Homemade Almond Milk

I've previously ranted about almond milk and my dislike of the misleading advertising comparing almond milk with cow's milk. Personally I dislike the flavour of the UHT almond milk, however I decided to have a go making fresh milk to see if there was a difference.

Making almond milk is really simple. Soak 1 cup of raw almonds in water overnight then drain. Place in a Thermomix or high-powered blender with 3 cups water, 2 medjool dates and a splash of vanilla extract and blend for at least a minute or until smooth.

Pour into muslin or a chux (or something called a nut bag? Sounds rude) to strain out all the fibre. Squeeze out as much milk as possible and voila! Almond milk!

Almond pulp

This was a bit of a lightbulb moment - fresh almond milk tastes AMAZING! It's nutty and creamy and has a great mouthfeel. Now I understand what people are raving about. Don't be duped however, this is no cow's milk alternative as it doesn't contain the calcium or protein that cow's milk does but nonetheless it tastes great! The other bonus is that the leftover almond pulp can be used in baking, muesli and smoothies as it is almond meal. If you are going to use it as almond meal, you'll need to dry it out in a slow oven. If not using immediately, pop it in the freezer so it doesn't go rancid.



 Sarah xx

Buckini Crumbed Fish with Kale Fritters

Buckini and macadamia crumbed flathead with kale fritters

I am slightly addicted to buckinis at the moment. Buckinis are activated buckwheat kernals ie buckwheat that has been dehydrated causing it to have a delicious crunchy texture and nutty taste. Despite its name, buckwheat is gluten free. The most common use for these little nuggets is in sweet dishes for example in muesli or crumbles, however I decided to go savoury this time.

The BEST Cookie Recipe Ever!!! (and a bonus GF muesli biscuit)

Left: GF Muesli Biscuit
Back: Choc Chip & M&M Cookie
Right: Salted Peanut, Pretzel & Chocolate Cookie

Big call, I know but everyone who eats these cookies raves about them.  It is such a versatile recipe that you can add any flavours you fancy. Just as a bonus I've added a GF biscuit recipe at the end (yes, I know the ones on the plate above have now been contaminated with gluten.)

Baked Beetroot and Apple Soup

I love farmers markets! Driving through country Victoria I stumbled across a market and of course I had to stop and stock up on some fresh produce. Considering it is now Autumn, there were root vegies, brassicas,  apples, pears and the last of the stone fruit.

Pan-Fried Salmon with Textures of Beetroot (and why you should K.I.S.S.)

Too much food!

This is what happens when:

a) I visit a farmers market and get a little too excited by the produce

and

b) I visit a beautiful restaurant and get a little too inspired (i.e. overambitious) 

The Royal Mail Hotel, Dunkeld

The Royal Mail Hotel, Dunkeld

Time to spoil myself! Despite visiting Dunkeld multiple times a year, I've never indulged in The Royal Mail Hotel's degustation. The bar and bistro menus are both great (and fancy!)- but it was time to test what the chef can really do. Last year a new chef (Robin Wickens) took over from the acclaimed Dan Hunter who moved onto Brae at Birregurra and I was intrigued as to what would become of the Royal Mail Hotel. The Royal Mail Hotel prides itself on using fresh produce, predominately from their own kitchen gardens or sourced from local provedores. The menu is seasonal and the produce is the star.

First impression - service. The sommelier was friendly yet professional and was able to answer all my questions regarding food and wine. He also managed to make dining for one a less awkward experience! He gave me some fabulous recommendations regarding local wines - the Syrah from Engima near Dunkeld was beautiful! The wine list was an absolute tome - over 100 pages, so it was lovely to have someone to help!

There are two menu options at the restaurant, an omnivore degustation and a vegetarian degustation, either can be matched with wines and were able to be adapted for dietary requirements or preferences. I went with the 8 course vegetarian degustation.

Here is what followed over the next two and a half hours....

Amuse Bouche - Exploding Beetroot, Carraway and Vodka

Served warm, this bursting amuse bouche could have been a disaster weren't it for the Sommelier warning me to put the entire spoon in my mouth at once! I can just imagine a dainty eater nibbling the edge and having beetroot explode all over their clothes! Taste-wise it was fairly simple, but the theatre of eating it made up for the flavour.

Alphabet Soup

The drab photo of this consomme is the exact opposite of the flavour of this zingy little broth. It came out as a sheet of parmesan gel with piped basil letters in a bowl. The tomato consomme was then poured over resulting in a fun dish to eat/slurp. I wish I knew how to turn tomatoes into such a fantastic, umami-rich broth. The flavour was stunning!

Confit Garlic Risotto

I must admit I was immediately disappointed when I saw risotto on the menu. BORING was my initial thought - the lazy restaurant dish to cater for all the gluten intolerant and vegetarians in the world. Thankfully, this was one of the best risottos i've eaten. Full of different elements of garlic culminating in a textural explosion of garlic! Confit, crumbed and fried, dehydrated, garlic chives, garlic flowers, it was an homage to garlic and it was absolutely delicious!

Beetroot and Horseradish with Pumpernickel Puree

The second beetroot dish of the night, luckily it is one of my favourite vegies! When a restaurant prides itself on using seasonal produce from the garden, you have to accept that some things will feature twice.  Similar to the garlic showcase that was the risotto, this was an ode to beetroot - raw, pickled, cooked, leaves and pureed. All brought together with a beautiful pumpernickel puree.

I loved the puree so much that I used the remnants of my bread to scrape every last bit! The breads presented were all made in house and numbered three - a potato bread, chive sourdough and a beautiful blackened raisin and fennel bread. All served with salty cultured butter.

Tomato, Basil, Pecorino, Gazpacho

Now this is what to make with the glut of tomatoes in the garden! So simple, yet delicious. A selection of raw heirloom tomatoes, with fresh green and purple basil leaves, pecorino shavings and a beautiful light gazpacho puree/mousse.

Brassicas, Cauliflower Egg, Wash Rind Cheese

The final savoury course - a showcase of brassica. This would get any kid to eat their vegies! The 'egg' was particularly cool - a soft creamy egg yolk encased in a caulflower and chive 'white'. It looked so realistic that I asked the waitress how the chef got the chives in the egg white, to which she responded it was cauliflower! Taste bud fail.

The tricky egg!

Onto the sweet stuff!

Plum and Creme Fraiche

Tangy and cleansing, this was a nice palate clenser. Cleverly presented with dots of the individual components of creamy creme fraiche, tangy plum puree and bitter eucalyptus gel, the flavours were then combined into a mousse and sorbet. Excellent combination of bitter, creamy, sweet and sour.

Zucchini Sponge, Angelica, Hazelnut, Buttermilk Ice-cream

The final dish - and surprisingly I wasn't overly full by this stage, perhaps due to the lack of protein. The zucchini sponge was fairly dry and the zucchini ribbon didn't really add much except to the presentation, however the hazelnut puree, buttermilk ice-cream and candied angelica were delicious. The hazelnut puree is what Nutella SHOULD taste like!

All in all it was a lovely dinner. I think the chef played it very safe as there was nothing mind blowing but perhaps this is simply his philosophy of using fresh, seasonal produce and letting the flavours shine.  It cannot be compared to Ultraviolet, but I think I need to resign myself to the fact I probably won't better that meal. I think Robin Wickens and the team at The Royal Mail Hotel have kept up the high standard that was previously set and I hope they continue as this establishment does wonders for a little town like Dunkeld.

If you're ever in Dunkeld, make sure you check out Cafe 109 opposite The Royal Mail and the Old Bakery which is two roads back from the main road - they have an old wood-fired oven and make the nicest bread and lunches.

Sarah xx

Cauliflower Pizza Base (Gluten Free)

Another sneaky recipe to get extra serves of vegies in per day, just like zucchetti and green smoothies. You won't even taste the cauliflower! The trick to this recipe is getting the base just right. It's a pizza after all, so it needs to be eaten with the hands, therefore no soggy bottoms!




Cauliflower Pizza

(Inspired by Not Quite Nigella, Taste and a gazillion magazine articles - versions of this recipe are everywhere!!!)
1 med-large cauliflower
1/3 cup almond meal (or gluten free/plain flour)
2 eggs
Salt & Pepper
Whichever pizza toppings you fancy

1. Pre-heat your oven to 220 degrees. In a food processor or Thermomix, pulse the cauliflower until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs (press turbo 3 times on a TMX)

2. Place cauliflower in a sealed microwave safe container and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Remove lid and let the steam escape and leave the cauliflower to cool down until able to handle.
4. Place cauliflower in a clean chux (or muslin) cloth and squeeze out all the water. The cauliflower will decrease in volume by about half.

5. Place in a bowl and stir through beaten eggs, meal/flour and salt and pepper.
6. Line a pizza stone or tray with baking paper and spread cauliflower mixture into a circle. It's much easier to use your hands for this part.

7. Place in the oven and cook for 15 minutes until golden.
8. Place a second piece of baking paper over the cooked base and flip over. Remove the top sheet of baking paper so the previous underside of the base is now exposed. Place back into the oven for 5-10 minutes until it starts to colour. (I forgot to take a photo...oops!)
9. Top with your favourite pizza toppings (I used tomato, cheese, mushrooms and olives) and bake for another 10 minutes until cooked.

ENJOY!

Sarah xx

Orange and Pistachio Cake

Orange and Pistachio Cake

The baking ban is over thanks to being on cake duty at work for this month's birthdays. Unfortunately I didn't have the time to bake something spectacular, but it was a blessing in disguise as this cake is wonderful! It is deliciously moist, however remains light unlike other flour-less cakes. 

Zucchetti (Zucchini Spaghetti) with Tuna, Olive and Tomato Sauce

I'm a little bit in love with my Zyliss julienne peeler due to its versatility. I use it for salads, rice paper rolls and now, pasta! Given the glut of zucchini around at the moment, I decided to give zucchetti a shot. It is super easy, incredibly quick to cook, and tastes great! What an easy way to get a serve or two of extra veggies in per day, not to mention the extra nutrients and fibre. A much better alternative to slim pasta any day ( and much cheaper!)

Homemade Coconut Yoghurt

A few months ago I jumped onboard the coconut yoghurt bandwagon to see what all the fuss was about. Coconut yoghurt fills a void for those with dairy and soy allergies in addition to the coconut fanatics out there. However, I was absolutely gobsmacked by the price! Given how cheap coconut cream/milk is, I don't understand why the commercial coconut yoghurts cost upwards of $10 for a 400g tub.

Spaghetti & Meatballs Cake

Ahhh novelty cakes! So much fun to make. If only I had children. Luckily my friends and brother are all big kids so they don't mind a bit of novelty factor for their birthday cakes.

This was my brother's cake.

Macaron Madness!

It's no secret I love macarons. I love their versatility and endless flavour combinations. I also love the fact that so many people are afraid of making them so I get lots of requests!

Here are some of the better ones over the last year...

L-R Plum pudding, gingerbread, candy cane, pistachio

200 of these babies later and I was sorted for Christmas gifts and dessert!

Plum Pudding

So simple to make - buttercream, a jar of fruit mince and spices.

Gingerbread

The wilton sugar decos make all the difference! Recipe thanks to Mr Zumbo. Absolutely delicious!

L-R Salted caramel, fruit tingle

My new favourite technique - stripes! So easy to do, all you need is a paintbrush and gel dye. Simply grab your piping back and draw stripes of dye from the nozzle to the end of the bag. Place your uncoloured macaron mix in the piping bag and voila! Stripy macarons!

Chocolate, Hot Cross Bun

The bunnies need a bit more practice this year!

Strawberry Cheesecake Macarons

Gobbled down in an instant at work!

Strawberry Cheesecake filling

Lemon curd buttercream with raspberry gel

Tasted better than they look!

Stay tuned for more macaron fun this year!

Sarah xx

Mushroom San Choy Bau

1 large serve!

Unlike some families, san choy bau wasn't a dish that was on rotation in our household. I've probably only ever had it once or twice in my life. As it seemed like a nice summery dish and I could eat it with my hands, I thought it was worth a shot.

I couldn't quite find a recipe that suited my liking so I modified a few and this is what I came up with.

Refreshing Green Smoothie

Everything tastes better with an umbrella straw!

I've jumped on the green smoothie bandwagon. I already eat plenty of vegetables but if I can sneak another serve or two in at breakfast all the better! I much prefer smoothies over juice as they are more filling and more nutritious due to the added fibre content. Juice has much too much sugar for my liking!

Due to Melbourne's excessive heat lately, I've been having smoothies post workout because I find them to be a more nourishing and satisfying breakfast especially with a some protein powder added. I've lately been using Sunwarrior which not only tastes delicious, but isn't so gritty. The best thing with this one is that it serves two, so you've got breakfast already prepared for the following day!

Raw Carrot Cake

The last slice. Got a pic just in time!

I've been on a baking hiatus for a little while so what better to do than try some raw food!

This is delicious AND fairly healthy too. It still has a fair bit of sugar in it from the dried fruit, but combined with nuts, coconut and chia, it will keep you full for hours. At just over 100 calories per slice you can't complain!

Pancake Macarons (and more)

Pancake and Maple Syrup Macarons

I love making macarons. They are so versatile and fun to make, not to mention delicious! I bought a couple of silpats so decided to give them a test run.

Tuesday is Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day) which is something I don't usually celebrate although it seems the supermarkets this year have found another reason to con us into thinking we do!

When I visited Zumbo last year I ate his pancake and maple syrup macaron and although it wasn't my favourite (too sweet!) I decided to make it anyway as the recipe is in his Zumbaron book.

Explosive Raspberry Marshmallows

Another week, another recipe from Sweet Studio! Inspiration thanks to Mr Darren Purchese.

This time marshmallows thanks to a delivery of freeze dried raspberries during the week from Just Tomatoes! The package of freeze dried fruit I received was fabulous and managed to get through quarantine without any issues (It was opened and checked). No, I wasn't paid to promote the company, I had just had a lot of trouble finding freeze dried fruit at a decent price so thought it was worth mentioning!

These aren't your ordinary marshmallows - they comprise of a chocolate pop rock disk, raspberry marshmallow with raspberry gel centre, dusted in raspberry dextrose!

This was my first attempt at tempering chocolate and surprisingly - it worked!

The rest of the assembly went pretty well, except for the fact that my semi-sphere moulds are 1 cm larger than the recipe states so some of my marshmallows don't cover the centre. Next time i'll make sure i don't fill the moulds as much and make the bases larger.

Either way it's a pretty exciting sweet treat and I'm sure there are endless flavour combinations that could be used here.

Sarah xx

Chocolate, Mandarin, Salted Caramel Dessert

Chocolate, mandarin (orange), salted caramel

Isn't it exciting when something just works?

That is exactly what happened with this seemingly difficult dessert. For Christmas I was lucky enough to receive Sweet Studio by Darren Purchese. After getting my hands on some extra equipment, I set about making something from the book. First up - Chocolate, mandarin, salted caramel. Mine promptly became orange rather than mandarin due to the price of mandarins but I don't think it mattered.

All up there are 7 components. 

From top to bottom:

• Candied oranges
• Chocolate glaze
• 70% Chocolate mousse
• Salted caramel
• Burnt orange creme
• Orange & vanilla marmalade
• Aerated chocolate shortbread

I cheated and used marmalade mixed with vanilla bean rather than making my own and candied some oranges rather than doing the decorations written in the recipe. I made most things last night then finished it off this morning. You probably do need to allow yourself a full day or overnight as some components need time to freeze. 

What surprised me was although many techniques were unfamiliar to me, it was all fairly straightforward and not too time consuming. The recipes are well written and easy to follow. I very much liked the two ribbons in the book which are required as I was constantly flicking pages to see what to do next.

Constructing the dessert was fairly simple. I had one small issue trying to find acetate. In the end I used baking paper which worked fine. I also found that the recipe said to remove from the fridge an hour before serving. I found it quite difficult to cut after doing this and would recommend cutting it straight from the fridge. It warms up fairly quickly anyway. The caramel was a bit oozy when cut but everything else stayed intact!

I have plenty of several of the components left over so need to come up with some ideas how to use them up. I think I would prefer it if the recipe stated, for example, to make up only a quarter batch of chocolate glaze. Not sure what I am going to do with the other 750mls I have in the fridge!

All in all it was a delicious, albeit very rich dessert. Apparently it serves 8. I'd say more like 12-16 as you really only need a sliver. 

There is no way I'm going to type out the recipe - go and buy the book if you are intrigued! 

Sarah xx

Hunny Pot Cake

I think i'm improving! This cake only took me a day from start to finish and was 100% stress free.

Inside is a honey and coconut cake which was really nice. I was going to do a basic vanilla cake but at the last minute changed as I thought it would be more appropriate!

Ispahan

Ahhh I love holidays and having people around to cook for! In the past few months I have been lucky enough to be given several baking cookbooks, one of them being 'Best of Pierre Herme.' It's a fabulous book full of very challenging recipes, with the greatest challenge being that they are all in French! Tonight I tried out the easiest recipe in the book, and Herme's signature - the ispahan.




Ispahan is a gigantic macaron filled with fresh raspberries, lychees and rose buttercream. This combination of flavours has been recreated in many desserts on restaurant menus and in other cookbooks. One of the other books I receieved, Sweet Studio by Darren Purchese has a dessert with the same flavour profile.

Anyway onto the Ispahan. My high school french came in very handy for this recipe, and combined with my knowledge of macarons, i'm pretty sure I got the recipe right. It tasted amazing and Dad declared it one of my best desserts yet. I did make two fairly big flaws: -
1. My macaron shell on the top cracked. Either because it was undercooked or because my raspberry layer underneath was too uneven.
2. I left the finished dessert under the window whilst Dad pressure sprayed the outside of the house. Who knew our windows were so leaky? The result was a very speckled dessert from the water spray!

Oh well! It just shows i'm not perfect!

So for the recipe. Here is a translated version. It is my translation so I accept no responsibility if I have made mistakes! Having said that it worked for me! There seemed to be a lot of mixture - I ended up making 22 macarons with leftover mixture and filled them with leftover rose buttercream and had extra buttercream left over. I think there was probably enough mixture to make another whole Ispahan!

Ispahan

(translated from Bestof Pierre Hermé)

Serves 6-8.Preparation 90mins. Cooking 60mins

Ingredients

Rose Macaron

250g almond meal

250g icing sugar

6 (180g) egg whites

3g pink food colouring

250g caster sugar

65g water

Italian Meringue

4 (120g) egg whites

250g caster sugar

75g water

Rose PetalButtercream

90g full cream milk

3-4 (70g) egg yolks

45g caster sugar

450g butter, softened at room temperature

4g rose essence

30g rose syrup (eg Monin)

(I didn't have essence & syrup so used 35g rosewater)

To Assemble

200g lychees in syrup

250g fresh raspberries

Glucose

Fresh rose petals

Method

Rose Macaron

Place almond meal and icing sugar in a food processor andpulse until combined. Sift mixture into a medium-sized bowl.

Add the food colouring into 3 egg whites, add to almond mealmixture and stir to combine.

Place the extra 3 egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer.

You need to ensure the almond paste is bright pink like this, otherwise it will become too pale when the egg whites are added.

In a small saucepan add the caster sugar and water. Heat ona medium heat until it reaches 110 degrees. Turn stand mixer to high to whipegg whites. When the syrup reaches 118 degrees, remove it from the heat andpour onto the whipped egg whites, in a slow, steady stream.

Keep whipping the egg whites until it becomes thick andglossy and reaches approximately 50 degrees.

Add approximately 1/3 egg white mixture to the almond mealpaste. Stir to incorporate and loosen the mixture. Fold in the remainder of theegg whites.

Place the mixture in a piping bag fitted with a #12 tip*.Line 1-2 trays with non-stick baking paper or a silpat and pipe 2 20cm discs,starting from the centre and working outwards.

The discs resting on the bench.

Leave the discs to sit at room temperature for approximately30 minutes or until a crust has formed. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (160fan-forced). (I baked at 140 degrees because that's what I usually do!)

Place the macaron discs in the oven and bake for 20-25minutes or until cooked. Remove from oven and leave to cool.

*I only have a size 9 tip which worked ok.

Italian Meringue

Place the caster sugar and water in a medium saucepan. Bringto a boil, brushing down the sides of the saucepan with a wet pastry brush. Letcook until it reaches 118 degrees. Meanwhile place the egg whites in the bowlof a stand mixer and whip until soft peaks form. When the sugar syrup is attemperature, add to egg whites, while the motor is running, in a slow steadystream (as per the macaron recipe). Continue to whisk until mixture is cool.Put aside 175g of the meringue for use later. (The remainder can be used tomake meringues or something else)

Rose PetalButtercream

Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl.Place the milk in a small saucepan, bring to the boil then pour over the eggyolk mixture. Whisk to incorporate then pour the mixture back into thesaucepan. Heat on a low heat until mixture reaches 85 degrees (be careful notto let the mixture stick to bottom of the saucepan.) Pour mixture into the bowlof a stand mixer and whip on high to cool mixture. Pour into a bowl and placein the fridge to continue to cool.

Place the butter into the bowl of the stand mixer (don’tworry about cleaning it.) Using the paddle, beat butter until soft and creamy.Pour in cooled crème anglaise mixture (the one you just put in the fridge) andbeat to combine. (If it curdles keep beating!) Using the lowest speed, or by hand, fold through the Italianmeringue and both the rose essence and syrup. Transfer into a piping bags witha #10 tip, ready to use quickly.

To assemble

Cut the lychees into a 2cm dice and let drain in the fridgeovernight (or pat dry well with a paper towel if you forget!) Place one of themacaron discs on a plate with the flat side facing up. Pipe the rosebuttercream over the disc, leaving 3 cm border. Place a row of raspberriesaround the border of the macaron. Next place a ring of lychees inside theraspberries. Repeat two more times, alternating rings of raspberries andlychees until the disc is filled. (you should have 3 rings of raspberries and 3rings of lychees.)

Place the second macaron disc on top, with the flat sidedown.

Decorate the top of the macaron with 3 fresh raspberries and5 rose petals, ‘gluing’ the decorations down with a dab of glucose. 

Don't leave uncovered under a window where it can get wet!!!

Leave in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.

Sarah xx