Recipe of the day: The perfect Mother’s Day recipes

Mother’s Day is an international holiday set to take place every year on the second Sunday of May in honour of mother’s and the love, support and dedication they put into raising their children.

The origins of the special day date back to the early 1900’s when a lady from Philadelphia, Ann Jarvis held a memorial service at her late mother’s church in Grafton, West Virginia to mark the special day as a tribute to her mother who had frequently organized women’s groups to promote friendship and health.

Within five years, many states adopted the holiday honouring Jarvis’s mother, and mother’s across the world, and in 1914 U.S. President Woodrow Wilson made it an official national holiday.

In celebration of Mother’s Day, we have put together delicious and wholesome recipes for you and the family to recreate to spoil your mother on her special day.

Cinnamon buns

Ingredients

• ¾ cup milk
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 teaspoon dried yeast
• 1 egg and 1 yolk
• 75g butter, melted
• 3 cups flour
• ¼ tablespoon salt
• Zest of 1 orange
• ¾ brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• ¼ cup butter, melted

For the icing

• ½ cup icing sugar
• 2 tablespoon warm water

Instructions

1. Preheat an oven to 180°C.
2. Place the milk and sugar in a medium-sized bowl and warm in the microwave for 30 to 40 seconds.
3. Remove, sprinkle over the yeast and set aside for 10 minutes until light and frothy.
4. Using a fork, whisk in the eggs and butter and set aside. In a large bowl, place the flour, salt and orange zest.
5. Pour the yeast mixture into the dry mix and stir to form a sticky dough. Tip onto a lightly floured bench and knead for 5-8 minutes. Add a little flour if necessary.
6. Place the dough into a clean lightly oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm, dry place for an hour or until doubled in size. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
7. Grease and line a square or round tin roughly 24cm with baking paper.
8. When the dough is ready, remove it from the bowl and knead gently for 1 minute.
9. Roll out to make a 27 x 22 cm rectangle and brush with the melted butter, reserving a little for the top. Sprinkle over the cinnamon mixture evenly.
10. Roll the dough tightly from the long side into a log. Cut using a small, serrated knife at 3cm intervals. Place the buns into the tin, and brush with a little extra butter.
11. Place back into a warm place for 30 minutes until doubled in size. Place the buns in the oven and cook for 20 minutes until golden and puffed.
12. Remove and cool for 15 minutes before icing.
13. To make the icing, combine the icing sugar and warm water in a small bowl. Drizzle over the buns. Serve while still warm.

Tomato and pancetta quiche

Ingredients

• 130g butter
• 255g all-purpose flour
• 5 eggs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cold water
• 180g pancetta, cut into small pieces
• 1 tablespoon oil
• ⅔ cup of milk
• 225g creme fraiche
• 110g Emmental cheese, grated
• 6 cherry tomatoes, halved tomatoes
• Handful of parsley, chopped
• Pinch of pepper
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Sprig of basil.

ALSO READ: Recipe of the day: How to cook a smoked and glazed eisbein

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 200ºC. Place the flour in a bowl and add the butter.
2. Cut the butter into tiny pieces, add 1 egg, salt and water and knead into a supple dough. Wrap in clingfilm and allow to rest for an hour in the fridge. Grease a 23cm baking pan with butter and dust with flour.
3. Cook the pancetta in a frying pan until crisp, transfer to a plate covered with kitchen towels and drain. Combine milk, creme fraiche, grated cheese and the 4 eggs in a bowl and mix.
4. Add pepper and nutmeg to taste.
5. Add chopped parsley and mix. Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it into a circle of approx. 25cm in diameter and transfer to the baking pan covering the bottom and sides.
6. With a fork prick tiny holes in the bottom to prevent it from rising. Trim excess dough off the top.
7. Spread bacon evenly over the bottom then pour in the cheese mixture.
8. Spread the tomato halves over the top then place the quiche in the middle of the oven and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
9. Serve with a sprig of basil for added colour.

Gnocchi with spinach and walnuts

Ingredients

• 250g spinach
• 500g gnocchi
• 75g mature cheese, grated
• 25g Parmesan cheese, grated
• 200g crème fraîche
• ½ teaspoon English mustard
• grating of fresh nutmeg
• Handful of walnut, broken into pieces

Instructions

1. Preheat the grill to high. In a colander, pour boiling water over the spinach until it has wilted. Cool a little, squeeze out the excess liquid and set aside.
2. Cook the gnocchi in boiling water for 2 minutes, until they float, then drain.
3. Mix the two kinds of cheese.
4. Spoon the crème fraîche and mustard into a pan and warm over low heat. Stir in three-quarters of the cheeses and heat gently until you have a smooth sauce (3 minutes).
5. Season, gently stir in the nutmeg, gnocchi and spinach, and heat through. Grill in a heatproof dish, topped with the remaining cheese, for 3-4 minutes until golden.
6. Top with walnuts and serve with a crispy green salad.

Tiramisu with speculaas

Ingredients

• 250g mascarpone
• 100g brown sugar
• 20 Speculaas biscuits
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 50ml Marsala or Amaretto*
• 20ml black coffee (espresso)

Instructions

1. Take the eggs and separate the whites from the yolks. Add yolks to a mixing bowl and slowly add the brown sugar and the vanilla extract until you get a frothy mix.
2. Add the mascarpone and mix with a whisk. Beat the egg whites until firm peaks form then, using a spatula, carefully and gently fold it into the eggs/mascarpone mix.
3. In a separate dish, mix the coffee and the Marsala. Quickly dip the Speculaas in the wine. Do not soak them completely as they have to remain a bit solid. Place one or two soaked biscuits at the bottom of a small bowl or dessert glass then cover with a layer of the egg mascarpone mix.
4. Alternate layers of biscuits with layers of cream, making sure to end with a layer of the mascarpone. Place the bowls/glasses in the refrigerator for 4 hours.
5. Before serving, sprinkle the top with crushed Speculaas crumbs (or chocolate shavings!) and add a sprig of mint for colour.

These recipes were supplied by Capsicum Culinary Studio