Ginny made this wicked chocolate cake. It was the crowning glory of a Persian feast, which included several courses beforehand. She also presented this amazing selection of Middle Eastern sweets personally brought over from Iran. Look how colourful they are. From left, there's REAL nougat (with 48% pistachios), baklava, various pistachio and lemon almond sweets and delicious spun sugar, like fancy candy floss, which we called horse's hair.

The cake was incredibly rich and melt in the mouth. It...
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This Cook Island loaf is really nice fresh with sweet or savoury toppings. Honey is my favourite. It also toasts well the day after.

1 c wholemeal flour
1 c white flour
100g desiccated coconut mixed
1 c hot water
2 tsp yeast
½ tsp sugar
½ c warm water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp tumeric
3 Tbs olive oil

Mix coconut and hot water. Blend yeast, sugar and warm water. When bubbly add other dry ingreds and oil and mix to a smooth and pliant dough, not sticky.

Cover and  rise until dou...

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Almost like shortbread, these biscuits are crisp and buttery.

Makes about 24

175 g butter (or spread)
50 g icing sugar
225 g flour
1 tsp baking powder
3 tsp ground ginger

Preheat oven to 190C. Beat butter and sugar until creamy and pale. Add flour, bp and ginger and mix to a dough. Turn out onto a clean surface and knead until mixed.
Roll out to 3-5 mm thick and cut into shapes. I roll inbetween 2 sheets of baking paper.
Bake for 10-12 min until pale golden. Remove from tr...

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These turned out pretty good - firm on the outside and chewy on the inside.

Preheat the oven to 200 C.

In a bowl mix together:
200g ground almonds
1 cup of caster sugar
1 teaspoon ground cardamon
2 egg whites

You can use a mixer but just a fork or spoon does fine. My paste was a bit gloopy so I added some rice flour. Drop teaspoon fulls onto a greased baking sheet. Leave room for spreading. Press a blanched or sliver of almond on the top of each macaroon, bake for 10 minutes.
Thanks ...

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Makes 18
1 c all-purpose flour
¼ c rice flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 c granulated sugar
¼ c desiccated coconut
½ c/125 g chilled unsalted butter cut into pieces (I used olive oil spread)
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp almond extract (didn’t have any)

Preheat oven to 180C and lightly butter a baking sheet or line sheet with baking paper.
Sift together flours, salt and sugar into a bowl, then sift together into another bowl. Add coconut and butter and mix in until crumbly. Add the extr...

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