Beet, walnut & goats cheese tart

Beet, walnut and goats cheese tart 

This is the second day in a row that I'm making this tart. I promised the girls at work to bring some in and I thought I'd share the recipe as its super easy.

1. Salt roast the beet with thyme for 1 hour at 200 degrees.
2. Put pastry in tart tin and line with baking paper, add pie weights, bake for 10-15 minutes on medium heat.
3. Whisk eggs with milk set aside.
4. Take pastry out of oven
5. Put chopped beet, goats cheese and walnuts in pastry case.
6. Pour over egg mixture then put in oven and bake for 30-40 minutes on 350'

Toasted Muesli

Im back in the kitchen after being on holiday's for 1 week in New Zealand. New Zealand is lovely and it was so nice to get away with Simon, where we could just be us and enjoy each others company. I will post some photos of our trip later, but in the interim I was so happy to get back to my kitchen. While in NZ I purchased some Old Mill Road Larder Labels with plans to organise the pantry. With this rainy Monday it was a perfect day to be inside and organise. I also made some muesli the recipe was from Homestyle New Zealand Magazine, much like real living magazine.


Toasted Muesli

1/2 cup Honey
1 1/2 Tbs canola oil
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup nuts (i used crushed peanuts and almonds)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup coconut


Preheat oven 180c
Warm honey and oil in small saucepan over low heat, gently simmer for 4 minutes.
In large bowl mix oats, nuts, seeds and coconut. Add honey mixture and stir.
Spread mixture over baking tray, bake for 10 minutes stir occasionally. I baked mine for a little longer to get more browned, just keep an eye on it as you go along.
Cool and add raisins if you like.
Store in air tight container.

Basil pesto gnocchi

classic pesto from tiger in a jar on Vimeo.

Nothing is more satisfying than making your favourite foods from scratch, so this week i've made a few loafs of bread and some pesto. I watched this video on Vimeo and the folk at Kinfolk sure know how to do a well shot cooking video. Very inspiring. Below is a little picture of last nights dinner.

Basil pesto gnocchi and garlic bread. 

Peanut butter cookies

All packed up and ready for my lovely neighbour Suzy to take with her on her move. We will miss you, you have been a great support to us through our journey of loss. Xx

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup natural chunky peanut butter 
1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ½ tablespoons honey
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
155 grams semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped 

Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C. Line 3 heavy large baking sheets with parchment paper. Mix the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat the peanut butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, honey, egg, and vanilla in a large bowl until well blended. Stir the dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture in 2 additions. Stir in the chopped chocolate Scoop about 3 tablespoonfuls of dough for each cookie onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake for about 12 minutes, or until the cookies puff and begin to brown on top but are still very soft to the touch. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 5 minutes. Using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to a rack and eat warm or cool completely.

Martha Stewart Macaron Recipe

Recipe from the Martha Stewart  website. I also found viewing some online videos helpful as you get to see the techniques and how much time should be spent on each method. I have put the recipe up here and added my own notes relating to Kitchen Aid speeds/times etc.

• Ingredients 
• 1 cup icing sugar

• 3/4 cup almond flour

• 2 large egg whites, room temperature

• Pinch of cream of tartar

• 1/4 cup caster sugar

1. Pulse confectioners' sugar and almond flour in a food processor until combined. Sift mixture 2 times.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk whites with a mixer on medium speed until foamy. If using Kitchen Aid use speed 4 for approx 1 minute. Add cream of tartar, and whisk until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to low, then add superfine sugar. Increase speed to high,(Kitchen Aid speed 8) and whisk until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes. Sift flour mixture over whites, and fold until mixture is smooth and shiny.
3. Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip, and pipe 3/4-inch rounds 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets, dragging pastry tip to the side of rounds rather than forming peaks. Tap bottom of each sheet on work surface to release trapped air. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Bake 1 sheet at a time, rotating halfway through, until macarons are crisp and firm, about 8-10 minutes. They should slide off the baking paper when cooked. 
   Let macarons cool on sheets for 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. (If macarons stick, spray water underneath parchment on hot sheet. The steam will help release macarons.)
4. Sandwich 2 same-size macarons with 1 teaspoon filling. Serve immediately, or stack between layers of parchment, wrap in plastic, and freeze for up to 3 months.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Vegan "Rum" Balls

I packet of Marie biscuits, crushed
4 tbs cocoa powder
1 cup desiccated coconut
1/2 can coconut cream
2 tbs rice syrup


To make crushing the biscuits easier I put them in the blender, you are after a fine crumble. then combine cocoa powder and coconut in a bowl. The coconut cream and rice syrup are a replacement for condensed milk. Open the coconut cream and you want to use the thickest part on the top, very important not to shake the can before use. Mix in the rice syrup and it should start to look a little like condensed milk. Add the cream mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Then shape into balls and roll into coconut. I added some peppermint essences to make them minty but you could use any flavour.

Banana Caramel Cake

Today I baked this lovely looking cake for my neighbour Suzie, she brings me over farm fresh eggs from her parents farm in Yackandanda. I like that we trade products I only wish it happened more often with others in the neighbourhood. I can see grapes growing from the man who lives behind us, I may have to offer up some veggies from my garden.


BANANA CARAMEL CAKE
Ingredients

110g butter, softened
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
2 bananas, peeled, halved lengthways
2 eggs
1 tbs golden syrup
3/4 cup plain flour
1/3 cup S/R Flour
1/3 cup milk


Preheat oven to 180c lightly grease loaf pan and line with baking paper.
Combine 10g butter, 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tbs cold water in saucepan oven medium heat. cook stirring until dissolved. bring to boil. Cook for 3 minutes until thickened. Pour into cake pan.
Cut bananas in half, trim to fit pan, place cut side down over syrup.
Beat remaining butter and sugar for 5 minutes until fluffy, add 1 egg at a time until combined, stir in golden syrup and half the flours and milk until just combined. Then stir in remaining flours and milk. Spread mixture over bananas. bake for 1 hour. Stand in pan for 5 minutes then turn out on wire rack to cool.