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!

Blueberry Pie

Who doesn't love pie? Especially in the summer months when fruit is ripe and in season! One of my favourites is blueberry pie.. homemade! None of that store bought stuff (it makes me run for the hills, ugh!)

I feel like pie is one of those foods where if you don't have the best tasting slice to eat, don't bother eating. Am I just a pie snob? I'm certainly picky with the crust, as I always enjoy using an all butter dough.
Today I am sharing with you my blueberry pie recipe. If you're in the mood for deliciousness, give it a try and if you have some vanilla ice cream or lemon sorbet in your freezer, enjoy your slice a la mode.

Ingredients
Dough/Crust

1 cup cold butter, cubed

2 1/2 cup all purpose flour

2/3 cup ice cold water

3 tbsp granulated white sugar

1 tsp salt

1 egg (for crust egg wash)

Filling

4 cups fresh blueberries

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp butter

Juice and rind of 1/2 a lemon

Method
Crust

In a stand mixer, add flour and butter and mix using dough hook attachment. Mix for 2-3 minutes on medium speed until flour resembles cornmeal, then add remaining ingredients until it mixes into dough. If you don't have a mixer, you can use a fork to press the pieces of butter into the flour, and slowly add the other ingredients until dough forms. Roll by hand and plastic wrap, then place into the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

Filling

Add blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, salt and lemon into large bowl. Let sit for 30 minutes +. 

Preheat oven to 400F. Remove dough from refrigerator and cut in half. Roll out both into the shape of a circle and line bottom of 9" pie dish with one crust. Add blueberry filling and dot with 1 tbsp butter, and then add the other crust over top. Seal edges of both crusts

with a fork, or fold over to close. Give crust an egg wash, sprinkle with a pinch of granulated sugar and poke a small hole or two in the centre of the top pie crust.

Bake in oven for 50-55 minutes or until golden brown. 

Enjoy!

Zucchini Tart

Everywhere I look these days, I see Zucchini. From local farmers markets to backyard gardens. They're so fresh and so delicious that I've decided to come up with different ways to use them in my cooking. The other week I made some delicious patty cakes (recipe is on my Instagram). Today though, I have decided to make a tart. Give my recipe a try. You'll love it.





Ingredients
Dough/Crust
1/2 cup cold butter, cubed
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup ice cold water
1 tbsp granulated white sugar
1 tsp salt
(make sure to wrap dough and place in refrigerator for 3hrs)

Filling
6-8 medium zucchini
1 onion, diced
3 eggs
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup milk
1 tbsp all purpose flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

Method
Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out crust and place into tart dish or pie dish. Peel the zucchini into thin slices, and set aside. Mix all other ingredients and pour into pie dish. Roll zucchini thins into little roses (see my Instagram video) place around the rim of the pie and move inwards until the whole top is covered. Bake in oven for 50 minutes. Enjoy!