Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Mars Bar slice



INGREDIENTS

4 x 60g Mars Bars, chopped
100g unsalted butter, chopped
3 cups Rice Bubbles
200g milk or dark chocolate, chopped
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

METHOD

Lightly grease an 18 x 28cm slice pan. Line base and 2 long sides with baking paper, extending paper 2cm above pan edge.

In a medium saucepan, stir Mars Bars and butter together over a low heat for 4-5 minutes until melted (see tip).

Place Rice Bubbles in large bowl. Blend in chocolate mixture until combined. Press firmly into prepared pan. Chill until firm.

Melt chocolate with oil in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Spread evenly over slice. Chill until set. Using a hot knife, cut into small squares. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Top tip
Mixture may look separated when melting the Mars Bars and butter, but will come back together after stirring for about 5 minutes.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Angela's Date and Lemon Scones



Ingredients
150ml-175ml milk
150ml cream
1 egg
3 cups self-raising flour
2 tbs caster sugar
1 cup chopped, dried dates
Finely grated rind 1 lemon
Cream & jam, to serve

Method
Makes 12

1. Preheat oven 200°C fan forced. Line large flat oven tray with baking paper.


2. Whisk 150ml milk, cream and egg together until well combined. Combine flour, sugar, dates and lemon rind in a large bowl. Add milk mixture and stir gently to a soft dough, adding remaining milk if necessary. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until dough comes together.


3. Press dough out to 2cm-thick. Cut scones from dough and place onto tray flat-side up. Press dough together gently and repeat using the remaining dough. Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle with a little sugar. Bake 12-15 minutes until golden and well risen. Serve hot with jam and cream.

Basic Scones



Ingredients
plain flour, for dusting
3 cups self-raising flour
80g butter, cubed
1 to 1 1/4 cups milk
jam and whipped cream, to serve

Method
Preheat oven to 200°C. Lightly dust a flat baking tray with plain flour. Sift self-raising flour into a large bowl.

Using your fingertips, rub butter into flour until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

Make a well in the centre. Add 1 cup of milk. Mix with a flat-bladed knife until mixture forms a soft dough, adding more milk if required. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until smooth (don't knead dough too much or scones will be tough).

Pat dough into a 2cm-thick round. Using a 5cm (diameter) round cutter, cut out 12 rounds. Press dough together and cut out remaining 4 rounds. Place scones onto prepared baking tray, 1cm apart. Sprinkle tops with a little plain flour. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and well risen. Transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm with jam and cream

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Shirley's Pikelets



Ingredients
1 cup (150g) self-raising flour
1 tbs caster sugar
3/4 cup (185ml) milk
1 egg
Melted butter, to brush, plus extra knobs to serve

Method
Sift flour and sugar together into a bowl with a pinch of salt.

Whisk milk and egg together, then add to dry ingredients, whisking until smooth.

Heat a non-stick frypan over medium heat and brush with a little melted butter. Drop level tablespoonfuls of the mixture into the pan and cook for half a minute or until bubbles appear on the surface.

Turn over and cook other side for 1 minute until golden.

Allow to cool and serve with butter, cream and jam.

Notes
Makes about 25 (small).

Friday, January 14, 2011

Australian Damper



Matilda @ North Ipswich bread and milk $15
7-11 @ Brassall bread and milk again for $15
Lucky 7 Convienience @ Leichhardt bread $10
Un-named Butcher @ Chinchilla bacon 3kg $45
SERIOUSLY....WTF ARE PEOPLE THINKING

Lets get back to our roots. This bread made by bush settlers may be baked on the open fire or in a regular oven. As is typical of hand-me-down recipes, there are as many versions as there are bush babies. One recipe says to use beer instead of milk, then wrap the dough around a stick and cook over an open fire.

ingredients:
2 cups self-rising flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tespoons sugar
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup milk

Method:Mix the flour, salt and sugar together in a bowl. Cut in the butter until fine crumbs form. Add milk to make a soft dough. Knead lightly on floured board until smooth. Shape into round loaf, brush with milk, and bake at 375 degrees F. for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the loaf makes a hollow sound when tapped.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Salmon sushi rolls



Makes: 16 small rolls

Ingredients (serves 4)
1 cup sushi rice, rinsed
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
4 nori sheets (dried, roasted seaweed)
1/2 avocado, sliced lengthways
Small (100g) can red salmon, drained, flaked
1/2 cucumber, cut into thin strips
1 small carrot, grated
soy sauce, to serve

Method
Place rice and 1 1/2 cups cold water in a saucepan over high heat. Cover and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid absorbed. Remove from heat. Stand for 5 minutes.

Place rice and vinegar in a bowl. Stir to combine. Allow to cool completely, stirring regularly to prevent rice becoming gluggy.

Place 1 nori sheet, shiny-side down, on a sushi mat. Using moist hands, spread one-quarter of the rice mixture over the nori sheet, leaving a 3cm-wide border around the edges. Place one-quarter of the avocado along the edge facing you. Top with onequarter each of the salmon, cucumber and carrot. Using the sushi mat, roll up firmly to enclose filling. Repeat with remaining nori, rice mixture, salmon and vegetables.

Slice each roll into 4 pieces. Wrap in plastic wrap.

Notes
You'll need a sushi mat for this recipe. You can find bamboo sushi mats in the Asian section of the supermarket or at Asian grocery stores.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Chicken Parmy Casserole



Ingredients:
1 Packet of ALDI’s Marinated Chicken Nibbles
2 cups of Grated cheese
1 cup of Cherry tomatoes (or small packet/tub)
1 – 2 cups of chopped mushrooms (add as little or as much as you like)
1 - 2 cups of chopped Cabbage
1/2 cup of Chives or shallots
3/4 cup of White Wine
Small tub of cream
Salt and Pepper

Method:
Place chicken nibbles into casserole dish. Cover with a cup of grated cheese. Cover with half the tomatoes. Cover with mushrooms, and also use the rest of the tomatoes. Top with Cabbage and the rest of the cheese. Pour over the top the cream and the white wine. Pepper and salt on the top and finally top with chives or shallots. Pop on the lid and into the oven (180 for about 2 hours). After 1 hour, take out of the oven and stir it around turning the chicken. At this stage you will be able to tell home much longer it will need. Try to get the chicken to nearly fall off the bone. Serve with rice.

(Save some chives or shallots to sprinkle a few on top before serving. If you don't have a Casserole dish, you can always use a deep baking tray and cover in Alfoil.)

Satay Sauce (Using the left over sauce from the Casserole Dish)


NB: The left over sauce from the chicken can be saved and easily turned into the best Satay sauce by re-heating and adding a dessert spoon of peanut butter. You may need to thinken it up alittle bit using a small amount of flour.