I love a simple recipe, and if it doesn’t require a ton of ingredients even better.
These make a nice gift, and are fairly easy to make. You need to reduce the Biscoff biscuits to fine crumbs. You can do this by putting them into a plastic bag bashing the living daylights out of them (great as stress relief) . An easier way is to blitz them in a food precessor until you have fine crumbs, (you might have to do this in two batches). You can halve the recipe if you want to make a smaller batch.
If you want to make these a little bit more grown up can also add a tablespoon or two of your favourite booze.
Makes between 36-40
500 Grams (reduced to very fine crumbs)
250 Grams Cream cheese
300 Grams Dark chocolate
Method
Add the cookie crumbs and cream cheese to a large bowl and mix until thoroughly combined
Line or lightly grease a try. Take a small teaspoon of the mixture roll it into a ball about the size of a cherry, and place on the tray. I usually keep a bowl of water beside me when doing this, as its easier to do if your hands are slightly wet. Continue making small balls of the mixture and put on the prepared tray until it has used up.
Put the tray in the fridge and chill for 1 hour
Break the chocolate into small pieces and place in a microwave proof dish. Microwave for 30 seconds at a time (stirring in between each blast so it doesn’t burn) until the chocolate has melted
Using 2 forks to lift the bon bons, dip into the chocolate and place back on the tray. Repeat until all the bon bons have been coated. Allow them to set for an hour in the fridge then transfer to an air tight container, or place in tiny paper cups if you’re feeling fancy
Some evenings after work you just want something quick and tasty, and this is fairly healthy too.
Any leftovers are good to take to work for lunch the next day.
Serves 4
Ingredients
Feta cheese
350 Grams Cherry tomatoes (cut in half)
1 Courgette/zucchini
1 Red onion (cut into 1/2 cm slices)
2-3 Cloves of garlic (roughly chopped)
3-4 Sprigs of thyme, 1 teaspoon of dried thyme
2-3 Tbsp Olive oil
Black pepper
Enough pasta for 4 people
Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (Celsius)
Put the block of feta in a large baking dish and surround with the chopped vegetables, garlic and herbs
Drizzle the cheese and vegetables with olive oil and sprinkle with black pepper.
Bake for 30 minutes
10 minutes before the baking dish is due to come out of the oven, put your pasta on to cook (cook according to instructions on the packet)
After 30 minutes remove the dish from the oven, a mash the feta cheese with back of large spoon. Take 1/2 a cup of the starchy water the pasta was cooking in and add this to the cheese and vegetables and stir well until until this creates a creamy sauce (add more water if you think it needs it.
Drain the pasta and stir through the sauce before serving
Bali has something for everyone and Ubud is a great example of this.
About 1 hour, 15 minutes from the airport, the main town is always busy with legions of mopeds. It’s not unusual to see a family of 5 on a single moped. If you’re visiting Bali, renting a moped is a popular way to get around. The law is currently changing to require foreigners to have a motor bike licence before renting a moped (largely due to tourists renting them without any experience of driving and getting in accidents).
Ubud has a beautifully carved historic palace, where you can buy tickets in the evening to see entertainment from Balinese folklore and amazingly graceful dancers. Parts of the entertainment can be a bit surreal with fantastical creatures and costumes, but well worth experiencing. In the hub of the town there is also a large market and the surrounding streets sell all manner of clothes, shoes, jewellery, handicrafts and assorted tourist tat. Locals also offers taxi rides on every street. Haggling at the stalls and for taxis is expected, but as always give a fair price, as the Covid lock down hit the Balinese extremely hard.
The town is a good base to visit sites like the Tegallalang rice terraces (about a 20-30 minutes taxi ride away). If you’re an Instagram fan there are numerous back drops specially designed for the Gram. For thrill seekers you can use specially designed swings or zip lines to traverse the deep tropical ravine. There are also plenty of cute cafes/warungs where can enjoy lunch or a few drinks and take in the exceptional views. If you plan to visit Ubud, I need to recommend Wayan Sutika, who is an exceptional driver/tour guide, as well as being super nice and fluent in English. He and his family also have their own beautiful home stay (B & B accommodation) on the the outskirts of town. Wayan has acted as a guide/driver for us each time we visited Bali and has always shown us new and fascinating places and is extremely knowledgeable about the history of the fabulous places he’ll show you.
Ubud attracts visitors from all over the world. Visitors range from backpackers and old hippies, through to those who enjoy the high end ultra luxury resorts on the outskirts of the town. With such a diverse range of people you will find any type of food/drink you can think of. Many visitors are interested in health and fitness, and there are fantastic spots all around Ubud if you want to join yoga or mediation classes. There are also plenty of vegetarian/vegan/raw food restaurants and cafes if you enjoy clean eating.
If you feel like kicking back for an afternoon or encounter a rainy day the Pondock Library is well worth a visit. It’s a not for profit organisation that has a library and also runs classes were local artisans can teach you local crafts or skills. Classes include Balinese cookery, woodcarving, dance, music, and painting. You can join a group class or arrange for private class, and costs are very reasonable.
I had a couple afternoons when I just wanted to relax and learned how to make traditional offerings you’ll see everywhere you go, and another class to learn fruit carving (I was beyond of proud myself and will never leave a melon uncarved again).
I’d definitely recommend trying local Indonesian food. One of the best restaurants I’ve visited is Cafe Wayan which is very atmospheric and you can choose to sit at traditional low tables or at western tables and chairs. The place also has the prettiest bathrooms you’ll ever see and are always adorned with fresh flowers.
The other thing you’ll find around Ubud are beauty salons or spas, offering all sorts of treatments, with massages being the most popular. Prices in salons are usually set, so I would advise against haggling. One of the best I have ever visited is Karsa Spa. It’s about a 10 minute taxi ride from the centre of town, or if you’re feeling athletic you can go on a 40 minute trek along the Campuhan Ridge to it (It’s uphill, but not too challenging, I would advise against doing it at midday like I did).
Karsa Spa offers different packages and I would recommend getting one that includes their flower baths if you want to indulge yourself. The spa is set in beautiful gardens and you can’t help but feel bougee having your nails done sitting in a garden looking out on rice terraces.
While the town has expanded and got busier from when I last visited 4 years ago, there are still plenty of beautiful walks 5 minutes from the town centre. You can also visit the monkey forest, about a 5-10 minute from the town centre (Personally I find monkeys terrifying, but if you like them you can go visit and quite possibly have your sunglasses stolen by the cheeky little sh1ts). My one word of caution is that the Balinese have a bit of a laissez-faire attitude to health and safety. Footpaths around the town centre are often uneven so watch your step. Zebra crossings also seem to be more a suggestion than the actual law so be careful crossing busy streets.
Bali is my happy place, and I was lucky enough to visit a new area in the eastern part of the island called Sideman (syd-a-min).
We arrived at night, not knowing much about the area, apart from it was still pretty rural. We stayed in the gorgeous Bebek Biru, which is a home stay (a Balinese bed and breakfast) which had two terraces to sit and enjoy the breathtaking views. Sideman village is still very traditional with a daily food market.
About 5-10 minutes walk outside the village, the area caters more to tourists and is dotted with home stays and warungs (traditional Balinese cafe/restaurant). When travelling to Bali you can only exchange money into the local currency once you are inside the country. Sideman didn’t seem to have any currency exchange shops, so remember to exchange cash before arrival, as most small local businesses still only operate with cash.
My first morning I was woken to a sensory overload of local nature. Cicadas were thrumming, water buffalo mooing, bullfrogs croaking, roosters crowing and geckos chirping, as well as the ever present drone of small vespa mopeds that both locals and tourists use to get around. Everywhere you go you’ll be treated to amazing views over the lush mountain forests and expertly manicured rice terraces.
The views from all over Sidemen are spectaclular. Bali is especially reliant on the tourist trade and the Covid lock down hit small local businesses especially hard. Many businesses have numerous side hustles, as making a living is so tough. While you may be in a home stay they can also arrange escorted tours, beauty treatments, cooking classes, moped hire etc. The locals are incredibly hard working and industrious.
I’ve always been impressed by the sweetness and generosity of spirit the Balinese have. Their warmth and kindness, after the cynicism and self centeredness of the west is disarming. This was very much the case when I visited Bukit Artha Warung. Komeng, the owner was funny and totally adorable and took great pride in making sure his guests enjoyed their food and even insisted we take an umbrella on an evening when it rained. Warung Deva also became a favourite.
Sideman is still very rural, so if you’re looking for bustling nightlife it maybe isn’t for you. However, you can still find plenty to do. The local warungs offer excellent Indonesian food and also western dishes, and can provide traditional Balinese cooking classes. If you feel like treating yourself there are any number of local beauty shops where you can enjoy all manner of beauty treatments at extremely reasonable prices. A 1 hour traditional massage costs between £6-9, if you haven’t had one of these before then you are definitely in for a treat.
If you enjoy a more active holiday, locals can arrange guided treks of the rice terraces and local mountains, white water rafting and visits to local places of interest such as beautifully decorated temples and waterfalls. Tukad Cepung waterfall is especially lovely, but it’s quite a physical climb up and down some very steep stairs, so bare this in mind if you have dodgy knees etc, when you get there its worth it, but go early to avoid the Instagrammers, posing for ages. In the last couple of years there have been issues with Instagrammers trying to do things like pose naked, or refusing to wear sarongs when visiting sacred sites. While I struggle to understand this sort of moronic behaviour, it’s important to be respectful of local culture and behave accordingly.
It’s possible to hire a guide and driver for a very fair price. We got to see stunning temples like Pura Kehen, carved with stunningly beautiful craftsmanship. A little bit of haggling might be acceptable, but please remember that the locals had nearly 3 years without any income at all, surviving only on what they could grow in the fields. So be a good guest and pay fairly for the excellent service you’ll invariably receive.
Sideman feels a bit like stepping back into a simpler time. Locals still thresh rice manually in the fields. If you live in the West and have ever complained about how hard you work, trust me, you haven’t seen hard work until you have seen rice farmers toiling in the heat. It was also refreshing to see a group of boys probably about 10 – 13 laughing and joking, out flying kites (which the Balinese love) and huddled together under a tree to try get some shade. If they were in the West, they would mostly likely be inside on a Xbox or some other screen.
If you get a chance to visit Bali and want a break from the hustle and bustle of some of the busier resorts, you’ll love Sidemen. It may be one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited.
I love a cinnamon roll, but being the distracted shopper that I am, I picked up ground cumin instead of cinnamon. Luckily I realised this before making the filling (let’s face it, it would be disgusting). After rifling through the cupboards I founds some ground ginger and decided to take a gamble and these actually turned out really well. So these are perfect for those of you who hate cinnamon, but feel free to substitute with cinnamon if you love it. The orange also gives a nice hint of freshness.
This is a relatively straight forward recipe based on a recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction. Her recipe doesn’t use orange, so if its not your thing you can leave it out. Some cinnamon roll recipes involve proving the dough over night etc, I like this recipe as the dough only needs to prove once. These are delicious with a coffee but are also ideal if you making brunch and will disappear in 5 minutes.
Ingredients
For the dough
400 Grams Plain flour
50 Grams Sugar
1/2 Tsp Salt
45 Grams Butter
180 ml Milk
2 & 1/4 Tsp Dried yeast (or 1 sachet)
1 Egg
For the filling
45 Grams Butter (very soft)
Zest of 1 orange (save the rest of the orange, as you’ll be adding the juice to your icing)
65 Grams Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Ground ginger
For the icing
115 Grams Cream Cheese
30 Grams Butter
80 Grams Icing sugar
Juice from half the orange you zested
Makes 10-12
Method
For the dough, add the flour, sugar, and salt to a bowl and set to one side
In a bowl in the microwave, or in a pot on the stove gently melt the butter in the milk until it is warm to the touch but not hot (you will be adding yeast to this, and if it’s too hot it will kill the yeast). Whisk in the yeast until it is dissolved
Pour the milk mix and egg into to the dry ingredients and stir well until you get a soft dough. You can then use the dough hook in a stand mixer to knead the dough or turn it out onto a well floured surface and knead for 5 minutes
Lightly grease a large bowl and put the dough in the bowl and rest for 10 minutes
While the dough is resting combine the ginger, orange zest and brown sugar for the filling
Once the dough has rested, roll it out into a rectangle about 14 x 8 inch or 36 x 20 cm. Spread the softened butter for the filling evenly across the rolled out dough, and sprinkle evenly with the cinnamon mix
Roll the dough into a long log (should be 14 in or 36cm long), cut into 10-12 equal slices. Grease a large baking dish (I find metal baking dishes are best for this, but use what you have) and place the slices of dough in the dish (cut side up). Cover with a tea towel and allow to rest for 60-90 minutes in a warmish area until the dough has doubled in size
Preheat your oven to 190 degrees (Celsius), bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes (cover loosely with kitchen foil if they are browning too quickly)
To make the icing, add the ingredients to a bowl, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Spread the icing evenly over the warm rolls with a spatula. (when cooled these can be stored in an airtight box in the fridge for up to 5 days, but trust me they won’t last that long)
Seaneen's Sunnyside Kitchen 