Autumn Skirlie

This is an adaptation of an old Scottish dish. We've eaten it a lot lately in the cooler evenings, rushing into the house after 6pm five nights a week and juggling homework, vision therapy, showers and sibling rivalry... somewhere there I try to feed us more than vegemite toast and this fits the bill pretty well.

The boys love it, and reheated with scrambled eggs in front of the fire the next morning, it's pretty close to wonderful.

~Autumn Skirlie~
(serves 3 as a main with a bit leftover)

4 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped (or spring onions, leeks etc)
2 cups rolled oats (not quick oats)
1.5 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
about 1/3 cup boiling water?
1 cup tinned red salmon, drained and flaked
1 large lemon, zested and juiced (2 if they're small)
2 large handfuls spinach, washed and roughly shredded
(or any other greens - kale, par-cooked broccoli, red lettuce are all good)
freshly ground black pepper


Heat the oil on low in a non-stick frying pan. Add the onion and cook until transparent.

Add the thyme leaves and oats and stir well. Cook on a lowish heat, tossing every few minutes, until the oats are beginning to colour -  about 5-10 minutes.

Add the lemon zest to the boiling water and pour over, stirring well and cook a couple more minutes - the oats will soften slightly but keep their shape. Add more boiling water if needed.

Stir in the salmon, lemon juice and black pepper, then pile the spinach on top and put the lid on to steam the spinach. When the spinach has cooked down, stir it through and serve - preferrably in front of a fire!

Lemon Yoghurt Cake with Passionfruit syrup

Adapted from a Donna Hay recipe. We made this recently to use the lemon and passionfruit glut, and it was delicious - beautiful texture. Would be good for afternoon tea or dessert.

~Lemon Yoghurt Cake with Passionfruit Syrup~

125g butter at room temperature (cool climate!)
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 cup thick plain yoghurt
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon rind
2 1/2 cups SR flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

syrup:
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup water
2/3 cup passionfruit pulp

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Sift flour and baking powder together. Stir juice, rind and yoghurt together.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and beat well. Add a little flour at the end to stop the mix curdling.

In a large bowl fold the dry and wet ingredients through the creamed butter mixture and combine so it is mixed well. Spoon into a 23cm round cake tin or large ring tin (I used a large bundt tin) and bake for 40 minutes or until skewer is clean. I covered it loosely with alfoil for the first 20 minutes, and then it needed only a further 8 minutes uncovered to finish.

Leave the cake in the tin for 5 min to cool, then turn out on a rack and cover loosely with a cloth. I left the bundt tin upended over the top of the cake, which allowed space to cool but kept it warm.

For the syrup: combine ingredients in a saucepan and heat on low heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Simmer 4-5 minutes until the syrup thickens.

Pour half the hot syrup over the cake and serve with cream or icecream and the remaining syrup.

D rated it 95 out of 100 and T gave it a 9 out of 10.

Frangipane Tart

This began with an apple flan from the Woman's Weekly a long time ago. I've substituted pear, nectarine, peach and plums, and all are good. Figs look beautiful but somehow the taste doesn't work. I think quince could look spectacular, must remember to try it when they are in season again.

~Frangipane Tart~
350g frozen puff pastry
1.5kg Golden Delicious apples or similar amount of fruit to substitute
100g ground almonds or hazelnuts
7 tablespoons sugar
1 lemon, zested and juiced
375ml cream
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla paste
2 tablespoons brandy
3-4 tablespoons flour

Butter a 12" flan dish (in future I'll try a rectangular dish to cut squares) and line with pastry.

Peel and core apples and cut into 1cm thick slices, or halve and stone plums/nectarines etc. Mix fruit with lemon juice, zest, and 2 tab sugar.

Sprinkle the pastry base with almond meal and arrange fruit evenly on top. Bake at 200 degrees C for 15-20 minutes.

Whisk cream, eggs, vanilla, brandy, 5 tab sugar and flour together until smooth - I use a stab mixer. Pour over the fruit and cook 15-20 minutes until the centre isn't wobbly and the bumps are starting to colour.

Serve warm or cool, with cream.

Lemon Meringue Slice

Jules adapted this from a Woman's Weekly recipe last year and we have passed it on to many people since. The topping is crunchy-sweet, the filling smooth and tart and the base very short - most probably good over vanilla icecream or with clotted cream, but we have it for decadent smokos. It doesn't last long around here!


~Lemon Meringue Slice~
125g butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 eggs, separated
1 cup self raising flour, sifted
1/2 to 3/4 cup lemon butter
1/2 cup caster sugar extra
1 cup desiccated coconut

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees and line an 18x28cm slice tin with baking paper.

Cream the butter and 1/2 cup sugar, then add the lemon zest and egg yolks and beat well.

Mix in the flour; it will be a very soft mixture. Spread over the base of the tin with floured fingers and bake for 10 minutes until golden.

Remove the base from the oven and allow to cool while you make the meringue. Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks, then add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar gradually until it is all dissolved and you can't feel any granules in the mix. Fold in the coconut gently.

Flatten the base with your hands if it is too puffy, then spread with lemon butter to cover. Spread the meringue over the top, starting at the edges and working inwards.

Turn the oven down to 150 degrees and bake for 20 minutes until meringue has golden peaks. Check half way through and adjust the temperature down if needed - we covered it with alfoil for the first 10 minutes to stop it burning in my thermostat-challenged oven.

Cool in the tin, then lift out using the baking paper. Cut into small squares on a board when it is completely cooled.

Chilli Apple Jelly

This is only a mild heat, so add more chilli if you wish. I like it with avacado on thick toast, or with cheese. It would make a good glaze on roast meat or veg too.


~Chilli Apple Jelly~

3.2kg cooking apples
2 cups lemon juice, plus pips
lemon rind in strips
2.5L cold water
about 2.8 kg sugar
5 teaspoons chilli flakes

Roughly cut up the apples - skin, core and all. Add water, lemon juice, rind and pips. Bring to the boil in a heavy based pan, reduce the heat and simmer until the fruit is pulpy.

Pour the fruit and liquid into a "bag" made from tying up the corners of a clean cheesecloth or old linen teatowel, and hang to drain over a bowl until it stops dripping, about 3-4 hours or overnight. Do not squeeze the bag to force juice out, or the jelly will be cloudy.

Measure the juice and allow 250g sugar and 1/2 tsp of chilli flakes for every 250ml of juice. Place the juice, sugar and chilli flakes in a clean heavy based pan. Bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Reduce the heat to a slow boil and skim any scum off the surface - a lot of the chilli flakes will come out with the scum but the flavour will remain and there will still be enough to look pretty. Allow to boil for 15-20 minutes or until it jells on a cold plate, skimming regularly. If you let it boil too long it will begin to caramelise and you'll have toffee flavoured chilli apple jelly.

Remove the pan from the heat and leave to settle for a few minutes. Bottle hot in sterilised jars and store in the dark. Refrigerate after opening.

Mather Street Tuna Pasta

The boys helped me create this recipe when we lived at Mather Street. T was only 4 but he chose what veges to add, and the result was delish.


~Mather Street Tuna Pasta~
6 single handfuls dry spiral pasta (can substitute cous cous)
4 large broccoli florets, cut small
1/2 large sweet potato, cubed into 1cm squares (sustitute pumpkin/zucchini/squash)
1 large tin tuna in oil
2 lemons, juiced and zested
2 finely sliced scallions
handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
black pepper
(parmesan to serve)

Cook pasta and drain cooking water into large serving bowl to warm the bowl.

Steam the veges, drain oil from tuna, then combine all ingredients in the (empty) serving bowl and toss well.

Serve with plenty of grated parmesan.

Lemon Braised Artichoke Hearts

Adapted from a Michael Chiarello recipe - this was delicious; thick and creamy the next day, lemon balancing the richness well. Next time I'd add more garlic :)


~Lemon-Braised Artichoke Hearts~
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
fine zest of 2 lemons
4 teaspoons stripped or finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
3 large garlic cloves
3 teaspoons kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
8 medium to large artichokes

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C.

Crush garlic with salt in a mortar and pestle. Combine with olive oil, lemon juice, zest, thyme, and pepper in a saucepan and set aside.

Thia is a good description with pics of preparing artichokes.

Or you can follow these directions :
Snap outer leaves from an artichoke. Cut off the top half, and then use a paring knife to trim down to the heart, rubbing cut surfaces with the leftover juiced lemon halves as you work, to avoid discoloration. Cut the heart in half and scrape out the choke with a spoon (I used a circa 1960s apple corer and it was brilliant). Cut each piece in half again.

As each artichoke heart quarter is completed, immediately turn it in the marinade to coat completely. When all the artichokes are trimmed, put the pan over high heat and bring to a boil. Pour the artichokes and marinade into a baking dish, cover with foil, and cook until the artichokes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool in the cooking liquid. Store in the fridge when cooled.

Michael Chiarello served this over fettucine

We tried it warm as a side to baked potatoes and roast topside, but after having it the next day on thick toast for breakfast, the flavour and texture was so much better. It would be delicious on pizza, in risotto, with fish, or on crusty bread.

20/11/08 editing to add that this was utterly divine - sorry if I've already used that phrase - on pizza, with sauteed leeks and spinach and a little cheese.

Really good stuff :)

Classic Mint Jelly

This is a late winter-early spring preserve for us; Granny Smith apples grown in the next shire are still plentiful and cheap, our friends and neighbours are swapping lemons for broccoli, and we have lots of fresh mint.

The recipe is from this book which I bought at a clearance sale a while ago. It's a clearly written book, with a good collection of basic preserves and detailed advice about how to troubleshoot.

~Classic Mint Jelly~
1.6kg green apples
5 cups water
1 cup chopped fresh mint
1 cup lemon juice
about 1kg sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh mint, extra

Cut the apples into chunks (do not remove skin or seeds) and place in a heavy based stock pan with the mint, lemon juice (I left pulp and seeds in this), and water. Slowly bring to the boil, then simmer until the apple is very soft. Stir to squash lumps. When it is mushy, allow to cool a little.

To make a "jelly bag", place a large clean piece of muslin or thin cotton (I used old sheeting) in a bowl and pour boiling water over it. Line a large seive with the wet fabric and place over another large bowl. Gently pour in the apple mixture and allow it to drain into the bowl.

When the pulp has drained most of the liquid, tie the corners of the fabric together, poke a long wooden spoon under the tied corners, and lift the "bag" out of the seive. Place a bowl inside a clean bucket and position the spoon so that it is across the top of the bucket - allowing the bag to hang freely from the spoon and drip into the bowl below.

Or if you own a jelly bag, simply use this to drain the liquid from the pulp.
Allow the bag to drain overnight and do not squeeze or force liquid out. If you do, the jelly will be cloudy. Our liquid looked cloudy, but it cleared on boiling. Store the drained liquid in the fridge overnight.

When you are ready to boil up, place 2 small plates in the freezer. Sterilise your jam jars. I wash them in hot soapy water then place in a 110 C oven for around 20 min. I pour boiling water over the clean lids just before sealing.

Discard the pulp from the bag. Measure the final amount of liquid. We had 1.75L. Pour the liquid into a large heavy based pan, and add 1 cup sugar to every cup of liquid. Heat gently, stirring to dissolve sugar. Bring to the boil and boil steadily for around 15 minutes, stirring often and skimming any scum from the surface.

Test for the setting point by pouring a spoonful onto one of the chilled plates. A skin will form on the surface - setting point is reached when the jelly wrinkles as you push your finger through it. When it is setting as you want, remove from heat and stir through the extra mint. Allow it to continue cooling a little and keep stirring every few minutes - when the mint leaves stay suspended in the jelly, instead of floating to the top, it is ready to pour into jars.

Pour boiling water over any of the equipment you use to transfer the jelly from the saucepan to the sterilised jars. Fill the jars to leave 1/2cm space at the top. Seal the jars immediately and turn upside down for 2 minutes. Invert and allow to cool.

Store in a cool dry place for 6-12 months. Refridgerate after opening.