the craft corner / sweet treats

Another month is drawing to a close.. which means I'm over at Em's with another edition of The Craft Corner. Winter is just around the corner, so this month is all about filling up your belly with some delicious, sweet treats! Both recipes involve fruit.. so they're kinda healthy. Never mind all the sugar..

muesli bar quest

I've lost count of the number of muesli bar recipes I have tried over the years. Tired of the store bought ones - expensive and too sweet. Or lack of diversity causing the kids to become bored and not want to eat them at all. But they are just such a simple and easy snack, young or old, I must continue my quest to find a homemade muesli bar that my kids will love. I will not wave the white flag!

Last week I tried another one that has been hiding in my recipe book for goodness knows how long, torn from a waiting room New Idea. Success with the kids? No. Success with the husband? No. But me, myself and I ate the whole batch - rather quickly too, I might add. So they can't be bad, right? I have taste buds - don't I? Please make these and confirm I have taste buds.

The difference I found with these compared to other recipes I have tried, is that this recipe actually tasted of the ingredients - not the ingredients masked by the flavour of butter and honey, glueing the ingredients together. I could taste the oats, sultanas, apricots, pepitas.. and I really enjoyed the omission of honey and addition of milk! There was such a subtle milky flavour holding the ingredients together. I think the pepitas were the winner for me, I just love them.

Muesli Fruit Oat Bars (sort of a ridiculous name for them but clearly New Idea thought it was great..)

2 Weet-Bix, crushed

1 cup rolled oats

1/3 cup sultanas

1/3 cup chopped soft and juicy apricots (I used soft, plump and juiceless DRIED apricots and they worked beautifully)

1/3 cup pepitas

1/4 cup caster sugar (I used brown sugar - you could easily make this 1/3 cup or leave it out completely if you're a health nut)
1/4 cup plain flour

75g unsalted butter, melted

1/4 cup milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

// Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.

// Grease and line a 20cm square cake tin, extending paper above pan edges to make it easy to lift out later.

// Place weet-bix, oats, sultanas, apricots, pepitas, sugar and flour in a large bowl and stir to combine.

// Add butter, milk and egg and stir to combine.

// Pour into pan and spread evenly.

// Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden and cooked. Stand in pan for 10 minutes before lifting out to cool on wire rack.

// Cut into 12 even bars. Or 6 - because if you eat them like I did, you can't eat just one at a time.

Bars can be stored in an airtight container for up to five days (if they last that long).

So go forth and bake! And please come back and tell me my taste buds have not died. No, really. I need to know if others like this?!

If you've got amazing muesli bar recipes in your possession, please share! And no, I do not own a Thermomix.

meatballs

Ruby's favourite. And one of my favourites to make.* Anything that's quick, easy and tasty gets a good run on the dinner rotation round here. There's just something about squishing wet mince between your fingers, no? I feel a little closer to Jamie and that's never a bad thing.

I don't remember what version I made before Jamie's 30 Minute Meals meatballs. Who cares. The 30MM version was tasty and we were happy. Then Jody posted her best ever spaghetti and meatballs and I had to test them out. Every one of Jody's recipes I have tried has been delicious, and these were no exception. The only things lacking for me were the zesty lemon tang and hint of mustard I was used to from Jamie's meatballs. So since then, I've been mashing the two together. It goes something like this.

Jamie + Jody's Meatball Mash Up

500g beef/pork mince
2 cloves garlic, bashed and chopped
1 egg
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/2 cup parmesan
chopped parsley/basil
good heaped tablespoon of mustard (I use dijon)
zest of 1/2 - 1 lemon (add some juice too if you like more zing)
lug of olive oil
salt + pepper
dried chilli flakes, optional (of course you could use fresh, but I prefer to use dried for these because I can control the heat for the kids, whereas with fresh, sometimes they're hotter than you think!)

//Mix everything together in a bowl using your hands. Roll into small walnut sized balls. If you added the lemon juice as well, you may find it a bit too wet. If so, add some more breadcrumbs.

//Heat some oil in a heavy based pan over medium heat. Add your meatballs and brown, a couple of minutes each side.

//Add two tins of diced tomatoes into your pan plus about a third of a tin of water (I buy the tinned tomatoes with basil + garlic). Wait for your tomatoes to bubble and add your stock of choice - I use one of those Continental Stock Pots. Perhaps because I quite like Marco Pierre White. Maybe I have a thing for chefs.
//Knock your heat back to low-ish and add some more finely chopped parsley/basil, salt and pepper, dried chilli flakes if you like. Have a taste - if it's too tomatoey, add a teaspoon of raw sugar.
//Give everything a gentle mix, making sure your meatballs are covered by the sauce.

//Cover (I leave the lid slightly ajar) and allow to bubble while you cook some pasta or rice.
//About five minutes before they're ready, add a few shakes of balsamic vinegar - a trick I learned from watching one of Jamie's shows. I do this with my lasagne sauce too. If your sauce has thickened too much here, just add a bit of water to loosen it up.

//Serve with a generous pile of pasta or rice, cracked pepper and more parmesan. Watch gleefully as the kids inhale it.

*Perhaps a favourite because each time I make it, I am reminded of my nephew's arrival into the world, as this was what I was doing when I got the call that he arrived unexpectedly early - with no name - hence the Baby T scribble. Clearly I was having a very organised day if I was making meatballs at 11.15am!

recipe :: lemon squares

I was given a couple of great cook books for Christmas which are going to get a good workout this year. Over the weekend we spent the afternoon and evening with some dear friends, and I wanted to take along some afternoon tea since we were given strict instructions to just bring ourselves. It was nice to reach up to the baking shelf in the pantry after having a long hiatus from the kitchen while on holidays.

This recipe comes from a book called Grandma's Recipes (which I cannot seem to find a link for). Mum bought it from one of those book clubs that are left in work lunch rooms/kindy foyers etc where you fill out the order form by hand and your books are delivered to you. Old school, I love it.

In the early stages of bringing this recipe to life, it showed great signs of dying an early death. The problem you see, was in the size of the baking tray. When Grandma encourages the use of a rectangular or square baking tin, in true Granny style, she bypasses measurements. So I reached for my old faithful rectangular slice tin, the one I always use for a slice recipe, the one that has NEVER failed me. Made the base, cooked it, and then when it came time to pour the topping over, realised the amount of mixture I had was waaaaaaay more than was ever going to fit in the remaining millimetres left in the tin. I do believe I cursed Grandma for not giving a heads up on using a LARGE rectangular or square baking tin. I had timed the baking so I would take the tray out of the oven, wrap it in towels, put it in the laundry basket, and stuff it in the back of the car to cool down on the way. I had left myself no room for failure. Since when do I fail at baking anyway?!! Snort.

Think, think, what to do? The only thing for it - I got out a LARGE SQUARE baking tin (22cm), chopped the end off the base to fit it into the NEW baking tin, and tried to ignore the little empty hole in one corner of the tin where the smooshed-together-base wouldn't reach. I poured the topping mixture all over the top, shuvved it back in the oven. BAM. When we bit into this little beauty a few hours later.. OH. MY. GOODNESS. Think lemon meringue pie without the meringue on top. With an almost classic shortbread base (soft and crumbly, not hard like shortbread biscuit). I had some ripper lemons because it was perfectly sweet with a marvellous bitter tang as you swallowed. I will not share how many squares I had. Suffice to say, I will be making this one again VERY soon. Grandma totally redeemed herself.

Something I really love about this book is that what it lacks in baking tray measurements, it makes up for in ingredient measurements. Each recipe lists ingredient measurements in grams, ounces and cups. I love to cook in cups - means I don't have to wash the tray off the scales. Lazy much?

Lemon Squares

Base
250g | 9oz | 1 cup butter
125g | 4.5oz | 1/2 cup sugar
250g | 9oz | 2.5 cups plain (all purpose) flour
pinch of salt

Topping
2 eggs
250g | 9oz | 1.5 cups sugar
2 tbsp flour
pinch of salt
2 lemons, juice and zest
icing sugar to decorate

Preheat oven to 160C (140C fan forced) (325F/gas 3). Grease a rectangular or square baking tray with butter (I still lined mine with baking paper so it was easy to lift the whole slab out once cooled, to chop easily).

Beat the butter and sugar until creamy. Add the flour and salt and mix to a smooth dough. Press the dough into the base of the tin and bake for 20 minutes or until cooked and golden.

Beat the eggs and sugar until foamy. Mix in the flour, salt, lemon juice and zest. Pour the mixture over the cooled base.* Bake for a further 25-30 minutes until the filling is set. Remove from the oven and leave in the tin to cool.

Sift icing sugar to coat the top and cut into squares (I used a hot knife to get through the stickyness as neatly as possible).

*I didn't have time to let the base cool, I literally pulled the base out of the oven when it was cooked (plus the few minutes spent fixing the tin-is-too-small-dilemma), poured the topping on and stuck it back in the oven. It is hard to imagine this slice tasting any better than it did, but next time I will try it with a cooled base and see if it makes any difference to the taste or texture.

**Sweet little mister couldn't get the squares in fast enough. Leaving room to chew is so overrated.

how to :: late night, last minute christmas gifting

Got a Christmas party coming up? Need a little homemade gift for your loved ones? Or people you may not love so much but are forced to spend your workdays with who would think less of you if you didn't give them something for Christmas? Here's how you do it.

Dash to the shops late on a Saturday afternoon to collect a handful of supplies for your amazing salads you have been allocated to take to your Christmas party the following day.

While you're there, panic when you realise you haven't bought any Christmas cards to give your friends - seeing as it's a CHRISTMAS party - nor given any thought to the fact you should probably be gifting something to show them you do actually care.

Buy some little cheapo cards and clear cello bags. The important point here is to be absolutely sure you give no thought whatsoever to the fact you only have blue and white twine left at home to use for wrapping, and randomly grab a pack of cards that in NO WAY match your twine.

Call your sister in the confectionary aisle and get her to help you refresh your failing memory on the loose quantities that are involved for your chosen WINNING recipe. Reassure yourself that if you've got the wrong amounts of ingredients, you can make it work regardless. You are that good. When you get home, surprise yourself that your memory is actually useful for the really important stuff - remembering quantities of chocolate.

Plan your enjoyable evening between a festive kitchen stint and editing at the computer. Abort plans when you fall asleep putting your toddler to bed and wake at 9.30pm, groggy and disorientated.

Fight all urges to raise the white flag and head straight for your bed covers. Make a cup of tea. Tell yourself to keep your eyes OPEN.

Get going on THE BEST peppermint bark you will ever taste. (Believe me, I have tried a few different recipes and this one wins, hands down. Don't waste your time on anything else.)

While you're waiting for layers to set, do some editing.

After the stroke of midnight when you have put your final layer on, and your editing is finished, go to bed happy that you actually achieved what you set out to do.

In the morning, leave your bark out for ten minutes to come to room temperature, then try to cut and bag it without the smalls seeing you. Give up after 30 seconds when they can smell it. Like sniffer dogs. Try not to lose your shit when they ask for 753 pieces. Be kind and give them a few dregs.

Write heartfelt messages on your non-matching Christmas cards. Use your kids' fancy Christmas tree shaped hole punch to attach to your bags with your non-matching twine.

When you're bagged and tagged, eat the scraps.

Last and most importantly, feel genuinely happy when your friends are truly grateful for their little Christmas gift. Got it? Good.

My favourite re-hashing edible handmade Christmas gift

lemon polenta biscuits

Our poor bank balance has been smashed the last two months. Rates, utilities, dance fees, kindy fees, mechanic, plumber, car rego, insurance, more utilities.. and so it goes. Just when things looked rosy, I booked our holiday airfares. Cue plumber and mechanic to rain on our parade. We have never experienced bills like this before, with such terrible timing. Shit happens. We push through.

So we are rationing through the school holidays - of all the times be without any bloody money! The grocery list consisted of essentials. Only essentials. So our regular baking meant nothing fancy. Just using your basic baking essentials that are always in the pantry. This recipe is from The Australian  Women's Weekly Cheap Eats cookbook. So appropriate considering we are totally cheap for another whole week. Boo hiss. Boo hiss again to monthly pay cycles. Boo hiss again again to the blurry photo below. I was too lazy to rectify the rubbish. If you squint, the baking paper is in focus.

This is not a sweet biscuit, I would even go so far as to say it could almost pass for savoury. If you like a good tangy punch to anything lemony, you could easily add more juice or rind. Next time, I will. They are not as lemony as I had expected, or hoped for. The dough comes together similar to a shortbread, but is much denser in the finish, providing a crunchy bite, not a crumbly one. The best part is, Eliot and I are the only ones who like them. I think the texture of the polenta through the biscuit put the other three off. Perhaps a love it or hate it recipe. You decide.

Lemon Polenta Biscuits
(makes roughly 30-35)

250g softened butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups (200g) icing sugar
2 tbsp finely grated lemon rind
1/2 cup (85g) polenta
2 1/2 cups (375g) plain flour
1 tbsp lemon juice

Beat butter, extract, icing sugar and 1 teaspoon of the rind* in bowl with electric mixer until combined. Stir in polenta, flour and juice, in two batches (I combined flour and polenta first). Knead dough on floured surface until smooth. Divide dough in half; shape pieces into two 20cm long logs. Cover, refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Preheat oven to 200/180 fan forced. Line baking sheets with baking paper. Cut logs into 1cm slices; place on oven trays, sprinkle remaining rind over biscuits. Bake about 15 minutes. Stand for 5 minutes; turn onto wire rack to cool.

*I recommend adding both tablespoons of rind into the dough and forget about sprinkling over the top before baking. The bits on top provide no extra flavour and the biscuits could use more tang (for my liking anyway).

Let me know if you love them or hate them.

biccie jar

You know I like a full biccie jar, and lately my go-to biccie of choice has been the old faithful, choc chip. Or double choc chip if you follow the recipe properly. But generally, I make the recipe work with the volume of chocolate I have in the pantry, anywhere between 170-250g will work for these, whether it's two varieties or just one.

A few lovely ladies have requested this recipe and I was going to email it. But thought, why not share the love? And the calories?

This recipe was given to me by my beautiful friend and mama, Rachel. The first time I tried them, we shared them for morning tea at the first Stitches & Craft Show we went to together, a few years ago. Our annual visit together became a lovely tradition. She has since moved to Canberra and I really miss our morning/afternoon tea catch ups while our little ones played around us. I have tweaked it a little but I still call them Rachel's.

Rachel's Choc Chip Cookies
makes 24 biscuits (if you don't eat any mixture ~ so more like 20)

135g unsalted butter, at room temp
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup plain flour, sifted
3/4 cup self raising flour, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder, sifted
200g dark chocolate, chopped
50g white chocolate, chopped
*it goes without saying that the better quality your chocolate, the better your biccies will be. If you use Nestle Melts, we can no longer be friends.
*use whatever flavour takes your fancy - white/milk/dark, it doesn't matter

Preheat oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with baking paper {seriously, the best invention, EVER}. Cream butter, sugar and vanilla extract with electric beaters or fancy pants KitchenAid, till light and fluffy (roughly 6-8 mins). Remember this won't be as light as if you were using caster sugar. Add egg and mix well. Sift flours and baking powder over butter/egg mixture, fold with spatula till just combined. Add chopped chocolate and, again, fold gently till just combined. The mixture will be quite wet.

Spoon dessert spoonfuls onto baking trays, allowing room to spread. Just scoop from mixing bowl and slide off spoon using your finger. No rolling or anything. These give you a really decent sized biscuit. If you aren't a piggy like me, then use a heaped teaspoon or don't fill your dessert spoon entirely. Bake for 12 minutes (or thereabouts, depending on the strength of your oven). Turn halfway if your oven likes to be hotter in some spots than others, like mine. They should be golden and still soft in the middle. The usual cool-for-5-minutes before transferring to cooling rack, or just leave on the baking trays if you're feeling particularly lazy.

When I put these (or any) biccies in the jar, I put small squares of baking paper in between each layer to keep them fresh.* You know how some biscuits like to go all soft and horrible when mounted on top of one another? Yep. Hate that.

Put the kettle on and enjoy.

If you want to share any of your good biscuit recipes, please leave me a link in the comments, I am always wanting to try new ones!

*I will not be held responsible for how quickly your biccie jar empties