cheese and leek tart

INGREDIENTS

1 sheet ready-rolled butter puff pastry
plain flour
20g butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large (500g) leek, sliced thinly
140g goat’s cheese, sliced
2 eggs
2/3 cup (160ml) cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper
frisée lettuce
1 tablespoon vinaigrette

METHOD

Lightly oil a 23cm round, loose-based flan tin. Place pastry on a lightly floured surface; dust top with a little more flour. Roll out until large enough to line tin. Lift pastry into tin, gently ease pastry into side of tin; do not stretch pastry or it will shrink during cooking. Lightly prick base with a fork; place tin on an oven tray. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to hot (220°C/200°C fan forced). Cover pastry with baking paper; fill with uncooked rice or dried beans. Bake in a hot oven for 15 minutes, then remove the paper and rice. Return pastry to oven for a further 1 minute
or until browned. Cool. Reduce oven temperature to moderate (180°C/160°C fan-forced).

Meanwhile, melt butter with oil in a medium frying pan. Add leek; cook,
stirring, for about 10 minutes or until very soft, but not colored. Spread leek onto pastry base; top with the goat’s cheese.

Whisk together eggs and cream, then season well with salt and pepper. Pour over leek and cheese. Bake tart
in a moderate oven for 25 minutes or until set. Cool tart in tin for 5 minutes before lifting out.

Raisin bread.

Ingredients:
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup raisins
1/4 cup soft butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup scalded milk
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten

Preparation:
Dissolve yeast in warm water. In a large bowl, combine raisins, butter, sugar, salt, and hot milk; stir to dissolve the sugar. Let mixture cool to lukewarm. Stir in 1 1/2 cups of the flour; beat well. Add yeast mixture and the beaten eggs; mix to blend well. Add enough of the remaining flour to make a soft but stiff dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes, until dough is smooth and elastic. Place dough in a lightly buttered bowl, turning once to grease the surface. Cover with a clean dish cloth; let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down and divide into 2 portions. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Shape into 2 loaves; place in 2 greased 8x4x3-inch loaf pans. Cover and let rise again for about 45 to 60 minutes, until almost double. Bake at 375° for 25 minutes, placing foil over loaves the last 10 minutes, if loaves are getting too brown. Remove loaves from pans and let cool on racks.

Date Tamarind Chutney

ingredients

Dates, de seeded 1 cup
Tamarind 2 lemon sized balls
Cumin seeds 1 tsp
Ginger 1 inch piece
Red chillies powder 1 tsp
Rock salt or sea salt 1/2 tsp

Grind all the ingredients together in the blenderiser to form a fine paste.
Stays for up to a month if well refrigerated.

Mud cake

Ingredients (serves 10)
• 250g butter, chopped
• 200g chocolate, chopped
• 2 cups caster sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup self-raising flour, sifted
• 1 1/2 cups plain flour, sifted
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
• chocolate flakes, to serve
Chocolate ganache (topping)
• 200g dark chocolate, chopped
• 2/3 cup thickened cream

Method
1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease a 6cm-deep, 22cm round cake pan. Line base and sides with baking paper.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add chocolate, sugar and 1 cup cold water. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 to 4 minutes or until smooth. Transfer to large bowl. Cool for 10 minutes.
3. Add eggs. Stir to combine. Add flours and cocoa. Stir until smooth. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center has moist crumbs clinging. Stand for 10 minutes in pan. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.
4. Make chocolate ganache: Place chocolate and cream in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 to 4 minutes or until smooth. Transfer to a bowl. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until thick enough to spread. Spread over cake. Top with chocolate flakes. Stand for 10 minutes or until ganache is set. Serve.

Arabian Dates Coconut Balls

ingredients
1/2 cup butter or margarine
6 ounces pitted whole dates, finely snipped (1 cup)
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
3 cups crisp rice cereal
1 cup flaked coconut

In a medium saucepan heat butter or margarine over medium-low heat till melted.
Add snipped dates and sugar.Add egg; beat well.
Cook and stir over medium-low heat for 4 to 5 minutes or till mixture thickens and begins to bubble.In a mixing bowl place rice cereal.
Pour date mixture over cereal; toss to mix well.
Cool about 10 minutes (till mixture is easy to shape into balls).
With buttered hands, shape into 1-inch balls (about 1 tablespoon each).
Roll date balls in coconut.Cover and chill before serving.

Pavlova

Ingredients:

4 egg whites
250g caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornflour
475ml whipping cream, whipped
fresh fruit to decorate

Preparation method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 150 C / Gas mark 2. Line a baking tray with baking parchment. Draw a 23cm (9 in) circle on the parchment.

2. In a large bowl, beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Gradually add in the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat until thick and glossy. Over beaten egg whites lose volume and deflate when folded into other ingredients. Be absolutely sure not a particle of grease or egg yolk gets into the whites. Gently fold in vanilla extract, lemon juice and cornflour.

3. Spoon mixture inside the circle drawn on the parchment. Working from the center, spread mixture towards the outside edge, building edge slightly. This should leave a slight depression in the center.

4. Bake for 1 hour. Cool on a wire rack.

5. Remove the parchment, and place meringue on a flat serving plate. Fill the center of the meringue with whipped cream, sweetened if desired. Top whipped cream and fresh fruit.

Tip:
To keep your meringue from being flat and grainy, try beating egg whites until stiff but not dry. Over beaten egg whites lose volume and deflate when folded into other ingredients. Also, when beating in sugar, beat in about 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well between each addition. Then beat until meringue is thick, white and glossy. Be absolutely sure not a particle of grease or egg yolk gets into the whites.

Fried Ice Cream

Your parents MUST help you with this one!
ingredients
1/2 cup caramel syrup
6 ounces corn flakes
1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream
1 (12 ounce) carton Cool Whip
12 maraschino cherries
Vegetable oil

Mix caramel with corn flakes until sticky. Scoop out ice cream and apply corn flake coating to cover ice cream. Store any leftover coating in refrigerator. Immerse ice cream ball in hot oil for 15 to 20 seconds. Place in a dish; top with whipped topping and a cherry.

Ghost Pops

3 ripe bananas
Popsicle sticks
2 cups white chocolate
Miniature chocolate chips

Peel bananas and cut in half width wise. Insert Popsicle stick in each half through the cut end, wrap each half in plastic wrap and freeze for 3 hours.

Melt white chocolate and frost the whole banana halves (apply with butter knife). Set on wax paper and press in miniature chocolate chips for eyes and mouth. Freeze until ready to serve.

Egg Paratha

ingredients

2 cups of Wheat Flour
4 Eggs
2 medium Onions (chopped)
1 Capsicum (chopped)
1 Tomato (chopped)
A few Fresh Coriander
1 tsp. Red Chilli Powder
Salt
2 tbsp. Cooking Oil
Clarified Butter (Ghee) or Butter (for preparing dough and frying parathas)

Pour oil into a frying pan and heat it.
Add chopped onions and fry on medium heat till they become golden brown.
Add the tomato and capsicum and fry it for few minutes. Now add eggs, salt, red chilli and mix it properly. Cook the mixture until eggs are well done.
Put coriander leaves into the mixture. Take off from the flame and leave the mixture aside.Make the dough by adding sufficient water to the flour. Knead it to convert into soft dough. Add 2 tbsp of clarified butter to it and knead it again for some time. Make small balls out of the dough.
Roll the balls to give them roti shape.
Take one roti and put the egg mixture. Cover it with another roti.
Roll this roti a little and fry both sides properly in butter.
Egg Paratha is ready to serve.