lime, poppy and pineapple syrup cake

18 Thursday Aug 2011

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I am a bit ‘over’ chocolate at the moment. Even my kids are. The scrummy Chocolate slice that usually disappears within a day or two of making it has lasted four days in the fridge so far – and there is still over half of it left. Very strange indeed.

When I saw this recipe on ‘Food In A Minute’ (watch it here) it instantly grabbed my attention. Tropical fruity flavours are very refreshing after chocolate overload. And no frosting either – again, with all my experimenting in the kitchen we are a bit over frosting too.

The USB cable for my camera is AWOL so I cant post a photo, but mine actually looks just like the one on FIAM website. TRUELY!!!

So here we go. You will need…

125g softened butter
½ cup caster sugar
¼ cup lime marmalade
2 eggs, beaten
1 ½ cups self raising flour
½ cup pineapple juice
2-3 tbsp poppy seeds

Syrup
½ cup pineapple juice
½ cup caster sugar

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Grease and line a 20 cm round tin.

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and marmalade.

Fold in sifted flour alternately with pineapple juice. Lastly stir through poppy seeds.

Spread mixture in cake tin and bake for 40 – 50 minutes.

For the syrup place pineapple juice and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to the boil, simmering for two minutes.

The original recipe said to pour hot syrup over the cake straight out of the oven while it is still in the tin then remove from tin when cool. However I didn’t read the recipe and took cake out of tin straight from the oven, put it on a plate and stabbed it all over with a toothpick before pouring the syrup over the top. And it was still good!

Mainly I did that so I could have a slice while it was still warm.

I have no patience.

Happy Baking 🙂

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coconut cake

16 Tuesday Aug 2011

Posted by in Baking, Recipes

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125 g butter
1/2 teaspoon coconut essence
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
300 g sour cream
80 mls milk

Preheat oven to 180 C

Grease square cake tin and line with non-stick baking paper

Beat butter, essence and sugar until light and fluffy. beat in eggs one at a time.

Stir in coconut, sifted flour, sour cream and milk in two batches.

Spread mixture in tin. Bake for approximately 40 minutes.

** I have also been told this mixture makes lovely cupcakes. Haven’t tried it yet though.

mars bar brownie

14 Sunday Aug 2011

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This is incredibly delicious!
400 g butter, chopped
400 g good quality dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 cups caster sugar
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
2 x 60 g Mars Bars, chilled & chopped

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C. Grease a 4cm deep, 22 cm x 28 cm base pan. Line bottom and two sides with non-stick baking paper.

Combine butter and chocolate in large heatproof microwave safe bowl. Microwave uncovered on Medium High for 3-4 minutes, stirring every minute, or until almost melted. Add cocoa and whisk until smooth.

Add sugar and mix well. Add one third of egg and stir to combine. Repeat with remaining egg. Sift the flour over chocolate mixture . Stir gently until just combined.

Pour mixture into prepared pan. Sprinkle Mars Bar over batter and press in slightly. Bake for 60-65 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre has moist crumbs clinging.

Cool completely in pan (this is the hardest part of the entire recipe! It requires great self control not to devour it immediately) then cut into squares. Very nice on its own, or served slightly warm with whipped cream.

Enjoy!

italian-style chicken pasta salad

12 Friday Aug 2011

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This is so good! Great for a dinner party.

350g chicken breast fillets
¼ cup lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
100g thinly sliced prosciutto
1 Lebanese cucumber
2 tablespoons seasoned pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ cups penne pasta, cooked
½ cup thinly sliced sun dried tomatoes
½ cup pitted black olives, halved
½ cup halved bottled artichoke hearts
½ cup parmesan cheese flakes

Creamy Basil Dressing

1/3 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
¼ teaspoon seasoned pepper
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 teaspoons cornflour
1/3 cup water
2/3 cup cream
1/3 cup shredded fresh basil
Salt, to taste

Remove excess fat and sinew from chicken. Flatten slightly with a mallet or rolling pin.

Place chicken in medium bowl with combined lemon juice and garlic. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight, turning occasionally.

Cut prosciutto into thin strips. Cut cucumber in half lengthwise, then cut each half into slices.

Drain chicken and coat in seasoned pepper. Heat oil in large heavy based frying pan. Cook the chicken for four minutes on each side, or until lightly browned and cooked through. Remove from heat. Cool and cut into 2 cm pieces.

Combine pasta, chicken pieces, cucumber slices, prosciutto, sundried tomatoes and artichoke hearts in a large serving bowl. Pour warm creamy basil dressing over and toss gently to combine.. Serve salad warm or cold, sprinkled with parmesan flakes.

Creamy Basil Dressing

Combine oil, vinegar, seasoned pepper and mustard in a medium pan. Blend cornflour with water in a small bowl or jug until smooth. Add to pan. Whisk over medium heat for 2 minutes or until sauce boils or thickens. Add cream, basil and salt. Stir until heated through.

tartiflette

12 Friday Aug 2011

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Just a little more fancy than your average scalloped potatoes.

1 kg potatoes
50 g butter
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tsp freshly chopped herbs (thyme, oregano)
200 g piece speck or pancetta, cut into 1 cm cubes (or use bacon)
1/2 cup dry white wine
200 ml thickened cream
250 g  reblochon, raclette or gruyere cheese

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C

Place potato in large pot of cold salted water. Bring to the boil and cook for three minutes. Drain well.

Melt butter in large frypan over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic, thyme and speck or pancetta, and stir for 5 minutes.  Stir in wine, cream, potato and most of the cheese.

Transfer mixture to large baking dish and sprinkle remaining cheese over top. Cover with baking paper and then foil. Bake 20 minutes then remove baking paper and foil. Bake for a further 20 minutes until bubbling and golden.

herb chicken balls with spicy dipping sauce

10 Wednesday Aug 2011

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(Makes about 40)

I made these recently. My teenage sons saw the recipe and asked if I was really going to cook chickens balls…

½ cup rice
2 teaspoons oil
5 spring onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
750g chicken mince
1/3 cup grated fresh parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra oil for deep frying

Boil, steam or microwave rice until tender.

Heat oil in a pan. Add spring onions, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring until spring onions are soft.

In a large bowl combine chicken, cheese, parsley, spring onion mixture and rice. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 mins.

Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls.

Deep-fry balls in extra hot oil until golden brown and cooked through. Drain on absorbent paper.

Serve with Spicy Sauce (below).

SPICY SAUCE

2/3 cup mild Thai-style sweet chilli sauce
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

low carb lasagne

08 Monday Aug 2011

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By using thinly sliced eggplant and zuchinni you can have lasagne with virtually zero carbs.

300 g Minced lean beef
1 x 400g can diced tomatoes
2 Garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 Cup Beef stock (low salt)
1 Large Eggplant
2 Large Zucchini
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh oregano, finely chopped
2 Tbsp Fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
1 1/2 Tbsp Tomato paste
2 tsp Mixed Italian Herbs, dried
1/4 Cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 Cup Cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 180C / 350F

Heat a saucepan and spray with olive oil. Cook garlic and onion until soft. Add the meat, sprinkle with half the Italian Herbs and cook until brown, then stir in the tomatoes.

Add the tomato paste, beef stock, fresh oregano and basil. Season with fresh cracked pepper and a pinch of sea salt. Simmer the sauce for about 30 minutes until the juice has reduced and thickened.

Meanwhile, thinly slice the eggplant and zucchini longways then place on a lined baking tray. Spray lightly with olive oil. Season with the rest of the mixed Italian herbs. Cook in oven for about 20 minutes, turning once. Once cooked, allow to cool for a few minutes.

Grease a small, square oven-proof dish and place the eggplant in it so it completely covers the bottom. Top this with a layer of meat sauce. Next, top with a layer of zucchini slices then again with the meat sauce. Keep layering until sauce is finished and finish with a layer of eggplant. Top with the cheeses.

Place foil over the top of the dish and bake in the oven for around 15 minutes at 200c.

Remove foil and grill for a further 5 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with a large garden salad.

red onion marmalade

06 Saturday Aug 2011

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3 ½        Red onions
1/3         Cup dry red wine
1/3         Cup red wine vinegar
¼            Cup light brown sugar
¼            Cup honey
1              Tbsp orange juice
1              Tbsp lemon juice

Cook onions, wine, vinegar, brown sugar and honey over medium heat stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Simmer until mixture is the consistency of a marmalade, about 30 minutes.

Stir in orange and lemon juices. Continue to cook, stirring, until juices are absorbed. Let cool, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 weeks. Serve at room temperature.

Makes about two cups.

lemon bars

04 Thursday Aug 2011

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HIGHLY addictive! But oh, so good!

Crust
1 cup butter
1 3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup icing sugar (plus more for dusting)

Topping
1 1/2 cup plain sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease and flour a 9 X 13 pan

To make crust:

  • In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and icing sugar
  • Cut in butter until combined and crumbly.
  • Press mixture into bottom of pan.
  • Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

To make topping:

  • While crust is baking, prepare topping.
  • In a larger bowl, add sugar, flour, and baking powder.
  • Then add slightly beaten eggs and lemon juice.
  • Mix well and pour on top of warm baked crust.
  • Bake for 20-25 minutes.
  • When cool, dust with icing sugar and refrigerate.
  • Cut into bars and enjoy them cold!

american pancakes

01 Monday Aug 2011

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One of our favourite weekend family breakfasts is pancakes. Not the thin crepe-style pancakes, but the thick, light-as-air ones, stacked and oozing with syrup.

Delicious.

Pancakes

225 grams plain flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

30 grams melted butter

350 mls buttermilk

Put all ingredients into a blender or food processor and whizz till well blended. You may need to scrape down the sides of the jug/bowl after a few seconds to ensure all ingredients well mixed in. Leave for 20 minutes.

Fry pancakes in a buttered pan. Not too hot though or the butter and first side burn before you have a chance to flip it over. Remember that when the top side of pancake is bubbling it’s time to flip.

The size of the pancakes is up to you. This mixture makes about 10 smallish pancakes (about 10cm diameter). And of course you can use whatever toppings take your fancy. Maple syrup, fruit, berries, cream, sugar and lemon juice…

Enjoy!