Hot Cross Bun Goodness...

I've been wanting to make these since Easter last year!  I was inspired by Fig & Cherry's review of the Bron Marshall recipe for Hot Cross Buns.  Today was the day that I finally pulled out the box of white bread mix from the pantry and kneaded my way to hot cross bun bliss.  I made a few little tweaks here and there and adapted it to what i had in my pantry.  I have to say I am mighty impressed with the result!

Hot Cross Buns

• 1¼ cups of warm water
• ½ cup of soft brown sugar
• 3 teaspoons of dry active yeast
• 4 cups of strong white flour
• 2 tablespoons of milk powder
• 2 teaspoons of mixed spice
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• A pinch of ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• ½ cup of dried currants
• ½ cup of saltanas
• 50 grams / 2 oz of butter, melted
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup of extra flour
• 1/3 cup of water

Add the warm water to a medium sized bowl and stir in the brown sugar until dissolved.
Sprinkle the yeast granules over the top and put aside.
Melt the butter and set aside.
In a large bowl or electric mixer sift the flour, milk powder, spices and salt and then add the dried fruits.
When the yeast mix is frothy add to the flour and fruit and pour in the melted butter. Mix to combine and knead by hand or in a mixer with a dough hook for about 8 minutes or until lovely and smooth.
Cover and set aside to at least double in size (2 hours or more).
Cut and shape 15 buns (I like to weigh mine for even sized buns!) and place in a warm lined or greased baking tin.
Place the buns in a warm place to continue rising for at least another hour, a little longer if possible.
Preheat the oven to 200°C, 390°F or gas mark 5½.
Gently brush the tops a little beaten egg wash.
Mix the remaining flour with enough water to make a firm ‘pipe-ible’ paste.
Using a piping bag or a small plastic bag with the point cut off, pipe the paste in lines across the buns to form the crosses.
Bake for 25 minutes, or until cooked through and hollow sounding when tapped on the bottoms.
Makes 16.

Hot cross buns are one of my favourite things.  I may have to make a few batches before we go away at Easter!

Lent Challenge

In addition to my lent challenge of reading the daily lectionary I have also decided to give up my two main addictions: coke and chocolate.  My decision was not based on what is going to benefit my health the most but rather to keep my attention toward the one that truely sustains me.  Its been almost 3 and so far so good.  It so happens though that giving up both may actually have some health benefits (who knew!)

10 Reasons to give up coke

1. The sugar content.  10 teaspoons of sugar in 1 can is A LOT!
2. Diabetes.  Having gone up to the APY lands I  have seen the extent of what the extra calories can do to your health.  If only I took a photo of the fridge in the store with the warnings for diabetics and its redirection towards the diet drinks
3. Kidney and liver damage.  Again another thing I have seen in the APY lands.
4. Dental health.  After visiting the dentist 3 times in one week and getting 1 major filling done, its really enough to put anyone off!  The acid in Coke eats away at tooth enamel
5. Increased risk of osteoporosis.  Again this is related to the acid in Coke.
6. Increased blood pressure.  I have a family history of this.
7. Causes dehydration.  Ever said to yourself on a hot day, 'a Coke would be good about now.'?  Well take note of how thirsty you are next time after you have had one.
8. Causes cell damage.  I have actually heard somewhere that it will make you look older.
9. Toxins contained in the drink. These can be broken down in the body and turned into carcinogens which are cancer causing.
10. Its unethical!  I really dont want to support dodgy work environments, poor pay or slave/child labour.

10 Reasons to give up chocolate

1.  Again with the sugar.  Even dark chocolate contains a fair amount.
2. Palm oil.  Its not good for you and its production means that rainforrests are being culled to make way for the plantations.
3. Many cocoa plantations use slave/child labour to havrvest their crop.  Conditions are dodgy and pay is barely enough to feed the child or their family.
4. Dental health
5. Diabetes.  We have so many processed foods that contribute to this health problem
6. It can become addictive 
7. ....

Ok, so maybe it's not so easy to find really good legitimate reasons to give up chocolate.  I have noticed that i have lost a little weight but that is not enough to make me give up chocolate forever. Infact a lot of what I have been reading is all pro chocolate!  My  advice to those wanting to give up chocolate and coke:  GIve up the Coke, be ethical about chocolate consumption.
What I've given up isn't the focus, it's what I've gained.  Denying myself of the luxuries  keeps me focused on God and His amazing work.  This has been an incredible journey so far.

Coffee Syrup

Tonight my brother and his wife are coming over for tea.  I sat down with Andrew and worked out a rough menu.  Mains: Roast Sammy (the ex-cow from Andrew's parent's place at Mylor) with veggies.  Dessert: a Jamie Oliver Banoffe pie.  We have some beautiful overripe bananas just waiting to be turned into something delicious!
The banoffe pie recipe calls for something called Camp Coffee.  I wasn't real sure what Camp Coffee was but I can imagine that it would be some sort of coffee syrup.  I started thinking about walking down to the local shopping centre to get some Bickford's Coffee Syrup.  Then I started thinking about all the coffee we have in our cupboards.  'Surely I could make my own,' I thought.  So I went to work and found a recipe for Coffee Syrup.  I'll let you know how the banoffe pie turns out later.

Coffee Syrup

3/4 cup Sugar
1 1/2 cup Coffee (I used a generous amount of ground coffee in my plunger)

Heat the coffee and sugar on a medium to high heat until the sugar is dissolved.  Turn the temperature down and simmer until the mixture reduces and becomes syrupy.  Keep checking  to ensure you get the perfect consistency.  How thick you want the syrup is up to you.  For me it was about 25 minutes.  The mixture should yield about 1 cup of syrup.  Store in a clean jar or container in the fridge.  Use in iced coffee, on ice cream or whatever recipe you choose to make that includes a coffee syrup.

Excuse me while I make myself a iced coffee...

Pumpkin Muffins

I've had a butternut pumpkin sitting in the crisper in the fridge for the last two weeks.  I figured it was about time that it found a home in some sort of cooking.  Scrolling through recipes I found a great recipe for pumpkin muffins.  Lots of sweet pumpkin recipes call for canned pumpkin.  Not that I've actually been looking but I have never found canned pumpkin in the stores.  Anyway, not to be defeated by the fact that my pantry doesn't posses canned pumpkin I found a great way to make the most of my beautiful butternut and made my own and more than likely better version of the canned stuff. 

So if you do want to attempt this recipe and don't have the canned pumpkin this is how I made it.

Pumpkin Puree
Set the temperature on you oven to 150 degrees.  Cut 1/2 of a butternut pumpkin into pieces with the skin still attached.  Place pumpkin in a baking tray with 1/4 inch of water.  Bake in the oven for at least and hour or until pumpkin is soft.  Remove skin (this should be easy to do) and puree with a stick mixer.

Another hurdle I came across was that I have never heard of pumpkin pie spice.  I googled again and found the recipe here.  All it involved is cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg.  Most stuff I guess you would find tucked away in your pantry so save yourself the expense!

Ok, now we can get to the fun part.

Pumpkin Muffins.

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (see above link)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sultanas
• 1 cup packed brown sugar (I didn't have any brown sugar so I used 1/2 cup white sugar and 1/3 cup golden syrup)
• 1 cup canned pumpkin (see recipe above)
• 1/3 cup buttermilk (1/3 cup of milk with 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar left for 5 minutes)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 210 degrees. Sift flour and baking soda into a large bowl.  Add dry ingredients and mix until combined.  Make a well in the centre and add the rest of the ingredients and fold in until just combined.  Place into 18 greased muffin tins.  Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Always important to taste test!

Guaranteed you will never look at pumpkins the same way again!

Ash Wednesday- Day 1 of my Lenten challenge

Ash Wednesday.  Its the beginning of what we know as the season of lent.  People give up or take on all sorts of things.  Fasting from food, chocolate, sugar, taking photos, etc.  I have also done this in the past also.  As I sat around yesterday contemplating what I was going to do or give up this Lenten season it suddenly occurred to me that I should look to the Bible for inspiration.  Who would have thought!  It seems a key feature of Lent is the 40 days Jesus spent out in the desert with the devil.  What better way to prepare yourself for that time than to immerse yourself in scripture.  I start my Lenten journey reflecting on the 2012 Lectionary readings.
I sat in the hammock with Bible in hand and open this morning to Isaiah 58:1-12, true fasting.  One particular part of that reading grabbed my attention.

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
   and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
   and break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your food with the hungry
   and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
   and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

I reflected on this quite a bit.  How was I going to take this and use it in a practical way today?  My head immediately went to scenarios I could play out today.  maybe I could go to the local shopping centre and donate to guy standing selling the Big Issue outside Foodland or go for a walk and possibly bump into someone who needs money for a bus ticket.  I put $2 in my pocket with the intention of stepping out of the house and making a small change but the urge to study was too strong and I ended up with my head in books and diaries sorting out my life and readings for the next 6 months.

About 3pm I got a phone call from my brother.  He was stuck on the Southern expressway with a flat tyre and no tools to fix it with.  As any good sister would do I jumped at the chance to 'rescue' my little bro from hours of sitting alongside a busy freeway waiting for someone to stop and help.  There it was, my mission for the day fulfilled.  We changed that tyre together with the speed of the pit crew during the Clipsil 500 in Adelaide.  Although it was a great opportunity to help someone in need I couldn't help but feel I may have cheated the mission.

Fregon Family Photo: Andrew, Tjilpi Robin, Jonathan, Antjala and Judy

It wasn't until I sat down with Andrew over dinner that I now realise how serious I'm prepared to take this.  I got a call when I was half way through my homemade chickpea and zuchini patty from Jonathan, a friend whom I have made a number of trips to the APY lands with.  Tjilpi Robin, the traditional Aboriginal elder we stay with is sick, very sick.  Diabetes, liver problems, ear infections, heart disease run rife in these small, remote Aboriginal townships.  As I sit here typing Tjilpi is being rushed to a hospital in Adelaide with serious liver problems.  According to Jonathan Tjilpi may be on his way out and may only have day left.  I've called the hospital but they are unaware of anyone coming in from the lands and said to call back in an hour when they may know more.  Until then I sit praying and awating more news and  anxious to be with Tjilpi when he gets here.  While people waiting in emergency look on and make their judgements about our Anangu friend, thinking about all the stereotypical things that may have brought him to this point and why they should be treated before him, I can't help but cry when I think about might possibly be.  I don't want him to be alone.  Tonight my heart breaks as I reflect on the reality of this reading.  Please pray with me for Tjilpi and his family.

Amazing Fig and Almond Jam

When I first acquired my container full of figs my first thought went to fig jam.  How can it not?  My mum had always turned her figs into jam and it was always yummy.  Always trying to better my mums amazing cooking I started to think about what it is I liked about hers.  The thick chunky texture was always a winner with me but it was too sweet.  I remembered having breakfast at Nonno and Nonna's house one morning and the delightful taste of the Beerenberg Fig and Almond jam I had on my toast.  It wasn't just the figs I liked.  It was also the citrusy taste it had as well.  It cut through the sweetness just nicely.  I started to do some on line research when I remembered our backpacker friends from Canada raving about Maggie Beer's Burnt Fig Jam.  Taking all the elements I loved about these three ideas I put together my own recipe.  I hope you enjoy.

From this...

Fig Jam

2kg Figs
1kg Dark brown Sugar
Juice from 2 small lemons
Rind from one small lemon
1/3 cup of roasted almonds chopped 

Soak the figs overnight in the sugar.  The next day boil the figs and sugar together.  Break up the figs with a spoon.  Continue to boil for at least an hour until you get the consistency you desire, stirring occasionally (test the consistency by placing a spoonful on a small plate and letting it cool.  Its easy to tell that way how thick it will be when finished).  Add the lemon rind, juice and almonds making sure it passes the taste test as you go.  Place hot jam into hot sterilised jars.

To this!

I suggest serving on crusty bread with a dollop of cream.  Yum!!

A week of bottles and jars

Wow! Its really has been a crazy week!  It started with a very boring last Wednesday.  Too much day time tv over the uni holidays was starting to send me a little crazy.  I decided to go up the the church where my mum runs Friendship Centre, a place where people (mostly over the age of 60) get together mid week, chat, do crafts and eat waay to much afternoon tea.  After being told I wasn't doing my little craft project the right way, being given a 2 hour tutorial on how to do it correctly and eating buttered scones to my hearts content people eventually started to pitter off and go home.  Thankful for my little lesson I said goodbye to my new 70-something friend only to notice someone had dropped off a few bags of plums.  I decided to take a bag of overripe plums home with me. On the way home I dropped into see Nonno and Nonna to give them a hand with preparation for sauce making for Saturday morning.  They had the copper boiler out and were trying to connect up the gas bottle but to no avail.  While Andrew went off gallivanting the suburbs of Adelaide for the right connection, Andrew's beautiful pregnant sister, Claire, other gorgeous sister Joy and I began picking all the ripe figs from the beautiful fig tree canope in Nonno's backyard.  All inspired by the fruit I had just acquired I went home and started to create.  By Friday I had stewed the plums and made burnt fig and almond jam.  Both ended up becoming a screaming success!  I will post my fig jam recipe later.

My Breakfast: Stewed plums with yoghurt and muesli

Figs all ready to go

My friend Sarah has become interested in the authentic Italian sauce making experience and had been invited to come and join in on the process early Saturday morning.  Joy had organised a room full of tomatoes that would be made into sauce and divided among the family members.  4:30am the sauce production began and people made their way over to Nonno and Nonna's house bleary eyed and not so bushy tailed to help out.  Step one, put the tomatoes in the copper.  Step two, put the boiled tomatoes through the mincer to get rid of any seeds and skin.  Step three, repeat step two to get the most from the tomatoes.  Step four, pour the freshly made sauce into long neck bottles.  Step five, cap bottles filled with sauce.  Step six, boil sauce bottles for maximum longevity.  Step seven, take a seat around the table in the back yard while Nonno cooks you sausages at 10:30am.  By 11am it was all over.  Andrew and I went home with 20 bottles of freshly made sauce.  People have asked me if the real Italian sauce making experience is anything like it is in Looking for Alibrandi.  I can't tell you because I haven't seen it but according to Sarah, it is.

Not sure how to flip the photo the right way but you get the idea

It doesn't stop there.  Andrew and I came home that afternoon and decided it was time to bottle our home brew apple cider too! 

Filling up bottles with home brew cider

At the end of the weekend we had 6 jars of fig and almond jam, 1 large container of stewed plums, 20 long necks of sauce and 40 odd bottles of apple cider!
Yes it has been quite a weekend!