Warm Sugared Donuts

Makes 34

4 teaspoons dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup warm milk
1/4 cup caster sugar
4 1/4 cups plain flour
70g butter, melted
3 eggs
vegetable oil for deep frying
1 cup caster sugar, extra
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine the yeast, water, milk & sugar in a bowl. Set aside for 10 minutes (the mixture should start to foam).
Add the flour, butter & eggs, & mix with a butter knife (ie one without a sharp edge) until a sticky dough forms.
Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface then place in an oiled bowl & cover with a tea towel. Stand in a warm place for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Knead for 5 minutes or until the dough feels smooth & elastic when pressed.
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to 1cm thick.
Cut out "O" shapes with a 7cm cutter, then cut a smaller 2.25cm "O" shape out of the larger "O" shapes.
Place the dough shapes on a tray lined with non-stick baking paper, cover with a clean towel & set aside in a warm place for 30-35 minutes or until the dough rises again.
Heat the oil for deep-frying in a saucepan (around 160ºC - test by dropping a cube of white bread into the oil which should turn golden brown within 30 seconds).
Cook donuts a few at a time for 1 minute each side or until golden.
Drain on paper towel briefly, then toss in combined extra sugar & cinnamon.

Tomato, Olive, Basil & Parsley Spaghetti

Serves 4

2 cloves garlic, sliced
1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes
680ml tomato puree
1/3 cup white wine
1 teaspoon sugar
8 anchovies, chopped (optional)
400g spaghetti
1/3 cup chopped basil leaves
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup sliced black olives
cracked black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese

Heat a deep frying pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic, chilli flakes, tomato puree, wine, sugar and anchovies, if using, and simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly.
Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti & drain.
To serve, stir the basil, parsley, olives and pepper through the sauce, toss with the pasta and top with the parmesan.

Fruit & Nut Cupcakes

I tried these out on Friday & they worked beautifully.

Same recipe as for Cherry Ripe Muffins with the following changes:

Exclude:
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup red maraschino cherries

Include:
3/4 cup sultanas
1/3 cup chopped almonds
1/3 cup chopped cashews

You can also replace the dark chocolate bits with milk chocolate, if you want.

Spicy Hot Chocolate

Serves 2

1/3 cup cocoa
1/4 cup caster sugar
1/4 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cups milk

Combine the cocoa, sugar, mixed spice & cinnamon in a saucepan. Add 1/4 cup milk & stir to form a paste.
Warm saucepan over low heat. Add the remaining milk & whisk vigorously until warm.
Serve with churros (below).

Churros

This is a traditional South American thing, similar to a donut, & is alway served with hot chocolate. The best way to eat them is by dipping bit by bit & biting off the end soaked with hot chocolate. Mmm...

Makes approx. 40

1 cup water
85g butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup plain flour, sifted
3 eggs
vegetable oil for deep-frying
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup icing sugar

Place water, butter, salt & sugar in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil.
Add the flour, reduce heat to low & stir vigorously until the mixture forms a ball & comes away from the side of the pan.
Remove from heat & add eggs one at a time, stirring well between additions.
Place the mixture in a piping bag fitted with a fluted nozzle.
Heat the oil in a deep saucepan over medium heat. When hot, pipe 10cm lengths of the mixture into the oil. Cook for 1 minute or until golden brown. Remove & drain on paper towel.
Liberally dust the warm churros with the combined cinnamon & icing sugar (or alternatively, use cinnamon sugar). Serve immediately. Yum!

Veal Rack with Leek & White Wine Sauce

Something a little warming for the cooler weather.

Serves 4-6

1.2kg veal rack (6 cutlets)
1 leek, trimmed & halved lengthwise
olive oil for brushing
sea salt & cracked black pepper

White wine sauce:
1 cup white wine
250g chilled butter, cubed

Preheat oven to 200ºC.
Secure the veal rack with kitchen string between each cutlet. Blanch (ie pour boiling water over & then drain immediately) the leek halves & tie the five longest strips over the string. Brush the veal generously with the oil & sprinkle with salt & pepper.
Heat a large frypan over high heat. Seal the meat for 1 minute on each side or until brown.
Place the meat on a rack in a baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes or until cooked to your liking.
To make the sauce, place the wine in a medium saucepan over high heat & simmer for 5 minutes or until reduced to 1/2 cup.
Reduce the heat to low & whisk in the butter a few cubes at a time. If the sauce appears oily rather than creamy, remove it from the heat & continue to whisk in the chilled butter until the mixture has a creamy appearance, then incorporate the remaining butter.
Serve the sauce immediately with the veal cutlets & steamed brussel sprouts (or vegies of choice).

Cherry Ripe Muffins

Yesterday, I found that Cadbury has brought out a range of packet muffin & cake mixes like Fruit & Nut Muffins & Top Deck Cake. I bought the Cherry Ripe Muffin pack, 'cause I was feeling lazy, but am a little disappointed with the results - not because they're bad, just 'cause they taste... packet -, so here's my made-up version. If someone tests it & has suggestions to make, please email me.

Makes 12

Pre-heat oven to 170ºC.

Mix:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup red maraschino cherries
1 teaspoon salt

Add:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

Beat well with a wooden spoon, then add:
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 cup boiling water

Beat again. Spoon into a greased muffin tray & bake for 20-25 minutes or until cooked.

Baby Apple Upside-Down Cakes

Serves 6

12 teaspoons golden syrup
2 small Pink Lady apples, cut into 6 x 1cm slices
120g caster sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
160g self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
120g unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 180ºC.
Place 2 teaspoons of golden syrup in the base of 6 greased 1/2 cup capacity non-stick muffin tins. Place an apple slice on top of the golden syrup (you may need to trim the slices to fit flat in the muffin holes).
To make the cake, beat the sugar, eggs & vanilla using an electric mixer for 4-5 minutes or until thick & pale. Fold in the sifted flour & baking powder, & melted butter, until just combined.
Spoon the mixture over the apple in the muffin holes & bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden. Cool for 5 minutes before turning out.
Serve warm with thick cream or vanilla bean ice cream. Mmmm!

Tasty Peruvian (Fried) Rice

People are always asking how I cook rice, 'cause it's so tasty, so here's the (v. rough) recipe.

Makes about 2 cups

vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
pinch of salt
1 cup long grain rice (I use Basmati)
1 1/2 cups water

Put enough oil in a saucepan to just cover the bottom & place over medium-low heat.
Once the oil is hot, put in the garlic & salt, stirring to fry it, but making sure it doesn't burn (about 2 minutes).
Add the rice, mixing well to coat all the grains with the oil (about 2 minutes).
Turn the heat to high, then add the water, mixing to make sure no rice is stuck to the bottom of the pan. Leave till the water is boiling.
Turn the heat down to low, stir well to unstick the rice again & cover the saucepan with aluminium foil & then a lid to create a tight seal. Leave for about 15 minutes or until rice on top is dry.
Serve with whatever you like! This rice is also great cold or reheated, so don't worry about making too much.

Variations

Because Peruvian rice is made in the 'fried' style, you can add whatever vegetables you like to make it more exciting.

My mum often adds chopped onion with the garlic & salt, stirring till it is soft & golden before adding the rice.
She also adds peas sometimes ("for a bit of colour"). If you use fresh peas, add them with the garlic, but if you use frozen peas, cook them separately in the microwave first & only add them once the rice is ready.
The same goes for any vegetables you want to add.

Steak with Red Wine Mushrooms

Specially for Mel & Ann.
Notes: I can't eat shiitake mushrooms, so I just use 200g regular ones; I always end up with a lot of sauce, so you might want to halve the amounts of stock & wine.

Serves 4

1 tablespoon oil (for frying)
4 thick sirloin or fillet steaks
1 tablespoon butter
4 shallots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
100g shiitake mushrooms
100g small field (ie regular) mushrooms
1 cup beef stock
1 cup red wine
1 tablespoon thyme leaves
cracked black pepper
mashed potato to serve

Heat oil in a frypan over medium heat. Add steaks to pan & cook for 3 minutes on each side or until cooked to your liking.
While steaks are cooking, heat butter in another frypan over medium heat. Add shallots & garlic to pan & cook for 1 minute. Add mushrooms to pan & toss for 1 minute. Add stock, wine, thyme & pepper to pan & allow to simmer until mushrooms are soft & sauce has reduced by half.
To serve, place mashed potato on warmed serving plates. Top potato with steak & pour over mushrooms & sauce. Serve immediately.

Chicken Skewers with Lemon Thyme

This was a bit hit with my cast on Sun night.
Note: I couldn't find lemon thyme, so I just used regular thyme.

Makes 12

12 short bamboo (or wooden) skewers
2x200g chicken breast fillets, trimmed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon thyme leaves
sea salt & cracked black pepper (to taste)
vegetable oil for frying

Soak skewers in hot water for at least 10 minutes.
Cut chicken into strips approximately 5mm thick & thread onto skewers.
Combine the lemon juice, lemon thyme, salt & pepper in a non-metallic dish. Add the chicken skewers & toss to coat with the marinade. Cover & refrigerate for 10 minutes.
Heat a non-stick frypan over medium-high heat. Brush the pan with oil. Cook the chicken skewers in batches for 2 minutes each side or until cooked through.
Serve just with lime mayonnaise (recipe below) as an appetiser, or add rice & salad to make a meal.

Lime Mayonnaise

This is also great as a spread on sandwiches.

Makes 1 cup

1 cup whole-egg mayonnaise (none of that processed, low-fat crap!)
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lime rind

Place the mayonnaise, lime juice & rind in a bowl & stir until combined.
Too easy!

Chocolate Filled Biscuits

Makes 22 filled biscuits

65g cold butter, chopped
1/4 cup icing sugar (do not use icing mixture!)
1/2 cup plain flour
2 1/2 teaspoons cornflour
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 egg yolk

Chocolate filling:
200g dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup (single) cream

Preheat oven to 180ºC.
Place the butter, icing sugar, flours, cocoa & egg yolk in a food processor & process until a soft dough forms (you might have to add a bit more butter if it isn't smooth enough). Wrap in plastic wrap (Gladwrap) & refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Line a baking tray (or two) with non-stick baking paper (Gladbake). Roll a teaspoon of the biscuit dough into a ball & place on the tray, then use your hand to flatten it to 3.5cm diameter. Repeat with the remaining dough to make 44 small biscuits. Bake for 5-7 minutes or until the bases are lightly cooked. Cool on the trays.
To make the chocolate filling, place the chocolate & cream in a small saucepan over low heat & stir until melted & glossy. Refrigerate until cool. Spread half the biscuits with the filling then sandwich them together with the remaining biscuits.
These will go in a flash!