Ingredients: 

• 700g watermelon, rind removed and discarded, roughly chopped
  600ml pure (thin) cream
  1/2 cup (125ml) milk
  1/2 cup (110g) caster sugar
  1 tbs lemon juice
  3 tsp rosewater, or to taste
  6 titanium-strength gelatine leaves, soaked in cold water for
  5 minutes
  Crushed freeze-dried raspberries (optional), to serve
• Method:

Place watermelon in a food processor and whiz until smooth, then pass through a fine sieve into a bowl. Combine 300ml watermelon juice, cream, milk, sugar, lemon juice and rosewater in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to a simmer. Remove from the heat. Squeeze excess water from gelatine, add to the pan and stir to dissolve. Pour into a 6-cup (1.5L) serving bowl and chill overnight to set.

Meringue Shards

Ingredients: 

• 2 egg whites
  1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar
  1/4 cup (30g) pure icing sugar, sifted
  1 tsp rosewater
  Dried edible rose petals (from gourmet food shops), to scatter, plus extra to serve
• Method:
• 
  For the meringue shards, preheat oven to 100°C. Grease 2 large baking trays and line with baking paper. Place egg whites, sugar and a pinch of salt in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment and whisk until stiff and glossy. Fold in icing sugar and rosewater to combine.
  
  Spread half of the mixture in a thin layer about 4mm thick on one prepared tray. Scatter with rose petals. Repeat with remaining meringue mixture. Bake for 1 hour or until crisp but not coloured. Turn off oven and cool completely inside the oven. Break into shards and store in an airtight container.
  
  Scatter panna cotta with meringue shards, extra dried rose petals and freeze-dried raspberries, if using, to serve.
  
  
• https://www.delicious.com.au/recipes/watermelon-rose-panna-cotta-meringue-recipe/350ovdj1 

Petite Mince Pies

Ingredients:

Filling
200g Mixed Fruit, chopped
2 Tbsp golden syrup
1 Tbsp finely grated lemon rind
1 tsp mixed spice
1/4 cup brandy

Pastry
1/2 cup Almond Meal
2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup caster sugar
200g unsalted butter, chilled and diced
1 egg and 1 Tbsp water, lightly beaten

Icing sugar, to dust

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Place all filling ingredients in a saucepan over a medium heat. Simmer for 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Allow to cool.

To make pastry, place almond meal, flour, sugar into a food processor and process until combined. Add butter and egg mixture and process until a ball forms. Wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Roll out pastry between 2 sheets of baking paper until 3mm thick. Use a round 6cm-diameter pastry cutter to cut 24 circles from pasty. Line base of 24-hole non-stick mini muffin pan (or use two 12-hole pans). Fill cases with fruit mince.

Re-roll remaining pastry and use a 4cm-diameter fluted pastry cutter to cut 24 circles for the lids. Brush underside of lid lightly with water before gently pressing onto pie.  Cut a small cross in middle of each lid.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden.  Allow to cool and dust with icing sugar before serving. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

Happy Christmas!

Blueberry Cobbler

Ingredients:

Fruit:
4 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp lemon zest

Batter:
6 Tbsp butter
1 cup plain flour
1 cup sugar (caster)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
ground cinnamon

Method:

Preheat oven to 165 degrees C. 
Slice butter into pieces and add to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
Place the pan in the oven while it preheats, to allow the butter to melt.
Once melted, remove the pan from the oven.
Add blueberries, sugar and zest to a bowl and stir to combine.
In a separate bowl mix together the batter ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Stir in the milk, just to combine.
Pour blueberries over melted butter in pan. Drizzle batter over the top. Sprinkle with a little bit of cinnamon. 
Bake at 165 degrees C for about 35-40 minutes, or until golden on top.
Serve warm, with a scoop of ice cream.

Enjoy!

Turkish Delight Rocky Road

Ingredients:

Melted butter, for brushing
200g milk chocolate
150g good-quality white chocolate, roughly chopped
250g Turkish delight (rose), roughly chopped
100g glace cherries or 100g raspberries (lollies)

Method:

Brush a 25cm x 75cm x 4cm deep bar tin with melted butter and line with baking paper. Melt milk chocolate in a small pan over a larger pan of simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Add white chocolate, the Turkish delight and cherries (or raspberries). Stir quickly, until just combined and spoon into the prepared tin. Do not press the mixture down. Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator to set. Remove from refrigerator and allow to soften for 10 minutes before cutting the set mixture into slices with a sharp knife.

Chocolate and pistachio biscotti

Ingredients:

125g butter
1 cup caster sugar
1 Tbsp orange zest, finely grated
2 eggs
2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
125g pistachio kernels
100g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
6 slices glace orange, chopped
2 Tbsp orange juice

Method:

Line 2 oven trays with baking paper. Preheat oven to moderate 180 degrees C. Beat the butter, sugar and rind with electric mixer until light and creamy. Add eggs gradually beating between additions until the mixture is smooth.

Sift the flour, cocoa, soda and baking powder, add to butter mixture with pistachios, chocolate and glace orange and stir until just combined.

Divide mixture in half. Spread each half onto a prepared tray and shape into a log, about 25cm long and 10-12cm wide. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until the mixture sounds hollow when tapped, and is cooked through when tested with a skewer. Remove from the oven and cook on a wire rack.

Reduce oven to 160 degrees C. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut each log into 1cm thick slices. Place biscotti, cut side up, on oven trays and bake for about 10 minutes. Turn slices over and cook for a further 5-10 minutes or until dried out. Cool before storing in an airtight container.

Dukkah spice mix and how to cook Dukkah-topped Turkish bread

Ingredients:

100g roasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted
2 Tbsp cumin seeds
1 Tbsp ground cardamom
2 tsp sea salt flakes
2 tsp peppercorns

Method:

Preheat the oven to moderate (180 degrees C). Finely chop hazelnuts, sesame seeds, cumin seeds, cardamom, salt and pepper in a food processor.

To use

Ingredients:

2 loaves of Turkish bread (long rectangular loaves)
1/4 cup olive oil

Method:

Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.  Cut Turkish bread into long thin finger shapes.  Brush well with olive oil and sprinkle with dukkah.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the bread is crisp and dukkah is golden brown.  Serve with either Eggplant and Garlic dip or White Bean dip.

White Bean Dip

 Ingredients:

2 x 400g cannellini beans, drained
1 orange, juiced
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper
olive oil, a little extra

Method:

Place the cannellini beans into the bowl of a food processor. Add the orange juice, garlic, oil, salt and pepper. Process for 30 seconds or until pureed. Place mixture into a serving bowl, drizzle with a little olive oil just before serving. Serve with Dukkah-topped Turkish bread.

Eggplant and Garlic dip

Ingredients:

1 medium eggplant
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp tahini
salt and pepper
olive oil, for drizzling
pinch of paprika

Method:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Put whole eggplant and garlic (wrap in alfoil) on a baking tray and roast in oven for 12-15 minutes or until the skin is blackened and blistered.

Allow eggplant to cool, then gently peel the skin away from the flesh with a small sharp knife. 

Put flesh of eggplant with the garlic into a food processor for 1-2 minutes or until pulpy. Add lemon juice, tahini, salt and pepper.  Process until the mixture is thick and creamy.  Taste and adjust flavour if required.

Place in a serving dish drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with paprika.

PossumK8te's Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp peanut oil
1 and 1/2 cups unsalted peanuts, roasted
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 eschallots, finely chopped
2 red chillies, seeds removed and roughly chopped
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp Thai fish sauce
1 Tbsp of palm or brown sugar
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup water
1 lime, juiced
1 Tbsp peanut butter

Method:

Heat oil in medium heavy-based pan, add peanuts, garlic and eschallots and cook over a low heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until garlic and eschallots are golden brown.  Work peanut mixture and chillies in food processor until finely chopped. Return the peanut mixture to the pan, add the soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar, coconut milk, water and lime juice, stir to combine.  Simmer uncovered, stirring for 8-10 minutes. Stir in the peanut butter.   

Gran's Apple Pie

Ingredients:

180g butter
2/3 cup caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk (reserve egg white for glaze)
1 and 1/2 cups plain flour, sifted
1 and 1/4 cups SR flour, sifted
6 Granny Smith apples
1 lemon, juiced and zest
butter for greasing
6 whole cloves or 1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup caster sugar
2 Tbsp plain flour
Extra Tbsp caster sugar

Method:

Beat butter, sugar and vanilla essence with an electric beater until smooth and creamy and increased in volume. Add the egg and egg yolk and beat until well combined.

Transfer to a large bowl. Add the sifted flours and mix with a wooden spoon until well combined. Place onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 2 even pieces. Knead each gently until mixture comes together. Wrap in baking paper and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

Peel apples, cut into quarters and remove the seeds. Cut each quarter into thin slices.  Place in bowl, cover with cold water and lemon juice. Refrigerate until required.

Preheat oven to moderately hot (about 200 degrees C). Brush a 20cm x 4.5cm deep loose-bottom fluted tin or round cake tin with melted butter.

Roll out one piece of pastry between 2 sheets of baking paper to fit the base and sides of the tin. Carefully ease the pastry into the tin.  Drain apples and dry well in a clean tea towel.  Place apples in a large bowl, add the grated rind, cloves or cinnamon, caster sugar and plain flour.  Mix with your hand to combine.  Pile the apples onto the pastry base.  Apples will sit about 5cm above the rim of the pastry.

Take the remaining pastry and roll out large enough to cover the apples completely. Place pastry on top and gently press the edges together. Using a sharp knife trim away the excess edges of the pastry.  Place the reserved egg white in a small bowl and beat with a fork until foamy.  Brush the top with egg white and sprinkle with sugar.  Cut a cross in the top of the pastry.

Bake for 15 minutes at 200 degrees C then reduce to 180 degrees C for 25-30 minutes. Remove the pie from the oven and stand on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the tin.

Serve a slice of pie with a scoop of ice cream.

NOTE: To remove pie from the tin, stand the tin on an upturned bowl and tap the edge of the tin. The tin should fall away.