In my kitchen ~ May 2015

There has been lots going on in my kitchen this past month, the usual cooking adventures but I'm thrilled to share a little kitchen reno we did (cough, cough ok Mr. GW needs all the credit but I am the ideas person and he then is the practical follow through person :)) and some very exciting purchases I've been waiting years to get which makes for one happy Jan.  
I'm tagging along with other devotees of the "In my kitchen" series hook up with the lovely Celia from Fig Jam and Lime Cordial.  Pop over for a look at others kitchens from all over the globe, it's really quite something!

I've tried to be as frugal as I can just to try and push myself to create something tasty and delicious out of nothing - saving money is also a motivation but I really wanted to get back out of the supermarket every few days habit, so I thought I'd share some of my tight arse treats.  And, if I'm really honest, I've been feeling really poo due to a change in medication which again isn't working or helping my cause but the one thing that gets me up is the thought of cooking something for my hungry family.  It also helps me pay for the extravagant additions to my kitchen this month ;) 

In my kitchen where these bastardised Anzac biscuits.  I used the normal recipe you can find here but I added some of my own spins.  I used chia, flaxseeds, currants and peppitas, some peach leather I needed to use up and a few pieces of chocolate rougly chopped.  I added only half the amount of oats, used agave syrup instead of golden syrup and lastly  used melted coconut oil instead of butter.  I added a few tablespoons more of flour and coconut oil to made a moist 'dough' due to the extra dry ingredients.  So maybe they aren't really an Anzac but a modern spin on one!!  Either way they were scrummy.

In my kitchen has been these heavenly gluten free thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies.  I initially made these for a friend of my daughters who is coeliac but I've now been making them just for us as they are the perfect cookie in my book ~ danger!

In my kitchen was my first ever spaghetti squash that I was gifted.  On expert advice, I sliced it in half and popped it into a baking tray that had water in it and baked/steamed it for 40 minutes.  It was really tasty with a lashing of butter and lots of salt and pepper.

The seeds I washed and roasted to have as an afternoon snack - tossed in sea salt and a hint of cayenne pepper made them lip smackingly morish.  I'll be doing this to my pumpkin seeds from now on too.

In my kitchen I've been making lots of my tomato and onion pie as luck would have it we still have loads of tomatoes coming in.  We have a back room that gets all the sun that has been a dream for rippening the green buggers that just won't on the vine.  I've also made 3 pie dishes worth and frozen them to have on a rainy day.

I got the round enamel dishes from the Salvo's for 20 cents a pop - love them and love a bargain!

In my kitchen are freshly dug spuddies and we've been having them in lots of things - there's hardly a day we don't eat potatoes come to think of it.  I saw this post here that made me think differently about the peelings that the worms usually get.  They have now become our little tid bit of an entree - tossed in some extra virgin olive oil and a good lash of salt and pepper they are make great crispy potato skins.

In my kitchen has been these kohlrabi leaves I've been pinching from the plant before the bulb is ready.  My fav way to use them boil them quickly in water, drain well and toss in coconut oil, a touch of chilli and salt and pepper.  I do the same with beetroot leaves too.

In my kitchen has been lots of bread baking - above a plaited white loaf and below my trusty no knead bread

I've tried my hand at my first ever focaccia using this recipe from 

Silvia Colloca's blog with fantastic success I'm very pleased to say and I'll be making it again as soon as I can trust myself not to inhale it.

In my kitchen has been lots of soup for the freezer.  With the colder weather I usually have soup for lunch each day.  This is the beginning of vegetable soup cooked with chicken stock, a parmesan rind and the left over corn cob that is taken out once the vegies are tender.  I added some pasta, rice and homemade tomato passata.  It made 10 serves for a few $$'s.

Not making it into my kitchen has been these radish's.  Mr. GW and I eat as garden snacks and give the spoils to our girls greedy girls below.

In my kitchen has been the most amazing eggs.  Set your eyes on the 90 gram baby below!!! It was a double yolker.

 My kitchen went from this to.....

to this! Ta-dah!  We weren't planning a kitchen reno quite yet, but on our weekly trip to Bunnings, I found this stainless -anti-fingerproof(!!!) cabinet for a bargain price.  It's for a man cave (hence the anti-fingerproof stainless I think) but it's perfect for my kitchen.  Mr. GW changed the wheels though as the original ones were very large (they are to be repurposed onto my wine barrels for the courtyard ;) waste not want not).It's not a perfect fit but it will be once the whole kitchen is re-done sometime in the next few years...or if I see the right thing it could be next week!

In my kitchen is my new baby.  I've been waiting years for her.  My very own KitchenAid!! (squeel!!)  I haven't named her yet - any ideas?  Kitchenaid have a deal on at the moment for Mothers day, giving you a free $300 food processor so that sealed it's fate.

and finally, in my kitchen is my new second hand camera!!  I'm thrilled with it too but I just have to work out how to use it so my photos will benefit.

That's enough excitement for one month!
Thanks for stopping by, I love getting your comments and visiting as many of the fellow In my kitchen contributors as possible.

Ciao, Jan x

Sweet as Hell Chocolate Brownie

Most of my friends are foodies, devotees of all good things eaten and washed down with a precious drop.  I also pride myself on remembering things they love to eat and what they don't.  My dear friend Michelle is a desperate chocoholic.  Well actually now I come to think of it, she is partial to anything of the sugared variety and she is just as sweet as her sweet tooth.  She very rarely drinks alcohol, its a wonder we are friends really :)  but when she does she orders the sweetest sugar rush going.  Kahlua & milk, Midori & lemonade oh and if you ordered her a slippery nipple it would have to be poured over ice-cream.  I watch in awe, twitching ever so slightly anticipating the sugar rush about to unfold.  

We have been firm friends for almost 20 years, bonded over high school misadventures of our husbands but also a love of talking and gluttony.  When the 2 couples meet, it is on.  Who can out do who in the cooking stakes.  Her hubby and I had a tzatziki off a while back, and I was devastated to crown him victor.  Which reminds me, we need a new challenge.  I need to win.

It is with so much delight that I've busted a gut to make the wickedest chocolate brownie I could think of for our annual Christmas shindig so here goes.  

Sweet as Hell Chocolate Brownie
2 cups SR flour
2 cups of sugar ~ I used 1/2 cup of caster sugar, 1/2 cup dark muscovado sugar and 1 cup of rapadura sugar
1 shot of espresso coffee, approx 30 mls
250g melted butter
2 whole eggs, beaten
125g dark chocolate, 85% cocoa
3/4 cup raw cacao powder
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 180c.
2. Line a slice tin with baking paper.
3. In a large bowl, sift in flour, sugar and cacao powder and a pinch of sea salt, chopped chocolate, and walnuts.
   
4. Stir in the melted butter, coffee and beaten eggs until all combined.
   
5. Spread evenly in the tray.  Don't under estimate the value of a spatula.  It will get every last lick of chocolate into that baking tray.
   
6. Bake for approximately 40 minutes or a little more.  Cool in tray on a wire rack and then pop into the fridge to cool way down before slicing. 

This is gorgeous as a hot dessert served with french vanilla bean ice cream. It was worthwhile adding the different sugars too for the added depth of flavour they gave the brownie.  I think I did Michelle proud, but I'm now calling my muffin top a brownie top.  The things we do for good friends!

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In decluttering news :) I DID the PLASTICS cupboard.... :D

Ciao, Jan

can I have another piece of chocolate cake

I've been wanting to make this chocolate cake recipe for awhile now and yesterday was the day! Looking at the pictures of it on Mariana's blog makes me lick my lips and want to boil the kettle and snuggle up with a thick slice.  I'm just hoping I can do it justice.
The following is kindly reprinted with permission from Mariana, these are her words and mine in the brackets:

Chocolate Cake              
200g caster sugar
90g salt reduced butter (I used salted as it was what I had)
185ml hot water
2 tbsp rich chocolate cocoa powder (I used raw cacao powder, I also was cheeky and added 60g of 70% cocoa dark cooking chocolate but added it in with the butter and sugar in the saucepan)
1/2 tsp bicarb soda
1 tspn vanilla extract
2 fresh eggs (free range of course)
150g SR flour

 Sift cocoa powder in a small bowl; whisk in hot water till there's no lumps.  Pour into medium sized saucepan along with sugar & chopped butter.  Melt over low heat till sugar dissolves & mixture begins to bubble; add bicarb; stir till it froths up nicely; take off heat; pour into a large bowl; set aside to cool.  Sometimes I make this step the night before and then complete the cake in the morning.  

I filled the bottom bowl with iced water to speed up the cooling process
& stirred it to also help speed it up, next time I will do it the night before!

Allow to cool; I mean cool - not still warm cos I've done it and the texture changes.  You may notice a skin has formed upon cooling; don't worry; it's perfectly normal.  When cool, hand whisk in the vanilla essence, followed by the beaten eggs till nice and glossy.  Sift in flour; whisk briskly for only a minute.  

Mixture is quite runny.  Pour into greased, bottom baking paper lined 20cm round tin (I used a springform tin); place into preheated 160-170 degree fan forced oven for 35-40 mins or till baked.  Sit for 1 minute; slide a knife all around the sides.  Upturn onto metal rack; remove the paper; allow to cool.

Icing

Put 125g icing sugar, 1 tbsp cocoa powder, 2 tspn butter & 1 tbsp milk (you may need to add a little more) into a ceramic bowl. (I used a stainless steel one)  Place over saucepan with hot simmering water.  Mix continuously till the mixture comes together and the icing is nice, thick and pourable.  If it's slightly runny, thats fine, just allow to thicken up a little longer (by letting it cool)before pouring over the cake.

Place cake onto serving plate. You'll need to move faily quickly with the icing as it sets pretty fast. (super fast!!) Pour directly onto the middle of the cake; use a long knife to swirl over top or to simply push the icing to the edges and allow to set in a rustic fashion.  Practise makes perfect.  

Thanks Mariana for the recipe it will be a firm favouite!  I desperately wanted to add some chopped walnuts to the top but alas it is going to school today as a lunch box dazzler and they are party poopers these days where nuts are concerned.

I was talking a friend through a recipe over the phone the other day, and it made me realise not everything I say is easy for someone not so kitchen savvy, so with this in mind I thought I'd take the time to show you how to perfectly cover a round cake tin.  Tear yourself off around 30cm's of baking paper and fold four times until you get a smaller square. Then, keep folding in half until you have an arrow shape.

Hold the pointy end to the center of your cake tin and keep your thumb to where the edge of the tin is then with scissors cut the excess off.

You should now have a somewhat perfect circle

This technique is also used to make a cover for stews, soups and poaching in a saucepan to stop the liquid reducing too much and a skin forming, so perfect when poaching fruit like whole pears, although you cut the tip of the point out to create a little hole in the center.  Its cheffy name is a cartouche.

My word, everyone and I mean everyone, needs this chocolate cake in there repertoire...the icing is just so, not too thick and the cake oh so moist. Do yourself, your family and friends a favour and get on it!

Ciao, Jan

sometimes only chocolate will do

I've had writers block these past few days.....things have been feeling a bit same same, so I needed to whip up some cooking inspiration and I got it from a friend who was cooking up some chocolate brownies.

I'm not a mad sweet tooth, I'm a savoury girl at heart but there are certain times that nothing but chocolate will do.  I've been wanting to make a chocolate brownie for ages but am scared I'll eat it all at once. I've made a deal with myself to only have a small slice a day, pinky promise.  

Heathers chocolate brownie

1 cup sugar

3-4 tbspn good quality cocoa

2 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla essence

3/4 cup or 185g melted butter

3/4 cup plain flour

Mix your sugar and cocoa before adding the eggs, vanilla and melted butter.

Add sifted flour and mix well to get rid of any lumps of flour.

Pour into a greased square tin and bake at 175c for 25 mins or so.

You can also ice with your favourite icing, a good one is a tbspn of cocoa, same of icing sugar, a tbspn of soft butter and a dash of water.  Allow icing to set in the fridge before cutting into squares. You can also add coconut, choc chips for an extra chocolate hit or nuts like walnuts.

I must admit, I made a few changes to the recipe.  I did 1/2 sugar 1/2 brown sugar, used raw 100% cacao powder and added a 170g block of dark chocolate with 70% cocoa.  So whats the verdict?  Amazeballs. I better hide it. And next time I'll be adding walnuts to it and will keep some good vanilla icecream on hand to have with it, I feel a bad addiction coming on!!  Whats that saying, "chocolate makes your clothes shrink" sign me up for some new jeans.

Ciao, Jan