Rudolf Tartlets

Last night was Noche de las Velitas so I celebrated with my Colombian family. These certainly aren't typical for this night but last night was all about the young and young at heart so...

Rudolf Tartlets

Serves: 32

Prep Time: 45mins (to be honest I'm not sure) Cook Time: 5mins plus refrigeration time

*The original recipe for these called for a type of biscuit that I can't find here that you pop in the oven to heat through and then press into a muffin tin to make the right shape. I tried this using the only biscuit I thought might be  reasonable substitute but in the end I decided they were too big (see below) so instead I used small tartlet cases.

32 small tartlet cases

300g chocolate

3/4 cup cream

100g fondant

32 red tic tacs (or other suitable nose)

64 green or blue 100's and 1000's

64 pretzels

1. Place tartlet cases onto a baking tray.

2. Pour cream into a saucepan and heat over low heat until just boiling, add in the chocolate and stir until smooth

3. Spoon 1tbsp measures of chocolate into each case.

4. Roll small balls of fondant and insert a tic tac inside each one to make the noses, place on top of the chocolate

I'm a fan of prep that can be done whilst sitting on the couch!

5. Roll smaller balls of fondant (as evenly sized as possible) and press a 100 & 1000 into each one and place on top of the chocolate for the eyes.

My original idea was to just draw a little black dot on as an eye,
but Rory had this suggestion and I felt like I had to try it.
Warning it takes some time!

6. Place the tray into the fridge to allow the chocolate to set slightly

7. Cut pretzels (there was a lot of breakage in this part of the process) to form antler shapes and then press into the top of the chocolate to form antlers.

8. Return Rudolf to the fridge until completely set

You could use a lot of other things to make the features of your reindeer, I chose these because I had them in my house and I was able to form the fondant to be a suitable size for the nose and eyes, but the options are endless.

These were great fun and by far the cutest dessert I have ever made. They were well received last night (or so I assume based on the empty tray I was able to bring home).

Mustard Pork with Roasted Pears

For the love of pork and pear... When I first found this recipe I was really excited, two of my favourite foods meshed together in one delicious bundle that takes about 30mins to make, it doesn't get any better than this.

Roasted Pear Salad

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 5mins Cook Time: 25mins

4 Beurre Bosc Pears cut into 2cm thick wedges

2 Red onions cut into wedges

Olive Oil Spray

2tbsp Balsamic Vinegar

100g Baby Spinach 

1 avocado thinly sliced

1. Preheat oven to 200C. Line a baking tray with non-stick paper.

2. Place the cut pears and onion onto one of the trays, spray with oil and drizzle with half of the vinegar.

3. Bake for 25mins or until the pears are golden and tender

4.Place the pear, onion, spinach, avocado and remaining vinegar in a bowl and toss to combine.

Mustard and Rosemary Pork

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 5mins Cook Time: 10-11mins

4 Pork Loin steaks

2 tbsp Wholegrain Mustard

2 tsp fresh chopped Rosemary

1 tsp Lime rind

1 tbsp Olive Oil

1. While the pears and onion are baking, combine the mustard, rosemary and lime rind in a bowl. 

2. Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over high heat. Cook the pork for 2mins on each side.

3. Remove Pork from heat and spread the mustard mixture on one side of the steak.

4. Transfer steaks onto a second baking tray and bake for 6-7mins until cooked through. 

This far exceeded my expectations. I love a meal that can be made in under 30mins!

One Year On...

So I actually missed the 1 year anniversary of my bucket list. I had intended to write this post then, but at the time I was preoccupied with making Stegabell - a Birthday cake for a friends "21st"! 

I'm not going to write a separate post about her, she follows the same recipe as my Turkey Cake, but if anyone is interested to find out about the making of Stegabell, give me a shout and I'll see what I can do to explain it a bit better, though don't expect an explanation of why anyone would ask for a Stegosaurus/Tinker bell cake, I don't know if I can do justice to how we came upon this idea...

Anyway, we're a year on from where this all began so I thought it was time for a bit of an update...

Meals

• Roast Turkey -I'm not sure if I really get to tick this off, but I honestly believe that it should count.
• Yorkshire Pudding -I was very pleased with the results here...
• Baked Beans - A whole lot easier than I expected them to be!
• Steamed Pork Buns - These didn't quite have the look I was after (I suspect it had something to do with the flour I used) but the taste was perfect
• Egg Rolls 
• Massaman Beef - LOVE!
• Eggs Benedict - This was a whole lot simpler than I expected
• Thai Green Curry - Happiness from a blender, how much easier could it be!
• Vegetarian Lasagne - This passed Rory's expectations for lasagne so I call it a win!
• Mexican Lasagne - Not much to look at but the taste was good!
• Spinach and Ricotta Pastries - Deliciously simple
• Tandoori Salmon - A commonly revisited recipe in our house!

Breads

• Sourdough 
• Braided Fruit Loaf  - Favourite bread ever...
• Spinach and Ricotta Pull Apart Loaf - Or maybe this was the favourite...
• Tattie Scones - No breakfast would be complete without them
• English Muffins 
• Crumpets 
• Peshwari Naan 

Desserts

• Irish Car Bomb Cup Cakes - The recipe that started it all, these are still remembered by those who ate them!
• Lemon Meringue Pie - I've made this a few times now, I've even branched out into muffin size ones, a never-fail YUM!
• Rich Chocolate Truffle Pie - Happiness is this
• Chocolate Meringue Pie 
• White Chocolate, Cherry and Almond Brownies - Not as white as it should have been thanks to the cherries but still yum!
• Rhubarb Pie 
• Swiss Rolls For all my fears of this, I have to say it wasn't so bad after all
• Key Lime Pie - Again I blame the LMP...

Fun Stuff

• White Chocolate Peppermint Bark - Nothing says Christmas quite like it
• Rudolf Tartlets 
• Cream Cheese Penguins 

EXTRAS!

Over the year I found a few other things that seemed list worthy so I added those on, here they are

• Beef and Guinness Pie - Yum
• Honeycomb Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake - As someone who doesn't love cheesecake, this was still really good!
• Orange and Poppyseed muffins - Best muffins I've ever made
• Sushi - Another thing that's become semi-regular in our house!

What next...

I still have a few things that need my attention, but here's a new list with a whole lot more added on (you can see I have left on the stuff I still haven't made from last year). I also own a slow cooker now, so I think as I experiment with that I will be sharing a bit more...

Meals

• Egg Rolls - I think I may have just forgotten about these... I will get there I promise!
• Asian Style Beef Pot Roast
• Honey Lime Tilapia
• Chilli Jam Chicken
• Honey Chicken
• Chicken and Asparagus Risotto
• Mustard Pork with Roasted Pears
• Proscuitto and Eggplant Bake
• Potato and Spinach Frittata
• Balsamic Roast Vegetables
• Broccoli Bake
• Veggie Burger

Breads

• Sourdough - I haven't braved this yet, give me time I'll get there I promise!
• English Muffins - I cheated and bought these when I made eggs benedict, I will make them though
• Crumpets - I've avoided this as I just don't know that they'll live up to my childhood memories of crumpets
• Peshwari Naan - Without a tandoor oven this will never work out as well as I would hope for but it stays on the list
• Focaccia
• Zucchini Bread
• Easter Bread
• Pumpkin Bread
• Herb and Garlic Pull-apart

Desserts

• Chocolate Meringue Pie - I haven't got to this, I got distracted by mini LMP's... It's coming though
• Rhubarb Pie - I'm still on the hunt for rhubarb (I've seen it a few times but never when I've had time to make a pie)
• Key Lime Pie - Again I blame the LMP...
• Pear Tarte Tatin

Fun Stuff

• Rudolf Tartlets - I was away at Christmas time, I will have to try again this year
• Cream Cheese Penguins - Anyone having an Antarctica Party soon?
• Piñata Cookies

What else is there that I've forgotten? Ideas/suggestions are more than welcome!

Sushi

I love sushi and getting hold of sushi here is easy, but it's holidays so I don't need easy. I needed a challenge, so here from my very own kitchen a variety of sushi rolls...

Sushi Rice
Makes: 6-9 Rolls
Prep Time: 2 mins Cook Time: 10 mins
3 cups sushi rice
3 & 1/2 cups water

Sushi Seasoning
½ cup of rice vinegar
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 teaspoons of salt

1. Wash the rice in running water for 1-2 minutes until the water runs clear. After you are done washing, take the rice and place it in a pot, add the water.
2. Cook on high heat at first, stir every minute or two, until the water boils. Then, lower the heat to low and cover the pot. Stop stirring.
3. While the rice is coking prepare the sushi seasoning by placing all ingredients in a small pot on medium heat and stir until the salt and sugar have dissolved.
4. After 6-8 min, check the water level - If there is no more water the rice is ready. If not, check back every minute, making sure not to burn the rice at the bottom.
5. Use a wooden spoon to remove the rice from the pot. Do not scrape the rice out of the bottom of the pot (the rice at the bottom will be dry and won't taste as good). Place the rice into a plastic or wooden bowl to chill. Pour the sushi seasoning over the top and stir through.

The sushi you make is up to you. I did both inside out and regular rolls and created a range of fillings based on what Rory and I like.

Spicy Tuna
Tuna steak
3tsp Sriracha sauce
1/2 tsp Sesame oil
1 sheet of Nori
1/2 cup sushi rice

1. Combine the Sriracha sauce and sesame oil in a bowl.
2. Place the nori shiny side down on the bamboo mat, cover with rice - slightly dampening your hands (1/4 cup water with 2 tsp rice vinegar) will make spreading the rice much easier as it won't stick to your fingers.

3. Lay the cubed strip of tuna across the rice and top with the sauce.

4. From the bottom end, start rolling the nori sheet over the filling tightly and firmly with the bamboo mat until the bottom end reaches the nori sheet. Squeeze tightly. 


5. Gently and carefully unfold the mat, leaving the roll tightly tucked. Reposition your hands on the mat to roll the sushi over further. At this point he bamboo mat will have overhang, be sure to keep this folded up so that it doesn't get trapped inside the roll.

6. Slice the roll into individual pieces.

*I had looked at a few recipes which suggested only using half the nori sheet per roll, but I found this made a very small roll. With the section I cut off I tried again and was able to create a spiral finish which looked much better than the squished up original.

Philadelphia Roll

Salmon Fillet

Cream cheese

Seasame seeds

1 sheet of Nori
1/2 cup sushi rice

This roll was an inside out version. 

1. Lay the nori sheet down and cover with rice. Sprinkle roasted sesame seeds over the rice and then flip the nori sheet over so the rice is in contact with the bamboo mat.(Cover the bamboo mat with cling film for this one so you don't spend hours cleaning squished rice out of the gaps in the mat) 

2. Lay the salmon onto the nori and then spread cream cheese along one side.

3. Roll, cut and enjoy

On my trip to collect supplies for the sushi I found tempura batter mix so as an experiment we fried half of the philadelphia rolls in tempura batter. 

1. Dip prepared roll in tempura batter flour and then dredge through the batter mix. 

2. Shallow fry in oil (170 degrees).

Tropical Roll

Tempura Salmon

Mango slices

Avocado slices

Cucumber slices

Japanese mayonnaise

Toasted coconut

Sushi rice 

Nori

1. Pepare nori and rice as per philadelphia, sprinkling instead with roasted coconut. 

2. Flip the nori sheet over and lay all ingredients down onto the seaweed.

3. Roll, cut and enjoy!

Spicy Salmon

Salmon Fillet
Salmon Roe

Sriracha sauce (as per spicy tuna)

Wasabi

1. Prepare the nori as per the spicy tuna recipe.
2. Lay down the salmon fillet, add the salmon roe, sriracha sauce and spread on some wasabi.

3. Roll, cut and enjoy!

This sushi was amazing (even if I do say so myself). I may never order sushi out again!

Orange and Poppy Seed Muffins

This wasn't on the original bucket list (Yes I know I know there's been lots of these lately! I really need to update the list) but I found poppy seeds in the supermarket the other day and so I thought there was no time like the present. 

Orange and Poppy Seed Muffins with Cream Cheese Icing

Serves: 12

Prep Time: 10mins 
Cook Time: 25mins

1 tbsp poppy seeds

3/4 cup milk

2&1/2 cups Self Raising flour

3/4 cup caster sugar

125g butter (melted)

2 eggs, lightly whisked

2 tsp orange rind

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1. Preheat oven to 190C. Line a 12 cup muffin tray with paper liners. 

2. Place the poppy seeds and 1/4 cup of the milk in a small bowl. Set aside for 10 mins.

3. Combine the flour and sugar in a large bowl. Add the poppy seed mixture along with the remaining milk, butter, eggs, orange rind and juice. Stir until ingredients are just combined.

4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin trays. Bake in the oven for 25 mins. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool.

Cream Cheese Icing

Cook Time: 5mins

200g cream cheese (softened)

60g butter (softened)

1tsp vanilla

Icing Sugar

1. Use an electric beater to mix the cream cheese, butter and vanilla. 

2. Gradually add the icing sugar until the icing reaches the desired consistency (this will depend on what you're using it for).

3. Pipe on to the cooled muffins. Garnish with remaining poppy seeds or orange slices.

I was worried when these came out of the oven, they weren't as orange as I expected and I feared I had under estimated the amount of juice required. Despite the light colouring the flavour was just right and the cream cheese icing made a perfect topping. 

I have left some un-iced as I know they'll be great for breakfast!

(There is a distinct lack of process photos for this recipe, Rory decided he wanted to play around with some camera techniques and was more focussed on the end product than what I was doing in the kitchen. Oh well!)

Mexican Lasagne

Rainy days + holidays = Bucket List...

This one went on the list because Rory loves both Mexican food and Lasagne. I'm not actually a fan of either so he was a willing subject to taste test along the way.

Mexican Lasagne

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 10mins Cook Time: 65mins

500g Mince

300g Refried Beans

3 Jalapeños (chopped)

3tbsp Taco Seasoning (see recipe below)

1tbsp Hot Salsa

150g Grated Cheese

12 Lasagne Sheets

200g Hot Salsa

1 cup Water

Guacamole (see recipe below)

Tomato (diced)

Capsicum (diced)

1. Preheat oven to 350. In a skillet cook the mince and drain. Stir in the beans, jalapeños, taco seasoning and 1 tbsp of salsa.

2. In a ceramic baking dish layer 1/3 of the lasagne sheets (uncooked) and cover with half of the meat mixture. Sprinkle with 1/3 cheese and repeat. Placing a final layer of lasagne sheets on top.

Half way through the layering

3. Combine the salsa with the water and pour over the top of the sheets, sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover and bake for 1 hour. 

Ready for the oven

4. Top the lasagne with guacamole and the chopped capsicum and tomato. Return to the oven for 5 minutes. Allow to stand for 10-15 mins.

It's only fitting that this was baked in my ceramic dish from Mexico

OK so I forgot to cover the lasagne when it went in the oven which meant it wasn't quite as moist as it should have been, but given Rory went back for seconds and I'm pretty sure the leftovers won't be left over for long and it wasn't too much of a disaster.

The recipe I adapted this from called for taco seasoning and while that's fairly easy to come by here I decided to make my own...

Taco Seasoning

1 tbsp chili powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp paprika
1&1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

1.Mix all spices together until well combined. Use immediately or store in an airtight container in your spice cabinet and use as needed. 

This can easily be made in bulk and added to a spice rack.

I also went with my own guacamole.

Guacamole

1 Avocado

1 Lime (juice)

1 small Tomato

2 tsp Taco Seasoning

1/4 onion

1. Blend all ingredients in a food processor.

This makes a smoother than normal, more paste like, guacamole which was ideal for the topping of the lasagne.

Honeycomb Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake

To be honest I have no idea why I made this, I am far from a cheesecake fan and it's hardly Rory's favourite thing, however I feel like being able to make cheesecake is something I should be able to do. So here it is...

Crunchy, chocolatey, swirly goodness

Honeycomb Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake

Prep Time: 15mins Cook Time: 10 mins in the oven 5 hrs in the fridge

Pie Crust:
400g chocolate biscuits (I used choc chip as they were all I could find here that weren't cream filled)
1/2 cup melted butter
4 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Process the biscuits in a blender until they are crumbed. Then in a small saucepan mix together the biscuit crumbs, sugar, butter and vanilla.

3. Press the mixture firmly and evenly against the sides of the pie tin. Bake in the oven for 10 mins and set aside in the fridge to cool.

Filling:
1 tsp vanilla essence
500g cream cheese
100g caster sugar
300ml cream
100g chocolate
80 grams of honeycomb 

1. Place cream cheese, caster sugar and vanilla in a bowl and beat. Whisk the cream in a separate bowl until it reaches the soft peak stage. Crush the honeycomb and add to the cream. Add this to the cream cheese mix and fold in.

Yum

2. Divide the mixture into two equal amounts and the melted chocolate to one portion. Spoon alternate amounts of chocolate and vanilla mixture to the biscuit base, then using the end of a spoon, swirl the two mixtures to create a ripple effect. 

3. Place the cheesecake in the fridge until set (at least 5 hours).

I made the mistake of trying to flatten the top of my cheesecake which meant that my swirl wasn't as obvious on top however when I cut into it, the swirl was quite distinct on each of the slices. The verdict: Delicious, even as someone who doesn't like cheesecake.

Beef and Guinness Pie

OK so this one wasn't on my original list, but the original list is in serious need of an update and I'm in the middle of report writing so it's "procrastibaking" time! 

How dinner began!

Beef and Guinness Pie

Prep Time: 10mins Cook Time: 3hrs

1 onion finely diced

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp plain flour

700g beef (stewing steak is ideal)

1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

2 beef stock cubes

540ml guinness

Pastry (frozen)

1. Soften onion in a deep pot with the butter. Mix in the flour until it has dissolved, then stir in the beef and worcestershire sauce. Mix in the stock cubes and then pour the guinness over the top. Bring the mix to a simmer and then cover and leave on low heat for 2hrs, stirring occasionally. Remove the lid and cook for a further 30 mins, allowing the sauce to thicken.

Perfectly soft meat in a divine sauce

2. Set the oven to 200C. Line a pie dish with pastry and add the filling. Then using remaining pastry create a lid for your pie, decorate as desired. Bake for 20mins or until pastry is nicely golden.

Pre-oven

I thought about making a pastry for this myself but my inclination to labour over a rolling pin just wasn't there. I used frozen pastry from the suprmarket and it tasted just fine. The almost licked clean plates after dinner indicated that it was perfectly acceptable so for the sake of saving myself time and energy, I'll stick with it the next time I make it.

Post-oven

Baked Beans

It's time to be honest, this was one item on my Bucket List that I really wasn't fussed about making, but Rory loves these and until recently it was impossible to get anything here that even vaguely resembled them. Since making my list though, we have found a few special import stores that have them and even a local variety which fills the need. However, by the time we found these they were already on my list so, here goes...

  

* Special Note for my sister Jo who reads my blog and decides everything I make takes too long, this is not one you'll want to even consider.

Baked Beans
Serves: 8
Prep/Cook Time: 3hrs (a lot of the steps can be done while the beans cook so I grouped these for this recipe) However the prep really only takes 30 mins.

500g white beans
1/2tsp bicarb
700g crushed tomatoes (Roma tomatoes are best, I used a mix this time which is why my sauce is quite orange, Roma would keep the red colour better)
2tbsp oil
Handful of mixed herbs (thyme, rosemary, sage)
3 cloves garlic
1 onion
2 cloves
1/4tsp mustard powder
150g bacon
4tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2tsp Tabasco sauce
1/4 cup sugar


1. Soak the beans in cold water overnight, the water level should be about 3 inches above the height of the beans. Place beans and the water from soaking into a large pot with the bicarb and cook for 1 1/2hrs on a medium heat until they are tender. Drain the beans reserving 1 cup of the liquid.

2. While the beans are cooking blanch the tomatoes. Using a knife make a small cross on each tomato, place into boiling water for about 2mins or until you see the skin peeling away. Remove and submerge in ice water for 2 mins, the skin should then just peel back from the flesh. Put all the tomatoes in a blender and mix until a fine liquid sauce is made.

3. Heat the oil in a pan/wok and saute the onion, garlic, herbs, cloves and mustard for 10mins. Add this mix to the blender with the tomatoes and mix on high until smooth. 

4. While the other ingredients are in the blender, quickly fry the bacon then pour the sauce into the pot and add the Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and sugar. Stir and simmer for 30mins.

5. Pour the sauce into the drained beans adding the 1 cup of water reserved after boiling. Mix thoroughly and cook on a low heat for approximately 1hr.

The intent was to have these for breakfast tomorrow morning but Rory is impatient so he had them over baked potatoes for dinner. The verdict: "They is nummy" which I think translates to: I did an OK job.