Peppermint Patties - 1 - $ - V

Well hello! It's been a long time hasn't it? You probably thought I dropped off the face of the earth! I almost did because my world fell over about a month ago, but it's slowly starting to right itself. Even though some days feel like each minute lasts a million years I have been blessed with much love from good friends and that is what's getting me through.

As has become my tradition I bake like a fiend before Xmas and give treats away as presents. I am very lucky to live in a world where I want for nothing and rather than spend lots of money on buying things that people don't really need I prefer to pour my good will - and various kinds of booze - into my gifts.

In addition to the usual rum balls (this year's versions contain spiced dark rum all the way from Cuba and Cointreau) I have added peppermint patties to my 2010 repertoire. These are so quick and easy to make you'll smash out everyone's gifts in an afternoon! I've packaged mine in noodle boxes this year but you can use jars or cellophane bags or waxed paper. A bit of fabric, a ribbon and your imagination will make for pretty pressies I'm sure.

Ingredients - makes approximately 30

400gm peppermint chocolate (not the gooey kind mind)
1/2 cup cream
12 sweet biscuits (I used Marie biscuits)
dessicated coconut

Break up the chocolate and put it in a glass bowl over a pot of simmering water.
In the meantime whizz the biccies in the food processor to make fine crumbs or crush with a rolling pin.
As the chocolate starts to melt, stir in the cream and mix well to make sure it is combined and and completely smooth.

Remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the biscuit crumbs and mix well. Pop the bowl in the fridge to cool. It will be impossible to roll the patties unless the mixture has cooled right down.
Take a small amount of mixture, roll it between your palms to form a ball and then cover in the coconut. Place on a tray lined with baking paper (the ball will start to spread out into a patty). Put the tray in the fridge until the patties are set hard.

Enjoy!

Mexican Chocolate Chilli Cake - 2 - $ - V

Yesterday many people around the world celebrated Dia de Muertos or the Day of the Dead festival with Mexico being the most famous for its colourful festivities.

On the weekend however, we celebrated my gorgeous friend Benny's 40th birthday with a Tex-Mex style BBQ and party. The birthday boy got up at 5am to light coals and hickory chips in smoking drums in order to cook the marinated brisket and sausage for about 8 hours! It was a mega effort and well worth it because I have never had such tasty, smoky, tender beef before - it was a real treat. There was also lots of white bread, corn muffins, 'slaw, beans and tangy potato salad all whipped up by Benny's smoking hot lady-wife.
For dessert we made a Mexican Chocolate Chilli birthday cake. I must send out a few shout-outs for this one as the designated baker hurt her back and it was last minute scramble to get a suitable cake baked to feed over 40 people! So to Kymmy for the tins and Mish for the recipe a big THANK-YOU.

I used some lovely Ancho chilli powder that I picked up at Gewurzhaus in Carlton and I am told it is the secret ingredient in a recent award winning cocktail...
This is a really low heat powder so I ended up doubling the amount in the recipe below and I think it could have even gone up a notch; use your own judgement and taste when making your version of this cake.

For the icing I substituted some of the cocoa powder with a chocolate spice mix that I also found at Gewurzhaus. It contained cassia, ginger, coriander and all sorts of other pungent smells and spices. The addition of this mix made the frosting top of the cake really sing with flavour, so again experiment with your own tastes.


Ingredients

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or chilli powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup cold water

Icing

2/3 cup icing sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2-3tbs warm water

Preheat oven to 175C degrees and grease and line an 8-inch round cake tin.

In a large mixing bowl combine all dry ingredients. Make two wells and pour the vinegar in one and the vanilla in the other. Pour the cold water over everything and whisk until just combined (doesn't matter if the batter isn't super smooth).

Bake for 30-35 minutes.

Once the cake has cooled completely, sift the icing ingredients to together in a bowl and add the water a little bit at time, stirring vigorously until the icing is nice and smooth and shiny.

Spread evenly over the cake, allow to set and serve.

Enjoy!

The Cookbook Challenge Week 24 Chocolate & Week 30 Baked - Green & Black's Cookies Exclusive - 2 - $ - V

Here I go again combining themes in the Cookbook Challenge, but I think you'll be glad that I did!

This recipe comes from a cookbook that's not even in the shops yet! Drum roll please...
Thanks to the lovely and generous peeps at Green & Black's Organic I got a sneak peek at some chocolate recipes, so I thought it fitting that I bake some cookies.

These little babies are super easy, fairly quick and delicious. (And very naughty but you can at least console yourself with the fact that there is something organic in there somewhere.)

The recipe says it makes 16 cookies, but boy are they big cookies! Next time I think I will bake the dough in two batches and make them half the size - then there's twice as many (tricksy no?).
Also once the dough comes out of the fridge work quickly, especially if it's a warm day, as it gets very sticky and hard to work with in a short space of time.


Ingredients

125g unsalted butter
100g caster sugar
50g muscovado sugar
1 medium free-range egg
few drops of vanilla extract
140g Plain Flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
75g rolled oats
150 - 200g Green & Black's Organic Chocolate (depending on your favourite flavour and level of addiction, try Green & Black’s Organic Butterscotch for a nice treat), chopped into chunks

Preheat oven to 180C degrees (160C for fan forced). Line a tray with baking paper.
Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl until it's nice and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat.
Add the flour, baking powder, salt and oats and then mix in the chocolate to form a dough. Put in the fridge for about 10 minutes for the dough to firm up.
Take plum-size balls of dough, roll them in your hands and then place on the tray with enough space in between for them to spread. Press the balls down with your hand to flatten slightly and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, leave them for 5 minutes to firm up and then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Enjoy!

Triple R Radiothon & Chang's Chocolate Spiders - 1 - $ - V

When I lived away from Melbourne for four years, there were two things that I would miss every single morning - not being able to get a decent cup of coffee and not being able to listen to Breakfasters on radio station Triple R.
Until I moved overseas, I didn't realise what a luxury it is to have community radio; I'd been tuning into The Rs since I was 13 and just thought that everyone had it as good as me. Not so! Now, 21 years later, I'm still listening and very grateful that I live in a community that have people willing to volunteer their time in order to broadcast 24-7.

The annual Radiothon is on at the moment and is the perfect time to subscribe to the station in order to keep this great self-funded institution running. There's loads of prizes to win and even if you don't live in Melbourne, thanks to the magic of the internets, you can stream Triple R anytime and listen to quality programs or download the podcasts for free. There's something for everyone on the grid (foodies in particular tune in to Eat It every Sunday and Suzie Morris-Ashton's Diet Schmiet every Tuesday on Breakfasters) and when you subscribe you get the chance to attend subscriber-only live to air music performances, exclusive film screenings and receive a copies of The Trip magazine.

Cameron Smith, Adrian Richardson (La Luna Bistro) & Shannon Bennett (Vue de Monde) at the Triple R BBQ day outside broadcast

I received my copy of The Trip last week and was reminded of The Bogan Banquet ideas that Breakfasters came up with back in May. Being of good bogan stock I thought it a fitting homage to my favourite show to bring you Chang's Chocolate Spiders. For my version I used dark chocolate and found that it took about 1 minute to melt the chocolate. I also only got about 20 spiders from the recipe.

You can subscribe to Triple R anytime by phoning 9388 1027 or online. Now that spiders are set I'm off to renew my subscription and pop the top on a West Coast Island Cooler...

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato & Chocolate Brownies - 2 - $ - V

Another reader recipe hooray!

This one comes from yummy mummy Erica. Or should I say tricksy mummy Erica? Because in true it's-good-for-you-and-if-I-have-to-hide-it-so-you'll-eat-it-I-will mother style she has snuck sweet potato and carrots into this recipe!
I can't wait until her little one is old enough to hear about it - oh the horror - he won't believe it.

Thanks for sharing Erica!

Ingredients

125g butter
1 cup firmly packed soft brown sugar
125g chocolate
3 eggs
1/2 cup plain flour
1/3 cup powdered Milo Malt
1/4 tsp baking powder
Half packet of Rafferty's Garden Premium Baby Food squirty tube (pureed sweet potato, carrot and apple)


Preheat oven to 180C degrees. Line a shallow slice pan with baking paper.
Break up chocolate and heat in a saucepan with butter and brown sugar until melted.
Take off the heat and mix in a large bowl with eggs and baby puree.
Sift in flour, baking powder and milo and stir well.
Pour into the prepared tin and bake for about 35 minutes
Remove from oven, allow to cool and then cut into squares.
Serve warm or cold.

Enjoy!

Reader Recipe - Dunc's Easter Truffles - 3 - $ - V

Ladies and gentleman, we are very lucky to have another fabulous reader recipe sent in by Duncan! (He also sent the pics too.)

You may remember Dunc from last year when he showed us how to construct these amazing gingerbread houses. I think I might need to officially make him our religious holiday recipe guru.

These truffles look just divine and I will definitely be having a crack at them on the weekend. I might go 70s style and put some Creme de Menthe in mine, do you think you can still buy that stuff?

Thanks Duncan! He writes...

Ingredients

250ml cream

60gm butter

1/2 a vanilla pod

500gm dark chocolate

300gm dark chocolate (separate)

Place cream and butter in the top of a double boiler, scrape seeds from the vanilla pod into the cream mix and bring to the boil before turning off the heat. Tip the 500gm chocolate into the hot cream mixture and stir until all lumps are melted and the mixture is velvety smooth. At this point you can continue with the mix as is, or add your favourite liquor. I broke my mix into three portions and made one with kahlua, one with sambuca and one with grand marnier. Simply add to taste.

At this point cover your mix with cling wrap and push it down on the surface of the chocolate leaving no room for bubbles and place in a cool spot to set overnight.

Once set, prepare a piping bag with a 1cm nozzle and give the ganache a brief stir and then fill the piping bag. Pipe small mounds of ganache every few centimetres on a tray lined with baking paper (you can also use a melon-baller or any other spoon). Place the tray into the fridge for a couple of hours until set.

Once set remove from the fridge and roll between your palms to make rounds. Once you have finished rolling the truffles melt the extra 300gm of chocolate (double-boiler style) and place the bowl near the truffles. Dab some chocolate onto your hands and taking the truffles two at a time roll them in your hands until nicely covered in chocolate. If you're fussy like me then let them set and cover again with a second coat.

Please note massive 'guns' from all the truffle rolling

Once the truffles are covered you can decorate to your liking and give out to all your friends that are on diets just before Easter. A suitable container is a half-egg mold or you can just whack them in little bags and do up with a ribbon.

Enjoy!