Apricot Slice

I can’t say that it has been all doom and gloom these past few months spent in “isolation”. We’ve had lots of movie nights and discovered the wonder that is Disney +. We’ve gone for walks in the sunshine and, excitedly, welcomed a furry friend into our household.

There has also been lot of cooking, and baking, with all three girls being all too eager to assist in the kitchen. The only downside being that even my ‘comfy’ jeans are now ‘snug’, and that’s putting it nicely.

But I’m sure things will even out as we start to get back to normal. I hope so, at least. Until then, you will generally find some form of baked good adorning our countertop, making for a nice morning tea treat (and afternoon tea treat, and after-dinner treat…you get the drift)

We created this apricot slice a little while ago, and I must say, it didn’t last long. Even my food sceptical daughter was happy to give it a try – although I think she enjoyed licking the white chocolate bowl more.

It is a no-bake slice, although there was some heating of the butter and sugar involved. Overall, though, it was relatively kid-friendly to pull together.

The apricot layer consisted of biscuits, chopped dried apricots, sweetened condensed milk and butter / sugar. Pressed into a lined pan, and then placed in the fridge for a few hours to firm up.

As for the chocolate layer, well this looks fancy but was really very simple. Just melted white chocolate with drops of orange colouring swirled through for a marbled effect.

I placed the slice back in the fridge overnight, and by the next morning, it was ready to be cut into slices. And to reduce our sugar-consumption (a little bit at least) we shared the slice “love” and delivered some to our neighbours.

But now, where are my stretchy pants….

Print Recipe
 Apricot Slice
Course Baking
Servings
slices (depending on the size)
Ingredients
Course Baking
Servings
slices (depending on the size)
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Grease and line a slice tray with baking paper.
  2. Place the biscuits into a food processor and process until they are a fine crumb. Add the chopped apricots and condensed milk.
  3. Meanwhile, heat the butter and sugar in a small saucepan until the butter has melted and the sugar has disolved. Add to the biscuit mixture and stir until well combined.
  4. Press into the lined tray, and place in the fridge for 2 hours or until firm.
  5. Melt the white cholocate and spread over the top of the slice. Add drops of the orangefood colouring, and use a skewer to swirl to make a marble effect.
  6. Place in the fridge to set overnight then cut into slices.
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Chocolate Banana Muffins

And so we have ourselves another long weekend! It really does feel as though we’ve had quite the run of them lately.

Unfortunately the weather has been a little drab, meaning outdoor adventures are not all that appealing. Instead, we’ve been making the most of having quiet time at home. Movies have been watched, artwork has been created, and games have been played. I even managed to finish another book (!) and gratefully ticked off some little admin tasks I’ve had on my ‘to do’ list for a while.

There has also been time spent in the kitchen. I cooked up a chicken tikka masala last night, and I’ve got some homemade vegetable stock currently bubbling away on the stove. And this morning, when I realised a couple of bananas had seemingly turned brown overnight, a batch of banana muffins was the solution!

I decided to add a chocolate spin to my regular recipe – for with the fog lingering outside – chocolate would surely add some cheer. Some were topped with walnuts, some without (school friendly). We enjoyed some of the muffins warm straight out of the oven for morning tea, with the rest being packaged away to be added to the lunchboxes during the week.

Not a bad way to spend a long weekend indeed!

Print Recipe
 Chocolate Banana Muffins
Course Baking
Keyword muffin
Servings
muffins
Ingredients
Course Baking
Keyword muffin
Servings
muffins
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 160C (fan forced). Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin cases.
  2. Cream butter and sugar in a mixer until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  3. Add the banana and vanilla, and beat until combined.
  4. Sift in cocoa powder and flour, and add milk. Stir until just combined.
  5. Spoon into prepared cases, and top with walnuts (optional). Bake for 30 minutes (or until cooked through).
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Strawberry Cheesecake

I don’t tend to bake sweet treats much these days. Not because I don’t enjoy it (I really do!) – its just that I generally crave savoury snacks over sweet – particularly when the weather is warmer. But now that the days are getting shorter, and t-shirts are being replaced with snuggly knits and scarves – there is something quite comforting about indulging in something sweet.

This strawberry cheesecake made an appearance at our Easter lunch. Actually it was one of two cakes we made for the occasion (the other being a tim tam cheesecake). I loved its simplicity – and the fact that the beautiful strawberries were the star of the show. It was also a non-baked version – so we could pull it together the day before.

I used shortbread for the base – flavoured with a little coconut. The creamy filling was made with cream cheese, cream, sweetened condensed milk and, of course, fresh strawberries. Jazzed up with a little fresh lime juice and zest.

The overall result was a cheesecake that was effortlessly delicious. Packed with flavour (and had me going back for seconds in the days that followed). A nice break from the chocolate overload over Easter too!

Print Recipe
 Strawberry Cheesecake
Course Baking
Servings
people
Ingredients
Course Baking
Servings
people
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Grease and line a springform baking tin.
  2. Process biscuits and coconut until they are a fine crumb. Add the melted butter, and process until combined. Press into the prepared tin, and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
  3. Add the cream cheese and condensed milk to a clean food processor, and process until smooth. Add 400g of the strawberries and cream, and continue to process until smooth.
  4. Heat the lime juice in a small saucepan until simmering. Squeeze the water out of the gelatine leaves, and add to the heated juice. Stir until dissolved, then allow to cool slightly.
  5. Add the gelatine mix to the processor, along with the lime zest, and process until combined. Carefully pour the mixture on top of the base, and refrigerate until set.
  6. Remove the cake from the tin, and top with extra strawberries to serve.
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Milo Bliss Balls

And just like that, our Summer of fun has come to an end. The school shirts are hanging front and centre in the cupboard, new shoes are being broken in, and the notes (oh the notes) are coming home each day.

Back to school also sees the never-ending question of what to pack for lunch. Most days the girls are happy with a sandwich or wrap, or perhaps some leftover pasta, padded out with a selection of fruit, vegetables (and J’s latest favourite – hummus). Actually not a lot has changed in terms of what I send since my last lunch box round-up when C was in kindy.

But I do like to do a little baking each week to add some variety to their afternoon tea, at least.

A favourite? These milo bliss balls – made simply with toasted coconut, brown rice puffs and sunflower seeds, blended together with dates, milo, chia seeds and a little water.

And then the fun started (well for J at least) as we rolled the mixture into balls and dipped them into a little more milo.

(I, on the other hand,*may* not have had as much fun when cleaning stray milo from various nooks and crannies for the next hour…)

But although they proved a little messy to make (when assisted by a certain 4 year old, that is) they were a huge hit in the lunchboxes last week. Not to mention being a rather tasty afternoon tea treat for the grown-ups too!


Print Recipe
 Mil Bliss Balls
Course Baking
Servings
balls
Ingredients
Course Baking
Servings
balls
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Process all ingredients together until well combined then rolls into balls. Store in the fridge.
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Savoury cheese and ham muffins

Why is it always the case that during the school week I have to (sometimes literally) drag the kids out of bed, yet on Sunday – when we can all sleep in – they are up at 5.30am and ready to start the day!?

Yes, as I lay in bed this morning, enjoying what I thought was going to be a little extra snooze time, the all-to-familiar call came through the monitor. Followed by a  little patter of feet down the hall. No amount of coaxing could get the girls back to bed, so that was it – our day officially started.

We played games, we ate breakfast (and second breakfast), we read stories, we more than likely annoyed the neighbours when we took the fun outside (sorry), and we even did a little baking.  And all before 9.00am.

On the menu? Savoury muffins – made with only 6 ingredients.

Flour, grated cheese, ham, milk, egg and olive oil. Kept very simple on this occasion as I plan to use them in the kids’ lunch boxes this week (and anything ‘green’ or ‘unusual’ is likely to be met with disdain at the moment).

While I measured the ingredients, the girls had fun stirring them and dividing them amongst the cases. Into the oven for 20 minutes, and we soon had ourselves a tasty morning tea.

I love the simplicity of this recipe – but it could easily be jazzed up for more adventurous palates. Some fresh herbs, sundried tomatoes or zucchini would be lovely, or even some olives if you had some on hand.

Oh and the littlest one, in particular,  wasted no time in sampling our efforts!





Print Recipe


Savoury cheese and ham muffins

Course Baking
Cuisine Baking
Keyword muffin

Servings
muffins


Ingredients

Course Baking
Cuisine Baking
Keyword muffin

Servings
muffins


Ingredients


Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 200C and line a muffin tray with paper cases.

  2. Place the sifted flour, 3/4 of the cheese and the ham in a large bowl. Stir to combine.

  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, egg and olive oil.

  4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir until just combined. Spoon into the prepared cases and top with the remaining cheese.

  5. Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through.


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Spinach and ricotta ‘sausage’ rolls

After realising that I can be a bit of a frozen puff-pastry hoarder, I’ve been looking for ways to make sure we use up the packets before they are lost in the depths of our chest freezer. Sausage rolls, in the traditional sense, have been baked in abundance for this reason, and are definitely a ‘go to’ for parties and entertaining. As are my favourite savoury scrolls – which are always a great lunchbox addition.

So when I was looking for a vegetarian dish to contribute to our recent Good Friday lunch, and also a way to finish off the half pack of puff pastry I had in the freezer, these lovely little spinach and ricotta rolls came to be.

Filled with the goodness of spinach, and jazzed up with both ricotta and feta – this vegetarian take on the ol’ sausage roll proved rather delicious. And they will now feature on my ‘bring a plate’ favourites list for sure!

Print Recipe
 Spinach and ricotta 'sausage' rolls
Course Baking
Cuisine Vegetarian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings
rolls
Ingredients
Course Baking
Cuisine Vegetarian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings
rolls
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 200C and line 2 trays with baking paper.
  2. Squeeze as much liquid out of the spinach as you can, then place in a large bowl with the ricotta, feta, egg and lemon zest. Stir to combine, and season.
  3. Cut each pastry sheet in half. Place 1/4 of the spinach mixture down the long side of each sheet. Brush the opposite side with egg, and roll to enclose.
  4. Cut each roll into 6 pieces, and place onto the lined baking trays. Brush the tops with a little more egg, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
  5. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
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Easy savoury scolls

And just like that, the Summer holidays have come to a close. School uniforms have been ironed, school and day-care bags have been cleaned, and school lunches are again, inevitably, on my mind.

I returned to work part-time last week too, which means that organising lunches and meals in advance is even more of a necessity. I’ve decided to make Sundays my  preparation day – with the hope that an hour or so of food preparation on Sunday will make things a lot easier during the rushed weekday mornings.

Sandwiches are made and frozen, fruit and vegetables are sliced, eggs are boiled and, on this particular occasion, a big batch of savoury scrolls was baked.

These were made even easier by using ready-made puff pastry. For all I had to do was top the sheets of pastry (I went with cheesy vegemite and “‘pizza”), roll them, slice and bake.

And while the kids demolished quite a few scrolls straight from the oven, the others were packaged up and placed in the freezer for a quick ‘grab and go’ addition to the lunchbox. My kids don’t mind eating the scrolls cold once thawed, however you can easily re-heat them for 10 minutes or so in the oven if you are wanting a nice after-school treat. 

And they made a pretty moreish afternoon snack for the grownups too!

 

Print Recipe
 Easy savoury scrolls
Course Baking
Cuisine Baking
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings
scrolls
Ingredients
Course Baking
Cuisine Baking
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings
scrolls
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 175C (fan forced) and line 2 trays with baking paper.
  2. Place two pastry sheets on a clean work surface. Spread with vegemite and top with half of the cheese. Roll up to enclose filling - brushing the edge with a little of the beaten egg to seal.
  3. Place the other two pasty sheets on a clean work surface. Spread with the tomato paste, and top with ham and the remaining cheese. Roll up to enclose filling - brushing the edge with a little of the beaten egg to seal.
  4. Slice each roll into 8 pieces. Place the pieces, cut side up, on the lined baking trays. Brush the tops with a little beaten egg at this stage if you'd like the scrolls to be even more golden brown).
  5. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until puffed up and golden brown. Allow to cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack.
  6. Serve warm or cool.
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Tim Tam Slice

I wanted to try a new slice creation when asked to ‘bring a plate’ to a friend’s BBQ the other week. Normally I take my rocky road, or lemon slice, but with a packet of Tim Tams sitting in the cupboard – well I had my inspiration to try something new.

On the subject of Tim Tams – they really are quite iconically Australian, aren’t they. So much so that when we had Japanese exchange students stay with us when I was younger, they took back packets of Tim Tams by the suitcase-load.  They weren’t all that fussed about Vegemite, but they couldn’t get enough when it came to Tim Tams!

But I digress.

This ‘no bake’ Tim Tam slice was made simply with biscuits, Tim Tams (of course), condensed milk, butter, coconut and cocoa powder.

Combined, pressed into a pan, then topped with white chocolate and more biscuit pieces. Then it was into the fridge to set – no baking required.

Then, after a few hours, the slice was ready to slice and serve.

I’m pleased to report that the slice had all the hallmarks of their biscuit inspiration. Full of chocolate and crunch.

A word of warning though….you may find it difficult to stop at just once piece…

Print Recipe
 Tim Tam Slice
Course Baking
Cuisine Slice
Prep Time 20 minutes + cooling time
Servings
pieces
Ingredients
Course Baking
Cuisine Slice
Prep Time 20 minutes + cooling time
Servings
pieces
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Line a slice tray with baking paper.
  2. Place the sweetened condensed milk, butter and cocoa powder in a small saucepan, and heat over a low heat - stirring until the butter has melted and the mixture is combined. Remove from the heat.
  3. Meanwhile, combine the Marie biscuits, half of the chopped Tim Tams and coconut in a large bowl. Add the butter mixture and stir until well combined. Press into the prepared slice tin.
  4. Melt the white chocolate, and pour over the slice. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped Tim Tams and place into the fridge for a few hours to set. Slice and serve.
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Nutty Date & Chocolate Slice

My two eldest girls can be quite challenging when it comes to food. Miss C will happily eat avocado, mangoes and prawn dumplings by the bucket load, but is generally not all that food focused at meal times (preferring instead to snack and graze throughout the day). Little J would happily have yoghurt for breakfast lunch and dinner, and has no interest in more ‘traditional’ meals such as sandwiches.

Needless to say that if I was to present them with a bowl filled with dates, they would be looked at with suspicion and remain uneaten.

Put dates in a chocolate covered slice however? Well that proved to be a winner!

This slice contains no flour, no eggs, but it does contain nuts so is not allergy-friendly for school lunchboxes.

The texture of this slice is almost fudge-like, and we all loved the little pops of crunchiness throughout. Covering the slice in dark chocolate took the whole slice to the next level too – and worked perfectly to fool my suspicious eaters!

Print Recipe
 Nutty Date & Chocolate Slice
Course Baking
Cuisine Slice
Prep Time 10 minutes
Passive Time 1 hour
Servings
slices
Ingredients
Course Baking
Cuisine Slice
Prep Time 10 minutes
Passive Time 1 hour
Servings
slices
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Line a loaf tin with baking paper, leaving a little overhanging the edges.
  2. Process the dates and nut butter in a food processor for a few minutes, until the mixture is well combined and forms a paste. Transfer to a large bowl, and stir through the puffed rice and chopped nuts.
  3. Press the mixture firmly into the lined tin (it will be quite sticky so you may want to use wet hands to do this). Pour the melted chocolate over the top of the slice, and place in the fridge to set for 1 hour. Cut the slice into squares and serve.
Recipe Notes

Keep the slice in the fridge until ready to eat as it will soften at room temperature.

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My favourite Lemon and Coconut Slice

When asked to “bring a plate”, I often lean towards creating a sweet treat. Rocky road is usually my “go to” sweet, and is generally well received, but on other occasions I like to bring a plate of lemon slice.  For it is easy to make, requires no baking, and the leftovers keep really well too.

Recently I offered to make a couple slices for a birthday party. I had a few chocolate based ones in mind, and figured my favourite lemon slice would work beautifully as a nice flavour contrast to those. And with some lemons leftover from the peach and lemon cake, well it was a no-brainer really.

So one dreary morning, my helpers and I got to work. Lemons were juiced and zested, biscuits were crumbed and condensed milk and butter were heated. And before too long we had ourselves a big tray of lemon slice, sprinkled with coconut, and ready to be sliced and served.

This was a great slice to make with the kids too. They had a lot of fun turning the food processor on and off, and stirring the coconut and melted ingredients into the biscuit crumbs. Bowls and spoons were licked not long after, and coconut was liberally sprinkled over the iced slice (and most of the kitchen benchtop, but let’s not talk about that…!)

Print Recipe
 Lemon and Coconut Slice
Course Baking
Cuisine Baking
Prep Time 30 minutes
Servings
slices (or more depending on the size)
Ingredients
Course Baking
Cuisine Baking
Prep Time 30 minutes
Servings
slices (or more depending on the size)
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Process the biscuits in a food processor until they resemble fine breadcrumbs. Place in a large bowl, add the coconut, lemon juice and zest, and stir to combine.
  2. Place the sweetened condensed milk and butter in a saucepan. Heat slowly, over a low heat, stirring until the butter has melted.
  3. Pour the butter mixture into the biscuit mixture, and stir until well combined. Press firmly into a slice tin (that is lined with baking paper), and place in the fridge for 10 minutes.
  4. Place the icing sugar and extra lemon juice in a small saucepan. Heat gently, stirring, until the sugar has melted and the ingredients have combined. Spread over the chilled slice, and sprinkle with extra coconut. Refrigerate for a couple of hours (or overnight) then slice and serve.
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