Focaccia

Focaccia... before they got to it

Focaccia

Strrrrraight from the Thermomix's recipe book (p 113),  with just a tweek at the end to make it Failsafe.

Ingredients:

• 400g lukewarm water
• 1 sachet (7g) dried yeast
• 20g oil
• 500g Bakers Flour
• 1 tsp Salt
• Garlic Sauce

Method:

• Place water, yeast and oil into TMX bowl and mix for 5 seconds on Speed3
• Add flour and salt. Mix for 20 seconds on Speed 6
• Set dial to Closed Lid,  and knead for 2 minutes on Interval Speed
• Place dough into a large bowl, in a warm place, to rise for up to an hour
• Knock down, shape on lined cooking tray and allow to rise for another 30 minutes
• Once done, brush over top with Garlic Sauce and Sea Salt Flakes
• Cook in hot oven (200-220ºC) for 20-30 minutes or until golden

Verdict:
I wasn't sure how they'd take another bread around here... after all,  I've recently done crumpets, bread rolls, pizza...  Anyway,  I needn't have worried.  After making one on the Saturday, I then made another 2 on the Sunday!  I cut it up, and plopped it on the kitchen bench with a bowl of Hummus and a spreader.  Holy moly!! Stand back!!!  They scoffed it down and I had to seriously say STOP! I've gotta get a picture!!  So,  the first picture was what was left by the time they let me in and the second one is the next day's focaccia.

Tweeks:
I've cut this up and put it in the freezer,  showing great restraint.  The idea is to only give it to the kids with their school lunches once a week, along with some hommus, because the thing I normally do is find something they like and then smother them with it, day after day.  Not this time!!! 

Bakers Flour... the first one had half 'Strong flour' and half plain as it was what was in the cupboard.  It was... pretty good.  The second I did with plain flour and that was a bit cakey.  Still yummy,  but missing 'something' that made it Focaccia-y.  The third i did with Strong Flour and it was great!  It was beautifully chewy and had great 'holes' through it.  That's what the first 2 were missing!!

I suppose you could leave out the garlic sauce and just brush with a little oil and a sprinkle of salt.


4/8/2012  I have made a new discovery!!  Instead of water,  I used No-Tomato Sauce and the results were yummeh!  I ended up having to add more flour at the end so the dough was workable,  but that was just a matter of sprinkle in a see.  This was very nice buttered.  (well,  what doesn't improve with butter??)

Chick-Chick Burgers

Chick-Chick Burgers

Chick-Chick.  That's chicken and chickpeas.  (Yeah, not chk-chk boom! for you Australians who remember.)   It was 4:45... we normally eat at 5:30... and I hadn't even decided what to make!!!  I had some chicken thigh mince in the freezer and then I just went from there.  This made about 27 or so patties and I expected to have some for school lunches tomorrow.  I was wrong!  They all went!!

The method with this basically went, find something, chuck it in, pulse it...

Ingredients:

• 1-2 cloves garlic
• handful of parsley leaves
• 2 spring onions
• 1 stick celery, roughly chopped
• 1 egg
• 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• about 1 cup breadcrumbs (homemade, of course!!)
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp citric acid
• 500g chicken thigh mince

Method:

• Add each ingredient in turn and pulse on about Speed 5-7 after each, to chop, mince and combine.  Only a few seconds each time.
• Form mixture into thin patties, about palm-size and shallow fry
• I served with Miracle Mash and green beans and goes really well with Pear Ketchup

Verdict: 
Ms C said "You're the best meat-maker!!"  Ummm... thanks.

Tweeks:
Actually, I was surprised they loved them so much.  I thought they might be a little dry and said they needed the sauce.  But Ms D doesn't eat the ketchup and ate more burgers than anyone!
Of course,  you can serve these like the beef burgers: in a bread-roll, with lettuce,  a little grated carrot, cucumber & pear ketchup.

Vanilla Slice with Pear Icing

I don't have a very good history with Vanilla Slice.  My main memory is Dad bringing them home for me whenever I was sick from school.  I wasn't sure which was worse; the idea of dealing with a 'snot block' when I was sick or that Dad didn't remember I didn't like them!  Later I tried one that was not from a big commercial place and I changed my mind.  Now I see what Dad was trying to show me.

This is super easy.

Ingredients:

• 1 pkt Sao biscuits  (Yes, I use Saos, not pastry!!  So sue me!!)
• A deep tray, about 25x30cm.  Mine fitted 3x3 Sao biscuits exactly

Custard filling (from TMX book, pg 155)

• 75g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 500g milk
• 40g cornflour
• 5g vanilla essence

Pear Icing

• 1 cup sugar
• 35g butter
• 2 small pears (I used 4 canned halves)
• a little water/syrup if needed

Method:

• Place sugar into TMX and pulverise for 20 seconds on Speed 9
• Scrape down and add remaining custard ingredients
• Cook for 7 minutes at 90degC on Speed 4
• Line pan with one layer of Sao biscuits
• Spread all of custard onto bottom layer of biscuits
• Top with another layer of biscuits
• Refridgerate
• Place 1 cup of sugar into TMX and pulverise for 20 seconds on Speed 9
• Add butter
• Cream until well combined
• Add pears and process briefly until well chopped
• Put in butterfly attachment and continue creaming on Speed 4, watching until it is the desired consistency
• Scrape down and add a little water or syrup if necessary
• Spread onto top Sao layer and put back into fridge until the Saos have softened and icing is set.

 Verdict:

Mmmmm.  Yuummmmmm. Mmmmmmmmm.  Ms D said "Mum!  I am speechless!!"  She's a laugh.  :)

Tweeks:

I think I could also do this with the Carob Custard.  And one day I'll find a Failsafe recipe for the pastry.

Pear Leather (or Pear 'Rollups')

Pear Leather or 'Rollups'

This is from the Failsafe website... but learn from my mistakes.  :)

Ingredients:

• 2 large cans of pears in syrup
• 1/2 tsp Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) (optional)

Method:

• Drain Pears and allow to drip dry for a good long time
• Pre-heat oven to 75-100ºC
• Line 1 or 2 oven trays with good quality baking paper
• Puree Pear with Ascorbic Acid
• With a spatula, spread the pear puree thinly over the baking paper
• Cook in oven for 3-4 hours
• Remove from oven and allow to cool enough to handle and remove from paper
• Starting on the long side,  roll pear leather up and then slice with a sharp knife
• Or, cut leather into strips and then roll.

Verdict:
Everyone is very excited to be having 'Rollups'.  I can see that the teachers may not think that this is 'brain food', but I'm just going to have to go and talk with them again.  Won't they be surprised to find it is pear, only pear and nothing but the pear.

Tweeks:
Oh my goodness,  I made so many mistakes doing this. 

I tried to dry the pear purée,  but the baking paper I used just got soggy and tore apart.  Messy.  At first it was just too thick...  and when I say 'at first' I mean after four hours!!!  (I'd hate to see the electricity bill after all this.) I touched it to see if it was dried and my finger just sank into the puree!!!  
Gah!  So, I scraped it all off and re-spread it much more thinly on 3 trays instead of 2.   I started off at 75 degrees,  but then went to 100.  That might just be my oven though.  The extra thin trays were in the oven for somewhere between 3 and 4 hours, with us just checking it until we decided it was ready.  I have stored these in the fridge, but only since I'm playing it safe.  I suppose it should be okay in the pantry??