Frozen Raspberry Marlow

I have been trawling through old recipe books lately. It is a fascinating pastime that usually results in the conclusion that recipe books are no longer necessary. Every recipe, cooking idea, weights and measures information is available on the internet. Cookbooks clutter up the bookshelves and get dusty.

Last week I was reading a book named, "Cooking with Fruits." Oh, this will be interesting I thought, and sure enough it had weird recipes in it like Fruit Dip for Crudites, Honeydew Melon with Crab, and Veal with Pomegranates. No, none of these were for me. 



So I quickly flicked to the sweet end of the book looking for a delicious creamy dessert or fancy cake recipe. Disappointment slowly mounted until I found this clever little recipe. Well, it is more an idea that can be adapted than a recipe. 

To state the obvious, frozen desserts are brilliant. They can be made in advance then eaten in small or large quantities, by one, a few or many. 

Raspberries- Fresh or frozen are suitable. I use frozen simply because they are cheaper.

Marshmallows- Usually available in vanilla, raspberry or mixed packets. Vanilla will produce a sweeter marlow but not by much. 

Dates- The recipe states fresh but if you can't get fresh or they are too expensive then use the packaged dates from the grocery aisle. It is important to check that there are no pits in them because the food processer can't cope with them and is likely to be damaged.

Cream- The quantity does not have to be accurate. If you want the raspberry flavour to be less intense, add more cream. 

Ingredients
1.5 cups raspberries
125g marshmallows
6 fresh dates
1 cup cream, whipped.

Method
1. Put dates in food processor and dribble boiling water over and allow to soften.

2. Add raspberries and blitz until smoothish. The raspberry seeds will still be visible.

3. Heat raspberry mixture with marshmallows in a small saucepan until marshmallows melt. 

4. Refrigerate until cold.
5. Fold in whipped cream.

6. Freeze until frozen.
7. Enjoy with anything you want. 

  

Eggless Strawberry Ice Cream

The punnets of strawberries were cheap this week so what better way to soothe a sore throat than with ice cream. 

This recipe contains no eggs. I know that commercial ice cream has eggs but I try not to think about it when I am tucking in to my favourite bought flavour. Making ice cream is however, quite different. The thought of half cooked egg in a chilled dessert just puts me off making ice cream so I have scoured the internet and tried many variations of frozen ice cream and sorbets to find delicious recipes.

This is the simplest recipe for ice cream that you could hope to find. There is also flexibility with the recipe which is great.

Sugar- I use raw sugar because this is what is sitting on the kitchen bench. Plus it also gives a deeper flavour.

Cream and milk- Depending on your preference, all milk, a mix of both or all cream can be used to make 2 cups in total. I tend to use 1 cup milk and 1 cup cream. It isn't as icy as all milk but if you want really creamy ice cream, then use all cream.

Vanilla- I like it but it doesn't matter if you haven't got any. 

Food colouring- If you like really pink ice cream. I don't use it because I think the ice cream is pink enough. 

If you don't have an ice cream maker, do not worry. The instructions for making it without are included. It is worth it!

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 x 250g punnet fresh strawberries.



Method  
1. Warm milk in the microwave until hot to touch.
2. Add sugar and stir until dissolved.
3. Place mix in refrigerator until chilled.
4. Add milk mix, cream, vanilla and hulled strawberries in a blender and blend until smooth.
If you have an ice cream machine:
5. Pour mixture into ice cream machine and follow instructions.
6. Store in freezer.

If you don't have an ice cream machine: 
5. Place a freezer safe pan or bowl in the freezer when starting to make the ice cream so it is chilled.
6. Transfer your mixture into the cold pan and put it back in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes. Around that time, check the ice cream. 
7. Once the edges start to freeze, take out the mixture and beat it using a hand mixer.
8. Return the pan to the freezer. Every 30 minutes or so, take it back out and beat the ice cream again. Repeat until it is firmly frozen, usually around four or five mixing sessions. Once it’s frozen, the mixture should be smooth and creamy.

Store your ice cream in the freezer. Enjoy!

Another fabulous portrait by John!

Spicy Sweet Potato Soup

This is one of those super simple recipes.

With only 5 ingredients, it takes just a bit of chopping and then a simmer on the stove.

It is also incredibly flexible so if the recipe looks vague, it is because it is and it doesn't matter. Adjust the recipe to suit your own taste and what you have on hand.

Ingredients       

1.5 tablespoons Thai red curry paste- Alter the quantity to suit yourself. This amount gives just a gentle kick.
2 medium gold sweet potatoes. These 2 weighed 1.3kg -  I like the gold ones because of their taste and they are always available and usually cheap. Also easy to grow. 
1 onion- brown or white
1/2 cup coconut milk- This will give a subtle coconut flavour but can be substituted with cream or yogurt.
1 cup water- I like my soup so thick that the spoon almost stands up in it. Add as much as you want to make it as thin as you want
Pepper, herbs to garnish- I used cracked black pepper and continental parsley for this batch. This parsley is the only herb growing well in my garden at the moment so I used it.

Method
1. Heat curry paste in large saucepan on medium heat until it becomes aromatic
2. Add onion and fry for a couple of minutes 
3. Chop sweet potato and add to pan
4. Add water and cook until sweet potato is tender
5. Turn stove off
6. Add coconut milk
7. Blend using stick mixer or blender
8. Add more water if too thick
9. Ladle into a bowl and garnish as desired
10. Serve with buttered toast. 

Gluten-free Peanut Slice

This recipe re-emerged when I gave an old recipe book to Catherine. The day after I gave it to her she presented me with an envelope of hand written recipes that had been lost within the pages of the book. I had forgotten all about this incredibly simple, gluten-free delight.

Here is the recipe for the peanut base. It can be topped with any sort of chocolate topping that you want. A thin layer of melted chocolate or a frosting would be great. I have included a link below for a simple and old fashioned icing made with cocoa. This is a good one if you want the icing to set so the slice can be cut and packed in layers in a plastic pot for travel. 

Ingredients

375g raw peanuts     
2 eggs
1 cup sugar (white or raw)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder



Method
1. Mince peanuts in food processor
2. Add baking powder and whiz to mix in
3. Beat eggs until thick and creamy
4. Mix in sugar and beat again
5. Combine egg mix and peanuts
6. Line base of brownie or slice tin (27cm x 17.5cm x 3cm) with baking paper
7.Spread mix in tin. Smooth surface

8. Bake at 180celsius for 35 minutes 

9. Take care not to overcook as it can easily become dry and hard to cut.  
10. Ice while still warm in tin
11. Once cool, tip out of tin and cut
12. Store in an airtight container. 

Click here for a Simple chocolate icing recipe.

Simplest Peanut Satay Sauce

There are some recipes that are timeless. Do you remember the 70s and 80s when the 'in thing' was the prawn cocktail- nude, little prawns hanging over the side of a dish containing the ubiquitous thousand island dressing? Let's not forget the shredded lettuce. Just in case you have forgotten, I found a photo on Wikipedia to jog your memory.  

I will not dwell on prawn cocktails any longer but rather I will share the simplest peanut satay sauce you will ever make. Many years ago I found a recipe that didn't require roasting peanuts, grinding peanuts, mixing things with the peanuts, etc,etc. It was great and I made it many times but often I would either not have all the ingredients in the house or forget to put something in because I no longer used the recipe. 

Fast forward a few more years and I was looking for tasty recipes for my annual family get together. The weather in Brisbane in April is beautiful and perfect for a barbecue so we decided to cook chicken sticks and sausages and anything else our guests wish to bring with them.

I didn't even look for the recipe this time. 
My peanut satay sauce now has only 3 ingredients.

1 can coconut milk
6 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter
3 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce- more if you like it hot.
(This makes a large quantity.)

Method
Heat slowly and stir until well combined.
Simmer until desired thickness.
If the sauce starts to separate, stir vigorously and it will recombine. 

Ideal accompaniment for any meats, to dip raw vegetables in or spice up roasted veggies. 

Spicy Spanish Almonds

These delectable almonds are another of my range of delicious nuts. For some bizarre reason they seem a bit more 'masculine' than my traditional sweet roasted macadamia nuts so I cooked a batch for brother's birthday. 

INGREDIENTS
3 cups of raw whole almonds
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
1 teaspoon ground rock or sea salt 
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 egg white
1 teaspoon water

METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 135 degrees Celsius (275F)

2. Line large baking tray with baking paper
3. Mix sugar, spices and salt in large bowl
4. Whisk egg white and water until thick and foamy
5. Tip almonds into egg white mix and stir to coat 
6. Tip into spice and mix to coat
7. Spread evenly onto baking sheet
8. Bake for 30 minutes
9. Stir and separate any that are stuck together
10. Reduce oven temperature to 100 degrees Celsius (205F) and bake about 30 minutes until dry.  
11. Stir and leave on tray to cool. They will become crisp once cool.
12. Store in airtight container. 

A few interesting facts about almonds

• The trees and their blossoms are truly beautiful.
• Technically, almonds are the seed of a tree.
• They are a member of the Amygdalus family and related to other fruits that contain hard pits, including cherries, plums and peaches. 
• They thrive in mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers in full sun.
• Nutritionally they are praised due to the presence of monounsaturated fatty acids, dietary fibre, antioxidants, vitamins like riboflavin, and trace minerals such as magnesium.

Coffee Cream Pots

This started out as a low-fat dessert recipe but I couldn't resist the temptation to add a bit of cream. It is made with low-fat ricotta cheese which I have always thought had bit of a sandy texture but this dessert is still worth the minimal effort required to make it. 

In keeping with the healthy, low-fat theme, I have teamed it with some beautiful fresh fruit. Mangoes and stone fruit have been divine this year and they are hard to resist. 

This cream would also be delicious with a biscuit such as biscotti or even a brandy snap. 

INGREDIENTS
500g low-fat ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon instant coffee dissolved in 1 teaspoon warm water
3 teaspoons Kahlua or similar liqueur
1/4 cup castor sugar
pinch cinnamon
1/2 cream thickened cream, lightly whipped (optional.)
   
note: If you don't have Kahlua or don't want to use liquor, use 2 teaspoons of instant coffee instead of one. 

METHOD
1. Using an electric mixer, combine all ingredients except cream.
2. Whip until very smooth.
3. Fold in cream.
4. Place in 6 small individual dishes and refrigerate for at least one hour.
5. Serve with fruit, biscuits or maybe chocolate sticks. 

This antique china is Shelley "Daffodil Time" trio demitasse cup, saucer and plate. 

  

A great dessert for a 
hot summer evening.  

Peanut Cookies

Why buy peanut cookies when you can make these in a jiffy if you have the munchies.
Another of my cheats' recipes. A packet of cake mix is always worth keeping in your pantry. 

INGREDIENTS
1 packet vanilla cake mix
1/4 cup crushed nuts (Optional- The cookies will still be great without.)
3/4 cup raw peanuts
1 egg
125g butter

METHOD
1. Mix cake mix, crushed nuts and peanuts in a bowl.
2. Melt butter.
3. Add egg to butter and mix well.
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients and mix well.
5. Roll teaspoons of mixture into balls and place on baking tray lined with baking paper. Leave room to spread. 
6. Bake at 180 Celsius for 15 minutes.
7. Cool on tray until firm.
8. Transfer to cooling rack and leave until room temperature.
9. Store in an airtight container. 

Why not try my other cheats' cookie recipes. They are all on my blog.

• Snickers
• Cherry Surprise
• Blondies
• Double Choc Chip
• Afghans
• Coconut rough. 

Happy Cooking!

  

Making Food and Positive Feelings

Since all this started I have done a lot of baking. Quick recipes that produce tasty results with minimum effort. I enjoy baking and it makes me feel good. 

According to this article, published in the Journal of Positive Psychology, "people who frequently take a turn at small, creative projects report feeling more relaxed and happier in their everyday lives." That's me.   

Baking is not going to cure my shoulder or magic the fatigue away but it is pleasurable and gives me a sense of accomplishment, no matter how quick the recipe is. For a short time, I concentrate on something else. Something that is fun. I suggest you give it a go and check out my recipes. They are about simple as you can get.  

Read more here: 
Feeling down? Scientists say cooking and baking could help you feel better

3 Weeks Until Christmas

It's back to food this week. It is only 3 weeks until Christmas and the shops are getting hectic. We do the groceries every Saturday morning, usually arriving soon after 8am and leaving at about 9:30. In and out before the rush and nobody waiting for our car park as week leave. No so this morning. By the time we got back to the car, the four wheeled vultures were circling, hunting for a car park.

The message for this week is to get organised now. Study your menus for Christmas functions. Start two shopping lists. The first one is for non-perishable items that you can buy now. The second list is for the items that you have to leave until the last minute. You can continue to add to this list until the last shop before Christmas but start now so you won't forget anything. 

What can you buy now? Most things: tins, coffee, biscuits, pet food, snacks, toilet paper. Have you ever noticed the huge amounts of toilet paper that are driven out of the supermarkets right before Christmas? Does the human body work differently at Christmas time, maybe in response to the change in diet? Who knows, but I can assure you that the toilet paper you buy today will not go stale in the next three weeks. 

Are you planning to try a recipe for the first time at Christmas? I have a habit of doing this and amazingly have not had a disaster but it is better to test recipes out ahead of time if you can. 

My Sister-In-Law is a creative and skilled cake maker and decorator. Fortunately for the rest of us who don't have the same degree of patience, dedication and skill Toni-Maree provides delicious recipes and ideas to try. Try out these truffles this weekend. Enjoy them and make more in time for Christmas. 

The Fantasy Cake Factory    

Christmas should be fun. Organise yourself so it is not all effort and stress at the last minute.  

This gorgeous bowl of gingerbread was created by Anita:
http://s125.photobucket.com/user/alongway99/library/?sort=4&page=1