CHOCOLATE AVOCADO

THIS IS REALLY GOOD ....

Peel and pit 3 avocados , then chop them and add them to a processor along with 75gm of cacao and 90 ml of clear honey .
Process until smooth .
Divide the chocolate mixture among 2 paper cones , serving plates or meringue nests .
Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and serve immediately or the chocolate mixture will freeze very well .

THANK YOU

Thank you  to everyone who phoned with good wishes , sent flowers  , cards and wrote letters .
To my family .........
Marc , Shaun , Dee , Paul , Nicole , Dale , Amelia , grand children Ella , Max and Jack.
We shared our grief ... You were Ken`s family .
The Marchwicki family ,,Emanuela and Ross , Henryk and Chris , Sonja and Shane
Cheryl Hunter  my neighbour and typist of all my recipes for the Express and got me to the line for  publication .
Cheryl also was the lady who offered to inject Ken with his pain medication when the  hospital system failed him .
Marion and Riccardo .....part of the family .
Ryan `Costa `  Laukens the unofficial 5th son who supported Dale through the 20 week journey and  stayed with the family on  Saturday the 19th  till the end .
Meg , my daughter`s closest friend and part of our family
Laufa and Lindsay Oakley  who bought us food when we never realised how hungry we were .
Mandy Mc Dowell in the midst of preparations  for her daughter`s wedding rarely missed a day of checking in or visiting .
Deanna Sutherland
Shelley and Paul Giles
The members of our broad  dysfunctional family including my sister Jenny Thompson
Vincent family
Jade Treloar
Naomi and Steve
Carol Craddock
Jenny Jones
Sam ...GHD
Gayle Webster
Joan Maxwell
Renae Maxwell and Trudy Maxwell
Ambulatory Care Team
Churchill Neighborhood Centre
Linda Cooper
Heather Beaton
Chrstine Hardy
Janice Street
Marg Heyne
Garry Macfarlane
Anita and Steve Mooney
Leonidas Vlahakis
Marion and Allan
Christine Hennnesey
Kellie Chase
Dot and Ian Chase
GHD Engineering Group
Leslie` Dry Cleaning
Kelsy`s Florist
Tiffany`s florist
Nina Rubinstein
Yallourn / Yallourn North Football Club
Chris and Donna
AGL LoyYang
PSG Loy Yang
Loy Yang Mines Production Group A and B
LoyYang Power Mines  2/12 Road Runners
Carol and Andrew Stimpson
Wayne and Sharlene Butler
Dave and Stella Aubery
Julie and Terry Larkin
Louise Rutledge
Anne Crawford
Julia Leonard
Ron and Sandra Mahoney
Noosha Mahoney
Brandon and Rennae  Mahoney
Deb Durea
Steve Durea
Dainbridge Nicholson Accountants
Jenny and John Webb
Maureen and Don Di Fabrizio
Rose and Rob Bettinelli
Christine Johnson
Sue Whittle
Scott Whittle
Wayne Anderson
Donna and Chris Sullivan
Robyn and Steve Grigoleit
Sandy and Phil Thompson
And to all the well wishes .......I truly thank you ...

In everyday life you wouldn't get on a train without knowing where you were going ..when you live with cancer the destination is never known .

 

WEEK NIGHT CHICKEN ( For Nicole )

Nicole , you can use either  8 chicken thighs / 4 skinless chicken fillets  halved / 4 chicken Maryland portions .
It`s your choice .

Preheat your oven to 160 deg C.

Spray a baking dish with cooking oil
Place chicken portions in the  dish  ( snuggly in a single layer ).
Sprinkle with cracked black pepper .
Set aside .

Using a small saucepan combine 3/4 cup of sour cream with 1/2 cup of tamari ( salt reduced soy sauce ) with 400gm of condensed French onion soup .
Heat this mixture over a very slow heat , just enough to mix well.
Pour over the chicken pieces .

Bake covered in the preheated oven for 50 minutes .
Then continue to bake uncovered for 10 minutes .

This week night chicken is pretty good on weekends too !


 

TRAVEL ITINERY FOR TERM 4 COOKING CLASS

You all have  2 weeks to dust off and update your cooking passports...We are about to take off on a tour of flavours of the world .

WEEK 1
DUBLIN BAY PRAWNS ......
PAVLOVA TRIFLE........

WEEK 2........
KUMARA ,ROSEMARY AND CARAMELISED ONION PIZZA
FENNEL AND RICOTTA PIZZA .....

WEEK 3
MEXICAN LAMB ..or ROO....or BEEF  Fillets  ( Alternative .. filalfel )
PEACH AND AMARETTI CRUMBLE

WEEK 4
SWEET PORK AND EGG STEW ..( alternative ..tofu)
BRANDY SNAPS AND RHUBARB STACKS

WEEK 5
ASPARAGUS AND GOAT  CHEESE RISOTTO
CHOC COCO NUT SLICE

WEEK 6
CROQUEMBOUCHE ..
( YES I`M SERIOUS )

WEEK 7
JAVANESE STEAK  ( alternative tofu or fish )
OREO CAKE

WEEK 8
JEGE ZEITOON
(Chicken with olives )
O`SHAUGHNESSY`S SPECIAL

WEEK 9
HERBED SALMON FILLET
GRASSHOPPER PIE

WEEK 10
MYSTERY  BOX ...
 

BRUSSEL SPROUTS WITH GINGER AND PRAWNS

Marinate 1 kg of green prawns in a mix of 1 cup of Chinese cooking wine , 1 dsp of ground white pepper , 1 dsp of stevia , 1 dsp of sesame oil , 1 dsp of fish sauce , 2 tbs of oyster sauce ...
Make sure all the prawns are coated .
Set aside to marinate .
Meanwhile heat 3 tbs of peanut oil in a large pan add 6 gloves of garlic finely sliced , 2 tbs of minced ginger  , saute till the garlic turns golden .
In a steamer add 10 brussel sprouts ...sliced in half , steam for 5 minutes .
Remove from heat .
Add the prawns and marinade  to the pan with the garlic and ginger .
Cook  making sure that all prawns are golden and cooked through . it is best to keep moving the prawns in the pan .
Slice 5 spring onions and mix through .
Garnish with sprigs of coriander .
Serve on warmed plates over a bed of quinoa .
 

YOGHURT PANNA COTTA

 

 

Panna cotta is a rich dessert made from cream and milk flavoured with vanilla and set with gelatine .

This is my version of panna cotta

Place together in a bowl ....1/3 a cup of castor sugar

500 ml of Greek yoghurt

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1/2 tsp of finely grated orange rind .

Whisk until smooth .

Sprinkle 3 tsp of powdered gelatine over 2 tbs of orange juice  in a cup

Stir the gelatine in to the juice until dissolved  ( I warmed the juice for 10 sec in microwave )

Whisk the gelatine mixture into the yoghurt mixture .

Divide  the mixture evenly among 4 moulds ( 2/3 cup capacity )

Place the moulds onto an oven tray .

Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight .

Use fresh strawberries to garnish and drizzle with a reduced balsamic glaze .

SWEET PORK AND EGG STEW

Boil an egg for each intended serve
Make a paste of 3 tbs of minced garlic
2 tbs of cracked black pepper
The  roots of 1 bunch of coriander , finely chopped .
Mix  thoroughly .
Heat 4 tbs of peanut oil in a heavy based pot on the stove .
Add the garlic , pepper and coriander mix ....fry until fragrant .
Now add 800 gm of pork ribs sliced in half , cook until the pork is browned on all sides .
Add 6 tbs of dark soy sauce
8 tbs of light soy sauce
Continue to move the pork in the pot as this allows the salt to be absorbed .
Slice 2 stalks of celery , 3 carrots , 2 onions , 1/2 head of small cauliflower
Add enough water to just  cover the meat and vegetables .
Finish off by adding 3 tbs of 5 spice powder  and 2 cubes of palm sugar , 3 cinnamon quills , 3 star  anise .
Bring back to the boil ,  reduce to a simmer .
Cover with a lid and place the pot in a hot oven ( 200deg C) for 90 minutes ..
Peel the hard boiled eggs and place in the hot stew and cover with the sauce .
Your kitchen will fill with the flavours of Asia .
The pork will melt in your mouth ..
Serving suggestion ....
Serve  over a bed of rice with sliced cucumber ...
Yummo !

 

This recipe GF

V .. substitute palm sugar with stevia , use tofu in place of pork , replace the eggs with whole radishes .

MANGO ICE CREAM

Slice 2 mangoes and weigh out 400gm (V)
OR
 Drain the contents from 2  x 400gm cans of sliced mangoes  ( mangoes usually come in halves or quarters , so slice 2 slices per serve for garnish , set aside )
You will need a 300ml bottle of thickened cream which needs to be beaten to a fluffy consistency . Set aside .
OR
Substitute dairy cream with soy cream  (V)
Puree the mango with 4 tbs of lemon juice and 170 gm of castor sugar ( stevia can be used in place of castor sugar..( V) in a processor .
Transfer to a bowl , cover and refrigerate .
( the no egg product can be used in place of eggs  (V)
In a small bowl of the electric mixer beat 2 egg yolks till they are pale creamy ...this takes time do not rush the process .
In a larger glass bowl beat the 2 egg whites until stiff .
Now we have all the components ready.
First fold the egg yolk mixture into the cream , now fold in the mango puree  , finally fold in the egg whites .

METHOD  FOR ICE CREAM MACHINE ......
Spoon mixture into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer`s instructions .
Scoop out into serving bowls , decorate with reserved  mango slices and or slices of lemon.

METHOD FOR MAKING ICE CREAM IN SLICE TRAYS .....
Spoon mixture into tray  and place in the freezer .
When semi frozen  , remove the mix from the freezer and beat the mixture to break any large ice crystals .
Place back in the freezer and repeat the process in 15 minutes .
Now place the ice cream mix in a plastic container until solid .
Soften slightly before serving.
Decorate with reserved mango slices and or lemon slices .

 

This is recipe is GF