Short Bread with Dulce De Leche – Alfajores

Happy Sunday! Aren’t we all glad it’s finally the weekend? 🙂 What do you normally doing during the weekend? I love baking and being in the kitchen on weekends! Last weekend Mr Bao got very sick with gastro poor thing he was literally best friends with the toilet for 30 hours straight! So we had to cancel all our plans and stay home…which is fine I guess because it meant I got to bake these Alfajores.

When I posted these Alfajores on my Instagram and Facebook I got a lot of comments asking what they were exactly. Now for starters I wouldn’t have a clue how to pronounce ‘Alfajores’ correctly but that doesn’t matter because they are delicious! To put it simply Alfajores are South American short bread cookies with dulce de leche which is a caramel made from cooking condense milk in either a water bath in the oven or in the can in a saucepan.

Dulce De Leche

I chose to make the dulce de leche in the over, because I found that to be the most authentic and easiest you just tip the condense milk into a baking dish and into baking tray filled with water and cook for 1.5 to 2 hours.

 

 

This recipe is for Julie because she’s been asking me for the recipe and what these Alfajores taste like 😀 Hope you will make these caramel short bread cookies soon because I promise you they will disappear in seconds!

Recipe – Alfajores (Short Bread with Dulce De Leche) adapted from Taste.com and SBS.com
Dulce De Leche
Yield – Approximately 500ml

Ingredients
2 x 395g sweetened condensed milk

Method
1) Preheat oven to 220°C. Pour condense milk into a baking dish. Place dish into a baking tray or roasting pan. Pour water into pan until halfway up to the side of the dish.
2) Cover dish with foil and bake for 1 hour 45 minutes or more until it turns into a dark golden colour. Check on the dulce de leche every half and hour and refill pan with water if necessary. Once it turns into a golden colour whisk mixture until smooth and glossy.

Notes
– Depending on your oven it may take longer or a shorter time to make your dulce de leche.
– Store dulce de leche in sterilised jars and in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
– Set dulce de leche aside and prepare to make shortbread cookie

Alfajores – Short bread cookies
Ingredients
300g (2 cups) plain flour, sifted
50g pure icing sugar, sifted
200g cold unsalted butter, chopped
2 egg yolks
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
275g dulce de leche
50g desiccated coconut for rolling

Method
1) Process flour, icing sugar, unsalted butter and pinch of salt in a food processor until mixture resembles crumbs. Add egg yolks and vanilla extract and process again until mixtures comes together. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour or overnight.
2) On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to 5mm thick. Using a 6cm round cooker cutter cut out 20 discs, re-rollling pastry if necessary. Place on oven tray with baking paper and refrigerate or freeze for 30 minutes or more.
3) Preheat oven to 180°C. Bake biscuits for 15 minutes or until light golden. Transfer to a rack to cool completely. Pipe dulce de leche over half the biscuits, then sandwich with remaining biscuits. Roll in desiccated coconut and serve immediately or place in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Notes
– Because the dough has a high butter content you need to work quickly when cutting out discs as dough can stick on rolling pin
– You can replace the desiccated coconut by sprinkling icing sugar over the biscuits

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Share a Churros Week support Beyond Blue – San Churros

Today’s post is a little different, of course it’s all about churros those delectable fried Spanish Donuts that San Churros specialising in making but more importantly it’s about their campaign to support beyondblue – an independent non-profit organisation working to address issues associated with depression, anxiety disorders and related mental illnesses.

San Churros has launched ‘Share A Churros Week’ and from the 15th-21st of June (this week) every churros sold $1 will be donated to beyondblue. When I was asked if I would like to help promote this campaign I couldn’t have said any quicker. Unfortunately, a few people very close to me suffer from depression and anxiety, I have seen first hand how it affects them. Therefore, if there’s anything I can do to support and help the charity I will definitely do it.

I wanted to share with some facts about depression and anxiety:
– 45 per cent of people will experience a mental health condition in their lifetime
– On average, 1 in 6 people will experience depression at some stage of their lives
– Anxiety is the most common mental condition in Australia
– On average, 1 in 4 people will experience anxiety
– At least six Australians take their own lives every day

For more information please visit the beyondblue website 🙂

I know it’s very important for people who suffer depression and anxiety to have the support from family and friends. Therefore, it’s a great concept of ‘Share A Churros’ because I honestly believe food can bring people together and because there’s endorphins in chocolate hehe that’s why I asked a dear friend of mine Catherine from Sweet Empire to go to San Churros and have a churros feast with me.

The are quite a few San Churros outlets in Melbourne, we found the one in Westfield Knox in Wantirna to be the closest to us both. We met at the newly renovated store it is much bigger and spacious compared to the kiosk they use to have inside the shopping centre.

With plenty of seating inside and sunlight shining through it is a great place for business meeting, afternoon tea and dessert after dinner. They also have comfy black leather sofas which is where to settled down and ordered our drinks.

Azteca Chilli Spanish Hot Chocolate $5.95

I can never leave without ordering the Azteca Spanish Hot chocolate which is chilli flavoured. If you haven’t had a Spanish hot chocolate before, I am warning you now it is VERY VERY thick haha and not everyone will like it! I personally love it! It is so thick it’s more like a pudding especially when it’s a little colder and thickens up. The subtle chilli taste gives it some more heat and perfect for a cold winter night. They have other flavours for the hot chocolate which I like too such as the peanut butter!

Churros For Two $14.95

We then ordered a Churros For Two because it’s the perfect amount churros for us. Instead of milk and dark chocolate we decided to try something different and order the white chocolate which tasted a little like condense milk and dulce de leche (which is cooked condense milk to make a caramel).

Thanks Catherine for being the hand model 🙂 Just look at that creamy dulce de leche! I’ve had the churros so many times haha my old office use to be walking distance to San Churros so yes I was a regular. They are made to order and freshly baked, never too oily and always crispy on the outside and soft inside with cinnamon sugar sprinkled over.

Fondue for Two $24.95

I would’ve loved to invite more people, but they were all working and hey who said two can’t be a party 😛 We didn’t have breakfast so this made up for it, we ordered the Fondue For Two which had a great range of condiments. Firstly a big pot of melted dark chocolate that is a must for a fondue. Then for dipping you had churros (of course!), fresh strawberries, bananas, marshmallows, brownies, macarons (pistachio & NY Cheesecake), pretzels and chocolate truffles! WOW!

 

Just looking at this platter makes me smile and want to share it with all my friends. I swear I have collected at least 3 fondue sets over the years, but I’ve never gotten around to using them. When I really should because it is such a great idea for dinner parties and so fun to eat using these little skewers.

Catherine as the hand model again ~ why is it always so hard to pick up the strawberries hurry up I want to eat you 😛

There we go the money shot! Fresh strawberries dipped in melted chocolate my favourite! What’s your favourite? We had such a great time chatting and fully indulging ourselves in churros and chocolate.

San Churros will be donating an extra $1 if you share your photos on Instagram and tag #shareachurros

So please do me a favour and visit San Churros if you can this week, order some churros, share with your friends and help raise money for beyondblue!

San Churros Knox
Number 3110a
Knox City Shopping Centre
425 Burward Hwy
Please visit the San Churros website for the closest outlet near you.

Daisy@Nevertoosweet and Catherine dined at San Churros as their guest and Haystac all opinions are true and honest. 

 

12 Beers on Tap – Beer Deluxe Hawthorn

My Dearest Readers, are you a beer drinker? I wouldn’t say it’s my drink of choice, but I do enjoy the occasional Corona and I’m starting to enjoy some Lagers. I was recently invited to visit Beer Deluxe in Hawthorn as the name suggests they specialise in beers and have 12 or even more on tap! It was very interesting to learn about how the beer is made underneath in restaurant.

Heres a list of their beer that night we visited 🙂 The tasting paddle seems like a great idea for those who want to try different kinds of beers without having to get too drunk too quickly hehe. I decided to bring Garfield with me, as Mr Bao has been very busy at work and I knew he would appreciate it more as he is definitely a beer drinker.

Beer Deluxe was very kind and reserved a table for me ~ they have a great space with high tables and comfy chair, I can see my colleagues enjoying a beer here on a Friday night.

Brooklyn Lager $9.5

Garfield started with a Brooklyn Lager from from the US, his comment it was quite light in flavour and resembled more like an ale instead. We liked how it came with a glass with the logo printed on it.

Lick Pier Ginger Beer $9.5

I know this may sound a little ignorant, however, I always like ginger beer was only the name and it had alcohol. But I guess I’m wrong because they had two ginger beer options on the menu and both with 4% alcohol. The Lick Pier ginger beer wasn’t as hot as I thought it would be, but it still had some heat to it.

Spicy Chicken wings, hot sauce, celery sticks and ranch $15

As you would expect for a restaurant which specialises in beer, they offered a great range of bar snacks. We ordered a couple to share, this is the spicy chicken wings with Sriracha hot sauce, celery sticks and ranch. It’s such a large serving, Garfield and I struggled to finish them after having 4 wings each in one go!

I think chicken wings are a great beer snack because their fun to eat with your fingers and the Sriracha sauce actually complimented the beer very well. Probably because it was so spicy and the beer helped to mellow it.

Tempura battered Calamari with Aioli $13

For those who remember Garfield from previous posts, he is the one who only likes 3 things – burgers, pad see ew and calamari! So there was no question that we would order the tempura battered calamari with aioli. We were both impressed at how light the batter was and the calamari stayed so tender and soft inside.

Cheeseburger $13

Another mush try dish was a burger, they have a decent size burger menu. We decided to choose a traditional and simple cheese burger with a beef pattie, melted cheese, lettuce, mayo and deluxe sauce. I found the pattie to be a little bland in flavour, but that was compensated by the melted cheese and the soft warm brioche bun.

Lager battered flathead tails and tartare sauce $22

Another dish that I normally order when I am at a pub is fish and chips, this was made using Lager batter and served with homemade tartare sauce. I nearly forgot how much food we ordered! Garfield made a comment that he never leaves after having dinner with me hungry haha 😛 I really enjoyed this fish and chips, the fish was still moist and the tartare sauce was delicious.

Housemade chocolate and salted caramel tart $12

I was pleased to see that they had two dessert options as this is not often seen at a pub ~ They had this house made chocolate and salted caramel tart. I wasn’t sure what the green candies was on top of the tart and it turns out to be mint flavoured candy which made this more like a chocolate and mint tart. Rather refreshing and rich at the same time 🙂

Garfield and I had a great time and he’s already planning to bring his colleagues here for lunch or dinner sometime as he really likes the ambience and vibe. The staff was very attentive and shared with me how they make beer in a room underneath the restaurant and how the beer becomes ‘on top’ Very interesting and I would love the chance to visit their beer making room next time I visit!

Beer Deluxe – Hawthorn 
329 Burwood Road
Hawthorn
Melbourne
PH: 9818 3944
W: http://www.beerdeluxe.com.au/hawthorn

Daisy@Nevertoosweet and Garfield dined at Beer Deluxe Hawthorn as their guests and ID Collective. 

Queen’s Birthday Weekend – Legacy, Camberwell

I hope all my Dear Reader’s in Melbourne have enjoyed the Queen’s Birthday long weekend 🙂 Mr Bao and I had a lovely weekend catching up with friends and spending time with our little puppy. As a weekend ritual we always go out for brunch and this time we ended up going to Legacy in Camberwell nice and close to home. They are owned and run by the same owners as Collective Espresso and Mob Espresso.

It was a very cold morning probably 13 or so degrees outside, but for Cupcake we still decided to sit outside and wear 4 layers of clothing plus a jacket and scarf. Now this is what I call love haha! The staff were wonderfully friendly and attentive.

My Two Boys

Chilli Mocha $4.6

Because it was so cold, I ordered something a little different, this is the chilli mocha. I’ve never heard of this combination before, it’s usually chocolate and chilli which I love and now with the addition of coffee. It was surprisingly nice and very comforting with the hint of heat from the chilli. Great combination and I hope more places will start offering this 🙂

Latte $3.9

Mr Bao ordered a latte which is a single origin (Sorry I forgot the country it’s from!) but it did had floral notes and quite light tasting. The latte art is also beautiful here!

Full House $23

We definitely eat more when it’s cold! Mr Bao needed a big and hearty brunch, he ordered the Full House with Kaiser bacon, field mushrooms, spinach, cherry vine tomatoes, potato rosti, sourdough toast and poached eggs.

You know I can’t resist a good yolk porn shot 😛 So here it is! We enjoyed all the ingredients and everything was cooked so well, our favourite was definitely the potato rosti that was made from grated potato. It was fried so the outside was so crispy but inside still stayed soft. You can’t see the Kasier bacon in this photo but it had great flavour without being too salty.

Legacy Buttermilk fried chicken $19

Another thing I can’t resist is fried chicken especially if it’s buttermilk because it means the chicken stays tender and moist. The fried chicken was placed in a brioche bun with charred corn slaw, mustard and sriracha mayo. Honestly, can’t fault this burger! The fried chicken was absolutely divine!

I forgot to share with you the amazing dessert/pastry cabinet I was staring at from the moment we got to the cafe. I’ve heard from Ash (Im So Hungree) that they make their own donuts and that I must try some! I am kicking myself for not asking the waiter to put some aside for me, as I missed out on the Salted caramel and the white chocolate and Reeses Peanut Butter cup one! Guess that just gives me another excuse to come back ~

Nutella Donut $5

Instead I got the filled donut with Nutella filled up to the top and covered in icing sugar, unlike some of the other donut outlets in Melbourne now. These are still fried donuts but definitely not oily with a slightly dense texture.

 

Can anyone resist a Nutella donut?! Seriously 🙂 I know I can’t hehe

Raspberry Poppyseed Donut $5

Surprisingly Mr Bao agreed to get another donut and he chose the Raspberry poppyseed which had a lovely deep rose colour. Raspberry flavours were strong with hints of poppy seed, a nice combination of flavours and I usually see poppyseed with orange ~

Another great cafe by the guys from MOB and Collective Espresso. The interior is a little more modern than the other two cafes, but food is definitely on par. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and I’m starting to get worried that it will soon be too popular for us to get a table on the weekends! 🙂 Note to self MUST TRY White chocolate Reeses Donut!

Legacy Camberwell
347 Camberwell Road
Camberwell
Melbourne
PH: 9041 1796
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Legacycamberwell

Rooftop Trains – Easey’s

I first noticed Easey’s on Easey Street in Collingwood a few weeks ago when I attend an event nearby. I looked up and noticed 3 trains on a rooftop of a 5 storey building, I could see a couple of people inside and some lights. I thought it was one of those party venues, hired out for private functions such as a 21st birthday. But it turns out to be Easey’s which servers burgers, fries and drinks. Pretty cool if you ask me 🙂 It was quite dark so unfortunately, I didn’t get a photo, but next time I go I promise to take a photo and update for you guys to have a look!

The decor is very hip with graffiti all over the walls, and I was quite impressed that they had lifts that went from the ground floor all the way up to the train carriages, even though each floor was quite small. I highly recommend making a booking online or calling them, as it was absolutely full when we arrived at 6:35 for our 7pm booking and still had to wait for the table to clear.

Backfie? lol

Because I was bored I decided to take a ‘backfie’ photo of Garfield’s back since he didn’t want to be in any of my blog photos. Our other friend Dyring was buying a drink so he missed this ‘backfie’ shot 😛

I really liked how the menu was designed, like information for Train lines, the names were quirky and the most interesting was the prices appeared in the form of when the train was going to leave for instance, the “Easey Cheesy” was “8:00” which mean it was $8.

Unlimited refills $4

We waited for a good half hour before we got our table, but staff we’re very friendly and offered us another table downstairs where we could wait and grab a drink. We were really hoping to be seated in one of the three carriages, however, they were all full so we headed down to level two one of their dining rooms. I really liked how the tables also had map of train lines in Melbourne. The soft drinks are $4 with unlimited refills or you can add a meal with chips and soft drink when you order a burger.

Easey Cheesey $8

I was surprised Garfield only wanted the “Easey Cheesey” because it seemed a little small and I wasn’t sure if he was going to be full. But he was determined that it was enough, it is the more traditional burger with beef patty, American cheddar, lettuce, tomato, pickles, onions, ketchup, mustard and mayo. You can also swap it for a potato cake if you want a vegetarian 🙂 I stole a bite and really enjoyed the pattie but found the bun to be a little cold.

“Too Ease” $10 plus 3 patties

Dyring was starving so he decided to go for the “Too Ease” with 3 extra patties!!! Haha so it became a 5 patty burger. The waitress was so calm when he placed the order, and she told me it is because this nothing compared to some of the 10 pattie with dim sim burgers she has put through!

Kudos to Dyring for being able to put the burger into his mouth without anything falling out haha he actually finished it within 5 minutes! I was totally impressed. He seemed to really enjoy his burger and said next time he can totally do 10 patties with ease so please wait for blog post part 2 when he does the challenge.

Changaz Sanga $10

I think with 5 patties haha we had enough beef so I decided to go for the Changaz Sanga which is a chicken burger with Easey’s fried chicken, bacon, American Cheddar, lettuce and mayo. It may not seem like a very big burger, but I honestly had trouble finishing it all! I think all the flavours in the burger was great just found the fried chicken to be a little bland.

Regular chips $4 with chipotle mayo

These look like regular chips but trust me these were one of the highlights of the night especially with that chipotle mayo!!! Garfield couldn’t stop eating them, I was so close to ordering another serve!

Chicken Bites $4

I know I know we over ordered but I wanted to try everything! These Southern fried chicken bites like nuggets were similar to the one in my burger and once again served with some mayo, we liked that it wasn’t very oily ~

Deep fried chocolate pop tarts $6

I’ve heard of pop tarts and I’m sure I’ve had it before, but I have never had deep fried chocolate ones and I dare say it has CHANGED my life!!! I wasn’t expecting it to be this good before trying 🙂 The crunchy texture on the outside reminded me of a donut but the pop tart centre was soft and oozy like a fondant!

Look at the close up of the pop tart! I simply can’t explain how delightful it was to eat and I honestly can’t wait to come back for more and think I’m going to buy a toaster just so I can eat pop tarts at home haha

Donut with milkshake flavoured custard $2.5

I insisted that we order the donut (I eventually took it home and shared it with Mr Bao haha) even though we were so full. It was a donut with milkshake flavoured custard and surprisingly it is green in colour, it was like a malt (Milk/Horlick) flavoured custard, even though it was slightly cold when I ate it at home. It wasn’t the least oily or greasy! Wish they had more flavours for me to try 😀

We all had a great time at Easey’s and think it’s a great space and has a lovely casual vibe to it. Perfect for a night out with mates, it is also very reasonably priced. Service was a little slow that night, that I can understand as they have only been open a couple of weeks and were already packed, so book online before you go 🙂 And don’t forget to try the deep fried pop tarts!!!

Easey’s
48 Easey St
Collingwood
Victoria 3166
http://easeys.com.au