Ginger and apricot slice

This delectable slice comes from Fresh from Akaroa the new cookbook by Lou and Ant Bentley. Inside are over 100 delicious recipes they created for their popular Akaroa cooking school as well as useful tips on giving dinner parties, buying and cooking fish, the perfect barbecue, canapes and cocktails and Asian inspired cooking.

Ginger and apricot slice has been our whanau’s favourite treat these holidays. It is so easy to put together, is a good keeper and makes a generous quantity so there was plenty to share with visitors who dropped by as well.

We have tried and enjoyed other recipes from this book including the stir-fried red chilli chicken with kaffir lime and coconut cream, the paprika roasted potatoes with spicy tomato sauce and the lemony lamb meatballs with asparagus and green bean salad. I think it is a great book for special family meals and casual entertaining!

Ginger and Apricot Slice

This moreish slice is fabulous with a cup of tea to give you an energy

boost mid-afternoon or as a decadent after-dinner treat

Makes 40 small pieces

Ingredients

200g butter

1/2 cup caramel condensed milk

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 x 250g packets Griffins gingernut biscuits

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1 cup dried apricots, chopped

2 tsp ground ginger

Method

Line a 20 x 30cm sponge roll tin with baking paper.

Melt the butter, condensed milk and sugar in a large saucepan over medium heat. Pour into a standmixer or use electric hand-held beaters to beat until thickened.

Put the gingernuts into a food processor and blitz until you have large crumbs; this may need to be done in several batches.

Add the gingernuts, walnuts, apricots and ginger to the butter mixture and stir to combine really well.

Place the mixture into the prepared tin, press flat using a spatula or palette knife, and leave to set in the fridge for an hour.

Ginger and Orange Icing

Ingredients 

2 1/2 cups icing sugar

1/2 tsp ground ginger

50g butter, melted

finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange

50g crystallised ginger, sliced

Method

Place the ingredients into a standmixer and whisk until you have a smooth creamy icing.

Spread the icing over the slice evenly using a palette knife. The slice is best kept refrigerated and keeps really well for a couple of weeks.

This recipe comes from Fresh from Akaroa by Lou and Ant Bentley. Publisher: Penguin. RRP $50

Reviews by Lyn Potter

Parent and grandparent, Avid traveler, writer & passionate home cook

Read more by Lyn here.