Coconut and Date Cake

This is one of my Grandmothers cakes. The cake and biscuit tin were constantly being replenished.
As a farmers wife, it would have been a favourite at the afternoon tea table.  All those hard working, hungry men who start work so early in the morning and seem to need continual feeding.  It is a good staple family or lunch box, morning or afternoon tea cake. Nothing fancy and very simple.
I do find with a lot of these old fashioned cakes they don't rise a lot. That is fine because they do taste delicious.
It is best eaten warm with butter. If you choose to make it a little more fancy, then ice it with a thick buttery lemon or orange icing. It is also delicious with a really thick creamy yoghurt.

1 1/2 cup chopped dates
125 grams butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups self raising flour
1/4 teaspoon bicarb soda
1/2 cup desiccated coconut

Chop the dates in half and place 1 cup in a bowl with the sugar. Leave 1/2 cup chopped dates till later.
Put the butter and water into a saucepan and bring to the boil.
Pour over the dates and sugar and mix well.
Cool slightly and add the beaten egg.
Fold in the sifted flour and bicarb soda, and coconut.

Line a loaf tin with glad bake or grease well. Pour the mixture into the tin and finally scatter over the remaining 1/2 cup dates. They will sink into the mixture, hopefully, not too far down.
Bake at a moderate 160-175 depending on your  oven for about 40 minutes.
Turn it out to cool slightly.
Put the kettle on to boil. Make a pot of tea.
Slice the cake. Spread with lashings of butter and enjoy with your cup of tea. Yum !

Want Food Tours to Thailand

I am just finishing off the details for the next Thailand tour. The last one was such fun and we all learnt so much. To the great amusement of our spouses and family we have already managed to have a reunion dinner ! The group consisted of 11 girls  and they all feel they have made new life long friends,  joined by the interest and love of food. The common threads of our small world were there too and amazingly there were many connections from our past lives to these new friends. As they say three degrees of separation..... From the frenetic energy of Bangkok to the ancient slower paced city of Chiang Mai, we shared many taste sensations, weird and wonderful and learnt about the cuisine and culture of this wonderful country.

The size of the group is small minimum of 6 maximum of 12 people. There is free time for shopping beauty treatments and lazing by the pool. This tour is perhaps more orientated to the females, however if a group of couples would like to go, please contact me as I feel a little golf could be enjoyed whilst the girls pursue other activities. It is so much fun, this experience, made all the more pleasant by the gorgeous amiable Thai people who are perhaps the loveliest in the world. They are constantly smiling, have an amazing sense of humour and make everything seem so effortless !
Come and join this fabulous, fun filled culinary adventure, with some friends

Some of the lovely comments from my group....

You have enriched my life with all the experiences we have faced in the past 10 days.... Karen

I cannot imagine life without some of the things we have done ...... Jane

Your research was spot on and the organisation perfect and smooth. Thank you so much for the most memorable trip.... Tomoko

Want Food Tours A fabulous culinary and cultural experience.......Fi

Wonderful fantastic memories with dear friends, divine food...... Judy

Everyday was so exciting! Cooking schools were fantastic. Amazing taste sensations and I quite possibly would have never tried some of the food we had.........Pru

The mutual horror and delight at some unknown organism in the food markets. The frenzied cacophony of chatter and laughter in the van everyday... Pam

The whole experience has been fantastic and beyond expectation. Loved every moment of it... Ange

Meeting new people and sharing so many funny times...... Shelley

The markets, restaurants, shopping, cooking schools and day trips have been full of such good times I will never forget....... Kate

For a full itinerary any questions or booking form, please feel free to email at wantfoodideas@gmail.com .
I am now taking bookings for September 2013 Tour departing 6th-16th
and March 2014.

                                         

TOUR INCLUDES

10 NIGHTS ACCOMODATION

9 BUFFET BREAKFASTS

5 LUNCHES

2 HANDS ON COOKING CLASSES

3 FRESH FOOD MARKETS WITH FOOD SAMPLING

3  COMMUNITIES  GOURMET WALKING TOUR WITH ENGLISH SPEAKING GUIDE

BANGKOK TOUR OF SPECIALTY RESTAURANTS WITH ENGLISH SPEAKING GUIDE

CULTURAL TOURS SILK TOUR AND COTTON WEAVING VILLAGE

DAILY TRANSPORT WITH GUIDE FOR ALL ORGANIZED ACTIVITIES

INTERNAL FLIGHTS BANGKOK TO CHIANG MAI

FAST TRACK  IMMIGRATION AT AIRPORT ON ARRIVAL IN BANGKOK

TRANSFERS TO AND FROM AIRPORT FOR ALL FLIGHTS

TRANSPORT TO AND FROM COOKING SCHOOLS

FULLY ESCORTED BY SUE WANT

NOT INCLUDED

AIRFARES TO BANGKOK
TRAVEL INSURANCE
VISA IF REQUIRED
ALCOHOL
TIPS AND GRATUITIES
SPENDING MONEY FOR ANY MEALS NOT SPECIFIED OR OPTIONAL
FARES AND COSTS FOR ANY EXTRA SHOPPING DAYS OR OPTIONAL MEALS

Cost  $2700 twin share
         $3457 single in a twin room

Chilli Chicken Soup

This soup is a meal in its self. It makes a large quantity and is better the next day. For those of you who were ardent fans of Seinfeld, you may remember the Soup Nazi. A New York soup stand vendor who had people queuing for his fabulous food. However he was a cantankerous man and refused to serve anyone who annoyed him or didn't follow the ordering procedure and he frequently ejected people from the queue. This character and his soup were the inspiration for this recipe. It is almost like a Mexican minestrone, rich and hearty. I always serve it with a big dollop of sour cream, some fresh coriander and corn chips.



2 onions
4 cloves garlic
4 chicken breasts (you could also use a ready cooked chicken )
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
2 carrots peeled and cut in discs and cut again in half
1 small capsicum, diced
1 can kidney beans
1 can corn kernels or 1cup of frozen kernels
2 tins tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
10 cups water
 freshly chopped coriander
freshly chopped parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons ground chilli or fresh chillies
1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
canola oil

Fry the chopped onions and garlic in a little oil, till opaque. Remove and in the same pot saute the chicken pieces until cooked. Chop the chicken and return to the pot, with the onions and garlic. Add the stock and all of the other chopped ingredients. Add as much chilli as you think you would like, but I use at least 2.
Bring the pot to the boil and turn down and simmer for 2-3 hours. Stir the pot at least every 20 minutes, to stop the chicken catching on the bottom of the pot. The soup will reduce, thicken and become dark
when it is done. Serve it with a sour cream, chopped coriander and a side of corn chips.

Middle Eastern Lamb Shanks with Coriander Pesto

We love our lamb shanks. Once given to the dog they weren't regarded as anything special. To my knowledge they were not even sold separately. Now they are a culinary must for a winter dinner. Slow cooked, meat falling off the bone, unctuous, glossy and full off flavour. Whilst they should be, they are not an incredibly cheap meal as they once would have been. Paying by weight there is often more bone than meat. You will need at least one for each person, maybe one and a half to two for men.
The dish can be prepared a day ahead and as is the case with all casserole type dishes it is often better the next day. Particularly yummy, if you have any left over take the meat off the bone and serve it with pasta perhaps a wide ribbon pasta, for another meal.
I have made shanks in many ways, with orange and dates and tomatoes. I taught this for many years in my cooking classes and it is by far my favourite. Spicy and sweet and full of flavour. The following amounts will feed 8-10 people.

150 ml canola oil
10 lamb shanks
2 onions, chopped
large bunch coriander
1 heaped teaspoon turmeric
30 grams  ground coriander
30 grams ground cumin
2 red chillies
2 cinnamon sticks
1/4 cup fresh ginger grated
2 pinches saffron
1/4 cup honey
2 cloves garlic sliced
150 ml white wine
chicken stock
approx 20 dried apricots.

Coriander Pesto

2 bunches coriander
2 cloves garlic
150 grams walnuts
2 green chillies
150 grams grated parmesan


Place all of ground cumin, coriander, chillies, honey and fresh coriander into a food processor and blend. Heat the oil in a large pot and brown the shanks. Remove from pan and set aside. Fry the chopped onion in the pan and add the blended spices and honey mixture to the onion, with the garlic turmeric, ginger, cinnamon sticks and saffron and continue fry.
Add the stock and wine and stir. Return the shanks to the pot making sure all the shanks are covered.
Bake in a slow oven for 2 1/2 hours. If you want to do it a little faster, turn the oven to 200C and cook for 1 1/2 hours. When cooked remove the shanks, pour the liquid into a saucepan and simmer.
Leave to cool and skim the fat off. Strain the sauce and reduce slightly.
Add the apricots and simmer  gently. Add the coriander pesto and 2 tablespoons butter. If your guests may not want the extra chilli leave out the coriander pesto and serve it as a side, just add the butter.
Serve the shanks on a bed of cubed sweet potato roasted with onion. Pour the sauce over and drizzle with mint yoghurt and preserved lemon. I served the dish with risoni and sweet potato last night!

Beef and Guiness Pie

Now the weather is getting a little cooler we tend to think of warming meals. The great Aussie beef pie comes to mind always a favourite and staple at any sporting match and hopefully on a grander scale at the kitchen table. There are some really good pies out there to buy moist fabulous fillings.
Byron Gourmet Pie company makes a delicious pie with fillings like Mexican, Ratatouille  Thai Chicken and of course a Steak. Not being readily available at the time,  I decided to make my own variety. Seriously you can really put any filling into a pie. For some reason everyone loves a meal in pastry and you can make it look very smart with little decorations on the pie top.  Don't fret about the pastry these are easy ! A ramekin with a pastry lid. This recipe made 4 pies, but make more of the meat mixture and keep for another meal. This is very hearty and has a rich luscious sauce. The meat is very tender, helped along by the Guinness !

1 kilo chuck steak
2 cups beef stock
400 ml of Guinness beer
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 onion chopped
3 cloves garlic crushed
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons plain flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
fresh thyme
salt and pepper
1 egg
1 packet frozen puff pastry
4 x 250 ml ramekins


Chop the steak into cubes. Place into a plastic bag with the flour and shake until the meat is totally covered in flour. Heat the olive oil in a large casserole dish and brown the meat. Remove from the pan.
Fry the onion and garlic until translucent. Return the meat to the pan with the stock, beer, tomatoes,

sugar, thyme salt and pepper. Make sure the meat is covered with the liquid, and the pot has a lid on it.
Simmer on the stove top, for approximately 2 hours. The sauce will be really rich and glossy. Stir the meat every 20 minutes to stop it catching on the bottom.
When cooked set aside to cool. This step can be done well ahead.
Remove the frozen pastry from the freezer and let thaw. It is easier to work with if it is still slightly frozen.
Cut a piece of pastry about an inch bigger all round than the ramekin, and grease the edge of the dish.
Place equal amounts of the meet mixture into the dishes and cover with the pastry lid, pressing it firmly into the edge of the dish, with the flat side of a fork prongs. Make a small air hole in the lid, brush with beaten egg and place on a tray in the oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden. Warning they are very hot so let them sit awhile before serving or warn your guests !
I served them with some ginger sweet potato mash and some cherry tomatoes cooked gently in balsamic vinegar in a frypan on top of the stove. Garlic beans would be lovely as well.

Pork Fritters with Sweet Chilli Sauce

My son James decided to cook dinner two nights ago using his brand new slow cooker. I had a very large piece of pork here which he cooked Kylie Kwong style in an Asian master stock. The result was delicious, but we did have enough pork left for another meal.

Rather than have it with a salad or reheated with vegetables, I decided to make the meat into fritters.

My grandmother and mother in turn always did this with leftover meat when I was young. I fished out the old cook book and there was the fritter batter recipe. Lamb or beef would also be equally delicious.

Two schools of thought on the meat, some chop it up and some slice it. I grew up with the slice method, but I am sure it doesn't matter a bit. The end result is yummy, filling and comforting. Serve it with the salad or vegetables and a sweet chilli sauce, or a really good relish.

2 cups Plain flour

2 teaspoons  baking powder

3/4 cup milk

pinch of salt

3 eggs

Sliced  leftover cooked meat of your choice. I had about 10 slices but put smaller bits together, to make decent sized fritters.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Beat eggs and milk together. Make a well int he centre of the flour and pour egg mixture into middle in a steady stream. Gradually incorporate the flour into the egg, beating into a smooth batter. You could also put the flour into a food processor, add the egg and milk mixture and blend to a smooth batter.
It is better for the mixture to stand a couple of hours before use, but an hour at least please.
Dip the pieces of meat into the batter and coat well.
Use a shallow fry pan and a small amount of oil. Heat the oil and fry the fritters 3-4 at a time until golden. Remove and drain on absorbent paper and serve immediately.

Green Tea and Five Flower Pannacotta

This beautiful dessert is so incredibly easy. You can experiment with many flavours or tea infusions. Traditionally Italian in origin it simply means boiled cream.
On our trip to Thailand we had the most fabulous meal at the Issaya Siamese Club. Memorable for many reasons, not only the food but the location and the amazing staff.
It is set  a little on the outskirts of the city in a large Thai mansion with garden and terraces. The chef Ian Kittichai who apprenticed at Claudes in Sydney, offers traditional Thai dishes with an international twist. The dining area is surrounded by an aromatic garden full of herbs, which are used in the kitchen.
The entire meal was superb. We chose the banquet amazing slow braised ribs and massamun lamb shanks, gorgeous canapés, all  presented in the most delightful array of baskets and dishes
The finale of the meal was a jasmine pannacotta, which was to die for. I love deserts like this, very light and sweet enough to finish off the spicy and intense flavours of the mains.
I chose to make one for my son's birthday dinner on my return. I didn't have any jasmine tea but did have this beautiful, green tea with strawberries, sunflower petal, rose petal, cornflower blossom and lemon. It was just as lovely and I am sure you could experiment with many different teas, that are on the market these days. Probably find an infusion you love and try it, I am sure it won't disappoint.
Coincidentally Neil Perry had a jasmine pannacotta in last Saturdays paper. he uses eggs and I haven't in this recipe.

400 mls Cream
200 mls Coconut milk ( use light if you are having the guilt's ) or use 150 mils milk
4  good quality Gelatine leaves
120 grams castor sugar
3 tea bags of your favourite infusion.
For decoration I used toasted shredded coconut.

Place the gelatine leaves in a bowl of water until softened. Put the cream and coconut milk into a saucepan to simmer gently. As it warms add the sugar and the tea bags and simmer gently for about 5 mins. Turn off the heat and remove the tea bags, being very careful not to break them. If this happens you will have to strain the tea out. Squeeze the gelatine leaves out and discard the water. Put the leaves into the cream mixture and whisk continuously until dissolved.
Lightly grease small moulds or ramekins and pour equal amounts into each. This should make 6 pannacotta. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
To remove them from the moulds run the dish under hot water, run a very sharp knife around the edge and turn upside down onto your serving plate.
I garnished with the toasted coconut, simply toasted in the oven on a baking tray. It doesn't take long , so stay close. Serve with berries or a fruit coulis.

Want Food Tour of Thailand

The hand painted walls ofthe Golden Buddha Temple

I have just returned from my inaugural food tour of Thailand. I was joined by a group of 10 wonderful girls who embraced the tour enthusiastically in every way from market tours, food sampling, cooking classes, shopping, dining and drinking.

This lady cooked the best roast duck and pork in the market

Hard at work grating the fresh coconut

Lots of fun at cooking class

Sampling some dumplings at the markets

Stunning in the sun hat after a stroll in the herb garden

We sampled food through the local markets with our wonderful guide Sam. Breakfast one morning was in Nang Leong a 100 year old market, that no foreigners had previously ventured too. Whilst they seemed to be quite alarmed at the sight of 11 chatty girls descending on their territory, that were very welcoming and eager to let us sample their fare. They even put on a little show as they deftly prepared tiny pork dumplings at super fast speed, as we ooohed an arrred, at their skill. We ate duck and congee for breakfast washed down with a milky coffee followed by a sweet coconut custard steamed in a banana leaf. The next market Or Tor Kor is the 4th biggest fresh food market in the world. The market is so clean and as always the presentation stunning. Produce here is mostly organic and amongst the best in the country.

These rose apples were delicious

Fresh fruit and vegetables, chilli pastes, beautiful herbs, fresh meat and seafood. Frustrated again, that I didn't have a kitchen to prepare these goodies in, I had to be content with lots of sampling. Anything that we chose, our guide would buy for us to sample and he suggested lots more local tidbits we were not familiar with as well.
Afternoon was spent in a cooking class, in a gorgeous Thai house surrounded by a beautiful herb garden. We watched and then cooked 4 dishes and ate them all of course. Lots of laughter and chat as we prepared these very simple tasty dishes. We grated fresh coconut and made the cream we cooked with, so delicious.
One day we toured through the 3 communities of Thailand China and little India, stopping to eat  at the best local restaurants serving the cuisine of each area. We returned home more than satisfied and in awe of all the food we would never try, without assistance from a local. As I have mentioned before, the Thais eat everything. They would be quite shocked to see how much of an animal we waste, and what insects and creatures we don't eat.
We also visited the beautiful oriental style house of Jim Thompson and the Jarm Village where the biggest Khmer community in Bangkok live.
Three days in Chiang Mai was a welcome respite after the frenetic pace of Bangkok.
We enjoyed massages, body scrubs and facials in the beautiful spa at the Rati Lanna .

Yui

Cooking classes with Yui, in her home was a fabulous real experience for us all.  She certainly makes it all seem so simple as she chattered away about different rices available in Thailand, when to use coconut milk and coconut cream, her life tales and her future ventures .
We ate in one of America's first ladies favourite restaurants, The Gallery on the Ping River.
After dinner we had some hilarious experiences in the famous Chiang Mai night markets battering for bags and pashminas, whilst tuk tuk drivers looked on with great amusement! Would have loved to know what they were saying !

Just a small sample of the orchids available

We toured the Warorot markets, the biggest market in the north. Tourists involved in the daily hustle of trade. Sensual aromas wafted by as we sampled lots of dried food and admired the stunning fresh flowers at such ridiculously low prices.

Roast duck and crackling mmmmm

looking forward to Jim Thompson House

Some of the group ready for our last dinner

Jasmine Pannacotta

Some of us chose to go to the Elephant refuge which was an amazing, up close experience.

Returning to Bangkok was like coming home. Lots of shopping to finish and more beauty treatments to be had, and tailored garments to collect.
The stunning dinner at Issaya Siamese Club was an unforgettable meal for us all.
So many memories, so much food, new friends and a lot of frivolity !
I will be taking a tour to Thailand again later in the year for anyone who may be interested in this life time experience. Please don't hesitate to contact me at wantfoodideas@gmail.com

Peanut Caramel Slice

Look what I found in the David Jones food hall the other day !

Don't dare open them before you are cooking with them or they will all be consumed in a minute by everyone around you. They can be used as a replacement for chocolate chips in cookies. I did try them in one slice sprinkling on top of the chocolate icing and adding some sea salt and they melted, so I  did this instead. Gone in 60 seconds by my tribe. Keep it in the fridge in this humidity it is much better.
There are so many recipes for caramel shortbread/slice, all very similar and all very nice. Try this for a variation.


125 grams butter
1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup self raising flour
1/4 cup castor sugar

FILLING
1 400 gram tin condensed milk
2 tablespoons golden syrup
4 tablespoons peanut butter
1 tablespoon butter

Reese's peanut butter chips
Chocolate for melting


Layer a baking tin approx 18cm by 28cm or 19cm by 29cm, with baking paper. A lamington style baking dish.
Melt the butter in a saucepan on the stove top. In a bowl sift flour add sugar and mix in the melted butter. Put this into your baking tin and press down evening it out as you go.
Bake in a moderate oven for 15 minutes. Remove and set aside.
In a saucepan melt the condensed milk, golden syrup, peanut butter and butter . Stir until combined and
continue cooking for over a low heat for a minute.
Pour the mixture over the cooked base and return to oven for 10 minutes.
When you have taken it out wait until cooled at least 5minutes and sprinkle with the peanut chips. At this stage if the top is too hot they will melt if too cold they wont stick ! Tricky! When totally cooled, heat the chocolate and drizzle over the top. This will help keep the chips on top.
Put the tray in the fridge. If you cant find these Reese's Chips you could add 3/4 cup peanuts on top of the caramel topping before placing in the oven. As it cools you can add some sea salt.
A good recipe to play around with and whatever you do it won't last long!

Curried Chicken Drumsticks Madras Style

This dish is one I haven't made since my children were young and loved drumsticks. It is a great family meal, pretty inexpensive and very easy. It is a great introduction to "spicy food" for little ones, as it is not terribly hot .The dish keeps and freezes well and as usual with this type of dish, it is often better the next day, so prepare ahead.  You can adjust the seasoning to your liking, you can adjust the amount as well. This  recipe is for 1 kilo which isn't a lot if you have a hungry family to feed ! You could use thigh cutlets as an alternative.



1 kg chicken drumsticks
1 tablespoon Madras curry paste
60 mls of canola oil
1 birds eye chilli finely chopped
3 cm piece of fresh ginger finely chopped
2 garlic cloves
2 tomatoes chopped
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 can coconut cream
2 teaspoons salt

Gently fry the chicken drumsticks to colour and remove from the pot. Add the rest of the oil you may need extra and fry the garlic, ginger, chilli , turmeric and tomatoes together and add the curry paste. Cook these for a minute or two. Add the coconut cream , sugar and salt and blend with the spices.
Return the drumsticks to the pot and cook on a gentle simmer for about 30-40 minutes. Give it a stir every 10 minutes or so to stop it catching on the bottom of the pan and too make sure all of the drumsticks are covered and cooking.
Add some chopped coriander for garnish and serve with rice and poppadoms and a little chutney.

I used about 2 kilos of drumsticks and obviously increased amounts of everything

A sprinkle of coriander and toasted peanuts for garnish