Honey Ice Cream

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 made using Little Big Dairy Co Honey Malt and Vanilla Milk

Homemade Honey Ice Cream

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.

Honey Ice Cream

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

Homemade Honey Ice Cream

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

Off the Shelf - ‘Jerusalem’ by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi

Since buying, collecting, reading, using and dreaming about cookbooks is such a big part of my life and this blog, I have decided to dedicate some space to them here. Every now and then instead of sharing a recipe, I will share a cookbook profile from one of the books on my shelves. What books other people have, how they use them and what they cook from them (if at all) is endlessly fascinating to me so I hope you will enjoy taking a cookbook off one of my shelves and see how it has influenced me and my cooking. 

The first book I wanted to take off my shelf for you is ‘Jerusalem’ by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi. With all the (much deserved) hype around Yotam Ottolenghi’s latest release ‘Simple’, it seemed only fitting to dive back into some of his earlier co-authored works. I also am unable to buy the new book as with it being so close to the end of the year, and having both my birthday and Christmas in December, I am always told by my family not to buy any new books so they can potentially give me them as a gift. So I am feeling an extreme case of FOMO at the moment, as everyday on Instagram I see another post about the book or about someone cooking from the book - and it all looks so good.

Not to mention Yotam’s new podcast ‘Simple Pleasures’, where he invites someone round to his place and they chat and enjoy dishes from his new book. I am already seriously craving the gnocchi he made for Nadiya Hussain on the first episode.

But until I get my hands on a copy, I still have the vast array of recipes from ‘Jerusalem’ to keep me occupied. See below for a little profile of the cookbook, and what I have made from it. It is definitely one I would recommend! 

Bought at: gifted (I have also gifted this book to someone else as well I liked it so much!)

Recipes made: Shakshuka (p.66) & Clear Chicken Soup with Knaidlach (pp.144-5)

I really like making and eating Shakshuka, however this was the first actual recipe for one I have followed. Most of the time I just make it all up using a can of diced tomatoes, whatever else we have that will go with it, plus the egg. It can be quite a simple dish, and after I saw Molly Yeh demonstrate it at a Local is Lovely workshop a couple of years ago I knew I could replicate it at home. I imagine Yotam and Sami’s version is more traditional than what I often make, and includes harissa and ground cumin. It was really nice making a shakshuka without a can of tomatoes and having a slightly spicy chunky sauce to cook the eggs in (I actually found it easier to cook the eggs this way). 

Adaptations: I reduced the amount of harissa to about a teaspoon as I’m not into really spicy foods, and reduced the amount of eggs as I was only serving one. I also used yellow capsicums as thats what we already had! 

Shakshuka

This chicken soup was my first ever attempt at making a Matzo Ball Soup over Passover. It is an involved affair, but worth it. My soup was not as flavourful as I had hoped, so I’m not sure if I should have cooked it longer or maybe it was the cuts of chicken I used (I didn’t 100% stick to the recipe on that one). I also used freshly ground matzo rather than pre-prepared matzo meal for the knaidlach so I think they would have been a bit lighter and smoother with the shop bought matzo meal. Definitely a recipe to go back to! 

Matzo Ball Soup

Favourite things about the book: This book is beautifully photographed and I really love the lifestyle photography from around Jerusalem. It really brings the essence of the city into the book and the recipes, rather than just showing photos of the completed dishes in isolation. 

I also really like the fact that this is more than a cookbook. Whilst reading you take in recipes you want to try and discover dishes you might never have heard of, but you also get a history lesson through food. The introductions for each chapter and recipes are well worth reading as much of the cultural and religious or historical significance of a dish or ingredient are explained. And sometimes personal notes from both the authors are shared around specific recipes too. 

Bookmarked recipes (to make later!): Swiss Chard Fritters (p.54) & Latkes (p.92).

Lifestyle photography in Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi

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

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 Apple & Honey Cake

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. 

Apple & Honey Cake (Dairy Free)

Apple & Honey Cake (Dairy Free)

Rosh Hashanah Apple & Honey Cake

Ladurée Inspired Rose Cake + Where to Go for Afternoon Tea in Sydney

Similar to the Rose and Vanilla Bean Ice Creams recipe I posted recently, this recipe is also inspired by a regular catch up spot frequented by my friends and I. Similar to The Tea Salon, the Ladurée cafe in the city was a great location to meet, and while more on the pricey side, offered great teas and cake. Also similar to The Tea Salon, Ladurée in Sydney closed earlier this year. It is such a shame that two of our favourite catch up spots are gone, it really feels like the good spots in the city are becoming fewer and fewer. 

The idea for this cake came to me ages ago, but it is only now that the need to make it felt really necessary. I haven’t stuck really closely to the original Ladurée cake, as I wasn’t keen on using food colouring. But feel free to do so in the cake and icing if you feel like it. The original cake is a candy coloured pink as the pictures below show, so add more than you think you need in the batter of the cake mix to ensure the cooked cake has the right hue. 

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I have created something that replicates the original in taste and texture in a way I am happy with. The original is more of a syrup cake, however the use of yoghurt and oil in this recipe creates a moist cake that doesn’t need a syrup - which makes the cake simpler and easier to make. The icing, also not in the original, adds more rose flavour which I love as the cake on its own is very subtle. 

If like my friends and I you are looking for good places to meet for afternoon (or morning) tea in Sydney City and close surrounds, here is a list of cafes and bakeries that I love:

• Black Star Pastry - Level 2, The Galleries (at Kinokuniya Bookstore) 500 George St Sydney: This is the easiest of the Black Star Pastry locations to get to if you are already in the City. There isn’t a lot of seating, and now everyone knows about it be prepared for a little wait to order. If it’s really busy get what you want takeaway and head over to Hyde Park or the Domain to eat outside. Try: The Strawberry Watermelon Cake is what they are famous for, and for good reason!

• The Tea Cosy - 33 George St The Rocks: Not far from Circular Quay and Wynyard, this is probably the cutest tea rooms you can go too. Situated in an old terrace house, freshly made scones can be enjoyed with a variety of jam flavours and knitting needles and wool at the table in case you fancy a bit of knitting while you catch up with friends. Try: The Devonshire Tea with Triple Berry Jam.

• Flour & Stone - 53 Riley St Woolloomooloo: A short walk from Hyde Park and St Mary’s Cathedral, this tiny bakery is well worth a visit. Again few tables are available, but it is worth it if you can hang around and wait for one. Try: They are really famous for the Pannacotta Lamingtons, however you really can’t go wrong with anything here. My favourites are the hand iced gingerbread, Old Fashioned Vanilla Cake and the Lemon Drizzle Cake.

• Petal Met Sugar - Shop 7 68 Sir John Young Cres Woolloomooloo: A two minute walk from Flour & Stone is patisserie come florist Petal Met Sugar. Great for a quiet catch up, served with delicate patisserie and fun florals. Try: For special occasions book their seasonal high tea to try a selection of their repertoire.

• Bourke Street Bakery - Shop 4 23 Barangaroo Ave Barangaroo: A short walk from Wynyard Station, is another outpost of the popular Bourke Street Bakery institution. It stocks all the favourites and great for an indulgent work day lunch time catch up. Try: Eggplant, Chickpea, Feta & Mint Sausage Roll and the Ginger Brûlée Tart.

• Rabbit Hole Tea Bar - Shop 1 23 Barangaroo Ave Barangaroo: Down the road from Bourke St Bakery is the second and smaller cafe from Rabbit Hole Tea. Great for a quiet catch up, but be prepared for a more limited menu than their larger Redfern cafe. Try: Iced Ginger Snap Latte and Salted Caramel Cookie.

• KOI Dessert Bar - 46 Kensington St Chippendale: A short walk from Central Station is this gem of a patisserie/dessert bar. Everything here looks amazing and has the flavours to back it up. Great for cake filled catch ups or super fancy set dinner and dessert menus (reservations only) in the upper level of their store for special occasions. Try: Strawberry Pillow and keep and eye out for their seasonal high teas which are just about the best high tea you can have in Sydney.

Strawberry Watermelon Cake from Black Star Pastry

The Tea Cosy

Old Fashioned Vanilla Cake from Flour & Stone

Seasonal High Tea from Petal Met Sugar

Bourke Street Bakery

Ginger Snap Iced Latte from Rabbit Hole Tea Bar

Strawberry Pillow from KOI Dessert Bar

Ladurée Inspired Rose Cake

Ladurée Inspired Rose Cake

Ingredients: 

175g plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp bicarb soda (baking soda)

175g plain Greek style yoghurt

150g caster sugar

2 eggs

1 tbsp rosewater (or to taste)

125ml vegetable oil

For the icing: 

125g icing sugar (confectioners)

1-2 tbsp rosewater

dried rose petals, for decoration

Method: 

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (or 160 fan forced) and line a 20 x 10.5 cm (approx.) loaf tin with baking paper so some of the paper hangs over two of the sides.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and bicarb soda. Then in a small/medium bowl whisk together the yoghurt, sugar, eggs, rosewater and oil. 

Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and whisk until the batter is smooth. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the cake is golden in colour and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. If in doubt give the cake another 5 minutes and check again. 

Place the cooked cake on a wire rack, and wait to remove it from the tin until it has cooled (using the overhanging baking paper to do so). 

Once the cake has cooled make the icing, by combining the icing sugar and 1 tbsp of the rosewater in a medium bowl (I prefer to use a whisk for this). If more liquid is needed for the icing to make it smoother, gradually add a little more rosewater or hot water can be added instead if you want a more delicate rose flavour. 

Spread the icing over the cake and top with dried rose petals to decorate. 

Ladurée Inspired Rose Cake

Ladurée Inspired Rose Cake

Reference: ‘At My Table - A Celebration of Home Cooking’ by Nigella Lawson (Chatto & Windus, 2017), p.254.

Ladurée Inspired Rose Cake

For more recipes showcasing the best of rose, check out my ebook Baking with Rose by clicking on the link below!

Earl Grey Shortbread (Caffeine Free)

This recipe has been on my mind for a long time. Like years. I always have lists going of things I want to make, and Earl Grey Shortbread is always on there. 

I was originally inspired by some Earl Grey Shortbread from Fortnum & Mason that a friend gifted me after a holiday in the UK at least three years ago. As all Fortnum & Mason products are (in my opinion), they were stunning and a great example of traditional shortbread and really showcased the bergamot flavour so distinctive to Earl Grey. 

I did try to recreate them once, using very finely crushed earl grey tea leaves. However without a good mortar and pestle and with no additional bergamot to add to lift the flavour, they fell far short of what I was trying to recreate. 

I left the recipe alone for quite some time, deciding maybe it was for the best since I can’t have caffeine anyway. I was attempting something that I probably wouldn’t be able to eat. 

Now however, after growing my own bergamots and sourcing some online, the possibility to create a caffeine free version of this biscuit arose. Much to my excitement the addition of fresh bergamot zest to a simple shortbread recipe worked a treat, and replicated the Fortnum & Mason version in flavour quite well. 

You can of course (very) finely crush some Earl Grey tea leaves to add to the mixture (I would say 1tsp added when creaming the butter and sugar), for the tea speckled look. And fresh bergamot zest could also be substituted for 1-2 drops of a good quality (food grade) bergamot essence.

Earl Grey Shortbread (Caffeine Free)

Ingredients: 

160g unsalted butter, softened

60g caster sugar 

finely grated zest of one small/medium bergamot

250g plain flour 

Method: 

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

Place the butter, sugar and zest in the bowl of the stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment until well combined. 

Add the flour, and mix on low until a dough starts to form. 

Lightly flour your work surface, and tip the dough out. Bring together with your hands then roll out to about 1-2mm thick with a rolling pin. 

Cut out fluted rounds with a 5cm cutter and place on prepared trays. Re-roll scraps of the dough until it is all used up. 

Bake in pre-heated oven for 20 minutes, turning the trays around halfway through to ensure even cooking. 

Allow to cool on the trays or transfer to a wire rack. 

Makes about 50 biscuits.

Rose & Vanilla Bean Ice Creams (Egg Free)

This is one of those super Summery recipes that I just can’t get enough of. Having said that, yes I know I am posting this while we are in the middle of Winter here in Australia, and feeling particularly cold if I do say so myself. 

I first made these late last year, when we were at the beginning of what felt like one of the hottest and longest Summers ever. I was inspired by a milkshake I used to order at one of my favourite city haunts, The Tea Salon. Rose and vanilla is a winning combination for me, and in the Summer months it was always nice to have a good alternative to a hot tea. I met up with friends there often, it really became our go to place. 

Located in the Sydney City Westfield it was easy to get to and ticked the boxes in terms of the menu, and the pretty pink decor didn’t hurt either! The Tea Salon closed down a few months ago, much to my friends and my dismay. It felt like the end of an era, and I’m not quite sure what will replace our regular city haunt yet. 

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Until we find somewhere just as good, I will have to be content with this recipe being the legacy of our many catch ups over the years at The Tea Salon. And while now doesn’t feel like the opportune time to be posting a recipe for ice cream for most of us here in Australia, it is definitely the perfect time for everyone in the Northern Hemisphere who seem to be enjoying endless Summer days. 

Not being a warm weather person, I am certainly not jealous of the weather everyone up there is having. I am however loving all the beautiful Instagram posts with all the Summer blooms, beautiful fashions, and fun outdoor activities. Summer in the UK in particular, through the lens of Instagram, looks utterly delightful compared to the hot and humid, sometimes almost 40 degrees days we can have here in Sydney. 

I can definitely see myself enjoying some of this ice cream again later in the year when the weather warms up, and maybe reminisce over some of the good times this recipe was inspired by. But for now I’ll just leave this recipe here till then, and continue to enjoy my warming cups of tea, soups and multitudes of blankets. 

Rose & Vanilla Bean Ice Creams

Rose & Vanilla Bean Ice Creams

Rose & Vanilla Bean Ice Creams (Egg Free)

Ingredients: 

165ml milk 

6 tbsp white sugar

250ml pouring cream 

1 vanilla bean seeds scraped or 1 tsp vanilla bean paste

2 tbsp rosewater (or to taste) 

Dried rose petals chopped, optional

Method: 

Whisk the milk and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved and the milk has become frothy. Then add the cream, the vanilla, and rosewater. Whisk until 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. 

Once ready, transfer to a large piping bag and pipe into ice cream mould. Sprinkle some of the dried rose petals over the top, insert food safe wooden sticks into the centre of each one and place in the freezer. To keep the sticks in place I often cover the whole mould with a couple of layers of plastic wrap. Alternatively, transfer ice cream to a freezer safe container (at least 1L capacity) and freeze overnight. 

If making the individual ice creams, carefully remove them from the mould when ready to eat, the ice cream will melt quite quickly in the warmer Summer months! I found it easier to remove all of them from the mould once they were properly frozen and individually wrap them in plastic wrap to store in the freezer. 

Makes 10 individual ice creams or about 1L of ice cream. 

Rose & Vanilla Bean Ice Creams

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

Rose & Vanilla Bean Ice Creams

Dried Rose Petals

For more recipes showcasing the best of rose, check out my eBook Baking with Rose by clicking the link below!