Rose Petal Berry Tiramisu

Rose Petal Berry Tiramisu
Ingredients
3 eggs, separated
250g cream cheese, softened and at room temperature.
25 lady fingers
1 bottle 280g boysenberries in syrup, drained, syrup reserved
½ cup sugar
2 tsp brandy
strawberries for garnish
3 roses, petals removed and washed (make sure they are free from pesticides)
4 squares of white chocolate, shaved with a potato peeler

method:
mash up boysenberries and press through a sieve to remove the seeds.
Set aside.
Add 1 tsp brandy to the reserved boysenberry syrup.
Dip lady fingers in syrup and use half to line a 20 cm square pyrex.

Blend egg yolks + sugar in food processor till combined.
Add 1 tsp brandy, vanilla, boysenberries and cream cheese and processed till combined.
Beat egg whites til stiff.
Fold in egg yolk mixture into egg whites gently.
Pour half of the mixture over the first layer of lady fingers.
Add another layer of lady fingers and finish off with the rest of the cheese cream mixture.

Garnish with rose petals, sliced strawberries and shaved white chocolate.
The fragrance of the rose petals really infused into the cake after a few hours in the fridge…and my girlfriends were all quite happy to be eating flowers..



This is one of the best desserts i have ever made...but might benefit from a firmer structure...the cream doesn't set completely...perhaps i can incorporate some whipped cream into future ones..
it is inspired by a similar tiramisu i had at Sarah's restaurant at Leigh Street a few days ago...
the restaurant is really quite interesting...there's no fixed menu and basically the chef goes to the market, selects the choicest produce and cooks whatever catches his fancy..!!! Minimal waste and something different every time you visit!! What a cool concept yar?? It's vegetarian as well but the food is so good that you wouldn't feel like you are missing out at all....my dining companion loved it so much she did a little jig and proclaimed it's the best food she's eaten in her 6 years in Adelaide!!
More reviews can be found here.

Berry Tea Konnyaku Jelly

I love experimenting with konnyaku jelly!
Previously, i'd just follow the instructions on the packet and add the artificial flavouring and colouring and sugar.....but i had a big bottle of apple and currant juice leftover from a dinner once..and thought...maybe i could use it as the base...so i added the konnyaku powder to the juice in a pan and then heated it till boiling and then stirred it for 5 more minutes till the bubbles dissipated...(as per the instructions on the packet..)
that batch turned out really well and the friends who tried it couldn't stop raving.

these ones in the picture are made with a base of cranberry, raspberry and strawberry tea...it's from lipton's herbal infusions range and i put the contents of the tea bags into the jelly as well..as i figured they were just bits of dried fruit and rosehip....the flavour was not as intense as i would have preferred but they're indefinitely better than the artificial stuff..i only used 2 teabags for 950ml of liquid...maybe i shld have used a couple more...and perhaps some fruit to zest it up...

Impossible Pie (coconut custard fruit pie) !!

What’s with the name? Basically you just mix everything together, pour it into a pie dish and bake it.
During the cooking process, the batter ‘magically’ separates into three layers, a caramel-ly crisp coconut top, a custardy middle and a pie crust!
I never thought I'd be so impressed. I just prepared this as a back up dessert for a dinner partly and mostly cos I have all the ingredients in the pantry. This recipe is from Jo Seagar’s ‘You shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble darling…” Jo’s philosophy is minimum effort, maximum effect…which I can readily attest to what this recipe is about!!
I’ve modified the recipe somewhat...halving the sugar, using skim milk, reducing the butter slightly, adding some fruit and serving it in smaller portions.

the first picture shows the pie from a small heart shaped pan...


the second one is the pie in a 23 cm pie dish...i added some mango slices as well but it was a bit thin cos i didn't double the recipe...and the crust is not supposed to be so dark ok?? i left the pie too close to the grill element..


Impossible Pie
Fills a 600ml capacity pie dish or 6X 100ml ramekins / Double all quantities for a 23 cm pie dish
Ingredients:

40 g butter, softened (original recipe: 50g)
¼ cup sugar (original recipe: ½ cup)
¼ cup flour
1 cup skim milk
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence OR 1.5 tbs Baileys
½ cup dessicated coconut
icing sugar to dust (optional)
¼ cup diced fruit of choice (I used boysenberries)
method:
in a food processor, mixed butter and sugar until creamy, add eggs then all other ingredients other than fruit and icing sugar.
Mix until a smooth batter.
Pour into a greased pie dish or ramekins. Add fruit.
Bake at 180 degrees for 1 hour or until the top is golden and crusty.

Nutritional analysis:
580kJ 2.5g protein
hey, it’s not too bad…the nutritional profile is similar to eating two slices of bread….

Painless microwave risotto

This is fantastic!! The microwave gourmet (Babara Krafta, not me..) does it again!! Yummy, quick and easy with no worries about burning the risotto and not having to hover over the stove and constantly stir! Much easier than Jamie Oliver’s creamy mushroom risotto I must say…

By the way, this picture was taken on the second day after reheating, topped with strios of roast chicken…the rice looks sort of gluggy..tastewise it’s still great…when the dish is first ready, the grains of rice are perfectly plump, separate and glistening..so please do not use this picture to compare..

Basic Risotto
Serves 6 as a side dish

Ingredients
30 g butter
2 tbs olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
200g Arborio rice
750 ml / 3 cups stock (stock made up from stock powder is fine)
2 tsp sea salt (less if using a stock cube)
freshly ground black pepper
freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional)

method:
1. heat butter and oil in a 25 cm . 10 inch flan or deep pie dish, uncovered at 100% for 90 secs. Add onions and stir to coat. Cook uncovered at 100% for another 3.5 minute. Add rice and stir to coat. Cook uncovered for 3.5 minute.
2. Stir in stock. Cook uncovered at 100% for 8 minutes. Stir well and cook for 8 minutes.
3. Remove from oven. Let stand, uncovered for 4 minutes to let rice absorb remaining liquid, stirring several times. Stir in salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese if desired.

Nutritional analysis per serve:
1610kJ 7G protein