My good friend Liz hosted a few mums and toddlers for a Melbourne Cup lunch last year.  A glass of bubbly, chicken salad and scrumptious chocolate and almond mini cakes topped with cream and sweet strawberries – not a bad way to spend a Tuesday.

Marie made the mini chocolate and almond cakes for the lunch and shared the recipe with me.  I have only made the large cake but they can be baked in muffin tins for individual desserts. The cake is flourless and despite the lack of height they are quite light.  My favourite bit is the flecks of finely chopped chocolate throughout.  No chocolate is melted, just finely chopped and mixed through.  It means the cake isn’t dominated by chocolate but each bite is filled with little flecks of chocolate to nibble.

This cake doesn’t suffer if made the day before.  Like any flourless cake they seem to keep better.  Serve with whipped cream, fresh strawberries and a little dust of icing sugar.  It is one incredibly good recipe!

chocolate and almond cake

(from the St John’s Wood and The Gap Parish Cookbook 2004)

200g quality dark chocolate
170g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g unsalted butter
4 eggs, separated
250g almond meal

Preheat oven to 170 degrees C.  Grease and line a 24cm cake tin.

Melt the butter and allow to cool.  Finely chop the chocolate so it is crumbly.

In a bowl whisk the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla until pale and thick.  Fold through the chocolate, melted butter and almond meal.

In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form.  Fold half of the whisked egg whites into the chocolate mixture, then fold through the remaining egg whites.  Spoon into the prepared tin and bake for 50 – 60 minutes.

When I watch Wimbledon, my thoughts turn to strawberries and cream.  The same goes if I’m watching The Australian Open.  In fact, whenever I am watching tennis I get a hankering for strawberries and cream.  So after a month of dedicated tennis viewing I have had my fair share, but the ultimate strawberry and cream combination is an Eton Mess.

Eton Mess is my favourite dessert of all time – strawberries, sweetened whipped cream, crumbled meringues and a non-traditional scoop of vanilla ice-cream.  According to Joel and his family, no dessert is complete without the presence of ice-cream, and I have to agree that the inclusion of ice-cream in Eton Mess is a stroke of genius.

I just use a basic Stephanie Alexander meringue recipe and it is enough for our 6 serves of Eton Mess.  All the other elements aren’t specific quantities – just a guideline.  If you use more or less of anything it won’t really matter because this is a recipe that would be hard to stuff up.  Just throw it all in a bowl and curl up for The Australian Open tennis final tonight!

eton mess

2 punnets of strawberries, washed, hulled and sliced
300ml cream
2 tablespoons caster sugar
vanilla ice-cream

meringues

(meringue recipe from Stephanie Alexander’s book ‘The Cooks Companion’)

2 egg whites
120g caster sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 150 degrees C.  Line a baking tray with baking paper.

Whisk the egg whites in a mixer until soft peaks form.  Continue to whisk and gradually add the sugar and whisk until the sugar has dissolved.  Rub a little of the egg whites between your forefinger and thumb to see if the sugar is still grainy.  Mix through the vanilla.

Dollop spoonfuls of the mix onto the baking tray to form 6 meringues.  Bake in the oven for 45 minutes then turn off the oven and open the door just a little and leave to cool.

Whisk the cream with 2 tablespoons of caster sugar until soft peaks form.  Crumble 5 meringues into 6 dessert bowls.  Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, the sliced strawberries and finish with big dollops of the whipped cream.  Crumble over the final meringue over and serve.

My kids love to have routine and order.  They seem to feel comfortable in knowing how our days, weeks and months are organised.  Friday nights are pizza night and have been for many years now.  The kids go through waves where some Friday nights they will demolish every slice in sight, and other times they just pick at one or two pieces.  But when I have broken with tradition and served something else for Friday night dinner there has been protests and possibly even a few tears.

So I continue with the weekly pizza night and trust it is building happy memories of family togetherness eating pizza, watching DVDs, playing boardgames as well as developing fine pizza making skills.  With so many pizzas being churned out I need to experiment with various toppings to keep my interest.  This version with lots of cheese, thinly sliced zucchini then topped with pesto and basil is scrumptious and makes a perfect Summer pizza.

Elliott helped me with last night’s pizzas.  Sprinkling the polenta on the pizza tray, rolling the dough, spooning the tomato sauce over the base and arranging the zucchini slices and bocconcini.  But he still didn’t eat it.  He is a ham and cheese pizza kind of three year old so he ate the kiddie pizzas.

zucchini and pesto pizza

1 pizza base
1 400g tin of tomatoes
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 small zucchini, thinly sliced
a handful of grated cheddar cheese
6 – 8 small balls of bocconcini, halved
a handful of grated Parmesan cheese
a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup pesto
fresh basil leaves to serve

Preheat oven to as high as it will go.

Tip the tomatoes into a bowl and add the garlic, oregano, salt and some freshly ground black pepper.  Blitz together with a stick blender or in a food processor until a smooth sauce.  Spoon 4 or 5 tablespoons of the sauce over the pizza base.  You may need more or less depending on the size of the pizza.  If you aren’t making other pizzas then freeze the remaining sauce for another time.

Sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the pizza then place the zucchini slices on top.  Arrange the halved bocconcini over, sprinkle over the Parmesan and drizzle over a little extra virgin olive oil.  Pop in the oven until the base is cooked and the top is golden.

Dollop little spoonfuls of the pesto all over the pizza and top with fresh basil and a little freshly ground black pepper.

School is back on Monday after a lovely, not so long Summer holiday.  Essie is starting school this year and she is beside herself with excitement. All books are contacted, lunch boxes labelled, uniforms ironed, new socks and shoes purchased etc.  The list is quite long and I’m feeling pretty chuffed with myself that I didn’t leave it all till the last minute and I’ve been able to enjoy the last week of holidays with the kids.  We are all trying to squeeze in as many swims as we can as well as watching the tennis and playing many rounds of Monopoly Junior before Monday arrives!

I was so tempted to scrap the dreaded contacting of books this year and just purchase book covers but then I thought I could get the kids’ gorgeous drawings and contact them on so they can enjoy them all year.  They look fabulous – some have more air bubbles than others but who notices with such clever little sketches.  Below is some of Tilly’s artwork and as you can see she loves her animals.

With school starting, so starts the regular routine of menu planning and stocking the freezer each week with goodies to throw into lunch boxes.  I hit the markets, the butcher, the bakery and the supermarket this morning, all before 9am, to stock up for our week’s menu.  It takes a bit of effort, but it makes the week run smoother and I have little food wastage at the end of the week.

If I am buying something for a recipe that doesn’t require the full amount then I will plan another meal for later in the week that will use the rest.  Haloumi was on my shopping list this morning and I knew I only needed half a pack for a recipe later in the week so I used up the rest in a salad for lunch.

This salad is incredibly quick with just some salad leaves, a tin of baby beetroots, a handful of toasted pecans, tomatoes and pan-fried haloumi.  The haloumi takes about a minute to cook and makes for a substantial salad.  Perfect with a good loaf of bread spread with butter or avocado.  A very lovely weekend lunch or light dinner.

haloumi and beetroot salad

1 small can of baby beetroot, drained, halved or quartered
1/4 cup pecans, toasted
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 small lettuce or a few cups of rocket and spinach
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic, crushed
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
150g haloumi, sliced in 1 cm pieces
a little drizzle of olive oil

Arrange the salad greens, tomato, baby beetroots and pecans on a platter.

In a small jar place the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic and a little salt and pepper.  Shake until combined then adjust the seasoning to taste.

Heat up a pan on a medium to high heat and drizzle in just a little olive oil.  Pan fry the haloumi for about 30 – 60 seconds on each side or until golden brown.  Remove from pan and place on top of salad.

Drizzle over the dressing, grind over some black pepper and serve immediately.  Haloumi is best eaten piping hot so don’t muck around and start taking photos of it!

The weather is all over the place at the moment.  There has been a difference of 10 degrees in just a matter of days so even though we were sweltering last week I am currently wearing a cardigan to keep the chill at bay.  But on one of those meltingly hot days last week I was inspired to juice some summer fruits to cool us all down.

In the latest Delicious magazine is a Belinda Jeffery recipe for Summer Sunrise Juice that proved irresistible.  The juice in the glass looks as pretty as a picture as the different fruits are juiced then poured into the glass one by one to form a rainbow of juices.  My rainbow layering wasn’t so obvious sadly.  Belinda does specify in her recipe to use tall glasses – I will remember for next time and hopefully that is the trick as my glasses were a bit on the short side.

Even if you cannot be bothered with juicing the individual fruits then pouring them one by one into the glass artfully then just juice it altogether and drink it up.  To describe it as ‘delicious’ does not give it justice.  The simple combination of rockmelon, pineapple, oranges and strawberries is stunning.  The perfect drink to share on a Summer weekend brunch.

summer sunrise juice

(slightly adapted from Belinda Jeffery’s recipe from Delicious magazine)

5 oranges, peeled and quartered
500g punnet of strawberries, hulled
1 rockmelon, peeled, seeds removed and roughly chopped
1 pineapple, peeled, seeds removed and roughly chopped
mint leaves to serve
ice

Pop 6 tall glasses in the fridge to chill.

Juice the strawberries and oranges and set aside. Juice up the rockmelon and set aside.  Juice up the pineapple and set aside.  If you haven’t got a juicer then you can whiz the fruit up in a blender and strain.

Fill the glasses with plenty of ice.  Pour in half the strawberry and orange juice into the base of the 6 glasses, tilting the glass as you pour so it runs down the inside.  Carefully pour in the rockmelon juice in the same way followed by the pineapple juice and finish with remaining  strawberry and orange juice.  Top with a few mint leaves and serve immediately.

This recipe is a keeper.  It is a recipe from my friend Jo, originally from her friend Kirani, which I have ever so slightly tweaked.  It makes a huge slab to feed the masses.  Perfect for Christmas gifts, parties and school fetes.

The ingredient that makes this rocky road different to any other one I’ve made or eaten is Clinkers.  I didn’t know Clinkers existed until I was at college as a fashion student and I was at a fashion parade as a dresser (fashion students do a lot of volunteer jobs as dressers to gain experience in who knows what). One of the other students/dressers pulled a bag of Clinkers out to share around and it was yum.  I haven’t really had many Clinkers since then but they are a brilliant addition to rocky road.

This is rocky road as it is meant to be, chock-a-block with lollies and marshmallows.  You can glam up rocky road with really fine chocolate, delicate rosewater marshmallows, turkish delight and pistachios but this is for kids, and adults can’t resist it either.  However a good drizzle of white chocolate looks impressive and if you’re feeling like taking it up a notch then you can scatter over some silver cachous, edible glitter or sprinkles.  A lot of fun to get the kids involved.

The quantities can be played around with so feel free to add more lollies or marshmallows if you feel it lacking and you can also add some chopped nuts.  I added nuts for a batch I did for Christmas gifts but this batch is just for kids – treats for all the holiday play dates – so safest to leave nuts out.

The original recipe called for 500g milk chocolate and 500g dark chocolate but I used 700g milk chocolate and 350g dark chocolate just because you can buy chocolate in 350g packs.

This recipe fills a big 35cm x 25cm tin which I lined. But whilst typing here I have had a Nigella cooking show on in the background and I heard her say she uses the big alfoil tins for slices like this as it makes it very easy to remove the set chocolate.  Not a bad idea.

Slice into large wedges if giving as a gift and pop into cellophane bags and tie with a ribbon. If I was slicing it up for a school fete stall I would be inclined to do small squares – makes it easy to share out amongst 4 kids there and then!

the ultimate rocky road

700g milk chocolate
350g dark chocolate
3 cups shredded coconut
200g pack of red snakes
250g pack of marshmallows
180g Clinkers
1/2 pack shortbread finger biscuits
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)
100g white chocolate

Line a 35cm x 25cm baking tin or use a big alfoil tray.

Melt the milk and dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl over simmering water.  Set aside to cool a little.

Use kitchen scissors to snip up the snake lollies into small pieces into a large bowl.  Snip the marshmallows and Clinkers in half and add to bowl.  Add the shredded coconut, nuts (if using) and crumble in the shortbread biscuits.  Mix everything together before adding the cooled, melted chocolate.  Mix everything together well and tip into the prepared tray.  Spread out the mix evenly and pop in the fridge until set.

Once set remove from the tray and place on a board.  Melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl over simmering water.  Scrap into a piping bag and drizzle the chocolate over the rocky road.  Sprinkle with cachous, edible glitter or sprinkles if you like before the white chocolate sets.

When I was a student I had a couple of jobs at local cafes.  One of the cafes had an apprentice chef work in the mornings to make salads and a few meals for take home ready meals.  I was always wanting to get away from the coffee machine and be out the back helping to prepare the meals and learn new recipes.  One of the meals was a coconut chicken curry that I adored and after many years of curry consumption I am confident it was a Malaysian Chicken Kapitan.

This recipe for Chicken Kapitan is a very simple one to whip up especially if you have a mini food processor.  I just put garlic, ginger, spring onions, spices and a little vegetable oil in the mini processor and blitz – that is the essence of the curry.  The curry paste just gets fried a little in vegetable oil, the cubed chicken is then added followed by coconut cream and a few whole spices.  To finish I stir through a little tamarind puree, sugar and toasted coconut.  It is so good!

The best part is that it is satisfyingly flavourful for adults but not very spicy so the kids will devour it too.  Elliott is going through a difficult fussy-eater phase and won’t really eat anything for dinner unless it is mashed potato but he devoured this last night.  Everyone loved it!  A good family meal.

chicken kapitan

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
800g chicken thigh fillets, cut into 3cm pieces
2 x 270ml tins of coconut cream
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
1 teaspoon tamarind puree
1 teaspoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons desiccated coconut, stir fried in a dry pan for a couple of minutes or until lightly toasted

curry paste

3 garlic cloves, crushed
a small knob of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
4 spring onions, chop up the white and pale green part only
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
3 cardamon pods
1 teaspoon dried chilli flakes (add more if you want it hotter)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Grind up all the curry paste ingredients together in a mortar and pestle or a food processor.

Heat up a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a wok and fry the paste for a minute.  Add the cubed chicken and stir fry for another minute or two.  Add the coconut cream, cinnamon, star anise and bring to the boil then turn down low to a simmer.  Leave to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through.

Stir in the tamarind puree, sugar, toasted coconut and then season to taste.  I have the tendency to add too much salt to dishes and you may find it needs no extra salt but I add roughly another 1/2 to 1 teaspoon extra at the end.  Serve with steamed rice.

Christmas has been and gone and we have returned from our holiday up in Far North Queensland at Joel’s parents’ farm.  Joel and I got to sleep in every single morning so it was truly a holiday.  The kids got to ride on the old farm horse, the quad bike, watch Grandad’s cattle get branded, go fishing and go swimming in the river.  Plus they had a whole heap of cousins to play with.

We all did our fair share of eating our way around the tablelands which has become a bit of a foodie destination.  The family farm is just near Mungalli Creek Dairy so that was our main port of call.  We popped over every second day to enjoy a Devonshire tea or their divine Sicilian Cheesecake.  Almost anything would be delicious if dolloped in their thick, rich double cream.  We also visited Skybury (coffee plantation), The Coffee Works,           Gallo Dairyland, stopped for a sublime coffee at Origin Espresso in Port Douglas and spent a rainy evening at the Reef House in Palm Cove for dinner.

However, the highlight was all the mangoes, bananas and lychees.  They were everywhere and were so delicious.  They would have been perfect to slice up and layer on top of a big homemade pavlova.

Pavlovas are an ideal summer dessert and I love mixing things up a little and add shredded coconut to the pavlova base or finely chopped chocolate or nuts.  Occasionally I have folded a little lemon curd through the whipped cream to put on top and that is a winner.  One of my favourites is a chocolate and coconut pavlova topped with cream and raspberries.  But if I have a big crowd to feed then I turn to this Julie Goodwin recipe for a big tray baked pavlova.

The texture is spot on – a crisp outer shell and soft and chewy in the middle.  I cannot stand those store bought pavlovas that are just marshmallow fluff.  The cooled pavlova just needs to be topped with whipped cream sweetened with a tiny bit of caster or icing sugar and loaded up with whatever fruits take your fancy. I think it is best made first up in the morning so there is plenty of time for it to cool and you don’t need to find a large enough container to store it!

I made the pavlova in the photo last month to feed a crowd and I just used the fruit I already had but you can load up the pavlova with more fruit and it will go even further and look more impressive.  If you need to take a dessert somewhere then it is quite handy to just leave the pavlova in the tray.  It will travel well and then you just slice it and serve it straight from the tray.  Perfect dessert for summer BBQs.

pavlova for a crowd

(slight variation to Julie Goodwin’s recipe from ‘The Heart Of The Home’)

6 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups caster sugar
1 tablespoon cornflour
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
600ml cream
2 tablespoons caster sugar, extra
fresh seasonal fruit (kiwi fruit, blueberries, passionfruit, mango, bananas, strawberries etc)

Preheat oven to 170 degrees C.  Grease and line a large baking tray roughly 38cm x 25cm (I vary the trays I use and it doesn’t matter too much if it is slightly smaller or larger).

Whisk the egg whites and salt in an electric mixer until soft peaks form.  Continue to whisk whilst adding a spoonful of caster sugar one at a time.  Keep whisking until the sugar is dissolved and it has formed into glossy stiff peaks. To test if sugar has dissolved, rub a little of the mixture between your forefinger and thumb to feel for any gritty sugar.

Sift the cornflour over the top of the egg whites and add the vinegar and vanilla then fold it all together gently.  Dollop the mixture carefully into the lined tray and use a palette knife to smooth the pavlova in the tray leaving a 2 cm space around the edge.

Pop in the oven for 30 minutes before reducing the temperature to 140 degrees C and bake for a further 40 minutes. Turn off the oven and prop the door open just an a couple of centimeters.  Leave like this until the pavlova is completely cooled.

When ready to serve, whip the cream with the extra caster sugar and dollop on top of the pavlova.  Prepare the fruit and arrange on top.

These last couple of months have been such a blur of activity and it is hard to believe Christmas in only 4 days away.  Joel has been working day and night and all my time has been devoted to keeping home life running smoothly.  Plus I have been busy in the kitchen baking Christmas gifts, cooking food for a number of end of year break-ups and parties plus a Tea For Six stall at our local Christmas carols.

We did steal a mini holiday and escape to Noosa on the weekend which was quick but absolute bliss.  The kids had an early morning swim, mum and I sipped lattes and Joel grabbed any spare moment there was to teach the older kids how to play Christmas carols on the ukulele which they have mastered very quickly!

Christmas is by far my favourite time of year and is my favourite food to make.  As we are going away for Christmas and I’m not in the kitchen cooking up the big Christmas day feast on the actual day I do feel somewhat displaced this year.  However I will still cook my favourite turkey with prune and chestnut stuffing for a Christmas eve feast before we board the plane go to Cairns.  And my mum is making her delicious Christmas pudding for Christmas eve dessert which I am looking forward to.  Plus I have been churning out batches of Caramelised Onions, Pecan & Coconut Biscotti, Rocky Road, Cranberry, Almond & White Chocolate Shortbread, Butter Cut-Out Cookies, Christmas cakes and these divine Raspberry Marshmallows  which all feels very festive.The kids have been getting involved too which keeps them happily occupied.

For the Tea For Six stall I made jars of French Chocolate Granola, Cranberry and White Chocolate Cookie Mix, Russian Caramels, Gingerbread and Mrs Smith’s Lemon Balls.  A weeks worth of work disappeared in a couple of hours.  But the quickest thing to disappear was the Cinnamon Roasted Almonds.  I had a bowl out so people could sample them and they were hard to resist.

I just love this recipe.  It is so easy to make in bulk and fairly inexpensive depending on where you get your almonds from.  I do like to buy nuts from over at Mick’s Nuts at West End but as I was churning out bags of Cinnamon Roasted Nuts for teachers, friends, Joel’s work colleagues and the markets I just bought in bulk from our local fruit and veg shop.

These are perfect to gift.  Pop them in a jar or tie them up in a cellophane bag.  But make sure to keep some to put on the Christmas table to snack on or to serve with some bubbles for Christmas drinks.  Having these baking in the oven fills the house with cinnamon aromas which feels very festive.  No one will be able to resist.

cinnamon roasted almonds

500g almonds
1 egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 120 degrees C.  Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.

In a bowl mix together the sugars and cinnamon.

In a large bowl whisk the egg white until frothy then add the vanilla and whisk for another 20 seconds.  Add the almonds and mix with a wooden spoon until the nuts are well coated and glossy from egg whites.  Tip in the sugars and cinnamon and mix carefully but thoroughly to coat the nuts in the sugars.

Spread the almonds evenly over the two trays and bake for 1 hour.  Every 10 – 15 minutes take a tray out and gently move the almonds around with a wooden spoon to encourage the almonds to roast evenly.  When the almonds no longer appear glossy then they are ready to come out of the oven.  Leave them to cool on the tray then carefully break them up with a wooden spoon.

Store in an airtight container.

I love this dressing.  It is my standby dressing I make whenever I need a green salad.  It is full of flavour and scrumptious enough to use as a dip to dunk raw vegetables in.

All you need is some salad leaves and a handful of tomatoes and you have a really delicious green salad.  If I can, I’ll add either some finely sliced shallots, sliced roasted almonds, bacon, crumbled feta, sliced avocado, halved boiled eggs or anything that takes my fancy.

If you don’t have any white balsamic vinegar then you can just use white wine vinegar.  I’ll use whatever one is within closest reach.  The quantities below should make enough dressing for a couple of salads.

dijon salad dressing

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until emulsified.  Or just pop all the ingredients in a jar and shake.

It will keep well in the fridge for a couple of weeks.