Gingerbread has been around for centuries; the gingerbread fair in Paris dates back to the 11th Century. Gingerbread figures were originally made as pigs and later developed into little men. This recipe makes crispy gingerbread biscuits that are perfect for gingerbread shapes. They can stand up to plenty of dunking because of their crispy texture.
Ingredients
2 ½ cups plain flour, sifted
1 tsp baking soda
125g butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup golden syrup
2 tsps ground ginger
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground cloves
Method
Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the golden syrup and sift in the flour, baking soda and spices. Mix to form a smooth dough.
Divide the dough in half and wrap in plastic film, refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or until firm.
Preheat oven to 190oC.
Roll out the dough between sheets of non-stick baking paper to 5mm thickness. Cut out shapes with a gingerbread man cookie cutter. Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
Bake for 8 minutes or until golden. Place on a cake rack, cool then decorate.
The gingerbread biscuits will not change much in colour whilst baking – take care not to burn them!
Cover the sausages with cold water; bring to the boil and simmer about 5 minutes.
Drain, cool, remove skins and cut each into 4 or 5 pieces.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion, garlic and ginger, carrots and potatoes, stirring until the onions are soft. Add the curry powder and cook a minute or two.
Add the tomato paste, chutney, apple sauce, stock and coconut milk. Stir well, then return the sausage chunks to the saucepan.
Bring too the boil then cover and simmer about 45 minutes. Remove the lid and allow to cook about 15 minutes more to reduce the sauce a bit. If you can’t be bothered, mix two tablespoon cornflour (corn starch) with 2 tablespoons water and stir this through to thicken.
1 cup of peas can be added in the last 15 minutes as well.
Season with salt and pepper and serve garnished with copped fresh coriander.
85g sundried tomatoes – dry in a bag (not oil packed)
350g package of whole wheat pasta – I used fettucine
2 teaspoons olive oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
250g grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup sundried tomato pesto
150g baby spinach
Parmesan cheese for topping
Method
Season chicken breasts, if desired (I used salt, pepper, and dried basil) and cook however you prefer. I saute mine in a skillet over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes per side, let rest, then slice.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Add sundried tomatoes and blanch for 2 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spoon, let dry, and thinly slice.
Use the same boiling water to add your pasta and cook according to package directions.
Reserve 1 cup cooking water then drain pasta. While pasta is cooking, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Add garlic and grape tomatoes and sautee until softened, about 5 minutes.
Toss together the pasta, reserved cooking water, pesto, chicken slices, garlic & tomatoes, and sundried tomatoes.
Stir in the spinach so it gets slightly wilted. Season the dish with salt and pepper if desired.
There is a rule when hosting brunch: avoid cooking on the day. Prep these recipes for eggs baked in spinach, salted caramel bread pudding and yoghurt panna cotta in advance, and your Easter weekend will be off to a winning start … For someone who has no belief-based obligation to host an Easter brunch this weekend, I sure have a lot of strong opinions on how to best cook one, and that’s mostly because brunch parties are much more fun than dinner parties. From late morning to midday, we are all bright-eyed and better-rested, our homes are filled with sunlight, the coffee is free-flowing and no matter how long it goes on, even if everyone overstays, you’re still going to have an empty home by dinnertime. My essential rule for hosting brunches is to sleep in, and barely to cook at all on the day. By focusing on recipes that can either be prepped the day before or become better after some time to rest, hosting a brunch becomes almost as luxurious as attending one. My favourite breakfast casserole bakes a dozen eggs in nests of creamed spinach, mushrooms and parmesan that looks, coincidentally, a lot like an Easter basket. It’s also gluten-, grain- and meat-free, so it accommodates all sorts of diets, and I get everything done the night before so all I have to do is crack in some eggs and turn on the oven in the morning. A panna cotta made with Greek yoghurt and finished with walnuts and honey is just a little sweet, but still decadent. You can serve it in wedges or individual cups and you can make it even two days in advance. Finally, the icing on the cake (or, forgive me, the sauce on the pudding) is a stunning upside-down salted caramel bread pudding that’s basically like the lovechild of french toast and a tarte tatin., which you will have no choice but to make for every brunch you ever host after this, because your friends and family will insist. Please, consider yourself warned.
Baked eggs with spinach and mushrooms
Serves 6-12
Ingredients
1kg spinach, washed
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
500g mushrooms, thinly sliced
225g whipping cream
¾ tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp nutmeg, grated (optional)
12 large eggs
6 tbsp parmesan, finely grated
Method
Bring 7mm water to a boil in a large ovenproof frying pan. Add half the spinach and cook, turning, until wilted – about 30 seconds. Add the remaining spinach and wilt. Cook, covered, over a moderately high heat until tender – just 1-2 minutes. Drain and cool under cold running water. Gently squeeze to remove as much liquid as possible, then coarsely chop.
Wipe the pan dry, then melt the butter over a medium-low heat. Cook the onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes, or until softened. Add the mushrooms, raise the heat to medium-high, for about 5 minutes or until softened.
Stir in the cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg (if using), and the chopped spinach and bring back to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat.
When you’re ready to bake, about 30 minutes before serving, heat the oven to 230C/450F/gas mark 8.
Put the spinach mix in a baking dish – or use your pan if ovenproof – and make 12 wells in it. Crack an egg into each. Bake at the top of the oven until the whites are firm and yolks are still runny – 15-30 minutes depending on ovens and baking vessel. It’s better to have to check more often than to let them overcook. It is nearly impossible to get all 12 eggs to cook evenly. The ones in the centre will be more runny; at the edges, they’ll be more firm. But don’t fret. I’ve found that almost all people have an egg preference (more runny vs. more firm) and each egg manages to find the right home. Just ask people their preference as you serve them.)
Sprinkle with salt and pepper and grated parmesan before serving.
Morning bread pudding with salted caramel
Serves 6-10
This recipe is from none other than Food52 co-founder Amanda Hesser. It is an overnight dish, ideally. Set it up before you go to bed and all you have to do when you wake up is bake it and invert it on to a serving dish. The longer it soaks, the more the bread and custard become one, but I think as long as it has an hour to soak, it will be good enough.
Ingredients
170g sugar plus 2 tbsp extra (optional)
6 tbsp unsalted butter
2-3 pinches salt
300-350g brioche loaf or challah bread (cut into 7mm-thick, 8cm-wide slices)
8 large eggs
60g mascarpone, plus more for serving
250ml milk
¼ tsp almond extract
Method
Combine the sugar, butter and salt over a medium heat for 7-10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves and begins to brown. Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir with a spatula so that it browns evenly. You will find that the butter separates from the melting sugar and this is just fine. Your caramel is done when it reaches a copper colour.
Pour over the base of a 2-litre oval gratin/roasting dish, or deep-dish pie pan. Transfer to the fridge until the caramel is cold and solid – about 30 minutes. Once chilled, arrange the bread slices around the dish with the heels in the centre and overlapping slightly.
Whisk together the eggs, 2 tbsp sugar (if using) and the mascarpone until very smooth. Add the milk and almond extract. Pour over the bread; saturate all of it. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill overnight. If your bread seems too high in the vessel to get a good soak, you can weight it with a plate in the fridge.
Take your dish from the fridge 1 hour before you want to bake it. Set the oven to 190C. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until moist, but not wet in the centre.
Run a knife around the edge of the dish, to loosen. Place a serving plate over the top of the dish and flip. Serve, cutting it into wedges at the table and spooning a healthy dollop of mascarpone on to each plate.
Yoghurt panna cotta with honey and walnuts
As far as panna cottas go, this is on the soft side but will still slice or hold form. Serves 7-8
Ingredients
Flavourless oil, such as sunflower
4 tbsp water
2 ½ tsp plain gelatin (or vegetarian equivalent)
460g Greek yoghurt
475ml milk or whipping cream (or a mix of the two)
50-100g granulated sugar
Juice of ½ a lemon
Honey, to serve
A big handful of walnuts, toasted,cooled and coarsely chopped
Method
If you plan to unmould the panna cotta, coat a 25cm round cake pan or smaller dessert cups with a little oil.
Put the water in a small bowl. Stir in the gelatin and set aside until it has softened – about 15 minutes.
Whisk together all of the yoghurt and 250ml of the milk, cream or mixture thereof. Bring the remaining milk or cream and sugar to a simmer. Stir in the water-gelatin mixture (it will dissolve immediately) and remove from heat. Whisk this mixture into the yoghurt mixture, then stir in the lemon juice at the end.
Pour the mixture into the cake pan or smaller cups, then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours for small cups and up to 8 for a large pan. It’s best to do this the night before you need it, to be safe.
To unmould the cake pan, fill a larger baking dish with 3cm boiling water. Dip the pan in it for 10 seconds, then flip it out on to a flat, round plate. (A curved one will cause the panna cotta to appear sunken in the middle.)To unmold smaller dishes, bring a small saucepan of water to a simmer and dip the bottom of a small panna cotta cup in one for five seconds, then invert it on to a plate. Repeat with remaining cups.
Right before you serving, sprinkle the panna cotta with walnuts and drizzle it with honey. This needs to be done right before you serve it, because the honey will (unfortunately) become liquidy and roll off if it, should it sit on the panna cotta for too long.
Using your fingertips, rub butter into flour until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
Make a well in the centre. Add 1 cup of milk. Mix with a flat-bladed knife until mixture forms a soft dough, adding more milk if required. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until smooth (don’t knead dough too much or scones will be tough).
Pat dough into a 2cm-thick round. Using a 5cm (diameter) round cutter, cut out 12 rounds. Press dough together and cut out remaining 4 rounds. Place scones onto prepared baking tray, 1cm apart.
Sprinkle tops with a little plain flour.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and well risen.
Vigorously whisk the egg yolks and lemon juice together in a stainless steel bowl and until the mixture is thickened and doubled in volume.
Place the bowl over a saucepan containing barely simmering water (or use a double boiler,) the water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. Continue to whisk rapidly.
Be careful not to let the eggs get too hot or they will scramble.
Slowly drizzle in the melted butter and continue to whisk until the sauce is thickened and doubled in volume.
Remove from heat, whisk in cayenne and salt.
Cover and place in a warm spot until ready to use for the eggs benedict.
If the sauce gets too thick, whisk in a few drops of warm water before serving.
Beat the egg and mix in the corn and seasoning. Stir in the flour and BP sifted together. Stir just enough to mix the ingredients (The mixture should have the consistency of batter. Add a little milk if too thick).
Fry in 1 to 2 tablespoon amounts in hot (as for pan cakes) oiled pan 2 mm of oil till golden then flip and cook the other side. Test for doneness. Nice served with bacon and /or tomato relish.
Potato & Corn Fritters
Lunch for 4 hungry people
Ingredients
1kg potatoes grated
Chopped herbs (optional)
3-4 large eggs
1 cup grated cheese
1 can creamed corn
half an onion, finely chopped (optional)
3 tablespoons of S/R flour
Method
Squeeze any liquid from grated potato and pour off. Place in bowl with chopped herbs.
Add all other ingredients and combine.
Season with the salt and pepper
Heat oil in frying pan. Drop tablespoons of mixture into frying pan flattening slightly to even thickness.
Cook each side 2-3 minutes till golden brown and crisp.
