Have you ever made sushi before?

We hadn't.  We aren't even big eaters of sushi truth be told.  But Monet had been asking for a while if we could make some, and after sampling a few pieces at a friend's place before Christmas, I said "sure"

'Coles' sell kits for around $10 which include the seaweed, rice (which you cook), the vinegar for the rice, the rolling mat, wasabi and soy sauce.  Pretty good value.  I had a few extra chicken tenderloins left over from the previous evening's meal, so I cooked them and sliced them up, a tin of salmon slices, half an avocado, carrot and cucumber batons.  

After cooking and preparing the rice, they were really easy to make.  And fun too.  Monet got into the act.  One thing is to have a sharp knife to slice the rolls.  I could imagine having blunt knives would squash them.

The six sheets of seaweed was right amount for the cooked rice.  And it yielded a lot of sushi.  Too much for the three of us (Lily wasn't tempted).  Thank goodness they were fine to eat the next day too and they were just as good.

I'm a Sucker for Advertising. (Banana Muffin recipe)

I've always said that Advertising works and yesterday those words rang in my ears again as I took Lily to the local news agency to purchase something we had seen on the telly.  The new Dora 'Little Cook Collection'.  How could I resist the $2.99 price tag for the two year old who is Dora mad (just like her big sister once was).   Of course the first issue sucks you in with a low price tag and then the future issues jump up to $7.99, then $12.99!

Miss Lily insisted we make the muffin recipe inside the magazine straight after walking back in the front door.  So, being the obliging mother I can be at times, we did.  A very simple Banana Muffin recipe with easy to follow instructions and the result?  Delicious.

Here's the recipe - it only makes 4, but I didn't mind that as I know that none would go to waste and they were very simple, easy and took no time to make....

You need...
1 large banana
40g soft brown sugar
2 tablespoons rapeseed oil (I used olive oil!)
1 small egg
65ml milk
100g self-raising flour

1.  Peel and mash the banana in a bowl using the back of a fork.  Mix in the sugar and the oil.

2.  Crack the egg into the bowl.  Pour in the milk and stir.

3.  Sieve the flour into the mixing bowl.

4.  Gently stir in the flour into the rest of the ingredients.

5.  Spoon the mixture into four muffin cases.  Fill each case almost up to the top.

6.  Place in a 190 degree C oven for 15-20 minutes.  Take them out and leave to cool.

As Dora would say, "Delicioso!"

Cheesy Feet

Nigella made hers (& therefore named hers) using Feet cutters.  I used a Crocodile cutter and a Kangaroo one I have.  They are so easy to make and very tasty indeed.  (Monet loves them!)  I will be making batches more in times to come...

*Taken from Nigella Lawson's 'Feast', pg 253, published 2004*

Ingredients

100gm Cheddar cheese, grated

25gm soft butter

50gm plain flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

Method

Preheat the oven to gas mark 6/200C.

Put all of the ingredients into a food processor and blitz until the dough comes together.  Just be patient; it will happen, I promise you.  Form into a fat disc, wrap in clingfilm and let it rest in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Roll out the dough on a floury surface to roughly 3mm in thickness, and cut out your feet with your cutters.  You can keep re-rolling this dough and cutting out feet until it is all used up.

Put them on to a lined baking tray sheet and cook in the oven for 10-12 minutes (depending on size).  The biscuits will continue to crisp up as they cool on a rack, so take them out when they're still a little soft in the middle.

Coconut Ice

I had forgotten all about Coconut Ice, until I came across this simple recipe....yummy.... And the littlest member of this household loved it. Of course.

*Taken from Murdoch Books publication 'Australian Family Favourites'*

Ingredients

250g (2 cups) icing (confectioners') sugar

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

400g tinned condensed milk

315g (3 1/2 cups) desiccated coconut

2-3 drops pink food colouring

Method

Grease a 20cm square cake tin and lane the base with baking paper.

Sift the icing sugar and cream of tartar into a bowl. Make a well and add the condensed milk. Using a wooden spoon, stir in half the coconut, then the remaining coconut. Mix well with your hands. Divide in half and tint one half pink. Using your hand, knead the colour through evenly.

Press the pink mixture over the base of the tin, cover with the white mixture and press down firmly. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until firm. Remove from the tin, remove the paper and cut into pieces.

Makes aprrox. 30 pieces

Orange Sweet Potato and Ditalini Patties

These were really tasty, besides the fact that for the life of me, I could not find any ditalini pasta anywhere. Instead I used tiny little star shaped pasta, I don't think there is any need to actually use the pasta specified, but what ever pasta you use, make sure it is tiny. I served mine on a bed of mixed lettuce leaves and a big dollop of creamy mayonnaise.

*Taken from 'Fast Food', a Murdoch publication Book, 2002*

Ingredients

2 orange sweet potatoes (about 800g in total)

1/2 cup (90g) ditalini

30g toasted pine nuts

2 cloves garlic, crushed

4 tbs finely chopped fresh basil

1/2 cup (50g) freshly grated Parmesan

1/3 cup (35g) dry breadcrumbs

plain flour, for dusting

olive oil, for shallow-frying

Method

Preheat the oven to very hot 250C. Pierce the whole sweet potatoes several times with a fork, then place in a roasting tin and roast for 1 hour, or until soft. Remove and allow to cool. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of rapidly boiling salted water until al dente. Drain and rinse under running water.

Peel the sweet potato and mash the flesh with a potato masher or fork, then add the pine nuts, garlic, basil, Parmesan, breadcrumbs and the pasta and combine. Season.

Shape the mixture into eight even patties (about 1.5cm thick) with floured hands, then lightly dust the patties with flour. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the patties in batches over medium heat for 2 minutes each side, or until golden and heated through. Drain on crumpled paper towels, sprinkle with salt and serve immediately. Great with a fresh green salad.

Serves 4

Banana Bread

This recipe was so (so) simple, that I am not lying to you when I say that Monet practically made it by herself! Sure I measured out the ingredients but she used the sifter, mixed and help add the wet ingredients. The only thing she really didn't do was put it in the oven and she most definitely liked the bowl!! I will no doubt, be making this recipe again. It was easy and the result was delicious...

*Taken from the Australian website 'Taste'*

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups Self Raising Flour

1/4 cup plain flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2/3 cup firmly packed, brown sugar

1/2 cup skim milk

2 eggs, lightly whisked

50g butter, melted, cooled

2 bananas, mashed

Method

Heat oven to 180C. Grease a loaf tin with melted butter then line with baking paper, draping the paper over the sides.

Sift together the SR flour, plain flour and cinnamon into a large bowl. Mix in brown sugar. In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, eggs, butter and bananas. Combine this with the flour and sugar mixture. Mix until well combined.

Pour into prepared tin and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.

Enjoy!

The Best Sweet Muffins

I took this recipe from the Australian Dairy website. And how lovely they are... Mmmm... As I used a mini muffin pan, I ended up making about 60 from this one mixture. Muffins always freeze well so most of them are tucked away in the freezer for now. I actually divided the mixture up into two bowls. In one I added frozen raspberries and choc chips. In the other I added one mashed ripe banana and chopped up jersey caramels. Deeeellllliccciiousssss....

Ingredients
3 cups Self Raising Flour
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups milk
170g butter, melted

Raspberry and Choc Chip Variety
1/2 cup raspberries
1/2 cup choc chips (white or milk)

Banana and Carmel Variety
1 cup mashed ripe banana
1/2 cup chopped Jersey Caramels

Apple and Cinnamon
1 tsp cinnamon
1 apple, peeled and chopped

Method
Sift the flour into a bowl and stir in the caster sugar. Whisk together the eggs, milk and melted butter. Pour this into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Do not over mix. Add any variants.

Spoon mixture into buttered muffin pans.

Bake for 200C for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

Allow to cool.

Makes 12 Muffins or 48 mini Muffins or 6 Texas Muffins

Choc, Apricot & Almond Slice

Having bought the oats to make the previous recipe of Anzac Biscuits, I looked around for other 'oat' recipes. This one comes from the pages of 'Woman's Day' - top, quality magazine (tongue in cheek there). Not the best slice I've ever made, but still nice all the same.

Ingredients

125g butter, chopped

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tbs golden syrup

2 cups rolled oats

100g milk chocolate, finely chopped (or use choc chips)

1/2 cup SR flour

1/2 cup chopped dried apricots

1/3 cup slivered almonds

Method

Preheat oven to moderately slow, 160C. Lightly grease and line an 18 x 28cm slice pan.

Combine butter, sugar and golden syrup in a medium pan. Stir over low heat for 4-5 minutes, until sugar dissolves.

Transfer butter mixture to a large bowl. Add oats, chocolate, flour, apricots and almonds. Mix well.

Press mixture firmly into prepared pan. Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until golden.

Once slice is cold, cut into serving size pieces and store in an airtight container.

Makes about 20

Anzac Biscuits

These biscuits were made by the Australian mothers/sisters/wives of the 'diggers' of WW1, and sent over to them. Hence the name, Anzac Biscuits. They keep really well and are very delicious. For a cruncher biscuit, bake for a few minutes longer...

Ingredients

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup plain flour, sifted

1 cup caster sugar

1 cup desiccated coconut

125 g butter, chopped

1 tbs golden syrup

2 tbs boiling water

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Method

Preheat oven to moderately slow, 160C. Lightly grease (or line) 4 baking trays.

In a medium bowl, combine rolled oats, flour, sugar and coconut.

Combine the butter and golden syrup in a small pan. Stir over low heat for 2-3 minutes, until melted.

Combine water and soda in a small jug. Stir into warm butter mixture. Pour mixture into dry ingredients. Mix well.

Roll rounded teaspoons of mixture into balls. Arrange on prepared trays, leaving a space between each to allow for spreading. Press lightly to flatten.

Bake for around 15 minutes or until golden. Stand 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

makes approx. 36

Basic Butter Cake

My sister will laugh when she sees this recipe posted... We used to make this cake allllll the time when we were old enough to be let loose in our mother's kitchen, usually after our weekly Saturday game of Netball. I have great memories of the colourful cakes we used to make and she reminded me of this a few weeks ago... I decided to make a rainbow cake with Monet's help late this morning, though Monet got all grumpy when I divided the mixture up and went loose with the food colouring... She didn't seem grumpy when I dished her up a slice though, later on!

To make this Basic Butter Cake into the 'rainbow', after all ingredients are mixed, simply divide into the required number of bowls and go for it with the food colouring. When all of the mixture is coloured, simply place heaped spoonfuls into the prepared pan...

*Taken from the Australian Women's Weekly 'Cake & Slices Cookbook'*

Ingredients

125g butter

1 tsp vanilla essence

3/4 cup caster sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups self-raising flour

1/2 cup milk

Method

Preheat oven to 180C.

Cream butter, essence and sugar in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy; beat in eggs one at a time, beat until combined. Stir in half the sifted flour and half the milk, then stir in remaining flour and milk. Pour mixture into prepared pan.

Bake for 40 minutes or until cooked through.

Leave in pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto wire to cool. Ice as desired. (I iced mine using a thick butter icing).

Keeping time: 2 days

Tuna Fritters with Whipped Fetta

These would have to be the tastiest tuna fritters I have ever tasted. Repeat. Ever tasted. They were delicious and if Lyndon liked them, well, that is really saying something. I think it is the combination of Tabasco sauce and lemon zest which really 'lift' them. Very simple to make with cheap ingredients. Try them.

Since I don't own a food processor, I used my Bamix with the 'mincer' attachment. I also find it better to place the uncooked fritters in the fridge to 'set' for at least 20 minutes before frying.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

100 g fetta

100 g ricotta

50 ml pouring cream

185 g canned tuna in springwater, drained

2 tsp lemon zest

2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, chopped

3 splashes Tabasco sauce

2 eggs

250 g potatoes, cooked and mashed

3 spring onions, sliced

3 cups (210 g) fresh breadcrumbs

1/2 cup (75 g) plain flour

olive oil, for frying

lemon wedges, to serve

watercress sprigs, to serve (optional)

Method

To make the whipped fetta, place fetta, ricotta and cream in a food processor with 3-4 tbs water and blend until smooth and light.

To make the fritters, place the tuna in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add lemon zest, parsley, Tabasco sauce and 1 egg and process. Add potatoes and process until combined. Transfer to a large bowl and mix in spring onions and 3 tbs of the breadcrumbs. Use your hands to shape mixture into small fritters about 6cm in diameter.

Beat remaining egg. Dip fritters in flour to coat. Dip into beaten egg, then in remaining breadcrumbs. Heat olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan and fry fritters for 2 minutes on each side or until cooked, then drain on kitchen paper. Serve with whipped fetta, lemon wedges and watercress if desired.

Chocolate Mint Carnival Bars

It is another wet and rainy day here in Cairns so Monet decided I should bake something. I thought I would give this recipe a try, considering I actually had everything in my pantry.. In the book it states that they are like a biscuit but I think they are very much like a Brownie. Delicious, especially when still a little warm...

*Taken from Philippa Vanstone's '500 Cookies'*

Ingredients
75g (3 oz) unsalted butter, softened
100g (3 1/2 oz) light brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp peppermint essence
190 g (6 1/2 oz) plain flour
2 tbs dutch process cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
100g (3 1/2 oz) choc chips (I used white)

Method
Pre-heat oven to 175C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Line a 23cm square tin.

Beat the butter and sugar, then add the egg and peppermint essence. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and beat into mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Press the mixture into the tin and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Cool in the tin and then cut into squares.

Store in an airtight container for five to seven days.

Yo-Yo Biscuits

As a child I loved Yo-Yo biscuits. They were quick and easy to make and remind me of cold, rainy Saturday afternoons. Very easy to make and guaranteed you won't stop at eating just one. A sure-fired winner!

Ingredients
3/4 cup Self Raising flour
1/3 cup Custard Powder
1/3 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup softened butter

Method
Preheat oven to 180C. Line or grease a baking tray.

Cream butter and icing sugar and gradually add sifted flour and icing sugar, mixing to a stiff dough using wooden spoon. Roll into small balls. Press with a fork dipped in flour for 10-15 minutes until just golden. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden. (I overcooked these ones a little)

Makes approx. 20

These can be served individually like this or can be paired together with a quick mixture of icing sugar and butter creamed together...

Butter Cut-Out Biscuits

Monet loves to help me bake, so I decided to make up a batch of these buttery cookies. Quick and easy to make and the dough freezes wonderfully. Half of this mixture is now wrapped in clingfilm and freezing away until a rainy day... Monet got a collection of cookie cutters from us for Christmas, so making this was an excuse for Monet to tryout her new cutters. Lots of fun, well it would have been a lot of fun if Monet didn't 'crack it' halfway through and walked away...

*Taken from Nigella Lawson's 'How To Be A Domestic Goddess'*

Ingredients
175g soft unsalted butter
200g caster sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
400g plain flour plus more if needed
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
300g icing sugar sieved and food colouring

Method
Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4.

Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and moving towards moussiness, then beat in the eggs and vanilla. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter eggs and mix gently but surely. If you think the finished mixture is too sticky to be rolled out, (chances are it will be), add more flour, but do so sparingly as too much will make the dough tough.

Halve the dough, form into fat discs, wrap each half in clingfilm and rest in the fridge for at least an hour.

Sprinkle a suitable surface with flour, place a disc of dough on it (not taking out the other half until you are finished with the first) and sprinkle a little more flour on top of that. Roll it out to a thickness of about 1/2 cm. Cut into shapes, dipping the cutter into flour as you go, and place the biscuits a little apart on lined baking trays.

Bake for 8-12 minutes, until they are lightly golden around the edges. Cool on rack.

To make the icing, put a couple of tablespoons of just-not-boiling water into a large bowl, add the sieved sugar and mix together, adding more water as you need to form a thick paste. Colour as desired and decorate biscuits...

(I divided the icing mixture into little zip-closing plastic bags, coloured the icing, closed bags up, snipped a little corner off the bag and used like a piping bag. Very little mess this way.)

Makes 50-60

Pizza Dough

I'm always on the lookout for a 'good', authentic, tasty, pizza dough recipe. I think I may have found it... Karen Martini is the actual owner/chef of St. Kilda's (in Melbourne), Mr. Wolf, re known for its pizzas.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
400g unbleached plain flour

100g fine semolina

2 tsp table salt

1 1/2 cups (375ml) warm water

3 tbs olive oil

2 tsp (7g) dried yeast

Method

Combine flour, semolina and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer with dough hook attached. Mix water, oil and yeast in a small bowl and stir to dissolve yeast. Pour water mixture into flour and mix at low speed until combined. Mix on medium (to high) speed for 10 minutes, until dough is smooth and elastic, but still quite wet and sticky.

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic film and rest in a warm place for about 30 minutes or until dough has doubled in size.

The dough can be used at once or stored, covered, in the fridge overnight.

Makes 4 pizza bases.

To use, preheat oven to 250 Degrees Celsius. Lightly brush a large pizza tray with oil and dust with semolina. Roll pizza dough out on a lightly floured surface and transfer to the pizza tray. Top. Bake for 10-15 minutes....

Donkey Drops

We call this recipe 'Donkey Drops' but you might know them under another name. They are very easy to make and eat! Monet thinks they are wonderful...

Ingredients

250g plain sweet biscuits, crushed. (I used a 200g pack 'Marie' biscuits)

1 cup desiccated coconut

1 1/2 tbs cocoa powder

1 tin condensed milk (390-400g can)

Desiccatted coconut, extra

Method

Mix the biscuit crumbs, coconut and cocoa together, then stir in condensed milk. Mix. Roll into walnut-sized balls, roll in coconut and refrigerate. Eat and enjoy!

Makes quite a lot - just depends on how much you eat when you make them!!

Choc Oatmeal Cookies

I got this recipe from my sis-in-law, Sarah (again) and it is a big hit in this household. Not that Lyndon eats biscuits but Monet and I surely can. It is a very easy recipe and Monet likes to get involved with this one. The mixture, before it is cooked, is scrumptious so maybe keep the kids away before baking!!

*Taken from a Bill Granger Cookbook*

Ingredients

150g unsalted butter, softened

230g (1 cup) soft brown sugar

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

125g (1 cup) plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

Pinch of salt

175g (1 cup) chocolate chips

235g (2 1/3cup) rolled oats

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Cream butter and sugar in a bowl until fluffy and smooth. Add the egg and vanilla until smooth. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into bowl and mix lightly. Add oats and choc chips and stir to combine.

Roll tbs of mixture into balls and place on baking paper lined trays. Flatten balls with a fork dipped in flour. Bake the cookies for 10-15 mins until pale golden in colour. remove from oven and let cool on trays for 5 minutes.

Makes about 30-36.

Play Dough (uncooked)

Okay, not exactly a food as such, but you still have to make it like you would a biscuit recipe. I find this recipe easy and the play dough turns out wonderful, just like the expensive shop one! Yippee... Good recipe to get the little ones involved...

Ingredients

1 cup plain flour

1/4 cup salt

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 cup water, combined with food colouring (colour of your choise)

Method

Place the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Add the oil and stir. Gradually add the coloured water into the dry ingredients.

Turn the dough out and knead until soft. Store in an airtight container.