Coconut Loaf with Passionfruit Sauce

Modified from NMAA Cooks
Images by Yasmin

This is a beautiful, citrus delight! Coconut and Passionfruit mix divinely together! However, the passionfruit sauce is optional. Enjoy! This recipe is very simple and quick to prepare (it takes a while to cook). I have had so many morning and afternoon teas with friends this week and have made about four of these loaves! It is sooo simple and easy; with only four ingredients this loaf is a winner!!! I am posting this recipe for Britany who enjoys cooking as much as I do! Thanks for the wonderful memories!

Ingredients:

For Loaf:

• 1 cup coconut
• 1 cup Self-raising flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup milk

For Sauce:

• 170g passionfruit pulp fresh or from a can
• 50g water
• 60g sugar

Method:
Heat oven to 190'C fan forced. Mix all ingredients together and cool in well greased loaf tin for 40-45 minutes (don't over cook, it will go dry).

For sauce, place ingredients in a small saucepan and cook for 7 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before serving.

Coffee-soaked Gateau

Recipe from Cakes, Pastries and Breads
Images by Yasmin

This cake was served as a 53rd birthday cake for my father. He is a very happy man who loves his coffee. This cake matches his personality perfectly; strong (flavoured), handsome (appearance), hearty (dessert), and an all round (shape pun intended!) lovely man (cake). This cake I am told tastes like Tiramisu, but I wouldn't know because I have never tasted one. But I can tell you that this cake tastes delicious and has a strong coffee/liquor flavour! This post is dedicated to all those hard working fathers who need to be thanked and given a treat to commemorate their birth, which is definately something to celebrate. I love you dad! Happy Birthday!



Ingredients:

For Cake:

• 185g butter
• 3/4 cup caster sugar
• 3 x 60g eggs, lighty beaten
• 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour

For Syrup:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups water
• 3 tblsp strong black coffee
• 3 tblsp rum

To decorate:

• 1 1/2 cups cream, lightly whipped
• cocoa, to dust

Method:

Well grease a 20cm cake tine and line the base with greased greaseproof paper. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs, adding a tablespoon of the flour with the last amount. Sift in the flour, then fold in carefully. Turn the mixture into the prepared tin and level off. Bake in a moderately hot oven for 45-50 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and springs back when lightly pressed. Allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes.

While the cake is cooking dissolve the sugar in the water and coffee in a pan over a low heat and add the rum.

Turn the cake out of the tin on to a serving plate. Pierce it all over with a skewer, then pour over some of the warm coffee syrup. Leave this to soak in, then pour over some more and continue to do this until the cake has absorbed all the syrup. Leave the cake to stand for at least 6 hours.

Spread the whipped cream all over the top and sides of the cake and decorate the top with a dusting of cocoa. Serve with coffee.

Pasties

Recipe and Images from Yasmin

This is a very simple dinner to prepare when live is hectic and there are many busy and late nights. This is a meal perfect for when you don't feel like making something that takes a while to develop a great flavour, is filling and healthy. If there are any left over puff pastry sheets to fill with the meat filling, simple sweet pasties can be prepared as well. The list of fillings possible for this pastry design is endless, so have a go at mixing your favourite sweet and savoury flavours to produce something simply delicious. If serving this meal as a dinner, be sure to serve with a beautiful garden salad. I apologise in advance for this inartistic photo of the meal, we were in a hurry to eat and I couldn't prepare a decent setting for the meal. It is eaten so quickly it is hard to capture it on camera!!!

(cooked savoury pastie)

Ingredients:

For Savoury:

• 1-2 carrot
• 1-2 zucchini
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 potato
• 1 cup green beans
• 1 cup corn kernells
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 300-500g minced beef 

For Sweet:

•  2 -3 dessert spoons of jam
• 1 apple, thinly sliced and cored
• 1 cup dried fruit (of choice)
• 1/2 cup coconut 

 (Uncooked Sweet Pastie)

Method:

Take frozen puff pastry sheets out of freezer and separate, allowing to defrost on the bench.

While pastry is defrosting, prepare savoury filling. Into a large bowl, grate carrot, zucchini, sweet potato, potato, beans and corn. Add partially defrosted minced meat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Using bare hands, thoroughly combine the savoury filling. 

Using a sharp knife, divide the mostly defrosted pastry diagonally, to create two triangles. Place a small handful of the uncooked mixture in one end of a triangle piece of pastry. Mold this to fit into the triangle shape, leaving about 1-2cm room around the edges to allow room to fold the pastry. Grab the other corner of the triangle and drag it over the filling to match the triangle shape, this is symmetrical. Press down on the folded pastry to seal the triangle shape pastie. Fold over the edges of the triangle and press again to secure (this should make sure that the pastie won't open and the contents spill). Lastly, twist the ends of the triangle, as it is just excess pastry.

Continue until all filling is used. As each pastie is made, place it on an oven tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Cook for 20-30 minutes on 180'C fan-forced.

If there is leftover pastry either cut it into triangles, as done for the savoury pasties, or leave it as a square to then fold into a rectangle (as shown in picture). Prepare a sweet filling. Smooth jam over pastry. Cover with coconut, thinly sliced apple, currants, sultanas, dried apricots and/or dates. Fold symetrically, using the same method as before, whether it is a triangle or rectangle, except, for the rectangle, cut a few slits in the sides (as shown in the photo).

Cook for 20-30 minutes at 180'C fan-forced.

Lemon Meringue Pie

Recipe and images by Yasmin

This is a family recipe that has been well shared among friends as well. It is truly delicious dessert for any gathering that I guarantee will stir a good conversation. This recipe requires minimal fuss and ingredients but still produces fantastic results. It really does.. Tickle Your Taste buds! For even more flavour in this dessert add one can of passion fruit pulp and syrup or two passion fruit. This gives an excellent kick to the citrus flavours.
NOTE: For future cooking reference, this pastry can be used for any pastry desserts - just remove the lemon zest. It produces a very steady dough for molding on the dish and extra decorations on the top of pies.

Ingredients:
Pastry:

·         100g chilled butter

·         1 1/2 cups plain flour

·         1/2 lemon of grated zest

·         50g icing sugar

·         1 egg, lightly beaten

·         2 tblsp chilled water

Filling:

·         tin of sweetened condensed milk

·         2 - 3 egg yolks

·         juice of to lemons

Meringue:

·         3 egg whites, at room temperature

·         1/2 cup Castor sugar

Method:
Using a food processor, pulse butter and flour until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add lemon zest and icing sugar, pulse for 1 minute. Combine the egg and water in a separate container. With motor running, slowly pour water mixture into the food processor. The mixture should stick together making dough. Remove. Roll into a ball in glad wrap. Chill for 30 minutes. Preheat oven 220'C. Prepare an oven proof dish. On a flowered board, roll out pastry to fit the cooking dish. Blind-bake for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and reduce temperature 180'C. For filling, combine ingredients into a bowl. Then pour into the partially cooked pastry base. Cook for approximately 15 minutes. For meringue, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly add Castor sugar while beating, until stiff and glossy.

Spoon meringue over the top of the cooked filling. Bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the meringue is lightly browned. Serve warm or cold with whipped cream and ice cream.

Mish's Muffin Recipe

Recipe from Mish
Photos by Yasmin

This is a different way to make delicious blueberry muffins. Very moist and truely yummy for lunches or snacks. Bonus, it is healthy too!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups self raising flour
• 1 cup castor sugar
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
•  1 tsp vanilla
• 2 x 75g packets of frozen blueberries

Method:
Combine all dry ingredients and berries. Combine oil, milk, eggs and vanilla in a separate bowl and mix well. Pour oil mixture into the dry mixture and stir 12-15 times. Do not over mix. Muffin mixture should still have some dry flour.

Bake in oven at 170'C fan forced for 30-35 minutes. Makes 1 1/2 dozen.

Microwave Caramel Self Sauce Pudding

Recipe from Super Food Ideas
Photo by Yasmin

I'm sorry that I have not been able to post any of the recipes I have listed in the 'Soon to come' column. I have had this recipe and photos ready to post since Mother's Day; however, have not had the time to post it. My mother enjoyed her first of two desserts I prepared for her, the second, Lemon Meringue Pie, will be posted shortly. I have just been sooo busy with one million and one things to do, I'm sure you all know the feeling. If you are in that stressed and hectic situation, I recommend that you be naughty and eat some of this delicious comfort food. This self-sauce pudding takes less that 17 minutes to prepare and cook, and it is absolutely fabulous! It can be made with or without the nuts, I prefer without. This pudding is perfect for a truely naughty afternoon tea or dessert, especially in the now cooler months when you need that bit of warmth. I'm telling you now, this hits the spot. I also appologise for the unprofessional photograph of this pudding, I was craving food and comfort, so I just took one quick photo, which wasn't very neat.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup self raising flour
• 1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
• 60g butter, melted
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup chopped pecan nuts (optional)
• 1 cup boiling water
• icing sugar and ice cream, to serve

Varitations: Replace pecans with chopped hazelnuts, almonds or macadamia nuts.

Method:
Grease a 6cm deep, 6 cup capacity, heatproof, microwave safe dish. Combine flour and 1/2 cup sugar in bowl. Make a well in the centre. Add butter, milk and egg. Whisk to combine. Stir in pecans. Spoon mixture into prepared dish. Smooth top. Combine boiling water and remaining sugar in a heatproof jug. Stir until sugar has dissolved. Pour mixture over the back of a large metal spoon to evenly cover pudding batter.

Place dish on a microwave safe rack or upturned dinner plate. Cook, uncovered, on Medium (50%), for 9-10 minutes or until the pudding comes out clean. Carefully remove from microwave. Stand for 1 minute. Dust with icing sugar. Serve with ice cream.

Apple and Cinnamon Cake

Recipe from Cake Bible
Photos by Yasmin

This is a very simple tea cake. It doesn't have much flavour but is very moist and perfect for tea, coffee or a snack. If you have a sweet tooth and aren't a fan of simple flavours then serve this cake with a jam of your choice. You can eat it like a scone with the jam by cutting the cake in two or you can serve it on the side of the cake (as shown in the photo) and eat it with the cake, like with a dessert. This recipe isn't in any way a festive Easter cake, however it is delicious to eat on Easter Monday in the peace and quiet of your home.

Ingredients:
Cake:

• 1 cup self raising flour
• 2 tblsp castor sugar
• 3 tblsp softened butter
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/3 cup milk

Topping:

• 200g green apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (or more if desired)
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1 1/2 tblsp butter, melted

Method:
Preheat oven to 180'C. Prepare cake tin. Sift flour and sugar into a mixing bowl. Add butter and cut into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Stir in the egg and milk. Beat to a smooth batter. Pour into the prepared bake tin.

Combine the apple, cinnamon and cornflour in a bowl - to coat the apple slices in flavour. Arrange on top of the cake batter. Drizzle butter over the top. Bake for 45 minutes or until cooked through. Cool in the tin on a rack. Remove from the tin when cooled and serve.