Peppermint slice and Christmas baking

Happy New Year! It wasn't my intention to have such a long break between posts. Time seems to slip by so quickly when you are on a break from full-time work and enjoying spending time with your family. My computer was packed away for most of this period so I ended up taking a break from my blog as well as keeping up with the many other blogs that I read regularly. It was back to work for me today so now it's back to blogging!

Christmas feels like a long time ago but I wanted to share an indulgent slice that originated from an aunt when I was growing up. It was insanely popular amongst the youngsters as well as the adults and I have distinct memories of trying to stuff as many pieces into my belly as possible without making myself physically ill. It was a fine line and often my cousins, siblings and I would just wait another 10 minutes or so before attempting another piece.

The original ingredients for the slice were not healthy in the slightest; condensed milk, chocolate ripple biscuits, butter and Cadbury's peppermint chocolate. I was pleased that by using soy condensed milk, removing the butter and substituting dark mint chocolate in a lesser quantity, I was able to reproduce this childhood favourite. The man and son were delighted that the consistency wasn't perfect in my trial run as it meant they had a whole batch for themselves to indulge on!

I mentioned my plan to make arancini for our Christmas Eve dinner with my family from a batch of cauliflower risotto but in my baking frenzy I didn't take any photos. They turned out great with some sun-dried tomatoes, olives and a small cube of cheezly stuffed inside. I shaped them as cones, dunked them in soy milk, then rolled them in corn flake crumbs and baked them in the oven sprayed with olive oil. I also took half of the peppermint slice, jaffa balls and a salad that I wasn't overly happy with.

For Christmas brunch with the man's family I whipped up a batch of socca from Terry Hope Romero's recipe testing which were a bit tedious to churn out for a large number of people. It didn't really matter as everyone enjoyed them and there were also jaffa balls and peppermint slice to be devoured.

For our formal Boxing Day lunch with the man's family, I made Imam Bayildi for our main meal item which was nice although it didn't impress me as much as when I first made it during Vegan MoFo. I merged a couple of different hummus recipes from Appetite from Reduction and baked some pita bread to go with it. These were both a big hit! A Mediterranean pasta salad was my other contribution which I would like to tweak a little in the future.    

Finally, I would like to share my most treasured present from this year. I was extremely delighted to unwrap this apron and oven mitts from my son. He chose it on his own and knew that I would love the chillies on it! Aprons have never been my thing but this one is getting put to good use because I love it so much.


Peppermint slice (Adapted from an old family recipe)

2 x 250g packets Arnott's Chocolate Ripple biscuits
1 x 330g tin Soymilke condensed milk
1 x 100g mint flavoured dark chocolate (72% cacao)
dessicated coconut, for topping

Place the biscuits in a food processor and pulse until they become a fine powder. Transfer the biscuit powder to a large bowl.

In a small saucepan combine the condensed milk and chocolate, heat on medium-low until the chocolate has melted, stirring occasionally. Pour the condensed milk and chocolate mixture into the bowl containing the biscuit powder and mix thoroughly until well combined.

Press the mixture into a 28 x 18 cm tin lined with baking paper, sprinkle with coconut and place it in the freezer for 30 minutes - 1 hour to allow it to set. Remove the slice from the tin and cut into small pieces. Store in the refrigerator in a sealed container.

Cauliflower risotto

Christmas can be a logistical nightmare for trying to get families together. For many years, we would have a lunch with one family followed by a dinner with the other family on Christmas Day which was quite exhausting. In more recent times, our first family gathering kicks off on Christmas Eve with my side of the family. Christmas Day is relatively quiet consisting of a brunch with the man's family followed by a proper lunch on Boxing Day. It feels more relaxing to have the festivities spread out over a few days and it also gives me plenty of time for cooking!

Over the last few years I have made a couple of nut roasts from Johanna's Green Gourmet Giraffe blog, a tofurkey discovered on Where's The Beef and Carla from easy as vegan pie's cauliflower and caramelised onion tart amongst other things. This year I wanted to mix it up a little. When my sister announced that she was planning a BBQ on Christmas Eve, I had to put my thinking cap on because veggie burgers or sausages didn't feel special enough for the occasion. I threw a few ideas at the man and the one that we both happily agreed on was arancini.

Arancini or risotto balls are best made with day old risotto so I decided to make a double batch of risotto, serve some for dinner and use the remainder for the arancini. A smooth textured risotto suits arancini best as it makes rolling the balls much easier. A cauliflower risotto recipe had been sitting in my drafts for several months as I didn't record the recipe properly when I initially threw it together and also felt that my first effort needed a bit of tweaking. I knew that the texture would be perfect for arancini so it was time to give it another try.

This risotto starts off by cooking the cauliflower in vegetable stock and then blending it with a bit of stock. The thick cauliflower puree is reserved and added to the plain risotto when it has finishing cooking which makes it a very creamy dish. We like to eat this risotto garnished with sun-dried tomatoes and olives. I have also sampled it with toasted slivered almonds and fresh parsley which gives it a lighter taste and a bit of crunch.

I was out of of white wine and fresh herbs which I would usually include in a risotto. I had prepared a very simple basil pesto so this was used in place of herbs. My mum has shocking allergies to every variety of nut so I had made this batch of pesto only with basil, olive oil, nutritional yeast and salt. The man adored this risotto and I had cunningly made it on a night when our son wasn't home for dinner. I've mentioned before that he doesn't care for risotto and olives are another pet hate of his. Sun-dried tomatoes are tolerable for him but they are not something that he is mad about. The man requested this meal to become a regular so I suggested that it could be a regular when it's tea for two.

I would like to wish all of my readers a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope you all enjoy the festive season and devour some delicious food with great company.

Cauliflower risotto

1/2 head cauliflower, cut into florets

8 cups vegetable stock
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cups arborio rice

1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 tablespoon basil pesto
salt and pepper, to taste
chopped sun dried tomatoes and olives, for garnish

Cook the cauliflower in a saucepan with the vegetable stock until tender, about 15-20 minutes. Drain the cauliflower in a colander and reserve the stock. Place the cauliflower florets in a blender with 1//2  - 1 cup of the vegetable stock and process until it becomes smooth and creamy.  Pour the rest of the stock back into the saucepan and simmer over a low heat.

Heat the olive oil in a large wide pot and fry the onions for about 5 minutes or until soft. Add the garlic and cook for another minute then stir through the rice ensuring that the grains are coated evenly with the oil, onions and garlic. Add 1 cup of stock and stir until the stock has been absorbed. Turn the heat to low and continue adding stock 1/2 cup at a time, stirring often, until the rice is almost tender.

Stir through the cauliflower puree, nutritional yeast and basil pesto and cook for another minute or two. Season with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with chopped sun-dried tomatoes, olives and fresh herbs if desired.