Homemade Trail Mix

Ingredients:

3 cups mixed seeds and nuts

1/3 cup coconut oil

1/3 maple syrup

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp flaky salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 150°C (convection) or 130°C (fan forced).

2. In a large bowl, mix together the seeds, nuts, coconut oil, maple syrup, cinnamon, flaky salt, and vanilla extract until everything is well coated.

3. Spread the mixture evenly on a lined baking tray.

4. Bake for 30-35 minutes, stirring halfway through, until the mixture is deep golden and fragrant.

5. Once baked, allow the mixture to cool completely before storing it in an airtight container.

Notes:

Flavour combos: adding cayenne pepper to this is also yum and adds a great kick!

Masala Chai-misu

Ingredients:

Masala chai teabags (I used these today, but brewing with tea leaves is EVEN BETTER!)

2 tsp coffee (I used instant ginger coffee I had on hand)

Savoiardi biscuits

300ml thickened cream

150ml mascarpone

2-3 tbsp caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Dusting

Cocoa powder

Cardamom powder

Cinnamon powder

Notes:

This is a freestyle recipe idea! What that means: cook with feeling and intuition. Things might not be exact, but the outcome will be great and delicious, so it’s okay to have extras. You’re creating here!

It starts off with your vessel (glass or dish) of choice. The thing with savoiardi (ladyfinger biscuits) is that they come in big bags anyway, so regardless of what size you make, you’ll always have extra.

Directions:

1. Brew your chai and coffee, then let them cool slightly while you prepare the cream.

2. In a bowl or stand mixer, whip the cream, mascarpone, caster sugar, and vanilla until soft peaks form (it’s so yum!).

3. To assemble: line the base of your glass or dish with a bit of cream. Swiftly dunk each biscuit into the warm coffee chai and place it into the glass/dish (I didn’t do this and the biscuit fell apart 😂). If this happens, don’t worry, just keep going.

4. Repeat the layers until you fill your vessel. Dust with your spiced cocoa powder and pop in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. Making these a day ahead works a treat as the flavors have time to meld.

5. Enjoy!!! 🥰🥰🥰🥰

Chai Porridge

Ingredients:

Porridge Base

500ml (2 cups) brewed chai 1/2 cup oats (Uncle Toby’s Rolled Oat Ancient Grains recommended)

1 tbsp honey

Toppings

2 tbsp peanut butter (smooth preferred)

1 banana, chopped

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp pine nuts

Pinch of flaky salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon powder

Directions:

1. In a small saucepot, on medium heat, gently heat the chai.

2. Once steaming (just about to boil), sprinkle in the oats and stir to combine.

3. Cook for 5 minutes or until oats have thickened and you have a creamy consistency.

4. Meanwhile, in a small pan, melt the butter and toast the pine nuts until they are golden brown.

5. Remove the porridge from heat and decant into bowls.

6. Top each bowl with 1 tbsp peanut butter and half of the chopped banana.

7. Spoon the butter-toasted pine nuts on top, including some of the brown butter for extra flavour.

8. Finish off with a pinch of flaky salt and a sprinkle of cinnamon powder.

Mini Pavs with Vanilla Cream

Ingredients:

Meringue Bases (makes about 12 mini pavs)

4 large egg whites

1 cup caster sugar

1 tsp white vinegar

1 tsp cornflour

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Vanilla Cream (makes approx 800ml)

600ml thickened cream

1/4 cup caster sugar

2 tsp vanilla paste (the good stuff! I like @queenfinefoods)

Optional: spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or cardamom for a spicy touch

Berry Coulis

1 cup mixed berries (fresh or frozen)

2 tbsp caster sugar

1 tbsp lemon juice

Toppings

Pulp of 2 passion fruits

Edible blooms

Grated ruby chocolate (@callebautoz)

Directions:

Meringue Bases

1. Preheat your oven to 120°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. In a clean, dry bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until soft peaks form.

3. Gradually add the caster sugar, a tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is glossy.

4. Gently fold in the white vinegar, cornflour, and vanilla extract.

5. Spoon the meringue mixture onto the prepared baking tray, forming small circles (approx. 7-8cm in diameter) with a slight indentation in the centre.

6. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn off the oven and let the meringues cool completely inside with the door ajar.

Vanilla Cream

1. In a large bowl, combine the thickened cream, caster sugar, and vanilla paste.

2. Whip everything together until soft peaks form. If desired, add spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or cardamom for extra flavour

Berry Coulis

1. In a small saucepan, combine the mixed berries, caster sugar, and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the berries break down and the sauce thickens (about 10-15 minutes).

2. Blend the mixture until smooth, then strain through a fine sieve to remove seeds. Let it cool.

Notes:

Top the Meringues: Spoon the vanilla cream onto the cooled meringue bases. Add the Berry Coulis: Drizzle the berry coulis over the cream. Finish with the passion fruit pulp, edible blooms, and a generous grate of ruby chocolate on top.

The vanilla cream is versatile and can be used in many desserts, cakes, and other treats. Feel free to get creative with your toppings. Seasonal fruits, nuts, or different chocolate varieties can all add unique flavours and textures to your mini pavs. Enjoy your mini pavs at any time of day! 🤗

Choc Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

250g (1 cup) cold butter, cubed (room temp is better but I’ve done this with cold butter and it works fine too, just needs more elbow grease if you aren’t using a mixer)

200g (1 cup) soft brown sugar

125g (½ cup) caster sugar

2 large eggs

450g (3 cups) plain flour

1 teaspoon cornflour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

350-400g (2 cups) chocolate chips + extra for top of cookies - a mix of high quality dark chocolate (70%) + milk chocolate (40%), roughly chopped

Flaky salt, to finish

Notes:

I like to make a double batch and freeze the cookie dough balls, so whenever you want to bake one off, you can.

I have used 1 1/2 caster sugar when I don’t have brown sugar, however the mix of two sugars gives a wonderful ‘not too sweet’ flavour and chewy texture.

Adding nuts or spreads to these cookies also works a treat - options are endless!

Directions:

1. Line a tray with baking paper.

2. In a large mixing bowl, using an electric whisk, stand mixer or wooden spoon, cream together cubed butter, brown sugar, and caster sugar for 4 minutes or until creamy (light pale yellow in colour).

3. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each one.

4. Using a spatula, stir in flour, corn flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just combined to avoid overmixing. Dough should still be chunky and crumbly. Stir in chocolate chips.

5. Separate dough into large balls (2-3 tbsp per ball) and place on the prepared baking tray. Place extra choc chunks on each ball.

6. Now time to mature the cookies: This intensifies the flavour and gives it a great texture. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes or overnight (or however long you can wait! Once frozen, place into a zip lock bag for easy access).

7. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 210°C convection heat/190°C fan-force.

8. Place dough balls 5cm apart on the lined tray and bake for 9-12 minutes or until just golden brown on the edges and set on the top. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with flaky salt and allow to cool for 10 mins on the tray. This allows the cookies to set/firm up as they will still be soft when they come out of the oven. Their cooled texture is soft, chewy and wondrously moorish.