Pineapple and Coconut Slice

See I told you I wouldn't make you wait long! 

It all started a few days ago when Mr B and I were at the supermarket. I was scouring the dried fruit section looking for my 'go-to' mix of mango, blueberries and cranberries but alas they were all out, so I hesitantly asked Mr B if he would eat dried apricots in a slice...the look he gave me was enough to know the answer was not so much 'no', but 'hell no'. Just when I was about to give up and buy him a jam roll off the clearance table, he piped up with a very meek 'but I do like dried pineapple....' 

It wasn't until I got home and thought about it that I realised I wasn't entirely sure what to do with dried pineapple. A quick google search only gave me a million web sites on how to make dried pineapple or how to make dried pineapple flowers, which looked fascinating, but not quite what I was after. Luckily Mr B had gone to a poker game for the evening so I had plenty of time to figure it out. 

I was thinking slice and I was thinking pineapple and coconut so I decided to have a play around with a recipe for Almond Slice (obviously minus the almonds) and you know what, it turned out pretty good! 

For the base you will need:

1/2 cup brown sugar

125g butter (melted)

1 cup plain flour

Pre-heat oven to 160C. 

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and press into the bottom of a lined and greased slice tin. Bake for 12- 15 mins.

While that is baking make your topping...

For the topping you will need:

1/4 cup milk

90g butter 

1/2 cup dessicated coconut

1/3 cup brown sugar

200g dried pineapple 

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and microwave for 3 minutes, stirring half way through. Give it a good stir and microwave for a further 60 seconds. 

Pour over the cooked base and put back in the oven for 10-15 mins. 

When it is done, let it sit on the counter to cool before you try and slice it.

This slice is so yummy, with it's brown sugar shortbread base and chewy pineapple and coconut topping, it doesn't matter if you have it hot out of the oven with some whipped cream or straight out of the fridge, it's delicious either way! 

Mrs B xx

Carrot and Vanilla Cake

It is relatively early on Sunday evening here, but it has been such a big weekend and Mr B and I are absolutely exhausted so we are sitting in our warm cosy beds, trying to keep our eyes open for just a few more minutes!

It all started Friday morning, Mr B and I were fortunate enough to have the day off work and the sun was shining so we decided to make the most of it.....what better way to do this then with a road trip!?

We headed east towards an area called Strathgordon, which is about an hour and a half / two hours drive from where we live, and to get there you go through some of the most beautiful forest scenery you will ever see. Once we got to the end of the road (you literally drive until you get to the end of the road!), we were able to walk out and across the Gordon Dam. The Dam is 140m high, just several metres higher than the Sydney Harbour Bridge (134m), and holds back thirty times the amount of water in the Harbour itself! But the facts and figures are nothing compared to the view.......

On our way home we called into Maydena because we had heard about a volunteer project called Railtrack Riders. Some members of the community have gotten together and built these pedal powered railtrack carts so you can pedal your way up the old railway track through the forest. And best of all, if you get tired, the guide comes up behind you on his cart and gives you a push! Once you reach the end of the track there is a display of old photos taken in Maydena when the forestry business was booming and the guide tells you all about them and the history. After this you go for a quick walk through the forest and they tell you to keep an eye out for the local platypus. Now it was about here I started to complain, loudly, about how I had never seen a platypus in the wild and how I hate it when people tell you to just keep an eye out for one! Next thing I knew, Mr B was jumping up on a log laying across the river and waving his arms about like a crazy man. My first thought was that he had a) lost his mind and b) if he didn't stop jumping around he would fall in the water but then I saw what all the fuss was about - the platypus was there! He was a cute lil bugger and we watched in awe and admiration until he got sick of us and disappeared into the water. Mission accomplished, we made our way out of the forest and back to our railtrack cart for the ride back. It was such a unique experience in such a beautiful location, and it was so much fun!  

To top the day off, we went out for dinner to a place called the Salamanca Beef and Seafood Grill. We have been there a few times and never had a bad meal, this time Mr B had a 1kg steak topped with prawns and scallops and I had Tasmanian Salmon topped with basil pesto and camembert and we finished the whole thing off with a gelato tasting plate - doesn't get much better then that. 

Yesterday we were up early, and wearing head to toe fluro wet weather gear, and out in the elements planting trees around our fence line. My Mum and Dad have been digging these trees out from their new property and were kind enough to give them to us. We got maybe 10 in and then had to pack it in as Mr B was going to watch the local football and I had heard whisperings of a new cake decorating shop I wanted to check out. Shortly after I arrived at the shop I had to phone Mr B and advise him I would be moving in as I was now home and would he come visit me. He said no so that kind of spoilt that idea, but I was very pleased and excited about the shop and all their goodies! Definitely going to become a favourite of mine and I'm thinking it may just be easier to have my pay sent straight to their bank account every fortnight! 

I managed to pick Mr B up and feed him a veal parmigiana before taking him to a poker game (quite the social butterfly this weekend isn't he!) which meant I got to spend the evening in the kitchen baking. After cranking out enough chutney and cheese scrolls to last a life time, I also whipped up a pineapple and coconut slice using dried pineapple and it is to die for....stay tuned and I will put the recipe up in the next few days!

All of this leads us to today....Mr B and I were up early again, planting 19 more trees in the wind and the rain and the cold. But it was worth it, assuming they all survive they will be a lovely border around our property and provide some much needed shelter and privacy. After that Mr B and I had just enough energy left to make a much needed cup of tea and put a big pot of pumpkin soup and some fresh bread on for dinner. It has been a huge weekend but we have achieved a lot which is always nice. 

Do you know what else is nice - Carrot and Vanilla Cake! And it's perfect to have on hand for those busy weekends when you get unexpected visitors or your just too busy to make your own lunch and need something you can grab on the run! 

This cake was really easy - mainly because I cheated. If you want to, you can make all the components from scratch, but if you don't, it's ok to cheat! 

All you will need is

1 pkt carrot cake mix with vanilla icing

1 pkt moist vanilla cake mix with vanilla icing

Prepare and bake carrot cake as per packet directions in a 9x 6 round tin.

Prepare and bake vanilla cake as per packet directions in a 9x6 round tin. 

Combine both icing sachets and prepare as directed. Set aside. 

Once the carrot cake is cooked, remove from the tin and place cake into a bowl. Set aside.

Once the vanilla cake is cooked, remove from the tin and cut the top of the cake off so it is nice and level. Place the off cuts in the bowl with the carrot cake.

Now, get your hands in there and combine the carrot cake and the vanilla cake off cuts. Make sure it is all well combined. 

Take a round 9x6 cake tin and line with baking paper. Push the carrot cake mixture into the tin ensuring even coverage. Spread the cake with a thin layer of vanilla icing. Place the vanilla cake on top and leave in the fridge for a 2-3 hours.

Remove cake from tin, pour over the remaining icing and sit down with a cup of tea and a well deserved slice of cake!

I know it sounds a little fiddly, but it's really not that time consuming and let's be honest, the only thing better then carrot cake is carrot and vanilla cake!  

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend however you chose to spend it!

Mrs B x

Prawn and Rice Noodles

You know how sometimes you just get a craving for something out of the blue? And you just can't rest / enjoy another meal until you've had it? 

Well that was me last week. 

All I wanted was some Singapore Noodles with Prawns.....and I don't even eat prawns! 

Ridiculous I say, but none the less, took up the challenge and set about making this recipe for Prawn and Rice Noodles I had floating around my recipe folder. 

You will need:

250g rice vermicelli noodles

5 spring onions, thinly sliced

2 tspns crushed garlic 

300g medium green prawns, peeled and deveined, with the tails removed

1 medium tomato, diced

2 cups roughly shredded wombok (Chinese cabbage)

1/4 cup Hoi Sin Sauce

2 tbspns soy sauce

1 egg, lightly beaten

Place noodles in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the dish. 
Heat a wok or fry pan over medium-high heat and spray with cooking oil. 
Add eschalots and garlic. Stir-fry for 1 minute or until softened. 
Add prawns. Stir-fry for 3 minutes or until prawns are just pink. 
Add tomato and wombok. Stir-fry for 1 minute or until heated through.
Add noodles, hoi sin, soy and season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine. 
Add egg. Stir-fry for 1 minute or until egg is cooked and Ta-Da! 


Just like that, you have created a delicious dish that people will think came from the local chinese takeaway, not from your very own kitchen!

This recipe made enough for Mr B and I to have a GIANT bowl each...but in reality it would easily make 4 normal sized meals. 

Craving satisfied. 

Happy Wednesday everyone!!!

Mrs B xx

Sunday night musings.....

Well another weekend has come and gone before we even knew it had arrived!

It all kicked off on Friday night, poor Mr B was exhausted and asleep on the couch by 5pm so being the good little house wife I am, I left him a steak and some chips out on the bench ready to be cooked and took myself out to dinner with the ladies from work.

We went to a restaurant called The Drunken Admiral down on the waterfront. It's a fantastic little seafood place and the atmosphere and menu there just go hand in hand with a great night out. The meals did not disappoint with everyone oohing and aahing over everyone else's mains. I had pan fried blue-eye rubbed with Indian spices and served with coconut rice and mint yoghurt - totally as good as it sounds! Just when we thought we could not be anymore satisfied......they brought out the dessert menu. A few of us decided to share the 'Undecided Dessert Plate' which was supposed to be a dessert tasting plate to serve 2 people and every night they change what is on it. Ours came out with some lemon curd (that tasted like the perfect lemon meringue pie filling), a twist on a summer pudding (which was a lovely fruit jelly topped with a vanilla bean custard), some chocolate mousse topped with shaved chocolate and a bowl of macadamia ice cream....excuse me while I slip blissfully into dessert heaven!! (Thanks Netty for the photo!!)

  

Saturday was a bit cold and miserable so Mr B and I organised a lunch / shopping date with his Mum and sister. First thing's first though, we had to feed our lil babies...........

At the moment we have 13 sheep staying in our back paddock and 5 of them are ready to have lamb's any day now! It is quite funny to see all their little personalities come out and the way they follow us around (like sheep!!) when we go for a walk up there.  

Lunch was lovely too - I didn't have the camera with me, but I had the biggest pineapple fritters I have ever seen.....it also didn't hurt that the pineapple was soaked in rum and vanilla before it was battered either! 

After lunch we were people 'with no purpose,' as Mr B's Mum put it, but somehow we managed to cover a fair bit of ground (and shop up a storm while we were at it!). By the time Mr B and I got home it was dark and time for dinner and a warm bed! 

As for today, well this morning I woke up and thought it was Monday, then I thought it was Thursday, then I thought maybe Friday....eventually I figured out it was Sunday so I got up and got Mr B and I some brekkie in bed - only way to spend a Sunday morning, lying in bed with a coffee and some hot buttery english muffins!

When we managed to drag ourselves out of bed, we went to visit some friends of ours who have recently had a little bub. I have been trying to restrain myself, but couldn't hold out anymore, there was a cute, newborn little baby with my name all over it for hugs! He was a gorgeous little boy and slept peacefully the whole time we were there (cluck cluck!!)

A quick trip to the supermarket later and the only thing left to do for the day was dive into the kitchen. I whipped up these Date and Banana Muffins using the recipe for my Date Loaf and I just added 2 chopped bananas into the date mixture before I microwaved it. These are really delicious and I can't wait to try one with some butter and a cup of tea!

Sheppard's Pie for dinner....ssshhhh don't tell the sheep!!

Hope you all had a fantastic weekend 

Mr and Mrs B xx

Mr B's Chicken Involtini

Is there really anything better then sitting down at the end of a busy day to a delicious meal? How about a delicious meal that someone else cooked? Don't get me wrong, I love being in the kitchen, but I am also quite partial to putting my feet up while someone else is in the kitchen on my behalf - don't we all? 

When Mr B said he was going to just 'whip up' some chicken involtini for dinner a few nights ago I was mainly just grateful for the opportunity to curl up on the couch with a blanket and play on the computer. Little did I know I would be presented with this......

...........I think he may have been showing off a little!! 

Not that I am complaining because it was mighty tasty! Although I did feel like after he made such a lovely dinner, the least I could do was the washing up.....and no one likes doing the washing up.

If you want to be like Mr B and impress people with your skills in the kitchen, you will need:

2 large chicken breasts

8 slices prosciutto
2 tspns crushed italian herbs (including basil, garlic and oregano)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 thin slices mozzarella or 1/2 cup grated mozarella and parmesan
2 tspns crushed garlic
3 large ripe tomatoes, halved, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup vegetable stock
1 teaspoon sugar
salad or steamed vegetables, to serve

Preheat the oven to 180°C (fan-forced).

Butterfly the chicken breasts by slicing horizontally almost to the end, taking care not to cut all the way through. Open out the chicken and press to flatten.

Arrange four slices of prosciutto overlapping each other on your work surface. Place a butterflied chicken breast along the thin edge, then top with 1 tspn herbs and a slice of mozzarella or 1/4 cup grated cheese.

Carefully roll up the chicken in the prosciutto to enclose the filling. It should hold it's shape, but if it doesn't, tie up with some kitchen string. Repeat to make the remaining involtini.

Heat a fry pan over medium heat and spray with some cooking oil. Add the two involtini and cook for about 2 minutes on each side until the proscuitto is brown and crisp. Remove from the pan and place in a baking dish.

Spray the pan again with a light coat of oil and add the tomato, garlic and stock.  Bring to the boil and reduce the heat so the mixture is just simmering. Season with pepper and sugar and cook for about 10 mins or until the sauce thickens slightly- don't add salt as the prosciutto is quite salty!!

Pour the sauce into the baking dish with the involtini and bake for 15 mins, being sure to turn the involtini over half way through. A skewer inserted into the centre of the rolls should release clear juices.

Serve with salad or steamed vegies.

                                          

May I just say that these were absolutely awesome! It was amazing how salty the sauce actually was because of the prosciutto, but that didn't matter because the combination of the salty prosciutto with the fresh tomatoes, herbs, mozarella and the chicken was just spot on - I will be requesting this become a regular I think!! 

Mrs B xx

Lemon Muffins with Strawberry Cheesecake Filling

When I'm not in the kitchen or curled up on the couch / in bed or out exploring the world / buying shoes, I'm at work. 

I know. 

Believe me I'm not a fan of it either. 

If I had my way I spend my days baking up a storm in some exotic location whilst wearing a gorgeous pair of shoes from my never ending collection, but alas in the real world, I work a 9-5...or in my case a 7:30 - 4....so today I wanted to share something with you.....

My desk. 

Which, for 8 hours a day, is my home.

I believe three of the most important things that make work less like work are 

1) working with great people (which I do)

2) enjoying what you do (which most days I do)

and 3) adding some personal touches to your workspace 

Note the essential elements below....

- Skull coffee mug

- Shoe clock

- Paper weight (gift from Mum and Dad when I started work)

- Mood calendar to advise / warn people when it is safe to enter or better to stay away 

- Red Nose Day teddy bear holding a Daffodil Day flower pot

- Wedding photos (and on the wall next to my desk, family photos) to remind me that life is about more then       

   just work

- Shoe calendar  (to remind me life is about shoes!) 

- Collection of nail files, combs and pen....plus phone, sticky notes and essential scribble paper 

- And I always have the radio on for some background noise....plus an impromptu dance / sing in the middle    

   of the day never goes astray!

 

Do you know what else never goes astray? Muffins! Tangy lemon muffins topped with a dollop of sweet creamy strawberry cheesecake!

All you will need is:

2.5 cups self raising flour
1/4 cup caster sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Juice and rind from one large (or 2 small) lemons
100g cream cheese softened
2 tbspns strawberry jam
1 tbspn icing sugar

Combine the cream cheese, strawberry jam and icing sugar in a bowl. Stir to combine and set aside.

Pre-heat oven to 160C (fan forced) and grease a 12 hole muffin tray.

Combine the flour, sugar, milk, egg, oil, lemon rind and juice in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until smooth.

3/4 fill each muffin cup and top with a tbspn of the cheesecake mixture.

Bake for 20-25 mins until they bounce back when touched or a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Take them to work, share them out, people will love you, that's just how it goes.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Mrs B x

Bavarian-on-a-Biscuit

Hello out there!! 

We are back into baking with a vengeance in our house!! It has been a long weekend here so not only did 3 whole days off provide for extra sleep in time, but it also provided for extra baking time!! 

Friday evening / Saturday morning resulted in these Bavarian-on-a-biscuits....Sunday evening resulted in a carrot and vanilla cake, some cheese and vegemite twists, cheese and chutney scrolls and some lemon muffins with strawberry cheesecake filling!! Did I mention I missed my lil kitchen while we were away? I just feel at home pottering in there, with the electric mixer going, trays lined up waiting for the oven, ingredients scattered across every bench top.....it makes me happy and I feel content there. We do have our disagreements from time to time....the appliances and the ingredients conspire and recipes don't turn out how they are supposed to, but then we have our moments when things just work - like these Bavarian-On-A-Biscuits! 

What could be better then chocolate chip cookies, topped with creamy bavarian and smothered in a fudgey chocolate ganache? Not much really, but I am about to jump into a hot bubble bath with my bavarian, a book I haven't been able to put down, House of Night No. III - totally better then the Twilight books, and a large glass of Captain Morgan's spiced rum, totally became addicted to it and Jameson's while we were away. I'm thinking between the bath, the dessert, the book and the rum, I could be onto a winning combination! 

Anyway, if you want to make these sweet little treats to indulge yourself either in a hot bath, snuggled up on the couch, hiding in the wardrobe, whatever takes your fancy, this is how it's done.....

You will need:

100g cream cheese at room temperature

1 cup thickened cream

2 tbspn cocoa

1 cup icing suger

20 chocolate chip cookies - 12 to be crushed and used in the bavarian and 8 to be kept whole for the assembly

300g chocolate melts

2 tbspn butter

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, cream, cocoa and icing sugar. Beat until smooth. 

Fold in the crushed chocolate chip cookies. Place mixture in the freezer for 4-6 hours or overnight.

When the bavarian mixture is chilled, place the chocolate melts and butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second bursts, stirring in between until smooth.

Place the remaining cookies on a baking tray. 

       



                       

Using a small ice cream scoop, scoop bavarian onto each cookie - be sure to press the bavarian gently onto the cookie to ensure it sticks.




Working quickly, dip each cookie, bavarian side first, into the chocolate. Don't be scared to push it right down into the chocolate to ensure your bavarian is totally covered. I find the best thing to do is have your chocolate in a deep jug and just push the biscuit straight in and pull it straight out. Place the biscuit on your tray and move onto the next one. Place the tray in the freezer for 4-6 hours to set before transferring to an airtight container. Now just remember it is a ganache on the top, so they won't be set set, but they will firm up. And do I even need to mention how the biscuit goes all soft and chewy and delicious!?

How has your weekend been? 

We have had a busy, but productive weekend. Alongside all that cooking, we managed to get in a bike ride to see Mr B's Pop - which involved us being fed a lovely roast lunch and getting to show off all our holiday snaps....and my first night time ride on the way back....which also led to my first 'night time run out of fuel on the side of the highway', but hey, that's what reserve tanks are for!! On Sunday we went to visit Mum and Dad at their new favourite local B&B - aptly named Emily's cottage - then on the way home we treated ourselves to Photoshop Elements 10 - first a new camera and now this....we are becoming quite the lil photographers!!! And that brings us to today...sleep in.....brekkie in bed.....groceries....walk around the paddock to check for lambs - 5 of our sheep are ready to have their lambs any day now which is all new and exciting for me - and we finished the day off with a visit from our friends - Ali is 6 months pregnant and she is just one of those people who looks stunningly beautiful the whole way through her pregnancy and really brings to life the definition of 'glowing' and her partner Matt just gets along so well with Mr B...they are scarily alike...they are the sort of friends you just love to see, doesn't matter if you are having a crisis or a bad day or a celebration, you know that if they are there, there will be smiles and laughter and good times so it was lovely to see them and catch up on all the travel stories and photos. Mr B also did some serious showing off in the kitchen tonight by cooking chicken involtini for dinner - totally worth it's own post later in the week....and that brings us to right now...my bath is run, my rum is cold and my bavarian is waiting so I hope you all had a lovely weekend and enjoy the week to come! 

Mrs B xxx