A Wannabe Food Critic

Passionfruit and Lemon Tart with Burnt Sugar

2014-04-25T03:37:00.003-07:00

This is a fabulous dessert by Mindfood. I did not change the recipe at all and it turned out perfectly. As you can see from the picture it was not so easy to cut! But a great dessert that is not too sweet.

Sweet Pastry (or use the bought stuff)

125g unsalted butter

100g caster sugar

1 egg, plus two yolks

250g flour

Passionfruit And Lemon Filling

2 cups cream

½ cup sugar

1 lemon, zest only

3 egg yolks, plus two eggs

175ml lemon juice

85ml passionfruit pulp, whisked and seeds strained

caster sugar for the glaze

whipped cream or ice cream, to serve

3 passionfruit, halved, to serve

Method

Take a medium-sized mixing bowl and cream the butter and sugar together until pale in colour. Add the egg and stir to combine. Next, lightly mix through the flour until dough forms. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate until required.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a 28cm diameter by 3cm height round flan tin. Cut out a circle of baking paper to place in the bottom of the tin.

On a lightly floured bench, roll the pastry out to a 5mm thick round. Gently lay the pastry into the flan tin and press into the edges. Using a knife, trim the excess pastry from the lip of the tin. Rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. This will prevent the pastry from shrinking when you bake it.

Blind bake the pastry shell for 20 minutes until slightly golden, using baking paper weighted with beans, rice or similar. Remove the paper and weights, turn the oven down to 150°C and continue to bake until the base is cooked and crisp (about 10 minutes). Beat the yolks lightly and brush around the inside of the tart and return to the oven for a minute. Remove from the oven and cool. (The yolk will create a protective membrane and prevent any possible leakage.)

Turn oven temperature to 120°C.

For the filling, gently heat cream, sugar and lemon zest together in a saucepan until sugar is dissolved.

Whisk eggs and yolks together in a mixing bowl. While whisking continuously, slowly drizzle the hot cream into eggs a little at a time until fully combined. Stir through the lemon juice and passionfruit juice, before straining custard through a sieve. Let custard sit for 5 minutes and skim any froth off the top.

Fill your pre-baked shell with custard and bake for 45-50 minutes until the tart is just set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate once tart is completely cool.

Sprinkle a healthy layer of caster sugar over your tart and “brûlée” with a gas blowtorch until dark and close to burnt in places.

Portion up with a hot knife and serve with a dollop of cream and half a fresh passionfruit on the side

Baileys White Chocolate Fudge

2013-11-30T22:07:00.001-08:00

Another great treat for Xmas.....

Ingredients
150ml Baileys
50ml milk
30g butter
350g caster sugar
300g white chocolate, broken into squares

Method
1 Line a square 20cm cake or slice time with baking paper
2 Measure out 125ml of Baileys and pour into the saucepan
3 Add the milk, butter, caster sugar and put the pan over a low heat. Stir occasionally until the sugar has dissolved and the butter melted. This takes approx 10 mins
4 Turn the heat to medium and stir while the mixture gently simmers. You want the bubbles calmly breaking the surface for 10 mins.
5 Remove pan from heat and stir in chocolate and the last 25ml Baileys. Keep stirring until chocolate has melted and you have a smooth consistency.
6 Transfer to the tin, and chill for at least 2 hours. Cut into squares.

Sticky Date pudding

2013-11-23T19:49:00.002-08:00

This is such an easy recipe and is sure to please guests!

Ingredients
1.5 cups (200g) seeded dried dates
1.5 cups (310ml) boiling water
1 tsp baking soda
50g butter chopped
half cup (100g) firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten lightly
1 cup (150g) self-raising flour

Butterscotch sauce
3/4 cup (150g) firmly packed brown sugar
300ml cream
80g butter

1 Preheat oven to 175oC. Grease deep 20cm round cake tin, line base with baking paper.
2 Combine dates and the water in medium heatproof bowl. Stir in soda and stand for 5 minutes.
3 Blend or process date mixture with butter and sugar until pureed. Add eggs and flour, blend or process until just combined. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
4 Bake, uncovered, in oven about 1 hour (cover with foil if pudding starts to overbrown). Stand for 10 minutes; turn onto serving plate. Serve warm with butterscotch sauce, strawberries and vanilla ice-cream.

Butterscotch sauce Combine ingredients in medium saucepan; stir over low heat until sauce is smooth and slightly thickened.

Serves 8.

Harvest Tomato Sauce

2013-01-28T23:34:00.000-08:00

With summer here and extra tomatoes grown in the garden this is a fabulous recipe to make and then either bottle or freeze. It is so versatile, but I usually use it as a pasta sauce base. I must give credit where credit is due as it is adapted from an Annabel Langbein recipe, from the book A Free Range Cook!

Ingredients

1kg tomatoes, cred and cut into wedges
1 red capsicum
1 onion, cut into thin wedges
3-4 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp chopped rosemary leaves
1 small chilli, seeded and chopped (optional)
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp olive oil
ground black pepper

Method
1 Preheat oven to 160oC. prepare the tomatoes, capsicum
and onion and place in a lined roasting dish in a single layer so they roast and caramelise rather than stew. You may need two roasting dishes.

2 Add the garlic, rosemary, and chilli. in a small bowl mix together the tomato paste, sugar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Spoon this mixture over the vegetables and stir through them to coat evenly.

3 Bake for about 2 hours or until vegetables are starting to caramelise and shrivel a little.

4 Allow the vegetables to cook then puree in a food processor or blender. The sauce will keep in the fridge for up to a week or can be frozen or bottled while still hot.

Red pepper shots with prawns

2012-10-05T16:15:00.000-07:00

Of course I never follow a recipe exactly, I like to adjust it to my own tastes. Therefore from the cooking class in Barcelona I have created red pepper shots with a garlic and chilli prawn to serve as a canape at a party.

Ingredients

2 large red bell peppers
3 large shallots
350-400mls water
salt
pinch sugar
8-10 saffron threads toasted

Method
1 Preheat the oven to 180oC, cut the peppers in half and place on an oven tray. Spread some olive oil over the peppers and season with salt. Bake in the oven for approx 30mins or until roasted.
2 Put the roasted peppers in a bowl and cover with gladwrap so they can sweat. Once cooled, peel the skins off and deseed. Cut into slices and set aside.
3 Slice the shallots, and simmer in a pan with a Tbsp olive oil until cooked. Do not brown.
4 Add the peppers, pinch of salt and sugar and cook for a further 5 mins.
5 Add the water and let simmer for a further 15-20 minutes. Take off heat.
6 Toast the saffron and infuse the soup with it (off the heat). Cover and leave for 1 hour.
7 Puree through a blender and place back into the pot. Check seasoning.
8 Serve the soup in shot glasses with anything you like as an accompaniment - a garlic prawn as I did was great. Sprinkle the prawns with parsley.

Cook and Taste cooking class, Barcelona

2012-10-05T15:38:00.000-07:00

While in Barcelona we could not miss an opportunity to have a Spanish cooking class.

http://www.cookandtaste.net/

Our class started at 5pm with a group of about 12 of us.

The menu was:

- Shot of red bell pepper soup flavoured with toasted saffron and cod
- Magret of duck, caramelised onion and foie cake
- Seafood paella
- Crema Catalana

It was a pretty hands on experience with an emphasis on 'experience' rather than learning... with a bit of wine to go with it.

Paella recipe (serves 4)

Ingredients
4 prawns
1/2 squid
300gr mussels
2 cloves garlic
1 or 2 tomatoes
1 green pepper
1 small red onion
6 Tbsp olive oil
320 grams rice
1 Ltr fish stock (4.4 cups)
8-10 saffron threads

Method
1 Heat the oil in the pan and fry the squid and prawns until slightly browned. Set aside.
2 Chop the onion and the green pepper and add them into the hot oil and fry slightly. After a few minutes add the chopped garlic and fry over medium heat.
3 Add the rice and fry for a few minutes. Then stir in the hot stock. Leave the rice now and do not stir.
4 Cook for a further 8 minutes approx on medium to high heat.
5 reduce the heat to medium and cook for a further 10 minutes.
6 Stir in the mussels and at the last moment add back in the prawns and squid. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Not your everyday burger joint

2012-10-05T15:01:00.000-07:00

Kiosko Gourmet Burger

Marques de L_Argentera 1 bis 08003, 08003 Barcelona, Spain

http://www.kioskoburger.com/

I know, I know, we should not have been eating burgers while in such a gastronomic place like Barcelona is! However, my husband loves a good burger, so we could not miss the chance to check these out. The place is extremely popular, so be prepared to queue - nothing new for Barcelona! The burger was beyond expectations. If you love a good gourmet burger you can't miss going here.

Cabbages and Condoms, Bangkok, Thailand

2012-10-05T14:52:00.000-07:00

A great experience if you happen to be in Bangkok is to go the Cabbages and Condoms Restaurant.

Location:

10 Sukhumvit Soi 12, Bangkok 10260, Thailand

Website:

http://www.pda.or.th/restaurant/

This restaurant was set up by the guy who brought contraception to Thailand. It is a fun, somewhat educational place, with everything in the surroundings either made out of condoms or related to safe sex.

Background:
The restaurant was conceptualized in part to
promote better understanding and acceptance
of family planning and to generate income
to support various development activities
of the Population and Community
Development Association (PDA)

Food:
There is an extensive menu of a range of Thai foods and are all very reasonably priced.

And remember, the food is guaranteed not to cause pregnancy!

Rhubarb Apple Crumble

2012-08-25T22:39:00.003-07:00

Ingredients

3 cooking apples, peeled, quartered and cored
1 cup water
20 sticks rhubarb
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind
100g butter, chopped
½ cup self raising flour
½ cup lightly packed brown sugar
½ cup rolled oats

Method

1 Preheat oven to 180 C.

2 Cut apples into thick slices and place in a saucepan with water. Simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile wash rhubarb and chop into 5 cm lengths. Add rhubarb, sugar and orange rind to apple, return to the boil and simmer for 3 minutes.

3 Pour mixture into a shallow oven proof dish. Make the crumble by rubbing the butter into the flour, mix in brown sugar, and rolled oats. Sprinkle crumble evenly over the apple and rhubarb and bake for 30 minutes. Serve with icecream, cream or custard.

Quick and Easy Chicken and Leek Pie

2012-08-25T22:39:00.001-07:00

Ingredients
Flaky Puff Pastry ( shop-bought is fine)

Filling

1.8 kg chicken (free-range preferably)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
4 leeks, white part and a little into the green
1 medium onion finely chopped
50g butter
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1 egg, beaten and mixed with 1 tablespoon milk to glaze the pie.

Method

1 Simmer the chicken with salt, freshly ground black pepper and bay leaf in a large saucepan of water for 1 hour or until cooked. When cool enough to handle remove flesh from chicken and discard skin and bones.

2 Strain the stock and skim fat as it rises to the surface.

3 Preheat the oven to 210 C
4 Wash and slice the leeks and sauté in butter with the onion until tender, stir in the flour and gradually add 3 cups of the chicken stock while constantly stirring until sauce boils and thickens. Add the chicken and the cream parsley and chives.
5 Pour the filling in to the pastry shell and cover with pastry, pressing the edges together. Glaze the pastry with the egg mixture and make a few steam holes.

6 Bake in the oven until the pastry is crisp and golden, about 35 minutes.

Spanish Romesco Sauce

2012-08-25T22:32:00.003-07:00

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
1 1-inch thick slice of crusty bread, torn into pieces
1/2 cup blanched almonds, chopped or slivered (can substitute hazelnuts, peeled)
5-6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 425g can of crushed tomatoes, or canned whole tomatoes (including the juice) that have been de-seeded, (you can use fresh tomatoes when in season)
200g roasted red bell peppers, (drained if using from a jar)
1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika (preferred) or sweet paprika
2-3 Tbsp sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

Method

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C. Heat the olive oil in a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, sauté the bread and almonds, stirring often, until they just begin to brown. Add the garlic and sauté another 1-2 minutes, stirring once or twice.
2 Place the contents of the sauté pan into a food processor with the remaining ingredients—salt, tomatoes, roasted bell peppers, smoked paprika, vinegar. Purée until smooth. Spread the sauce out on a baking sheet in a pan and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges begin to caramelize. Allow to cool and scrape into a container to store.
To use romesco sauce, mix with pasta, shrimp, chicken or vegetables either before or after they are cooked, much like you would a pesto. I prefer it best with chicken skewers
Kept in a sealed container, Romesco sauce will last for a week or more in the fridge. It freezes well, too.

Yield: Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Julia Child's Chicken Liver Pate

2012-08-25T22:23:00.003-07:00

Julia Child’s Chicken Liver Mousse
Adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Ingredients
2 cups chicken livers
2 Tbsp minced shallots
2 Tbsp butter
1/3 cup cognac or brandy
1/4 cup cream
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. allspice
1/8 tsp. pepper
Pinch of fresh thyme
1/2 cup melted butter
Salt and pepper

Method
1. Remove any greenish or blackish spots from the livers, as well as any sinew. Cut the livers into 1 cm pieces.
2. Melt butter over medium heat in a sauté pan until foam has subsided. Sauté livers with the shallots in butter for 2 to 3 minutes, until the livers are just stiffened, but still rosy inside. Scrape into the blender jar.
3. Pour the wine or cognac into the pan and boil it down rapidly until it has reduced to 3 tablespoons. Scrape it into the blender jar.
4. Add the cream and seasonings to the blender jar. Cover and blend at top speed for several seconds until the liver is a smooth paste.
5. Add the melted butter and blend several seconds more. Adjust seasoning.
6. Optional: press through a sieve to get rid of any chunky bits.
7. Pack into the bowl or jar and chill for 2 to 3 hours.During this process you can seal it with some melted butter.

Salmon and Red Pepper Spring Rolls

2011-09-12T02:02:00.000-07:00

Here is a great finger food dish that you can prepare ahead of time and just do the final cook in the oven before serving. Alternatively you can make bigger rolls for a lunch dish.

Ingredients

500g fresh boneless, skinless salmon fillet

4 tsp dukkah

Zest of a lemon

2 Tbsp chopped coriander

Flesh of one large roasted red pepper cut into 8 pieces

8 spring roll wrappers

Method

1 Cut salmon into batons about 10cm x 3cm.

2 Place one baton on the centre of each spring roll wrapper. Sprinkle with half a tsp dukkah, a little lemon zest and coriander, and top with a piece of roasted pepper.

3 Fold in ends and roll up like a fat cigar. Place on a plate and chill until ready to cook. Make 8 rolls.

4 Heat oil in frypan and brown rolls over medium heat for about 2 mins each side.

5 Transfer to a 200oC oven and bake for 5 mins until golden brown and crispy.

Serve with the following dipping sauce – 3Tbsp sweet chilli sauce, 1 Tbsp fish sauce, 1 tsp grated ginger, and juice of half a lime all mixed together.

Annabel Langbein & Regal Salmon

2011-08-26T21:58:00.000-07:00

I joined the 'Free Range Cook' last week at Nosh Foodmarket to see some dishes made with Regal Salmon.
Some creative, easy and delicious recipes were
demonstrated , including this Grilled Salmon with Lemongrass and Chilli.

Ingredients
900g boneless, skinless salmon fillets (can do whole or in portions)
2 tsp finely grated lemongrass
1/4 cup sweet chilli sauce
1 Tbsp fish sauce
2 kaffir lime leaves, finely chopped (or finely grate zest of 2 limes)
2 Tbsp lime juice
1tsp finely grated fresh ginger
salt and ground black pepper

Method
1 Preheat oven to 250oC. Prepare salmon and place in a shallow baking dish.
2 Combine all other ingredients in a small bowl and pour over salmon.
3 Once oven is up to temperature, change heat setting to grill.
4 Grill salmon about 10cm from heat source until cooked through and golden (about 6-8mins) This method is called flash grilling.
5 Rest fish, just like you do meat but covering in tinfoil and then a tea towel for 15 minutes. This helps with finishing off the cooking process.
6 Serve on a bed of rocket. Spoon over the sauces from the pan and any left over marinade. Squeeze some lemon juice over and serve with some lemon cheeks.
7 This can be served warm or cold.

Delicious!

BBQ Chicken and lime leaf

2011-07-22T21:40:00.000-07:00

We learnt how to cook this flavoursome chicken dish during our recent cooking class at the famous Morning Glory Cooking School in Hoi An, Vietnam.

BBQ chicken with mango salad

Ingredients
800g boneless chicken thighs, skin off
1/3 cup fresh turmeric or 1 Tbsp ground turmeric
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp coarse black pepper
1/2 tsp five spice
1 Tbsp sugar
1/3 cup lemongrass, pounded
4 kaffir lime leaves, sliced finely
2 Tbsp garlic, pounded
2 Tbsp shallots, pounded
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp fish sauce
8 wooden skewers soaked in water for an hour

Method
1 Cut thighs into 16 pieces. Place in a bowl. Add salt, sugar, black pepper and five spice and mix well.
2 Pound turmeric, add to chicken with garlic, shallots, lemongrass, chilli, lime leaves, sesame oil, and fish sauce. Mix well. You may like to wear plastic gloves to stop your hands turning yellow if using fresh turmeric.
3 Marinate for 30 minutes.
4 Thread 2 pieces onto each skewer. Grill 5-6 minutes on each side on a low heat.

Serves for as a main and is lovely accompanied with a mango salad.

Cranberry and White Chocolate Biscotti

2011-07-22T21:22:00.000-07:00

Because of their dry texture, biscotti are traditionally served with a drink such as coffee or wine, into which they can be dunked. I like to serve it with the white chocolate creme brulee (see recipe in blog) that I also love to eat!

Ingredients
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1.5 cups flour (2 cups depending on the size of your eggs)
1 tsp baking powder
100g white chocolate, coarsely chopped
70g blanched almonds
100g dried cranberries

Method
1 Preheat oven to 175oC. Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla until pale and thick.
2 Add sifted flour and baking powder, chocolate, almonds and cranberries and fold together to form a sticky dough. Divide mixture into two and turn out onto a lined baking tray.
3 Using wet hands, shape dough into two flat logs about 7cm x 20cm. Bake 25-30mins until lightly browned and firm.
4 Reduce oven to 150oC. Allow logs to cool at least 15 minutes then cut into 1cm-thick slices. (I like to cut mine thicker than this). Place on lined trays and bake for 15-20 mins until dry and crisp, turning over halfway through cooking. Cool on wire racks. Makes up to 35.

You can create your own biscotti flavours from this recipe using different chocolate, dried fruit and nuts, rum essence, or finely grated zest of an orange.

Holidaying in Vietnam

2011-06-30T03:01:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from a fabulous 17 days in Vietnam. I will post the wonderful dishes we created in Hoi An during our cooking class later, but first I'd like to do a review of our trip.

View of pool from hotel room

There was a lot of searching the Internet and discussion with friends on where to go and how long to stay there. Unfortunately, we lost a day due to the volcano erupting in Chile which caused plane delays due to the ash cloud circumnavigating the southern hemisphere. We began our trip in the south - Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon to the locals).We stayed at an amazing hotel - The Majestic Hotel. We chose it as it was not just another 5 star hotel, but one with history and character, and were not disappointed. By the way, we booked all of our hotels on Hotels.com.

Memorable moments of Ho Chi Minh City:
* Breakfast on the rooftop of the Majestic Hotel with the view of the River.
* Crawling through the Cu Chi Tunnels
* Dinner with friends at Hoa Tuc Restaurant - the best food we had in the whole of Vietnam
* Trying to cross the road outside our hotel - and deciding not to!
* Sheltering in a torrential downpour in the old Post Office.

From Ho Chi Minh we flew to Danang and caught a taxi to Hoi An. The taxi took about 30-40 minutes and cost less than $20. We booked our flights from home on the Vietnam Airlines and they were really reasonable. We had heard so much about Hoi An and really were not disappointed. It has an old town that is closed off to cars. The place is famous for getting clothing made (which we did) and cooking classes (which we also did).

Memorable moments of Hoi An:
* Eating our first Vietnamese style Wonton's at Ms Ly's restaurant
* The wonderful photo opportunities in the old town and market
* Our bicycle tour into the countryside in 40degree heat - Heaven and Earth
* The fabulous half day cooking class (check out the Vietnamese food entries) at Morning glory
* Watching the world go by at the Mango House restaurant

After 5 days in Hoi An we took a tourist bus to Hue. In hindsight this 4 hour trip could have been more plesant if we had hired a driver as they were so cheap. But at $6 each we could hardly complain. Hue is a World Heritage site, and is famous for its Citadel. But the best thing about our stay here was our hotel. A complete oasis away from the hustle and bustle and heat of Hue. To be honest, the township of Hue reminded me of Kuta Beach in Bali more than 10 years ago and that is not a compliment. Luckily, our hotel was situated 5km out of town, with free shuttles into town. With 40oC heat we were happy to have the beautiful pool, and after 10 days of travel and being tourists, we needed a bit of rest from all the sight-seeing. I so wish we had booked for longer!

Highlights of Hue
* The Citadel - a must visit
* The swimming pool in the stiffling heat
* The yoga class in the tranquil spa
* Hotel - Pilgrimage Village - a complete bargain for a 5
star hotel.

Our favourite restaurant in Hue would have been La Carambole. This is owned by a Frenchman and his Vietnamese wife and serves both cuisines. The food was excellent and it was amazingly cheap.

Moving on from Hue was a flight to Hanoi. After such tranquility I don't think we were prepared for the energy and pace of life of a population bigger than NZs total. We stayed in the Old Quarter which has a population density of over 50,000km2 - and you could tell!

Our hotel was Hanoi Elite Hotel - number 1 on Trip Advisor when we booked. at $50 a night it was a great deal, clean and comfortable for a very small hotel and the best part was the customer service. The staff could not have been more helpful and friendly. We booked out trip to Halong Bay through our hotel and were not disappointed with the Indochina Sails trip we took for two days and one night.

This trip was really a highlight of our trip and a great end to a wonderful 17 days.

PANFORTE!

2010-12-29T20:36:00.000-08:00

This is a traditional Italian dessert resembling fruit cake, and for those that prefer something a bit more chocolaty at Christmas it is just the thing. It is an incredibly versatile recipe as you can play around with different combinations of fruit and nuts.

Ingredients
85g flour
2 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp dried ginger
200g dried fruit (I used 100g figs, and then a mixture of cranberries, apricots and pineapple)
250g nuts (I used 100g brazil nuts, and 150g roasted almonds, but you could use hazelnuts)
100g chocolate, coarsely chopped
zest of 1 orange
150g castor sugar
150g honey
icing sugar to dust

Method
1 Preheat the oven to 150oC bake. Grease and line a 20cm round cake tin.
2 Sift the flour and spices into a bowl and add the fruit, nuts, chocolate and orange zest and mix to combine.
3 Place the sugar, honey, and 2 Tbsp of water in a saucepan and slowly bring to the boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Continue to boil over medium heat until the mixture reaches soft ball stage (drip a small amount of the mixture into a glass of cold water. A soft ball should form.)
4 Using a wooden spoon and working quickly, pour the caramel over the dry ingredients and mix well to combine.
5 Spoon out into the greased tin and bake for 15 mins. Cool and sprinkle generously with icing sugar. Store in an airtight container. Serve in small bite-sized pieces with coffee, or dessert wine.

Florentine Slice

2010-12-07T00:18:00.000-08:00

Ingredients
200g dark chocolate (or milk if you prefer)
3/4 cup sultanas
2 cups crushed corm flakes
1/2 cup roasted almonds roughly chopped
60g red glace cherries
2/3 cup condensed milk

Method
1 Put chopped chocolate in top of a double saucepan, stir over simmering water until melted.
2 Spread evenly over base of 28cm x 18cm tin lined with foil. Bring foil over edges for easy removal.
3 Refridgerate until set.
4 Combine sultanas, corflakes, almonds, chopped cherries and condensed milk in a bowl. Mix well and spread mixture evenly ovr chocolate base.
5 Bake in moderate oven for 15-20mins. Cool, refridgerate until set.

YUMMY!

Smoked Salmon Pate

2010-12-06T23:50:00.000-08:00

Smoked Salmon Pate

Ingredients
100g smoked salmon
1 x 250g packet cream cheese (I choose to use light, but that's up to you)
half a lemon's zest
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup raw almonds, finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped herbs (I used whatever was in the garden - parsley, chives and dill)

12 slices cooked vogel toast bread cut into triangles - or whatever you prefer to serve it with

Method
1 Place salmon, cream cheese, lemon zest and juice into a food processor. Process until smooth, pink mixture forms.
2 Spoon into two small dishes for serving. Smooth the tops, cover with gladwrap and refridgerate for at least a couple of hours.
3 Combine chopped nuts and herbs. Remove plastic from the top of the salmon pate. Sprinkle herb mixture over top evenly. Place on serving platter with vogel toasts/ fresh french stick,or whatever you want to serve it wth

Alternative:
If you make this recipe with full-fat cream cheese it will set better and therefore you can grease and line a dish with gladwrap and place the salmon in. Cover and leave in the fridge for four hours min before rolling in double the herb mixture.

Taste of Auckland with a Matt Moran Masterclass

2010-11-27T15:01:00.000-08:00

The highlight of 'Taste of Auckland' this weekend was the masterclass with Matt Moran chef and owner of Aria restaurant in Sydney and Brisbane, and co-host of Australia's Masterchef for Series 3. Check out the video clip of him searing a piece of tuna fish. He was quite the entertainer!

I have to admit I felt like a teenager about to meet some rockstar - how age changes our priorities.... to good food!

Along with this, we spent a pleasurable three hours indulging in fabulous food from a number of top Auckland restaurants and sampling nibbles from a number of top NZ food producers. Oh, and I forgot to mention the great wine,,, of course couldn't go past the Cloudy Bay stall for some Pelorus bubbles.

Crushed Broadbeans on Brushetta

2010-10-05T22:20:00.000-07:00

With new spring veges in the garden and farmers market this beautiful green treat is delicious and a delight to be seen. Motivation came from finding broadbeans at La Cigale (French Farmers Market in Parnel) and I really didn't have a recipe to follow.....but it turned out delicious!

Ingredients
1 bunch Broadbeans (or half a bag of frozen beans) cooked and double podded
Handful of grated parmesan
good pinch of rock salt
two glugs of extra virgin olive oil
1 small garlic clove

Method
1 Add cooked broadbeans, parmesan, olive oil, salt and garlic to a mortar and pestle. Crush all ingredients together.
2 Cut a french stick or small ciabatta into slices and toast in the oven on both sides, brushed with garlic infused olive oil.
3 Load the brushetta with bean mixture and serve.

Chocolate Chip biscuits

2010-10-03T15:18:00.000-07:00

This has got to be the most delicious chocolate chip biscuit recipe you can find.

Ingredients
125g butter, softened (you can use unsalted as well)
1.25 cups tightly packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 egg, lightly beaten
1.5 cups plain flour
0.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 cups chocolate bits

Method
1 Preheat oven to 180oC.
2 place butter and sugar in a bowl and beat until light and creamy. Add vanilla and egg and stir to combine.
3 Stir in the sifted flour and baking powder until just combined. Fold through chocolate bits.
4 Place spoonfuls of mixture on a lined baking tray, allowing room for spreading. Cook for 15-20 mins, until they turn pale gold. allow to cool on the tray for 5 mins before placing biscuits on a wire rack to cool further. Makes 16.

Homemade Sausage Rolls

2010-09-05T01:20:00.000-07:00

Another great recipe from Masterchef Australia, but as usual I have adjusted it. You can always double the recipe if you want to make loads, but this recipe make about 20 - depending on how big you like them.

Ingredients
1 Tbsp butter
1 large carrot, peeled, grated
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
4 thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
1 garlic cloves, crushed
200g beef mince
200g pork mince
1 Tbsp fresh oregano
I Tbsp tomato paste
! Tbsp lea and perrins
1 cups fresh breadcrumbs
2 x sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed, halved
1 egg yolks, lightly whisked
sesame seeds, to garnish
tomato or BBQ sauce, to serve

Method
Step 1: Preheat oven to 180°C.

Step 2: Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat, add grated carrot and cook for until carrot starts to soften. Cover with a lid and cook for 4-5 minutes until very soft. Puree carrot mixture in a blender until smooth. Season to taste. Set aside to cool completely. (Puree optional)

Step 3: Heat oil in frying pan over medium-high heat, then add onion, thyme, bay leaf, garlic and a pinch of salt. Cook for 4-6 minutes or until onion has softened. Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf and set aside to cool completely.

Step 4: Combine minces, the carrot puree, oregano, onion mixture and breadcrumbs in a large bowl. Season with salt. Divide the mince mixture into 4 portions and shape into a log the length of the past sheet. Place pastry sheet onto a floured work surface and slice each pastry sheet in half lengthways. Place the sausage log across the closest edge of a pastry sheet. Roll to enclose mixture until the two edges of the pastry meet, trim and discard excess pastry. Brush a little egg wash on the join to secure.

Step 5: Cut the rolls to the size you prefer (I cut 5 per roll) and place on a lined baking tray, brush evenly with egg yolk and sprinkle with seeds. Repeat with remaining pastry. Cook in the oven for about 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

Step 6: Serve with either tomato or BBQ sauce.

My Anzac Biscuits

2010-08-13T21:53:00.000-07:00

I've never been one to really follow a recipe and this is a prime example! I started with an Anzac biscuit recipe and gave it a twist. The attempt was to make a biscuit you felt guilt free when eating. Hey, they have got to be better than eating processed museli bars from the supermarket!

Ingredients

1 cup plain flour
1 cup coconut
1 cup rolled oats
half a cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp hot water
125gm butter
2 Tbsp golden syrup
1.5 cups total of a combination of raisins/sultana, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, sliced almonds. (Or whatever you have in the cupboard)

Method
1 Melt butter and syrup together in a saucepan and leave to cool.
2 all dry ingredients together, add fruit and nuts. Add butter mixture and mix together.
3 Dissolve soda in water and mix in.
4 Place rounded balls on a greased over tray. Bake at 180 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden.
Makes approx 16, depending on the size you choose.