Mini Meringue Pies

Rantings of a Basketcase, November 2012


It was rhubarb and strawberry season, and we had been invited to a dinner party when I decided to create these. I wanted something that was finger-food friendly, could be eaten cold, and would use some cooked rhubarb I had in the fridge.
I was well pleased with the outcome, although they were better when fresh than cold, simply because the meringue weeped a little as it cooled.
Suitable for probably nearly any kind of fruit I reckon. Inspired by my Mums lemon meringue pie.

The Good: Quick, easy, tasty. No need to make your own pastry, the hardest part of this is deciding what fruit to use

The Bad: The pastry cases were a little chewy. I would definitely shell out for better quality ones next time.

Overall Result: 8.5/10

Christmas Pudding Truffles

Rantings of a Basketcase, December 2012

These did not go at ALL like I had planned. They wound up being little hard bites rather than soft, chewy truffles like I had hoped. Also, the lollies I used were not ideal. That said, they were still incredibly yummy, and disappeared at a rapid rate of knots!

The Good: Tasty, pretty, great for decorating a Christmas morning tea table

The Bad: The chocolate melts really fast, so you cant have them out of the fridge for long.

Overall rating: 6/10. I was not happy with this one. I need to try it again with a different truffle recipe. And smaller lollies for on the top!

Pull-apart Garlic Breads

Rantings of a Basketcase, May 2012

An amendment from a recipe found on an American website, these have been a hit every single time I make them. I made them for a gourmet dinner for our Tramping Club families group at the ski lodge last winter, and they were gone within 5 minutes. They never even made it to the tables, everyone came to the servery to get them!

The Good: Simple with a breadmaker, require no advanced skills and taste fantastic

The Bad: Awfully moreish. You wont want to stop eating them

Notes: Always, ALWAYS use butter. Never use oil.

Overall Rating: 10/10. Probably my favourite recipe of all time. Why haven't I made these recently?

Butterscotch Self-Saucing Pudding

Healthy Food Guide, September 2008

I made this for the first time when we had friends over for a pot-luck type meal and I was designated dessert. It is deliciously yummy, and although a bit fiddly at times, well worth the effort.

The Good: Sweet and rich without being too rich like some chocolate puddings are. Moist and sponge-like cake and a sticky toffee sauce to round it out. This recipe has never failed me, and I have successfully re-heated it on several occasions.

The Bad: The fact it only uses one egg makes it difficult to cook a smaller portion, and its such a more-ish dessert that while it can comfortably feed six with a serve of ice-cream, its very easy for it to end up only serving 3 or 4. Not so good for the waistline!

Notes: I always tend to use butter rather than spread for HFG recipes. Just because I like that buttery taste.

Overall Rating: 9/10

No photo sorry - this never lasts long enough!

Apricot Choc-Chip Cookies

Healthy Food Guide, June 2007

I make a variant of these biscuits on a regular basis now, after they got a great reception at a work morning tea. Make sure your flour is as fresh as possible, otherwise they can taste stale. The nuts are optional - I tend to add extra chocolate chips and dried apricots instead. Also, use real butter. It tastes better :)

The good: Easy. Can be made as biscuits or a slice. Slightly healthier than many other biscuits, but dont taste "healthy"

The bad: Very crumbly mix that is difficult to mainpulate.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10.

Daydreaming

Early in 2013 I went to a cupcake decorating course, and they had the most awesome spice rack - full of sprinkles! If only I did more cake decorating, so I could use that as excuse...

This awesome cake decorating spice rack was at Cupcake Sweeties. They do awesome classes, and have a huge range of gear available in store as well.