LEST WE FORGET

As much as I would have loved to, I simply did not make it to this year's dawn service. It would be somewhat personally disheartening if I did not pay my respects in one way or another, so this year I decided to use baking as an outlet for these feelings by making a sweet, golden batch of Anzac morsels for everyone to munch on. This is my way of sharing the love, which I enjoy doing oh-so-much. 

There are literally a million version on this classic biscuit but staying true to my heritage I decided to keep things simple. Less is more, don't you know that already?

anzac biscuits

  1 1/4 cups plain flour, sifted

  1 cup rolled oats

  1/2 cup caster sugar

  3/4 cup desiccated coconut

  2tbsp golden syrup or treacle

  150g unsalted butter, chopped

  1/2tsp bicarb soda

  1 1/2tsp hot water 

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius. Place the flour, oats, sugar and coconut in a large bowl and stir to combine. 

In a saucepan, place the golden syrup and butter over a low heat and stir until the butter has melted. Mix the bicarb soda with the hot water and add to the golden syrup mixture. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix together (or get down and dirty with your hands like I do) until well combined. 

Roll small tablespoonfuls of the mixture into balls and place on a lined baking tray. Press firmly down on each ball to flatten and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden.

Store in an airtight container - if they last that long.

IMPROMPTU SHENANIGANS

Nothing says dinner party like an impromptu dinner party - and nothing helps your gluttonous nature more than ravenous friends.

This was, yet again, put into practice in the household yesterday with an irresistible Sunday roast with all the fancy trimmings, including quite possibly the most divine tart I have ever had the pleasure of making (and step-by-step quality controlling - you know, just to make sure it was coming along nicely).

It's almost too good to share, but I will, because I am nice and also because it's a recipe from one of my favourite food magazines which I suggest you start buying for hibernation inspiration (I did, however, tweak my tart recipe ever so slightly).

Tying in with the household's domestic mood yesterday, it was noticed that an incredible abundance of chillis had ripened themselves in the vegetable garden.  Hence, some homemade harissa paste proudly sits in a jar on the kitchen windowsill eager to be used up.  Because we heart spicy food and will most certainly need it to keep warm if today's chill factor is anything to go by.

Just for the record, the diners indulged in a rosemary, lemon and apple cider roasted pork loin, apples stuffed with walnuts, prunes & bacon, carrot and ginger mash and some greens (for health factor).  Feast your eyes on the below pictures and be sure to try this impressive tart at least once - it's sinfully good.

*recipe courtesy Vali Little | delicious | issue 104

amaretto tart

  300g amaretti biscuits, crushed

  120g unsalted butter, melted

  1cup milk

  200g white marshmallows

  3tsp instant coffee

  2tbsp amaretto liquer

  150ml thickened cream

  flaked almonds, toasted, to serve

  melted dark chocolate, to serve

Preheat oven to 170 degrees celsius.  Lightly grease a 36x12cm removable base tart tin.  Combine the biscuits with butter and press firmly into the base and sides of the tin.  Bake for 5 minutes or until golden. Remove and cool.

Combine the milk and marshmallows in a pan over a low heat and stir until the marshmallows have melted.  Add the coffee and amaretto and stir until smooth.  Cool completely.

Whisk the cream until stiff peaks form and fold into the marshmallow mixture.  Pour into the tart shell and chill for at least 2 hours to set.

To serve, scatter with toasted flaked almonds and drizzle with melted chocolate.

EVERYTHING'S BETTER IN MINIATURE

I think we can all unanimously agree that anything miniature is too hard to resist. In this case, it can also be extended to the vegetable world which, it seems, has recently been overtaken with pint-sized items such as dutch carrots, super-duper-tiny pumpkins and even - to my shock realisation today - micro cucumbers (I'm talking about barely three inches long here, I have never seen a cucumber that small before in my life).

What better way to sample the delights as we delve into autumn than to roast the heck out of all these cute vegetables in a sweet, sticky balsamic dressing?  Well, if you do think of a better idea, I'm all ears.  But until that happens, give the below recipe a try.  Resistance is futile.

balsamic roasted mini vegetables

  3 miniature squash, quartered and seeded

  2 handfuls round beans, trimmed

  1 parsnip, cubed

  1 bunch dutch carrots, stalks removed

  2 swedes, cubed

  1/2 handful rosemary, torn

  1/2 handful oregano, torn

  2 shallots, sliced

  1/4 cup olive oil

  1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

  1/3 cup soft brown sugar

  salt and pepper, to season

Preheat oven to 210 degrees celsius.  Place garlic cloves, shallots and all vegetables - except beans - in one large (or two medium) roasting trays; place beans in their own special little dish.  Evenly distribute the rosemary and oregano between trays and drizzle vegetables with a generous amount of olive oil.  Season with a small amount of salt and pepper.

In a jug, stir together balsamic vinegar and sugar.  Drizzle over vegetables and place roasting tray/s (except beans) in the oven to roast for 30-40 minutes or until very soft.  The beans will take less time - around 20 minutes - so place in oven to coincide with the finished medley.

Serve warm on a freezing cold night - it'll be just the thing you need.

SEVENTH HEAVEN

And once again, I have to post something that includes my ultimate vice - the mother of all dairy products.  The weekend just passed involved a sincere physical effort on my part (I won't go into details, but I will divulge that I am now on the waiting list for a new liver) and as such I thought it deserving to satisfy my primal urge with a hearty, filling tart that included three of my favourite things = carbs, potatoes and mountainous piles of fetta and cheddar cheese.

I can only say, this is an incredibly diverse recipe that can be changed as you please.  The flakier the pastry the better, as it adds a wonderful textural contrast to the creamy filling that awaits tastebud heaven.

fetta & potato tart

  400g (2 sheets) flaky puff pastry
  200g goat's fetta, crumbled
  150g tasty cheese, grated
  3 large waxy potatoes, washed
  3 spring onions, finely sliced
  4 free range eggs
  200ml cream
  2 garlic cloves, crushed
  1 handful lemon thyme, chopped
  salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 220 degrees celsius.  Dice the potatoes into large chunks and bring to the boil in a large saucepan until just cooked.  Drain and set aside to cool.

Roll out the pastry and line a 26cm deep dish tart tin.  Place the cooked potato, fetta, tasty cheese and spring onion evenly over the pastry.

Whisk together eggs, cream, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper in a bowl and pour over the tart filling.  Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes or until pastry if browned and filling is just set.

Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes before serving warm with a leafy green salad.

SOUL REVIVER

First off, I apologise for lack of activity over the past few days.  Not unlike many of the stores I expected to stay open over the Easter break to satisfy my numerous vices, I too decided a few days off was well deserved of late and went off the grid until today.

This activity - or lack thereof - had a domino effect in that the cupboards at home became very close to ration mode.  I found myself today peering into the vegetable crisper at the questionably fresh beetroot,  knowing that something healthy to revive the soul was in order for dinner.  And here we have it.

black quinoa, beetroot and pumpkin medley

  3 large beetroots, peeled and cubed

  1/4 pumpkin, peeled and cubed

  1 cup black quinoa, washed thoroughly

  3 cups water

  1 handful lemon thyme, chopped

  1 handful parsley, chopped

  pinch dried chilli flakes

  pinch cumin seeds

  100g goats cheese, crumbled

  salt and pepper, to season

  6tbsp olive oil

dressing 

  zest of one lemon and juice of 1/2 lemon

  3tbsp olive oil

  1tbsp spanish sherry vinegar

  1/2 chilli, finely diced

  2 cloves garlic, crushed

Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius.  Place the beetroot, thyme and half the olive oil in a roasting tray and shake until beetroot is well coated.  Season with a touch of salt and pepper and roast for 45 minutes or until softened.  At the same time, place the pumpkin, chilli flakes, cumin seeds and remaining olive oil in a separate tray and shake until coated.  Season with salt and pepper and roast for 40-45 minutes or until softened.  Once ready remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.

To cook the quinoa, place water and quinoa in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil.  Reduce heat to keep to a simmer for 15 minutes.  Drain any excess liquid and set aside for 5 minutes before using.

To make the dressing, place the garlic, lemon zest, olive oil, lemon juice and sherry in a jug and whisk until well combined.  

To complete the medley place the quinoa, beetroot, pumpkin and parsley in a large bowl and top with dressing.  Stir until coated and serve with crumbled goats cheese.

STUFFED

What happens when you have food guilts? Well, I make something out of green vegetables.  My theory is that if you're eating traffic light coloured veggies, you have no shame or fear of retribution.

These beauties are stuffed full of rice and all things delicious and filling, so not only are you giving your body a good dose of the recommended 5+ a day, you're also getting a mighty full belly and giving the tastebuds a good workout.  What more could you want?

Well, you could want dessert. In which case I would say go ahead, because if you decide to have the below recipe for dinner there are more than enough calories left in your RDI to scoff down something to satisfy the sweet tooth.

stuffed capsicums

  2 green capsicums

  2 cups cooked rice

  4 anchovies, diced

  1/2 cup cooked baby peas

  1/4 cup tasty cheese, cubed

  1 handful parsley, chopped

  1 handful basil, chopped

  2tbsp olive oil

  3tsp sambal oelek

  1/2 cup poached chicken, shredded

  

Preheat oven to 190 degrees celsius.  Slice the tops off the capsicums and remove seeds and veins (the fleshy white part).

Place the cooked rice, anchovies, peas, cheese, parsley, basil, chicken, sambal oelek and olive oil in a large bowl and mix until well combined.  Stuff capsicums with the mixture and place, standing vertically, on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 50 minutes.

Remove from oven once the capsicum skin begins to wrinkle.  Stand for 5 minutes before serving.   If you wish to offset the heat of the sambal oelek, serve the capsicums with a large dollop of cucumber yoghurt (diced cucumber, natural greek yoghurt, salt and pepper).

CAESAR THE GREAT

Caesar salad has got to the one of the world's best salad inventions.  Seeing as for some strange reason they come in two sizes (small and comatose) in a lot of restaurants and cafes, I simply cannot go past ordering the humongous sized portion and always somewhat regret nibbling on the grissini whilst waiting for them to cart it out on its own trolley because, once it arrives, I am half full from all the bread.  

But - my justification is that it's a salad, right?  Therefore you can never really eat too much of it - it's a salad!  Even if it's slathered in a rich, creamy dressing and mountainous lashings of parmesan cheese.  It's not the healthiest of all but I am willing to justify this fact to myself over and over again.  Because it's worth it.

I can take less guilt knowing that I can make this dish at home, by hand, and have control over how much cream, bacon and cheese goes into it.  This in no way means I make a healthy version with 'lite' cream and 'low fat' cheese, because let's be honest here - using the real deal is exactly why it's so damn delicious.

So if you dare, try this recipe out.  I bet you won't regret it. But your calorie-counting friends might.

caesar salad

  1 baby cos, washed and shredded

  1 cup shredded chicken or 3 rashers bacon, crisp fried and sliced

  6-8 anchovies, diced

  1 cup stale crusty bread, cut into 1cm cubes

  2 free range eggs

  70ml cream

  juice of 1 lemon

  1 clove garlic, crushed

  salt and pepper, to taste

  40g parmesan cheese, shaved, plus extra for dressing

  30ml olive oil, plus extra for croutons

make croutons

Place the bread on a large baking tray and drizzle with olive oil.  Grill on high heat, tossing occasionally, until browned and crispy.  Set aside.

make salad

Bring a saucepan of water to the boil.  Gently place the eggs in the saucepan and hard boil for approximately 7 minutes (depending on how you like the yolk).  Remove and let cool before shelling - a trick I use is to turn the cold tap on very slightly and remove the shell underneath the stream of water (especially handy when you're in a rush and can't wait for the egg to cool down).  Slice into quarters and set aside.

make dressing

Place the olive oil, cream, lemon juice, anchovies and garlic in a glass jug.  Whisk vigorously with a fork until well combined and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Adjust to taste by adding more cream/oil/lemon juice. Add 2tbsp of grated parmesan cheese and set aside.

make pretty

Place the cos on a large platter and top with chicken or bacon.  Scatter croutons, egg and parmesan over the top and dollop the lot with generous, non-dieting serves of creamy dressing. D-lish.