GUEST POST - Recipe of the week - Amazing Cadbury's Creme Egg Brownies

This week's recipe is a guest post which comes courtesy of the brilliant, beautiful, blonde, baking twins Rozzie and Lizzie. The twenty-two year old twins bake, a lot, from beautiful cakes, to delicious bread, yummy muffins, gooey cookies, sticky flapjacks, scrummy cupcakes, and that is just the sweet stuff. After posting the above pictures and recipe on Facebook they quickly went viral and became a Facebook phenomenon, reaching 25k shares in three days (so apologies if you have seen and tried these already). Luckily for me the girls are sharing the recipe with me, and you, too. So without further ado here it is, the best damn brownie recipe you'll ever try.....

AMAZING CADBURY'S CREME EGG BROWNIES!

185g unsalted butter
185g best dark chocolate
85g plain flour
40g cocoa powder
3 large eggs
275g golden caster sugar
6 Cadbury’s Crème eggs cut in half.

Preheat the oven to 160C and grease a 20 cm square baking tin.
Melt the butter and dark chocolate together either in the microwave or in a bowl over boiling water.
Break 3 large eggs into a large bowl and tip in 275g golden caster sugar. With an electric mixer on maximum speed, whisk the eggs and sugar until they look thick and creamy, like a milk shake. This can take 3-8 minutes. You will know it's ready when the mixture becomes really pale and about double its original volume.
Pour the cooled chocolate mixture over the eggy mousse, and then gently fold together.
Hold a sieve over the bowl of eggy chocolate mixture and sift the cocoa and flour mixture, shaking the sieve from side to side, to cover the top evenly. Gently fold in to the mixture.
Pour into the baking tin and cook for 15 minutes then take out of the oven and gently press the cadburys crème egg halves into the mix, spacing them apart evenly. Put back in the over for another 5-10 minutes.
Leave to cool before removing from tin and cutting into squares.

For the very few of you who aren't creme egg fans try substituting in oreos or a few mini eggs for the creme egg halves they are just as yummy!

If you want to follow Rozzie and Lizzie on Twitter and see more of their wonderful baking creations you can do so on twitter here and here.

Ps These two really are ones to watch, if they don't have a book or cookery show out soon I'll be very surprised!

Halloween & Twilight Inspired Cupcakes

I've always loved Halloween and having babies is the perfect excuse to once again embrace the day day and get all spooky. Honey's daddy and Honey carved a terrifying brilliant pumpkin and I made my best lemon cupcakes with a Twilight twist (yes I'm a mummy to two and yes I still love Twilight - team Edward all the way). The cupcakes were lemon with a ghoulish green sponge and red food colouring fang bites.

The awesome LEGO skull and pumpkin storage heads were very kindly sent to us by ROOM Copenhagen: www.roomcph.com which are a great little storage option for all the little bits toddlers and babies accumulate, in our case that is a lots of farmyard animals and Happyland figures. Honey loves them.

Recipe of the Week - Easy Peasy Banana and Nutella Muffins

After trying to be good and not too eat too much cake, I simply had to bake, so decided to settle on banana and Nutella muffins. Like a cupcake, sans buttercream, and with bananas, therefore not quite as naughty (so I'm telling myself). I still have to have a bit of gooeyness though so these gorgeous treats have blobs of liquid Nutella hidden in the middle of them.

These muffins are super easy, and made from store cupboard ready products, you can whip these up in half an hour and have the most yummy of treats. Seriously good warm for a weekend breakfast feast. They can also be frozen for rainy days.

Ingredients

230g  self raising flour
150g granulated white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 large free range eggs, lightly beaten
110g melted unsalted butter
3 large very ripe bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla extract
A pot of Nutella, at room temp

Pre-heat your oven to 180C. Line your muffin tins with 12 paper liners.
In one bowl combine your flour, sugar & salt. In another combine your eggs, butter, mashed bananas & vanilla.
Tip one into the other and gently stir together until just combined.
Divide your mixture into your cases, each one should be just about half full.
Take a teaspoon Nutella and put a blob onto the centre of each muffin. Use a small knife to poke it through and cover with surrounding batter.
Repeat with each muffin and then put them all onto the middle shelf of your oven.
Bake for 20-25 mins, when they're done you should be able to stick a skewer into the centre and have it come out clean.

Recipe of the Week - Luscious Lemon Drizzle

Ok so I haven't posted a cake recipe for what seems like ages as I'm really trying to be good and shift the last few baby pounds, so of course haven't been baking as much as it's normally left to me to eat 95% of anything I make, oh the joys of living with a "professional athlete". Anyway I must have been complaining of a lack of treats and sweetness, (I can't cope without cake) so my darling husband baked me a beautiful Lemon Drizzle Cake. And not just any old cake, a gooey lemony delight of a cake. It is best warm out of the oven with a huge dollop of silky smooth creme fraiche, but I can also cope with it cold.

This recipe is one of Tana Ramsays, and the batter seems a little dry but once the cake is baked the syrup is poured over it, intensifying the flavour and moistness.

Ingredients
225g Caster sugar
225g unsalted butter
4 eggs
Finely grated zest of one lemon
225g Self-raising flour

1 1/2 lemons
85g caster sugar

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Beat together 225g softened unsalted butter and 225g caster sugar until pale and creamy, then add 4 eggs, one at a time, slowly mixing through. Sift in 225g flour, then add the finely grated zest of 1 lemon and mix until well combined. Line a loaf tin (8 x 21cm) with greaseproof paper, then spoon in the mixture and level the top with a spoon.

Bake for 45-50 mins until a thin skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. While the cake is cooling in its tin, mix together the juice of 1 1/2 lemons and 85g caster sugar to make the drizzle. Prick the warm cake all over with a skewer or fork, then pour over the drizzle - the juice will sink in and the sugar will form a lovely, crisp topping. Leave in the tin until completely cool, then remove and serve. Will keep in an airtight container for 3-4 days, or freeze for up to 1 month.

Week in Pictures - Sun, Swimming Pools and Cucumber Sandwiches

As always with my "week" in picture posts, these have come from the last few weeks, not just one. The weather has turned super drab, but I did manage to capture a few snaps as evidence that the sun can shine when it wants! I also ate lots of afternoon tea, went on a hen do in the Cotswolds, a trip to Liberty, a rainy Surrey County Show, witnessed someone special winning the Premiership Final and had a drunken (not me) trip to the Kensington Roof Gardens.

Recipe of the Week - Strawberries & Cream Jubilee Cupcakes

These cupcakes are heavenly, they are actually The Hummingbird's strawberry cheesecakes cupcakes. You can use any fruit, I used raspberries once which were really yummy. Anything with cream cheese frosting is a winner to me (it is the same as my carrot cake recipe see here). The cupcake cases and stand are from Sainsbury's awesome new homemaking range, and the Jubilee cake toppers are from Ocado.

Ingredients
120g plain flour
140g caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
40g unsalted butter
120ml whole milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
6 large strawberries chopped into pieces
200g digestive biscuits, finely crushed
12 whole tray lined with paper cases
300g icing sugar
50g unsalted butter
125g cream cheese

Method
Preheat the oven to 170c. In an electric mixer beat together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and soft butter until everything is combined. Gradually add the vanilla and milk until combined, then add the egg and beat for a few minute until combined.
Divide the chopped strawberries into the cupcake cases and divide the cake mixture between them. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until light golden brown. Cool on a rack.
Mix together the icing sugar, butter and cream cheese for the frosting and when the cupcakes are cooled pipe on top. Sprinkle with the crushed digestives and any other toppers you fancy.

Recipe of the Week - The Best Carrot Cake Ever!

I know I say this a lot about cake recipes but as this is another from the Hummingbird and it really is über delicious and moist. You can even fool yourself into thinking it's one of you five a day, I do!

Ingredients
300g soft light brown sugar
3 eggs
300ml sunflower or light olive oil
300g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon, plus extra to decorate
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp vanilla extract
300g grated carrots (approx 4 large carrots)
100g shelled walnuts, chopped, plus extra, to decorate
300g icing Sugar
50g unsalted Butter, at room temperature
125g cold cream Cheese

Method
1 Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F) Gas 3.
2 Put the sugar, eggs and oil in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric whisk) and beat until all the ingredients are well incorporated (don’t worry if the mixture looks slightly split). Slowly add the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt and vanilla extract and continue to beat until well mixed.
3 Stir in the grated carrots and walnuts by hand until they are all evenly dispersed. Pour the mixture into two round prepared cake tins and smooth over with a palette knife. Bake in the preheated oven for 20–25 minutes, or until golden brown and the sponge bounces back when touched. Leave the cakes to cool slightly in the tins before turning out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
4 For the cream cheese frosting beat the icing sugar and butter together in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric whisk) on medium-slow speed until the mixture comes together and is well mixed. Add the cream cheese and beat until it is completely incorporated. Turn the mixer up to medium-high speed. Continue beating until the frosting is light and fluffy, at least 5 minutes. Do not overbeat, as it can quickly become runny.
5 When the cakes are cold, put one on a cake stand and spread about one-quarter of the cream cheese frosting over it with a palette knife. Place a second cake on top and spread another quarter of the frosting over it. Spread the remaining frosting over the sides. Decorate with walnuts and a light sprinkling of cinnamon.

Recipe of the week - Cheats Super Quick 20min. Chocolate Orange Cupcakes

After being invited to a rather impromptu picnic last weekend I decided to whip up a super quick batch of cupcakes, with mega cheat Dr Oetker cupcake chocolate icing. The whole lot took me under 30 mins, whilst getting Honey's lunch packed, my makeup on and all of us out the door. This never happens, and what's even better is that they went down a storm. I was dubious using ready made icing, but it was actually very good, more of a gooey ganache than a normal buttercream icing, but I prefer that anyway. I love cupcakes and my all time never fail recipe book for such is The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook by Tarek Malouf. I adapted this from their vanilla cupcake recipe, and if you have time a real chocolate ganache or buttercream is obviously better but Dr Oetker is definitely my no. 1 favourite cheat at the moment! The mix always seems a little too liquidy but go with it, it works. I do find though I never have enough mix for 12 cupcakes, just 11, hence the 12 hole tray lined with 11 paper cases. 

Ingredients
120g plain flour

140g caster sugar

1 ½ tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

40g unsalted butter, at room temperature

120ml whole milk

1 egg

Grated zest of one large orange

Dr. Oetker chocolate cupcake icing

edible sprinkles, to decorate

a 12-hole cupcake tray, lined with 11 paper cases

Method

Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F) Gas 3.

Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric whisk) and beat on slow speed until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined. Gradually pour in half the milk and beat until the milk is just incorporated.

Whisk the egg, grated orange zest and remaining milk together in a separate bowl for a few seconds, then pour into the flour mixture and continue beating until just incorporated (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula). Continue mixing for a couple more minutes until smooth. Do not overmix.

Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until two-thirds full and bake in the preheated oven for 20–25 minutes, or until light golden and the sponge bounces back when touched. A skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.

Leave the cupcakes to cool slightly in the tray before turning out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely. When the cupcakes have cooled, pipe with your chosen nozzle from the top of the Dr Oetker nib and sprinkle with edible decorations.

ready made icing.... ssssh!

Recipe of the week - The best & easiest banana and chocolate cake

This is the easiest and most forgiving cake recipe I have ever used, and although the methodology may look a little odd to seasoned bakers (no liquid and mixing the flour in before the eggs), trust the recipe, it really does work, and produces the most delicious, moreish, dense loaf you could wish for. This ugly little cake is never going to win an award for the prettiest treat on the block, but for ease, speed and taste you just can't beat it.
Best enjoyed for breakfast with a cup of earl grey or straight out of the oven while the chocolate chunks are still liquid!

Ingredients
175g softened butter
175g soft brown sugar
175g self-raising flour
2 eggs
2 medium/3 large bananas, squished
400g chocolate chunks (I use dark chocolate)




Cream the butter and sugar



Mix in the flour



Add in the eggs



Stir in the banana and chocolate



Pour into a greased and lined loaf tin, put in a preheated oven on 175c, for 35mins. Take it out of the oven and let it cool in the tin, et voila!



This lasts a good week in the tin (if you can!), and gets moister and moister!

Macaron Monday

After a hectic birthday week last week, Monday, today, was always going to hit hard with a soccer punch of reality. I did however manage to ease the path back to routine and order and piles of washing with a box of Paul's mini macarons. My absolute favourite treat in the world, our wedding cake was in fact a tower of Lauduree macarons. Heaven, delish, and so light they practically don't count as a naughty treat!

Cakespiration

I am currently deciding what type of cake to make for hubby's birthday and really can't decide. Simple but glorious Victoria sponge? Or a gooey and indulgent chocolate fudge? How about a light and airy lemon curd cake? Hmmm actually maybe a banana and toffee sticky sponge? Then shall I bake cupcakes, or a tiered cake? You see the problem I'm having?!
Anyway here are a few of my past creations to try and make my mind up...





Honey's christening cake decorated with fresh white roses




A few of my prettier cakes