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Learning how to make goat's cheese...

2013-03-17T15:45:00.002+11:00

At the end of February 2013, I went to Leaning Oak in Mudgee New South Wales to take learn the ancient art of making cheese. Leaning Oak has workshops about once a month with the wonderfully informative artisan cheese-maker Gloria. She is one of the owners of the farm (sharing the responsibility with her husband) and they make fantastic cheeses from their very own herd of sheep and goats.

The goats & sheep are a happy group. They are well cared for and it shows.

We began the trip by getting into Mudgee on Friday and staying at a Farmer's Daughter Wines The Rose cabin. We booked a couple of months in advance to ensure we had somewhere nice to stay and very nice it was!! The cabin was a well equipped two bedroom, each with their own en suite, full kitchen, and living area. I would definitely recommend them to anyone who wanted to stay near Mudgee proper and visit the area.

Cabin at Farmer's Daughter Wines
791 Ulan Road, Mudgee, NSW

On Saturday, we awoke refreshed and after a light breakfast of oatmeal, we headed over to the Leaning Oak farm to begin our class to start at 9 a.m. We were so excited and raring to go that we actually got there at 8:30 a.m. and consequently, had a bit of time to get to know our fellow class-mates (max class size of 6). There was another couple that had a herd of goats and were looking to learn how to make cheese from their milk. Also present was a lady who once had a herd of Boer goats and was interested in learning about cheese making as well. Those three, and our group of three made up the six person class size that worked so well together.

Once tea/coffee were drunk and visiting was finished, Gloria came in and explained what we were going to do on our first day and checked to see if we had brought our extras (change of shoes, ice cream or other containers, and an optional apron) from the list she had sent us in advance of the class. The extra shoes were for cleanliness, one for out in the dairy/on the farm, and the other for inside the cheese making room. The containers were for bringing your cheeses back home in and of course the optional apron was to protect your clothing in case of spills. Once all the ground work was laid, we went off to try our hand at milking the goats the old fashioned way.

Milking goats by hand is not as easy for some as it was for others. The process is time consuming and the milking machine makes faster work of it. Makes much more sense to machine milk than it does to try and hand milk but the experience of doing it that was is something that will not be easily forgotten. The goats are harnessed in a milking bay and they are given grain to eat while they are being milked. They are perfectly content and happy with not a care in the world. The milking machine is quick and efficient.

Happy goats, waiting to be milked

After milking, we go back and change our shoes to go into the cheese making room. The first thing we are taught is how to pasteurize the fresh goats milk. We use the double boiling system with the stainless steel jug of fresh milk sitting on a trivet in a vat of boiling water. Heat the milk to 68 degrees Celsius and keep it at that temperature for 2 minutes.

Once you have pasteurized your milk, you must bring the temperature back down to make cheese. Putting the milk container in a cold water bath will accomplish this quickly. Keep an eye on the milk to ensure that the temperature only comes down to about 34 degrees Celsius. Decant about 3 litres of milk in one container for the fresh cheese and about 6.5 litres into another for making feta. Everything should be sanitized appropriately before hand. Cleanliness is very very important here. No unwanted bacteria need apply!

Measuring out the milk

Once you have the milk measured out and at the right temperature, you add your starter to the containers and mix. Use a stainless steel spoon to mix with but never wood. Wooden spoons can harbour bad bacteria that you don't want in your cheese.

Starter: It has the consistency of runny yoghurt

Once you have added the amount of correct starter (bacterial controlled milk that has been mixed ahead of time) needed to each container of milk, you stir it in gently for about two minutes with a sanitized stainless steel spoon. You want an even mixture but don't be to vigorous with it.

Supplies: Milton Anti-bacterial solution, Liquid Calcium and Vegetarian Rennet

Next, measure out the rennet and the calcium into separate containers that a little cooled pre-boiled water has been added to. Add these each to the milk one at a time and gently stir for approximately 2 minutes to distribute the calcium and rennet evenly. Do not stir the mixture to much or the milk will split and create a separated product that is useless in making cheese. Luckily, we didn't have this problem.

Rennet and Calcium containers

Just a little side note for those interested; The reason we add calcium is that it fortifies the protein in goat's milk to aid in coagulation. Goat's milk does not contain as robust protein as cow's or sheep's milk. The rennet makes a firmer cheese creating curds and whey.

After adding these products and stirring the milk, maintain the setting temperature and wait for curd to form. The room will need to be kept warm during this process to encourage the cheese to set. In about 90 minutes, the curd will be ready to cut. The process for checking to see if it is, in fact, ready to cut is to first cut a vertical incision and then a horizontal one across it. Press gently downward until you see that the curd is firm and the whey has an opaque greenish colour to it. Test #1, have a reasonably transparent whey. If the whey is milky, give it some more time.

Checking the curd

For the feta, cut the curd by cutting straight down in even 1 to 1.5 centimetre lines and then again across the grain, equally spaced apart. Cut at an angle next to have basically cubed curd. Test #2, does the curd hold it's shape when cut at an angle?

Cubing

Note: The curd should actually go down to the bottom of the container with the whey on top. Floating curd is a sure sign of contamination.

Next, stir and lift the curds with a sterilized stainless steel spoon. This process needs to be repeated several times at certain intervals. Once the allotted time is complete, the curd gets hooped.

Gloria has these beautiful stainless steel draining trays to aid in the whey extraction process. At home, you can use a baking tray with a wire rack over it. If I ever get to the point where I'm making cheese frequently, I will definitely invest in one (or more) of these trays!

Leave the cheese to drain in these hoops for a while and turn them on timed intervals. With gloves, grab one hoop and turn it into your opposite hand. Put the hoop down, turn the cheese over into you other hand and re-hoop it. The following pictorial shows this process.

Step one

Step two

Step three

Step four

Step five

Once turned a few times and at the correct stage, put the cheese in containers. The feta will go into a brine solution and the fresh cheese will go into a container on it's own lightly salted.

Brining

Day two of our workshop focused on making Camembert/Brie and blue cheeses. The process was slightly altered with the addition of moulds but still very similar to the steps taken the day before. The entire process from start to finish is not nearly as difficult as I had imagined it would be. We had a fabulous time and made some new friends along the way. We've eaten the fresh and feta cheeses already. They were absolutely the best of their kind that we have ever had. The Camembert and blue cheeses are still ripening away and we look forward to eating them soon.

The finished feta cheese

I did not have the space nor the inclination to get very detailed on this process. I have left out a great many important things and would recommend that you not utilize my post here as the way to make cheese. Seek out an experienced teacher or even a book on the process. Gloria is a wonderful teacher and I would recommend her workshop to get a good understanding of the entire process. If you have the desire to learn about making goat's milk cheese, Leaning Oak is a wonderful place to do it. The location is idyllic and the cheese sublime. If you go, drop me a line and let me know how you liked it.

Stay tuned for my next post in which I will show you a recipe that I created using one of the feta cheeses we made during this workshop. Until then, bon appetit!

Salad and dessert... what more could you ask for?

2013-02-02T20:25:00.002+11:00

Hello folks! I apologize that I didn't get this post out last weekend but my Internet was down. I couldn't get any surfing or posting or email done at all. So, that put me off by a week but I don't think you will be disappointed. This post is about my favourite salad of all time and of course, a dessert to follow. Both dishes are from my very own kitchen, are full of flavourful ingredients and sure to please.

The salad is easy and delicious. To begin with, cook 1/2 cup of quinoa to package instructions. After it's cooled off a bit, put it in a large bowl with a pint of cherry tomatoes, a small handful of basil leaves, two large handfuls of Arugula (Rocket) leaves, 1/4 to 1/2 cup of sliced olives, two tablespoons of capers and some crumbled feta.

I cut multi-coloured olives from around their seeds.

Top that with a dressing made of the juice of 1/2 of a lemon, one tablespoon of olive oil and salt/pepper to taste. Toss and serve with additional lemon wedges.

Doesn't that just look delicious? It's so easy and very very good... Try it and let me know how you like it.

Dessert Anyone?

Anyone who knows me, knows that I just love dessert. It is the finishing touch to a lovely meal and the next dish fits that description beautifully.

This is a tapioca pudding that I just cannot get enough of. It is beautiful by itself but topped with sliced bananas that have sugar caramelized on top just seals the deal for me. This recipe actually makes enough for a comfortable six servings in ramekins but as you can see, I've put it all in two large bowls to serve a crowd from.

The little black dots are from the vanilla bean paste. Real vanilla adds a beautiful flavor to this dish.

To begin with, add 1/2 cup of small pearl tapioca (not instant), five cups of milk (or two cans coconut milk and a can of water, if you like more of a tropical flavour), 1/2 teaspoon of salt, one piece of whole cinnamon, 2-4 whole cloves, and two pieces of star anise to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and stir frequently to prevent sticking.

Stir in 1/2 cup of granulated sugar (or 1/4 cup of agave nectar) and reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Stir frequently until the pudding has thickened and the tapioca pearls are completely translucent.

Remove the pudding from the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste. Remove the cinnamon, cloves, and star anise then spoon the pudding into ramekins for individual servings or larger bowls to serve a group.

Chill covered in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours prior to adding the bananas.

Just before serving, top the pudding with a shallow layer of ripe banana slices and sprinkle a small amount of granulated sugar on top. Be sure to spread the sugar as evenly as possible.

Using a kitchen torch, melt the sugar into a crispy caramel topping. Serve cold.

Please dear reader, let me know if you make either of these dishes and how you liked it. I am always interested in how my concoctions are received. Bon Apetit!

Recipes:

Rebecca's Fantastic Salad

one pint of cherry tomatoes

small handful of basil leaves

1/2 cup quinoa grains

2 large handfuls of arugula (rocket) leaves

1/4 - 1/2 cup olives, sliced

2 TBSP capers, drained

100 g. feta cheese, crumbled

Dressing

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

salt/pepper to taste

Rebecca's Banana Tapioca Pudding

5 cups whole milk (or 2 13.5 oz cans coconut milk & 1 can water)

1/2 cup small pearl tapioca (NOT instant)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar (or 1/4 cup light agave nectar)

1 piece of whole cinnamon

2-4 cloves

2 small pieces of star anise

1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)

2 ripe bananas

2-3 TBSP granulated sugar for camamelizing

Happy New Year Everyone!!

2013-01-01T15:42:00.000+11:00

Today, we prepared our standard New Year traditional lunch of Black-eyed Peas & Cornbread. If you haven't got a tradition to start the New Year off with, might I suggest this one?

It is an old wives tale that eating black-eyed peas on New Years Day brings you luck. While I don't have such beliefs, it is a tradition in this house to eat black-eyed peas on New Years Day in remembrance of my grandmother. My Grandma Wright had black-eyed peas and cornbread to bring in the New Year as far back as I can remember. So, Grandma... I make, I eat, and I remember you on this day.

My black-eyed peas are not terribly spicy but I do like to spike it up a notch by adding jalapeño peppers and my very own hot pepper sauce. Just make the black-eyed peas according to the package directions (I use dried peas) and add whatever you like to it. Here, they are made with a touch of salt, a bit of fried onions, garlic, and chopped jalapeño. The simpler the better I think!

Fry up the onions first in a little oil, then add the garlic and jalapeño peppers and continue to cook until done.

Add cooked black-eyed peas

Our Super Cornbread is a wonderful addition to any meal, but goes especially well with black-eyed peas. It is moist, a little spicy, and will keep for a few days in the refrigerator if you have left overs. It will be just as moist upon reheating as it was to begin with. My secret ingredient is sharp cheddar cheese (shhh... it's a secret).

1/2 cup of sharp cheddar cheese (Tasty Cheese for my Australian friends)

To create this amazing cornbread, simply put all dry ingredients into a bowl and mix in the jalapeño peppers and cheese.

cheese and jalapeño peppers

In a separate bowl, mix together your eggs, milk, and honey. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and mix it all together. Once blended well, add the butter and gently stir until combined.

Place the mix in a prepared pan

Add this mix to a prepared SQUARE (I know, my pan is not square... you should use either a square or round pan) pan. This will ensure that your cornbread is not wafer thin.

My Grandmother used a cast iron skillet and when I was still in Texas, that is what I used as well. Unfortunately, I do not currently own a square pan or a cast iron skillet. :( If you use the proper sized pan, put it into a preheated 425 F (220 C) oven and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Once everything is done, you will have a delicious, healthy, and filling meal. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Black-eyed Peas

2 cups dried black-eyed peas (cooked according to package directions)
1 TBSP olive oil
1/2 onion
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 jalapeño pepper
salt & pepper to taste

Super Cornbread

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup medium-ground yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese
2 jalapeño peppers, chopped
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 medium eggs
1 scant cup milk
3 TBSP honey
1/4 cup of unsalted butter, melted (I typically use the reducing cholesterol spread here)

Crepes!

2012-12-30T11:25:00.000+11:00

Today, I made crepes. I have been experimenting with different kinds of crepes and found this recipe for Gluten Free Crepes to be very very good. It's made with rice flour, guar gum, milk, eggs, and butter. The guar gum helps the rice flour stick together since it does not contain gluten but if you can't find it, you can leave it out.

For my crepes, the filling consisted of a lemony cream cheese, with added strawberries and bananas, and topped off with whipped cream. I found this to be a good combination even though I tend to eat the strawberries with the cream by themselves before eating the filled crepes. Perfect Sunday morning breakfast. :)

Another way you can make these is with just the cream cheese filling and a raspberry coulis topping (I'll add the raspberry coulis recipe at the end of the post).

Without further ado, here are the recipes:

Gluten Free Crepes

1/3 cup rice flour
3 eggs
3/4 cup milk (I use 2% lowfat milk)
1 TBSP unsalted melted butter
1/4 tsp guar gum

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth, about 1 minute. Allow to rest for 10 minutes.
Preheat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Place enough batter in the pan to just cover the bottom. You may need to swirl it around a bit. Dump out the excess batter back into the blender and let cook.
The crepes will start to bubble and lift away at the edges. Once this happens, they should be slightly browned on the bottom and ready to turn.
Turn and let brown slightly on the other side and slip into a warmed plate.
Continue in this way until all the batter is used up. You should have between 6 to 8 crepes.

Cream Cheese Filling

1 cup cottage cheese

1/2 cup softened cream cheese

3 - 6 TBSP powdered sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)

zest of 1/2 lemon, grated finely

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in a hand held blender and blend until creamy.
Once smooth, place in a small bowl.

Whipped Cream Topping

1/2 cup of heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 TBSP powdered sugar

With a hand-held powered whisk, blend all ingredients until smooth peaks form. Once whipped, place in a small bowl.

Additional recipe for the raspberry coulis (not shown) is below:

Raspberry Coulis

450 g packet of frozen raspberries, thawed
7-8 TBSP white sugar
1/4 cup water
dash of salt
1 TBSP freshly squeezed lemon juice

Add all ingredients to a heavy bottomed sauce pan and simmer over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Be careful not to boil the mix.
Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Once cooled, blend with a hand blended until smooth.
Transfer to a mesh strainer over a larger bowl and push the residue with a spatula until there is nothing left in the strainer except the raspberry seeds.
Discard the seeds and transfer the puree to the refrigerator and leave at least 2 hours before serving.

This recipe makes plenty of sauce and you only need a little to drizzle over the top of your crepes. It is very very tasty.

Which ever way you decide to make the crepes, they are very good. You may have enough to store for later. If you do, store unassembled crepes with wax paper in-between each one and placed in a large zip lock bag. They'll keep in the refrigerator for a couple of days at most.

If you decide to make these, please let me know which way you served them (with filling, bananas, strawberries, and whipped cream or just filling and raspberry coulis) and if you liked them as much as traditional crepes. And of course... Enjoy!

Mango Season!

2012-12-18T21:14:00.000+11:00

It's mango season in New South Wales. The mangoes are beautiful, delicious, plentiful, and cheap this time of year. With that much delicious fresh fruit around, I bought a package of twelve. I had eaten a few of them and still had plenty left to go, so I looked around for something to do besides just having fresh mango for breakfast. Not that that is a bad thing mind you but a little variety never hurt. :)

I found a recipe for Mango Syllabub that I thought I would like to try. Since then, I have made it three times and I believe I have it worked out to a fantastic, easy, dessert recipe that even a child would love.

First, you start with the sugar syrup. Place 1/2 cup of water, two whole star anise, and 1/3 cup of white sugar in a heavy bottomed pan on the stove top. Turn the heat to low and stir until the sugar dissolves. Once dissolved however, STOP stirring and turn the heat up to medium high. Set a timer for five minutes and let it go to come to a soft boil. When the timer goes off, check the consistency. It should be like thin syrup. If it is, take the star anise out and let it cool. Once cooled, place in an airtight container and put it in the refrigerator until cold. You can make this portion a full day ahead of time if necessary.

Next, take six med mangoes and cut them up, removing peel and seed. Place most of the mango, reserving out the flesh of one, in a food processor with the juice from 1/2 of a lemon and pulse until smooth. (If you have never cut a mango or would like a refresher, take a look at this video.)

Once the mango is done, pour 300 ml of whipping cream in a cold (tall) bowl and whip until soft peaks form. Fold the cold syrup (you made earlier) throughout.

Place a couple of tablespoons of the mixed cream into the bottom of six ramekins, spoon mango puree over that, place the mango pieces in next and top with remaining whipped cream. If you have extra mango pieces, you could top the final product.

Refrigerate for at least an hour and then enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cup white sugar

1/2 cup water

2 star anise

300 ml whipping cream

6 fresh medium to large mangos

juice of 1/2 lemon

Apple and Cherry Crumble

2012-11-18T13:22:00.000+11:00

Hello, you are in for a special treat. We went to the grocery store last weekend and found cherries on sale. They were delicious by themselves so I knew they would make a great dessert too. I decided to use them in a hot crumble and present them as a contribution to a lovely meal our friends served us last night. So, back to the store on Saturday to buy a few more ingredients and now we have a fabulous Apple and Cherry Crumble.

For the first step, peel and core five medium to large Granny Smith apples. Place them into a saucepan and add about three to four cups of cherries that have been pitted and halved. To that, add one third cup of white sugar, and the juice and zest from half a lemon. Cook over medium to medium-high heat on the stove-top until the fruit gets slightly soft.

Fruit starting to cook

Fruit slightly soft after about 10 - 15 minutes of simmering

While the fruit is simmering, create the crumble topping. Start by putting oats, brown sugar, rice flour, butter, pitted dates, sunflower seeds and cinnamon into a food processor and pulse until crumbly... then top the apple/cherry mixture and cook in a preheated 180 degree Celsius oven for fifteen to twenty minutes or until topping is brown and bubbly.

Crumble ingredients

NOTE: The recipe I made here makes plenty of crumble topping. (I doubled the crumble portion of the recipe) I happen to like a lot of topping but if you don't, you can make the single recipe or double it and save some for later. :)

Crumble once pulsed/mixed

Take it out of the oven and let it cool slightly. Serve with ice-cream or double whipped cream.

Completed Apple/Cherry Crumble

Presto... a wonderful use of apples and cherries!

Ingredients

5 med to large granny smith apples
3 - 4 cups pitted & halved cherries
1/3 cup white sugarjuice & zest of 1/2 lemon

Topping:

½ cup rolled oats
3 Tbsp brown sugar

¼ (or less) cup rice flour
3 - 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
¼ cup of pitted dates

¼ unsalted sunflower seeds

1/2 tsp of cinnamon

Millet Pilaf with Tomatoes and Goat Cheese

2012-11-12T20:27:00.000+11:00

My husband and I have been eating more meat free dishes lately. I won't say vegetarian because they sometimes contain cheese and/or chicken stock but they are meat free. You could make either of the entrée's here vegetarian with some simple modifications but I will present it to you the way we made it.

For starters, I would like to suggest the Millet Pilaf for anyone who is gluten sensitive as it is a gluten free dish. It would readily replace stuffing in your Thanksgiving Dinner (for those in the USA or contemplating a Thanksgiving abroad). We love it so much that it has become a staple at our house and yes, we have replaced stuffing entirely with this dish. We make enough for four and take the left overs to lunch with us the next day. It travels very well in Tupperware type containers.

I use organic ingredients whenever I can. For this recipe, I've found organic Millet but not much else.

You start with 3 cups of vegetable or chicken stock brought to a boil. I used chicken stock here and love the flavour but I have used vegetable stock as well and am very happy with that final taste also. Once the stock is heated through to boiling, add the millet and reduce the heat to a low boil. Stir it often until the liquid is all absorbed. Once that happens, cover and remove from heat to sit for 10 minutes.

While your millet is resting, sauté a sweet yellow or red onion (I used red) in olive oil until translucent and slightly caramelized. Add the pistachios and continue to sauté for a minute or two more. Once the millet has rested the full ten minutes, fluff it up with a fork and mix it into the onion/pistachio mixture. Add your cranberries and coriander (cilantro) and stir until heated through.

Serve with fresh vegetables or as a side for any meat dish (turkey for example) and enjoy!

For my side dish, I thickly sliced four tomatoes and placed them on a prepared oven proof oblong baking dish. Over the top, I lightly sprinkled olive oil, chopped garlic, a little salt, and some "Herbes de Provence" and baked in 190-200 degree Celsius oven for about 20-25 minutes. I have used "Roman Herb Dukkah" as a seasoning instead of "Herbes de Provence" with equal success. Try whatever strikes your fancy.

Once browned slightly on top, take the tomatoes out of the oven and place neat rounds of goats cheese atop each slice. Turn the heat to the broiler setting and place back in the oven for a minute to three, until cheese is hot but not runny.

You'll notice the goat cheese here has some black flecks on it. For this recipe, I've tried all kinds of goat cheese and found that I really prefer the ash coated variety so that it what you are seeing. The ash coated goat cheese is flavourful but not overpowering. It's a delight to the senses.

Arrange the tomato slices on individual plates with your meal or on a serving platter and sprinkle lightly with balsamic vinegar.

Oh my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Here are the ingredients listed out for each dish:

Millet Pilaf

1 cup of millet

3 cups of stock of your choice

olive oil

1 onion, sliced thin

1/2 cup pistachio, chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped

handful of coriander, chopped

(notice - no celery!)

Grilled Tomato with Goat Cheese

4 organic tomatoes

olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

pinch of salt

1/2 - 1 teaspoon of herbs of your choice

("Herbes de Provence" or "Roman Dukkah" is preferred)

150 grams goat cheese

balsamic vinegar

We enjoy this type of meal very much and believe you will too! Bon appétit!

Did someone say, "Molten Chocolate Cake"?

2012-06-25T21:39:00.001+10:00

Ok, if you know me at all, you know that I love chocolate. Specifically, dark chocolate.

Recently, I have been experimenting with different gluten-free flours and being winter here, I have been craving warm chocolaty desserts. I wanted to satisfy that craving with something that wouldn't cause me any digestion issues. Well, the cake that I have come up with, and presented to you here, is something I think you'll really enjoy. Every time that I've made it, it has come out beautifully (and I might add, delicious). My husband agrees that it is the best yet, so I thought I'd share it with you.

The first thing you will notice is that this chocolate molten cake is gluten-free. I achieve this by ditching the regular flour and using chestnut flour instead. Chestnut flour can be purchased at most health food or whole food type stores. I got mine from a little fresh grocer in Winston Hills Mall (for those that don't know, that's in NSW Australia). This type of flour is fine, mixes easily, and adds a slight nutty taste. Add that to the dark chocolate and you have an instant hit.

Rebecca's Dark Chocolate Lava Cake

Serves: 2
Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

2 TBSP unsalted butter, plus more for the ramekins
2 ounces dark chocolate, broken into pieces (don't skimp on the chocolate... use a good quality brand) plus two small squares
1/3 cup icing sugar, plus more for the ramekins
2 medium eggs
1 tsp finely ground espresso
pinch salt
3 TBSP chestnut flour
1/4 cup whipping cream
berries of your choice

Steps:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F or 200 degrees C. Butter two 6-ounce ramekins, then dust with icing sugar.

Place butter and chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 20-30 seconds. Stir and microwave again in 15 second intervals until the chocolate has melted completely and mixed with the butter. Let cool slightly.

In a different, small bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, espresso powder, salt and flour. Slowly stream in melted chocolate mixture and whisk until just combined.

Pour batter into previously prepared ramekins. Place one small piece of chocolate into the center of each ramekin.

Bake for exactly 10 minutes. A toothpick inserted 1/2 inch from the edge of the ramekin should come out clean. DO NOT OVER-BAKE. Your cake should look something like this. The centre is obviously still soft and liquidly.

Cool for about 5 minutes. Run a knife around the inside of the ramekin to loosen and invert the cake into a serving bowl. Add berries of your choice and a dollop of whipped cream. I used strawberries here but it's equally good with pitted cherries or raspberries. Whatever berry you want!

What you'll end up with is the most decadent, wonderful, chocolaty dessert known to man and your bowl will resemble the following photo.

A couple of side notes: You can prepare the batter ahead of time and refrigerate up to 1 day without any ill effects. I have successfully done this and noticed that the espresso taste becomes more noticeable, but only slightly. Also, you can double or triple the recipe to make more but you may need to adjust the cooking time slightly. Just watch it closely to ensure it doesn't burn.

Try it and let me know how it turns out for you.

Bon Appetit!

Healthy Heart Cookbook by the American Medical Association

2012-06-03T19:19:00.002+10:00

Hello fellow Foodies! Today, I am reviewing the cookbook "Healthy Heart Cookbook" by the American Medical Association.

The front cover says that it is a cookbook for healthy living. The first 25 or so pages covers topics from understanding & fighting heart disease, nutritional information & goal setting, activity & exercise, and ends with a section of foods that fight heart disease. I particularly like that last section because it provides you examples of a food (such as nuts & seeds) and informs you of what it contains (plant sterols) and how it benefits you (lower cholesterol levels).

The cookbook section contains:

Starters, soups & salads
Main dishes
Side dishes
Desserts & snacks

The very last pages contain not only the index, but a nifty "Ingredients & Techniques" section that help you understand what terms such as al dente, braising, and zest mean. It also tells you how to peel a mango and what other types of foods stuffs are used for.

The first recipe that I would like to share with you is Hoppin' John. It's an old-fashioned recipe with plenty of wholesome goodness in it. Even though it takes about an hour to cook, it is very very easy to make.

Clicking on this recipe should enlarge it for you.

The first thing that you should notice is that it has five stars which, according to my rating scale, means that this is the best food ever!

Normally, I will follow a recipe to the letter but I have perfected the way I cook this one with a few small changes. Firstly, I don't actually add any salt as I use prepared chicken broth which always contains plenty of salt. The next thing I do differently is that I will cook the black-eyed peas, without the rice, for only 15 minutes instead of the stated 30. The reason is that my rice always takes a little longer than 30 minutes to cook and I don't want to over cook my black-eyed peas. The last thing that I do differently is cook the rice in with the black-eyed peas for 40 minutes, not 30 for reasons explained above. This particular recipe calls for mustard greens or spinach and I have always used fresh baby spinach as I like the mellower flavour of spinach.

My finished product.

Just perfect with a little hot pepper sauce.

You could add bacon or something like that to this meal but I like it just the way it is. You might notice that I have a type of bread product on my plate here. That is my attempt at home made gluten free cornbread. It is wonderfully delicious and quite spicy (it has jalapenos in it). When I get the recipe developed with the best possible combination of ingredients, I will share it on a later blog. ;)

The next recipe I would like to share is "Southwestern Chicken Soup".

This is a photo from the book, reprinted with permission.

Clicking on this recipe should enlarge it for you.

Once again... five stars! This recipe comes out of the Starters, Soups, and Salads section but my husband and I will eat it as a main meal. It is just the thing for a cold evening when you want something fast and easy but delicious.

Something that you should have noticed is that the bottom of both of these recipes have the nutrient analysis for one serving. This is really handy for those of us watching our intake of calories, carbs, or fat.

While this is not a large cookbook, it is a good one. I have enjoyed many of the recipes that I have made from it and I believe you will too. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Raspberry Soufflé

2012-05-31T16:47:00.001+10:00

My husband and I were recently watching Food Safari, the French edition, and saw them doing a Raspberry Soufflé. Now, I've never had much luck with soufflé's but this chef (I know I know... he's a professional) made it look soooooo easy that I just HAD to try it. So, I did... Good things happened! The soufflé was FANTASTIC... even though it was a little overdone on the top. (Here's a link to the recipe.)

A couple of points about how I did this:

I used frozen raspberries.
My serving bowls were to large. Next time, I'll use those little six ounce bowls.
I used fan forced heat in my oven... don't do this. It browns the top a little too fast.
They didn't include a coulis recipe so I made my own... I've added that at the end of this post.
I didn't have freeze-dried raspberries so I used caster sugar instead.

Removing the raspberry seeds through a sieve

Finished soufflé, fresh out of the oven...notice the overly
browned tops. It didn't subtract from the taste at all!

Finished (well almost) product complete with raspberries
and icing sugar.

My raspberry sauce, being poured into the soufflé.

About to take the first bite!

And the mess that I had to clean up afterward....
it was totally worth it!

As promised, here's my recipe for raspberry coulis:

1 450g package of frozen raspberries, thawed
5 TBSP sugar
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice

Place the raspberries and sugar in a saucepan and simmer over low heat until all sugar has dissolved. If your mixture is overly dry, add a tablespoon or two of water.
Transfer the mixture into a blender, or if using a hand blender a tall glass, and puree until smooth.
Using a mesh strainer, strain the mix into a bowl. Continue pushing the residue through the sieve until just seeds are left. Discard seeds.
Transfer to a serving dish.

BTW... I've used this recipe for a number of things. Over fruit, ice cream, crepe's, etc...

If you decide to make this, you will not be disappointed!

Tosca Reno's "The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook"

2012-01-27T12:05:00.002+11:00

I've made almost every recipe in this book! Typically, I will make a few recipes and depending on how they turn out, I may or may not continue with a book. It is very rare when the right combination of ease, direction, and other information make a recipe book worth returning to again and again. This is one of those books and I wholeheartedly recommend it!

The contents include:

Foreword by Dr. Lisa Hark, PhD, RD
Introduction
Breakfast
Soup
Grains
Sauces, Spreads and Salsas
One-Dish & Easy Meals
Proteins
Vegetables
Pasta
Sweets & Breads
A Festive Occasion
Q & A
Index
Credits

Normally, I don't read forewords. I did for this book. I was interested why Tosca Reno would write a book like this. I think the fact that she is living embodiment of what we all wish we could do; change our lives for the better, get control of our health, feel good, and have a purpose in life. Her insight gave this book character and depth. In her words, "I want to live a long, healthy life with my husband and children, so I work hard at Clean Eating. I don't want to miss a single day God has planned for me." I agree!!!

All the recipes have nutritional value per serving at the end. They also highlight the servings per recipe, time it takes to prepare and cook. I find this immensely valuable information when I am attempting to plan out my meals for the week.

The first one I would like to highlight is Quinoa Pilaf. Many of you may not have heard of this grain. Let me tell you, it's worth seeking out.

Here's a photo (out of the book) by Donna Griffith. When you make this recipe, it will look just like the photo.

All copies reprinted with permission.

Try this recipe and let me know how you like it.

Now, if that wasn't enough to convince you... try the Moroccan Chicken and Lentils from page 150:

Once again, here's a photo (out of the book) by Donna Griffith.

All copies are reprinted with permission.

After making this, you should have no doubt as to the wholesome goodness that awaits you in the book. This book is full of good, healthy recipes. Try it out and let me know what you think.

Cheers!

Donna Hay’s "No Time to Cook"

2011-10-03T15:56:00.002+11:00

Hello folks. It's been a while since I last wrote but I think you'll be OK with that. The cookbook I am going to discuss here is Donna Hay's No Time To Cook! I have nothing but praise for this book as everything I have made from it turns out beautifully. Now, for the review.

According to the introduction, this cookbook was conceived by Ms. Hay after she began contemplating starting a family and was devised for "time-poor people". I for one, am glad she did it. This was my first Donna Hay cookbook and after I made some of the recipes herein, I purchased another one. I'll critique it next time.

The table of contents consist of the following:

assembled dinners
CHEATS 1. breakfast & brunch
fast flavour
CHEATS 2. marinades & rubs
one pan
CHEATS 3. salad sides
one pot
CHEATS 4. sauces & salsa
one dish
CHEATS 5. vegetable sides
some now some later
CHEATS 6. nibbles
instant desserts
CHEATS 7. sweet treats
glossary
measures & conversions
index

There have been a few times in which I was just interested in how she would have done a vegetable in a faster way and have looked up a recipe from the contents. Most often, I like to look at the pictures and decide what I want to make. The photos of the finished recipe are artfully done and truly mimic the real deal looking very similar to my own finished attempts at them.

Some of the recipes in this book have turned into family favorites. Barbecued spinach & mozzarella pizza (made without tomatoes or tomato sauce), lemongrass chicken wonton soup, and lemon salmon pasta are all fantastic! Having received permission from the publisher, I will share the recipe of lemon salmon pasta with you so you can see if you'd like to purchase this book. Even if you don't like that particular recipe (although I can't imagine why you wouldn't. It's easy, tasty, quick, and even my teenager likes it.) I would suggest seeking out this cookbook for the vast number of other recipes it has.

So, without further ado, here's lemon salmon pasta:

Lemon Salmon Pasta, reprinted by permission.

Picture out of the book of Lemon Salmon Pasta, reprinted by permission.

You will notice that I gave this recipe four and one-half stars. My standard of measurement are as follows:

Big X = never make this again
One Star = was not horrible but I won't make it again
Two Stars = was ok, but definitely not worth the effort
Three Stars = good and most people in the house liked it
Four Stars = very good and should probably become a staple
Five Stars = THIS IS THE BEST FOOD EVER!!!

So, with this particular recipe... it falls into the 'become a staple' and 'THE BEST FOOD EVER' categories in my house. Hopefully, you'll give it a go and see where it falls in yours. Happy cooking!

My First Favorite Cookbook!

2011-07-06T15:30:00.001+10:00

As an amateur cook, I love to try out new recipes. Well, to start this post, I decided to begin with one of my all time favorites. This cookbook is called "The Around the World Cookbook" and was first published in the US by Lorenz Books in 1998. The ISBN number is 1840381116 (if you are interested).

What's so great about this one is that it covers many of the world's cuisines. One the title page, it claims that it has "over 350 authentic recipes". As far as I can tell, the recipes that I have made out of the book are truly authentic. Each section is broken into country or region; Africa, China, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Middle East, Morocco, Italy, Spain, France, North America, Cajun & Creole, Caribbean, and Mexico. Flipping through the book, you'll find plenty of beautiful illustrations and fantastic recipes with easy to find ingredients.

A couple of my favorite recipes in this book are "Beef Madras" which is a Southern Indian curry and "Galveston Chicken" in the North American section. If you are lucky enough to be an owner of this book, you will enjoy it enough to come back to it many times for authentic cuisines of the world!