The Humble Cookie

My sister's birthday is tomorrow.

Shock.

Horror.
Panic. ... Why?

Because I haven't even brought her a present yet!
In all honesty, I didn't know what to buy her, so I decided to... as usual, no doubt..Bake!

I had asked her a couple of times what she would like, she dropped a few hints mumbling about gingerbread, madeira cake, and cookies. Cookies caught my hearing.

As you do, you cream the butter and sugar for any normal cookie.

I used IKEA chocolate. Best. chocolate. Ever! It even over rules Lindt chocolate, which is a huuge acheivment. Go to IKEA and pick up a couple of hundred of these, you'll thank me later.

That is providing you have an IKEA around where you live, of course.

Then the rest is all up to that trustworty recipe of mine. This cookies recipe is not just any cookie recipe.

No. Definatly not. A cookies either too hard that it breaks your tooth, or too soft that it melts in  your mouth before you even have the chance to taste it.

And to finish off, a picture of the versatile egg.

The Humble cookie is a great one, and a very versatile one. I threw in a couple of chocolate chips, that I cut out from that fabsy IKEA chocolate bar, and a few walnuts.

Walla. Enjoy.

The Humble Cookie

     - Makes around 20, depending on size of choice

- 50g Butter, room temperature

- 2 Tb Dark Brown Sugar

- 2 Tb Caster Sugar

- 1 Egg

- 1/2 t vanilla essence

- 3 Tbs of chocolate chips, throw in a few walnuts if you're feeling generous

- 3/4 SR flour

 

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.

Cream butter with electric beater, then add both sugars until mixture is light and fluffly. Add in one large egg and beat again. Add the 3/4 cup of SR flour, and stir with a metal spoon. DON'T BEAT FROM NOW ON! Sprinkle the vanilla essence, and let the chocolate chips tumble in the bowl, and continue mixing until all combined quite well. Be sure not to over mix, only until the mixture comes and holds together.

Roll Tablespoons of the gooey mixture in your hands and place in a safe distance on a lined and greased baking tray.

Overcrowding them makes the mixture end up merging into one giant cookie, and whats the use in that if you can't share it?

Place the goods in, and cook for 20-25 minutes until light golden brown.

Chocolate Mud Cupcakes

How many ways are there to describe this chocolate mud cupcake?
I think 4? 
1. Moist
2. Chocolatey
3. Fluffy
4. Did I say Chocolatey?
Yes, I had another baking session on this fine Sunday afternoon, and I fattened up my household.
On another random note..I believe I haven't introduced my little budgie to you have I? How rude of me.
Everyone this is Georgie.

Georgie, this is Everyone.

He's gorgeous isn't he? 

He's a mad chirper and sings like all day everyday. No joke. literally, it gets annoying after a while.


Chocolate mud cupcakes
100g dark chocolate
1 cup water
125g butter, softened
255g brown sugar
3 eggs
225 SR flour
1/2 cup plain flour
1/4 cup of cocoa powder


Method
Preheat oven to 160 degrees celcius. 
Combine the chocolate and water in a saucepan and stir over low heat until melted. Remove from heat and let cool.
In a separate bowl, cream sugar, butter and eggs until light and fluffy. Add the flours, cocoa powder and the warm chocolate mixture. Stir until all combined.
Spoon evenly into patty pan cases and bake for 20 mins or until skewer comes out clean.
Ice if desired. Or just gobble it all up..

Nice and Iced Chocolate Cupcakes

Hello, I bet you've been missing me..

No? Okay.. what about cake?

Yes. I though that would be the answer.

Here we go: I've started at a new school and all, and there is this Arts day, where anyone can bring got do to with dancing, cooking, photography, painting, drawing, singing.. and the list could go on forever and ever.

But you know me..

First thing I jumped at was cakes. Yessss I had this in the bag, and I was pretty certain I was going to take out first place .... along with second and third of course.

So, everyone has their cake in their hand with the theme of 'chocolate by death' and we're all huddling together, though very cautiously so we dont absoloutley squash our cakes.
This girl was standing next to me, and her cake was incredible.


Understatement.
It was out of this world.


I was so tempted to give her knock so she 'accidently' smooshed her icing all over herself, her uniform and the blue carpet.


But I thought better of it. As I looked around the room in horror, I realised I hadnt put any effort atall in to my cake. I had a really bad cold the night before you see.. so thats the only thing that stopped me producing some sort of chocolate wedding cake that would blow your mind and have you jumping out of your seats.


But no, dissappointment.


I will make a WOW one next year, promise?
Okay, as long as we're both even


p.s please praise my artistic photos, I tried the best I could with that dodgy camera of mine!



Nice and Iced Chocolate Cupakes
-125g butter (room temperature)
- 2 Eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 3/4 cup of Caster Sugar
- 2 Cups SR Flour
- 3 heaped tablespoons of Cocoa powder

Method
Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. The butter should be as white as possible. Add the eggs and beat until light and fluffy again. Stir in the sifted flour and milk with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined.
Place mixture into patty pans, 3/4 of the way full so they don't totally expand, blow up and mess up your oven with chocolatey goodness..
And bake for 10-15 mins, or until a skewer comes out clean and the top is springy.

Pecan and Chocloate Pastries

I know, I know its been ages since i last updated. I finally got around to uploading the pictures on my laptop. Right now, im jamming to some Demi Lovato music so, im in the mood to put pictures up and write about the pecan and chocolate cigars.

I really wanted to try and make these, because i have never really worked with fillo pastry, but after my trusty google searching, i found out the secrets to getting your fillo pastry perfect. I found that you had to cover the pastry sheets with damp tea towels.. that way it stays moist and it doesnt dry out!
Right, lets get to it. Oh.. and by the way, did i not mention how delicious sweet and crispy they tasted?


So first up, I started with my pecan nuts and blended them in my mini food processor, until they were relativley blended and fine.

Cute food processor, huh?

After i had processed the pecans, i just combined them with cinnamon and brown sugar and threw them in a large bowl

then i measured some butter, and some olive oil


then i simply just put both of them into a small saucepan and melted them

then i got my yummy little chocolate chip morsles

i grinded them in a nut grinder, dont grind them in a food processor! you dont want chocolate dust, more like chocolate rubble, some buts chunky some bits tiny like this:

so, i had the butter and olive oil mixture, my pecan nut mixture, and my chocolate mixture.
they all remained seperate in their own bowls. and i got to work with brushing the pastry, filling, folding, filling then rolling! I dont actually have any pictures of me doing this (maybe because i was in a rush because i was scared that the pastry could dry out!)i have only one picture:

Underneath those chocolate chips, is the pecan and cinnamon mixture. after these chocolate chips went on i tucked in the longer sides about 1/2 a centimetre and then i carefully rolled it up so it looked like a pretty cigar

lightly brush over the top with the olive oil mixture so you get a shiny glaze after it's baked, i kind of went over the top with this.. but use in moderation!!

put them in to the oven, for about 15-20 mins and they will turn out like this

Scrumptious!



Perfect Pecan and Chocolate Cigars
- 100g pecan nuts

- 2 tsps ground cinnamon

- 1 tsp brown sugar

- 125g butter

- 1/4 olive oil

- 250g choppped milk/dark chocolate


Method
Preheat oven to 180c degrees
Ground pecan nuts in a mini food processor, and combine with cinnamon and brown sugar. Set aside.
Melt butter and olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat until melted. Set aside.
Chop milk or dark chocolate and place in a small bowl.
Cover fillo pastry with a wet tea towel, to prevent it from drying out. Working with about 3 sheets at a time, cut in half so you are left with a long rectangle. Brush half of the rectangle and place in 2 tsps of pecan mixture. Fold ver, so you have a square. Brush the square with olive oil mixture again, and place 2 tsps of chocolate chips. Roll the vertical longer sides in 1cm and starting from the chocolate end, roll into a cigar shape. Place on lined tray and gaze the tops again, with olive oil mixture. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 mins or until pastry is a pale gold.

EAT.

Pistachio Fudge

I found the best fudge recipe in the world here. It comes from the legend cook: Nigella Lawson. She makes amazing desserts, and I thought that I had to try one of them.
I had already tried her "Berry Cheesecake" which was a great success (dont worry, i will post the cheesecake soon!), so I was browsing through her recipes and came across a very tasty looking treat.
Pistachio fudge. Wow.
So, I tried it and it was uh-mazing. Grainy, fudgy, choclatey and soft. It's so simple to make I dont even need to provide step by step pictures! its just a simple matter of turning on your stove and bashing up some pistachio nuts.
Pretty fattening, and not healthy, but whatever.. its still amazing.

I will post step by step pictures when I get round to making it again (which is very soon!), but til' then I have to share the recipe!!


CHOCOLATE PISTACHIO INCREDIBLE FUDGE
- 350g dark chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa solids), chopped
- 1 x 397g of Sweetened condensed milk
- 30g butter
- Pinch of salt
- 150g pistachio nuts


METHOD
Put the chopped chcolate, condensed milk, butter and salt in a heavy based pan, on low heat and stir to melt.
Put the nuts into a freezer bag and bash up with a rolling pin, until broken up into both big and little pieces. (You want crumbs aswell as chunks to give it some bite).
Add pistachio's to the choclate mixture in the pan, and mix until combined.
Pour and spatch this mixture onto a foil lined 23cm square tin, smoothing the top.
Let the fudge cool, and then refrigerate until set. You can then cut it into small peices (3 x 2.25 cm)to give 64 peices.
Once cut, it can be kept into the freezer, no need to thaw, just eat straight away!!
(It tastes much better when you leave it in the freezer for longer and then indulge in it, it goes more grainy and fudgy that way)

Enjoy, and then you can thank me later..
with some of these