Churros Con Chocolate

Churros are to my understanding a doughnut originating from Spain which is dipped in a thick hot chocolate and eaten at breakfast time. In Western culture, it is enjoyed more as a dessert. I love visiting the Churro cafes here in Perth but alas they are not very local to me. So I decided to try a few recipes and found this to be the closest to what I would order from the Cafe, the only difference being the price and convenience of enjoying these in my own home. This recipe is definitely a family and friend pleaser and is best, I think, served warm.

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 cup water
4 tablespoons butter
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon sugar
3 eggs
oil for frying
Cinnamon sugar to coat
Sauce
50g thickened cream
1 block of eating chocolate


1. In a saucepan, mix together water, butter, sugar and salt over medium-high heat and bring it to the boil.

2. Add the flour all at once and mix with a wood spoon until well mixed and no flour lumps. Remove from heat and let it sit, off the heat, for a minute.

3. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add one egg at a time and mix with your hands, or alternatively, use an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a wooden spoon. When all the eggs have been mixed in, you should have a very thick but smooth batter.

4. Heat some oil in a frying pan (or a deep heavy skillet) at medium/high heat. As you wait, scrape the dough into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip.

5. When the oil is hot, pipe the dough into the oil and cut with scissors. Be sure not to overcrowd the pan and turn the churros over as each side is cooked to a golden brown colour.

6. When cooked, remove from the pan and place onto a paper-towel lined bowl to soak in the oil and immediately season with the Cinnamon sugar.

7. To cook the dipping sauce heat the thickened cream in a saucepan. When it is hot (not boiling), place the chocolate in the cream in small pieces to allow it to melt easier.  Continue stirring the chocolate and cream until you get a smooth consistency.

8. Serve warm and enjoy!

Notes and Variations
My Churros Con Chocolate recipe makes for very dense churros so if you want something that is a little bit more fluffy, reduce the amount of flour amount to one cup.
The type of chocolate you use for the dipping sauce is entirely up to your taste buds. My family loves dark chocolate, but they don't complain if I serve up milk or white chocolate. To be a little bit adventurous, you could also use caramel, whipped cream or ice cream as a dip.
If pastry bags aren't a common item in your pantry, most major supermarkets stock disposable piping bags which can be found in the cake section. This is what I use because I hate washing (just don't throw away the tips!)
Finally, when I make this I find it makes a big batch of churros, to the point where I can save half of the batter for me to fry up the next day. This recipe is truly for those who want to have a churros feast!

LaLa's Lamb Skewers

It's a lovely day outside and we are celebrating my dad's birthday with a BBQ. Chicken and sausages are such a staple at any BBQ event but I really love lamb. So I made these lamb skewers using mince, for the little ones who like to nibble, and being a mince it is reasonably affordable compared to other cuts of lamb. I found these skewers really easy to make because when a meal requires advanced preparation, I find it less stressful and it means I can cook *and* enjoy the company I have on the day. 

Makes approximately 20 skewers

Ingredients

1kg lamb mince

3 tablespoon dried rosemary

3 tablespoon dried mint

3 tablespoon ground cumin

3 tablespoon mince garlic

salt and pepper to season 

20 bamboo skewers

Step 1 and 2 to be done 24 hours prior to the skewers being cooked.

1. Combine the mince and all the herbs and spices together with salt and pepper, into a bowl and mix well. 

2. When mixed roll into small balls, approximately the size of golf balls, then leave in the fridge overnight in an air-tight container to let the herbs and spices infuse into the meat. 

3. Soak your bamboo sticks in cold water, ensuring they are fully immersed. I used a small bowl of water to keep the bamboo sticks under water. Soak for 30 minutes. 

4. Combine two lamb balls and mould into an elongated roll. Then spike the bamboo stick through the middle, ensuring the tip of the bamboo comes out from the top. 

5. Pre-heat your char-grill or BBQ and grill for approximately 10 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with your favourite dipping sauce and enjoy. 

Turon

In my family when it is someone's birthday, we all bring a dish to cook and share. For my dad's birthday I was asked to make a Filipino fried banana spring roll dessert, called Turon. The ingredients I have used for this recipe is very Westernized and while the quantity seems a lot, believe me when I say, these will get gobbled up so quickly and your guests will be asking for more. I hope one day I will be lucky enough to taste this yummy dessert, freshly made in the Philippines.

Makes 40 mini Turon rolls

Ingredients

6 bananas

1 can jackfruit in syrup

2 cup brown sugar

1 pack of 50 springs roll wrapper
small bowl of water

oil for frying

honey for drizzling

1. Cut up the banana into small pieces and put into a bowl. The way I cut it, you end up getting 8 small pieces.

2. Dice up your jackfruit and put into a bowl. Put the brown sugar into a bowl also and lay out your table ready for rolling. 

3. For each banana piece, coat it with brown sugar. Along with a few pieces of diced jackfruit, place them on to one corner of the spring roll wrapper.

4. Fold to create the turon and seal it using water. Below is a step-by-step how. 

5. By the end of step 4 you should have a nice big pile of turon for frying. So heat up a generous amount of oil, enough to be able to coat the turon when in the pan. When the oil is hot, put some turon in the pan for frying. The oil should sizzle as the turon goes in.

6. Brown the turon on both sides by turning it over during the frying stage. When browned, place on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil and continue cooking the rest of the turon.

7. Place the cooked turon onto a plate, drizzle with honey and serve. 

Notes and Variations
Now I know the quantity and amount of turon being made here is a lot, but you will find that either everyone is going to polish it all off (which is often the case) or the turon that you don't fry, you can put in an air-tight container and store it in the freezer for three months ready for another time you have a craving for this delicious dessert. If you opt to freeze it, all you have to do is warm up the oil in a pan and fry away as if you had just freshly made it.

LaLa's Sopas (Filipino Soup)

I think most of you will agree that when one is sick, there is nothing more comforting and nourishing than mama's soup. It seems this winter my family and I have been very hospitable to the cold and flu bugs because they keep coming and going from my house! When I was little my mama cooked this for me when I was sick. Now that she has passed the recipe onto me and I am a mama, I cook it for my little ones (and my other son, my husband) when they are sick. However this can be made when one is feeling perfectly well and it tastes just as good.

Serves 4 | 30 minutes
Ingredients
250g macaroni pasta
200g beef minced meat
2 potatoes diced
2 carrots diced
1 small onion diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 chicken stock cube
1 tablespoon olive oil
boiling water
salt and pepper to season


1. Dice potatoes, carrots and onion.

2. Heat up oil in a pot on medium/high heat.  Fry onion, garlic and ginger until the onion is glazed and the garlic is browned.

3. Add mince meat for frying to the pot and season with salt and pepper. While your mince meat is browning, fill up and boil hot water in the kettle and dissolve chicken stock cube as per product instructions.

4. When the mince is browned and cooked through, add the diced carrot and potatoes and mix in with the mince.

5. Add the macaroni pasta into the pot as well as the chicken stock. If the stock doesn't completely cover all the ingredients, add more water to the pot.

6.  Add the dark and light soy sauces, as well as the fish sauce and stir everything in the pot so it is all mixed together. I also add a dash of salt and pepper for extra seasoning. Cover the pot and reduce heat to low/medium heat then leave to cook until potato is cooked through and pasta is soft. Serve immediately.

Notes and Variations
This soup is actually a variation of the original Sopas recipe ('sopa' being Hispanic for soup). The original recipe requires the use of chicken, which you could use, but I find when sick the iron in the beef really makes you feel nourished and fuller. And as with many soups, you can add other vegetables to boil, such as celery, capsicum, or cabbage.
If you are not comfortable using chicken stock cubes, you can always use packaged liquid stock. I also find that when I am making this soup for someone who is unwell, they have lost their taste buds and extra seasoning is required to enable them to taste the soup. In doing so, I increase the quantity of the sauces accordingly.

Banana and Walnut Loaf

This Banana and Walnut Loaf recipe is so simple and so delicious! This recipe is a family favourite during winter, but I find I don't ever get complaints when I make it other times of the year. Slice it up and enjoy with melting butter.

Makes 1 Loaf with 8 servings | Less than 60 minutes
Ingredients
2 bananas
2 teaspoons gold syrup
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup self-raising flour
pinch of salt
½ cup crushed walnuts

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180⁰C. In a bowl mash bananas and golden syrup together.

2. Add egg, sugar, sifted flour, crushed walnuts and salt and mix until combined well. When everything is mixed well, you should get a nice smooth batter.

3. Grease and line your loaf pan. Pour the batter into the pan and let it bake in the oven for 30 minutes, or until a skewer is inserted in the middle of the loaf and it comes out clean.

4. When cooked, allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn onto the wire rack to cool.

Notes and Variations
I love the crunch the walnuts gives in this banana loaf. However you can substitute walnuts with other delicious things like fig, chocolate ricotta, sultanas, blueberries or pecan nuts just to name a few.

Cozy Banana Choc-Chip Muffins

I had two overripe bananas that I needed to use but didn't want to make something that would go to waste. This recipe ticks all the boxes when it comes to making the most of left over food items, like my bananas, using common pantry items and makes enough for a single or , at most, two helpfuls. If you need to make more, all you've got to do is double the quantity. These banana choc-chip muffins are a beautiful accompaniment to your cuppa and its kid-friendly, which is always a bonus!

Makes approximately 6 muffins | 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 ripe bananas

¹/₃ cup melted butter

³/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon vanilla essence

1 teaspoon baking soda

Dash of salt

1 cup plain flour

¹/₃ cup chocolate bits

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180⁰C. Put the peeled bananas in a mixing bowl and smash them with a potato masher and mix in the melted butter.

2. Add the sugar, egg and vanilla essence to the mix, followed by the baking soda, salt and flour. When all mixed, you should have a nice thick batter.

3. Grease and/or line your muffin pan with cases. Spoon the batter in the cases, filling it up to three quarters of the case so there is room for the muffin to rise. I also add a few chocolate bits on the top of the batter, but that's optional.

4. Bake the muffins in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean from the muffins. Leave to cool on a wire rack until the aroma of the muffins gets to you and you have to eat them!

Notes and Variations

You can make this recipe a lot more healthier by partially or entirely substituting the flour with whole wheat flour. The choc-chip component is also optional in this recipe but I find it goes well so nicely with the banana in a muffin size, and its also my way of enticing the kids the eat it. Banana goes great with other things, such as walnuts, oats, peanut butter, or other fruits, which you can use to substitute the choc-chips. Enjoy :)

Home Made Sausage Rolls

I cooked these after serving dinner and the family chowed them down! Great for parties or even as a snack when watching the footy, everyone loves home-made sausage rolls and you cannot go wrong with this simple recipe.

Makes approximately 30 mini sausage rolls | approximately 30 minutes
Ingredients
1 carrot
1 onion
1 teaspoon of dried parsley
2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup bread crumbs
500g sausage mince
2 ready-rolled puff pastry sheets
2 egg yolks
salt and pepper to season
sesame seed to sprinkle

1. Preheat oven to 180⁰C. Peel carrot and onion and place in the food processor to be finely diced or pureed
.

2. Combine one egg, mince, breadcrumbs, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper with the carrot, onion and parsley. Then combine the entire mixture into approximately 4 batches.

3. Cut a sheet of puff pastry into two and place a portion of the mixture onto the cut pastry into a roll shape lengthwise. 

4. Beat the remaining egg and use it to brush the pastry on each side of the sausage meat mixture. Enclose the roll with the pastry, placing a tight seam underneath to seal the meat inside the pastry. 

5. Cut the sausage roll into thirds (or according to your desired size) and place a baking paper-lined tray. Brush the top of the cut rolls with egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

6. Bake the rolls in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Serve while hot.