Almond Rosemary Crackers

A boring title methinks…but I have been studying good blogging habits and to my horror found I have comitted the cardinal recipe blogging sin; not naming my post correctly…being silly, in other words! This means all you search engine recipe junkies cannot find my recipes because, ‘Going Crackers’ does not come up in google when ‘Crackers’ is the search term!

So in an effort to help more readers find my recipes, I have taken the Oath of Truthful Titles, (yes that would be OTT)…no more crazy lady rants…well in the title at least.

I am sitting at present in Alice Springs airport waiting for my flight home to Perth after a whirlwind trip to cook with Cyndi O’Meara. What a beautiful place this is and I must say, unexpectedly so from my perspective. I think I thought I was flying into a flat desert, but quite the contrary. Stunning scenery and iconic Australian landscape that needs further investigation with the family…but I digress.

This recipe is one I whipped up last weekend in a cooking frenzy to feed my family in my absence (do they appreciate it?? NO!)

It is adapted from a recipe on Elana’s Pantry, a fantastic Gluten Free site that I frequent, though there are ingredients used that are unavailable in Australia. As usual, I knew there was an easier Thermomix version and so this; fantastic Almond and Rosemary crackers. I must say I have gone down this path before, but always added flour to make more of a shortbread. I now have a whole gamut of other ideas based on this method, so hold on to your Thermomixes…here we go!

Almond and Rosemary Crackers

NEED:

2 sprigs fresh rosemary, foliage only

270g blanched almonds

Celtic Sea salt to taste

1tbsp EVOO

1 egg

DO:

Preheat oven to 150°C.

Place rosemary, almonds and salt into Thermomix bowl and mill for 5 seconds on speed 8.

Add EVOO and egg and mix for 10 seconds on speed 6 to form a dough.

Roll out between 2 sheets of baking paper as thinly as possible and score with a pizza cutter into desired shapes. Sprinkle with additional salt grains if desired and press into the dough with a piece of baking paper.

Bake for 15 minutes until crisp. To complete ‘crisping’ process, break crackers apart and turn over and return to turned off oven to dry out.

Serve with cheese platter.

TASTE:

Add different herbs of choice according to what you have growing in your garden. Other good matches would be basil, oregano, paprika, or add garlic and 40g of good Parmesan to the nut mix before milling together.

So there you have it kids, not as boring as one may think…and all as I sit in an airport, gotta love it…

Persian Power Bars

I have been twiddling around with the idea of power bars for sometime as the ones you can buy are;

• A) nasty tasting
• B) bad for you in that they have masses of additives and
• C) because I have a Thermomix and that is what I do!

Of course due to the masses of spare time at my disposal, until now there has been no need for such a thing on here, but dear reader, I recieved my usual subscription email from my friends over at Duo Dishes this week…and inspirationally there was a lovely recipe for something along the lines I had been thinking of, but far more romantically named and of Persian origin, who could not be charmed by that idea? Anyhoo…it catapulted me into action and here we have it! I guess the thing I loved most about their recipe was the no baking bit, and of course with Thermomix in your kitchen, the cooking plus stirring part could not be easier!

However, it did became a bit of a ‘schlep’ (as Marketing Manager Mandy would say…MMM from here on in!) I have 4 Thermomix bowls at home which naturally makes life a little easier in recipes like this, but I resolutely persisted and did this in one bowl, just so I knew it could be done…and yes kids, it can!

Persian Power Bars (with a little Duo input!)

NEED:

100g walnut pieces

40g organic shredded coconut

100g almonds

100g rapadura sugar

zest 1 orange

400g pitted Medjool dates

100g shelled pistachios

1tsp vanilla bean paste

240g unsalted butter

40g raw honey

300g SR flour

2tsp ground cinnamon

2tsp ground cardamom

1tsp Celtic sea salt

DO:

Toast walnuts for 10 minutes by placing into cold oven and setting temperature to 200C. Cool. (May I just mention, do not skip this step as the difference between toasted and untoasted walnuts is a revelation in flavour!)

Place coconut, almonds, raw sugar and orange zest into Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 9. Set aside.

Place dates, pistachios, vanilla and toasted walnuts into Thermomix bowl and chop for 10 seconds on speed 6. Set aside.

Place butter, honey, flour and ground spices into Thermomix bowl and chop for 3 seconds on speed 5.

Cook for 20 minutes at 100C on speed 2. Ensure that mixture does not stick to centre of blade by pressing Reverse button a couple of times and also by stopping timer to scrape down sides of bowl during cooking time.

Add 220g of coconut almond mix and salt to Thermomix bowl and blend for 20 seconds on speed 5. Press half that mixture into large square spring form pan lined with baking paper. (Or use square pan of choice but for easy removal bring baking paper up on two sides, above the top of the pan.)

Push date mixture on top of base, press remaining cooked mix on top of that and then press (using a piece of baking paper) the remaining coconut almond mix on top of that again! Allow to cool completely before placing in fridge for at least 4 hours before cutting into bars.

Wrap separately, freeze and on a busy day (who has those??) you have a fantastic breakfast on the go, a mid morning snack for the energised or dare I say it, an extremely high calorie tidbit to have any time of the day or night! So, MMM, I’m hoping you’ll be making these now now.

Well this post had to happen sooner or later…and I guess it’s officially sooner! I have managed to go through all my posts and look what I found! I could start a tart and pie shop, clearly! Any potential partners out there, send me a message and I’m ready to go!

First up in my self imposed round up, and most recently added, the free form tart with fresh apricots and cherries can be found here. Tart (in the true sense of the word) sweet, a little nutty, and so EASY!

Then there was the fresh fig and honey tart, with a touch of marzipan…and just to add a dimension, toffee topping!

Of course, no Australian food blogger could have a complete site with out the good ole Meat Pie post…enjoy!

Simple, fruity, great pastry…what more could you want in a fruit pie? Well vanilla bean of course. One of my faves…(aren’t they all?)

If you come here often, you will know that Lemon is almost as good as chocolate to me…thus the Lemon Olive Oil Tart…which if you never cook anything else from this site, you must do this one…promise me now!

Got no time? Need dessert quickly? This is the one for you…no pastry, but a flan none the less…and a little international as well!

Oh that’s right…you know how I said the Lemon Olive oil tart was my fave?? Maybe not, maybe it’s this one…Buerre Noisette….Burnt Butter is my new fascination at the minute, seriously good stuff…calories worth eating!

Kind of a cross between a cheesecake and a sweet pie, this will become a family favorite…it would be in our house, if I allowed myself to make it again! Some pies should only be eaten once…for the sake of the arteries that is!

Never shie away from a fruit you don’t know…put it in a pastry shell and voila, easy dessert…(and completely delish!)

Another Lemon slash cheesecake slash pie cross worth eating…(again…aren’t they all??)

OK OK, Chocolate meets almonds head on…and they both WIN! Chocolate pastry, chocolate filling (with almond frangipane) topped with chocolate ganache…can’t really go wrong if you are a chocolate lover!

Now for a rare look at a savoury option…hang on to it whilst you can, there may never be another!

Strawberries, Luscious Lime, crispy pastry, a true summer tart…try it today!

Sorry, but there’s more and of course chocolate is involved…easy peasy, chocolate squeezy!

And here comes another traditional tart…or pie…The quintessential Lemon Meringue Pie.

I could of course keep going, and was in fact surprised (though why I don’t know!) by the sheer number of pastry delights on here…I stopped here as there are many others, but they are less recent and perhaps not as well done as I would like them to be. (Time for an upgrade or two I suppose!) Cut to the chase I hear you cry…recipe recipe recipe….OK!

So to today’s offering…you wouldn’t believe it…chocolate again, pecans are the nuts of choice and not my recipe, but stunning in every way…lactose free, unless butter bothers you. All the components of decadence required by chocolate and nuts and the best darn pastry a Thermomix can mix!

Adapted from Willies famous recipe, it is a chocolate pecan tart. Now before you shriek at the sheer number of sugar grams, remember I was using pure cacao and I have to say, it was a chocolate hit like no other. (Being Easter weekend, I know what I’m on about here folks!)

NEED:

Pastry:

100g raw sugar

200g plain flour

100g unsalted butter frozen and cubed

2 egg yolks

1tsp vanilla essence

Filling:

180g pure cacao (Or reduce sugar and use 70% dark chocolate)

50g unsalted butter

75g caster sugar

160g pure maple syrup

3 eggs

100-120g pecan halves

DO:

Pastry:

Preheat oven to 190oC and butter a 23cm loose bottomed flan tin. Set aside.

Place sugar into Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 10.

Add flour and butter and mix together for 6-7 seconds on speed 8.

Add vanilla essence and yolks and mix for a further 6-7 seconds on speed 6 or until pastry forms soft balls.

Tip out onto floured Silpat mat and bring together with hands into large disc shape. Roll out using floured rolling pin and line prepared flan tin. Place in freezer for at least 15 minutes. Remove, line with baking paper and weights (rice, beans or proper pie weights) and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove weights and bake a further 5 minutes until pastry is no longer shiny. Remove and cool slightly before filling with prepared filling.

Filling:

Place cacao into Thermomix bowl and mill for approximately 10 seconds until powdered.

Add butter, sugar, and maple syrup to Thermomix bowl and melt for 6 minutes at 50oC on speed 1.

Add eggs through hole in lid and beat in for 30 seconds on speed 8. Scrape down sides of bowl if necessary and repeat. You will have a thick mousse like consistency.

Place pecans into prepared pastry case, scrape filling on top and spread with spatula. Bake a further 10-15 minutes until set in centre. Chill completely before serving with lashings of cream…kind of necessary due to the dense nature of pure cacao.

I know I know, ‘Tarts R Us’…that is what I could call this blog quite easily…and no other jokes in the tart arena are acceptable to me…so watch out! I did this during the week to great acclaim at the office and have to say that the sliver I managed to get before literally turning around and finding the entire thing GONE…was divine…in fact, as with a lot of my better creations, I have been dreaming of another one, so here it is! With dinner guests arriving any minute, this was so quick and easy, seasonal and stunning to look at…I mean really, don’t you think? The colours of the fruit, the vanilla glaze…toasted almond pastry, what more could a tart ask for?

NEED:

100g toasted almonds

40g sugar

110g unsalted butter

220g plain flour

1 egg yolk

1tsp mixed spice

1 tsp vanilla essence

caster sugar to taste

500g sliced pitted fresh apricots

350g pitted fresh cherries

DO:

Place cooled almonds into Thermomix bowl with sugar and mill for 10 seconds on speed 10.

Add butter, flour, egg yolk, mixed spice and vanilla essence. Blend together for a few seconds on speed 7. Continue blending with short bursts on the Turbo button until the mixture forms a crumbly dough. Tip out onto Silpat mat and bring together with hands to form a disc. Place in freezer for up to 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180C.

Roll pastry out using cornflour to prevent sticking to a large round on baking paper. Place sliced apricots and cherries into centre of pastry and sprinkle liberally with caster sugar. Fold edges of pastry up and over around the fruit to form a crust.

(It can be quite rough and in fact is very forgiving…so don’t be too alarmed if it looks a little rustic! Stick back together where necessary with a few pinches as needed.)

Bake for 25-35 minutes until pastry is fragrant and centre is bubbling, and fruit is well cooked. Cool slightly before drizzling with a little vanilla essence, some milk and enough icing sugar to form a thick consistency ‘glaze’.

Dust with icing sugar and ideally serve with ice cream and or cream!

Well it was tough, but someone had to eat it! Luckily I made this one at work and the office staff were happy to oblige…otherwise my ever increasing girth would be even girthier! My sister Kerri provided me with some of her lovely fresh figs and of course I had to blog about them! I took on the fig challenge, just as I took on the chocolate challenge, thinking of so many options that my hips ached! ANYHOO, this is the end result, and it smelt so amazing as it was cooking that I had frequent visitors into the demo kitchen to see what was for morning tea…those spoilt children!

Toffee Crusted Fig  and Marzipan Tart

Pastry NEED:

100g toasted almonds

50g sugar

130g unsalted butter, cubed and frozen

1tsp vanilla essence

½tsp cinnamon

Pinch salt

210g plain flour

1 egg yolk

1-2tbsp ice cold water

Pastry DO:

Place toasted and cooled almonds with sugar into Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 8.

Add butter, essence, cinnamon, and salt and mix for 5 seconds on speed 7.

Add remaining ingredients and with dial set to closed lid position mix for 10 seconds on Interval speed.

Turn out onto lightly floured Silicone mat and knead into a tight disc.

Place disc into flan tin with removable base and with floured hands press out and up edges to fully line tin. Place in freezer while you prepare the filling.

Vanilla Scented Marzipan NEED:

130g sugar

1 whole vanilla bean

130g blanched almonds

1tbsp cornflour

1 small egg white

DO:

Place sugar and vanilla bean into Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 8.

Add almonds and mill a further 10 seconds on speed 8.

Add cornflour and egg white and mix together for approximately 30-40 seconds on speed 5, scraping down sides of bowl if necessary.

When marzipan has formed a reasonable dough, turn out onto corn floured silicone mat and roll out using rolling pin. Lay on top of lined flan tin and cut excess away. (Reserve excess.)

Fig Tart NEED:

Enough fresh figs to line flan dish of choice when quartered

250g mascarpone cheese

1 egg

15g raw honey

Reserved Marzipan

Fig Tart DO:

Place figs carefully on top of marzipan, arranged cut side up centrically.

Place remaining ingredients into Thermomix bowl and mix for 8 seconds on speed 7. Spread over figs.

Bake in preheated 180ºC oven for 30-35 minutes until just wobbly in centre. Leave in oven to cool. Chill before topping with toffee.
Toffee Crust NEED:

150g caster sugar

50g honey

Enough water to dampen sugar

Toffee Crust DO:

Place all ingredients into heavy based pan and heat to a medium temperature stirring only occasionally.

When all sugar has dissolved, increase heat to high and bring to the boil without stirring.

Remove toffee from stove when it has reached the hard ball stage and is caramel in colour. Drizzle over completely cold tart and allow to set.

I know, I know, a little lengthy, even fiddly, but oh so worth it in the end…yes the rear end!

Yes, The Full Willy! As in Willy’s Wonky Chocolate…its a long story, but after watching the amazing Willy on SBS and being totally charmed by the romance of it all, I happened to visit my sister and found that her husband had gone ahead and ordered some of Willy’s amazing chocolate and whats more, he GAVE me some, bless his cotton socks! They cost a little more than the average chocolate bar (well a lot more actually) and in an effort to honour such a gift (and chocolate perfection) I pondered again and again what I should do with such a precious commodity! I felt like the proverbial kid in a candy factory and couldn’t quite decide between good and gooder…but here we go. A combo of several faves of mine, brioche, almonds and of course, good old Willies Wonky chocolate.

NEED:
1 batch Brioche dough

1 beaten egg for glaze

100g Willys 100% cacao bar (or unsweetened dark chocolate in the absence of excellence!)

150g caster sugar

150g almonds

150g clotted cream

2tsp vanilla essence

1tsp almond essence (optional)

DO:
Line 2 trays with baking paper and set aside. Make brioche as directed and rise overnight. Bring dough to room temperature before using as follows;

Roll dough out to large rectangular shape.

Spread filling on as evenly as possible. Fold half dough lengthways into centre of rectangle. Bring other half in to meet it in center. Fold those ‘pockets’ in on top of one another to make a long layered length of dough.

Cut across into equal widths (see pic) and place onto prepared trays. Brush with egg wash. Place into cold oven (to facilitate another rise) and bake for approximately 20 minutes until golden brown at 200-220C. Cool slightly before eating…though to burn ones tongue on molten chocolate inside fragrant brioche is akin to sadistic pleasure…not that I know about all that stuff!

To make filling;

To make filling place chocolate (in chunks) into Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 9. Add sugar and almonds and mill a further 20 seconds until the fat is actually starting to be released from the cacao and almonds and the mixture starts to form a rough dough.

Add cream and essences and mix a further 10 seconds on speed 7. Spread this on dough and proceed as directed above.

So Willy, here’s hoping this meets your high standards! Amazing story, amazing chocolate,and now amazing Chocolate Brioche (at least I like to think so…thanks Stu!)

Well I have a work related injury, and it is impeding my typing, but never my cooking! I sliced my fore finger open like I was filleting a fish! OUCH…a roll of paper towel, nausea attack, visit to the Doc for super glue and butterfly tapes later, I am typing with great difficulty. With an enforced day off (strictly Doc’s orders)I had been thinking about going to the movies today, but the treat that I would have taken had I actually got there, took priority and here it is! A bit of a combo with a couple of processes, I was inspired by one of my fave Australian food bloggers, Not Quite Nigella’s post before Christmas for Salted Pretzel Chocolate Toffees, (which incidentally is probably the first recipe from another blogger I have actually  cooked in quite a while to rave reviews)!! I always have good intentions and an ever growing cooking list, but something else always comes up!

Nutty Caramel Popcorn with Pretzels and Chocolate

NEED:
125g raw macadamias

125g raw almonds

Couple of handfuls of salted pretzels

1pkg microwave popcorn

400g brown sugar

170g cream

100g unsalted butter

pinch sea salt

Dash of rum or other alcohol of choice

2tsp vanilla essence

125g whie chocolate buttons

125g dark chocolate buttons

2tbsp extra virgin coconut oil

DO:
Place nuts onto baking tray and place into cold oven set to 200C for 10 minutes. Remove and chop roughly (without slicing fingers if at all possible!) Set aside.

Spread pretzels on two large silicone mats (Silpat), divide nuts equally between them. Cook popcorn as directed on packaging, remove ‘old maids’ and divide between mats.

In heavy based saucepan, place sugar cream, butter, salt and rum if using. Cook on a low heat stirring occasionally (Induction level 6) until sugar has melted without any grainy residue. Increase heat to around 8 and bring to approximately 260F (Please use a Candy thermometer if you have one for an accurate result.) If you don’t have one, use the hard ball test.

Add vanilla and quickly stir into caramel, pour over popcorn and nut mix, spreading quickly to cover as much of the popcorn etc as possible. Allow to cool.

Place white chocolate buttons into clean pan with 1tbsp of coconut oil. Melt on Induction 2 until it melts completely. Drizzle over 1 tray of mixture.

Repeat with dark chocolate buttons and remaining coconut oil. Drizzle over the other tray and if you have enough, drizzle or flick on top of the white chocolate tray to add a little extra pizazz! Allow to set completely before breaking into pieces and storing in the fridge.

These are beautiful as gifts, wrap in clear cellophane bags and won’t you be the favourite friend, aunty, neighbour, blogger…? Go to, blogees and then come back on here and tell me about it!

Pumpkin Avo Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

Christmas Day and the kids have just left…feeling cruisy, the food was stunning and even though the kitchen is still in need of some cleaning, it is pretty OK. Thought I would quickly write this one down and put it up…nothing like obsession when it strikes at the least likely times! Hope you all had a great Christmas and like me, are looking forward to a fantastic 2010! (Of course this had to wait till New Year’s Eve, until I could organise a card reader to upload pics to my iMac, which despite the frustrations, is absolutely FANTASTIC! So now I owe you all a Happy 2010 as well as long overdue Merry Christmas.)

Pumpkin and Avo Salad

NEED:

700g peeled and seeded pumpkin
salt and cracked black pepper

Oil spray
100g mixed salad leaves
100g almond slivers
1-2 avocados, cut into wedges
1 small Spanish onion, thinly sliced
Handful basil leaves
Dressing:
80g raw honey
2tbsp seeded mustard
80g white wine vinegar
sea salt and pepper to taste
240g EVOO

DO:

Preheat oven to 200C. Slice the pumpkin into thin wedges and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Spray with oil spray and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Roast for 20-25 minutes or until tender and caramelised. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
Arrange the pumpkin on a serving plate with salad leaves, almonds, avocado, Spanish onion and basil.
Drizzle with dressing and serve.

To make dressing place honey, mustard and vinegar into TM bowl and cook for 3-4 minutes at 100C on speed 2-3 with MC off. Add seasoning to taste, EVOO and mix for a few seconds on speed 5-6 until blended. Refrigerate until ready for use.

Christmas Ice Cream Torte

I know that sounds crazy to my northern readers, but as the temperature starts to head into the 30′s (Celcius that is), our thoughts down under turn to Christmas, and ways to keep the feasting cool and casual, around the pool or water somewhere, somehow…what better conglomeration than Ice Cream and Christmas Pudding? Great in the centre of your Christmas table or really charming as individual serves, this recipe is a beauty, if I say so myself. More of a torte than a Christmas pudding, a piece d’resistance after a stunning meal, and a must to start off my Christmas ramblings for 2009. Hard to believe how fast the year has gone, but lets stay away from that topic shall we? SO with no further ado, let the cooking begin…2009 Christmas here we come!

Christmas Ice Cream Torte

NEED:
1 recipe Raspberry Coulis from Everyday Cooking for Every Family (Thermomix book)

230g butter shortbread biscuits (I recommend Walkers for the butter content.)

55g toasted blanched almonds

55g sugar

2 eggs

300g chilled cream

½ tsp rosewater (optional)

50g craisins

50g shelled pistachios

150g each pink and green Turkish delight, cubed (available at specialty stores)

DO:

Make Raspberry Coulis and cool.

Pre heat oven to 180ºC. Line the base of a 13cm spring form pan or for individual tortes, butter a muffin or friand tin and set aside.

Place shortbread biscuits and almonds into clean Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 10.

Push into pan and bake for 10 minutes. Cool completely.

Place sugar into clean and dry Thermomix bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 10. Insert Butterfly.

Add eggs and cook for 6 minutes at 60ºC on speed 3.

Pour into separate bowl and chill.

Pour cream and rosewater into Thermoimix bowl and whip for 10-20 seconds on speed 4 until soft peaks form. Fold by spatula into chilled custard and then fold through remaining ingredients except Coulis.

Pour into base and then pour Coulis on top. Stir through with a skewer to create a marbled effect.

Freeze for 4 hours or more before serving.  Garnish unmoulded torte with fresh berries, mint leaves and additional pistachios or Turkish delight pieces as desired, and dust with icing sugar.

General Tips

To assist with serving, place in fridge 20 minutes before unmoulding and slicing.

Hazelnut Brownie Slice

Well folks, I have been introduced to Raw Foodism of late, and in a quest to make something delicious that meets the raw food criteria, I came across a lovely picture of a Raw Brownie, no recipe, just a pic, and I think this recipe is almost it, but perfectly awesome in it’s own right…just look at it! One little square of this will last you almost all day as far as energy requirements are concerned, I am amazed as to how filling this is! Raw, tick, delicious, tick, decadent, tick! I loved it so much it has just made the reprint of the Thermomix little booklet ‘Rawlicious’ which is widely available from your Thermomix consultant or by phoning the office! So please, let me know how that works for you…and BTW Sydney and Melbourne, I am appearing at the Gluten Free Expo in Sydney August 21st and 22nd, and helping with Nico Moretti’s cooking classes on August 25th both the day and evening ones, so come and say hi.

Hazelnut Brownie Slice

NEED:
Crust:
40g cacao butter
60g pitted dates
130g hazelnuts
50g shredded coconut
Topping:
100g dates
160g macadamias
160g hazelnuts
50g raw cacao
80g organic coconut oil
80g cacao butter
30g maple or pear syrup
Pinch sea salt
Few chopped nuts of choice or shredded coconut for garnish

DO:
Place all base ingredients into Thermomix bowl and chop for 20 seconds on speed 7. Press into 20cm square baking tin that has been lined with baking paper. Place into freezer.
Make the topping by placing dates into Thermomix bowl and chopping for 10 seconds on speed 7.
Add remaining ingredients except garnish nuts and blend for 20 seconds on speed 9 until smooth and creamy. Pour onto base, sprinkle with chopped nuts and refrigerate until firm.
Cut into slices or squares to serve.

I imagine this could be done in a high powered food processor, but why put yourself through it? Just get the original and the best…that sounds like a great marketing line if ever there was one!