Have you ever been to a coffee shop and ordered one of those big, beautiful looking biscuits they have in fabulous glass jars on the counter?  Thinking you might just savour it with your double shot cap.  Oh! the disapointment when it arrives on the tiny white plate.  It is tasteless, and either too dry and hard or crumbles into million pieces when you try and daintily break a bit off, never mind trying to dip it into your coffee!  These biscuits are tasty, sweet and chewy, but a little crunchy, so you can dip them if you like, or you can eat it without looking like a mess!

What You Need:

• 175g caster sugar
• 110g brown sugar
• 225g butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 450g plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon bi-carb soda
• 1/4 cup crushed macadamia nuts
• 1/4 cup white chocolate bits
• pinch salt

What You Need To Do:

Preheat the oven to 200 degress Celcius.
I always use butter in my cooking.  I think it performs better than margarine, so make sure you let the butter almost come to room temperature so it will cream better with the sugars.  So, obviously that is the first step, cream the butter with the sugars!

Whisk up the eggs with the vanilla and add a little of the egg to the mix and beat in well.  Keep doing this until you have added all of the egg.   This is practically the same recipe as the Jam Drops, but I changed a few things, so with this one you don’t have to freeze the dough, so therefore, eating biscuit time comes quicker!  This is great news for when the hungry hordes (insert names of various children/spouses here) come home from school/work!

I was actually after a recipe for kids healthy muesli bars but I didn’t really have all the ingredients for them so I decided to sort of make my own recipe. So, I used an oatmeal slice base and just added what I thought would be yummy, but they are not as healthy as I would have liked! The girls sort of helped me make these by telling me what they wanted in them, mostly honey and sugar and not much else and definately none of those sultanas! Well I only had muesli in the cupboard, and honey and dates, so in they went! (they don’t realise that muesli is full of sultanas, shh!)

What You Need:

• 50g butter
• 1/4 cup raw sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 1/2 cups muesli
• 1/2 cup chopped dates
• 75g wholemeal self raising flour

What You Need To Do:

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celcius and line a 20cm tin with baking paper. This is so quick to make so get this out of the way first!

Melt the butter, honey and sugars over a medium heat. You want the sugar to dissove and the mixture to be smooth. Don’t be tempted to taste it because it’s that hot it will take your tastebuds right off! (not speaking from experience or anything) Set it aside to cool a bit before mixing into the dry stuff.

Mix the flour through the muesli and dates then add the melted honey and sugars. You might need to use your hands because the mixture is quite thick. Knead it all together and then press it into the baking tin.

Bake it for about 20 minutes or until it is golden on top and then let it cool in the tin before cutting into pieces. It will still be soft when it is done but it will firm up as it cools. I like them a bit chewy but if you want them crisper leave them in for a bit longer.

Oh, and a big Thankyou! to my precious 4 year old for her expert hand modeling work!

I was watching Jamie Oliver on the TV today and he was chucking everything in the bowl – as he does- and I thought I might go and make something. We only had the crust left of the loaf of bread so i thought i would try and make some bread.  Being late in the afternoon, (not used to daylight saving yet!) to make a loaf might be a bit adventurous so I thought I would try a flat bread and so came a cross a recipe for foccacia.  With my bread making efforts previously a bit well, err, umm, not so good, this seemed easy enough.  Chuck it in the bowl, a la Jamie, mix, knead and wait.  Well it is in the oven now and the smell is divine so go and make some for tea tonight to have with a steak and salad or a nice bowl of soup.

What You Need:

• 3 cups plain flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoon yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon fresh parmesan cheese

What You Need To Do:

Grab a large bowl, metal or ceramic is better than plastic, and sift the flour and salt together.  Sprinkle in the yeast and the mixed herbs.  I use instant dried yeast, the same as the little packets you get, but it is in a 250g container.  You can get it at the supermarket and just store it in the fridge.  Mix it all together so the yeast and herbs are even throughout the flour.

Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour in the water and the oil.  Mix it all up.  Get your hands in there and knead it for about  (is it sounding Jamie Oliver-ish?!)  3 minutes to form a soft dough.

Place it back in the bowl, cover it with some glad wrap and put it in a warm place for about and hour or so until it doubles in size.  I actually put mine in the office right next to me on the desk because it is quite hot in here with the computer going!

When it has doubled in size you punch it down so it deflates and then knead it for another 3 minutes until it is quite smooth.  I think this is great, any bread I have made has at least 10 minutes of kneading so this is really quick and easy on the arms!

Roll it out to a rectangle shape to fit a tray about 36cm x 26cm and poke a few holes into the dough but don’t go all the way through.  These will catch a bit more of the toppings. Scatter the onion, some more herbs, salt and the parmesan.  I also sprinkled a little more olive oil over the top just to help keep it a bit moist and brown up.

The smell is amazing as it is cooking and you will want to devour it as soon as it is out of the oven!!!

Well for the first recipe back from the rather extended break, I thought I would let the kids take over the kitchen!

Insane I know, but I was rather surprised that there was only a few cupfuls of flour and sugar on the floor!! But I think the end result rather speaks for itself.  I am quite proud of the 9 year olds ability to cook and the 4 year olds ability to spill things ( but I already knew she was talented in that department!).  These are easy to make, so are a good school holiday activity, as long as you walk away and don’t witness what goes down during a kids cooking class!

What You Need:

• 225g butter
• 175g caster sugar
• 110g brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1tsp vanilla
• 450g plain flour
• 1/2 tsp bi-carb soda
• 55mL milk
• pinch salt
• jam

What You Need To Do:

I get the kids to measure everything out first so all the ingredients are layed out in front of them because there have been a few times when things have been left out!  So first of all you have to cream the butter and the sugars.  Keep going until it is pale yellow and nice and light.

Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl with the vanilla and add it to the sugar mixture a little bit at a time and beat it between additions. This just helps to stop it curdling which sometimes happens if you add the eggs all at once.

Sift the flour, soda and salt over the mixture and carefully fold until there are no lumps of flour.  Now is the time to walk away, no run, if you want to keep your sanity, cos things get pretty messy!

Gradually add some of the milk until a soft dough forms.  You probably won’t need the whole 55ml, depending on your flour, because you don’t want the dough to be too sticky.

Roll the mixture into 2 logs, wrap them and put them in the freezer for about an hour.  You can use this time to hose out the kitchen or sit back and relax while the kids do it.  As I said earlier, if sanity is important…….its up to you!!

When the mixture has set hard, preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celcius, and cut discs from the rolls about 5mm and place on baking trays lined with baking paper.  Leave a space between each disc because they will spread out during cooking.

To make the jam drop centre, I used a 1/4 teaspoon measure to press into the centre of the disc to make the hole for the jam to go into.  Drop the same amount (1/4 tsp) of jam into the mark and bake for 8-9 minutes or until golden.  let them cool on the tray for a few minutes because they will be soft and then transfer them to wire rack to cool.

Have fun making these with the kids!!

We have finally moved into our new house by the beach.  It is so lovely, and I can’t wait to do some cooking in my new kitchen.  It is heaps bigger than my last one so I have more bench space to make more mess on!!

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and New Year.  We were in the middle of moving so it was very chaotic, with boxes everywhere and frantic unpacking looking for stuff!  So much fun!  We managed to get organised, a bit, and had a wonderfully relaxing day with the family.

Thanks for keeping in touch, and I hope to post lots of recipes this year that you will like and more importantly, cook!!

Jo.

Hello!

Sorry I haven’t been posting lately but as you know we have been trying to sell the house and it looks like it is finally sold. Yay! However that means cooking and photography will be non-existant for the next little while.
I know, I know, it is rather sporadic to begin with but I will be back soon, well, as soon as we have somewhere to live!

Please keep in touch and I will try to keep you up to date!!
Thanks, Jo.

I love this for dessert, or afternoon tea or morning tea or… well, you get the idea!  You can serve it hot with yummy caramel sauce or cold with lashings of butter and a cuppa.

What You Need:

• 250g pitted dates
• 1 teaspoon bi-carb soda
• 1 1/2 cups boiling water
• 125g butter, softened
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cups self raising flour

Caramel Sauce

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 300ml thickened cream
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 60 butter

What You Need To Do:

First of all, preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celcius and grease a 22cm base cake tin.  Roughly chop the dates, sampling many as you go!, and put them into a bowl with the bicarb and pour over the boiling water.  Let this stand for 20 minutes or so.

Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla, using an electric mixer, until pale and creamy.  This is the part that the kids always want to dip their fingers in even though you tell them that it is just butter!  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  In a larger bowl, sift the flour and fold in the dates and the butter mix.  Mix well so it is all combined.

Pour the mix into the cake tin and bake for about 30 to 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Making the caramel sauce is really easy!  Put all the ingredients into a saucepan over medium heat and cook until the sugar dissolves and then let it boil.  Reduce the heat to medium low and let simmer for a couple of minutes.  Do not be tempted to taste it at this stage, even though it looks delectable, – cos its really hot!!  Let it sit for 5 minutes and then serve it with the cake and some whipped cream or icecream!

Here is a fantastic dish that is easy, but looks so good, and will impress your visitors!! Even my three year old requests this for dessert because she know I can whip it up in a short time, before she has to go to bed, so she can at least have – something special – as dessert is called in my place.

What You Need:

• 3 apples (I used Granny Smith because that is what was in the fruit bowl)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 200g castor sugar
• 30g unsalted butter,cubed
• 1 sheet puff pastry (ready made frozen)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons water

What You Need To Do:

Peel the apples so they still retain their nice rounded shape and then cut into quarters. Cut out the core carefully and trim the edges so the pieces are neat, and cut the core side so it sits flat on the bench. You don’t have to do this, but it gives the tart a more even finish and helps the apple to sit flat on the bottom of the pan. Toss the apple pieces in the lemon juice and half of the sugar. The lemon will stop them from going brown while you are making the rest.

Put the other 100g of sugar and the water into an oven proof frying pan over low heat to dissolve the sugar. Or if you don’t ( like me!) own any fancy cookware then just put it into an ordinary frying pan and we will deal with that bit later! Increase the heat slightly and cook the sugar for about five minutes or until it is turning a nice golden colour.

Put the apple pieces in the pan, cut side up, in a neat circular fashion, and dot the apple with the butter. Turn the heat down to low and cook for a further five minutes to cook the apple a bit. You don’t want it to be too soft before it goes into the oven. Take it off the heat and let it cool a little. Trust me, if you don’t have a fancy pan, and you like the fact that you have fingerprints, let the apples cool for a bit!

Cut a circle from the pastry that is a little bit bigger than the pan you are using. Lay the pastry over the apple and tuck any excess underneath, inside the pan. If you aren’t putting your frying pan in the oven, choose a small round baking tin and grease it with butter or cooking spray. Arrange the cooled apple pieces, cut side up, into the tin and pour over the golden caramel the apples were cooked in. Then place the pastry on top.

Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes or until the pastry is golden and flaky. The juice may overflow, so you might want to put a tray underneath! Remove from the oven and let it rest for about 10 minutes in the pan.

Now for the theatrical part! Like the pizza maker who throws the dough into the air or the magician who rips the tablecloth out from under a fully set table, place a plate on top of your pan and turn it over so the tart is apple side up on your plate! Voila! One perfectly caramel-ly, apple-ly, crispy, chewy something special! Serve hot with a generous dollop of cream or some extra creamy icecream.

School Holidays! So much time, so little to do! Only joking! Today we made pikelets for the kids for morning tea. Which was good actually because I now have a recipe to use and pass on. I usually cook with the precise measuring system called – a little of this and a pinch of that – so to actually measure out the ingredients was a good exercise. Now my daughter won’t look at me with that quizzical -I don’t understand look- that eight year olds seem to have!

What You Need:

• 2 cups self raising flour
• 1 tablespoon caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• pinch salt

What You Need To Do:

Sift the flour, sugar and salt into a large bowl. Crack the egg into a jug and pour half of the milk in as well and whisk until the egg and milk is frothy. Also add the vanilla to this mix.

Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour the milk mix in. Mix with a whisk, from the centre, gradually dragging flour into the centre liquid and add more milk until the batter is runny but still coats the back of a spoon. It will be full of air bubbles and very shiny in appearance.

Heat a frying pan and coat with a little olive oil and butter. Use some paper towel to remove the excess and then pour a spoonful of batter into the pan. Wait for the bubbles to burst and then flip it over to cook on the other side. They should be golden brown, but cooked through!

A little tip to keep the pikelets soft, is to put them on a plate and cover with plastic wrap, to trap a bit of the steam. Be sure to let a bit of steam out though because you don’t want them to go soggy. And no, I don’t mean let some steam off because the kids are pestering you for the pikelets that they can smell cooking!

Serve them hot with butter and honey or lemon and sugar ( my kids favourite)!

Hello! Sorry I haven’t been in touch lately but I am trying to sell my house and am a bit hesitant at making a mess in the kitchen because somebody always wants to have a look when you have just rolled out the scone dough or browned the meat or filled the sink with dishes!!! Anyway, I thought today, too bad!, I will make a mess and cook something tasty for lunch. It’s nice on its own or you could have some for dinner with a nice piece of chicken breast cooked in Tandoori or Tikka paste.

What You Need:

• 500g pumpkin
• 1 large onion
• 1 zucchini
• 8 cherry tomatoes
• rosemary
• thyme
• flat leaf parsley
• salt
• pepper
• 1 cup cous cous
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup natural yoghurt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• garlic

What You Need To Do:

First of all roast the pumpkin, onion and the herbs, except the parlsey, with some olive oil, salt and pepper for about 10 minutes or until the pumpkin is cooked through and starting to brown. The onion should be soft and sweet tasting.

I cooked the zucchini on the barbeque so it would have the nice char grill lines on it and it also adds a smokey favour but you can put it in the oven with the pumpkin if you don’t have a barbeque. Just cut it into thin strips and add some garlic and olive oil before placing it on the char, making sure it is pretty hot before you start. It was about this time that the phone rang and I panicked into a wild clean up but it turned out to be a friend calling, not the estate agent, so I calmed down and continued in my normal sedate-like manner!! Phew!

For the cous cous I cheat and use the easy way! Just add a cup of boiling water to a cup of the dry cous cous and cover with plastic wrap and let it sit until it is all absorbed, usually about 5 or 6 minutes. Add some salt and pepper and fluff with a fork until all the grains are separate.

When you have all the bits cooked just toss them together in a large bowl and season to taste. Add the tomatoes, chopped in half, and tear some parsley leaves from the stalks, no need to chop them!

Mix the cumin powder into the yoghurt and serve drizzled over the top.