Chewy chocolate chunk slice

Epicure chocolate, recipes from 20 years of indulgent ideas, 191pp
edited by Kylie Walker
The Age, John Fairfax Publications, 2006
Cooking on page 32

Melbourne’s main newspaper, The Age, has been publishing recipes for many, many years and this cookbook captures 20 years worth of their chocolate and other indulgent dishes. It also celebrates the 20th birthday of The Age’s weekly food and wine section, Epicure. Looking at the publication date, the section is now into its 31st year.

According to the introduction, the section has shared more than 300 chocolate recipes, but some years were sparse, with only four such recipes published in 1991. This page-32 recipe is by a reader, Linda Nguyen.

Chewy chocolate chunk slice

Ingredients
1 cup self-raising flour
½ cup desiccated coconut
½ cup brown sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
125g butter, melted
1 x 395g tin sweetened condensed milk
100g dark chocolate
100g white chocolate
½ cut chopped nuts such as walnuts, pecans or macadamia nuts (optional)
icing (confectioner’s) sugar, to dust (optional)

Method
Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line the sides of a 22cm square tin or equivalent (e.g. a lamington tin.)

Combine flour, coconut, sugar, cocoa powder, butter and condensed milk in a large bowl and mix well. Spread mixture into the prepared pan.

Roughly chop the dark and white chocolate into chunks and press into base. Sprinkle nuts over the base (if using).

Bake for about 25 minutes. Make sure it’s still a little soft when taking out of the oven (the softer it is, the more fudgy it is!).

Remove from the oven and cool in the pan. Cut into squares. Dust with icing sugar to serve, if desired.

Makes 16 pieces.

How it played out
Oh my, oh my, oh my! What a brilliant recipe for using chocolate.

I followed the recipe as written—good grief, what would I change? Used chopped walnuts, dark chocolate buds that I broke up a bit, and white chocolate chips.

Made this to share with our daughter, Petra, and her cricket team. I cut the slices a little smaller than recommended so the pieces would go further (got about 24 pieces). A bonus was that they had slightly fewer calories (kilojoules). But who’s counting?

Verdict
A complete success and beautifully chewy. I should weave the word ‘decadent’ into the title. Really popular with everyone except the one lass who avoids gluten. Oops sorry, I forgot about that.

Travel
We’ve had plenty of chocolate on our travels in far flung places. But one memorable day in Germany saw us enjoying ice cream AND chocolate in the one place—Münster. Both were sensational.

Sugar pumpkin with lentils and tangy dressing

Fired up vegetarian: no nonsense barbecuing, 184pp.
by Ross Dobson
Murdoch Books, Crows Nest NSW, 2013
Cooking on pages 132–33

I really like Ross Dobson’s flair with food. I first came across his recipe five years ago when we were visiting friends in Victoria. Jan went through her cookbooks to find a likely page-32 option for us to make. That memorable fish dish remains one of my favourites on this blog, and it led me to track down more of Dobson’s books.

In this book, Dobson sets out to prove to us that vegetarian cookery deserves a place on the barbecue. Page 32 is a chapter divider, so I moved on to a great looking option on pages 132–33. Let’s see how good it is.

Sugar pumpkin with lentils and tangy dressing

Ingredients
55 g (2 oz/ 1/4 cup) puy lentils or tiny blue–green lentils
1 sugar or butternut pumpkin (squash), about 2 kg (4 lb 8 oz)
1 tablespoon rice bran oil
1 red onion, finely sliced
1 cup small mint leaves
1 cup flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

Tangy dressing
60 ml (2 fl oz/ 1/4 cup) light olive oil
1 large red chilli, finely sliced
4 garlic cloves, finely sliced
60 ml (2 fl oz/ 1/4 cup) white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Method
To make the dressing, put the olive oil, chilli and garlic in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the chilli and garlic start to sizzle, cook for just a minute or two longer, then remove from the heat. Stir in the vinegar, sugar and salt and mix until dissolved. Pour into a jar or bowl and set aside to infuse.

Put the lentils in a small saucepan and pour in enough water to cover. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils are tender but not mushy—this may take as little as 5 minutes, or up to 20 minutes, depending on the age of your lentils, so check them regularly. Drain well and set aside.

Preheat the barbecue grill to medium.

Cut the pumpkin in half, then scoop out and discard the seeds. Leaving the skin on, cut the pumpkin into wedges no thicker than 2 cm (3/4 inch). Brush the flesh with the rice bran oil and cook on the grill for 10 minutes on each side, or until golden and cooked through, checking regularly to ensure it doesn’t burn too much.

Put the hot pumpkin in a large bowl with the onions, herbs and lentils. Stir the dressing , then pour it over the pumpkin.

Toss gently to combine. Serve warm. Serves 4.

How it played out
I made this during our stay in Flinders Island in March. We were invited for a barbecue at Ken and Carolyn’s and I volunteered to bring a couple of salads. 

I was pleased to find puy lentils in the small supermarket in the main town on Flinders. There was already a large chunk of pumpkin in the fridge where we were staying, as well as a bottle of rice bran oil in the cupboard. While I got all the ingredients ready (I cut the pumpkin in chunk), Poor John and Graeme cleaned up the gas barbecue. Too many of the holes on the main burner were clogged, so they went to work with a safety pin. 🙂

Of course, some of the pumpkin pieces got a bit charred, but that didn’t affect the taste. Served with a wonderful feast of crayfish, whiting, kebabs and more.

Verdict
A really great vegetable salad recipe that I will make often. It looks so colourful and the flavours are wonderful. The dressing adds a lovely tang, and some of us squeezed over a bit of lemon and lime juice to give a bit of extra zing.

Soon I’ll be writing more about Ken and Carolyn and others who provided catering and food service on Flinders Island. That will appear on my travel blog and I’ll add a link when it’s up.

Chilli cornbread

Marie Claire Hot, 400pp.
by Michele Cranston
Murdoch Books Australian, Millers Point NSW, 2005
Cooking on pages 32–33

We love chillies, so buying this book was an absolute no-brainer. It was a secondhand bookstore purchase for a measly $3. It’s loaded with a great variety of recipes with zing, and I’m sure I’ll get a lot of use out if. 

The introduction quite rightly points out that chillies vary widely in hotness, and that the seeds are usually the hottest part. There’s also a reminder to use rubber gloves when chopping chillies so you don’t later do damage to your face and eyes. Can’t remember how many times I’ve rubbed my eyes after handling chillies. 

Pages 32–33 have a bread recipe.

Chilli cornbread

Ingredients
150g (5 1/2 oz/ 1 cup) polenta
125 g (4 1/2 oz/ 1 cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
185 ml (6 fl oz/ 3/4 cup) milk
2 tablespoons plain yoghurt
3 tablespoons olive oil
150 g (5 1/2 oz/ 3/4 cup) corn kernels
1/2 red capsicum (pepper), sliced
1 small red chilli, seeded and chopped
3 teaspoons finely chopped marjoram
5 spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced
75 g (2 1/2 oz/ 1/2 cup) grated mozzarella cheese

Method
Place the polenta, four, baking powder and sugar in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs, milk, yoghurt and oil. Mix well. Add the corn, capsicum, chilli, marjoram and spring onions and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4). Pour the batter into a greased 30 x 20 cm (12 x 8 in) baking tray and top with the grated mozzarella. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the centre.

Cool slightly in the tray, then turn out onto a board. Trim the sides and cut into 4 cm (1 1/2 inch) squares.

How it played out
Corn bread is one of those things you can make blindfolded, although I don’t recommend doing that with this recipe until you’ve chopped the chilli and marjoram, and sliced the capsicum (bell pepper) and spring onions. Oh, and wait until you’ve cut the kernels off the corncob.

That said, I followed the recipe—with my eyes open—using cheddar cheese and dried marjoram because that’s what I had on hand.

I did cool the bread in the pan, but didn’t bother trimming the outer edges because the bread, when baked, had a great shape.

Served with steaks with horseradish sauce, another page-32 recipe coming soon. But seriously, you could serve it with almost anything, even a savoury breakfast.

Verdict
A lovely and colourful bread, but we thought it desperately needed a touch of salt, maybe 1/2 teaspoon, but otherwise it was a great variation on cornbread.

Obviously, you could increase (or reduce) the chilli or use different spices to suit your taste.

Travel
We’re travelling in Europe at the moment. We’re seeing all kinds of street food cuisines (mostly sold from food vans), but nothing has been quite like the street food we found in Cambodia.

Macadamia-crumbed chicken strips

Home cooking, 256pp.
by Valli Little
HarperCollinsPublishers Australia, Sydney, 2012
Cooking on page 32

This is one of many cookbooks put out through a collaboration involving ABC Books (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), NewsLifeMedia and delicious magazines.

The 100+ recipes here are from Valli Little’s home kitchen. She’s a bestselling author and food director for delicious magazine. The book includes family favourites and plenty of ideas for easy entertaining.

It’s almost impossible to go wrong with these dishes unless, of course, you choose to make something calling for ingredients you don’t especially like.

Macadamia-crumbed chicken strips

Ingredients
1/2 cup (75g) macadamias, roughly chopped
2 cups (100g) breadcrumbs
1 cup (150g) plain flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
12 chicken tenderloins or 4 x 170g chicken breast fillets, cut into thirds lengthways
sunflower oil, to deep-fry

Tomato salsa
4 tomatoes, seed removed, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 long green chilli, seeds removed, chopped
1 tbs grated ginger
2 tbs chopped coriander (cilantro), plus extra leaves to serve
juice of 1 lime, plus lime wedges to serve
1/3 cup (80ml) extra virgin olive oil

Method
For the tomato salsa, place all the ingredients in a bowl, season , then toss to combine. Set aside.

Place the macadamias and breadcrumbs in a food processor and whizz to fine crumbs. Transfer to a bowl.

Place the flour in a separate bowl and season. Place the egg in a third bowl.

Dust the chicken first in flour, shaking off the excess, then in the egg and finally in the macadamia crumbs, making sure each piece is well coated. Chill for 20 minutes to firm up.

Preheat the oven to 150°C.

Half-fill a large saucepan or deep-fryer with the oil and heat to 190°C (if you don’t have a kitchen thermometer, a cube of bread dropped into the oil will turn golden after 30 seconds when the oil is hot enough). In batches, deep-fry the crumbed chicken strips for 3–4 minutes until golden and cooked through. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. Transfer to a baking tray and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining chicken.

Serve the chicken strips with the tomato salsa, lime wedges and extra coriander leaves. Serves. 4.

How this played out
This seemed like a perfect recipe for a picnic so I started it in the mid-afternoon to take along for an early evening outing with family and friends. I figured it could be served at room temperature without problem.

As suggested, I made the salsa first so the flavours could meld. I then cut about 1.3 kilograms worth of chicken breast fillets into strips, and followed the recipe to coat the strips in flour, then egg, and finally the crumb mixture. As you can tell I was making a double batch to feed a crowd.

I used panko breadcrumbs because that’s what I had on hand. There was enough of all three coatings to have done 2 kilos (or more) of chicken strips, so keep that in mind if you want to make an even larger batch.

Deep frying always takes longer than you think it will, especially when you’re doing a lot. Each batch of strips took close to 5 minutes to become golden. In the end, we were a little late heading out, but so were the friends (Vicky, Graham and Luke) who were joining us, so that didn’t matter.

Served with lots of salads and a frittata.

As a special treat, Vicky brought along her kayak so my niece, Ellen, and her hubby, Tom, could each have a go on the Molonglo River, which feeds into Canberra’s Lake Burley Griffin.

Verdict
What a great way spend time with friends and family. Lots of delicious food (the chicken was a winner and the crumb mixture gave a nice, but subtle crunch), wonderful company, excellent weather, and the kayak didn’t tip over.

If the chicken pieces are cut a little smaller, I think this recipe would also be good as an appetiser, with the salsa as a dipping sauce.

Travel
Tom and Ellen visited us as part of a 10-week, trip-of-a-lifetime around Southeast Asia. We felt especially blessed they managed to fit Canberra into their travels. They were just ahead of the colourful autumn displays we have in Canberra.

Tom has a go at kayaking on the Molonglo River

Picnicking with Ellen, Tom, Poor John, Vicky and Luke. Graham is missing, off to the right

Biggel balls

Green eggs and ham cookbook, 64pp.
by Georgeanne Brennan
Random House, New York, 2006
Cooking on page 32

I love Dr Seuss books and am especially fond of The Cat in the Hat.

Georgeanne Brenna and Frankie Frankeny, who collaborated on this cookbook, love Dr Seuss too. According to Brennan, the pair read all 44 Dr Seuss books and found they were full of wacky foods for them to bring to life.

They then set about creating and illustrating recipes that were not only Seussian, zany and fun, but also deliciously good and healthy.

There are some great recipe titles, such as River of Nobsk Corn-off-the Cobsk, Noodle-Eating-Poodle Noodles, Pink Yink Ink Drink and, of course, Who-Roast-Beast.

So on to page 32 with a recipe inspired by Dr Seuss’ Sleep Blook.

Biggel balls

Ingredients
5 ounces grated mild cheddar, Monterey Jack, or other cheese
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 tablespoon butter at room temperature,
1 tablespoon minced chives
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 to 1/2 cup poppy or sesame seeds, chopped green pumpkin seeds, chopped pistachios or pecans, or other seeds or nuts

Method
In a food processor, combine the cheese, sour cream, butter, chives and salt, and process until smooth, about 1 minute.

Using your hands, shape the mixture into bite-size balls. Place on a tray lined with aluminium foil and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

Spread the seeds or nuts on a plate and roll the balls in them. 

Makes about 18 balls.

How it played out
We like strong flavours so I used a vintage cheddar, and followed everything else. After refrigerating them for just 30 minutes—I was in a hurry—I rolled them in poppy seeds. Even 1/3 cup of seeds is too much. I needed about 1/4 cup for 17 balls.

Took them to a friend’s house. Served as a snack with wine. Also spread a couple on savoury biscuits (crackers).

Verdict
So very easy to make (a perfect recipe to involve the kids—don’t they always love to get their hands messy) and just as easy to serve. Goes well as an appetiser and would be great popped into a lunch box.

I think I’d prefer them rolled in toasted sesame seeds (or a mixture of sesame and poppy seeds for a prettier appearance) and served with a salsa dipper.

The great thing about this recipe is that you can choose virtually any cheese that will stay firm, and any nuts or seeds that you fancy.

Travel
We’ve just arrived in France and are catching up with people shown in this post from my travel blog.

Tandoori fish with mint relish

Sizzling barbecues, 144pp.
by Reader’s Digest kitchens
Reader’s Digest (Australia), Ultimo NSW, 2012
Cooking on page 32–33

For fuss-free cooking, not much beats a barbecue. That’s why I grabbed this at the recent Lifeline Book Fair.

This cookbook seems to be part of a Reader’s Digest series that covers various cooking styles, cuisines and core ingredients

This volume has a range of recipes for the barbecue hotplate, grill rack, wok burner and rotisserie. I thought it was great that the dishes went beyond meat options to include vegetables and fruit. So what’s on page 32?

Tandoori fish with mint relish

Ingredients
4  white fish fillets (125 g each), such as red snapper, bream or barramundi
2 teaspoons sunflower oil

Marinade
2 tablespoons Greek-style yogurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
pinch cayenne pepper
pinch garam masala
1 clove garlic finely chopped
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger
3 teaspoons paprika
salt and pepper

Mint relish
1/3 cup (20 g) finely chopped fresh mint
1/2 teaspoon seeded and finely chopped fresh green chilli
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon caster sugar

Method
To make the marinade, combine the yogurt, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, garam masala, garlic, ginger and paprika, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Place the fish in a shallow non-metallic dish, rub in the marinade, cover and refrigerate for at least 1½ hours.

To make the mint relish, mix the mint, chilli, garam masala, lemon juice and sugar together and add salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate until required.

Lightly oil a barbecue hotplate or grill rack then preheat to medium–high heat. Remove the fish from the marinade and, using your fingers, gently wipe off any excess marinade.

Cook the fish on the hotplate or grill rack over direct heat for about 5 minutes each side, or until cooked through. Serve hot with the mint relish to one side. Steamed rice or wild rice is a good accompaniment.

How it played out
Readers’ Digest books spell out everything so clearly. I made the marinade first and got the fish—bream purchased on special at the market—in the fridge so the flavours could blend. The mint relish came next. I had mint from the garden and a chilli from a friend’s garden.

Then it was a simple matter of cooking the fish. I did this indoors on a lightly oiled ridged hotplate. I made a bit of a mess of the fillets when I tried to lift them from the hotplate. Maybe a little more oil next time!

Served with a mixed bean salad, another page-32 recipe.

Verdict
The fish on the plate may not have won a photo beauty contest, but the flavour was very nice. That said, there was nothing about it that could be called tandoori, except that it was reddish in colour.

If I want tandoori flavours, I’ll be looking for a different, more spice-laden recipe. If I decide to re-use this one as a tandoori option, I’ll be adding a lot more cayenne and garam masala at the very least, and probably a teaspoon each of ground cumin and coriander. Maybe some turmeric too. Would also increase the chilli and garam masala in the mint relish.

But I readily admit that we’re big-time spice and chilli lovers so if you prefer milder flavourings this should be perfect as is.

Travel
One of the best Indian tandoori dishes I’ve ever had was a dish featuring chunks of paneer that we ordered in a small restaurant called Friends, in the northern Indian town of Mussoorie.

Mixed bean salad

Shortcuts: more than 200 recipes for busy cooks, 184pp.
The Australian Women’s Weekly kitchens
ACP Books, Sydney, 2010
Cooking on page 32

This handy spiral bound book is filled with tips and recipes for cooks who are time-poor and short of inspiration. There are plenty of useful hints like using frozen chopped onions or other pre-cut vegetables and herbs. And other tips such as noting how quick it is to cook couscous and vermicelli. There is also advice on shopping and storage.

Recipes cover soups, salads, barbecues, things to do with bread, stir-fries, roasts, dessert and baking. Many pages have two recipes and each recipe has a photo.

Page 32’s recipes are for salads. I made the first one.

Mixed bean salad

Ingredients
250g (8 ounces) green beans, trimmed
250 g (8ounces) yellow beans, trimmed
60g (2 ounces) butter, chopped
1/3 cup (45g) finely chopped roasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind

Method
Boil, steam or microwave beans until tender; drain. Combine warm beans with remaining ingredients in medium bowl. Serves 4.

How it played out
I chose this recipe because a friend gave me fresh green beans from her garden and I’d already bought yellow beans on special on the market.

I was a little short, having only 190 grams of each kind of bean, so I cut the butter back to 50 grams and slightly reduced the nuts, parsley and lemon rind. I steamed the beans for about 5 minutes.

The hazelnuts were roasted at 135°C (275°F) for about 15 minutes. I let them cool for about 5 minutes and then rubbed them vigorously in a towel to remove the skins.

Served with tandoori fish with mint relish, another page-32 recipe.

Verdict
We almost always get the recommended five serves of veggies every day and this was a great addition to my repertoire.

I rarely have two kinds of beans on hand, so I’ll probably keep this recipe as one I might serve to company. It’s pretty, colourful and a bit out of the ordinary. The nuts add a classy touch. Highly recommended.

Travel
We’ve had some great meals on our travels including a few very special dishes in northern India.