Bananaberry Bread

One night as I was tucking my twins into bed, Master H very randomly said "I want banana bread please". I did what most mothers would do to settle the kids and get them to bed, I simply said "ok, tomorrow, go to bed or you won't get it". When tomorrow came I of course had completely forgotten about the banana bread request BUT Master H did not. He kept harping on and on about it and I knew there was no shutting this one down.

My problem that day was I was actually working from home. I couldn't afford to spend heaps of time in the kitchen pretending to be a lady of leisure who didn't have a job and who had all the time in the world. So I Googled (of course) the simplest recipe I could fine with ingredients that were already in my pantry and got to it as quickly as possible.

This recipe was fabulous as I didn't even need an electric mixer, just a bowl and a wooden spoon. In 15 minutes flat the cake was in the oven. Master H was happy his request was baking away. I could go back in my office and work with a smile as the house was starting to smell heavenly.

Bananaberry Bread

3 ripe bananas
a handful of blueberries
half a cup of diced strawberries
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 and 1/2 cup plain flour
pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees and line a loaf tin.

2. In a bowl add all wet ingredients. Mix well until sugar is dissolved. Add fruit to mix and stir.

3. Then add dry ingredients and mix well.

4. Pop in loaf tin, shove in oven for 1 hour.

5. Serve warm with butter melting all over it!

Strawberry Sponge Cake

Hello hello hello! We've been on a gorgeous Malaysian holiday over the Xmas and New Year break but it's back to the grindstone now. This is my first cake of the year. It's summer and hot and strawberries are in abundance so it was easy to decide what to showcase in this cake. My friend made a very scrumptious looking Strawberries and Cream sponge the other day and I was inspired to give it a go.

I've never really been a fan of sponge cake but this recipe seemed so full of air and lightness that I had to try. Thanks Donna Hay. It's a super hot day and my cake has to be made in advance due to time constraints so instead of whipped cream I opted for a more robust buttercream - just so it wouldn't melt in the drive to where we'll be partaking in this cake. It will be shared at twingroup later so fingers cross it'll taste as good as it promises to be. So here's my attempt.

Strawberry Sponge Cake 

For cake
1 1/4 cup plain flour
6 eggs
3/4 cup caster sugar
60g melted butter

For buttercream
250g soft butter
3 cups icing sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk
a pinch of salt

For filling
1 punnet of strawberry
strawberry jam

1. Beat eggs and sugar with an electric mixer for about 10 minutes. You want the mixture to be pale and full of air. It will triple in quantity.

2. Sift the flour at least 3 times. I think I did 5 just because I could. Then sift flour into egg and sugar mixture. Don't be aggressive in the folding as you'll beat the air out.

3. Fold in melted butter in the same fashion - try to keep as much air in as possible.

4. Pour batter into 2 x 20cm round tins or 1 big one. I opted for the 1 big as I do not have 2 identical tins (note to self : must go shopping for more cake tins)

5. Bake in a preheated 180 degrees oven for 25-30 minutes.

6. Allow to cool on wire rack and start on the buttercream.

7. For the buttercream beat soften butter and icing sugar. Add the other ingredients and mix well. If you want the icing runnier add more milk a tablespoon at the time. If you want it thicker add more icing sugar a little at the time.

8. Decorate which ever way you please. I chose to cut my cake into 2 and layered it with strawberries and jam. I then covered the entire cake with buttercream and decorated with strawberries and drizzles of toffee swirls and shards.

Strawberry Custard Tarts

It was twin playgroup time again and I was tossing up between making either this or cookie pops. After a rather hectic week and not really wanting to load the twins into the car and drag them (or rather them drag me) through the shops for 1 item I made these tarts. Always fun to make and certainly a winner among the kids. They just love anything with strawberry in it. Also the price of strawberries are coming back down again so I had several punnets just looking fat and sweet calling at me "eat me, eat me". You only have to tell me once.

The recipe that I used is from Taste.com.au with a little tweak. I doubled the custard ingredients as the original recipe only made enough custard for 12 mini store bought pastry cases and I wanted more. Also I made my own tart cases. I did not make the pastry from scratch but by all means if you can please do. I used ready made shortcrust pastry and also some dark chocolate shortcrust pastry. Here's a thing I learnt from using the chocolate pastry - taste SO crazily yummy as is without baking. All the remnants from the cut outs ... ate them :)

Strawberry Custard Tarts
3 sheets shortcrust pastry (I used 2 normal, 1 chocolate just because I could)
4 egg yolks
4 tablespoons caster sugar
2/3 cups thickened cream
strawberry jam
1 punnet strawberries

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
2. Cut out pastry and shape into muffin trays. I made 24 minis and 6 large muffin size ones.
3. Dock the pastry by piercing it with a fork several times so that it doesn't rise and get too puffy or you won't have room for lots of custard.
4. Bake in oven for 10 minutes, set aside to cool and start on custard.
*** pastry will shrink a little when baked so when you cut out pastry to make tart cases do not cut out pieces that are too small ***
5. Whisk yolks and sugar until all sugar is dissolved. Then add cream and mix. Don't whisk too much or the final product will be bubbly and not smooth.
6. Put a small dollop of jam on the base of each tart and add a piece of strawberry. How big the piece of fruit is up to you and also it has to fit the size of tart.
7. Pour custard into tart case around the strawberry and try not to overfill.
8. Bake for approx 15 minutes until custard is set.

Lemon Curd Cream Filled Strawberries

I wanted to make dessert for my husband today as we celebrated our wedding anniversary. Problem is he is not that keen on sweets - crazy I know! On the rare occasion that he does have any dessert he would always lean towards something with a tang. So after thinking about what to make and realising I really did not have a lot spare time to make it with I decided to steal the idea from another recipe I have. There is a summer berry tart that I make called Creamy Lemony Summer Tart that is quick and easy and it's fruity and tangy so it made sense that I'd use the filling from that tart for our dessert tonight.

Dessert tonight was quite simple strawberries filled with a tangy lemon curd cream. Hardly any time needed and very little cooking. Here's how to make it.

20 strawberries
4-5 tablespoons cream cheese (softened)
2-3 tablespoons lemon curd (I use store bought)
1/3 cup sugar
4 tablespoons water

1. To core the strawberries simple use a sharp knife and cut a cone shape out from the centre. The more you take out the more you can fill so do take out as much as possible.
*Be careful not to go too deep and make a hole at the bottom*
**I use an egg carton to hold the strawberries in for ease when filling**
*** don't waste the core, it's delicious!!***

      

2. Mix lemon curd and cream cheese. You want a nice thick consistency.
*if filling is too runny add more cream cheese or too thick ad more lemon curd*

store bought is fine

3. In a small saucepan make toffee by boiling sugar and water. Once the bubbling sugar changes colour to a lovely golden brown turn fire off.

4. Use a spoon and drizzle toffee on baking paper. You want to make a random pattern of webbing or netting. Have some thin strains and some big thick drops so that you have some crunchy bits and some lovely big chunks. Make it random and it looks quite pretty.

5. When toffee cools remove from paper and simple break shards for garnish.

6. Fill strawberries with lemon curd filling. Garnish with toffee shards.

7. Try to stop eating all of it by yourself!!

Creamy Lemony Summer Tart ... for all seasons!

I have to give credit for this recipe to the queen goddess of all Domestic Goddesses, she who only needs one name, the one and only Nigella.

This tart is so simple and no fuss that everyone really should have the ingredients in their pantry as staple ... you just never know when you need to whip one up. I ALWAYS find a reason like birthdays, a new baby, special visits from friends, lunch, Wednesday, Friday ... you get the picture.

I do fear publishing this recipe will expose me as a fraud to some of my friends who have had the pleasure of eating the tart as they'll see how easy it is and how little effort I actually put in to it. The thing is Nigella has made such an incredible tart that it would be a sin not to share .... after all, you know the saying ... a shared calorie is a non calorie!! This is my slightly modified version, Nigella's link is at the bottom of post.

Creamy Lemony No Fuss Tart.

400g digestive biscuit
100g salted butter softened (unsalted will do but I love a touch of salt in the base)
500g cream cheese softened or it'll be lumpy
350g lemon curd (I use Yackandandah brand as I find it has the perfect tangy zingy taste for me)
An assorted combination of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and whatever else you want

1. Blitz the digestives and butter until it looks like browney goldeny sand. Press into tart tin. Use a springform tin for easy removal. I normally make one big tart plus 3-4 extra little single pie size ones in the disposable trays. What shape or size or quantity is obviously up to you. Freeze it for at least 15 minutes.

2. Open jar of curd, throw on top of cream cheese in food processor, press button, blitz and you're done. This is how easy it is.

3. Pour lemon curd cream on tart base, decorate with fruit, pop back in fridge for at least 4 hours. The longer the better or removing the tart from tin might be tricky.

4. Present to friends, wait for ooohs and aaahhs, take a bow and say something appropriate like "it was no effort really" ... and quietly thank Nigella.

Credit for inspiration to Nigella Lawson.