laurasaur

1 cups wholemeal flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

mix dry ingredients, mix milk and eggs seperately, and combine all with melted butter until just mixed.

cook on a very hot skillet.

It has taken me a long time to get up the courage to make hummus after a disastorus (read: garlicy) experience a few years ago. This however, has brought back my faith in my hummus-making-abilities. It was even worth the walk in the 100% humidity sweltering heat to pick up some garlic. No more $4/tub supermarket hummus for us! Yum.

If you are not used to using dried chickpeas, I guess you could use canned but dried taste so much better and not to mention are so much cheaper. Just soak them overnight in a saucepan with lots of water, rinse and then cook for about an hour or until they are quite mushy. I like to peel my chickpeas before making hummus but I think I may be in the minority with this. Infact next time I will try without peeling .. what a rebel.

2 cups soaked cooked chickpeas
2 garlic cloves, peeled
3/4 cup sesame seed paste
1 lemon or more worth of lemon juice to taste
salt
pepper

blend garlic, sesame and salt. add 1/2 cup water and blend until smooth.
add chickpeas and blend until desired consistency is reached, season to taste with salt and pepper.

1 1/4 cups + 2 tablespoons flour
1/2  teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
112g unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup coconut cream
2 large eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut cream or buttermilk
Pinch of cream of tartar

1/2 tsp of lime curd for each cupcake
cream cheese frosting
1/2 cup shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 180°c / 350°F. Line 12 cupcake tins with papers. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Beat sugar, butter and 1/2 cup coconut cream in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla extract. On low, beat in dry ingredients and then remaining coconut cream, just until blended.

Using clean dry beaters, beat egg whites with pinch of cream of tartar in another large bowl until just stiff . Fold beaten egg whites into batter.

Divide cake batter between pans, fill to 3/4 full. Bake until just golden about 20 minutes. Cool cakes in pans, turn cakes out onto racks and cool completely.

Once cool cut a cone out of the top of each one and fill with Lime curd. Spread cream cheese frosting on top, and roll in shredded coconut to coat.

• 224 g cream cheese, softened
• 58 g butter, softened
• 125 g sifted confectioners’ sugar
• 5 ml vanilla extract

beat butter and cream cheese till creamy then add remaining. makes enough for 24 frosted like icing or 12 piped on.

Best Chocolate Fudge Cocoa Brownies

140g (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (use some good stuff)
1/4 teaspoon salt (skip if using salted butter)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cold large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan.

Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a saucepan over very low heat. Stir until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth and hot so that the sugar has started to dissolve a bit but the butter is not burning. Remove from the heat and set aside until the mixture is just slightly warm.

Stir in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, stirring hard after each one. Add the flour and mix thoroughly for about 1 minute with a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan (the batter will be very thick).

Bake until a toothpick emerges with some moist crumbs sticking to it (but not wet with batter), 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.