All posts tagged: easy entertaining

Autumn Holidays

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Busy days of late.  Autumn term break starts at the end of this week, and looking forward to time spent with ‘calmer’ days around home, behind the camera, and in the kitchen. Joining forces with my sister to prepare this morning tea: Fresh home made sushi, spring vegetable rolls, deep fried feta stuffed olives sticks, curried egg, honey leg ham and mustard tiered sandwiches, home made curried puffs, cream corn and tuna vol au vents, mascarpone, sun dried tomato and basil pesto pin wheels. Have a great week, Yvette…x

Baked Banana Cheesecake

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How wonderful to share with you my friends, what a lovely day it’s been today. A few rays of Autumn sunshine, although the air is crisp and cool, a little home-style baking,  time to write and hear back from a friend via e-mail and an afternoon ‘happy moment’ with my sister with  coffee and a slice of this baked banana cheesecake. ‘Happy Moment’ a small indulgence while on the Slimmer Mediterranean Diet This baked banana cheesecake, sort of just came together while out shopping, I had decided not to through away those forgotten bananas before not attempting to bake something with them. In my mind, was my favourite banana bread recipe, but while out I picked up one (I have too many!!) of my monthly cooking magazines. And wow! just what I needed a seasonal special on baking with banana’s. Chocolate & Banana French toasties;Banana & Apple friands; Beef vindaloo with coconut & banana sambal; Banoffee trifle; Spiced banana tarte tatin…but I had to use those over ripen banana’s and the recipe to win me …

Christmas Sugar Cheer

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What better way to start the countdown to Christmas than sharing some festive Christmas sugar cheer. Our sugar project; prepare some Christmas treats to see around thirty smiling faces. With so many ‘little’ treats to choose from we short listed some of our favourites, and created a couple of our own. The main feature, a ‘Pandoro’ Christmas Tree. Pandoro (pan d’oro) is a traditional Italian sweet yeast bread most popular around Christmas and New Year . Typically a Veronese (someone or something from Verona, Italy) product, pandoro is traditionally shaped like a frustum with an 8 pointed-star section. Cut crossways it’s shaped like a star, and then layered usually with Chantilly cream, custard or even ice-cream. It is often served dusted with vanilla scented icing sugar made to resemble the snowy peaks of the Italian Alps during Christmas. Ours was filled with fresh whipped cream, cherry syrup jam and cherries (tinned). Decorated on top with fresh cherries and puff pastry reindeers and snowflakes sprinkled with icing sugar. These pastries are based on cream horns, see details here. …

Strawberries my love…

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Seasonal flavours from the earth…. The sweet temptation of fresh strawberries. Nothing fancy involved, just pineapple jelly, blueberries and strawberries, vanilla ice cream sprinkled with white chocolate and coconut mixed topping. Served in parfait glasses. Mix 250ml of boiling water with the jelly, pour into serving glasses, insert fresh chopped strawberries and blueberries and leave to set overnight. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream sprinkled with melted white chocolate buds and shredded coconut. Sweet temptations! Did you know?? Strawberries are the only fruitwith their seeds on the outside! A strawberry treat. Enjoy! Yvette…x

Food of the Gods

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Easter is not far away, and it’s the sweetest time to indulge in some chocolate.Without the guilt factor – right! It’s also a time when I need to get cracking and hatch a few whimsically dressed eggs for festive Easter. We’ve only just said goodbye to Santa and his sleigh and it’s hello, Easter bunny. So it’s time to cook with chocolate. There are so many wonderful recipes that I’ve tried over the years and over the next couple of weeks will try and put together some of my favourites. This weeks recipe doesn’t call for chocolate, but cocoa powder, it’s a new recipe given to me from a friend, a chocolate taste with cocoa powder and maltesers. Maltesers consist of a roughly spherical malt honeycomb centre, surrounded by milk chocolate, and they give this slice a delicate ‘crunch’. Recipe: Malteser Fudge Slice 1 cup Self-Raising Flour 3/4 cup cocoa powder 120g Maltesers 2 eggs, lightly beaten 3/4 cup sugar 2 tablespoons  vegetable oil 2 x 200g tubs light vanilla Fruche *Frùche is a soft, …

Tarts with Zing

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We’re all short of time! The rush of our everyday routines! These little tart’s tick all the boxes, time, flavour, charming and rewarding. Serving them as a little mignon dessert is a great way to end your dinner. Easy Entertaining! So yes, these mignon Lemon Meringue Tarts have zing. Just for your taste buds to tingle with the luscious lemon butter, finished off with creamy meringue, topped with a dollop of double cream and garnished with candied lemon. Zing your taste buds, read on for the recipe…

Iced Centerpiece

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This centerpiece is just fabulous to jazz up your fresh fruit an ice-cream platter.Made from a silicone cake mould,its very simple to make. There are so many designs nowadays available in silicone, your choice is unlimited.Here’s how to prepare your centerpiece. I used this one,a flower and bow design,also as wreath design it has a hole in the middle to serve ice-cream,cream or yoghurt. Fill the mould with water or fruit juice,add fresh small fruits  such as blueberries,strawberries,or pieces of chopped fruit and mint leaves,place on tray and leave overnight in the freezer. When frozen your iced shape is easily removed from the silicone. Fill the platter with assorted fresh fruit,place scooped ice-cream in the center and wow! Easy Entertaining, and a fun Summer Dessert. It’s also a great way to keep your Summer punch iced. Just place the iced mould into you punch bowl and it keeps it cool and iced for the rest of your serving time. Enjoy my friends, and happy entertaining!

Ocean Table Bliss

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The Summer weather is here, and believe me I’m enjoying every minute of it. The ocean blues,fine white beach sand, shells, and candlelight set the mood for a great Summer feeling to a table setting. Easy entertaining… A photo of a ocean scene or a memorable holiday photo,gives that personal touch to an easy conversation – fun holiday memories… I added a glass vase with mixed sized shells… A white linen tea towel makes a great centre table runner, I used as a base white plates, that way any colour scheme can be immerged into the setting. I added blue and white side plates and blue glassware… I had scallop shells saved away,and these are a great ocean theme accessory, place one facedown, and rest the other on top, place a small tea lamp candle inside. These are also great accessories for outside partying, lighting a pathway or around the table at ground level. Using blue napkins…now here’s a personal choice..yes I love white linen “real napkins” but  with the unlimited use of paper napkins with their colors and …