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Apricot chutney

January 23rd 2012 18:38

One of our little treats for a Sunday lunch is a toasted sandwhich with crispy bacon, jarlesberg cheese and chutney (Mmmmm, I'm salivating just thinking about it...)

Up until now, the chutney of choice for this combination with Maggie Beer's Tomato and Saffron chutney with it's soft, complex flavours. However, with apricots continuing to ripen on the tree, we pulled together this apricot chutney and I think this might be the new favourite. Definitely sweeter than Maggie Beer's offering, this is a great chutney to serve with cold meats, as well as stirring into a curry at the last minute for that extra kick.

Apricot Chutney (from Sally Wise A Year in a Bottle)

1.5kg apricots, halved
500g onions, chopped
2 cups white vinegar
750g sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon curry powder

Remove stones and chop apricots. Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan, bring to the boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour or until chutney is thick.

Bottle and seal immediately. Store in a cool, dry, dark place away from sunlight for up to two years. The chutney can, and should, be eaten at once.

Makes approximatley 2kg.

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Posted By: Helen Randell - Category: No Category

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Preserving the art of preserving

January 21st 2012 07:26

There's been a lot of action in the kitchen lately...

though we not actually making meals...

we've borrowed the Folwer's kit and are going all out...

apricots, plums, pears, peaches... as well as lemons, jams and chutneys...

and on that note, if anyone has an old style Folwer's preserver (or jars) they want to sell for cheap, then let me know

Retro orange and green pots a preference!

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Posted By: Helen Randell - Category: No Category

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Pistachio macarons

January 17th 2012 10:57

If cupcakes were the party favourite of 2009/10, then macarons were the sweet treat for 2011.

The hard outer crust which gives way to a chewy centre and the layer of sweet, smooth flavoured buttercream sandwiching the two halves together – really how could you go wrong.

To add to my ‘sweets credibility’, I made a batch of these for a girl’s post-Christmas brunch and they were such a success that I had a request to make them for our New Year’s Eve get together as well.

I made two different flavours, both from the Donna Hay Oct/Nov 2011 edition, but the principle is the same. There are a couple of important points I will run you through to begin with.

It is a good idea to draw 4cm diameter circles on your baking paper before you start. That way, there is more chance that your macarons will end up being roughly the same size and therefore easy to sandwich together. I tried to use my old school compass, but ended up just drawing around a measuring cup which was roughly the correct size.

You should age your egg whites. That means, crack and separate your eggs a couple of days before you need them. Store the egg whites in the fridge in a container with some plastic wrap covering them until they are needed, then about 30-60 minutes before you are going to begin baking, pull them out of the fridge to bring to room temperature.

Once your macarons are piped, give the trays a good tap on the bench to get rid of any air bubbles which may otherwise cause cracking, then leave them for about 20 minutes to form a skin.

If possible, leave the macarons in an airtight container for at least a day before eating them (difficult I know). The flavour really does increase if you leave them a day.

Pistachio macarons with orange butter cream - adapted from Donna Hay mag.

200g icing sugar
40g almond meal
90g pistachio meal
3 eggwhites
green food colouring
1 tablespoon caster sugar

Orange butter cream
60g butter, softened
40g icing sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated orange rind
30g almond meal

To make the butter cream, place the butter in an electric mixer and beat for 6-8 minutes or until pale and creamy. Add the icing sugar and orange rind and beat for a further 10 minutes. Add the almond meal and beat until combined. Place the mixture in a piping bag and refrigerate until needed.

Preheat oven to 150 degree. Sift the icing sugar and nut meals into a bowl and mix to combine.

Place the aged eggewhites and a few drops of colouring into an electric mixer and whisk on high for 30 seconds. Add caster sugar and whisk for a further 10 minutes until stiff peaks form.

Fold through the combined meal mixture in two batches until smooth. Place the mixture into a piping bag and pipe 4cm rounds onto baking trays lined with baking paper. Lightly tap the trays and allow to stand for 20 minutes until a skin forms.

Reduce temperature to 130 degrees and bake for 19-20 minutes or until crisp on the outside.

Cool completely on trays. Pipe the orange butter cream onto half the macarons and sandwich them together with remaining macarons. Makes 24.

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Posted By: Helen Randell - Category: No Category

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Avocado-y potato salad

January 12th 2012 10:35

I'm going to start strong, and begin 2012 by posting a recipe from my orange book with the flowers on it

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Resolution checklist...

January 2nd 2012 05:52

Ok - so I think it might be time to fess up...

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Glazed salmon fillets

December 28th 2011 22:42

As we head into the non-ratings period where there is pretty much nothing on tv, I have borrowed a couple of Nigella DVDs from our local library (I love the library, where else can you borrow quality things for free?!?!). She was talking up the value of those easy, after work meals and one that she was showing was a Japanese inspired dish - marinated salmon fillets

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Posted By: Helen Randell - Category: No Category

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Christmas baking

December 26th 2011 22:41

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you are all having a lovely time with loved ones, enjoying the fun of a few days off

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Raspberry jam

December 13th 2011 05:58

With all these raspberries hanging around I decided to make a batch of raspberry jam. Never having done it before, I was a little wary of the pips and what the texture would be like. My fears turned out to be unfounded - these guys are so soft and cooked into submission, that there is not chance to getting seeds stuck in your teeth

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Posted By: Helen Randell - Category: No Category

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