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Posts tagged fruit

Turning fruit-bowl slop into dessert-bowl mmmmmmm

January 4, 2012 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, Sweets & treats · Tagged breakfast, brunch, celebrations, feeding the family, fruit, recipe

A few bit of fruit that have seen better days....

How was your Christmas, did you overindulge? I did. There’s just so much to tempt me, so much that’s ‘special’ and delicious to eat. In fact the days are barely long enough to fit in all of the eating. There are the breakfasts, brunches, lunches, afternoon teas, early drinkies, dinner, dessert and supper. It’s hardcore, trying to find the time to sleep when you’re so busy shoving good tasting stuff down your gob all day.

Anyway, needless to say, I’m feeling a little worse for wear now. I made the mistake of looking in the mirror. In profile my tummy is sticking out further than my boobs, which is a BAD SIGN. So I’m thinking detox and healthier foods. But to be honest, I suffer a bit of emotional trauma if I go from feast to famine too quickly. Far better for me to ease out of the festivities slowly.

Which is perhaps why I found myself in the kitchen this morning dreaming of fruit compotes. They’re perfect; the right mix of fruit freshness with a naughty sweet treat edge. And justifiable at this time of year, when stone fruit is so abundant. I do that thing in the supermarket where I just buy four peaches and four nectarines and four plums and four apricots (for my family of four). But of course I get home and they’re all too hard to eat. And the next day we check eagerly and find them still like rocks. And the next. Finally we forget about them, and after a particularly hot day I find myself with an expensive fruit bowl soup of wrinkly skins and too-soft bits that are starting to mold together.

So really with this dish, I’m not avoiding detox, I’m just being a frugal homemaker, ensuring that I just don’t waste anything. Of course, I wouldn’t serve this on icecream (noooooo, never), just a bowl of vanilla yoghurt is a better choice.

vegie smugglers peach and apricot compote

And abracadabra! Fruit divinity awaits you.

Peach & Apricot compote

2 peaches
3 apricots
¼ cup brown sugar
Juice of 1 orange
8cm lemon peeling
1 cinnamon stick

Cut a cross into the bottoms of the fruit. Pop in a heatproof bowl and pour boiling water over the top. After a minute or so, remove them and peel off the skins. Chop roughly (I like a non-uniform texture).

Place all of the ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. After 5 minutes or so, turn off the heat and leave everything to stew together for a bit.

Serve warm or cold over yoghurt, pancakes, French toast (or icecream). And if you have it, a little drizzle of lime juice on top makes this really zingy and delicious.

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A bit jammy

November 15, 2011 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, Sweets & treats · Tagged celebrations, cooking techniques, fruit, recipe

Scared off by talk of pectin variability and techniques of jar sterilisation, I’ve never been a jam maker. Add to that a couple of preserving disasters in my youth (a large disgustingly mouldy jar of roasted capsicums and 4 litres of rancid preserved lemons), and I’ve been happy enough to grab my jams and chutneys at markets and on election day outside the church hall from kind, elderly ladies.

But the other day on my doorstep, stood my mother, with a kilo of cumquats from her tree and a photocopy of a page from an old microwave-cooking cookbook.

So I’ve given it a go, and am happy to report that it was easy and I’m a bit inspired. I know some of you are vehemently anti-microwave so this recipe is not for you. But for the rest of us, who figure that a few micro-waves in moderation are ok, this recipe is great. Here goes…

Sterilise your jars

Don’t be scared. I followed Sally Wise’s advice from ‘A year in a bottle’, which has been on my shelves for a while (secretly, I’ve been coveting the role of preserve princess). Wash your jars in hot soapy water. Rinse and place on a tray in your oven. Heat to 110C, then turn off and leave for at least 10 minutes. Take the washed lids and simmer in boiling water for 2 minutes (this is where I went wrong with my lemons).

Blitzing the fruit means it cooks quickly and it is peel chunk-free

MAKE THE CITRUS JAM
This recipe is from either a Woman’s Weekly or Family Circle Microwave cookbook – I’m not sure exactly, I only have a photocopy of 1 page).

½ kilo citrus fruit (I used cumquats)
1 ½ cups water
3 cups white sugar

Wash the fruit well, discard any mouldy ones. Cut roughly and remove any seeds. Add the fruit to a food processor (I did two batches in my mini-one) and blitz well.

Place in a large microwave-proof bowl. Add the water and microwave on high for 10 minutes.

Add the sugar and mix well. Cook for 18 minutes more in total – do 3 x 6 minutes and give the mixture a stir each time.

TEST FOR SETTING

This is the bit that always makes me sigh and turn the page in recipe books, but actually it’s easy. Again, Sally Wise’s advice is good – put two teaspoons of jam onto a saucer. Pop into the fridge for a couple of minutes. Run your finger through it – if it wrinkles, it is ready. If it doesn’t, it might need another couple of minutes of cooking.

Leave the jam for a few more minutes to start to cool, then pop into your warm jars. Seal while warm.

You've bothered to make jam - go all the way and give them frilly hats.

DECORATE

If like me, you’ve got an expensive pair of pinking shears that rarely see the light of day, dig them out and make some pretty frilly caps for your jam. It is nearly Christmas after all.

And there you have it. Pretty painless. I’m off to woo my neighbour, Gloria, with a jar. Who will you woo with your uber-housewife homemade? I’ll be back later in the week with a yum recipe that actually uses up some of the jam too. See you then…

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Tra-la-la-la (and other sounds of the suburbs)

September 7, 2011 · Filed under All recipes, News, Sweets & treats · Tagged family, fruit, lunchbox, recipe, treats

Can you hear that tinkling of laughter? The crunching of leaves and the squirting of water? That’s my children out playing in their yard! Truly, it’s probably Miss Fruitarian up a tree in her home made treehouse, just big enough for her two zhu zhu pets, Jilly and Prince Dashington.

Mr Meat & Potatoes is under the house, whacking the piers with chopsticks and calling out ‘CAN YOU HEAR THAT MUM?’, then running around the side to come and check.

I am, of course, in my new north facing, sunny kitchen relishing a bit of sunshine and trying to ignore the fact that each time we upgrade our housing, I somehow end up with a crappier kitchen. This one is even complete with mouldy cupboards that smell like a vague mixture of wet dog, old vase water and forgotten socks. I’ve quickly learnt to hold my breath whenever I need to fetch anything.

Still, I’ve got an oven that cooks evenly (although it smells too) and I’m feeling very domestic and settled. The new school is going well and with all the walking (before we had to drive to school) and outdoor play, both the kids are eating like horses and falling exhausted into bed each night.

So to complete the happy family picture, here’s an apple muffin recipe that can be baked in either mini muffin tins, or patty pans. I’m opting for the patty pans – easier to clean up, and just like a whole batch of muffin tops (the good kind).

vegie smugglers apple and sultana mini muffins

Muffin tops of the delicious kind.

Apple & sultana mini muffins

1¼ cups self-raising flour
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup All-Bran
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ cup sultanas
¾ cup milk
½ cup grapeseed oil
1 egg
1 apple, grated

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line 24 mini-muffin holes with paper cases.
Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl. Add the sugar, All-Bran, cinnamon and sultanas and mix lightly.

Place the milk, oil, egg and apple in another bowl and whisk well.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Fold in until just combined. Divide the mixture evenly between the muffin cases. Bake for 15–18 minutes until golden and springy.

MAKES 24

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In season: apples & snow

July 14, 2011 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, News, Sweets & treats · Tagged cooking techniques, fruit, heirloom recipes, recipe

.... well in Australia, we call this 'snow'....

Last weekend the Vegie Smugglers family had a jaunt out to the country. We had a fantastic time at Orange, which is about 4 hours inland from Sydney. Great drive, great foodie spot, great adventure playground for the kids, and spots of snow up on Mount Canobolas. Well, patches of dirty ice really, but for never-seen-snow kids like mine, it was the ultimate thrill and they were happy to frolic in the sub-zero mud for an hour (I had to retreat to the car with frostbite about 45 minutes in).

We struck gold and happened to be in town on the weekend of the farmer’s market. The produce was fresh, tasty, local, and heavenly. And I couldn’t leave without stopping by one of the little unattended roadside shacks where you pick your box of produce and leave your money in the honesty box. Love it. Funnily enough, you don’t see those boxes too often in the city.

How could I resist!!!

So now we’re eating our way through 7kg of apples. I’ve dug out ‘Lady Hackett’s Household Guide’ and am trawling through the chapter on ‘hot fruit puddings’. Most of them all start with the premise of stewed apples, which they mainly do with heaps of water. Sounds a bit insipid, so I’ve dug out my own stewed apples recipe. And with the final product I’m going to have an experiment this weekend. I like the look of the apple rice meringue. Combine the mashed apples with cooked rice and 2 egg yolks, and then top with the egg whites whipped up with caster sugar. Set in the oven for a few minutes until brown. Yum.

Here I've dropped the apples onto a rice pudding... recipe in the book...

Stewed apples

2 large or 3 small apples, peeled, sliced
2 tbsp water
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp sugar
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground ginger (optional)
2 cloves (optional)
1 tbsp butter

Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Mix well, cover and bring to a simmer. Cook until the fruit is soft (8-10 minutes), stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat. Cool. Discard the cloves (if using).

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A quick clafoutis

April 20, 2011 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, Sweets & treats · Tagged cooking techniques, eggs, fruit, recipe

Right. Easter this weekend, so we need a recipe with eggs. Avoiding all the usual culprits, I thought a clafoutis would be good – a nice opportunity to get one last pleasure from plum season. They’ve been one bright spot in a pretty drab year for summer fruit.

I was photographing this for the new cookbook, but they do sink FAST, meaning that I couldn’t get a good enough shot, so let’s keep this recipe as a WEB EXCLUSIVE. Awesome.

Being lactose intolerant I rarely cook with cream. My body can handle a bit of cheese here and there and I always just substitute soy milk without any dramas, but cream is a challenge and since my last pregnancy my body has evolved and it’s now a total no-go zone. But in the supermarket I saw a lactose-free cream (in the long-life section), and thought this recipe was a good chance to give it a go… so far so good. Combined with a lacteeze and I might be back on my way to dessert heaven!

Doesn't this look gorgeous? But wait, there's more...

Plum Clafoutis

These quantities are for the small dish pictured. Double the mixture for a large, family-sized flan dish

Butter for greasing
3-4 tbsp caster sugar
3 plums, quartered
2 eggs
2 tbsp plain flour
1/3 cup milk (soy is fine)
1/3 cup cream
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 190C.

Grease an oven-proof shallow dish. Sprinkle and teaspoon of the sugar over the base. Place the plum pieces around evenly.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until frothy (a minute or until your arm is too tired to bother any further), add the sugar and keep whisking and combine in the flour, milk and cream. Also pop in the vanilla and zest.

Pour over the plums and bake for 30 minutes or so until golden and firm. Serve with ice cream.

Eggs... cream... more!

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Berry pun headline goes here…

January 21, 2011 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, Sweets & treats · Tagged feeding the family, fruit, recipe

Berry nice? Berry good? Berry yummy? The berry best? The food mags are full of good berry puns at the moment. Which means it’s berry season. You’ll have noticed the prices have plunged and since they grow best in cooler climates, they generally haven’t been flood affected.

And the best bit is that they’re so yum that you don’t have to do anything fancier than plonking them in a bowl and you have a delicious gourmet dessert.

Nice and simple for summer.

Berries & yoghurt

Dollop quality vanilla yoghurt in a bowl. Toss over any mix of berries. Top with mint leaves.

The best way to smuggle… fruit

November 23, 2010 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, Sweets & treats, The best way to smuggle... · Tagged feeding the family, fruit, ideas, kids products, recipe

Yay! Summer on a stick.

We went swimming twice on the weekend, which means that Summer must be close. For the next few months I will constantly be picking up randomly dumped, sodden cossies and towels, I will struggle to get anyone into bed before 8.30pm and any half decent TV show will disappear for the ‘non-ratings’ period – which is a dinosaur concept that the networks should seriously rethink (note to ‘traditional’ media – Youtube has no such hiatus).

Apart from the crap TV, humidity, sticky sunscreen and mosquitos, Summer is so packed full of so many reasons to be happy. Christmas. Sitting on strange men’s knees. Beaches. Swimming. Holidays. Nectarines. Fireworks. Mangos. Peaches. Cherries. Apricots. Plums.

There are however, some strange little children who are not fond of fruit. Do you have one of them? You’re in luck over the next little while – you can hide virtually any fruit if you blitz it and freeze it into an iceblock. Choose whatever is in season and you won’t need any extra sweeteners. Try out a bunch of combinations until your kids are munching away happily.

And to make it irresistable, invest in fun iceblock moulds. Try this swirly one, or here’s a rocket inspired one.

And what’s in the iceblocks pictured above? The yellow one is mango and peach chunks with freshly squeezed orange juice. The white one is blitzed up rockmelon and vanilla yoghurt. For the other two combinations, you’ll have to buy the cookbook – I do have to make a living somehow!

Off to the pool…

The best mother’s day pancakes

May 6, 2010 · Filed under All recipes, News, Sweets & treats · Tagged breakfast, brunch, celebrations, family, food, fruit, kids, mother's day, parenting, recipe, treats

It’s Mother’s Day in Australia this Sunday. Time to ooohh and aaaaahhh over colourful bits of cardboard stuck together and a painted footprint trodden on a paper love heart. Time to dig coins out of my purse to give to Miss Fruitarian to spend on pot pouri at the school Mother’s Day stall.

Luckily this year, things are looking up. Miss Fruitarian has won a prize in the local council’s “my mum’s a star…” competition, which means she and I are off to a local playcentre to collect our mystery prize. I’m hoping for a lovely pamper pack, but might have to settle for a free entry voucher at a local ladies gym.

I asked what she had to do for the entry, and wondered if perhaps she had submitted the portrait she did of me a few weeks back which included every single wrinkle. I looked like a cross between a cabbage patch baby and a zebra. It would win the pity vote for sure.

Apparently it was just a 25 words or less thing, and she wrote that “she gives me big squeezy cuddles”. Which is nice, but considering the amount of time I put into catering for the family I would have hoped for more of an ode to my cooking. When I pursued this line of questioning, she looked at me a bit blankly “But Dad’s the good cook”.

Yes. Here’s why… Sunday mornings at our place are Dad’s tribute to all breakfasts sweet and salty. Just saying. Not complaining. At all. Because here’s a good example of something that Dad whips up quite often. And he does the dishes afterwards too, which means that every Sunday is Mother’s Day at our place….

Mum will really love you if you whip up a couple of these

Oaty Banana Pancakes

3/4 cup oats
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 small banana, mashed
1 tbsp melted butter
Spray oil

Place the oats in a bowl and pour over the milk. Leave them to soak for 10-15 minutes (up to 30 minutes if you have time).
Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl.
Mix the sugar, egg, banana and butter through the oat mixture. Pour this mixture into the flour and mix gently. If you have time, leave the mixture to sit for 20-30 minutes, otherwise it can be used straight away.
Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Spray with oil. Add 1/3 cup amounts to the pan. Turn once bubbles appear and the pancake is golden. Each side takes 2-3 minutes.
Serve them with maple syrup and more fruit – diced rockmelon and strawberries are really fantastic.

Did you try these? How did they taste? I’d love to hear your feedback…

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