Welcome~2010

I can't believe it's already 2010.....it seems but an instant ago that I was standing on the edge of the Indian Ocean with my 4 children, friends, husband and what seemed like a large proportion of the population of Western Australia, all welcoming in the new Millenium.
Wow!
My life is flashing by!
Was that really a decade ago already!

I'm heralding the start of this new decade, and there are so many things I am looking forward to.
I have some worthy goals in the domain of living more consciously regarding our usage of this planets resources....we personally have been using more than our fair share and I'm aiming to rectify that in what ever way I can this year....pv cells on the rooftop to harvest our bountiful sunshine, an extended vegetable garden, use of my dehydrator more, waste less through more efficient planning, consciousness, education and restraint......I'm going to have to learn to love that word, I can see, as right now I group 'planning' right there with 'constraint' for some reason.
I'm not a great planner....I like to think it's the free-spirit that resides still within the middle-aged me......but planning is what is going to have to happen!

I am looking to the coming year with anticipation of all those goals that we get clear about at the dawning of a new year and there is much to do......plants to grow and harvest, earth to dirty our hands with, feasts to share, recipes to be tried, friends to nurture and love, family to cherish and hold close, houses to be cared for, family to sew for, laughter to be shared, mischief to be made, books to read and share.... bodies and souls to be strengthened, minds to be expanded and quietened, youth to be celebrated, age to be respected and dignified......dogs to walk and wash, trees to be admired, and stars and skies to become acquainted with......and that's just for starters, haha!

On that note, I'm off to bed....I'm going to need my sleep I can see!

A quick recipe or two I made for our Christmas Eve picnic by the river with friends....

SAGE AND PROSCIUTTO CAKES

1 cup (170g) instant polenta

1/2 cup (75g) plain spelt flour/GF flour

1 tsp baking powder, sifted

1/4 tsp bicarb soda, sifted

2 tbsp sage leaves, chopped

sea salt and cracked black pepper

1 1/2 cups (360g) sour cream/yoghurt

2 eggs

12 sage leaves extra and 12 slices prosciutto

Preheat oven to 180 C (355 F).

Place the polenta, flour, baking powder, bicarb, chopped sage, salt, pepper, cream and eggs in a bowl and mix well to combine. Place extra sage in the bases of 12 lightly greased 1/2 cup capacity muffin tins.

Line each tin with prosciutto and fill with the polenta mixture.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until cooked.

Turn out to serve.

Makes 12.

ARTICHOKE AND LEMON DIP

250g light cream cheese

300g marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1/2 cup/40g grated parmesan cheese

1 tbsp lemon juice

sea salt and cracked black pepper

olive oil, toasted pine nuts and chilli flakes to serve

crackers

Place the cream cheese, parmesan, artichokes, lemon juice, and salt and pepper in a food processor and pulse until coarse, or smooth, depending on your taste.

Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with pine nuts and chilli flakes to serve.

WARM BAKED PEACH AND RASPBERRY CAKE

SERVES 20

(Recipe can be halved, which I did and it was wonderful. I used nectarines, as well as a couple of peaches I had.....I blanched them but didn't bother to peel the nectarines)

8 ripe peaches/nectarines/plums

500g butter

2 cups (440g) caster sugar

2 2/3 cups plain flour, sifted (I use equal quantities of brown rice flour, almond meal, tapioca flour and spelt flour)

2 2/3 cups SR flour, sifted (as above, plus 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp bicarb, 1/2 tsp cream of tartar)

6 large eggs, lightly beaten

200g natural yoghurt

1 1/2 cups almond meal

500g fresh or frozen raspberries

Icing sugar and raspberry sauce to serve

Topping:

180g unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups (330g) caster sugar

6 large eggs

2 vanilla beans split, seeds scraped (use 1tsp vanilla extract if no beans)

Raspberry Sauce

1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar

250g fresh or frozen raspberries

juice of 1 lemon

Place sugar and 2 tbsp water in a small pan over medium heat stirring to dissolve the sugar. Cool slightly, then add the berries and lemon juice. Blend in a food processor until smooth, the pass through a sieve. Chill until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 180 C and lightly grease a 8cm deep, 33 cm round springform cake pan or a 45cm x 30 cm baking dish.

If desired, peel the fruit by cutting a small cross in the base of each piece of fruit. plunge into boiling water for 30 seconds, then remove and refresh immediately in a bowl of iced water. Peel, then halve and remove the stones. Set aside.

For the topping, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, then add the sugar, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Place the eggs and vanilla seeds in a bowl and whisk to combine, then stir into the cooled butter mixture. Set aside.

Beat together the softened butter and caster sugar in an electirc mixer until thick and pale, then fold in the flours and a good pinch of salt.

Whisk together eggs and yoghurt in a large boel, then add to the flour mixture, stirring until you have a softish batter that drops easily from the spoon. (I had to add up to another 1/2 cup of milk/yoghurt).

Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan (it shouldn't fill more than a quarter of the depth, as the cake rise a great deal).

Smooth the top of the cake, then sprinkle with the almond meal, Sprinkle the raspberries over the cake, then spoon over the topping mixture. Arrange the peaches/fruit over the top, cut side up, starting from the outside and working in a spiral pattern towards the centre, pushing down into the batter.

Bake for 2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the cetnre comes out clean. You may  need to loosely cover the top with foil if its browning too quickly.

Dust with icing sugar, then serve with raspberry sauce.

I didn't bother with the sauce but I'm sure it'll be gorgeous!

(Donna Hay Recipes)