Childrens' choice

Cheesy hot dog sticks

A yummy treat for kids' parties
Makes 16
Ingredients

• 2 cups self raising flour, sifted
• 1 tsp sea salt flakes
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1¼ cups grated cheese
• 16 wooden ice cream (popsicle) sticks
• 16 cheerios
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• Sauce, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to  200°C (180 fan forced).  Place the flour and salt in a bowl and make a well in the centre.  Add the buttermilk and mix with a butter knife until a dough forms.  Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.
2. Divide dough into 16 pieces and roll each out to a 10cm round.  Sprinkle each round with cheese.  Press an ice cream stick into the end of each cheerio and place in the centre of each round of dough.  Roll up the dough to enclose the cheerios then place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
3. Brush the pastry with egg and cook for about 15 minutes or until golden and puffed.
4. Serve with your favourite sauce.

Recipe credit
Donna Hay Kids Magazine

Berry donut desserts

Dessert does not get any easier than this!
Preparation:  10 minutes
Serves 4
Ingredients

• 125gm strawberries, quartered
• 100gm blueberries (or 50gm blueberries and 50gm raspberries)
• 2 tbsp icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
• 1 cup cream
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 4 large cinnamon donuts, or 8 small

Method

1. Combine berries and 3 tsp icing sugar in a bowl.  Set aside for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Meanwhile, whip cream with vanilla and remaining icing sugar until thick.
2. Split donuts in half through the centre. Pipe or spoon cream onto the bases then top with berries (reserving some cream and a few berries for the tops). Cover with donut tops.
3. Dust with icing sugar then spoon or pipe a little cream into the donut hole and finish with berries.  ​Serve and enjoy.

Recipe credit
Woolworths Fresh Magazine

Italian meatball subs

Ingredients

• 1 baguette or French stick (note 1 French stick makes 4 serves)
• 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Meatballs

• 1kg beef mince
• ¾​ cup breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp dried Italian herbs
• ​Salt and pepper
• Plain flour

Tomato sauce

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 2 tbs tomato paste
• 1 tsp sugar
• ½ cup beef stock
• 1 tsp Italian herbs

Method

1. Make meatballs by combining mince, breadcrumbs, eggs, parmesan, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper. Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls (keep small so they fit into the breadstick). Toss in flour and set aside.
2. Make tomato sauce. Heat oil and gently sauté onion and garlic until soft. Stir in canned tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, beef stock and herbs. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Season to taste.
3. Add meatballs to sauce and toss gently to coat the meatballs. Cover and cook on medium for about 20 minutes, or until meatballs are cooked through.
4. Cut the breadstick in half lengthwise. Fill with mozzarella cheese and top with meatballs.  Sprinkle with more mozzarella to finish.
5. Cut the breadstick into quarters.  Serve and enjoy.

Hint
Serve leftover meatballs with spaghetti and garlic bread

Cheesy rissoles

Classic, tasty comfort food
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients

• 1kg beef mince
• ¾ cup breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp dried Italian herbs
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• Salt and pepper
• Small block soft cheese (Swiss, Havarti, Jarslberg, feta etc), cut into small cubes
• Plain flour
• Oil for shallow frying

​Method

1. Combine mince, breadcrumbs, eggs, parmesan, garlic, herbs and tomato paste. Season with salt and pepper. Roll small handfuls of mince mixture into balls.  Push a cheese cube into the centre and press mixture around the cheese, being careful to ensure that the cheese is completely enclosed.  Toss in flour and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 180°C (160 fan forced).  Heat oil in frying pan over medium heat.  Add rissoles to pan and brown on all sides.  Transfer to a baking tray and cook for about 30 minutes until cooked through.  Serve and enjoy.

Serving suggestion
Enjoy with mashed potatoes, gravy and your favourite vegetables, or chips and salad

Cheatin' chilli beans

Cheap, cheerful, comforting and quick
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients

• 6 - 8 medium potatoes
• 1 large or 2 x 410gm cans baked beans
• 1 sachet mild taco seasoning
• Grated cheese
• Sour cream
• Corn chips, to serve

Method

1. Boil potatoes in salted water until tender.  If you are short on time, cut them in half first.
2. Place baked beans and taco seasoning in a saucepan over medium-high heat.  Stir until heated through.
3. Cut cooked potatoes in half and arrange on serving plates.  Sprinkle with grated cheese then top with beans.  Add a little more grated cheese, followed by sour cream and corn chips.  Serve and enjoy.

​Suggestions
Stir in some canned corn or kidney beans
Top with a little fresh salad for colour (and because it's healthy)

Simple nachos

A quick and simple snack
Ingredients

• Canola spray
• 1 large packet corn chips
• 1 jar mild salsa
• ½​ cup ham or bacon, finely chopped
• Grated cheese

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (160 fan forced).  Spray ovenproof dishes with canola oil.
   
2. Fill dishes with corn chips.  Spoon salsa over the corn chips.  Sprinkle with chopped ham or bacon and cover with grated cheese.
3. Place in oven until cheese is melted and salsa is heated through.
4. Serve and enjoy.

​Hints and variations

• Try using flavoured corn chips
• Delicious served with guacamole and sour cream
• Substitute ham or bacon for cooked beef mince mixed with taco seasoning or chilli powder
• Toss in some corn for something extra

Cheesy Vegemite scrolls

Ingredients

• 2 sheets ready made puff pastry, thawed
• Vegemite to spread over pastry, according to taste
• 1 cup grated tasty cheese, more depending on how 'cheesy' you like it
• 1 beaten egg mixed with 1 tbsp water

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C (180 fan forced).  Line oven trays with baking paper.
2. Spread pastry sheets with vegemite then sprinkle with grated cheese.
3. Roll lengthwise.  Brush edge with egg wash to seal then slice into 1½cm pieces.
4. Place scrolls on baking trays, flat edge down, allowing room for spreading.  Brush with egg wash.
5. Bake until golden brown.  Serve and enjoy.

Cheerio puffs

An extremely easy snack ... perfect for the footy or kids' parties
Ingredients

• 500gm cheerios
• 2 sheets ready made puff pastry, thawed
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• Sauce, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C (180 fan forced).  Line trays with baking paper.
2. Prick the cheerios once or twice with a fork (this is so they don't pop like the one in my photo).
3. Cut the pastry sheets into squares, large enough to wrap around a cheerio.  Brush the edges of the pastry with water and press to seal.
4. The cheerios can be wrapped either by creating a triangle or by wrapping around the cheerio and scoring across to form a striped effect (see photo).
5. Brush the puff pastry lightly with beaten egg.
6. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden.​  Allow to cool slightly and enjoy with your favourite sauce.

Jam drops

Ingredients

• 230gm butter
• ½ cup caster sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla essence
• 1½ cups self raising flour
• ½ cup icing sugar
• ½ cup jam

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (160 fan forced). Line two trays with baking paper.
2. Cream the butter, caster sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy.
3. Fold in flour and icing sugar until well combined.
4. Roll heaped teaspoons of mixture into balls. Place on prepared trays, about 5cm apart, allowing room for spreading.
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 or until golden.  Serve and enjoy.

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. In a large bowl, mix together the Rice Bubbles, icing sugar, cocoa and coconut.  Pour melted copha over the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
3. Spoon mixture evenly into 24 patty papers and set in fridge.

Raspberry tarts

Dainty and delicious
Makes 12
Preparation + cooking:  1 hour 20 minutes
Ingredients

• ¾ cup plain flour
• ½ cup cornflour
• 2 tbsp ground almonds or almond meal
• Pinch baking powder
• 100gm salted butter, chilled and chopped
• Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• ¼ cup raspberry jam
• 125gm fresh raspberries
• Finely grated rind of ½ lemon, extra
• Icing sugar, for dusting

Method

1. Place plain flour, cornflour, almonds, baking powder, butter and lemon rind in a food processor.  Pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.  Add egg, pulse until mixture just comes together.  Transfer to a floured surface and knead gently until just smooth.  Form into a disk, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 200°C (180 fan forced).  Roll out pastry between 2 sheets of baking paper to a 2mm thickness.  Using a 7½cm fluted cutter, cut out 12 rounds of pastry and line patty pans.  Prick bases with a fork.  Bake for 5 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
3. Heat jam in a saucepan until runny.  Coarsely mash raspberries in a bowl, add jam and extra lemon rind, stirring gently to combine.  Spoon filling into pastry cases.  Reduce oven temperature to 180°C (160 fan forced).
4. Roll out remaining pastry to a 2mm thickness and using a 5cm star or flower shape cutter, cut out 12 shapes.  Top each tart with a pastry shape and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden.  Allow the tarts to stand for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. Dust with icing sugar before serving.

Notes
Turn these little gems into strawberry tarts by substituting strawberry jam and fresh strawberries
Be careful not to overfill the pastry cases, the overflow does not look pretty and it may burn
Store any leftover tarts in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, if they last that long!!  After refrigeration, allow the tarts to stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving