JAM PINWHEELS

Ingredients......2 and 1/2 cups of self raising flour, pinch of salt, 30gm of butter/ marg cut into small pieces, 1/3 cup of castor sugar, 2/3rds cup of milk, 1 egg lightly beaten, 1/3 rd cup of strawberry jam, extra milk for glazing. Preheat your oven to 200 deg C. Lightly spray and line an oven tray. Mix together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter/ marg and rub it in with your fingertips. Add the sugar and stir it through. In a small bowl mix together the egg and milk. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and add the milk and egg mixture. Mix lightly with a flat bladed knife to a soft dough. The dough should have lost its sickiness, ( but not become tough or dry). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured bench and shape into rectangle about 1 cm thick. Spread the jam over the dough. Roll up from the long side as you would for a Swiss roll. Cut into 2cm lengths. Place the rounds cut side up on the prepared pan and brush with nmilk. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Turn onto a wire rack to cool. Serve the pinwheel scones warm or cold, as is or with butter or cream.

TUNA FISH QUICHE WITH ITALIAN HERBS

Ingredients ....1 and 1/2 sheets of shortcrust pastry (rolled and joined), 198 gm tin of tuna fish ( drained), 1 tbs of dried onions, 2 tbs of Italian herbs, 1 dsp of fennel seeds, 1 tbs of minced garlic, 1/2 tsp of cracked black pepper, 3 eggs lightly beaten, 285 ml of milk. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease a 20cm flan dish and lightly sprinkle with fine polenta. Join the 1 and 1/2 sheets of shortcrust pastry sheets, line the flan dish and trim . Drain the tuna fish and mix with all the other ingredients. Pour into the prepared flan dish and cook in the preheated oven for 40 minutes or until well risen and firm to touch. Serve as you like or with sliced cucumber , spring onions and sliced tomatoes. It is your dish, enjoy.

GREEN OLIVE , CHORIZO AND TASTY CHEESE CROSTATAS .

Ingredients......1 and 3/4 cups of plain flour, 125gm of butter/ marg, 1 egg yolk, 3 tbs of chilled water, 1 tbs of lemon juice. 700gm of chunky pasta sauce, ( or your own homemade Napoletana sauce), 1/4 cup of pitted green olives, 2 x 125gm chorizo sausages, thinly sliced, 1 and 1/4 cups of grated tasty cheese. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Line and grease 2 oven trays, set aside. Place the plain flour and butter/ marg in your food processor and process until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. In a separate bowl, combine the egg yolk, chilled water and lemon juice. With the processor running add the egg yolk mixture and process until the dough comes together. Now turn the dough out onto a sheet of cling wrap and cover the dough and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Remove the dough after chilling and divide the crostata dough into 4 and roll each piece into a 20cm square. Trim and place on the prepared oven trays. Spread each crostata with the / your pasta sauce. Top with sliced chorizo sausage and sliced green olives. Sprinkle with tasty cheese. Bake in your preheated oven for 20 minutes. Serve sprinkled with fresh oregano leaves. There you go, YOU have just made your very own pizza from scratch. ( crostata means pie in Italian ). WELL DONE.

BASIL PESTO.

Ingredients.....1 large bunch of sweet basil, 100gm of finely grated Parmesan cheese, 125gm of pinenuts, 3 tbs of minced garlic, a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Place all ingredients in your blender with sufficient oil to give the mixture the consistency of a thick cream. Blend thoroughly, can be used immediately or can be stored in a container in your refrigerator / freezer. This pesto can also be folded through cooked or drained pasta.

BASIL

My favourite herb of all time is basil. Basil has a mouthwatering aroma and is a versatile herb to use with many different types of food. Basil goes well with tomatoes, and tomato based dishes, eggplants, zucchini, marrow, squash and spinach. Basil goes well with cream cheese and in pasta dishes. Basil makes a savoury vinegar when leaves are steeped in a white vinegar for a few weeks.

THE REASON I LOVE TO COOK (2).

My fruit mince cake was offered to my friends with coffee, I explained my recipe. Maureen took my offer on a piece of cake and her her honest comments.... the texture is unlike to 'the traditional' fruit cake, but yes she liked it. Maureen's husband declined my offer, but after Maureen had sampled the cake, she encouraged her husband Roel to try a piece, Roel does not eat sweets. The cake is not overly sweet and Roel ate the cake and nodded in acceptance. I will continue to create my own recipes and I encourage you to do so. Start small, go with your thoughts and know your ingredients and how they react, and do not forget to write your recipe down.

THE REASON I LOVE TO COOK.

To cook, to create is a challenge without a recipe. I depend on my belief in flavours , spices and protein at hand. Today, I made a cake , well I divided the mixture into two. I did not know if this recipe , ( my recipe ) would be successful. I preheated the oven to 180 deg C. The ingredients I used ...... 800gm of preserved dried fruit, 1 tsp of bi carb of soda. I put the above ingredients into the bowl of my mixer and added 400ml of water, 1/2 cup of plain flour, 1 and 1/2 cups of self raising flour, and 2 beaten eggs . I mixed until just combined. Seriously I am not following any recipe, just my instinct. I lined a square pan with baking paper and a smaller round pan with baking paper. I divided the mixture between the two pans. I placed the pans in the preheated oven for 70 minutes, when i tested the cakes with a skewer that came out clean. I then lifted the cakes to a wire rack to cool. The cakes feel amazing to the touch, but we need to know how they taste. I will leave them in air tight containters overnight, and let you know tomorrow.

CHINESE STYLE LAMB CURRY

Ingredients......700gm of boneless lamb ( cut into 1" cubes), 1 cup of chicken stock, 130gm of potatoes cut into 1" cubes, 125gm of sliced mushrooms, 55gm of sliced water chestnuts, 2 carrots sliced,1 green capsicum, deseeded and sliced, 2 tbs of minced garlic, 2 tbs of minced ginger, 1 tbs of curry powder, 2 tbs of sesame oil. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C and lightly oil an ovenproof lidded dish. Alternatively you can lightly grease your slow cooker if you are preparing well ahead of serving time. Heat the sesame oil in a large pan , add the minced garlic and ginger. Add the cubed lamb and cook , stirring until the lamb is sealed. Turn the pan ingredients into the ovenproof dish or your slow cooker, adding the cubed potatoes and carrots. Sprinkle over the curry powder and stir to mix. Add the water chestnuts, capsicum and mushrooms. Finally pour over the chicken stock. Give the lamb curry mixture a stir , cover and cook in the preheated oven for 90 minutes or until the lamb is cooked through. Or if using your slow cooker, cook on low for 4 hours. Serve over steamed rice or a mixed grain and as you can see I topped the lamb curry with sliced onion. Enjoy..

FIG CONSERVE

A conserve is where the fruit stays whole/ halved or quartered in a syrup. Conserves are delicious served with bread / scones and butter. Conserves are also great served with ice cream and or puddings. Ingredients....1 kg of purple figs quartered, 2 lemons finely grated and juiced, 4 cups of sugar. Preheat your oven to 180deg C. Place the quartered figs in a large saucepan with the finely grated lemon rind and juice of the 2 lemons and cook gently until soft. If the heat is too high , the mixture will dry out and you will need to add 2 tbs of water. Now warm the sugar in a bowl for 20 minutes. Then add the the sugar to the figs and heat gently, stirring until dissloved, then increase the heat and gently boil until thickened. Stir thoroughly and then pour into sterilized jars and seal. If you love figs , you will adore fig conserve as a dessert or scone topper...

SOURDOUGH BREAD WITH FRIENDSHIP STARTER

This is the last cup of starter I have from my 10 day mix. You are probably thinking at long last I am going to prepare bread with the friendship starter. I agree the title is a little confusing , friendship bread is a very old recipe from long ago. I have been told this recipe came from Germany ( centuries earlier) and known as Herman's bread. The word bread icluded in all the recipes is because we use a 'starter' that takes 10 days to prepare. The recipe is truly magic and I am so glad and honoured to share it with you. To day we make bread..... Ingredients.....1 cup of friendship starter, 7gm of dried yeast, 1 cup of lukewarm water, 3 tbs of canola oil, 3 cups of bread flour (00/ mid protein ), 1 tsp of salt. Let's begin....Dissolve 7gm of dried yeast in 1 cup of lukewarm water and let stand until creamy (about 10 minutes). In a large non metallic bowl mix together 1 cup of friendship starter , the yeast mix, 3 tbs of canola oil, 2 cups of bread flour, 1 tsp of salt. Finally add another cup of bread flour in 1/4 cup increments, stirring after each addition. Now place the dough in the bowl of your mixer and mix with dough hooksuntil smoothand elastic, about 10 minutes. Oil a large bowl and place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat the dough. Cover with adamp cloth and let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 60 minutes. Preheat your oven now 200deg C. It is your choice about the shape of your bread. If using a loaf pan , just lightly grease it , you can also use a heated Dutch oven, or just a lined and lightly greased oven tray. Deflate the dough and place the dough in the trat/ pan of your choice . Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

FRIENDSHIP APPLE CAKE (4)

Ingredients .....1 cup of friendship bread starter, 2 cups of flour, 1 and 1/2 tsp of baking powder, 1/2 tsp of baking soda, 1 cup of oil, 1 cup of castor sugar, 1 dsp of ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp of salt, 3 lightly beaten eggs, 1 tsp of vanilla extract, 1 cup of milk, 100gm of instant puddding, 2 apples both peeled, (1 finely chopped , 1 cut into quarters and sliced.) Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Line and lightly grease a 24cm x 24cm square pan ( or 2 smaller loaf / round pans). Place all the above ingredients bar the apples,into a large bowl and mix until smooth. I used my electric mixer. Once mixed add the finely chopped apples and stir through. Now pour the batter into the prepared pan/s. Finally top the batter with the sliced apple and sprinkle with a mixture of cinnamon and castor sugar. bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted comes out clean, if browning too quickly place a sheet of baking paper loosely on top. OMG this is good.

FRIENDSHIP ZUCCHINI CAKE (3).

Ingredients ... 1 cup of friendship bread starter, the original ingredients for the friendship bread, but only adding 1/2 cup of oil, 2 cups of grated zucchini ( squeeze to remove excess liquid), 1 cup of granulated nuts, 1 tsp of ground nutmeg. Bake in the preheated oven in 2 lined and greased loaf pans. Remove from the oven and let cool in pan before removing to a wire rack. Absolutely delicious.

FRIENDSHIP FRUIT CAKE…(2).

Ingredients......1 cup of the friendship bread starter, the ingredients added to the starter for the original friendship bread/ cake. Plus 1/2 cup of Maraschino cherries, drained and chopped, 1/2 cup of granulated nuts, 1 cup of mix dried mixed fruit. Follow the original instructions. For the friendship fruit cake, I lined a 20cm x 20cm pan and poured the batter in. The oven had been preheated to 180 deg C. I baked the friendship fruit cake for 1 hour and 15 minutes ....but cook till a skewer inserted comes out clean. ( only you know your oven ).

DAY 10 OF THE FRIENDSHIP BREAD STARTER./ FRIENDSHIP BREAD /CAKE (1).

MIXING AND DIVIDING THE STARTER ON DAY 10. Pour the entire contents of the starter bag into a non metallic bowl. Add 1 and 1/2 cups of bread flour, 1 and 1/2 cups of castor sugar, 1 and 1/2 cups of milk. Mix with a wooden spoon. Measure out 4 cups of starter batter( 1 cup each) and place in large ziplock backs. Keep a bag of starter for yourself and share the other bags with your friends. I am setting aside one to begin another 10 day starter. The other 4, I will be baking a traditional friendship bread . My first bread ......( traditional ). Ingredients....3 lightly beaten eggs, 1 cup of vegetable oil, 1 cup of castor sugar, 1/2 cup of milk, 1 dsp of ground cinnamon, 1 tsp of vanilla extract, 1 and 1/2 tsp of baking powder, 1/2 tsp of baking soda, 1/2 tsp of salt, 2 cups of plain flour, 150 ozs of dry instant pudding mix. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Liberally spray two loaf pans and lightly sprinkle with fine polenta. In a small bowl mix together 1/4 cup of castor sugar and 1 tsp of ground ciinamon. Place all ingredients in the bowl of your mixer and mix until smooth , it will not take long. Divide the mixture between the 2 prepared loaf pans. Sprinkle the top of each loaf with the cinnamon , sugar mix. Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack and then remove bread ( friendship cake )from pans.

OLIVE, HALOUMI AND ROSEMARY LOAF

This recipe is my gift to you. It is a savoury loaf and I serve it buttered and topped with whatever chutney jar I have open. Ingredients....1 cup of diced onions, 200ml of olive oil, 4 eggs at room temperature and lightly beaten, 2 cups of chopped kalamata olives, 1 tsp of minced garlic, 2 tbs of soft brown sugar, 250gm of grated haloumi cheese, 1 tsp of baking soda, 1/2 tsp of baking powder, 1/2 tsp of cracked black pepper, 375 gm of plain flour, 300gm of sour cream, 1 tbs of fresh chopped rosemary. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease and line a 25cm x 10cm x 10cm loaf pan. Saute the onions in oil with the garlic and then add the chopped olives and rosemary, stir then set aside to cool. In the bowl of your electric mixer add the lightly beaten eggs and sugar and beat until the sugar is dissolved, then add the sour cream. Now mix with the cooked onions and olives. Slowly add the mixed flour mixture , whisking out any lumps, forming a smooth batter. Fold through the haloumi cheese and chopped rosemary. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean from the centre. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.

CUSTARD CREAMS

Ingredients....125gm of butter/ marg, 1/2 cup of castor sugar, 2 egg yolks, 1 tsp of vanilla extract, 1/4 cup of custard powder, 3/4 cup of plain flour, 3/4 cup of self raising flour, 1/2 cup of strawberry jam, 1/2 cup of cream cheese, 1/4 cup of cream. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Line two baking trays with baking paper. Beat together the cream cheese with the cream until thickened. Use your electric beaters, to beat the butter/ marg and sugar together until light and creamy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and beat until well combined. Now, transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Using a flat bladed knife, incorporate the custard powder and the mixture of self raising and plain flour. Stir with the knife unil ingredients are just combined. Use your fingers to form a soft dough. Roll out 1 tsp of the mixture into balls. arrange the balls about 5cm apart on the oven tray. flatten the balls lightlt with a fork. bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven or until golden. Remove from the oven and leave on the trays for 5 minutes and then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Spread half of the biscuits with 1/4 tsp of strawberry jam and spoon / pipe a small amount of the cream mixture over the jam. Sandwich together with the remaining biscuits.

THE MANOR BOILED FRUIT CAKE

Ingredients....2 cups of mixed fruit, 1 cup of soft brown sugar,110gm of butter/ marg, 1 tsp of bi carb of soda, 3/4 cup of water, 1/4 cup of Apera( cream sherry), 2 tbs of Dutch cocoa, topped to 1/2 cup with plain flour, 1 and 1/2 cups of self raising flour, 2 eggs at room temp , lightly beaten . Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease and line a 20cm square pan with baking paper. Place the fruit, sugar , butter/ marg, bi carb, and the liquid in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Bring the mixture to a simmer and simmer for 1 minute only and then allow to cool. Once cooled add the flour mix and the beaten eggs. mix with a wooden spoon until well combined. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan bang the pan on the bench to expell air pockets. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes or until firm to the touch and a skewer inserted comes out clean. Remove from the pan and allow to cool on a wire rack.

SPICY DATE AND NUT FRUIT CAKE.

Ingredients.....230gm of butter/ marg, 170 gm of soft brown sugar, 45 ml of treacle, 4 eggs lightly beaten, 340gm of self raising flour mixed with 1 dsp of ground nutmeg, 1 tbs of gropund cinnamon, 1 dsp of ground ginger, 60 gm of granulated nuts, 230gm of pitted dates roughly chopped, 340gm of sultanas, 45ml of Apera ( sweet cream sherry). Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease and line a 20cm square pan. Cream the butter/ margarine and sugar together. Stir in the treacle. Beat in the lightly beaten eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour spice mix. Now mix in the granulated nuts, the remaining flour, dates, sultanas and Apera. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Slightly hollow the centre of the batter. Bake in the preheated oven for 2 hours or until the cake is risen and firm to touch, best to check with a skewer inserted and coming out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan and then cool completely on a wire rack. This cake can be stored for 2 weeks in an airtight container or for 4 months in your freezer. I like this cake served simply as is or with a light sprinkle of icing sugar, but this is now your creation, decorate as you like. Enjoy with coffee, tea and friends.

ROGAN JOSH SLOW COOKED.

Ingredients...1 kg of cubed stewing steak, 100ml of canola oil, 1 tbs of minced garlic, 1 dsp of minced ginger, 1 tbs of sweet paprika, 1 tsp of cracked black pepper, 6 tbs of natural yoghurt, 2 onions peeled and sliced, 150 ml of cold water, 400gm of ripe and sliced tomatoes, 1 tbs of Garam Masala. Liberally spray your slow cooker. Place the oil in a frypan along with the cubed meat and fry /cook until browned. Turn the meat out into the slow cooker. In a medium bowl place the sliced onions and spices and mix to coat the onions, now turn into the pan and cook gently till the onions are tender. Stir in the yoghurt and then add the water and sliced tomatoes, bring to a gentle simmer. Now add the mixture to your slow cooker. Place on High for 4 hours or Low for 8 hours. To serve transfer to a serving dish with boiled riced and garnish with sliced tomatoes and onion rings. This dish is full of aromas and very welcoming when you arrive home from work.

DAY 5 OF THE 10 DAY BREAD STARTER.

Today , day 5 was time to feed the starter. Ingredients.....1 cup of plain flour, 1 cup of castor sugar, 1 cup of milk. I placed the ingredients separately into the large ziplock bag. Now continue to squash and squish the ingredients to incorporate over the next 5 days. Remember to allow accumulated air out from the bag. The starter is a live culture.

SIMPLE APPLE TOPPED TEACAKE

Ingredients.......1 x 340gm packet of plain cake mix, 1 tbs of softened butter/ margarine, 1 egg lightly beaten, 4 tbs of milk, 2 small apples ( peeled and cored),2 tbs of castor sugar, 1 dsp of cinnamon, 2 tbs of flaked almonds. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Liberally grease and lightly sprinkle with polenta a 20 cm round sandwich pan. Beat the cake mix, egg , milk and softened butter/ marg until thoroughly combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan . Slice each of the peeled apples into 8 wedges. In a small bowl mix together the sugar and cinnamon and toss the wedges through the mix. Arrange the wedges over the cake and press down lightly. Sprinkle the remaining sugar- cinnamon mix over along with the flaked almonds. bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Removed from oven and carefully invert onto a wire rack to cool completely. This cake can be served spread with butter if you wish.

APPLE SCONE CAKE

Ingredients.....2 and 1/4 cups of self raising flour, pinch of salt, 1 tsp of ground cardamon, 1/2 cup of castor sugar, 60gm margarine / butter, 1 cup of buttermilk, 2 cooking apples, peeled, cored and sliced, 2 extra tbs of castor sugar, 1 tsp of ground cinnamon, 1 extra tbs of sugar. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease a 23cm round springform pan and lightly sprinkle with fine polenta. Mix together in a large bowl the flour, salt, and 1/2 cup of sugar.Use your fingertips to lightly rub in the margarine/ butter. Now add the buttermilk and stir with a butter knife into a very soft mixture. Pour the dough in the prepared pan and gently spread the top evenly. Mix together 2 tbs of castor sugar with the cinnamon in a bowl and dip the slices into the spice mixture and then press the slices into the scone/ cake mixture. Finally sprinkle the remaining tbs of sugar over. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until lightly golden and a skewer comes out clean when inserted. Carefully remove from the pan and allow to cool before serving sliced and buttered.

LAMB BURGERS

Ingredients.... 340gm of minced lamb meat, 60gm of breadcrumbs, 1 dsp of fennel seeds, 1 dsp of dried rosemary, 1 small zucchini ( finely chopped), 1 egg, lightly beaten, 1 dsp of minced garlic, 1 tsp of minced ginger, 1 dsp of dried onion flakes. These burgers are so tasty and easily prepared. Place all the ingredientsin a large bowl and combine thoroughly. Shape into 4 burgers, brush each burger with a little oil. Place on a hot barbeque or in a pan over a high heat. Cook until the meat is cooked throughout. Turn the burgers and baste with a drizzle of oil and a sprinkle of rosemary. Serve as desired.