Warm Winter salad.

1 cup of chopped pumpkin (dice size)
1 whole red beet
100g feta
good sized bunch of endive or rocket
1/5 teaspoon of ground fennel
olive oil


pierce a few tiny pricks in the beet and wrap in foil, bake in the oven on 200c for at least 1hr for a cricket ball sized beet.
coat the chopped pumpkin in a splash of olive oil and sprinkle with the ground fennel. roast for 30mins.
once the beet is cooked remove from the foil and peel the skin off, cut into chunks.
pull apart the endive and drizzle with a splash of olive oil and toss through the feta, pumpkin and beets. season to taste.

Orange syrup cakes

I love these easy to whip up little beauties! 


1 orange
150g butter
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup of water
1/2 teaspoon of bicarb
2 cups of SR flour
2 eggs


THE SYRUP:
* juice the orange into a small pot, then grate the rind of half of the orange into it, add 1/4 cup of the caster sugar, the vanilla and the water, let boil and thicken slightly into a syrup.
(I also add the orange half to the syrup while it's cooking and take it out just before I add the syrup to the flour mix)


THE CAKE:
* cream the butter and the sugar, adding the eggs one at a time making sure each is combined before adding the next.
* slowly add the flour, mixing well.
* now add the bicarb to your syrup mix and stir till it froths up then add to your flour mix and continue to mix for a further minute.
* fill your muffin cases and cook on 160c for 10-14 mins.
* for the icing I used pure icing sugar, the grated rind and the juice from the remaining half of the orange.

Boozy semifreddo

This one is 'Adults only' for sure!
1 egg
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup caster
200g nutino hazelnut spread
300ml full fat thickened cream
1 tablespoon of alcohol, now I used Bundaberg Rum Choc coffee liqueur but you could use anything you like I guess. 
Also I like to add a dash of mint essence.


* whisk the egg & yolks and the sugar in a heat proof bowl over a pot of simmering water until it has thickened.
* in your mixer blend together the Nutino, cream, liqueur and coco until peaks form.
* fold in the egg mix and the hazelnuts.
* pour out into a loaf tin lined with baking paper and freeze for at least 3hrs.
* I serve mine with chopped hazelnuts on the top and a drizzle of the liqueur and sliced into a decent size wedge!

Hazelnut loveliness

Easy and yummy, what a great combination!

Hazelnut coffee yum cakes

1 cup of caster sugar

1 cup of butter (soft)

3 eggs

1/4 cup of milk

2 cups of sr flour

splash of vanilla extract

small shot of esspreso coffee

1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts

Cream butter and sugar, then one at a time add the eggs making sure to combine fully before adding the next.

Slowerly add the flour and then the remainder of the ingredients.

Mix for a further 3-5 mins.

Cook on 160c in muffin cases for 15-18 mins.

For the icing I used pure icing sugar and a drop of esspreso and then sprinkled the top with chopped hazelnuts.

Ethan's Rhubarb Souffle

I kid you not, my 8 year old son made this with only a little help with 'hot' things from me!  I know it seems a daughnting recipe but really it is very simple and so delicious!!

500g rhubarb, chopped
150g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
1 tbs cornflour mixed with 1 tsp water
4 egg whites
For the crumble topping75g plain flour
100g softened butter
50g brown or white sugar
50g rolled oats
1/3 cup roasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
　Place rhubarb in a saucepan with 75g of the caster sugar and ¼ cup water. Cover & cook for 5-10 minutes until softened.
Add ½ of the cornflour mixture and stir for 3-4 minutes until thickened, then cook for a further minute to cook out the cornflour. Set aside in a bowl to cool to room temperature for at least 5 minutes.
to make the crumble topping, combine flour, 50g of the butter, sugar and a pinch of salt in a bowl, mixing with your fingers until combined and crumble like. Add the oats and hazelnuts.

Increase oven temperature to 200°C.
Grease 125ml soufflé moulds with remaining softened butter. Refrigerate for 5 minutes to set the butter, Sprinkle sugar into each mould and roll ramekin around so the sugar coats the butter, tip out any excess.
Place egg whites in a large, clean, dry bowl with 1 tablespoon of the remaining sugar and beat in mixer on high until soft peaks. Gradually sprinkle in the remaining sugar and beat for about 30 seconds - 1 minute until you have shiny, soft peaks.
Mix an equal amount of beaten egg white with cooled fruit puree until combined, then add the same amount of egg white again and fold through gently, turning the bowl, then lifting and folding the mixture to keep as much air in the mixture as possible. Spoon into buttered, sugared moulds, taking care to avoid getting any mixture on the side of the ramekins until the moulds are full. then run your thumb around the very inside of the rim so you have a clean rim.
Bake for 8-10 minutes until risen about 1 cm above the rim. Sprinkle the crumble topping over the top and Serve with vanilla ice cream if you like, we just have them on their own. YUM!

Place the crumble mixture on a lined baking tray and bake for 5 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Pasta, my way.

The recipe:
pasta is simple! 1 to 1 for 1 is the best way to remember it.
100g '00' flour
to
1 egg
serves 1 person!
just double as you need, for a family of 4:
400g '00' flour
4 eggs
and I like to add a splash of olive oil and some salt and pepper to taste, we often add some chopped rosemary or parsley too.
you can mix the flour and eggs by hand or in a mixer, knead it into a ball on a floured surface and the cover with clingwrap and put it in the fridge for half and hour.
get a pot of salted water on the boil ready for the cut pasta.
roll your pasta out either with a machine or by hand and cut into the desired shape using the macj=hine sutters or a pizza wheel works just as well.
cook for 5 - 8 minutes depending on the quantity.

we like to serve ours with a light creamy sauce, pancetta, leek and toasted bread crumbs.
lily's breadcrumbs:
process some day old bread in the food processor along with a dash of olive oil, salt & pepper and fresh parsley, leave a few larger pieces in the mix too.
tip onto a lined tray and bake for 5 minutes or until golden brown.
in a pan add (rough measure)
40g of butter
50g of pancetta
1 teaspoon of capers
S&P
cook until your leeks are soft and then add a small dash of cream,
1 tablespoon, but add more if you please.
toss in your cooked pasta
serve with a sprinkle of parmasan cheese and those gorgeous
'lily's breadcrumbs'
Buono!!

Facile per un Sabato

AKA: Easy on a Saturday.
I love this quick and easy lunch snack, it makes a quick dip if you're in a hurry too!


1 stick of gorgeous lovely fresh bread, don't skimp, get a good one.
1 avocado
half a chopped fire roasted pepper (I buy the Always Fresh brand in a jar)
squeeze of lemon
dash of finely grated lemon rind
salt & pepper
good handful of chopped parsley


*Combine everything in a bowl and mush roughly with a fork, spread on a slice of crusty bread!
EASY!