My Picks For Re-Inventing the Lamington 2011!

Mr P's Beautiful Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge Lamingtons

Those of you who follow Mr. P's blog Delicious Delicious Delicious may be aware that he is hosting his second Re-Inventing the Lamington Contest and I am taking part as a member of the judges panel.

It was thanks to Mr. P's Lamington contest last year that I discovered the delicious Australian snack cake, the Lamington. I also discovered, that with all their dipping and coating, lamingtons are the kiss of death to any fresh cleaned kitchen. I love all the entries and have the utmost respect for all the effort--and cleaning--that all the bakers put forth for this contest.

So, I spent a good part of my weekend going over the Lamington ideas submitted to Mr. P and weighing the merits of each.

I also relied heavily on my ability to lick my laptop's computer screen and taste photos of food--one of my many very special super powers.

So, after wiping the drool off my Macbook's keyboard, I settled on three ideas that appealed to me the most.

Orange Blossom Cheesecake with Pomegranate Honey

Posting one of my favorite desserts today: Cheesecake!

That irresistible, pure vice dessert that draws me back into the kitchen again and again for marathon baking sessions.

Unfortunately, cheesecake isn't about instant gratification. It can be maddening when you're enduring cravings. Waiting for the ingredients to lose their chill. Then the long baking time and even longer time to cool, chill and set up. The reward for all that waiting: a rich creamy dessert that promises happiness with each bite, while it stealthily fills out your hips.

This cheesecake is an absolute winner. The flavors are amazing and I can honestly say it is one of the best cheesecakes I've ever eaten.

Let me take you on a brief cheesecake tour, starting from the bottom up. We've taken the classic graham cracker crust and added ground pecans, cinnamon and cloves to give it a subtle spicy nuttiness. The creamy cheesecake is fragrant with orange blossom and zest. Then we have our sauce, a sweet and tart reduction of pomegranate, raspberry and honey. Complementing the floral citrus flavor of the cheesecake perfectly.

It was so good that I ate every single slice I cut to stage and photograph. How many was that? Forget it. I will never admit it.

Raspberry Marshmallows

I've been craving raspberries for the past two weeks, so everyone will have to forgive what is likely to become a series of raspberry themed posts.

I've been wanting to post a fruit flavored marshmallows for a while now. However, I had not stumbled upon quite the right recipe. I could always fall back on my regular marshmallow base and dress it up with some food coloring and flavoring oils but I wanted something that had a fresher taste. A lush homemade marshmallow that packed real fruit flavor.

I lucked out when I stumbled upon this recipe at Butter Sugar Flour, utilizing only four ingredients and needing no artificial flavors or colors. Just plenty of fresh raspberries.

So it came as no surprise when I popped a few of these marshmallows into my mouth and they tasted just like these.