MINTED GREEN PEA CHOWDER.

Ingredients......3 tbs of butter/ marg, 1 cup of chopped onion, 1 cup of diced and peeled potato. 4 cups of chicken / vegetable stock, 2 cups of frozen / fresh green peas, 125 ml of cream, 1/4 cup of chopped fresh mint. Melt the butter/ marg in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook until the onion softens. Add the potato and stock , bring to the boil then reduce the heat to medium and simmer partially covered for 10 minutes. Add the peas and increase the heat and cook un til the potato is tender. Remove the pot from the heat and remove 1 cup of the pea mixture with a slotted spoon to a small bowl and set aside. Add the cream and the mint to the saucepan, stir through. Carefully process with a hand blender until smooth. Finally add the reserved pea mixture. To serve, heat and stir on medium until heated through. Season with cracked black pepper. This soup is like serving up summer with the flavour of fresh mint and sweet peas. Enjoy.

CHERRY BLOSSOMS

Ingredients.....2 cups of rice bubbles, 125 gm of glace cherries, chopped,1 cup of desiccated coconut, 1/2 cup of condensed milk, 90 gm of copha. Pink coloured coconut... a cup of desiccated coconut with a few drops of pink food colouring, using the back of a metal teaspoon work the colour through the coconut until the required colour is achieved. Mix together the rice bubbles, chopped cherries, coconut and condensed milk in a large mixing bowl. Melt the copha in a small saucepan over a low heat, allow to cool slightly, then stir this into the rice bubble mixture. Form the mixture into balls about golf ball size and toss in the pink coconut. Refrigerate in an air tight container.

LIVER AND SAUSAGE BROCHETTES (SKEWERS)

Ingredients...500 gm of calf's liver, 500 gm of chipolata / small sausages, 250 gm of button mushrooms, 185 gm of melted butter/ marg, cracked black pepper, 24 bay leaves, 24 cherry tomatoes. Preheat your griller to medium. Cut the liver into cubes. Leave the sausages and mushrooms whole. Pour 3/4 of the melted butter/ marg into a shallow bowl and roll the liver cubes in it, season with cracked black pepper. Thread the liver cubes, sausages, mushrooms, bat leaves and tomatoes on 8cm long skewers in alternating order. Use the remaining melted butter/ marg to brush over the bruchettes. Place the skewers under the griller and cook for 8 minutes on each side.

CHOCOLATE AND BANANA FOOL.

Ingredients.....115 gm of 70% cocoa chocolate, broken into small pieces, 300 ml of ready made fresh custard, 2 bananas. Place the chocolate pieces in a small bowl and meltin the microwave on high for 1- 2 minutes. Pour the custard into a medium bowl and stir through the melted chocolate to make a rippled effect. Peel and slice the bananas and stir them through the chocolate and custard mixture. spoon into 4 glass bowls/ glasses. Top with extra grated or flaked chooclate. Chill for 30 minutes before serving.

RED CENTRE SALAD.

Ingredients......2 tbs of rice bran / canola oil, 300gm of kangaroo fillet, 1 red onion sliced into rings, 3 cups of mixed salad leaves, 1 cup of sno pea sprouts, 1/2 cup of raw beetroot sliced into matchsticks, 50 ml of sour cream, 2 tbs of wholemeal mustard, cracked black pepper to taste. Heat half the oil in a large frying pan and cook the onion rings until tender. Set aside. Heat remaining oil and sear the kangaroo fillet, making sure not to overcook. Cut into thin slices. Place the salad leaves and sno pea sprouts into a serving dish. Soprinkle over the beetroot. place onion rings in the centre of the salad and top with kangaroo slices. In a separate bowl mix together the cream, mustard and pepper to dress the salad. You can replace the kangaroo fillet with beef fillet.

FEEL LIKE A BISCUIT CHALLENGE ?

Ingredients.. Butter/ marg, brown and white sugar, plain flour, vanilla extract, 2 eggs, salt, baking powder, granulated nuts, choc chops. WHAT? There is no mistake, it is my challenge to you... I am sharing with you the feeling for cooking. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Line 2 baking sheets with baking paper. Melt a cup of butter/ marg, it can be warm but not hot. Next stir in just enough white and brown sugar to form a thick paste. Add 2 lightly beaten eggs at room temperature. Now mix in enough flour to make a crumbly consistency. Do not forget to add the baking powder along with a little salt and the vanilla extract. You can use use hands to mix through. With clean hands knead in some granulated nuts and chocolate chips.... (eering on the side of there can never be enough chocolate). Form small balls with the biscuit dough. Flatten the balls a little and then place on the prepared sheets / trays. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, you can remove after 10 minutes if you are after a more fudgy biscuit. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

A MARSHMALLOW ADDICTION.

So well expressed by author Josephine Moon. "Very specifically the pink and white ones, they have this dry coating that cracks and crumbles when you first put them in your mouth. If you can resist from biting into them, they start to melt around the edges and when they are silky and stretchy and you cannot stand it any longer you bite down, the flavour of the raspberry and vanilla comes out. I love them covered in melted chocolate and think they are best frozen, yes frozen they go chewy and are so good." I also love marshmallows and use them in the no cook fruit cake and often eat as many as I use in the recipe.