Funfetti Blondies

A blondie is the cake you make when you want cookies and the cookies you have when you can't be bothered rolling them into individual balls. This blondie recipe is a melt and mix wonder and if you skip the icing, you won't even need the beaters.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 100 g butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 1/2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup hundreds and thousands
• 2 tbs hundreds and thousands

• Method

  • STEP 1Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Grease and line a 33cm x 22cm lamington or slice tin.
  • STEP 2In a large mixing bowl combine the sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla. Mix until just combined.
  • STEP 3Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl and mix to combine. Stir in the 1/3 cup of hundreds and thousands.
  • STEP 4Spread the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and cut into squares.
  • STEP 5To make the icing, put the icing sugar and softened butter into a bowl and beat with electric beaters on high, until combined. Add the milk and beat further until the mixture puffs up a bit and is smooth and creamy.
  • STEP 6Ice your blondies with a big slather of buttercream icing and top them off with a generous sprinkle of hundreds and thousands.

  • Notes

    This recipe makes 12 - 16 depending on how big you cut the squares.
    An easier option is to ice the whole blondie before cutting it, but I wanted the individual look of cookies, so I cut first and iced them individually.
    The texture of these is somewhere between a cookie and a slice.

Chocolate Cheesecake Brownie Muffin

If you have trouble deciding between cheesecake and brownies for dessert, why not combine the two into a delicious super dessert!

Ingredients

• 250 g cream cheese
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1/4 cup plain flour

Chocolate Brownie

• 190 g dark chocolate melts
• 160 g butter
• 3/4 cup plain flour
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup brown sugar

Method

• STEP 1Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Grease a 12 hole muffin pan with cooking spray.
• STEP 2Beat the cream cheese and caster sugar until smooth. Stir in the vanilla and beaten eggs, then add the flour. Mix until to smooth and then set aside while you make the chocolate brownie mix.
• STEP 3Put the chocolate melts and butter into a large glass bowl and melt in the microwave in short bursts of 30 seconds until smooth. Add the brown sugar and eggs, mix well. Stir in the flour.
• STEP 4Divide the chocolate brownie mixture across the 12 muffin holes. Spoon the cheesecake mixture over the top. Use a skewer to swirl the mixture in each muffin cup so that it marbles.
• STEP 5Cook for 25 minutes, until they are just set but still gooey in the centre.

• Notes

  These "muffins" don't rise much, so you can fill the muffin cups to the top.
  You don't want these cooked through, they are more delicious with an oozy centre.
  Serve these as a dessert with some double cream and raspberries on the side

Chocolate Avocado Fudge Muffins

These fudge muffins are butter-free and egg-free. There's no compromise on the taste though, substituting avocado for the butter not only makes them healthier, but it gives them a decadent rich texture.

Ingredients

• 2 cups plain flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1 avocado mashed
• 150 g Greek yoghurt
• 1 cup skim milk
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla essence

Method

• STEP 1Preheat oven to 160˚C and line a 12 hole muffin tin with patty cases.
• STEP 2Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa and salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the chocolate chips.
• STEP 3In a second mixing bowl whisk together the mashed avocado and yoghurt until smooth. Then add the milk, oil and vanilla and whisk until it's all combined.
• STEP 4Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
• STEP 5Spoon into prepared muffin tin, filling each cup to about 3/4 full. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes or until a skewer comes out mostly clean and the muffins spring back when touched.

• Notes

  These muffins are best eaten warm, straight out of the oven.
  You can also top them with extra chocolate chips if you want to make them super decadent.
  Make sure you use a slow oven, the mixture is very dense and needs a long, slow cook time.
  These muffins are very fudge-y so the inside of them will still be quite moist even when they are fully cooked.

Baked Cauliflower Tots

Break the weekday potato malaise with another white vegetable the kids might love. These cauliflower tots are a healthy potato gem substitute

Ingredients

• 550 g cauliflower florets
• 1/4 cup onion finely diced
• 1/4 cup parmesan finely grated
• 1/4 cup dried breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp salt and pepper

• Method

  • STEP 1Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
  • STEP 2Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and add the cauliflower florets. Cook for 5 - 10 minutes, until just tender.
  • STEP 3Drain the florets and transfer them to a food processor. Pulse lightly until the florets break down to about the consistency of rice. Tip the florets into a large bowl and add, onion, parmesan cheese, egg and salt and pepper. Mix to combine.
  • STEP 4Use your hands to form 1 - 2 tablespoons of the mixture into 'tot' shapes and place them on the baking tray. (You may need two baking trays, depending on how big you make your tots.) The recipe should yield you about 12 - 16 tots.
  • STEP 5Bake the tots for 20 minutes and then flip them over and bake for a further 10 - 15 minutes. They should be browned and crisped when ready.
  • STEP 6Remove from the oven and serve with hummus and a squeeze of lemon.

  • Notes

    One medium head of cauliflower will easily yield you 550g of florets.
    Make sure you dice your onion really finely for this recipe otherwise your tots will be lumpy and the kids may rebel.
    When pulsing the cauliflower, don't overdo it, if you reduce them to mush, your tots will be too liquid-y and won't hold together.

Cookies house

 Cookies 100 s

Tasty treat for both adults and children.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 1/3 cup plain flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 1/2 cup hundreds and thousands

Method

• STEP 1Preheat oven to 150C. Beat butter and sugars until creamy.
• STEP 2Add egg and vanilla, beat until well combined.
• STEP 3Mix in flour and baking soda until combined, then add hundreds and thousands.
• STEP 4Spray an oven tray with cooking spray.
• STEP 5Knead dough and roll out with a rolling pin to 5mm thick.
• STEP 6Using cookie cutters, cut out cookies in shapes as desired.
• STEP 7Sprinkle with extra hundreds and thousands and bake for 4 minutes.
• STEP 8Flip cookies, then leave in oven for a further 2-3 minutes.
• STEP 9Remove tray and cool on rack.

Notes

For maximum cookies use small cookie cutters. Adjust cooking times for fan forced ovens

Almond and Apricot Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 2/3 cup plain flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup soft butter
• 1 cup brown sugar firmly packed
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 3/4 cup almonds chopped
• 3/4 cup dried apricots chopped

Method

• STEP 1In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar.
• STEP 2Beat in egg and vanilla essence.
• STEP 3In a separate bowl stir in the sifted flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
• STEP 4Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and then add almonds and apricots.
• STEP 5Drop rounded teaspoons of mixture onto a baking tray lined with baking paper.
• STEP 6Bake in a a pre-heated 175C oven for 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown.
• STEP 7Cool on wire racks.

Notes

For a sweeter edge a cup of white chocolate chips can be added.

Sugar-free rockmelon and yoghurt sorbet

Sugar-free rockmelon and yoghurt sorbet

Want guilt-free fro-yo? Give this sugar-free rockmelon and yoghurt sorbet a go.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 rockmelons, chopped, frozen
• 3 overripe bananas, cut into 1cm pieces, frozen
• 1 1/2 cups (420g) thick Greek-style yoghurt

• METHOD

  • 1
    In 3 batches, whiz the rockmelon and banana in a food processor until smooth. With the motor running, gradually add 1/2 cup (140g) yoghurt to each batch until the mixture is smooth and the consistency of gelato. Spoon into a 1.25L (5 cup) container. Serve immediately.

NOTES

-

You will need a food processor.