DARK HORSES

I have been looking through some of my old recipe books, I have a lot of community recipe books that have been produced by schools, plunkets etc. I am amazed by the names of some of the recipes there's Bird's Nests, Bumble Bees, Beetles, Dark Horses, Hedgehogs and Ragged Robins, most of which bear no resemblance to their names. Makes me wonder why/who named them? So I thought I'd give Dark Horses a go, maybe the name suggests they turn out better than the mix looks.

I have to say that these biscuits were a pleasant surprise. Was not sure they were going to work when I put them in the oven but they are nice and crisp with good flavour there just different sort of a fruit and nut biscuit, would be nice with some chopped chocolate in them......bit of a dark horse really this biscuit!!

Dark Horses

115 grams butter

115 grams sugar

1 beaten egg

1/2 cup chopped dates

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup sultanas

1/2 teaspoon baking soda dissolved in 1 teaspoon boiling water

1 cup flour

Cream butter and sugar, add the egg, walnuts, dates, sultanas and soda dissolved in water, mix all together, add four and mix well. Put spoonful lots on baking tray. Bake at 180 c for 10-15 minutes until golden, cool on rack.

The House & The Cherry Tree

I have had a few requests to put a picture on this blog of the new house. Because the house is quite a long house its not that easy to get it in one picture with a decent close up view, but I think you'll get the idea of what its like (the pole coming form the chimney is the street light). We have just over 1/2 an acre which is great. I have really been restricted to where I can plant things as we need to put in so much top soil to raise the ground level. I have had to plant the trees in areas where the level will stay the same. As I am a very impatient person I just had to get planting just couldn't wait for the topsoil.

One of the trees I planted is a fruiting dwarf cherry tree (variety Stella) so I have affectionately call the tree Stells. Went out to visit her today just to see how she's getting along. Lots of blossom and a few bees on her today. I really don't expect much, if any fruit of her this year but each blossom is a potential bunch of cherries.

I anyone reads this blog and knows about cherry trees in the North Island, would you leave a comment please. I would love to now if I have a realistic chance of actually getting any cherries as I have been told by someone the professes to know it all that the weather may be too warm for the tree to fruit, so another opinion would be great.........Jan

EVERYONE LOVES CHOCOLATE CAKE

Everyone loves chocolate cake don't they? they do in my house anyway. If I take it to work which I do from time to time its always really popular. This recipe is real easy to make, moist, good colour (actually looks like chocolate cake) and it makes a large cake. I always cook this in a large pyrex dish that I have, mainly because I have plastic lids that fit the pyrex dishes. I have never seen these lids for sale in NZ. Mine came from the US, they are great. My sister first bought them back and I got more when I was there. Only $1.99, well worth the money saves having to find a container for the cake. They really should sell them here they make lids for all the pyrex containers including bowls. My excitement for these lids may seem a little OTT but they really are great.

CHOCOLATE CAKE

3 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups sugar

2 cups hot instant coffee

2/3 cup oil (not soya or olive, use canola or ricebran)

2 teaspoons vinegar

2 teaspoons vanilla

Sift the dry ingredients together, make a well in the centre add the liquid ingredients. What I do is put 2 cups boiling water and 2 teaspoons coffee powder in a bowl and add the oil, vinegar and vanilla then add that to the dry ingredients. Mix until combined. This is a thick sticky mix. Bake at 190 c for 30 minutes or until cooked when tested. Ice with chocolate icing. happy baking!

Gingernuts-The Dunkers

I guess that its a bit of a NZ tradition that gingernuts are the biscuits that are known for being dunked in a hot cup of tea or coffee. Can't say I ever really got into dunking probably because I never really mastered the art, I always ended up with half a biscuit at the bottom of my cup of tea, so I gave up. There is a bit of an art to dunking, too long and you loose the biscuit, not long enough and biscuits still hard.


Thought I'd have a go at making gingernuts today, easy to make, recipe said makes 50 so thought that would last in the tin for at least half a day!!. I only managed to get 30 out of this recipe and they very just average biscuit size so where the 50 estimate comes from who knows. Sometimes with baking its the simple recipe that's the nicest. I find that some of the new recipes are just too elaborate. Don't get me wrong I love new ingredients/combinations but sometimes the result is just not worth the hassle.


They were quite nice, crunchy, good ginger taste, not as hard as bought ginger biscuits and everyone liked them. Just watch the cooking time if you make them. I baked for 12 minutes but they were a little too brown on some of the edge.



GINGERNUT BISCUITS

125g butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup golden syrup

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tabelspoon ground ginger

1 teaspon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon mixed spice


Melt the butter, sugar and golden syrup over a low heat, remove from heat stir in the sifted dry ingredients, cool for 15 minutes then roll into balls flatten with a fork and bake at 180 c for 12 minutes (maybe a bit less) cool on trays.

Sugar Buns

I am still unpacking boxes from our move 3 months ago, and there is still the storage unit to go as well. I am not the best at parting with stuff, just too sentimental for my own good!.


I came across some of my Nana's recipe books from I think the 1940's I think I have got the date right by finding out when a car that's advertised in it came out. I decided to make something from it. In this book there is a champion coal range advertised, no times for the baking and no specific oven temperature. I guess back then everyone baked so they all knew the basics. Now I don't have a problem with that but I know that if some of the younger ones (making myself sound real old now, I'm 46) picked up the book they would have no clue.




I spent a good hour looking at the book deciding what to make and was getting nowhere so I thought open the page Jan and do the second recipe down...which is what I did. Making these old recipes will give me a chance to show off all the beautiful china that I have inherited.



These sugar buns were very easy to make and taste very nice, I will admit to having one or two, I have converted the recipe to metric.
SUGAR BUNS

110 grams butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon lemon essence
450 grams flour
3 heaped teaspoon baking powder
1/2-3/4 cup sultanas


Cream butter and sugar, add egg and milk and essence (it may look like its curdled but don't worry it will come together with the flour) add the sifted flour and baking powder and sultanas Mix together put largish spoonfuls on baking tray, sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 175 c for approx 15 minutes or until slightly golden. I got 20 quite large ones but you could make them smaller and get more.

The Plot's Taking Shape.

It might not look much at the moment but the plot is starting to take shape, I have planted about half of it and have more seeds in the germination process.

I get a weekly email Get growing from NZ gardener, today's one says "Don't be tempted to plant your Tomatoes outside yet, October is traditionally the time Tomatoes get put outside" Well @#$%&*, mine are outside in the wind and rain...........I figure they will either survive or turn up their toes and die!!, so sowed more seeds just in case. So far in the garden I have planted, beans Purple Tee Pee, Tomatoes Super teak and Money Maker. Courgettes yellow & green, peas & lettuces. Pumpkins Jack-be-Little, Gherkins. being a novice at this either all will be fine or I'll learn the hard way. the picture is not too good. I promise i'll try to do better next time.

An Expensive Day...

Well what an expensive day, Max the 4 year old golden lab cut his foot on a stone in our driveway on Sunday. After cleaning it and bandaging it any double socking him (wish I'd taken a picture of that) it was still slightly coming through the sock....and having a new house and new carpet blood spots are unacceptable!!. Most people would say a dog inside in unacceptable, but he's regularly bathed and they ....yes there is 2 our other is a black lab called Abby. They are only allowed on a mat that we have for them and they sleep in the garage at night. Anyway back to the story. We decided to take Max to the vet today to have the foot looked at, never in our wildest dreams did we think it would cost $420 to have 5 stitches!!!. At least it will heal now, he is not a happy boy with bandage.




I was going to cook a casserole for dinner tonight but as we did not get home until 4.30 it was too late. I bought some schnitzel on the way home and we had that with wedges and a salad. The salad was really nice considering the combination. I am pretty creative when it comes to making a salad with Mesculin I just turn to the fridge/pantry and grab. Tonight was mesculin, celery, Gruyere cheese, grated carrot and gold kiwifruit.



We love tomatoes on salad but at $9.99 a kg I can live without them at the moment, plenty more things that can go on instead of tomatoes.



I took a picture of Kevin's dinner just because I could....... It looked better than in the photo.

Vege Patch In The Making......

I have been itching to get a vege patch in., never been serious about veges before but I'm ready!!! We have recently moved to a new house out of town with a just over half acre section. We decided that we want most of the trees and plants to be productive, and evergreen if possible. We have planted, 2 avocado's, 2 feijoa's, strawberries, passionfruit, dwarf cherry, tamarillo. I have been having a go at growing my prospective veges from seed and have had an almost 100% germination rate (thanks Kings Seeds). My Purple Tee Pee beans are doing a Jack in the beanstalk thing in the formal lounge (new that extra room would come in useful) so they need to be planted outside, also have jack-be-little pumpkin, gherkins, capsicum, supersteak tomato, but I bought that one.

First we actually have to dig the garden and fork in the compost. My dear husband is home tomorrow so hopefully he will do it if I'm still not feeling to good (home with the flu today). Then we can get these babies in the ground........so until tomorrow there's pics of the strawberries and the proposed garden.

Brown Betty

Well as promised in the last post, I have finally got round to making Brown Betty and taking a photo of it.

I have no idea where the recipe came from its not attributed to anyone in Mum's recipe book, Its very easy to make and I ice it with peppermint icing with coconut on the top. The original recipe says 1/2 cup of milk, I find it works much better with 3/4 cup milk.

BROWN BETTY

In a pot melt

4 oz Butter

4oz Sugar

3/4 cup milk

1 Tablespoon Cocoa

When cool add

1 cup sultanas

1 cup Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Put into a lines sponge roll/slice tin ans bake at 350 F or 175 C for 12-15 minutes

When cool ice with chocolate/peppermint icing and sprinkle with coconut.......very quick and easy.

One thing I should point out is that I have very creative spelling, so if something is a bit weird ask me to clarify (or correct it) if you cant make it out.

I think I'm having trouble getting the pictures within the text where I want them but I guess I'll work it out in time!!

Mums Cook Book

Recently it was 20 years since my Mother passed away, she was a great cook and fabulous baker. None of her cooking was especially gourmet, she was just a great basic cook.

I got out her cook book and on the 20th anniversary of her death and had 'a stroll down memory lane'

I made a slice called Brown Betty which she always had in the tins.

Picture and recipe to follow