Handmade Chocolate Bars

Sunshine Pudding

Prepare a 2 litre pudding basin – grease well and double line base with baking paper circles.

1. Combine raisins, sultanas, cherries and Cointreau in a bowl and leave to soak for 30 minutes.
2. Place apricots, apricot nectar, orange juice and rind in a small saucepan and simmer covered for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool and puree.
3. Cream butter and brown sugar in a small bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition.
4. Sift flours into a large bowl, add butter cake crumbs, macadamias, soaked fruit, pureed apricots and butter mixture and mix well to combine. Spoon mixture into the basin and smooth the top. Top with baking paper round.
5. Take a 60cm long piece of baking paper and foil, layer and make a 3cm pleat in the middle of the sheets. Place onto pudding basin and secure with kitchen string.
6. Place a wire rack onto the base of a large saucepan, a third filled with water and bring to the boil. Carefully place pudding onto rack, making sure the water comes about halfway up basin. Cover and simmer for 6 hours, topping up water when needed. Remove from saucepan and stand for 10 minutes before turning out.
7. Serve with cream, custard or ice-cream if desired.

Candied nuts decoration:

1. Place sugar and water in a medium, heavy-based saucepan and stir over low heat until sugar has completely dissolved. Stop stirring, increase heat and bring to boil. Reduce to medium heat and gently boil until the toffee begins to change colour. Do not stir toffee once it has boiled.
2. Working quickly, drop macadamias one at a time into the toffee and toss with a fork to coat, remove and place on a tray lined with baking paper. Repeat with remaining macadamias.
3. Decorate the top of the pudding and serve.

Christmas Slice

Preheat oven 150°C (fan-forced).

1. Line a loaf tin (20cm x 10cm) with baking paper.
2. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir until well combined.
3. Spoon mixture into prepared tin and bake for 40mins. Allow to cool. Dust with icing sugar and slice thinly.

Caramel Walnut Brioche Pudding

Butter both sides of sliced Brioche and layer in greased pan (mine is 8” x 11”).

2.     Sprinkle dried Mixed fruit and Walnuts evenly over bread.

3.     Mix eggs, sugar and vanilla paste until sugar is dissolved,then mix together with Cream and Milk.

4.     Pour egg mix over Brioche and let soak whilst you make your caramel.

5.     In heavy based pan add butter, golden syrup and condensed milk, stir until all melted on low heat. This can then be spooned over Brioche into all gaps, finish by sprinkling more Walnuts and Cinnamon.

6.     Place in oven 165’c fan forced for 35-45 minutes, or until centre is set.

7.     Enjoy

# You may like to soak Mixed Fruit in a little Brandy!

Easter Fruit Loaf

Preheat oven to 180°C

Dough:

1. Sift self raising flour, bi-carb soda, mixed spice and castor sugar into a large bowl. Pour in buttermilk and mix with a butter knife to combine. Tip onto a floured surface and knead for 1 minute. Roll out to a 40cm x 30cm rectangle.
2. Cream butter, sugar and vanilla essence until light and fluffy. Thinly spread creamed butter mix over dough and sprinkle evenly with almond meal. Combine all the fruit in a small bowl and spread on top of the almond meal.
3. Roll into a loaf, place on a greased paper lined oven tray and set aside for 15 minutes to allow dough to rise.
4. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. When cool, ice and sprinkle with toasted flaked almonds.

Icing:

1. Combine sifted icing sugar with boiling water.

Currant & Apple Crumble

Preheat oven to 180°C.

For crumble topping, place flour, cinnamon and butter in a food processor and whiz for 1 minute or until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add brown sugar and pulse to combine.

Place the mixture into a large bowl. Add the whole almonds and macadamias to the food processor, pulse until coarsely chopped, add nuts to the flour mixture to combine ingredients then set aside.

In a separate bowl place apples, currants, caster sugar and stir well to coat.

Tip into a 1.5L baking dish, then scatter over the crumble topping.

Sprinkle the crumble with flaked almonds.

Bake for 45-50 minutes until the crumble is golden and bubbling. Dust with icing sugar, serve with ice cream and enjoy

Christmas Cake Friands (GF)