STRAWBERRY CHEESE DESSERT

If you enjoy cheesecake desserts, this is a winner! The dish is always licked clean!

Biscuit crust

I packet tennis biscuits (crushed)

60ml butter (melted)

100g slivered almonds (roasted until golden)

Mix the ingredients together , using only half the almonds , and press into a rectangular dish (+- 30cm x 20cm) or a large round pyrex dish. Set aside in the fridge.

Filling

1 tin full cream condensed milk

80ml lemon juice

300g fresh strawberries

1t vanilla essence

250ml fresh cream

250g smooth cottage cheese

1.  Blend the condensed milk and lemon juice until the mixture thickens.

2.  Wash, dry and hull the strawberries and keep 10 for decoration.

3.  Blend the remainder with the condensed milk.

4.  Add cottage cheese and vanilla essence.

5.  Whip the cream separately until thick and fold into the cheese mixture.

6.  Pour into the dish with the biscuit crust.

7.  Decorate with the remaining strawberries and roasted almonds and chill in the fridge.

TASTY LAMB SHANKS

  

(Serves 4 )
4 small lamb shanks

Dijon mustard

2 T oil

2 large onions, chopped

2 or 3 cloves of garlic, crushed

Mixed herbs

Salt

Ground pepper

1 wine glass of red wine(or a few tablespoons of balsamic vinegar)

3 tomatoes, skinned and chopped or 1 tin of chopped tomatoes

1 T tomato paste

1T sugar

Beef or mutton stock

 METHOD

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C

1. Season lamb with course salt and ground pepper and smooth Dijon mustard all over meat.

2. Heat oil in an oven proof saucepan and add the onions. Fry until translucent, add garlic and herbs.

3. Add the shanks to the pan and brown on all sides. Pour in the glass of red wine or balsamic vinegar.

4. Add the skinned\tinned tomatoes, tomato paste and sugar.

5. Finally add 2 cups of stock and transfer to the oven. Cook for +- 3 hours, until the meat falls off the bone.

Turn shanks every now and then.

6. Serve with mash and your choice of veg.

If I make this dish for a week night, I do the prep the night before and put it in the slow cooker in the morning and leave it to cook all day on low. When I get home from work it’s tender, tasty and ready to eat!

                                                                                   

RICH CHOCOLATE SAUCE

I love to make this chocolate sauce and keep it for whenever the occasion arises. It lasts for 1 month in the fridge. Just heat it up when you need it ! No cream ! But you can add 1/2 a slab of dark chocolate if you so desire.

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

1/3 cup cocoa

1T butter                                                                   

pinch salt

Method

1. Mix all ingredients in a saucepan.
2. Stir continuously and bring to the boil for 2 minutes.
3. At this point you can add 1/2 slab of dark chocolate, but it tastes great without.
4. Pour into an ovenproof jug and serve hot or cold......delicious!

APPLE TART

This is the easiest, tastiest apple dessert around !

Ingredients

2 tins apples (or 4 granny smith apples, steamed)

3/4c sugar

3/4c (187g) butter                                                              

1 1/4c flour                                                                    

Method

1. Lay tinned / cooked apples in a pie dish.

Preheat oven to 200 C

2. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. (generously)

3. Mix sugar and butter together until creamy.
4. Add the sifted flour and mix. It should stick together but not be too wet or too crumbly.
5. Using a teaspoon, Take spoonfuls and dot over the top of the apples until they are covered.
6. Bake in oven for 1/2 an hour. Allow to cool slightly before serving with cream or custard. The topping
goes slightly hard and crisp as it cools.
It is delicious eaten cold, straight out of the fridge. 

The Most Delicious Chocolate cake

This is such a decadent, easy cake to bake. For Birthdays, those unexpected visitors or just a midnight snack ! It tastes better the next day !

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

Pinch salt

125 g butter

250 ml water

125 ml oil

1/2 cup cocoa

125 ml buttermilk (can use normal milk and add a tsp lemon juice)

5 ml bicarbonate of soda

2 extra large eggs

5ml vanilla essence

Preheat oven to 180 degree C

Sift flour, sugar and salt.  Heat butter, water, oil and cocoa until boiling. Cool slightly, pour over flour and mix well.  Mix buttermilk and bicarb. Beat eggs lightly and mix with buttermilk. Add to flour. Add your teaspoon of vanilla essence. Pour into ovenpan (roasting dish – the one that usually comes with your oven, preferably 32cm x 23cm). Bake for about 20 minutes. The testing needle should come out clean but fairly moist.

ICING

60 g butter (5 T)

3 dessertspoons buttermilk (same thing to make as above)

30 ml (2T) cocoa

1 t vanilla

 2.5 cups icing sugar

Heat butter, buttermilk and cocoa to boiling point. Remove. Sift and stir in icing sugar and vanilla essence. Pour hot icing over hot cake.

ENJOY!  You can serve with vanilla ice-cream if you wish but also delicious on its own!