Ingredients
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tsp milk
2 tsp light corn syrup
1/4 tsp almond extract
assorted food coloring
Method
1. In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth.
2. Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.
3. Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity.
4. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.
Ingredients
125 g butter, room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups self raising flour
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla paste
Pinch of salt
Icing
3/4 cup icing sugar
5 g butter
1 tbls boiling water
Icing flowers and edible glitter, to decorate
Method
1. Preheat oven to 180⁰C.
2. Grease and flour a 12 x ½ cup capacity cupcake tin.
3. Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat for ten minutes or until smooth.
4. Divide mixture between prepared cake tin and bake for 10-12 minutes or until cakes spring back to the touch.
5. Remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
6. For icing, sieve icing sugar into a bowl, ensuring to remove any lumps.
7. Place butter and boiling water in a small bowl and mix until butter has melted. Pour into icing sugar, a little at a time and stirring well between each addition until icing reached the desired consistency.
8. Spread icing sugar over cupcakes and decorate with icing flowers and edible glitter if desired.
Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Zest of 1 large lemon (outer yellow skin)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
Confectioners (Butter cream) Frosting:
2 cups confectioners sugar (icing or powdered sugar), sifted
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 tbls milk or light cream
Food colors (if desired)
Method
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.
2. In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract.
4. In a separate bowl whisk together the lemon zest, flour, baking powder, and salt.
5. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and milk, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
6. Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter and bake for about 17 - 20 minutes or just until set and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean.
7. Do not over bake or the cupcakes will be dry.
8. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, frost with icing.
9. If you want flat topped cupcakes then slice off the dome of each cupcake, with a sharp knife, before frosting.
10. If you want to pipe the frosting, I like to use a large Wilton 1M star decorating tip.
11. Cupcakes are best eaten the same day they are made, but they can be covered and stored for a few days.
Confectioners (Butter cream) Frosting:
Method
1. In an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter until smooth and well blended.
2. Add the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar.
3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4. Add the milk and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes).
5. Add a little more milk or sugar, if needed.
6. Tint the frosting with desired food color
Makes about 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
1 cup plain whole-milk Yogurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
3 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/2 cup chopped pitted green olives
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added chickpeas, rinsed and drained
6 (6-inch) whole wheat pitas, cut in half
12 Bibb lettuce leaves
6 (1/8-inch-thick) slices tomato, cut in half
Method
1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.
2. Combine chicken and next 5 ingredients (through chickpeas) in a large bowl.
3. Add yogurt mixture to chicken mixture; toss gently to coat.
4. Line each pita half with 1 lettuce leaf and 1 tomato piece.
5. Add 1/2 cup chicken mixture to each pita half.
Ingredients
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup of sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
5 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup whole milk
1 medium apple, peeled and sliced
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220°C. Grease a 9-inch square baking dish with or pie pan with a 4-cup capacity.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk vigorously together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a separate small bowl, mix 1/4 a cup of the sugar with the cinnamon, set aside.
4. Using an mixer, beat the butter with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Beat in the egg until blended. Add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk, beating after each addition until just combined.
5. Pour half of the batter in the bottom of the baking dish. Lay the apple slices on the batter so they just cover the batter (you may have to overlap some slices). Sprinkle the apples with the cinnamon-sugar mixture, reserving a teaspoon or two to sprinkle on top. Spread the rest of the batter over the apples. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon-sugar on top.
6. Bake the cake for 25 minutes or until it is golden brown and apples start to bubble at the edges.
Yield: Serves 6.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
1 large refrigerated bread dough
2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
Cooking spray
1/2 kg tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
50 grm pancetta
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
Method
1. Preheat oven to 220°C.
2. Place dough on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal; press dough into a 12-inch circle. Crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim. Lightly spray surface of dough with cooking spray. Bake at 220° C for 8 minutes. Remove from oven.
3. Arrange tomato slices on paper towels. Cover with additional paper towels; let stand 5 minutes. Sprinkle garlic evenly over surface of dough; sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese evenly over dough. Arrange tomato slices on top of cheese; sprinkle with pepper. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 220° C for 5 minutes.
4. Chop pancetta. Cook pancetta in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp; drain. Sprinkle pancetta over pizza; bake an additional 1 minute or until crust is golden. Sprinkle basil over pizza;
5. let stand 2 minutes. Cut into 6 wedges.
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
½ cup cocoa powder
½ cup hot water
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. Salt
16 tbsp. unsalted butter
1½ cups sugar
2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1¾ tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup sour cream, at room temperature
For the caramel sauce:
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup sugar
1 cup heavy cream
¼ tsp. vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
For the filling:
24 fun-size Snickers bars, chopped
For the frosting:
16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 lb. confectioners’ sugar
1½ tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup caramel sauce
Pinch of coarse salt
2 tbsp. heavy cream
For garnish:
8 fun-size Snickers bars, chopped
Method
1.To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line standard cupcake pans with paper liners. In a small bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder and hot water until smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
2.In a medium saucepan, combine the butter and the sugar over medium heat. Heat, stirring occasionally to combine, until the butter is melted. Remove the mixture from the heat and transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
3.Beat on medium-low speed, 4-5 minutes, until the mixture is cooled. Mix in the eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed and beating well after each addition.
4.Mix in the vanilla and then the cocoa mixture and beat until incorporated. With the mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, beating just until combined.
5.Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, filling them about ¾ of the way full. Bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, rotating the pans halfway through baking. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
6.To make the caramel sauce, melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar begins to foam a bit. It will look and smell like it’s on the verge of burning. Remove from the heat and add the heavy cream. Stir until the sauce is smooth (you may need to return it to the heat to smooth it out), then mix in the vanilla and salt. Let cool. (This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.)
7.To fill the cupcakes, cut a cone out of the center of each cupcake with a paring knife.
8.To make the filling, combine the chopped Snickers bars in a bowl with 1/3-½ cup of the caramel sauce, and mix to coat.
9.Drop a spoonful of the filling mixture into each cupcake.
Frosting
1.Add the butter to the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on medium-high speed 1 minute until smooth. Blend in the confectioners’ sugar until smooth, 1-2 minutes. Mix in the vanilla, caramel sauce and salt until incorporated. (Note: the caramel sauce should be just warm enough that it is workable, but not warm enough to melt the butter in the frosting.)
2.Add the heavy cream and whip on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
3.Transfer the frosting to a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip. Drizzle the frosted cupcakes with additional caramel sauce and garnish with chopped Snickers bars.
Yield: 20 cupcakes
Ingredients
1/2 kg of medium russet potatoes (approx 3 medium potatoes)
1 1/2 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 tsp Dried Thyme
1/4 tsp Dried Oregano
1/8 tsp Dried Rosemary
1/4 tsp of Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp of Old Bay Seasoning
2 tbsp of Parmesan Style Grated Cheese
Method
1. Preheat oven to 425 centrigrade.
2. Wash and cut potatoes into 1/8ths.
3. Place on a cookie sheet that has been lined with foil
4. Mix all of the spices and the parmesan cheese in a small bowl.
5. Place all of the potatoes into a gallon size freezer bag, add olive oil and the parmesan cheese/spice mixture to the bag.
6. Seal the bag and shake until the potatoes are evenly coated.
7. Once thoroughly coated dump onto the prepared cookie sheet and spread in a single layer.
8. Bake 30-45 minutes or until tender and lightly golden brown. (Baking times will vary depending on the amount of fries that you make and the size that you cut them).
Ingredients
- 2 tbls finely chopped fresh
parsley
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/8 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
- 5 tbls plain low-fat
Greek-style yogurt, divided
- 2 tbls fresh lemon juice,
divided
- 3 garlic cloves, minced and
divided
- 1 pound skinless, boneless
chicken breast halves, thinly sliced
- 2 tbls extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 4 (6-inch) pitas, halved
- 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
- 1/2 cup chopped plum tomato
- 1/4 cup pre-chopped red onion
Method
- Combine first 6 ingredients
in a large bowl; stir in 1 tablespoon yogurt, 1 tablespoon juice, and 2
garlic cloves.
- Add chicken; toss to coat.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken
mixture to pan; sauté 6 minutes or until browned and done, stirring
frequently.
- While chicken cooks, combine
remaining 1/4 cup yogurt, remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice, remaining 1
garlic clove, and tahini, stirring well. Spread 1 1/2 teaspoons tahini
mixture inside each pita half; divide chicken evenly among pita halves.
- Fill each pita half with 1
tablespoon cucumber, 1 tablespoon tomato, and 1 1/2 teaspoons onion.
Ingredients
- 2 1/3 cups water
- 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can
vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 3/4 cups uncooked couscous
- 3 cups chopped cooked chicken
breast
- 1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled
feta cheese
- 1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf
parsley
- 2 (6-ounce) jars marinated
artichoke hearts, undrained
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black
pepper
Method
- Combine 2 cups water and
tomatoes in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at high 3 minutes or until
water boils; cover and let stand 10 minutes or until soft. Drain and chop;
set aside.
- Place 1/3 cup water and
vegetable broth in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Stir in couscous.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes or until tender. Remove from
heat; stir in tomatoes and remaining ingredients.
