STRAWBERRIES WITH BALSAMIC VINEGAR

This recipe is really simple combining sweetness, spice and acidity. Be sure to to use only ripe strawberries. strawberries contain a lot of vitamin C and are a good source of fibre and maganese. Ingredients.....2 tbs of castor sugar, 1 tbs of balsamic vinegar, 400gm of fresh, ripe strawberries, hulled and halved, cracked black pepper to serve. Place the vinegar and sugar in a non metallic bowl and stir. Add the strawberries and stir well, set aside and let stand for 60 minutes. Stir again, add extra sugar or vinegar, to your taste. Sprinkle over a little cracked pepper to serve.

ROSEMARY PUMPKIN LOAF.

This loaf incorporates polenta as one of the ingredients. Polenta is a flour like cereal made from ground maize / dried corn and is readily available in your supermarket. Ingredients....500 gm of pumpkin, peeled and cut into 1 cm pieces, 1 tbs of canola / rice bran oil, 1 tbs of dried rosemary, 260 gm of self raising flour, 125 gm of polenta, 40 gm of finely grated Parmesan cheese,2 eggs, lightly beaten, 300gm of sour cream, 55 gm of pepitas. Preheat your oven to 200 deg C. Grease and line a loaf pan with baking paper ( 14 cm x 21 cm ). Place the combined pumpkin, oil and half the rosemary in a large ovenproof dish in a single layer and bake in the preheated oven, for 20 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Cool for 10 minutes and then mash in a large bowl. Reduce oven temperature 160 deg C. Mix together the flour, polenta and the remaining rosemary and then add to the mashed pumkin mixture Whisk eggs and sour cream together and then pour onto the mixture, stirring until just combined. Spread the mixture into the prepared pan and sprinkle over the pepitas, pressing gently into the surface. Cover loosely with a piece of foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Remove the foil and continue to bake for a further 20 minutes. Leave the loaf to stand in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

MIXED BERRY BAKED CHEESECAKE

There are so many different ways to prepare cheesecake along with an assortment of ingredients. The mixed berry cheesecake is very easy to prepare and none the the less delicious. This one is for you Robyn, 'happy birthday'. Ingredients....250 gm of plain chocolate biscuits, 125 gm of butter/ marg , melted, 2 x 250gm tubs of cream cheese, softened, 110 gm of castor sugar, 1 tbs of lemon juice, 2 eggs, lightly beaten, 80 gm of sour cream, 1 tbs of plain flour, 225 gm of frozen mixed berries, thawed. Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Grease and line a 20 cm x 30 cm lamington pan. Process the biscuits until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the butter/ marg and process until just combined. Use your hand to press the biscuit mixture into the base of the prepared pan. Refrigerate intil firm. beat the cream cheese and juice in a large bowl with your electric mixer until smooth. Add the flour, sour cream and beaten eggs, beat until combined. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the biscuit base, sprinkle with the thawed berries. bake the cheesecake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes. Cool to room temperature, refrigerate until firm.

BRIOCHE .

Brioche is a rich, light yeast bread of French origin. It is made with a good amount of egg yolks and butter, usually baked in fluted oven proof moulds, though a traditional muffin pan is quite acceptable. There is no rule as to what shape you bake your brioche. Ingredients......375 gm of plain flour, 5 gm of dried yeast, 1/4 tsp of salt, 55 gm of castor sugar, 180 ml of warm milk, 5 egg yolks, lightly mixed, 125 gm of butter / marg, 1 extra egg yolk, lightly beaten, 1 dsp of castor sugar. Combine flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix together the sugar and milk, until the sugar dissolves. Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture, then stir in the egg yolks. Using a wooden spoon, stir until the mixture stiffens. Now your hands to mix until a firm dough forms. Divide the butter into 10 portions. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and work each piece of bvutter/ marg into the dough, kneading well after each addition and the dough becomes smooth and glossy. Place the dough in lightly oiled large bowl, cover and stand in a warm place for about 2 hours or until the dough doubles in size. Grease 12 fluted ovenproof moulds or 12 hole muffin pan. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Divide the dough into 12 portions, remove about a 1/4 of each portion. Roll both the large and small portions into balls. Place the large portions in the prepared pan / moulds, make a small indent in the top of each portion with your fingertip. Place a small round on each indentation. Brush each brioche with the extra egg yolk and sprinkle with a little castor sugar. Stand uncovered, in a warm place for 1 hour or until the dough doubles in size. Bake the brioche in the preheated oven, uncovered for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

MY BREAD AND VEGETABLE LASAGNE.

Ingredients.....1 x 400gm can of condensed tomato soup, 2 x medium zucchini, 6 medium tomatoes, 2 cups of frozen mixed vegies, 1 cup of chopped onions, 8 slices of bread, 300 ml of Apera/ medium sweet sherry, 2 tbs of minced garlic, 1 dsp of minced ginger, cracked black pepper to taste, Italian herb mix, fennel seeds and chopped fresh / dried basil, grated cheese to scatter over top. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Lightly grease an ovenproof dish. Tear the bread slices into chunks. Use half of the torn bread to line the base of your dish. Slice 3 of the tomatoes and place over the bread chunks and then top with slices of one of the zucchinis. Sprinkle a scatter of fennel seeds and Italian herbs over. Top with a mix of the frozen mixed vegies, chopped onions and a layer of zucchini slices. Place the remainder of the bread slices over top. Finish off with slices of the remaining 3 tomatoes and a sprinkle of fresh / dried basil. In a separate bowl mix together the condensed soup, Apera sherry , the minced ginger and garlic. Pour the tomato soup mixture over the bread lasagne. Scatter over a layer of grated cheese and cracked black pepper to taste. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes and enjoy the warm, welcoming aromas fill your house.

PESTO AND OLIVE SODA BREAD

Ingredients...350 gm of plain flour, 250 gm of wholemeal flour, 1 tsp of bi carb of soda, 1/2 tsp of salt, 3 tbs of pesto ( I used basil pesto, pecorino and cashews), 300 ml of buttermilk, 85 gm of sliced black olives, extra milk for glazing. Preheat your oven to 200 deg c. line a baking sheet with baking paper. Mix together the flours , salt and bi carb of soda in a large bowl. Combine the pesto and buttermilk, stir this into the flour mix with the olives and mix to a soft dough, add a little more liquid if needed. Shape the dough into a 20 cm / 8" round. Place on the prepared baking sheet. flatten slightly and cut a deep cross in the top with a sharp knife. Brush with a little extra milk. bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes or until golden brown. the loaf should sound hollow when tapped on the base. Best served on the day it is baked with soup or cheese and or a salad.

REFRIGERATOR COOKIES.

Make this dough and keep it rolled in a log shape and tightly sealed in a plastic wrap. The dough will keep 3 for days in your refrigerator or 3 months in your freezer. Defrost the frozen dough in your refrigerator before slicing and baking. Ingredients......250 gm of room temp butter/ marg, 160 gm of icing sugar, 375 gm of plain flour. To prepare the cookie dough...beat the butter/ marg and icing sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Transfer to a large bowl. Stir the flour in two batches, into the butter/ marg mixture. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a 25 cm log. Wrap each log in cling film, refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Flavour variations..... Vanilla.. Beat 1 tsp of vanilla extractinto the butter/ marg and sugar mixture. Lemon....beat 1 tsp finely grated lemon rind into the butter/ marg and sugar mixture. Orange... beat 1 tsp of grated orange rindinto the butter / marg and sugar mixture. Chocolate.... Beat in 2 tbs of cocoa into the butter/ marg and sugar mixture along with 1/4 cup of chocolate chips. When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Line 2 or 3 baking trays with baking paper. Cut the refrigerated / thawed logs into 1 cm slices and place on oven trays 2 cm apart. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Place cooked cookies on a wire rack to cool.