Nut Butter Easter Eggs

Of course we made some pineapple ones at a recent family gathering!!! Anne

 

Nut Butter Egg Filling:    1¼ cup natural, runny peanut butter (no sugar added) or substitute with almond or cashew butter; ¼ cup maple syrup; ¼ cup icing sugar; ⅓ cup almond flour; ½ tsp vanilla extract; pinch of salt

Chocolate Coating:    1½ cups white chocolate melts; 2 tsp coconut oil; ½ tsp food colouring or for a natural bird’s egg look ½ tsp blue spirulina + ¼ tsp matcha powder (or use a 2:1 ratio of any blue and green food dye)

In a mixing bowl, beat together the nut butter, maple syrup, icing sugar, almond flour, vanilla extract & salt until well combined. Portion the nut butter filling into 2 tblsp portions. Roll each one into a ball using your hands, then use your hands to shape the ball into an egg shape. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet & cool in the freezer while you prepare the coating. 

Add the white chocolate & coconut oil to a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 15-20 second intervals, stirring well between each interval, until fully melted. Whisk in the food colouring (or spirulina & matcha) & adjust colours as desired. Pour into a short drinking glass or a similar vessel.

Coating the eggs works best when they are semi-frozen. This helps the chocolate coating firm up quickly. Stick a toothpick in the bottom of an egg, then dip into the chocolate. Let the excess chocolate drip off. Wait until the white chocolate is mostly hardened, then return to the parchment paper & immediately remove the toothpick. Happy Easter.

Rainbow smoothie popsicles

Based on

https://www.taste.com.au/recipes/rainbow-smoothie-popsicles-recipe/56c4zf4d?r=healthy&h=Health

375ml (11/2 cups) almond milk; 2 tsp pure maple syrup; 1 banana, peeled, sliced; 2 tbsp rolled oats; 50g chopped fresh pineapple; 125g frozen strawberries

Place the almond milk, maple syrup, banana and oats in a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour 1/2 of the banana mixture into a jug. Cover and place in the fridge.

Add the pineapple to the blender with the remaining banana mixture. Blend until smooth. Pour among twelve 80ml (1/3 cup) popsicles moulds. Place in the freezer until firm but not hard.

Pour the remaining ½ banana mixture into the clean blender. Add the frozen strawberries. Blend until smooth. Pour among the popsicle moulds. Insert a popsicle stick into each mould. Place in the freezer to set.

Pineapple porcupines!

Raw Energy Recipes, Leslie and Susannah Kenton 1985 London

Porcupine Pineapple Chunks

“A lovely idea for children’s parties.”

Cut a fresh pineapple into cubes and skewer on to cocktail sticks. Roll in clear honey and then coat with wheatgerm, sesame seeds or coconut.

Chill and serve.

Banana/Pineapple Splits

The Star Wars Cookbook: Ice Sabers, 30 Chilled Treats Using the Force of your Freezer, Lara Starr, photography by Matthew Carden 2013 San Francisco

  

Bananakin Splits  makes 4 splits

Strawberry Sauce: 350g frozen strawberries (I used fresh); ¼ cup caster sugar; 1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Chocolate sauce: ½ cup thickened cream; ¾ cup chopped dark chocolate

Roasted bananas: 4 ripe bananas, peeled and halved lengthwise; 2 tblsp brown sugar

Splits: 500m each of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry ice cream; ½ cup crushed pineapple; whipped cream; 12 maraschino cherries 

1. To make the strawberry sauce: Set the strawberries in a fine strainer over a bowl and thaw for several hour or in the refrigerator overnight. Reserve the juice in a small bowl and set aside. Force the berries through the strainer with a wooden spoon, mashing and stirring as much of the berry puree as possible is passed through the strainer. Discard the seeds. Add the reserved juice, caster sugar and lemon juice and stir to combine. (I put the strawberries into the blender with the caster sugar and lemon juice and used all the puree)

2. Preheat the oven to 200°C

3. To make the roasted bananas: Line a baking tray with baking paper or a nonstick liner. Place the bananas on the prepared sheet, cut-side up. Sprinkle the tops with the brown sugar. Roast for 30 minutes, or until the bananas are soft when tested with a fork and the topping is golden and bubbly. Cool for 15 minutes.

4. To make the chocolate sauce: melt the cream and chocolate together in a microwave or in the top of a double boiler. Stir until smooth. Set aside. It will thicken as it cools.

5. To make the splits: Put one scoop each of the chocolate, vanilla and strawberry ice cream into four long ice cream split bowls.

6. Top the vanilla ice ceam with the chocolate sauce, the strawberry ice cream with the crushed pineapple and the chocolate ice ceam with the strawberry sauce. Add two banana slices to each split and top with the whipped cream and cherries.

"Go forth, young Jedi! May your Ice Sabers and other frozen treats delight your appetite, and may the Force always be with you! " Lara Starr, cookbook author.

Pineapple chocolate truffles

The Lunchbox Book: Over 100 mix-and-match recipes to tempt your kids with – easy to make and great fun to eat, Emma-Lee Gow and Janet Smith 1988 London

Sweet Treats: Truffles

Makes about 12

50g (2oz) plain, milk or white chocolate; 25g (1oz) polyunsaturated margarine; 50g (2oz) sponge cake, crumbled; 25g (1oz) icing sugar, sifted; 10ml (2tsp) orange, apple or pineapple juice; chocolate vermicelli, to coat (optional)

1 Break the chocolate into squares and place in a small heatproof bowl with the margarine. Stand the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until the chocolate has melted.

2 Stir in the cake crumbs, icing sugar and fruit juice. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes or until the mixture is firm enough to handle.

3 Dust your fingers with icing sugar and divide the mixture into twelve and roll into small balls. Coat in the vermicelli if using.

4 Put the truffles in petit four cases. Chill I the refrigerator until ready for transporting.

Packing and storage: Wrap in plastic wrap or foil for transporting. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 – 3 weeks.

Daisy and Sofie cook a pineapple cake

"We had a very ripe pineapple in our fruit bowl this morning and we were spoilt for choice on recipes from your blog!

Decided on the pineapple layer cake and we added some preserved ginger too, it is delicious!

We talked about quarters and halves, and Daisy practiced her cutting." Daisy and Sofie

Thanks for the beautiful photos of Daisy cooking up the pineapple layer cake Sofie!

Here's the recipe again for anyone who thinks that spoon looks pretty delicious!!!

“Aerophos” Recipe Book, Melbourne 1950

Basic Recipe for Hot Fruit Layer Pudding

6 oz (175g) self-raising flour; 2 oz (50g) butter;2 oz (50g) sugar; 2 eggs; 2/3 cup milk; about 1 ½ cups stewed drained fruit or shredded fruit such as pineapple

Sift flour. Cream butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in sifted flour alternately with the milk. Place half the mixture in a greased cake tin (this quantity is sufficient for a tin 8” (20cm) in diameter, 1 1/2 “ (3.8cm) deep). Cover with fruit pulp and top this with remaining batter.

Bake in a moderate oven (350⁰F/180⁰C) about 45 minutes. For four to six.

Variations of fruit layer pudding:

Pineapple and coconut pudding: Add 2oz (50g) coconut o the flour. Use shredded pineapple.

Creative kids love pineapple!

Vivi and Max are an essential ingredient of the Pineapple Princesses children's team ! 

Young Children's Mix and Fix Cook Book, over 55 tasty, nutritious easy-to-make recipes, recipes originally appeared in Humpty Dumpty's Magazine 1975 New York

Cookies, Candies, Desserts and Snacks: Fruit Kabobs

“Good snacks! Handy too – just pass a plateful, no forks or spoons needed!”

What you need: 8 maraschino cherries; 8 pineapple chunks; 8 miniature marshmallows; 8 toothpicks

How to fix:                                                                                                                

1  For each toothpick, stick on one maraschino cherry, one pineapple chunk and one miniature marshmallow (like stringing beads)       

2  Eat with your fingers. Please don’t chew the toothpick! This makes 2 servings.

Max loves his Hawaiian pineapple souvenir!

Thanks for helping, they were delicious!

Pineapple Coconut Ice

Remembering the delicious coconut ice my mother made for our school fetes in the 1960s! Anne

1 can sweetened condensed milk; 500g icing sugar; 390g/5 cups desiccated coconut; pineapple essence; yellow food colouring

Combine sweetened condensed milk, icing sugar and desiccated coconut.

Divide mixture into two.

Press half the mixture into an 18cm x 18cm loaf pan.

Mix a few drops (not too much!) of yellow food colouring and pineapple essence into the remaining half of the mixture. Press into the pan on top of the first layer. To ease spreading slightly wet a knife in warm water and smooth over the top.

Allow to set before cutting into squares.

A pineapple mocktail, a cocktail and a couple of tonics

The Lunchbox Book: Over 100 mix-and-match recipes to tempt your kids with – easy to make and great fun to eat, Emma-Lee Gow and Janet Smith 1988 London
 

Caribbean Quencher

Serves 2

300ml pineapple juicer; 150ml tropical fruit juice; 150ml mineral water; few slices lime

Mix all the ingredients together in a jug. Chill in the refrigerator until ready for transporting.

Packing and storage: Pour into vacuum flasks or lidded plastic beakers for transporting. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

 

 

 

Some of my wonderful family enjoying Marisa's special blend!

Nutrition Stripped - 100 Whole-food recipes made deliciously simple, McKel Hill 2016 USA

Garden Pineapple Drink

Serves 1

1 yellow bell pepper; 1 large carrot; ½ cup cubed fresh pineapple; 1cm piece fresh ginger, peeled; 3 to 4 fresh mint leaves; 1 large English (seedless) cucumber; 1 lemon, peeled

Using a juicer: Run the bell pepper, carrot, and pineapple through first, followed by the ginger and mint. Feed the cucumber and lemon through the juicer last to catch any remaining bits in the juicer. Enjoy immediately or store in an airtight glass container for up to 2 days or in the freezer for up to 4 days.

Nutrition tip: Pineapple contains a natural enzyme, bromelain, which is a powerful antioxidant that helps with inflammation, muscle relaxation, and digestion.

 

Immunity Tonic

Serves 2

2 cups filtered water; 3mm piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced; 3mm piece fresh turmeric, peeled and minced, or 1 tspn ground turmeric; ½ tspn cayenne pepper, or to taste; 1 tspn ground cinnamon; ½ tspn sea salt; 2 cups freshly juiced pineapple; juice of 4 lemons; 2 tblspn honey, or to taste; 1 tblspn raw apple cider vinegar (optional); 2 fresh mint leaves for garnish

In a medium saucepan, combine the water, ginger, turmeric, cayenne, cinnamon, and salt. Simmer for 30 minutes, then remove from the heat and add the pineapple juice, honey, and vinegar (if using). Serve warm, with each mug topped with a fresh mint leaf. Or cool and pour over ice to serve chilled

 

http://www.yummly.com/recipe/external/Pineapple-ginger-champagne-cocktail-1775593

Pineapple-ginger-champagne-cocktail

Author: Eva Felis

Serves: 2

This recipe for my pineapple-ginger-champagne-cocktail is perfect for any occasion and can be easily multiplied for bigger gatherings. Ginger balances the fruitiness of the pineapple and champagne adds nice bubbles.

Ingredients:

 

120 ml / ½ cup vodka; 80 ml / ⅓ cup pineapple juice; 60 ml / ¼ cup fresh lime juice; 60 ml / ¼ cup ginger simple syrup (see notes below for recipe); 120 ml / ½ cup champagne or other sparkling wine; ice cubes; lime slices for garnish

Instructions:

1.Divide vodka, pineapple and lime juice, and ginger simple syrup in two chilled cocktail glasses over ice cubes.

2.Stir gently and top with champagne or sparkling wine. Garnish with lime slices.

Notes:

To make the ginger simple syrup: 240 ml / 1 cup water; 200 g / 1 cup granulated sugar; 140 g / 5 oz. fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

Add all ingredients to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved. Cover with a lid and let steep for at least one hour. Strain and store in a jar in your refrigerator for up to two weeks.

This recipe makes more ginger simple syrup than you will need for the pineapple-ginger-champagne-cocktail. It is also great for a little spice and sweetness in your tea, cake or cocktail.

 

Toby exploiting one of his many skills!

 

Pineapple cookies

 

Ann made these delicious biscuits! Thanks for the cookie cutter, it's been put to great use.

 

http://www.spoonforkbacon.com/2016/07/lime-sugar-cookies-with-pineapple-buttercream/

“Why is everything about a pineapple so awesome? No really, why?? From their funky and design friendly shape to their sweet and tangy flavor, I love everything about pineapples! They also just basically SCREAM “summer” so I get pretty stoked about that too.” Jenny

 

Lime Sugar Cookies with Pineapple Buttercream

 

(Photo from the website)

 

Makes 30 cookies (using 5cm x 9cm cookie cutter)

 

Ingredients:

lime cutout cookies: 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 tablespoon fresh lime zest; 230g unsalted butter, softened; 1 cup superfine sugar; 1 large egg, room temperature and lightly beaten; 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 

pineapple buttercream: 230g unsalted butter, softened; 450g powdered sugar, sifted; 1/3 cup fresh pineapple juice; pinch salt; yellow food coloring; green food coloring

 

1 (5cm x 9cm) pineapple shaped cookie cutter

 

Directions:

1. For cookies: Preheat oven to 200˚C.

 

2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder and lime zest. Whisk together and set aside.

 

3. In a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), cream together butter and sugar. Until light and fluffy.

 

4. Add egg and vanilla to the butter mixture and continue to mix together.

 

5. Stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture and beat together until smooth dough forms, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

 

6. Lightly dust a clan surface and roll the dough out until about 5mm thick.

 

7. Using your pineapple cookie cutter, cut out as many cookies as possible, rerolling the dough scraps as needed.

 

8. Transfer cookies onto a parchment lined baking sheet, about 4cm apart and bake for 7-9 minutes or until the cookies have just baked through and are barely brown around the edges.

 

9. Allow cookies to cool completely before frosting.

 

10. Pineapple buttercream: In a mixing bowl beat butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar, 1 cup at a time, until fully incorporated (the mixture will be extra stiff and thick at this point). Beat in pineapple juice, 1-2 tablespoons at a time until fully incorporated and the buttercream is light and fluffy.

 

11. To assemble: Divide the buttercream into 2 mixing bowls. The first bowl should have 3/4 of the buttercream mixture with the remaining buttercream in the second bowl. Add a couple drops of yellow food coloring into the first batch and a couple drops of green into the second (if using professional grade, you’ll only need a drop or two the size of a pinhead) and mix together until smooth and each buttercream batch is uniformly one color.

 

12. Fill a piping bag, fitted with a small star tip, with the yellow buttercream. Pipe small beads of buttercream, at a 45˚angle, in straight rows, over the rounded base of the cookie.

 

13. Once all the bodies of the cookies have been frosted, fill another piping bag, fitted with a small circle tip, with the green colored buttercream.

 

14. Pipe the green buttercream over the leafy tops of the pineapple cookies to finish decorating.

 

15. Set cookies aside and allow buttercream to slightly hardened. Serve.

**These finished cookies can be stored in an airtight container and refrigerated for up to a week or frozen for up to 2 months. (if freezing, do not frost cookies until defrosted and ready to use)**

 

 

My adorable first-cousins-twice-removed, Vivian and Max, used their artistic expertise to decorate these biscuits made from the above recipe recommended by Katrina (the added lime zest was an inspired ingredient), Anne

 

This lovely design by Vivian shows the sun surrounded by planets, topped with a rainbow!

 

YUM!

 

I love these "storybook cookies" in Jean Bowrings' New Cake Decorating Book, 1^st printed 1969 Melbourne. She says "baking cookies like those in our colour picture is fun the whole family can enjoy."

Pineapples in the family

This beautiful little girl is our great niece, Matilda, totally loving her first pieces of pineapple!

 

A Princess for sure!!

 

 

And this wonderful mistress-piece was painted by Lizzie, 

Les's first cousin once removed (I think) as Tahlula Bird Face Painting in Sydney.

 

Check out this wonderful “Knitchen” created for the 2014 Jazz and Jumpers in July Festival in Warwick, Queensland. And there's a pineapple,

http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2014/07/21/4050199.htm

 

 

http://www.kidspot.com.au/kitchen/recipes/ham-and-pineapple-calzones-3681

Sophie Hanson, Kidspot

Ham and pineapple calzones

“All kids seem to love ham and pineapple pizzas, so the idea of folding this favourite over into a yummy little pizza ‘pie’ like the ham and pineapple calzones below, is an absolute winner. And like all dough/pizza recipes, it's a great recipe for kids to help with.”

Ingredients

For the pizza dough: 3 tsp active dry yeast, 1 tbsp caster sugar, 1 cup (250ml) lukewarm water, 2 1/3 cups (350g) plain flour, 1/2 tsp salt

For the filling:1 tbsp olive oil, 1 medium red onion, finely chopped, 1 can cherry tomatoes or 1 punnet fresh cherry tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups pineapple pieces, drained, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, 6 thick slices good quality ham, shredded or cut into strips

Method

 

1. For the pizza dough; combine the yeast, sugar and water in a large bowl. Mix well then set aside for 5 minutes or until the mixture froths a little on the surface. Add the flour and salt and bring together into a sticky dough. Now either knead this together on a lightly floured surface or use an electric mixer with a dough hook. Either way, knead for 5 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. Place in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a nice warm spot for 1 hour.

2. Preheat oven to 200C (180C fan-forced) and line two large baking trays with paper. Heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium and cook the onion for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the tomatoes, lower the heat and cook for another 5 minutes.

3. To assemble: Divide the dough into 6 or 8 small balls (depending on how many calzones you would like and how big you'd like them to be). Roll one ball out to a circle about 5mm thick, spread one half with the tomato sauce, leaving a good clear edge for sealing, then sprinkle with the ham, cheese and pineapple. Fold the other half of dough over the top and then seal by rolling the edges up over themselves to form a seal. Brush with a little extra olive oil then slice a couple of 'steam vents' in the top. Repeat with remaining dough balls and filling then bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden and cooked through.