homemade bread

Nothing beats the yummy smell of freshly baked homemade bread, even if it is made via a breadmaker. I know exactly what the ingredients are. Best of all, my family enjoy every slice!

morning baking

today's baking is yummy, chunky sultana scones, hot out of the oven and ready to eat. I used an adapted recipe based on the old Edmonds cookbook, although in my rush to get them into the oven, I forgot to brush milk on the tops. Still yummy though! here's the recipe:

SULTANA SCONES

3 cups plain flour
6 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
3/4 - 1 cup sultanas (varies according to taste)
75g butter
1 - 1 1/2 cups milk (try buttermilk for a fluffier scone)
extra milk
extra flour

Method

Sift dry ingredients into a bowl.
Cut butter in until it looks like breadcrumbs.
Add milk and mix quickly to form a soft dough.
Knead a few times. Don't overwork dough or you'll have tough scones.
Line baking tray with non-stick baking paper.
Press scone dough quickly onto this until about 2-3cm thick.
Cut into 9 - 12 even sized pieces depending on how large you want your scones to be. (I like chunky sizes so I cut 9). Leave about 1.5 -2cm space between the scones.
Brush tops with milk.
Bake at 220 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

take a plate

 from late September to early December our family calendar is filled with school and sports club prizegivings, shared morning teas and lunches, school trips and outings. Most of these functions ask for the parents to 'take a plate.' I'll be working my way through my favourite recipes, making and baking lots of goodies to fulfil the 'take a plate' requirements. I like the challenge of making something different every time. It's the school netball prizegiving tonight and I've made a yummy no-bake chocolate fudge slice. The recipe is from Alison Holst's "Best Baking" book.

CHOCOLATE FUDGE SLICE

250g packet Super wine, Malt or Digestive biscuits (crushed)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
3 Tbsp milk
75g butter
approx 1 cup chopped sultanas or 1 cup chopped walnuts (or mixture of both)
1 tsp vanilla

Crush the biscuits evenly inside a large, sealed plastic bag.
Mix the sugar and cocoa in a medium sized pot, then stir in the milk, and add the butter.
Stirring all the time, bring to the boil.
Remove from the heat, add the crushed biscuits, chopped sultanas and/or nuts and the essence. Stir together.
Press mixture into a lined slice tray until it's the depth you like. (you don't need to spread the mixture over the whole tin). Using the back of a spoon, flatten the surface fairly smoothly. Ice with chocolate icing.

CHOCOLATE ICING

1 Tbsp cocoa
2 Tbsp boiling water
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup icing sugar (sifted)

Put cocoa into a small bowl, add the boiling water and mix into a paste. Add the butter, vanilla and sifted icing sugar. Beat until smooth. (Adjust consistency of icing by adding a little extra icing or water if needed).

Cut into pieces when firm. Store in the fridge in hot weather.

Makes 12-32 slices depending on size.

banana cake anyone?

for Fathers Day today, dear hubby enjoyed his favourite moist banana cake. This family favourite is easy to bake and tastes absolutely yummy. The overripe bananas that lurk in the fruit bowl are just right for this cake. Here's the recipe:

Moist Banana Cake

125 grams softened butter

1 cup white sugar

2 large eggs

3 bananas (mashed approx 2 cups)

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 tablespoons hot milk

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mix well after each one. Stir in the mashed banana and mix well. Next, stir the baking soda into the hot milk and add to the mixture. Lastly, fold in the sifted flour and baking powder.

Pour mixture into a greased/lined 20cm tin and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until cake springs back when lightly pressed. Use a cake tester if you're not sure. Cool for 15 minutes in the tin, then turn out and cool completely on the wire rack. Then ice with the lemon icing.

Lemon Icing

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon butter

2 cups icing sugar

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

Heat the butter & lemon juice and stir until the butter has melted. Mix all the ingredients together until it reaches a smooth, spreadable consistency. If it gets too firm, just add a few more drops of water.

how about this photo of my little cake lover who swiped a chunk of icing off the cake just after I'd taken the cake photo! love her smug expression!

classic choc chip cookies

sharing another recipe for our favourite cookie...

CHOC CHIP COOKIES

180 grams unsalted butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
150 grams choc chips

1) Preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2) Put the butter, sugar, vanilla in the bowl and mix with an electric mixer until it's pale and creamy.
3) Gradually add the eggs and beat well.
4) Add the sifted flour and baking powder and mix until it forms a smooth dough.
5) Fold in the chocolate chips.
6) Roll into balls and then place onto your lined baking tray and press to flatten
7) Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden.
8) Allow to cool on tray. Makes 12 cookies.

Enjoy!!!

kiwi baking

it's one of those cold, winter days when my craft motivation is at a low. Just right for a snuggle down with a hot chocolate and 2 great books about kiwi baking. Hmmm!

lemon marshmallow slice

Here's a yummy lemony treat full of old-fashioned flavour. It's a fiddly recipe with 3 different parts, but it's worth the effort...

Lemon Marshmallow Slice

step 1 - shortcake

125g butter
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 egg (beaten)
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Cream butter and sugar. Add beaten egg, flour and vanilla essence. Mix well and then press out onto well greased slice tray. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 160 degrees until pale golden colour. Cool.

step 2 - filling

1 cup white sugar
1 cup water
juice and grated rind 2 medium size lemons
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons custard powder
2 tablespoons cornflower

Put sugar, water and juice plus rind of lemons in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Seperately mix the milk, custard powder and cornflour to a smooth paste. Stir the 2 mixtures together using a wire whisk and then slowly bring to the boil. Boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and pour over the shortcake.

step 3 - marshmallow

2 tablespoons gelatine
1 cup boiling water
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon lemon essence
1 cup icing sugar

Dissolve the gelatine in water in a medium-large saucepan. Add sugar, boil for 8 minutes and then cool. Add the lemon essence and icing sugar and beat until thick and creamy. Then pour at once over the filling and leave to set. Cut when cold.

ps:this is a tangy, very lemony tasting slice. If you want less of a lemon taste then use the juice/rind of 1-1 1/2 lemons in filling and 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of lemon essence in the marshmallow. Enjoy!

Afghans

Today, as promised, Afghans were baked, cooled and now ready to eat. The recipe from Alexa Johnstone's book was easy to follow and after several sample tastings, I'm happy to report that this recipe delivers a lovely chocolatey, crumbley biscuit. It isn't a overly sweet afghan so you might like to add more sugar if you're after a sweeter biscuit.

A rich, creamy icing adds a lovely finishing touch. Although afghans taste extra specially nice with a walnut piece on top, I missed that as we didn't have any walnuts in the pantry. Still yummy though!