Confession time.

I love nuts almost as much as a terrible pun.

Delicious, earthy flavours. Great pre-workout snack. Technically a fruit. What's not to love?!

If, like me, you have a perchant for these nutritious nibbles, there is a fair chance you will also be head over heels for its entree offspring: Dukkah

Not familiar with it? Essentially dukkah is a mix of ground nuts and spices which can be served with bread, balsamic vinegar and olive oil as part of a dipping platter. Dunking the bread in the oils first and then the dukkah means the nut mix sticks to the bread and provides you additional flavours and crunch with every mouthful. Yum!

Or you can buck convention like my Nanna and use the mix as a crusting for roast meats or simply sprinkled over roasted vegetables. Each to their own!

 

Everybody seems to have their own version of dukkah, with the type of nuts and spices used varying across rationality and depending on availability. This recipe happens to be one that I have used over the last couple of years and I could still eat it by the bucket load!

Give it a shot and you won't regret it!


Unless your allergic to nuts...
Then there may be a mild dissatisfaction accompanied by anaphylactic shock...   

Basic Spicy Dukkah

3 cups hazelnuts
2 cups sesame seeds
5 tbsp coriander seeds
5 tbsp cumin seeds
4 tsp ground black pepper
3 tsp sea salt flakes



Preheat oven to 180 degrees (C) and spread the hazelnuts evenly over a baking tray. Bake in the hot oven for 5-6 minutes or until lightly roasted  (you should be able to smell them when they're ready!)

Remove the nuts from the oven and allow to cool slightly before placing in a tea towel and rubbing the nuts to remove their skins. Set the nuts aside and throw away the skins.

Place the sesame, cumin and coriander seeds in a fry pan along with the black pepper and cook over a low heat for 2-3 minutes or until lightly toasted and aromatic.

Combine the nuts, seed mix and salt in a food processor and blitz until it reaches the desired texture. I like to keep a couple of chunkier nut pieces in mine but you don't want them so big they won't stick to your dipping bread!

You could kick it old school and use a mortar and pestle for this step but in all honesty I am generally too lazy for such shenanigans...

And that's all there is to it!

Bottle your mixture up and give it to friends and family to earn their undying admiration or whip it out the next time your having some nibbles and wine... or sneak into the cupboard and eat a few spoons of it by itself....

No judgement!




And just for the heck of it, since we are talking about nuts, have a squirrel to brighten up your day!

xxoo

Relish the Thought!

The pre-Christmas rush has well and truly set in so just a quick post this afternoon!

In addition to my Citrus Sea Salt, Christmas Rocky Road and Fruit Mince Tarts; featuring in my Christmas gift guide this year in this deliciously spicy Eggplant Relish!


Enjoy it alongside a platter or cheese and biscuits or simply spread it on a slice of crusty bread, whatever takes your fancy!

Whats more, it couldn't be easier to make! Simply throw your ingredients into a pot and let the stove do the rest. Now thats my kind of recipe!

Spicy Eggplant Relish

 

Adapted from this recipe at taste.com.au
Makes about 4 cups



2 large eggplants, cut into 2cm cubes
2 tbsp salt
2 small red capsicums, deseeded and cut into 2cm pieces
250g brown onions, cut into thin wedges
10 fresh pitted dates, roughly chopped
500ml white wine vinegar
250g brown sugar
A long red chili, sliced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
4 tsp cumin seeds


Place the eggplant in a large colander and sprinkle with the salt. Toss to combine and allow the colander to stand in a sink for an hour. Rinse well to get off any excess salt and pat dry with a paper towel

Combine the eggplant with all of the remaining ingredients in a large saucepan and cook over a high heat, stirring until the mixture comes to the boil and the sugar has dissolved.

Simmer, stirring regularly, with the lid off for 2 hours or until all the excess liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick.  Remove from the heat and allow to stand for 2-3 minutes before spooning into steralized jars.

  

It's a DIY Christmas!

 

There really is something special about fresh fruit in summertime.

Whether its bright red cherries a top a pavlova or the sweet flesh of a mango making faces and hands sticky - everything just looks, smells and tastes more alive!

As I've mentioned previously, I love to give my family homemade food gifts at Christmas time, and in Australia this means fresh summer fruits are in abundance! Heaven!

When scouring the Internet looking for inspiration I happened to come across this recipe from In Sonnet's Kitchen and as a lover of zesty citruses I simply couldn't pass it by.  

I made a couple of adjustments from the original recipes and now, making their Christmas debut, little jars of this delicious Citrus Sea Salt will be taking pride of place in my families' gift hampers, ready to season whatever meats or vegetables they desire in the new year.

 

 Citrus Sea Salt

3 cups Sea Salt 
2 lemons, zested
3 oranges, zested


Preheat oven to 110 degrees C

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix to combine. Spread the mixture evenly over a baking tray and bake for 2 hours to dry it out, stirring halfway through.

Allow the salt to cool completely and then pour into individual jars.   

Voila! The perfect gift done and dusted! 

  

On the 12th Day of Christmas...

Ok, so there are actually 14 days until Christmas, but whose counting?!


In my last post I shared my recipe for Fruit Mince Tarts so, sticking with the Christmas spirit, this time around I'm bringing you a super delicious recipe for seasonal Rocky Road.

What makes it 'seasonal' you ask? Well swap your traditional crushed biscuits for gingerbread, trade those dried fruits for glace cherries and add a smack of brazil nuts and you have yourself a delicious slab of chocolate-coated Christmas spirit!


This recipe is actually based on this one from the ever-fabulous Nigella Lawson, with a few small changes. I don't think she will mind though... look at that smile!

Christmas Rocky Road 

Makes about 16 pieces (depending on how greedy your slices are cut!) 



250g dark chocolate
250g milk chocolate
175g butter
1/2 cup golden syrup
150g Brazil nuts, roughly chopped
150g red glace cherries
125g mini marshmallows
200g crushed gingerbread


For The Gingerbread  

65g butter
1/4 cup golden syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp ground ginger 
2 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp bicarb soda
1 1/4 cups self-raising flour




*Note: this gingerbread is quite spicy because you still want the full flavour effect when its broken into small chunks and mixed with the other slice ingredients but you can adjust it as you see fit. It also makes more than is required for this recipe but that just means you have a delicious snack to munch on while the slice is setting!*

To Make the Gingerbread:

Place the butter, golden syrup and brown sugar in a saucepan and melt over a low/medium heat, constantly stirring, until totally melted and combined. Set the mix aside for 30min to cool.

 

Place the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir to combine them. Stir the egg yolk into the butter mixture and then add it all to the dry mix.

Stir everything together until it forms a soft dough and use your hands to roll it into balls (about three-times the size of a golf ball) and flatten onto a baking tray lined with non-stick paper, leaving a 3cm gap between each disk. 

Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 12 minutes then remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking tray for 5 minutes. Move to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. 

For the Rocky Road:

Line the base and sides of a 20cm square cake tin with baking paper.

Place the chocolates, butter and golden syrup in a heatproof mixing bowl and microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring each time, until the mixture in totally melted and combine.


Roughly crumble the gingerbread into small chunks and add to the chocolate mixture along with the nuts, cherries and marshmallows. Stir to combine and spoon the mix into the prepared cake tin. 

Refrigerate for at least an hour or until set and firm.

Remove the slice from the tin and slice into small squares.

If you wish, decorate with a sprinkle of icing sugar and serve to your adoring friends and family, or wrap in cellophane bags to make the perfect gift! 


  

  XXOO

   

'Tis the Season!

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!”

― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

 

Believe it or not, it's that time of year again! Working in a cafe, I have witnessed first hand the way in which shops are suddenly become full of decorations, carols and an inexplicable increase in the level of crazy-eyes, distressed looking shoppers clamouring for the perfect gift.

I can do without the stress.

That's why every year I love to make homemade food gifts for my family. No, not the stingy kind! More like the "I-actually-thought-you-might-enjoy-this-rather-than-some-useless-thing-you-don't-actually-need" kind. 

Once I have my ingredients I can get home, crank up the music and dance my way around the kitchen knowing I am giving my loved ones something they will love and which can't be bought in any store!

 For my family I usually put together a whole assortment of jams, chutneys, sauces, spice rubs etc. but for my friends, who have more of a sweet tooth (and less diabetes!),  I usually put together plates full of biscuits, truffles, puddings  and all other forms of sugary Christmas goodness!

Hey, it only comes once a year right?

Amongst that  collection of goodies I love to throw in a batch of fresh fruit mince pies. I have one particular English friend who I make these for every year and her hubby loves them! Glowing reviews from an Englishman? Doesn't get much better than that!

These tarts not only make the perfect gift but can also be whipped up in on time for the yearly Christmas party or simply to wolf down with a cup of tea, whatever you fancy!

Give them a go yourself and sound of in the comments below with your thoughts!

Fruit Mince Pies

Makes about 10


For the Pastry: 

1 1/4 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp custard powder
2 tbsp icing sugar
80g butter, cubed
1 egg, separated
2 tbsp chilled water



For the Fruit Mince Filling:

**Note: I quite like this recipe which comes from Gourmet Traveller but if you don't have the time to make a proper filling you can simply use a 410g jar of store-bought fruit mince (I promise I won't tell!)

280g brown sugar
200g raisins
2 Granny Smith apples, coarsely grated
100g butter, melted
100ml muscat
100g each of currants and dried sour cherries
100g each of glace figs and fresh dates, finely chopped
70g candied orange peel, finely chopped
40g cedro (or candied lemon rind), finely chopped
Finely grated rind and juice of 1 orange
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp each of grated nutmeg, ground cloves and ground ginger



If you are making your own fruit mince: combine all ingredients in a sterilised contained and refrigerate for between 24hrs to 8 weeks (the longer you leave it to sit the stronger the flavours will be).


To make the pastry by placing the flour, baking powder, custard powder and icing sugar in a food processor and blend to combine. Add the cubed butter and process again until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.

Add the egg yolk (save the white for later!) and the chilled water and process until the mixture starts to come together as a dough. Remove from the processor and knead the mixture on a floured bench until you have a smooth dough.

Flatten the dough into a disk shape, wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes or until chilled. When it is ready, unwrap the dough and place it in between two sheets of baking paper then roll it out to about 4mm thick.


Use a circular cutter to cut 10cm circles from the dough and line 10 individual tart tins with the pastry (or cut the pastry to fit whatever sized tart cases you have on hand). Re-roll your leftover dough and cut out stars (or whatever shape you want to sit atop your tarts).

Fill your pastry cases about 3/4 of the way with fruit mince and then place your star cutout on top. Lightly brush with your leftover egg white and bake at 160 degrees Celsius for 20min or until the pastry is lightly golden.

Remove the tarts from the oven and allow to cool in their tart tins for 10 minutes then remove from their cases and cool completely on a wire rack.

   

Simply dust your tarts with a little icing sugar and voila  - Christmas has arrived!