A Classic Cloth Boiled Christmas Pudding

Cooking with SBA’s Kitchen

The next session is scheduled for:

Date: Thursday 22 October, 2026
Time: 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
Venue: Briagolong Community House
Cost: $55.00 per person
Bookings: Click here
Max Participants: 6 participants

Sample Menu:

Classic Cloth Boiled Plum Pudding
Irish Liqueur Cream
Brandy Sauce
Plum Pudding Tiffin
Plum Pudding & Orange with Yoghurt Cream
(All food will be gluten free – that includes the pudding!)

A traditional cloth boiled plum pudding with a little Irish flaire!

For some obscure reason, she who has never been a huge fan of plum pudding, is the one who makes it year after year after year for her family, and dares not walk through the door on Christmas day without the pud and the favourite accompaniments to serve with it! I’ve even been known to make it when I was unable to be with my family on that big day in December – go figure!

Join me in this fun session, where you will make a plum pudding (with a little touch of the Irish) to take home and do the first boil, before hanging or storing your pud ready to share on Christmas day!

Before you come along on the day, make sure that your kettle or jug is full, and ready to boil as soon as you arrive home, and have a big pot (not a saucepan) out and ready to fill!

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A little more detail…

On the day:
※ Participants will be provided with ingredients, instructions and guidance as they prepare the various s dishes on the day.
※ We will enjoy a light meal prepared on the day, and there will be a couple of the dishes to give you ideas on how to use up any leftover pudding after the event.
※ All food will be gluten free.

What you will take home:
※ Your own Christmas pudding.
※ Notes and recipes for the dishes made on the day, and information required for boiling, storing and reheating the pudding on the big day.
※ A share of any leftovers from the lunch (containers provided).
※ Maybe a new friendship with other’s who attend on the day.

Session Duration:
The session will run for approximately 4 hours.

More Information:
I prefer not to call this a cooking class, but more of a hands-on cooking and knowledge sharing session, where those attending learn and share from my experience. I am not a trained chef, just taught and guided by my experiences, and driven by my love of cooking, sharing, and celebrating with food.

Health and Safety
※ If you have any dietary restrictions, please contact me prior to booking as I like to make sure that everyone can enjoy the food prepared on the day.
※ Closed shoes must be worn on the day.

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If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me using the Contact Page.

Mum’s Mushroom Tarts

Mum's Mushroom Tarts

I challenge anyone to stop at just one!

Category: Afternoon Tea, Baking, Finger Food, Supper

Style: Australian

Keyword: Jam and Cream, Jam and Cream Tarts

Quantity: 9 tarts

Author: sbaskitchen

Ingredients

FOR THE TART SHELLS

1 sheet of sweet shortcrust pastry (See notes for gluten free pastry)

TO FINISH

9 teaspoons Plum & Raspberry Jam Jam
150 ml Pure Cream
Caster sugar
½ tsp Vanilla bean paste
Drinking Chocolate

Instructions

FOR THE TART SHELLS

Preheat the oven to 175˚C.
Roll out the pastry and line nine lightly greased, cup cake tins.
Cut 2 cm lengths of pastry about 8mm wide to bake with the tart shells (keep an eye on them while they are baking as they may cook quicker than the shells).
Chill in the fridge to seize the pastry.
Line each shell with a small piece of baking paper and top with baking beads.
Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the paper and baking beads.
Continue to bake until golden.
If desired, reduce oven to 50˚C and remove the tarts shells from the tins, and return to the oven to continue to dry the pastry.

TO FINISH

Combine cream and vanilla, sweetened to taste with caster sugar, in a bowl and whisk until soft peaks.
Spread 1 tsp of jam into the base of each tart shell, cover with whipped cream, smooth with a knife and lightly dust with drinking chocolate.
Insert a strip of pastry into the middle of each tart, as for a stalk.

Notes

For gluten free tarts, use my Sweet Short Crust Pastry - Gluten Free

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry Tart Shells

If you have a moment, I would love to hear your thoughts on what you see on
this page – just pop a note in the comments box below.
With many thanks and kindness,
Julie.

Sourdough Fruit Bread (Gluten Free)

Sourdough Fruit Bread - Gluten Free

Quantity: 1 Loaf

Author: sbaskitchen

Ingredients

THE OVERNIGHT FERMENT

240 g sourdough starter
160 g water
105 g brown rice flour buckwheat flour or a blend of both

FRUIT & SEED MIX

1½ cups sultanas
½ cup pepitas/pumpkin seeds
½ cup buckwheat groats
300 ml water apple juice, or apple cider

PSYLLIUM HUSK GEL

20 g psyllium husk
125 g water
60 g honey

DRY INGREDIENTS

70 g walnuts roughly chopped
100 g sorghum flour
100 g buckwheat flour
50 g tapioca starch
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp sea salt
Brown rice flour for dusting.

Instructions

THE NIGHT BEFORE

Combine the sourdough starter, water and brown rice flour together in a bowl and mix well to achieve a smooth batter. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside on the bench for 8 hours or overnight.
Place the sultanas, seeds and liquid of choice, into a basin, cover with plastic wrap and leave on the bench for 8 hours or overnight.

TO MAKE THE LOAF

The following morning line your loaf tin with baking paper, or grease the loaf tin with canola oil.
Whisk together the psyllium husk, water and honey in a large bowl and set it aside for 5 to 10 minutes until it becomes gelatinous.
Tip in the sultanas, seeds and residual liquid and stir to combine, then pour in the overnight ferment, stirring well.
Add the dry ingredients, and using a metal or wooden spoon, mix until the dough comes together, then use your hands to work the dough until it is smooth - it will be a little sticky.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead lightly, shaping it to fit into your loaf tin.
Carefully place the dough into your lined loaf tin, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and set aside at room temperature (approx 23˚C) for 4 hours or overnight, if you wish.
Preheat the oven to 240˚C.
Remove the plastic wrap, lightly dust the top of the loaf with brown rice flour or buckwheat flour, and then, using a razor blade or tip of a sharp knife, score the dough lengthways. Place the loaf on the middle rack in the oven and bake for 40 minutes, then reduce the heat to 200˚C and continue to bake for an additional 30 minutes.
Remove the loaf from the oven and place it directly onto a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before cutting.

Notes

You will need a loaf tin (approx 21cm x 11cm).
Do not be tempted to cut the bread before it is completely cool, in fact it is better cut the following day.
Wrap the bread in baking paper and store at room temperature. It will keep for 4 days or so. You can also freeze the bread if you need to.
I have successfully used chickpea (besan) flour in place of sorghum flour, and either a blend of buckwheat and brown rice flour or just buckwheat flour in place of brown rice flour.

If you have a moment, I would love to hear your thoughts on what you see on
this page – just pop a note in the comments box below.
With many thanks and kindness,
Julie.

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The Farmer, The Huntress & The Cook

August 9, 2026August 9, 2026 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

Last weekend I was blessed to collaborate with two truly amazing women, Lucy of Metaphorically Speaking and YIntarini Farm, and Daniella of Danniella Hogarth – Wellness and Energy.

After a great deal of planning we gathered on Yintarini Farm, which sits on Gunaikurnai country, in Gippsland, Victoria, on what was a very brisk Saturday morning. When I left our home we were engulfed in a very thick fog, on arrival at the farm, the sky was clear and blue and the sun was shining down upon us – it was destined to be a beautiful day. Yintarini Farm is the home base for …Metaphorically Speaking…, a counselling and eco-therapy practice where nature is key to improving people’s health and wellbeing.

Early morning fog…

Early morning on the farm…

We had come together to share our collaborative knowledge, with those keen to learn the skills of ethically processing, preparing and cooking meat grown on the farm, the whole paddock to plate experience. Continue reading →

Family, Gatherings, Memories & Food

July 15, 2026July 15, 2026 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

Plans were in place, everything was in the diary, I’d been in touch with those we were to visit, but as seems to happen, the phone rang, and plans had to be changed!

I worked, cooking and baking ready to be with Christopher, Olivia and our grandchildren. I made meatballs in tomato sauce, a real family favourite, topless cottage pie (didn’t have time to do the potato), sausage rolls, meringues, choc chip biscuits and crisp coconut biscuits. Jars were filled and everything packed.