Conversions and stuff

1 cup of:
rice = 228g
mashed banana = 260g
dry breadcrumbs = 115g
fresh breadcrumbs = 60g
firmly packed brown sugar = 226g
butter = 238g
caster sugar = 225g
grated cheddar cheese = 100g
cocoa powder = 112g
dessicated coconut = 80g
cornflour = 150g
deseeded dried dates = 170g
flour = 150g
jam = 340g
marshmallows = 96g
grated parmesan = 88g
frozen peas = 128g
raisins = 180g
frozen rasberries = 130g
rolled oats = 92g
sour cream = 250g
sugar = 220g
caster sugar = 225g
icing sugar = 140g
greek yoghurt = 270g

1 oz = 28.4 grams

Date loaf (tastes like jamaican ginger cake)

No ginger in it but it tastes like a bought ginger cake that we used to get in the UK

170g chopped dates
200g brown sugar
60g butter
250ml boiling water
220g self-raising flour, sifted
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp vanilla essence

Put dates, sugar and butter in a bowl
Pour over boiling water
Stir until butter is melted
Add flour, mix well
Add bicarb, mix well
Mix in vanilla

Pour into greased loaf tin
Bake at 180C for 45-50 min

Natural food colourings (for dying eggs)

1 litre water

1 TB vinegar

1 TB salt

RED - 1-2 chopped beetroot - simmer 30 min, strain

YELLOW - 6 TB ground tumeric, simmer for few min

BLUE - 1 large red cabbage, shredded, simmer 30 min, strain

Boil up some eggs then draw on them in white crayon

Soak eggs in liquid, red is quick, yellow bit longer, blue needs a few hours

OR (pictured)

Wrap eggs in onion skins then muslin cloth, tie

Boil for 10-12 minutes

Christmas pudding

Aussies aeem to prefer plum pudding, but heres a traditional Engish pud

Traditionally made on the sunday before advent (about 5 weeks)
1lb/450g dried mixed fruit (raisins/sultanas/currants)
1oz/25g mixed peel
1 small cooking apple, peeled, cored and finely chopped
Grated zest and juice of 1/2 lge orange and 1/2 lemon
4 TB brandy, plus extra for soaking at the end
2oz/55g SR flour
1 level tsp ground mixed spice
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4oz/110g shredded suet
4oz/110g soft, dark brown sugar
4oz/110g white, fresh breadcrumbs
1oz/25g whole shelled almonds, roughly chopped
2 large eggs

Lightly butter a 2 1/2 pint/1.4 litre pudding basin
Place dried fruits, peel and juice in large mixing bowl, add brandy and stir well
Marinate for couple hours or overnight
Sift flour , spice and cinnamon in very large mixing bowl
Add suet, sugar, zest breadcrumbs and nuts, stir
Add dried fruit and stir again
Beat eggs lightly in small bowl then stir in quickly
Everyone have a turn at stirring, add coins and make a wish!

Spoon into bowl, pressing down with back of spoon
Cover with double layer of greaseproof paper, then aluminium foil, secure with string
Place pudding in steamer set over saucepan of simmering water
Steam for 7 hours
Check water doesn't boil dry
Remove from steamer and cool completely
Remove paper, prick with skewer and pour over extra brandy.
Cover with fresh greaseproof and retie string
Store in a cool dry place until Christmas!
Reheat by steaming again for about an hour

Flaming the pudding
Half fill metal ladle with brandy and heat over gas flame or candle
When flame is hot enough brandy will light
Pour over pudding

Lemon curd and Meringue nests

Lemon curd
Juice of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 lime
3 egg yolks
6-8 TB sugar
4 TB butter

Make a double boiler (mixing bowl over saucepan of boiling water)
Pour juice into bowl
Whisk in egg yolks
KEEP WHISKING
Gradually whisk in sugar, then butter
Cook until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon

This stuff is ADDICTIVE, be warned!
Eat on toast or make little tarts or use to fill a sponge cake or meringue nests...

Meringue - crispy and gooey (:

4 egg whites
Pinch of salt
225g/8oz/1 cup caster sugar
4 tsp cornflour
2 tsp rasberry vinegar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Beat egg whites and salt until stiff
Gradually beat in sugar
Beat in cornflour, vinegar then vanilla
Spoon onto greaseproof paper in small 'nests' or one large if you prefer
Bake at 135C for an hour or so

Also perfect filled with whipped cream and topped with fresh fruit

Chocolate and pecan pinwheels

Brush a sheet of frozen puff pastry with melted butter
Scatter chopped chocolate and pecans over
Roll up and slice 2.5cm to make pinwheels
Sprinkle with brown sugar
Bake @ 200C for 20-25 min

Vegi puffs

2 sheets frozen puff pastry
30g butter
1 cup peas
2 leeks, sliced
2 zuchinni, diced
2 TB cream cheese
seasoning

Heat butter in frying pan
Fry vegis
Stir in cream cheese, season
Cool
Spoon into pastry and fold diagonally
Seal with beaten egg
Brush with egg
Bake 25-30 min @200C

Frozen cookies

basic recipe
500g margarine
1 tin condensed milk
1 cup sugar
5 cups self-raising flour

optional flavourings
choc chips
mini m&m's
100&1000's
milo and coconut
cherries
nuts

Cream sugar and margarine
Add milk
Add flour
Add choice of flavourings
roll into tsp sized balls and press down with a fork on greased baking sheet
OR
roll into a snake and wrap in cling wrap, freeze, when needed cut off slices and bake!
Bake at 180c for 10-15 min (until golden)

Baked cheesecake (Large!)

This is the cake I make for very special occasions - bit of a hassle but SOOO worth it!

Base
8 digestive biscuits, crushed (marie biscuits are the Aussie sub)
2 TB butter, melted
2 TB sugar

Mix and press into bottom of springform pan

Filling
600g soft cream cheese
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
Vanilla

Beat cream cheese, beat in sugar
Beat in eggs, one at a time
Add vanilla
Pour onto base and bake at 175 for 25 min

Topping
600 ml sour cream
3 TB sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Combine and spread onto baked cheesecake
Bake on 260C for further 5 min

Cool for 24 hours

Baked apples

1 large green apple per person

sultanas or mixed fruit
mixed spice
brown sugar
OR
chopped dried apricots
golden syrup
cinnamon
OR
dried cranberries
caster sugar

Wash apples
Remove cores
Score line around apple halfway down 1cm deep
Mix ingredients and stuff each apple as full as you can.
Bake @ 180C for 35-45 min

Slow cooker rice pudding

3/4 cup pudding rice
3 cups milk (replace 1/2 cup with cream)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinamnon
pinch salt
TB golden syrup /TB treacle/ handful of raisins (optional)
2 TB diced/melted butter (optional)

Rinse rice in cold water
Put in lightly greased slow cooker
Add remaining ingredients except for butter
Stir to combine
Sprinkle butter over

Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 1/2 - 3 hours (until rice has absorbed liquid)
Turn off when still a little 'runny'

Curried egg patties

4 hard-boiled eggs, chopped small
50g butter
40g plain flour
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
150ml semi-skim milk
1 beaten egg
1 tsp tomato puree
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp lemon juice

Coating
Seasoned plain flour
1 large beaten egg
Dried breadcrumbs

Melt butter
Stir in flour curry powder and salt
Cook 2 min
Gradually stir in milk, to make thick sauce
Cook 5 min, stirring all the time
Take off heat and add beten egg, tomato puree, W- sauce and lemon juice
Stir in hard-boiled eggs
Season with salt
Chill until mixture becomes firm
Form into 4 rounds
Dip in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs

Shallow fry in 5mm hot oil until golden brown
Drain on kitchen paper

Slow cooked chicken and rice casserole

I think I cooked mine too long and the rice turned a bit mushy, I'll try it again one day!

1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup flour
spray oil
1 1/2 cups brown rice
1 diced onion
225g sliced mushrooms
3-4 chicken breasts
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika

Combine chicken broth with 1/2 cup of the milk in a saucepan, heat on med
Whisk remaining milk with flour, when broth boils gradually stir into broth
Cool
Spray crockpot
Add rice, onion, mushroom and seasonings to crockpot
Mix in broth, lay chicken on top

Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours

Slow cooker falafels

Can of chickpeas
1/2 chopped onion
1 TB parsley
2 cloves garlic (crushed)
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
juice from 1 lemon
1/2 - 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
2 TB olive oil

Mash chickpeas with a fork
Blend onion, herbs and spices, egg and lemon juice
Mix in chickpeas
Add breadcrumbs, mix with a fork
It should still be wet and sticky but forms into balls easily
Pour oil in slow cooker bowl
Form mixture into golf ball size, dip both sides in oil

Cook on HIGH for 2-5 hours

Honey chicken drummers

My hubby likes to take these to work with him

125ml (1/2 cup) soy sauce
80ml (1/3 cup) honey
1 lemon
1 garlic clove
12 chicken drumsticks

Oven @ 180c
Combine ingredients and pour over chicken
Cover with foil
bake 45 min, turning and basting every 15 min
Drain and cool

Microwave mug cake

For the times whwn you NEED a cake and you don't have any time or shops!
4 TB plain flour
4 TB sugar
2 TB cocoa powder
1 egg
3 TB milk
3 TB oil
3 TB choc chip (omit if you don't have any)
vanilla

Mix dry ingredients together in a large mug
Add egg and mix well
Mix in rest of ingredients
Microwave on HIGH (1000 watts) for 3 min
The cake comes up really high above the level of the mug but don't panic!

Chicken nuggets

500g chicken mince
2 small carrots, grated
1 zuchinni, grated
handful of grated cheese
1 egg
breadcrumbs (I use stuffing mix for an extra herby flavour)
spray oil

Mix all, except breadcrumbs, together in a big bowl until well combined
Shape into nuggets, patties, whatever you fancy (I made 12 giant nuggets)
Roll in the breadcrumbs
Place on a greased/non-stick baking sheet
Spray lightly with oil
Bake at 200C for 20-25 min
I flip them for the last 5 min but not essential

Slow cooker meatloaf

2 slices bread crumbed
1/2 cup milk
1 onion grated
2 eggs
1/2 cup ketchup
1 TB worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 kg minced meat (beef or pork or a mixture)

Make an aluminium foil cradle in your slow cooker bowl to lift the meatloaf out with
Combine bread and milk squishing it til its soggy
Add onion, eggs, ketchup Woster sauce, salt and pepper and mix
Add meat and mix with your hands
Form into loaf inside the slow cooker
Cover and cook on LOW 6-7 hours or HIGH 3-4 hours

Slow cooker treacle sponge

3 TB golden syrup
175g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
1 TB fresh white breadcrumbs
juice of 1 1/2 lemons
175g caster sugar
zest of 1 lemon
3 eggs
200g self-raising flour
3 TB milk

Put syrup, breadcrumbs and juice of 1/2 lemon in 1.2 litre pudding basin
Cream butter and sugar
Mix in lemon rind then alternate spoonfuls of beaten egg and flour
fold in lemon juice and enough milk to make dropping consistency
Spoon ito pudding basin
Cover with greaseproof paper and buttered foil, creasing it in the centre to allow for expansion. Secure with string and make a little handle to lift it out
Put pudding in slow cooker using a saucer to lift it off of the bottom
Pour boiling water 2/3 up sides of basin
Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 1/4 - 4 hours (until skewer comes out clean)
Cool before inverting onto serving plate

Easy fondant (rollout) icing

450g icing sugar
2 TB liquid glucose
1 egg white
food colourings

Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until you get a soft dough.
Knead on worksurface sprinkled with icing sugar
Add food colouring a little at a time and knead in

EASY and so much fun to work with.

Lemon coconut slice

1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup caster sugar
90g butter, chopped
finely grated rind of 2 lemons
filling
395g tin condensed milk
2 eggs lightly beaten
juice or 2 lemons
topping
2 eggs
1 cup caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 1/2 cups shredded coconut

Oven @ 180c
Line 30x20cm baking pan
Sift flour
Add coconut and sugar
Add butter and rub in until crumbly
Add lemon rind, toss to combine
Press into tin
Cook 12-15 min, until golden brown, stand on wire rack

Put condensed milk in bowl
Add beaten eggs and juice, stir until well combined
Pour over base and spread evenly

Place eggs, sugar and vanilla in electric mixer until it increases in volume, becomes thick and pale yellow
Add coconut, stir until well combined
Spoon onto fillingand use 2 forks to spread evenly
Return to oven for 20-25 min, until golden brown and crisp

Stand on wire rack until cold

Base can be made a day in advance

Australian crunch

I live in Australia now and funnily enough the Ozzies have never heard of it! but it was my favourite bakery treat back in the UK!

I only have the recipie in ounces but I'll convert it

8oz/225g butter (no wonder its nice)
5oz/142g sugar
3oz/85g coconut
3oz/85g cornflakes
1 TB cocoa powder (thats 20ml UK and OZ tablespoons are different)
5oz/142g self raising flour
4oz/114g chocolate

Preheat oven to 180C
Grease 30x20cm slice tin
Melt butter
Stir in everything else, apart from chocolate
Press into pan
Bake for 30 min
Melt chocolate and pour onto cooled slice

Fast potato bake

6 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
1 onion, diced
5 rashers bacon, chopped
600ml cream
garlic, crushed (to taste)
cheese, grated

layer potatoes and bacon in oven/microwave safe dish
add crushed garlic to cream then pour over
microwave for 15 min (or until cooked)
sprinkle with cheese and bake at 180C until browned

Beetroot dip

450g can beetroot
125g yoghurt or sour cream
1 TB water

Process together

Makes a lovely pink dip that my 2-yr old daughter will eat instead of tomato sauce!

Herb baked ricotta

1 kg fresh ricotta
3 eggs
Thyme
Olive oil
Pepper

Spray a 6cm springform cake pan
Stir together ricotta and eggs
Press into pan
Place pan on tray
Sprinkle thyme, olive oil and pepper
Bake at 200c for 30-40 min
Cool
Serve with baguette slices, baked with oil and salt, sundried tomatoes and olives

I made this as a Christmas day starter, easy and impressive!

Devilled sausages

12 sausages
1 onion
500ml gravy
2 TB tomato paste
1 apple finely chopped

Cook sausages
Cook onion
Add onion, tomato paste, apple and cream to gravy

Cook @ 180c for 20 minutes

Carbonara

100g bacon
1 onion
garlic
mushrooms
250ml cream
250g pasta
1 egg
parmesan

Cook pasta
Fry chopped onion,bacon, garlic and mushrooms
Add a little bit of water and eveporate
Add cream and coook until it coats the back of a spoon
Add cooked pasta to the pan
Turn off heat and crack egg into mix
Stir lightly
Garnish with parmesan

Fast Fishcakes

Makes 6
I large tin of salmon
50g self-raising flour
2 eggs beaten
2 TB lemon juice
Salt and pepper
Oil for frying

Drain salmon, mash with bones, pick out big pieces of skin

Add eggs, lemon, seasoning and sifted flour

Mix well

Drop spoonfuls in to hot oil in frying pan, squishing into shape

Turn once

I don't actually like tinned salmon but these are so delicious!