Turkish Delight Rocky Road Recipe

Marshmallows, Turkish delight, roasted macadamia nuts and desiccated coconut are bound together with a light coating of chocolate.

Roasting the nuts enhances their flavour and gives them more crunch. We roast the macadamia nuts ourselves, but you could use packaged roasted unsalted macadamia nuts if preferred. Other nuts could be used in place of the macadamias (blanched almonds are a nice alternative).

Preparation time: about 30 minutes

Makes about 40 pieces.

We use a 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

100g macadamia nuts
350g milk chocolate (white or dark chocolate could be used)
300g chocolate-coated Turkish delight bars (we use Fry's brand)
250g (2 3/4 cups) marshmallows (we use Pascall vanilla-flavoured marshmallows)
64g (3/4 cup) desiccated coconut

If your macadamia nuts are unroasted, preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (160 degrees Celsius fan-forced). Adjust the oven rack to the middle shelf position (not necessary for a fan-forced oven). Place nuts in a single layer on a baking tray and place in the preheated oven. Check the nuts frequently during cooking as they can quickly over-brown. The smaller the nut pieces, the less time they will take to roast. Roast nuts for about 5-10 minutes, until lightly golden. Remove nuts from the oven and set aside to cool to room temperature (about 15 minutes).

Line an 18cm by 28cm (top inside measurements) rectangular slice pan with baking paper. Allow the paper to overhang the sides of the pan to make it easier to lift the rocky road from the pan when set.

The chocolate can be melted in a microwave, double boiler, or a bowl placed on top of a saucepan of hot water. Whichever way you melt the chocolate, ensure that you heat it gently (it should never be more than slightly warm to the touch). Don't allow any water to come in contact with the melting chocolate as this can cause the chocolate to lose its smooth texture. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

To melt the chocolate using a saucepan and heatproof bowl: One-quarter fill the saucepan with water. Sit the bowl on top of the saucepan and check that the base of the bowl doesn't touch the water (use a different bowl if necessary). Remove the bowl and bring the saucepan of water to the simmer. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Ensure the inside of the bowl is dry. Place chocolate in the bowl and sit the bowl on the saucepan. Using a spatula or metal spoon, stir the chocolate frequently until melted.

Remove the bowl from the saucepan and set aside while you prepare the other ingredients.

Roughly chop Turkish delight into pieces about 2cm by 1.5cm by 1cm.

To help ensure that every piece of rocky road contains some Turkish delight, we place the Turkish delight pieces in a single layer in the lined pan.

If desired, you can omit this step and just add the Turkish delight to the bowl with the other ingredients.

Cut the marshmallows into halves. Roughly chop nuts.

Place marshmallows, nuts and coconut in a large bowl and toss to combine.

Pour melted chocolate over marshmallow mixture.

Stir to coat all of the ingredients with the chocolate.

Using a spatula or spoon, dollop the marshmallow mixture on top of the Turkish delight.

Firmly but gently, push the mixture down with the spatula or the back of a spoon. Tap the pan on the bench several times to make sure the chocolate fills the gaps between the Turkish delight pieces.

Refrigerate rocky road in pan until chocolate has set (at least a few hours). When set, remove rocky road from the pan and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

To serve, peel off the baking paper, and cut the rocky road into pieces.© www.exclusivelyfood.com.au

Click here for our rocky road with marshmallows, glace cherries and crushed peanuts.

Butter Cake Recipe

This moist and light vanilla butter cake could be iced, dusted with icing sugar or served plain.

We measure the sour cream and milk and leave them, and the eggs, to stand at room temperature while the butter softens. If your oven cooks unevenly, rotate the cake half way through the baking time to promote even browning.

Preparation time: about 35 minutes (excludes baking time)

Serves about 8-10.

We use a 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

225g (1 1/2 cups) self-raising flour
75g (1/2 cup) plain flour
150g butter, chopped and softened (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon fine table salt with the butter)
226g (1 cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar)
1 1/2 teaspoons (7.5ml) vanilla extract
3 large eggs (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
83g (1/3 cup) sour cream (about 35 percent fat)
166ml (2/3 cup) milk

Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Celsius fan-forced). If you are not using a fan-forced oven, adjust the oven rack to the lower half of the oven so that the top of the cake will be in the centre of the oven.

Grease the side and base of a 20cm diameter (top inside measurement) round cake pan. We use a springform pan for easy removal of the cake. Line base and side of the pan with non-stick baking paper.

Combine self-raising flour and plain flour in a medium bowl and set aside.

Using an electric mixer or electric hand-held beaters on low speed, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together in a large bowl.

Increase speed to medium once the sugar is incorporated. Stop the machine once or twice during beating to scrape down the side and base of the bowl with a spatula. Beat the mixture until it is pale and creamy (about five minutes).


Don't rush the addition of the eggs as the mixture will be more likely to separate and develop a curdled appearance. Add the first egg to the butter mixture and beat on medium speed for about one minute. Repeat with the second egg. Stop the machine and scrape down the side and base of the bowl. Add the remaining egg, beating on medium speed for about one minute. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

Add the sour cream and beat until just combined (about 10 seconds). Scrape down the side and base of the bowl.

Sift half the combined flours over the butter mixture. Add half the milk and, with the machine on very low speed, beat for about 10 seconds until just incorporated. Scrape down the side of the bowl. Add the remaining milk and sift in the remaining flour and beat, on very low speed, for 5-10 seconds to combine the ingredients. Stop beating as soon as the ingredients are combined as over-beating the mixture may cause the cake to be tough.

Spoon mixture into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a spatula or the back of a spoon.

Bake for about 1 hour and 7 minutes to 1 hour and 17 minutes, or until a thin-bladed knife or wooden skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. The cake should be golden brown and spring back when lightly pressed in the centre.

Place pan on a wire rack. When cake has completely cooled, remove from pan.

Store cake in an airtight container. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au

Below: Butter cake dusted with icing sugar.

Rice Salad Recipe

This salad — a combination of brown rice, crunchy vegetables, roasted cashews and an Asian-style soy dressing — could be served as a side dish or a light meal.

Preparation time: about 20 minutes (excludes boiling and cooling times)

Yields about 6 cups.

We use a 20ml tablespoon and 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

220g (1 cup) medium grain brown rice
6g (about 1 medium) garlic clove, peeled
30ml (1 1/2 tablespoons) peanut oil (or other mild-flavoured oil)
10g (2 teaspoons) white sugar
60ml (3 tablespoons) white vinegar
30ml (1 1/2 tablespoons) soy sauce
6g (1 1/2 teaspoons) finely chopped red chilli (adjust the amount according to taste)
110g (about 1 medium) Lebanese cucumber
120g (about 1/2 large) deseeded red capsicum
100g (about 17) snow peas
40g (about 3 small) green onions (green shallots)
130g (about 1 small) carrot
100g (2/3 cup) roasted unsalted cashews

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add rice and garlic to the boiling water and stir briefly to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. Cook garlic for two minutes, until slightly softened. Remove the garlic from the saucepan and finely chop. Continue cooking rice until tender, about a further 28 minutes.

Place garlic in a bowl large enough to hold all of the salad ingredients. Add the peanut oil, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and chilli to the bowl and stir until the sugar has dissolved. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

When the rice is cooked, pour into a colander, briefly rinse rice under running water to separate grains then drain well. While still hot, add to the bowl with the dressing. Stir to coat the rice with the dressing.

Cover bowl and refrigerate until rice is cold (about 45 minutes); the vegetables might lose some of their crunch if added to warm rice. During the cooling time, stir the rice a couple of times to distribute the dressing.

Finely dice the cucumber and capsicum. Remove the stem end from each snow pea and peel away any strings running down the lengths of the peas. Thinly slice the snow peas. Finely slice the green onions. Peel and grate the carrot. Roughly chop the cashews.

If you weren't able to weigh the vegetables before starting, the approximate cup measurements are 3/4 cup diced cucumber, 3/4 cup diced capsicum, 3/4 cup sliced snow peas, 1/3 cup sliced green onions and 1 cup grated carrot.

When the rice is cold, add the cucumber, capsicum, snow peas, green onions, carrot and cashews to the bowl.

Gently stir or toss the ingredients to combine. The salad can be served immediately or covered and refrigerated until required. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au

Roasted Pumpkin Salad Recipe

Roasted pumpkin, baby spinach leaves and toasted almonds are drizzled with a sweet balsamic vinegar and honey dressing, and then topped with crumbled feta cheese.

We use butternut pumpkin (butternut squash) in this salad, but a different variety of pumpkin could be used if preferred.

Over time, the dressing will cause the spinach leaves to wilt and the feta will take on colour from the balsamic vinegar, so add the dressing and top the salad with the feta just before serving.

We use a 20ml tablespoon and 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

1.2kg pumpkin (we use butternut)
20ml (1 tablespoon) oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
16g (about 2 medium) garlic cloves, unpeeled
40ml (2 tablespoons) balsamic vinegar
40ml (2 tablespoons) olive oil
20ml (1 tablespoon) honey
100g (about 5 loosely filled cups) baby spinach leaves
75g (1/2 cup) toasted slivered almonds
100g feta cheese

Preheat oven to 220 degrees Celsius (190 degrees Celsius fan-forced). If you are not using a fan-forced oven, move the oven rack to the middle shelf position.

Cut pumpkin into slices about 1.8cm thick, and remove skin and seeds. Cut the pumpkin slices into pieces about 1.8cm by 4cm by 4cm.

Place pumpkin pieces on a large baking tray, drizzle with one tablespoon of oil and toss to coat. Spread pumpkin out in a single layer on the tray and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Cut a small amount off the end of each garlic clove (this helps prevent the garlic from bursting out of its skin when roasting) and put garlic on the tray with the pumpkin. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

Bake pumpkin and garlic for 20 minutes. Remove tray from oven and set garlic aside to cool. Turn the pumpkin pieces over and return to oven. Continue cooking pumpkin for about 15-25 minutes, until lightly browned and tender when tested with the point of a knife. Allow pumpkin to cool to room temperature.

Make dressing (see instructions below).

Arrange spinach leaves, pumpkin and nuts on a serving platter. Shake the dressing and pour over the salad. Crumble feta over the salad and serve immediately.

Dressing
Squeeze garlic from its skin into a bowl.

Mash garlic with a fork.

Place garlic, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper in a screw-top jar (we use a clean jam jar).

Cover jar with lid and shake well to combine the ingredients. If it is a cold day, the honey will take a little longer to incorporate. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au

Chocolate Pots Recipe

We serve these rich, creamy baked chocolate pots with whipped cream and a sprinkling of grated chocolate. The flavour and texture of the chocolate pots is significantly affected by the chocolate used, so use one that you enjoy eating.

For a hint of coffee flavour, the recipe includes an optional half teaspoon of coffee granules; the amount of coffee can be increased or decreased as desired.

Preparation time: about 30 minutes (excludes baking and cooling times)

Makes six 110ml chocolate pots.

We use a 20ml tablespoon and 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

230g milk chocolate
80g dark chocolate
375ml (1 1/2 cups) thickened cream (35 percent fat)
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules (optional)
36g (2 tablespoons, firmly packed) caster sugar (superfine sugar)
1/2 teaspoon (2.5ml) vanilla extract
4 large egg yolks (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
Whipped cream, for serving

Adjust the oven rack so that the tops of the chocolate pots will be just below the middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 130 degrees Celsius. If you have a fan-forced oven and are not able to turn the fan off, we recommend preheating your oven to 120 degrees Celsius fan-forced.

Line the base of a large baking dish with a tea towel folded to fit or a few layers of paper towels. Place six 150ml capacity ovenproof ramekins on the tea towel/paper towels. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

Roughly chop chocolate. Place cream, milk chocolate, dark chocolate and coffee in a large saucepan over very low heat.

Stir the mixture frequently and remove from heat when the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. The chocolate mixture should be lukewarm at this stage. If it is a little too warm, set it aside to cool for about five minutes before continuing with the recipe.

Place the sugar and vanilla in a large bowl. Add the egg yolks to the bowl, and without delay, stir with a whisk until combined. If you leave the egg yolks and sugar together unstirred, the yolks will start to harden. Don't whisk vigorously as this will incorporate air bubbles.

Pour chocolate mixture onto the egg mixture and stir with a whisk until combined.

Strain the mixture through a fine sieve (this will remove lumps of egg or unmelted chocolate) into a jug with a spout (the spout makes it easier to pour the mixture into the ramekins).

Divide chocolate mixture evenly among the ramekins.

Place the baking dish in the oven and carefully pour enough boiling water into the dish to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

Bake for 50 minutes. The chocolate mixture should still be quite runny.

Carefully remove the baking dish from the oven. Leave ramekins in water for 40 minutes.

After 40 minutes, remove ramekins from the water, cover each ramekin with plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours or overnight to allow the chocolate mixture to set. The chocolate pots can be stored in the refrigerator for at least three days.

We like to serve the chocolate pots with whipped cream. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au

Vegetable Slice Recipe

This savoury slice is based on our zucchini slice. We omitted the bacon, reduced the amount of zucchini and added extra vegetables and flavourings: roasted capsicum, corn kernels, grated carrot, parmesan cheese, garlic and parsley. The slice can be served hot or cold.

The recipe includes instructions for roasting capsicum, but if you wish to purchase chargrilled/roasted capsicum, you will need 125 grams. The cooked fresh corn could be replaced with 165 grams (one scant cup) frozen corn kernels or drained canned corn kernels.

Preparation time: about 40 minutes (excludes baking time)

Serves about 6 as a light meal with a salad.

We use a 20ml tablespoon and 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

275g (about 1 large) red capsicum
1 teaspoon (5ml) oil, for frying onion
160g (about 1 medium) onion, peeled and finely chopped
9g (about 1 large) garlic clove, peeled and crushed
460g (about 1 very large) corn cob, husk and silk removed
200g (about 1 medium) zucchini
150g (about 1 medium) carrot
8g (2 tablespoons) finely chopped parsley
25g (1/4 cup, lightly packed) grated parmesan cheese
56g (3/4 cup, lightly packed) grated tasty cheddar cheese
112g (3/4 cup) self-raising flour
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 large eggs (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
83ml (1/3 cup) oil (we use peanut oil, but any mild-flavoured oil could be used)

Line an 18cm by 28cm rectangular baking dish or slice pan with baking paper. A different sized pan can be used if desired, but you will probably need to adjust the baking time.

Preheat grill on high.

Cut capsicum in half and remove the stalk, seeds and membranes. Press capsicum with your hand to flatten (you may need to cut through any lumpy parts to help them flatten). Place capsicum skin side up on a baking tray.

Place capsicum under the hot grill (broiler) for about 8-10 minutes, until most of the skin surface blackens.

Remove capsicum and tray from under grill (leave capsicum on tray), place a sheet of greaseproof paper on top of the capsicum, and set aside until cool enough to handle (about 10 minutes).

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (160 degrees Celsius fan-forced). If you are not using a fan-forced oven, move the oven rack to the middle shelf position.

Heat one teaspoon of oil in a heavy-based nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Fry onion for about 8-10 minutes, stirring often, until softened and very lightly browned. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for one minute.

Set onion mixture aside while preparing remaining ingredients.

Place the corn in a saucepan of boiling water, cover and cook for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside until cool enough to handle.

Peel skin off capsicum and discard skin.

Dice the capsicum into small pieces and place in a large bowl. © exclusivelyfood.com.au
Remove ends from zucchini and carrot and finely grate. If you weren't able to weigh the carrot and zucchini before starting, the approximate cup measurements are 1 1/2 lightly packed cups grated zucchini and 1 lightly packed cup grated carrot.

Squeeze handfuls of grated zucchini and carrot over sink to remove excess liquid (this prevents the slice from being too wet). Add zucchini and carrot to the bowl with the capsicum.

Remove corn kernels from cob (stand cob upright on a chopping board, and use a sharp knife to cut down the length of the cob).

Add corn kernels, parsley and cooled onion mixture to the bowl with the vegetables and stir to combine.

Add parmesan and cheddar cheeses, flour, salt (we use a rounded 1/4 teaspoon fine salt) and pepper to the bowl and stir to combine the ingredients.

Use a fork to beat the eggs and 1/3 cup oil together in a small bowl. Add egg and oil mixture to the other ingredients and stir until just combined.

Pour mixture into prepared baking pan and spread evenly.

Bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until slice is golden brown and firm to the touch.

Store slice in the refrigerator or freezer. When freezing the slice, we cut it into single serve pieces, wrap the pieces in plastic wrap, and place them in an airtight container. The slice is suitable to reheat. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au