Psssst!! Just thought you should all know, Penny from Jeroxie Addictive and Consuming, is giving away 8 bottles of Cobram Estate's new Manzanillo Extra Virgin Olive Oil. You should go over there and enter right away!

I was lucky enough to score a bottle from her shipment and she asked me to try out a recipe with it. I tried George's olive oil chocolate mousse.

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Believe it or not, Easter is just around the corner. Actually, just writing that made me realise just how around the corner it actually is! Eeeeep!!!

The lovely Felicity has been kind enough to send me some recipe drafts that Curtis Stone has been working on, along with Coles. Curtis is back in Australia to help promote the current Easter campaign for Coles. Coles’ Simon McDowell, General Manager Marketing, says its “focus on food this season is to instill confidence in the ‘kitchen novice’ and assist them in putting fresh, quality and inexpensive meals on the table”.

There was one recipe that stood out for me, and it was this one with apples. It was so easy to make, and took no time at all. I will admit I had Hamsley on apple peeling duty so that helped to speed things up. The addition of muesli was good, almost making it like an apple crumble in a cup.

I'll be making it again when I want a quick, easy, tasty dessert to impress.

Coles and Curtis Stone have created recipe cards with meal solutions designed to inspire Australian seafood novices. The range of fresh meal ideas designed to suit any Easter banquet include;

• Beef Rib Roast with Whole Grain Mustard 
• Grilled Barramundi with Spinach and Herb Roasted Potatoes 
• Fettuccine with Prawns, Spring Onions, Lemon and Chilli 
• Ginger and Soy Glazed Salmon with Bok Choy 
• Fresh Green Beans with Pan Fried Mushrooms 
• Oven Steamed Ling Fillets with Mushrooms and Garlic Mash 
• Cauliflower Gratin 
• Caramel Apples with Cinnamon and Vanilla Ice-Cream

Recipes can be downloaded from http://www.coles.com.au/, and have a tasty Easter!

Caramel Apples with Cinnamon and Vanilla Ice Cream
Curtis Stone

Prep time: 10mins
Cooking time: 15mins


1 cup Coles thickened cream1 cup Coles white sugar
7 royal gala apples (Iron Chef Shellie suggests peeling, coring and quarting your apples)
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp queen vanilla extract
1 cup Carmans classical fruit muesli, to serve
Coles vanilla ice cream 2L, to serve


1. Place the sugar in a large frying pan over a medium high heat. Cook, without stirring but swirling the pan, watching closely as it can burn easily, until the sugar dissolves and becomes pale golden.


2. Carefully add the cream (it will sizzle) and swirl the pan to mix. Once cream and sugar are mixed thoroughly, add the vanilla, cinnamon and apples and cook, stirring often for 10 minutes, or until the apples are tender. Remove from the heat and allow apples to cool slightly in the caramel.


3. Spoon the warm apples into 8 sundae glasses or small bowls, add the ice cream and garnish with the toasted museli. Spoon some of the remaining caramel sauce from the pan over the ice cream and apples and serve immediately.

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Happy Australia Day to my fellow Australians, and everyone else around the globe!
Even though I'm half Malaysian, and half Swiss, I'm still pretty darn Australian.
I spent my first birthday in the Flinders Ranges. I've driven up to Darwin, Cairns and all different parts of Australia with my parents in a 4WD. I enjoy a nice cold beer. I like pavalova and a good old sausage sizzle. I wear thongs... but I don't do Vegemite. In fact, I'd rather lick the road than eat Vegemite.

I do love the humble lamington; sponge cake, smothered in chocolate, then rolled in coconut. If you are lucky you can get some that are wedged together with jam.
This recipe caught my eye in the latest issue of Delicious magazine. It wasn't until the day before Australia Day that I realised I should do an post about something Australian. I didn't really have time to do the version that was in the magazine, as I was busy making a birthday cake for Hamsley; so I did a cheat's version of it. By cheating, I bought King Island decadent chocolate mousse, instead of making the already 'quick chocolate mousse'.

And with chocolate (mousse), upon chocolate (lamington)... what's there not to like about this? Thanks to Coles having a 'buy one, get one free' when buying lamingtons, I think I'll be enjoying this a few times!

Lamington Trifle
2 tablespoons icing sugar, sifted
1/4 cup mint leaves, finely chopped
2 x 120g punnets raspberries
6 lamington fingers, cut into 2cm cubes
Toasted flaked almonds to, serve


1 cup (250g) mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup (125ml) thickened cream
1/4 cup (25g) good quality cocoa-powder, sifted
1/4 cup (35g) icing sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon Cointreau (optional)


1. For the mousse, stir all the ingredients in a bowl with a pinch of salt until smooth.


2. Gently crush sugar, mint and berries with a fork. Divide the lamington pieces among 4 glasses, then top with berry mixture, mousse and almonds.


Serves 4.

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No matter how many times I tell myself I'm never buying another Women's Weekly cookbook... I buy at least two. I found this cookbook half price at a discount bookshop; had a quick flick, and knew there were many things I wanted to make that I hadn't seen in any of their other cookbooks I owned.

What better for cool week than ice-cream?
I had a few other options flagged; like jellies and mousses, but who can resist a three layer ice-cream?... well I guess you can if you are highly lactose intolerant and go into anaphylactic shock if you eat ice-cream... then you might wanna resist this!

Even though it was three layers, it wasn't too much work. I didn't really wait for each layer to freeze firm before adding the next layer, cos let's face it; I started making it after dinner, and I wanted to go to bed before I turned into a pumpkin.

My favorite layer was the top layer, with a lovely almond flavour. It is the taste you most remember about cassata. The added texture of the glacé fruits and flaked almonds makes this ice-cream a real winner. Mum even kept praising it whilst she was eating it; that's when you know something is really good!


Cassata
Australian Women's Weekly
2 eggs, seperated
1/2 cup (80g) icing sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) cream
few drops almond essence


Second Layer:
2 eggs, seperated
1/2 cup (80g) icing sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) cream
60g dark eating chocolate, melted
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 1/2 tablespoon water


Third Layer
1cup (250ml) cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg white, beaten lightly
1/3 cup (55g) icing sugar
2 tablespoons red glacé cherries,  chopped finely
2 glacé apricots, chopped finely (I couldn't find these, so I just used extra glacé cherries.)
2 glacé pineapple rings, chopped finely
1 tablespoon green glacé cherries, chopped finely
30g flaked almonds, toasted


1. Beat egg whites in small bowl with electric mixer until firm peaks form; gradually beat in sifted icing sugar. Fold in lightly beaten egg yolks.


2. Beat cream and almond essence in small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form.; fold into egg mixture. Pour mixture into deep 20cm-round cake pan. Level top; freeze until firm.


3. Make second layer and spread over almond layer; freeze until firm.
Second Layer: beat egg whites in a small bowl with electric mixer until firm peaks form; gradually beat in sifted icing sugar. Beat cream in small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form; fold into egg white mixture. Place chocolate in small bowl; stir in egg yolks. Stir blended cocoa and water into chocolate mixture; fold chocolate mixture through cream mixture.


4. Make third layer and spread over second layer; freeze until firm.
Third Layer: beat cream and extract in small bowl with electric mixer until firm peaks form. Beat egg white in small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form; gradually add sifted icing sugar. Fold egg white mixture into cream; fold in fruit and nuts.


5. Run small spatula around edge of cassata; wipe hot cloth over base and side of pan. Turn cassata onto serving plate.


Cassata can be made a week ahead; keep, covered, in freezer.


Serves 8.

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Twitter friend Kyla had made this just recently and said it was incredibly easy to make, looked and tasted fantastic. She was right, although I had a bit of a mess after photographing, when the slice I carefully placed on my plate fell as I was changing lenses. Raspberry sauce went everywhere, and the we had cream everywhere trying to put it in a container to put back in the fridge. Ah.... fun times!
I ended up using a 20cm cake pan instead of a 22cm pan, as Mum was hogging it to make a cheesecake. Thus I didn't use the full amount of savoiardi biscuits.

At first I wasn't sure about pairing it with the raspberry sauce, but after tasting them together, I can see why is it part of the recipe!
A perfect "misu" for the person who doesn't like the traditional coffee based tiramisu. So refreshing, and perfect for summer; I can't wait for another slice tomorrow!


Mangomisu

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So it's Christmas week all around the world.
What are your Christmas plans? I'm going to Carols by Candlelight at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Christmas eve with my friends. It's kind of ironic given that I hate carols, and D-grade celebrities, yet I was the one who rounded everyone up for the event. As a result, I'm missing my mother cook goose for the very first time for the family. Then Christmas day, I'm off to Grandmother's house for a feast and a half.... followed by many hours on the couch, telling myself I will never eat again.

I had my Christmas lunch for my friends on the weekend and needed a Christmas themed dessert. I had always admired these white Christmas trees on the front cover of the book, so I decided this year I would admire no longer, and bake away!

I sometimes forget to read some parts of the recipe from time to time. The result of this was, I forgot to chop my marshmallows, and because I couldn't find marshmallows with toasted coconut, I ended up adding 100grams of each... thus resulting in having to add twice as much white chocolate for it all to stick together.

The end result was damn delicious though! Mixing together the white Christmas mixture was like smelling sugar heaven! Whilst it is a rather rich dessert, it's definitely a hit with the crowds, and I would no hesitate to make it again.


White Christmas Mud Cakes

125g butter, chopped coarsely
125g white eating chocolate, chopped coarsely
2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar
2/3 cup (160ml) milk
1/2 cup (35g) self-raising flour
2 eggs
2 tablespoons Cointreau
60g white eating chocolate, melted, extra
1 tablespoon icing sugar

White Christmas
120g white eating chocolate, chopped coarsley
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup (30g) rice bubbles
100g marshmallows with toasted coconut, choppped finely
1/4 cup (35g) coarsely chopped unsalted pistachios
1/4 cup (35g) coarsely chopped dried cranberries
1/2 cup (60g) finely chopped glace peaches (I used glace pineapple)

1. Preheat oven to 160°C/140°C fan-forced. Grease eight 3/4 cup (180ml) pudding moulds.

2. Stir butter, chocolate, caster sugar and milk in medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Transfer to medium bowl; cool 10 minutes. Whisk in sifted flours, then eggs. Spoon cake mixture into moulds; place on oven tray.

3. Bake cakes about 30 minutes; drizzle cakes with liqueur. Turn hot cakes, still in their moulds, upside down onto baking paper lined tray; stand overnight.

4. Cut four 20cm circles in half. Roll each half into a tight cone. Staple or tape cones to hold their shape.

5. Make white christmas: stir chocolate and oil in a small saucepan over low heat until smooth. Combine rice bubbles, marshmallow, nuts and fruit in a medium bowl; stir in melted chocolate mixture.'

6. Push spoonfuls of white christmas firmly into cones. Stand each cone upright in a tall narrow glass. Refrigerate cones about 1 hour or until set.

7. Remove cakes from moulds. Trim tops of cakes to make flat; turn upside down onto tray. Remove white christmas cone from paper; secure cones to each cake with a little of the extra chocolate. Refrigerate 10 minutes. Serve mud cakes dusted with sifted icing sugar.

Makes 8.

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Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, my first ever attempt at the gingerbread construction industry.
It took me pretty much the good part of a day getting the architectural plans from Martha Stewart, the foundation mixture together from Donna Hay, and the exterior decorating and landscape gardening done.

After 2 rounds of putting the roof on, and the house collapsing, I made my cement (royal icing) a bit more runny, and eventually got everything to stay in place.

I wanted to stick on pretzels all around the sides to make it look like a log cabin, but after my epic cooking efforts on Saturday, and not having any pretzels in the house... there was a big case of the C.B.F.s

Mum wanted me to add more lollies to the side of the house, but I didn't want one of those super tacky, over candied houses. I'm very happy with the end results. As to whether I'd do one again... I would say yes. But I would make sure I wasn't planning on cooking 2 other things on the same day!


Gingerbread House
Donna Hay

1.2kg (7 1/2 cups) plain flour
3 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda, sifted
1 1/2 cups (265g) brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground ginger, sifted
375g butter
1 2/3 cups (580g) golden syrup

Icing
4 cups (640g) icing sugar, sifted
3 eggwhites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
assorted lollies to decorate

1. Preheat oven to 180°C or 160°C fan-forced. Place half the flour and bicarbonate of soda in the bowl of a food processor with half the sugar, ginger, butter and golden syrup. Process until dough just starts to come together, turn out and set aside. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

2. Combine both quantities of dough and knead to bring together. Divide dough into thirds. Lightly grease three 40cm x 30cm cookie trays (your trays should have a lip them). Divide dough between trays and press into tray, smooth the top with the back of a spoon. Bake, in batches, for 25-30 mintues or until dark golden. Turn out onto wire racks and allow to cool completely. (I cut out my walls and windows instead of baking slab pre-casts).

3. To make the icing, place the sugar, eggwhites and cream of tartar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 4-5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Place the icing in a piping bag with a 1cm round nozzle.

4. To assemble:
a) Use a large serrated knife and cut each gingerbread sheet in half. Use a ruler as a guide. Set aside four halves; two for the walls and two for the roof.
b) Use the serrated knife to cut two even-sized triangles from the top of the remaining two halves to create the side walls of the house and discard the triangles.
c) Secure one of the rectangular walls and one of the side walls to a cake board with the icing and allow to dry until firm. Support the walls against a tall jar until the icing is dry.

d) Secure the other rectangular wall and remaining side wall to the board and exisiting walls using the icing. Again, use some tall jars as support and allow the icing to dry completely before the next step.
e) Secure each of the roof pieces to the sides of the house suing the icing and allow to dry complely.

f) Decorate with remaining icing and lollies.

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The theme this week was beans. I thought I'd think outside the box, and go with the variety of beans that does not make one fart. So I made a trip to the gourmet food shop to pick me up some vanilla beans.

I had never made a panna cotta before this challenge. In fact, I'm not even sure if I had even tasted a panna cotta before making this one.
It was meant to be a lavender panna cotta with lavender shards, but I couldn't find dried edible lavender flowers in time. In the end I left them out, and tried to substitute with a bag of earl grey tea. I also left out the toffee lavender shards, as I had already consumed my body weight in lollies from decorating my first gingerbread house (blog post to come on that soon!!)

It was also my first experience using gelatine leaves, and I was so surprised how easy they are to use. So much easier than that powdery stuff!

The layer of chocolate sauce was also far more than required, but I didn't want to throw out good chocolate sauce.
The panna cotta had a lovely lemony flavour, that almost reminded me a little of cheesecake.
A fantastic recipe, I'd love to try again with lavender flowers.


Lavender Panna Cotta with Lavender Shards

400ml pure (thin) cream
200ml thickened cream
1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar
Pared rind of 1 lemon
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
2 tablespoons dried edible lavender flowers, plus extra to garnish
3 gold-strength gelatine leaves

Lavender Shards
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
1 teaspoon dried edible lavender flowers

Chocolate Sauce
200ml pure (thin) cream
50ml milk
200g dark chocolate, chopped
20g good-quality cocoa powder

1. Place the cream, sugar, lemon rind, vanilla pod and seeds and lavender in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring to just below boiling point, then remove from head and set aside for 30 minutes to infuse.

2. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for 5 minutes to soften. Meanwhile, reheat the cream mixture over low heat. Squeeze excess liquid from gelatine, then ad leaves to cream, stirring to dissolve. Strain mixture through a sieve, pressing down on lavender flowers to extract as much flavour as possible. Divide among four to six 150ml serving glasses, then chill for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

3. Meanwhile, for lavender shards, lightly grease a baking sheet. Stir sugar and 1/2 cup (125ml) water in a saucepan over low heat to dissolve. Increase heat to high and bring to the boil, then allow to bubble, not stirring but occasionally brushing sides down with a wet pastry brush, for 5-6 minutes until golden. Pour onto tray, scatter with lavender and set aside at room temperature for 10 minutes or until set. Crack into shards, then store in an airtight container for 2-3 days.

4. Make chocolate Sauce: place cream and milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to just below boiling point, then remove from the heat. Whisk in chocolate until melted, then gently whisk in cocoa until smooth. Strain into a jug and set aside to cool.

5. Top each panna cotta with a little chocolate sauce, then add lavender shards and garnish with extra lavender flowers.

Serves 4-6.

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And so it begins! The first week of The Cookbook Challenge.
Having a sweet tooth, I have a feeling most of my recipes are going to be dessert orientated. But I have been trying to plan a few weeks in advance, as I look through my ever growing collection of cookbooks and magazines, and I assure you; there are going to be some surprises along the way. Some that will have you scratching your head, just like that smoked chicken cheesecake I showed you not that long ago!

So Bill Granger came off the shelf this week. I own all of his cookbooks. They have gorgeous pictures, and delicious recipes. I am hanging out for the day when I can go to Sydney to try his famous ricotta hotcakes. I have the recipe in one of the books to keep me going until then.

With the theme of citrus, I had many options to choose from. I went for a lemon mousse as I have never heard of one before. I had always made chocolate mousse, so lemon seemed like a refreshing option. With Melbourne's recent heat wave, it was EXTREMELY refreshing whilst trying to keep cool in front of the overworked fan.

The only problem with the mousse was my zest wasn't grated finely enough, so it was a bit grainy. I think a microplane zester is on my Christmas list, along with the Bourke St Bakery cookbook... for anyone listening *wink wink, nudge nudge*.

The madeleines were fantastic. Although I nearly burnt the first batch. They were rescued in time, and I didn't walk away whilst the other batches cooked.

And that's my recipe/s for the first round of The Cookbook Challenge!

Lemon Mousse

finely grated zest from 3 lemons
60ml (1/4 cup) lemon juice
185g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
4 eggs, seperated
150g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1. Put the lemon zest and juice, sugar and egg yolks in a double boiler and cook over a low heat, stirring constantly for about 10 minutes, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Whisk in small amounts of butter at a time. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

2. Whisk the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until stiff peaks form.

3. Fold half of the beaten egg whites into the lemon mixture with a metal spoon, then fold in the remaining egg whites. Divide among four serving glasses and refrigerate until firm.

Serve with lemon madeleines.
Serves 4.

Lemon Madeleines

5 eggs
200g caster sugar
finely grated zest from 1 lemon
200g plain flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
180g unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas6).

2. Whisk the eggs and sugar together until they are pale and fluffy, then mix in the lemon zest. Add the flour, baking powder and butter, and fold everything together. Leave the mixture to rest for 5 minutes. Spoon the mixture into a greased madeleine tray, and bake for 8 to 9 minutes, or a little longer, depending on the size of the holes in your madeleine tray.

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