I’m so happy because this year, I have received the best Christmas ‘present’ ever! My best friend Paula has been living in Sydney for the past year to study and yesterday she returned home to Melbourne for good. Yay! :) Paula actually doesn’t remember the first time we met, but I can recall being awkwardly alone during the first Year 8 Art lesson of the year and shyly making my way over to her desk and asking if I could sit next to her. Luckily for me, she said yes and we’ve been best friends ever since.

What do I love about Paula? Without writing a thousand-word essay, she’s straightforward and confident, intelligent and composed, very sweet and sensitive, constantly puts others’ needs first and has a heart of absolute gold. Without getting too emotional, she’s always believed in me, always listened to my constant ramblings, always there if I needed a shoulder to cry on, and for that I am truly thankful to have her as my friend.

I’m glad that she has come home at this time of year because it’s the time you spend with the ones you love most. I’ve been looking forward to sharing a plate of biscuits, a few laughs and a cup of peppermint tea with my best friend for so long. Tonight I did and I couldn’t be happier.

Welcome home Paula :)

For Christmas this year, I’ve made a big batch of macadamia shortbread and (crunchy) gingerbread biscuits, wrapped them up in squares of calico and ribbon and gave them to my nearest and dearest to enjoy. To my family, friends and my 15 or so readers, haha, may you all have a wonderful and festive Christmas!

Linda xx

Macadamia Shortbread

(a classic recipe from one my all-time favourite baking books, ‘Homebaked’ by the Australian Women’s Weekly)

250g unsalted butter, softened

110g (½ cup) caster sugar

2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract (or the seeds from 1 vanilla pod)

300g (2 cups) plain flour

75g (½ cup) rice flour

75g (½ cup) finely chopped macadamias

2 tablespoons caster sugar or vanilla sugar, to sprinkle

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C. Line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
2. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla until very light in colour and rather fluffy. Gently fold in the flours and nuts. Using your (clean) hands, press the ingredients together to form a large mass.
3. On a floured bench, gently knead the dough until smooth. This should only take a minute or two.
4. Divide the dough into three portions. Roughly roll each portion between two sheets of non-stick baking paper into a 20cm circle. Press into the shortbread rounds using an upturned loose-bottomed fluted tin, to create three rounds. Cut each round into 12 wedges. Using a spatula, carefully transfer the wedges onto your prepared baking trays (you may need to repeat this process as your trays may not have enough space). Prick each wedge with the tines of a fork and sprinkle with sugar.
5. Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until the shortbread turns a pale straw colour. Allow the wedges to stand on the tray before transferring them to a wire rack to cool.

Gingerbread Biscuits

½ cup caster sugar

½ cup brown sugar

200g unsalted butter, softened

1 egg

¾ cup golden syrup

3 cups (450) plain flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 ½ teaspoons ground ginger

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

½ teaspoons ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoons ground cloves

pinch of pepper

¼ teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
2. Beat butter and sugar until very light in colour and fluffy. Add egg and golden syrup and mix until a lovely, gooey mixture forms.
3. Add flour, baking soda, salt, pepper and spices and mix until just combined. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and gently knead for a minute. Divide the mixture into four portions and place in the fridge for at least an hour (overnight is also fine).
4. Roll each portion between two sheets of baking paper and cut out shapes as desired. Place the cut-outs onto your prepared baking trays (you may need to repeat this process as your trays may not have enough space).
5. Bake for approximately 10 minutes for small biscuits and 12 minutes for larger shapes or until the biscuits turn a lovely golden brown colour. Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you know, I like to bake, and yes, I know sweets and cakes aren’t necessarily the healthiest of food options. I don’t bake everyday and when I do, it’s not like I’m eating it all on my own! I certainly believe that sugar and fats are fine in moderation and I know I don’t indulge too often, but each time I stuff my face with biscuits or cake, I always have this little twinge of guilt in the pit of my stomach.

This cake has lots of butter, lots of sugar, but it has two types of fruit, nuts and yoghurt, so you can eat it without feeling too guilty! :)

Peach Raspberry Almond Yoghurt Cake

150g unsalted butter, softened

100g caster sugar

100g brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 eggs

200g natural yoghurt

100g self raising flour, sifted

150g almond meal

3 small yellow peaches, peeled, diced

150g raspberries

50g flaked almonds

icing sugar, to dust

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C. Grease and line with non-stick baking paper a 23 centimetre springform tin.
2. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla extract until very light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well between additions. Add the yoghurt and mix until just combined. Add the flour and almond meal and lightly mix.
3. Gently fold in the fruit and pour the batter into the prepared tin. Sprinkle with the flaked almonds.
4. Bake for around 30 minutes, cover with foil and bake for a further 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
5. Allow the cake to cool in the tin and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Dust with icing sugar and serve up huge pieces to the ones that you love :)

‘Dulce de leche‘, translated from Spanish, literally means ’sweet of milk’. It is rich, moreish and is literally boiled condensed milk. It can be bought ready-made, but it is ridiculously easy to make: just throw a can or two of condensed milk into a large saucepan of water, bring it to the boil and simmer for a few hours, always making sure the water is topped up and that the cans are fully immersed in water. The time you leave to simmer depends on the consistency you want really. The longer you boil it for, the more viscous it becomes. I find three hours is just about right :)

I thought about making alfajores, a Latin American specialty consisting of two crisp biscuits sandwiched together with dulce de leche, but decided against it as I was in the mood for something extra caramelly (is ‘caramelly’ even a word?!). I pretty much fiddled around for a few days and came up with a recipe using dulce de leche in the biscuit base itself. The biscuits turn out a gorgeous golden colour, crisp on the outside and rather soft in the middle, chewy almost. Sandwiched with a dollop of even more dulce de leche and you can’t get much better than that!

If making your own dulce de leche, boiling up two cans of condensed milk will produce more than you need for the recipe below (one can is not enough). Leftover caramel can be heated up with a touch of cream to create a lovely, runny sauce which is perfect poured over vanilla ice cream. But to be honest, I’m such a caramel fan, I’d happily eat it as it is with a spoon, as you would with a jar of Nutella or peanut butter :) (maybe I could use the leftover dulce de leche and try to make my own Caramello Koalas, haha!)

Double Dulce de Leche Biscuits

200g unsalted butter, softened

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup caster sugar

1.5 cups dulce de leche

2 eggs

2.5 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Prepare a baking tray with non-stick baking paper and set aside.
2. Beat the butter, sugars and three quarters of a cup of the dulce de leche until light and fluffy.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time, ensuring they are well mixed after each addition.
4. Add the sifted flour, baking powder and salt and combine until just combined.
5. Drop a big teaspoonful of batter for each biscuit onto the prepared tray leaving 5 centimetres of space in between them. The mixture is a bit gooey and I found it easier using a piping bag.
6. Bake for approximately 8 – 10 minutes or until a deep golden brown (baking time will ultimately vary depending on the size of your biscuit). Remove from tray and allow to cool on a wire rack.
7. Once cool, spread half of the biscuits with the extra dulce de leche and partner them with a naked biscuit. That’s it! :)

P.S. This recipe makes lots!