Crunchies...

...A firm South African favourite



Crunchies were a staple for me growing up. Everybody I knew who sold sweets out of their homes or at schools sold crunchies. Everytime I make these I am overwhelmed by feelings of nostalgia. I remember begging my mother every day after school for 20c for popcorn and 50c for my daily crunchie fix. Wow... it seems like centuries ago and yet I still love these.


I remember the first day I made these for my niece and nephew(aged 6 and 7). I told them that I was going to make them crunchies. They looked at me with strange expressions on their faces and the exclaimed that they didn't know what crunchies are. They waited eagerly as I made and baked the crunchies and after one bite the first comment out their mouths were, "Aunty Diane we've had these before but we didn't know what they were called". I'm guessing that with all the food restrictions being placed on schools these days they aren't so popular with the kids anymore. Since making these for them they always request them when I call or visit them.

Crunchies, whether they are in the form of biscuits (cookies) or bars are made with the same basic ingredients which include oats, coconut and golden syrup. To spice them up you could also add your favourite chopped dried fruits and/or nuts or even chocolate chips. My favourite additions are dried apricots, pecan nuts or chocolate chips. I always love to drizzle them with melted chocolate after they have been cut and cooled in the pan.

2 cups (500ml) flour
2 cup (500ml) oats
2 cup (500ml) coconut
1 cup (250ml) sugar
250 g butter or margarine
4 tablespoons golden syrup (add about 2 tablespoons more if you like your crunchies a little chewy)
2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

1. Mix all the dry ingredients for the crunchies, except for the baking soda in a large bowl.
   
2. Heat the butter and syrup in a saucepan until all the butter has melted.
   
3. Add the bicarb (baking soda) and stir until frothy.
   
4. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix well.
   
5. Spread the mixture evenly into a medium sized greased baking pan, about 10 by 8 inches.
   
6. Press firmly with your hands or the the back of a spoon to press until the top of the
   mixture is smooth and even.
   
7. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 350dgrees F until golden brown
   
8. Cut into squares while still warm and leave in pan to cool completely.
   
9. Store in an airtight containter.

No Chocolate Please

I promised a few of my friends last week that I will put together a black forest cake. I love black forest cake but for some reason I've never made one before. I wasn't going to take any shortcuts with this one and was going to include every bit of goodness that a black forest cake is known for right down to kirsch soaked cherries. When I got home though it was another story. You see people have been complaining that everything thing I make is chocolate. Well can I help it....I'm so in love with chocolate.

I decided to go ahead and make something else which is not related to chocolate. I found myself lost since I wasn't really sure what other dessert I would possibly enjoy that doesn't include chocolate. Then I remembered a special treat that I used to enjoy with my boyfriend a few years ago (he doesn't care much for chocolate desserts or any other dessert for that matter), carrot and pecan nut muffins. So carrot cake it was.

I have yet to buy a good carrot cake. I'm not saying that nobody out there sells good carrot cake, I'm just saying that all the ones I've bought in the past were very disappointing. If they weren't dry then they didn't have carrots....I mean they probably used half a carrot for an entire cake. If it's go next to no carrots can you still call it carrot cake. So I decided that I will stick to buying carrot and pecan nut muffins from Woolies (Woolworths) cause they are utterly delicious.

A few years ago I made my first carrot cake and to my surprise it turned out quite good. I didn't enjoy grating the carrots though. I think this is the reason why I've always avoided making carrot cake. This time around I actually enjoyed grating the carrots because I knew that a lot of people were counting on me to give them good dessert.

I used a recipe that I found all those years ago when I made my first carrot cake. It's a lovely cake, moist and spicy, just the way I like carrot cake to be. If you enjoy carrot cake then you will enjoy this one. I got so many good compliments for this cake. I was even surprised when my neighbours little daughter came up to me and said, "Aunty Diane you are talented". I mean I didn't even think that kids enjoy carrot cake...I didn't. Well that been said I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

This cake needs to be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container because of the cream cheese. It tastes even better the next day if it will last that long.


Carrot Cake

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 pinch salt
3 cups grated carrots (pack the carrots tightly into the cup when measuring)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)


Icing:

113g (1/4 lb) butter
226g (8 ounces) cream cheese
450g (1 lb) powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Mix together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a bowl.
   
2. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the oil, eggs and vanilla. Using a wooden spoon, mix until all the ingredients are combined.
   
3. Mix in the carrots and chopped nuts
   
4. Pour into 3 23cm (9-inch) cake pans.
   
5. Bake in a preheated oven at 175°C (350°F) for 35 minutes.

Icing:

1. Mix butter and cream cheese together until smooth, then add sugar a little at a time.
   
2. Beat until smooth.

You can decorated the finished cake with chopped nuts if you like (use the same nuts that you used in the cake).

Viva la Macaron

Yesterday when I got home from work I had a strong desire to be in the kitchen baking up something good and since I didn't have to cook any supper I had all the time I needed. I opened the cupboard and the first two things I saw was a packet of chopped almonds and a bag of icing sugar. A light went off in my head and suddently I had a vision of macarons.

I have yet to try these sweet treats mostly because I've always been afraid that it would be too complicated for a humble home baker like myself. Reading all the comments people had about making macarons at home didn't help much either. I've always hated been a failure and so whenever possible I try to avoid things which I think have a failure possibility.

I thought what the heck I'll just do it for fun (I can be a perfectionist sometimes and take what I do very seriously). I had 20 minutes before the final episode of Ugly Betty season 2 starts. I though I'd get it into the oven before that.

I had printed a few recipes over the past couple of weeks but I knew exactly which one I was going to try. I sprung off the couch to retrieve David Lebovitz recipe for chocolate macarons from my recipe collection. I chose his because it didn't seem too complicated and also because he tried and tested his recipe so many times. To my dismay I couldn't find my book and then I remembered that I had left it at my sister-in-law's place 2 weekends ago (I baked up a storm that weekend). Then it struck me I'll just get it over the internet. I hate reading from screens when I'm baking and prefer to have a hard copy but I really wanted to make these so I went ahead. I looked at the time...and oh my gosh....it was now 5 minutes before Ugly Betty started.

No time to get the spice grinder which was stored too far out of reach (see I don't have a food processor and I needed it to grind the almonds) so I reached for the hand blender. I knew that it wasn't going to do a very good job of grinding the almonds but I thought what the heck I'm doing this for fun. You will notice the little almond specks on the surface of my macarons.

So I ground the almonds, measured the icing sugar and cocoa, seperated the eggs and then I noticed the tv auto tuning to Ugly Betty - I wasn't about to miss the final episode of a show I so love. I left everything as is and then went into the lounge to watch the final (sob sob) episode (sob sob) of Ugly Betty. This show always gets me in stitches which is sought of therapeutic for me especially on stressful days. My boyfriend doesn't get it and just shakes his head everytime I crack up laughing.

During the first ad break I sifted the ground almonds, cocoa and icing sugar together in a bowl.

During the second ad break I started to whip the eggs but I had just enough time to add the sugar before whipping the egg whites to stiff peaks.

During the third ad break I continued to whip the egg whites and then I thought to hell with that I'm going to watch Ugly Betty in peace so I left everything standing until the credits went up.

I went back into the kitchen - with a heavy heart - to finish my macarons. I whipped the egg whites again cause I wasn't really satisfied with them. Folding in the dry ingredients got me nervous cause I read on David's blog that one wrong fold or one fold too many and then it's all over.

I folded in the dry ingredients carefully, quickly piped little mounds on my baking tray (as you can see by looking at my macarons) which I covered with greaseproof paper and popped them into the oven. I didn't leave them to stand because it was getting late.

I went back to the oven 13 minutes later to take a peek, and what do you know, I saw "feet". I would have sung "I believe I can fly" right there and then but it was late and people were about to sleep so I just gave a quiet shrill, closed the oven door and did a little happy dance. The "feet" on my macarons weren't as well developed as the one's I've seen on the macarons from the great pastry chefs (can Pierre Herme please stand up), but for a first time I would say that I got off on the right foot (no pun intended).

Pierre Hermé's Macaron Chocolat

Some of my dear friends might be wondering what "feet" are and why I was so excited to see them. The "feet" are the "lacy" edges you see around the base of macarons. The reason I was so excited was that I've read so many times of how people couldn't get it right the first time.

When the macarons were done I removed them from the oven and left them to cool to room temperature. I had a "should I shouldn't I" moment when it came to removing the macarons from the parchment paper. See I've read how people have had some trouble removing their macarons from the paper. I couldn't decide whether I should remove them with a spatula while they were still warm or if I should just leave them to cool and remove them later. I left them to cool for about 20 minutes and then what do you know.....it's time for happy dance number 2. I managed to peel off the macarons (carefully and slowly) without any trouble.

I wasn't going to do the prune filling the recipe called for and I didn't have any chocolate for the ganache so I decided to make chocolate buttercream. I threw (by now I'm tired with no energy for measuring) some butter, milk, cocoa and icing sugar into a bowl and whisked to a nice creamy buttercream. Surprisingly the buttercream turned out great and I regreted not paying attention to the amounts of ingredients I added. It wasn't too sweet, was the right consistency and had just the right level of richness and chocolate goodness. I thougjht I was going to be disappointed with using buttercream instead of the ganache but I found it quite satisfying.

I can't wait to try these again using the proper techniques called for in the recipe. I know I'm going to be making these again and again so don't frown when you see too many posts on macarons.

Dessert Express

Last night I was really wishing for a good treat but being so tired from all the late nights I decided that I need a quick and easy treat that I could enjoy. I thought about what I was wishing for.....something with nuts and chocolate. I thought about making the pecan slices that my sister-in-law goes gaga over but then that would require too much effort for my tired self. I then thought about a nice chocolate souffle but then that would require too much mixing and whipping.

Then out of the blues I thought I'd make my chocolate "rocks" or as many might call it nut clusters. I love nuts and I love chocolate so this would be the perfect treat requiring almost no time or effort (and just one bowl to wash....yay).

The next part was deciding which nuts and which chocolate. I love pecans, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts....and so on and so on...but I was looking for just the right taste that would satisfy my deep desire for something sweet. How could I forget....macadamia nuts. I love macadamia nuts because of their smooth, sweet and rich flavour. And did you know that they are healthy for you too.

Originally from Australia these exotic nuts are considered delicacies around the world and whats more they go well with just about anything...chocolate, ice-cream, cookies, nougat (I love Sally Williams)....I can go on and on.

I didn't need a recipe for this simple treat just some chocolate and nuts. I settled for milk chocolate. I normally would buy the best chocolate I can get my hands on for a treat like this but I wasn't really fussy so I grabbed the first things my eyes settled on. I used 100g each of chocolate and nuts.

I just melted the chocolate, threw in the nuts and dropped spoonfuls onto greaseproof paper to set into the beautiful nut clusters that I love. You could add glace ginger or chopped glace cherries if you'd like to add a little more pizazz.

While I sat down to enjoy my treat I started thinking about other quick and easy treats that I've enjoyed over the years. Treats that I hadn't thought about until that very moment. I will share with you a few of my favourites. All of these don't really require a recipe just some eye-balling.

Chocolate covered marshmallow sandwiches

Oh boy I remember making these growing up. The perfect treat that is oh so kid friendly. I don't know if you can get Marie biscuits around the world but if you can't get your hands on any you can use any plain biscuits or digestive biscuits.

What you need:

Marie biscuits

Marshmallows

Chocolate (melted - the amount you need would depend on how many sandwiches you making)

What you need to do:

Place a marshmallow between 2 biscuits. Place in the microwave for just a few seconds. Dip in the marshmallow sandwich into the melted chocolate. You can dip the entire sandwich or just the top half. Refrigerate until chocolate sets.

See quick, easy and delicious

Quick and Easy chocolate mousse

What you need:

1 package chocolate instant pudding
1 can condensed milk
1 cup cold water
1 cup fresh cream or whipping cream

What you need to do:

Whip the cream until stiff and fluffy and set aside. If you using fresh cream you need to take care cause too much whipping and the cream will curdle.

In a separate bowl mix together the pudding, condensed milk and water.

Fold in whipped cream.

Spoon into serving dishes and leave in fridge to set.


No bake cake

What you need:

1 package Tennis biscuits 0r digestive biscuits
1 vanilla instant pudding
Milk

Topping:

200g chocolate (chopped)
100g fresh cream

Prepare the topping first:

Microwave chocolate in and cream together in a microwave for a few minutes until chocolate has melted. After 30 seconds remove the bowl and stir. You would need to do this until the chocolate has melted. Remove from microwave and stir to incorporate the milk and chocolate. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Prepare the pudding according to the package directions.

Place a single layer of biscuits at the bottom of a deep tray or Pyrex dish. Spread half of the prepared pudding over the biscuits. Top the pudding with another single layer of biscuits

Pour the chocolate topping over the biscuits.

Leave in fridge to set.

I have lots more but I'll leave you with these for now. All of these desserts take less than 30 minutes to prepare so they are excellent for when you are short on time (and energy). I haven't made these recently so I don't have any pictures but will post some soon. Watch this space for more quick and easy delicious desserts.

Extra, Extra this just in....

I am thrilled to share with you that my niece Azariah was born at 3.78kgs today just a few short hours ago. I can't wait to meet her.

Congratulations to Timothy and Kristy. Enjoy your new bundle of joy.

Lot's of love to you Azariah and may you have a beautiful life.

xoxoxo