Tag: home made

Home-made Ginger Cookies

Baking a batch or two of cookies was something our mothers and grandmothers thought nothing of. They didn’t mind creaming the butter and sugar by hand, or for the lucky ones, in the mixer. Today we avoid such recipes if we can.

(Up until last year I didn’t own a cake mixer and my ‘tools of trade’ were a glass bowl and a wooden spoon by mum made me on her wood-turning lathe! )

This recipe is made in a pot – it will take longer to cool the mix than it will to make them! Best  news is that you will just have a pot and a wooden spoon to wash up afterwards 🙂

My best tip for making your cookies this method is to make sure the butter & sugar mix is cool enough not to cook the eggs!

Preheat the oven to 180°c – and prepare two baking trays by lining them with baking paper.

Ingredients:

  • 175 g butter
  • 1/4 cup golden syrup
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  •  2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • Extra sugar

Melt butter and golden syrup in a large pot. Remove from the heat. Stir in the sugar.

Add the egg and beat well with a wooden spoon. Sift the dry ingredients into the pot and mix everything together well.

Roll tablespoons of the mixture into balls, and then roll in the extra sugar.

Place on a prepared baking tray and flatten gently with a fork.

Bake at 180°c for 12 minutes or until golden.

Ginger cookies (1).png
Home-made ginger cookies – perfect for dunking in your coffee!

(If you have crystallised ginger in your pantry try chopping 50 g finely and adding to the mix – for those ginger lovers out there this will be a lovely treat!)

Happy baking xx

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Ginger & Apricot No-Bake Cookie Slice

This is a no-cook bake which is super delicious and something I normally make in the summer. I don’t really know why I only make it in the summer? Silly really, as it has to be stored in the refrigerator to keep it cool, and stop the thing from going soft in the heat! Winter is a much more sensible season for this slice 🙂

Funny how we get into habits isn’t it? Even baking habits it seems 🙂

Step One: Line a 30cm x 24cm sponge roll tray or baking tin with baking paper.

Slice Ingredients

  • 100 g butter
  • 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 cup dried apricots, chopped
  • 1/2 cup crystallised ginger, finely choppedNo bake slice.png
  • 1 cup desiccated coconut
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 375 g plain sweet biscuits, crushed

Step Two: Melt the butter with the condensed milk in a small pot.

Step Three: Mix all the remaining ingredients in a large bowl

Step Four: Mix the butter and condensed milk through the biscuit mix

Step Five: Press the entire mix into the prepared pan and put in the refrigerator to set – about 1 hour.

While the slice is setting you can make the icing.

Icing Ingredients

  • 50 g butter
  • 3 tbsp boiling water
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 3 1/2 cups icing sugar

Melt the butter, and mix to a smooth consistency with the boiling water, lemon juice and icing sugar.

Spread over the base and sprinkle with 1/4 cup crystallised chopped ginger and 2 tbsp chopped walnuts or pistachios. (I added chopped cranberries just because!)

This slice keeps well in an airtight container in a cool place. Serve it in small squares – mouthfuls for the ‘chief tester’!

If you love ginger then this is a home-made slice you will love – I am not a big ginger lover but this is really good – I promise!

Happy baking xx

 

 

 

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White Chocolate & Cranberry Cookies

A quick and easy recipe for home-made white chocolate and cranberry cookies – we love the chewiness of the cranberries with the crunch of the cookie!

Ingredients

  • 125g unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups tightly packed brown sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence or paste (I use paste but essence is fine to use)
  • 1 lightly beaten egg
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 250g good-quality chocolate
  • 1/2 cup chopped cranberries

Preheat your oven to 180c. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Butter & sugar into your mixer and beat until light and creamy. Make sure the ingredients are well mixed.
Add vanilla & egg and beat again.
Sift the flour, baking powder & salt into the butter mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in the chocolate and cranberries.
Roll tablespoons of cookie dough and put about 3cm apart on the lined baking tray. Flatten with a fork. Bake for 15-20 mins until a pale golden brown.

When my granddaughter Taylor lived in Auckland, I would make her cookies and take them around to her house. She wouldn’t share them with her little friend who was over to play, instead offering the store-bought cookies in the pantry – Nana’s cookies were too special to give away!

Little kids and big kids love a home-made cookie, so even if you are not a seasoned baker try making these easy to bake cookies. You will be well rewarded with compliments and an empty cookie jar!

Happy baking xx

White Choc Cookies
White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies

 

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Beetroot…so good!

Sharon Webber, 21st January, 2016.

I am a big lover of beetroot – love the colour, love the taste, love it in a salad, raw, or as a side-dish for a BBQ and in a home-made burger. I remember saying that to my then new-husband who looked at me like I was mad! They don’t do beetroot in burgers where he comes from 🙂

Here is a quick & easy recipe to do with beetroot for that side-dish – great with a BBQ.

Home-Made Spiced Beetroot

Leftover juice from 12 medium-large beetroot
3 cups white vinegar
3 cups white sugar
6 whole cloves
1 teaspoon mixed spice
2 cinnamon sticks

Scrub the beetroot and place it in a large pan. Cover the beetroot generously with cold water and bring to the boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook the beetroot for 40-50 minutes, or until it is tender when pierced with a knife. Drain off the liquid, reserving 3 cups. Set aside the beetroot until it is cool enough to handle. When it is cool, rub off the skin and slice or quarter – however you like really, the beetroot thickly.
Clean the pan and add the reserved beetroot juice, vinegar, sugar and spices. Simmer for 5 minutes until sugar has dissolved. Add the sliced beetroot back to saucepan to heat through then spoon it into jars. Top up with spiced juice and seal.
Makes about 4 medium jars.

Beetroot

TIP
You can use rubber gloves to prevent hands staining when you’re rubbing the skin off the beetroot 🙂

I discovered this next recipe in my favourite food magazine – Dish  It is a New Zealand magazine that not only has great recipes, it showcases NZ produce, chefs & places to eat.

Beetroot Relish 

  1. 1 kg of beetroot, peeled, and grated                  
  2. 1 apple, grated                                          
  3. 2 red onions, finely chopped                               
  4. 2 cloves garlic, crushed                                      
  5. 2 teaspoons of sea salt                                        
  6. finely grated zest 1 orange                                 
  7. juice of 2 oranges                                                
  8. 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
  9. 1/4 cup water
  10. 1 teaspoon mixed spice
  11. 2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper

I used my new food processor to deal to first 4 ingredients! Feeling lazy and it is a hot day Put all of the ingredients in a large heavy-based pot and bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Reduce the  heat and cook, uncovered over a low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 – 2  hours, until the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick & glossy. Spoon into hot, sterlised jars and seal tightly.  (Refrigerate after opening).  Makes about 4 cups.

IMG_0780

Give these a go if you like beetroot – if you haven’t tried it before, give it a go! It really tastes great.

xx

 

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