Ever practical, The Cook’s Companion has always been a reliable source of last-minute solutions, both sweet and savoury. In this instance, I needed a simple cake to whip up to form a part of a more elaborate affair for a baby shower cake. This cake fitted the brief perfectly, used only what I had to […]
Category: Baking
Apple Bread
I love Tessa Kiros, her cookbooks are wonderful. I own Falling Cloudberries and Apples for Jam. This recipe comes from Apples for Jam. I’ve made it a few times, and I love it. As someone who doesn’t eat bananas, I love the concept of apple bread instead. It’s perfect for either breakfast or an […]
Chocolate Eclair
I have always thought choux pastry would be more difficult to make than it actually turned out to be. While the method is a little more involved in that the mixture is essentially cooked on the stove and then again in the oven, anyone who has ever made a bechamel sauce need not fear this delicious pastry. […]
Chocolate (Vegan) Olive Oil Cake
This cake is delicious. I was expecting a dense cake, and was surprised by its light and fluffy texture. I made this on a lovely lazy Sunday afternoon. When I first leisurely flicked through Nigellissima, I was instantly drawn to this recipe. It reminded me of the Vegan Chocolate Cake I love.If I had to […]
Apricot and Walnut Sandwich Bars
These bars were one of the recipes I immediately tagged upon first receiving this book (Mary Berry’s Baking Bible), due to the inclusion of apricots (my favourite stone fruit) and the apparent simplicity of the recipe. Although Mary Berry describes these as similar to those you find in a health-food store; due to the enormous […]
Zucchini Slice
I have been making this Zucchini Slice for years. I’ve made it countless times, and often can make it from memory. It’s adaptable and can easily suit vegetables you have. It’s also perfect to make the day before and take into work for lunch. I prefer to serve it warm, but it can easily be […]
Herb and Garlic Foccacia
Faithful reader, I have a confession to make. I call myself a baker, but I had never made bread. I had only used yeast on a small handful of occassions to make a sweet dough, and lacked the confidence to bake. Yes, I called myself a baker, yet I hid away from bread. It was […]
Chocolate Squash Cake (or Chocolate Pumpkin Cake)
For reasons I cannot fathom, the North Americans and the British call butternut pumpkin ‘squash’. In fact, all pumpkin we have in Australia is considered ‘winter squash’ by North Americans and only the big orange ‘Halloween’ pumpkins are ‘proper’ pumpkin. No doubt we are considered the strange ones for labelling so many ‘squash’ as pumpkin […]
Warm Salted Pretzels
As it’s that time of year and as I love a themed party, I decided to host an Oktoberfest-themed dinner. Apart from the Lebkuchen I have already posted, I also baked these beautiful pretzels to have with beers before the main event began. There is a micro-brewery and restaurant in Beechworth, Victoria that we used […]
Lebkuchen Hearts from Marian Keyes
Having recently celebrated an Oktoberfest dinner at home with friends, I needed something traditionally German to end our meals, but nothing as hugely filling as the Black Forest Cake, which is the German cake to end all cakes. Although these are traditionally Christmas cookies (and Marian Keyes tells a charming tale of receiving a 20cm […]
A Tale of Two Kitchens 