribs enough not to enjoy as a snack. Juuuuuust right.

Apple and Almond Cakes

2 nice large Apples- I used Sundowner today
(1 of them sliced finely, one of them grated)

125 gr Butter

1 cup Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

1 1/2 cup Almond Meal

1 cup SR Gfree Flour

1/3 cup Raisons

1/4 cup Marsala (or other liquid like apple juice)

Spices to taste- I used about a teaspoon of mixed nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves

2 Tab Butter extra

2 Tab Castor Sugar

Soak the raisons in the marsala, I pop them in the microwave for a minute to plump up nicely.

Use a mandoline to slice one of the apples very thinly, or use a really sharp knife and be really careful.

Pop them in a bowl with the extra butter and castor sugar, and microwave them for about a minute and a half to soften down a bit so they're soft enough to mold around the cake tins.

Grease the cake tins, I used texas muffin pans and plain canola spray oil. Mold the apples carefully around the pans, or if you can't be bothered, just place a slice in the bottom of each cavity.

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. I like to add the spices now too.

Add in the eggs, one at a time, and beat really well.

Add in the raisons and grated apple and mix throughly.

Fold through the flour and almond meal until well combined.

Put half a cup of the mixture into each muffin cavity, and fold over the edges of the apple slices. Smooth the tops of each little cake well.

Pop in the oven at 180*c for 25-30 minutes, or until a lightly pressed finger on the top of each meets a slight resistance and it springs back gently.

Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a rack.

You can eat these little lovelies still warm, preferably with some lactose free cream and custard.

They came out sweet and subtley spiced, but I do think the flavour was much nicer the next day, even heated up again. There was just a depth of apple and marsala that wasn't as obvious before. In fact, the only thing I didn't like about these was the way the raisons looked poking through the apple slices. It kinda looked funky, like a spot of mould, or a dead fly maybe... a liberal dusting of icing sugar, the chefs friend, will hide that nicely though, or else make sure that's where you pour the custard!

I must admit, if I make these again just for us, I'll probably just go with the slice of apple on top- and I won't probably pre-cook it either. If I'm making these for the cafe or a dinner party I'd probably go with the all-over look. They both look pretty cute.
The family however, was divided on the subject, we had two votes for the apple-all-over, and 2 for the apple-on-top look. In the interest of fair play we obviously need a tie breaker- so Dear Reader, we look to you.

Which look do you prefer for your Apple Almond Cake?

My Darling Madeleine

2011-08-27T14:01:00.000+10:00

It was one of those days...

I have been wanting to whip up some little Madeleines for ages. They're such sweet little cakes, perfect for tea drinking and dunking, and perfect for MiddleC who's a total French Freak too.

There seems to be a lot of controversy on what makes up a traditional madeleine, as I found out upon consulting my good friend Google. Brown butter, orange blossom water, almond meal, baking powder, resting, chilling, the 'hump' or not.... the true nature of these little delights was hard to find. Heston had a nice sounding recipe that he said he wooed his wife with, but as that 20yr marriage collapsed recently, that was certainly no recommendation either.

Giving my research up as a bad job, I decided to make my own little dainties in the spirit of culinary law, if not the letter. I decided to flavour mine with Tea and Honey instead. Instead of my beloved Dilmah Earl Grey, I decided to try Madame Flavour's Grey De Luxe instead. Billed as 'classic with a touch of lemon myrtle and lavender' it was certainly worth a cup or two, and sounded like a lovely addition to my batter.

Attempt Number One:
I happily reviewed my collection of recipes, and cobbled together a creation of my own that seemed to have all the same ratios to fit the bill, but with my gluten free and flavour profiles filled. I browned my butter, made my batter, the eggs were slightly flat, but pressed on. I decided not to rest the batter, as the only reason I could find for doing so was to relax the gluten- and that wasn't a problem for me now was it? I filled my pans, the batter was a little thin looking, but we'll see... and baked away.

This was the result:

Ok, these things happen, and I was trialling a new recipe, so I added more flour next time, and reduced the baking time by a fair bit and waited

Nooooo!!!!!!!!!

Third time lucky, right? I played around this time with the ratios. Less butter, more eggs, sugar and flour. All went well until-

My eggs just wouldn't whip enough. The beaters and bowl were perfectly clean, the eggs were room temperature- i leave them out overnight, the weather was perfect- no humidity to speak of.... but no fluffing, no ribbons... Arrrgh... I wasn't wasting any more ingredients on the little buggers, even though I buy them in bulk, this was becoming an expensive process. I beat the eggs for as long as possible without exploding my Kenwood, then continued.

I made quite a few changes to the method this time.
I added a bit of baking powder, just to help out those stubborn eggs,the butter mixture was cooled in the fridge, then thinned out by mixing in some of the eggmix before folding through, and the batter was rested at room temperature for an hour.
OK, I whacked the pans in the oven in a kind of calm despair. If these didn't work, at least I had an interesting story to blog, and waited.

I set my alarm and went into the other room. I wasn't going to sit by the oven door and let the batter know how anxious I was. Confidence is one of the most important ingredients in baking, and I wasn't going to let this one rattle me!
Riiiiiiiiiiiiinggggggggggg........ I raced-I mean walked sedately to the kitchen and opened the door... Yes! There they were, golden beauties with a perfect rise and springing back when lightly pushed in the middle. I pulled them out, let them rest for a couple of minutes, then turned them onto the cooling rack. Risking a burnt tongue I couldn't resist ripping one apart to taste and to check for texture. Oh, I was happy. At last.

75 gm Butter
200 gr GF Flour
6 small Eggs (but I'm sure you could use 4 if they fluff properly)
1 cup Castor Sugar
4 Tab. Honey
3 Teabags

Place the butter in a pan and cook it gently until it changes colour to light brown- but be careful not to burn it. Add in the tea part of the teabags, and the honey, and let it infuse for 20 mins or so as it cools down. Strain it through a fine strainer to remove the solids. Pop it in the fridge to get cold, but don't let it go solid.

Beat the eggs and sugar together until they're nice and thick and fluffy. They should pretty much triple their volume, and leave a thick ribbon if you drizzle some of the mix over the batter.

Take a good spoonful of the egg mix and stir it through the buttery mixture to lighten and thin it out. You want to be able to stir it through the batter evenly and gently, not have to beat it through roughly and ruin all the tiny bubbles.

Sift the flour and baking powder over the eggmix, and together with the butter mix, fold through gently until it's nicely combined. Make sure the butter mix doesn't sink to the bottom of the bowl and hide.

Leave the batter to stand for at least an hour.

Put good teaspoons of batter into greased Madeleine pans, and pop them into a 180* oven for about 7 minutes. Now the time may vary slightly- every oven is a bit different, but the cakes should be puffed and golden, and if you poke them gently they should be slightly resilient.

Pull them out. Let them rest a minute or two, then put them on a cooling rack to cool a little.

Madeleines should be served fresh and still a little warm from the oven, a bit like doughnuts. They still taste good colder and older, but it's not the same as brand new and wafting warm breath straight from the oven to you.

Sprinkle them lightly with icing sugar and enjoy with a well earned cup of tea. Of course you will use the tea you created them with, and if it's not as sublime as Dilmah, it's a pretty close second. Dunk the dainties in, and relax.... breathe in the scents of honey, bergamont, and other tea tasting goodness, and nibble and sip until sated.

Who needs yoga when you have a good cup of tea? What do you think Dear Readers?

Pistachio and Rose Syrup Cake

2011-08-21T18:34:00.000+10:00

I love floral flavours-

lavender, rose, orange blossom, and I even have jasmine essence and magnolia flavouring as well. As one who'd banned from perfumes and artificial scents due to my various InTolerances, I think I appreciate them all the more.

We can only use unscented or pure eucalyptus or orange oil based cleaners in my house, and even being too close to someone overscented can set me off.
One time MiddleC was house sitting for a few months, then moved back in. The first day was terrible! I was cranky, unreasonable and felt plain angry with her. I was able to realise that it really was weird, and I wasn't resentful of her for being home, but it wasn't until that night when I started itching that I realised it was something environmental not plain mental that ailed me! Poor girl had to wash all her clothes and bedding and throw out all her forbidden smellies like soap, wash powders and the rest before I could get as close to her as normal.

Anyway, after such a success with my Lime and Coconut cake a couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd continue in the spirit of things and try another super moist rich syrup cake, but this time using one of my favourite flavourings, Rose. What goes with rose, well pistachio of course, and thanks to my new Thermo, I can make my own fantastic pistachio meal whenever I want. Of course you can just use almond meal, or a mixture of both if you like and if your food processor is up to the challenge, or just buy some of the pretty little nuts to scatter over the top for serving, I won't mind.

I'm also using a (rather violently coloured) rose syrup I bought at my local Indian Supermarket. There is a really nice Alchemy rose syrup available at some places, or just make a syrup of equal quantities castor sugar and water boiled together and reduced slightly, before adding a tablespoon- or to taste- of rosewater or rose essence.

Pistachio and Rose Syrup Cake

250g Almond meal
200g Pistachio meal
1/2 cup GF Flour
250g Butter
1 cup Sugar
4 Eggs
3/4 cup lactose free Yoghurt
2 tsp gf Baking powder
Rosehip Jam, if desired
200ml Rose Syrup

Cream butter and sugar together until really nice and fluffy.

Add in eggs once at a time until well combined.

Mix together the nut meals, flour,and baking powder and then mix into the egg mix together with the yoghurt. Isn't it a pretty colour?

Put half the mixture into a lined baking tin, then dot with the jam.

Cover with the rest of the mixture, and smooth over the top.

Bake for 2 hours at 150*c. I had a tray underneath my springform tin, and I found that a couple of tablespoons of oil leached out of my cake during cooking. I would put this down to the fresh nut meal, as I've never had this problem before.

While fresh out the oven, pour the syrup over, cover and let cool in tin. If you look closely dear Readers, you might notice the little holes I stabbed in my cake to help it soak up the syrup. I wish I hadn't done that in the end as it didn't look pretty and I don't think it was necessary in the first place, so learn from my mistakes and keep your cake pretty.

I sprinkled my cake with icing sugar to hide it's little blemishes, and decorated it with whole dried rosebuds, aren't they cute? I also served it with some more yoghurt rather that cream as the slight tart note was the perfect match to the sweet syrup.

The pistachio meal made a really nice change from just straight almond, but I think it would taste nearly as nice without it, funnily enough the jam too. Rosehip jam isn't strongly flavoured so if I add it again I'll mix some rose water/essence through it to oomph it up a bit.

I feel quite exotic with my Pistachio Rose Syrup Cake sitting on my counter, and I think it looks just as nice as a bunch of real roses too!

So Dear Readers, would you rather flowers or cake on Your kitchen counter?

Rhubarb Lemon Meringue Smash Pie

2011-08-12T12:03:00.000+10:00

I love making jam and preserves,

but its such a pain to stand at the stove stirring, stirring, stirring for ages- and then if you forget for a minute and burn the pot it takes aaaages to soak and scrub clean, and cleaning the stove top of splatters too, it can be such a pain!
Consequently I only tend to make jams and preserves when I have such a glut of produce that the freezer can't contain it all.

But all that is about to change!

Last week my wonderful Mum sent me a new toy, a Thermochef which is an almost magical kitchen tool that can do practically everything- perfect for me with an arm out of commission for the next few months! One of the many great applications is that it will make jam all by itself, no supervision required. Awesome. And small amounts of jam as well, even a cup or so, so if I fancy something new to try on my gfree toast every morning I can. Wow. Oh the possibilities....

Anyway, as much as I'm carried away with my jam making, I realise that most of my Dear Readers prefer recipes for a whole dish- so I combined the two to keep everyone happy!

So here's a Rhubarb Lemon Meringue Smash Pie.

Sounds interesting, hmm? Well, I'm not a huge pastry lover, but do like shortbread and it gives a lovely textural crunch to the sublime silky smoothness of the lemon butter and meringue. The Rhubarb is to add that earthy base note to ground the dish and add the tartness to keep your palate from going into a sugar coma after a bowl of this.

I tried a few plating ideas, and liked the long plate style the best. The idea is to look as if you've picked up a slice of Rhubarb and Lemon meringue pie and sort of dashed it across the plate. I imagined the pastry hitting first, then the rest of the filling kind of falling out splashing out by weight, maybe I should have practised by throwing one across the kitchen first?

There is actually a lot of components to this dish, but never fear, I will give a secret hint.... you can buy most of it at the supermarket and then pretend you made it all yourself.
Nice buttery lemon curd is available in jars, there's a gorgeous rhubarb berry jam at Coles, and you can get a packet of quality gfree shortbread to break into crumbs too. See, how easy is that?
Now you can relax with the pressure off, and you can indulge me as I play around with my new toy :)

Rhubarb Jam/Sauce

Two parts rhubarb by weight
one part sugar by weight
couple of tablespoons of water
couple of tablespoons of lemon juice
Tablespoon/ to taste/ balsamic vinegar- I used a raspberry balsamic

However you make this,

you just cook it all down until it's thick and bubbly and sets when a bit is smeared on a cold saucer.
The balsamic vinegar is lovely in this- trust me, and using a raspberry one was even better.

Lemon Butter

80g lemon juice
80g egg yolks- (4)
40g sugar
80g butter

Cook this in a double boiler whisking constantly until lovely and thickened and will coat the back of a spoon.

Rhubarb Batons

Cut the rhubarb to the size you want, sprinkle thickly with sugar, sprinkle liberally with water, then bake in a moderate oven for 10-15 minutes. The rhubarb should be soft enough to stick a skewer through easily but still maintain it's structure.

Italian Meringue

3 egg whites
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
pinch cream of tartar

Bring water and sugar slowly to a boil with cream of tartar, and boil for about 4 minutes. The mixture and it's bubbles should be clear and shiny but not reduced down too much at all.
I never check my temperatures, I just go by the look- sorry.
Put the eggwhites into mixer bowl on low speed, then pour in syrup slowly.
Crank it up to full and beat until white, billowy and glossy clouds are created, and it's fairly cool.
For a better explanation,see my post on icecream cone cupcakes.

Now the fun part, pulling it all together.

The easiest way to do this at home is to serve it all cold, that way you can set the plates up well in advance and just sprinkle the crumbs on at the last minute. At a restaurant, I would serve the rhubarb and lemon curd warm, and blowtorch the meringue at the last minute so it's just warm too, but it will still taste awesome cold as well.

Step 1, the Jam.
It's easier if you warm the jam a little, or if it's really thick you could thin it just a touch with boiling water. You want to be able to eat the jam with the rest of the dish so it adds a nice tart note. You don't want it to be so set hard that you'd have to suck the edge of the plate as the only way to get a taste of it.
Using a nice thick paintbrush- not one from the shed that you painted the walls with I hope, paint a nice thick stripe across the plate or bowl.

Step 2, the Meringue
For the rimmed bowl, I used a palate knife to smear a thick layer of meringue around the rim. You could pipe it, or wipe it, or blob it instead if you like. For the plates I blobbed it on leaving room for the meringue as well. Use a kitchen blowtorch to brown the meringue nicely and set the top.

Step 3, the Lemon Curd
Blob or pipe the curd into rounds alongside the meringue on the plates. For the bowls I put a generous amount in the middle.

Step 4, the Rhubarb
Blot the rhubarb off on some kitchen paper so it doesn't bleed onto the plate, then stack them artistically on one side, or on top of the lemon curd.

Step 5, the Crumb
Grab a packet of pure butter gfree, lactose free shortbread. Roughly crumble them up in your fingers to make some yummy crumbs to represent the pastry of the pie. You don't want dust, just nice chunky crumbs to add texture to the dish. Either place a line of them across the edge of the plate or pile them on top of the lot in the bowl. Either way, do this at the last minute or they'll go yucky and soggy and lose all their effect.

Phew! It's actually a lot quicker to plate this up than to read about it! I know the plating in the photos is very clunky and not elegant, but my right arm is out of commission for now and I bet you'll make yours a lot prettier. I guess my left arm has a steep learning curve ahead of it. I hope you like my idea for the smash pie, I won't mind if you buy the ingredients instead, or just enjoy the rhubarb jam or lemon curd on toast for brekkie. I just know I sure had fun playing around with my new toy and checking out what it can do.

So, Dearest Readers, would you make the components for the Smash Pie, or buy them ready made?

Coconut and Lime Syrup Cake

2011-08-08T22:35:00.001+10:00

Hands up who misses Real Cakes?

Anyone? I know I sure do. Buying one pre-made is always a bit hit and miss, the best answer is always to make your own if you have time, but it's always great if you find a gem of shop that sell the Real Deal.

Our fantastic farmers markets in Canberra have a great array of local produce and producers. I love to wander the stalls on a Saturday, picking a choosing from such bounty.

I always check out the cake stalls even though there's not usually anything for me there. I glean ideas, flavours and combinations and just inspiration from the people there making stuff they're proud of. Amore Cakes is one of these. They even have a few gluten free items for me to try and they taste great.
Amore Cakes has a bustling stand with a selection of cakes available by the slice. Now these are Real Cakes. The flavours are really there, the slices are really moist and they taste really good! Honest cakes, that contain butter and sugar and all the other 'bad' stuff.

I was really excited the other day to find out they had produced a small recipe book with some of the best loved cakes in it. I knew how good they were already, so just had to find a way to convert them to gluten and dairy InTolerant, and I was set. My friend Pony is a huge fan of the Coconut and Lime cake, and with a MasterChef Winner Dinner at her place, I volunteered to bring dessert.

I never, ever take along something I can't eat- what's the point? When I serve up a cake or other gluten-filled looking substance and people tell me how great it tastes, I smile and help myself to a serving too. When I explain there's no gluten or (usually) lactose involved the first instinct of most is to spit it out, but then they remember how yummy it is and just keep eating. Sometimes it even changes an attitude or too as well. See, changing the world, one gluten at a time.

Lime and Coconut Syrup Cake,
adapted from Sam Walkers Amore Secrets Cookbook

125 gr Butter
1 cup Castor Sugar
4 Eggs
2 cups Dessicated Coconut
1 cup GFree SR Flour
150 grms Sour Cream
1 large Kaffir Lime Leaf, chopped finely
1/2 cup Shredded Coconut

Lime Syrup

100 ml Lime Juice
100 gr castor sugar
1 finely shredded Kaffir Lime Leaf

Now this cake isn't lactose free today. I decided to make it with the same sour cream recommended so I could get a feel for the recipe before I switch it up a bit. I think I'd like to play up the coconut a bit more and use dense coconut cream next time.

Cream the butter and sugar together with the kaffir lime leaf, until light and fluffy.

Add in the eggs and sour cream and beat well.

Stir through the flour and coconut.

Put the mixture into a lined 20 cm pan. I used this one, as that's the only 'normal size' one I've got, the others are all huge catering sized, but this one turned out juuuust right.

Sprinkle the shredded coconut on top and press lightly onto the mixture.

Put in the oven at 150*C and think happy thoughts for 2 hours while the house fills with smells that will be the envy of all who pass by.

Pull out the oven and let it cool in the pan for 5 mins. Pour the lime syrup over the cake and let it cool completely in the pan.

The cake turned out beautifully- smooth, moist, rich and delicious with a nice dense crumb, especially good for a gluten free cake. Cooling it the tin helps keep it from drying out and if you wanted you could even cover it to cool it slower.
The next day the cake was even better with the flavour of the lime less 'raw'. Sam recomends not storing the cake in the fridge and it certainly tastes a lot nicer at room temperature too.

I really love this cake, like I said- it's Real. And Really Good too!

So Dear Readers, what type of cake do you like the most?

Golden Syrup Dumplings

2011-08-04T19:18:00.000+10:00

What do you think of when you see this?

I bet it's not gorgeous fluffy dumplings is it?

Suet is a very old-fashioned fat that has rather gone out of vogue in today's low fat, low cholesterol, low carb society. Fortunately no one in my family suffers from high cholesterol so I am not afraid!

I remember riding my bike to the butchers to buy suet so my dad could make us these when I was little, and wondering what he'd do with it. Most butchers who break down their own meat should have it available.

This time the suet didn't actually cost me anything, when I asked my friendly market butcher for some he happily gave me an enormous amount for free. He said that pig and chicken fat were quite valuable, but not beef. Beef suet is a lovely creamy colour that sort of 'flakes' as you pull it apart. It doesn't smell, or have any blood, and usually comes from around the kidneys of the animal. It certainly doesn't add any beefiness to the dumplings, but when you use it in pastry it gives a lovely crisp shell that is quite firm and can be used beautifully for pies.

Anyway, I only needed 100grms, so my doggie happily gobbled the rest. I considered freezing it, but had a vision of someone pulling out a frozen lump of fat and trying to defrost for dinner before realising what it was. So I didn't.

Dumplings

100 grms of suet- yes you could use butter if you must :)
200 grms of SR gfree flour
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
lemon zest
100 ml water
1 egg
Good pinch of salt

Sauce

1/2 cup golden syrup
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 cups water
1/2 butter
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Finely grate the suet. I used a microplane to give lovely thin shavings- the smaller the better.

Mix the flour, sugar, zest and salt into the suet and rub together well.
Add the egg and most of the water- you may need a little more or less as gfree flours can absorb more than 'normal' flours, and mix together to clump.

Turn out and knead lightly. You're after a nice smooth dough that's not sticky or dry. It should be elastic and pliable.
Split the dough in half, then cut into 8 pieces each, they should be about the size of a whole walnut. Don't make them too big or they won't cook through and be gluggy.

Mix the ingredients for the sauce in a medium saucepan- one with a lid, and bring to the boil. Let it boil for a few minutes,to thoroughly combine and turn syrupy.

Carefully add the little dumplings, let the sauce come back up to boil then put on the lid and turn the temperature down so they just simmer away.
Simmer for 10 minutes, then lift the lid and turn them over. Pop the lid back on and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Check one of the dumplings, they should be dry and fluffy inside. If they're still doughy let them cook a bit longer. Don't let them boil away too long though or they'll start to break down and absorb too much of the sauce.

Pull the dumplings out and serve them hot drizzled with sauce and a scoop of lactose free vanilla ice cream or cream.

If you like you can quickly reduce the sauce by boiling it vigorously for a few minutes and it will become thicker- but be careful as it'll get sweeter too.

These were really yummy, but boy o boy they were sweet! I reduced my sauce and I wish I hadn't. Even my dessert expert littlej couldn't finish her sauce and we really needed that icecream to cut through it all. Don't say I didn't warn you!

So my Readers Dear, have you ever cooked with suet before, or does the idea of it put you off?

Pancetta Roasted Rabbit

2011-08-01T21:13:00.003+10:00

Time again for another Murdoch Books 365 Challenge!

They have a great team working their way through Stephane Reynaud's '365 Good Reasons to Sit Down to Eat' Cookbook. And the blog includes a mix of all sorts of people who cook for fun. In case you missed it, I've done a couple of previous posts- Duck with honey and Rack of Lamb that are also on my blog.
http://blog.murdochbooks.com.au/365-challenge/?currentPage=4
http://blog.murdochbooks.com.au/365-challenge/?currentPage=4

Thanks to shows like Masterchef , rabbit is one of those ingredients that seem to be having a bit of a revival of late.
Just last week I found fresh rabbit in the meat section at Coles , at about $19kg it’s certainly more expensive than chicken but I’m always up for a culinary challenge and wanted to give it a go. My dad grew up trapping rabbits for the pot in the bush, and it was a staple of his family’s dinners, but I have to admit I’ve not had a lot of rabbit before. I remember the odd bunny stew, but that’s about it really. I chose this recipe to change all that.

1 Rabbit
1 tablespoon peppercorns
2 sprigs of rosemary
6 French shallots
1 bulb of garlic cut cross ways
1 tablespoon herbes de provence
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
6 slices rolled pancetta
250 mls white wine
5o gr butter

First step, tackle the beast. The ones at Coles come whole, but this little fella came from the butcher who kindly offered to cut it up for me. I was tempted, but I like to understand my ingredients at a more basic level and decided to go it alone. The bones are not very strong and it’s quite easy to dismember the little bunny, so if you can’t get a nice butcher to chop it up, don’t be afraid to try and do it yourself.

It looks so nude and pathetic laid across my chopping board, I can’t help glancing across at my cat stretched out in the sun and looking for comparisons. I open the cavity and find a little plastic bag with the liver and the find the kidneys still attached, I take these out and wonder what to do with them... they aren’t included in the recipe. I’ve seen Gary and George scoff them down on the telly, so I cheffy them up a little by threading them on some rosemary twigs for a treat to go with the meal.

I take off the front legs, cut across the haunches and back legs, then straight through the saddle for two nice pieces. The ribs and belly flaps I trim off and keep, along with the fillets that run down the back, I’ll use these in a nice little pie later.

I toast off my peppercorns as my pan heats up, then take them out and add some oil.
The rabbit needs to sear well and get some nice colour on it to develop some flavour and caramelisation so let the oil heat as well before adding the meat. I let these colour on one side and turned them before adding the garlic, shallots, rosemary and herbs as I didn’t want the others burning before the meat was ready as it would add a bitterness to the pan that would come out in the sauce later. Pop the pan into a preheated 180*c oven and let it cook for 30mins.

Take the pan out the oven and reset it to 150*c.
Check the meat and see if it needs turning, some bits of rabbit are thinner than others and it can be a bit tricky not to let them cook too fast. Drape the pancetta across the pieces, I put extra on the front legs to protect them. The idea of the pancetta apart from adding flavour is to protect and even baste the meat a little. Rabbit has no fat to speak of and the melting fat from the pancetta will help stop it drying out. Pop the pan back in the oven for another 15mins.

Once you take the pan out the oven again, take out the pieces of rabbit and veggies. I chose to drain the oil from the pan as the sauce calls for quite a lot of butter and if I have to choose a fat to consume I’d rather it be that than veggie oil.

Pop the pan on heat, then deglaze with a glass of wine.

Now the last time I made on of Stephanes recipes, I used the sweet wine in the ingredients list and it was waaay to sweet indeed. Today, I was prepared and used nice dry white instead, there was no point preparing the meal if no one wanted to eat it after all, was there?

While the wine bubbles away, scrape up all the lovely brown bits sticking to the bottom of the pan. Once the wine has reduced just a touch, whisk in the butter to make a lovely silky smooth thin sauce. I also added some more rosemary to lift the flavour of the dish a little and just freshen it up a touch.

Serve your rabbit with some nice veggies and a lovely drizzle of sauce over the lot. I used a creamy cauliflower puree to offset the saltiness of the pancetta, and I couldn't resist adding some carrots to go with the bunny.

The verdict?

The meat was tasty, lovely and tender with none of the gaminess I remembered and the sauce was divine, but although the kiddies enjoyed the meal and polished the bones of the rabbit 'wings', I would rather use chicken thighs at less than half the price.
Perhaps rabbit is cheaper in France?

So Dear Readers, have you tried rabbit before, and what did you think of it?

An Anatomy Lesson

2011-07-28T09:58:00.000+10:00

How are you at map reading Dear Readers?

When I use a map I've got the kind of mind that needs to feel out the route- this involves turning the map around and around and swaying in the direction indicated as I try and get a feel for it.

This annoys BigJ, he can take one quick look at the map, turn himself around 20 times until he's dizzy, point directly to magnetic north and be at the destination in record time avoiding all tolls and speed cameras along the way. He finds my map dance embarrassing and never lets me drive with him in the car- Or give him directions.

Now, I'm a bit obsessed with shoulders at the moment.

Mine is having issues and although I've googled and read, been to Doctors and had it explained, I still needed to 'see' it for myself. Looking in the mirror and wriggling my good shoulder didn't really help that much, I needed to see where things were and what they do inside. Hmmm... OK off to the markets, result- one lamb shoulder ready to go!

Now my butchery techniques are very basic and my knife skills aren't at their best with a bung shoulder so bear with me guys as we explore the mysteries that lie within.....

My, what a lovely looking shoulder you have my dear

The shoulder uncovered

Underside of shoulder- i guess that's the inside really

Look how perfectly this supports and covers the shoulder blade, such a pity I ripped mine

Big tendons in the joint- I've got a tear in one of these :(

Tissue holding the joint together- The Dr thinks I've pulled some of that off the bone :(

Ball and socket joint, very shallow in the shoulder.This seems to be having issues too.Very clunky and sticks :(

I know that my anatomy varies slightly from that of a sheep (well I hope anyway!)but that helps me understand things a bit better. I couldn't see some of the other bits that I'm having trouble with as well, but that seems to have covered most of them. Ultrasounds, CT scans, Xrays, and MRIs are all very well for the Surgeon- and he has all mine to go off, but I'm a chef and I understand food so much better! BigJ thinks that I'm totally strange doing this experiment, and I seem to have embarrassed him yet again, but I think he should be grateful I found a way to satisfy my curiosity!

Well, now that I've had my fun, I really need to do something with the lamb. Because of all those connective tissues and stuff we saw the best way to cook it is long and low, braising will be the perfect solution.

Braising Mix

1 sachet/ 2 tablespoons Tomato Paste
1 bottle of Tomato Passata or tin of crushed tomatoes
Good glass of wine- I used white but red is good too
1 onion roughly chopped
1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
Herbs of choice- thyme, rosemary
Garlic
Salt and Pepper

Mix all these together and place in a pan big enough to fit the lamb, but small enough that they fit snugly.

Nestle in the pieces of meat, and make sure that they're mostly covered by the tomato mix. If you need some more liquid add in a bit more wine, or stock or even water.

Cover the dish closely with a lid or alfoil.

Bake in a 160* oven for about 3 hours. Turn them over about halfway through.

I enjoyed my meal of shoulder with some Fava Beans and a Nice Chianti... ;) and it was Delicious!

So Dear Readers, do you need to turn the map when you navigate and do a little map-dance like me?

Peanut Butter Choc-Fudge Pudding

2011-07-24T18:12:00.000+10:00

Everybody needs to be able to cook,

even if you do have all your meals prepared by your own personal chef!

It's holiday time here in Canberra, and I've been giving littlej cooking lessons and she's done so well that I've even promoted her to the Shun knives.
I love to teach and explain the why of things, but didn't realise how it would sound to anyone else until the builders- yes, they're back, but new ones this time who do a good job- in the other room called out asking if this was an episode of MasterChef Master Class! I was in the middle of explaining how to hold the knives safely and how to angle the knife correctly, and how NOT to be afraid of them "use strong strong arm motions, knives can smell fear and know when you're not confident" and was a bit embarrased that they overheard, but I bought their silence with warm Brownies..men can be easily manipulated like that!

Although we have been having meals like Pork Terrine and Mango Sago Pudding, today is all about fun, littlej and her friend are up to their noses in flour, gelatine and noodles- thankfully not all in the one meal! Now they're tackling a self saucing pudding and I thought I would post it for posterity.

In my InBox recently was a yummy sounding recipe from Shirley at Gluten Free Easily http://glutenfreeeasily.com/amy-green-simply-sugar-and-gluten-free-cookbook-review-and-giveaway she adapted form Amy Greens new cookbook, Simply Sugar and Gluten Free. http://simplysugarandglutenfree.com/ This is my adaption of Shirley's adaption of Amy's original recipe! I'm sure the original is absolutely fantastic, but as I've said before, cooking is all about adapting to what you have in the cupboard and what you personally can or like to eat.
My recipe is just a little different from Shirleys, whose is just little bit different from Amy's, and I bet your's will be just a little bit different from mine too. Actually, I really hope your's is a LOT different, as littlej and her friend dumped in all the sugar at once and ours was really, really, really sweet!

One of the things I liked in this recipe is that it's cooked in a slow cooker. I know I've got a big oven and all, but sometimes I need it set to a higher or lower temperature for the main course that won't necesarily make for a happy dessert. I figured this type of pudding could tick away on the bench, keeping the oven free yet be hot and ready when wanted. One thing that I didn't take inot account though was that I have a REALLY OLD original crockpot from the 70's. I would loooove one of the new breed, or a fast/slow cooker, but this is what I've got and I think the newer models must work much more efficiently or at different temperatures, because my little crocky took nearly 3 1/2 hours instead of the 1-2 hrs suggested by the original recipe. It wasn't really a problem as I had plenty of time today, but trying to keep 2 excited girls from lifting the lid every 20mins was! Needless to say that a dessert that could have fed a family was devoured by the 2 of them as they declared it their reward for being patient all day.

Peanut Butter Choc Fudge Pudding

Recipe courtesy of Amy Green and Ulysses Press (And Shirley of Gluten Free Easily)

1/2 cup gluten-free flour

1/4 cup x 2 lots, raw sugar- I think brown would be better though

3/4 tsp gluten-free baking powder

1/2 tsp salt flakes

1/3 cup lactose free milk

1 tbsp canola oil

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup cocoa

1 1/4 cups coffee

Spray your slowcooker with cooking oil.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ¼ cup of the sugar- NOT both lots, baking powder and salt.

In another bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, and vanilla.

Heat the peanut butter for about 30 seconds, just until soft. Add the first bowl of wet ingredients to the dry ingredients along with the peanut butter. It's a pretty thick batter, but that's the way it's supposed to be.

Spread the batter evenly in the bottom of your slow cooker

Whisk the cocoa , other ¼ cup sugar, and coffee together. Ladle it carefully on top of the batter in the slow cooker so it doesn't leave holes by just pouring it in. Don't mix the two together as this is the sauce part of the self-saucing!

Cover and cook on high for 1 to 2 hours, checking after 1 hour. The pudding is ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. My puddingy bits were sticking out above the layer of sauce below and looked dry and a bit fluffy. The sauce part is supposed to be wet :)

My littlej and her friend R just love peanut butter and declared this pudding Yummm!

It was easy for them to make together without supervision (except for the sugar) and the fact that it was self saucing made them feel very clever indeed. I fear- due to the calorie content, not yumm content- that it will be added to littlej's regular list of recipes. She's also working on a PBJ version adapting the original yet again!
I hope you don't mind Amy!

So Readers, how do you keep amused during school holidays?

Toffeecomb

2011-07-20T21:55:00.000+10:00

What's on earth's that, you say?

Well let me explain....

I wanted to make some honeycomb that didn't actually contain honey. You see I've got a vegan dinner coming up and want something sweet to have with coffee at the end. I decided to use an old favourite instead, Golden Syrup. The flavour is slightly different than one made using honey, more 'Crunchie' than 'Violet Crumble' (Australian chocolate bars), but still yummy and exactly what I want. So to be true to my ingredients and for clarity, I've decided to name my confectionary Toffeecomb instead. You still get the general idea, and if not you can always ask :)

We grew up with golden syrup- my Dad always calls it Cockies Joy, thick spread on bread with butter, dripping down pancakes, and especially wonderful made into Golden Syrup Dumplings.... post coming soon!

Golden syrup is just water and sugar. No allergy issues or animal products here,thanks. I won't enter into the whole refined sugar debate etc,etc. Foods like this are 'sometimes' foods anyway and great for a bit of fun in the kitchen. It's great to make with the kiddies, as it has a cool science experiment vibe going once the bicarb is added and watching it foam up is really exciting!

1 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Golden Syrup
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 teaspoons bicarb soda

First prepare a tray for your toffeecomb. Line a tray or pan with some baking paper and place it right next to the stove. Don't forget this step and remember just as you're ready to pour it into the dish or it will be messy and discouraging as all the fluffiness will be lost and you'll have to start again.

Place sugar, syrup, water and vinegar in a large saucepan.

Stir gently until combined and sugar has started to dissolve a little. Be careful not to splash any on the sides of the pan or it might crystallise later and ruin the effect. If needed run a wet cloth/finger/pastry brush around the edges to wash any sugar crystals down.

Put on a medium heat and boil gently for about 8 mins or until it reaches hard crack stage.

Quickly whisk the bicarb soda evenly through the mix, it will immediately foam up dramatically, and pour it straight into the pan .
Don't keep stirring or bumping the mix or all the lovely little gas bubbles will collapse. If any kiddies or curious husbands are helping, they need to be very careful as this is just frothy toffee, and will give very nasty burns if it gets on you.

As a chef, I have recieved burns of various natures and degrees, including steam burns, oil burns, water scalds, open flame burns, contact burns from hot surfaces, reflected burns from cooking on the chargrill for 6 hrs at a time leaving sunburn type burns, and sugar burns. The sugar burn was by far the worst burn of all as it just keep burning through the layers and when I ~~stupidly~~ I mean instinctively tried to brush it off with the other hand, it just stuck onto and burnt into that one as well! So, please take care my dearest Readers, I would hate to have any injuries to you on my conscience.

Leave it to cool down in the pan, then break it up and enjoy!

If you like you can smear one side of it with chocolate, or to keep it vegan, use Sweet William Chocolate that's gluten, lactose, nut and vegan friendly. I must admit that I was so excited with my pan of toffeecomb goodness that I started smashing away as soon as it was cool and set. It's much more sensible to apply the chocolate BEFORE you do this. Trust me on this.

Serve this with coffee as an sfter dinner treat, or just as a treat in general! Yummm....

So Dear Readers,

do you have a favourtie sweet spread from your childhood, and have you ever had any nasty kitchen burns?

Fritters In A Flash

2011-07-15T19:06:00.000+10:00

Sometimes you just need something yummy now.

No time to run out for special fresh ingredients, or long involved processes- just something whipped up out of the pantry guarenteed to be good.

I'm not much of a fan of pre-packaged stuff, but it always pays to have some basics and bits and pieces available to build on. A rat around in the cupbard revealed some corn kernels and a tin of crab. Hmmm.... Fritters!

OK corn, crab, egg, gfree crumbs, lemons-always in the fridge, and an extra treat of some yummy mayonaise from Heidi at Apples Under My Bed. What more could you ask for?

Of course these would be better with perfect fresh ingredients. Crab lump meat, roasted ears of corn, I might fancy these up next dinner party, but lunch for me and littlej these are juuuuust right.

First rat around in the pantry and gather your ingredients

Small tin of 170g or approx 1/2 a cup of drained crab meat

1/2 cup of tinned corn kernels

1/2 cup gfree rice crumbs

1 egg lightly beaten

1/4 mayonaisse

zest of about 1/2 small lemon

chopped chives

Pop everything together into a bowl and mix gently.

Form into nice little fritters and shallow fry gently until they're golden brown and hot all the way through.

Serve them with some salad and some more mayonaise for dipping.

Easy Peasy and maybe 10mins from start to finish. School holiday lunch with style!

So Readers Dear, are you a fan of pre-packaged goods or do you prefer to cook from scratch?

A Bit On The Side

2011-07-09T18:22:00.000+10:00

When you go to a cafe, do you like to get a little treat on the side of your Lactose free-Weak-Decaf-Coffee?

I've come across tiny meringues, little chocolates, and of course- biscuits aka cookies. Now I think it's always exciting to look at, but of course I have to leave it there :(

However, the cafes certainly mean well, and at one cafe I worked at it was my job to make the little 'freebies', several hundred at a time. The biscuits had to be quick, cheap, easy, and of course yummy! After a bit of trial and error, I decided the best option was to use a cookie press.

Have you used these before? They're like a caulking gun for builders, but of course for cooks and cookies! You fill the cylinder body with a nice soft dough and depress the plunger which releases a measured shot through various shaped nozzles. This means you can pump out lots of cookies in a very short time and they have the added advantage of uniformity of shape and size, very important when every customer should be loved equally!

I love having good quality InTolerant options available at the major supermarkets!

Cookie Press Cookies (3 dozen)

1/2 cup Castor Sugar
185g Butter/Nuttlex
1 Egg
2 cups gluten free Plain Flour
1/2 teaspoon gfree baking powder
1 Tablespoon Lactose free Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Pinch of Salt

Cream the butter and sugar together.

Add in the egg and milk, and I like to put in the baking powder and salt now too as it mixes in evenly. Beat through for a second or two.

Add in the flour and mix on very low speed until combined.

Now is the time to divide the dough and add in any extra flavourings. I usually just knead it in by hand.

Bring the dough together and roll into a shape that will fit into the cylinder body of the cookie press. Let it rest for about 20mins just to firm up a little.

Put the dough in the press and cookie away! Now DON"T WORRY IF YOU DON"T HAVE A COOKIE PRESS, you can just roll out little balls of the dough and press it down gently with a fork. It works just as well, it's just not quite so fancy!

This is such a nice basic recipe and just about any extra flavourings can be added to change it up and various yummy things sprinkled on top before baking. About the only thing you can't put in a cookie press are chunks. They just won't fit through the holes. So no chocolate chips, or fruity bits, sorry, but cocoa and purees are fine for flavour.

Don't worry that you'll have hundreds of biscuits either, the dough freezes fantastically whether in a big lump, or carefully spritzed out on sheets ready to pop in the oven at a moments notice.

The basic recipe has a good shortbread style flavour with a nice crisp bite. It can even be dunked quickly into your coffee, win-win!

Here I've made 3 variations, the palest is just plain, the brown has cocoa powder added, and the one in the middle has spices. You can also give the raw biscuits a very light spray or brush with water, and top with pretty coloured sprinkles too.

Editorial Note:
Now while the little bit on the side of your coffee is cute and all, I have to admit I think it's not always so good for business- before you shout me down just think about it for a sec; while drinking your beverage of choice you might fancy a little something something, just to take the edge off your sweet tooth or to tide you over to lunch... that little biscuit is probably juuuuuust enough, and free! But now you won't look longingly across at the lovely array of cakes or bigger bikkies on the counter, be tempted and spend a couple more dollars. There's only so much you'll spend on a cup of coffee, so factoring in the price of a free cookie isn't really an option, even if it's low cost to produce; so an extra sale is always welcome. I would rather reward my customers by putting that money spent into a better quality coffee or lower prices over all.
This is the business side of me speaking, not the customer side though, just want to clear that up :)

So Dearest Readers,

would you travel further to a cafe just for the free little biscuit, or would you have a different cafe-choosing-criteria?

Duck for Dessert

2011-07-04T14:14:00.000+10:00

Hello My Lovelies, it's time for another 365 Challenge through
Murdoch Books!

They have a great team working their way through Stephane Reynaud's '365 Good Reasons to Sit Down to Eat' Cookbook. A mix of all sorts of people who cook for fun.

In case you missed it, this was my previous challenge and I enjoyed it very much, it was loads of fun and always interesting to try something new.

http://blog.murdochbooks.com.au/365-challenge/17-may-rack-of-lamb-with-pesto-and-turnips.html

This time around I got July 1st, Duck With Honey.

Now I don't mind a bit of sweetness with savoury foods, and this pairing of duck and honey seemed to make sense. Then I read the rest of the ingredients, and let's just say I had my doubts. It's good to stretch your culinary style sometimes, and I would hate to be thought narrow minded, so I threw caution to the winds and sallied forth into the world of sticky wine, sticky honey and sticky, sticky duck.

3 Tab Honey
200ml Sauternes
1 Tab Armagnac
3 Duck breasts
1 Tab Herbes de Provence
6 Apricots
3 Peaches
1 Eggplant
50gr Almonds
50gr Hazelnuts
Salt and Pepper

Cooking is all about adapting.

Sometimes the recipe in a book calls for items that are out of season, out of stock, or out of my price range!

As we are currently shivering our way through the middle of a cold Canberra winter, fresh peaches and apricots were mysteriously hard to find. Tinned ones? Not really the right posh-iness expected in French cooking, dried ones? Definitely a better choice.

Herbes de Provence were unaccountably not in the spice aisle at Woolies, but a quick Google search helped me mix up a blend of lavender, thyme and rosemary which at least gave a Gallic vibe that I hoped would not offend Stephane if he ever stumbled across this blog!

Sauternes and Armagnac were available at my local grog shop, but my purse-strings were astonishingly hard to loosen when confronted with the price. After a brief struggle, my purse and I reached a compromise and settled on a bottle of Botrytis Sticky and some Brandy that will hide in my cupboard until wanted at Christmas. After this, I felt so virtuous saving so much money I went and bought myself a nice new Hippy style blouse that I will wear in about a month- so I can truthfully say to my suspicious husband 'what, this old thing? I've had it for AGES.' My purse and I are good at that.

But back to the food ....

First I slashed the duck breasts as recommend in a diamond pattern. This allows the marinade to penetrate the meat and also helps the excess fat render from the skin.

Mix the wine, brandy and honey. Dip the breasts in the mix and sprinkle with the herbs as suggested, or pop the herbs in along with the meat, and marinate overnight.

Prepare the eggplant. I decided to leave the peices larger than the cubes recommended, as I thought it would present better on the plate. What with the fruit and the nuts, there already seemed a lot of fussiness going on. I sprinkled the larger pieces with salt and left them for about 20 mins to disgorge any bitterness, then patted them dry and adding them to the pan with the duck breasts.

Place the duck skin side down in a dry, cold pan. This is really good to remember, having the pan cold to start will help the fat render and the skin to crisp better without the meat over cooking. And there’s really no need at all for oiling the pan as the duck will generously supply more than enough of its own.

Be really watchful at this point as the sugars from the wine and honey will burn easily. There’s a fine line between burnished and burnt! The eggplant will go gorgeously silky and brown from all the ducky goodness in the pan, and have an amazing flavour- but don’t consider this the healthy part of the dinner as it sponges up plenty of that rendered fat.

Once the duck is cooked to your liking, pull it and the eggplant out of the pan and let it rest somewhere warm.

Drain out the fat, and place the marinade, fruit and nuts in the pan back on the heat. To plump the fruit nicely, cover the pan with a lid and they’ll steam away while absorbing lots of the flavour. I loved how the herby earthiness of the lavender and thyme managed to penetrate the fruit. Once they’re fat and juicy, take the lid off and let the liquid reduce down to a sauce consistency. At this point I added a tablespoon of butter to add some gloss and richness and any juices that released from the resting duck. They are the ‘essence’ of the meat after all, and it’s such a shame to let them go to waste.

To present, I chose a rectangle plate that would follow the line of the eggplant and the shape of the duck breast. A bigger one would have been better, but I had to work with what I’ve got. I placed a slice of eggplant in the middle of the plate, then sliced my duck at an angle and fanned it over the eggplant. This way it showed off both the crispy skin and the pink blush inside as well. I arranged some of the fruit over the meat without covering it all, and placed on a few nuts for extra interest and shape contrast. The sauce would be nice presented in a little jug at the table so each diner could add their own, but I drizzled it around the arrangement of food and it worked OK too. A piece of lavender and thyme on top would have been the finishing touch and reinforced the flavour profile- you’ll just have to imagine it this time!

What did I think of this dish?

Personally I prefer Asian style flavours and don't cook much French inspired food- unless it's dessert. Unfortunetly this recipe was just way too sweet for me and could almost be counted as dessert itself! The duck played second fiddle to the cloying syrup surrounding it. Fresh fruit would have added a much needed touch of tartness, but I still don't think it would be enough.

I mentioned earlier adapting a dish.

In this case, I would adapt the flavours to my palate by halving or even chopping the amount of honey by a third and swapping out the sticky wine for a dry white. A touch of stock or jus in the sauce would also tone it down a little. I think this way the lovely nuances of the lavender, the savoury notes of the thyme and lovely brown bits on the duck skin would all blend into a harmonious whole, instead of being a one-man-band of sticky sweetness.

A bit of further adaptation and I think I could make this into a dish that would appeal more to my taste, and be one I would happily share with friends for dinner.

Sorry Stephane, I hope you don’t mind!

Well Readers, what do you think of sweet sauce for a savoury dish? And what flavour profile do you like the most?

Now to the interesting bit Lovelies- another give away!
This time it's a SCANPAN, Soft Touch Spectrum,Santoku Knife. A funky bright green colour to liven up your kitchen and a cool sheaf to keep it nicely covered over when not in use and sitting in your drawer. Not too big, it's just the right size for preparing the evenings veggies, or taking on a picnic to chop the salad or slice the sausages.

To go in draw, just leave a comment- can't make it any simpler can I? The winner shall be chosen yet again by my patented and highly envied Cat Raffle Method. See this post for details, http://intolerantchef.blogspot.com/2011/06/beautilicious-blueberry-souffle.html
I distance myself from any feline fancies, but wish you the best. May the Fur be with you.

Bundy and Coke Braised Beef Ribs

2011-06-29T17:09:00.000+10:00

I'm not much of a drinker really.

I enjoy a couple of glasses of wine and the occaisional grown up G&T, but only the odd sip of spirits. I have a whole cupboard full of alcohol, but mainly bought for their novelty or cooking value. Let's see..... Musk liquor, Cherry wine, Rose Liquor, Bubbly Lychee, Mandarin, delicious Chambois, Lavender, and even Black Sapote liquor. I also have a wine rack with various inhabitants, BigJ took them all down to dust the other week and I was astonished to find some very nice sounding reds from the early 90's up there, and a bottle of champagne from goodness knows when- how long does champagne last anyway? I also have a stash of cooking wine that I buy on sale and let age gracefully before turning them into sauces magnifique.

It sounds like we really DO have a lot on hand doesn't it?

Anyway, I also just happen to have a stack of Bundaberg Rum and Cola sitting in my fridge. I love the history of Rum, it conjures up images of Pirates, Smugglers, our own Australian Rum Rebellion......... Too good to be relegated to only Christmas cooking, but a bit too strong for me on it's own, of course I need to cook with it! I decided to team it with rich slow cooked meat to let the flavour and sugars round out and mellow.

Beef short ribs are the perfect match for this recipe, they're great simmering away with the meat just falling apart at the end of cooking. Perfect for this cold weather of ours.

Now, you may not have noticed (due to my lack of skill) dear reader, that when I've planned out a recipe especially for blogging, I do try and make a bit of an effort with my photos. Unfortunatley, this is not one of those times. I was just about to start cooking when I thought 'This could be interesting' and started snapping away. Many of these 'interesting' ideas never make it to the blog, but we loved this meal so it made the cut. Just imagine perfect photographic images, with a perfect chef-one who is clean, not covered in splatters, and a perfect family sitting around a perfectly laid dinner table with shiny faces and perfect manners. This is obviously the norm for my home every evening. I hope you all aspire to my level of perfection. :)

Brown the ribs nicely in a thick bottomed pan that holds them in a single layer. They will cook more evenly and faster too this way. You also want all those nice little bits that stick on the base to go back into the liquid in the dish for enriching the sauce at the end.

Pull the ribs out and sweat down some onions and carrots. I left these pretty large as they'll just turn to mush otherwise as they braise away. You just want to get them started and coated with some of the oil that comes out of the meat. Spread them in a nice thick layer on the base of the pan.
Put the meat back in the pan on top of the veggies and pour over a can of the Bundy and Coke. Reserve one for deglazing later. Pop the lid on the dish and let it simmer away. I cooked mine on the stove top with a simmer ring underneath it, but it's just as easy to pop it in the oven at about 180*.

Just forget about it for an hour or so,

That should be just enough time to do the dishes, set the table, change your frock, brush your hair and freshen your lipstick, the way I do every evening before sitting down to dinner. :)

Pull out the meat and veggies and plate them up.

If there's a bit too much oil in the pan, spoon it off the top of the juices. Then deglaze the pan back on the heat on the stove top and scrape up all the yumminess that might have stuck to the bottom. Simmer it down quickly to boil out the alcohol and reduce it, then thicken just a little if you need to with a little bit of arrowroot slurry.

Pour the sauce over the meat and veggies, and serve with a some sweet potatoes baked in the oven at the same time as the dish, some greens or maybe a nice creamy mash.
The coke adds a lovly sweetness and the rum adds that little something to notch it up from easy family dinner to something a little more special. Top the lot with a basic gremolata - grated garlic, lemon zest and fresh parsley, just to give it a lift and freshen the flavours after the long, slow cooking.

I'm ashamed to admit, that at this point, my perfectly perfect family used their fingers to wipe the pates clean and get every las bit of that sweet,sticky sauce- no napkins in sight.

Sigh..... well, nearly perfect anyway.

So my Dearest Readers, are you much of a drinker, and do YOU have the perfect family?

Musk Pannacotta

2011-06-24T15:56:00.000+10:00

Do you remember Musk Sticks?

The mild perfumey pink lolly stick that would have in every goody-bag at every birthday of your childhood? When they were fresh, they'd be slightly soft with a bit of 'give' to them, but when they were stale, they'd still be tasty, but would have to be sucked on to soften them up so you wouldn't break a tooth.

I came across this liquor at the local Show, and was tickled pink :) with the flavour. I don't know if these are a uniquely Australian sweet, I haven't seen them anywhere else, but if it's not your cup of tea, you can replace the sweet muskiness with another flavour of your choice.

Panacotta Recipe

400ml lactose free cream
(I did try this with coconut cream, but the flavours didn't work nearly as well, you really need the bland smoothness of plain cream)
100ml musk liquor
1 1/2 tsp gelatine
1 tablespoon castor sugar
few drops of pretty pink colouring

Musk Toffee Topping

1/4 cup water
1/4 cup musk liquor
few drops hot pink colouring

Put all the topping ingredients in a pan and bring to the boil. Boil for 5 minutes until reduced and syrupy.

Put the gelatine and 1 tablespoon of cold water in a small dish and let it
'bloom' for a few minutes. This means it will swell and soften down the granules so it will dissolve evenly later.

Place the cream, musk liquor and sugar in a pan and let it come to the boil.

Take it off the heat and stir in the gelatine mixture. Let it stand for a couple of minutes, then give another good stir to make sure the gelatine is mixed evenly. I don't advise whisking the mixture as you can get a lot of little air bubbles trapped in the end product.

Give your panacotta moulds a very light spritz with vegetable spray oil, this will make your life much easier when it comes to serving time. Don't worry, you won't taste it in the finished product.

Place about a teaspoon of the syrup mixture to the bottom of the moulds. Gently pour the cream mixture over the back of a spoon into the moulds until nearly full. The reason you do this is to try not to disturb the bit on the bottom so that when you unmould them, there'll be a nice hot pink base with a little dripping attractively over the edges ala creme caramel style. Getting a bit fancy aren't we?

Pop the little lovelies in the fridge for at least 4 hours to set and develop flavours.

Now, The Big Moment.......

To get the musky morsels out of the moulds just try breaking the seal at the top by easing back the edge with your finger, then placing the serving plate over the bottom of it and tipping it upside down. It just might slide out- maybe. Mine came out first time no problem. But if it's stubborn and doesn't want to co-operate, then boil the kettle and fill up a bowl a bit bigger than the moulds with the hot water. Dip each mould in the water for a few seconds then try again, this time there shouldn't be any problem. If this for some strange reason STILL isn't working, just hand the moulds to your guests along with a spoon and pretend you meant to serve them this way all along.

Aren't they gorgeous? Perfect for moments of pure pink perfumed pleasure,their marvellous muskiness making mouth-watering memories.

Yes, they do have that effect on me Readers, perhaps I didn't evaporate off all the alcohol? Maybe it's the red food colouring or the sugar rush? You'll just have to try them for yourself to see.

So Dear Readers, do you remember musk sticks? And what was your favourite childhood lolly?

I'm On A Roll!

2011-06-20T20:51:00.000+10:00

Flushed with the success of my Sponge Roll earlier in the week,

I was inspired to revisit an old friend of mine, the Rolled Spinach Quiche.

I'm craving some fresh tasting greens and this is stuffed full of greeny goodness. Watercress has a nice bit of iron-y tasting zinginess, and spinach has a mild sweetness that balances it out. The winter is starting to get to me, and a plain salad is not as exciting as it could be, so getting greens by the mouthful in a quiche is much more appealing. Although this is a cold meal, I'll eat it sitting in the feeble rays of sunlight struggling to break through the sleet, and dream of the warmer days to come......

The very original recipe for this came from an old Womens Weekly Cookbook, and I first made it back in the '80's. Its a cute, if somewhat dated, way of presenting a crustless quiche, and the green colour is quite stunning when it's sliced.

1 packet of Frozen Spinach
1 bunch of Watercress
1cup of lactose free Milk
1/2 cup of gluten free Flour
5 Eggs
50 gr hard goat cheese
3 tablespoons of Butter
Salt and Pepper

Defrost the spinach patiently in a fine mesh strainer lined with a chux cloth, and squeeze out all the excess water. Or... defrost the spinach IMpatiently by throwing it whole in a pan over medium heat and stirring until all the water has evaporated leaving you with a nice moist paste.

Chop or process the zingy watercress finely.

In a pan (by the bits of green, you can see I re-cycled the spinach pan) melt the butter then add in the flour and cook it off for about a minute to get rid of the 'raw' taste.

Whisk in all the milk, and let it come to the boil and thicken. Take it off the heat and cool down quite a bit.

In the meantime, separate your eggs and grate your goat cheese.

To the milk and flour base, add in the spinach, watercress, egg yolks, cheese and seasoning and stir until all combined into a lovely green goopiness.

Beat the egg whites on their own until they reach stiff peaks.

Mix a spoonfull of them into the other mix to lighten it, then gently fold in the rest without knocking out all the air bubbles in the whites.

Spread it out evenly into the lined pan, and bake at 200*C for 20 minutes.

Turn it out the same way as you did for the Sponge Roll (see step by step in the previous post) Then roll up in a clean teatowl, place on a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature.

Open the quiche out gently, it might have a few deep creases, but don't worry, you'll cover them up with a yummy filling anyway.

Now spread with a yummy filling- I used soft goat cheese whipped with a tbs lactose free milk until light and smooth, roast capsicum, avocado cubes, smoked salmon and a squeeze of lemon juice. Cream cheese would be great too. Pop into the fridge until nice and firm then cut into groovy green slices.

I served this with a nice little salad for crunch, and some slow roasted tomatoes to add sweetness and a touch of moisture to the whole dish.

Well Readers, what do you think- is the spiral still in style,

or is it a throwback to an earlier culinary era? And can we help it make a comeback?