Category: Valentine’s Day Recipes

I don’t think there are many people who aren’t familiar with the deliciousness of macarons. They do have a bit of a reputation of being hard to make, but this recipe demonstrates that it’s possible (and not that hard) to make them at home…

• 2 Dilmah Ceylon Spice Chai tea bags
• Zest of ½ orange
• 75 g whipping cream
• 100 g dark chocolate
• 30 g butter, cubed, at room temperature

• 2 Dilmah Real Rose and Vanilla tea bags
• 65 g whipping cream
• 100 g white chocolate
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom seeds
• 30 g butter, cubed, at room temperature

• 2 Dilmah Real Green Tea and Jasmine tea bags
• 65 g whipping cream
• 100 g white chocolate
• Green food colouring
• 30 g butter, cubed, at room temperature

This is the second recipe in our Valentine’s Day Sweet Treats recipe series. These tea-infused chocolate cupcakes are a really versatile base for decorating with any colour/flavoured icing you like. They would also look great decorated with cream and strawberries, or with a sprinkling of little sugar hearts on top.  

  Ingredients:

• 65 g butter
• ½ cup castor sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups self-rising flour
• ¼  cup cocoa powder
• ½ cup milk
• ½ cup Dilmah Breakfast tea

Method:

2. Sift flour, cocoa powder into a bowl.

3. Make ½ cup Dilmah Breakfast tea using 2 tea bags and hot water. Allow to infuse 10 minutes, cool in refrigerator.

4. With an electric mixer beat butter, sugar and egg together until combined. Fold half flour/cocoa powder and half milk. Repeat with remaining flour/cocoa powder, milk and tea.

5. Divide the mixture among the greased cup cake pans and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean.

6. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Thanks to our friends at Dilmah for sharing this beautiful recipe with us. Dilmah is a family‐owned Sri Lankan tea company established by Merrill J. Fernando, the first tea grower to offer his tea, grown, handpicked and traditionally made, directly from the origin. www.dilmah.com.au

If you’re looking for a sure-fire way to impress your Valentine this Valentine’s Day, then you can’t go past a sweet home-made treat. This series of recipes focus on delicious treats that are easy to make and delightful to eat.

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup icing sugar
• ¼ cup pistachio kernels
• 4 Dilmah Exceptional Rose with French Vanilla real leaf tea bags
• ½ cup boiling water
• 4 tsp gelatine powder
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• ¼ cup glucose syrup (light corn syrup)
• Pinch of salt
• 1 egg white

Method:

1. Place the Pistachio kernels on a baking tray and roast in the oven at 180°C for 8 – 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool, then rub them in a clean tea towel until all the skins are removed. Place in a food processor with the icing sugar and pulse until it forms a fine crumb (it can have some larger pieces of pistachio left in it for texture).

2. Lightly oil a 22cm square baking pan (non-stick pans work better), sprinkle well with half of the powdered icing sugar/ pistachio crumbs, making sure the sides have a dusting of icing sugar.

3. Place 4 teabags in the ½ cup boiling water, allow to steep for 10 minutes, then remove tea bags, squeezing out excess liquid. In a large glass bowl place ¼ cup of the infused tea water, sprinkle with the gelatine, stir, and set aside.

4. In a heavy saucepan cook sugar, glucose syrup, salt and the other ¼ cup of tea infused water over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase heat and allow to bubble until you get to ‘soft ball stage’* (116°C/ 240F on a candy thermometer), approximately 10 minutes. Remove from heat and pour over the gelatine mix, stirring until softened and the gelatine dissolves.

5. Beat the hot sugar/gelatine mixture with a hand held electric beater on high until the mixture thickens (approximately 3 times its size) and goes white, this will take around 10 minutes. Then in a separate clean bowl with clean beaters (any oil will stop the egg white from fluffing) beat the egg white until it just holds stiff peaks, then transfer it into the sugar mixture and beat again until just combined.

6. Pour into prepared tin, sprinkle over the remaining icing sugar/pistachio mix. Cool at room temperature for 3 hours then cut into desired shapes with a sharp lightly oiled knife or cookie cutter. Toss in the icing sugar/pistachio crumb to coat all sides. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

*Soft ball stage means that if you drop a little of the hot sugar mixture into cold water to cool it down, it will hold its shape in a soft ball. Unless you have worked with hot sugar before it is easier to use a candy thermometer.

Thanks to our friends at Dilmah for sharing this beautiful recipe with us. Dilmah is a family‐owned Sri Lankan tea company established by Merrill J. Fernando, the first tea grower to offer his tea, grown, handpicked and traditionally made, directly from the origin. www.dilmah.com.au

• Prawns
• Chorizo
• Skewers

• Rocket
• Avocado
• Mango
• Tomato
• Red onion
• Salt and pepper
• A squeeze of lime juice
• A drizzle of olive oil

We’ve had a great response to the BBQ Mango Cheeks and Lamb recipe featured earlier this week, so we’ve got another delicious mango recipe – a dessert this time. I don’t think I’ve met anyone who doesn’t like Pavlova – it’s a summer classic. On a hot day you just can’t beat it with a bit of fresh mango. These Mini Mango Pavlovas are so easy and tasty that they’re certain to be a hit with your Valentine.

• 2 x fresh Australian mangoes
• 8 x pavlova nests (store bought)
• 1 ½ tablespoons of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
• Whipped cream
• Mint (optional)

I love the happy memories we associate with eating great food, which is what I drew me to Louise’s recipe for Crêpe Suzette. Louise recalls: “I grew up with close family friends who were French, and we always had Crêpe Suzette on special occasions for dessert (among Duck à l’orange, and profiteroles). It was so lovely being introduced to a different cuisine so young, and also to understand the lovely community that dining creates within a family. Every now and then, we’d have the smallest amount of ‘plonk’ with our meals although we were only 12 years old! But it showed us the true purpose of beautiful wine and alcohol. It’s used to celebrate, to create conversation and to compliment gastronomy. Divine.”

• 100g caster sugar
• 35g unsalted butter
• 150ml orange juice
• 1 orange zest
• 3 tablespoons Grand Marnier
• 2 tablespoons brandy (or a little more :0)

1. Place first six ingredients in a food processor and whiz until combined and mixture forms a smooth batter. If you don’t have a food processor, use a stick blender or hand beaters.
2. Pour into a jug, and let sit for 30 minutes.
3. Heat a small frying pan over medium-high heat.
4. Carefully brush the pan with a little melted butter.
5. Tilting the pan slightly, pour in enough batter (about 2-3 tablespoons) to just cover the base. Cook for 1-2 minutes until base of the crepe is lightly browned.
6. Carefully flip the crepe to brown the other side. Transfer to a plate and repeat until batter is used.

These gorgeous ceramic jugs not only look great in the kitchen, but they are also a functional way of measuring out your ingredients to make the perfect crepe.  

Truffles are up there with cupcakes on the ‘romantic treats’ list. We love this recipe for Raw Almond Choc Truffles from leading Australian nutritionist, Lola Berry. We agree with Lola – “the only trick is trying not to eat them all at once!” We have put the ingredient list and method below, but you can also watch Lola make these delicious truffles here on YouTube.

For further and nutritional information, check out: www.almondbreeze.com.au

Fed up of spilling ingredients on your cook books or iPad when you’re cooking? Check out this cool folding cook book stand from Joseph Joseph. It will keep your recipes clean and folds away so it can also be stashed on the book shelf when not in use.

Giving someone a cupcake (or two!) on Valentine’s Day is a sweet, romantic gesture, especially if you’ve made them yourself. The unique thing about these lovely Rose Red Velvet cupcakes is the rose tea infused butter, which adds another subtle flavour to this simple recipe. Decoration can be as simple or as fancy as you like – you could even serve them up with a single red rose – how romantic!

• 2 cups plain flour
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 1tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 ½ cups castor sugar
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 200g tea infused butter, melted (see recipe for this below)
• 2 eggs, lightly whisked
• 1tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1tbsp red food colouring

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Line 18, 80ml (1/3 cup) capacity muffin pans with paper cases.
2. Sift flour, cocoa powder and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Stir through the sugar.
3. Whisk the buttermilk, tea infused melted butter, eggs, vinegar and vanilla in a large jug until combined.
4. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture. Add the buttermilk mixture. Stir until just combined. Stir in the food colouring.
5. Divide the mixture among the lined pans.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Tea infused butter:

• 280g unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp Dilmah Exceptional Rose with French Vanilla tea

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan until just liquid.
2. Add the tea leaves and continue heating the mixture for 5 minutes over very low heat.
3. Remove the butter from the heat and let the mixture stand for another 5 minutes.
4. Strain out the tea leaves by pouring the liquid butter through a sieve into a bowl.
5. Press the tea into the sieve with spoon on order to squeeze out the butter it has absorbed.

**there is a certain amount of butter that will be lost as it will stick to the tea leaves. One cup of butter will yield closer to 3/4 cup of butter. The recipe takes this into consideration, so only add 200g of tea infused melted butter to the cupcake mixture.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Have the cream cheese cold and butter at room temperature.
• In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and rosewater until blended. Add sugar one-third at a time and beat just until smooth and the desired consistency. Do not overbeat.
• When the cupcakes are cold, pipe the cream crease frosting on top or use an ice-cream scoop to dollop the frosting on the stunning red-domed cupcakes.

Check out Dilmah’s range of other delicious teas, which are great to use as infusions in cooking or to drink everyday.

Mr Gift has a great range of kitchen utensils and gadgets that make perfect gifts for conscientious cooks and budding bakers.

Mangoes are one of my favourite summer fruits. They’re delicious on their own, but also add a tropical freshness to any summer dish. In the warmer months I adore recipes that involve a BBQ – it’s great to cook outside and there’s less washing up! This BBQ Mango and Lamb recipe’s a beauty. It would have been great for Australia Day (and Sam would definitely approve!), but why not give it a go for a relaxed but very tasty Valentine’s treat?

Make the most of this season’s mangoes with these BBQ lamb cutlets and mango cheeks