This is just the thing to use up those rapidly ripening bananas in the fruit bowl. I used 3 very ripe bananas for this cake which gave it a great flavour. The recipe calls for buttermilk which results in a more soft and airy texture; but like all banana cakes, it is still quite dense and moist. The cream cheese frosting recipe I followed turned out too sweet for my liking so I added more lemon juice, more cream cheese and a decent amount of whipping cream. The resulting frosting was a little runnier than it would have been because of the cream but it firmed up after an hour in the fridge (I couldn’t wait that long to cut the first slice!). I really enjoyed this banana cake and the housemates helped polish it off within 48 hours- that says it all.

Banana Cake

Recipe from Exclusively Food

• 125g butter, softened (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon salt with the flour)
• 330g (1 1/2 cups) sugar
• 280g (1 very slightly rounded cup) very ripe, mashed banana
• 1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence
• 2 large free-range eggs
• 100ml buttermilk
• 225g (1 1/2 cups) self-raising flour
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Preheat oven to 160C (fan forced).

Grease the side and base of a 22cm diameter (inside top measurement) round cake pan. Line base of the pan with non-stick baking paper.

Place butter, sugar, banana, vanilla and eggs in a food processor. Process for about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of processor. Add buttermilk and pulse to combine.

Sift flour, salt (if using) and bicarbonate of soda together into a large bowl. Add flour mixture to food processor and process until just combined.

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Leave cake to cool on a wire rack.

Spread cooled cake with cream cheese icing. Store cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Cream Cheese Icing

• 250g cream cheese, softened
• 45g butter, softened
• 210g (1 2/3 cups) icing sugar
• 3 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/3 cup chilled whipping cream

Beat cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sifted icing sugar and beat until smooth. Add lemon juice and beat to combine. Add whipping cream and beat until thick.

Spread icing over top and sides of cooled cake.

I made these for dinner a couple of weeks ago. I had a couple of cos lettuces from mum’s garden and a bunch of cucumbers from my trip to the market to use. It makes me feel like a domesticated housewife when I decide meals based on ‘what we’ve got to use up’, but it makes sense really and I’m sure that’s how it works in commercial kitchens too. Anyway, I settled on a middle eastern style turkish bread sandwich with thinly sliced minute steaks, natural yoghurt and caramelised onions.

The potato salad was a recipe I spotted in a magazine by Chef Matt Stone who operates the Greenhouse restaurant in the inner-city, which is a very hip, eco-friendly and decidedly alternative restaurant which has been receiving lots of buzz lately. The recipe looked good and it kind of paired with the steak sandwich idea, so I decided to do both. It’s sort of got a burger and fries vibe I guess.

The sandwiches were goooood! I ended up using sour cream instead of yoghurt but I think either would work well. The onions really made it. The potato salad was also delicious, but I have to admit the last thing I wanted after working through that sandwich was more carbs. The potato salad was good for lunch the next day though with leftover sour cream.

Middle-Eastern (kinda) Steak Sandwiches

Adjust quantity of ingredients to amount of servings needed – it’s not rocket science

• turkish rolls, halved
• minute steaks
• onion, thinly sliced
• cos lettuce
• cucumbers
• tomato
• natural/greek-style yoghurt or sour cream
• barbecue sauce
• finely chopped parsley and mint – optional

Fry the minute steaks until done, set aside. Using the same pan, saute the onions with a little barbecue sauce until soft.

Chop cucumber and tomato. Tear lettuce leaves. Layer them in the turkish rolls. Add steak, onions, yoghurt or sour cream and parsley & mint if you wish.

Moorish Potato Salad

Recipe by Matt Stone of Greenhouse Perth

• 1.25 kg Kipfler or Gourmet Ruby Lou potatoes
• 4 Spring onions, finely sliced (bottom half only)
• 1 cup coriander leaves, washed
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tbsp cumin seeds, lightly toasted
• ¾ tsp caraway seeds, lightly toasted
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• 1 large red chilli, deseeded
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 6 tbsp olive oil

Put potatoes in a large pot filled with cold water and a generous pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender in the middle. Drain and set aside to cool.

Toast the cumin and caraway seeds in a dry pan, preheated pan until fragrant (about 1 minute), shaking the pan constantly to avoid burning.

Tip the toasted seeds immediately into a mortar and pestle and prepare the dressing by pounding with salt, garlic, chili, and paprika to make a paste.

Add lemon juice and olive oil, season to taste.

Using a wet knife, slice potatoes into 2cm rounds and toss with coriander, spring onion and dressing. Season to taste and serve.

Okay, so I kind of cheated with these. Remember my Hazelnut Mocha Torte from a few posts ago? Well this is it again, but in cupcake form; and with a different frosting. They are still gluten free and still just as delicious – if not more so. The cakes had a slightly crusty surface but the inside remained beautifully moist and tender. On top of each, I spread a good dollop of Nutella and piped a small swirl of coffee flavoured buttercream. I felt like they needed the decadence of extra chocolate so I shaved some dark ghana over the top to finish them off.

The swiss buttercream was new for me and I really enjoyed the process. This type of buttercream is slightly harder than ‘simple buttercream’ involving powdered sugar, butter and a little milk – but it is infinitely better. It is far less sweet for one and also has a much more soft, airy and luscious mouth-feel. There are a few other types of buttercreams with increasing degrees of difficulty, but swiss is a good starting point for beginners like me.

I only had to cook for myself tonight and felt like something easy. I had a few veggies to use up and I spotted some green curry paste in the fridge and a chicken breast in the freezer – a done deal. I whacked on the rice cooker, and cut up the chicken and set it to marinating in a few spoonfuls of curry paste whilst I prepared the other ingredients. I had a baby zucchini and a few hungarian wax peppers which mum had given me from her garden so they went in, along with capsicums, broccoli and red onion.

I sealed the chicken in a hot pan and added the onions to soften a bit. Then I poured in a bit of water and the zucchini. After simmering for a couple of minutes I threw in the softer vegetables and stirred in about 200ml of coconut cream/milk. A couple of minutes later it was ready to serve with a big squeeze of lime juice and steamed jasmine rise.

Pavlova Base

• 8 egg whites (60g eggs)
• 2 cups caster or white sugar (cannot be reduced)
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar or pinch of salt (optional)
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 3 Tbsp cornflour
• 2 tsp vanilla essence (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 190C.

2. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

3. Combine egg whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl. Gently warm the egg white mixture over a saucepan of boiling water (without bottom of bowl touching the water) to dissolve the sugar. Stir often and test the mixture with your fingers to feel if the sugar has dissolved. Do not allow to get too hot or the eggs will begin cooking. When sugar has completely dissolved (no grittiness can be felt) remove from heat.

4. Add cream of tartar or salt if you wish (helps egg whites to whip up – I hardly ever use it) and begin whipping mixture with electric beaters. Continue until stiff peaks form, but do not continue past this point.

5. Add remaining ingredients and beat briefly.

6. Spread pavlova mixture on baking paper in a rough circle. Place in oven and immediately reduce temperature to 100C. Bake for about 90 minutes or until the outside feels ‘crusty’. Turn off oven but leave pavlova inside with the door closed to cool down completely (or even overnight).

7. Serve topped with whipped cream and soft fruits such as kiwi, strawberries, banana, passionfruit or berries.

Pesto is a great option for flavouring pasta when you feel like something light, flavoursome and healthy. The main ingredient is basil so it’s good for using up excess basil leaves from the garden during summer. The best thing about it is that everything except the pasta is raw – so you get the full nutritional value of all those green leaves, chopped nuts and garlic. A generous amount of fresh parmesan cheese provides the salty flavour that really makes this dish work. I also like to add a bit of chicken for protein but it isn’t really needed. The recipe I’ve taken to using is very basic and rather traditional. The final flavour will ultimately depend on the quality of the ingredients you  use and the type of basil.

Basil and Pine Nut (traditional) Pesto

• 45g (1/4 cup) pine nuts (cashews are a cheaper substitute)
• ~1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
• 2 small cloves of garlic, peeled
• 60g (3/4 cup) parmigiano-reggiano or other good quality parmesan
• 5 tbs olive oil

Combine nuts, basil, garlic and cheese in a food processor or blender. Slowly add olive oil until a relatively smooth consistency is reached (or leave chunky if you prefer).

Stir through freshly cooked pasta with pan fried chicken pieces and season well to taste.

Hello and welcome!

I created this blog because I wanted a place to share recipes with my family, friends and readers. I’ve always had a strong interest in food, but since moving out of home a few years ago, I have had to learn more about cooking just to survive. I love carbs more than anything and struggle to imagine a meal without them. Naturally I love pastas and just about anything with potato. I also have a soft spot for the flavours of India and south East Asia. Mexican food is something I’m new to but I enjoy it now and then. I will post recipes that my family has always loved as well as any great recipes my friends share with me. I have friends from a fairly wide range of ethnic backgrounds (in Australia everyone is from somewhere, basically) so I am excited to share the recipes that my semi-adventurous Western palate decides are good. Over time this blog will become a resource of dinner ideas for myself, and maybe for my readers too.

This blog has also become a place for me to experiment with food photography. I have never really had an interest in photography before, but I was displeased with the quality of the photos in my early entries and quickly found myself trying to take better ones. I still struggle to take pictures I like but I am learning a lot and will hopefully get a real camera one day.

Every now and then I will write a review about a restaurant that I’ve been to. I find reviews a very challenging thing to do so I don’t always write them after dining out, especially if I haven’t got much good to say. The restaurants I visit are generally around the northern suburbs of Perth, but occasionally I venture out to Northbridge or Fremantle etc.

Baking is something I’ve always had an interest in. In particular, I like baking cakes. I usually made my own birthday cakes from a fairly young age and it’s something I’ve gotten back into recently – so expect to see a few cake recipes. I don’t do desserts often but when I do they tend to be rich, decadent affairs. I love butter and cream and chocolate. I also find fruit to be an inspiring ingredient.

I don’t have anything against cupcakes. They have their charms. But 9 times out of 10 I’d be happier with a humble muffin.

I hope you find something you like here!

- Matt

My gluten-intolerant Italian friend introduced me to this amazing cake when she made it for her birthday last year. I finally got around to trying it myself recently and was surprised by how easy it was to make – for a cake with no flour or leavening. The cake itself is beautifully moist and tender with the flavour of hazelnuts and real chocolate. The coffee mascarpone topping is the perfect accompaniment. I was so impressed by how it turned out that I made a second one to bring to Christmas dinner. This is a great flavour combination and a recipe worth trying!

Hazelnut Mocha Torte

Please note that this cake will barely rise as it uses no leavening agents. It is also normal for the cake to sink slightly in the centre as it is cooling. For a taller cake it is fine to double the mixture and extend the baking time as is needed.

• 1 tsp instant coffee
• 1 Tbsp cream
• 1/3 cup caster sugar
• 100g good quality dark chocolate, chopped (my new favourite is Old Gold ‘mildly dark’)
• 50g unsalted butter, cubed
• 3 eggs, separated
• ½ cup ground roasted hazelnuts, firmly packed*
• 1 Tbsp dutch cocoa

*If you can’t find ground hazelnuts you can just buy whole hazelnuts and pulverise them with a blender. 

Topping:

• 1 Tbs caster sugar (or to taste)
• 3 Tsp instant coffee
• 1 Tbs near-boiling water
• 125g mascarpone
• ½ cup cream, whipped to stiff peaks
• Chocolate hazelnut spread such as Nutella
• Extra chocolate and hazelnuts to decorate

Prepare 8″ springform tin. Preheat oven to 170C

To make torte:

Melt coffee, cream, sugar, chocolate and butter together in the microwave (medium for 1 minute, stir, repeat) or in a bain marie. Cool slightly.

Blend egg yolks and ground hazelnuts into chocolate mixture

Whip egg whites in a small bowl of an electric mixer until soft peaks form.

Sift cocoa over whipped whites and fold in to combine. Fold lightly into chocolate mixture, about a third at a time.

Spoon into prepared tin. Bake for about 25-30 minutes until cooked. Cool in tin for 5 minutes. Place a piece of baking paper onto a wire rack before turning torte out. Serve upside down as the surface will be smoother.

To make topping:

Dissolve sugar and coffee in the water. Combine with mascarpone until smooth.

Gently combine with the whipped cream until thick and smooth.

To assemble:

Once completely cool, cover the top of the torte with a thin layer of Nutella. Spoon over the coffee mascarpone topping and spread out evenly. Top with grated chocolate and roughly chopped hazelnuts.

I made these reindeer cookies recently for a Christmas dinner that I helped to host. They were a pretty big hit with the party-folk and disappeared in no time. They’re just a simple (but delicious) sugar cookie with royal icing for the outline and red nose. I made these last year and used red smarties instead for the nose which worked just as well, but I couldn’t be bothered buying and sifting through them. The cookie cutter is actually a moose which came in a set from Ikea, but I reckon it looks enough like a reindeer.

Reindeer Sugar Cookies

You will need the animal cookie cutter set from Ikea or another suitable cutter, or a stencil and good knife skills.

• 3 cups plain or pastry (low-protein) flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt (or 1 tsp kosher salt)
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 250g unsalted butter, at room temp
• 1 egg, at room temp
• 1 tsp natural vanilla essence

Preheat oven to a moderate-low temperature, around 160-170C (fan forced). It really depends how thick your cookies are. Thicker cookies need a slightly lower temperature to avoid cracking. You may have to use some trial and error with your oven.

Cream the butter and sugar for a few minutes, add the egg and vanilla, and beat until smooth and creamy.

Whisk dry ingredients in a bowl until well combined. Add to the butter mixture and stir until a ball begins to form.

Knead together on a floured surface to an even consistency. Roll out between two pieces of baking paper to pencil thickness. Place flat in the fridge for 15 minutes or until stiff.

Cut out shapes from the chilled dough and place onto an oiled or lined tray with a little space between each. If the dough gets too soft or warm put it back in the fridge for a few minutes; this will help the cookies keep their shape.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until a light golden brown appears around the edges. They will harden up quite a bit when they cool so don’t be too concerned if they’re a bit soft coming out of the oven. Cool on a wire rack once they’re hard enough to move.

I had to cook dinner for one tonight, and what’s easier than nachos? I topped some plain corn chips with a hearty beef and bean sauce, added some hot salsa, cheese, spring onions, and my very own hand-picked olives. I also made a frozen margarita which is currently giving me a healthy buzz. Don’t you judge me.

Yum.