PASSIONFRUIT WHITE CHOC GANANCHE COOKIES

Passionfruit adds a hint of tang to these rich, buttery choc cookies

Makes 16

Prep 30 mins (plus chilling, and setting)

Cook 20 mins

Ingredients

250g unsalted butter, chopped, at

●

room temperature

200g (1 ⅓ cups) plain flour

●

125g (¾ cup) icing sugar mixture

●

35g (⅓ cup) cocoa powder, plus

●

extra, to dust

50g (⅓ cup) cornflour

●

1 tbsp milk

●

150g white chocolate, chopped

●

2 tbsp thickened cream

Pulp of 2 passionfruit (you’ll need

●

2 tbsp pulp. See tip)

●

Method

Step 1 Preheat oven to 160C/140C fanforced. Line two baking trays with baking paper. Use electric beaters to beat the butter in a bowl until very pale and creamy. Sift over the flour, icing sugar, cocoa and cornflour. Add the milk. Use a wooden spoon to stir until combined.

Step 2 Roll level tablespoonfuls of the mixture into balls. Place on the prepared trays, allowing room for spreading. Bake, swapping the trays halfway through cooking, for 20 minutes or until cooked through. Set aside on trays until cooled completely.

Step 3 Meanwhile, make the ganache.

Place the white chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium, stirring every 30 seconds, for 1 minute 30 seconds, or until melted and smooth. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool.

Stir through the passionfruit pulp. Place in the fridge for 1 hour or until thick and spreadable.

Step 4 Place 1 heaped teaspoonful of the ganache on 1 cookie. Sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining ganache and cookies. Set aside until set. Dust with cocoa, to serve. Cook’s tip: If you can’t find fresh passionfruit pulp, canned or frozen will do the trick.

An edited extract from Taste: The Sweet as Baking Cookbook, HarperCollins, $40

Fiction Black Silk & Sympathy

Deborah Challinor: HarperCollins, $33

What is it about death and dying that intrigues us all? In her latest historical fiction, the New Zealand author steps into the homes of Sydney residents in the mid19th century to take a peek at the unlikely Victorian customs surrounding funerals. Plucky protagonist Tatiana “Tatty” Caldwell, who emigrates to Sydney in the 1860s, winds up working for an undertaker whom she later marries. Through her we see the way people dealt with death and dying – did you know you could have professional photographs taken of your dead relatives, serve funeral biscuits at a wake and hire professional mourners? Challinor has set Tatty up as a recurring character, so expect to see her next adventure out next year.

MERCEDES MAGUIRE

★★★★☆

History McDouall Stuart Hitches a Ride

Rosemary Cadden: Dinkus Publishing, $35 Journalist Cadden and explorer John McDouall Stuart both came to Australia from Kirkcaldy in Scotland, albeit 140 years apart. Cadden became fascinated by the gruff, hard-drinking Scotsman’s fame as the first European to travel on horseback from Adelaide to the Top End. Now she has become his quirky modern counterpart as a solo Scotswoman following his trail – a feat braved with an old Toyota 4WD called Bad-ass Betsy. Cadden’s story is delicious: bright, light, funny, enlightening, complete with easy maps and a whimsical self-deprecatory wit. What a tough trip she took, alone out there, passing through daunting deserts, quaint campgrounds, wild weather and more. The resulting book is a charmer.

SAMELA HARRIS

★★★★★