Honey Cake

Today I am sharing a sweet, delicious recipe for honey cake, a popular Greek dessert. The flavours in this cake are often key ingredients used throughout the eastern Mediterranean regions. There's a light taste of cinnamon which pairs well with the citrus infused honey syrup that soaks the cake. The pistachios over top give a slight crunch which compliments the soft, spongy and sticky dessert.

This cake is on my list of favourites. Check the recipe below and give it a try!

Honey Cake

Ingredients
Cake
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup softened butter
1/4 cup milk
3 eggs
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp lemon zest
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

Honey Syrup
1 cup white sugar
1 cup honey
3/4 cup water
1 tsp orange blossom water

Method
Pre-heat oven to 350C. Grease a 9" baking pan (I used parchment paper as well). Combine flour, baking powder, orange and lemon zests, cinnamon and salt together. Set aside.
With a stand up or electric mixer, beat the butter until smooth then add sugar and eggs one at a time. Beat for 2 minutes then slowly add the dry ingredients and the milk, until a thick batter forms. Pour into pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick runs out smooth.









To make the syrup
Use a saucepan to combine the honey, water, sugar and orange blossom water (or more orange zest). Mix and bring to a simmer and let cook for 5 minutes. Slightly cool.

When cake is ready and hot from the oven, pour the syrup slowly over top the cake, and allow it to soak it all up. I poked a few holes with a toothpick. Let cake sit for 1 hour, add pistachios over top and serve.

Enjoy!

Masala Matar Paneer

Today I am sharing my recipe for a delicious Indian masala dish called matar paneer. It is a rich and creamy vegetarian dish filled with the delicious flavour and aroma of popular Indian spices as well as a yummy cheese called Paneer and plenty of green peas. Give it a try if you're into deliciously spicy food.

Matar Paneer

Ingredients
3 large tomatoes, chopped
3 large onions, chopped
1 400g package paneer cheese, cubed
3 cups frozen peas
1/4 cup cooking oil
1/4 cup milk  (or heavy cream)
3 green chillies
1 tbsp turmeric
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp garam masala powder
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp sugar

*pepper flakes or fresh cilantro for garnish

Method
Boil frozen peas and drain. Set aside. Heat some oil in large stew pot and cook tomatoes,onions, fresh ginger and green chillies for 10 minutes on medium heat, or until soft. When slightly cooled, blend until smooth in a blender. Remove from blender and add back to pot with all spices and let thicken and cook down for another 10 minutes until it resembles a paste. Then add milk and stir until incorporated and has become a thick delicious sauce. Add cooked peas to the pot and cover. In a separate frying pan, add oil and sear chunks of paneer for a minute on each side, then drop them into the pot and cover. Let simmer on low for 1 hour. Serve over rice or with naan.

Enjoy!

Rosemary Fig Loaf with Pinenuts

If you're one to enjoy a cup of tea and a light and delicious baked good, this recipe is up your alley, especially if you enjoy a sweet fragrance. Herbs are not only for use in savoury cooking - using them when baking can be great. I enjoy using sage and rosemary especially when making sweet breads, loafs and cakes.

Below is my recipe for a moist and delicious loaf that can be enjoyed with your morning cup of tea or coffee or for dessert. Give it a try!

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

4 large eggs

1 cup soft butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup pine nuts or walnuts (more for garnish)

1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (more for garnish)

1 tbsp honey

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp salt

Method

Preheat oven at 350C. Beat the sugar and butter in an stand mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then slowly add flour and mix until incorporated. Lastly, add lemon zest, rosemary, vanilla, salt and pine nuts and mix for one minute. The batter will be thick, so grab a strong spatula and scoop out the batter into a greased loaf pan. Slice some figs in half and press into the top of the batter and sprinkle a few more pine nuts over top. Add extra rosemary for garnish. Bake for 1 hour at 350C, then remove from oven and drizzle with honey and let cool on wire rack. 

Enjoy!

Chocolate Banana Cake

My chocolate banana cake recipe is out of this world. I find myself making it more often than not when I have a serious craving for decadent chocolate cake.

If you're looking to make a rich and delicious chocolate cake, give this recipe a try. It's a perfect way to use up the over ripened bananas you may have chilling in your cold, dark freezer.

Ingredients

Chocolate Banana Cake

Cake

2 cups white sugar

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

2 large soft bananas, mashed

3/4 cup cacao powder 

2 eggs

1 cup warm water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp baking powder 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

Ganache

1/2 cup 35% heavy cream

2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp rum (optional)

Method

Heat oven to 350F, then line a 12 x 12 cake pan with parchment paper or cooking spray to grease a Bundt pan if using. Mix all dry ingredients for cake in large mixing bowl. In separate bowl, add mashed bananas, eggs, milk, water, oil and vanilla and whisk for 1 minute. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix for 2-3 minutes. Pour batter in cake pan and bake for 45 minutes.

To make ganache, heat cream until it begins to simmer and pour over top chocolate chips and salt in a mixing bowl. Use a spatula to fold for a couple of minutes until the cream melts the chips and it becomes very smooth.

When the cake has baked and cooled, spread the chocolate ganache over top and let sit for an hour if you'd like the chocolate ganache to set for an easy, messy free slicing. Keep refrigerated for up to a week. Garnish with crushed banana chips if you desire. 

Enjoy!

Irish Stew in slow cooker

Irish Stew

As soon as October hits, I pull out the slow cooker. It's that time of year when the temperature dips and the hunger for warm comfort food rises. I love chilli, soup and stew, so I decided to start with an Irish stew on this cool Autumn day.

Below is a delicious recipe for Irish stew in a slow cooker. I swear, if you give this a try you will not be disappointed. The beef literally falls apart, it's so tender and delicious. The flavours are intense, and so savoury! I only wish I had a larger slow cooker so I could make double the servings to last all week. Yum!

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 1/2 - 2lbs top sirloin beef or lamb, cubed

3 large potatoes, cubed

3 large stalks celery, chopped

3 large carrots, chopped

1 cup mushrooms, chopped

1 large onion, diced

1 cup frozen peas

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 tbsp olive oil

3 cups rich beef broth

1 cup Guinness stout 

1/2 cup red wine

3 tbsp flour

2 tbsp tomato paste
1 bay leaf

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp dry thyme

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp Worcestershire 

1 tsp back pepper

parsely for garnish 

Method

In a hot pot with some oil, brown the beef/lamb.  Do not over crowd the pot, so you'll want to brown the pieces in batches. When you've finished browning, add garlic for a minute, then add Guinness and red wine. After a few minutes of simmering, transfer all of it to the slow cooker. In the same pot, add a bit more oil, and all the vegetables. Let cook to soften on medium heat for about 20 minutes, then transfer to slow cooker. 

Grab a large mixing bowl and add broth, tomato paste, sugar, salt, dry thyme, bay leaf, worcestershire and black pepper. Mix and add to the slower cooker. It should be nice and full. Give it a bit of a stir to incorporate everything, and set it on high. Let sit 4 - 6 hours. 

Not long before serving, mix 3 tbsp flour with some of the hot broth, then pour back into the stew. I also add more green peas at this stage because I like the pop of colour. Let sit for 10 minutes to thicken, and then serve.

Enjoy hot with some buttered bread.

Happy Autumn everyone x

Chipotle Chicken Chilli with Sweet Potato

It's Autumn and you know what that means fellow foodies! COMFORT FOOD!

One of my favourite kitchen gadgets to use this time of year is the slow cooker. Here is a different kind of chilli recipe that I came up with based solely on my love for sweet potato and also by being a bit tired of the conventional chilli recipes out there. Give it a try!

Ingredients

2 large chicken breasts, cubed

2 sweet potatoes, cubed

1 onion, chopped

1 cup canned black beans

1 cup corn niblets

1/2 cup water

3 chipotles peppers in adobo sauce, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

3 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black cracked pepper

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp turmeric

Method

In large pan over high heat, heat 3 tablespoons of canola oil. Add chicken and onion and cook for 5 minutes, then add potato and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes until slightly tender. Move all contents of pan to a slow cooker, add remaining ingredients and stir. Set on low and cook for 5+ hours. Serve with green onion, sour cream, avocado or crushed tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Double chocolate Nutella cookies

Like cookies?
Like dessert?
Like chocolate?
Like Nutella?
.......... Like it with a glass of cold milk? Like no further. Just bake. Here's my recipe for my double chocolate Nutella cookies.
Be careful, they're addictive and so delicious. . You've been warned!

Ingredients
2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup cacao powder
1/4 cup Nutella
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
1 1/4 cup semi sweet or milk chocolate chips
(more Nutella if you'd like to pipe 1 tsp within the cookie)

Method
Preheat oven to 375F.
With an electric mixer, beat butter, nutella and sugars for 5 minutes on medium speed. Add eggs and vanilla and beat another 2 minutes. Slowly add the flour, cacao powder, baking soda and salt and mix for 2 minutes. Finally mix in the chocolate chips for a few more seconds.
Tip: I usually refrigerate my cookie dough for 1 hour before I roll out the balls. I find it bakes better that way.

Roll into 1" balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 7-8 minutes. Make sure cookies are a little soft in the centre to ensure they stay chewy and soft after cooling down.

Enjoy!