Roast chicken with rose and sage flower oil marinade

INGREDIENTS


Chicken
2 lemons
salt
Dried rose buds, or fresh rose petals
Sage flowers
fresh thyme
fresh oregano
2 cloves of garlic
Olive oil

(you can substitute the thyme and oregano for other herbs such as rosemary)


METHOD

Crush the herbs, sage flowers and garlic (and if your using fresh rose petals, crush them too).  Add them to a jar filled with olive oil, together with the  dried rose buds.  Leave to stand for a week or until flavours have infused.

Rub salt on the chicken together with some of the rose oil.  Leave to marinade for at least half an hour.  Meanwhile quarter one lemon.  Crush some fresh herbs and  add to the lemon together with a bit of the rose oil.  Before putting the chicken in a preheated oven, squeeze half a lemon onto it.  Check chicken every so often, adding more oil and lemon juice.

Orange and mango almond cake

INGREDIENTS

1 orange
1 mango, peeled
250 g almond meal
250 g castor sugar
4 to 5 eggs
1 tsp baking powder

METHOD

Preheat oven at 170 degree C.
Place the whole orange in a pot.  Cover with water, bring to a boil then simmer for an hour.  Let the orange cool down.  Cut into smaller pieces and remove the seeds (optional).  Puree the orange and mango.  In a bowl mix the castor sugar and eggs.  Then mix in the orange and mango puree, almond meal and baking powder.  Place into a greased cake dish.  Bake for about 50 minutes.

If you wish you can add a mango or orange syrup.  Add to the cake when still warm.  Poke holes into the cake with a knife then pour in syrup.

Orange syrup

INGREDIENTS

 2 tsp orange zest
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup castor sugar

METHOD

Bring all the ingredients to a boil for two minutes then simmer.

To make the mango syrup substitute the orange juice with mango juice.

Olive bread

INGREDIENTS

ham or sun-dried tomatoes
200-300 g olives
150 g swiss cheese or parmesan
250 g self-raising flour
4 eggs
150 ml olive oil
120 ml white wine
salt and pepper to taste
spring onions c/basil chopped

METHOD
Preheat oven 200 C.  Add the eggs to the flour.  Mix well.  Then mix in the oil, then the wine.  Add the olives, cheese, tomatoes, salt, pepper and spring onions.  Cook for 45 minutes.

Sticky fig and date pudding

This recipe is based on the fig and date sticky toffee pudding
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/2065/fig+date+sticky+toffee+puddings


INGREDIENTS

•  butter, to grease ramikins
• 200g (3/4 cup) whole dried figs, coarsely chopped
• 135g (3/4 cup) pitted dates, coarsely chopped
• 310ml (1 1/4 cups) boiling water
• 4 earl grey tea bags
• 125g butter, at room temperature
• 100 g or less, brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 225g (1 1/2 cups) self-raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• Thickened cream or ice-cream to serve (optional)
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  Butterscotch sauce

• 100 g or less, brown sugar
• 250ml (1 cup) thickened cream
• 50g butter, chopped

METHOD

 

Preheat oven 160°C.  Combine fig, dates with boiling water.  Add tea bags and soak for 15 minutes.  Remove tea bags.  Beat the butter and sugar until pale and creamy.  Add the eggs one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition.  Add the bicarbonate of soda to the flour.  Alternatively fold the flour and soaked fig and dates into the egg mixture.  Spoon mixture into greased ramikins. Place on tray and put into oven. Cook for 30 minutes.

To make the sauce combine all the ingredients into a saucepan.  Stir over low heat until butter and sugar is dissolved.  Then bring to a boil on medium heat.  Simmer until the sauce thickens.  Pour over pudding and serve with double cream or ice-cream.

Tiramisu

 This recipe is from SBS:Italian Food Safari
http://www.sbs.com.au/shows/italianfoodsafari/recipes/detail/recipe/9212?s_kwcid=TC|18658|tiramisu%20recipe||S||5833957982
As usual I used less than the recommended amount of sugar. Instead of ground coffee I used grated dark chocolate mixed with roasted wattle seeds and I omitted the strega.

 

Ingredients

3 egg yolks
60g castor sugar
500g mascarpone
40 mL Strega
20 mL Sambucca

1 packet savoiardi biscuits
100g dark chocolate, chopped
1L hot coffee
Ground coffee

Italian Meringue
100mL water
250g castor sugar
125mL egg whites

Preparation

Place the egg yolks and caster sugar in a mixing bowl, and whisk on high speed until pale and fluffy. Add the mascarpone and on a medium speed, whisk until it starts to thicken.  Be sure not to over mix as you may split the mascarpone.

Add the liqueurs and mix until just combined.  (You may adjust the quantity of liqueur according to personal taste).  Place to one side and make the Italian meringue.

Add the water to a clean, grease free saucepan, then slowly add the sugar making sure that all the grains get wet. Place over a medium heat and bring to soft ball stage. 


Making sure that your mixing bowl is completely grease free, place in your egg whites and whisk on high speed until they start to become white and fluffy. As your egg whites reach medium peak, start to slowly add your hot sugar.  Once all the sugar has been added, continue to whisk until the Italian meringue has completely cooled.

Take your Italian meringue, and carefully fold into the mascarpone mix.  Taste, and adjust the amount of liqueur if necessary.


Take your sponge finger biscuits, and soak in the coffee, a few at a time. Give the biscuits a light squeeze to remove any excess coffee.  (Try not to soak your biscuits all the way through.  There should still be a little portion in the middle that has not been soaked in the coffee).

Line your bowl with the biscuits.  Once the bowl has been completely covered with the biscuits, sprinkle with a little of the chopped chocolate.

Add a little of the mascarpone mix, coming up the bowl, one third of the way.  Cover with some more of the coffee soaked sponge finger biscuits, and sprinkle again with the chopped chocolate.  Place some more mix onto the sponge finger biscuit, coming up another third of the way up the bowl.  Repeat this process once more, levelling out the mix with the top edge of the bowl.

Place in the fridge, and allow the tiramisu to become firm enough to cut, minimum 2 hours.
Just before serving, sprinkle the top with freshly ground coffee.
 

Apple and blueberry crumble with a ginger twist

INGREDIENTS

filling
apples
blueberries
2 bay leaves
a few cloves
nutmeg
cinnammon stick or ground
ground ginger
butter

crust
100 g flour
100 g butter
50 g sugar
100 g rolled oats
fresh grated ginger


METHOD

Preheat oven, 180 degrees celsius.
Add apples, bay leaves, cloves, cinnammon and ground ginger into a pan with a nob of butter.  Simmer.  Meanwhile add flour, butter and sugar into a blender.  Mix together. Then add the grated ginger and rolled oats.  Mix.  Into a buttered baking dish, add the apple mix.  Then add the blueberries.  Add the crust mix on top.  Bake until crust is golden (around 45 minutes).

Berry Cake

A twist to Isabelle's recipe.  This works well using blueberries and cherries with the pips.  I use other berries sparingly as they tend to be sour. 


INGREDIENTS

125 g self raising flour
100 g sugar
3 or 4 eggs
1/2 L of milk
vanilla essence
melted butter
berries (blueberries, cherries etc)
banana (optional)


METHOD

Preheat oven 180 degrees celsius. 
Mix eggs one at a time to the flour and sugar.  Then add the milk, vanilla and melted butter. Butter a shallow baking dish, add the sliced banana.  Pour in the mixture then add the berries.  Cook for about 45 minutes or until mixture is firm.