It's not often that one of the most universally loved treats is also the easiest and quickest to make. For starters, there's no baking involved. And it's also adaptable, with endless possibilities for variations.
We are talking, of course, about Rocky Road. Did you know that Rocky Road is an Australian creation? Back in the 1850's Plucky confectionery importers found a way of using the sweets that had been broken or spoiled during their arduous journey from Europe down to Australia. Those savvy upcyclers mixed them with local nuts and chocolate offcuts to recover the sweets instead of throwing them out. The name Rocky Road is in reference to the bumpy trails scattered with rocks and potholes that travelers used in order to access the gold fields. Today, their ingenuity has become our decadent treat. There's a simple formula to follow that paves the way (ha!) to good Rocky Road. It should be made up of the following:
With this formula in mind, let's make some Rocky Road.
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How appealing does the following sound: you've got guests arriving in an hour, or you're on your way to a bring-a-plate do. You need to whip up something fast, and ideally it should also be delicious, classy and have a point of difference. You have little time or energy and can't contemplate the fiddliness of making hors d'oeuvres, yet you want your offering to pack a punch.
Then follow us. This recipe for Sweet and Spicy Roasted Nuts is not only quick and easy, but has a good chance of scoring you Legendary Nibblies Contributor status for years to come. You can thank us later. For now, we cook. Before the hot weather takes over, we thought we'd do a sweet baked treat. A month from now there will be many of us loath to turn the oven on, which is an excellent excuse to do it right now, and make one of my very favourite things: chocolate tahini biscuits.
Tahini gives these morish biscuits a subtle, slightly 'grown up' flavour, while still having enough chocolate to satisfy anyone with a sweet craving. The butter, chocolate chips, cocoa and tahini deliver a big, rich flavour hit. The generous amount of cocoa compared to a relatively restrained amount of flour makes for a fudgy, pillowy texture that makes you want another. They're really very addictive. Sorry :) Spring is here, and boy does my Sodastream know it! This is the time of year when my reflex to pop the kettle on starts to dull, and instead I reach for something cold and refreshing. Naturally, this led to the inspiration for this week's recipe: flavoured syrups for cocktails, mocktails and desserts!
Over the next few weeks it's our mission at Village Wholefoods HQ to help you with some easy summer entertaining ideas, and sprinkle a little holiday season magic over simple family meals. The syrup recipes we're sharing here are a versatile bunch which can be used to make simple chilled drinks, cocktails or mocktails. They can be used as sauce for cakes, crepes and desserts. They are also a fantastic holiday season gift. When is bread not bread? When it's banana bread! Yep, we all know banana bread is cake, and that just the act of baking it in a loaf shape does not in fact make it bread, but we've all been calling it bread for too long to change now. And isn't it nice to justify cake for breakfast? I mean, we don't generally eat French fries for breakfast but we're always down for a hash brown. It's all about how you market it. Fried po-tay-to, fried po-tah-to. Same rules apply for banana bread.
This oh-so-simple mix and bake recipe is very handy. Feel free to make it your own by adding in different things. Sometimes I add blueberries, or a shot of cooled espresso, and on one decadent occasion, I stirred a giant spoonful of milo through the batter. Delicious! Have fun experimenting and making it your own. |
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