In Australia Valentine’s Day is just a minor blip on the calendar, not the huger than huge occasion it is in the US. Nonetheless it gives me a perfect excuse to dust off my heart-shaped cutters and to create something sweet. Continue reading
Donna Hay chocolate cookies with peppermint filling
7 FebI think I am in the minority when I say it should be a case of ‘never the twain shall meet’ with chocolate and peppermint. Followers of my blog will know that I don’t have a sweet tooth but that’s not the reason for my somewhat controversial belief. Continue reading
Tequila cookies
11 Jan
When I was a teenager, many millennium ago, tequila was the go to drink for party people. Never me, of course – I drank nothing but water on nights out with friends #Ummmm
Anyway, the image of tequila as a cheap and cheerful beverage was only recently extinguished for me when the Hungry Dad brought home a fancy bottle of tequila. Clue number one that it was nothing like the drink of days gone by: the bottle stopper wasn’t a mini sombrero. Clue number two: it wasn’t a ginormous bottle and it cost more than I care to admit. Continue reading
Red velvet cookies with cream cheese filling
4 Jan
I was looking for red velvet-themed baking recipes to make. I found enough to keep me baking every day for the rest of my life but there was something about this one that caught me eye. Red velvet is my fav flavour on the rare occasion that I indulge in sweet treats so I knew I had to make these. Continue reading
Donna Hay rum & raisin Christmas cookies
19 DecThese are the cookies Santa is waiting for each Christmas Eve as he frantically makes his journey across the planet on his sleigh.
Rich, chunky, chocolatey and with a hint of rum they will give Mr Claus a much needed energy fix to help him keep on keeping on. The oats will help his cholesterol levels after all those other treats he has snacked on during his journey and the rum will soothe his weary bones. Continue reading
Donna Hay Christmas cinnamon sugar cookies / biscuits
24 NovHo ho ho – it is getting very close to all that is festive… the ‘where has the year gone?’ conversations, the ‘what am I going to buy Aunty Carol?’ questions, the musings on when to bake to avoid the heat of the day…
Here in Sydney December is always a bazillion degrees. Often humid, too. And very often followed by a thunderstorm late in the day. As I type we are experiencing a house-shaking, sky-piercing, ear-throbbing thunder and lightening spectacular.
I used a snowflake cutter to make these cookies / biscuits as it is the newest member of my constantly expanding cookie cutter collection. We don’t get snow, so I don’t understand the fascination with all things frozen. Having said that, I’m not sure what a Southern Hemisphere festive-season cutter would be shaped like – a sun? A huge fly? A sunburnt tourist on Bondi Beach?
Maybe we’ll stick with tradition then…
Rosemary chocolate chip cookies / biscuits
2 SepI have written before about my wonderful rosemary bush, which thrives despite the neglect we show it. It is vibrant, green, and always happy to provide a sprig or two whenever we deign to visit it. Poor tree.
These rosemary choc chip biscuits (as we call them) or cookies (for my American readers) are amazing: a bewitching combination of savoury and sweet. They marry perfectly with a cuppa or a glass of something stronger (don’t worry – I won’t tell anyone.) Continue reading
How to bake lemon bars
8 AugI was unaware of the tarty deliciousness of lemon bars until about a week ago. I had seen umpteen recipes on international blogs but it wasn’t until my mother-in-law presented me with a bucket filled to the brim with lemons from her tree that I decided to make them.
Hello, tastebuds. Continue reading
Easy raspberry and almond squares recipe
25 Jul
It is so cold in Sydney at the moment that I’m spending most of my time in the kitchen baking. Standing in front of a lovely warm oven is the best way to while a way a bit of time. The downside is I’m burning through flour, milk, eggs and butter at a rate of knots! Oh well…
Recently I flicked through some of my so-huge-it-needs-to-be-culled cookbook collection and landed on a recipe from The Australian Women’s Weekly book, The Baking Collection. This marvellous book is, as they say in certain circles, all thriller – no filler. Page after page of tempting bakes to make and I could think of no happier way to spend a day than creating some of these treats.
I chose the recipe for raspberry and walnut slice, though I used ground almonds instead of ground walnuts. I think any ground nut [or nut meal] would work here so feel free to experiment. The recipe called for ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon but I am such a lover of this scented spice that I just freehanded a massive amount.
GATHER:
150g butter, diced and softened
2/3 cup icing sugar
1 ¾ cup plain flour
at least one teaspoon ground cinnamon [more if you prefer]
½ cup ground almonds
300g frozen raspberries
LET’S GET TO IT:
Preheat oven to 180C and grease and line a 20cm x 30cm rectangular slice pan.
In bowl of electric mixer beat butter and icing sugar until pale [you may need to scrape down sides of bowl a few times]
Stir in sifted flour, cinnamon and nut meal until mixture is crumble [do not over-mix].
Set aside one cup of crumble mix, then place the rest of the crumble mix in the pan and use the base of a glass to firmly pat down. Sprinkle over raspberries, then sprinkle over remaining mix.
Bake for around 20 minutes or until golden.
Inhale – the smell is amazing.
Allow to cool in tin before slicing into squares.
Donna Hay white chocolate and macadamia biscuits / cookies
12 JunSo as you may have noticed I quite enjoying baking 🙂 I especially love sharing my baked goods with family and friends – despite my adoration of turning sugar, flour and eggs into cakes and biscuits I’m not such a sweet tooth. #teamSavoury.
As is my wont I made these Donna Hay white chocolate and macadamia bickies [or cookies, for my American friends] and took them into work this week. My friend Jane declared these morsels to be some of my best work. When I relayed this compliment to the Hungry Dad he agreed.