Wholemeal Bread

Making your own bread at home without a bread maker is simple, not to mention worth making if only for the gorgeous aroma that fills your home.

Easy Homemade Garlic Naan Bread

An Indian curry isn't complete without a nice warm naan bread, easily made in your own kitchen! By making your own you can also customize to suit your tastes - whether this means extra garlic, fennel, cumin, you can really get creative!

Basic Pizza Dough

Here's a really easy pizza dough recipe.

Basic Pizza Dough

Makes 1 Pizza

1/2 Cup lukewarm water
1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp dried active yeast
1 Cup plain flour (wholemeal flour works well too)
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp olive oil

1. Combine the water and sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and leave for about 15 minutes to activate the yeast. Activated yeast will look like this:

2. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in the yeast mixture and the olive oil. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine.

3. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead a few times and shape into a ball. Return to the bowl, cover with cling film or a tea-towel. Set aside for a while, in a warm environment, until the dough has doubled in size. I usually do this a few hours in advance and just leave it.

4. Roll out on a floured surface to form a pizza base. Prick the base with a fork at a couple of different locations. Add desired toppings and bake at 200°C for about 15 minutes. 

Tip: Pizza base will cook better if it's on a vented tray, like a pizza baking tray with holes in the base.

Caramelised Onions

Caramelised onions are so easy to prepare and there are so many different ways to use them. They make a good base for French onion soup, onion and feta tarts, gravy, steak sauce, and a great pizza topping. They also keep in the refrigerator for about a week so it's worth making up a batch!

Caramelised Onions

Makes about 2.5 Cups

4 red onions
3/4 Cup water
1/4 Cup brown sugar
1/4 Cup Balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper

1. Peel and slice the onions.

2. Put everything in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 45-50 minutes, until all liquid is absorbed or evaporated and the onions are nice and soft.

3. Allow to cool, store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Basic Egg Pasta

Using this simple recipe, you can make all sorts of fresh pastas; fettuccine, spaghetti, lasagne, ravioli, tortellini. Just get creative with it!

Making your own pasta is really worth the little bit of extra effort. It tastes so lovely and almost melts in your mouth. It doesn't matter if you don't have a pasta machine, just use a rolling pin and roll the dough as thin as you can get it.

Traditionally, you would make pasta by making a heap of flour on a bench, making a well in the centre for the eggs, and the gradually pushing flour into the eggy centre. This takes a long time and can be hard to keep the eggs from running off along the bench. Just chuck everything in a food processor and I promise it will turn out just as good!

Homemade Pasta

Serves 4-6

2 Cups flour
3 Eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil

1. Sift the flour and salt. Add to a food processor and with the motor running add the eggs and oil, continue to process until it forms a dough.

2. Tip out onto a floured surface and knead a few times. Wrap in cling film and set aside to rest for about 30 minutes.

3. Separate the mixture into 4 and roll out each piece and either pass through a pasta machine until thin or roll with a rolling pin until nice and thin.

4. If making fettuccine, roll the pasta sheets up and slice into long strips. If making filled pasta, cut out the desired shapes.

5. Cook in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for about 4 minutes.

Short Crust Pastry

Short crust pastry is a great recipe to have stored away as it goes well with both sweet and savory dishes. It is easy to make and easy to work with.

Short Crust Pastry

Makes 1 pie/tart

2 Cups plain flour
180 g butter, cubed and chilled
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg yolk
2 - 3 Tbsp chilled water

1. Place the flour, butter, and salt in a food processor. Process in short bursts until the mixture resembles a fine crumb.

2. With the mixer running, add the egg yolk and chilled water and mix until the mixture forms a solid dough.

3. Tip out onto a floured surface and shape into a ball. Wrap in cling film and chill for 60 minutes.

4. Roll pastry out on a floured surface, or between two sheets of baking paper, until about 3 mm thick. Press into the base and sides of a pie or tart dish. Prick the bottom a few times with a fork. Chill for about 30 minutes.

5. Blind bake at 180°C for 15 minutes. Remove baking paper and beads and bake for another 10 minutes.

6. Cool slightly before filling.  

Super Easy Raspberry Coulis

I am posting this recipe first as I am excited and want to post something and I know this one off the top of my head.

This raspberry coulis (syrup) recipe is really quick, easy, and delicious! It would work well with any sort of berry, both fresh and frozen. I used frozen raspberries here.

3 Cups Raspberries (Fresh or frozen)
1/2 Cup Caster Sugar (Normal sugar would work too, just heat the syrup more to make sure it dissolves)
2 Tbsp Water

1. Put everything in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.

2. Simmer for a few minutes until the sugar is dissolved

3. Pass through a sieve to remove the seeds (Seeds? Pips? I don't know what to call them!)

4. Once cooled, store in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for about two weeks

You could find all sorts of uses for this. Over desserts, ice cream, pancakes, waffles... Be careful not to just eat it as is! It's so tasty that you may be tempted!