COCONUT LIME CAKE

BAKING a new recipe which is vastly different from my usual cake repertoire is always fun.

 

I'm working my way through the wonderful Merle Parrish's new cookbook Merle's Country Show Baking: and Other Favourites and everything I have baked has looked just as the recipes did in the book - amazing!

 

I did substitute full cream coconut milk for low-fat as I bought the wrong can but it still rose and tasted good.

 

 

The cakes were for the opening of the new Bellbrae Fire Station and our

guests seemed to enjoy them at the morning tea which was nice.

 

 

The beauty of leeks

LEEKS are one of the easiest and most delicious vegetables to grow.

In today's Weekly Times, Peter Cundall has an excellent article on growing these great vegies.
 

 Here's a nice recipe to make and share with friends and family. 

Leek and Spud Soup

 

Ingredients

 

60ml (1/4 cup) olive oil

1 brown onion, halved, chopped

3 cloves of garlic clove, crushed and chopped

4 medium (about 700g) peeled desiree, pink eye or pontiac potatoes, cut into 2cm cubes

2 leeks, pale section only, washed, dried, thinly sliced

1.25L (5 cups) vegetable stock

4 thick slices day-old white bread, crusts removed, cut into 2cm cubes

125ml (1/2 cup) low-fat greek yogurt or thickened cream

Pinch of salt

2 tbs finely chopped fresh chives or corriander

Method
Heat 1 tbs of the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.

 

Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for three minutes or until the onion softens.

 

Add potato and leek and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until leek softens.

 

Add the stock and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium and gently boil, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until potato is soft. Remove from heat and set aside for 10 minutes to cool.

 

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C. Place bread in a roasting pan. Drizzle with remaining oil and toss until bread is evenly coated. Toast in preheated oven, shaking pan occasionally, for 10 minutes or until crisp. Remove croutons from oven and set aside.

 

Transfer one-third of the potato mixture to the jug of a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a clean saucepan. Repeat in 2 more batches with the remaining potato mixture.

 

Place the soup over medium heat. Add the cream and stir to combine.

 

Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until hot, then taste and season with salt.

 

Ladle the soup among serving bowls and sprinkle with chives and top with croutons.

 

Enjoy with friends!

Pumpkin chutney

WHILE scrunching up papers to light the wood heater the other night, the Australian's weekend magazine fell out of the pile and landed open on David Herbert's always interesting recipe page.

As I tossed in the pine cones, I noticed an intriguing recipe for pumpkin chutney.

Mmmm.

As my pumpkins look ready, I shall pull on my wellies and scramble about the veggie beds tomorrow, tapping on their thick hides for one that sounds hollow.

Hopefully the results will resemble this...

But even if they don't, I'm sure they will taste amazing.

Herbert is akin the Matthew Evans, Jill Dupleix and Stephanie Alexander - you know that their recipes will also ways turns out delish - even if my humble efforts don't good as wonderful, they always resemble the photo!

You can't ask for more than that.

Good Garlic

PLANTING garlic is very satisfying, very easy and now is the time to get moving with this delightful aromatic bulb.

You can use good-sized corms from your last harvest or purchase organic garlic from a number of suppliers. A friend has even used shop-bought Australian-grown garlic, pulled apart the cloves and planted them with good results.

Isn't garlic gorgeous!

Plant the tops of the bulbs just below the soil surface, with the pointy end upwards and the flatter or root end should be pointing down.
I plant mine around 10 cm apart, in rows about 30 cm apart.

Simply leave them and they are ready to harvest late next spring  or early summer depending on your climate. The redoubtable Peter Cundall has some excellent tips here.


Then use them for this delicious recipe for mushrooms with lemon and garlic from the always reliable Gourmet Farmer, Mathew Evans.

It's also good to plant around roses to control aphids and other pests.

As well as being delicious (I reckon nearly everything bar porridge tastes better with garlic and I'm working on this), it's also great for your chooks.
A piece of crushed garlic in their fresh water will help them combat any intestinal parasite problems the girls may have and so far I've not noticed any taste seeping into the eggs they lay.
The dried stems and leaves of the garlic plant after harvesting can also be strewn in their coop to deter fleas and other insects.

And for us, many health benefits can be enjoyed from garlic - including lower blood pressure. Repelling vampires? The jury is still out.

Meanwhile, growing garlic is so easy everyone should have a few bulbs in their garden.

More information about this 'fragrant rose' as garlic is also known can be found at the Australian Garlic Industry Association (AGIA) website.

Autumn = Risotto

Here's a risotto recipe based on a Donna Hay classic - mine uses heaps more garlic and greens but less stock.

Autumn is bliss.

Sunny days, cool evenings, a chill in the air.

Good surf starts rolling in, the tomatoes are over and your beans and peas start climbing towards the heavens.

Time to check you have ordered firewood, give your woollen dressing-gown a nice wash in wool mix so it's ready for the first chilly morning and think about moving past steamed veggies and salads for dinner.

So here's a cracker recipe for risotto I made it for some friends last night.

It's great when you are busy talking non-stop; discussing books, chook raising, politics or where to go snowboarding / surfing / cycling, as you just combine the ingredients and put it in the oven.

I love using my gorgeous, reliable blue Le Cruset casserole dish as I can cook the bacon, garlic and mushrooms, add the rest of the ingredients, before placing it in the oven. Once its cooked, it can go on the table and everyone can help themselves.

(In this instance I used beef stock as I thought I might give the hens the leftovers and I obviously do not feed them anything containing poultry.)

Baked mushroom, bacon, kale and spinach risotto

1 Tblsp olive oil

4 cloves of garlic, crushed

400g button mushrooms, roughly chopped

4 rashers bacon, rind removed, roughly chopped

1 ½ cups Arborio rice

4 cups chicken stock

100g baby spinach leaves

20g finely chopped kale

1 cup (80g) finely grated Parmesan

20g butter

Sea salt and cracked black pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F).
2. Heat oil in a non-stick frying pan or casserole dish over medium heat.
3. Add bacon, cook until nearly brown
4. Add garlic and mushrooms and cook for five minutes or until browned.
5. Place in a medium ovenproof dish with the rice and stock and stir to combine.
6. Put the lid on or cover tightly with aluminium foil and bake for 40 minutes or until most of the stock is absorbed and rice is aldente.
7. Stir through the spinach, kale, Parmesan, butter, salt and pepper.

Serves 4 (Leftovers freeze just fine, but it's unlikely you'll have any!)