Apple puff dumplings in cinnamon syrup

Apple trees all over the country are bursting with fruit at the moment. As I type this, I can see the neighbour's tree across the road, it's limbs sagging under the weight of juicy ripe apples.

Monday while I was on a walk after dinner, I passed a tree next to the old tennis courts. There were apples hanging off it, and the smell was delicious. I was amazed I'd never noticed it before. The tree was growing right through the tennis court fence, where probably, a discarded core had been tossed.

Apple trees dot the sides of the road about the place. I can imagine these too have grown from an apple tossed out the window of passing cars. There are free apples to be picked everywhere if you keep your eyes open.

On they way to Mount Gambier, on the grounds where the old forestry headquarters used to be, the houses are long gone, but the fruit trees remain. Apples, peaches, walnut and lemon trees still bear fruit, and unless you knew they were there, driving past, you'd have no idea. Just a tip, if you're not sure whether an apple is ripe or not, cut it in half, the seeds should be dark.

An older couple from our cul-de-sac brought over a box of apples in the last week from their trees. It was so nice of them. We've lived here for over 10 years, and it's the first time we've really interacted besides a smile and the odd wave.


Morning tea a few days later were a couple of these apple dumplings. Crunchy on the top and soggy on the bottom. Perfect for the cooler weather we are having. The afternoons and mornings have been a bit nippy. I do hope there are a few more warmer days coming though. I was so not ready to say goodbye to Summer. Not yet.

Apple puff dumplings

Dough: 
1 cup self raising flour
10 grams butter
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk

3 apples, peeled, cored and quartered
1 tablespoon white sugar

Syrup:
2 cups boiling water
1 cup brown sugar
60 grams butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
White sugar

For the dough, rub butter into flour, until there are no more lumps of butter.
Mix egg and milk. Add to flour and combine to a soft dough.
Roll out into a rectangle on a floured surface, and cut into 12 long strips.

Wrap a strip of dough around each apple quarter and place in the fridge.

For the syrup, melt butter and cinnamon in a saucepan. Add sugar, vanilla essence and boiled water. Stir until sugar is melted. 

Pour the syrup in a casserole dish big enough to hold the 12 apple dumplings.

Drop the wrapped apple quarters into the syrup and sprinkle over with white sugar. Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve the dumplings with cream or icecream.

Mud cake muffins

These should be called McFatty Fat cakes. Or Mudguts Muffintops. They are so good, and I ate too many *hangs head in shame*. My name is Alicia, and I am a chocoholic. As I've aged my preference has shifted to dark chocolate, probably why I love these so much.

Mud cake muffins sounds much better. 

If you're a recovering chocoholic, I suggest you call your support person. You're going to need them. With almost a whole block of wonderful dark chocolate, these muffins are irresistable.

Mud cake muffins

175 grams butter
175 grams dark chocolate, broken up 
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup plain flour, sifted with the cocoa
2 Tablespoons cocoa
1/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Melt butter and chocolate in the microwave on 50% for 30 second increments, or in a saucepan on a medium heat.

Place chocolate mixture in a large mixing bowl. 

Add sugar and stir to dissolve the sugar to get out any lumps.

Add eggs and vanilla and beat well.

Stir in flour and cocoa, then the milk.

Place cases into a 12 hole muffin tin. Fill* cases with cake mixture and bake for 25 minutes.

I've frosted with chocolate buttercream icing and sprinkles.

*This recipe uses plain flour so the cakes will not rise in the paper cases.

Try some green icing and christmas themed sprinkles to bring these into the christmas season. (I know I may just get Batman slapped for even mentioning the C word in November)

It will be here all too soon and I am in no way prepared. What I do know, after hosting the family last year, and travelling the year before, I just want to relax and let the holidays just float by, as much as possible. No stress. NO commitments. We'll see how that pans out!

Linking with Ann for Things I know.

Chocolate creams

Chocolate Creams

125 grams butter
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 cups SR Flour
1/4 cup custard powder
2 tablespoons cocoa 

Icing
75 grams butter
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon milk


Preheat oven to 180C.
Beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy.
Add the milk and beat to combine.
Sift the flour, custard powder, and cocoa. Add to the bowl and mix in to form a soft dough.

Roll about 2 teaspoons worth to make small balls.
Place on baking tray and press with a fork to flatten. Dip the fork in flour first, to stop it sticking to the dough.

Bake for 15 - 20 minutes.

Let the biscuits cool while you make the icing.

To make icing, beat the butter and icing sugar in a small bowl, Beat in the milk.

Spread about half a teaspoon of icing on one biscuit, and join with a biscuit of the same size.

Welcome to Open Slather #100!

I'm just a little bit chuffed that this week sees me hosting my 100th link up. Feel free to add ONE of your social media accounts, like Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to Open Slather, as well as a blog post.  I hope you all find new blogs and accounts to follow and followers for yours. :)

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Lemon butter

Lemon butter or lemon curd, whatever you want to call it, is one of my childhood faves. I could just eat this stuff by the spoonful, straight from the jar.

I love getting free lemons. I love getting free anything, but my favourite is fresh produce that I can make something out of. Something to cook with to make delicious food.

You can substitute the lemon rind and juice, for any other citrus, like oranges or lime.
This recipe will make three small jars. Wash jars and lids in hot soapy water, then place in a 160C oven for 10 minutes, removing just before you place the hot lemon butter in them.

Lemon Butter

3 lemons
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, beaten
175 gr butter

Finely grate the rind from the lemons, making sure not to get too much of the white pith just under the skin.

Juice the lemons, then sieve to get rid of the pulp and pips.

Place the juice, rind and sugar in a medium saucepan, on a low temperature. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.

Add the eggs and butter, continue to stir until the butter has melted.

Turn the heat up to a simmer and stir until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes.
Place hot lemon curd into hot sterilised jars and seal.

Ways to use your lemon butter -

• mix with yogurt, mascarpone cheese, or cream cheese for a tart filling
• on toast
• on pancakes
• a glaze for a cake
• spoonfuls straight from the jar when no one is looking
• thinned down for an easy lemon sauce. Add in herbs, chilli, ginger, garlic etc.

This is how I used some! You will need -

A pack of 2, unfilled sponges

300 mls of cream, whipped with a half a teaspoon of vanilla essence

1 small jar of lemon butter

Cut each sponge in half. Spread the bottom layer with lemon butter, then spread with some whipped cream. Place the other half of sponge on top. Repeat layering the cake like this. 

Place the last, and top section of cake.

Mix about two teaspoons of lemon butter with the remaining cream, just so it is swirled through.

Place a thin layer of the lemon cream on the outside of the entire cake. This will ensure the crumbs are held in place. Spread the rest of the cream evenly over the outside of the cake. 

I made some decorations on the top with lemon butter. Decorate it how ever you would like. You could use strawberries, toasted almond slivers, coconut or grated chocolate for example.

Have you tried lemon butter?
What homemade goodness do you remember loving as a kid?

Lime and poppy seed biscotti

I haven't been around very much lately. 

I've had good days and bad, most bad. After three weeks on the medication,  things weren't improving much. 

I saw my counsellor for the first time on Friday, two weeks too late if you ask me. All she had to do was say "Tell me about yourself", and I lost it, couldn't speak without bawling. Got some stuff off my chest though and she upped my meds. I have felt a big change over the weekend.

It always seems these sorts of things happen when the people we need around, are out of town. Like Murphy's Law. One of those people is my sister. She's living the good life, travelling and seeing the sights in Ireland, with her boyfriend, in a Wicked van. I am loving seeing the photos she posts on Facey, she's having the time of her life, and it is much deserved.

Anyway before she left she said if I wanted limes, her tree had heaps. Saturday I ducked in and picked some. This is what I made using three of them.


Lime and Poppy seed biscotti

120 grams butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon lime zest (close enough is good enough)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups flour
1 Tablespoon poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 180C.

Beat together butter, sugar, salt, baking powder and zest.

Add eggs, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix to combine.

Mix in flour and poppy seeds.

Divide the soft dough into half and make two logs, about 3 cm high and 5cm wide. Transfer to a greased and floured tray.

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 25 minutes. Reduce the oven to 160C.

Cut the logs into 1 cm thick slices. Place on tray and bake for 30 minutes, turning once halfway through.

Let cool. Place in an airtight container. 

If you value your waistline, seal with three layers and duct tape, hide and forget you ever made them. They are so delicious! Or eat a few and make you friends very happy by giving them some.

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Orange, coconut and cardamom biscuits

Occasionally, well often, the biscuit barrel is bare. If it happens before our next big shopping day, we bake.

The last time it happened we made chocolate biscuits, and used up the cocoa. I must buy more.

I looked for what we had, and that was three oranges in the fruit bowl. I could use the zest. I looked for an easy recipe, I always look for the easiest recipe. I found one and decided to add some extras I had in the pantry.

I like these biscuits. I like that Izzy can help by rolling the dough in balls herself, even though at least three or four biscuits worth of dough go missing in her mouth. But isn't that the best bit for kids in the biscuit making process? She would have eaten the lot if I let her.

3/4 cup Self Raising Flour
100 gr butter or marg
1/4 cup caster sugar
zest of an orange
1/4 cup dessicated coconut
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom 

Preheat oven to 180C.

Place all ingredients in a bowl.
Rub together with your fingers and form into a soft dough.
Roll into small balls, you should have about 24.
Place on a greased baking tray and lightly press with a fork.

Bake at 180C for 10 minutes.

Flogging this recipe at With some grace

Papaya Marinated steak w/ papaya salad

This may sound like a papaya overload, but it's not. There's other flavours going on, and if you didn't know the marinade had papaya in it, you wouldn't realise.

Little Summer loved the papaya raw, couldn't get enough. Izzy is my fussy, nose screwer upper and wouldn't have a bar of it. She did eat the marinated steak though.

I actually like eating the raw red papaya as my morning fruit. They are packed with vitamins and minerals. So good for you. 

I use the peels on my face. The flesh is actually really great at getting rid of dead skin and healing, I love how it improves my complexion. 

Papaya contains an enzyme called Papain that breaks down protein. So it works well as a marinade on tougher cuts of meat. I used rump steak in this instance, but I've also used the marinade with pork fillet and it was awesome. 

You'll need half a red papaya, which will cost you from $2.50 to $3. I was surprised it was so cheap, considering it is a tropical fruit. 

This recipe also uses kaffir lime leaves. If you aren't lucky enough to know someone with a tree, you can buy them in the herb section of the supermarket. It freezes really well so I doesn't go to waste. I just pull out the leaves I need, when I need.

Papaya marinade
1 kaffir lime leaf, sliced thinly
1/4 red papaya, mashed with a fork
1/2 teaspoon chinese 5 spice
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon chilli oil
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar

Mix together. Pour and massage into 500 grams(or up to 1 kg) of rump steak.

Leave for 1/2 hour to 1 hour.

Take steak out of marinade and grill as you normally would. Serve with salad.

Papaya and avocado salad
1 spring onion, sliced
1/4 papaya, sliced
1/2 avocado, sliced
1/4 capsicum, sliced
1 kaffir lime leaf, sliced thinly
1 Tablespoon toasted pine nuts 

Place all in a bowl and gently toss together.

Dressing
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
1/8 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp brown sugar

Mix all together and drizzle over salad.

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Sweet potato pizza

I made this yummy pizza when my sister and her partner were coming for dinner, I cut this up for pre dinner nibbles. Well, they were unfashionably late and by the time they did arrive I'd put the lasagna on the table and we tucked into that. They didn't even touch it! I was a bit annoyed because it tasted bloody good!

Anyway I made it again for my lunch a few days later. I really like it.

Wholemeal pizza dough
7g(two teaspoons) dry yeast 
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 cup warm water
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups wholemeal flour
1 teaspoon salt

Place yeast, sugar and water in a small bowl. Lightly mix with a fork and set aside for 10 minutes until frothy.

Put flour in a large bowl, with the salt. Add the yeast mix and olive oil to the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until dough comes together.

Knead for 5 minutes, then put back into the large bowl, cover with a tea towel and sit in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Knock down the dough with your fist and divide into four portions.

Roll out on a floured surface and place on an oiled tray.

Pizza topping
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and sliced into 5mm thick rounds.
Olive Oil
Poppy seeds
Rosemary leaves and Rosemary flowers(if you have them)
Mixed greens - e.g. rocket, beet leaves, spinach
feta or goats cheese(optional)

Oil a baking tray, place sweet potato rounds in one layer. Loosely cover with foil and bake in a 180C oven for 10 minutes.

Brush some olive oil(I used garlic oil) on the pizza base. Lightly sprinkle poppy seeds and about 1 tablespoon of rosemary leaves.

Lay sweet potato rounds on base and then drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for 15 minutes at 230C.

When cooked, cut into slices and scatter mixed greens over and some cheese if using. Garnish with the rosemary flowers.

Sharing this recipe at Little Wolff blog for Little Veggie Kitchen

Roasted capsicum pasta sauce

Something different and veggie healthy to put on your pasta, is this simple sauce. Easy to make, when you get over peeling the skins, with all the flavour and goodness intact. 

Roasted capsicum pasta sauce
6 red capsicums
1/2 cup cream
salt and pepper

Roast the whole capsicums in a 200C oven for 20 minutes, until the skins start to brown and blister.

Let them cool a bit, remove skins, stalk and seeds.

Puree the capsicums, then place in a pan with the cream and cook for about  four minutes. Season with salt and pepper and toss through cooked pasta.

Feel free to add some parmesan to the sauce.

Try browning some cubed chicken in the pan before adding the puree and cream.

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Homemade crackers and simple avocado dip

I make these crackers quite often, usually when there are no other savoury biscuits in the house. They are so moorish.

The ingredients are so simple and if you ever took any notice at the ingredient list on a box of supermarket crackers, most probably a lot more natural and healthy.

Speaking of natural and healthy, a simple avocado dip to serve them with. I have been enjoying this dip with veggies like celery and capsicum for a mid afternoon snack. It is strange for me, because I have never really been much of an avocado fan.

I first saw this cracker recipe at Maria's farm country kitchen. She used wholemeal flour and you could too, if you'd like to.

Homemade crackers
2 cups of plain flour
1 teaspoon of salt
2/3 cup of water
1/3 cup olive oil

Mix all ingredients together to form a dough.

Using olive oil on the bench and rolling pin, roll out dough to about a 2-3mm thickness. Place in two large baking trays, or three medium size trays, greased with olive oil. You might have to stretch them out a bit to the edges. Don't worry if it is uneven in some bits.

Using a knife, or a pizza cutter(this is what I use, it's easier), cut the dough into whatever size crackers you want.

Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and whatever flavours you would like. Sumac, parmesan, dried herbs or just plain.

I've also mixed in flavours into the dough itself, like mixed herbs, Za'atar spice mix or parmesan.

Bake at 190C for 15 minutes.

Avocado dip
1 ripe avocado
1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil
pinch salt
grind of black pepper
1/2 tablespoon chopped chives, more if you want
squeeze of lemon juice

Mash all together with a fork.

You could add more to it, like finely chopped onion and tomato, and corn kernels, for a chunkier dip and more flavour.

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Sunset soup

I've called this sunset soup because of the colours in it's vegetables. Pumpkin, sweet potato, red capsicum and carrot remind me of the hues in a good sunset.

It's very healthy, and makes a perfect veggie meal. I have just started the food combining diet. It is not so much a diet than a lifestyle change for the better. I was feeling toxic, bloated, unbalanced, tired. It was time to make a change. A few days in and I felt better already. It makes me feel better on the inside, which in turn will make me feel and look better on the outside.

I've done it before and don't know why, for the life of me I don't go back to it instead of taking the path of calorie counting, when it leaves me starving and not able to stick to it.

Basically the diet sees that carbs(starches) are not mixed with proteins(meat, cheese). I am having one protein meal, one carb meal and a neutral meal(mostly veggies or salad) a day. 

I had this for lunch as my neutral meal.

Sunset Soup

3 cups cubed pumpkin
1 chopped red capsicum
1 chopped red onion
1 sliced carrot
1 cup cubed sweet potato
5 cups water or stock
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
handful of parsley

Place all but the garlic and parsley in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer rapidly for 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft.

Add garlic and parsley and process until smooth.

Garnished with cream, sunflower seeds and pepitas(pumpkin seeds)

Lunch yesterday, with cream, pea shoots and chilli oil

How's the weather where you are? It's getting mighty cold down South. Perfect for hot soup :)

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Apple and roasted quince cake

I found this recipe on Kidspot. I've changed it to suit what I have in my fridge and pantry like I usually do. The original had buttermilk and butter, which I am not in the habit of buying. But you could use if you do have them.

What I had was quinces given to me. This is a great way to use up fruit that is ripe and in need of being used.

Due to my oven being a total cow, well the oven door which won't close properly to be exact, I cooked the cake for a bit longer than the 40 minutes. When I gently push the middle of the cake and it springs back up, I know it is done.

125 grams margarine
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup apple puree
1/2 cup roasted quince puree*
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
250 gr plain flour
1 tsp bicarb soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup of milk

Cream butter and sugar.
Beat in eggs, puree and vanilla.
Sift flour, salt, cinnamon and bicarb of soda. Fold through flour and milk alternatively.
Bake at 180C for 40 minutes.

*Peel, core and quarter quince, cut quarters in half. Place in a pan, sprinkled with sugar and dotted with margarine. Squeeze over the juice of 1 orange. Cover with foil and bake for 2 hours at 150C.

Alternatively you could use 1 cup of any pureed fruit you want. I have used pear and a mix of apple and passionfruit.

It is a lovely cake which is so beautiful with just a dollop of cream.

Pumpkin and herb damper

Pumpkins are ripening in gardens now, if not, gardeners have picked them, and are cutting them up for use.

This handy, quick and rustic damper recipe is good for mopping up casserole juices, for dipping in soups, or just because with a spread of butter or cream cheese.

If you don't have pumpkin ready, mashed potato works just as well.

Pumpkin Damper
1 cup mashed pumpkin
3 cups self-raising flour
3 teaspoons margarine
2 tablespoons dried herbs
1/4 teaspoon salt
pepper
1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 220C.

In a bowl, add flour, salt, pepper and herbs. 
(optional extras here could be 1 teaspoon of cumin for a pumpkin damper, or 1 tspn paprika for a potato damper)

Rub margarine into flour.

Mix the pumpkin with the milk, then add to the flour until a soft dough forms.

Place the dough onto a greased tray and press into a 25 cm round. Cut the round into 8 segments, 2cm deep.
(you could sprinkle the top here with pepita seeds or sesame seeds if you like)

Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180C for 20-30 minutes.

Passionfruit self saucing pudding

Don't think I am complaining, I secretly love it when someone comes round and plonks a bag full of fresh homegrown food on my kitchen bench. It means I get to cook something new.

A week ago my sister brought over a heap of passionfruit. My first thought was what the heck am I going to do with all those. The look on my face must have read the same, she said "You don't have to have them." I had my poker face on when my sister in law sat a bag of quinces on the bench yesterday!

It's happening more and more frequently. An uncle I have hardly anything to do with left a bag of spuds, a box of apples and a bag of peaches at my brothers place for me. Do I scream give me all your unwanted food stuffs?!

Turns out Summer is a real fan of passionfruit, could eat them all day. I'd probably let her but the resulting mess in her nappies isn't pretty! I am slowly convincing myself to start toilet training her, maybe after the school holidays. I may have psyched myself up by then. It has to happen sometime soon. Oh, the joy.....

I did drop off some passionfruit iced vanilla slice and some passionfruit pudding off at my sisters to say thanks for the fruit. I also made some passionfruit custards, baked in teacups, so good! Me and hubby ate those. They weren't going anywhere!

This is the recipe I made up for the pudding :) It's delicious :D

Passionfruit self saucing pudding

2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons Self Raising flour
pinch salt
1 cup low fat milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup dessicated coconut
1/4 cup passionfruit pulp(with seeds)
1 tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 180 C.

Separate eggs.
Beat egg yolks with the half cup of sugar.
Beat in milk, flour, lemon juice, salt and passionfruit.
Beat egg white until frothy, add the tablespoon of sugar and beat until soft peaks form.
Fold the egg white mixture into passionfruit mix.
Pour into a greased dish. Stand dish in a pan of cold water, so water goes half way up the sides of the dish.
Bake for 40-50 minutes.

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