Christmas Shortbread

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1⅛ cups butter, cubed
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons rice flour (optional)

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.
2. Grease two cookie sheets.
3. Mix flour, sugar, and rice flour in a bowl.
4. Add the butter by rubbing in with fingertips.
5. Press mixture together to form a dough ball.
6. Place dough on a lightly floured surface.
7. Knead gently.
8. Divide dough in half, placing one rounded, ½-inch thick piece on each cookie sheet.
9. Gently mark out eight equal portions on each piece, radiating from the center.
10. Prick dough with a fork.
11. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.
12. Allow the shortbread to cool and store in an airtight container.

Read more: Food in Australia - Australian Food, Australian Cuisine - traditional, popular, recipe, diet, history, common, meals, staple, rice, people, types, make, customs, fruits, country, bread, vegetables, bread, typical http://www.foodbycountry.com/Algeria-to-France/Australia.html#ixzz1BCFMNbkX

Read more »

Lamingtons

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¾ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups flour
• ½ cup milk
• Pinch of salt

For icing:

• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 5 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons butter
• ½ cup milk
• Shredded coconut

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix together butter, sugar, vanilla, and eggs.
3. Slowly add baking powder, baking soda, flour, milk, and salt.
4. Pour mixture into an 8-inch square cake pan and bake for about 45 minutes.
5. Let cool and store overnight in a sealed container.
6. Make icing: Measure confectioners' sugar and cocoa into a large mixing bowl.
7. Heat milk and 2 teaspoons butter until the butter is melted. Add the milk gradually to the sugar mixture, stirring constantly. The icing should be fluid but not too runny.
8. Cut the cooled cake into 2-inch squares, and put the coconut into a shallow baking dish. Have ready a cooling rack set over a sheet of waxed paper to catch icing drips.
9. Holding a cake square with two forks, dip it into the icing, and then roll in the coconut. Transfer to rack to dry. Repeat until all cake square are coated.

Serves 16.

A Biscuit for a Treat?

Australians, like the English, call cookies "biscuits." They often use the nickname "bickies" or "bikkies" especially when offering a biscuit to a child (or even when offering a treat to a pet). Every household has a biscuit tin, a decorative round tin with a lid, to keep the supply of biscuits handy.

Read more: Food in Australia - Australian Food, Australian Cuisine - traditional, popular, recipe, diet, history, common, meals, staple, rice, people, types, make, customs, fruits, country, bread, vegetables, bread, typical http://www.foodbycountry.com/Algeria-to-France/Australia.html#ixzz1BCErNZzP

Read more »

Lamb Leg with Baby Potatoes

• 
  Ingredients:
• 1 x 1.5kg leg of lamb
• 1 x 800g can crushed tomatoes
• 1 x 40g sachet McCORMICK Slow Cookers Garlic & Herb Lamb Shanks
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 12 baby potatoes
• Method:
• Fry lamb in a hot pan to brown and seal. Place into the slow cooker dish. Combine the crushed tomatoes and McCORMICK Slow Cookers Garlic & Herb Lamb Shanks sachet and Worcestershire sauce, pour over the lamb. Add in the baby potatoes and cover. Cook on LOW for 8 hours.
• Serving Suggestion:
• This goes well with steamed beans and baby carrots
  .

Read more »

Australian's Favorites

Certain foods are local and unique to Australia such as Vegemite, which has remained Australian's favorite for many decades. Among the many, Vegemite, lamingtons, and Arnott's Biscuits have won the loyalty of most Australians.
Vegemite
Vegemite is as Australian as you can get. In 1922, a young Australian by the name of Fred Walker decided to try to make a special "yeast extract" that would be as delicious as it was nourishing. A chief scientist in Fred's company, Dr. Cyril Callister, invented the first yeast extract spread. Brewer's yeast from Carlton & United Breweries were used and blended with ingredients such as celery, onions, and salt to make a thick dark paste. In 1923, a trade name competition was held to find a name for this new product and Vegemite was chosen. Throughout World War II, soldiers, sailors, and civilians were all given Vegemite in their rations and it became so popular that it even fell into short supply. Fred Walker and Company Pty. Ltd. became Kraft Foods Limited in 1950 and it celebrated its 60th anniversary in October 1983.
When in Australia, you must try this healthy and delicious bread spread. It is one of the richest sources of Vitamin B and a great cure for mouth ulcers!
Lamingtons
Lamingtons are small squares of sponge cake that is carefully covered with chocolate icing and sprinkled with desiccated coconut. Originally the slang for the homburg hat, which was worn by Baron Lamington, Governor of Queensland in the late 1800s to early 1900s, these cakes were named for him.
In the early days, lamingtons were made with a white sponge cake with a center of strawberry or raspberry jam. However, Lamingtons are mostly made without jam or with just fresh whipped cream instead.
Arnott's Biscuits
Arnott's is a name synonymous with quality biscuits and biscuit making. From a humble beginning as a small retail bakery back in 1865, Arnott's Biscuits Ltd. today employs thousands of people and supplies biscuits to more than 40 countries around the globe. Millions of Australians have grown up on Arnott's biscuits; and for them, Arnotts is more than a biscuit company, it is a piece of Australia's history and forms part of their culture.

Read more »