Passionfruit 'Cheesecake' - without the cheese!

Let me start by saying this is absolutely delicious! Truly. It is made up of some of my favourite flavours, lemon and passionfruit. And to top it off, there's no cooking involved!!

This dish is one I have always loved and the recipe came to me again this week via facebook. I don't think it is 'owned' by anyone, but it's a popular Australian dessert. Passionfruit itself is one of the most popular flavours in Australia, so much so that you can even buy it tinned. That is what I used for this as passionfruit are not in season right now here in the UK. I have a dwindling stash of the tins, and I use them sparingly. Well worth it for this though!

So I had to play around with this a little as the recipe I originally had was a little ambiguous about the gelatine, but with some brilliant advise from the Aussie mum of a friend (thanks Sandra!!), it turned out perfectly this time. You just won't believe how easy it was!!

By the way, the original recipe was a tray bake, with the base made of plain biscuits laid out covering the bottom of the pan. In Aus, use scotch fingers, in the UK I used malted milk biscuits. Any plain biscuit can be used. This time, however, I wanted to make it like a cheesecake to serve at a friend's house, so I crushed the biscuits and mixed with melted butter to make a more traditional base that would go into a round tin.

The second time round I made it smaller - normal sized, and had a bit of spare everythign to make these little glasses of pudding - 4 of them.

Anyway here is the recipe.....

Passionfruit Slice/'Cheesecake'

Serves 12-16

Ingredients:

1 x 250g packet of plain biscuits

1 x 395g can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 c (125ml) lemon juice

2 teaspoons gelatine dissolved in 2-3 tablespoons of  boiling water

300ml double cream

2-3 fresh passionfruit (they are best eaten when the outside is wrinkled) or 1/2 tin of passionfruit pulp

100g melted butter (if you are making the traditional crushed biscuit base)

Method:

1. Line a baking tray or springform pan with baking paper. If using a square/rectangular tray, lay the biscuits out to cover the bottom of the tray.

2. If using the round springform pan, blitz the biscuits in a food processor until finely crumbed. Add melted butter and mix to a wet sand consistency. Press firmly into the base of the pan and smooth over to make it even. Place in the fridge for 30 mins.

3. Meanwhile, sprinkle the gelatine over the boiled water and mix until dissolved. If it is looking thick, add a little more water.

4. Whip the cream until very soft peaks form. Add in the rest of the ingredients (lemon, condensed milk, gelatine) and whip a few more times to combine. Mix gently, you need to make sure it is well combined but not too thick.

5. Spread the mixture over the base and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Spoon the passionfruit pulp on top and refrigerate until set, preferably over night.

Note: I doubled the ingredients to make the cake/slice in these pictures. It's tastes just as good with the quantities, but not as high.

Trust me, this is soooooo good!

ANZAC Biscuits

It's an annual event. ANZAC Day is remembered in Australia and New Zealand on April 25th each year. It is our biggest and most important remembrance day. This year it is the 100th anniversary since the fateful day our troops landed on the beaches at Gallipoli in Turkey.

Anzac Biscuits are probably one of the most iconic of Australian biscuits. They are very simple to make - using ingredients you will find in your store cupboard. They are oat and golden syrup based - you might actually have a similar recipe of your own. Of course they can be made all year round, but many people do make them especially at this time of year.

Anyway do have a go at making these, they are a family favourite and can easily be made dairy free by using an alternative 'butter'.

ANZAC BISCUITS

Makes 35

Ingredients:

1 cup plain flour

1 cup rolled (porridge) oats

1 cup desiccated coconut

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup butter (approx 100g)

2 tablespoons golden syrup

1 teaspoon bi-carb soda

2 tablespoons boiling water

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) .

2. Combine flour, sugar, oats and coconut in a bowl.

3. Melt butter and golden syrup in a small saucepan over a low heat.

4. Mix bi-carb with boiling water and stir. add to syrup. Pour liquids into dry ingredients and mix well.

5. Spoon dollops (walnut size) onto a lined baking tray and leave room to spread.

6. Bake on moderate oven for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven once browned all over - be careful, start with 10 minutes and then check. If they need more time add one more minute and check. DO not walk away from the oven at this time as they can go to burnt VERY QUICKLY.

These biscuits can be chewy or crisp, the difference is 1 minute in the oven!

7. Cool on the tray until they are firm enough to move to a cooling rack. Enjoy!

We will remember them.

(Unbelievably good) Chocolate Chip Biscuits

I can guarantee these are possibly the best chocolate chip biscuits you will ever eat. A big call, I know. But one I don't make lightly. I first made these about 8 years ago when my friend Nadia, gave me a wonderful recipe book called 'Breakfast, Lunch, Tea' by Rose Bakery, in Paris.

The book is filled with amazingly simple and delicious food. I loved it so much, my husband and I searched the bakery out in Paris just to go and have brunch there.  It's run by an English woman and her French husband and it is extremely popular with the locals. You have to wait to be seated and the line can be long. But worth it. You can of course buy something off the counter to take away...your mouth will water as you take in all the delicious options.
They don't seem to have a website, but if you search for Rose Bakery Paris in Google, you will see a LOT of reviews. When next in Paris, I urge you to visit.

Anyway, I wanted to share this recipe with you - taken from the book.


Chocolate Chip Biscuits
From Rose Bakery
Makes about 60 (in my opinion - but actual recipe says 25)

Ingredients:
225g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
220g (generous 1 cup) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 free range eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon bicarb of soda (baking soda)
360g plain (all purpose) flour, sifted - plus extra for dusting
250g finely chopped chocolate (I used dark chocolate with 70% cocoa solids)

Method:
1. Beat the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, then add the vanilla extract.
2. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. If they have that  'curdled' or 'not combined properly' look, add a tablespoon of the flour mixture to help it incorporate.
3. Sift together the salt, flour and bi carb of soda, and beat this into the butter mixture.
4. Finally add the chopped chocolate and mix until smooth. This is a fairly wet mixture, don't worry about that!
5. Tip the cookie dough out onto a floured surface and split into four equal amounts. Roll each quarter into the flour and shape into a log about 4-5cm wide. Wrap each log in cling film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours until hard. At this stage, the biscuit logs can also be frozen. * See note below for how to cook from frozen.

6. Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Line each tray with baking/parchment paper.

7. Cut the dough into 5mm slices using a serrated knife and place them well apart on the baking trays. Bake for about 10 mins or until golden brown.

8. Cool and enjoy.

NOTES:

* If freezing the dough, making sure it is wrapped securely in cling film. Remove from the freezer and slice and cook from frozen.

* You can use chocolate chips in these, but the beauty really comes from the smaller melted pieces of chocolate throughout the whole biscuit. A block is better.

* These biscuits are super light and not overly sweet.

* These are perfect to keep in the freezer and then whip out when someone drops in unexpectedly - they cook in 10 mins.....and cool in only a couple of minutes. So easy to have on stand by.

Packaged up for some of the teachers at my son's school for morning break.

I'm also going to send some to my Foodie Pen Pal this month too.

Lamingtons

Lamingtons. We love them. Really love them. An iconic Australian cake, and popular with most Aussies.

In our house here in the UK, they are simply our favourites. I always have the idea to make a batch, keep a couple out to eat, and then freeze the rest so we can enjoy them for longer. It rarely happens as we just can't resist them!

Anyway, I am going to give you two cake recipes here - choose the one that suits you the best; they both make good lamingtons but one makes them egg and dairy free (& soya free if needed too) and the other is a standard sponge using egg and butter.
Regardless of the recipe you choose, the procedures are still the same.

Lamingtons
Makes approximately 20 cakes

Vanilla Cake

Ingredients:

150g butter, softened

200g caster sugar

125g plain flour

250g self-raising flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp bi-carb soda (baking soda)

3 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

200ml milk

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 160 deg C and then line the bases of a 20 cm x 30cm tin with baking parchment.

2. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy - this will take about 10 minutes so that it is very pale. This adds essential air into the mixture. Sift the flours, baking powder and bi-carb of soda together into another bowl

3. Add the eggs, one at a time into the mixture, beating well after each one. Adding a spoonful of the flour mixture helps prevent curdling.

4. Once all the eggs are incorporated, add the rest of the flour and mix gently until it is all just combined.

5. Pour in the milk and vanilla and mix slowly until it forms a batter consistency.

6. Gently measure equal amounts into the two tins, flatten it out very carefully and then cook for 20-25 mins. Check they are cooked by lightly touching the top- it should spring back. You can also insert a probe - if it comes out clean your cake is cooked.

7. Remove cakes from the oven and allow to cool slightly in the tins. Tip out onto a baking rack to cool completely.


Egg/Dairy Free Cake

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups self raising flour + 2 heaped tablespoons
1 cup caster sugar
pinch salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 cup water

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees celsius. Grease and line a 20cm x 30cm tin with parchment paper.
2. Sift dry ingredients together.
3. Add wet ingredients and mix on high until smooth. Pour into the tin.
4. Bake for 20-25 mins or until a skewer comes out clean.


For both cakes, cool completely and then cut into 4cm x 4cm squares (approximately).

Coating

3 cups icing sugar (powdered sugar), sifted
3 heaped tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted
1/2 cup milk (or soya/coconut/almond milk - any non dairy milk if choosing that option)
50 g unsalted butter (or dairy free alternative)
2 cups desiccated coconut - use 1 cup at a time.

1. Sift icing sugar and cocoa into a medium sized bowl.
2. Warm the milk gently in a small saucepan and add the butter. Stir until melted.
3. Add to the icing sugar and stir thoroughly to remove all lumps. The chocolate mixture should be runny - you might need to add more milk to make it thin enough to coat the cake without running off the sides completely. This takes a bit of trial and error to get right. You might need to try a cake square to gauge the consistency and adjust accordingly. If it is too runny, add a small amount of sifted icing sugar to thicken it. Be careful, only use a small amount at a time.
4. Using two forks, dip a cake square into the chocolate mixtures, coating completely. Lift and allow excess chocolate sauce to drip off the cake, then roll in the coconut, coating thoroughly on all sides.
5. Place onto a wire cooling rack - place some baking paper underneath to catch any drips. If your coating is too thick, you'll get more drips than if it is thinner and the excess has run off before adding the coconut.
6. Repeat for all cake squares.

Lamingtons are best eaten after being allowed to rest and set for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

This week I made one giant lamington cake for my husband -same principle but coating in chocolate required me to use a tray to soak it in the chocolate sauce. I made it a bit too runny, so the chocolate coating wasn't as thick or as sweet as it should have been.

This one is made with the vanilla cake recipe.

This is the vegan (egg and dairy free) cake.

These are an incredibly popular cake - I highly recommend giving them a go!

Kris x

Marshmallow Bunnies

This is my final Easter bake for this year - sadly, as I love Easter baking. This is a recipe we have made for the last few years, and my son and I love making it together. This marshmallow recipe doesn't require any boiling sugar, so it's much simpler and safer with children. The resulting marshmallow is really light and fluffy - YUM!

I have had the large mold for years, but I had to source the small baby bunnies through eBay Australia - they weren't available anywhere else!

The marshmallow stores well for quite a while, so no pressure to eat this in one day!

Marshmallow Bunnies

Ingredients:

2 cups caster sugar

1 cup water - boiling

2 tbsp Gelatine

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 cups desiccated coconut (unsweetened)

pinch of salt

Green food colouring

Method:

1. Dissolve the gelatine in the boiling cup of water.

2. In an electric mixer - add the sugar to a clean bowl, and pour in the gelatin mixture.

Beat on the highest setting for approximately 10 - 15 minutes or until the marshmallow is really thick and white.

3. Add the vanilla and the pinch of salt to the mixture while it is still beating.

4. Meanwhile use a spray oil to grease your bunny molds and a lamington tray (square or rectangular tray about 20cm x 20cm or similar). I would line the tray with parchment paper and oil that.

5. Spoon the mixture into the bunny molds, make sure you try and press the marshmallow into all the nooks and crannies.

6. With a smooth knife make the marshmallow flat on top and place the molds in the fridge for about an hour.

7.  To do the grass, add a small amount of green food colouring to the remaining marshmallow, and beat it in until it is evenly coloured. Scrape into the tray and flatten the top with an offset spatula to make the top flat and even. Chill in the fridge for an hour.

8. While the marshmallow sets, take half the coconut and place into a ziplock bag. Add a couple of drops of green food coloring and massage the coconut so that it becomes green too. It happens easily, and will be a little patchy but I think that adds to the charm.

9. Cut the set marshmallow into squares using a hot knife, and toss into the green coconut to coat all sides.

10. Gently remove the marshmallow bunnies from the moulds, cover in plain coconut and place gently on the grass. the coconut will adhere to the bunnies easily, just pat it on.

11. Using a cotton bud or end of a match/toothpick, dip in food colouring and colour the ears, eyes and nose. If you prefer, you can do they face/ears before adding the coconut - I haven't done it this way but it may be easier than colouring the coconut as well.

12. Keep covered until ready to eat.

An alternate bunny from another year

Orange and Cranberry Hot Cross buns

After my first attempt at these earlier in the week, I have been thinking about, researching and contemplating how to improve them. I am so incredibly happy with these today and I honestly think they are the best ones I have ever eaten!

To top it all off, I knew I was having some Moose Maple Butter delivered this morning, so I wanted them out of the oven so I could slather it on them. This butter is absolutely delicious.....butter mixed with maple syrup and a touch of sea salt and it simply is the perfect accompaniment to the buns. For fairness I did also have a half with normal butter; it was good too, but the Moose Maple butter elevated it to another level.

For this recipe, I based it on Paul Hollywood's classic hot cross buns (from the BBC website - the one in his book is quite different), but made my own adjustments, so I will add my recipe below.

If you have time before Easter, do give these a go. Be aware though, they do take a few hours as they need to prove twice for an hour each time.

In my mind these are the best thing I have made this week!

Orange and Cranberry Hot Cross Buns

For the Buns:

300 ml milk

500 g strong white flour

75 g caster sugar

1 tsp salt

7g sachet fast-action yeast

50 g butter - melted

1 free range egg, beaten

150 g dried cranberries (not fresh ones)

2 oranges, zest of both and juice of one.

1 tsp mixed spice

sunflower oil for greasing the bowl

For the Cross:

75 g plain flour

5 tbsp water

For the Glaze:

1 tbsp caster sugar

1 tbsp boiling water

METHOD:

1. Bring the milk to the boil and then take it off the heat, transfer to a bowl and leave to cool down until it reaches hand temperature. This is very important. Hot milk will kill the yeast, so make sure you let it cool to a just warm temperature.

2. Zest the oranges into a small bowl. In another bowl add the cranberries and the juice of one orange, leave them to soak until step 6.

3. Mix the flour, spices, salt, sugar, yeast, butter and egg together in a bowl and then slowly add the warm milk, mixing until it forms a soft, sticky dough.

4. Tip out the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough for about 5 mins or until is is smooth and elastic. You can of course use the dough hook on an electric mixer, but do the final part out on the bench so it becomes less sticky.

5. Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for about an hour or until doubled in size. 

6. Tip the dough out of the bowl onto the bench top and knead it to remove any air bubbles. Flatten it out into a rectangular shape and sprinkle the drained (and patted dry) cranberries and orange zest onto the dough. Fold the dough over to incorporate the toppings, and knead so they are well combined.  If you add the fruit into the first knead and prove, I have found it stops the dough rising so well. So adding it in just before the second prove seems to work better.

7. Divide the dough into 12 even sized pieces, and roll each piece into a smooth ball on a lightly floured surface - you shouldn't need much flour at this stage. Also, it's okay to knead these pieces a bit more to shape them. Arrange them onto a tray lined with baking parchment, leaving enough room so that they just touch when they expand and rise (about 1-2cm apart depending on their size).

8. Set aside to prove for another hour. At this stage I placed the tray into a clean plastic shopping bag rather than covering in cling film.

9. Heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

10. For the cross, mix the flour with 5 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Add the water a tablespoon at a time, so that you get the right consistency for a thick paste. Spoon the paste into a disposable piping bag (or ziplock bag) and trim off the bottom of the bag - a small opening is all you need. Pipe along each row of buns in one direction only, then come back and do the opposite direction to make crosses, all in one go. Don't do individual buns, it will look messy and take so much longer.

11. Bake for 20-25 mins on the middle shelf in the oven, or until golden brown.

12. Mix the caster sugar and water together until the sugar dissolves, and then when they buns are straight out of the oven brush them liberally with the glaze so the tops are all covered.

13. Gently rip the buns apart to eat and enjoy!

 

Utter, utter deliciousness!

Happy Easter everyone!