When I picked up some gorgeous heirloom tomatoes at my local greengrocer I knew immediately I wanted to make a Heirloom Tomato Salad with them.

Some ingredients are best enjoyed simply, and this is certainly true of tomatoes in my opinion, especially heirloom tomatoes. Heirloom tomatoes lack a genetic mutation that is present in common tomatoes that provide that uniform red colour we are so familiar with, but the lack of this mutation is of benefit to the tomatoes though in that it imparts a sweeter and more of a true tomato taste.

Amazingly heirloom tomatoes come in over 4,000 different varieties. Yes, 4,000! And come in yellow, brown, red, green, purple and also come in a mixture of these colours, making them especially beautiful.

My heirloom tomato salad is a combination of chopped and sliced tomatoes, bocconcini, basil, toasted croutons and a simple dressing. While I made the salad for  1, for my lunch today, you can easily multiply the ingredients to make a larger salad to share.

So tell me, what is your favourite way to enjoy tomatoes?

Continue reading Heirloom Tomato Salad Recipe

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As the days grow colder it’s hard to resist the allure of comforting winter desserts, such as these Apple and Rhubarb Pies.

Luckily winters here in Brisbane are relatively mild, but growing up in Tasmania I loathed the long cold winters. Especially the winters while I was at university.

After my first year of university I started a full time job as an undergraduate accountant and continued university part time. Given my work and university commitments I decided to move out of my parents house, which involved an hour long drive to and from work each day, and into a townhouse that was within walking distance to work. I shared the townhouse with a friend, and as much as we both loved our townhouse, we hated it in winter. It was bitterly cold, and seemed determined to stay cold no matter how much effort we put in to heating it. Inside the house it was necessary to wear layers of clothing, and often, on exceptionally cold winter nights, we’d resort to wearing coats and gloves as we huddled around the heater.  The only thing that seemed to warm us was food. So I made big batches of soup, but our favourite winter treat was apple pie and ice cream.

Back then the apple pies were frozen apple pies from the supermarket, but comforting nonetheless. And a warm and comforting dessert was exactly what I felt like last night when the weather report said we were in for a cold night. This time though the pies were homemade, and infinitely more comforting.

So tell me, what is your favourite comforting winter dessert?

Continue reading Individual Apple & Rhubarb Pies

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When the words “let’s take a break” are uttered in a relationship there is usually a sense of impending doom…that it will all be over.

But sometimes a break is a good thing.

A break provides perspective and can help you get back to what it is that you really love. For me the break, as I’m sure you’ve guessed, involved taking a break from blogging.

I’ve been blogging since 2007, practically forever in the blogging world, and over recent months I lost what it was that I loved about the time I spend here, on Delicieux. It can be hard when you’re a blogger not to get caught up in all the things you’re told you must do when you run a blog.  Hard not to get caught up in keeping up with the latest trends, not to feel overwhelmed keeping up with posting on social media, keeping up with commenting on other blogs, putting up posts you think you should be writing instead of the posts you really want to write, and ashamedly, it’s also hard not to feel jealous at the success of others.

My inner critic became harsh, and I became even more self conscious than I normally am, and kept thinking nothing I did was good enough to post, so when I had a number of other things going on in my personal life, and found it difficult to find the time to blog, I decided it was time to take a break.

With that break came the perspective I was seeking. I remembered why I began blogging in the first place, which was simply to share my love of food and cooking, and to share my cooking journey. I’m not the worlds best cook, nor will I ever be, and during my break I came to realise that’s just fine. I’m not the best baker, the best food photographer, best food writer or best when it comes to inventing new, exciting and amazing recipes, but I am passionate about food. Passionate about learning about and enjoying food, and if I can share that with just one person then I’m happy.

Continue reading Chocolate Banoffee Puddings

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As a regular reader of this blog you will know I have a sweet tooth. A sweet little something every now and again, quite simply, as far as I am concerned at least, adds to the enjoyment of life.

But when it comes to choosing something sweet to eat, despite appearances to the contrary, I am selective. If I’m going to indulge it has to be good. It has to be worth the calories. And usually my preference is for cakes, a few squares of dark chocolate or a decadent dessert. Cookies rarely get a look in, especially shortbread, as there are so many things I’d rather eat instead.

Shortbread is something I grew up with, unsurprising when you consider my Scottish heritage, but the shortbread I grew up with was always plain shortbread. Sweet and buttery, but in my mind boring.

However the addition of a small amount of ground chai tea leaves makes all the difference taking these Chai Shortbread Cookies, from boring and uninteresting (to me) to a cookie that is suddenly so much more interesting, not to mention fragrant. These cookies are morish and addictive, something I’d never thought I’d say about shortbread, but it might help explain why they’ve been rapidly disappearing!

Continue reading Chai Shortbread Cookies

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It was my birthday yesterday and I had the most wonderful day being pampered by my husband.

It started with him excitedly giving me a birthday card. After our first few years together he now understands that I love thoughtful cards, and that they can often mean more to me than any gift. His card was indeed thoughtful, in fact it brought tears to my eyes. This was quickly followed by gifts, and I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw the little girl wrapping paper, which has become somewhat of a birthday tradition as each year he wraps my presents in Princess style paper. This year though it was fairy paper, for something different.  Along with a copy of Heston Blumenthal At Home, I received a gorgeous green silk dress and a dvd of one of my favourite movies.

Then came a breakfast of lemon pancakes. Pancakes are my husbands breakfast speciality, and I’m only too happy to enjoy them on the all too rare occasions that he cooks nowadays.

As I finished my pancakes he disappeared for a while, and I soon discovered he’d been busy preparing a candlelit bath, complete with a glass of champagne. Every few minutes he came to check if my champagne glass needed a top up, or if I’d like a snack or anything else. What more can a girl ask for!

And that’s how I feel about these Double Chocolate Dulce de Leche cupcakes. They are delicious, dark and divinely chocolatey cupcakes. With melted chocolate and cocoa in the batter, they have a rich chocolate taste that many chocolate cupcake recipes lack, and filled with dulce de leche and topped with a dulce de leche Italian meringue buttercream they are all a birthday girl could ask for.

Continue reading Double Chocolate Dulce de Leche Cupcakes

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We’ve had so much rain in Brisbane recently the cravings for those typical winter comfort desserts, such as crumbles, puddings and pies, kicked in. And so it was last weekend I found myself making this Chocolate Plum Crumble Tart.

For the pastry I adapted Maggie Beer’s infamous Sour Cream Pastry recipe. I’d been wanting to try it for years, but rarely having sour cream in the house I’d never gotten around to it. But with an abundance of homemade yoghurt I decided to give it a try with, you guessed it, yoghurt and a little cocoa to satisfy my chocolate cravings.

Although I’m sure it’s not as rich as Maggie’s original, it worked beautifully. Maggie Beer is certainly a genius.

For the filling, I went with a simple combination of roughly chopped plums, sugar and a sprinkle of cinnamon, which was then topped with a generous chocolate crumble topping.

Served warm it’s fabulous with a dollop of cream, but it’s also fantastic cold too, especially with a cup of green Early Grey tea.

Continue reading Chocolate Plum Crumble Tart

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