Lentil Daal

This dish is from Week 4 of my Indian cooking class - I've not ever really worked with (or even cared to work with) lentils before, so was not sure whether I'd like this dish or not.  The verdict: it was OK, but I probably won't make it again.  Nice as a lunch dish, as lentils are a good light meal.

At the top of our recipe sheet, the following was written by our teacher:

Lentils, popularily known as daal, are perhaps the common and the most popular of Indian foods. They are an integral part of everyday Indian meals.

Ingredients:

For cooking lentils
100-150g lentils (orange-pink in colour)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger paste (or 20g finely cut fresh ginger)
500mL water (approx - add more if required)
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp chilli powder

For Tadka (Seasoning):
2 Tbsp clarified butter or oil
½ medium onion, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
3 Tbsp tomato puree

For garnish:
½ tsp garam masala
fresh coriander, finely chopped

Method:
1. Wash the lentils 3 or 4 times in water. Boil the water and add lentils, salt, ginger, chilli and tumeric. Half-cover it with a lid and when it comes to the boil, reduce the heat and cook until done.
2. Heat ghee or oil in a small pan, add cumin seeds and let them splutter.
3. Add onions and fry until golden brown.
4. Add tomato puree and cook for a minute.
5. Add steps 2,3,4 to the lentils.
6. Garnish the daal with fresh finely chopped coriander leaves and garam masala.

Serve with cumin rice or chapati.

Chapati (Wholemeal Bread)

This is another recipe from Week 4 of my Indian cooking class - very easy to make, and well-received by everyone in my family!  Chapati is also known as roti.

Ingredients:
1½ cups atta flour (or wholemeal flour which has been sifted 3 or 4 times)
1 Tbsp oil
approx ¾ cup water to make dough
½ cup flour (for rolling)

Method:
1. Put flour in a mixing bowl and add oil to it and mix thoroughly. Take ¼ cup lukewarm water and mix it with flour and then add more as required to make a soft and pliable dough. Knead well and leave for 15 minutes covered with a damp cloth.
2. Divide the dough into medium sized round balls. Sprinkle some dry flour on the rolling board or bench top. Flatten each ball by placing it on the rolling board with your fingers. Put dry flour on both sides of the flattened ball and place it on the floured board or bench top and roll it with a rolling pin into a thick round pancake.
3. Heat a heavy based frying pan and grease a little with oil to prevent the chapati from sticking to the pan. Cook on medium heat. When one side dries up and tiny bubbles being to appear, turn it over and cook until brown spots form on the under surface, then turn it over. Press slowly with a paper towel until it swells up. Remove from the pan and apply a little butter to one side.

Chapati can be served with any vegetarian or non-vegetarian dish.

Parantha
1. Take one round ball of chapati dough, roll it out into a small pancake, spread melted butter or ghee and then fold this pancake into a square.
2. Sprinkle some dry flour on the board and roll it out into a square shape.
3. Heat the griddle and when it is hot, place the parantha on this. When one side is cooked, spread ghee or oil with a brush or spoon and turn it over.
4. Fry both sides until golden brown.

Murg (Chicken) Makhmali Kebab

This is a recipe from Week 4 of the Indian cooking class I'm taking - it is lovely, once you can get over the curdled cream/yoghurt texture!  Next time, I'd probably make it with a lot less white pepper, as it was quite overpowering.

Ingredients:
400g boneless chicken thigh
2 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste
4 Tbsp thickened cream
4 Tbsp natural yoghurt
1 tsp white pepper
4 Tbsp green coriander
2 green chillies
pinch nutmeg (optional)
1 egg white
2 Tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
½ Tbsp lemon juice

Method:
1. Clean chicken pieces and cut them into 2-3 inch pieces
2. Mix ginger, garlic, lemon juice and salt, and mix it with pieces and set aside.
3. Chop green chillies and coriander fine, or liquidise it in a chopper.
4. Mix cream and yoghurt with white pepper, green chillies, nutmeg and egg white, and half of the chopped coriander.
5. Now mix the chicken pieces with this mixture and leave it for 2 hours.

{We did all of the above before we attended our class, left the chicken to marinate overnight, and then took it along to our class to carry on with the rest of the method...}

6. Preheat oven for 5 minutes on 180ºC
7. Prepare tray with aluminium foil and grease it with butter or oil nicely and then place marinated chicken pieces on this and cover loosely with tin foil.
8. Bake at 180ºC for 8-10 minutes. Turn the pieces and bake again for 5 minutes or until done.
9. Remove, put in a serving dish and garnish with the rest of the coriander and thin carrot/cucumber sticks in side.

Serve hot.

{An alternative way to cook this is in a wok on medium heat, stirring constantly}

Cucumber Raita

As soon as I told DH that we were making cucumber raita at our Indian cooking class, he started quoting Rowan Atkinson (flick through to around 4min 20sec for the bit on raita).

Super easy to make, and can also be made with potato and/or carrot instead of cucumber. Chilli powder and black pepper are optional, but they both give it a nice wee 'kick'.

Ingredients:
½ cup grated cucumber
1 cup plain yoghurt
2 Tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
¼ tsp chilli powder (optional)
¼ tsp black pepper
salt to taste
¼ tsp cumin powder

Method:
1. Beat yoghurt, make sure there are no lumps
2. Wash and grate cucumber
3. Mix cucumber, coriander leaves, and other spices with yoghurt
4. Serve chilled.

Vegetable Pulao

Another from my Indian cooking class - very easy to make, it's basically frozen veges with a few spices, then mix the cooked rice through.

Ingredients:
5 Tbsp cooking oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
2 cinnamon sticks
2 brown cardamoms
1 cup basmati rice
2 tsp salt (1 for rice, 1 for veges)
1 cup mixed vegetables

Method:
1. Soak rice in cold water. Pour 4-5 cups of water in a pot and add 1 tsp salt.
2. Add rice and boil until cooked, drain rice in sieve and cool under cold water. Keep aside.
3. Heat oil in a pan, add cumin, bay leaves, cinnamon, cardamoms. Fry for 5 seconds then add vegetables and fry for 5-10 minutes or until cooked. Remove from heat.
4. Take a big mixing bowl, put rice and vegetables in and mix well.
5. Transfer into a serving dish and heat in the microwave for 4-5 minutes and garnish with fresh coriander.

Serve hot with chicken or lamb.

Keema Mutter (Mince and Peas)

This recipe is from Week 3 of my Indian cooking class - this can be made with or without gravy. I made mine with 1 cup of water, and by the time I got home with it (half an hour after making it), the mince was moist but not exactly gravy-like.

Ingredients:
350g lamb or beef mince
1 large onion, finely diced
1 tsp ginger, finely chopped or grated
1 tsp garlic
½ tsp tumeric
1 green chilli (optional)
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 Tbsp oil
2 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp chilli powder
3-4 tomatoes, skinned and finely chopped (or 4 Tbsp tomato puree)
100g green peas
½ tsp garam masala powder
2 eggs, hardboiled and sliced
A few coriander leaves, freshly chopped
1 tsp salt
Water as required

Method:
1. Heat oil over medium heat, add cumin seeds, let them splutter and then add onions. Fry for five minutes until the onions turn golden brown, then add ginger and garlic paste. Fry for another minute.
2. Reduce heat and add tumeric, coriander powder, salt, chilli powder and finely chopped green chilli.
3. Add tomatoes and cook for 40 seconds, and then add mince.
4. Cook for 8 minutes, stirring frequently (break lumps of mince, if any) or until oil is separated from mince.
5. Add fresh or frozen green peas, add water and simmer for 6-8 minutes on medium heat.
6. Add garam masala powder and remove from heat.
7. Transfer onto a serving dish and arrange sliced eggs on top. Garnish with green coriander leaves.

Serve with chapati or rice and potato raita.

Amritsari Fish (Fried Fish)

This is a third recipe from Wee 2 of our cooking class, but we didn't get to try it. I'll have to give it a go sometime soon, as it sounds really yummy.

Ingredients:
250g boneless fish fillets (tarakihi or blue cod)
½ tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp garlic paste
3 Tbsp self raising flour
4 Tbsp channa flour
Salt to taste
3-4 Tbsp lemon juice
1 cup oil (for deep frying)
1 tsp fish masala (optional)
1 tsp chat masala (optional, to sprinkle on fried fish)

Method:
1. Cut fish into large chunks. Take a bowl, mix lemon juice, salt and garlic. Add fish pieces, marinate for 20-30 minutes.
2. Add all other spices, self raising flout and channa flour to the marinated fish and mix it gently. If it looks too dry and lumpy, add a little water.
3. Make sure fish pieces are coated with the paste, if required add more flour (either channa or self raising).
4. Heat oil in a deep frying pan and fry the fish until golden brown.
5. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle chat masala on fried fish.

Serve hot with tomato ketchup or coriander chutney.

Mushrooms and Capsicum

I don't know what the Indian name for this dish is, but it's really yummy! Easy to adapt - if you don't like mushrooms, try potatoes or tofu. If capsicums are too expensive, just add less. If you like multicolours, add more colours - red, green and yellow would be lovely. If you don't like cashews, add a different nut (hazelnuts would be delicious). If you don't like sultanas, leave them out, or add less.

Ingredients:
200g white button mushrooms, cut into quarters
½ green capsicum, cut into pieces (the same size as the mushroom pieces)
½ red capsicum, cut into pieces (the same size as the mushroom pieces)
1 medium onion, very finely diced
2 Tbsp tomato puree
6-8 Tbsp, cooking oil
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
½ tsp chilli powder (optional)
1 tsp salt
a handful of cashew pieces
a handful of sultanas

Method:
1. Prepare all ingredients in advance, and put spices on a plate (everything cooks very quickly, so you'll want everything to hand.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add cashews and fry just until they turn golden brown. Remove (leaving oil in the pan) and put aside on a plate.
3. Put mushrooms in oil, and fry for just a couple of minutes. Remove, and put with cashews.
4. Put capsicum in oil, and fry for just a couple of minutes. Remove, and put with other cooked ingredients.
5. Add onion to oil, and fry until golden brown. Add tomato puree and fry for 20 seconds.
6. Add coriander, cumin and chilli powders, and salt. Add cashews, mushrooms, capsicum and sultanas.
7. Mix and fry for 2 minutes until the water dries.

Serve hot with chapati or naan, or with round buns fried with butter.

Palak Meat (Meat in Spinach Gravy)

This is from Week 2 of my Indian cooking class - we had a weeks' break due to snow in Wellington, but we still get 6 classes, which is great.

Ingredients:
300-400g diced lamb
1 tsp cumin seeds

Coarsely grind the next three spices together:
2 green and 2 black cardamoms
4 cloves
2" stick of cinnamon (note - just a thin piece, not an entire curled up piece like you buy at the supermarket - break it up into pieces of bark)

1 bay leaf
2 medium onions, finely chopped
2 tsp crushed ginger-garlic (one of each, or two of either one)
2 large chopped tomatoes or 4 Tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp tumeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
salt to taste
300-500g frozen spinach
1 Tbsp cumin powder
1 Tbsp coriander powder

Method:
1. Cook spinach in ½ cup of water until well cooked.
2. Add a little salt to the spinach
3. Blend it or churn in food processor to make a thick paste (we used a stick blender). Keep it aside.
4. In a large saucepan, pour 3 Tbsp oil. When hot, add bay leaf and cumin seeds. Then add onions and saute until golden brown.
5. Add ginger-garlic and saute.
6. Add tomatoes and saute until the oil leaves the masala.
7. Add tumeric, chilli powder and salt.
8. Add meat and the coarsly ground cardamoms, cloves and cinnamon. Saute meat for 10 minutes until you see the oil separating from the meat.
9. Add 2½ cups of water and let the meat cook on a medium heat.
10. When the meat is well cooked, add the spinach puree and cumin/coriander powders and cook on a medium heat for about 10 minutes.

Serve with roti or rice.

Louise Cake Muffins

I'm a huge fan of Louise Cake, so when I came upon this recipe on Food In a Minute for Louise Muffins, I had to try it.  They're as delicious as they sound, but it takes a bit of practice to get them out of the muffin tins nicely - I recommend the use of silicone mini muffin tins.

Ingredients:
75g butter, softened
1/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup strawberry jam
1 Tbsp sugar
1/4 cup coconut

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly grease muffin tins.

2. Cream butter and sugar until light and creamy and add the egg yolks. Stir in the sifted flour and baking powder and mix to a soft dough. If dough is too soft, chill for 20 minutes in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic wrap.

3. Roll out the dough between 2 sheets of baking paper and cut 12, 6-7 cm circles. Gently place these circles into the muffin tins to form the base. Divide the strawberry jam between the bases.

4. Whisk the egg whites with sugar until stiff peaks form and then fold in the coconut. Divide meringue between the tarts and place just below halfway in the oven.

5. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden. Leave in the tins for a few minutes before cooling on a baking rack.

Oatie Pancakes

Another one from the good ol' Intermediate cookbook - my sons both love these, and I feel like they have a little bit more nutritional value than regular pikelets (I make them small, like pikelets, so they're easier to eat).

Ingredients:
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 beaten egg
25g butter, melted
2 Tbsp sugar
½ cup flour
2 tsp baking powder

Method: 
Soak rolled oats in milk for 5 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
Cook as you would pikelets - I place spoonfuls in the sandwich press, so I don't need to use butter or oil for cooking.

The original recipe had a mock maple syrup recipe to serve it with - which is rather extravagant, but I'll put it here, just in case.  Generally, we just eat them plain, or with a slice of banana on top.

Mock Maple Syrup
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup water
1 tsp vanilla essence
- boil sugar and water until sugar is dissolved.  Cool and add vanilla.

Lemon Honey

Another recipe from Intermediate - I remember this being delicious on bread!

Ingredients:
Juice and rind of 3 lemons
3 egg
135g butter
1 cup sugar

Method:
Beat egg, then put in the top half of a double boiler with all the other ingredients.
Half fill the base with water, then boil the mixture on high until it thickens.
Store in a jar in the fridge.

Chocolate Chippie Cookies

I don't actually remember if these are any good or not, so please do comment on them if you try them out.  These are another gem from my Form 1 cooking class.

Ingredients:
60g butter
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp condensed milk
Vanilla essence
½ cup flour
½ tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp chocolate chips

Method:
Cream butter, sugar and condensed milk, add vanilla.
Sift dry ingredients, and to mixture with chocolate chips.
Mix thoroughly and roll into balls (approx 8).
Place on a greased try and flatten with a fork.
Bake at 180°C for approx 10 minutes.  Cool on a rack.

Scrummy Sausages

This recipe is one that I love - it came from my Form 1 cooking class, back at Bohally Intermediate.  You Blenheim folk may remember it!

Ingredients:
8 precooked sausages
1 onion, diced
1 apple, grated
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp vinegar
4 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp soy sauce
4 Tbsp tomato sauce

Method:
Cut sausages in half lengthwise, or into bite sized rounds, and place into a baking dish.
Mix all other ingredients and pour over the sausages.
Bake at 200°C for 15-20 minutes.
Serve with mashed potatoes and green vegetables for a simple and simply scrummy meal!

Aioli

The only thing I don't like about aioli is that it has raw egg in it, so that's something to watch if you're pregnant or otherwise not willing to run the risk - otherwise, aioli is delicious!

Ingredients:
3 egg yolks
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 lemons worth of juice
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 cup canola oil

Method:
Bung all ingredients except the oil in a food processor and mix thoroughly.  Slowly add the oil - you'll see the consistency change as you do it.

Pikelets

This recipe is from the good ol' Edmonds cookbook - which every self-respecting Kiwi must have a copy of!!  We have the 1998 edition (my copy) and the 1976 edition (which I think belonged to hubby's grandma?) - there's quite a few differences between the two books, so it's handy having them both!

I admit to shortening the method to "my" way of doing pikelets, because it works well for me!!

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 egg
¼ cup sugar
3/4 cup milk

Method:
Put flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.  Put egg and sugar in, and mix well.  Add milk, and mix until just combined.  Drop little spoonfuls into a lightly greased frying pan.  Turn pikelets when they start to bubble on the surface.  Cook second side until golden.

I usually cook my pikelets in the sandwich press (but not pressing them flat!) - that way I don't have to grease the pan with butter or oil.  I also often reduce the amount of sugar, with no discernible difference in the taste - halve the sugar content, and it makes you feel better about feeding them to the kids!

As a variation, I sometimes puree some vegetables and mix this in (adjust the amount of milk accordingly - sometimes you need a bit more or a bit less, to get the right consistency).  With the wee bit of sugar, it makes the pikelets a tasty way of feeding veges to that reluctant toddler!

Rice Bubble Cake

This was always one of my favourites as a kid, and I still love it now. At least one of my boys does too (the second one hasn't tried it yet, as he's not a year old yet, and it has honey in it).

Ingredients:
125g butter
3 tsp sugar
2 heaped tsp honey
5 cups rice bubbles

Method:
1. Add butter, sugar and honey to a large saucepan (large enough to later add the rice bubbles) and melt over a medium heat.
2. Bring the mixture to the boil and allow it to turn over for about four minutes or until the mixture starts to turn brown.  Stir occasionally.
3. Remove from the heat and add the rice bubbles.  Stir well to evenly mix everything together.
4. Press the mixture into a lined tin and chill in the fridge until set.
5. Cut into pieces and enjoy!

Chocolate Cake in a Mug

Sometimes you just want a slice of chocolate cake, but don't want to make an entire cake. Well, the solution is here, thanks to Ally - a chocolate cake made in a mug, and it takes less than 5 minutes from thinking "Hmm, I want cake" to sitting down and eating it!

Ingredients
•1 - Coffee Mug
•4 - tablespoons flour
•4 - tablespoons sugar
•2 - tablespoons baking cocoa
•1 - egg
•3 - tablespoons milk
•3 - tablespoons oil
•3 -4 - tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
•Small splash of vanilla extract

Directions
1.Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well . Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
2.Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
3.Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla, and mix again.
4.Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 2 minutes at 1000 watts.

Personally, I just bung everything in the mug at the same time, give it a good ol' mix, and toss it in the microwave. Delicious!

Murg Masala (Spicy Chicken)

The second recipe from Week 1 of my Indian cooking class - this is delicious, but I have to admit that I only put in ¼ tsp of chilli powder, and no fresh chillies, as I'm a bit of a wuss! It was delicious though, and I'll happily make it again for myself and someone that wishes to join me (it won't be a regular in our house, due to the number of onions, and hubby's intolerance of onions).

Murg Masala:

Ingredients
• Boneless chicken 500g cut into bite-sized pieces
• Coriander seeds 1 Tbsp, roasted lightly and coarsely crushed
• Fenugreek seeds ½ tsp
• Cooking oil 7-8 Tbsp
• Onions 2 large, cut into slices
• Garlic paste 2 tsp
• Tomatoes 3
• Tomato puree 8 Tbsp
• Salt 1 ½ tsp
• Fenugreek leaves (dry) 4 Tbsp (aka Kasoori Methi)
• Red chilli powder 1 tsp
• Coriander powder 1 ½ tsp
• Cream 4-5 Tbsp
• Milk 1 cup
• Green coriander 3-4 Tbsp, finely chopped
• Green capsicum 1, finely sliced into long thin slices
• Ginger 2” piece, cut into match sticks (optional)
• Green chillies 1-2, cut into long thin slices (optional)

Method
1. Dry roast whole coriander lightly in a pan, crush with a rolling pin.
2. Heat oil in a wok, reduce heat. Add fenugreek seeds and stir for a few seconds until they turn golden.
3. Add onions and cook on medium heat until light brown.
4. Add garlic and stir for 1 minute.
5. Add tomatoes, cook for 2 minutes. Add fenugreek leaves.
6. Add crushed coriander, chilli powder and coriander powder.
7. Add chicken and fry for 10-15 minutes on medium heat, stirring well to mix everything together.
8. Add salt. Cover and cook for 5-10 minutes until tender, stirring occasionally.
9. Add tomato puree and chopped coriander. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until dry.
10. Reduce heat, add milk and cook for 2-3 minutes on low heat, stirring constantly.
11. Add capsicum, ginger sticks and chilli slices (deseeded). Mix well.
12. Reduce heat and add cream. Mix well and remove from fire. Serve hot with rice or chapatti.

Ghee Pulao

I'm doing a 6-week Indian cooking class at the local high school at the moment, and we just had our first class last night (OK, I admit it, the class was actually the inspiration behind starting this blog, so I don't lose the recipes!)

So each week I'll post the recipes that we work with - I think we'll be doing two recipes a week.

The first recipe this week is rice, to go with a main meal, which this week was Murg Masala.

However... Ghee Pualo:

Ingredients
• Basmati rice 1 cup
• Cumin seeds 1 tsp
• Onion (medium) 1
• Ghee or oil 3 Tbsp
• Salt 1 tsp or to taste

Method
1. Wash and soak rice for 10 minutes in two cups of water.
2. Peel and slice onion lengthwise into thin slices.
3. Heat ghee/oil in a pot, add cumin seeds and once it starts to crackle, add onions.
4. Fry until brown.
5. Add rice with water and add salt. Cover and bring to boil.
6. Reduce heat to low, stir once and cover with lid again. Cook until all water is absorbed.
7. Serve hot.

Serving suggestions: serve with Chicken Masala or any other mains.

Muesli Bars

A while ago, I came upon this recipe at Towards Sustainability - it's a great muesli bar recipe, and got the thumbs-up from Michael (see this link here for his reaction the first time we made it), but we haven't made it often, as both my boys seem to prefer the muffin-style muesli bars these days.

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats
6 crushed Weet Bix
½ cup sultanas
60g dried apricots, chopped
1 cup 100% orange juice
1/3 cup honey
2 egg whites

Method

1. Combine orange juice and honey in a small saucepan, and simmer over medium heat for around 10 minutes, until it thickens and forms a thin syrup.

2. Combine oats, Weet Bix, sultanas and apricots in a bowl. Add syrup and stir to combine. Add egg whites and mix.

3. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Press mixture into a lined 18 x 28cm tin, and bake 20-25 minutes until golden.

4. Cool in tin, turn out and cut into bars. They will last for up to a week in an air-tight container.

Custard Muffins

A while ago, my friend Kerry gave me a recipe for YoYo Muffins, which are another one of those must-have recipes. Quick and easy to whip up, and super-yummy. So here's the recipe:

1½ cups of flour
½ cup custard powder
3 teaspoons baking powder
¼ cup sugar
100g butter
2 eggs
1 cup milk
¼ raspberry jam

Sift flour, custard powder and baking powder into a bowl. Mix in sugar. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Melt butter. Beat eggs and milk together. Add butter and milk to dry ingredients. Mix to just moisten. Half fill greased deep muffin tins with the mixture. Place a teaspoon of jam on the mixture in the tin. Place a teaspoon of jam on the mixture in the tin. Top with more muffin mixture to three quater fill tins. Bake at 190°c for 15 mins or until muffins spring back when lightly touched.

I changed the recipe slightly, as we didn't have much jam. I put crushed pineapple in the middle instead, and they were quite yummy! So I recommend trying that (or any other sweet centre, probably - the muffins themselves are not particularly sweet, so they need something reasonably strong-tasting and sweet in the middle).

Cheesy Hot Cakes

I've "borrowed" this recipe from Mel, but it's just too tasty not to share! Cheesy Hot Cakes are basically cheese pikelets, and would go well with grated vegetables in them. I'm thinking... grated carrot and zucchini, some diced capsicum, and maybe some grated turnip or kumara.

The recipe is incredibly simple:

Ingredients:
1 cup self-raising flour (or, as I did: 1 cup standard flour and 2t baking powder)
1 Tablespoon white/caster sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup grated cheese

Method:
Sift together flour, BP, sugar and cheese. Stir milk and beaten egg together, and add to the flour. Mix until well combined.
Place tablespoons of mixture into hot, lightly greased frying pan. Cook until bubbles appear on surface then turn and cook until golden brown.

I cooked mine in our sandwich press - that way, I didn't need to grease a pan, so I could convince myself that they're just that little bit healthier! I think you could probably get away with less (or no) sugar in this recipe too - it's one of those recipes that is basically a batter that you can add anything you like to it!

Nanna's No-Fail Fruit Cake

While I was in Blenheim, I sourced Mum's copy of my Nanna's No-Fail Fruit Cake - it's a lovely light fruit cake, quite suitable as a Christmas cake, a wedding cake, or any other occasion that a fruit cake is required.

So, here it is...

Ingredients:
3/4 lb (340g) butter
3/4 lb (340g) brown sugar
1¼ lb (570g) flour
6 eggs
600mL dry ginger ale
1½ teaspoons baking powder
3 lb (1.36kg) mixed fruit
1 teaspoon lemon essence
1 teaspoon almond essence
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 tablespoon wine or brandy

Instructions:
1. Soak fruit in ginger ale, essences and wine/brandy overnight.
2. Cream butter and sugar, add egg yolks. then whites beaten stiffly.
3. Add flour, fruiit and baking powder last of all.
4. Bake for 4 hours in a slow overn 120°C.

This makes quite a big cake - my large tin is about 11" square by 3" deep. You will need to line the tin well with thick brown paper - first butter it, then I always put two layers of supermarket bag paper in the bottom, and one layer around the sides about 1 - 1.5" higher than the cake tin. Try the cake with a thin metal spike of some sort, a knitting needle is a good thing, and if it comes out clean the cake is cooked, if not leave it in a bit longer, perhaps turn the oven off and leave it to cool in the oven - this is often enough to finish it off if not quite cooked in the time.

When you take it out, don't remove the brown paper until you are ready to use the cake. Wrap it up in newspaper ot something and put it away until Christmas (or whatever occasion you are making it for). Best made about a month or 6 weeks before needed.

It's quite an easy recipe to divide if you don't want to make such a big cake, and it doesn't really mind if you leave out the wine, brandy or essences, or add them all for good measure. You can also add nuts if you wish.

Cheese Muffins

These have become a regular in our house - both the boys love them, and they're just so quick and easy to do. They're also very forgiving on the actual quantities, and can easily be adapted by adding some grated vegetables and/or ham pieces (or other meat of your choosing!)

Ingredients:
1½ cups flour
2 heaped teaspoons baking powder (or 3 regular teaspoons)
1½-2 cups grated cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup milk
1 egg

Method:
Mix flour, baking powder, cheese and seasoning together.
Mix egg into milk.
Pour milk into dry ingredients, and stir until just mixed.
Spoon mixture into mini muffin trays, and bake for approx 10 minutes at 180°C, until just golden.

Welcome!

I don't promise this blog is going to be very interesting at all - it's simply going to be a place for me to store recipes that I collect, instead of random bits of paper in my recipe book cupboard. Or, occasionally, on sticky-notes on the fridge door.

All the same - I hope you try some of these recipes out. Some are great, some are just standard everyday recipes (OK, most of them will be, probably), and some probably should be tried once and then never again!