Spiked Lemon Curd Ice Cream Sundae

People are always giving me lemons at this time of year, its kind of lucky really, since every attempt at growing our own lemon tree has ended up with a dead tree. Im surprised my children are happy and healthy, I mean, don't they say that you shouldn't get a pet until you can look after a plant? And you shouldn't have children until you can look after a pet?

Anyway, my husband has this theory that if you wee on the lemon tree it will make the lemons grow. He is full of theories that man, did you know, BP petrol makes your car go faster but Shell petrol gets you more mileage *rolls eyes*. 

Well it seems my dear husband has passed on this tradition to our 3 1/2 year old son. Every time we visit my Mum's house, he insists on doing a wee on the lemon tree.

Can you imagine his delight when the last time we went to visit and my Mum handed us a big bag of lemons. Bless his soul, the boy looked super proud of himself. The entire trip home he explained to me how he grew the lemons.

So I guess that is the story of how I ended up with a bazillion lemons. You know what they say, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

Well I made lemon curd instead. And then I mixed my lemon curd with some Greek yogurt and cream, spiked it with half a bottle (ok not that much) of lemoncello and put it in the freezer.

The result, to die for lemon curd ice cream.

But I mean why stop there. So I scooped it into a glass, topped with crumbled meringue and topped with more lemon curd. AH MAZE ING

I originally intended to serve this with a raspberry coulis but I couldnt resist more lemon curd. It really is the best.

Anyway, for this recipe, you can use store bought meringues which is what I did.You can also use store bought lemon curd or you can find the recipe I use HERE.

Spiked Lemon Curd Ice Cream Sundae

Ingredients

Ice cream

250mls thickened cream

250 grams full fat plain Greek Yogurt

Lemon Curd from recipe or 2 jars of store bought

60mls Lemoncello (optional) - or more if you like, I know I do

1 lemon

1 packet meringue nests

Directions

1. Lightly whip the cream until soft peaks form. Fold in yogurt and lemon curd (1 jar or half the quanitity of lemon curd recipe) until combined.

2. Slowly pour lemoncello whilst slowly stiring until combined.

3. Pour into a freezer safe container and freeze overnight.

* If you have an ice cream churning, then churn for 10 mins. 

Assemble

Place ice cream in fridge for 10 mins to soften

Layer scoop of ice cream, crumbled meringue and a dollop of lemon curd.

Add more lemoncello if desired

ENJOY!

 

Thermomix Lemon curd

This is the lemon curd recipe I have used since I first made lemon curd in the thermomix. The recipe is from the "Everyday cooking, for every family" cookbook that I got with my Thermomix.
I have adapted the quantities to suit me as I always want alot of lemon curd. It never last long in this house.

Lemon Curd

Ingredients

Juice of 3-4 lemons + rind of one lemon

275 grams raw sugar

250 grams unsalted butter

5 eggs

Directions

1. Weigh 275 grams raw sugar into the tmx bowl and grind Speed 9 for 30 seconds

2. Attach butterfly to the bowl and add remaining ingredients

3. Cook for 14-16 minuets at 80 degrees and speed 3

4. Place into sterilized jars with the lids of until cooled. Once cooled, add the lid and refrigerate.

I cant tell you how long this lasts, because, like I said, they don't last long at all in my house.

Buttermilk waffles with caramelised bananas, whipped cream and milk chocolate

So who doesnt love waffles? Honestly, they may be the best food in the world.
Eat them in the morning and its like eating dessert for breakfast. Except, its perfectly acceptable because waffles are totally a breakfast. Dontcha know.
I was pretty excited when I came across a cheapy waffle maker last week and after a weekend of work christmas parties for my husband, I now had the perfect occasion to whip some up. I mean, what better hang over cure then waffles?
I used buttermilk in this recipe because buttermilk just makes everything better. All fluffy and soft kind of better and, on this occasion, it didn't disappoint.
You can serve these waffles on their own with a bit of ice cream and a drizzle of maple syrup, but if you really want to go all out, I highly recommend you make the caramelised bananas to go with it.

Now if you dont have a waffle maker, my bad. I bet you want one now.

Buttermilk waffles with Caramelised Bananas, whipped cream and milk chocolate

Ingredients
Waffles

340 grams plain flour

2 Tbs raw sugar (castor sugar if not using tmx)

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups buttermilk

50 grams unsalted butter melted

2 eggs

Topping
2 Tbs unsalted butter
2-3 Bananas, sliced
1/4 cup (loosely packed) brown sugar
300 mls whipping cream
200 grams milk chocolate

Directions
1. Place the sugar in thermomix and process for 20 seconds on speed 9
2. Add flour, salt, butter and eggs and process for 30 seconds on speed 6
3. Slowly pour the buttermilk into the tmx bowl whilst processing on speed 5.
4. Scrape down the sides of bowl and process for another 5 seconds on speed 5
5. Heat up waffle maker and spray with oil. Cook in batches

To make the topping
6. Melt butter in a fry pan with brown sugar, add sliced bananas and cook until caramelised (about 2 mins).

7. Pour cream into a bowl and whip until soft peaks form

6. Place milk chocolate chips in a microwave safe container and heat for 30 seconds. Stir and repeat until melted

Assemble

To assemble, pour caramelised bananas over a waffle, dollop some cream and drizzle the milk chocolate

Big Fat Greek Salad

Ok, so let be honest, this isn't really a Greek salad. Not in the traditional sense at least. But it has some of my favourite Greek food ingredients. And, it sounded better then Marinated Octopus, Grilled Haloumi and Pomegranate salad with a tangy yogurt dressing.

Marinated Octopus has to be one of my favourite foods.  My Dad pretty much always had a jar of this in the fridge when we were growing up. And Olives. Mmmmm
I havent come across a jar of marinated octopus at a supermarket for sometime, so when I was shopping the other day and found some, I may or may not have actually squealed a little bit. I know, I totally need to get out more.

Im aware that not everyone is a fan of eating marinated octopus, or seafood for that matter, so if you fall in that category just replace with lamb or chicken.

This is a hearty salad and is definitely fit for a main course. Try it, I think you will love it. If not, send me your marinated octopus =)

Grilled Haloumi, Octopus and Pomegranate Salad

Ingredients

For the Salad

1 Jar (300grams) Marinated Octopus

180 grams Haloumi cheese

150 grams Rocket and Spinach Mix

100 grams sun-dried tomatos

150 grams fetta stuffed bell peppers (can find these in the deli) sliced in half

100 grams your favourite olives

1 tomato cut into wedges

1/2 Pomegranate 

1/2 Lemon

For the dressing

Juice of half a lemon

5 Tbs Natural Greek Yogurt

1/4 tsp Minced Garlic (Optional)

Method

1. Slice haloumi cheese in half so each piece is 1cm thick. Spray pan with oil and grill for 2-3 mins on each side or until golden brown. Once cooked, squeeze half a lemon over the top and slice into bite sized pieces

2. Place washed rocket and spinach in a bowl or plate. Add sundried tomatos, olives, tomato and bell peppers. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds over the top.

3. Add the marinated octopus and haloumi cheese.

4. In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, lemon and garlic. Dollop over the salad

ENJOY!

*Variation

If using chicken or lamb in place of octopus, coat with lemon juice and sprinkle with dried oregano before cooking.