CHEWY OAT COOKIES WITH MAPLE FILLING

You will love these bikkies ... trust me!!
Makes 18
Ingredients
  • 125gm butter
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp icing sugar
  • ½​ cup plain flour
  • ½​ cup rolled oats
  • ½​ cup shredded coconut
  • ½​ cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Method
  1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees.  Line two oven trays with baking paper.
  2. For the filling, beat half the butter, 3 tsp of the maple syrup and icing sugar until smith.  Set aside.
  3. Combine flour, oats, coconut and brown sugar in a medium bowl.  Place remaining butter and syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until butter melts.  Stir in bicarb soda then add to oat mixture.  Mix well.
  4. Roll slightly rounded teaspoons of oat mixture and place onto prepared trays, allowing a little room for spreading.  You should get about 36 cookies.  Bake, swapping trays around halfway through cooking, for about 15 minutes or until just starting to colour.  Set aside to cool for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  5. When ready to serve, spread half of the cookies with prepared filling and sandwich together.  Enjoy!!

Coconut  lemon  curd  tarts

A lovely, tangy little tart
Makes 6 small or 12 mini tarts
Ingredients:
  • 1 jar lemon curd (or lemon butter)
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/4 cup caster sugar
  • ½​ tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp cornflour
  • 1 cup desiccated coconut
  • Whipped cream to serve
Method:
  1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees.  Brush loose-based flan pans with oil (or cupcake trays for mini tarts).
  2. Beat egg white until stiff peaks form.  Gradually add caster sugar, beating until sugar dissolves and mixture is thick and glossy.  Fold in vanilla, cornflour and coconut.  Divide mixture between pans.  Using wet fingertips, press over base and sides.  Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden.  Stand for 5 minutes.  While warm, loosen cases from pans but do not remove.  When cooled, remove tart cases and place on a wire rack.
  3. Spoon lemon curd into cases.  Chill and serve with whipped cream (and for extra luxury, top with a chocolate dipped strawberry).

Ricciarelli (Tuscan Almond Biscuits)

These are just lovely with a good coffee.  Recipe was taken from page 109 of the July edition of Delicious magazine.  Note these biscuits need to be made in advance to allow the dough sufficient chilling time - minimum 2 hours)
Makes 30 to 40 biscuits (depending on how large you make them)
Ingredients
  • 1 + 1/3 cups (200gm) pure icing sugar, plus extra to dust
  • ½​ tsp baking powder
  • Pinch salt
  • 3 cups (300gm) almond meal
  • Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
  • 2 egg whites
  • 1 tsp almond extract
​Method
  1. Sift icing sugar, baking powder and a pinch of salt into a bowl, then stir through the almond meal and lemon zest.
  2. In a separate bowl beat egg whites until soft peaks form.  Add the almond extract, then fold in one third of the combined dry ingredients.  Once mixed in, carefully fold in the remainder until combined.  Divide the mixture in half and roll each half into a ball.
  3. Roll out each ball of dough on a lightly floured surface into a sausage shape about 20cm long.  Enclose in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours (preferably overnight).
  4. Preheat oven to 150 degrees.  Line biscuit trays with baking paper and set aside.
  5. Remove dough from fridge and place on a floured surface.  Sift a little icing sugar onto a plate.  Slice the dough into 1cm thick pieces.  Pinch the corners to form a diamond shape.  Press one side of each biscuit in the icing sugar, then arrange (sugar side up) on baking trays.
  6. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for about 15 to 20mins or until pale golden.  Remove from oven, dust with a little icing sugar and cool on  a wire rack.  Enjoy with your coffee.
Notes:
No need to space the biscuits out too much - they do not spread.
Be careful not to overcook the biscuits or they will go very hard.  Remember that the biscuits will harden as they cool.

Jam Drops

Picture
Ingredients
  • ½ cup caster sugar
  • ½ tsp vanilla essence
  • 230gm butter
  • 1½ cups self raising flour
  • ½ cup icing sugar
  • ½ cup jam
Method
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line two trays with baking paper.
  2. Cream the butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.
  3. Fold in flour and icing sugar until well combined.
  4. Roll teaspoons of mixture into balls. Place on prepared trays, about 5cm apart.
  5. Make an indentation in the centre of each ball. Spoon half a teaspoon of jam into centre of each biscuit.
  6. Bake for about 15 minutes until golden.

booby doos (a variation of Jam Drops)


Ingredients:
  • ½ cup caster sugar
  • ½ tsp vanilla essence
  • 230gm butter
  • 1½ cups self raising flour
  • ½ cup icing sugar
  • 1 small packet glace cherries
Method:
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line two trays with baking paper.
  2. Cream the butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.
  3. Fold in flour and icing sugar until well combined.
  4. Roll teaspoons of mixture into balls. Place on prepared trays, about 5cm apart.
  5. Press a glace cherry into the centre of each biscuit.
  6. Bake for about 15 minutes until golden.

coconut oat cookies

Makes 24 cookies
Ingredients
  • 100gm butter
  • 75gm caster sugar
  • 75gm brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 100gm self raising flour
  • 50gm oats
  • 50gm desiccated coconut
​Method
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees (160 fan forced).  Line 2 biscuit trays with baking paper.
  2. Cream butter, caster sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg then fold in flour.  If mixture is dry, add a little milk.  Fold in oats and coconut.
  3. Place teaspoons of mixture onto trays, leaving 5cm for spreading.
  4. Bake for 7 to 8 mins until golden.
  5. Remove from oven and cool biscuits on wire racks.

chocolate bark

Ingredients
  • 85gm unsalted pistachios, shelled
  • 400gm dark cooking chocolate
  • 200gm white cooking chocolate
  • 1/3 cup dried cranberries (craisins), finely chopped
​Method
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Toast pistachios on a lined baking tray for about 3 to 4 minutes.  Melt both chocolates in separate bowls.
  2. Line a biscuit tray with foil.  Spread dark chocolate over base. Drizzle with white chocolate. Swirl with a butter knife to create a marbled effect.  Sprinkle with pistachios and cranberries. 
  3. Refrigerate until set then break into shards.  Serve or package as desired.

Chocolate  Crackles

Ingredients
  • 250gm Copha
  • 4 cups Rice Bubbles
  • 1½ cups icing sugar
  • 3 tbsp cocoa
  • 1 cup coconut​
Method
  1. Melt copha in saucepan over low heat.
  2. Mix Rice Bubbles, icing sugar, cocoa, coconut and melted copha in a large bowl until combined.
  3. Spoon mixture evenly into 24 patty papers and set in fridge. Enjoy!

ANZAC  SLICE


This is one of our family's favourites.  Here is a link to the recipe www.taste.com.au/recipes/22346/anzac+slice 

Chocolate  Fridge  Slice

Ingredients
  • 250gm choc-chip cookies, cut into 2cm pieces
  • ½ cup roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped
  • ½ cup sultanas, chopped
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
  • 100g unsalted butter, chopped
  • 180g dark chocolate, chopped
  • 395gm can sweetened condensed milk
  • Cocoa powder, for dusting
  • Chocolate ganache:
  • 120g dark chocolate, chopped
  • 50g unsalted butter, chopped
​Method 
  1. Grease and line base and sides of a 6cm-deep, 19cm (base) square cake pan with baking paper, allowing paper to extend 2cm above edges of pan. Combine cookies, peanuts, sultanas and cocoa in a bowl.
  2. Place butter, chocolate and condensed milk in a medium saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes or until smooth. Pour over cookie mixture. Stir well to combine. Spoon mixture into prepared pan, pressing with the back of the spoon. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.
  3. Make chocolate ganache: Place chocolate and butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth. Remove from heat. Stand for 5 minutes. Spread ganache over slice. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set. Lift slice from pan. Dust with cocoa powder. Cut into 24 squares. Serve.

Hot  Cross  Bun  Truffles

An indulgent Easter treat which makes about 30 truffles.
Ingredients
  • 200gm milk cooking chocolate, melted
  • ½ cup condensed milk
  • ½ cup unsalted toasted cashews, chopped
  • 1 cup plain sweet biscuits, roughly chopped
  • ½ cup red glace cherries, chopped
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 1 + 1/4 cups milk chocolate melts
  • 30gm copha
  • 100gm while chocolate, melted
Method
  1. Combine melted milk cooking chocolate, condensed milk, cashews, biscuits, cherries and cinnamon.  Mix well and refrigerate until firm.
  2. Combine milk chocolate melts and copha in a small bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until smooth.
  3. Roll heaped teaspoonfuls of mixture into balls.  Coat with chocolate copha mixture.  Refrigerate until set.
  4. Pipe crosses over truffles using the melted white chocolate.
​Hint
Use this recipe for Christmas truffles by drizzling over a little white chocolate then top with red and green glace cherries formed into the shape of holly.