Feijoa and White Chocolate Cake

As I mentioned on my last post. It's crazy feijoa season here. There's about 2 months of the year that NZ has an overflow of feijoa, and then we don't see them again till the next year. Which is good, because when they are in season, there are so many, and they are so good, that without fail you completely gorge yourself on them, and by the end of the season, are so over them that you're searching for new and interesting ways to use them up. 

Note: they also freeze really well, so you can scoop the pulp and stow it away in the freezer for a baking on a rainy day if you've already had your fill for now. 

After the feijoa oatcakes and crumbles I've been making of late I wanted to try something new, plus Mr 3 wanted to make a 'Mudders Day' chocolate cake for me... FYI - by him helping bake, he means he wants to lick the spoon and eat all the ingredients, minimal help actually attained. But, he's there and involved and we have fun making a mess, so that's all good. But, yes, I made my own Mother's Day cake essentially. 

Now, he wanted chocolate cake, but me being me, and hating seeing food go to waste, I knew I needed to include the feijoa. There's a few feijoa cakes out there with cocoa in them,  but the idea of milk or dark chocolate with feijoa just doesn't quite sound right to me. Plus I wanted to make something that could have cream cheese icing, no explanation necessary on that one, cream cheese icing is THE BEST. 

A few years back I made feijoa and white chocolate muffins, which were an amazing flavour combo, so I wanted to recreate that in cake form here. The result here is a deliciously moist, rich yet tart cake. The richness comes from the white chocolate which caramelised in some spots, and the tartness from the feijoa and cream cheese icing. I've left the icing quite soft, as that's how I like it, but if you prefer a firmer icing, simply add more icing sugar. 

Ingredients (makes 24cm round cake): 

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp lemon juice 
• 1 3/4 flour
• 2 tsp baking powder 
• 120 grams butter, melted
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3 tbsp boiling water (45ml)
•  1 cup of feijoa pulp
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips, optional, but worthwhile

Icing:

• 100g butter, room temperature
• 100g cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups icing sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice and lemon zest

Method:

Grease a 25cm diameter cake tin. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C. 

In a cake mixer, or using an electric hand beater beat sugar and eggs till light and fluffy. 

Add lemon juice, mix. Then add baking powder and flour, half a cup at a time, till all combined. 

Mix baking soda with boiling water, and along with feijoa pulp and melted butter, add to your cake mix, folding together till well combined. Finally fold in the chocolate chips. 

Pour cake mix into your greased cake tin and bake 40 - 50 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. 

Leave to cool in tin for 15 mins before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Once cooled ice with cream cheese icing. 

To make icing, beat butter until light in colour and fluffy. Add softened cream cheese and beat until smooth and combined. Add sifted icing sugar half a cup at a time until it reaches the desired consistency. I like it quite soft. Stir in a teaspoon of lemon juice and lemon rind (optional). 

The best savoury mince

Mince. You either love it or hate it. Personally, and obviously I love it. So easy and versatile and able to be loaded with flavour.

Today I'm recreating something from my childhood. A weekly staple was mince on rice. For my husband too, but they sometimes had theirs with mashed potato, which is what we've done tonight. As kids it wasn't quite as refined. Literally mince cooked with onion, tomato sauce and frozen mixed vegetables, so I wanted to give our childhood staple an upgrade.

Half way through cooking I realised this is kind of just a deconstructed cottage pie, but either way, this should become your go to mince mix, do a double batch and freeze some too. The kids devoured it (the little one definitely takes after me, licking his plate clean of every last morsel) and we were all so satisfied from the depth of flavour.

I have a couple of things which I think make it. You may or may not agree. 1. Celery leaves, they hold so much flavour, so as well as the stalk, I reserve the leaves and add them later when the liquid goes in. 2. Tomato sauce, now I don't usually advocate for tomato sauce on a proper meal (it's for chips and pies) but in this case it adds a little bit of sweetness and is used instead of tomato paste and sugar. Adjust your quantity to taste.

I also haven't added any salt to this, with the stock, soy and Worcestershire I don't really think it needs more. Plus we served it with mash tonight, which already has salt too. I used white wine, but any would do. I just specify drinkable. If you wouldn't drink DO NOT cook with it. If you don't want to add wine, just add an extra 1/4 cup stock, and maybe a tsp of vinegar.

Serving suggestions:

• On toast, or in a bowl with crusty bread on the side
• On rice
• On mashed potato or kumara
• As cottage pie
• Add a tin of beans and perhaps an extra cup of stock and eat it as a stew
• As a healthy pie filling
• In a baked potato

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion
• 2 carrots
• 2 stalks of celery, leaves reserved
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 500g beef mince
• 1/4 cup your choice of drinkable wine, optional 
• 1 1/2 cups beef stock
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup of tomato sauce
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp onion powder 
• 1 tsp dried parsley (2 tbsp fresh) 
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 1/2 cup frozen peas

Finely dice the onion, carrot and celery, setting the leaves aside. 

Heat the oil to a medium heat in a large frying pan that has a lid. 

Gently saute the vegetables, stirring, till they are softened. About 5 minutes. 

Add the beef mince. Use the spoon to break the meat up, and cook till lightly browned and dry. 

Add the wine, use this to loosen any crusty bits off the bottom of the pan. 

Once the wine has cooked off, add the stock, 1/4 cup tomato sauce, soy and Worcestershire sauces, onion powder, parsley, and reserved finely chopped celery leaves.  

Simmer on a low heat, covered for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Remove the lid. Taste, and add more tomato sauce (or soy/ Worcestershire) if desired. 

Mix the cornflour with a tiny bit of cold water to make a smooth paste, stir this into your mince, along with the frozen peas and simmer, uncovered, stirring every minute or two for 10 minutes until reduced and thickened. 

Serve in one of the ways suggested above. 

Feijoa Oatcake

Wow. Welcome back. This is my first blogpost in 8 months! But more importantly, how have we been in lockdown for six weeks and I have only just decided to reboot the blog? I mean, we've been baking up a storm, cookies, cakes, bread, slow cooks, stir frys, curries. Heck we even recreated the famous Big Mac one night, which by the way was SO GOOD! (Find the recipe we used here).  So why haven't I shared on here yet? Well, I'm a mum. A 3 year old, and a 21 month old. Who for the past six weeks have been stuck at home, like every other kid in the country, with no kindergarten reprieve for me. Don't get me wrong, it's been great. The two of them have begun to play together more, (and fight just as much), we've done walks, crafts, and baking. Plus we made a panic buy, (no not toilet paper) the day the impending lockdown was announced: a trampoline. A great outlet for all! 

So yeah, two little ones keep me pretty busy. Plus most of what I have been making this past 6 weeks is other peoples recipes. My creative outlet was on autopilot. But this morning, feeling slightly under the weather (thanks delicious bottle of red wine last night) I was in the mood to be a bit more experimental and it sure paid off. The smell wafting through the house when I pulled this out of the oven was incredible. We ate it warm, without cream or yogurt, but having a dollop on the side would only add to the experience. The rest eaten cold, was soft aand chewy and extremely moreish.  It will keep in an airtight container for a day or two, 3 or 4 days in the fridge, but it's pretty low in sugar and lots of moist fruit so is best eaten within the first couple of days. 

This is a twist on a traditional shortcake recipe, which I've made 'healthier' if you will. Slightly less sugar, added oats, and spice, plus a switched to wholemeal flour. 
I've used feijoa, like most people who have trees, you end up overrun and out of ideas on how to use them! Once scooped, they freeze well and can be added to muffins, crumbles or used in this delicious Oatcake. 

If you don't have feijoas, any fruit would do. Fresh or tinned peaches or plums; Berries - fresh or frozen; Stewed apple or pear. Also, any flour would work. I used wholemeal just to up the fibre content, and make me feel better about serving the kids adult sized pieces. I mean, they'd have eaten the whole tray had I let them. But plain flour would work just as well. 

As for the spices, mix and switch to suit the fruit. Feijoa and ginger work together perfectly, but I'd put cinnamon with apple. Perhaps a pinch of nutmeg and clove with the cinnamon for a plum one - mixed spice, a touch of cardamom with peach. Suit yourself.



Ingredients (9 - 12 generous servings):

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 170g butter
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla essence 
• 1/2 cup oats 
• 3/4 cup wholemeal flour
• 1 1/2 tsp ginger - optional
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups of fruit - as described above 

Method:

Line a 20cm square baking dish with baking powder. Preheat oven to 180*C.
Cream butter and sugar together till light in colour. Add vanilla and egg, beat well. 
Mix in oats, flour, ginger (or other spices) and baking powder, until you have a soft dough. 
Take 3/4 of the dough and press it into the lined baking dish. 
Arrange fruit over the top. 
Dollop lumps of remaining dough over the fruit. It will spread as it bakes. 
Bake for 40 mins till golden brown and the fruit is bubbling through the cracks in the top. 
Allow to cool for 15 mins before cutting and serving. 
Serve with lightly whipped cream or Greek yogurt. 
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days - if it lasts that long. 

Triple Chocolate Peanut Butter Skillet Cookie

Anyone else get mad pudding cravings on cold rainy nights? Just me? We'd finished dinner and the sweet tooth had set in. But I was out of ice cream, and plain chocolate wasn't going to cut it. I mean, Easter was last weekend, so I was a bit over chocolate... but chocolate chip cookies on the other hand. So you know that feeling when you're craving cookies but can't be bothered dealing with the mess that all that creaming and mixing makes? Well this one pan cookie recipe is literally one pan (plus some measuring utensils), melt, mix and bake all in the same pan. Too Easy. Too delicious. Too dangerous? Depends how much self control you have not to devour the whole thing in one sitting. We nearly did... This recipe could happily serve 8, realistically & gluttonously only 4, maybe 6. 

I used three different chocolates, mainly because I couldn't decide between milk or dark chocolate, and if I'm going to do both, I may as well do all three. Any or all would work, depending on your preference. But the peanut butter is a must. It doesn't overpower it, just a subtle flavour but the fat content of the peanuts helps with the overall dough so if you're unable to have peanut butter, substitute for another nut butter. 

It took me maybe 10 minutes to prep the cookie, fifteen minutes to bake, and then only moments to devour. If you want to serve it in slices you'll need to allow it to cool for 10-15 minutes when it comes out of the oven , but if you're planning to serve it in the pan, load ice-cream on top and serve in the middle of the table and all dig in. But caution as it will be hot. Especially those molten chocolate spots. 

First up, melt the butter in a small heavy based frying pan, cast iron, or another skillet. Don't stir, just swirl, if it bubbles and browns a little don't worry, it actually makes the butter a little sweeter when it browns. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool for 5 minutes. While it's cooling you can prep all your other ingredients. Once it's cooled, but still warmed you can add the peanut butter and sugar. These will melt into the butter a little. I suggest half a cup of peanut butter, but basically I just dumped two massive scoops into the pan. Peanut butter is one of those sticky things that's pretty hard to measure. Brown sugar is best also as it's not grainy and gives a richer caramelised flavour, but again, use what you have on hand. The recipe will surely forgive you. 

Mix the rest, bake and like I said serve with ice-cream while hot. We were all out, as I mentioned, so a big dollop of cold vanilla custard also does the trick. Any leftovers (yeah right) are great the next day with a cup of tea or coffee, but it won't last longer than that. 

Ingredients (Serves 4-8): 

• 100 grams butter
• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup plain flour
• 1/2 cup rolled oats 
• 3/4 cup of chocolate chunks (white, dark and milk or a mixture) 

Preheat your oven to 180*C. 

Use a small oven proof frying pan to melt your butter. Swirl rather than stir. Once melted take off the heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes. If it browns, don't worry. 

Once cooled a little, add the peanut butter, sugar and vanilla and gently mix to combine. The peanut butter doesn't need to be completely blended in. 

Crack an egg into the pan also, and mix to combine. 

Add the sifted flour and baking soda, along with the rolled oats. Mix to form a sticky cookie dough. Press the dough down into the pan and pop into the oven for 15 minutes. 

Once removed from the oven allow to cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving, or pile the ice cream on top and eat straight out of the pan! 

Enjoy. 

Macaroni Chicken & Cheese (with hidden vegetables!)

This recipe is perfect for the upcoming cooler months. When you want more of that comfort food, or for when you want something that you can just pop in the oven at the end of a busy day that's tasty, but still full of all the good stuff you need. I like to have a bit of chicken for protein (aka extra fullness feeling) and for the little people, it's great to be able to sneak in some veggies. Peeling the zucchini (courgette) first means the colour of the dish is still cheesy and the pumpkin adds creaminess and a bit more of an earthy flavour.

Ingredients (Serves 6-8 people):

• 500g macaroni or other dried pasta shapes
• 600g chicken breast - two large breasts is about enough 
• 1 tbsp dried thyme 
• 2 tsp white wine vinegar - lemon juice would also work
• Olive oil
• 1.5 cup diced pumpkin 
• 2 or 3 zucchini peeled and roughly chopped 
• 50g butter
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1.5 cups milk 
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg - freshly grated nutmeg has the best flavour if you can get your hands on whole nutmeg. 
• 2 cups grated cheese (cheddar, colby, mild, parmesan or a combination - obviously the type of cheese you use will affect how cheesy the flavour is, so I tend to stick to cheddar/mild for toddlers) 
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs

Boil the pasta in a large pot of salted water according to the packet directions. Drain and toss through a few glugs of olive oil. 

In a small saucepan boil cubed pumpkin and zucchini for 10 minutes till tender. Drain & puree with a stick blender, food processor, or just mash. Set aside. 

Slice chicken breast lengthways through the middle so you have two flatter fillets. Heat another tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and fry each fillet for 4-6 minutes each side till lightly browned. Set aside and allow to cool. Add thyme, white wine vinegar and a splash of water to the pan and stir to remove all the tasty juices from the bottom of the pan. Add this chicken thyme juice to the pureed veggies. 

Finally make the sauce. Melt the butter and garlic over a medium heat. Once bubbling, add the flour and stir. It will be a little foamy. Gradually add the milk, stirring well after each addition to make sure you don't get any lumps. Continue stirring and once thickened take off the heat and add half of the grated cheese. Stir till you have a smooth sauce. Add the nutmeg and pureed veggies. Stir and season to taste. 

Roughly chop the chicken and combine with the sauce and cooked pasta. Spoon everything into a large baking dish (or two smaller ones if you want to freeze half). Top with remaining cheese and then breadcrumbs. Can be chilled for 24hrs, or frozen for up to 4 months at this point. 

Preheat oven to 180*C. 

Bake for 30 - 40 mins till heated through and lightly golden on top. 

Serve with a green salad, or steamed veggies and crusty bread. 

Venison & Mushroom Pie

We were blessed to have some really good quality wild venison to cook this week. The first night we cooked a truly fabulous Annabel Langbein recipe, serving the fillets on ginger mashed kumara, with a sweet red wine and balsamic sauce. It really was sensational, partly down to the tender quality and flavour of the meat, as well as the accompaniments of course. 

But tonight I had the challenge of using the rest of the meat to create a pie (Hubby's orders. But who doesn't like pie right?). The challenge was, that the meat was from the eye fillet, so exceptionally tender and only requiring quick cooking. 

Pies are traditionally a dish that are suited to a tougher cut of meat. This recipe explains how to cook it using a high quality cut of meat. However if you had stewing steak then you'd simply rearrange the order, brown the meat first, and simmer it in the gravy for at least 40 minutes till it's tender, before cooling and using as a pie filling. 

One of my tips with pies is to cool the filling first. It doesn't have to be fridge cold (though you could prepare the filling a day in advance), but you certainly do not want it hot. It would cause the pastry to melt a little which you don't want to happen prior to going into the oven. Also, a HOT oven, so make sure to preheat first. 

Ingredients (Serves 4-6 with sides): 

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 400g venison fillets, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp flour 
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 c red wine  
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 50g butter
• 200g mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 1 cup diced pumpkin
• 1 tbsp dried thyme (or 1/4c of fresh thyme) 
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 cup of beef stock
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 sheets of butter puff pastry*
• 1/2 cup frozen peas

Toss the chopped meat in the first measure of flour, seasoned with salt and pepper. 

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large frying pan. Lightly brown the meat in batches and set aside in a bowl. 

Once the meat is browned, reduce the heat to low and use the wine to de-glaze the pan. Stirring until all of the bits have been removed from the bottom of the pan, and the wine has significantly reduced. Pour this over top of the meat and set aside. 

Heat the oil and half of the butter in a large frying pan. Add the mushrooms and pumpkin and saute for 5-10 minutes until mushrooms are softened. 

Add the garlic, additional butter, and thyme, and stir till the butter has melted. Sprinkle over the flour and stir to coat. 

Gradually add the hot beef stock to the pan (if using a cheaper cut of meat return it to the pan now to stew in the gravy), stirring constantly and allow the sauce to thicken. 

Once thickened, remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature (if using a fillet cut of meat stir it into the gravy once cooled). 

Preheat the oven to 190*C fanbake (210*C bake). 

Butter a 22cm pie dish and line the base with the thawed pastry. Cutting to fit. 

Spoon the cooled filling into the base and sprinkle with 1/2 a cup of frozen peas. 

Use the remaining pastry to cover the top. If you don't have enough a rustic lattice top will do the trick (I like my pies to be rustic and somewhat freeform). If you do fully cover the top, be sure to prick a few holes in the top to allow it to steam. 

Bake for 40 minutes till the centre is hot.  

Remove from the oven and sit for 10 mins before cutting. 

Serve with roasted potatoes and steamed veggies or salads. 

* Many store bought pastries are made with vegetable fat (often palm oil), check the ingredients and if possible it's worth spending the few extra dollars for butter puff pastry. 

Mini Enchiladas

These little morsels are a game changer: fast, delicious, versatile and a total hit with adults and kids alike! Even better - they're easy enough to get the kids into the kitchen. 

If you've been thinking about encouraging your children's life skills and growing their confidence in the kitchen then this dish is a great place to start. Equally, if you have a hoard of kids over after training or for a kids party, you can whip these up no trouble. 

It's all food you can keep in stock in the pantry too, even the chicken - either use leftovers or pick up one of these Tegel Shredded Roast Chicken packets which lasts in the fridge for a few weeks.


Ingredients: (serves 4-6 people - or 12 as a snack)

• 12 small to medium sized tortillas (20-25cm diameter is a good size) 
• 2 cups (approx 300g) cooked shredded chicken
• Or 1 can kidney beans for vegetarian
• 1 can corn kernels, rinsed and drained
• ½ onion, finely diced
• 1 400g can Wattie's Mexican Tomatoes 
• 1 x 35g packet Farrah's Taco Spice Mix
• 2 cups grated cheese

To Serve: 

• 125 ml tub sour cream
• Sweet chilli sauce 
• Green Salad

Method:

Heat the oven to 180°C. Spray a regular-sized muffin tray (not texas muffins) with cooking oil.

Heat tortillas as directed on package (usually 30 seconds in the microwave does the trick). Press 1 tortilla into each muffin cup. Bake for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in medium bowl, stir together chicken (or beans), onion, corn and half of the cheese. Stir in tomato and taco seasoning. Divide the mixture into the cooked tortilla shells. Top with the remaining grated cheese.

Bake 14 - 17 minutes or until enchiladas are toasted and mixture is heated through. Top each with a spoonful of sour cream, dollop of sweet chilli sauce, and serve warm with salad on the side.