When Good Bread Goes Bad
For the past year or so I have made all our bread by hand -2 loaves at a time – without a bread maker, the old-fashioned way
Which I love to do except when my cooking spray runs out….
hmmm yeah – kind of resent it when it doesn’t turn out of the pan like a dream (which I did my best to grease!)
What kitchen mishap do you take personally??
Make My Week #14 – Nice Buns!
Well just when I thought I had no show and tell…. I remembered my buns, oh hush now you know I am teasing!! 
I’ve just completed my 2nd round of Hot Cross Buns for the tasting.
We are having 11 children and 12 adults for an Easter Egg hunt and Hot Cross Buns over on Sunday morning before church (as you do!)
My original batch was the delightful Mrs Cake’s recipe – renders 16 buns
and these ones are from Jo Seagar (click for the recipe) – renders 32 buns
As a bun lover The Atlas (who is definitely Hot! but hardly ever Cross) will make the final decision.
And just to keep it real – here’s an Easter fail – homemade egg that cracks as you take it out of the mold? Not cool. However it still tastes okay – which leads me to another Easter fail – Lent without sugar? Not so successful.
Happy Birthday Atlas Man
It was The Atlas’ birthday on 3rd of Jan so I threw him a little surprise pot-luck tea with some friends.
And even though I planned it before Christmas no-one ‘spilled the beans’.
So after a morning and a half surfing he came home to a tidy house and a bench full of baking.
(The tidy house hardly every happens – when my boys said daddy needed more presents I told them the tidy house was one!)
The lego cake is an idea from the Donna Hay kids magazine I got just before Christmas.
Super easy and suitably pleased with using a book/magazine I own to actually make something.
Don’t Judge A Cupcake By Its Icing
So recently I was the lucky winner of some Kaitaia Fire from Monica’s blog (think gorgeous and inspiring food interspersed with her amazing and courageous cancer journey)
Of course she showed how it could be used with a ‘spikey’ recipe. (Spikey is my boy’s word for spicy or hot)
Chilli chocolate cupcakes. recipe here.
I want you to understand that even though it looks like something has dropped a pat on them they were delicious.
I’m just learning with the icing – so long as you don’t think of a turd I’m sure you’ll be able to enjoy them.
I Saw It Here
I love trying new recipes – sweet ones in particular.
On Tuesday night I had a dessert evening at my place and on Wednesday an office shout to do as a favour.
I’m never sure what the rules are for publishing recipes on-line that you got from a book but I got three of mine online.
Licorice Truffles – mmmmm dipped in white or dark or milk chocolate. Found here at domestic princess Paisley Jade.
Mini Baked Oreo Cheesecakes another one found at PJ’s place. (Check out her recipe tab for all sorts of great recipes)
And from Little Poppa a simple homemade icecream which I have made Lemon Curd (Sophie Gray’s) and folded through.
To go with these I have made Dark Chocolate and Cream Cheese Brownies a variation on an SG recipe.
Gooey Lemon Slice from the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook
and Coconut and Pineapple Cupcakes also from there.
Add to that a few dried apricots dipped in chocolate and you have a pretty good dessert evening and office shout I think.
What’s your favourite impressive dessert/baking recipe? Don’t forget to enter my giveaway – there is a link on Friday’s post.
In My Kitchen
There have been some occasions lately
Naturally these things call for baking – yes?
Here are some of the things emerging from the kitchen.
I’ve also tried some new recipes. My first time cooking with polenta too.
Done some old favourites – Pad Thai for dinner? Sure way to The Atlas’ heart.
Everyone should have a cake on their birthday I think don’t you Maddie and Alex? Or maybe 2 perhaps Alex??
I love my kitchen. It’s probably the room of the house that is most complete in terms of decorating and accessorizing. Although I do have a new lampshade in mind and there’s a wall we are planning to remove…but for now I love it and I especially love that it is the nourishment centre of our home.
What’s new in your kitchen? What’s your favourite room in your home?
The Family Table
When we first got married we were both working.
We used to get home with no desire to muck about creating gourmet dishes in the kitchen. Pretty much I think we ate stir fry for a good portion of those first 7 years. (When we weren’t eating out!)
Then little Flip came along and the season changed for us.
For the last 5 years part of my job has been ‘playing house’.
I can’t say I’d call myself a gourmet cook but I think there’s certainly a lot more variety than there was in the ‘stir fry years’.
For a while I’ve been menu planning and last year when I cooked my way through Sophie Gray’s first book I suddenly realised that new recipes weren’t anywhere near the work I thought they were.
One of the things I adore about menu planning is the fact I never have to feel frustrated when someone asks ‘what are we having for tea?’ and I don’t have to open the fridge 20 times in a day wondering what I should make for tea.
I still get into ruts every now and again where I cook the same thing for a few weeks in a row but I am much more inclined to actually use and look through my books.
This weekend we enjoyed some Moroccan Honey Spiced Lamb. So good and so pleasing because we have a whole ‘sheep’ in the freezer from a friend’s farmlet.
Not that it’s ‘proper’ recipes all the time, we have our fair share of homemade pizza and the other night we had fish burgers. But we made them special by using home-made buns and the new coriander I bought at the Lyttleton Farmer’s Market the other day.
Once a week a friend and I get together and make our dinners at my place for that night – that way we get to hang out and we try new recipes. Nothing like having some fun with something you have to do anyway.
I still get a lot more use out of my baking recipe books – really cupcakes and brownies are always going to win in my books – so much more calories, ahem, glamour involved!
What’s your latest recipe love? Whose book should I look through next for inspiration?
Remembering simple, achievable, cheap, tasty – these are my criteria.
Cheats ‘Fancy’ Eggs
I originally got this idea from Sophie Gray.
You take a cheap ($2 in my case) hollow egg, mine are 70 g each.
You split it along the edges – not as simple as it would seem!
Then you fill it with treats.
Then you re-seal it along the edges – not simple when you have made a dogs breakfast of the splitting.
And decorate around the seam along the edges – not applicable in this instance.
So I used the rest of the melted chocolate to create a ‘diversion’ and put sprinkles over the top.
Any resemblance to anything real or imagined is purely your own imagination at work, but I do thank you for thinking there might be some reason or artistic design!
I made 4 – Flip, Bounce, Daddy and Grandad who is spending Easter with us will all find one for them at the breakfast table. Not to be eaten until later though because…
We have an ‘annual’ Easter egg hunt with friends tomorrow at 8am before church. I love that. I also love that they make awesome Hot Cross Buns for the grown ups.
Five for Friday
Last week I got The Hummingbird Bakery cookbook.
Yesterday I made 5 recipes from it. I think 5 new recipes in one day might be a record for me!
The Atlas has a work shout today and maybe I quite like the thought of being impressive from a distance.
Not that I’m competitive or anything (I did tell my mum when I was 5 there is no point running in a race if you can’t win it!).
Green Tea cupcakes with green tea syrup in the icing.
Pineapple and Coconut using coconut cream.
Marshmallow (The Atlas ate 2 last night so they must be good)
American Peanut and Chocolate Cookies
and Lemon Cupcakes.
Very pleased with my efforts until I put the brownie on too high and over-cooked it a bit.
What’s making you happy on Friday??
Things That Make Me Go Mmmmmm
This week has sort of disappeared again!
I have some projects on the go which I am having fun with.
This week I have enjoyed
Making Paisley Jade’s Courgette and Chocolate Croc-Pot cake. It looks good. I made it to give away so I’m not sure about the taste.
Making the cake using these treasures found in the garden. Care of the previous owners gardening skills I don’t have any.
Watching ‘Ma’ reading to the boys.
Loving that my boys love books. So much pleasure, so many happy memories for me being passed on to a new generation.
Friday ‘dinner dates’. Every Friday a friend comes over and we make a double dinner together for both our families. Socialising and working – I’m all over it! Pad Thai tonight. Eaten before I got to photograph it.
And this – my brand-new 1950s inspired lady bike. Thanks to The Atlas.
My requirements of a bike go like this
1. Good looks
2. Can I bike in a dress?
3. Does it have a basket and a bell?
4. Can I put Bounce on the back?
5. That’s it really I’m not planning on going cross-country or up hill (although Christchurch is a bit like a BMX track at present!)
I think this will work perfectly don’t you?
I’ll try post a pic of me on it in the weekend so you can truly appreciate my awesome style!
Click here for more gratefulness.
