DIY desserts
Food Fix
Chocolate Marzipan
Ingredients for the filling: 1 cup of blanched, ground almonds, 1 cup of icing sugar (sieved), 4-5 teaspoons of egg white, a few drops of almond essence (optional).
For the coating: 1 cup of plain coating chocolate, grated.
Method: Mix together the ground cashew nuts, icing sugar and the essence. Add sufficient egg white to the mixture into a stiff dough. Knead lightly. Add different colourings as desired and form them into different shapes. Leave to dry on a grease-proof paper for a few hours at room temperature.
To coat chocolate: Melt the grated chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water. Dip the balls into the melted chocolate one at a time. Using two forks, evenly coat each ball with chocolate. Lift balls using forks and shake off any surplus chocolates.
Transfer these coated chocolates on to a grease-proof paper and leave to set. When set, wrap the chocolates in coloured silver wrappers
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients: 1 cup of butter or margarine, 1 cup of granulated sugar (soft), 1 cup of firmly-packed brown sugar, 2 eggs, a teaspoon of vanilla, 2 cups of sifted maida, a teaspoon of soda, half a cup of chopped walnuts, ¾ teaspoon of salt, three cups of oats, a cup of chocolate chunks.
Method: Beat the butter and sugars together until it turns creamy in texture. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Sift together flour, soda and salt. Add this to the creamed mixture and blend well. Stir in oats, chocolate pieces and walnuts. Drop teaspoonfuls onto grease-proof cooking sheets. Bake this in a preheated oven (375º F) for 10 to 12 minutes.
Egg Nog
Ingredients: A litre of milk, 3 tablespoons of sugar, 4 eggs, a teaspoon of vanilla, a quarter cup of rum (optional), a pinch of ground nutmeg.
Method: Stir milk and sugar in a saucepan set over medium high heat. Bring to a boil stirring often, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. In a bowl, whisk yolks with vanilla. Gradually whisk about one quarter of hot milk mixture into yolks. Gradually pour yolk mixture into hot milk mixture in saucepan whisking all the time. Cook over low heat stirring constantly until egg nog is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Do not allow to boil.
Strain egg nog into a serving pitcher and stir in the rum. Cover and refrigerate until it is chilled (2-8 hours). Just before serving, vigorously whisk mixture to break up any lumps, or strain again through a sieve. Taste egg nog and, if richer than you like, add a little more milk. Pour into glasses and sprinkle nutmeg and serve.
