Making mother’s day

0 of 4

Wondering how to spoil your mother on Sunday? Pick a meal — any meal will do — and ask her to sit it out with a frozen strawberry daiquiri in hand — while the family shops, prepares, cooks and cleans up after any one of the three recipes below, supplied by Grant Bushby

Something for brunch ...

Shakshuka

(serves 4 — 6)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 red pepper, seeded and diced

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon chilli powder (optional or add more depending on taste)

2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes

4 large eggs

1 small bunch fresh parsley, chopped

Sourdough toast to serve

Method

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, add the chopped red pepper and onion and cook for five minutes or until the onion becomes translucent.

Add the garlic and spices and cook for one minute. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for two to three minutes.

Using the back of a spoon, make four cavities in the tomato mixture, then gently crack one egg into each cavity.

Cover and cook for six to eight minutes or until the egg whites have set but the yolks are still soft.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve with slices of buttered sourdough or ciabatta toast.

Chefs tip: For a little extra indulgence, crumble feta cheese over the top of the eggs before serving.

Something for tea ...

Honey Cake

Ingredients

¼ cup honey

¾ cup sugar

2 tbsp unsalted butter

3 large eggs, whisked

1 tsp baking soda

3 cups all-purpose flour

950ml sour cream

2 cups icing sugar

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Fresh berries for decoration (optional)

Method

Place sugar, honey and butter in a large saucepan and melt over medium/low heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar has melted (five to seven mins).

Remove from heat and while it’s still hot, add beaten eggs in a slow steady stream while whisking vigorously until incorporated.

Whisk constantly or you will end up with scrambled eggs! Stir in the baking soda then slowly fold in the flour with a spatula until you have a dough-like consistency that doesn’t stick to your hands.

Cut the dough into eight equal pieces. On a well-floured surface, roll each piece out into a thin 23cm circle.

Place 23cm plate over the rolled dough and trace around it with a sharp knife to get a perfect circle (keep the scraps for later.)

Transfer the dough to a large sheet of baking paper and bake two at a time at 180°C for four to five minutes or until golden.

Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before stacking. Repeat with remaining layers.

Finally bake the scraps and once cooled and firm, crush with a rolling pin until you have fine crumbs.

To make the icing: Beat one cup heavy cream until fluffy and stiff peaks form (one to two min on high speed).

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream and the icing sugar, then fold the whipped cream into the sour cream mixture. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Assembling: Spread about ¼ cup frosting on each cake layer then press the cake layers down gently as you go to prevent air gaps.

Use the remaining icing for the top and sides of the cake. Dust the top and sides with your crumbs, then cover with cling film and refrigerate overnight.

The cake needs time to absorb some of the cream and soften. When ready, remove the cling film and add the fresh berries on top for decoration.

Something for sundowners ...

Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri

Ingredients

250g frozen strawberries

60g fresh strawberries

30ml sugar syrup*

60ml fresh lime juice

120ml white rum

Fresh strawberries for garnishing

Method

Place all ingredients in a blender and blitz for 30 seconds. Taste and adjust with more syrup, lime or rum according to preference.

Pour into glasses and serve garnished with fresh strawberry slices.

* To make sugar syrup, dissolve 300g caster sugar in 150ml water over a low heat. Leave to cool before use.

Bottle leftovers and store in the fridge for future use in cocktails.

Something for dinner ...

Tom Yum Kung

Tom yum is a delicious hot and sour soup from Thailand. “Tom” means boiling, “yum” means mixed and “Kung” means prawn.

Ingredients

3 cups water

3 cups chicken stock

3 shallots, chopped

¼ cup galangal, sliced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

3 lemon grass, smashed

3 to 4 kaffir lime leaves

4 tbsp fish sauce

4 tbsp Thai chilli paste (adjust to your taste)

230g mushrooms (oyster mushrooms are best but any will do)

450g prawns, heads removed, peeled and deveined

4 chillies, smashed

2 tomatoes, diced

3 limes, juiced

Handful coriander, chopped

Method

Combine water and chicken stock in a large pot. Add shallots, galangal, garlic, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves and bring to boil over high heat.

Stir in fish sauce and Thai chilli paste to season.

Add mushrooms and prawns and cook for two to three minutes.

Reduce heat to low and add lime juice.

Stir and cook for a minute or two before removing from the heat.

Serve in a bowl, garnish with coriander.