With a sewing night ahead of me, I thought I’d make something simple that we can eat in a casual setting. Nothing says casual like dips and bread!

http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/chefs/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall/beetroot-and-walnut-hummus-recipe_p_1.html - Beetroot Dip

http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/chefs/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall/broad-bean-hummus-recipe_p_1.html - Broad bean Dip.

UPDATE: Just made the broad bean dip. And of course I taste tested it. It has a suprising amount of flavour for something with very little ingredients.

I left some feed back for Hugh

http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/chefs/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall/very-lemony-hummus-recipe_p_1.html - Very lemony hummus.

UPDATE: The hummus is quite nice too.

I must remember to cut up the famous cucumber -> http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150092644076810

And for dessert (if I have room for it) -> http://www.cadbury.com.au/Cadbury-Kitchen/Teatime-Treats/Chocolate-Surprise-in-Golden-Syrup-Dumplings.aspx Chocolate suprise Dumplings.

Ingredients:

5 eggs
150g castor sugar
250ml lemon juice
70g unsalted butter
2 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 teaspoon corn flour
1 teaspoon white vinegar
200g mascarpone

Method:

Lemon Curd

Using a clean bowl and beater place 5 egg yolks and gradually add 150g castor sugar while still beating.

Mix together over simmering water for approx 5 minutes until it starts to thicken.

Add 250ml lemon juice and return to simmering water. Mix for a further 5 minutes.

Take off heat and let cool for 5 minutes.

Add 70g of unsalted room temperature butter and whisk in.

Pavlova

Whip 5 egg whites (make sure there is no yolk otherwise it won’t rise and 200g caster sugar until thick white and glossy.

Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence and mix through.

Add 1 teaspoon of corn flour and white vinegar.

Spread in brownie tray lined with paper and cook for 20 minutes in a 160C oven.

When cooled to touch, spread filling over the top and gently roll.

Filling

Mix together 200g mascarpone and 1 teaspoon vanilla essence.

Ingredients:

115g butter, softended
2/3 Cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 cup plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup white chip chocolates
1/2 cup milk chip chocolates

Method:

Preheat oven to 190C. Grease or line 2 baking trays.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy

Beat in the egg

Sift in together with flour and baking soda

Add vanilla essence

Stir in the choc chips

Spoon on to trays and cook for 10-12 minutes. Cool on racks.

With Christmas coming up, I thought I’d put this here for anyone game enough to try this.

I’ve made this 3 times for Christmas and each time it went down a treat. This is a lovely version as it’s not a dry cake and you modify the ingredients depending on what you have on hand. Ingredients in bold show the items where the quantites can’t be altered. The rest can depending upon your tastes.

December 2008: I made this again and got even more compliments

Ingredients:

500g – 750g Sultanas
100g Mixed Fruit [Peel]
6 Dried Dates, Roughly Chopped
Small Handlful Glace Cherries, Roughly Chopped
1/4 – 1/2 Cup Brandy
200g butter
1 Cup Brown Sugar
4 Eggs
1 1/2 Cups Fresh Bread Crumbs
1/4 Cup Almond Meal
1/4 Cup Hazelnut Meal
1/2 Dark Choc Bits
1 Cup Plain White Flour [really does need to be White Flour]
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Mixed Spices
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Essence
1/2 Teaspoon Bi-Carb Soda
1/2 Block of mixed White and Dark Best Quality Cooking Chocolate, Roughly Chopped.

MATERIALS
Baking Paper
Aliuminium foil
2L Pudding Basin [Can be any large deep ceramic or pyrex bowl as long as it has a lip around the edge to tie string around]
Small Wire Rack [I found this at a 2 dollar shop for literally $2]
Electric mixer [hand held is fine. You can pick them up for under $20 at Woolies]
Large deep pan. [place the Pudding Basin in the pan with the Wire Rack and if you can close the lid it will work fine]

Method:

Combine the Sultanas, Mixed Fruit [Peel], Dates, Cherries and Brandy in a bowl. Cover and let stand for a minimum of 30 minutes. For best results, let stand overnight.

Beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy, beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. NB: The egg and sugar may seperate. I found if I just kept beating on the highest speed that it eventually started to come back together again. It won’t be perfect but it will do.

Stir in the fruit, breadcrumbs, almond and hazelnut meal, dark choc bits, mixed white and dark chocolate, bi-card soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spices, vanilla essence and sifted plain flour. Mix well with a spoon.

Spoon in to a greased 2L (8 cup) pudding basin. Cover the basin with baking paper, aluminimum foil, then cover with a tight fitting lid OR tie string around the outside edge to hold the layers down.

Place a small wire rack in the base of a large deep pan. Place pudding on rack, pour in enough water to come up 1/4 – 1/2 way up the sides of the basin. Cover pan with lid, let simmer 2 – 3 hours making sure that the pan does not boil dry by adding more what when running low.

Remove from pan and let cool. Cover and refridgerate until ready to serve. On day of serving, place back in pan with rack and boil for 2 hours to re-heat and rehydrate, turn out and serve with cream or custard.

Serves 8 comfortably.

Ingredients:

1 part egg mayonnaise
1 part sour cream
Cooled cooked spinach (the frozen pack stuff is best)
Veggie soup powder mix (Maggi is best)
Salt and pepper to season
Round loaf with the top cut and middle scooped out.

Method:

Mix the sour cream and mayonnaise together.

Mix in the spinach.

Slowly add the veggie soup powder. Taste as you go and add more in if necessary.

Season with salt and pepper.

Place the mix in to the round loaf. Lay the scooped out bread around the edges.