1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F).  Brush a round 22cm (9″) base measurement cake pan with melted dairy spread to lightly grease.  Line the base with non-stick baking paper.
2. Combine the cocoa powder & hot water in a medium bowl.  Combine the instant coffee powder & boiling water in a cup.  Add the coffee to the cocoa mixture & stir until combined.
3. Add almond meal, sugar, & egg yolks to cocoa mixture, & stir until well combined.
4. Use an electric beater to whisk egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until soft peaks form.  Use a metal spoon to fold a spoonful of egg whites into cocoa mixture until combined.  Gently fold in remaining egg whites until just combined.
5. Pour mixture into prepared pan.  Place cake pan in a roasting pan.  Pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan to reach two-thirds of the way up the side of the cake pan.  Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Remove from the oven.  Remove cake pan from water bath & set aside for 20 minutes to cool  Turn cake onto a wire rack & remove paper.  Set aside for another 20 minutes or until cooled to room temperature.
6. Cut cake into wedges & carefully transfer to serving plates.  Serve with strawberries

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1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F).  Lightly grease a 20cm square (8″) tin & line the base with baking paper.
2. Sift the flours together into a bowl.  In a large bowl, beat the butter & the sugar until light & creamy.  Add 1 egg, beat well & add 1 tbsp of the flour mixture.  Beat in the second egg, milk, & vanilla.  Fold in the remaining flour & ½ c. walnuts. Spoon into the tin & smooth the surface.
3. Scatter the top with the remaining chopped walnuts & some extra brown sugar.  Bake for 30-45 minutes.  Allow to cool in the tin.  Carefully turn out & cut into squares.

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1. Slice the rhubarb thinly and put it, the brown sugar, water, & spices in a saucepan on lowest heat for about an hour, with the lid on, until the rhubarb has totally collapsed. Strain the liquid into a bowl or jug. Remove the cinnamon & star anise & then set the rhubarb aside to cool.
2. Create a batch of sweet shortcrust pastry (see link for recipe). Once you’ve mixed it all up, put it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before rolling out.
3. Roll out your pastry & place in your tart or pie dish. Cover with parchment paper & fill with rice or baking weights & bake for about 15 minutes. Allow to cool while melting chocolate.
4. Melt 375g (about 13.2 oz) of semi-sweet good quality chocolate. When the chocolate is melted, pour it into the base of the tart. Don’t fill it too much, you want just a thin layer. Refrigerate until chocolate sets.
5. Make custard. You could do this from scratch, or use 1 box of custard powder & make according to the directions on the package.
6. Once your chocolate/pastry has hardened, put a layer of the cooled rhubarb on top of the chocolate. Pour the custard over the rhubarb & put in the refrigerator to set. You need the custard to set to about the firmness of Jell-O before you top with strawberries.
7. Decorate the top with strawberries. It’s hard to say exactly how many you will need, but about three baskets should do it. Once the custard has set, layer the strawberries, halved, on top of the custard in a circle starting from the outer edge until right in the middle. Make a second layer on top to cover any visible gaps where you can see the custard.
8. Sprinkle with fine white sugar & put back in the refrigerator. The strawberries will absorb the sugar & turn into a sort of glaze. If you want to get fancy, you can use a dessert torch to heat the sugar & caramelize it into a nice crust. Serve with vanilla ice cream on the side.

Chef’s Note: You can omit the rhubarb and use more strawberries to turn this into just a strawberry tart.

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1. In a small bowl, stir together confectioners’ sugar & milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup & almond extract until icing is smooth & glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.
2. Divide into separate bowls, & add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush. Let them dry at least 4-5 hours or over night before stacking.

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1. Cream the shortening, water & sugar together until light & fluffy. Add the molasses & egg yolk & mix until well blended.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. If using a stand mixer, use stir. The dough will be sticky. DO NOT ADD MORE FLOUR REGARDLESS OF HOW TEMPTED YOU MAY BE!!! Too much flour will make the cookies tough. Form into 2 flat disks & put in the freezer for at least an hour or more.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F.
4. When the dough is cold enough to handle, roll it to about ¼” thick between 2 pieces of wax paper (the wax paper keeps you from having to use more flour). I roll mine a little thinner because I like a little crispness on the edges. Gently press together the scraps into another disk & put back in the freezer until ready for use. Bake for 8-10 minutes on parchment lined cookie sheets. Cool on pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Cool completely before decorating.

Chef’s Note: I use shortening instead of butter or margarine because shortening is flavorless and doesn’t impact the spices. I think butter is best served in sugar cookies. If you decide to substitute butter or margarine for the shortening, omit the water from the recipe.

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1. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except the whipped topping.  Transfer to a slow cooker coated with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Cover & cook on low for 6-7 hours or until a thermometer inserted reads 160°F.
3. Serve in bowls with whipped topping if desired.

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1. Melt caramels & 1/3 c. evaporated milk, stirring constantly.
2. Mix by hand cake mix with melted butter & 1/3 c. evaporated milk; add nuts to mix.
3. Place approximately 2/3 of cake mixture into an ungreased 9″ x 13″ pan.  Press evenly into bottom of pan.
4. Bake for 8 minutes at 350°F.  Sprinkle with chocolate chips while hot & pour melted caramels evenly over top, being careful not to get caramel close to the sides of the pan.
5. Crumble remainder of cake mixture over top.  Bake 18 minutes at 350°F.  Do not overbake.

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1. Preheat the oven to 250°F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Place the egg white in a medium sized stainless steel bowl & whisk until frothy.  Add the brown sugar & vanilla & stir until smooth.
3. Add the pecans & coconut, if desired, & stir until well coated.  Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet & arrange in a single layer.
4. Set aside at least 30 minutes & up to two hours.  Transfer to the oven & bake, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour.
5. Immediately loosen the nuts with a spatula & set aside to cool.

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1. Start with a saucepan that will fit everything, & bring the milk to a simmer.  While that is heating, beat the eggs in a medium mixing bowl.  Add the hot milk very slowly to the eggs. Once it is combined very well, put the egg & milk mixture back in the pan & put it over low heat.
2. Whisk the mixture (now a custard) until it thickens & will coat the back of a spoon & leave a trail when you run a finger over it.  Remove it from the heat & stir in the chocolate until it’s melted.
3. Pour the mixture through a mesh strainer into a large clean bowl.  Allow it to cool slightly, then stir in the cream & vanilla.
4. Cover the bowl & refrigerate until cold or overnight.  Stir the mixture one more time, then put it in your ice cream maker following the manufacturer’s directions.
5. Eat immediately for soft serve or freeze for at least two hours for a firmer consistency.

Chef’s Note: For a slight change up, I added roughly chopped peppermint bark candy to the ice cream maker about 5 minutes before the ice cream was done in the machine.

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1. Peel, core, and cut the apples into ¼” rings.
2. Place sweet potatoes in a large saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil & cook 25 minutes, or until tender but firm. Drain, cool & cut into ¼” slices.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease a 7×11″ baking dish.
4. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, cinnamon & nutmeg.
5. Layer sweet potatoes, brown sugar mixture & apples in the prepared baking dish.
6. In a medium bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, butter & pecans. Sprinkle over the sweet potatoes.
7. Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Chef’s Note: We had this at a friend’s house for Thanksgiving and loved it so much we made it for Christmas!

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