Spiced Lemon Cake

Preparation 20 Minutes

Cook 45 Minutes

Serves 12-16

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced).

  1.  Place butter and sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer, beat until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until well incorporated.

  2. Fold in the sifted flour, almond meal, baking powder and spice alternately with the sour cream, mixing until well combined. Add lemon juice and rind, mixing well.

  3. Spoon batter into a greased and lined 20cm square cake pan. Sprinkle the pine nuts and currants over the top and bake for 40- 45 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.

  4. For the syrup: Place sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon in a saucepan. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer until reduced, thick and syrupy. Remove cinnamon stick.

  5. Drizzle the syrup evenly over the cake, allowing it to be absorbed. Allow to cool in the pan for 1 hour. Serve cake pieces with a dollop of thick cream or yoghurt.

Ingredients

175g butter, diced and softened

1¼ cups caster sugar

3 extra large eggs

1 ½ cups plain flour

½ cup SUNBEAM Almond Meal

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp mixed spice

½ cup sour cream

¼ cup lemon juice

1 tbsp finely grated lemon rind

¼ cup SUNBEAM Currants

¼ cup SUNBEAM Pine Nuts

Spiced Syrup

¼ cup caster sugar

juice of 1 lemon (approx. 60ml)

1 cinnamon stick

Recipe Collection

Fruit & Nut Hot Cross Truffles

  1. Combine mixed fruit, dates, seed mix,  hazelnuts, coconut, coconut oil and vanilla essence in a food processor and blend until a smooth, thick paste is formed.
  2. Divide into 25 equal portions and roll each  into a ball before flattening slightly.
  3. Pipe melted white chocolate crosses onto  truffles and refrigerate for at least 2 hours  before serving cold.

Ricotta & Walnut Tagliatelle

  1. Place pasta into a large saucepan of boiling water and cook to pack directions, or until al dente. Drain.

  2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large frying pan. Add walnuts and sunflower seeds, tossing regularly until toasted. Add garlic, chilli and lemon rind cooking a further minute.

  3. Add cooked drained pasta to the fryingpan with the ricotta, rocket, vinegar, lemon juice and some additional oil. Season and toss well.

Beef & Apricot Tagine

1. Heat half of the oil in a large frying pan, add onion and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes until tender. Add spices and cook a further minute until fragrant. Add to the pot of a slow cooker.

2. Using the remaining oil, sear beef in batches until well browned. Add to the slow cooker with the stock, tomatoes, cinnamon and orange peel. Cook on low heat for 8 hours.

3. Add the apricots and chickpeas in the last 30 minutes of cooking time. Season well. Serve beef with almonds and coriander and accompany with rice and yoghurt.

*For a faster cooking time, cook on High heat for 4 hours.

Burnt Honey and Macadamia Semifreddo

  1. Line a 2L freezer-safe container with baking paper.
  2. In a small saucepan melt butter. Add honey and cook for a further 2 mins until foamy and golden. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
  3. Combine all eggs, vanilla, sugar and salt in a heatproof bowl.  Bring a saucepan of water to a simmer,  place bowl over the top and constantly beat for 6-8 mins (using an electric beater) or until the mixture is thick and pale. Remove from heat, beat in the burnt honey mixture then allow to cool for 5 mins.
  4. Beat thickened cream to stiff peaks. Gently fold the burnt honey custard, fruit and macadamias through the whipped cream, then spoon into the prepared container and freezer overnight.
  5. Serve generous scoops in waffle cones.

Chocolate Ripple Christmas Wreath

You will need to begin this recipe the night before

Whip the cream to soft peaks. 

Spread a few tablespoons of whipped cream onto the base of a 26-28cm round serving plate.  This will stop your wreath from sliding around.

Dollop 1 flat tbsp of whipped cream onto a biscuit and top with another biscuit.  Repeat until you have a stack of 5 biscuits, the top biscuit should not have any cream on top.

Repeat to make 8 stacks of biscuits.

On the prepared serving plate, arrange the biscuit stacks into a wreath shape.  Spread the entire biscuit wreath with just enough whipped cream to ensure the biscuits are covered on top and around the sides.  Refrigerate overnight, reserving remaining whipped cream.

When ready to serve, spread remaining whipped cream around the wreath.  Decorate with dried fruit and nuts.

Cinnamon Scrolls

Transfer warm milk to the bowl of an electric mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Add in sugar, egg, egg yolk and melted butter. Mix until well combined.  

Stir in flour, salt, currants and sultanas until a dough begins to form. 

Place dough hook on stand mixer and knead dough on medium speed for 8 minutes. Dough should form into a nice ball. 

Transfer dough ball into an oiled bowl and cover with cling film. Allow dough to rise for approximately an hour, or until doubled in size.  

After dough has doubled in size, transfer dough to a well-floured surface and roll out into a 35x22cm rectangle. Spread softened butter over dough. 

In a small bowl, mix brown sugar and cinnamon. Use your hands to sprinkle mixture over the buttered dough followed by the currants, then press into the butter. 

Tightly roll dough up, starting from the shorter side and place seam-side down making sure to seal the edges of the dough as best you can.  

Cut into 1 inch sections with a serrated knife. You should get 9 large pieces. 

Place cinnamon scrolls in a greased 23x23cm baking pan or round 23cm cake pan. Cover with plastic wrap and a warm towel and let rise again for 30-45 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Remove clingwrap and bake for 20-25 minutes or until just slightly golden brown on the edges. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before frosting.

Makes 9 cinnamon scrolls. 

To make the frosting: 

In the bowl using electric mixer, combine cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth, light and fluffy.  

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