Round and round...

I used to think a 'Bus Driver's Holiday' was a good thing. Like, he wasn't actually driving the bus so he would be able to enjoy the sights from the bus rather than concentrating on the traffic and counting out people's change. I thought 'Oh, how nice for the bus driver that on his holiday he gets to sit in a different seat and look out the window and see all the things he usually can't look at.'

But apparently not - apparently the bus driver would rather be anywhere else than on a bus. A Contiki tour maybe? Or Niagara Falls? Or maybe the Leaning Tower of Pisa? It's true that buses make me car (bus) sick so I guess I have no right to judge...

However, if the bus driver had these slices to eat I am sure he would be delighted wherever he ended up. I was totally blissed out by the butter/honey/almond combo when I had them with my (previously-mentioned-baking-hero-and-all-round-sweetie) friend Lou the other afternoon with a pot of fresh mint tea and some gossiping and possibly some looking at regretsy.com and laughing a lot...

p.s. Lou used wholemeal flour which made the base extra chewy and nice and really very good for you.

The bus driver's mother-in-law's almond honey slice

(from Epicure, The Age, May 3, 2005)

One of the perks of taking a bus up the Hume Highway is a certain bus driver on the Euroa line and the slices that her mother-in-law makes. This recipe, recently shared, has been making the rounds and it's a cracker.

The topping is more like a thick, nutty glaze than an icing - feel free to increase the quantity of topping by, say, 25 per cent if you want an extra-generous covering on the slice.

INGREDIENTS


Base:


90g melted butter


1/2 cup (120g) firmly packed brown sugar


1 cup (145g) plain flour


1/2 cup (70g) packaged ground almonds


For the almond topping:


125g butter, chopped


1/4 cup (95g) honey


1 1/2 cups (200g) slivered almonds

METHOD

· Preheat oven to 170C

· Combine base ingredients and mix well. If the base seems floury, add a little extra melted butter. Press into a greased, 18cm x 32cm lamington or slice tray (if you do not have a tray this size, use a smaller tray rather than a larger one. This is a fairly thin slice, and the mixture may not be enough to cover a larger tray).

· Bake for 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven, but leave the oven on while the slice is cooling and make the almond topping:

Combine butter and honey in a small, heavy-based saucepan and stir over heat until butter is melted. Simmer, uncovered, about 3 minutes or until mixture is a light caramel colour.

· Stir in nuts.

· Spread base with hot topping and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

· Cool in the tray.