Florentines

Ingredients
50g butter
1/3 cup dark brown and caster sugar mixed
¼ cup golden syrup
½ cup self-raising flour
8 glace cherries, finely chopped
grated lemon and mandarin zest
1/3 cup sliced almonds
¼ cup raisins
175g/6oz plain chocolate, broken into pieces
175g/6oz white chocolate, broken into pieces

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Line 3 baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
2. Measure the butter, sugar and syrup into a small pan and heat gently until the butter has melted. Remove from the heat and add the flour, chopped cherries, zest and nuts to the pan and stir well to mix. Spoon 1 tsp of the mixture on to the prepared baking trays, leaving plenty of room for them to spread.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for about 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Allow the florentines to cool on the paper before lifting on to a cooling rack with a palette knife. (If the florentines have been baked on greased baking trays, then allow them to harden for a few minutes only before lifting on to cooling racks to cool completely. If the florentines do become too hard to remove, then pop them back into the oven for a few minutes to allow them to soften.)
4. Melt the chocolate in a bowl placed over a pan of hot water. Spread a little melted chocolate over the flat base of each florentine, mark a zig-zag in the chocolate with a fork and leave to set, chocolate side up, on the cooling rack. Store in an airtight container.

Gracie's Favourite Stir-fry

Ingredients
100g finely sliced steak
1 small white onion peeled and quartered
2 bok choy leaves finely sliced
1 tbsp finely chopped celery
1/4 courgette, finely sliced
1 tbsp carrot, finely sliced
1/4 clove garlic, finely sliced
three shakes ground coriander
1 tbsp sweet soy
1/2 tbsp soy
1/2 tbsp mirin and/or xhio xing wine
olive oil
1 tsp cornflour
1/4 cup water

Method
1. Place all ingredients except cornflour and water into a bowl and mix thoroughly.
2. Place small amount of olive oil in frying pan and heat on medium/low heat.
3. Add bowl of ingredients and continue to fry on medium/low heat until onion is soft.
4. Mix cornflour with water and add to pan to thicken sauce. If sauce is too thick add more water until glossy coating is achieved.
5. Serve.

Note: freeze the beef for an hour to firm it up so it can be sliced finely

Vanilla Biscuits

Ingredients
85g/3oz unsalted butter, at room temperature
55g/2oz soft brown sugar
2 cups of plain flour
2 vanilla pods, split open and seeds scraped out
2 eggs
icing sugar, to dust

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7.
2. Place the butter and sugar in a food processor and cream together.
3. Add the flour, vanilla seeds and eggs and blend together to combine.
4. Remove the mixture and shape into 8-10 small circles.
5. Place the circles onto a baking tray lined with baking paper.
6. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
8. Transfer to a serving plate and dust with icing sugar to serve.

Versatile Biscuits

Ingredients
175g Plain Flour
110g Soft Butter
50g Sugar

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. Put the flour into a mixing bowl, rub in the soft butter, add the caster sugar and bring the whole mixture together to form a stiff dough. Do not add any water.
3. Roll the dough out to about 1/2 cm thickness and cut into shapes. Place carefully on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 6-10mins, or until pale golden.
4. Take out, and cool on a wire rack.

Notes: this is such a versatile biscuit recipe, add ground cinnamon for cinnamon biscuits, ground ginger or lemon rind.

Children love experimenting with these, xmas tree shapes, pigs, cows...

This can be made in a food processor too, just stop the machine as soon as it comes together, otherwise it will toughen.