No-Frills Recipes ... cooking, baking & excerpts on travel

These choc chip muffins that I made recently were a hit at breakfast.  Not only were they easy to make, they were moist as I added more yoghurt than what was called for in the recipe.  This is a very simple and straightforward recipe that will yield consistent good result. Recipe for Choc Chip Raisin Yoghurt Muffins   Ingredients 9 oz plain flour 4 oz caster sugar 2 eggs 1/2 cup melted butter or veg. oil (I used melted butter) 125 - 140 ml plain yoghurt 1 tsp vanilla 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda 80 gm raisins 80 gm choc chips a pinch of salt Method Sift flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a mixing bowl.  Add in sugar and mix well. Whisk eggs, oil, yoghurt and vanilla till well mixed. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture, mix till just combined. Scoop (I used an ice cream scoop) batter into paper lined muffin pan, about 3/4 full. Bake in a preheated oven @ 200 deg.C for 20 t...

This is my first attempt at making chutney and I was having the impression that it's going to be a very tedious chore.  When a friend gave me a few mangoes recently, I quickly browsed through the internet to look for some easy recipes to try my hands at making chutney.  I was taken aback when I realised that it was not so difficult as I had imagined and  was truly very satisfied with my maiden attempt! Recipe for Mango Chutney Ingredients 850 gm/1.3/4 lb mango flesh, cut into 3/4" cubes. 80 gm raisin 1/4 cup apple cider 1 medium onion, chopped 1 Tsp chopped garlic 1 Tsp chilli powder 1  Tsp garam masala 1 Tsp mustard seeds 1/4  Tsp turmeric powder 2 Tsps oil Method Lightly fry the chopped garlic and onion with oil, add in the mustard seeds, stir fry. Add in the mangoes, raisins and the rest of the ingredients.  Mix well and once it starts to boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for about 1 hour, ...

These crispy crisps are very suitable for snacking and can be addictive too.  It's simple and easy to prepare but you must work quickly when preparing this pastry as the Filo sheets dry up very quickly, more so in our hot weather.  These are light and refreshing and should they lose their crispiness later, just pop them into the oven toaster to reheat. Recipe for Almond Filo Pastry Ingredients 5 sheets of Filo pastry 1 egg white 30 gm melted butter or oil (I used butter) 40 gm sugar 30 to 40 gm almond flakes Method Place the Filo sheets on a board, cut into half.  (Cover the sheets with parchment paper and place a damp cloth on top to prevent the sheets from drying). Beat the egg white with a ball whisk till foamy and broken down, add in the melted butter, mix well. Place a sheet of pastry on the board, brush with the egg white butter mixture, sprinkle the sugar on top generously. Then place another sheet of pastry on top of the first and rep...

I had some egg whites left from making ice cream and not to put them to waste, I made these lemony friands for afternoon tea.  Tossed in some pitted prunes to enhance the flavour and taste. Recipe for Lemony Prune Friands Ingredients 100 gm melted butter, cooled 125 gm icing sugar 40 gm plain flour  70 gm almond meal  3 medium egg whites Zest from 1 lemon 85 gm pitted prunes, chopped Method Lightly grease and flour the Friand pan. Sift the icing sugar and flour into a bowl, add almond meal, mix well. Whisk egg whites till light and floppy.  Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, tip in the egg whites and lemon rind, then lightly stir in the melted butter to form a soft batter. Scoop the batter into the pan and sprinkle some chopped prunes over each cake.  Bake for 15 - 20 mins. Cool in the pan for about 5 mins. turn out and dust with icing sugar before serving. Yield :  9 Frian...