Nonnax9's Blog

I think I originally got the recepie from my friend Esther.  I only make this at Christmas time for Christmas Pressies.  It is always a great hit and is yummy with ice-cream.  However it is pretty boozy and should be taken into consideration if driving soon after consumption.

1. 6 cups of water
2. 2 cups of orange juice
3. 12 fine strips of orange rind
4. 6   fine strips of lemon rind
5. 8 whole cloves
6. 1 cinnamon stick about 5 cm
7. 750 grams of dried fruit salad mix
8. 1 1/2 cups of brandy or more if you want

1 1/2 cups of sugar

 Method:

 Heat water, orange juice with fruit rind, cloves and cinnamon in a saucepan.

Put fruit into a basin and pour hot syrup over and leave stand for 4 hour

Return fruit and syrup to the saucepan and add sugar and cover and cook until it comes to the boil.

Return to the basin and cool

Add brandy and stir through

Spoon into clean sterile jars pushing fruit down into the syrup so it is all covered.

Leave stand for at least 3 day before using.

I have had this for well over 12 months and it is just fine.

Probably tastes better really

Note:  I find this is too much liquid so I use only 3 or 4 cups of water and double the fruit.  I then use a bit more sugar and about half a cup and a few more cloves and extra cinnamon stick

This is a mayonnaise I make when I want something a bit different from the stuff from the Supermarket.  It is great on home made coleslaw and I like it on an old fashioned salad. (one that is just lettuce, tomato etc on you plate.)  I usually make triple quantities.

This will keep for months if kept in the fridge.  It does sometimes curdle when you add the vinegar but it will come out smooth in the end.

You Need:

• 1 egg
• 2 tabsp of sugar
• 1 teasp of mustard
• 1/2 teasp cornflour
• salt.

Beat all the ingredients together well and then add

• 2 tabsp vinegar
• 3 tabsp milk

stir constantly over heat until mayo thickens and comes to the boil.  Cool and refrigerate.

EGGPLANT PIE

I usually only cook this for something special as it takes a while to do and it is very fattening as it is full of calories but delicious. It is also fairly rich.

It needs to be cooked a couple of days before to be really yummy.

You Need:

• A couple of grilled eggplants – I cheat here and buy it cooked from Norton Street Grocer.
• A good quantity of spaghetti sauce.
• Fresh white breadcrumbs
• And pecorino cheese.  Quiet a bit.

Cook and prepare the eggplants by peeling slicing into reasonable slices by that I mean not paper thin and cook either on the bar-b-que or in a pan with olive oil

For the sauce I sauté a few cloves of garlic add a couple of tall jars of Passata and a handful of basil.  S & P.  Simmer for a while until a little thickened.  If you have too much you can always use it for spaghetti and it will freeze.

To do the breadcrumbs:  You will probably need 1 loaf of bread.

Heat a good quantity of olive oil in a pan.  Needs to be fairly hot so the crumbs sizzle. 

Drop a good handful of crumbs into the oil and keep stirring around and turning until brown.  It soaks up lots of oil so you need to keep adding more.  Keep doing this until all the crumbs are done.

• Now you should have the eggplant done
• The sauce ready
• The crumbs done.

Now start layering it all into a pie dish.

• Cover the bottom of the dish with the sauce
• Then a layer of eggplant
• Then a layer of cooked crumbs
• Then sprinkle cheese all over it and start again

• Sauce, eggplant, crumbs, cheese.

• Sauce, eggplant, crumbs, cheese.

• Finish with crumbs and cheese when you have a few layers.  I usually have 3 or 4 depending on the depth of the dish.

Then cook in the oven for about 1 hour for it all to soak up.

Serve with crusty bread and green salad.

CHEESE AND MACADAMIA BISCUITS

250 grams of grated cheese (I used half tasty cheddar and half pecorino)

250grams butter

2 cups plain flour

Pinch cayenne pepper

100g or so of well chopped macadamia nuts

Cream butter and cheese.  Add flour, pepper and chopped nuts.

Roll into thin logs and wrap in glad wrap. Freeze

Cut and cook on papered tray in 250 degrees for about 10 minutes or until done.  (It seems to take longer more like 20 mins in my oven)

I will make about 3 logs out of this mixture and keeps well in freezer.

Whole Orange Cake with Citrus Icing

1 medium whole orange (240g)

200g melted butter

3 eggs, beaten lightly

1 cup (220g) caster sugar

11/2 cups of self raising flour

1. 1.                Preheat oven to moderate (180C/160C fan forced). Grease and line 20cm cake pan with baking paper
2. 2.                Wash and dry orange; cut into quarters and remove seeds. Process in a small food processor until it becomes pulpy.
3. 3.                Transfer orange to a medium bowl, stir in butter, eggs, sugar and sifted flour until smooth. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake in mod oven for about 50 mins or until cooked when tested.  Stand for 10 mins before turning onto a wire rack to cool.

CITRUS ICING

1 medium lemon (140g)

1 small orange (180g)

1 cup of icing sugar mixture

1 teasp of boiling water

Using a zester remove strips of rind from lemon and orange.  You will needl2 teasp of each

Squeeze juice from fruit you will need 2 teasp of both orange and lemon.  Sift icing sugar into a bowl and stir in juices and enough water to make a smooth paste. Stir in rind.

Pour citrus icing immediately over cake; stand until set.

I usually serve this with just icing sugar sprinkled over it and a blob of clotted cream on the side as I didn’t like the icing that comes with this recipe.

Perhaps it might be OK with a thicker icing

2 oz butter (I just use a big spoonful)

4 tabsp plain flour

s & p

¼ teasp dry mustard

Pinch cayenne

2 ½ cups milk

3 gherkins

2 hard boiled eggs

7 oz can salmon (I just use the big size)

1 chicken stock cube

4 shallots or spring onions

Melt the butter and add flour, S & P, mustard cayenne and cook stirring 1 minute. Gradually add milk and stir until sauce comes to boil and thickens, cook 1 minute.  Remove from the heat and add finely sliced gherkins and roughly chopped eggs, drained salmon, crumbled stock cubes and chopped shallots.

 Spoon into greased ovenproof dish.  Sprinkle topping on top and bake in mod oven 20-25 minutes till heated through and golden brown on top.

TOPPING

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

2 tabsp butter

4oz (30g) cheese 1 tabsp chopped parsley

Combine ingredients and sprinkle on top

I don’t really measure anything in this recipe.  I just guess and it always turns out.

Aunty Marge’s

ANZAC BISCUITS

2 cups of rolled oats

11/2 (half) cups coconut

2 cups of plain flour

3 teasp bicarbonate soda

5 tabsp boiling water

1 cup of sugar

2 tabsp golden syrup

250g butter

Combined rolled oats, sifted flour, sugar and coconut in bowl

Combine butter and golden syrup in saucepan stir over heat until the butter is melted.

Mix soda with boiling water and add to melted butter mixture.

Stir into dry ingredients

Roll teasp of mixture onto baking paper lined trays and flatten with fork.  Allow room for spreading

Bake in slow oven for 20 minutes until golden and cool on tray.

Mixture makes about 6 doz.

Warning:

Be careful when adding soda and water to butter as it froths up everywhere and makes a bit mess.  After the first mess I learnt to do it over the basin of dry ingredients.