FRUIT AND NOODLE PUDDING

Noodles for dessert....why not? Ingredients....250gm of fettucine noodles, 1 large cooking apple , peeled and grated, 3/4 cup of soft brown sugar, 1 tsp of ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg, 1/3 cup of raisins, 45gm of butter/ marg melted, 3 eggs separated. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Liberaaly well grease an ovenproof dish. Drop the noodles into a saucepan of boiling water that you have added a dsp of oil to. Stir gently and cook for until just tender. Drain in a colander and rinse with fresh water, drain again and turn into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the grated apple, sugar, spices, raisins and melted butter/ marg. Now add the lightly beaten egg yolks, stirring through the noodle mix. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff and fold through gently to fully incorporate. Place the mixture in the prepared ovenproof dish, cover with a sheet of baking paper and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes... Serve hot or cold .....it is delicious and filling.

CORNED TUNA AND CHIPS

Most of the ingredients for this really tasty dish will already be in your pantry and best of all the whole dish can be prepared and cooked in 40 minutes. Ingredients......30gm of butter/ marg, 1/4 cup of flour, 1 and 1/4 cups of milk, 1/2 cup of grated tasty cheese, cracked black pepper, a sprinkle of dried dill, 1 x 220gm can of tuna, 1 x 420gm can of corn kernels(drained), 2 large tomatoes, finely sliced, 75gm packet of salt and vinegar chips. Preheat your oven to 180 deg F. Spray a rectangular ovenproof dish and line the sides and base with the tomato slices and sprinkle with the dried dill. In a small bowl mix together the milk and flour until smooth. Melt the butter/ marg in a large pan. Now add the milk mixture slowly and stir until well combined. Simmer for 2 minutes and stir through the grated cheese and season with the cracked pepper. Flake the tuna and add to the sauce with the liquid from the can and finally fold in the drained corn kernels. Spoon the the tuna mixture into the tomato lined tray and crumble the salt and vinegar potato crisps over top. Place the tray in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until the top is golden and crisp. Serve with buttered sourdough bread and or a leafy mixed green salad.

PEANUT AND GINGER LOAF

Ingredients...3 cups of self raising flour, pinch of salt, 1 tsp of ground ginger, 3/4 cup of soft brown sugar, 1/2 cup of sultanas, 1/3 cup of candied ginger , chopped finely, 1/2 cup of granulted nuts,90 gm of butter/ marg, 4 tbs of black treacle, 2 eggs lightly beaten, 2/3 rds cup of milk. Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Grease a 2kg loaf pan and line the base and sides with baking paper. Mix together in a large bowl the flour, salt, ground ginger, sugar, sultanas, chopped candied ginger and peanuts. Mix the beaten eggs and milk together in another bowl. Now place the treacle and butter/marg into a small saucepan and heat gently until melted. Add the treacle mixture to the dry ingredients and gradually beat in the egg and milk mixture until well blended. Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf pan and bake in the preheated oven for 1 and 1/4 hours or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly in the pan before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. This spiced loaf can be eaten as a plain cake drizzled with a little honey or cut into slices and buttered.

LIGHT CHEESY ROLL SAVOURY RING .

Ingredients......2 cups of plain flour,1 tbs and 1/2 tsp of baking powder, 1 tsp of salt, 1 tsp of paprika , 1 and 1/2 cups of grated mozarella cheese, 4 tbs of commercial relish( any large pieces chopped) 1 egg lightly beaten, 2/3 rds of a cup of milk. Preheat your oven to 200 deg C. Mix the flour , baking powder, salt and paprika into a large mixing bowl. Rub in 1 and 1/2 cups of grated cheese and the relish . Beat the egg and milk together in a separate bowl. Pour most of the milk mixture into the cheese mixture , reserving a little for glazing. Mix to a dough with your hands. Divide the dough into 6 pieces and form them into balls . Place them onto a greased and lined baking tray to form a circle, leaving space between each roll. Brush the balls with the milk and egg mixture and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until risen and golden. Cool on a wire rack, the rolls can be served warm or cold.

FRUIT AND NUT SHORTBREADS

Definition..shortbread begins back with the medieval biscuit bread, The leftover dough from the bread making was dried out in a low oven until it hardened into a type of rusk type biscuit....the word biscuit means twice cooked. Gradually the yeast in the bread was replaced by butter and the biscuit bread developed into shortbread . Ingredients.....375gm plain four, a pinch of salt, 75gm of castor sugar, 280gm of butter/marg (softened), 60gm of dried sultanas/ raisins(chopped), 60gm of granulated nuts. Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Grease an oven tray and line with baking paper and lightly sprinkle with castor sugar. Here is a very old recipe .... Mix the flour, salt and castor sugar together in a large bowl. Using your hands rub the butter into the flour mix and knead to a dough. Finally knead in the fruit and nuts. Divide the dough into two and shape into 2 circles on the baking paper lined sheetsand sprinkle the top of the circles with castor sugar . Bake in the preheated oven on the middle shelf for 40 minutes or until the shortbread rounds begin to turn golden . Remove the oven sheets from the oven and carefully slice with a sharp knife. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

CREME CHANTILLY / CHANTILLY CREAM

Either way chantilly cream is just a flavoured cream whipped cream, thickened with egg whites that makes a little cream go a long way. Ingredients.....6 tbs of cream , 1 egg white, 1 dsp of castor sugar, 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Wash and dry the beaters thoroughly and then beat the egg white until stiff, add the sugar and vanilla extract, continuing to beat until glossy. Finalluy fold the meringue into the thickened cream until well blended. You can double / triple the ingredients for a larger amount of chantilly cream , but remember that the above amounts will go a long way.

KIDNEYS WITH MUSTARD SAUCE

Ingredients......8 lamb kidneys, 30gm of butter/marg, 1 small onion peeled and sliced, cracked black pepper to taste, 250 gm of sliced mushrooms, 1 tbs of wholegrain mustard,4 tbs of milk, 4 tbs of cream, 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg, 4 cups of cooked rice or mixed grain of your choice. Trim and slice the kidneys, then saute in the butter in large pan. Remove the sauteed kidneys and keep them warm. Now add the sliced mushrooms and onion to the pan adding a little mor butter or marg if it has been absorbed before the onion is tender, season to taste. In a separate small bowl mix together the wholgrain mustard, milk and cream, then stir this mix through the onions and mushrooms. Finally add the kidneys and reheat to a slow simmer and remove from heat. Fold the ground nutmeg and the cracked pepper through the cooked rice/ grains. Divide the rice/ grains between the serving plates and spoon over the kidneys with mustard sauce.