Makes 12 squares


Ingredients:

2 cup (225g) self-raising flour
3 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ cup (115g) butter or margarine
¾ cup (115g) light soft brown sugar
2 eggs
5 tsp golden syrup
5 tsp milk

Topping:
3 pieces stem ginger
¾ cup (115g) icing sugar
4 tsp stem ginger syrup


Method:

• Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F). Grease a shallow oblong tin measuring 27.5 x 17.5cm and line with non-stick paper. Sift flour, ginger, cinnamon and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Rub in butter, then stir in sugar.
• In a bowl, whisk together eggs, syrup and milk. Pour into dry ingredients and beat until smooth and glossy. Pour into prepared tin. Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes until well risen and firm to the touch. Leave in tin for 30 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Cut each piece of stem ginger into quarters and arrange on top of cake. In a bowl, mix together sifted icing sugar, ginger syrup and sufficient water to make a smooth icing. Put icing into a greaseproof paper icing bag and drizzle over top of cake. Leave to set. Cut cake into squares.

Makes 8-10 slices


Ingredients:

2 cup (225g) plain flour
¼ cup (55g) caster sugar
2 tsp easy blend yeast
2 tsp caraway seeds
¼ cup (55ml) tepid water
½ cup (115g) unsalted butter, melted
3 eggs, beaten
icing sugar, to finish


Method:

• Grease a 20cm kugelhopf mould. Sift flour into a bowl. Stir in sugar, yeast and caraway seeds. Make a well in the center; stir in water, butter and eggs. Beat vigorously until smooth. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place until doubled in size. Stir mixture and turn into prepared mould. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise again until doubled in size.
• Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Remove plastic wrap. Bake kugelhopf in the oven for 20 minutes. Lower the temperature to 190°C (375°F) and bake for a further 10 minutes until well risen and golden brown. Leave in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack. Dust lightly with icing sugar. Serve with butter while still slightly warm.

Serves 4-6


Ingredients:

5 lavender flower sprigs
2½ cup (550ml) milk
¾ cup (175g) lavender honey
4 egg yolks
⅔ cup (150ml) double (heavy) cream
⅔ cup (150ml) yogurt
lavender flowers, to decorate


Method:

• Turn freezer to its coldest setting. In a saucepan, heat lavender sprigs and milk to almost boiling. Remove from heat and leave to infuse for 30 minutes. Remove lavender sprigs and bring milk to the boil.
• In a small saucepan, heat honey until just melted. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks until thick and light. Gradually add melted honey. Pour boiling milk onto egg yolk mixture, beating constantly. Pour mixture into a bowl set over a pan of boiling water. Stir for about 8 minutes until custard will coat the back of the spoon. Strain into a bowl, cover and leave to cool. Stir in cream and yogurt.
• Pour mixture into an 850ml freezerproof container. Put in freezer. When sides are beginning to set, beat thoroughly. Return to freezer and repeat after 30-40 minutes. When ice cream is just beginning to solidify, beat vigorously to a smooth slush. Return to freezer. Transfer from freezer to refrigerator 20 minutes before serving. Decorate with lavender flowers.

Makes 8-10 slices


Ingredients:

⅔ cup (150g) butter or margarine
¾ cup (115g) soft light brown sugar
½ cup (175g) clear honey
1¾ cup (200g) self-raising flour
1½ tsp ground mixed spice
2 eggs, beaten
2¼ cup (350g) icing sugar


Method:

• Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease an 850ml fluted ring mould. Put butter or margarine, sugar, honey and 3 tsp water into a saucepan. Heat gently until butter has melted and sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and cool for 10 minutes.
• Sift flour and mixed spice into a bowl. Pour in melted mixture and eggs; beat well until smooth. Pour batter into prepared tin. Bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes until well risen and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for 2-3 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
• To make icing, sift icing sugar into a bowl. Stir in about 9 tsp water to make a smooth, flowing icing. Spoon carefully over cake so that it is evenly covered in icing.

Serves 6


Ingredients:

pared rind and juice 1 lemon
12 large, scented lemon geranium leaves
1¾ cup (425g) double (thick) cream
⅓ cup (85g) caster sugar
½ cup (115ml) dry white wine
55g ratafia biscuits
small geranium leaves and lemon rind strips or slices, to garnish


Method:

• Put strips of lemon rind and geranium leaves in a small saucepan and pour over ⅔ cup (155ml) cream. Bring to the boil very slowly, stirring all the time. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely, stirring occasionally.
• In a large bowl, put sugar, lemon juice and wine and stir until the sugar has completely dissolved. Strain cooked cream and pour into wine mixture with remaining cream, stirring continuously.
• Whisk with an electric whisk until syllabub stands in soft peaks (this takes about 10-15 minutes). Divide ratafia biscuits between 6 tall glasses and spoon the syllabub on top. Decorate each glass with small geranium leaves and strips of lemon rind or lemon slices and serve the syllabub at once.

Serves 5-6


Ingredients:

7½ cup (550g) mixed dried fruit, such as prunes, apricots, figs, apples, pears and peaches
2 tbsp sherry
juice ½ lemon
2 tbsp clear honey
½ cinnamon stick
4 tbsp brandy
¾ cup (85g) toasted almond flakes
½ cup (55g) walnuts, coarsely chopped
chilled single (light) cream or ice cream, to serve


Method:

• Soak druit overnight in 2½ cup (625ml) water and the sherry.
• Put fruit and soaking liquid into a saucepan with lemon juice, honey and cinnamon stick. Cover and simmer on a low heat until fruit is just tender. Discard cinnamon stick, transfer fruit to serving dish and keep warm.
• In a small pan, heat brandy and set alight. While still flaming, pour it over the fruit. Scatter with almonds and walnuts and serve immediately, with cream or ice cream.
  

Note: The effect of flaming brandy is to burn off the alcohol and so concentrate the flavour. It is important to warm brandy first or it will not set alight.

Serves 4-6


Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
2½ tsp caster sugar
pinch cornflour
2½ cup (625ml) whipping cream
2 vanilla pods
caster sugar for topping
frosted flowers (optional)


Method:

• In a large bowl, beat egg yolks lightly with sugar and cornflour. Put cream into a saucepan. With a sharp knife, split open vanilla pods and scrape seeds into cream. Bring almost to boiling point, then pour onto yolks, beating all the time. Pour into top of a double boiler, or a bowl set over a pan of simmering water, and cook over medium heat until mixture thickens sufficiently to coat the back of spoon. Pour into shallow gratin dish. Leave to cool, then chill in the refrigerator overnight.
• Two hours before serving, heat grill to very high. Cover surface of pudding thickly and evenly with sugar and place under grill until the sugar has caramelized. Chill for 2 hours. Decorate with frosted flowers, if desired.

Serves 6


Ingredients:

3 tsp cardamom seeds
2 lemons
1 cup (115g) ground almonds
½ cup (55g) dried breadcrumbs
⅓ cup (85g) caster sugar
4 eggs, separated
pinch of salt
whipping cream and shredded lemon rind, to serve


Method:

• Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F). Butter a 16.5cm round loose-bottomed cake tin.
• Grind cardamom seeds in a mortar. Grate lemon rind and squeeze juice from lemons.
• In a bowl, mix together ground almonds, 2 tsp of the ground cardamom, breadcrumbs, lemon rind and juice. Mix in the sugar. Beat egg yolks and add to almond mixture. Whisk egg whites with salt until stiff; carefully fold into the mixture. Pour into prepared tin. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Leave to cool in tin. Serve topped with piped whipped cream and shredded lemon rind as a dessert, or plain with coffee.

Ingredients:

1 packet agar-agar strands
450g granulated sugar
200ml fresh milk
2 fragrant screwpine leaves (daun pandan), wash and tie into a knot
6 cups water
1 tsp rose essence
yellow, green, red and blue food colouring


Method:

• Soak agar-agar for 1 hour then drain.
• Pur agar-agar, pandan leaves and water in a large pot. Bring to the boil, then continue boiling till agar-agar dissolves. Add sugar, stir and when sugar dissolves, strain jelly into a large bowl. Add milk and essence to jelly and stir. Put 2 large ladles of jelly in each of four small shallow bowls, leaving rest in large bowl. Add a different colour to each small bowl and chill coloured jelly in fridge. Leave the white mixture at room temperature to prevent it setting before coloured jellies. When the bowl of coloured jelly have set, cut them into small cubes, add to the white mixture and stir to mix. Pour into jelly moulds and chill.

Ingredients:

4 cups milk powder
1 cup self-raising flour
4 tbsp ghee
1 cup (250ml) fresh milk
ghee for deep frying

For syrup:
3 cups sugar
3 cups water
1 stick (3cm long) cinnamon
5 cloves
5 cardamoms


Method:

• Combine milk powder, flour, ghee and fresh milk in a bowl. Make little balls the size of walnuts.
• Heat ghee then fry milk balls over low heat till dark brown. Drain, cool a little, then put milk balls into syrup.
• Serve when cold.
• For syrup: Put all ingredients in a saucepan and boil till sugar dissolves. Remove and cool a little before putting in the milk balls.

Ingredients:

230g sugar
6 tbsp water
180g ground almonds
180g butter or ghee
2 tsp rose water
6 cardamoms, remove seeds from pod and crush them
pinch of salt


Method:

• Dissolve sugar in water over low heat, then bring to the boil.
• Add almonds, rose water, butter or ghee and salt, then keep stirring.
• When mixture thickens, pour into a shallow dish and sprinkle the crushed cardamom seeds on top.
• Leave to cool before cutting into squares or diamond shapes.
• Decorate with cherries.

Ingredients:

1 cup rice flour
450g grated coconut, add 2 cups water and extract 4 cups milk
1 level tbsp tapioca flour
1 tsp salt
2-3 fragrant screwpine leaves (daun pandan)

For syrup:
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups water
1 fragrant screwpine leaf (daun pandan)


Method:

• Combine rice flour, coconut milk, tapioca flour and salt.
• Stir and strain into a saucepan.
• Add pandan leaves and cook, stirring all the time.
• When thick, remove from heat, put into individual moulds or into a tray and chill.
• When serving, pour syrup over pudding.
• For syrup: Combine ingredients for syrup in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Cool before pouring over pudding.

Ingredients:

• 600g sweet potatoes, boil in water to which 2 fragrant screwpine leaves have been added, peel then mash while still warm
• 4 fragrant screwpine leaves (daun pandan), pound to extract juice
• 4 heaped tbsp plain flour
• 1 block palm sugar (gula Melaka), cut into little slivers
• 230g grated coconut, (remove skin) steam with a little salt to prevent the coconut from going sour

Method:

• Squeeze juice from crushed pandan leaves into mashed sweet potatoes. Add flour and a pinch of salt and mix. Take a small lump of dough, flatten it, put a few slivers of gula Melaka in the middle and roll into a ball. Repeat till all the dough is used up.
• Boil a pan of water. Drop sweet potato balls into boiling water.
• Remove when they rise to the surface, drain and roll in steamed coconut.

Ingredients:

• 450g sugar
• 2 cups water (for boiling sugar)
• 2 fragrant screwpine leaves (daun pandan)
• 900g grated coconut (remove skin), for 1st squeeze, add 1 cup water, using a fine tea towel or piece of muslin, extract 2 cups thick milk. For 2nd squeeze, add 1 cup water to coconut and extract equal amount of milk.
• 600g rice dough
• 4 heaped tbsp tapioca flour
• pinch of salt
• ½ tsp cochineal

Method:

• Boil water in steamer.
• Put sugar, water and pandan leaves in a saucepan and heat till sugar dissolves.
• Leave syrup until it is like warm, then add to coconut milk (1st squeeze). Combine rice dough with tapioca flour and salt. Add coconut milk (2nd squeeze) and mix to a smooth paste, then add coconut milk-syrup. Stir till smooth and well mixed then strain with fine mesh strainer. Grease a square or round (27cm diameter) sandwich tin. Heat tin in steamer for about 5 minutes.
• Put 4 cups of mixture in a bowl and colour with cochineal. Leave the rest of the mixture white. Pour 1 cup of white mixture into the heated tray and steam for 6-8 minutes, then add ¾ cup red mixture over first layer, pouring it gently. Steam for 5 minutes.
• Repeat process, steaming white and red layers alternately till all the mixture is used up. For the last layer, which should be red, pour 1 cup mixture and steam for 10-12 minutes.
  Cut when thoroughly cool.

Ingredients:

12 ripe pisang kepok or pisang nipah, wash unpeeled, and steam for 15 minutes
230g grated coconut, remove skin before grating
2 tbsp sugar
½ tsp salt


Method:

Peel steamed bananas and cut into thick slices. Mix coconut with sugar and salt, add banana slices and mix.

Ingredients:

300g palm sugar (gula Melaka)
1½ cup water
2½ tbsp granulated sugar
5 ripe bananas (pisang kepok), cut each in two, lengthwise
1 fragrant screwpine leaf (daun pandan), wash and tie
1 small bundle bean thread vermicelli, soak for a few minutes then cut into shorter lengths (optional)

Coconut Milk Sauce:
Mix 230g grated coconut (remove skin) with ½ cup boiled water and extract the thick coconut milk, then add a pinch of salt.


Method:

• Combine gula Melaka, granulated sugar, water and pandan leaf in a saucepan and put over heat to dissolve sugar.
• When sugar has dissolved, strain syrup into another saucepan, add bananas and vermicelli (if used). Bring to the boil and leave to cook for 5 minutes.
• Serve with Coconut Milk Sauce.

Ingredients:

½ packet (15g) agar-agar strands, soak for ½ an hour
4 cups water
½ can (410g/369ml) evaporated milk
1 egg
225g granulated sugar
1 tsp orange essence
½ tsp yellow food colouring


Method:

• Boil agar-agar in water. When dissolved, strain into another saucepan. Mix the milk with egg, half the amount of sugar and essense in a large bowl. Dissolve the rest of the sugar in a large saucepan and cook till sugar becomes brown and cystallizes.
• Combine milk mixture with jelly and add to cystallized sugar. Cook, stirring all the time, until it boils, then continue cooking for a minute or two. Remove from heat and pour into large jelly moulds or trays. Leave to cool, then chill in fridge.

Ingredients:

290g butter or margarine
290g caster sugar
6 eggs
290g plain flour, mix with 2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp cocoa
3-4 tbsp warm water

For custard sauce:
1 egg
1 tbsp sugar
1 cup (250ml) milk
2 tsp custard powder, add 2 tbsp milk from allowance and mix well


Method:

• Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.
• Fold in the sieved flour and cocoa, adding sufficient water to make a soft dropping consistency so that mixture drops readily from spoon.
• Pour mixture into a greased pudding basin, filling it only three-quarters full to allow room for pudding to rise.
• Steam for 1-1¼ hours.
• Turn out on a dish. If it appears to stick, loosen edges with a blunt knife. Serve at once with custard sauce.
• For custard sauce: Beat egg and sugar lightly in a saucepan. Add rest of milk and heat. When almost boiling, gradually add custard powder stirring all the time. Cook over low heat till mixture boils and thickens.

Ingredients:

600g fresh tapioca, peel, wash and slice very thin
1 block palm sugar (gula Melaka), cut into pieces
5 tbsp water
oil for deep frying


Method:

• Rub tapioca slices with salt then deep fry till light brown; drain and cool.
• Put gula Melaka and water in a pan and dissolve over low heat, then add the tapioca slices and stir till they are well coated with syrup. Remove from heat. Leave to cool before storing in an air-tight container.

Ingredients:

6 tbsp ghee
120g cashew nuts
120g sultanas
150g yellow vermicelli, break into 3 pieces
5 cups (1.25L) fresh milk
230g granulated sugar
1 tbsp rose water


Method:

• Heat ghee in large, heavy saucepan. Deep fry cashew nuts then the sultanas separately. Drain and set aside.
• Fry vermicelli in remaining ghee till brown, then add milk. Keep stirring, add sugar and rose water. Bring to the boil then continue to boil for a few more minutes. Add sultanas and cashew nuts, cover, reduce heat and cook till vermicelli is soft. Serve hot.