Fruit Pastry Twirls

Ingredients

• 4 sheets Puff Pastry
• 1 tin Peaches
• 2 green Apples
• 2 tbls Apricot Jam
• Cinnamon

Method

1. Cut Circles of Puff pastry using a glass; vary the size to your wishes
2. Cut thin slices of apple and lay them on the pastry in a starlike manner
3. Heat apricot jam in microwave, and spead on fruit.
4. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
5. Cook in a 180C oven, for 15mins or until golden and puffy
6. Repeat with Tinned Peaches.

Experiment, many other fruits can be used, aswell as different types of jam

Monte Carlo's

Ingredients

• Ingredients:
• 185g butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups self raising flour
• 1/2 cup plain flour
• 1/2 cup desiccated coconut
• 1/4 cup raspberry jam
• Cream Filling:
• 60g butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 3/4 cup icing sugar
• 2 teaspoons milk

 

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Grease oven trays. Beat butter, essence, sugar and egg until smooth. Transfer to a larger bowl, then add flours and coconut in two batches. Spoon teaspoons of mixture onto prepared trays, flatten slightly: rough surface with a fork. Bake for 12mins.
2. Cream Filling:
3. Beat butter, essence and sifted icing sugar, mix until light and fluffy, then beat in milk. Refrigerate until spreadable.Sandwich biscuits with cream and jam.

 
 
 

 

Passionfruit macadamia and white chocolate pudding with pineapple jam

Ingredients

• 300 g white chocolate
• 315 g Butter
• 10 Eggs
• 230 g Sugar
• 250 g Flour sifted
• chopped zest of 1 Lemon or lime
• of 1 Lemon or lime
• 100 ml passionfruit pulp or to taste
• ¼ cup toasted Macadamia nuts
• ¼ cup lightly toasted Coconut
• 1½ kg Pineapples
• 500 g Sugar
• 250 ml Water
• Coconut liqueur

Measurement Conversion Calculator

Method

1. Whisk sugar and eggs.
2. Melt chocolate in butter, allow to cool slightly.
3. Add chocolate to sugar mix.
4. Add pulp, juice, zest, coconut and nuts.
5. Whisk in flour gently to avoid lumps.
6. Place in molds lined with plastic cling wrap.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes on a high temperature, ensuring the interior is warm and runny.
8. Skin and cut pineapple into small pieces.
9. Place in large saucepan and add sugar and water.
10. 1Bring to boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
11. 1Strain or blend to puree.
12. 2Finish with a dash of coconut liqueur.
13. 1Place warmed up crush on plate. Gently squeeze pudding on top.

 

Rocky creek buzz

What a beaut day to visit all at Rocky Creek. Bit windy but at least the sun is out.

Market buzz

Malanda markets

Market buzz

The yungaburra markets give me the opportunity to sell some of my jams. So many interesting things to buy. Crystals, crochet items, food, seedlings. Can't forget the good coffee either.

GREEK CRESENT BISCUITES

Ingredients:
250g unsalted butter
80g icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tsp almond essence
1 egg yolk
375g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
100g ground almond
Sifted icing sugar for dusting


How to make:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan oven 160°C/350°F/Gas mark 4.
- Grease or line two baking sheets. This volume will make between 30-40 biscuits.
- Beat the butter and icing sugar until pale and fluffy.
- Add the essence and egg, then beat until combined.
- Fold in the flour, baking powder and almonds. Only fold until you sense the mix is about to come together into a dough.
- Take tablespoons of the mix and roll in your hands until you have made a fat sausage. Curve it slightly into a crescent and place on the baking sheet. The biscuits expand a little but not greatly so you can put them quite close.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
- Traditionally the biscuits are dusted with icing sugar before serving.

JAM MUFFINS

Ingredients

• 300g (2 cups) self-raising flour
• 2/3 cup caster sugar, plus 1/2 cup extra to coat
• 80ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil
• 1 large egg
• 175ml buttermilk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 tsp good-quality strawberry jam
• 100g unsalted butter
• 1 t
• sp ground cinnamon

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and grease a 6-hole muffin pan.
2. Sift the flour into a medium bowl, then add a pinch of salt and the caster sugar. In a jug, combine the vegetable oil, egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract. Add to the dry mixture and stir to only just combine. Place a spoonful of the mixture in each muffin hole and make an indent in the centre. Fill each indent with a generous 1/2 teaspoon of strawberry jam. Cover the jam with the remaining muffin mixture and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
3. Meanwhile, melt the butter. Combine the extra sugar and the cinnamon in a large bowl. When the muffins are cool enough to handle, brush each muffin with the melted butter, then roll in the cinnamon sugar. Serve while still a little warm.

JAM DONUTS

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup (55g) caster sugar
¾ cup (185g) warm milk
2½ cups (375g) plain flour
1 sachet dried yeast (8g)
pinch salt
3 egg yolks
100g butter, chopped coarsely
½ cup strawberry jam, warmed, sieved
vegetable oil, for deep frying
1 cup (220g) caster sugar, extra

METHOD

Combine sugar and milk in small jug; stir well to dissolve sugar.

Combine flour, yeast and salt in large bowl. Add milk mixture and egg yolks stirring well with a wooden spoon to combine.

Tip mixture onto a lightly floured bench; using hands knead dough until just smooth, about 2 minutes.

Knead butter into dough; one piece at a time, until incorporated and dough becomes glossy and very smooth. You will need to keep the bench lightly floured during this process.

Place dough in an oiled bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Stand in a warm place about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Divide dough into 20 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Place on a baking tray; cover with plastic wrap and stand 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Place jam in small piping bag, fitted with a small plain piping nozzle.

Heat oil in wok or large saucepan to 190°C or 170°C fan-forced.

Add dough balls, a few at a time, turning occasionally with a slotted spoon to ensure they brown evenly. Cook until golden brown and floating, about 5 minutes.

Drain on absorbent paper before tossing in extra sugar. Pipe jam into the centre of each doughnut. Serve immediately.

JAM FANCIES

Ingredients

• 200g butter, chopped, at room temperature
• 100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 250g (1 2/3 cups) plain flour
• 85g (1/4 cup)  Strawberry OR  Raspberry jam

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Line 2 baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Use an electric beater to beat the butter, sugar and vanilla until pale and creamy.
2. Sift half the flour over the butter mixture. Use a round-bladed knife in a cutting action to stir until just combined. Add the remaining flour and stir until it forms moist clumps. Gather the dough together and turn onto a sheet of non-stick baking paper.
3. Divide the dough in half. Roll one portion between two sheets of baking paper to form a 5mm-thick disc. Use a 5cm-diameter round pastry cutter to cut out 18 discs. Place pastry discs on 1 lined tray. Use a fork to lightly prick.
4. Roll out the remaining dough and use a 5cm-diameter round pastry cutter to cut out 18 discs. Use a 2cm-diameter fluted pastry cutter to cut a small hole in the centre of each disc. Place discs with holes on the remaining lined tray.
5. Bake biscuits in oven, swapping trays halfway through cooking, for 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Set aside on the trays to cool.
6. Spread each whole biscuit evenly with jam. Sandwich together with the remaining biscuits and serve.
   
   
   
   

Gozleme

Yum Yum.  Gozleme.  Time to get back to some rustic cooking.

 

Cooking Time

30 minutes

Ingredients (serves 6)

• 600g (4 cups) plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 410ml (12/3 cups) warm water
• 125ml (1/2 cup) olive oil
• 250g feta, finely grated
• 100g fresh ricotta, crumbled
• 4 shallots, trimmed, finely chopped
• 6 cups (1 bunch) finely shredded silverbeet leaves

Method

1. Sift flour and salt into a bowl. Make a well in the centre. Add water and 2 tablespoons of oil. Mix until a dough comes together. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Cover and set aside overnight to rest.
2. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions. Roll out 1 portion on a lightly floured surface to a 45 x 20cm rectangle.
3. Combine feta, ricotta, shallot and silverbeet in a bowl. Top one half of the dough with one-sixth of the feta mixture, leaving a 3cm border. Fold in half to enclose the filling. Use a rolling pin to seal the edges. Repeat with remaining dough and feta mixture.
4. Preheat a barbecue flat plate on medium-low. Drizzle over a little remaining oil. Cook 2-3 gözleme, drizzling over a little remaining oil, for 5 minutes each side or until golden. Repeat, in 2 more batches, with the remaining gözleme and oil. Cut into slices.
   
   
   

Cup cake turned into butterflies

Ingredients

• 200g unsalted butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
• 1/2 cup milk

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced oven. Line muffin or mini-muffin pans with paper cases.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat butter, vanilla and sugar in a small bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition (mixture will separate at this stage). Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Stir in half the flour. Stir in half the milk. Repeat with remaining flour and milk until combined.
3. For 1/3 cup-capacity muffin pans use 2 level tablespoons of mixture. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes. Alternatively, for 1 tablespoon-capacity mini muffin pans use 1 tablespoon mixture. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
4. Stand cakes in pans for 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
     
   Once your cup cakes have cooled
   
   
   • 1 cup raspberry jam
   • 300ml thickened cream, whipped
   • icing sugar mixture, to decorate
   • Using a sharp knife, cut a 2cm-deep x 3cm-wide piece from top of each cake. Cut tops in half. Spoon 2 teaspoons jam into each hole. Spoon cream over jam. Arrange cake tops over cream to form wings. Dust with icing sugar. Serve.
   
   
   
   
    

Cumquat Marmalade

 

Ingredients

1. 2 cups kumquats, sliced ( some seeds removed)
2. 4 cups water
3. 1 1/2 cups sugar

 Directions

1. Slice the kumquats and put them in the water (in a pan that can be used on the stovetop). Let this stand overnight.
2. The next day, put the pan on the stovetop and boil the fruit until it is tender. Then pour the fruit mixture into a bowl and let stand for another night.
3. On the third day, transfer the fruit/water mixture to a cooking pot and add 1 1/2 cups of sugar. Add brandy if used. Boil this mixture until it jells (about 45 minutes).
4. Pour into warm, sterilised jars and seal.

NUTELLA COOKIES

The main ingredient is Nutella but there’s only 3 more ingredients in this recipe for a simple chocolate cookie.

Ingredients

• 1 cup Nutella
• ½ cups Sugar
• 1 cup All-purpose Flour
• 1 whole Egg 

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 350 F OR175C
  Blend all ingedients together well. Form into 1″ balls. Place on a cookie sheet. Press down firmly with the bottom of a glass. Bake 7-8 minutes or until set. Cool.
  
  

  

  
  

JAM TARTS

Ingredients

• 110g plain flour
• 50g unsalted butter, chilled, cut into small pieces
• 1 cup jam
• Icing sugar, to dust
•  

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Sift flour into a bowl and add a pinch of salt. Use your fingers to rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add 1 tablespoon of very cold water and use a fork to mix together, then add a little more chilled water until the mixture forms a smooth ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Roll out on a lightly floured surface and use a round pastry cutter to cut out 6 circles. Use a small, heart-shaped cutter to cut 6 hearts from the excess pastry.
2. Grease six 6cm loose-bottomed, fluted tart pans. Use the circles to line the pans, then refrigerate for a further 10 minutes. Line the pastry shells with baking paper and fill with rice or pastry weights. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the paper and weights, fill the tarts with jam and place a pastry heart in the centre of each tart. Bake for a further 8 minutes. Allow to cool before dusting with icing sugar.
   
   
   

RED VELVET CUP CAKES

 Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1  bottle Red Food Color
• 2 teaspoons  Pure Vanilla Extract

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 1 (8 ounce) / 280 grams package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons  Pure Vanilla Extract
• 16 ounces / 450grams caster sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F OR 180 C. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat. Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
3. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. Frost with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.
4. Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat cream cheese, softened, butter, sour cream and Pure Vanilla Extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in  sugar until smooth. 

 

Strawberry Jelly Roll or a Strawberry Roulade

Prep Time: 6 hours, 30 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 6 hours, 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla, divided
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3 plus cups caster sugar
• milk, optional
• 1/3 cup strawberry jam (the kind without whole berries in it)

Preparation:

Early in the day, or the day before serving, preheat oven to 375 degrees F or 190 C. Grease jelly roll pan (15x10x1-inch). Line with parchment paper and grease again. Spread clean dish towel on work surface. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Set out a wire cooling rack.

With a wire whisk, combine flour and baking powder. Set aside. Separate eggs. Set whites aside. With an electric or stand mixer, beat yolks with 1/2 teaspoon vanilla on high for 5 minutes until thick. Add 1/2 cup sugar gradually until combined. In a clean and very dry bowl and beaters, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Carefully, fold (using figure eight motion) yolk mixture into whites. Sprinkle flour mixture on top. Fold until just combined. Spread batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes. It's done when center bounces back when touched. Loosen sides of cake from pan. Carefully, dump cake onto prepared dish towel. Quickly, trim any rough or uneven edges. Tightly, but carefully, roll cake and towel from short end. Place on rack to cool.

To prepare frosting, sift* powdered sugar. Cream butter and powdered sugar. Beat on high until smooth. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Combine. If too thick, add milk a tablespoon at a time.

To finish Strawberry Jelly Roll Cake, stir strawberry jam well. Unroll and remove dish towel. Spread jam on cake. Spread frosting over jam. Re-roll cake and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Strawberry Jelly Roll Cake serves 6 to 10 people.

RASPBERRY BAR COOKIES

Here's a scrumptious recipe 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup raspberry jam, seedless

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F or 180 C. Grease 8-inch square pan, set aside.
2.  In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt with a wire whisk. 
3. Add rest of ingredients except jam. 
4. Stir until large crumbs form.
5.  Press 2 cups of mixture into prepared pan. 
6. Spread jam to 1/4 inch of pan sides. 
7. Sprinkle remaining crumbs over top. 
8. Lightly press crumbs into jam. 
9. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until brown around edges. 
10. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. 

Servings 16 to 25 depending on size of bars cut.

CHERRY STRUDEL

There are many varieties of strudel in the Balkans, ranging from poppyseed, raisin and honey, to sweet cheese, apple and cherry. Unlike some strudel doughs, this Bulgarian cherry strudel or chereshata shtrudel is not made with yeast. It is rolled out thinly to produce a flaky crust rather than a puffy one.

Makes 10 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• Dough:
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 10 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup warm water
• .
• Filling:
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 pounds Bing cherries, washed, stemmed and pitted
• 3/4 cup dry breadcrumbs

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, egg, 1/2 cup melted butter and water. Mix into a smooth, pliable dough. Wrap with plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes.
   
   
2. Place rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 200 C degrees. In a large bowl, combine walnuts, sugar, cherries and breadcrumbs. Reserve.
   
   
3. Place a  sheet of parchment paper (or tea towel) on a flat surface. Dust it lightly with flour. Roll the dough as thinly as possible until it covers the entire parchment paper (and, in the case of a tea towel, until you can see the design on the cloth through it).
   
   
4. Lightly brush the edges of dough with water. Spread the cherry filling on the dough, leaving a 1-inch unfilled border on all sides.
   
   
5. Using the parchment paper or tea towel to lift the dough, fold the sides in first, then the bottom. Continue rolling away from yourself until you have a nice cylinder.
   
   
6. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet, shape into a horsehoe and brush with remaining melted butter. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. Dust strudel with confectioners' sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature. Garnish with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

Recipe for Semolina Pudding with Apricot Compote

While this dessert is made without sucrose, it does have fruit sugar and Stevia, a sweetener made from plants. You can easily substitute sugar for the Stevia. Start with 3 tablespoons sugar and add more if it is not sweet enough.
This pudding recipe makes enough for 2 - 3 people.
This recipe needs to chill for at least 1 hour, in addition to prep time.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 c. milk
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1/4 c. semolina, farina or brown rice hot cereal, uncooked
• 1 tsp. orange zest
• 2 T. orange juice concentrate
• 2 packet of powdered Stevia sweetener, or to taste, divided
• 2 T. cream
• 8 oz. raw, ripe apricots, about 8 small
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• Ground cinnamon (optional)
• Powdered sugar (optional)

Preparation:

Bring the milk and the salt to boil in a small pan. While stirring, add the cereal in a slow stream. Reduce heat and stir for 5 minutes as cereal thickens.

Remove from heat, add orange juice, zest, 1 packet of Stevia (or 1/2 tsp. Stevia extract) and cream. Stir until combined.

Line a two cup casserole dish with plastic wrap. Pour pudding into dish, smooth top and refrigerate for an hour.

Meanwhile, wash and stone apricots. Place in a small pan with cinnamon stick, second package of Stevia and lemon juice. Cook for 5 - 10 minutes, until apricots are soft. Taste and adjust seasoning.

 Refrigerate.

Presentation: Turn pudding out of form onto serving plate. Decorate with Apricot Compote, sprinkle with cinnamon and dust with powdered sugar, if you wish. To serve, use a big spoon and serve your guests part of the pudding with some apricots in a dish.

APRICOT CAKE

This recipe for apricot cake is plain-Jane in everything but the taste. Many Germans know how to make this by heart; it's as popular as Toll-House cookies in the US. Fresh fruit makes this "Aprikosenkuchen" a steady summer coffee accompaniment, whether camping on the beach or on the balcony.

Makes 12 servings of Aprikosenkuchen.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

• 10 T. butter, softened
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract or 1 T. vanilla sugar
• 3 eggs
• Zest from 1/2 lemon
• 2 c. flour
• 2 tsp.  baking powder, or 1 package German Backpulver
• 1/4 c. buttermilk or sour milk
• about 14 apricots, cut in half,

Preparation:

Use an 11 inch springform pan if you have one, otherwise you could try a 9x9 or 9 x 13 inch baking pan, but the baking times will be different. Butter and flour it. Set aside.
Cream the butter with the sugar and vanilla or vanilla sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in lemon zest.
Mix the flour with the baking powder and salt. Beat into the egg mixture. Add the buttermilk and mix well.
Spread the batter into the baking pan. Place the apricots on top, cut side down.

Bake at 350°F or 180 C for 30-40 minutes.

Fruity icecreams. Naturally better for you.

This pic was posted on a persons facebook page.

So easy and just imagine how many fruits you can do this too. The mind boggles. If anyone tries it plz let me know what fruits you have used. I have done the same thing with bananas and mango cheeks.

Jam Jar Sterilisation

Method 1 :

Heat the oven to 180°C- don't be tempted to heat the oven any higher or you may risk the glass breaking. Lay a double layer of newspaper on each oven shelf but not the floor of the oven. Arrange the jars on the shelf making sure the jars are not touching each other. Close the oven door and sterilize the jars for about 20 minutes. Using thick oven mitts, remove each jar from the oven as needed onto a heatproof mat or heat pad, making sure you fill while the jam or preserve is hot as is the jar. Do NOT add cold food to hot jars, or hot food to cold jars.

Method 2 :

 Fill your dishwasher with clean cold jars and run a minimum or rinse wash to time the ending with when your jam, preserve or pickle will be ready. Use the jars one at a time from the dishwasher needed making sure you fill while the jam or preserve is hot as is the jar. Do NOT add cold food to hot jars, or hot food to cold jars.

Method 3:

 In the Microwave

Clean the jars as normal, rinse but leave the jars a little wet. Microwave for no more than one minute.

Do's and Dont's 

1. Do NOT add cold food to hot jars, or hot food to cold jars.
2. Remove jars from the oven or dishwasher only when needed or they will cool down too much.
3. Always sterilize more jars than you think you will need. Should you have more mixture than anticipated it is too late to start sterilizing once the food is ready.

Lime Cheesecake with Raspberry Jelly

As I was searching new recipies that utilise the awesome flavours of fruits I found this little beautiful recipie.  I hope you enjoy making it as much as I have. 

 Thanks to : To Food with Love

Lime Cheesecake with Raspberry Jelly

Ingredients

100g Granita or Marie biscuits, finely crushed
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp melted butter
1 block (250g) cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 packet (42.5g) lime-flavoured jelly crystals (or substitute with lemon jelly)
1/4 cup boiling water
1 packet (85g) raspberry-flavoured jelly crystals
16 raspberries (or more)

Method

Line the base and sides of an 8 inch square tin with baking paper. Combine crushed biscuits with melted butter and press it onto the base of the tin. Refrigerate for 1 hour until firm.

Dissolve the 1/2 packet of lime jelly into 1/4 cup boiling water (or you could dissolve the whole pack in 1/2 cup boiling water and just use half of it). Set aside to cool slightly.

Beat the cream cheese until smooth, then gradually beat in the lime jelly mixture until there are no more lumps. Pour over the biscuit base and spread evenly. Place raspberries on top. Refrigerate for 1 hour until just firm.

Prepare the raspberry jelly according to packet instructions. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until it starts to thicken slightly (but not set). Pour the jelly over the cheese layer and refrigerate again for 3-4 hours until the jelly is set. Cut into squares and serve.

No Cook Jam or Freezer Jam

Freezer jam is not shelf-stable, so for long-term storage, it must go in the freezer.The only effective way to make this jam is to use store bought pectin like a JAMSETTA.

Once these jams have set, they should keep for two weeks in the refrigerator or one year in the freezer.

Sterilized containers are not required for no-cook jams, they simply need to be washed in hot soapy water and rinsed before use. Plastic freezer containers, or glass jars with tight-fitting lids that are no larger than 2 cups can be used.

Uncooked freezer jam is a little different than its cooked counterpart. It doesn't have that thick, cooked-down texture and flavor. Instead, it looks and tastes like the ripe fruit.

Pick up whatever is ripe and looks good to you:strawberries, peaches, mango, cherries, blueberries.

If you want to start out with smaller batches, go ahead and halve the amounts. If you use a different pectin than the ones I used, be sure to check the label before you start jamming—some of them require more sugar to set properly.

Raspberry Jam
 
Ingredients 

• 8 cups raspberries
• 2 tablespoons kirschwasser
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• Pectin (See below).

 
 Method

 1.  Crush 8 cups, or 2 pounds, of fresh raspberries and 2 tablespoons kirschwasser. You should have about 4 cups crushed berries. 

2. Combine 2 cups granulated sugar and a 45g of instant fruit pectin and stir into the fruit for three minutes. Transfer the jam into small jars or containers and allow it to set in the fridge for 24 hours. 

3.  Transfer to correct container and keep for the recomended time 

 

 

This arvo I made a quick and easy Cherry Pie.  Simply delicious with homemade custard, cream or ice cream.  So easy to make.  The use of arrowroot makes it more Paleo friendly. Its an easy yet awesome tasting dessert.

CHERRY PIE 

I used store bought puff pastry. 
Morello sour cherries - pitted
Arrowroot (or cornflour) 

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
• Drain the cherries and reserve the juice.  Place juice into a saucepan and add approx 2 TB of arrowroot power.  Mix so there are no lumps.  If you have a sweet tooth you can add sugar at this point to your taste, as cherries are quite sour for some.  The desert topping ( ie crean, custard or ice cream bring sweetness to the dish)
• Line your bake wear with greasefroof paper or grease the container.
• Place cherries into saucepan and heat gently.  The mixture will thicken in approx 1 - 2 min.  Continue to stir constantly.  
• The sauce will change to a darker colour and thicken quickly.
• When the mixture is the right thickness (like a thick jam) pour into prepared dish over the pastry.
• Trim away excess pastry.
• Place in oven  @180 degrees celcius for approx 30 min or until puff pastry golden and beautiful. 
• Remove from oven and allow to cool.  The centre of the pie will thicken as it cools. 
• Enjoy with your fave topping.

Raspberry Jam slice

Raspberry Jam slice

This recipie can be modified to utilise any jam that you have available in your pantry and the kids love it.

Ingredients

• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 125g butter, chilled, cubed
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 3/4 cup raspberry jamor any jam of your choice.
• 2 cups desiccated coconut

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line a 3cm deep, 24cm x 29.5cm (base) lamington pan.
2. Process flour, 1/2 cup sugar and butter to resemble breadcrumbs. Add 1 egg and vanilla. Process to form a dough.
3. Press dough into base of prepared pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until light golden. Spread jam over warm base.
4. Whisk remaining eggs and remaining 1/2 cup sugar together. Stir in coconut. Spread over jam. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden. Cool completely in pan. Cut into pieces. Serve
   
   

Jam Drops

  Jam drops 

Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups of self raising flour
Pinch salt
Favourite jam

1. Beat butter abd sugar to a cream
2. Add lightly beaten egg and vanilla and beat together well.
3. Sift flour and salt together.
4. Add to creamed mixture and mix well.
5. Take teaspoonfulls of mixture ad roll into balls.
6. Place on greased trays -allow room for spreasing.
7. make a hollow in each ball with the end of the wooden spoon or your finger.
8. Place a little jam in each hollow.
9. Bake in a moderate oven for 10 - 15 min
10. Allow to cool on tray

Makes 30ish.

Alternatively instead of placing jam on the top of  the dough add a freckle or a choc whirl or even a carob whirl.  Adds a different dimension to awesome ;) 

PUMPKIN SCONES

One of the best things I make is PUMPKIN SCONES.  So easy and once again a recipie from high school.  As with the scones I have not had an epic fail yet.

Ingredients
2 Tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup cooked and mashed pumkin
1 egg
2.5 cups of self raising flour
1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon cinamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup milk.

1. Beat butter and sugar to a cream.
2. Add mashed pumpkin and mix well.
3. Add egg and beat well.
4. Sift flour, ginger, salt, cinamon and nutmeg together.
5. Fold dry ingredients into the creamed mixture alternatively with the milk to make a moist dough.
6. Turn onto a floured surface and kneed slightly.
7. Press out to a 2.5 cm thickness.
8. Cut out with cutter or a glass if u do not have a cutter.
9.  Place onto a slightly greased tray starting and the centre and working outwards.  Make sure your scones are just touching each other.
10. Brush with a little milk.'Bake in a hot oven for 10 - 12 min or until golden brown.
11. Enjoy with a bit of jam or a dolup of sour cream.

Makes 12.

Scones

The best way to have jam is on the failthful old scone.  Many have made scones and not succeeded.  I have used a recipe from school for many years now and have not had a failure yet.  Have made these camping and cooked them in the camp oven - what a treat.  Please enjoy.

Basic Scone dough

2 cups self raising flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons butter
200 ml milk

1. Sift flour and salt into a bowl
2. Rub butter in with fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Make a well in the centre
4. Gradually add the milk and mix with a knife to form a moist dough.
5. Turn out onto a floured board a
6. Press out to about 2.5 cm thickness.
7. Cut out circles with a cutter or a wine glass.
8. Place finished scone into the centre of the tray and work outwards with each scone making sure scones tough each other.
9. Glaze with a zizzle of milk
10. Bale in a hot oven for 10 - 12 min.  Or place them into the camp oven for a treat when camping.
11. When cooked tap scone on the base, like bread it will sound hollow.  Then you know they are aready.
12. Serve immediately with you favourite jam or golden syrup and a dollup of cream.
13. Cover the remainders in a tea towel and devour when cold.

 Makes approx 12

GUILT FREE FRUIT CAKE

Ingredients
2 3/4 cups mixed dried fruit
1 C apricot nectar (if I have none I use a good orange juice)
1 tsp honey (optional as the fruit and nectar is very sweet.
1 cup mashed pumkin
1 1/2 cups self raising flour ( I have used fine alomnd meal with great results - Paleo friendly this way.)
1tsp mixed spice
1 tap bi carb soda.
I always add a handfull of nuts (ie almonds, walnuts or pecans) and apricot nectar in a saucepan.

Preheat oven to 180 . b Line and grease a 20cm square or round cake pan.  Be sure to put greaseproof paper on the bottonm to ensure the gorjus sticky mixture does not attach itself to the bottom while cooking.

1. Combine the mixed fruit.   Bring to the boil.  Cook for 3 min on simmer.  Transfer to a lg bowl and set aside to cool a tad.
2. Add pumpkin, flour, spice and bi carand (nuts)  to the fruit mixture. fold through ingredients without over working the mixture.
3. Spoon into a pan and smooth surface.
4. Bake for 50 min until a skewer inserted into cake comes out clean.  

Transfer to a rack to allow to cool completely.

Cake always lasts well if it is not devoured in a day like at our house.

Enjoy.

NO COOK JAM VS COOKED JAM

No-Cook

• No-cook jams may be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks or can be kept in the freezer for 6 to 8 months.
• Sterilized containers are not required for no-cook jams, they simply need to be washed in hot soapy water and rinsed before use. Plastic freezer containers, or glass jars with tight-fitting lids that are no larger than 2 cups can be used.

Cooked

• Cooked jams may be stored on the shelf for up to 1 year.
• It's important to use sterilized jars, lids and utensils when preparing cooked jams 

IDLE HANDS - SIMPLE BOOK MAKING

At times we get bored with cooking and turn our hands to something more creative.  Have you ever thought of

• Making a book from scratch and decorating it with your drawings or even turning it into a travel journal or sketch book.

WHAT DO I NEED?

10 sheets of regular white office paper
Heavy cover paper (this can be construction paper, or thick handmade paper or a postcard weight paper)
A bookbinding needle
A Bookbinding Awl
Wax thread or book binding thread.

Instructions

1. Grab a sheet of office paper and fold it in half. If you want a smaller sized book, trim the paper down to the size you want and then fold it in half. You now have made one folio.
2. Fold the rest of the sheets of paper in half to make 10 folios. You can fold the heavy cover-stock at this point as well.
3. Open a folio slightly and then slide in the remaining 9 folios into that one. Doing so should give you a stack of folios. This becomes the book's signature.
4. Put your heavy coverstock over this folio and viola. Some of the guts of the paper will poke through your cover, so you can either trim the overhang so it matches the cover or leave it. It's all up to you and your style.
5. Open the completed book. Using a pencil, mark a dot in the center of the fold.
6. Now make two more dots, 2.25" up and down from the center dot on the fold. These will be where you punch the holes for the thread with your awl.
7. Punch the awl through all 11 pieces of paper. If you twist the awl after it has gone all the way through, it widens the hold and smoothes it out. It's now time to sew the signature.
8. Take out your waxed thread and measure out roughly 2.5 feet of thread. Load up one of your book binding needles with the thread.
9. You now have to make a choice of whether you want the leftover thread to hang on the outside or the inside of the book. If you are making a book for mostly decorative purposes, most artists choose to leave it on the outside. This decision effects whether or not you start sewing from the center of the book or on the outside. Because I am going to show you a decorative book, I will tell you the instructions for keeping the leftovers on the outside.
10. Take the needle and thread and push it through the center of the hole on the outside of the signature.
11. Pull the needle and string through the hole, leaving a few inches behind. This becomes what you will knot the string with to make your book.
12. Put the needle into the left outer hole and pull the thread tight.
13. Pass the needle and thread through the opposite outer hole on the outside of the cover.
14. Put the needle through the center hole one more time and remove the needle. You are all done sewing.
15. Pull both strings tight to help keep your book together.
16. Now tie a knot (I usually make 2 or 3 knots together for security) where the two strings meet. Depending on how long you want the excess thread to be, you may need a pair of scissors to trim it down.

And that's it. You have now finished making a very simple book. Congratulations. What's even better is that you now have a book that fits inside your planner that you can now use as a separate journal or sketch book when you are out at work and feel the need to be creative. If you liked this simple journal but want to spice it up a bit more for a holiday present, here's a few ideas of things you can add to your first book.

Optional EXTRAS:

• Rip the edges of each folio so it has a "rough edge" to it. To do this you carefully rip about a centimeter of the page, or wet the page roughly and tear small bits off to make it rough. I will warn you that this is very time consuming but it does make a nice ripped edge.
• Print out a sheet of paper with a title for you book and then glue it onto the cover of it.
• College an assortment of pictures or scraps of colored paper to your book.
• Tie decorative strings in various styles off the outside of the book to give it an artsy flair (and make it more kitty-toy friendly).
• Braid the remaining binding and add beads to it.
   

Maple syrup - homemade

Homemade Maple Syrup
Makes approx. 1 1/2 cups

1 c. water
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. maple extract or Imitation Flavoring

1. Bring the water and sugars to a slow boil in a saucepan over low heat, stirring continuously. Take it off the heat before it comes to a rolling boil. Stir in maple extract and let cool. Transfer to a container and store in the fridge.

Crochet Fruits

I found this image of tiny crochet fruits.  So cute must find out how to do this.

Sago Pudding

Being on  a Primal Diet we are limited by our food choices, particulary for sweets as one of us can not have any dairy.  I have found that Sago is fine and makes a suitable dessert that can be adapted well to the diet. On this occassion we have used home made berry jam to add sweetness to the dish.

 Its filling and the sweetness of the desert comes from the fresh fruits. If you wish you can substitute coconut milk for whole milk.

Ingredients
3/4 cup Sago or Tapioca
2 cups Coconut milk
1 Cup Water
1 Tablespoon sugar (optional)

Method

1. Soak Sago in cocnut milk and water for approx one hour.
2. After 1 hour heat the sago and coconut and water mixture in a saucepan bringing it to the boil.
3. Reduce heat and simmer stirring continuously for 10 - 15 minutes or until the sago becomes translucent.  Remover from heat and place into a bowl.  
4. Add your favourite topping be it jam, fresh fruit or a syrup of your choice.
5. Refrigerate until slightly cooled and serve.
6. Refridgerate remainder sage for a refreshing snack.

This recipie can be easily converted to use in a Thermo Mix.

Serves 4 easily.

Explosive Mixture

Explosive Mixture:

An eggplant based pickle.  Made with fresh vegetables together with sundried tonatoes, olives, chillies and olive oil.  Eat it by itself or a wonderful addition to pasta.

Magic Ice-cream topping

So easy as I found out accidently

1 1/4 cups of choc chips
1/2 cup coconut oil

Add ingredients together and mix and melt in a double boilder until smooth and all melted.  Pour into a bottle with openable lid.  Store in fridge.  When required open lid and place into microwave for 30 sec keep heating in 15 sec intervals if not melted on first attempt.    Pour over icecream.  Enjoy.