Mango and Sweet Potato Curry

 

·Mango & Sweet Potato Curry·

 Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 4tbsp Korma curry paste
• 400ml mango nectar
• 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into slices
• 250ml carton of coconut cream
• 1tsp cornflour
• 200g cauliflower, sliced
• 1 ripe mango, stone removed, peeled and cubed
• handful of snow peas (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large deep frypan and fry the curry paste a few seconds until aromatic. Add the sweet potato and mango nectar and bring to the boil, then cover and simmer over a low heat for 20 minutes.
2. Add enough coconut cream to the cornflour to make a paste, then combine with the remaining cream and stir into the saucepan. Add the cauliflower (and peas) and simmer uncovered for 5 mins. Season to taste and serve with basmati rice and fresh coriander.

This one was very popular with our dog Luna, who very diligently stood watch while I took photos ^.^

 

Happy Cow Burgers with Sage and Rosemary Fries

·Happy Cow Burgers with Sage and Rosemary Fries·

 Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 40 minutes | Serves: 3

This recipe was created for my wonderful husband, who has decided to support my vegetarianism by not eating meat or meat by-products when I'm around. This means a lot to me, as I know he is a staunch meat lover. To say thank you for his support and kindness, I decided to create a veggie burger that will *hopefully* soothe his fast-food cravings. Hell, it may even soothe mine too!

This recipe utilises Quorn as a base for the patties. I know some people don't like / can't eat Quorn so you can substitute TVP or maybe even minced Seitan, but I can't guarantee the patties will hold together as well.

Ingredients:

For the fries

• 4 large potatoes, scrubbed, skin on
• 1 tsp ground rosemary
• 1/2 tsp ground sage
• splash of oil to coat

For the burger patties

• 1/2 bag (about 170g) of Quorn mince, thawed
• 1 small onion
• 2 eggs, lightly whisked
• 3 slices of wholemeal bread, grated into crumbs
• 1 heaped teaspooon of minced garlic (or 1 clove, finely chopped)
• 1 tsp ground rosemary
• 1 tsp ground sage
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp barbeque sauce
• 1 tbsp tomato sauce (ketchup)
• oil for frying
• pinch of sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Fries:

Preheat the oven to 220C (200C fan-forced)

Slice your potatoes into 1cm thick chip shapes. Try to keep them fairly uniform so they cook evenly. 

Place potato chips into a large bowl. Sprinkle with rosemary and sage, then drizzle a little oil over the top. Shake and toss in the bowl until the fries are coated evenly with oil and herbs. 

Spread out on a tray lined with baking paper and place in the oven for 35-45 minutes. 

Burger patties:

Finely chop onion and set to brown in a pan on medium low heat with the oil, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper.
While onions are softening, grab a bowl and combine Quorn, breadcrumbs and sage with the tomato, bbq and worcestershire sauces. Add egg a little at a time and mix well, pressing the mixture with your spoon to make sure the bread gets well soaked and turns gloopy. Add onions and stir through.
Wipe pan clean and add a little oil over medium heat. Shape mix into patties and place in pan, pressing them a little to flatten them out. Cook 5 mins each side or until brown and firm.

Serve on buns with your favourite burger toppings and the home baked fries!
- We had ours with a fried egg, double cheese, tomato sauce, red onion, lettuce, cucumber and sour cream. They were freaking awesome- even better than the real thing! :D

Notes:
My first patty held together OK but the others were a little crumbly. That didn't matter so much for me (they still taste awesome!) but if presentation is key make sure they hold together well in your hand before you throw them in the pan. If they fall apart, add more egg and/or bread crumbs a bit at a time.

Turkish Strawberry Cupcakes

·Turkish Strawberry Cupcakes·

Serves: 20 cupcakes | Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

• 115g butter, softened
• 115g raw caster sugar
• 175g self-raising flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 punnet (10) fresh strawberries
• 2 tsp rose water

Icing:

• 30g butter, softened (NOT melted)
• 3/4 cup icing sugar
• 2 tsp mashed strawberries

To make the cupcakes: 
Preheat oven to 180C and line two cupcake trays with papers. Chop strawberries into small pieces, place in a bowl and mix with 2tsp of rosewater and a sprinkle of sugar. Set aside. 

Cream butter and sugar together until creamy. Add eggs one at a time and whisk until you can make loose peaks. Sift flour and fold into liquid mixture.

Once mixture gets too stiff to fold, add chopped strawberries- leave about a tablespoon for the icing. Fold gently until liquid is well combined. 
Spoon mixture into cupcake cases and bake for 15-20 minutes. In my oven 18 minutes is perfect. They should be light bread-brown on top.

To make the icing:
Take left over strawberries and mash with a fork or potato masher until pulpy. Set aside.

Chop butter into small pieces. Sift icing sugar over the butter and mix with a spoon, adding a little of the strawberry mix at at time to loosen things up. 

Once you have a nice paste, you can get a mixer into it - I use the whisk attachment of my stick blender. The icing should be spoonable but not too runny. You want it to spread but still hold its shape on top of the cupcakes. Once the butter is well combined, taste and add extra rosewater / icing sugar if needed.

Spoon a little on to each cooled cupcake and top with a fresh rose petal. Place in the fridge for ten minutes to set the icing. Devour!

Apricot and Ginger Pies

 

· Apricot & Ginger Pies ·

There was some pie crust dough left over from the pie in my previous post, and to save wasting it, these happened! The photos looked so damn inviting I couldn't bear to resize them :)

Ingredients:

• Leftover prepared pie crust dough as per this post
• 400g preserved apricots (or fresh apricots, cooked until very soft)
• 1/2 tsp minced ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tbsp raw sugar

Directions:

1. Mix ginger(s) with the apricot to make a gloopy mess.

2. Line ramekins with 5mm thick dough mixture. Cut level with the top of each ramekin. 

3. Divide apricots evenly between your pies.

4. Cut remaining dough into 1cm strips and create a lattice (or design of your choice) on top. Press edges to seal. Sprinkle with raw sugar and a little cinnamon if desired.

5. Bake for 30 minutes @180C.

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Notes:

I had enough crust for three small pies (pie-lets?), about 3" wide and 2" deep.

Will probably re-create this at full size as it was completely delicious. The ginger gives a lovely warmth and subtle spice without overpowering the apricots. A pie for a cold winter evening, served warm with lots of cream!

The apricots used in this recipe were picked and preserved by my wonderful Mum :)

Apple Blueberry Pie

·Apple Blueberry Pie with Shortcake Crust·

 Prep Time: 60 minutes | Cook Time: 40 minutes 

Recipe from taste.com.au

 

Ingredients:

Filling

• 4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into thin wedges
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon rind
• 70g (1/3 cup) caster sugar
• 60ml (1/4 cup) water
• 300g pkt frozen blueberries, thawed

 Crust

• 125g unsalted butter
• 100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 150g (1 cup) self-raising flour
• 100g (2/3 cup) plain flour
• 2 tbs demerara (or raw) sugar
• Pouring cream or vanilla custard, to serve
  

Directions:

1. To make the filling, place the apple, lemon rind, sugar and water in a saucepan over low heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until apple is soft.
Add the blueberries and simmer for 1 minute. Set aside to cool.

2. Meanwhile, use electric beaters to beat the butter and caster sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. 

Sift the combined flour over the butter mixture and stir to combine. 

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. 

Wrap one-third of the dough in plastic wrap. Wrap remaining dough in plastic wrap and place both dough portions in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.

3. Preheat oven to 180C. Roll out the larger dough portion on a lightly floured surface into a 24cm disc. Line a round 20cm springform pan with the pastry disc, to cover the base and about 2cm up the side. 

Strain the filling to remove any excess moisture and transfer to the prepared pan. 

Roll out the remaining dough portion and cut into 2cm-wide strips. Arrange the strips in a lattice pattern over the filling and press to seal. Sprinkle with the demerara sugar.

4. Bake for 30 minutes. Set aside in the pan for 10 minutes to cool. Serve warm with cream or custard.

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Notes:

This was my first attempt at making a pie from scratch. Pies have always been one of my favorite desserts (something I have no doubt was inherited from my father) but they've always looked super complicated and prone to disaster. 

This recipe seemed simple enough so I gave it a try.

FREAKING INCREDIBLE. The filling didn't have that cloying sweetness like some pies, allowing the blueberries to really stand out. The crust was oh-so-perfect, crumbly, sugary, vanilla-y with that fresh-biscuit crunch on top. 

Quite probably the best pie I've ever eaten, and I've had a few! Dad- expect one of these to come your way in the near future :)

Words of caution: 

I found my pie was very heavy and didn't come cleanly off the base of the pan (hence the photos are taken beforehand!). If you need to serve this on a pretty plate, make it with enough time to cool completely before trying to move it. I had to use a spatula to hold the middle up, and even then it twisted and cracked. 

I'd recommend putting your fruit in a strainer while making the crust, to get as much liquid out as possible. Turn it over with a spoon every now and then to make sure it drains evenly. Put a bowl under the strainer to catch the syrup and store it in the freezer to use in another creation!

Eye Candy - Toffee Experiment

· Hazelnut and Vanilla Toffees on a Chocolate Crumb ·

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This was just a plating experiment after playing around making toffee. The chocolate crumb was left over from the Cherry Fancies.

My toffee didn't get up to temperature (no candy thermometer) so is a little bendy out of the fridge but man, it still tastes great!

Please excuse the slightly dismal photos, hard to get nice lighting in the middle of the night.

Worknight Meals: Corn & Egg Thread Soup

· Corn & Egg Thread Soup ·

Serves: 2-4 | Prep Time: 2 minutes | Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

4 cups (1L) chicken flavoured stock

400g can creamed corn

1 50g pack rice vermicelli 

1 egg, lightly beaten

Chives, to garnish

Directions:

Bring stock and corn to the boil in a large saucepan. Add noodles, stir briefly to separate, then simmer for four minutes or until noodles are soft and clear. 

Reduce heat, and add egg in a thin stream, whisking briskly with a fork. 

Garnish with chives and serve with crusty bread.