Slow Cooker Pineapple & Coconut Self Saucing Pudding

Did I mention how much I hate winter? Well, I do and it’s not even technically cold here in Queensland, the Sunshine State. It might get down to as low as 8 deg C (46 deg F) overnight (sometimes cooler) and the average temperature during the day is around 20 deg C (68 deg F). I don’t handle the cold too well. The only thing I like about winter is the food. Being a warm climate for about 9 months of the year, we don’t really ‘do’ soups, stews and puddings so for these couple of cold months I like to make the most of the more hearty recipes. Any kind of self saucing pudding is great and I had a fresh pineapple so Pineapple & Coconut Self Saucing Pudding it was.

This recipe is a good one to use as a standard for any flavour. Use whatever seasonal produce you have or add cocoa for a chocolate version. It produces a light spongy pudding.

The pineapples are full of juice and extra sweet at the moment. I have to stop myself from eating too much otherwise I suffer from ‘furry tongue’.

Damien’s mother gave me all of her appliances once she moved into the nursing home and other kitchen things and even though I do have a slow cooker, I love the size of this little one. It was just perfect for a self saucing pudding. You need to give it a light spray with oil to avoid sticking.

The method is pretty much the same as you would make for an oven or microwaved self saucing pudding.

You put the pudding mixture in the dish and carefully pour over the liquid.

I cooked this one on low for approximately 2 hours. It’s just a matter of inserting a skewer and checking that the top half of the pudding has set. You can see in the photo above all the bubbly sauce oozing up the sides of the dish.

Served with ice cream, this was really good. I’m going to remember doing them in the slow cooker from now on as I can just mix it, set it and leave it until dinner time and it keeps warm in the slow cooker. Hope you give this one a try.

Slow Cooker Pineapple & Coconut Self Saucing Pudding

• 1 cup self raising flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 60 grams butter, melted
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup fresh or canned pineapple, chopped
• 1/2 cup coconut
• 3 tablespoons golden syrup
• 1 1/2 cups hot water
• 25 grams butter, melted

 

1. Combine flour, sugar, coconut.
2. Add melted butter and milk and gently fold through flour.
3. Add pineapple.
4. Place in a greased slow cooker (or dish for baking in the oven or microwave).
5. Combine syrup, hot water and extra 25 grams melted butter.
6. Gently pour liquid over pudding batter.
7. Cook in slow cooker on slow for approximately 2 hours.

 

 

Ham & Pineapple Skewers with Rice Salad

Welcome to a new monthly feature in 2015, “The Ironing Chef”. I came up with the idea, while ironing one day believe it or not, when thinking about what to cook for dinner. I remembered the TV show “The Iron Chef” where they get one ingredient to cook 3 or 4 courses using standard pantry ingredients as well (and they have the really goofy voice overs in the Japanese version of the show). I’m forever making do with what I’ve got on hand but wanted to share how easy it easy to prepare simple meals using only what you’ve got. So many times I’d love to run down to the supermarket to pick up those extra few ingredients to make something but hold off and just use what I’ve got.

Ham & Pineapple Skewers on a Warm Rice Salad

I had some leftover ham from Christmas, which I cut off the bone and froze. Being smack bang in the middle of summer here in Australia, the pineapples are beautiful at the moment so I had half a pineapple that needed using up as well.

The extra ingredients I grabbed from the pantry and fridge were as follows:

(1)  1 cup white rice

(2)  frozen vegetable mix of corn, peas, capsicum

(3)  last bit of wilted English spinach from the fridge

(4)  half a small tub of light sour cream

(5)  6 Butternut Snap Cookies

plus basic seasonings and sauces from the pantry.  Not everyone is going to have these same ingredients but it’s about using what you do have. If you have frozen broccoli, for example, use that. Or use leftover cake or biscuits of any kind to add to a dessert. Ice cream, cream, Greek or flavoured yoghurt is also good to use in desserts. Rice or pasta, it makes no difference.

I put the rice onto boil and cut the pineapple in half, saving one half for the dessert and cut the other half into chunks and threaded alternately onto a skewer with cubes of the leg ham. I used my sandwich press to cook the skewers.

Just before the rice was cooked, I added a handful of the frozen vegies plus the English spinach, finely shredded. I dressed the rice salad mixture with a mixture of sweet chilli and soy sauce, two ingredients which are always in my pantry.

Pineapple &

http://directory.northernontariobusiness.com/profile/414a7497190eaef6b5d75d5a6a11afcf/

Coconut Parfait

We’re not usually dessert eaters, except the kids might have a bowl of ice cream or an icy pole occasionally. (Usually they don’t eat all their dinner so there’s no treats.) I decided to make a dessert using the other half of the pineapple and layer it with crunchy biscuit crumbs and a little sour cream. I wasn’t sure how the sour cream would go but you wouldn’t believe it. I found one solitary ready made meringue stuck up the back of the pantry which I crumbled into the sour cream. I also added a couple drops of coconut essence to the sour cream (another pantry staple of mine) but you could leave it out if you like or add shredded coconut. Let your imagination go wild. (I’ll let you in to a little secret. I couldn’t believe my luck when searching the pantry to see what I could use when I found a pineapple jelly/jello. It was my intention to have a layered parfait with jelly, sour cream and the biscuit crumbs. I put the fresh pineapple into the jelly and it didn’t set because of the natural enzymes that occur in things such as fresh pineapple, kiwi etc. Bugger! I salvaged the pineapple and tossed the jelly but that’s the way it goes. That’s not the first time a disaster of that magnitude has happened in my kitchen!)

So, other than preparing the jelly earlier in the day (which didn’t work anyway), there wasn’t much to preparing this meal. I did make the dessert a little before dinner time and just let sit in the fridge. The meal came together really quickly and was very tasty and filling. Never underestimate what you’ve got lurking in the fridge, pantry or fridge and how it can be used. Rather than throw it away, think outside the box and use it up. Stay tuned for next month when I go into the deep, dark depths of my freezer and fridge to see what needs using up.

PS. I’m not much of a meal planner. I have done it over the years but I’ve developed a knack of looking in the fridge that morning and working out what we’ll be having for dinner. Either way, whatever works for you.

Pineapple Coconut Slice

It’s springtime in Australia and one of my most favourite things about this time of the year, besides the weather getting warmer, is the tropical fruit in abundance. Strawberries are packing our supermarket shelves. Passionfruit vines are busting and pineapples are everywhere at really cheap prices. I know you can still buy most of these things at any time of the year (usually imported from overseas) but there’s nothing like buying fresh, seasonal fruit when it’s at it’s peak.

I was at my usual fruit and vegetable market on my regular fortnightly visit when 6 pineapples were available for $2. I grabbed them and put them all to good use. There was freshly cut pineapple chunks for school lunches, pineapple and ice cream for dessert, pineapple muffins, grated pineapple frozen for ice blocks and this Pineapple Coconut Slice.

I took my inspiration from the Aussie classic Coconut Jam Slice recipe (a recipe I’ve just realised I haven’t shared on my blog but have made many times) that’s in all our cookbooks. The shortbread crust topped with jam and topped with a coconut macaroon-type topping and baked to a golden brown.

I grated one small pineapple (you could substitute with a small can of crushed pineapple) and added 1/4 cup of sugar and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch which had been blended in a little water. I boiled it on the stove top until it had come to a jam-like consistency and allowed to cool.

Prebake the shortcrust base until golden brown.

Then add the cooled pineapple mixture.

Top with the crumbled coconut macaroon-like topping and bake until golden brown. These recipe froze really well too. Another delicious way to enjoy this season’s pineapples. Can’t wait until we’re in the full swing of mango and stone fruit season, which is just around the corner.

Pineapple Coconut Slice

(based on Coconut Jam Slice from here)

• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 125gm butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups coconut
• 1 small pineapple, grated (or 1 small can crushed pineapple)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tbs cornflour, blended with a little water

1. Preheat oven to 170 deg C.
2. Combine flour and 1/2 cup sugar.
3. Melt butter and add 1 beaten egg and vanilla, then add to flour mixture.
4. Press dough into a slice pan (approx 24x30cm) and bake until golden brown.
5. While baking, add grated (or crushed) pineapple to a small pan and heat.
6. Add 1/4 cup sugar and blended cornflour and stir until thicken. Allow to cool.
7. Spread pineapple mixture on top of baked pastry.
8. Beat remaining 2 eggs and 1/2 cup sugar then add coconut.
9. Spread over pineapple mixture and bake until golden brown (approx 20 mins).

Pineapple & Mint Cakes with Lime Drizzle

You know me and those silly cravings I get. I had a craving to make a Hummingbird Cake a few weeks ago but that didn’t happen so I’ve had a can of crushed pineapple staring at me in the pantry every time I opened the door. No point making big cakes in our house anymore otherwise I just eat the lot. I bought myself a mini loaf pan and this pineapple recipe was perfect.

Ideally, one of these ‘mini’ loaves might do two people but I ate the whole thing. It wasn’t that big, really. This recipe can be made in a normal sized loaf pan, a ring pan, round pan or cupcakes. You could also add lime zest to the icing for a bit of extra lime taste.

Pineapple & Mint Cakes with Lime Drizzle

• 1 1/2 half cups plain flour
• 1 x 450g can crushed pineaple in natural juice
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbs dried mint leaves (or 2 tbs Gourmet Garden mint)
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 6 tablespoons oil (I use canola)
• 1 teaspoon bicarb soda
• half teaspoon salt
• 1 cup icing sugar
• enough lime juice to mix with icing sugar to form a honey-like consistency for Lime Drizzle

1. Turn oven to 180 C (375 F). Grease or line baking tin well.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, canned pineapple (including juice) and water in a bowl.
3. Add mint, vinegar, oil, baking soda and salt. Mix well.
4. Pour into the tin. Bake 20 to 25 minutes.
5. Cool for 10 minutes then take out of tin.
6. Drizzle with lime icing.

 

{Sour} Pineapple Pudding Cake

You’ve heard the saying “if life gives you lemons, make lemonade”? Well, if life gives you a sour (or tart) pineapple, make this pudding cake. While I was out with my Aunt on the weekend, I was explaining how it’s disappointing when you pick a pineapple and it’s sour. My son and I love pineapple and eat it quite often, especially in the warmer months, but get disappointed when it’s sour and nearly inedible.

My Aunt told me about a recipe that my Nanna (her Mum) would make all the time when the pineapples were a little tart. Just grate the pineapple, put it in a baking dish, top with a sprinkling of brown sugar and then a basic cake mixture and bake until brown. Serve with cream or ice cream.

It took me all of 5 minutes while I was getting dinner ready. I didn’t think much of it when I pulled it out of the oven. It looked pretty bland. I thought I’d just try a corner bit (like I usually do) and OH. EM. GEE! I have never tasted a pudding/cake/dessert as nice as this. I called my son straight away to taste it and he gave a big thumbs up. I never saw him eat his dinner so quickly just so he could have dessert.

It was like a self saucing pudding, with a light, sweet smooth pineapple bottom. I just used a vanilla cake box mix I found in the cupboard left over from the big birthday cake bake-off that happens every November but you could use any basic cake recipe. I think the No Fuss Fudge Cake recipe I use all the time would be perfect for this. I know it’ll be too hot for puddings soon but I might have to make an allowance for this. This was just gorgeous! Thanks Aunty!

Pineapple Pudding Cake

• fresh pineapple, grated
• enough brown sugar to sprinkle lightly on top of pineapple
• vanilla cake box mix (I used half the cake batter as I only had a small amount of pineapple left) or basic sponge or cake recipe

1. Grease a baking dish or cake tin to suitable to hold the amount of pineapple you have.
2. Sprinkle lightly with brown sugar.
3. Top with cake batter and bake until cooked through and browned on top.