Lemon Cream Pie

Unbelievably creamy lemon pie is just like key lime pie with a lemon twist. Don't let the name fool you, this easy lemon cream pie may be luscious, but it is simple to create! This luscious lemon cream pie recipe uses condensed milk, grated lemon zest, fresh lemon juice and with fresh whipped cream topping. A super easy spring or summer dessert and a great alternative to lemon meringue pie.

Ingredients:

Crust:

• 180g digestive biscuits
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 85g butter

Filling:

• 2 cans sweetened condensed milk
• 2 large egg yolks
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• ¾ cup fresh lemon juice

Whipped cream:

• 1 cup double cream
• ¼ cup icing sugar

Method:

Preheat oven to 175ºC/165ºC for fan assist oven.

In a food processor, crush digestive biscuits until they resemble fine crumbs. Add sugar and combine. Melt butter in microwave. Add to crumb mixture and mix until all crumbs are wet. Press evenly into the bottom and up the sides of a standard 9 inch pie dish.

Bake crust for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.

Prepare the filling while crust bakes. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, salt, lemon zest and lemon juice. Pour into hot crust and bake an additional 10-12 minutes, until filling is solid when  jiggled in the pan.

Cool completely at room temperature, then refrigerate 3 hours, or until chilled.

Whisk double cream and icing sugar with a hand whisk or stand mixer until stiff peaks form. Dollop or pipe onto top of pie before serving.

Dhaba Chicken Curry

A traditional North Indian dish inspired by the road side restaurants known as Dhabas. Rustic chicken curry cooked in a rich onion-tomato masala flavoured with basic Indian spices. Juicy and succulent marinated chicken pieces are cooked in a simple, spicy tomato onion curry flavoured with whole spices, ginger, garlic and yogurt. I served the Dhana Chicken Curry with rice and my homemade sourdough roti/Phulka. The link is: https://yummymummyrecipes.blogspot.com/2023/05/sourdough-rotiphulka.html

Ingredients:

For marination:

• 600g mini chicken fillet, or choice of your preferred chicken part  
• 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• ½ tsp salt
• 1½ tsp Kashmiri red chili powder
• ¼ garam masala powder

For the curry:

• 5 tbsp cooking oil
• 3-4 whole cloves
• 4-5 whole black peppercorns
• 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
• 2-3 whole dry red chillies
• 1 cup grated red onions
• 1 tsp chopped ginger
• 1 tsp chopped garlic
• ½ cup chopped tomatoes
• ¾ cup plain yogurt, whisked with 2 tsp plain flour)
• 1½ tsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1½ tsp Kashmiri red chili powder
• 1 tsp salt or to taste
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tbsp Kasuri methi
• 3 tbsp chopped coriander

Method:

For marination: Add chicken, ginger-garlic paste, lime juice, salt, red chili powder and garam masala powder in a large mixing bowl. Mix well until all combine. Set aside while making the curry.

For the curry: Lightly crush cloves, black peppercorns and cinnamon stick in a mortar and pestle and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pan on high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the crushed spices and dry chillies and let them crackle for 2-3 seconds.

Add the red onions and cook on medium-high heat until they turn slightly brown, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add ginger and garlic and cook until onions are nicely browned. (about 5 minutes).

Now, add the marinated chicken to the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add tomatoes and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Add yogurt and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Now add coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin powder and salt and mix well.

Reduce the heat to low.

Add ½ cup of water and mix well.

Cover the pan with a lid and cook on low heat until the chicken is tender (about 30 minutes). Stir a few times while cooking.

Add garam masala and Kasuri methi and cook for another minute.

Add some water if the curry is too thick, and bring it to a boil.

Check for salt and add more if needed. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve.

Fudgy Oreo Brownies

Raise your hands if you love brownies? How about Oreo cookies? Well, today I have combined the two to create the ultimate brownie recipe. You are absolutely going to LOVE these!!!

This brownie are thick, fudgy and rich in flavour. I stuffed them with whole Oreos, and topped them with broken ones. Perfection. 

You won't be able to stop at just one brownie-trust me.

Ingredients:

• 300g dark chocolate, chopped 
• 200g butter
• 200g plain flour
• 50g cocoa powder
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 300g brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 28-30 Oreo cookies

Method:

Grease and line a 9 inch square cake tin with baking paper. Preheat the oven to 170ºC /160ºC for fan assist oven.

In a pan, combine the cooking chocolate and butter. Heat over low heat until fully melted, stirring occasionally. Once melted, allow it to cool for a few minutes.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract until fully combined.

Add the cooled chocolate mixture to the bowl and whip until the mixture is fully combined, smooth and glossy.

Sift in the plain flour, baking powder and the cocoa powder in the brownie batter. Mix well with a silicone spatula until the batter is thick and glossy.

Pour half of the brownie batter into the prepared cake tin, smoothing it out evenly.

Lay 20 Oreos on top of the batter in the tin in a single layer.

Pour the remaining brownie batter over the Oreos, smoothing the top with an angled spatula.

Break the remaining Oreos into pieces and scatter them over the top of the batter, pressing them in lightly.

Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out mostly clean with few moist crumbs.

Allow the brownies to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

For a thicker, fudgy texture, refrigerate the brownie overnight before cutting. This also helps in achieving clean-cut lines. 

Sourdough Farmhouse Sandwich Loaf

Soft and fluffy sourdough bread is the perfect bread to have on hand. Made with white and wholemeal bread flour, active sourdough starter, butter and a little sugar, this fermented bread has a lighter texture and tangy flavour.

Not only this recipe absolutely delicious ( making it really hard to ever go back to store-bough bread), but it is also super simple. No strange ingredients, no stretching and folding every 30 minutes.....Just mix, rise, shape, rise again and bake!!!

Let it cool, slice and slather it with butter. It is so yummy and it reminds me of a bread you would get on a breadboard from a restaurant.

Let's be honest, though, it is wat better since it's made from scratch and has that wonderful sourdough tang. 

Ingredients:

• 270g warm water
• 85g warm milk, can substitute with plant-base milk
• 45g sugar
• 120g active sourdough starter
• 50g butter, melted and cooled, can substitute with plant-base butter
• 400g white bread flour
• 200g wholemeal bread flour
• 12g salt

Method:

Premix and autolyse: Add the milk, water and sugar in a large mixing bowl and stir until the sugar dissolved.  

Now add the sourdough starter to the liquid ingredients and stir to dissolve it a little.

Now add the rest of the ingredients; bread flours, salt and melted butter. Mix them together until a shaggy dough forms. Cover with a shower cap or a tea towel and let it sit for an hour.

Kneading the dough: You can knead this by hand or a stand  mixer. If kneading by hand, knead the dough for 10 minutes or until it is soft and elastic. The dough should feel slightly sticky but not be a big mess.

If using stand mixer, which is my favourite. You need to use the dough hook. Knead for 2-3 minutes, then give the mixer a rest for 2 minutes. Repeat this process in total 3 times. The dough should come away from the side of the bowl when it is done.

Bulk ferment: Once the dough is kneaded sufficiently, you need to bulk ferment the dough. If you are using a stand mixer, it is fine to leave it in the mixing bowl. At this point you can just leave the dough as it is, covering it with shower cap or tea towel to stop it drying out. 

As with any sourdough bread, the bulk ferment time depend on the temperature in your kitchen and of course the strength of your starter.  You are  looking for your dough to be just UNDER double.

Shaping: Once the dough has finished its bulk ferment you can shape your dough. Before you start shaping, lightly butter or oil the loaf pan.

ease the dough out the bowl using a silicone dough scraper, remembering to have the smooth side on the counter and the sticky side facing up. You shouldn't need any flour for this as your dough shouldn't stick.

Gently ease your dough out into a rough rectangle, with the shortest side in front of you.

Pop any large bubbles and gently flatten the dough using your fingertips.

Then roll the dough up into a log and tuck the ends under. Leave the dough to sit and relax for around 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes. tighten up the log by pulling the dough a little, using the sticky underside to create tension. Then simply plop the log into your oiled tin.

Second rise: Once the bread has been shaped and is in the tin, you will need to let it rise again so that it fills up the shape of the tin.

This should only takes a few hours but like bulk ferment, this will depends on the strength of your starter and the temperature  of your kitchen.

You will know it is done when it's risen above the lip of the tin (if you are using an open tin) It will be rounded on the top. When you poke it, it will leave a slight indent but spring back nice and slowly.

If you shaped it quite tight, you will see some tension on top of the dough as it's risen.

Baking: Preheat the oven around 180ºC. Let the oven warm for around 1o minutes and then place the sandwich loaf tin in the oven and bake for approximately 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Once the dough is baked, remove it from the tin and leave to cool on a wire rack. Brush the top with some melted butter for a richer flavoured and soft crust.

Ideally, leave it for at least 90 minutes before you cut into it.

Enjoy!!!

Vegan Sweet Potato Chickpea Stew

A super healthy vegan stew that is easy to make and oh-so-satisfying, this sweet potato and chickpea stew is ready in under 1 hour. The stew is naturally vegan  and gluten-free and has well-balanced flavours for the perfect winter comfort meal. I like to add baby spinach to get more iron in the diet  as well as vitamin C as spinach is also rich with it.

I typically use Indian spices for vegan stews and soups. You can make this vegan sweet potato stew as spicy as you like, by adding more or less chilli. 

You can serve this stew over rice, quinoa, or with some crusty bread for an easy plant-based dinner. 

Ingredients:

• 3-4 tbsp cooking oil 
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• ½ tsp chilli flakes
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 2 can chickpeas, drained
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2-3 handful baby spinach

Method:

In a large pot, heat the cooking oil and fry the onion over medium heat for 3-4 minutes until softened and slightly golden. Add the garlic and continue to cook for another minutes until fragrant.

Add all the spices to the pan and mix them in. Next, stir in the chopped tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens a bit.

Next, add the chickpeas an sweet potatoes to the pot and pour in the coconut milk. Mix everything well and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender.

Add the baby spinach to the pot and cook for another minute until the spinach wilts. Serve over rice, quinoa or some crusty bread.

Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake

This baked Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake is rich, creamy, fluffy and sunshiny sweet. So, if you love lemon and cheesecake, you have to try this ricotta cheesecake recipe!

This wonderful baked cheesecake recipe, using ricotta cheese, cream cheese and yogurt. One of the reason is it gives a fluffier texture to the cheesecake and doesn't make it quite as heavy to eat.

Ingredients:

• 380g cream cheese, room temperature
• 500g ricotta
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 200g castor sugar
• 330ml plain yogurt
• 3 lemons, juice and zest
• 4 tbsp cornflour

For the topping:

• 2 tbsp lemon curd
• 1 cup double cream for decorating on top or serving, whipped until stiff
• some grated white chocolate

Method:

Preheat oven to 170ºC. Line and base a 9 inch round springform tin with baking paper and grease the sides of the pan.

Also, wrap the bottom of the springform pan in aluminium foil so the foil also comes up the sides, like a coat. This will stop any water from seeping into the pan once it is in the water bath.

In a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients except the eggs, and beat until everything is combined and smooth.

Then slowly add the lightly beaten eggs, again, until everything is combined.

Transfer the mixture to the baking pan and using the tip of a knife, lightly swirl around to get rid of any bubbles you see.

Carefully transfer the cheesecake to a larger baking pan, and fill with water in it, just halfway up the outside of the springform tin.

This will allow the cheesecake to cook more slowly and evenly. Then place in the oven and bake for 45 minutes. There should be a slight wobble to the cheesecake and a little golden on the surface.

Once done, switch the oven off, and leave the cake inside wit the door closed for a further 60 minutes.

When the cake has fully cooled, place in the fridge to chill, preferably overnight, but at least 6 hours. 

Once firm, turn out onto a serving plate. It is easiest to keep the cheesecake in the baking tin in the fridge until completely set and then remove the outer ring and place a plate on top of the cheesecake and turn upside down, then remove the cake pan base and baking paper.

When chilled, you can decorate the top with the whipped cream. Heat the lemon curd for 30 seconds in the microwave to loosen up and then drizzle over the top. Sprinkle with some grated white chocolate or leave it out to suit!

Shortbread Lemon Bars

Perfect for potlucks, picnics or just a quiet afternoon tea, these lemon bars with buttery shortbread crust and luscious lemon filling are as pretty as they are delicious!

Beautiful. Elegant. Impressive.

LOVE the lemon curd!. Jammy, a bit custardy, tangy and not-too-sweet. Hits the spot!

Ingredients:

Crust:

• 175g plain flour
• 95g granulated sugar
• 115g butter, cut into cubes, room temperature

Lemon Filling: 

• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 120g granulated sugar
• 80ml lemon juice
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 30g butter, melted and cooled
• 10g plain flour
• icing sugar for coating the bars

Method:

Preheat the oven to 175ºC. Grease an 8 inch square oven-proof dish and line the bottom and sides with baking paper, about 2 inches of overhand on each side. 

Crust: Mix the flour and sugar in a medium bowl. Add in the cubed butters and cut butter into flour mixture with a fork. Alternatively, you can rub the butter and flour mixture with your fingertips. The mixture will look like breadcrumbs.

Spread the mixture into the oven proof dish with your hand. You can use the back of a spoon to spread it evenly. You should lightly flour the spoon to avoid it sticking to the flour-butter mixture.

Bake for 25 minutes until it is golden brown. For a soft crust, bake for 22 minutes or until it lightly changes colour.

Lemon filling: Mix the lemon zest and sugar in a bowl with a fork or rub with your fingertips to increase the lemon flavour. Add in the eggs and whisk until well combined. Then add the cooled melted butter, lemon juice and mix. Add in the flour and mix until all incorporated.

Add the lemon filling to the hot crust. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the filling is set but still soft. Remove from oven and let it cool at room temperature for about 1½ hours. When it is cool enough, lift the paper from the sides.

Cut into 9 squares. Dust with icing sugar. These bars can last for a week if you keep in the fridge. 

Chicken Karahi

Karahi is named after the pan in which it was originally cooked-a heavy, often cast-iron pan that is similar to a wok, but rounder with a flatter base. Traditionally, meat would be simmered and stir-fried in this karahi in an open fire.

Chicken karahi distinguishing features are it's rich, tomatoey base and a fragrant finishing of green chili peppers, coriander and silvers of ginger.

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup of cooking oil or ghee
• 600g chicken breast, cut into bite pieces. You may use any part you prefer
• 500g tomatoes, finely chopped
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp minced ginger
• salt to taste
• 2 tsp paprika or kashmiri red chili
• 1 tsp crushed black pepper
• 1 tsp chili flakes
• ½ tbsp cumin powder
• ½ tbsp coriander powder
• 2 green chillies, slit in half lengthwise
• handful or coriander, chopped
• ¼ cup ginger cut into fine matchstick pieces

Method:

Heat the oil in a pan, (or a karahi wok if you have) on high heat.

Add the chicken and stir the chicken constantly until he chicken begins to take on golden colour in some places.

Add in the minced ginger and garlic. Give this a fry alongside the chicken, again stirring constantly and ensuring nothing burns. Continue to fry this until the raw smell of the ginger and garlic begins to fade.

Add all the chopped tomatoes and spices. Stir in and allow this all to cook on high, stirring to ensure nothing catches at the bottom of the pan.

Continue to cook this for 15 minutes, over high heat. The oil will separate, the tomatoes will thicken and begin to coat the chicken, and you will see holes begin to bubble in the gravy. The chicken should be cooked through at this point once the oil rises to the top and you see the holes coming through.

Add the coriander and green chillies, stir in, turn the heat down to a low heat and allow everything to simmer together for 5 minutes with the lid still off.

Serve with the matchstick-cut ginger and additional coriander/green chilli if desire. Goes well with hot rice!

Lemon Marmalade

Recently, my friend came back from his holiday in Spain where he rented a house there for 3 months during the winter month. There are orange tree, lemon tree and also an avocado tree, and the trees are full with fruits. So, just before he left his rented Air B&B, I told him to get me some beautiful, homegrown lemons from the garden, in which to my surprise he brought back a big bag of lemons. I have been baking all sorts of cakes & desserts using the lemons. I still need to find how I can use up most of the lemons before they get rotten.

I spend a bit of time trawling online sites before deciding that the best thing would be to have a go at making some lemon marmalade. If you think that making a marmalade is difficult, I want to assure you that it is easier than you may think. So, here its the recipes.

Ingredients:

• 500g unwaxed lemons
• 6 cups water
• 1.5kg sugar

Method:

Place a saucer or a small plate in the freezer, ready to check for the setting point of your marmalade.

Thoroughly wash the lemons. Remove each end of the lemons. Remove each end of the lemons and cut the lemons into quarters lengthways. Holding two of the quarters together, slice as thinly as possible and remove any seeds.

Place the lemon slices into a non-reactive bowl. Add the 6 cups of water, cover the bowl and leave the lemons to stand overnight.

The following day, place the lemons and water into a jam pan. Over medium-high heat, bring the fruit and water to boil. Boil for about 15 minutes or until the lemon peel is tender, stirring occasionally with a long-handled wooden spoon. The time may vary slightly depending on the variety of lemon and the thickness of the slices.

Add the sugar and stir well to dissolve it. After dissolving the sugar, return the fruit to the boil, stir occasionally and skim to remove any foam. Continue to stir until the marmalade reaches setting point, about 25 minutes.

Remove from the heat to conduct the wrinkle test. If not set, continue to boil for another 2-3 minutes and then test again. The "wrinkle test" is by putting a small amount of the marmalade onto the saucer that you taken out from the freezer. Let it cool for a minute then push against the marmalade with the tip of your finger. If the surface wrinkles it means setting point has been reached. 

Take the mixture off the heat and let the marmalade stand for about 10 minutes. This will help evenly distribute the fruit throughout the jars.

Ladle the marmalade into sterilized jars. It's ready to give as gift to family and friends.