Ginger Mango Detox Smoothie

Confession time... I don't like fruit very much. I'll reluctantly eat a banana or apple when I feel like I should be healthy but it would not be my preferred choice. Luckily I love veggies, so hopefully I'm covered. This year I am hoping to get some more fruit into my diet and smoothies are a great way to do that!

After all the indulgence of the holidays I thought a nice detox smoothie would be a good way to start the morning. I'm also dying of the flu and ginger is a great bug fighter, so it seemed to make sense. I doubled the ginger in the original recipe.

I was pleasantly surprised with this smoothie, it's zingy and delicious and not too fruity at all. Definitely a great start to the morning!



Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 4-5 slices frozen mango
• 1 inch knob of ginger, peeled and grated
• 2 oz orange juice
• 2 oz water
• 5-6 ice cubes

Blend all ingredients in a blender and drink! <3

Adapted from here.

Now I'm going to sip my smoothie and sit down with my 2014 Create an Amazing Year workbook and get a start on 2014! 

Vanilla Pavlova

Would you believe I've never made Pavlova?  I've always loved it but never actually made it.  I remember as a teenager going to my second cousins wedding and being delighted to hear that the wedding cake was a tower of pavlovas!  I thought it was genius and decided that day to do it for my wedding, but alas I got married in America and it was not an option.  This recipe turned out to be pretty simple, although all the whipping is time consuming and I cannot imagine doing it without a mixer of some kind.  It turned out just perfectly crunchy on the outside and marshmallow-y on the inside.  Top it with whatever fruit you have on hand. I was hoping to use passion fruit as well, but I couldn't get any yesterday.  Berries are particularly delicious.  This would also work very well with a mascarpone topping.

Ingredients: 

For the meringue:

• 5 egg whites, at room temperature
• 1.25 cups caster sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped out
• 1.5 tbsp cornflour (corn starch)

For the topping:

• 1 carton of whipping cream
• 2-3 tbsp caster sugar to taste
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Fruit of your choice

Beat the eggs until stiff and slowly add in sugar.  Beat for 5-10 minutes until very stiff shiny peaks form.  Add vanilla, vinegar and vanilla beans and beat until all combined.  Fold in corn flour.

Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment.  Use a plate to trace a circle on the parchment.  Dump the meringue into the center of the circle and spread out to meet the edges.

Bake at 120C for 60-90 minutes to desired doneness. Allow to cool with oven door ajar.

Once cool, whip cream with vanilla and sugar and spread on top of meringue.  Decorate with fruit and serve immediately!

Enjoy after a lovely BBQ with some sangria, as pictured right! ;)

Clementine Creamsicle Cupcakes

Came up with this glorious cupcake recipe yesterday, they taste just like an orange creamsicle.  I baked them for a birthday party and they went down a treat, especially when I told the kids they didn't have to eat the orange on top! ;)  These would be perfect for a baby shower or christening, they're really light and delicate. 

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 1/2 cup  (4oz)  butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, sliced in half, beans scraped
• 1 tbsp orange zest
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup (6 fl oz) cream
• 1/4 cup orange juice, fresh squeezed
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups plain flour
• ½ tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp. salt
• Vanilla buttercream mixed with 1tbsp orange zest
• Clementine segments to garnish
• Orange zest to garnish

Preheat oven to 180C/350F.  Prepare a cupcake tin with liners.

Cream butter and sugar until light in colour in large. Add in eggs, vanilla bean and orange zest. Mix orange juice and cream into the bowl.

Sift flour with the other dry ingredients and slowly add into the liquid ingredients, mixing well.

Spoon into cupcake liners, filling about 3/4 of the way up. This should yield about 16 cupcakes. 

Bake for 20 minutes until puffed up and golden brown.  Allow to cool before frosting.

Decorate with vanilla frosting and clementine segments, sprinkling with some orange zest if desired.

Cardamom Scented Hot Cross Buns

With Lent coming early this year and me craving something sweet and spicy, I decided to whip up some hot cross buns.  These are delicious right out of the oven and just as good a few hours later with a thick spread of butter.


Ingredients:

• 450ml milk
• 120g butter
• 1 orange peel
• 1 lemon peel
• 2 cloves
• 2 green cardamom pods, crushed
• 1 black cardamom pod, crushd
• 1 egg, beaten
• 900g bread/strong flour, sifted
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 14g of dried yeast
• 200g mixed dried fruit/sultanas
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• 1 egg and 2 tbsp milk for egg wash

For the cross:

• 8 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 8 tbsp water

For the sugar glaze:

• 5 tbsp sugar
• 5 tbsp boiling water
• 1/2 tsp orange extract

Gently heat the milk, butter, cardamom, cloves, fruit peels in a saucepan, simmer for 2 minutes and allow to infuse for 10 minutes. Cool and strain. Stir in the beaten egg.

Place the flour, yeast, spices, sugar and dried fruit in a bowl.

Pour the milk into the dry ingredients and bring together to form a ball.

Knead the dough on a floured surface for 10 minutes until smooth and place the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with saran wrap. Allow to prove in a warm place until it has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F

Knock back the dough and divide into 15 balls and shape into buns.

Place the buns onto a baking tray lined with parchment, placing them fairly close together but not touching.

Make a cross on the top of each bun with a knife and leave to prove for a further 1 hour or until doubled in size. The buns will almost join. Brush the buns with egg wash.

Mix the flour, sugar and water to form a thick paste (place the paste into a plastic bag, cut a small corner off) and pipe a cross on each bun.

Place in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes until risen and golden.

Combine the sugar, water and extract together until sugar dissolves and brush over the buns while still hot.

Orange Pound Cake

My organic box arrived this week loaded with oranges.  It is Seville season after all and people all over Europe are making marmalade.  Well, I hate marmalade and I'm not particularly fond of oranges on their own, so I had to come up with some way to use them.  This is a fabulous pound cake that is melt-in-your-mouth buttery orangey goodness.  The syrup ensures it stays moist and I do believe it tastes better the next day.  I will definitely make this again and add a tiny bit of orange extract to the batter next time.  If you're looking for a lovely fruity cake to cheer someone up, this has got to be a hit!


Ingredients:

• ½ pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 ½ cups granulated sugar, divided
• 4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup grated orange zest (6 oranges)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cup freshly squeezed orange juice, divided
• ¾ cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Heat oven to 350F / 180C. Grease and flour two 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½ – inch loaf pans.

Cream the butter and 2 cups of the sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then add the orange zest.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, combine ¼ cup of the orange juice, the buttermilk, and vanilla.

Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour.

Divide the batter evenly between the pans, smooth the tops, and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until a cake tester comes out clean.

While the cakes bake, cook the remaining ½ cup of granulated sugar with the remaining ½ cup orange juice in a small saucepan over low heat until the sugar dissolves. When the cakes are done, let them cool for 10 minutes. Spoon the orange syrup over the cakes and allow the cakes to cool completely.

Source: Barefoot Contessa