I’ll stand to one side while those who are risk-averse stampede back out to the desserts section.

Right then. That now leaves about three of you in the room and what knowing souls you are.

I’ll come right out and tell you that I adore offal – well, certain kinds. I grew up eating the stuff, knowing no better and therefore enjoying it all. I was spared tripe and lamb’s brains and sweetbreads, but the rest of it? Love it.

Ask any chef who puts liver and onions on the menu and they will tell you  it is routinely and joyously ordered by those who now live in an offal-free house and who only ever get the chance to enjoy it when they dine out. Then there are those who are unwilling to eat offal in its normal form – often it’s the look of the whole organ that puts them off – but who love all sorts of pâté and gently pretend not to hear when they find out its core ingredient.

For those who love it, I have some heartening news: Pâté is cheap – livers are just a few dollars a kilo – and very easy to make, especially if you have a blender. But first, you have to make friends with a butcher, or even better a poultry retailer, for without chicken livers – or duck livers – you will not have a dish.

Go on. Try it on warm buttered toast, with some little cornichons (sweet dill pickles to us plebs) or some pickled cherries on the side. Regardless of what the risk-averse may tell you, the view from this detour is worth the journey.

Makes 2 cups

INGREDIENTS

250g chicken or duck livers; 1 onion, finely diced; 1 clove garlic, finely diced; 3 rashers bacon, rind removed and sliced into 1cm strips; 125 g butter; salt and pepper; sprinkle of dried herbs or 1 tsp fresh thyme; 1 tbsp port or brandy; 40g butter, extra, to seal

METHOD

Wash and dry the livers and trim any fat around the liver and traces of gall.

Melt about 30g of butter in a heavy based fry pan over low heat and gently fry the onion and bacon until the onion is soft but not browned.

Add the livers, salt, pepper and herbs and continue to fry gently until the livers are no longer pink on the outside, about 5 – 7 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool a little.

Place mixture in the bowl of a food processor and add remaining butter and port or brandy. Blitz for a couple of minutes to get the mixture as smooth as possible. Using a food processor will result in a coarse texture – a blender will give you a slightly smoother result. For the smoothest consistency of all, push the blended mixture through a sieve.

Spoon the pâté into a small dish and smooth out the top to as flat as possible. Chill.

Melt 40g (2 tablespoons) butter in a small saucepan and allow it to cool for two minutes. Spoon the clarified butter over the top of the pâté, leaving the white milk solids at the bottom of the saucepan. The butter creates a good seal, but the pâté will still need covering with cling wrap. It will keep for up to one week in the fridge. Serve with warm buttered toast.

COST

$6.40 for two generous cups

Muffins. Cakes. Biscuits. Rice bubble bars.

I have imagined this recipe for quite a while now but finally have cracked it. At long last, I have a perfectly good use for white chocolate – when melted, it holds a butterscotch sauce suspended through it and then hardens nicely. You could at this stage use a balloon whisk to flick hot sauce  in a shower of droplets over a sheet of baking (silicone) paper and make your own chips but that seems like far too much effort. Best just to stir it through some rice bubbles and wait impatiently for the bubble bars to set.

If you can.

Makes 12 pieces

INGREDIENTS

100g butter; 1 cup (225g) dark brown sugar; ¾ cup (180ml) thickened cream; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 tsp sea salt; 225g white cooking chocolate buttons; 4 cups rice bubbles (called rice krispies in the UK and US); ¾ cup sultanas OR chopped dried apricots OR chopped dates

METHOD

Line a 30cm square cake tin with baking paper and set aside.

Place the butter in a large saucepan and melt over medium to low heat.  Add the brown sugar and stir continuously until the sugar melts into the butter and starts to dissolve. Add cream, vanilla and sea salt and stir well to thoroughly mix together.  Simmer gently for 2 minutes.

Place white chocolate buttons in a large heat-proof bowl and pour the butterscotch sauce over the top. Stir with a balloon whisk until the chocolate melts into the sauce and is smooth and glossy.

Add the rice bubbles and dried sultanas or apricots and stir well to combine. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and press down firmly with a large spoon. Chill for one hour before using a sharp knife to cut into bars or squares.

Wrap each bar in foil or clingwrap and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. They are suitable to freeze.

COST

$7.00 for 12 pieces

METHOD

If using diced lamb or a larger piece, trim excess fat and cut into 1½ cm cubes. Heat oil in a heavy based frying pan or large saucepan over medium heat and add the oil. Add diced lamb or mince, onions and garlic and saute for 5 to 7 minutes until browned. Add the cumin, coriander seeds, cinnamon, paprika and turmeric and stir for 2 minutes to thoroughly coat the meat, then dry-fry to roast teh spices and release their flavours.

Add the pinenuts, dates or apricots and sour cream, together with one cup of water and stir well to combine. Reduce heat to low, cover with a lid and simmer very gently for one to one and a half hours until the meat is meltingly tender.

Check for seasoning and check the water every now and again – if it becomes too dry and the meat is still not tender, add a little more water. Once this meat filling is made, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days, or freeze it for up to two months.

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a baking sheet with baking paper.

Unfold three sheets of filo and lay them on a benchtop. Cover the remaining pastry with a damp clean tea towel.

Brush one sheet of filo with a little melted butter, then place the second filo sheet on top and brush with butter again. Repeat with third pastry sheet.

Place one quarter of the meat filling in a line at one narrow end of the filo. Fold the long ends over the meat to enclose it, then roll the pastry tightly over the meat to the other end to make a fat sausage roll shape. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat this with the remaining filo pastry and meat filling to make four fat pies.

If you want 8 thinner pies, simply cut the triple stack of filo in half across the width and fill with a thin spoonful of meat and roll them up as before.

Brush the pies with beaten egg. bake for 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden and crispy. Serve with steamed rice and green vegetables on the side.

COST

$15.65 for four people

It was another year before we talked, introduced through mutual friends, while his mate did his best to chat up my girlfriend.

It was another year after that before we went on a date. A few months later, we were back at the scene of that first smile, in the western Blue Mountains in an old country pub, chilled through with Autumn evening air, laughing at the silliness of his jokes. I have a photo of us somewhere. I was twenty-five years younger, blonde streaks through my hair, Jenny Koo style knitted sweater on, eyes bright with vodka.

We met because we loved to go camping at the same spot. We continued to meet at intermittent long weekends throughout the year, each of us in our separate camping spots, him near the river, me with my pals up on a hill, each of us with welcoming camp fires and the odd spare stool for extra bods to sit on.

Even then I had a cast iron fry pan and was not afraid to use it. Perhaps it was the vodka, it was almost certainly the smile, but I decided, in a fit of madness, to make some banana pancakes. It was autumn, getting chilly, the fire was dying a little and it was very dark. So of course I knew my pancakes would be perfect.

I made the crêpe batter in the only large bowl I could find,  a 1 litre ice cream container, then set the pan to cook the crepes. Actually, despite burning the first one, the next few came out really well, while I expertly circled the frypan to avoid the camp fire smoke as it blew across my eyes. I perched them on an old chipped enamelled camping plate while I made the sauce. Yes, I was making an orange and coffee sauce in a fry pan on a smokey camp fire in the dark. As you do when you see a winning smile in the wilds of the Blue Mountains.

I made the sauce. I added the banana slices. It came together beautifully. I looked around for some bowls to dole them out. We could smell it. Our mouths were watering.

There were no bowls. No plates except for the one enamelled chipped plate. Having used the rest for the barbecued steak, we were now plate-less. There was no way I was going to head down the hill to the river in the pitch dark to gather some freezing water for some washing up in the Blue Mountains. Was I crazy? I could kill myself tripping over a twig and ruin my Jenny Koo-esque jumper.

Don’t worry, he said, I’ll use this. He held out the lid to the ice cream container from earlier in the evening. Oh well, it’s camping after all. Needs must. It’s hardly restaurant fare is it? We’re roughing it after all.

So he’s eating perfect crêpes with a delicious runny sauce and bananas are floating dangerously towards the edges of his plate and eventually it happens and as he presses on one side of his plate with a fork, the plate buckles and the remains of his dessert tilts into the fire, smooring the flames. As the fire hisses and the smoke becomes perfumed with sugar and booze, he turns to me and says, “You’re a great cook, but geez you’re a messy camper”.

And then he smiled just for me and lit up my world once and for all.

It’s Pancake Tuesday today. Use it to rock someone’s world. Camping accessories optional. Want to make pancakes? Try these recipes:

Basics – How to make crepes

Crepes with bananas and orange sauce

Lemon chiffon crepes

Chocolate crepes with two minute berry sauce

With a rather ordinary purplish skin, there’s nothing to really set it apart from it’s fair-skinned cousins, but once the flesh is laid bare, the real joy begins. Blood plums have a rich, intense flavour and reliably turn the kitchen into a murder-scene once the bright red flesh is cut.

Of course, you can make this terrine with any dark-fleshed plums – the darker, the better – but do buy blood plums if you see them.

This terrine has been in my repertoire for years and years and every now and again I make the effort to re-create it. It sounds like a fiendishly difficult dessert to make but as with all these things it relies on just one or two tricks. Tilting the terrine pan to one side against the side of the fridge (or nestled into some ice cubes) gives a startling geometric look, and being fearless when working with gelatine will bring you all sorts of compliments from your guests.

And as for your guests, do share this with your friends whenever you make it. It’s a big dessert and demands you be generous.

Makes a 26cm terrine, enough for 12 slices

INGREDIENTS

Custard Cream:1½ cups (375ml) pre-packaged custard; 1 -2 cups (250-500ml) milk; ½ cup (125ml) runny cream

Terrine: 1 kg blood plums; ½ cup dry white wine or watered-down apple juice; ½ cup caster sugar; a strip of lemon rind, about 7-8cm in length and 1 cm wide; a strip of orange rind, about 7-8 cm in length and 1 cm wide; 12 leaves gold-strength gelatine OR 3 tbsp powdered gelatine; 50ml water

METHOD

Custard Cream: Mix prepared custard and cream together and add 1 cup of milk. Stir well.  Add enough extra milk to make a runny custard, the consistency of runny cream. Set aside.

Terrine: Place plums in a saucepan big enough to fit them all snugly. Add wine, caster sugar, lemon and orange rinds and half a cup of water and put a lid on the saucepan.

Heat over a low heat and poach the plums for 10 minutes until the skins are peeling off and the flesh is tender but not breaking down. You may have to turn the plums over halfway through the poaching to cook them evenly. Keep the lid on the saucepan and leave it to one side to cool the fruit completely.

Remove the citrus rinds from the poaching liquid. Place a sieve over a large jug and drain the plums. Reserve the poaching syrup.

Skin the plums, remove the stones and cut up the flesh into rough chunks. Place the flesh and as much of the plum juices as you can into a blender and purée the flesh to as smooth as possible. Pour a quarter of the syrup into the flesh to loosen it up a little.

Mix 1 cup of the custard cream and 1 cup of purée together. Reserve the rest of the custard cream, purée and the remaining syrup.

If using gelatine leaves: Place 6 leaves of gelatine into a bowl of cold tap water and let them soften over the next ten minutes. When they are very soft and jelly-like, lift them out and squeeze out excess water, then dissolve them in 2 tablespoons of boiling water.

If using powdered gelatine: Mix 1 ½ tbsp of powdered gelatine in 2 tablespoons of boiling water and stir well until dissolved.

Add prepared gelatine to the cream and purée mixture and stir well.

Rinse out a 26-28cm terrine or loaf tin with cold water. Place the terrine in a small roasting or gratin dish and tip ice cubes all around it. Tilt the mould so that it rests on a 45° angle. Carefully pour the purée into the tilted terrine to half fill it. Place the roasting dish in the fridge without changing the angle of the mould, to set for two hours.

To make the jelly, measure out the purée and add enough poaching syrup to make two cups. Stir well. Prepare and dissolve the remaining gelatine according to the instructions above and add to the fruit purée.

Remove the mould from the fridge and stand the terrine flat on the bench top. Gently pour in the jelly so that it fills the other half of the terrine and evens out at the top to a flat surface. Return the terrine to the fridge and chill, standing it flat on the shelf, for another two hours or until set.

To unmold the terrine, gently place the terrine in a sink of hot tap water for about 15 seconds. Place a flat plate over the terrine, then invert the lot onto the plate and let it slide out.  Serve, cut into 12 generous slices, with a couple of spoonfuls of remaining custard cream or a scoop of good vanilla ice-cream on the side.

COST

$9.00 – 15.00 for at least 8 people, depending on type of gelatine used

I fell in with a number of bloggers from Western Australia over a wonderful evening meal (okay, okay, and several subsequent drinks at a pub) and we shared tips, ideas, experiencesand the sheer joy of creative endeavour. We left with promises to contribute to each other’s blogs and to keep in touch.

So without further ado, please welcome the gorgeous Perth-based KC, teacher by day, incredibly inventive cook and writer by night. Her blog, The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader is a riot of fresh produce, a commitment to keeping it real and the odd cocktail thrown in. She also happens to be the only female blogger I’ve met who’s taller than me, so all things considered she’s very impressive! Please drop by and say hello, I know she’d love to hear from you.

KC has kindly adapted one of her favourite recipes for the budget minded and admitted that keeping her recipes to a budget was a great challenge, but I think she’s hit all the right notes. This takes in the stars of autumn seasonal vegetables – mushrooms  and sweet potatoes – and then punches it up with some big flavours like tabasco and tequila. Yep, tequila.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

Mayonnaise: ½ cup mayonnaise; 1 tsp Tabasco OR ½ tsp chilli powder; A squeeze of lemon juice; 2 tsp tequila (optional)

Balsamic Glaze: 1 tbsp brown sugar; 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar; salt and pepper to taste

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into “chips”; 4 large field mushrooms, stems/stalks removed; a handful of rocket (about 100g); 200g haloumi, cut into slices about 1 cm thick; 1 red onion, thinly sliced; 4 round bread rolls; 1 large tomato, thinly sliced

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 180°C.

Grease 2 baking trays and lay your sweet potato chips out on these. Salt liberally. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until cooked through and starting to brown on the edges.

While this is happening, prepare the rest of your meal…

Mix half of the mayonnaise and tabasco together, set aside.

Mix the rest of the mayo with the lemon juice and tequila, if using, then set aside.

Mix the sugar, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and a dash of salt and pepper together in a little bowl with a fork.

Cook your onions over a medium heat with some olive oil in a frying pan. Set aside.

Brush the mushrooms on both sides with this glaze, then grill the mushrooms on a barbecue or a grill over a medium heat, about 4 minutes on each side (until cooked through). Set aside while you grill your haloumi.

Grill your haloumi in a frying pan over a medium heat until golden on both sides (about 2 mins on each side.) If you are a multitasking genius you could fry your mushrooms, onions and haloumi at the same time!

Then stack your burger together. I like to stack in this order: Mushroom on the bottom, haloumi slices on mushroom, onion on haloumi, then tomato and rocket.

Spread the Tabasco Mayo on the top bun, then place it on the top of your rocket. Et voilà: grilled haloumi burger.

Serve with the sweet potato chips and lemon tequila mayo on the side. For a lunch option, just make the burgers, they’re pretty filling as is.

COST

$14.00 for four hearty serves

Take cheese on toast for example. Ridiculously easy. Very popular. So easy to make-over. And all before you get out of your PJs.

The spicy red sauce in this recipe can be made the day before and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Simply warm it through in the microwave or in a small saucepan for half a minute, just to take the chill out of it rather than re-heating it to boiling point.

Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

Spicy Red Sauce: 3 large tomatoes; pinch cayenne or chilli powder; 6 – 8 basil leaves, finely shredded; 1 tbsp water

Toasts: 8 slices homestyle bread, such as vienna, pane di casa or sourdough; 1 x 250g block haloumi cheese or feta, drained; 2 tbsp olive oil; 6 mint leaves, finely shredded; 1 large or 2 medium avocado

METHOD

Spicy Red Sauce: Bring a small saucepan of water to a simmer. Cut a small cross in the skin of the bottom of each tomato and place in the barely simmering water for 30 seconds. Remove the tomatoes and place them in a bowl of very cold water to cool. Using a small knife, peel the skin off the tomatoes from the base then roughly chop.

Place the roughly chopped tomato in a small saucepan with the cayenne, shredded basil leaves, water and a pinch of salt. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes until the tomato softens. Remove from heat, and pulse to a smooth sauce with a stick blender or push the sauce through a sieve. Cool a little.

Toasts: Place the bread slices on a tray under the grill or in an oven and toast on both sides until golden brown. Keep warm.

Heat a fry-pan over a medium heat and heat the oil. Slice the haloumi widthways into 5 mm slices. Fry slices of cheese, in batches, for about three minutes on each side until golden brown and crisp. Remove from oil and drain on kitchen paper. Scatter the mint shreds into the cheesy oil and quickly fry, stirring well, for about 30 seconds until heated through and crispy. Remove at once.

To Serve: Spread avocado over each toast and top with haloumi, a scattering of mint leaves and a spoonful of spicy sauce.

COST

$9.50 for four people

Now, a decent joint of beef is not cheap and never will be, so it’s worth taking your time when cooking this dinner. Breathe out. Breathe in again. You can do this!

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Surely, this must be the perfect counter-point to anyone who declares that British cuisine is awful:  Justifiably, it speaks for itself and brooks no argument. Crucially, you must buy the right cut of beef for this meal. Some cuts such as bolar, silverside or rump will not do. For mine it has to be a prime rib roast, with well marbled meat. At $20+ a kilo, it’s not a cheap meal, but it will always be a memorable one, especially if you pay attention to the yorkshire pudding and horseradish cream that accompanies this meal.

There is really only one thing to remember when roasting beef and that is to remove it from a hot oven earlier than you would otherwise think to, and to rest it well before carving. That’s all you have to do to ensure succulent, tender and juicy meat. You can finish off the yorkshire puddings and gravy while the meat rests. This meal will easily serve six and can easily stretch to eight – it’s simply more potatoes and gravy.

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

1 rib roast of about 1 ½ to 2 kilos (I buy a joint that has two ribs); 3 tbsp oil; salt and pepper to taste; 125ml water; 6-8 medium potatoes, scrubbed and peeled.

Yorkshire Puddings: 1 ½ cups self-raising flour; 2 eggs; ¾ cup water;  ¾ cup milk; salt and pepper to taste; ¾ cup oil or pan drippings

Horseradish cream: 150g sour cream; 2-3 tbsps grated fresh horseradish OR 3 tbsp jarred horseradish (not horseradish cream); 1 tbsp chopped parsley; sea salt to taste

METHOD

Preheat oven to 200°C

Horseradish cream: Mix all ingredients together and set aside until serving, or refrigerate.

Yorkshire Pudding: In a large bowl, sift flour and a pinch of salt. Make a well in the centre and add eggs. Using a balloon whisk beat in the egg, gently pulling in the flour from the edges of the bowl. Add the combined water and milk half a cupful at a time and whisk well after each addition. Continue whisking until all liquid is incorporated and batter is smooth.  Pour into a jug and leave to stand one hour while the meat finishes cooking.

Roast Beef: Brush meat with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place meat on a rack in a roasting dish. Bake in centre of oven for 15 minutes.

Halve or quarter potatoes and place them in a large saucepan. Cover with water, add a teaspoon of table salt and bring to the boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then remove from heat and drain.

After the meat has been cooking for 15 minutes, add the drained potatoes to roasting dish, baste with oil or pan drippings. Reduce the oven temperature to 190°C. Roast meat in oven for a further 20 minutes per 500g for meat cooked to medium,  or 25 minutes per 500g for medium to well done.

Remove meat from pan and place on baking tray or carving platter. Cover with two sheets of foil and keep warm, either in a warming tray, or near the stove top for the next 30 minutes while you finish preparing the meal.

Roast potatoes for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes until crispy on outside and soft and fluffy in the middle. Keep warm.

Yorkshire pudding: When meat and potatoes have been removed from the oven, turn the heat up to 220°C. Place a tablespoon of oil or pan drippings into the bottom of  a 12-cup muffin tray or 6-cup Texas muffin tray and place in oven for 10 minutes until the oil is smoking hot.

Remove the muffin tray and carefully pour batter into each of the cups. The batter will immediately bubble and sizzle and start to rise. Return the pan to the oven as quickly as possible and leave to finish cooking while you carve the meat.

Carve the beef across the grain to make sure each slice is as tender and juicy as possible. Carve the meat and place on a warmed meat platter, with the potatoes piled around.

Remove yorkshire puddings from the oven and carefully pull out of each muffin cup – a pair of tongs usually works well.

Serve with horseradish cream, a well-flavoured gravy made from the pan juices and some steamed vegetables.

COST:

$25.00 for six to eight people

But then there were a lot of people who have difficulties with icing a cake.

Here is a reprise of a post I wrote over a year ago which introduces you to the basics of soft icing. Another post on fondant icing will come up in the next couple of days.

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Called frosting in the US, butter cream is the soft creamy icing that we use on cupcakes, sponge cakes, children’s birthday cakes and all sorts of other cake decorations. A butter icing will keep a cake softer and fresher for longer.

Because it is made with butter rather than fresh cream it tends to last longer. It also holds its shape when you whip it or pipe it. It is the simplest style of icing to make and very popular with children who find it easier to spread. One basic recipe can be flavoured or coloured in a myriad of ways, from chocolate to vanilla, from blood-red or vivid purple to delicate baby pink. It can be the same flavour as the cake, or a different complementary flavour that adds another dimension to the overall taste. It truly makes the plainest sponge look as if it’s had a million dollar makeover.

All soft icings are similar in style – they need icing sugar (called confectioners’ sugar in the US), and some form of fat, such as butter. In a chocolate ganache, that fat is cream, but the results are the same – a sweet transformative layer. If at all possible, avoid margarine. Butter helps to set or stiffen the cream, giving a better shape if it’s moulded or piped. Margarine doesn’t have that ability.

There are lots of different ways of making a butter cream, but as with these things, it’s best to have a  basic recipe to start with. There are many around the world who declare that Magnolia Bakery in New York has the best cupcakes and in turn, the best butter cream. The girls from Sex and The City certainly thought so. Here then, is the world-famous recipe.

All the following recipes will make enough for 12 small cupcakes or will completely cover one 20cm sponge cake (top and sides).

Magnolia Bakery Butter Cream Icing

INGREDIENTS

125g butter, softened at room temperature; 3 – 4 cups icing sugar mixture; ¼ cup milk; 1 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl.  Add in 2 cups sugar, then the milk and vanilla. Using electric beaters set on medium speed, beat for about 3-5 minutes or until smooth, fluffy and creamy.

Gradually add the remaining sugar, ½ cup at a time, beating well (about 2 minutes) after each addition, until the icing is thick enough for good spreading consistency (you may not need all the sugar).

If desired, add a few drops of food colouring and mix thoroughly. Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.

Chocolate Butter Cream Icing

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup cocoa (for a light colour and flavour) OR ½ cup (medium) OR ¾ cup (dark); 125g butter, softened; 3 – 4 cups icing sugar mixture; ¼ cup milk; 1 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD

In small bowl, stir together desired amount of cocoa and icing sugar.

In small mixer bowl, beat butter with ½ cup of cocoa mixture with electric beaters for 3 minutes until soft and fluffy. Add remaining cocoa mixture with milk, beating to spreading consistency. Blend in vanilla extract.

Cream Cheese Icing

Perfect for carrot cake, banana cake, zucchini bread or coffee and walnut loaf, this is a creamed icing that should be a part of your repertoire. Usually it is flavoured with a little lemon or orange icing, but it could also be flavoured with coffee extract or coconut essence.

INGREDIENTS

200g cream cheese, softened; 1 tsp vanilla extract OR 1 tsp of finely grated lemon or orange rind OR ½-1 tsp of flavoured extract of your choosing; 1 ¾ cups icing sugar mixture, sifted; 1 tbsp lemon or orange juice or milk (optional)

METHOD

Mix the cream cheese in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until softened. Add extract or zest and icing sugar and beat well until softened. If the mixture is too stiff, loosen a little with citrus juice or a little milk to make a spreading consistency.

Chocolate Ganache

People love ganache but think that because it’s so lovely it must be difficult to make. Nothing could be further from the truth. Ganache is so simple it will become a favourite topping for birthday cakes for years to come. It’s perfect – if over-the-top – for mud cakes, chocolate cakes and anything with strawberries or raspberries in it. It goes without saying you can make this with white chocolate if you want.

INGREDIENTS

200g dark cooking chocolate; 1 cup thickened cream; 2 tbsp liqueur (optional)

METHOD

Break up chocolate into small pieces and place in a large heat-proof bowl. Place cream in a saucepan and heat over a medium heat until it comes to a simmer. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate pieces.

Using a whisk, beat the cream and chocolate together for a minute or two until the cream becomes dark, glossy and thick. There should be no chocolate lumps left. Place the bowl in the fridge and chill for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, you can use the cool but still runny ganache to coat cupcakes or cakes with a smooth glazed finish. The longer you leave it in the fridge, the thicker the ganache becomes.

To whip the ganache to make a deliciously rich tasting chocolate cream, chill for a further 10 minutes, then pour into a chilled bowl. Whisk with electric beaters on high until the ganache thickens and softens and becomes the consistency of chocolate cream.

If you simply want a thick ganache, chill for at least 30 minutes. The cream will become thick but should still be spreadable, a bit like butter.

To coat the cake, place a palette knife in a jug of boiling hot water. Wipe dry, then use the warmed palette knife to spread the ganache over the tops and sides of the cake. From time to time, clean the palette knife and reheat in the jug of water. Place the cake back in the fridge to firm up the ganache before decorating.

Right now is just such a time to take advantage of the beautiful late-summer crop now coming into our shops.

Pears on the other hand are just starting their season and I picked up the first batch at the markets last week. Bartlett or Williams pears are ideal for this recipe, but you could just as easily use Buerre Bosc pears later in the year.

A variation of rhubarb and apple, this slice is comforting, a little lip-smacking thanks to the tartness of rhubarb and great either as a dessert – warm, with cream – or as a lunch box addition.

Makes a 17 x 27cm slice

INGREDIENTS

1 bunch rhubarb (about eight stalks, leaves removed); 4 large firm pears; ¼ cup brown sugar; ¼ cup orange juice, or the juice from 1 orange; 2 tsp vanilla extract; 200g butter, softened; ¾ cup caster sugar; 2 eggs; 2 cups plain flour; 1 cup rolled oats

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180°C.  Line a large ovenproof dish with baking paper so that it overlaps the sides a little.

Trim top and bottom of rhubarb and cut stalks into 10cm lengths. Peel, quarter and core pears. Cut quarters in half again. Spread rhubarb stalks and pears over bottom of prepared baking dish, sprinkle with brown sugar, orange juice and vanilla and bake for 25-30 minutes until tender and golden. Set aside to cool, juices and all. Keep the oven on.

Line base and sides of a 17 x 27 cm slice tin with baking paper.

Using electric beaters, cream the butter and caster sugar in a bowl until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well. Stir in 1 ½ cups of flour and all the oats until combined.

Spread half of the oat mixture over base of prepared tin. Spread cooked rhubarb and pears over oat mixture.

Add remaining flour to the oat mixture and stir well to combine. Crumble over rhubarb mixture and bake for 35-40 minutes until the crumble top is golden and crunchy.

Remove from oven and stand on a wire rack to cool. Cut into pieces to serve.

COST

$5.80 for 16 large pieces