Milk Chocolate Nut Fudge

This is a VERY EASY way to make fudge! And it goes down well, too.

.

Thanks to Margie for suggesting this recipe be added.

.

Makes approx 30 pieces

.

Milk Chocolate Nut Fudge

.

Ingredients:

1 x 400g can sweetened condensed milk
2 x 250g Cadbury Milk Cooking Chocolate, broken into pieces
¼ cup unsalted peanut butter
1½ cups chopped nuts (hazelnuts, almonds, macadamias or pistachios)
Shredded coconut (if you wish for decoration)

Method:

1. Combine condensed milk and chocolate in a saucepan, stir over low heat or until chocolate melts.

2. Mix in peanut butter and nuts.

3. Pour into baking paper lined 28cm x 19cm slice pan. Sprinkle coconut on top (if desired).

4. Refrigerate until set. Cut into squares.

.

Makes: approx 30 pieces

.

Rating: 4.5

.

Lemon & Coconut Slice

...because you always need something nice to take when they say "bring a plate".

Lemon & Coconut Slice

Ingredients:

Base:

1/4 cup sugar
1 cup plain flour
100g butter, cold
3/4 cup coconut, toasted
pinch salt

Lemon Topping:

1/4 cup lemon juice
3/4 cup sugar
2 free range eggs
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp plain flour
1 Tbsp lemon rind
pinch salt

Ingredients:

1. Mix all the base ingredients in a food processor/mix-master.

2. Put into a foil lined baking tray, pat down, bake in oven for 25 minutes on 180°C.

3. Mix all the lemon topping ingredients in a food processor/mix-master until smooth.

4. Pour over base and back in the oven for 30 minutes.

5. Let cool and enjoy!

Rating: 4

Easy Peppermint Slice

Warning: This recipe may find you suddenly becoming addicted! However, do not be tempted to add more of the peppermint essence as it will get stronger in taste overnight. Once the slice is made, be careful not to leave it out of the fridge too long or the copha will start to melt again.

Easy Peppermint Slice

Ingredients:

Base:

300g Oreo cookies (with the cream!)
100g melted butter

Filling:

45g copha
1/4 cup milk
1 Tbsp peppermint essence
2 1/2 cups icing sugar

Topping:

125g dark chocolate
10g copha

Method:

1. Crush the Oreos into crumbs.

2. Mix in the melted butter and press into a lined slice pan.

3. Chill for 10 mins.

4. Melt the copha, milk and peppermint essence together, then add the icing sugar, mixing until lump-free.

5. Smooth over the Oreo base.

6. Chill again.

7. Using a low heat, melt the copha and the chocolate together.

8. Pour over the slice.

9. Refrigerate until set.

Makes: 24 pieces.

Rating: 4.5

Pumpkin Scones

A good old Aussie creation!! I think it's time the Scone was brought back into fashion.

Pumpkin Scones

Ingredients:

25g butter
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp grated lemon rind
1 cup of cold mashed pumpkin
1 free range egg
1/3 cup of milk
2 cups of self-raising flour
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Method:

1. Cream butter and sugar.

2. Blend in lemon rind and pumpkin.

3. Add beaten egg and milk.

4. Lastly, sift flour with the nutmeg and stir into mixture.

5. Turn onto a lightly floured board and knead gently.

6. Roll out and cut into circles. Brush tops with beaten egg or milk.

7. Bake at 220*C for 12-15 minutes.

Rating: 4

Coconut Ice

A delicious and easy sweet to make! For a truly vegetarian recipe, please see note in bold below...

Coconut Ice

Ingredients:

750g icing sugar
300g desiccated coconut
400ml condensed milk
Vanilla essence
Blue or green food colouring ****** (see note below)

Method:

1. Lightly grease and line a small square cake tin.

2. Using a large bowl, sift in the icing sugar and add the desiccated coconut. Mix well.

3. Add the condensed milk and a splash of vanilla essence mix until well combined. If dry add small amounts of water until just moist.

4. Halve mixture. Using one half, flatten it out evenly into the tin. It may help to use a glass to flatten.

5. Colour the other half of the mixture with about 10 drops of food colouring.

6. Flatten the coloured mixture on top of the white.

7. Set in fridge for about 1 hour or until hard.

8. Cut into small pieces and serve or store in an airtight container.


******NOTE: If you want to make a vegetarian coconut ice recipe, you CAN NOT use red or pink food colouring as this is made from crushing the bodies of the Cochineal Beetle to release their red colour.

Rating: 5!

Tamarillo Fruit Sponge Cake

This is an amazing dish. It's sweet, and yet tart at the same time. It makes great use of those gorgeous red fruits that have become so available in the recent years.

Must be eaten quickly, though, as it will not keep.

Tamarillo Fruit Sponge Cake

Ingredients:

500g tamarillos
125g sugar
1/2 cup water
1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
50g butter
50g sugar
1 egg
milk to mix

Method:

1. Place 125g sugar and water in pan, bring to the boil, stir to dissolve sugar and allow to boil gently for 5 minutes.

2. Peel the tamarillos, slice into the syrup and cook gently for 5 minutes.

3. Place butter and 50g sugar in mixer bowl, cream until light and fluffy. Add the egg slowly until well beaten in.

4. Sift together flour and baking powder and add to creamed mixture at lowest speed, 1 Tbsp at a time. Mix in 2-3 Tbsp milk to form a dropping consistency.

5. Place hot stewed tamarillos in greased oven-proof dish and spoon sponge mixture over top. Smooth with a knife and bake at 180-190*C for approximately 45 minutes until well risen, firm and golden brown.

6. Serve hot, sprinkled with icing sugar.

Serves: 4

Rating: 4.5

Baklava

Baklava is probably one of the best known of all Middle Eastern sweets. In this delightful version of Turkish origin, sheets of buttered wafer-thin filo pastry are layered with nuts and baked; then they're soaked in a lemon and orange-blossom flavoured sugar and honey syrup. SO not for the diet-conscious

Baklava

Ingredients:

Pastries:

450g filo pastry (about 30 sheets)
250g unsalted butter, melted
250g finely chopped walnuts (or almonds, pistachios, or a combination)
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
¼ cup sugar

Syrup:

1¼ cups sugar
1 cups water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup honey
1 tablespoon orange-blossom water (available at Middle Eastern grocers or good health food stores)

Method:

Butter a 28cm x 18cm (11-inch x 7-inch) tin. If necessary, cut the pastry the size of the tin.
Place one sheet of pastry on the bottom of the tin and butter it with a pastry brush. Repeat for half the pastry (about 15 sheets).

Combine the nuts, cinnamon, and sugar.

Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the top layer of buttered filo pastry. Continue layering the remaining pastry on top of the nut mixture, again brushing each layer of pastry with melted butter. After the final layer of pastry is placed on top, brush it with butter.

Carefully cut the tray of pastry into diagonal diamond shapes with a sharp knife, cutting directly to the base.

Bake in a moderate oven 180°C/355°F for about 45 minutes or until the top is crisp and golden.

Combine the sugar, water, and lemon juice in a pan, stir over low heat to dissolve the sugar, and then boil for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the honey, stir to dissolve, and add the orange-blossom water.

Pour the hot syrup over the cooked baklava. Let set for at least 2 hours, or for best results leave overnight for the syrup to be fully absorbed.


Makes: about 18 large pieces

Rating - have yet to cook this recipe, but I LOVE baklava!!