Shortbread

These are my Mum's favourite biscuits. Crumbly, buttery shortbread.

However, would it surprise you if I said that Mum doesn't like butter? Nope, can't stand the taste, the smell, the texture. But give her a plate of these? And she just about inhales them.
I could never figure out why, because these biscuits are baked with almost the entire stick of butter (220g)!

These biscuits are fabulous with a cup of coffee. The rice flour gives it a nice crumbly interior, while the exterior holds its shape rather well. They are good travellers too. I would know, because these biscuits survived a plane trip in my suitcase. Yes, my suitcase, stored in ziploc bags no less. And they arrived at their destination looking just as unblemished as they were when I packed them.

Make these today, won't you?

Recipe from Donna Hay's Modern Classics Book 2

Ingredients:

• 220g chilled butter, chopped
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 2 cups plain flour
• 1/2 cup rice flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160ºC. Line trays with non-stick baking paper. Process all ingredients in a food processor until a dough forms.
2. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead gently.
3. Roll tablespoons of dough into balls. Place on baking trays and flatten slightly with a fork.
4. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until just golden brown.

Notes:

I used my KitchenAid mixer for this because my food processor is too small. First I creamed the butter and sugar, then added vanilla and egg, before adding the flours half a cup at a time.

Happy baking!

White Chocolate Chunk and Cranberry Cookies

Somehow my cookies always end up stacked. It's the easiest composition, since I only take pictures while Miss Pantry is having a nap.

I have a sweet tooth. As if you didn't already know.

Every few days, I get the urge to eat something sweet. Oh who am I kidding? I get the urge for something sweet daily. So I turn to my stash of chocolate when the cravings strike. And before I know it, I'd have eaten half a slab and I'll spend the rest of the day feeling like a fat slob.

Only sometimes will I let the annoying thing called will-power get in the way. I think my butt subconsciously knows that too much chocolate is not good for it.

Well, here you go. Partially unstacked and with a ribbon. Wow.

Times like this, I curse that I am not blessed with super high metabolism or the skinny gene. Or that I don't look like Miranda Kerr - I have a secret crush on her. She's gorgeous and advocates a healthy lifestyle. And she drinks chlorophyll. It's supposed to help with something, cell regeneration or whatnot. I forget. Maybe I should drink chlorophyll, might help with memory.

So anyhow, in an effort to eat less chocolate/packaged cookies/store-bought-highly-processed junk, I figured I'll make my own sweet snacks. If I made them, then I get to eat them without feeling guilty, because I'll know exactly how much sugar or fat has gone into them. Right?

I know what you are thinking right now. You're thinking "this cookie has chocolate and processed sugar in it"! Yes, yes, you are right. And it does make this cookie decadently sweet. But you see, that is the key. Because it is sweet, one (or two) cookies will be enough to satiate my sugar cravings.

Ingenious isn't it?

Recipe adapted from Taste.com.au
Yields 32 cookies

Ingredients:

• 125g butter, softened
• ¼ cup caster sugar
• ¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• ⅓ cup rice flour
• ½ cup almond meal
• ¾ cup plain flour
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• 150g white chocolate, roughly chopped

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC (160ºC fan forced).
2. Beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg. Beat until combined.
3. Stir in flours, almond meal, chocolate and cranberries.
4. Roll level tablespoons of mixture into balls and place 5 cm apart on trays. Flatten slightly. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until light golden. Cool for 5 minutes on trays before transferring to racks.

Happy baking!

Amaretti Amore

Gosh, it has been ONE YEAR since my last post. Is anyone still following this blog? I don't blame you if you're not.

To lure you back, here's a sweet incentive. These are extremely easy to eat! Crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside. With a subtle hit of almondy goodness. Ah, I'm in love.

Recipe from The Australian Women's Weekly cookbooks: Wicked sweet indulgences

Yields 20 biscuits

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (125g) almond meal
• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar
• 2 egg whites
• ¼ teaspoon almond essence
• 20 blanched alomonds (20g)

Method:

1. Line 2 oven trays.
2. Beat almond meal, sugar, egg whites and essence in a small bowl with electric mixer for 3 minutes; stand 5 minutes.
3. Spoon mixture into piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain tube. Pipe directly onto prepared tray in a circular motion from centre out, to make biscuits about 4cm in diameter.
4. Top each biscuit with an almond. Cover trays of unbaked biscuits loosely with foil; stand at room temperature overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 180ºC. Bake biscuits for 12 minutes or until browned lightly. Stand amaretti for 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool.

Tip: Amaretti can be baked the day they are made, however, they will spread a little more. For best results, stand the unbaked biscuits overnight.

Happy baking!

Anzac Biscuits

This has got to be one of the easiest biscuit recipe ever. It's yummy. It's economical. It stores well. There is no egg, so it's safe to give to people with egg allergy. Did I mention that it's yummy too?

Think how happy your children/partners/friends/family/colleagues/neighbours will be when they taste this biscuit. And the pride and warm-glowy feeling it will give you, knowing that YOU baked it. Out of l.o.v.e for them. You'll feel like the genius-domestic-goddess/god-extraordinaire that you are.

And look, because I love you, I've baked some for you. I've even tied a ribbon too. Aren't I nice?

Happy Friday and have a great weekend.


Recipe from Donna Hay's Modern Classics Book 2:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup plain (all purpose) flour
• ½ cup sugar
• ¾ cup desiccated coconut
• 2 tablespoons golden syrup
• 125g (4 oz) butter
• ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• 1 tablespoon hot water

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 160ºC. Place oats, flour, sugar and coconut in a bowl.
2. Place the golden syrup and butter in a saucepan over low heat and allow to melt.
3. Mix bicarbonate of soda with the water and add to the butter mixture. Pour butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well.
4. Place tablespoonfuls of the mixture on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper, allowing room for the biscuits to spread, and flatten slightly.
5. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden. Cool on wire racks.

Notes:  

• Makes 22. (I usually get 20 or 21 only, each of my biscuits might be a bit bigger)

More Bento

Cooking for Miss Pantry, who is a "sometimes-fussy-eater" can be quite frustrating. Something she would eat with gusto one day becomes floor decoration another. I call it mealtime Russian Roulette.

Have you tried getting a toddler to eat something she doesn't want to? It's like trying to catch a dog and give it oral flea medicine. Only worse. Imagine a big, kicky, screaming dog who cries bloody murder and tries to propel herself into your arms when you attempt to buckle her into her high chair. So loud that you think the neighbours are going to ring the police.

But, being Mother of the Year that I am, I try to be patient and not get upset by food refusal. I also try to offer a balanced diet, and I make it a point not to cook Miss Pantry anything that I wouldn't eat myself..

Since half the time, I'm the one finishing up her lunches.

No wonder my pants are getting tight.

My First Bento!

Miss Pantry loves to feed herself. So I am always on the lookout for finger foods that are healthy and appealing to toddlers.

On a recent trip to Singapore, I bought a small and very cute lunchbox for me Miss Pantry. I wanted something to hold food that can be eaten cold/at room temperature while we are out and about. This lunchbox is just the right portion size. The picture above is my first attempt at bento, and includes all the food groups a growing child like Miss P needs. Though none of the food groups that her Mummy loves - like Cake, Chocolate and Candy.

And I have finally found another use for all those cookie cutters I just had to buy, they work just as well as veggie cutters! Stay tuned for more bento making!

Apple and Sultana Mini Muffins

It's Spring! It's Spring! It's finally here! Yippee! And a beautiful 24 degrees celsius it is too in Sydney.

To celebrate the arrival of Spring, and to celebrate my inner domestic goddess, I've slaved for hours in the kitchen to bake you some Apple and Sultana mini muffins.

Oh alright. I fibbed. You caught me out. The truth is, I had one lonely unloved apple that I wanted to use up, and a surplus of sultanas left over from the sultana and cornflake cookies baked last week.

But the muffins look lovely, don't they?

Recipe adapted from Taste.com.au
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups (300g) self-raising flour, sifted
• ⅔ cup (150g) caster sugar
• 1 cups (250ml) buttermilk
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• ⅓ cups (80ml) vegetable oil
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 1 finely chopped pink lady apple, skin on
• ½ cup (85g) sultanas

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Place flour and sugar in a large bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, oil and cinnamon. Stir through apple and sultanas.
3. Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 12-hole, 1/2 cup muffin pan, taking care not to overfill.
4. Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Serve warm or cold.

Notes:

• I used a mini muffin pan, halved the recipe and got 12 mini muffins.
• I used mini cupcake liners, thus avoiding the need to grease the muffin pan. Less washing up!
• I sprinkled rolled oats over the top of muffin mixture prior to baking for some crunch and bite.

Happy baking!