Gingerbread Men

Of all the sweet treats that I love and have made, Gingerbread has never been on my list, I only ever think of making it at Christmas. So this year I decided that our tree needed some homemade decorations an I thought gingerbread men would be the perfect decoration an delicious treat (plus the house smells so festive.) It was surprisingly easier than I thought, they are fun to make an make the tree look extra special! X

 

Recipe

- 350g/12oz plain flour, plus extra for rolling out

- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

- 2 tsp ground ginger

- 1 tsp ground cinnamon

- 125g/4½oz butter

- 175g/6oz light soft brown sugar

- 1 free-range egg

- 4 tbsp golden syrup

To decorate

- writing icing

- cake decoration

Method

1. Sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon and pour into the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and blend until the mix looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar.

2. Lightly beat the egg and golden syrup together, add to the food processor and pulse until the mixture clumps together. Tip the dough out, knead briefly until smooth, wrap in clingfim and leave to chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Line two baking trays with greaseproof paper.

4. Roll the dough out to a 0.5cm/¼in thickness on a lightly floured surface. Using cutters, cut out the gingerbread men shapes and place on the baking tray, leaving a gap between them.

5. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden-brown. Leave on the tray for 10 minutes and then move to a wire rack to finish cooling. When cooled decorate with the writing icing and cake decorations.

Carrot Cake

Carrot Cake has always been a favourite of mine, its always so moist, the different textures and flavours, finished with the gorgeous butter cream on top, its simply delicous. So last week when we had a Wintery weekend I decided to get to it an make one. It was one of the simplest recipes to follow, you basically measure and mix everything, no neatness just a bowl of delicious mix. An it turned out amazing even if I say so myself, everything just came together perfect an I could have happily eaten all of it, you should definetly try it! Happy Monday! x

   Ingredients

300g plain flour

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

200g soft brown sugar

4 eggs

250ml oil

1 orange zested

1 lemon zested

200g carrots , finely grated

150g walnuts chopped

For the Cream Cheese Frosting

125g unsalted butter at room temperature

50g icing sugar

250g cream cheese

Method

1. Heat the oven to 150C/fan 130C/gas 2. Line a 20cm, 10cm deep cake tin. Sift the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda together and stir in the sugar. Beat the eggs with the oil and citrus zests. Stir in the carrots and fold everything into the flour mixture. Fold in the walnuts and pineapple if using. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool.
2. For the frosting, beat the butter and icing sugar together until soft and then beat in the cream cheese. Chill the mixture until it's thick but spreadable. Spread a thick layer on top of the cake, making sure the side of the icing is flat and continues upwards from the side of the cake.

Lemon Cookies

So a couple of posts ago I mentioned that I might try and have a go at making some Mint Choc Chip Cookies, well the Mint side didnt come to plan and instead I though i'd try an make some Lemon & Strawberry Cookies. It was the easiest & quickest reciepe that I have tried to do so far ( not that there have been many.) The smell from them was delicious and even if i say so myself they were delicious, i will definelty be making them again.

 

COOKIES:

2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c. lemon juice
1 tsp. baking soda
4 1/2 c. sifted flour
1 c. shortening
1 c. buttermilk
1 lemon rind, grated
2 tsp. baking powder

ICING:

1 box powdered sugar (1 lb.) ]
2 tbsp. evaporated milk
1/4 tsp. lemon extract
2 tbsp. melted butter
Rind and juice of 1 lemon
Drops of boiling water to thin

Cream sugar and shortening. Add eggs and beat until fluffy. Add lemon juice and grated rind. Sift flour, soda and baking powder together. Add to above mixture alternating with buttermilk. Drop on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Cool and ice. Makes 8 to 10 dozen. Icing: Combine ingredients for icing. Mix well.  

Frozen Banana Bombs

At the weekend I was craving something sweet to snack on and after searching the cuboards I discovered it was going to have to be something basic due to lack of supplies. After having a look round the internet I discovered a fun and easy recipe for 'Frozen Banana Bombs.'

I found the recipe at Verses From My Kitchen, where the background behind this little treat is explained. You can cover your melted chocolate in any decorations my option was more chocolate but white this time. They were so easy to make me and my boyfriend had fun making them and they hit the spot sorting out my sweet craving. The bombs were so delicious breaking throught the gorgeous chocolate to discover the banana, yum X

Banoffee Pie

On Sunday afternoon I can home and in my fridge recognised some ingredients that definetly had not been there in the morning, the baking tin was out and You Tube was on the Ipad in the kitchen. It seemed my younger brother Joshua (never baked in his life) had a sudden urge to bake one of his favourite desserts.... Banoffee Pie. After the shock, I was excited to get stuck in and him (Gordon Ramsey) and me (Ina Green/Barefoot Contessa) made our first ever Pie together and it was something. Joshua/Gordon had found this 'Fresher Foods' video on You Tube and the girl does a brillinat step by step guide of how to make this mouthwatering dessert.

After watching the video, we began. The steps are so easy and in my limited baking experience I have to say it is one of the simplest desserts to make, however it is time consumming best to make it if you have a few hours spare or you can leave it and come back. Our overall outcome was slightly messy (toffee ran a bit over the sides) but absolutly gorgeous Pie, which as a first attempt we were very happy with and will definetly be making again.

Peanut Swirl Brownies

For weeks I have been wanting to do a post about recipes, I have previously blogged about my fondness for all things sweet and how I will eventually get round to baking something my self and this weekend was my time. I decided to bake Peanut Swirl Brownies as lately in our house cookery programmes seem to be a regular feature and one in particular is the Barefoot Contessa aka Ina Green. On one of her shows she was making the Peanut Swirl Brownies and she made it look so simple and the final result looked so scrumscious I had to try it myself. 

You will need...

• 1 pound unsalted butter
• 1 pound plus 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips divided
• 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate
• 6 extra-large eggs
• 3 tablespoons instant coffee granules
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extracts
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup smooth or chunky peanut butter