Lemon Melting Moments

This recipe is taken from the Masterchef magazine. We have enjoyed going through the magazines picking all the things we want to cook :) ... some have been monumental mistakes others, like these yummy biscuits were a huge hit ... enjoy !

Lemon Melting Moments

200g (1 1/3 cups) plain flour
100g (2/3 cups) cornflour
225g unsalted butter, chopped, softened
80g (1/2 cup) icing sugar, sifted, plus extra, to dust
3 lemons zested
1 tsp vanilla extract

Passionfruit filling
4 passionfruit, pulp removed
200g (1 1/4 cups) icing sugar, sifted
1 tbs liquid glucose
80g unsalted butter, softened

1. Preheat oven to 170c. Sift flours with 1/4 tsp salt into a bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add zest and vanilla then gradually beat in combined flours until mixture just comes together.

2. Roll 2 teaspoonsful of dough into balls, placing them on 2 oven trays lined with baking paper. Using a floured fork, mark biscuits with tines. Bake for 12 mintues, swapping trays halfway, or until biscuits are light golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Makes 40.

3. Meanwhile, to make filling, press pulp through a fine sieve, reserving seeds. Place 2 tbs juice, 3 tsp reserved seeds and remaining ingredients in the bowl of an electric beater. Beat of high speed until fluffy. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

4. Spread filling on 20 biscuits, then sandwich with remaining biscuits. Dust with extra icing sugar to serve.


Recipe from Masterchef Issue 3 July 2010

Lemon Melting Moments

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Really Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

The kids are home for the holidays and baking is always a popular activity and this recipe is so easy the kids can definitely get in there and help. So with flour everywhere, the extra choc chips tasted and the spoons and beaters licked here is our result :) ENJOY !




The recipe ..

125g unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups tightly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
a pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 180 c. Place butter and sugar in a bowl and beat until light and creamy. Add vanilla and egg and stir to combine. Stir in the sifted flour, baking powder and salt until just combined. Fold through chocolate chips.

Place spoonfuls of cookie mixture on a greased and lined baking tray, allowing room for spreading. Cook for 15-20 mintues, until they turn pale gold.

Allow to cool on the tray for 5 minutes before placing biscuits on a wire rack to cool further. Makes 16.






Recipe from Bill Granger ..... “Bills Sydney Food”


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Chicken Korma

You are going to love this recipe....It is so easy to cook and it is really yummy, even the kids say so.

Chicken Korma, it isn't spicy so don't worry about adding the 1/4 cup of paste. The dip, of course, is optional. I have cooked this now 4 times and only last night did I make the dip. The kids weren't that fussed, but I think that was because it had visible green bits in it ... lol ...

Chicken Korma (Serves 6)


90g (1/3 cup) Greek style natural yoghurt
60g (1/4 cup) korma curry paste (This is not spicy, so good for the kids)
1 tsp garam masala
pinch of saffron threads *
800g chicken thighs fillets, cut into pieces
60ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil
2 brown onions (I only use one), finely chopped
125ml (1/2 cup) pouring cream
1 tbs vegetable oil, extra
55g (1/3 cup) raw cashews
50g (1/4 cup) raisins
12 fresh curry leaves

* I don't use these

1. Combine the yoghurt, curry paste, garam masala and saffron in a large glass or ceramic bowl. Add the
chicken and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to marinate.

2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the onion. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes
or until golden.

3. Stir in the chicken. Reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 5 mintues. Add the cream and simmer for a
further 5 mintues or until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce thickens. Season with salt.

4. Meanwhile, heat the extra oil in a pan over medium-low heat. Add cashews, raisins and curry leaves.
Cook for 1-2 minutes or until the cashews are golden and the raisins are plump.

5. Transfer the curry to a serving dish. Top with cashew mixture to serve.


Coriander and mint chutney with pappadums

70g (1/4 cup) Greek style yoghurt
1/4 cup fresh coriander sprigs
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
2 tsp tamarind chutney (available from the supermarket)

Place all ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. Season with salt. Prepare the pappadums according to the packet. (My food processor wasn’t working so I just chopped the herbs, still turned out nice)

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Citrus Delicious Pudding

Its not often I cook dessert, however, since hubby and I didn't go out for our 13th Wedding Anniversary I decided we should do something special ... well .... dinner didn't turn out quite how I had planned. It was supposed to be a yummy lemon and oregano chicken. The chicken was nice but the sauce was nothing short of awful LOL .... almost a night for cereal ... :)

I have never cooked a lemon delicious pudding, but I thought they were supposed to be like a sponge with a lemon sauce .. well this wasn't quite sponge like. I yummy crispy top with some sponge underneath, but then it got a bit mushy :) .. not sure if that is how its supposed to be....

RATINGS

Ease of cooking 10 .. Chuck it all in the food processor and then into the dish .. easy as ..
Yumminess as voted by the kids ... 8.5 a bit lemony for the older two, and the youngest gave it a rating of 30 out of 10 lol :) I think she liked it ..

Citrus Delicious Pudding


90g butter, softened
1 1/2 cups (330g) caster sugar
1 1/2 cups (375ml) milk
3 eggs
1/2 cup (75g) plain all purpose flour
1/2 cup (125ml) lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind
icing (confectioners) sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Place the butter, sugar, milk, eggs, lemon juice, flour, baking powder and orange rind in a bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Pour into a lightly greased 5 cup-capacity ovenproof dish and bake for 1 hour or until golden. Dust with icing sugar to serve. Serves 6.

Enjoy ! .... we did .... oh ! we had a bit of ice cream with it :)

Chicken and Mushroom Pies

Another yummy dinner :) ..... This recipe is from the Good Taste magazine that Woolworths sell. This recipe could be done in one big baking dish if you like, but I thought it would be fun to have individual dishes (ramekins).

RATINGS

Yumminess rating by the kids ... 8 ... they don't like mushrooms :)
Ease of Cooking 10 ..


Chicken and Mushroom Pies

600g potatoes, peeled, coarsely chopped
40g butter
125ml (1/2 cup) pouring cream
1tbs wholegrain mustard
2 tsp Olive Oil
600g single chicken breast fillets, cut into pieces
1 leek, trimmed, halved lengthways, washed, thinly sliced
250g cup mushrooms, halved
125ml (1/2cup) dry white wine
1 tbs flour
250ml (1 cup) chicken stock


1. Preheat oven to 180c. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Cook the potato in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and return to the pan. Add half the butter and half the cream. Mash until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the mustard.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the chick to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until golden brown almost cooked through. Transfer to a plate.

3. Melt the remaining butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until foaming. Add the leek and mushroom, and cook, stirring occasionally for 3 minutes or until soft. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes or until the wine has reduced by half. Add the flour and cook, stirring for 1-2 minutes or until the mixture bubbles. Remove from heat. Gradually add the stock, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until smooth. Place over medium-high heat. Stir with a wooden spoon for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens and comes to the boil. Remove from heat. Stir in the chicken and remaining cream.

4. Divide chicken mixture among four 310ml (1 1/4 cup) capacity ovenproof dishes. Use a spoon to spread the potato mixture over the chicken mixture.

5. Place on the lined tray. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly before serving.


Enjoy ...

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Baked Coconut and Coriander Fish ...

You have to try this dish ! ..... its easy and so very yummy. I always struggle with fish dishes, in that I can never find recipes that everyone likes and are quick and easy. This one is a definite repeat dinner.

RATINGS

Yumminess as judged by the kids .. 10 .. their plates were empty.
Ease of cooking 9 .. only because I hate cutting up raw fish :)


Baked Coconut and Coriander Fish


1 x 270ml can light coconut cream (although I used coconut milk)
1 bunch broccolini, cut into 3cm pieces
1 x 250g SunRice long grain white rice in 90 seconds (I used 1 cup long grain rice and pre cooked it)
4 shallots, trimmed, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander
2 tsp fish sauce
400g Basa fillets, cut into 4 cm pieces (Basa is a firm fillet, so an equivalent fish would do, I don't know my fish so I can't offer an alternative)
30g (1/3 cup) dried multigrain breadcrumbs
2 tsp finely grated lemon rind


1. Preheat oven to 200c. Place the coconut cream in a large frying pan over medium-low heat. Add broccolini, rice, shallot, coriander and fish sauce. Stir to combine. Cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

2. Stir in the fish. Transfer to a 2L (8cup) capacity ovenproof dish.

3. Combine breadcrumbs and lemon rind in a bowl. Sprinkle over the fish mixture. Bake, covering with foil if necessary to prevent overbrowning, for 20-25 minutes or until breadcrumbs are golden. (I found I had to cook it a bit longer to make sure the fish was cook)


Thats it ! Enjoy ...

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Meatballs ..

One of the staples on our dinner menu is Meatballs .... all the kids love them and they are so easy to make. Tonight we are going to a 'Cocktail' Party .. really just a eat and chat kinda thing :) .... so girls parents have to bring a plate of something. I find that lots of people bring sweet things... so tonight I am taking the meatballs, just not with pasta and sauce ....

Meatballs with Chilli and Lime Dip

Yumminess is off the scale .. this dip is fantastic ... the kids haven't tried it though ..

The Meatballs .. I probably don't need to tell you how to make meatballs, but here is the way I do it ..

Mince 500-700g I use around 600g for the 5 of us.
1 egg
A generous amount of breadcrumbs I use the ones from the box, I generally don't have any spare bread around.
Mixed herbs probably around 1-2 teaspoons
A good dollop of tomato sauce
and I sometimes put in around 1/2-1 teaspoons of curry powder ... just gives a little something I think ..


Mix and squish around with your hands, make into small balls and cook in a frypan.

The dip recipe is from a very old Family Circle Fabulous Mince Recipes

Chilli and Lime Dip

Combine :

1/4 cup (60ml) sweet chilli sauce
2 teaspoons of soft brown sugar
1 teaspoon of finely grated lime rind
3-4 teaspoons of lime juice **
1 tablespoon freshly chopped basil

I put the 4 teaspoons of lime juice in and found it a little too much so I put in a good squeeze of honey.

** HINT ... to make it easier to squeeze citrus, I put the limes into the microwave for 10-20 seconds and then roll on the bench ... cut them in half and squeeze and you will find that you get much more juice out of it ..


Viola ... very easy finger food to take to a party ... The red dip you see int he photo is just plain tomato sauce(ketchup), why? its still tastes good with meatballs :)

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Enjoy !

Carbonara ...

This recipe is very quick and easy, great for nights like tonight where i forgot to get any meat out of the freezer early enough ..

The recipe comes from a book I bought when I lived in Malaysia ... The author is Australian, Jane Strecker, living in Kuala Lumpur and the photographs were taken by the photographer, Sarah Grasset, i used to work with when i lived in KL....

The idea of her book is a fantastic one, its called Family to Fabulous, so each recipe has a family recipe and then on the next page is a fabulous recipe .. so the same family recipe pimped up to look very flash lol ... for those dinner guests over the age of 10 :) ...

I have change the recipe a bit to suit us ... I will type up the recipe as in the book and let you know what I change ..

Spaghetti Carbonara

RATINGS

RATINGS for ease of cooking 10
RATINGS for yumminess from the kids 9

Ingredients

8 rindless bacon rashers, chopped into small pieces
4 eggs (I only use one egg, I can't stop it going scrambled egg like so I stick to one)
1 cup cream (low fat is suitable)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (the grated parmesan in the bag is ok too)
4 spring onions (I only use 2)
400g spaghetti
Parmesan cheese, grated, to serve
(I also add mushrooms, this just adds a bit of extra flavour and yumminess - probably around 100g, chopped)


1. Fry the bacon in a frying pan, then add mushrooms. Drain on absorbent paper and set aside.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, cream, cheese and spring onion. Add the bacon and mushroom mix and stir through.

3. Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling water until al dente. Drain and return to the saucepan.

4. Pour the sauce mixture over the spaghetti and stir through over low heat until the sauce mixture is just warmed through. Avoid heating too long as the egg will start to resemble scrambled egg.

5. Serve with extra parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top ...

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Enjoy ....

Chicken Laksa

The first recipe :) ... This recipe is taken from "Australian Womens Weekly The New Classics" cookbook .... The kids loved this because they like soup, chicken and noodles ... It's not a hard recipe but if you don't do some Asian cooking then you may have to get a few ingredients....

RATINGS OUT OF 10

RATING for yumminess according to me 10
RATING for yumminess according to the kids 6


Ingredient List

1 litre (4 cups) of water
12 fresh kaffir lime leaves (from the fruit and vege section)
2 cloves of garlic (i use the jar stuff if i am in a hurry)
800g of chicken thigh fillets
1/2 cup laksa paste (i have used varying amounts according to how hot the kids like it,
if your kids don't like hot food just use a tablespoon or so)
3 1/4 cups of coconut milk
2 fresh chillies. chopped finely (I don't add these)
150g dried stick noodles
175g singapore noodles
2 tablespoons of palm sugar (this comes in little handy sachets in the asian section of the supermarket, brown sugar would do if you can't find it)
1/3 cup (80ml) of lime juice
2 tablespoons of fish sauce
80g fried tofu puffs, halved (I don't add these)
1 1/2 cups (120g) bean sprouts
1/2 cup loosely packed coriander leaves (I love coriander so I add more)
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh vietnamese mint leaves (i just use normal mint if I can't find these)


1. Place the water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Add 4 lime leaves, garlic and chicken, reduce heat;simmer covered for about 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Cool chicken in liquid for 15 minutes. Slice chicken thinly;reserve. Strain stock through muslin lined sieve (I just use a sieve like a large tea strainer) in a large bowl;discard solids. allow stock to cool;skim fat from surface.

2. Cook laksa paste in large saucepan, stirring, until fragrant. Stir in stock, coconut milk, chilli and remaining torn lime leaves; bring to a boil. Reduce heat;simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, place rice stick noodles in a large heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water, stand until just tender;drain. Place Singapore noodles in separate bowl cover with boiling water, separate with a fork, drain. Divide both noodles among serving bowls.

4. Stir sugar, juice, sauce, tofu and chicken into laksa. Ladle laksa over noodles; sprinkle with sprouts and herbs.

Serves 4 ... we are 2 adults and 3 kids and it does us well.

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So here is what it looks like .. with all those extra herbs :)

Welcome

Well ... here we are in the blogging world again ..... I still have my photography Blog however this blog is for more for the food and recipes, but there will be some photography too .....

I am no chef ... but I am a mother that has to think of what's for dinner and make it pretty much every night ... so I am qualified to enough to write about the culinary pursuits in my own kitchen ... be they successes or complete horrible failures where we end up with cereal for dinner ... believe me its happened on a number of occasions. :)

So here you will find recipes that have been a big hit, hopefully some photographs of those hits and hopefully some involvement from you the reader as time goes on :)

Enjoy ....

Of course I can't post without a photo ... and since I missed out on photographing the Roast Lamb for dinner ... you get this crazy looking flower that I captured on a walk through Ku-ring-gai Wildflower Garden ..