Anyone for some home made baileys?

Here is a quick post, really quick!  Christmas is almost here and like everyone, I have been flat out doing a million things BUT I have not managed to get any special christmas treats made. Tonight, I AM making myself some home made baileys which tastes so much better than the purchased stuff, is quick and easy.

Ready, Set, Lets Go!!!

You need

2 eggs

370 mls whiskey

1 tin condensed milk

1 tin evaporated milk

1/2 cup chocolate topping

1/4 tspn coconut essence

600 mls thickened cream

In a large pouring jug mix together the eggs, whiskey, milk, chocolate topping and coconut essence and finally the cream. 

Strain the baileys a couple of times to get out any chunky egg goobys.

Pour into sterilised glass bottles.

Refridgerate.

This recipe makes a couple of good sized bottles or lots of little ones which are great for gift giving.

Drink straight with ice, unless you like it weak like me, in which case, dilute with milk and have it like milk shake.  Yumm!

Enjoy!  And have a great Christmas!



Getting ready for Christmas

Who in their right mind starts making biscuits at 10pm on a Sunday night? Me! Hahaha.

And yes, I do have to get up early for work tomorrow. What am  doing I ask myself...

For those of you who don't know, I teach cooking  in a Primary School and this week I have the last lessons for the year so in class we are doing some cool stuff like roasted beetroot dip and salad of the imagination with ingredients from the school garden, lemon curd filled cup cakes, honey spice biscuits, Eaton mess ( I think that's how you spell it) and fruit punch.  I decided I wanted to have some shortbread's decorating the table when the kids come in.  So here I am, at 11.30pm with about an hour of baking left.  I am starting to get tired and am watching an episode of Merlin to keep me company - the one where Gius gets possessed by a goblin.  It is soooo funny!  Oh! and I am writing this at the same time, whilst I am waiting for this lot of shortbread to be done!  No one can say I can't multi task...

I'm off topic aren't I.  Back to the shortbread.  My house must smell  like butter by now  and I have finished my first batch of these delicious Lebanese treats.  I got this recipe off my girlfriend Douha, who I mentioned in the previous Post.  I have given these out as Christmas gifts for years.  The texture of these are DIVINE, they just melt in your mouth AND the recipe makes about 100 good sized shortbread or 150 smaller ones making it a really great gift idea.  Reasonable cost for lots of goodies.  

Traditionally these are made in little diamonds with a pine nut in the centre.  They are so cute!  Mum says they are moorish!  When I am lazy, which is right about now as it is  12.45pm and 220 shortbread later. I have changed from making little diamonds to the quicker little balls instead.

So have a go, I guarantee everyone will love them.

Douha's shortbread tip  BAKE WITH LOVE

2 cups self raising flour

2 cups plain flour

3 cups icing sugar

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate soda

2 cups melted butter

pine nuts or almonds to decorate

Pre heat oven to 150 degrees Celsius

Line 3 baking trays with baking paper.

Sift all dry ingredients into a large bowl.

Melt butter, add to the dry ingredients and mix well.

Roll out the dough and cut into diamond shapes before topping with a nut. 

                           OR

Roll into small balls.

Place on baking tray and bake until firm and light not dark.  In my oven this is about 10 mins.

Cool on wire rack.

These keep well in an air tight container.

Till next time, Love, light and happiness.  Live long and prosper.  Eat, drink and be merry!

 

   

Sugared lemon and Orange slices

Last weekend I planned to do absolutely NO cooking.  I was just not in the mood for cooking.  I was especially not in the mood for dishes!  Dishes seem to breed in my house, little pests!

I spent a good part of the day cleaning my messy back yard,  winter had left its mark and from the kids continually  leave everything out side.  It is amazing how much cutlery I find hidden in the garden!  It had been a typically hot Aussie day and I was thirsty so I headed into the kitchen for a glass of water. I bought some lemons that morning and quickly squeezed some into a jug of water, then, I placed some slices of lemon into my jug.  Looked pretty!  Take a Photo!  Maybe I can put that on the blog!

When lemon is sliced it has so many dimensions to it making it interesting to look at.  I always wanted to make sugared lemon slices.  Hmmm, I have some more lemons in the fridge and some oranges too. Can’t be too hard to make?  A quick bit of research results in lots of different recipes.  Which one to try, perhaps a little bit of this one, little bit of that one and let’s see what happens!

Wash the fruit and slice into rounds.  Using a saucepan make sugar syrup by dissolving a cup of caster sugar in a cup of water.   Add the fruit, keeping it lying flat in the pot.  Simmer for 15 minutes.  Take out the fruit and discard the sugar syrup, this will get rid of a lot of the bitterness from the pith of the fruit, and it did, I did a taste test… blak!  Make another lot of sugar syrup and add fruit.  Simmer for another half hour or so. 

Using tongs take out the fruit and lay on trays covered with baking paper.  This can be left to dry naturally but I am impatient and  put mine in the oven on slow and let it dry out over a couple of hours. 

How does it taste you ask?  Pretty good actually, BUT to finish them off I dipped them  in caster sugar.  The sugar should stick well as the sugar syrup has made the fruit all sticky. I love the visual effect of the finished product and they taste interesting and quite different.   I’m thinking these might make some lovely little Christmas pressies.

So as you can see, I did no cooking that weekend! Lol

A tribute to a fantastic cook!

My best friend and soul sister Douha,  whom I have shared the ups and downs of life for the past 30 years lost her beautiful Mum last week.  As we do, I began thinking about what this lovely lady has meant to me.  Funnily enough, I  associate her with my VERY slow introduction to the most delicious food I have ever tasted, Lebanese!

I first met Mrs Hajar when I rode to her house to play with my newly made friend. I was a 12 year old tom boy who had just started at a new school and came from a typically Aussie home.  My new friend was a traditional Lebanese girl who was brought up to follow the culture of their homeland. 

All these years later, I clearly remember the first time I entered their home, all I could think of  and I am sure I said it ( as I do!) "WHATS THAT STINK?"  It was so strong and yuk!  It was garlic and lemon, the smells of dinner cooking and nothing like the meat and 3 veg I grew up eating for dinner.

I went into the kitchen and Mrs Hajar was speed chopping something, probably parsley.  She could chop so fast and the parsley was so fine.  There was food everywhere, a feast was in the making.  I can't remember what I tried, but I didn't like it.  Mrs Hajar was a renowned cook in her own Lebanese restaurant in town - Quiet Waters. 

During that year my family moved in at the end of the street and I began to visit my friend daily.  I was becoming accustomed to the TANTALISING smells that came from within.  Somewhere I had gone from Yuk to YUUUUUM, whats your Mum cooking today?  I am sure this was the start of my love of the different cultural flavours on offer in our country.

 I started enjoying the tabbouleh and hummus on pita bread before moving to felafel, kibbeh and the more exotic stuffed vine leaves.  I remember watching the vines leaves being made for a son's wedding, the bowl was MASSIVE and full of the tiny delectable treats, and I remember them being gone in the blink of an eye.  All that time to wrap the little parcels and then POOF! HEY PRESTO! DISSAPEARO!    Of course there was much more to try like hatalia for dessert and  yogurt and apricot juice to drink and the list goes on.



I once  had a lesson making their special spinach pies..which I later tried to make, but I am in need of another lesson.  Thank goodness my friend has learned much of her Mother's cooking and when there is time, has agreed to show me how to make them again.

For your interest I have added a link from The Cook and The Chef which featured Mrs Hajar and her son Jamal talking about Kibbeh, one of my fav's.  I hope to get her recipe up on here in the furture.

https://www.facebook.com/v/116910988769

Getting ready for Christmas Post will have Mrs Hajar's recipe for Shortbread which is much nicer than the common short bread and so very easy to make.

Well, I guess I could prattle on forever... RIP Mrs Hajar, you shall be missed.  You left so much behind in your family, and even further afield in me.

Allah yerhama.