Viewing entries tagged
honey
The ideal combo of oatmeal, pancake and muffin. They’re protein and fibre-full and naturally sweet (no refined sugar), bursting with berries (zero dryness here) and filling. They’re quick to make, and super convenient as they can be made in advance, frozen and defrosted when cravings strike. They also look rather irresistible on any breakfast table, so great for when you have guests.
At the centre of a party you have the brash, garishly dressed harpy in a spandex and lurex flesh-popping, bum-skirting bodycon dress. She’s swishing her long, over-straightened blonde hair in the hope that people, like magpies, will be drawn in by its glinting sheen. But she’s telling the story you’ve heard a hundred times.
The punchlines are obvious and overdone. It’s an opaque boast to show off her intellect and attractiveness. She’s hyperbolising, and the decibels are mounting, in order to suck more people in.
You draw near, but after a few superficial bites, you hit the bone. What appeared to be a sumptuous, resplendent, sticky chicken wing feast was just a scraggly bit of overhyped flesh, and you’re left with a sickly sweet taste, desperate for something more refreshing and with more interest.
That’s when you leave the centre of the room and go over to the quiet person in the corner: modestly dressed, elegant but not overstated, and initially slightly shy. But once you start talking, there’s no stopping - tantalising wit, layers of texture and depth, sweet enough but with refreshing zestiness that intrigues and keeps you going back for more. Guard this salad closely because when others' attention rapidly wanes they’ll be coming over here too. Food envy is not something to be treated lightly, so here’s the recipe:
Recipe
Ingredients (serves 4)
3 tbsp (60g) smooth peanut butter (unsalted preferably)
4 1/2 tsp (45g) honey
4 1/2 tsp sesame oil
4 1/2 tsp soy sauce
3 tbsp lime juice
15g finely grated fresh ginger
1 medium sized garlic clove, crushed
(optional) 1 small Thai red chilli, very finely chopped
230g red cabbage (approx 1 quarter of a cabbage)
1 red pepper
130g cucumber
3 spring onions
100g beansprouts
60g roasted and salted peanuts, crushed + 10g extra for serving
25g coriander, roughly chopped + 5g extra for serving
Method
Amaretti (gluten-free)
These are not those tooth-breaking, individually wrapped little rocks you might impulse buy at coffee shops. They’re soft, aromatic and chewy (and great for the dentally challenged).
Amaretti are also perfect for coeliacs, and can make a wonderful dessert paired with ice cream and a tangy berry sauce (see recipe here).
This recipe should be paired with my one for summer berry lemon curd tarts (see recipe here) which awkwardly leaves you with spare egg whites. Don’t waste them, make these instead –you won’t regret it…
Ingredients (makes 35 small cookies)
360g ground almonds
220g caster sugar
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
½ tsp salt
115g egg white (3 large eggs, approx.)
4 tsp honey
¼ tsp almond extract
100g icing sugar, sieved, for rolling
1 large baking tray lined with baking parchment
Method
1.) Preheat oven to 170˚C. In a large bowl mix together the ground almonds, sugar, lemon zest and salt, and set aside.
2.) Pour the egg whites into the bone dry and non-greasy bowl of an electric mixer. Whisk on high speed until soft and frothy peaks form. Pour the honey into the eggs and continue to whisk on a high speed until the peaks are glossy (see above photo). Sprinkle the almond extract into the eggs and whisk together very briefly at a low speed just to combine.
3.) Very gently fold the whisked egg white mixture into the dry ingredients. They will combine to form a soft and sticky paste.
4.) Using your palms, roll 20g at a time of the mixture into spheres (roughly 2.5cm in diameter), and then roll each generously in a bowl of icing sugar. Repeat and arrange on the tray, leaving at least 3cm between. Use the tines of a fork to slightly flatten the amaretti spheres. Place the tray in the oven to bake for 8-12 minutes until they are beginning to turn golden on the outside but are still soft inside. They will continue to cook as they cool.
Its origins lie as either Central Asian Turkic traditional layered breads, or traditional Roman desserts from Istanbul the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (I favour the latter option). Breakfast, afternoon tea, dinner – these golden perfumed sweets are appropriate at any time of the day in may book and they are way simpler & quicker to make than you might think.
Many recipes call for the pastry to soak for 8 hours or more – I came up with a recipe that can be made and cooked (and eaten) in less than half an hour.
Ingredients
¼ cup caster sugar
¼ cup water
¼ cup orange blossom honey
1 ½ tsp lemon juice
½ tsp rose water
100g pistachios (ground to affine rubble)
100g walnuts (ground to a fine rubble)
Pinch of salt
6 sheets filo pastry
200g melted butter
100g bread crumbs
Syrup
½ cup water
½ cup caster sugar
¼ cup orange blossom honey
1 tsp lemon juice
¾ tsp rose water
tray line with baking parchment
Method
Makes 12
Cantucci (the Tuscan name for biscotti) are typically served with vin santo for dessert. I tend to chuck in whatever nut or dried fruit we have available, and this particular combo worked out exceptionally well: the tanginess and chew from the oranges, the toasty crunch of the hazelnuts, and the plump, wine-soaked sweetness from the figs. I try not to overcook them so as to retain some of that satisfying chewiness.