My Best Anzac Biscuits

You have to make Anzac biscuits on Anzac Day.  Tradition, y'know?  Although I have stuck to this tradition for as long as I can remember, I've not made successful Anzacs before.  This is despite me following recipes, I promise.  I like a chewy biscuit, not too soft, but definitely not in the hard or crunchy classification.  My previous Anzacs have been either too hard for my liking, or so ... Well, soft isn't the word I'm after.  They've turned into one baking tray of something resembling brandy snaps.  Yes, I must have been putting them too close together, and yes, something else must have been wrong for them to spread quite so much.  Edible, and yummy, but not really what I was after.  Every time I had that style of Anzac biscuit disaster I would remember the Anzac Day spent in the U.S. where asking for golden syrup scored us that look of "... Er... You want what now?" so we substituted molasses.  It's not the same.

Today, I found numerous recipes for chewy Anzac biscuits.  I chose the more recent recipe that also used less sugar and coconut.  Success!  These are soft and chewy.  You can find the recipe here, or below:

Ingredients:
1 cup rolled oats (mine were quick oats, thanks to the most recent Queensland floods)
1 cup plain flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup dessicated coconut
125g butter, chopped
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda

Method:
Preheat oven to 160C.  Line 3 baking trays with baking paper (I really spread out my biscuits this time, so used 2 trays twice).
Combine oats, flour, sugar, and coconut in a bowl.  Place butter, syrup, and 2 tablespoons cold water in a saucepan over medium heat.  Stir for 2 minutes or until butter has melted, then stir in the bicarb soda.  Stir the butter mix into the oat mix.
Roll level tablespoons of mixture into balls, place onto trays 5cm apart, and flatten slightly.  Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden.  Remove to a wire rack to cool.

I found that at the 10 minute mark I had to swap the trays - the original bottom tray then only needed another minute, the other tray another 4. 
Putting away ingredients while the first batch was baking, I transferred my coconut to a slightly-too-small jar.  So the 2nd batch scored a bonus tablespoon or so of coconut.  This worked.  They didn't spread as much but are still soft and chewy.
Before I tasted these, I was thinking I should just keep baking Anzac biscuits until I come across a recipe that works to my satisfaction.  However, I think I found it!  I'll be transferring this recipe to my trusty old recipe book.  Of course, a few more batches before next Anzac Day just might be in order...

Jamie's Shortbread

The actual title of this recipe is "The best shortbread in the world".  Modest, huh?  One of my students gave me some shortbread (and a really touching card), and then I had to have more.  How could I go past this, in one of my new cookbooks - Cook with Jamie ?  Although there are variations listed, I started out with the basic version.  Ridiculously easy.

Ingredients:
250g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
125g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
250g plain flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting
125g semolina or cornflour (I used cornflour.  I checked the use-by date on my previous packet - last decade sometime.  New packet bought).

Method:
Preheat the oven to 150C.  Butter a 22cm square tin.  Cream butter and sugar together with a whisk or wooden spoon until pale, light and fluffy.  Add the plain flour and cornflour.  Mix very lightly with a wooden spoon and then your hands until you have a smooth dough.

Transfer your dough to a floured surface and roll it out until it's an even 2cm/1 inch thick all over.  Press the rolled-out dough into your tin, poking it into the corners with your fingers - don't worry about it having to look perfect.  Prick the dough all over with a fork, then pop it in the preheated oven for 50 minutes* until lightly golden.

While it's still warm, sprinkle with a generous dusting of caster sugar.  Allow the shortbread to cool slightly, then cut into 12 chunky finger-sized pieces.

For this baking experience, I don't agree with the 'best in the world' classification.   Mostly due to the thickness - for something that thick, it's actually really hard to eat, much less dunk in a cup of tea (as suggested).  Next time I will use a slightly larger tin so it's a bit thinner - and will hopefully bake in the stated time, at the stated temperature.

*Yeah, that's what it said.  50 minutes and it hardly looked any different from when it went in.  After another 15 minutes, it still wasn't done, so I upped the temperature to 180C and baked the shortbread for a further 10 minutes, then turned off the oven and left it in for another 5 minutes. 

Pistachio Cookies

Some of my friends and family are lactose-intolerant or chocolate-intolerant.  Hard as it is to imagine a world without these things, it did inspire me to make these pistachio cookies as part of Christmas presents.  Like the truffles, these are from coffee & bites by Susie Theodorou.

Ingredients:
150g (1 cup) shelled unsalted pistachios
175g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
3 tablespoons finely grated orange rind
50g (1/2 cup) plain flour
3 large egg whites
2 tablespoons icing sugar

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180C (160-170C fan-forced).  Line 2 baking sheets with greased parchment paper.  Put 3/4 of the pistachios in a food processor and finely grind (don't stress over the occasional large piece).  Transfer the pistachios to a bowl and stir in 115g (1/2 cup) of the caster sugar and all the orange rind, then sift in the flour.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form.  Gradually whisk in the remaining caster sugar - the mixture should become glossy and stiff.  (Yes!  I didn't get lazy, but actually kept at it until I could tip the bowl and have nothing fall out).

Fold the egg whites into the pistachio mixture with a plastic spatula.  I discovered I don't own a spatula, plastic or otherwise.

Place heaped tablespoons of the cookie mixture, in oval shapes, onto the prepared baking sheets, making sure to space them well apart.  Shave the remaining pistachios over the cookies using either a small truffle shaver or vegetable peeler or just chop thinly (guess which method I used?!).  Bake for 12 minutes until quite puffy, just browned and set on the base.  Dust with icing sugar and leave to cool for 10 minutes before removing with a palette knife onto a cake rack to cool.  Serve cold.
Makes 30.

Because of the meringue, the biscuits didn't spread while baking.  You can freeze these for up to 2 months - not that mine had any cause to be frozen, but just in case!  And it seems I didn't get a photo of the baked cookies - not much different from these, just a bit less glossy and a bit more baked. 

White Chocolate, Date and Cardamom Cookies

I have been waiting for a couple of weeks to post this.  2 Sundays ago I felt like baking.  I had 2 spare eggs and some butter, so looked for some cookie recipes.  I very nearly did my usual batch, but I decided to give Jamie's recipe another whirl.  With a slight twist.

I kept the basic cookie dough the same:

125g butter
100g (1/2 cup) unrefined golden caster sugar
1 large egg, preferably free-range or organic
100g plain flour
25g porridge oats
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt (well, that's what Jamie says - I can't bring myself to put that much salt in anything, so just sprinkled a bit in the mix)

Take your butter out of the fridge 15 minutes before you start so it has time to soften a bit first (or, use Dairy Soft and the microwave...).  Put the butter in a mixing bowl with the sugar and mix with a wooden spoon until you get a thick, creamy consistency.  Crack your egg into another bowl and beat it with a fork, then add it to the butter and sugar and mix well.  Sieve your flour into the bowl to remove any lumps, add the oats, baking powder and salt, and mix until lovely and smooth.  (Or you can just put everything into a food processor and whiz until smooth).

Then I had to get creative with the flavours.  He suggests citrus cookies - requiring an orange and a lemon (I had orange but no lemon); or double chocolate cookies (I had white chocolate but no dark).  In the little blurb at the top of the recipe, he says you can flavour with dried fruit and nuts as well, just keep the quantities the same as for the chocolate cookies (50g of each).  I contemplated white chocolate and orange biscuits.  Thinking of my pantry contents, I remembered I had dates from making raw brownies (about to happen again tonight).  And I'd just made a cardamom curry so that spice was on my mind.  Cardamom is associated in my brain with Morocco; Morocco equals dates.  Cardamom is also associated for me with white chocolate thanks to a truffle recipe.  I decided to combine all these elements. 

I had thought far enough ahead that I had included a 1/2 teaspoon of cardamom with the flour and baking powder in the basic mix.  I really like cardamom, and I know that jar of spice is nearing the end of its potency.  If you're not such a huge cardamom fan, consider a smaller quantity... 

Chop 50g of white chocolate (I have a new chocolate-block-chopping-for-biscuits technique, almost like shaving it - and then I put the rest back in the pantry).  Chop 50g dates (I chopped them into about 12 pieces each, so they were about 1/2cm square).  Add the chocolate and dates to the mix, spoon onto a piece of clingfilm and roll into a sausage shape with a roughly 7cm diameter.  Pop the dough into the freezer for 30 minutes.  Or 40.  Or 50...  That last step I remember being awkward from last time (the sausage bit, not the resting in the freezer).  It was still a bit awkward.

Preheat oven to 190C/375F/gas 5.  Get your chilled dough out of the freezer and cut it into 1cm thick slices (not my best skill - next time I'm just going to do the tablespoons of dough, flattened, thing).  Place these on 2 non-stick baking trays, leaving a good bit of space between the slices because they really spread during cooking.  Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.  Let them cool down slightly before placing on a wire rack to cool completely and crisp up.

This combination is (for me, anyway) a winner.  Besides, I prefer my cookies soft on the inside and these deliver.  Best baked when other eaters are around.

Saturday's photo:

Post-run, we had Mexican.  The light-fitting was comprised of Corona bottles.

Sunday's photo:

There is a grevillea by the road, with a new flower in the process of unfurling.

The New TV Series

Oh dear.  I have a new thing.  I've begun watching a popular TV series, and I've become hooked.

For several months, I've been seeing posts in my Facebook feed about Downton Abbey.  I had thought maybe it might be something I might possibly enjoy, but had taken it no further.  Maybe, if I ever made it back to the video store, I might try to find it...

On Saturday evening, while enjoying some pre-dinner nibbles at Robert and Aidan's, I turned around to find a fabulous DVD collection.  4 shelves!  In alphabetical order!  Drool.  A much better collection than mine, so I said to Aidan that the next time we had a girly DVD night we should go there.  He was thrilled.  The lower shelves were for series, including Downton Abbey.  Some talk of it ensued (mostly due to the fabulosity of Maggie Smith), and I mentioned I hadn't seen it.  Jaws dropped, I asked if I could borrow it, and season 1 ended up in my bag. 

I wasn't much good for anything on Sunday evening, and as my current viewing of the long-running obsession (NCIS, treated like the painting of the Sydney Harbour Bridge) was at the end of a season, I started Downton.  So far, I love it.  And I want to be the Dowager (Maggie Smith) when I grow up.

I enjoy having so many characters with interesting, individual lives and interests and parts to play.  And they have such great lines!  Some are really funny, some very insightful, and some just interesting as an indication of general thought at the time.  Plus the correlation of an entailment plot with Pride and Prejudice, but in a slightly more modern context, is always enticing.  The idea of everyone having a part to play, everyone has a place, can be so reassuring but also so suffocating.  You know what's expected of you, but you don't often have a choice as to what your role is to be.  On top of that, watching it from a vantage point of a hundred years you know what has just happened (the Boer war some years prior, and the sinking of the Titanic right before the first episode), and you know what's about to happen.  I'm still only a few episodes in but that question has been hanging around my brain.

Ooh, and great music.  And it's nicely shot, too.  Devouring under way.

Today's photo:

I had to bake a quiche today, using up the silverbeet.  The gardener said it smelt amazing.  My favourite bit about baking with pastry is the blind baking, for which I bought pastry weights specially.

Mum's Baked Custard

When I was growing up, if there was a glut of milk for some reason mum would make a baked custard.  (Excuse me while my tastebuds have a moment).  Recently, I signed up for milk delivery - but because I've had a cold I haven't been consuming as much milk as normal.  There is enough milk in my fridge that I wouldn't have to buy any until Monday, but tomorrow is delivery day.  Yes, I am able to change my order but I forgot to actually do this until after the cutoff time. 

On mum's last visit, she was looking for something and came across an old (I mean, really old) Good Weekend magazine.  On the front, she had written out her recipe for baked custard.  Could this have been found at a better time?  I think not. 

So, did you get all that?  Excellent.  (Oh, the cup with pills is part of the graphics of the cover, not an actual cup).

Dear Mum,

Thank you for passing on this recipe.  I hope it's ok if I share it with the whole internet.  You should be glad I have a smart phone complete with a converter app.  So when you said, 'preheat oven to 375F' I could just put that into the converter and discover it's 190C.  I boiled the kettle for the bain marie then realised I only had 2, not 3, eggs.  While I waited for confirmation from Abm that he had a spare egg for me to use, I checked cake books for recipes with only 2 eggs.  These are surprisingly scarce.  When he arrived, we chatted while I boiled the kettle (fully, this time), greased the casserole dish, and sorted out the best bowls to use. 

I separated the (thankfully) 3 eggs.  I admit, I neglected to add the pinch of salt to the whites before beating them.  Um, I also admit that after a while of beating them I decided the peaks were firm enough.  I also admit I was rather 'mum-like' in my measuring of '? 3 dessertspoons' caster sugar. 

Now, when you say 'gently heat 600mL milk with a teaspoon vanilla essence DO NOT BOIL' (well, I reordered the sentence so those not in the family who may read this can sort it out), how heated do you mean?  Do you mean lukewarm?  Almost boiling but not quite?  Over low heat?  Medium-low heat?  Medium heat?  I used medium-low heat and heated it a little past lukewarm before adding 3 dessertspoons sugar and then stirred until the sugar was dissolved.  While I was waiting for the milk to heat I whisked the egg yolks, and put the casserole dish in the lasagne dish (best dish for bain maries).  After the sugar had dissolved, I added the yolks to the milk and sugar and stirred a bit with a wooden spoon.  I was half hoping the whole mix would thicken and look more like custard than milk and egg, but I was disappointed.

I enlisted Abm's help in holding the sieve over the casserole dish so I could pour the egg and milk into the casserole dish through the sieve.  Good thing he was here.  Now, this whole 'gradually fold in egg white meringue so that most of it remains on top of milk/egg mix' bit.  Can you be more specific?  Am I to pour over the meringue and just let it sit?  Or mostly stir?  It seemed to sit on top anyway so I just tried to make it look pretty.  Of course I will add nutmeg if it's ever mentioned - who wouldn't?! :)  Water added for bain marie, and into the oven.  After 10 minutes (or should it really be 15?) I lowered the temperature to 175C, which is what my converter app told me 350F approximates.  After 20 minutes it looked all nicely browned so I took it out of the oven.  The meringue was nicely meringue-y but the custard was still quite wobbly so next time (yes, practice makes perfect) I'm guessing more mixing and possibly longer cook time...?

Anyway, I was very pleased to have made this recipe.  I think Abm is rather pleased as well.  And of course there are leftovers as well so dad might benefit also...  Obviously, I need more practice.  With merely eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and nutmeg, it's relatively healthy, yes?  Excellent.  I hope to be able to make this for you in due course :)
Lots of love,
Anna xo

Today's photo:

Public holiday today in Brisbane, thankfully.  Spring was in the air, so I was inspired to do some gardening.  Before I got stuck into it, I appreciated the light and shadow on the tomato and aloe vera plants.  After taking this photo, I had to check my camera and what I was seeing - the top looks chopped off but it's just made that way, promise.

Orange Syrup Cake, Anna-Style

Step 1.  Preparation is important.  First, make a chocolate buttermilk cake.  Lament the fact that buttermilk comes in 600mL cartons - but then find out how you can make a more normal amount of buttermilk.  Still, most of a carton remains.  Check out recipes to help use up the remainder.  Worry that there is not much space in the freezer, and ask your brother if he has room in his freezer (he does).  If necessary, have a cold that hangs around so you are off work but too sleepy to do anything, and eating oranges nearly daily to aid vitamins and feeling healthier.

Step 2.  A week later, you should feel energetic enough (in the 3 hours of energy you seem to have on selected afternoons) to attempt this cake.  One that is from a book you've had for several years...11 years, in fact...almost to the day...  Over the course of the week one of your friends will do a blog post about lemon syrup cake which should further inspire you.  On the day, realise you are down to only 1 orange.  Thankfully 1/2 an orange is hiding in the fridge from Wednesday's lunch, and there are still a couple of lemons around.  Make a cup of tea.

Step 3.  Gather ingredients.  Turn on computer, start playing Italian Cafe on iTunes, and dance when inspired.  Arrange ingredients from left to right in recipe order:
125g butter
1/2 cup (110g) sugar
2 eggs
1 3/4 (260g) self-raising flour
1/2 cup (125mL) buttermilk
1 tablespoon finely grated orange rind
1/4 cup (60mL) orange juice
...and realise you have gone through way more eggs than normal this week!  Well, this is the official list of ingredients.  The 1 1/2 oranges (at the right, obviously) are joined by 2 lemons.  And you should also think while arranging these ingredients (unmeasured, un-grated, un-juiced) that your friend is so much neater in her food pictures.  Measuring everything and then taking a photo - beautiful!  Maybe in the future.

Step 4.  Turn on oven.  Aim for 'moderate' but don't actually check (to be true 'Anna-style' this will be about 150C, you discover later).  Fish out the loaf pan (14x21cm) from the baking tin cupboard.  Spray with oil, line with baking paper, then enjoy the slightly slippery cork tiles.  Recognise that sliding around is not a good idea at this time.  Measure out the butter in your favourite mixing bowl, soften it a tiny bit in the microwave, and add the sugar.  Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add an egg, beat until just combined; add the other egg, beat until just combined.  Note how cleanly the eggs slip out of the eggshells and wonder if this has anything to do with egg freshness.

Step 5.  Measure out the flour over a sieve over a bowl.  Only, when you get to the 2nd (or is it the 3rd?) quarter cup after the full cup, stop and think - is this the 2nd or 3rd quarter?  Hmmm...  You're pretty sure it's only the 2nd quarter, so hoping you're correct, continue.  Sift flour (although, writing this, see that you misread that instruction) into bowl.  Choosing not to wear an apron today, notice at this point that your black top is collecting stray flour bits and could probably do with a wash soon.  Measure out the buttermilk, slightly reminiscent of yoghurt by this stage.  Add half the flour to the butter mix and stir with a wooden spoon.  Pour in half the buttermilk, mix.  Grate orange for the rind - the whole orange yields pretty much the tablespoon you're needing.  While you're grating, the sunlight coming through the window is making a pretty picture with the beaters and the batter, so take a few photos.  Add the rind to the mix.  So fragrant!  And yesterday you read that the fruit is named for the Sanskrit word 'narangan' which means fragrant - well named.  Juice the oranges - about 3/4 of an orange provides the 1/4 cup of juice required.  Pour it into the mix, and mix.  Add the rest of the flour (mix) and buttermilk (mix).

Step 6.  Check oven temperature and discover it's only at 150.  Increase temperature to 180.  Spread batter into prepared pan.  You have to push it a bit to spread it to the edges, and wonder if maybe you used too much flour after all.  Keep juicing the orange and lemons until you have a cup of juice; start putting a few ingredients away until oven is properly preheated, then put the tin in the oven and bake for about 50 minutes.  Take your cup of tea, mixing bowl, beaters, wooden spoon, butter knife and phone to sofa; drink tea, licking remains from implements and playing solitaire.

Step 7.  About 45 minutes into cooking time, make orange syrup: 1 cup juice into a small saucepan, 1/2 cup sugar, stir on low heat until sugar is dissolved.  Which doesn't take long at all.  Increase heat to high and bring to the boil - the sound is like an aeroplane taking off, a little bit, or like a swarm of insects.  Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, without stirring, 'for about 10 minutes or until syrup thickens slightly'.  [Ugh.  I'm not a fan of such vague instructions.  How much is slightly?]  After removing cake from the oven and a further 10 minutes, increase the heat to medium.  After another 5 minutes - unattended - you notice the saucepan is about to overflow with bubbling juice, and decide enough is enough, this is surely 'thickened slightly' enough.  Move the cake to a wire rack (out of the tin) over an oven tray, stick the skewer into the cake several times (even though the recipe doesn't state that you should), and pour the syrup over the cake, taking a photo or 3 while pouring.

Step 8.  Go and get dinner.  When you return, your brother and DVD Sam have beaten you back.  "Your house smells amazing" they say.  After dinner, cut 3 slices (about 2cm each) and take a few photos, including a really blurry one after a really funny comment (not food related).  Wonder how one of the plates ended up with syrup underneath it.  Appreciate the compliments of the blokes.  Watch some more of the Olympics, then slice the rest of the loaf (there are 5 more slices), wrap them each in Glad wrap, keeping them in the same order, and transfer to the freezer.  Feel rather virtuous for freezing them straight away and not saving any for coffee time in the next few days.  Think about what you can use that's in the freezer so there's more space.  Watch more of the Olympics.

Today's photo:

Another beautiful Brisbane winter day.  Another gig, this time at the Presbyterian church on St Paul's Tce in Spring Hill.  A bit of a wait to get into the church.  The play of sunlight and stonework and blue sky and clouds.

Coffee for a Cause

Yesterday I said I would be drinking coffee for a cause today.  At participating cafes, $1 per cup of coffee would go towards grassroots services for the homeless.  This was enough of a reason to drag myself out of the house.  It was a close thing - but, the one day of the year when one of my indulgences is helping others was too good to miss.

I noted all the suitable options yesterday and then chose one of the closest ones today.  Although as I nearly fell asleep on the train it could have been a slightly different story.  I had heard from a few fellow coffee afficionados (afficionadi, maybe?) that Bunker at Milton was worth a visit.  From the station I had to pass a couple of other coffee spots, which surprised me in this unassuming street. 

Bunker is well-named.  It really is in a bunker, with vines covering the walls and ceiling, a nice contrast to the otherwise industrial feel.  And the coffee.  So far this year I think it might just win.  As usual, I ordered a cappuccino, and I was pleased to see a decent amount of chocolate going on top.  I was about halfway through consuming this cappuccino when I realised the amazing chocolatey goodness I was experiencing was coming from real chocolate - not just that normal mix you find sprinkled in most places.  When I was almost finished, I realised that this is a coffee and chocolate place.  Now I have to go back.

You can't really tell from the photo above, but the clipboards show the filter coffee options, featured coffee options, something else (I knew I should have written these down!) and the special of the day (jaffa).

I arrived just before the rush, so there was minimal wait for my caffeine - I noticed the staff knew many of the names of people who came in just after me, always a nice sign.  Another plus was the music and the staff actually knowing musical things ('this performer likes A minor' for example).  I felt self-conscious taking photos though, so took the above as surreptitiously as possible, and the below shot after I had left.  The man in the photo came out just as I was snapping - sprung! 

Bunker can be found at 21 Railway Tce, Milton.   No doubt, I will also be found there again.

Today's photo:

Baking.  Afternoon light catching the dripping beaters.  Anticipation.

Banana and Chocolate Loaf, Anna-Style

Step 1: For a few days, look with concern at banana supply.  Note how many there are, and how many will be eaten before they get to the very ripe stage.  Realise that there will be a couple too ripe to eat, unless consumption increases to more than one a day.  (Unlikely).

Step 2:  Google kiwi fruit recipes (there being a bag of about 6 kiwi fruit in the fridge).  There are only 11 recipes listed on taste.com.au.  Type 'banana' into the search box.  24 pages come up.  After a few recipe readings, decide that this one looks like a winner.  Start playing a suitable album (in my case, The Resistance by Muse).

Step 3:  Assemble ingredients on bench-top, left to right.  Find that there's really not much self raising flour left, so bring out the plain flour and baking powder as well.  Find that there's really not much brown sugar left either, so bring out the caster sugar as well.  Of course, don't worry about lightly beating the eggs just yet.

Step 4:  Actually read the method listed in the recipe.  Read it again to work out which lot of ingredients really needs a large bowl, and which can get by with a regular mixing bowl.  Preheat oven to 170C; grease and line a 10x20cm loaf tin.

Step 5:  Set up sieve over large mixing bowl.  Carefully measure out a cup of self raising flour, transfer to sieve.  Really carefully, fill the 1/2 cup measure with self raising flour, transfer to sieve.  Do a little happy dance because you have exactly the right amount of flour.  Remember that you are a messy baker and don an apron.  Sift flour into bowl.  Measure 1/3 cup brown sugar, add to flour.  Measure remainder of brown sugar (not really 1/3 cup, more like 1/6 cup) and top up with raw caster sugar, add to flour.  Ponder the differences in squishability between the 2 sugar types. Add 1/4 teaspoon mixed spice and 1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda to flour.  Mix it all together using the 1/2 teaspoon measure, knowing it's not the most efficient method but it's in your hand.  Make a well in the centre.

Step 6:  Crack eggs into medium mixing bowl and give them a little whisk with a fork.  Pour in 1/2 cup milk and 1/3 cup olive oil, checking several times that you have the right measuring cup and the right amount according to the recipe.  Give it a bit more of a whisk.

Step 7:  Peel the first banana, break it into large chunks in the 1 cup measure.  Note that it doesn't come to much.  Peel the second banana, break it into large chunks in the 1 cup measure.  Note that, together, they don't come to much, definitely not the 3/4 cup listed in the recipe, more like 1/2 cup if you're feeling generous.  Mash with a fork but don't be too diligent.  Add banana, what there is of it, to egg mix.

Step 8:  Resist taste-testing any of the dark chocolate melts.  Break them into smaller bits (my new favourite method - stack a few at a time the same way between fingers, press with thumbs).  Reminisce on a lovely former student who brought you choc chip cookies, freshly baked from food tech, with these larger choc bits.  Fill 1 cup with dark chocolate, add to egg mix.  Go to pantry.  Contemplate using some Lindt 85%.  Reconsider.  Spy the Cadbury baking white chocolate.  Decide it's a better option than using the super good stuff.  After opening the packet and breaking off a chunk, discover it's much harder to break into chunks than the dark melts.  Find a board and a knife and start chopping.  Don't resist taste-testing.  Eat a few pieces to ensure no tainted bit is put into the mix.  Once full rows have been chopped, find you have about 3/4 cup white chocolate, add it to egg mix (if you must, justify the extra chocolate with the reduced banana quantity, even though you know it's more a texture thing than a solid amount thing).  Mix a bit with fork, trying belatedly to reduce the size of banana bits.

Step 9:  Pour banana mix into flour mix, folding gently until just combined.  Spoon into prepared loaf tin, mixing the last bit of flour at the bottom that you always miss when the method says 'until just combined'.  Put tin into oven, bake for 45 minutes.  Refer to loaf as Chocolate (with banana) Loaf.  Test with a skewer and find chocolatey batter at point.  Put tin back into oven, lick chocolatey batter from skewer, bake for another 5 minutes.  Remove from oven, test successfully with skewer, turn off oven, leave loaf to cool in tin for about 5-10 minutes.

Step 10:  Slice loaf, note the softness of the loaf and the amount of chocolate that appears on the knife.  Hmm.  Cut another slice.  Take some photos, until the steam fogs up the camera lens.  Place slices on plates, enjoy.  Plan to maybe have a slice tomorrow, then slice the remainder and freeze so you don't pig out over the next couple of days.  You know what you're like.  After writing the above, download photos and find none really suitable.  Slice a few more, take some more photos - fog-free! - and find one you like.  Upload to blog.

Ponder what to do with the freshly cut slices.  As it's fish and chips for dinner tonight, be good!

Today's daily photo:

Our first sunny day in ages.  Having had a run this morning, I put on a load of washing.  Back in pajamas, lounging on the sofa, I heard the washing machine finish.  First-world problem:  I wanted to put my washing on the line outside, but I didn't want to get out of my pajamas.  Stuff the neighbours.  I put the washing on the outside line while still in pajamas.  As soon as I pulled up the line, my eyes were dazzled by an array of glistening drops.  I have many photos with water features.  One thing I like about droplet photos (and even, the droplets themselves when you look at them closely) - inverted worlds, in miniature.

Silverbeet Quiche and Cinnamon Hearts

For my most recent organic fruit and vegetable delivery, I opted to include silverbeet.  I don't think I've ever done this before.  Looking for recipes, all I could really find was one for cannelloni.  Tempting - and it almost happened, but I felt it required a few more people consuming it to be justified.  Substituting silverbeet with spinach, though, and I thought a quiche would work well.  By the time I was actually about to cook though, I was having to work with what I had in my fridge and freezer.  Ooh, and on Saturday I walked past a pie-type thing with green stuff and roast sweet potato.  So, the following recipe is a mishmash of a quiche Lorraine recipe and my own substitutions.

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Lightly grease a fluted 3cm deep, 23cm (base), loose-base flan pan. Steam about 1/4 bunch silverbeet, drain (squeeze out as much water as possible) and roughly chop.
2. Line base and sides of flan with 2 sheets thawed shortcrust pastry (really only a bit more than 1 sheet is needed). Trim excess. (Here I would prick the base with a fork).  Line pastry with baking paper. Half-fill with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove paper and beans. Bake a further 10 minutes or until golden.
3. Heat some oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 chopped onion. Cook for 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Cool. Sprinkle over pastry, along with about 1/2 cup roasted sweet potato and silverbeet. Top with 1 cup grated tasty cheese.
4. Reduce oven temperature to 180°C. Whisk 3 eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk (originally 300mL cream, 1/2 cup milk - I didn't have cream, and this was far too much liquid, so next time I'll use this amount), and a teaspoon plain flour in a jug (and salt and pepper if desired). Pour over vegetables. Place onto tray. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until set. Stand for 5 minutes. Serve.
   
   So, being a conscientious recipe-follower, I thawed 2 sheets of shortcrust pastry.  And I used only just more than one.  Not wanting to throw out food (I'm of Scottish ancestry, can you tell?), I looked for some more recipes.  These cinnamon hearts were perfect!  Quick, easy, no blind-baking required, hardly any ingredients... The original recipe is here or this is my version:

Preheat oven to 180C.  Line a baking sheet with baking paper.  Use cookie cutters to cut hearts (and stars and whatever else you want) from 1 or 2 sheets of just-thawed shortcrust pastry.  Brush with eggwhite, dust with cinnamon sugar.  Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until golden.

Let Me Count the Ways

How did I change today?  Let me count the ways...

1. I woke up to find I'd been Timelined.  I do appreciate Facebook giving me a preview before forcing me to change, and giving me the chance to remove or hide things before the enforced changeover in a week.  Switching to Timeline was something I was actually considering doing over the holidays, but I didn't get around to it.  Normally I resist the Facebook changes until it is forced upon me, but with such a long build-up for this one, and so many friends already using this method (willingly or not), I was just about ready to make the switch on my own anyway.  Now though, I have the dilemma of deleting old posts from certain people I'd rather not remember, or keeping them there.  It is a part of my life, after all... More thought required.  2. It did spur me to stalk an ex friend though, and my feelings were not so upset as they have been.  Maybe, in time, we could be friends again.  No promises though.

3. I had a wonderful sleep in, thanks to the public holiday.  After yesterday's coffee diet (I worked out today I had 5, 2 of them doubles - youch!) I was only a teensy bit worried about sleeping, but I was so exhausted I had no problems getting to sleep.  And I slept.  Woohoo!  I even had a lunchtime nap.  Super.

4. I did not wear jeans today.  I love jeans, but wore a knit dress and tartan stockings instead.  Perfect.

5. I just ran.  Recently I've been trying to go as fast as I can, working out where to sprint, aiming for a certain distance in a certain time.  Tonight, I admitted to myself I am a slow runner, and I just ran.  I also did not walk, except for the first 10-20 metres after my 2 drink stops.  There are some bits that I have been walking because my brain stops telling my feet to run, but most of me knows that's unnecessary, so tonight they were run.  My overall time was better by 2 minutes than my previous best time for that distance.  'Nuff said.

6. I experimented with outfits and stockings.  More will be revealed about me and stockings in good time.  I know it's hard to believe, but I think I need more shoes.  And another pair of boots. 

7.  Ooh, I'm surprised I didn't remember this before.  I planned.  Last week I was in a grizzly grump of a mood, feeling very much over everything even though it was only week 3.  On Friday I investigated some options of things I could do, but today I had so many more ideas.  Including (so excited!) a potential getaway.  Only for a night, but I think being not in Brisbane will be good for me and my brain.

8. Oh, and yeah, I baked.  That's not new... and it was using very ripe bananas - also not new.  Find the recipe here for these Coconut, Chocolate and Banana muffins.  I used Green & Black's 85% which was maybe not the greatest choice - it is quite bitter, but Lindt Lindor was a less appealing option.  Next time I think I will mix in 1/4 cup cocoa for an even bigger chocolate hit.  I am also not a huge fan of the coconut - I was trying to think of a decent substitution, but maybe if I just omit it, it might just make not so many (the recipe makes 36 mini muffins). 

Banana and Walnut Bread

I had 2 bananas that were overripe.  One was so overripe that it felt apart on the banana stand.  You know what that means...

 The recipe can be found here.  I only had a bit over 50g of walnuts, so I topped up the 100g with the pistachios I had leftover from Easter's dessert (chocolate, chilli and pistachio mousse).  As it only requires flour, egg, milk, banana, bicarb, sugar, bananas and nuts - all ingredients I had in stock - it feels vaguely healthy.  But that would be from the lack of butter and not needing too much sugar.  It is so moist that it doesn't need butter though so maybe this could be a win.  The only thing was it was really not even close to ready at the 45 minute mark, but another 5 minutes was all it needed. 

Of course, now the other problem is I have banana bread... Thankfully it freezes well!

Fruit and Cinnamon Muffins

I totally had a different New Thing lined up for today.  As I had a mega sleep-in (I slept through my alarm and everything - I think that was a first, as my alarm tone is the old-fashioned car horn), I did not get to the place to do the New Thing... It will happen soon though.  It must.  Anyway, sporadically I need to cull my fruit.  I can't quite eat it at the same rate it is delivered, so when I know that some items have been there a while I have to find some way to use them up.  I had a pear, 2 kiwi fruit and 3 apples in the too-ripe-to-be-enjoyed pile.  Stewed fruit sprang to mind.  Also, on Wednesday I had bought a cookbook (very much on impulse) called Cooking from the Market: Fruit, and there's a recipe in there for Apple Cinnamon Muffins. 

New Thing #1 then, was to make my own fruit puree.  I didn't use sugar (I'm not a fan of sugar), and I didn't peel my fruit (nutrients, people).  I also decided to refrain from taking a post-puree photo - no-one wants to see something that looks like, well, vomit.

Then, the muffins.

Preheat oven to 200C, and lightly grease a 12-hole standard muffin tin or line the holes with paper cases.  Melt 150g unsalted butter.

Sift 310g (2 1/2 cups) self-raising flour and 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon into a bowl and add 125g (2/3 cup) soft brown sugar.  Make a well in the centre.  Whisk together 350mL milk, 2 eggs, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and pour into the well in the flour.  Add the melted butter.

Fold the mixture gently with a metal spoon until just combined.  Add 400g pureed cooked apple (or ready-made apple puree, or stewed fruit), and stir it through the mix.  Don't overmix, it will still be a bit lumpy.

Fill each muffin hole with the mixture - they will be quite full but they don't rise very much.  Sprinkle with 60g finely chopped walnuts.  Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, until golden.  Leave in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cool.

They smell amazing and taste wonderful.  As a bonus, this is the first time I think that the muffins have all come cleanly out of the tin.  This is the first time in ages - like, years - that I've made muffins.  Win.

Traditions Old and New

When I was growing up, there were some rules about Lent and Good Friday.  Hot cross buns were only to be eaten at 3pm on Good Friday, and not after Easter Saturday.  Between 12 and 3 on Good Friday, we weren't allowed to do much - it had to be quiet, no rowdy games, no music.

For the last 10 years or so, I have made my own hot cross buns on Good Friday.  My first time, I discovered this process takes about 3 hours - perfect.  I used to listen to a recording of Bach's St Matthew Passion while making hot cross buns - my recording is of Sir Georg Solti conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, a 3 cd set on the Decca label.  It is a wonderful recording (which means, it sounds big and German - none of this 'authentic Baroque performance practice' - and the violin solos are so well played).  Bonus - it lasts for about 3 hours and 6 minutes.  Each time I hear it, I feel I find something new in it.  Bach was a genius.  However, a few years ago I discovered I was missing disc 1.  Agh!  Last year I tried listening to the 2nd cd twice (a bit weird), but since then all stereo systems in my house have died, and when I put the cds onto iTunes it went all weird.  So this year, I was trying to find a last-minute recording - although this was a bit nerve-wracking.  What if I didn't like it?  I didn't find one - not even excerpts - so I had to work out what to do.

My solution: a day free of music.  This was so hard.  I usually listen to the radio while eating breakfast - not today.  I usually have music on while I'm cooking - not today.  My brain, of course, filled in the blanks.  Some neighbours were playing 80s hits around 11am, but from about 11:30 - 3:30 it was very quiet in my neighbourhood.  There is always music in my head though.  So while I was making hot cross buns, my brain played some Uptown Girl (thanks, neighbours), the opening chorus and my favourite arias from the St Matthew Passion, and the Handel-Halvorsen Passacaglia (the same one I played with Viola Man for our staff concert - although I wasn't quite as brilliant as Perlman). 

The hot cross buns themselves were my best yet.  Yay!  I will credit this with a few things. 

1 - I figured that I knew by now when dough was 'smooth', so didn't time the kneading, just went with the feel.  This meant, I think, that when it was actually ready to prove, it could just do its thing.  So, for the first time ever, it took just over an hour to double in size, instead of me getting impatient at 90 minutes and saying, that'll do.

2 - I used a slice tin, not just the baking tray.  I saw a few recipes last year that called for this method and at the time I thought, weird.  I don't know if it actually made a difference, but they were really good...



 I still need to improve the flour paste for the crosses on top.  This year I'm blaming this result on last year (the picture is from before they were cooked).  Last year, I was following the recipe for a dozen, and was doing a super job of halving all the ingredients.  Until I got to the water element of the flour paste, which I doubled.  That should just have been last year's problem, right?  Except this year I was following the fruit loaf recipe (which doesn't include flour paste, obviously), and just estimated the flour and water.  "That looks like last year's paste" I thought.  *Mistake*. 

Lime and Coconut Macaroons

I mentioned in the Sweet Soy Omelette post that I love lime.  I don't, however, love coconut.  I've found that coconut-lovers are shocked by this, but anyone not enamoured of the stuff can see my point.  So this Jill Dupleix extras recipe (from Good Cooking: the New Essentials) was yet untested by me. 

There have been 3 limes sitting in my fruit bowl for a couple of weeks at least, languishing because I've given up alcohol for Lent - no more G&Ts for me for a while.  Which is a good thing.  Today, looking for inspiration for something new, I was flipping through this cookbook, and spied this recipe.  I had all the ingredients so made them this afternoon.

So, so easy.  I was still hesitant on account of the coconut, but wow - delicious!  I had a little of the mix left after filling a baking tray and even that was yummy.  Once cooked, I thought I should probably taste-test before writing about it - drool.  Light, but with a chewiness that I adore in baked goods.  Plus limey brilliance.  These will definitely be baked again!  After all, I still have 1 1/2 limes and a whole lot of coconut...

Recipe:
Use your hands to mix 100 g caster sugar, 150 g desiccated coconut, 2 egg whites, 1 tbsp grated lime zest and 1 tbsp lime juice to a thick paste.  Press into a flat square, 1 cm high (I did this part on a piece of foil).  Cut out small rounds (or any shape), and bake on a tray at 170C/Gas 3 for 12 - 15 minutes or until lightly golden (mine were ready in 10 minutes).

Exercising Restraint

This morning, I made biscuits.

I only had one student this morning (bliss!), and I had a meeting in the afternoon which required me to bring something to share.  So once the student was done, at 9am, I baked.  This was so nice.  Made me wish for a normal job (you know, 9-5, Monday - Friday), so that I could actually have a weekend.  Excuse me while I have a giggle.

Now, this biscuit recipe I have used many times.  Many, many times.  And it's basic enough that it can withstand substitutions quite easily.  It's in the Donna Hay Off the Shelf book (Food Processor Biscuits).  Today I used more than the recommended 1 cup of chocolate chips (I had about 1 1/3 cups of dark chocolate melts which I broke into pieces), and I used dried apricots instead of raisins.  Partly because that's what was in the cupboard, and partly because comments on past baking has been the raisins are just mean - you think you're getting chocolate when in fact it's vaguely healthy instead.  At least when you bite into a piece of apricot there are no illusions.

The main thing for today, though, is that this recipe apparently makes 25 biscuits.  I always have more than that, as 2 tablespoons per biscuit is a lot of biscuit dough.  Now, I bake 10 biscuits per tray, so I'm always left with a certain amount of dough which will obviously not make a whole extra tray of biscuits.  I must admit, usually this ends with me just eating the remainder of the biscuit dough.  Enjoying it, yes, until I've finished it...  But today I thought, I'm going to bake a half-tray's worth of biscuits.  Which ended up being 8 biscuits anyway, so the total number was 38.  Totally feeling virtuous.