Pink Ribbon treats: a cause for breakfast

Julie Le Clerc's Raspberry crumble slice for Pink Ribbon Breakfast. Photo / Supplied

The Pink Ribbon Breakfast is Breast Cancer Foundation NZ’s largest annual fundraising campaign. Every May, thousands of Kiwis come together with their friends, whānau and workmates to host events to raise much-needed funds. You can get involved however and wherever you like – whether it’s a big breakfast in a community hall, morning tea at work or a canapes evening at home – every Pink Ribbon Breakfast makes a real difference. Head pinkribbonbreakfast.co.nz to register. In the meantime, here’s some recipe inspiration from three Kiwi food personalities.

Julie Le Clerc’s Raspberry crumble slice

Makes 16 squares

The buttery shortbread base and crumble topping of this delicious slice simply melt in the mouth. Raspberry gives these squares a nice tang – you could also use lemon curd as a filling, or switch to other jam flavours, such as plum, apricot or strawberry, if you like.

300g plain flour

150g raw caster sugar

200g cold butter, cubed

300g raspberry jam

2 Tbsp icing sugar

1 Tbsp freeze-dried raspberry powder

Preheat oven to 160C fan bake and position an oven rack on the centre shelf of the oven. Line a 20cm square cake tin with baking paper.

Put the flour, sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until it looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Alternatively, this can be done in a food processor, pulsing the mixture until crumbly.

Spoon two-thirds of the mixture into the cake tin. Press the mixture down firmly using the base of a glass or back of a tablespoon. Put remaining crumble mixture in the fridge.

Spread the jam evenly over the shortbread base. Now crumble the reserved mixture over the top so the jam is fully covered.

Bake for 50-55 minutes until crumble topping is golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely in the tin.

Mix the icing sugar and raspberry powder together and dust over the top of the slice. Cut into squares or bars, as preferred.

Lasts well for up to 5 days, if stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

Kelsi Boocock's chocolate raspberry cookies. Photo / Supplied

Kelsi Boocock’s Chocolate raspberry cookies

1 cup almond meal

2 cups plain flour, gluten-free optional

1 cup coconut sugar

¼ cup cacao powder

½ tsp baking soda

1 Tbsp ground flax seeds

⅓ cup coconut oil (or any oil,) melted

⅓ to ½ cup plant milk

100g dark chocolate, chopped

¾ cup frozen raspberries

Preheat your oven to 180C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Mix the almond meal, plain flour, coconut sugar, cacao powder, baking soda and flax seeds in a bowl. Then add in the coconut oil and plant milk then mix again (add more plant milk if needed.) Finally, add the chocolate and raspberries and fold through.

Roll into 10-12 balls and place on the baking tray. Press down slightly into cookie shapes then bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes until cooked.

Alby Hailes' Blood orange vegan baklava scrolls. Photo / Supplied

Blood orange vegan baklava scrolls

Makes 12 scrolls

Tangzhong starter

30g high-grade flour

100ml non-dairy milk (oat, almond or soy)

Dough

400g high-grade flour

50g soft brown sugar

½ blood orange, finely grated zest only

½ tsp ground cardamom

5g sea salt

1 sachet (8g) instant dried yeast

200ml non-dairy milk (oat, almond or soy), heated until just warm

75ml olive oil

Baklava filling

75g walnuts

50g pistachio kernels

75g soft brown sugar

75g tahini

30ml olive oil

½ blood orange, finely grated zest only

1 tbsp orange blossom water

1 tsp ground cardamom

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp sea salt

Blood orange glaze

175g icing sugar, sifted

2 Tbsp blood orange juice

2 tsp orange blossom water

20g pistachio kernels, roughly chopped

20g walnuts, roughly chopped

Make the dough the night before serving. First make the tangzhong starter. Place the flour and milk in a small saucepan and whisk until smooth. Cook over medium heat for a few minutes, stirring regularly, until a thickened paste is reached. Transfer the tangzhong to a small bowl and leave to cool at room temperature.

For the dough, whisk together the flour, sugar, orange zest, cardamom, salt and yeast together in a large bowl (do not place the yeast directly on top of the salt when adding to the bowl). Make a well in the centre, add the tangzhong starter, milk and olive oil, and mix to form a soft dough. Tip the dough out on to a clean work surface and knead for 10-15 minutes until the gluten has developed and the dough is smooth and elastic; the dough will stick to your hands initially but try not to use any extra flour while kneading. Lightly oil the mixing bowl, form the dough into a ball and return to the bowl. Cover the bowl with cling film and refrigerate overnight.

The following morning, preheat the oven to 160C fan-forced (or 180C conventional). Grease and line a large rectangular baking tin (approx. 23cm x 33cm) with baking paper. Remove the dough from the fridge (it should be puffed up and doubled in size) and leave to come to room temperature for 5 minutes.

To prepare the filling, place the walnuts and pistachios in a single layer on a baking paper-lined oven tray. Bake for 8 minutes until lightly roasted. Remove from the oven, transfer the nuts to a food processor and pulse a couple of times until finely chopped (or you can finely chop by hand). Transfer to a medium bowl, add the brown sugar, tahini, olive oil, orange zest, orange blossom water, cardamom, cinnamon and salt. Mix together until evenly combined to form a runny paste.

To make the scrolls, remove the dough from the fridge, punch down the dough to remove the air and tip out on to a lightly floured surface. Roll out the dough into a large rectangle, approx. 30cm x 50cm. Spread the filling evenly over the dough. With the long side facing you, roll the dough into a tight log, slice off the ends to neaten, and slice into 12 equal pieces. Carefully place your scrolls in the prepared baking tin, cut side up and evenly spaced apart, so they are almost touching. Cover loosely with a tea towel and leave for 1 hour in a warm place until risen and touching each other to fill the tin. Once risen, bake the scrolls for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

To make the glaze, whisk together the icing sugar, blood orange juice and orange blossom water in a bowl to form a smooth, thick glaze. Place the chopped pistachios and walnuts on a baking tray and toast in the oven for 5 minutes, until golden brown.

To serve: Remove the scrolls from the oven and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Spoon the glaze over the warm scrolls and sprinkle with the toasted pistachios and walnuts. Serve warm.

Note: While the scrolls are best eaten fresh, they can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container for 2 days. Before serving, reheat in a low-temperature oven or microwave. Always serve warm. If needed, you can substitute the blood orange with regular oranges, and use pink food colouring in the glaze, if desired.