Bitter Sweet Recipes

This recipe was given to me quite few years back by a friend’s mum when we went to stay on their farm in central Queensland.

Its very quick, easy and tasty and is surprisingly filling. It can be served as a posh starter to a meal, or, as I prefer, in a big warm bowl on a lazy night in front of the TV.

This recipe yields 2 large serves or 4 small starter serves. It is best eaten on the day of cooking, but you can keep it in the fridge for about a day if you like.

INGREDIENTS

Half a head of Cauliflower
Generous teaspoon of Crushed Garlic
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
pinch of nutmeg
2 vegetable stock cubes or about 3 cups of veggie stock
3 tablespoons of grated parmesan
a knob of butter
1/2 cup cream (or milk)
salt and pepper

METHOD

Cut the Cauliflower into medium sized chunks.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan with the garlic. Add the cauliflower and stir until the cauliflower is lightly browned.

Add in your veggie stock and nutmeg then simmer until the cauliflower is soft (about 5 minutes).

Using a stick mix (or your blender, carefully!) puree until it is no longer lumpy.

Add the parmesan, butter and cream. Puree again until combined. Taste your soup and season as needed. Warm again slightly before serving.

VARIATIONS

You can make a healthy variation of this soup by omitting the butter, reducing the parmesan (or using low fat cheese) and using light milk instead of cream. If you do this you may need to add in 2 teaspoons of corn flour to thicken the soup up.

I am the first to admit that I don’t like eating bananas once they get to that brown spotted stage. Usually when my bunch of bananas start to ‘turn’ they are immediately peeled and chopped into small bits to be frozen and used in smoothies. This time I got to them a bit late and they were already quite brown and beginning to go soft, perfect for banana bread.

Because the weather is starting to warm up I wanted to make a summery banana bread, I was searching around for a recipe and came across Janelle Bloom’s Banana and Coconut bread (as featured in Super Food Ideas magazine), which intrigued me because it used coconut milk as the ‘wet’ ingredient.

So now I am writing this waiting for my banana bread to bake and enjoying the delicious scents wafting from the oven. My teapot is waiting and the water is boiled so I can have a nice cup of tea with that first slice hot from the oven…

An hour later the banana coconut loaf is ready, it has a nice sweet chewy crust and a very moist spongy texture. Definitely my new favourite recipe for banana bread, this is going into my permanent collection, nice one Janelle!

Two days later and the banana loaf is still moist and delicious, it has a wonderful texture with lots of little bits of banana and the coconut flavour complements it wonderfully.

This recipe makes a large loaf… don’t do what I did and put it in a small tin! Janelle’s recipe states that it will keep well in an airtight container for about a week.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup desiccated coconut
1 cup castor sugar
1 1/2 cup self raising flour
1 cup mashed banana
1 cup coconut milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

METHOD

Grease and Line a large loaf tin, and preheat your oven to 170 degrees Celcius.

In a large bowl combine dry ingredients.

Mash your banana and combine with the rest of the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.

Pour wet mixture over dry mixture and mix until combined. (it will look a little lumpy due to the chunks of banana and the coconut)

Place batter in your prepared pan and cook for about one hour until your loaf is lightly browned and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Allow to cool in pan for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

I love anything Apple and Cinnamon flavoured, it’s just one of those great flavour combinations which manage to make me feel warm and cozy every time I eat or smell it. So on this very cold night I decided it would be nice to make my version of an apple and cinnamon tea cake (to enjoy in bed with a cup of tea while reading my latest library book).

This cake has quite a fluffy spongy texture with a nice crust around the edges. The sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on top also gives the apples a yummy sweet crunch that goes very well with the sweet brown sugar cake below. Perfect to enjoy with a cup of tea in the cold weather!

This cake can be stored in an airtight container for around two days after cooking, but it is best enjoyed on the day of baking. I like to cook it in my pyrex pie plate instead of a traditional cake tin, I prefer the ratio of apple to cake because I dont like tea cake that is 3 inches thick, but if you dont have a pie plate a medium cake tin is also ok.

INGREDIENTS

190 grams Self Raising Flour
Pinch of Salt
80 grams Cold Butter
120 grams of Brown Sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence

2 small Green apples

1 1/2 tablespoons of White sugar
3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
METHOD

Grease and line a medium cake tin or a pie plate (I use a pyrex pie plate for this cake), Preheat your fan forced oven to 160 degrees celcius.

In a large mixing bowl combine the flour and salt. Cube your cold butter and rub it into the flour using your fingertips. (You can also do this in a food processor, just pulse it until you get the right texture)

Stir in the brown sugar making sure to crush any lumps with the back of a wooden spoon.

Make a well and add the egg, milk and vanilla. Whisk well to a smooth batter.

Pour your batter into the prepared tin. Peel, core and slice your apples, and arrange the slices on top of the batter. Sprinkle with your mixture of cinnamon sugar.

Bake in the oven at 160 degrees celcuis for 20 minutes, until the apples are caramelised and golden and the cake beneath is cooked.

Allow it to cool before slicing and serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a steaming cup of tea.

These messy little pies are so easy and yummy. They are really easy to throw together for a quick and tasty dessert. The rough lids that leave gaps around the edges allows the steam to escape during cooking which will ensure you have a crisp shortbread crust and delicious caramelisation of the sugar around the edges to create a sweet sticky toffee effect. Of course you can make them neatly for beautiful presentation, but I like the idea of a rustic pie that is just begging to be smooshed into ice cream and eaten.

I make these using a texas muffin pan with 6 holes. I find that they are the perfect size for a satisfying dessert and allow a perfect ratio of shortbread crust to apple filling. This recipe serves 6. They may be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 days after cooking but are best served warm and fresh.

INGREDIENTS

Shortbread crust
170 grams of plain flour
pinch of salt
55 grams of white sugar
115 grams butter
1 large egg yolk
1 -2 tablespoons cold water

Apple Filling
90 grams of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
pinch of salt
pinch of nutmeg
1 tablespoon of plain flour
4 apples of your choice (I used pink lady because they are in season)

METHOD

Make the Shortbread Crust

Combine the dry Ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and rub in the butter until you have a wet sand texture.

In a small bowl whisk together the water and egg yolk and add it to the flour mix.

Mix until it comes together an form it into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Make the Apple Filling

Combine everything except for the apples in a large mixing bowl. Stir until all ingredients are combined and it forms a crumbly mixture.

Peel, core and slice your apples. Mix them into the sugar mixture until well coated.

Assemble

Grease your 6 hole texas muffin tin and preheat your oven to 170 degrees celcius.

Divide the shortbread pastry into 6. Divide each ball into a larger and a smaller ball so you are left with 6 larger balls and 6 smaller balls of shortbread pastry.

Roll out the larger balls into round circles to fit the muffin tin holes as a ‘crust’. fill the crust with the apple mixture. The apple mix will shrink slightly during cooking so it is best if they are well filled.

Roll out the smaller balls and use these as “pie lids”. I like to make mine a little messy as the holes  and gaps around the edges allow the sugar around the edges to caramelise, allows the steam to escape to stop them becoming soggy and it gives the pies a home made feel.

Bake for 25-30 mins until the tops are crunchy and golden and you see caramelised sugar around the edges of each pie.

Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream and a dusting of icing powder.

This is one of the easiest, yummiest soups that I make frequently during winter. Its really the type of soup where the throw all the ingredients in the pot and its ready to eat in about an hour with no fuss.

Its a good soup to freeze in single portions for a quick and easy meal, and the flavour is just as good if not better after freezing. Its also great because its is a hearty winter meal with ingredients that are easy to come by and very economical.

As mentioned above, this soup can be frozen successfully for up to a month, just defrost in the fridge the night before serving and reheat in a pot. You can also store it in the fridge for up to 3 days after cooking. This recipe will serve 6-8 people.

INGREDIENTS

500g of Dried Split green peas
1 Ham Hock
1 Large carrot diced
1 brown onion diced
1 stick of celery diced
2 small dried bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon of mixed spice
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
3 chicken of vegetable stock cubes
7 cups of water

METHOD

Prepare split peas by rinsing them in water, removing any dicoloured peas and draining well.

Place all ingredients in a large pot and bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer and allow to simmer for 40-60 minutes, until the peas are soft and the hock is tender.

Remove the hock from the soup and cut off all the excess ham. Discard the fat and the cleaned bone and return the ham flesh to the soup.

Cooked ham hock ready to remove the meat to return to the soup

Remove the Bay Leaves before serving.

Meat from the Hock, returned to the soup

Season to taste and serve with some crusty bread or dinner rolls.

I love bread… all that carbohydratey goodness that you know you really shouldn’t be eating a second helping of but do anyway. Well this is a super easy, super fast, super tasty bread that you wont be able to resist. It uses beer and baking powder as its leavening agents so there is no need to fuss around with dried yeast or prooving time, rising temperature and whatnot.

I think its best if you use a reasonably nice beer (one that you like to drink), in this recipe. While the bread doesn’t taste overly beery when its cooked there will be undertones of the yeasty, hoppy, caramelly beer flavour.

I also like to add some flavourings such as cheese and herb to make it super tasty, but you can change these to suit your tastes. You can also substitute half of the plain flour for rye flour, soy and linseed breadmix flour, or wholemeal flour.

This will make a loaf suitable for 4 people (or 2 people if you are a greedy bread muncher like me). As with any home made breads, due to the lack of preserving agents it wont keep well so you will need to eat it on the day of baking

INGREDIENTS

2 cups of plain flour
1/2 Tablespoon of white sugar
1/2 – 1 Teaspoon Salt
2/3 tablespoon of Baking powder
1 teaspoon thyme (dried or fresh)
1/2 teaspoon oregano (dried or fresh)
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
240ml Beer of your choice

Ingredients (clockwise); Grated Cheese, Plain Flour, Salt, Pepper, Sugar, James Boag Beer, Baking Powder, Thyme, Oregano, Basil, Garlic, Olive Oil.

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius and prepare a bread tin or baking tray lined with baking paper.

In a medium mixing bowl stir all dry ingredients together until well combined.

Pour in the beer and wet ingredients, mix with a spoon (it will foam up) while you are mixing.

It will come together to form a very sticky wet and stiff dough.

Turn the dough out onto your prepared baking tray and, using damp hands, shape it into the desired shape. ( I usually do a loaf shape or a round shape)

Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, until it is browned on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

It is a slightly heavier bread than usual but REALLY delicious.

Slice and serve warm with butter.

... or serve with your favourite (chicken) soup

VARIATIONS

You can really add any flavour combinations that you like, just make sure you get the quantities of the basic dough correct. You can also experiment with different beers too.

I had a houseful of boys this weekend, and after a boozy late night they were all looking a bit groggy in the morning. So I whipped up a big batch of pancakes and strong coffee for them. This is my absolute fail safe pancake recipe that is made up of a conglomerate of many different recipes and tips from cookbooks and my mum. Its very quick and easy to make and always produces a light fluffy pancake that will rival any you get in a cafe or restaurant.
I have added some cinnamon and nutmeg to spice the batter slightly, which just adds a hint of something extra that you cant quite put your finger on and makes for an unforgettable and different-in-a-good-way pancake experience.

This recipe make about 6 large pancakes, you can double it or even triple it if you are feeding lots of people. It needs to be made just before cooking and doesn’t require and resting period like some other pancake batters do. Once the pancakes are made, if you have leftovers they can be frozen quite successfully in a airtight ziplock bag and toasted in the toaster for a quick crispy pancake, however they will lose some of their light and fluffy qualities. See the variations section below for pancakes that freeze well.

INGREDIENTS

1cup self raising flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 tablespoons castor sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 egg
about a tablespoon knob melted butter

METHOD

In a medium mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and spices.

Mix with a fork and make a well.
To the well add the milk, vanilla essence and egg.

Whisk well until the batter is free of lumps.

This next stage is very important in producing a beautiful light fluffy and well risen pancake.
In a nonstick fry pan melt the tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Once melted pour the butter into your batter.
Now mix your batter VERY gently with a whisk until the butter is JUST mixed in.

Under no circumstances should you over mix you batter once the butter is in this will result in a flat and rubbery pancake.

Do not rest the batter in the fridge, or on the bench, you need to cook them immediately after adding the melted butter to the batter.

Now using a paper towel rub the butter residue around the pan and heat to medium heat to prepare for cooking of your pancakes.

Gently ladle 1/3cup of batter (I like the size of pancake this amount produces but if you want large pancakes of pikelets instead adjust the measurement accordingly)  into the center of your fry pan.
Wait for bubbles to start forming on the surface and a crust to form on the bottom and flip the pancake over.

A few seconds after you flip you will notice that the pancake is rising up, This creates air bubbles and makes a deliciously light and fluffy pancake.

When the bottom of the pancake is lightly browned it is ready to be served.

You may need to adjust the heat of your pan during the cooking of the pancakes, I usually turn the heat down a notch or two after the first 2-3 pancakes are cooked to stop them cooking too fast and burning. If you are using a non stick pan you should not need to add anymore butter to the pan, but if you like the extra flavour you can use the paper towel from the beginning to rub some extra butter into the pan.

Ideally it is best to eat the pancakes when they come hot off the pan, but if you are cooking for a few people and this is not possible you can place them in a warm oven (warmed to 100 degrees celcius and turned off) for a few minutes while you cook the rest. But be warned don’t leave them in for too long or they will deflate and go crisp on the edges.

VARIATIONS

Once you have your basic pancake batter down pat you can really do any variations that take your fancy. Here are some suggestions;

Berry pancakes: Stir in your choice of frozen or fresh berries before cooking and serve with berries in syrup and a dusting of icing sugar.

Banana pancakes: Finely slice small segments of banana and stir into the batter before cooking also, substitute 1 tablespoon of sugar for 1 tablespoon of honey, the banana will caramelise while the pancake is cooking and the honey adds a delicious depth of flavour. These ones are great for freezing to have for a delicious quick weekday breakfast.

Apple and cinnamon Pancakes: Grate a green apple and add it to the pancake mix and increase the cinnamon to 1.5 teaspoons. These ones are also great for freezing.

Pikelets: As mentioned above, this recipe makes really good pikelets too. They are great with afternoon tea, or to put in the kids lunches. Instead of 1/3 cup measures of batter, use 2 tablespoons of batter. Serve with jam and whipped cream.

This is actually the first time I made this yummy little dessert and I will definitely be making it again! I found the original recipe in Gourmet Traveller Magazine, but I have made some improvements to suit my tastes.

Its not the prettiest dessert to serve up as it is practically a wobbly baked custard with fruit, but what it lacks in looks, it makes up for in taste. I think if I were to make it for a dinner party, I would probably bake it in individual ramekins to save the bother of trying to serve it in a presentable manner.

This recipe will serve 6.

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup plain flour
3 tablespoons of white sugar
3 whole eggs
450 ml of full fat milk
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
1/2 teaspoon of grated nutmeg
30 grams of melted butter, plus a little extra to grease
300 grams of tinned or fresh apricots
2 tablespoons of granulated sugar (to sprinkle)

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees celsius and grease a baking dish with butter ( I used a pyrex pie dish).

If using tinned fruit, drain it well. If using fresh fruit slice in half and remove the stone. Arrange your fruit cut side up in your prepared dish.

In a medium mixing bowl mix the flour, sugar, eggs, vanilla and melted butter. Mix the milk with grated nutmeg and heat in a saucepan or microwave until it is hot.

Slowly whisk your milk mixture into your egg mixture, then pour it over the fruit.

The original recipe stated to dot the butter over the dish instead of including it in the batter, but in my opinion, this does not yield desirable results

Bake in your preheated oven on the bottom rack for 40 minutes, until the clafoutis is puffed, golden and set.

Sprinkle with granulated sugar and allow to cool slightly (it will be easier to cut) before serving with some good quality vanilla bean ice cream.

VARIATIONS

The classic clafoutis is made with cherries, and I would love to try this come summer when there is an abundance of fresh cherries.

You can really use any stone fruit in this recipe and it can be canned or fresh. I used canned apricot when I made it (which was delicious), but I have a sneaking suspicion the taste and texture would be much improved using fresh fruit.

I would also like to try some variations using fresh berries, or a pear and almond one. But I cannot vouch for the success of this as I am yet to test it. Ill post back on these variations when I get my hands of some fresh berries…

I saw this on ABC’s “The cook and the chef” the other night and was inspired to make one too.
A traditional pound cake uses a pound of each ingredient (flour, butter, eggs and sugar) and there are many added flavour variations of the recipe.

I had some left over dried fruit from my hot cross bun making at Easter time so I decided to make a fruit pound cake. It turned out with a delicious moist golden crumb with a hint of fruit and brandy, perfect with your mid morning cup of tea.

This is a smaller version of a pound cake, as, frankly, I don’t have a small army to feed 4 pounds of cake to. This cake will produce 4-6 serves but you can double the recipe for a larger cake.

INGREDIENTS
100 grams dried mixed fruit
100 grams of softened butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla essence
100 grams white sugar
2 eggs at room temperature
1 tablespoon brandy
1 teaspoon of baking powder
100 grams plain flour

METHOD

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celcius. Prepare a small cake or loaf tin grease and line with paper.

Soak fruit in some boiling water for 10 minutes and drain.

Beat butter and vanilla until fluffy and slowly add the sugar. Beat for another 5 minutes on high speed until pale and thick.

Stir in eggs and brandy to the butter mixture until just combined.

Sift flour and baking powder together and fold into butter mixture. Gently mix in the fruit until just combined.

Pour into prepared tin, smooth over the top and bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool and slice.

This can be stored in an airtight container for about 5 days.

There is nothing like a delicious gooey bread and butter pudding to warm you up during the cooler months. The sweet custard combined with the crispy sugary bread bits on top make this my favourite dessert during winter.

This recipe will serve 6 people. It is a good idea to use good quality butter to achieve a rich smooth and creamy flavour.

INGREDIENTS

10 slices of white bread, buttered on both sides
2 cups skim milk
5 whole fresh eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla essence
5 tablespoons of white sugar
ground cinnamon
ground nutmeg

METHOD

Lightly grease a medium sized baking dish with melted butter.

Spread your bread on both sides with good quality butter.

Whisk together the milk, eggs and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl.

Slice the buttered bread into four triangles and arrange one layer of bread in the bottom of your baking dish.
Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar, some cinnamon and nutmeg.

Continue making layers like this until all of the bread is used up and the baking dish is full.
Push down on the bread with a wooden spoon to compress it slightly and pour the milk mixture carefully over the bread and sprinkle with the remaining sugar and a little cinnamon.

Allow the pudding to stand for half an hour, the bread will soak up some of the milk mixture during this time.

Preheat you oven to 160 degrees celcius during the resting time. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until the custard is set and the pudding is puffed and lightly browned.

Serve warm with whipped cream or a good quality vanilla ice cream.

VARIATIONS

There and many variations on this classic pudding. Here are some of my favourites;

Include a sprinkle of sultanas and toasted slivered almonds between each layer of bread. sprinkle some of the almonds on top before baking.

When buttering the bread, you can also spread each piece with some good quality marmalade or preserve of your choice, you will need to reduce the sugar depending on the sweetness of the jam or marmalade you have chosen.

Mix in 4 tablespoons of cocoa powder into your milk mixture, and sprinkle dark chocolate buttons in between layers of bread. Do not sprinkle the chocolate on top as it may burn during cooking.