apple chocolate & hazelnut crumble

On the road this week and having some technical difficulties…. tune in wednesday for the recipe to this tasty winter dessert.

chocolate hazelnut birthday cake with frangelico poached prunes

There has to be something to be said for hosting a house party in your own place. Sure there is the downside of having the mess to clean when the guests do depart, but to my mind the positives far outweigh that little inconvenience. I mean there’s no need to worry about traffic or taxis or getting there on time. And with easy access to your own wardrobe you can adjust your outfit accordingly if you find that you’re too cool or too warm. Or for that matter if you happen to be like my flatmate Dr Kate and find yourself to be a little indecisive when it comes to choosing from your recent shoe purchases (8 pairs on a recent trip to San Francisco) you have the option of mixing things up with a regular shoe change. Read the rest of this entry »

fig & walnut pavlova with yoghurt sour cream 

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about my brother and his life long obsession with that classic dessert lemon meringue pie and well it got me reminiscing about all the great desserts from my younger years: cheesecake, rice pudding, baked custard, apple crunch (Mum’s version of your classic crumble), fruit salad, baked apples stuffed with dried fruit, busy day pudding, strawberries with marsala and cream, and the dangerously boozy chocolate log. All comforting sweet treats in their own right, but none that got me anywhere near as excited as that great New Zealand / Australian creation: the pavlova. Read the rest of this entry »

mum’s legendary lemon meringue pie
 

Mention that classic dessert, Lemon Meringue Pie and my thoughts turn instantly to my gorgeous not-so-little brother. For as long as I can remember Dom has been fanatical about his pie, think Homer Simpson and his devotion to beer or doughnuts and you’re not even in the same ballpark as to how much Dom loves LMP. Read the rest of this entry »

chocolate & pistachio fudge 

I must admit, I am a little surprised to be finding myself writing about marshmallow this week. I mean it’s not something I tend to think about all that often, if ever. That is unless I happen to find myself in front of an open fire with a long stick and a craving for something toasty warm and sickly sweet with the added bonus of satisfying my pyromaniac tendencies. But even then I’d be far more likely to go for a glass of Muscat or port than charred molten confectionery. Read the rest of this entry »

chocolate sorbet 

I really believe that the only good thing about failure is that it makes you appreciate things so much more when you do manage to succeed. I mean if we were perfect and everything worked spot on first time life would become a little dull, wouldn’t it??

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verjuice poached peach

There’s something about Maggie. Ever since I first came across this dynamo of Australian food, via her Pheasant Farm pate and quince paste, I’ve been big Maggie Beer fan. Her love of the seasons and simple, produce-focused cooking style together with her big country smile have always been a winner. For those of you Northern Hemisphere types, not familiar with this pioneer of Australian food I guess you could say she’s almost Australia’s answer to Alice Waters of Chez Panisse fame. Read the rest of this entry »

baked cheesecake & fig tart

Well, this week folks, I had planned on telling you the tale of two tarts. Two equally succulent but very different gals who had one thing in common, apart from both being a lovely way to end a meal: a topping of ripe, fragrant figs. But sometimes fate gets in the way of a good story and well this week I come to you with a tale of joy and a tale of woe. Read the rest of this entry »

chocolate mousse cake with hazelnut praline

I’ve come to the conclusion that a good chocolate cake is the little black dress (LBD) of the dessert world. I mean they are both absolute classics that are always in vogue. There is a dress-them-up or dress-them-down flexibility which makes them a workhorse in their respective arenas. And they are both excellent examples of why when you’re onto a good thing, you should stick to it. Read the rest of this entry »

mango granita with coconut cream

For those of you who are regular visitors to stonesoup, it will not come as a surprise that I’m admitting to being an icecream freak. There isn’t anything in the dessert arena that gets my heart racing like a good scoop or two. In Winter I love to serve it as an accompaniment to hot, rich things like a crumble, but it is during the Summer months that icecream tends to take center stage as a dessert on its own. Read the rest of this entry »