Four Things (take 2)

I wrote a long-winded and detailed post but it was eaten! Here is the quicker version of a bunch of stuff I made.

1. Cauliflower & Caramelised Onion Tart (from smitten kitchen)

So delicious. So easy.

The pastry was flaky and tasty, the filling was the sort of things that dreams are made of and it was all easy enough to make quickly after work. Do it.

2. Franken-brownies

Or, what happens when you decide to add other foodstuffs to brownies.

NW: gummi bears

NE: mini M&Ms

SE: mini marshmallows

SW: turkish delight

Science was the winner. Also, turkish delight.

3. Chocolate Banana Bread

I love bananas. Just not in things.

Until now. This recipe has changed my banana bread-related life. I am now the kind of person who makes banana bread regularly.

4. Pickled Carrots

We get a fruit & vegie box from Organic Angels once a week and, sometimes, we end up with an excess of stuff. I generally use a bunch of carrots during a week but we always seem to have more. They multiply in the fridge. I needed to take action.

I decided on pickled carrots using this recipe from David Lebovitz but instead of fennel, I used coriander and cumin seeds and some peppercorns. SO GOOD OMG.

Kinda Caesar Salad

Here's a quick dinner that we had during our hothot weather in the last week. It's half based on Jamie Oliver's Warm Bread Salad (aka Jamie's version of fattoush) and the Caesar Salad from Veganomicon. Obviously, this version isn't vegan but it is very easy to rid it of vegan-unfriendly things.

I make my croutons by cutting/tearing bread (rye bread in this instance) and putting them in a bowl with olive oil, lemon juice, a clove or two of garlic, pepper and a touch of salt. In terms of proportions, enough oil so that they all get a bit of a coat, a good slug of lemon juice and the rest to your taste. I put them in the oven until crouton-y which, generally speaking, is how long it takes to put the rest of the salad together.

I hard-boil some eggs (put the eggs in the cold water, cook for 12 minutes) and I break the woody ends off the asparagus, add it to the egg boiling water until it looks bright green (the asparagus, although the water will also go a bit green) and then put it into some cold water to keep it nomtastic.

Then, lettuce, snowpeas, tomatoes, dutch carrots, capers and the croutons go into a bowl. I dressed this salad with only lemon juice but you can use the delicious dressing below and then I lay the asparagus pseudo-artistically on top, broken up eggs and shaved parmesan.

Quick, easy and delicious. Winner.



Caesar Dressing (from Veganomicon)

1/3 cup blanched almonds
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
350g silken tofu (conversion from pounds - I think I ended up using just 1 small pack of silken tofu)
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp capers
4 tsp caper brine
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp mustard powder
salt

Pulse almonds in a food processor until crumbly. Empty the ground almonds into an airtight container. Blend the garlic, tofu and oil in the food processor until creamy. Add the lemon juice, capers, brine, sugar and mustard powder and pulse until blended. Add lemon and salt to taste. Pout into the almonds and whisk to combine. Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.

This kept well in the fridge for a week or so and probably would have lasted longer (but there wasn't any left to check and see).

Christmas Morning Muffins

Cranberries and chocolate and oranges, oh my!

We spent Christmas eve up in the hills with Esther's mum, eating falafel, opening presents and watching Wind in the Willows (2006) - seriously, Mark Gatiss = Best. Ratty. Ever.

I also decided to make these muffins that I saw on Ezra Pound Cake as they combined a bunch of things I love and I thought they sounded easy and festive.

In conclusion, DELICIOUS! I will be making these again.

Catastrophe Cookies (Or, the biscuits previously known as Afghans.)

I'm a walker.



I love walking and discovering things and/or seeing things in a different light and/or just taking the time to see. My favourite walk has been The Ridgeway which I walked half of last year (and photos can be seen here) but I've done some amazing walks in and around Melbourne (which can be seen here.)

But what does all this walking have to do with biscuits, you ask?! Well, in March, Not Quite Nigella posted a recipe that is very close to my heart: Afghan Biscuits. I've always loved these biscuits and they are easily obtained in Perth i.e. every single cafe has them. I suddenly realised I'd never seen them in Melbourne and I was aghast.



I did a very scientific poll of my friends and the results shocked me - nearly everyone who grew up in the Eastern 2/3rds of the country had never heard of, let alone eaten, an Afghan biscuit.

I took it upon myself to write this terrible wrong and made many batches. And it was with one of these early batches that a new (and not so racist) name was bestowed on them. I'll let J, one of the members of my walking posse explain:

Just as we were leaving civilisation (well, we were about to walk into CFA territory rather than MFB territory), our map failed us somewhat by not matching up with what was on the ground. G kindly offered to ride up ahead to see whether one part of the path ended where we thought it did, and the rest of us asked ourselves why we didn’t bring a cyclist all the time. Our question was soon answered as G came off his bike, and we rushed to see what had happened. His elbow was well and truly grazed up, with one significant gouge expelling large amounts of blood. I emptied my waterbottle over his wound to wash as much of the gravel out as I could, then tied a hanky around it. We all walked to the nearest houses and knocked on doors until someone was home and let us use his bathroom. We cleaned G’s elbow a bit more and applied some Dettol cream (thank you, random man), and I cleaned the hanky and reattached it.

SJ called E, and she came with a first aid kit, cleaned the wound with saline, and attached a better dressing than my hanky! As we were waiting for her, we drank the rest of our tea and ate more delicious biscuits. It was at this point that we renamed them Catastrophe Cookies, because they were pretty much the ideal thing to eat at this stage of a catastrophe. E drove G and me to RMH emergency room, where we waited for a couple of hours before G was anaesthetised, cleaned up properly, stitched up, and given a tetnus booster. D and SJ called a taxi and took G’s bike back into SJ & E’s place.

- from here

Anyway, now you know the story of the name, let me explain why these biscuits are so delicious.

1. They are crunchy and crumbly at the same time

2. Chocolate

3. Icing. On a biscuit.

4. They are damn fine with a cup of tea.



They are also exceptionally quick and easy to make - the only frustrating moment is waiting for them to cool before pouring icing on them.

They are the kind of biscuit you expect to see at the cake stall at a school fête and, to me, that is the highest compliment there is.



Catastrophe Cookies
makes approx 16

Biscuits
170g butter, softened
100g brown sugar
180g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
3 Tbsp cocoa
60g cornflakes

Icing
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp water
3 Tbsp caster sugar
190g icing sugar
3 Tbsp cocoa
walnut (or pecan) halves

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Cream butter and sugar together while getting the dry ingredients ready to sift.

2. Sift into creamed butter and sugar and mix until combined. The mixture will (most likely) become one big sticky ball of deliciousness.

3. Stir in the cornflakes (or, if you are lazy like me, pour the cornflakes in and mix on a low setting until combined).

4. Roll into balls and place on a lined baking tray. Flatten them a little bit and try not to overcrowd the tray - they don't spread a lot but you do want them all to bake at the same speed.

5. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. They'll be quite fragile at this stage but they become more hardy as they cool.

6. Cool. (Boo.)

7. Make the icing! Spoon the icing onto the biscuits and press a walnut (or, in this case, a pecan) onto the biscuit.

8. EAT AND ENJOY!

Easy and Delicious Lentil Stew

Inspired by Carla's Lentil Stew, I decided to whip up my own version for dinner (and lunch the next day).



I pretty much followed Carla's recipe but added some zucchini and (deliciously sweet) corn and we had no pasta to add.

This was such an easy and hearty dinner and filled the house with amazing cooking smells and, thus, is now an Official Favourite.