Desserts
Ingredients:
125 g butter, chopped
150 g pitted dates, roughly chopped
3/4 cups caster sugar, plus extra
1 tspn mixed spice
1/4 tspn salt
1 tspn bicarbonate soda
1 x egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cup self-raising flour, sifted
6 x medium fresh figs
60 g butter (for toffee)
1/2 cup thickened cream (for toffee)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar (for toffee)
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Lightly grease and line base and sides of a 7cm deep, 20cm (base) square pan. (you can use a round pan if you don’t have a square one)
2. Place butter, dates, sugar, salt and 1cup of water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 2 minutes.
3. Remove from heat. Stir in bicarbonate of soda (mixture will foam). Transfer to a large bowl and set aside for 15 minutes to cool slightly.
4. Add egg to the date mixture and mix well. Combine flour and mixed spice. Add to the mixture and stir gently to combine. Spoon into pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Stand in pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
5. Meanwhile, preheat grill (broiler). Cut figs in half; place cut-side up, on oven tray. Sprinkle with sugar over the cut surface. Grill figs until browned lightly and caramelized.
6. To make the toffee sauce, melt butter, thickened cream and brown sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Increase heat. Simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Cut cake into squares. Top with figs and drizzle with toffee sauce. Serve with whipped cream.
Ingredients:
400ml light coconut milk
400ml reduced-fat milk
1/4 cup Natvia or fruit sugar or caster sugar
1/2 cup Arborio rice or any short grain rice
1/4 cup red quinoa, cooked
1/4 cup white quinoa, cooked
Method:
1. Place the coconut milk, milk and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil. Stir in rice and cover. Reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 25-30 minutes or until the rice is tender and the mixture is creamy. Stir in the quinoa and cook for two minutes or until heated through. Set aside to cool. Divide coconut rice among serving bowls. Serve with your favourite fruit. Drizzle with honey.
Ingredients:
115g butter, softened
1 cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
1/2 cup milk
Raspberry coulis
1 cup frozen raspberries
2 tbs caster sugar
1 tbs water
Buttercream frosting
125g butter, softened
1 1/2 cups icing sugar mixture
1 tbs milk
1/4 tsp yellow food coloring
1/4 tsp red food gel
Method:
Makes 14-16 cupcakes
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line muffin pans with patty cases.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the eggs, one at a time and beat in the vanilla until just combined (mixture will look curdled at this stage). Add the flour and milk in alternate batches and beat until combined. Always remember to start your mixer on low speed when adding ingredients, or you’ll get flour everywhere!
3. Divide mixture evenly among the prepared cups (I used a large ice-cream scoop and it is the perfect measurement for the large patty cases). Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centres comes out clean. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely.
4. To make the coulis, combine raspberries, sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil, while mashing with a wooden spoon. Simmer for one minute on low. Place raspberries in a food processor and process until smooth. Use a spoon to press puree through a sieve into a bowl. Discard seeds. Place in the fridge until required.
5. Use an apple corer to cut holes in the cupcakes – but don’t go all the way through (you can use a small knife if you don’t have an apple corer). Spoon coulis in the center of each cupcake. Top with a small piece of cake that was cut out.
6. Using an electric mixer, beat butter in a bowl until pale and fluffy. Gradually add icing sugar and milk, beating constantly until combined. Place in the fridge until required.
7. To achieve the swirl, carefully squeeze a few drops of red food gel down the side of the piping bag and use a skewer to spread it down in a line. Sprinkle a few drops of yellow food coloring on the buttercream mixture and mix slightly. Put the frosting in a piping bag fitted with your desired nozzle and pipe on top of cupcakes. Decorate with maraschino cherries or fresh raspberries.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups plain flour, sifted
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups water
150g butter
4 eggs
1/4 cup caster sugar
2 tsps ground cinnamon
rice bran oil or any cooking oil, to deep-fry
Hot Chocolate Sauce:
3/4 cup thickened cream
180g packet dark chocolate, chopped
Method:
1. Combine sifted flour and salt in a large bowl. Place the water and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat and cook stirring, until butter melts. Bring to the boil. Add the flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mixture forms a ball and comes away from the side of the pan. Transfer mixture into a clean mixing bowl fitted with a paddle attachment. Set aside for a few minutes to cool slightly.
2. Using an electric mixer , beat the eggs into the flour mixture, one at a time, beating well after each addition until well combined (mixture should look glossy and thick). Transfer mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm star fluted nozzle.
3. Half-fill medium heavy-based saucepan with oil. Heat oil over medium-high heat (you will know when the oil is ready when you drop in a cube of bread and it turns golden brown in a few seconds).
4. Pipe mixture into the oil and use scissors to cut the dough to a desired length. Cook for 2 minutes and turn using tongs and cook until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to a plate lined with paper towel. Repeat with the remaining dough.
5. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Sprinkle churros with cinnamon sugar.
6. To make the chocolate sauce, bring cream almost to the boil in a small saucepan. Add chocolate and stir until smooth. Cool slightly. Serve churros with chocolate sauce.
Ingredients:
1×85 g packet Aeroplane port wine jelly
1×85 g packet Aeroplane mango jelly
1×85 g packet Aeroplane raspberry jelly
1×400 g jam roll, sliced
1×800 g can peach slices
1 x punnet strawberries, hulled, sliced, plus extra to decorate
1 cup cherries
750 ml bought thick custard
300 ml thickened cream, whipped
1 x ripe mango, thinly sliced
Method:
1. Prepare the jelly according to packet instructions, refrigerate until set. Cut into cubes.
2. Place the jam rolls in the base of a 3L shallow glass bowl, pressing onto the base. Top with half of the peach slices and drizzle 1/2 cup of peach juice. Layer with jelly cubes, strawberries, and remaining peach slices. Drizzle the custard over the top.
3. Spoon the whipped cream over the trifle and top with strawberries, cherries, red currants and mango slices. Place in the fridge until required.
