Win a $50 Byron Bay Cookie Company hamper!

While in Byron Bay recently, I had the pleasure of visiting the Byron Bay Cookie Company's headquarters and retail outlet to learn more about their range of products. I also had the pleasure of sampling some of their delicious baked goods - lucky me! :)

Many of you reading this post will already know about Byron Bay Cookie Company's cookies - they are avaialble in a vast range of flavours and there are plenty of gluten-free options. They can be seen in cafes and coffee carts around Australia, as well as on airlines and in selected department stores both in Australia and the UK. Their products are now also available for purchase through http://www.cookie.com.au/ and http://www.amazon.com/.

The Byron Bay Cookie Company has been around since 1990 and is probably best known for its large, iconic cookies. Nowadays though, there are also the smaller, delicious biscuits from Luken & May, and crispbreads from Byron Bay Gourmet Foods.

My personal favourites are the white choc chunk & macadamia nut cookie, the brand new muesli cookie, as well as the Byron Bay Gourmet Food's wonderful (and Sydney Royal Show gold medal winning) rosemary & sea salt crispbread - great served on a cheese platter. I'm also a big fan of the Luken & May range - great for sharing at home, or a lovely gift when visiting family/friends.

*** GIVEAWAY ***

Thanks to the good people at the Byron Bay Cookie Company, one lucky Diary of a Ladybird reader has the chance to win this wonderful hamper of delicious Byron Bay Cookie Company products, worth $50!

To enter:

1. Simply tell me what your favourite Byron Bay Cookie Company product is by commenting on this post.
2. Then, email me a copy of your comment along with your full name and delivery address to diaryofaladybird[at]gmail[dot]com.

Entries close at midnight AEST July 26 and the giveaway is restricted to Australian residents only (sorry!). The winning entry will be selected by random.

Good luck!

Ladybird x

*** This giveaway has now closed ***

Congratulations to Erin of Gravelly Beach in Tasmania!

Baby Panettone

One of the things I love about food blogging is that you actually end up learning a lot about food along the way. I particularly love learning about festive food from around the world, its history, the way foods evolve along with soceity, and so on. Fascinating stuff (well.. for me anyway!). I had one of these warm and fuzzy moments when reading an article about panettone recently. It was so lovely to read about its origins and how significant it is to Italians at this time of year. Food really does bring people together, which I think is one of the nicest things about Christmas. So, even though I am not Italian, I decided I wanted in on this panettone business!

So what is panettone? Panettone is a traditional Italian bread with a domed top enjoyed around Christmas. It is a lovely buttery and lightly sweetened bread dotted with dried fruit such as raisins and candied citron. It is said to have originated in Milan, and is commonly enjoyed warm or lightly toasted along with (and even dunked into) espresso at breakfast.

Although it takes a little time to wait for the dough to rise (I definitely do not recommend attempting to make this on a weekday after work), here is a recipe to make your own baby size panettone. I'm a sucker for anything miniature, aren't you?! To make this recipe, you'll need 8 empty, clean, regular-size cans. I only had 4, so I actually halved the recipe below.

Baby Panettone
Adapted recipe from 200 Christmas Recipes by Hamlyn

2 tsp easy-blend dried yeast
125g caster sugar, plus 1 tsp
175ml hand-hot milk
700g strong bread flour (available in the baking aisle of most supermarkets)
4 large eggs, plus 2 yolks
2 tsp vanilla extract
zest of 2 lemons
175 salted butter, very soft and diced
185g mixed dried fruit

1. Grease 8 x 400ml clean food cans and line with greaseproof paper that extends above the rims. Grease the paper.

2. Stir the yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar into the milk in a large, warm bowl and leave for 10 minutes or until frothy. Stir in 100g of the flour. Cover with clingfilm and leave for 30 minutes.

3. Add the eggs and egg yolks, the remaining flour and the sugar, vanilla, zest and butter. Mix with a round-bladed knife to make a soft dough, adding a little more flour if the dough feels sticky. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Leave to rise in a lightly greased bowl, covered with clingfilm, for 2-4 hours or until doubled in size.

4. Knock back the dough and lightly knead in the dried fruit. Cut the dough into 8 pieces and drop into the tins. Cover and leave to rise until the dough reaches the can rims.

5. Bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees celsius (Gas Mark 6) for 20-25 minutes or until risen and golden. Remove from oven and leave in cans for 5 minutes before shaking out the panettone to cool on a wire rack.

Variation
To make a whole panettone instead of 8 baby ones, shape the mixture into 1 large ball. Place in a 15cm round cake tin, greased and lined with a double layer of greased greaseproof paper that extends 10cm above the rim. Cover and leave to rise. Bake for 15 minutes at 200 degrees celcius, then reduce to 180 degrees celcius and bake for 40 minutes until well risen and an inserted skewer comes out clean. Leave in tin for 10 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy at home, or wrap well with clingfilm, add some festive decorations and give away to family/friends!


Ladybird x

Lime & Passionfruit Curd

If you are not already sold by the title of this post, I must preface this recipe by telling you (rather unashamedly) how absolutely gorgeous it is to eat... The lime and passionfruit make this a wonderfully fresh and flavoursome curd that's like summer on a spoon. It is very easy to make, and would make a wonderful edible gift for a loved one. Stored in a jar with an airtight lid, this curd will keep in the fridge for up to 1 month.

There are many uses for a lovely curd like this... Here are are just a few ideas to get you drooling...

• Served with pancakes
• Injected into vanilla cupcakes with a piping tip
• Paired with whipped cream to sandwich a sponge cake together
•  Drizzled over ice cream
• Served with a citrusy cheesecake

But enough with the hyperbole, where's the recipe already?!

Lime & Passionfruit Curd

Adapted recipe from 200 Christmas Recipes by Hamlyn

(makes around 2 1/4 cups quantity)

Ingredients

250g caster sugar

zest and juice of 4 limes, kept aside in separate bowls

125 unsalted butter, cut into pieces

4 eggs, beaten and strained

3 passionfuits

Method

1. Place a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure that the bowl is not touching the water. Place the sugar and zest in the bowl and press them against the edge of the bowl with a spoon to release the oils from the zest.

2. Pour the lime juice into the bowl through a sieve and add the butter. Heat, stirring occasionally, until the butter has melted.

3. Whisk the eggs into the mixture and then switch back to the wooden spoon and stir constantly to avoid curdling. Continue stirring over low heat for approximately 20-25 minutes until the curd lightly coats the back of the wooden spoon.

4. Remove the bowl from the heat and cool slightly before stirring through the passionfruit pulp.

5. Transfer to warm, sterilised jars*. Cover each jar with a disc of waxed paper, placed waxed side down. Allow to cool, then close the jars with their lids.

* How to sterilise jars

I have often wondered what this actually entails, but as it turns out, it's relatively simple! To sterilise jars wash them either in the dishwasher or in hot soapy water. Rinse and dry them in the oven on the lowest setting for 15 minutes. Fill the jars while still warm.

Note

The curd will thicken with refrigeration, but if you wish to thin it out again for use simply warm slightly.

Till next time, dear readers!

Ladybird x

Cranberry & White Chocolate Bites

Around this time last year, I made white chocolate and macadamia shortbread cookies and packaged them up and gave them away as Christmas gifts. I wanted to do something similar again this year, but this time I wanted them to taste a little more Christmasy, so the inclusion of cranberries in a cookie seemed like a good idea.

I usually follow recipes that I come across and don't spend much time developing my own recipes, but this is something I'm very keen on doing more of, especially in 2011. So, in the spirit of getting a head start of new year's resolutions, here is my recipe for these little bite size Christmas treats. Quick and easy to make, these make a great gift for friends with little notice.

The recipe makes around 60 cookies that can be kept in an airtight container for up to a week (if they last!).

White Chocolate & Cranberry Bites

An original Diary of a Ladybird recipe!

Ingredients

200g unsalted butter, softened

pinch salt

1/4 c caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 c plain flour

2 tbsp rice flour

1/4 c dried cranberries, finely chopped

Half block (90g) white chocolate, finely chopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius and line two baking trays with baking paper.

2. Cream the butter, sugar and pinch of salt. Add the plain flour and rice flour, then mix in the cranberries and white chocolate.

3. Roll small teaspoonfuls of mixture into balls and place on the baking tray, and bake for around 10 minutes or until golden.

4. Cool on the tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

I'll be featuring a few more Christmas recipes over the coming days, including great ideas for food that can also double as homemade gifts. Stay tuned!


Ladybird x