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Fennel and blood orange salad
A the beginning of winter this year I planted fennel in my vegetable garden for the first time. It’s been an astounding success and I am harvesting beautiful bulbs every few days. The aroma of the freshly cut young fennel is astonishing – so fresh and sharply aniseed, but also almost sweet in overtone. I love fennel slowly roasted, or gently braised with some butter, but it is also delicious raw in salads, crunchy as celery, but not stringy or fibrous, and with a complexity of flavour that complements sweet ingredients such as oranges, or apple. Today I paired two finely shaved bulbs with some blood oranges and made a dressing with apple cider vinegar, honey and good olive oil. Garnished with a few of the delicate fennel fronds there could scarcely be a simpler salad. It was wonderful on its own with just some chewy bread to accompany, but it would also pair well with rich roasted pork belly or perfectly pan-fried duck breast. Serves 2 – 4 2 young fennel bulbs, trimmed 3 blood oranges fennel fronds for garnish sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon honey Finely slice the fennel and place in a serving bowl. Carefully cut away the rind and pith of the blood oranges and slice horizontally. Place the oranges on top of the fennel and garnish with the fennel fronds. In a small jar with a screw top lid, place the vinegar, olive oil and honey and shake well to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. When ready to serve pour the dressing over the fennel and oranges and toss very carefully, or pass separately in a small serving jug. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Warm potato salad with dill and almonds
It is always wise to make too much potato salad. Even if you are cooking for two, make enough for five. Potato salad improves with age – that is, if you are lucky enough to have any left over. My mother was a proponent of the ‘you can’t have too much’ school of thought when it came to catering. We always had masses of leftovers after a party or family function, and dined on them for days afterwards. I have made it my mission to master portion control, and count catering a true success if there is plenty to eat, but hardly anything leftover. But potato salad is a special class of leftover and perfect for snacking, putting on a sandwich or, in the case of this recipe, putting in a hot frying pan with a little olive oil and making crispy, crunchy and decadent. It’s a lighter and fresher tasting potato salad – no heavy mayonnaise dressing to overwhelm the delicate potatoes – just a simple dressing to bring the ingredients together. The almonds provide a satisfying textural contrast, and the dill is heady and herbaceous. It takes only about 20 minutes to make and is a great addition to almost any summertime meal. Serves 4 – 6 1 kg small new potatoes, skin on 3 tablespoons fresh dill, roughly chopped 1 tablespoon roasted almonds, roughly chopped sea salt and freshly ground black pepper Dressing: 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 2 tsp Dijon mustard pinch sea salt Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise and then boil in a large saucepan in plenty of lightly salted water until tender, but not too soft. when the potatoes are cooked, carefully drain off the water and then return to the pot and cover with a tea towel (this absorbs the steam and stops the potatoes from going soggy and falling apart). Mix together all the dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake well to combine. While the potatoes are still hot pour over the dressing and transfer to a serving bowl. Scatter over the almonds and dill and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Best served right away, but is still good warm or at room temperature. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Golden beetroot salad with honeyed walnuts
The beet is the most intense of vegetables. The radish, admittedly, is more feverish, but the fire of the radish is a cold fire, the fire of discontent, not of passion. Tomatoes are lusty enough, yet there runs through tomatoes an undercurrent of frivolity. Beets are deadly serious. Tom Robbins Serves 4 4 small purple beetroots 4 small golden beetroots 100 g walnuts 2 tablespoons honey 50g soft goat’s cheese, broken into small pieces 1 cup baby rocket leaves 1 cup baby spinach leaves 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar 3 tablespoons olive oil sea salt and black pepper Preheat oven to 180 C. Wrap the beetroots in aluminium foil – in separate packages for golden and purple beets. Bake in the oven for 1 hour, or until tender. While the beets are cooking, spread the walnuts onto a shallow baking tray that is lined with silicon baking paper. Drizzle over the honey and place in the oven. Cook for about 15 minutes, turning once or twice. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Once the beetroots are cooked, unwrap from the foil and as soon as they are cool enough to handle, peel away the skin. It’s a messy job, and you may want to wear gloves to avoid staining your fingers. Chop the beetroots into quarters and place in separate small bowls. Sprinkle the vinegar and olive oil over the beetroots, half in each bowl and then season well with salt an pepper. Place the salad greens on the bottom of a serving platter. Top with the beetroot, walnuts and goat’s cheese. Serve at once. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Gingerbread cake with blood orange caramel
“Oh my dear. When has cake ever been for hunger? It’s for flavor, and, in this case, comfort.” Meena van Praag This cake is very dark and rich, spicy and sweet, and with a slight undercurrent of bitterness from the use of treacle and rapadura sugar, a dark brown, unrefined sugar from Sri Lanka. The blood orange caramel which is served on the side also has bitter-sweet notes, making it a thoroughly adult version of a gingerbread cake. It’s perfect for a fireside supper, and for the weather in my part of the world at the moment, which is decidedly chilly. It’s also fabulous if left for a couple of days, cut into thick slices and grilled under a hot grill, before serving with mascarpone, sliced bananas and some chopped pecan nuts. I’d also suggest the musical accompaniment of Nina Simone singing “Feeling Good” when eating this cake. Enjoy! Serves 8 – 10 125 g soft butter 125 g rapadura sugar (if unavailable, use dark brown sugar) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 eggs 250 g plain flour 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 240 g treacle 1/4 cup fresh ginger, peeled and cut into tiny pieces 2 tablespoons milk 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda Preheat oven to 180 C. Lightly grease a 22 cm bundt tin or square cake pan. In a medium sized bowl beat together the butter, rapadura sugar and vanilla until creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Fold through the flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, treacle and fresh ginger until well combined. Finally, add the bicarbonate of soda to the milk and fold through the mixture. Turn into prepared pan and bake for 45 – 50 minutes, or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Serve warm with blood orange caramel and thick cream. Blood orange caramel 220 g caster sugar 100 ml water 2 tablespoons blood orange juice 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped 1 teaspoon orange blossom water (optional) 3 blood oranges, peeled to remove skin and all pith, and sliced thickly To make the blood orange caramel place the sugar and water in a medium-sized saucepan, bring to the boil and boil for 8 – 10 minutes until it becomes a golden caramel. Add the juices, vanilla bean and seeds and orange blossom water, if using. Do this carefully as the caramel will spit. Stir until well combined. Place the sliced oranges in a flat dish and when the caramel has cooled slightly, pour over the oranges and cool to room temperature. Remove the vanilla bean before serving with the cake.
Roasted almonds with thyme and sea salt
Almonds are native to the Middle East, from Syria and Turkey and the regions towards Pakistan. Spread by human settlement along the shores of the Mediterranean into northern Africa and southern Europe, it is a prominent part of the food culture of both the Middle East and Europe – think tagines, marzipan, macarons and amaretti, and used in both sweet and savoury dishes. I love them roasted whole, chopped and added to salads, and covered with dark chocolate as a special treat. The earthy flavour of thyme is really delicious in this recipe, and with the sea salt they become the perfect snack. Really great as tapas, part of a cheese board, or with some Pedro Ximénez sherry, they would also make a lovely gift, in a fancy schmancy glass bottle. Makes 2 cups 2 cups almonds (skin on) 2 tablespoons olive oil 6 – 8 sprigs thyme sea salt Preheat oven to 180 C. In a medium sized bowl mix together the almonds and olive oil and add the thyme, mixing well. Place on a flat baking tray in a single layer and roast in the oven for 15 minutes. Take out of the oven and sprinkle with sea salt, to taste. Cool on the tray and then store in an airtight container. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Tangelo cake
“I don’t know why, but the meals we have on picnics always taste so much nicer than the ones we have indoors.” – Five Go Off in a Caravan This is a perfect springtime cake. It is buttery and deliciously citrus-sy, but it’s not a fragile edifice that can’t travel in a picnic basket to a park, or a riverbank, or shady spot overlooking the beach. When I was thinking about creating the recipe I had in mind something like an old-fashioned maderia cake, but brighter in flavour, and not quite so heavy in texture, and I think I succeeded. I love tangelos and wanted to use them in this cake, but it would also be delicious to make it using oranges. The icing is not too overpowering, and you could even serve it plain – with a spoonful of Greek yoghurt yogurt and some fresh tangelo pieces, rather than as a traditional iced cake. We ate it with a cup of tea, while playing a game of Scrabble, on what was an unaccustomed lazy Saturday afternoon. I hope, if you make this cake, it will help to make the occasion special too. Serves 8-12 Cake: 250 g butter, softened 250 g sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract/paste zest of 2 tangelos (or oranges) 4 eggs 250 g self-raising flour, sifted 100 ml fresh tangelo juice (or orange juice) Icing: 250 g icing sugar 1 tablespoon soft butter 50 ml tangelo, or orange juice (approximately) zest of 1 tangelo (or orange) Preheat oven to 170 C. Grease and line the base of a 22 cm round cake tin. In a medium-sized bowl beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla and zest until creamy and light. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Add the flour and tangelo juice and mix until well combined. Carefully turn out of the bowl and into the cake tin, smoothing the top to make it level. Make for 50 – 55 minutes, until a thin skewer inserted into the middle of the cake come out clean. Turn out of the tin onto a cake rack and cool completely, before icing. The cake will keep for 3 – 4 days, if it lasts that long! To make the icing,combine the icing sugar and butter, and beat together, adding enough tangelo juice to achieve a spreadable texture. Spread the icing over the cool cake and sprinkle over the zest in the centre.
Chocolate cake for serious chocolate lovers
Chocolate cake speaks to me of home – birthdays, happy smiles on children’s faces, and the comfort of good conversation with a well loved, old friends. I suppose the first cake I ever made was a chocolate cake and my love affair with them has continued ever since. This cake is both fudgy and rich, but not too much. It has buttermilk in the cake to lighten it, which is a good thing considering the icing is fairly over the top. I like to use a Dutch process cocoa because it has a discernably richer flavour than normal cocoa and a glorious colour. A pinch of salt is also mandatory in all chocolate desserts to make them taste really delicious. This particular chocolate cake has become a firm favourite at our place, and I hope it becomes one for you too. Serves 8 – 10 1/2 cup water 80g butter 3 tablespoons dutch process cocoa 1 cup self raising flour 1 cup sugar 2 eggs 1/3 cup buttermilk 1 teaspoon vanilla pinch sea salt Icing: 1 cup icing sugar 100g dark chocolate 250g cream cheese Preheat oven to 165 C. Grease a 20 cm round cake tin and line the base with silicon paper. Combine the water, cocoa and butter in a small saucepan over low heat and heat until the butter melts and then stir until the mixture is smooth. Take off the heat and cool. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar and salt. In a separate small bowl mix together the eggs, buttermilk and vanilla. When the chocolate mixture is lukewarm add it and the buttermilk mixture to the flour and sugar and mix well until smooth and glossy. Pour into the cake tin and cook in the oven for 35-40 minutes, until a thin skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Turn the cake out onto a cake rack to cool. When the cake is completely cold, cut it into three layers and then sandwich together and cover the top and sides with the icing. Make the top layer a little thicker so you can swirl it about about and get that eat me right now look. Icing: To make the icing, melt the chocolate and then mix together with the cream cheese and icing sugar until it is smooth and glossy. This cake will keep for several days and does not need to be refrigerated, unless the weather is really hot. Enjoy it for afternoon tea in the garden, or as an after dinner indulgence. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Lime drizzle cake – the cake to make when you really want cake
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When life gives you flour, butter, sugar and eggs, preheat the oven. One of the advantages of occasionally working at home is that at lunchtime you can decide that the time is right to make a cake, get up from your desk, and get started. I was thinking this yesterday after a busy morning at my desk and then I came across a post from a gorgeous blog called Bliss in images, titled “For goodness’ sake let’s eat some cake” . It expressed just what I was thinking – it’s cake o’clock – and I couldn’t help myself. Out came the ingredients and 45 minutes later there was cake. The best thing about this cake is that it can be eaten almost straight from the oven – there’s no icing, just a tangy, sour-sweet syrup that gets poured over the hot cake and soaks in, making the cake moist and citrusy and delicious. The next best thing about this cake is that it is prepared in a food processor and takes only a few minutes to go from ingredients to mixture to oven. The only bad thing about this cake is that it disappears far too quickly every time. Make a 20 cm round cake and serves 8 – 10 100 g pecan nuts, finely chopped 150 g butter 1 cup sugar finely grated rind of 3 limes 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or paste 1 egg 1/2 cup milk 2 tablespoons verjuice Lime syrup: 3 tablespoons sugar juice of 3 limes Preheat oven to 180 C. Grease a 20cm, deep, round cake tin and line the base with silicon paper. In a food processor, combine the butter, sugar, flour and lime rind. Process together until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the vanilla, egg, milk and verjuice and process until a smooth batter is formed. Don’t overdo the mixing or else a tough cake will be the result. Gently mix in the pecan nuts with a wooden spoon or spatula. Spoon the batter into the cake tin and bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until lightly golden and the cake springs back when pressed gently with your fingertips. Meanwhile mix together the lime juice and sugar and stir gently until the sugar has dissolved. When the cake is cooked, take out of the oven and after 5 minutes, carefully turn out onto a serving plate. Drizzle over the lime syrup, a little bit at a time, so that it soaks into the cake. Serve warm or cold, with whipped cream or a dollop of greek yoghurt on the side.
Nutella cheesecake (this is SO not on my health plan)
Chocolate is a serious thing. Deanna Troi (Star Trek:The Next Generation) Serves 8 – 10 250 grams chocolate digestive biscuits (I use McVitties) 75 g soft butter 1 x 400 g jar Nutella 500 g cream cheese seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean 40 grams icing sugar 100 grams toasted hazelnuts, with skins removed, and chopped pinto small pieces Place the digestive biscuits into the bowl of a food processor, add the butter and process until it starts to clump, and look a little bit like damp sand. Spoon into a 22cm round springform tin and press into the base using your fingers or the back of a spoon. Place in the fridge while you make the filling. Beat the cream cheese, vanilla seeds and icing sugar in a medium sized bowl until smooth and then add the Nutella to the cream cheese mixture, and continue beating until combined. It is best to have the Nutella and the cream cheese at room temperature to get them to mix beautifully. Smooth the Nutella mixture over the base and scatter the chopped hazelnuts on top to cover. Chill for at least four hours or overnight. The cheesecake is best served straight from the fridge, rather than at room temperature. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Cranberry and almond loaf
Scrumptious is the word I would use to describe this cake. It is rich and buttery but not heavy or stodgy, and the lemon and almond give subtle but distinctive flavour overtones. Cranberries are one of my favourite dried fruits because although they are sweetened they still have lots of tang. The cake keeps well and is also a winning addition to school lunchoxes as a treat. It’s also delicious served warm for dessert with a scoop of vanilla icecream on the side. 125g butter 185g caster sugar grated zest of 1 large lemon 3 eggs 150g greek yoghurt 60g almond meal 185g self raising flour 100g sweetened dried cranberries (craisins) Preheat oven to 150C. Grease and line a 25cm x 11cm loaf tin with silicon paper. Cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time until well combined. Fold in the remaining ingredients – yoghurt, almond meal, flour and cranberries. Spoon the mixture into the tin and smooth the surface with a spatula. Place in the oven and bake for about 1 hour, or until the cake leaves the edges of tin and a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes before carefully turning out onto a wire rack to cool. Eat while warm or cool. Keeps for three days in an airtight container and also freezes well. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Figs with honey, yoghurt and toasted almonds
Figs are one of the most beautiful fruits. Unctuously sweet and perfumed, they are also tender and very luxurious. Unless you have a fig tree they are an extravagance as they are so expensive, but for the short season when they are available, as an occasional treat there is nothing better. Give me figs over chocolate any time! They are one of the most ancient of fruits, and it is thought they might have been the very first agricultural crop, with fig tree fossils found in the Jordan Valley dating from thousands of years ago. They are certainly mentioned in Roman writings and in the Bible. The simpler the treatment of fresh figs, the better, and so, in this recipe, with just honey, yoghurt and lightly toasted almonds you can make a wonderful breakfast or brunch dish for the love of your life. Serves 2 3 fresh, just ripe figs 4 tablespoons greek yoghurt 1 tablespoon honey (a floral one is best) 1 tablespoon lightly toasted flaked almonds a few fresh rosemary or thyme flowers, if you have them, for garnish Slice the figs in half, lengthwise and place three halves on each of two beautiful plates. Drizzle over the honey and then a couple of tablespoons of the yoghurt. sprinkle over the almonds and flowers, if you have them. Serve straight away. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation
Macaroni and cheese: the ultimate comfort food
When the nights begin to cool, and autumn takes hold there is nothing more wonderful for Sunday night supper than macaroni and cheese. It’s oozy and creamy and warming, and almost universally loved. My recipe includes pieces of crisp bacon, fresh chives and a crunchy topping of cheesy sourdough crumbs. Best of all the sauce is a luxurious no-cook mixture of mascarpone cheese, milk and tangy mustard, which is poured over the cooked pasta before baking in the oven until crisp and golden. Heartily recommend eating while watching a favourite movie, glass of wine in hand with the ones you love. Serves 4: 300g macaroni250g bacon, diced125g sharp cheddar cheese, grated1 cup milk250g mascarpone cheese 2 teaspoons seeded mustard 1 tablespoon chives,snipped100g fresh crusty sourdough bread Preheat oven to 180 C. Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil and cook the macaroni for 8 – 10 minutes, until just al dente. Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a small pan over medium heat until crispy, then drain on absorbent paper and set aside. In a medium sized bowl place the milk, mascarpone, mustard and chives and whisk together gently until well combined. Tear the bread into chunks and process in a food processor with half the cheese until rough crumbs are formed. When the macaroni is cooked, drain well and add to the creamy mixture with the remainder of the cheese, and the bacon, and stir well. The mixture will seem quite runny, but it will thicken as the pasta bakes. Season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place in a 1.5L casserole dish and spread the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the top. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes in the oven until the crumb topping is golden brown. Take out of the oven and rest for 5 minutes before serving to your hungry family or guests, on its own or with a green salad on the side. Posted by:mawarre I love to cook (and eat). Based in Brisbane, Australia, I write about the food I cook for my friends and family. Post navigation