Pecan pie cookies

If you're needing a quick sweet fix and feel like baking, I'd suggest making these. The only problem I had with these cookies is that they're made on pastry. For pecan pie, I prefer to make a biscuit base. These tasted a lot like the pastry they were on.

- 1 sheet short crust pastry

- 2 tablespoons butter, melted

- 1/2 cup pecans, chopped

- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar

- 1/4 cup glucose syrup

- 2 eggs

- pinch of salt

1. Preheat your oven to 204 degrees Celsius. 

2. In a pan, combine everything except the pastry and stir over low heat until it has thickened slightly. 

2. Cut rounds of pastry out and fold a 1/4 inch lip around the edge. (I used triangle cutter because I didn't have a circle). Place 1 tablespoon of the mixture on each. 

3. Bake for 8 minutes or until just set. 

Chocolate and toffee pinwheel cookies

For a couple of years now, I've had a small bag of toffee almond and walnut pieces and didn't know what to do with them. Originally, they're suggested to top off your ice cream. But it's winter and too cold to eat ice cream. So instead I used some in these. I still have more left over too.

- 1 sheet puff pastry

- 2 tablespoons butter, melted

- 3 tablespoons brown sugar

- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

- 1/2 cup toffee bits

- 1/2 cup mini choc chips

- 1/2 cup pecans, chopped

- 1 egg, lightly beaten for paste

1. Roll out the pastry and brush with melted butter. 

2. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnon on top. 

3. Sprinkle the toffee, pecans, and choc chips on top. (I mixed all these in a bowl first).

4. Roll up the pastry into a log and deal with a strip of egg wash. 

5. Cut into 1/2 inch slices and place on a lined oven tray. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 14-16 minutes. Cool.

Lemon Bars

I'm not a lover of sweets when it comes to lemon. In the other hand, my mum loves it, so after her suggesting to make something lemony, I found a recipe for these lemon bars. Let's just say they didn't last long between my mum and my friends. 

- 1 cup butter

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 2 cups flour

- pinch of salt

FILLING:

- 6 eggs

- 3 cups sugar

- 2 tablespoons lemon zest

- 1 cup lemon juice

- 1 cup flour

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. 

2. To make the base:

Cream the butter and sugar together. Mix in the flour and salt to make a dough. 

3. Press into a lined with foil tin to make a 1/2 inch crust. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Chill. 

4. FOR THE FILLING:

Whisk all the filling ingredients together and pour it into the chilled crust. 

5. Bake for 30-35 minutes until set and cool to room temperature. Dust with icing sugar. 

Mini Pavlovas

When I made this recipe, I wasn't sure if I had to leave the pavlovas in the oven to cool completely, or I could take them out. Instead, I left them in for about 1/2 hour to cool before takimg them out to completely cool. They were hard on the outside, and chewy in the middle. DELICIOUS. And the best part? The pavlova itself only has 3 ingredients.

- 4 egg whites
- 1/2 cup caster sugar
-1 teaspoon corn flour


1. Preheat the oven to 140°C and line and spray a baking tray.

2. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.

3. Whisk in 1/2 of the sugar until it becomes very shiny.

4. Fold in the rest of the sugar and cornflour.

5. Pipe swirls of mixture onto the tray and bake for 30 minutes.  Leave to cool completely. 

6. Top with fruit of your choice.

Chicken, Sweet Potato and Corn Chowder

This was the first time I ever tasted chowder. I was a bit weary of it as I have only just started liking sweet potato and have gone off corm a little bit. But surprisingly it's quite delicious. Perfect for these cold days.

• 25g butter
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 sticks celery, chopped
• ½ red capsicum, deseeded and diced
• ½ green capsicum, deseeded and diced
• 400g golden sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 2 x 400g pouches Heinz Condensed Soup & More™ Creamy Chicken with Garden Herbs
• 2 cups frozen corn kernels
• 200g cooked chicken, chopped
• 1 cup milk

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add onion, celery, red and green capsicum and cook until softened but not brown. Add sweet potato.
2. Pour over Heinz Condensed Soup & More™ Creamy Chicken with Garden Herbs and stir in 1 ½ cups water. Bring to the boil.
3. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer 10 minutes.
4. Add frozen corn kernels, cooked chicken and milk.
5. Continue cooking for a further 5-10 minutes until chicken is heated through. Season to taste