Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Super Amazing Vege Lasagne

Serves about 6.

Ingredients:

Big chunk of pumpkin
2 decent sized red kumara
2 cloves of garlic (or 1 tsp minced garlic)
1 big onion
bit of butter
wee bit of sweet chili sauce (optional)
big handful of fresh spinach
1 big carrot
some lasagne pasta or sheets
tin of watties tomato and mushroom pasta sauce
1 or 2 big mushrooms
cheese/white sauce: milk, flour, butter, cheese, tiny bit of mustard
mix of seeds to go on top
extra grated cheese

-----

1. Chop up the onion finely, and sauté with the chopped/minced garlic until the onions are colourless but not browned.
2. scoop the seeds out of the pumpkin, peel and chop into chunks.
* peel and chop the kumara into chunks too.
* stick the pumpkin and kumara chunks in the microwave for about 5 mins on HIGH so they get soft enough to mash.
* mash the kumara and pumpkin with a tiny bit of butter, then add in the onion and garlic mixture, and finally a bit of sweet chili sauce if you want.

3. While the stuff is in the microwave, if you have lasagne pasta, put it on to boil, if you have lasagne sheets, start laying them in your dish.

4. Wash and chop up the fresh spinach

5. Peel and slice the carrot very thinly.

6. Peel and chop up the mushroom

7. Make a white cheese sauce with the milk, flour, butter, cheese, tiny bit of mustard.
* make sure it is thickish.

8. Start putting the lasagne together:
pasta sheet
pumpkin mash layer
spinach layer
pasta sheet
cheese sauce layer
mushroom and carrot layer
tomato and mushroom sauce layer
pasta sheet
sprinkle with cheese and seeds

Or, put it in whatever order you want, its up to you :}

9. Bake in a moderate oven (180C/350F) for about 45mins, until the cheese has melted and bubbled and stuff.
10. Let cool for a few mins, and serve straight out of the dish with salad or whatever :}

NB: leftovers can be kept in the fridge for a few days, or in portion sizes in the freezer for a month or so.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Milk Coffee Tiramisu

Serves 9

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tbsp Instant Coffee,
1 C Boiling Water
1/3 C Tia Maria/Kahlua
2 x 200g tubs Vanilla Fruche
1 packet Arnotts Milk Coffee Biscuits
Cocoa for dusting
½ c Thickened Light Cream

Directions:
Mix together the coffee and water.
Add the Tia Maria and set aside.

In a separate bowl mix together the cream and fruche until combined and smooth.

Soak enough Milk Coffee biscuits in the coffee mixture to cover the base of a 210mm square shallow dish for 30 seconds or until just starting to soften.

Place in the base of the dish and top with a layer of the cream mixture. Repeat this process until the two mixtures are used, finishing with a layer of cream.

Dust the top with cocoa.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.


Slice into squares with a sharp knife and serve.

Quick Mocha Tiramisu

serves 1

Ingredients
1 Tblsp Cottee's Thick and Rich Chocolate Sauce
1 Italian sponge finger biscuit
1 Tblsp strong coffee
1 tsp coffee liqueur (optional)
1 large scoop vanilla ice cream or whipped cream


Method

1. Use Cottee’s Thick and Rich Chocolate Sauce to drizzle around a dessert glass.

2. Place a sponge finger in each glass and pour over an espresso shot (if you don’t have an espresso machine use 1 tablespoon of strong black coffee).

3. Add a little coffee liqueur if desired.

4. Top with a spoonful of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and another drizzle of Cottee’s Chocolate sauce. Serve immediately.

Fruit Crush dessert

Ingredients:
250mls Yoghurt
250mls Cream Fraiche
1 Cup Wine Biscuits, broken into small pieces
1 Tbsp Icing Sugar
250g Frozen Mixed Berries eg. Strawberries, boysenberries


Directions:
Beat the cream fraiche and yoghurt together.
Chop the fruit slightly, mix with the cream fraiche, biscuits and icing sugar.
Spoon into serving glasses, chill for 1 hour.
Decorate with fruit and mint leaves

serves 4

Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding with Fudge Sauce

Ingredients:
200g Butter, melted plus 50g for Sauce
1 tbsp Cocoa Powder
6 Eggs
1 c Caster Sugar
3/4 c Flour
3 Mars Bars chopped, plus 3 chopped for sauce
300ml Cream, for sauce

Directions:
Butter 8 ramekins or cups. Blend eggs and sugar until thick. Fold in sifted flour and cocoa, fold in butter and chocolate pieces. Spoon into ramekins or cups, microwave on high for 3-4 minutes, stand for 2 minutes before serving. Heat 300mls cream, 50g butter and mars bars to make a rich sauce. Cool before serving over puddings.

Chef's Tip: Chill the Mars Bars for these puds it makes them easier to chop.


(sourced from: http://www.woolworths.co.nz/Bitter_Chocolate_Pudding_with_Fudge_Sauce_Recipe_169.htm)

Chocolate Berry Cheesecake


Serves 6

Ingredients
100g melted butter
250g sweet plain chocolate biscuits*
425g can Wattie's Boysenberries in Syrup
500g pottle Tararua Cheesecake Filling
2 tsp gelatin

Method

1. Crush the biscuits in a food processor or by placing in a sealed plastic bag and crushing with a rolling pin. Stir in the melted butter. Press into the base and sides of a 23cm loose bottom flan tin. Refrigerate until required.

2. Drain and reserve the juice from the Wattie's Boysenberries in Syrup.

3. Beat together the drained boysenberries and Tararua Cheesecake Filling until smooth. Spread into the prepared flan.

4. Sprinkle the gelatin over the reserved boysenberry juice and when it has been absorbed, warm in the microwave for 2 minutes on high and stir until dissolved. Cool. Pour over the cheesecake filling and refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.

(sourced from here: http://www.foodinaminute.co.nz/Recipes/recipe_default.aspx?recipeid=72)

Monday, September 8, 2008

Train's baked macaroni

4 cups cooked elbow macaroni
2-3 cups milk (whichever you can fit, since in my dish I can only fit two..)
1 1/4 cup sharp cheese, cubed
salt and pepper to taste
bread, pieced up (one or two slices, more like one and a half.. just a good amount)
Dots of butter, 2tbs in all (dots of butter = taking the butter in little bits and dotting it around on top of whatever you're making)
bread crumbs

Cook the macaroni.
Stir the cubed cheese and bread pieces and macaroni together
Add the salt and pepper to the milk, pour in (it just makes it easier? And keeps the salt/pepper from sticking to just one bit of the macaroni)
Dot the butter
Bread crumbs stuff on top

Preheat oven to 425
Bake for 40-50 minutes

Put it all in a casserole dish or something. You don't needa cover it.