Apple and ginger patty cakes

Apple and Ginger Patty Cakes

Apple and ginger patty cakes are just right for the Christmas season.

Light, fluffy cupcakes filled with apple and ginger with a festive touch on top.

Originally published as “Quick, Fancy Patty Cakes” in the Brisbane Worker, January 17th, 1939 and voted as “Best recipe of the week ending December 27th 1938”

Ingredients

These ingredients make 12 vintage sized cupcakes (you could easily triple this amount for 18-20 modern sized cupcakes)

For the batter 

4 teaspoons (1 Australian tablespoon) of butter or dairy free margarine

3 Australian (20ml) or 4 US (15ml) tablespoons of sugar

2 eggs or equivalent in egg replacer

1/2 cup milk

1 cup self raising flour or 1 cup plain or all purpose flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder added

food colouring

For the filling 

1 apple

ginger and sugar to taste. Powdered ginger was used in the original recipe but why not try glace ginger, chopped finely?

Method

Preheat your over to 180 degrees C or 350 degrees F

Mix the butter, sugar, eggs, milk and flour into a batter.

Fill your patty pans about halfway full, making sure you don’t use all the batter.

Grate the apple and add ginger and sugar to taste.

Place a teaspoonful of apple on top of the batter in the patty pans.

Mix a couple of drops  of food colouring with the remaining batter and put a teaspoonful on top of the filling.

Bake for 15 minutes or until cooked.

Tuna treat party snacks

Tuna Treats

Tuna Treats, a cheesy topping for crackers or toast. Serve it as a nibbly on your Christmas party table or use it as a tasty sandwich spread.

Originally published in the Australian Women’s Weekly, December 2nd, 1964

Ingredients

420gm or 14oz of canned tuna

120gm or 4oz of cream cheese

1 tablespoon (Australian 20gm) or US 4 teaspoons of chopped chives

1/4 teaspoon of garlic salt

a few drops of Tabasco sauce

Crackers or toast to serve

Method

Soften the cream cheese.

Drain and mash the tuna.

Mix everything but the crackers together into a firm paste.

Roll into balls.

Serve with crackers or toast.

This recipe also makes a great sandwich spread.