Last Minute Christmas Cake

Self-Saucing Chocolate Pudding

1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Lightly grease a 4 cup capacity baking dish.
2. Combine flour, almond meal, sugar and cocoa in a large mixing bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs and milk. Add to the dry ingredients with the raisins and mix well. Spoon into baking dish.
4. For the sauce, combine the water, sugar and cocoa. Pour over the batter in the baking dish and bake for 30-35 minutes until cake is cooked. Serve warm with ice-cream, cream or custard.

Spiced Lamb in Lettuce Cups

1. Heat oil in a large frying pan. Add onion and garlic, cooking for several minutes until tender. Add spices, cooking a further minute. Increase heat and add lamb mince, cooking until well browned.
2. Add dates, pomegranate molasses, herbs and pinenuts. Mix well and season to taste.
3. Spoon mixture between prepared lettuce cups. Drizzle with yoghurt and lemon juice, finishing with additional mint leaves.

Fruit & Nut Biscotti

Heat oven to 180 degrees C. Generously butter or spray bottom and sides of loaf pan with cooking spray.

In large bowl, stir flour, nuts, sultanas, flax seeds, brown sugar, salt and baking soda. Stir in milk. Pour batter evenly into prepared pan.

Bake 50 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely in pan on cooling rack. Transfer to freezer and freeze at least 1 hour, but no more than 3 hours.

Heat oven to 200 degrees c. Remove loaf from pan. Use sharp serrated knife to cut loaf into 1/8-inch thick slices. Arrange slices in single layer on rimmed baking sheets. Bake 15 minutes until golden brown, flipping halfway through baking. Transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.

Store at room temperature in airtight container up to 1 week.

Eggnog Bundt Cakes

1. For eggnog, combine milk, cream, spices and vanilla in a small saucepan. Heat gently. Meanwhile whisk together the yolk and sugar. Gradually add warmed milk mixture to egg until all combined. Return to saucepan and continue cooking over a low heat until hot and slightly thickened. Remove, stir in rum and set aside to cool. Reserve 1 tablespoon for icing.
2. Pre-heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Lightly grease 6 x 1 cup capacity bundt tins and place onto a flat baking tray.
3. Combine currants and rum. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until creamy and pale. Add eggs one at a time until well combined. Add dry ingredients and eggnog alternately until well combined and mixture is smooth. Spoon between prepared pans and bake for 25 minutes until golden and cooked through. Turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
4. Mix together the icing sugar, reserved eggnog, water and some additional nutmeg if you prefer. Drizzle over cooled bundt cakes and finish with fresh cherries.

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.

Banana & Walnut Muffins