Chicken Laksa - Pileca Laksa

Spicy, warm and hearty chicken laksa.

Ingredients:

200g (small jar) of good quality laksa paste (from your Thai grocer) I used Por Kwan Laksa Paste

800ml coconut cream (400ml if making for 2 serves only)

500g chicken/vegetable stock

600g chicken breast cut into slices

(Alternatively you can add prawns, beef strips, duck strips).

200g fresh Asian noodles I used a combination of both shoelace/thin and thicker style noodles

1/2 cup bean sprouts if desired

5 thicker spring onions cut finely and fried until they just start to get golden

Handful fresh coriander to garnish

Fresh red chillies to garnish if desired

Black pepper chili paste to garnish on top if you like your laksa spicy

Method:

Heat the laksa paste in a large saucepan for a few minutes to release the aroma. Add coconut milk and stock and bring to boil. Add the chicken or the chosen meat/prawns and simmer on reduced heat until cooked.

Place noodles in a large bowl and pour boiling water over to cover. Allow to stand for two minutes to heat through, then drain. Divide drained noodles between serving bowls (bowls should be fairly large and deep), pour laksa and all its ingredients over and garnish with bean sprouts, spring onion and coriander.

Enjoy!

German Style Salty Pretzels - Slane Perece

I absolutely love the salty pretzels - I often have them for breakfast on my way to work from a German Bakery near by. So I thought I would recreate my own from a great recipe I found.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 sachets dried yeast

2 tsp caster sugar

635gm (4 1/2 cups flour)

40g softened butter

50gm bicarbonate soda

1 egg yolk for brushing

Sea salt flakes for scattering

Method:

In a small cup empty out sachets of dried yeast and add a small amount of warm water - combine so you get a paste like texture. Cover with cling wrap and leave in a warm place for 5-7 minutes - it should rise and bubbles will form.

In a large bowl add flour, sugar and a pinch of salt and stir through. Add the yeast mixture and 250ml warm water. Combine and form the dough, it should be nice and soft and all of the flour should be incorporated. If you need to, add more water. Oil the dough mixture slightly and cover the bowl with a tea towel. Leave to stand in a warm place (this is called proving) for 1-1 1/2 hrs - until doubled in size. See step by step pictures below.

Knock back dough and divide into 8 even pieces or 10 if you want smaller pretzels. Roll each piece on a work surface to about 45cm long so it tapers on the ends and is thicker in the middle. Bring ends inwards and cross over once, then twist once more, then fold back and press ends onto the thicker side to create the pretzel shape. Place on an oil brushed tray.

Preheat oven to 200C. Bring 5 litres of water to simmer in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add bicarbonate soda, stir to combine, then carefully add pretzels into the water to blanch. They should float on the top and you can turn them once then take them out (this procedure should take about 30 seconds on each side). Place the pretzels back into the oiled tray and brush the egg yolk over them. Scatter sea salt flakes over the pretzels as desired. Bake on 200C until golden brown (25-30mins).

Serve warm and enjoy - Happy Baking!



Tennis Ball Cake

Tennis ball cake made in inspiration for my brother's birthday.

The inside is a mud cake as per the below recipe.



Mud Cake - Torta od cokolade

This was my own creation for my 25th birthday - it was delicious!

Ingredients:

250g butter, chopped

200g Nestle cooking dark chocolate, chopped (1 whole block)

2 cups caster sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup self-raising flour, sifted

1 1/2 cups plain flour, sifted

1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted

chocolate flakes, to serve

Chocolate ganache

200g Nestle cooking dark chocolate, chopped (1 whole block)
2/3 cup thickened cream

Method

Preheat oven to 180C fan-forced. Grease medium sized cake pan. Line base with baking paper.

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add chocolate, sugar and 1 cup cold water. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 to 4 minutes or until smooth. Transfer to large bowl. Cool for 10 minutes.

Add eggs. Stir to combine. Add flour and cocoa. Stir until smooth. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre has moist crumbs clinging. Stand for 10 minutes in pan. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

To make the chocolate ganache: Place chocolate and cream in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 to 4 minutes or until smooth. Transfer to a bowl. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until thick enough to spread. Spread over cake. Top with chocolate flakes. Serve and indulge in this delicious treat.

Happy Baking :)

Pavlova with cherries and kiwi

My version of Donna Hay's Pavlova

Ingredients:

12 egg whites
14 tablespoons of caster sugar
6 tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch), sifted
6 teaspoons white vinegar
2 cups (500ml) thickened cream
Mixed berried, cherries and kiwi fruit or other fruit as desired

Method:

Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F). Place the egg white in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, whisking well, until the mixture is stiff and glossy.

Add the cornflour and vinegar and whisk until just combined. Shape the mixture into an 18cm round on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Reduce oven to 120°C (250°F) and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes. Turn the oven off and allow the pavlova to cool completely in the oven. Whisk the cream until soft peaks form. Spread over the pavlova, top with berries, cherries and kiwi fruit and serve immediately. Serves 15-20.

Happy Baking :)





Orascici - Walnut cakes filled with cream

Short bread pastry on the outside that crumbles away filled with a delicate cream.

Ingredients:

1 cup warm milk 

1/2kg flour

250g butter

8 table spoons sugar

1 sachet baking powder

Pinch of salt

Cream filling:

1 cup warm milk

3 table spoons of flour (bring to to the boil with the milk until you get a cream like texture)

1 Vanilla Pudding

125g butter

3-4 table spoons of caster sugar

Method:

Preheat oven to 180C. In a large bowl beat the butter with an electric mixer until soft and fluffy. Add flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and mix well until you get a smooth like texture.

Oil every walnut mould and start pressing the dough into each mould it should be about 0.5cm in thickness.

Place all the moulds into a baking tray and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until golden. Cool.

Cream filling:

In a large saucepan add milk and gradually stir in flour spoon by spoon until the texture thickens. Add butter, sugar and the vanilla pudding (mixed with 350g milk - prepare as per instructions on pack). Mix well until smooth. Cool.

Take out all the wall nut cakes from the mould and start filling with the cream on one side. Top off with the other half so you get a walnut shape as shown above. The moulds are as per the below:



Kosnice

Easy to make - perfect for big occasions when catering for many.

Ingredients:

1 wafer block pack (you can buy this in your local delicatessen)

250g butter

1 cup milk

3-4 table spoons flour

4 table spoons sugar

200g finely chopped almonds 

chocolate

Jam as desired (I used Quince Jam for this recipe)

Method:

In a large saucepan add milk and gradually stir in flour until the texture thickens. Add butter, sugar and almonds. Stir until its all well combined and cooking through. Leave to cool.

Cut out rounds from the wafer block withe the moulds shown below. With a knife spread a layer of jam.

Sip in some sugar into your mould then remove to achieve a layer on the sides so that your mixture does not stick to the mould. Spoon the mixture into the mould and then carefully shake out onto the wafer round. Repeat process until all of the mixture is used.

Refrigerate and then serve. Moulds shown below.

Enjoy :)