Honey Ice Cream

Kath October 16, 2018

I started making this ice cream a year ago. I thought what a great idea it would be to make a ‘breakfast appropriate ice cream’ and serve it with fresh berries and homemade muesli (which is why some of the photos in this post have jars of muesli in them!). Only for special occasions of course. In theory it was all a great idea, until you have a massive sugar rush before 9 am.

Despite this, I would still recommend this ice cream for serving with waffles or pancakes (or these ricotta hotcakes) for brunch. And of course it is divine on its own as an easy dessert. I would also pair it with the Apple & Honey Cake I posted recently, with my Duck Egg Pavlova, or a fruit crumble (or maybe at a stretch my Muesli Breakfast Crumble if you were feeling a little indulgent!).

My massive sugar rush ‘breakfast’ - honey ice cream with homemade muesli and berries!

For this recipe I used the Honey Malt and Vanilla Milk from Little Big Dairy Co. I love this milk as not only does it taste great (and is truely addictive!), but all Little Big Dairy Co’s products are single source. This means everything is produced from their farm in the Central West of NSW. Having tried a few of their products now, I truely believe you can taste the difference. Everything just tastes so good compared to other milks or creams, in a way that makes me think I hadn’t tried really good quality milk or cream until I tried Little Big Dairy Co.

I buy some of their products from Harris Farm Markets (including the milk used for this recipe), and they are also available in the Food Hall at David Jones in the city (I have been known to take cooler bags and ice bricks into the city and carry some of their products home on the train!).

If you can’t find the Little Big Dairy Co Honey Malt and Vanilla milk, regular full cream or skim will work well too.

Honey Ice Cream

Ingredients:

40g white sugar (Panela Sugar also works well)

175ml milk (preferably Little Big Dairy Co Honey Malt and Vanilla Milk)

125ml pouring cream

150ml Greek style yoghurt

1 tbsp vanilla bean paste

160g mild flavoured honey

Method:

Whisk the milk and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved and the milk has become frothy. Then add the cream, yoghurt, vanilla and honey. Whisk until well combined and the mixture has thickened a little.

Transfer mixture into the bowl of an ice cream machine, and process according to machine instructions. I find the churning process takes about 10 minutes (weather depending), and is ready once the ice cream has thickened, slightly frozen and is clinging to the paddle of the ice cream machine.

Transfer ice cream to a freezer safe container (at least 1L capacity) and freeze overnight.

Remove from freezer when ready to serve - due to the yoghurt in the ice cream it does not freeze as hard as other ice creams and is easy to serve straight from the freezer.

Reference: ‘Lomelino’s Ice Cream’ by Linda Lomelino (Roost Books, 2015), p.13

Honey Ice Cream made using Little Big Dairy Co’s Honey Malt and Vanilla Milk

Rosh Hashanah Inspired Apple & Honey Loaf Cake (Dairy Free)

Kath September 10, 2018

After the research I have done and all I have seen about honey cakes at this time of year, I am quite willing to admit this one isn’t particularly traditional. It is however exactly the kind of honey cake I have been looking for.

I first heard of honey cake through the Rosh Hashanah chapter in Nigella Lawson’s book ‘Feast’. Nigella’s recipe uses golden syrup instead of honey, which for a novice like me at the time was a little confusing. Nigella explains that is just how she likes her honey cakes, with no honey! I have since seen a multitude of recipes for honey cake, and whilst all looking delicious, they all contained at least one ingredient I couldn’t eat - black tea, coffee or orange juice. So I never made them. I did make Nigella’s and whilst it was good (and I would make it again), knowing it wasn’t a very traditional honey cake meant I still had to keep searching for the right one.

Then last month I was making a carrot cake for my Dad’s birthday (recipe from Katie Quinn Davies book ‘What Katie Ate’), and as I was grating the carrots and measuring out the honey I thought, maybe this could work with apples instead of carrots? It then occurred to me that the combination of apples and honey would be perfect for Rosh Hashanah since they are so symbolic for that holiday. The recipe would also be perfect for me if it worked, as it didn’t contain any black tea, coffee or orange juice.

So I tried it. And it most definitely works! For the original cake I made, I added honey to the cream cheese icing as well and it was just so good - the recipe for that cake is in my newly released eBook (which is all about baking cakes with seasonal fruits, yum!). You can get a copy by clicking here or scrolling to the bottom of this post.

After a little deliberation about the icing on the cake - icing on Rosh Hashanah honey cakes isn’t very traditional and mostly considered unnecessary, and the dairy content of the icing would make the cake not kosher depending on the context in which it was served - I opted for a icing free loaf cake. You can brush a little honey over the warm cake if you wish, but this is completely optional. The cake works so well with and without the icing, and I can tell I will be making this many more times!

Apple & Honey Cake with Honeyed Cream Cheese Icing - Recipe in Seasonal Cakes & Bakes eBook

Rosh Hashanah Inspired Apple & Honey Loaf Cake (Dairy Free)

Ingredients:

75g panela sugar (or light/dark brown sugar)

125ml canola/vegetable oil

125ml honey (+ 1tbsp extra, optional)

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

225g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarb soda

1 tsp ground ginger

3 small/medium apples (I used Pink Lady variety)

Method:

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius and line a 20 x 10.5 cm (approx.) loaf tin with baking paper so some of the paper hangs over the sides.

In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, oil, honey, eggs and vanilla.

Then add the flour, baking powder and ginger. Sift in the bicarb soda and whisk together until combined.

Peel and grate the apples. Place a few layers of paper towel inside a medium bowl and place all the grated apple inside it. Squeeze out as much juice from the grated apples as possible using the paper towel. Then add the apples to the cake mixture and mix to combine.

Transfer to the prepared tin and bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until the cake is springy to the touch and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the tin immediately, using the overhanging baking paper to do so. Place on a wire rack, and brush extra honey over the top if using. Serve warm.

Panela Sugar Shortbread + How to Make Homemade Vanilla Extract

Kath October 27, 2017

Now that I am well accustomed to using Panela Sugar, I am testing it out in almost every tried and tested recipe I have! And my latest discovering is that Panela Sugar Shortbread is like making a super easy version of a caramel shortbread! The bigger crystals of Panela stay whole within each biscuit, and once cooked they caramelise even more and taste like small pieces of caramel in each bite.

And as Panela sugar is unrefined, it makes me feel a little less guilty about eating a few of these! Other unrefined sugars, such as rapadura, would probably work well too and give a similar caramel flavour to the shortbread.

I made these a little while ago as my contribution for an afternoon tea, and the leftovers were eaten at the host’s work the next day. I am told they went down really well, with one person commenting that they tasted like Irish Shortbread. Now, I had no idea the Irish had their own version of shortbread, so now I think I need to do a little research and brush up on my shortbread knowledge!

How to Make Vanilla Extract

If using vanilla beans for this recipe (or any other!), don’t throw out the pods after the seeds have been used. Fill a small/medium jar or bottle with vodka and add the pods to it as you use them.
Shake the bottle now and then, and keep stored at room temperature. The more pods you add to the vodka the deeper the colour and the better the flavour you will get.
Depending on how many pods are infusing, expect to wait at least two-three months before using the vanilla extract. You can judge it by the colour of the extract and the aroma. I think the deeper the colour the better - I’d rather wait longer to use it and have a more intense vanilla flavour. See below for progress shots of making vanilla extract from day one to four months.
I have mentioned before that vanilla pods can also be used for vanilla sugar, and now that I am using my vanilla sugar I have been rinsing the pods off from that and adding them to the extract too - they still have lots of flavour and it would be such a shame to waste them!
If you are looking for a good bought vanilla extract, I would of course recommend the one made by Grounded Pleasures! It has a rich colour and really wonderful intense flavour, and each tube comes with a vanilla pod inside - and you don’t have to wait a few months to use it!

Homemade Vanilla Extract and Vanilla Sugar

Panela Sugar Shortbread

Ingredients:

160g unsalted butter, at room temperature

60g Grounded Pleasures Organic Panela Sugar

1 Grounded Pleasures Organic Vanilla Bean, seeds scraped

250g plain flour

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 150 degrees Celsius and line two large baking trays with baking paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, place the butter (135g), Panela sugar and the vanilla bean seeds. Beat until well combined.

Add the flour and mix on low speed until the flour has incorporated. Mix on a low-medium speed until a dough starts to form. If the mixture remains too crumbly, add the remaining butter and mix well.

Sprinkle some flour on your work surface, bring the dough together with your hands, then turn onto the floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out, dusting with more flour as needed, so it is flat and and about 2mm thick.

Cut the biscuits out using a small round biscuit cutter (mine is 4.5cm), using a small spatula to lift them over to the prepared tray.

Bake biscuits for about 15 minutes, or until the edges are slightly golden. I like the check the underneath of a couple of biscuits too, if that is a little golden then the biscuits are definitely cooked.

Cool the biscuits on the trays and store in an airtight container.

Makes about 45 small biscuits.

Thanks to Grounded Pleasures for sponsoring this post and providing the yummy Panela Sugar & Vanilla Beans!

Muesli Breakfast Crumble

Kath July 25, 2017

When I’m working, and there are early mornings, long days and lots of travel ahead, the last thing I feel like doing when I wake up is make breakfast. However, breakfast is exactly what I need to start those kinds of work days off on the right foot. I tend to opt for quick things like toast, though they don’t keep me full for very long. Every so often however, I find something for breakfast that I really like, and can be made in advance and quickly re-heated and eaten before the work day begins.

A couple of years ago I started making a double batch of these pancakes on the weekend, then kept enough for two per day in the fridge for the working week, or freeze them to defrost in the microwave each morning. While reheated pancakes don’t have the same ring to them as freshly made, I found it so much easier to wake up each morning knowing I had something nice to eat. I made sure I had some nice maple syrup, honey or fresh honeycomb, berries or other fruit and yoghurt to eat with them and it made the start to the day so much easier.

I have since found a few more breakfasts that can be made in advance, including the crumpets in this recent post, and this Muesli Breakfast Crumble. The crumble is inspired by the dessert crumble I made last year, which I loved, and some homemade muesli I was gifted from a friend at work who later gave me the recipe. I have used finely sliced Pink Lady apples and poached quince as my fruit filling for this Breakfast Crumble, however almost any fruit combination will work. Stone fruit and berries would be amazing in Summer, and rhubarb in Winter. The quantities of the fruit don’t matter so much, as long as they fill your baking dish with enough room for the crumble topping to sit on top.

What are your tips for easy and tasty breakfasts during the work week?

Also just a little note to say I'm going to be putting together a (mostly) weekly newsletter, filled with recipes, tips, tricks and recommendations you won't find here on the blog! I'm hoping to share even more exclusive content via the newsletter soon, so click here to sign up!

Grounded Pleasures Organic Panela Sugar - used in crumble mixture

Muesli Breakfast Crumble

Ingredients:

x3 small apples, I prefer Pink Lady, finely sliced then roughly chopped

1.5-2 large poached quinces, roughly chopped

2 tbsp quince poaching liquid

1 Grounded Pleasures Vanilla Bean, seeds scraped

60g wholemeal plain flour

60g oats

1/2 tsp cinnamon

50g margarine or softened unsalted butter

20g sunflower kernels

15g chia seeds

75g Grounded Pleasures Organic Panela Sugar

25g pepitas

30g slivered almonds

Greek yoghurt, to serve

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Mix the apple, quince, poaching liquid and vanilla bean seeds in a baking dish (interior dimensions approx. 24 x 19.5 x 6.5cm), then set aside.

In a medium/large bowl combine the flour, oats, cinnamon, margarine, sunflower kernels, chia seeds, Panela sugar, pepitas and almonds, until they are well combined and the margarine has evenly dispersed.

Spoon the muesli crumble mixture over the apples and quince in the baking dish, ensuring the entire surface of the dish is evenly covered.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until the crumble topping is golden. Serve warm from the oven with Greek yoghurt or reheat portions for easy breakfasts later on.

Thanks to Grounded Pleasures for sponsoring this post and providing the yummy Panela Sugar & Vanilla Beans!

How to Bake with Panela Sugar - Plum & Panela Cake with Vanilla & Panela Ice Cream

Kath March 27, 2017

This recipe not only celebrates our lovely in season plums, but also a fantastic organic and unrefined sugar called Panela. Panela sugar is a product of dried sugar cane juice. It retains the beneficial nutrients and minerals (so that makes this cake healthy, no?) and has a caramel like flavour. I found it worked so well with the slightly tart flavour of the plums, and gave the cake a rich golden colour.

I was introduced to Panela sugar by Sophie, one half of the Ballarat based business Grounded Pleasures. Sophie and I met last year at a Local is Lovely Workshop, at which she brought along some of the Grounded Pleasures products which mostly consist of exquisite hot chocolates. We made hot chocolates the old fashioned way over the gas stove in the shed in which our workshop was hosted in. And since it was a very chilly Winters day, they were much welcomed by everyone.

Sophie told us about some of the other products they sell at Grounded Pleasures, which included the Panela Sugar, vanilla (beans & extract) and a Real White Drinking Chocolate. I was quite interested in the latter, since I am unable to eat (or drink) chocolate for health reasons and thus always miss out on a warming cup of hot chocolate in Winter.

Soon after the workshop, I got some of the Panela Sugar and the White Hot Chocolate and instantly loved cooking and eating/drinking both. The Panela Sugar is easily substituted in many recipes where caster sugar is called for, and I found it added a lovely depth of flavour to muffins in particular.

Since then Sophie has sent me some more of their delicious products, which has lead to much recipe inspiration. I found the Panela Sugar and vanilla products not only worked really well in this cake, but also made a really nice simple homemade ice cream. The Panela Sugar gave a rich caramel flavour and colour to the simple vanilla ice cream, which paired well with the cake, but also tasted so good on its own as a simple mid-week dessert.

A note on using vanilla beans in baking - don’t throw away the vanilla pods after the seeds have been used in the cake/ice cream. Keep them to make vanilla sugar or homemade vanilla extract, even without the seeds the pods retain a lot of flavour.

Plum & Panela Cake

Ingredients:

125g flavourless margarine, or softened unsalted butter

150g Grounded Pleasures Organic Panela Sugar, plus extra

1 Grounded Pleasures Organic Vanilla Bean, seeds scraped

1/2 tsp Grounded Pleasures Organic Vanilla Extract

75g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

150g almond meal

3 eggs

2 plums (any variety)

Method:

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Line a 20cm round loose bottomed (or springform) cake tin with baking paper.

Beat the margarine/butter with the Panela sugar, seeds of the vanilla pod and the vanilla extract, until fluffy and creamy. In a separate bowl, gently whisk together the flour and baking powder.

Add the eggs one at a time to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition. Then fold in the plain flour and baking powder, along with the almond meal.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth the top. Cut the plums in half, then in half again. Then slice up each plum quarter into 3 or 4 slices. Place the plum slices onto the top of the cake, working your way around the outside of the cake then moving into the middle (you might not need all of the two plums, it will depend on their size). Keep the slices of plum fairly close together as they will separate a little when the cake rises. Sprinkle the plums with some more Panela sugar.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until the cake is golden in colour and a skewer comes out clean. The cake will be a deep golden colour due to the Panela sugar.

Leave the cake in the tin for 10 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool - alternatively serve warm as a dessert with the Vanilla and Panela Ice Cream.

Vanilla & Panela Ice Cream

Ingredients:

165ml full cream milk

6 tbsp Grounded Pleasures Organic Panela Sugar

250ml pouring cream

1 tsp Grounded Pleasures Organic Vanilla extract

1 Grounded Pleasures Organic Vanilla bean, seeds scraped

Method:

Whisk the milk and Panela Sugar together until the sugar has dissolved and the milk has become frothy. Then add the cream, the vanilla extract and the seeds of the vanilla bean and whisk until combined.

Transfer mixture into the bowl of an ice cream machine, and process according to machine instructions. Once ready, transfer ice cream into a freezer safe container and freeze for at least 4 hours (overnight is best).

References: ‘Holiday’ by Bill Granger (Murdoch Books, 2007), p.124; ‘Lomelino’s Ice Cream’ by Linda Lomelino (Roost Books, 2015), p.13.

Thanks to Grounded Pleasures for sponsoring this post and providing the Panela Sugar, Vanilla Beans & Extract!

Honey Ice Cream

Rosh Hashanah Inspired Apple & Honey Loaf Cake (Dairy Free)

How to Make Vanilla Extract

Panela Sugar Shortbread

Muesli Breakfast Crumble

Plum & Panela Cake

Vanilla & Panela Ice Cream

Kulinary Adventures of Kath

Food Photography, Recipes & Baking