PUMPKIN AND DATE BREAD.

Ingredients...1 cup of cooked, mashed pumpkin, 1/4 of a cup of soft brown sugar, 2 cups of self raising flour, 1 cup of pitted, dried dates, chopped, 1 egg, lightly beaten, 1/2 cup of milk. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Lightly grease a loaf pan with cooking oil spray and a sprinkle of polenta. Place the pumpkin in a large bowl. Add the sugar, flour, dates, milk and lightly beaten egg. Mix well to combine using a wooden spoon. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Delicious!

HONEY CHICKEN

Ingredients.....1.8 kg chicken, 2 tbs of honey, 1 tbs of wholegrain mustard. Stuffing ingredients... 3/4 of a cup of breadcrumbs, 1 tsp of ground cardamon, 1/4 of a cup of grated lemon rind, 1/4 of a cup granulated nuts, 1 egg, lightly beaten, 2 tbs of melted butter/ marg, juice of 1 lemon Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Place a wire cooling rack on top of a roasting pan and spray lightly with cooking spray. First make the stuffing, mix all the stiffing ingredients together until well combined. Place the stuffing mixture inside the chicken cavity, pressing down firmly. Now mix together the honey and mustard and brush over the chicken. Bake the chicken in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Cover with a sheet of baking paper if browning too quickly and return to the oven and continue cooking for 45 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with roasted vegetables and or a tossed salad.

BAKED PEAR AND CUSTARD SLICE

Ingredients...100 gm butter / marg, 2/3 rds of a cup of castor sugar, lightly beaten, 1 cup of fresh , firm pears, chopped, 1 and 1/2 cups of self raising flour, 1/2 cup of milk, 1 cup vanilla custard ( store bought prepared custard is fine to use ). Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Lightly grease and line a 24 cm x 24 cm square pan with baking paper. Place the butter / marg and sugar in a bowl and beat with your electric mixer until light and creamy. Add the egg with 3 tbs of the flour and beat well. Stir in the chopped pear pieces, the using a wooden spoon fold in the the remaining flour and milk alternatively. Spread half the mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan. Top with the custard then place spoonfuls of the remaining pear mixture over the custard to almost cover. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes or until golden in colour. Cool before carefully removing to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

SALMON FILLETS WITH APRICOT SAUCE.

Ingredients.....1 cup of water, 3/4 of a cup of apricots, chopped / tinned apricots, chopped and crained, 1 onion, chopped, juice of 2 lemons, 2 tbs of butter / marg, 1 tbs of rice bran / canola oil, 4 salmon fillets, skin on, cracked black pepper to taste, baby spinach and fried potato slices to serve. Place the water, apricots and onion in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for a further 3 minutes. Puree until smooth then stir through the lemon juice and butter / marg. Heat the oil in a non stick frying pan. When hot add the salmon fillets skin side down, season with pepper and cook over a medium high heat for 2 minutes, turn and continue to cook for 3 minutes or until cooked to your preference. Serve on a bed of baby spinach with the apricot sauce and fried potatoes.

ICE CREAM PUDDING.

Ingredients....1 litre of vanilla ice crea, softened. 1 cup of fresh mango, finely chopped, 1/4 cup of chocolate syrup, 1/2 cup of granulated nuts. Chocolate fudge sauce....Ingredients.... 100gm of 70% cocoa chocolate, 1/2 cup of crea. Place the ice cream in a large mixing bowl. Add the chopped mango, syrup, granulated nuts and mix well with a wooden spoon. Spoon the combined mixture into a 6 cup capacity bowl lined with plastic wrap. Place in the freezer overnight. To preprae the fudge sauce: place the chocolate in a small saucepan and cook over a low heat until melted. Gradually add the cream and stir to combine. Leave to cool for 10 minutes before serving. Serve the ice cream pudding cut into wedges with a drizzle of chocolate fudge sauce.

GOULASH SOUP.

This is a 'souped' up version of the Hungarian dish Goulash, in keeping with tradition, serve this soup with sour cream. Ingredients......2 tbs of plain flour, 1 tsp of paprika, 1 tsp of ground black pepper, 500 gm of stewing steak, trimmed of fat and cut into 1' / 2.5 cm cibes, 1 tbs of canola / rice bran oil, 1 onion, chopped, 60 ml of water, 1 tsp of minced garlic, 4 cups of beef stock, 1 tsp of caraway seeds, 1 x 400 gm of diced tomatoes, 1 x cup of chopped carrot, 1 x cup of diced swede, 1 x cup of potato, sour cream to serve. Place the flour, paprika, pepper in a large resealable plastic bag . Add the beef, seal the bag, toss until coated. heat the oil in a large saucepanover a medium high heat. Add the beef. Heat and stir until the beef is browned. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion and stir until the onion starts to soften. Add the water, scraping any brown bits from bottom of the pot. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil, simmer partially covered for 75 minutes or until the beef and vegetables are tender. Cover the saucepan with the lid and let stand until 30 minute before you are ready to serve, then heat gently until warmed through. Ladle into bowls and top with sour cream to serve.

FLOURLESS FUDGE CAKE

Ingredients.....200 gm of butter / marg, 75 gm of cacao, 6 eggs, lightly beaten, 220 gm of raw castor sugar, 120 gm of almond meal. Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Line a 20 cm springform pan with baking paper. Melt the butter in a bowl in the microwave in 10 second increments, then stir in the cacao until smooth. Place the eggs and sugar in the bowl of your electric mixer and beat until doubled in volume. Add the cacao mixture and gently fold through the almond meal to combine. pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes or until just set. Allow the fudge cake to cool in the pan then carefully remove the sides of the pan and dust with extra cacao.