Tag: quick

Pesto & Asparagus Tart

Looking for something easy to make for a Sunday lunch? This little tasty tart is so simple it is embarassing!

Take one sheet of ready rolled flaky pastry and place it on a lined baking tray. Dollop 3 tablespoons of pesto on to the pastry spreading it out to within 1 1/2 cm of the edge.

Trim a bunch of asparagus and lay out on the pesto.

Top with 3/4 c of grated Colby cheese. Season with salt & pepper.

Pop into a hot oven (190 C) – and fan bake for 20 minutes.

Oh my gosh – so tasty, so easy! So happy it is asparagus season – while it is in season make sure you enjoy the asparagus this way. If you are like me and LOVE asaparagus you will be eating it steamed with poached eggs or on the BBQ drizzled with olive oil…yum yum yum!

Happy eating xx

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Apple & Berry Crumble – my quick version for the busy cook

IMG_0044This is a very quick and easy Apple & Berry Crumble that can be made in less than 10 minutes – it takes just 25-30minutes to bake in the oven.

Now what makes this particular recipe quicker than most is that you use canned apples rather than peeling, chopping and cooking some Granny Smith apples!

I know this is kind of cheating for the traditional home cook however I work full time, & there would be little to no chance of a fresh fruit dessert coming out of my kitchen at the end of the day – as well as a main meal!

And if you have a teenage boy in your home, then I guarantee you that they are always hungry! One lesson to learn is that dessert is a good tummy filler – and made with fruit, a healthier option than bread & butter on the table as was the case at my mother-in-laws house in the 70’s and 80’s.

Ingredients

  • 2 x 415g sliced apples
  • 3/4 cup of frozen berries of your choice
  • 1 teaspoons grated lemon rind
  • 50 g melted butter
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cups rolled oats

Place the apples into a oven proof dish – I have learnt that the best dish for a crumble is a flatter one so the crumbs are a thinner layer. Mix through the lemon rind.

Mix all the other ingredients together – and then sprinkle over the apple and press down lightly.

Bake at 190°c for 30 minutes or until golden brown and crisp! Serves 4-6

Now wasn’t that easy?

I added 3/4 cup of frozen raspberries to our Apple & Berry Crumble last night – (another ingredient I always have in the freezer) –  you could leave out the berries and add sultana’s or raisins and whole cloves for a change; more like a strudel taste!

Try this with ice-cream as a dessert or with a dollop of yoghurt (to soothe your conscious) and as a hot breakfast on a cooler Winter morning.

Happy cooking xx

 

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Louise Slice -a Kiwi Baking Classic

Here’s my quick version of a New Zealand classic – something that my Nana and mum both had in their baking repertoire. My youngest son loved it and I often baked this for a lunchbox homemade treat.

Ingredients

  • 100g butter
  • 1/4 cup sugarLouise slices
  • 2 eggs, seperated
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 cup raspberry jam ( or your favourite flavour)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup coconut

Melt the butter in a large pot- stir in the first measure of sugar. Add the egg yolks only to the pot and mix until well combined.

Sift the flour and baking powder into the pot and mix to combine.

Spread this mixture into a 20 x 30cm sponge roll tin that you have lined with baking paper.

Spread the jam over the base – I usually warm the jam up to make it easier to spread.

Beat the egg whites until stiff. Mix in the second measure of sugar and the fold in the coconut.

Bake at 180°c for 25-30 minutes or until golden on the top.  Cut into squares while still warm.

A soft cake base with a layer of jam, and a topping of crunchy coconut meringue – a delicious slice that deserves a comeback!

Happy baking xx

 

 

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banana & pistachio rolls…

Are you looking for something sweet but not too sweet? Quick and easy to make? And a different enough to impress dinner guests?

This desert recipe will have them coming back for more I promise – even those dieting guests who we cooks love to hate 🙂

 Ingredients to serve 4

  • 6 sheets of filo pastry
  • 50g melted butter
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 1 cup finely chopped pistachios
  • 4 bananas  – straight ones are easier to work with!
  • honey to serve
  • Natural thick greek yogurt to serve
  1. Preheat your oven to 180°c.
  2. Lay one sheet of filo on the bench & brush with melted butter. Repeat with the another two(2) layers of filo pastry. Repeat with the other three (3) sheets of filo. Cut in half so you have 4 large squares each three (3) sheets thick.
  3. Brush the top layer of filo with melted butter, sprinkle with the cinnamon and brown sugar, and the sprinkle over the pistachios.
  4. Place each banana, widthways in the middle of each filo square. Do what you have to bend the banana to fit 🙂 Firmly roll the pastry around the banana, making sure no pistachios escape!
  5. Place the rolls on a lined baking tray (I always use baking paper) with the pastry seam underneath. Brush with melted butter and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden and crisp.
  6. Drizzle over honey and more pistachios. Serve rolls hot with a spoonful of yoghurt or if you are being indulgent and not watching the waistline a scoop of vanilla ice-cream.

File 8-03-16, 7 39 50 PM

If you have not used filo pastry before this is a good recipe to try it out on. Filo is a healthier option  – and it cooks up really crunchy and is just plain yum! 

Happy Baking xx

 

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Blueberry & Yoghurt Loaf with Fresh Blueberries

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Visiting Mama Blue Winery last weekend and having fresh blueberries got me thinking about a quick and easy recipe we love to eat at our house – Blueberry & Yoghurt Loaf. I think you will enjoy this one!

Ingredients:

150g butter, melted
1 cup (220g) caster (superfine) sugar
2 eggs
½ cup (140g) Greek-style (thick) yoghurt
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups (225g) self-raising flour, sifted
125g fresh blueberries, plus extra, to serve
icing (confectioner’s) sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F).

2.Place the butter, sugar, eggs, yoghurt, lemon zest and vanilla in a bowl and whisk to combine.

3.Add the flour and whisk until well combined. Fold through the blueberries and spoon into a lightly greased 22cm x 8cm x 7cm loaf tin lined with non-stick baking paper.

4. Smooth the top with a palette knife and bake for 1 hour–1 hour 10 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer.

5. Allow the loaf to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with icing sugar and top with extra blueberries to serve. Serves 6–8.

Happy baking xx

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