Golden Honey Biscuits

I found this recipe in my "Successful Baking" files. We actually made these as a family it was pretty fun, Miss three, Mr TTCB and me sharing a kitchen was a great new experience. The best part was sitting down after and eating a fresh warm cookie together and smiling over the fact we made these delicious addictive cookies.

These sweet biscuits have a wonderfully light, cake-like texture and I warn you are so morish and tempting they did not last 24 hours in our house and we made 20 of them.

Golden Honey Biscuits

20mins preparation
12-15 mins baking, plus cooling.
makes 20 -25 biscuits

Ingredients:
100g unsalted butter, softened
125g (2/3 cup) light brown sugar
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 a teaspoon vanilla flavoring essence
8 teaspoons honey
185g (1.5 cups) plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I actually didn't have this and they still tasted great)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180. Grease 2 baking trays.

2. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer or wooden spoon until light and creamy.

3. Add the egg, a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and honey.

4. Sift together the flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Gently fold into the creamed mixture using a large metal spoon.

5. Put heaped teaspoonfuls of the mixture onto the prepared baking trays, allowing room for the biscuits to spread. To make decorative grooves, press the top of each biscuit with the prongs of a fine fork, dipping the fork into flour to prevent the mixture from sticking.

6. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden, swapping over the baking trays halfway through the baking time. Cool for 2-3 minutes, then transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool completely.

COOKS TIPS: for a different flavor , add 1 teaspoon ground ginger instead of cinnamon. For a citrus tang, add the grated rind of 1 large lemon or 2 limes.

TTCB Rating: /5

Crab Meat and Saffron Linguine

Recipe by Not Quite Nigella

This Crab Meat and Saffron Linguine recipe is tasty and fairly quick, I used canned crab meat and the Saffron Linguine I had brought from "Bliss In The Bush" and they sourced it from a Tamworth family business Bellata Gold .

Not Quite Nigella's version I have no doubt looked prettier, the girl just has skill and I believe she used fresh crab meat. However what my dish lacked in pretty, it made up for in taste and was just good old fashioned comfort food. We sat and ate large bowls of pasta rugged up in our winter warmers. This dish is great for the family but would also suit a dinner party or lunch.

Crab with Saffron Linguine
An original recipe by Not Quite Nigella

Ingredients: (serves 4)

•400g fresh linguine (I used a 375g packet of Bellata God Saffron Linguine)
•1 tbs olive oil
•400g raw crab meat
•1 garlic clove, thinly sliced ( I used a teaspoon of crushed garlic from a jar)
•2 tbs lemon juice
•1 tbs verjuice
•2-3 tbs finely grated parmesan
•250ml cream
•Salt & freshly ground pepper
•Chopped fresh parsley

Method:

1. Cook linguine in boiling salted water until al dente. Drain and keep warm.

2. Heat pan and add oil. Add crab meat and garlic, and cook for 3-4 mins until cooked but not browned.

3. Add lemon juice, verjuice or vinegar and the parmesan.

4. Pour in cream and reduce to sauce consistency. Add drained linguine to the sauce, season and serve topped with parsley.

TTCB Rating: /5

Still Here...

I know I haven't posted in a few days but I am still here and doing the food tour thing, I have not abandoned my goal. Painfully though I have been coping with headaches, and as those who suffer them will agree you just don't feel up to much when they are bad. So I have been taking it easy and not cooking.

I don't have a picture to show you yet but.........Some exciting news is that I won a competition over at "Not Quite Nigella" and I am excitedly waiting for my Citta Paper Napkins. I know some of you are thinking *rolling your eyes* yeah great wow napkins, but I love pretty and functional things and I enjoy cooking dinner for my friends and family and dressing the table. So I am excited to be receiving a little gift in the post. So thank you Lorraine over at "Not Quite Nigella" for hosting a great competition.

Great Northern Hotel‎
40 Elbow St, West Kempsey NSW 2440
(02) 6562 4323‎

Keeping with my Indian theme Mr Saphire brought home some Indian take out tonight, now this is quite a feet considering there is no Indian restaurant in our town, but he was excited when he spotted that the restaurants behind The Great Northern a local pub, does different cuisines on a Wednesday night.

This week it was Indian (next week I believe is Japanese if anyone is interested). The take out we had tonight was Rogan Josh, and a fish dish. I am not sure what the fish dish was called and either is Mr Saphire. The fish dish had a pickle or chutney on top and the fish was steamed. It was all quite nice but I do confess I have had better and it was rather similar to make at home kits you get from the supermarket in a jar or box. But I guess the luxury is in this case it taste fine and no one had to cook and there were no dishes either. Mr Saphire also managed to score an Indian desert called Burfi.

Burfi we had was a sweet coconut based desert, that we both agreed I should try and make. So I am going to share a recipe for Coconut Burfi with you that I found at http://www.bellaonline.com/

COCONUT BURFI

Ingredients:

2 cups grated coconut (you can use desiccated, just make sure it is unsweetened)
½ cup sugar (you can use Splenda), to taste
1, 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
pinch of cardamom powder
2 tbsp toasted coconut flakes for garnish

METHOD:

In a small dry skillet on very low heat, lightly toast 2 tbsp of coconut flakes until golden brown. Remove from the skillet immediately and set aside until needed. This will be used for the garnish.

Since the condensed milk is already sweetened, you may not need to use any sugar. This is a personal preference depending on your level of desired sweetness.

In a saucepan on medium low heat, add the condensed milk and the sugar. Stir well and allow the sugar to dissolve. Add the coconut, stir well to combine and let cook until all the liquid has been absorbed and the coconut starts clumping together. Keep stirring continuously so the mixture does not burn. Add the cardamom powder, remove from the heat and allow to cool just slightly.

Spread evenly on a lightly greased (butter or cooking spray) baking sheet or tray. The thickness should be at least ¼ inch but no more than ½ inch thick. This is easy to do while the mixture is still warm. Decorate with the toasted coconut flakes and allow to cool. Cut into diamond shape pieces and refrigerate in an airtight container.

Chicken with Lemon, Caper and Parsley Sauce

Chicken with Lemon, Caper and Parsley Sauce was the off screen star at my Avatar dinner party, we enjoyed the chicken with steamed chat potato's and steamed green beans before settling down to watch Avatar by James Cameron's on DVD.

This photo really doesn't do it justice, I was in a bit of a hurry settling the little ones down to chips and nuggets and dishing up the main to the adults and trying to get a photo.

I really should have gotten someone else to take a decent shot for me while I finished up. But I can assure you it was delicious and so simple to make. The original recipe called for veal but I was not sure if all my guests would eat veal so I changed it to chicken.

My guest also had an allergy to dairy and eggs, so I substituted the butter for Nuttelex and it turned out just fine.

Chicken with Lemon, Caper and Parsley Sauce.

(serves 4) the following is the original recipe from Super Food Ideas magazine

40grams of Butter ( I used Nuttelex)

4 (100gram) veal schnitzels uncrumbed and halved ( I used 3 chicken breasts)

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 and 1/2 tablespoons of baby capers, drained.

1/4 cup of Lemon juice

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves.

1. Melt half the butter in a large frying pan over medium - high heat. Add veal (or chicken) and cook in batches until browned and cooked through, transfer to a plate and cover to keep warm.

2. Reduce heat to medium low. Melting remaining butter in pan. Add garlic and capers, cook stirring for 1 minute until fragrant. Add lemon juice and parsley. Cook stirring for 2 - 3 minutes or until sauce has thickened return Veal (or chicken) to pan along with any juices. Cook until heated through 1 - 2 minutes . Then serve.

Serve with steamed chat potato's and steamed green beans.

Bellata Gold & Harvest Ingredients

Today I stopped by "Bliss in the Bush" its a boutique café, I chose it as my destination for Sunday lunch - http://www.bliss-in-the-bush.com/

I adore this place as it mixes two great loves of mine, shopping and good food. While browsing the wares I came across Bellata Gold Saffron Linguine and was reminded of a crab and saffron pasta dish I had admired on "Not Quite Nigella" so quickly grabbed up a box.

After reading the box, I fell more in love with the product. It is grown, produced and sold by the same family. Based at Tamworth, it is low GI, GMO Free, Chemical Free and has as I said 100% traceability as the box says "country gate to pasta plate".

Bellata Gold

unit 6 / 52 Barnes Street

Tamworth NSW 2340

phone: +612 67655633

email: info@bellatagold.com.au
http://www.bellatagold.com.au/

I paid $6.50(au) for 375g of Saffron Linguine but noticed you can get it for $3.95(au) by shopping on-line at the Bellata Gold website, however you will also have a $7.50 or there abouts shipping fee. You can also purchase their whole range and larger quantities then you might be able to source near you so, you will have to weigh up the pros and cons yourself on that one.

I enjoyed my lunch at Bliss in the bush, Salmon on brochette with cream cheese and capers always a winner with me. I then continued my window shopping and stumbled on another product that I will eventually try out. Harvest Ingredients, which is a little pouch that is a ready made meal you simply add vegetables and meats. Gluten free and 100% natural, they seemed to have some yummy meal options like Butter Chicken, Coconut Curry, Moroccan Lamb.There are also others but your best bet is to take a look at the website.

Harvest Ingredients
P.O. Box 180 Bowral NSW 2576
phone: 61 2 48852811
email: info@harvestingredients.com.au
http://www.harvestingredients.com.au/

Avatar Dinner Party

Tonight I am having a friend over and her 3 kids to have dinner and watch Avatar on dvd. I am not going all out on the kids menu simple chips and chicken nuggets there. But for the adults I thought I would apply some effort and dress the table and make something simple but yummy so I am going with............

Chicken with lemon caper and parsley sauce, served with steamed chat potato's and green beans. The original recipe called for veal but I was not sure if Mel would like veal, so decided chicken was a better option. The recipe was on page 47 of Super Food Ideas, May 2010 issue 114.

For desert the kids will be having cup cakes and I very well may splurge and give them some blue icing to go with the movie. The adults will be having Limoncello aperitif, which is lemon gelato with limoncello liqueur. This was on page 85 of Super Food Ideas, May 2010 issue 114.

It should be a fun night low key but delicious and fairly relaxed. What are you having for dinner tonight?