cheese biscuits

i needed to take something to a party last night and was at a loss as to what to bring...everyone had already made it known what their contribution was going to be and all the things i could have brought were being brought by someone else...then, i thought about these...they're yummy, and everyone asked for the recipe, so here it is...

200 grams sharp cheedar cheese
50 grams parmesan cheese
250 grams butter
500 grams strong bakers' flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
paprika


preheat the oven to 170C.

line baking trays with baking paper.

place the cheddar cheese in the thermomix bowl and grate for 2-3 seconds on speed 8. set aside.

place the parmesan cheese in the thermomix bowl and grate for 8 seconds on speed 8. set aside.

place the flour, sugar, peppers and butter in the thermomix bowl and mix for 10 seconds on speed 5 or until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

add the cheeses to the flour mixture in the bowl. place the dial on closed lid position and use interval speed to knead for 2 minutes.

portion the dough as desired. i used a mini icecream scoop.

sprinkle with paprika.

bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden.

raspberry and strawberry charlotte

eggs benedict

just a photo this time. i made this and loved the flowing yolk...have a great day!

anders ousback's grilled pepper relish

the first time i had this was july 1st, 1999, 13 years ago. i was at simon johnson's pyrmont store for the vogue cookbook launch and need i tell you that it was delicious? it was served with a beautiful artisan sourdough baguette and the creamiest ripe brie.

8 large red capsicums, halved and seeded.
olive oil
3 teaspoons cracked peppercorns
3 teaspoons brown mustard seeds
3 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds
3 teaspoons coriander seeds
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 knobs ginger, peeled and shredded
3 chillies, finely sliced
2 large onions, diced
2 large apples, peeled and diced
6 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
4 bay leaves
4 tablespoons currants
4 tablespoons honey
200ml port
200ml white wine vinegar
sea salt to taste

preheat the oven to 200°C. place the capsicums, cut side down, on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake for 30 minutes or until the skins start to blister. cool, slip off the skins and slice into long strips. set aside.

place a little olive oil into a heavy based saucepan and roast the peppercorns, mustard and corriander. add the garlic, ginger, chilli and onion and cook until the onions are translucent. add the apple and cook a further 10 minutes.

add the tomato, bay leaves, currants, honey, port, vinegar, salt and capsicums and simmer over low heat for 1 1/2-2 hours or until the mixture has thickened. remove from the stove and spoon the relish into warm sterilised jars. seal whilst hot and allow to cool. store in the refrigerator or a cool cupboard.

what to cook if you can't cook...

dear friend, miss cathryn, and i were chatting this morning about recipes that we could share with her niece who has recently moved away from home.

the first recommendation i made was that miss cathryn teach her niece how to cook a steak. steak is quick and easy once one is taught the basics.

i then referred miss cathryn to two easy ones which i dig up for anyone who can't cook but has to - my daggy porcupines and internet chicken. yes, i know, they are both recipes which use canned soup, but it's a start for someone who can't cook, and while i haven't had those dishes for a while, i think of them rather fondly. i do think it's important if one can't cook that one starts with something which will result in a tasty and comforting dish.

hot cross buns

i made hot cross buns for the first time this year. they weren't something i had placed on my "to do" list, but they were made because i had to...
determined that they were to be successful, i perused a number of recipes and even procured recipes from my friends for good measure. this is the recipe i settled on, and having shared the buns with nearly thirty strangers the first time i made them, with many coming up to me declaring how good they were, i feel confident in sharing this recipe with you.

360 grams milk
60 grams butter
2 teaspoons dried yeast
2 teaspoons bread improver
1 teaspoon sea salt
60 grams raw sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons mixed spice
600 grams strong bakers' flour
100 grams sultanas
20 grams mixed peel
80 grams currants

this recipe makes about 40 mini hot cross buns, or about 12 regular sized ones...instructions are for the mini ones because they are so cute!

line the base of two lamington tins with baking paper and set aside.

place the milk, butter, yeast, bread improver, salt, sugar and spices in the thermomix bowl and heat at 37°C for 2 minutes on speed 1.

add the flour to the warm milk mixture. mix for 6 secs on speed 5.

knead on interval speed for 1 minute. add the dried fruit and knead for another minute on interval speed.

tip the dough out onto your a lightly floured surface and give it a light knead to further incorporate the fruit. divide the dough into 40 golf ball sized portions and place them into the prepared lamington tins. cover the tins loosely with a clean tea towel and let rise somewhere warm until doubled in size, approx 40 mins. Preheat oven 200°C.

once the buns have risen, pipe the crosses with the following paste:

1/4 cup plain flour
scant 1/4 cup water

place the flour into a small bowl and mix with enough water to make a thick batter. transfer into a small zip lock bag, snip a tiny corner off the bag and pipe the crosses onto the buns.
bake 10 to 15 minutes or until golden.

once the buns are baked, brush with a glaze made with 1/4 cup raw sugar dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water to achieve a glossy appearance. serve warm if possible - you want everyone to know what real hot cross buns taste like. these aren't half bad served the next day, but there isn't anything like a fresh hot cross bun!

whisks' pasties

one of my friends, miss cathryn, recently made some pasties, and inspired me to do the same. this is what i did with what i had. what i made was by no means authentic cornish pasties, but i don't think i heard a single complaint. i didn't have any lard, so i used the 2 cartons of sour cream i had in the fridge to make the pastry. i didn't have turnips or swedes and wasn't going to the shops just to get for that either, so i did the sacrilegious and used carrots(!!!).

i really did go out of my way to not be authentic, didn't i? but they were delicious, and with that, i rest my case.

makes 16 big pasties

pastry

2x300ml cartons sour cream
4 cups strong bakers' flour

combine together in the thermomix or food processor until the flour and cream come together. tip the mixture onto a lightly floured board and knead lightly into a ball and place into a plastic bag. seal and place in the refrigerator to rest.

filling

1 large onion
3 large carrots (or turnips/swedes, if you want to get it right)
30 grams olive oil
1 kilo skirt steak
3 large potatoes
salt and pepper to taste
1 or 2 eggs

line 3 baking trays with baking paper.

place the onion and carrots/swedes/turnips in the thermomix bowl and chop on speed 5 until just chopped - you can hear when this is done and this takes about 3 or 4 seconds. add the olive oil and saute for 8 minutes at 100C on speed 1.
i like my steak and potatoes cubed by hand, but this can be chopped up with the thermomix, if desired. if you want to chop the steak with your thermomix, cut the meat into 4 centimetre cubes and chill in the freezer for about 30 minutes before chopping. turbo once or twice to get the consistency you like. peel the potatoes and quarter, and place into the thermomix bowl. chop the potatoes using the turbo function pressing the turbo button once or twice to get the size you like. combine the carrots, onions, potatoes and meat together and season generously.

preheat the oven to 200C.

retrieve the pastry and divide it into 16 portions and roll each portion into a thin disc. you will be surprised at how thin this pastry can be rolled and even more surprised at how strong it is...at least i was - it holds the filling admirably. once all the discs have been rolled, divide the filling amongst them. fold the pastry over and press to seal, then crimp however you wish. if you don't do the crimping thing, just press the tines of a fork around the pastry - not only does it add a decorative feature, it helps to seal the pasty. place the pasties on the prepared baking trays. place the egg(s) into a bowl and whisk lightly. brush the pasties with the egg generously and bake the pasties for 25 minutes or until golden.