Happy Easter

Hoping your having a lovely Easter and enjoying a hot cross bun....or two!

YUM

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Love Potion

As Valentine's Day aproaches it's got me thinking.....

If your like me and need a little help in the love department why not try a little magic? 

Get out your cauldron and whip up a batch of Love Potion to get the "juices" flowing!

adapted from www.magic-spells-and-potions.com

Rose LOVE Potion

Three hearts of precious wild pink rose
that under sun and starlight grows;
Three silver spoons of honey gold
awakens powers of the old;
Three silver spoons of brandy wine
you shall be mine, you shall be mine.
You shall be mine till I you free
This is my will, so shall it be.

Method:

Put all the ingredients in order into a pot reciting the spell and then, with a SILVER spoon, stir them together on the last three lines. 

Then you have the Love Potion ready to use.

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Or if a delicious cocktail is more your type of potion then this recipe is sure to cast a spell....

 

LOVE Potion Cocktail 

• 30ml  strawberry or vanilla vodka
• 15ml white crème de cacao
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
• scoop of vanilla ice cream
• 1/2 cup ice
• strawberry for garnish

 

Method:

1. Pour the ingredients into a blender.
2. Blend until smooth.
3. Pour into a chilled glass.
4. Garnish with a strawberry.

If the mix is too thick, add berries or milk; too thin, add ice or ice cream.

SOoooooooo goood !!

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A Sing-Song & Some Shortbread

Yesterday my sister and I vistited our Nanna at her nursing home and we took her along to their Carols for Christmas evening.  It was so much fun and there was such a big turn-out (over 100 residents and family members).  

In between songs there was a lovely lady handing out homemade shortbread.  It was so delicious (I've been on a mission to find an awesome shortbread recipe for ages) so we plucked-up and asked for the recipe.  She was more than happy to oblige and said that it came on the side of the rice flour box!

So carrying on with her Christmas spirit I thought I would share the recipe with you here too....

Traditional Shortbread

115g Rice Flour

225g Plain Flour

115g Caster Sugar

1 pinch Salt

225g Butter

Directions

• Sieve flour, rice flour, sugar and salt into a bowl.
• Rub in butter and knead until smooth paste forms.
• Turn onto floured board, roll out to 1 - 1.5 cm thick and make bars or shape as desired, prick with a fork.
• Place on cold greased tray, sprinkle with some extra caster sugar, cook in a slow oven 140-150°C (300°F) 45 minutes to 60 minutes, until pale brown.

Enjoy!.....let me know how you like them.

P.S:  How cute are those shortbread molds that have pretty traditional pictutes on them like thisles and flowers - I want one!

....Happy Baking X

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My Weekend

I had the best weekend filled with some of my favourite things....

Sewing up a storm making lots of Christmas pressies.
Wrapping up all of those pressies
Baking batches of gingerbread men....so cute
Coffee with my Nanna and Sister
Hanging out with my fur babies and decorating the house

- LOVE it

what did you get-up to this weekend?




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honey, honey

Today I had a hankering for HONEY JOYS!  So I gave-in and made the biggest batch ever (to share of course).  They have been one of my favourite treats since I was little and I still love 'em.

So you too can enJOY some of these scrummy babies, I've included the recipe below (yay)....

Honey Joys

90g butter or margarine
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon honey
4 cups Corn Flakes

Preheat oven to 150°C.

Line 24 hole patty pan with paper cases.

Melt butter, sugar and honey together in a saucepan until frothy.

Add Corn Flakes and mix well.

Working quickly spoon into paper patty cases.

Bake in a slow oven 150°C for 10-12 minutes.

Cool.  
  




www.kelloggs.com.au 
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McVities......fit for a KING

For the reception Prince William requested an alternative treat to the traditional Wedding cake – a McVities chocolate biscuit cake which was one of his favourites as a young boy. 

The couple asked McVitie's Cake Company to create a chocolate biscuit cake for the reception at Buckingham Palace (pictured above).

The chocolate biscuit cake is made from a Royal Family recipe.  Below is a version of this scruptiously decadant looking cake!  ....YYYYUuuuummm!

The Royal Chocolate Biscuit Cake

You’ll need:

• 400g milk chocolate
• 250g dark chocolate
• 200g white chocolate
• 150g unsalted butter
• 275g golden syrup
• 275g digestive biscuits
• some good quality salt, such as fleur de sel, to sprinkle on top (optional)

You’ll also need:

• A large heatproof bowl for melting the chocolate mixture plus some kind of baking tray or dish to hold the chocolate biscuit mixture while it sets. I used a 28cm x 18cm x 3cm baking tin, which was just about big enough to hold this amount.

The Steps:

• Line your dish or tray with greaseproof or parchment paper.
• Break each digestive biscuit into 3 or 4 pieces.
• Break all of the chocolate into very small pieces or chop finely.
• Cut the butter into small pieces.
• Place your heatproof bowl over a pot of hot (but not simmering) water and over a very low heat. Add the golden syrup and butter.
• Once the butter has started melting, stir in the chocolate pieces and, stirring constantly, allow the whole mixture to melt together gently.
• Remove from the heat as soon as the chocolate has melted. Add the biscuit pieces and stir to combine.
• Fill your dish or tray with the chocolate biscuit mixture and, if you like, sprinkle with fleur de sel or other salt flakes.
• Allow to set in the fridge for about 2 hours, then cut into slices of whatever size and

Bunny Ears

As Easter is just around the corner I thought I would share with you a very special family recipe.  My mother's side of the family is Latvian and with that comes lots of delicious food!  My Nan is an amazing cook and when I was growing up we would spend lots of time cooking together.  Out of all the different things we made "Bunny Ears" were our favourite (and everyone else's too!) and we would always make triple quantity batches.

"Bunny Ears" are traditionally made for Easter time, but once you've tasted these scrummy numbers I guarantee you won't be able to wait until Easter comes around again to make another batch!  ; )

Happy Easter and I hope you enjoy making and eating them as much as I do!

  

BUNNY EARS

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
1 egg
6 tbs sour cream
1-1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar (for finished cookies)
vegetable oil

In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg slightly. Add the 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar and combine with a spoon. Add in the lemon rind and sour cream and mix well to combine. Sift or whisk together the flour and baking powder and gradually add to the wet ingredients, mixing well after each addition.

Lightly flour a pastry board and knead the dough for a few minutes until it is very elastic. Sprinkle a bit more flour on the pastry board and roll out the dough until it is 1/8" thick or less.

Use a pizza cutter, knife or pastry wheel and cut the dough into strips 3/4" wide. Then cut diagonally in the opposite direction every 2". Using a sharp knife, cut a small slit in the center of each piece of dough. Using one piece of dough at a time, pull one end through the slit in the center to form a Bunny Ear.

In a wok or deep fryer, heat approx. 1-1/2" of the oil over medium heat until hot but not smoking. You should be able to see little movements on the surface of the oil.

Using a skimmer or slotted spoon, lower about 5 Bunny Ears at a time into the hot oil. Let them brown on one side for approximately 10 seconds, then turn them over and let the other side brown. Remove from the oil immediately and place on paper towels to drain. Continue until all of the Bunny Ears have been cooked.

Let the Bunny Ears cool and sprinkled with the 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar through a sieve.

Note: Letting the cookies cool before sprinkling with the sugar will help to keep them crisp.



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