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A New Home and Choc Chip Cookies

May 4, 2012 in Cookies, Food Photography, Home-made, Pastries and Sweets, Sweets

This is more of a catch-up post on what I have been up to. But I will add some foodie stuff in…I can’t resist it.
Last year my husband and I decided that we had had enough of the rat race and merely existing instead of living was not an option for us. We made a decision that Cape Town was going to be our new home. Things just started falling into place and everything that was meant to happen, happened. It just felt so right – even though the two or three months leading up to the “Big Move” were stressful, it was worth the wait. I guess we are extremely lucky and very blessed.

We drove down over five days with the kids and doggies in two cars, stopping along little towns and places we never knew existed.  What a great trip!
The booking of places to sleep overnight was very last minute so we often found ourselves booking into what was available in the nearest town. There are some strange places out there!!! We were very fortunate in our choice of accommodation though. When we eventually got to Cape Town it was already rather late and I just could not find an affordable pet friendly place to stay. Luckily my husband had packed the tent in the car ‘in case’. Thank goodness for that – we camped out for the night at the Noordhoek Caravan Park very unprepared. Pouring rain, hole in the tent…. ( advise to parents: check tents after teens have taken it out for the weekend). Anyway, it was all very exciting and certainly not the worst experience we’ve had. The next day the removal van was on time, waiting for us to arrive. The move went rather smoothly which I am grateful for. So, here we are ready to take on the ‘Mother City’.

That was two months ago and it has been hectic settling into the day to day routine. Don’t know about you but I detest having to fill out forms. And after filling out many of them we finally have internet access, phone lines and all those ‘techie’ things that we rely on.   We just need to change our pace slightly. There is just so much to see and do in Cape Town and we are enjoying every minute – with cameras around our ‘Vaalie’ necks. I am still trying to find where to buy my favourite ‘foodie goodies’ but discovering new things is part of the plan.

So now, it’s me and my blog. I have so much to catch up on and share with you.

With a big move comes insecurity. Especially for kids. Lots of hugs and comforting food makes it all feel like home.
Here is my family’s favourite comfort food at the moment. Good Old Choc Chip Cookies.

These have certainly earned the title of “comfort food’. After all, if there’s chocolate in them, there is comfort.
I baked a big batch of these before the trip, hoping it would last….NOT!  So now, I bake two batches at a time and store them in the cookie jars. Still doesn’t last.
What makes your Choc Chip Cookies different? A special ingredient or a specific method you use? I am always keen to try new Choc Chip Cookie recipes.




Notice, my cookie jar is still full! That’s because the kids were still asleep when these were baked.

 

Thirsty Thursday #5

July 6, 2011 in Beverages, Colours, Drinks, Food Photography, Photography, Purple, Recipes, Summer, Thirsty Thursday

If it’s freezing where you live – DON’T look any further! For all the continents enjoying glorious summer heat…READ ON!
Granita is a refreshingly healthy alternative to ice cream and is rather economical too.
Water, sugar and loads of flavour are all you need to get started.

Granita is frozen ice that has been scraped to form granular crystals or flakes of ice. If you are familiar with a “slush puppy” – that is it. The kids love it (without alcohol of course) and the possibilities are endless.

Granita requires that you use syrup as a base for your recipe, combined with purees or juices.

Recipe for Granita Syrup:

1. Dissolve and bring to the boil, 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar.
2. Cool to room temperature.
3. Mix this syrup with the rest of the ingredients for your granita.

This mixture then gets placed in a shallow container and into the freezer. If the consistency is too thin, the mixture might not freeze well.
During the freezing process stir the mixture with a fork every 20 minutes or so, until all liquid has been frozen. Start raking the frozen ice from the edges to the middle, scraping the sides and bottom of the pan. It takes about 3 hours for the granita to be completely frozen. It seems like a bit of work, but not really. This is quite therapeutic… All you have to do is remember to rake and scrape the ice every 20 minutes. If you find that the granita has become too solid, just remove the container from the freezer and allow to melt slightly at room temperature and rake it with a fork again.
Ready to scoop into your favourite glass and topped off with whatever tickles your fancy.

Tips:

Chill the glasses that you are going to be using to pour the granita into later.
For a light granita use juices.

For a chunkier granita use thicker purees.



Recipe Card

Chocolate Dipped Almond Crunchies

July 3, 2011 in Food Photography, Home-made, Photography, Recipes, Sweets

This is the easiest recipe ever! The kids love to make these.
Usually, crunchies are made in a shallow dish and cut up into squares but I decided to make them ‘all the same size’ in a muffin tray. After visiting Gameal’s I tried some variations of my own. Anything goes here…




Crunchies

Recipe: Chocolate Dipped Almond Crunchies

Ingredients

  • 175g butter
  • 2 cups oats
  • 1 cup coconut
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp golden syrup
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • 1/2 slab of dark chocolate, for dipping
  • 1/2 tsp butter

Instructions

  1. Melt butter and syrup together.
  2. Add bicarbonate and stir until it froths.
  3. Mix dry ingredients into the melted butter and add the almond extract.
  4. Mix well.
  5. Gently press the mixture into a muffin tray.
  6. Bake in the oven at 180ºC for 20-30 minutes.
  7. When the crunchies turn light brown, remove from the oven.
  8. Switch off the oven and leave crunchies in for another 10 minutes to dry out.
  9. Allow to cool before removing from the tin.
  10. Melt the chocolate with 1/2 teaspoon of butter.
  11. Dip the bottom of the crunchies into the chocolate and allow to cool for the chocolate to harden.

Variations and Tips

Endless possibilities.
Use nuts or dried fruits.
Choc chips.
White chocolate.

Preparation time: 15 minute(s)

Cooking time: 20 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 20

 

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