Chocolate chip sheep cupcakes

These cakes were one of my best friends favourites, she loved her sheep so I decided to put them onto a cake. They're quite simple to make, it's the decorating that takes the time. 

Ingredients:

220g butter

220g caster sugar

3 eggs

220g self raising flour

Vanilla essence

60g chocolate chips

Ingredients for icing and decorating:

160g butter

160g icing sugar

Giant chocolate buttons (for the head)

Small chocolate buttons (for the ears) 

Mini white marshmallows

Brown and white writing icing

Method:

1) preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius, gas mark 3. Cream together the butter and sugar well until smooth. 

2) add the eggs a little at a time and mix, then add the flour and vanilla essence and mix until just combined. Then fold the mixture to get as much air in as possible.

3) add the chocolate chips and fold them in, divide between cupcake cases and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. 

4) leave to cool and make the butter cream, combine the butter and icing sugar and mix well for about five minutes to get a smooth and creamy buttercream. 

5) once the cakes are cool, spread the buttercream over them evenly. Take one giant chocolate button and put two dots of white writing icing on it to make the eyes, then take the brown writing icing and put two smaller dots in the middle of the white ones.

6) for the ears, take a small chocolate button and half it, put a small amount of buttercream on one side of each half and stick them to the back of the head (see image)

7) finally, stick the head with the ears attached to the front of the cake and then add the marshmallows by sticking them evenly into the buttercream. Enjoy!

Raspberry and Caramel ombré cake

This cake is a real show stopper, it does take time but it's great for impressing your friends and tastes delishous too! This recipe was initially from the Good Food magazine, but I have adapted it slightly.

Ingredients:

400g butter

400g light soft brown sugar

5 large eggs

400g self raising flour

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp milk

200g raspberries

Icing ingredients:

A 397g can of caramel

300g full fat cream cheese

140g butter

300g golden icing sugar

100g raspberries

Pink food colouring 

Method:

1) preheat the oven to 160 degrees celcius and Greece and line two deep 20cm cake tins. Firstly, beat the butter and sugar well until light and fluffy, add a pinch of salt and beat again. Gradually add the eggs, mixing after each addition to avoid the mixture curdling. 

2) add the flour, mixing until just incorporated and then add the milk and vanilla extract and mix. Add the raspberries and gently fold them in, you want to try and avoid them breaking! Divide your mixture between the two tins and bake for about 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. 

3) remove the cakes from the oven and leave them to cool in their tins for about 15 minutes, because they are quite soft, if you remove them from the tins too soon they may crumble and break. Once cooled slightly, you can then transfer them to cool out of the tins on a wire cooling rack.

4) to make the icing, put 2 tbsp of caramel, the cream cheese, butter and icing sugar into a bowl and beat until smooth. Careful not to over mix or the cream cheese may cause it to go runny.

5) slice both of your cakes in half horizontally, and begin to sandwich them together with a layer of caramel and halved raspberries.

6) using about a third of the icing, roughly cover the cake with a thin layer, this will stop the cake crumbling and give it a smoother finish. Put the cake in the fridge for about 20 minutes. Halve the remaining icing between two bowls and use a little pink food colouring to dye one batch. 

7) remove the cake from the fridge and spread the golden icing over the top of the cake and about half way down the sides. Cover the bottom of the cake with the pink icing. Clean your knife and gradually swipe it upwards through the pink icing and into the golden, blending the colors together to create an ombré effect. Do this all around the cake and smooth the edges with a clean knife.

Enjoy!

Gingerbread tray bake

This rich and gooey ginger tray bake is easy to make and tastes delicious with the lemon icing!

Ingredients:

275g golden syrup

275g black treacle

225g softened butter

450g self raising flour

2 teaspoons ground mixed spice

2 heaped teaspoons ground ginger

4 large eggs beaten

4 tablespoons milk

Icing:

220g icing sugar

1 lemon

50g chopped crystallised ginger

Method:

1) preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius, grease a tray bake or roasting tin roughly 30x23 cm and line it.

2) put the syrup, treacle, sugar and butter into a large pan and heat slowly until everything has melted together. Take off the heat and stir in the flour and spices. Add the eggs which should be beaten lightly and milk. Stir until smooth and pour into the lined tin.

3) bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until risen and a skewer inserted comes out clean. Leave to cool for a couple of minutes then turn it out onto a cooling tack and leave to fully cool.

4) for the icing, sift the icing sugar into a bowl and slowly add the juice from your lemon. Mix until the consistency is runny and will drizzle nicely over your cake.

5) spoon the icing over the cooled cake and sprinkle the chopped ginger evenly over the top, leave to set then cut into squares, enjoy! 

Homemade Lemonade

This is such a yummy recipe for homemade lemonade and is the perfect drink for summer! It is best served very cold, and is so refreshing on a hot day.

Ingredients:

4 lemons

175g brown sugar

900ml boiling water 

Method:

1) scrub the lemons, half them and squeeze out the juice.

2) Place the juice and pulp in a bowl with the sugar and pour in 300ml of boiling water.

3) Stir until the sugar dissolves, add the lemon halves and another 600ml of boiling water.

4) Stir and leave the mixture to cool, covering it.

5) Strain the cooled lemonade, making sure to squeeze all the juice out of the lemon halves.

6) I like to put a handful of strawberries and blueberries in the glass too, which makes it feel even more like a treat!

Three layer chocolate cake

This is one of the best chocolate cakes out there. It's rich, gooey and uses real chocolate instead of cocoa powder which I personally think gives a better result. 

Ingredients:                                                                    

230g plain chocolate such as Cadbury Bournville          

170g unsalted butter.                                                    

350g light brown sugar.                                                

3 large eggs, seperated.                                               

370g plain flour.                                                             

1 1/2 tsp baking powder.                                               

1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

500ml milk

Ingredients for buttercream icing:

175g plain chocolate

225g butter

1tbsp milk

1tsp vanilla extract

250g icing sugar

3 heaped tbsp Nutella 

Method:

1) Pre heat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Melt chocolate in a bowl over simmering water. Cream together the butter and sugar for about 4 minutes until fluffy, add the egg yolks and beat well. 

2) Add the melted chocolate and mix, in a seperate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. 

3) Mix the vanilla with the milk and add some to the chocolate mixture. Then add half of the flour mixture to the chocolate mixture, then half of the milk and keep swapping until all is combined.

4) Whisk the egg whites until they can create soft peaks - careful not to over whisk. Carefully fold in the eggs whites to the mixture and divide the final mix between three tins.

5) Bake for about 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. 

6) to make the buttercream icing, cream together the butter and sugar, then add the melted chocolate, vanilla and Nutella and beat until fluffy.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Muffins

These Blueberry Muffins are simply some of the best out there. They're light and moreish and can be eaten as a breakfast treat or a snack with a cup of tea.  

Ingredients:

• 110g plain flour

• 110g butter

• 65g caster sugar

• 2 free-range eggs

• 1½ tsp baking powder

• 125g blueberries, or equivalent in frozen blueberries

• pinch of nutmeg

  
  

  Method:

  
  

  1) preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Cream the butter and sugar together then slowly add the eggs, mix well. Add the flour, baking powder and nutmeg and combine. Refrigerate the mixture for at least an hour.

• Watch technique0:50 mins

• 2) Add the blueberries and stir in gently. Place a spoonful of the chilled mixture into each muffin case, filling each to just over half way. 

  
  

  
  
  

• Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden, enjoy!

  
  

  
  
  
  

Death by Chocolate Brownies

These brownies are possibly one of the most chocolatey things ever, and are quick and easy to make. Containing plain, milk AND white chocolate, there is really no place to go wrong.

Ingredients:

185g butter

185g plain chocolate

85g plain flour 

40g cocoa powder

60g white chocolate cut into chunks

60g milk chocolate cut into chunks

3 eggs

275g golden caster sugar

Method:

1) preheat oven to 160 degrees centigrade and then melt together the 185g plain chocolate with the butter.

2) grease and line a square baking tin. Mix eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until thick and creamy.

3) pour chocolate mixture into egg mixture and mix well. Add the flour and cocoa powder and combine. 

4) stir in the chocolate chunks and pour mixture into tin.

5) bake for 20-25 minutes until a shiny, papery crust has formed on top of the brownies.

6) leave to cool slightly then cut into squares and enjoy!

Apple Streusel Muffins

These apple muffins would be great with a cup of tea or coffee and can almost be considered healthy with the fresh apple.

Ingredients:                                                   

For the muffin,                                               For the streusel topping,

280g plain flour.                                             50g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder.                                     1tsp ground cinnamon

1tsp ground cinnamon.                                  35g butter

Pinch of salt.                                                  25g light soft brown sugar

115g soft light brown sugar

1 large cooking apple, peeled 

and chopped finely

2 eggs

250ml milk

85g melted butter

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius, line a muffin tin with cases.

2. To make the streusel topping, mix together the flour and cinnamon, then rub in the soft butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, stir in the sugar and set to one side.

3. Mix together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in another bowl. Add the sugar and chopped apple.

4. Lightly beat the eggs in a jug and add the milk and melted butter. Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

5. Spoon the mixture into cases and sprinkle a generous amount of streusel topping over each muffin, bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Enjoy!

S'more cupcakes

S'mores are traditionally made over a campfire, toasted marshmallows sandwiched between two chocolate digestive biscuits (yum). So in cupcake form these are irresistible!

Ingredients for the sponge:                               Ingredients for the frosting:

30g plain chocolate.                                         180g caster sugar

5 digestive biscuits.                                          1 egg white

80g unsalted butter                                          1/2 tsp cream of tartar 

280g caster sugar.                                            50g white marshmallows

200g plain flour.                                                1 tsp vanilla extract

45g cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder 

Pinch of salt

2 large eggs

240ml milk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees C, line a muffin tin with cases and finely grate the chocolate with a cheese grater. Put the biscuits in a plastic bag and Crush them with a rolling pin.

2. Beat together the butter, sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt until resembling fine breadcrumbs.

3. Mix the eggs and milk in a jug and pour this into the dry ingredients, mix until incorporated, smooth and thick.

4. Fill each case with mixture and sprinkle some chocolate shavings on top, followed by some of the crushed biscuits, leaving some for later.

5. Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes our clean. Leave to cool.

6. To make the marshmallow frosting, put a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Add the sugar, egg white, tartar to the bowl and melt together.

7. Roughly chop marshmallows and add, letting the melt into the mixture. Remove from heat and while still warm whisk for about three minutes until frosting forms stiff peaks and becomes light and fluffy.

8. Frost cakes and sprinkle over remaining biscuit crumbs.

 Top with a square of chocolate and enjoy!

Lemon Drizzle Loaf

This zingy lemon drizzle loaf is perfect to quickly rustle up and will taste delicious, to make this you will need:

3 eggs

170g self raising flour

170g caster sugar

170g butter

1tsp baking powder

110g icing sugar

1 tbsp granulated sugar

2 lemons

Method:

1. Begin by pre heating the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, mix together the eggs, flour, sugar, butter, baking powder and the zest of the two lemons. Pour the mixture into a loaf tin (or you can make it into a cake or tray bake by choosing whichever tin takes your fancy). 

  

2. Bake in pre heated oven for 25 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted comes out clean.

3. Whilst the cake is cooking, prepare the icing. Mix together the icing sugar and juice of one and a half  lemons until all combined.

4. While the loaf is still warm, poke holes into the cake with a knife or a skewer and pour over your icing so that it will seep into the cake (yum!).

5. Mix the granulated sugar with the remaining half of the lemon juice, and pour over the top. This will create a delicious sugary crust.

Enjoy!

Scrummy Triple Chocolate Cookies

As a massive chocaholic, these triple chocolate cookies are perfection. They are easy and simple to make and are great to sell for charity bake sales or just to munch on throughout the day.

What you will need:

150g granulated sugar
220g brown sugar
225g unsalted butter
1tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
385g plain flour
pinch of salt
1tsp bicarbonate of soda

100g white chocolate chips

100g milk chocolate chips

100g plain chocolate chips

Begin by preheating the oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

1. Cream together the butter and sugars, I usually do this with a hand held electric whisk for about 2 minutes to get the mixture light and fluffy.

2. Add the vanilla extract and eggs and mix well until everything has been incorporated.

3. Combine all of the dry ingredients together and gradually add them to the creamed mix.

4. Stir in all of the chocolate chips until they are evenly distributed among the cookie dough.

  5. Roll into medium sized balls and bake on non stick or lightly greased trays for 10-12 minutes.

Enjoy!

Happy Baking!

Introducing me

As a new blogger, I thought I would tell you what my blog will be about...
My posts will be about baking, new recipes, old recipes and tips and tricks that I have discovered. I do occasionally find myself rambling so you may find that I go off on a tangent, like I'm clearly doing now. Apologies.
I love trying out and inventing/adjusting recipes which I plan to share for people to (hopefully) enjoy and test out themselves! Baking mainly for friends and family, I try to decorate my bakes uniquely for that person, especially for birthdays! So here are some of the cakes that I have done before, I am stupidly writing this before dinner and am making myself extremely hungry....

A checkerboard cake with a Cath Kidston inspired design

My friend with her birthday sheep cake

Some s'more cupcakes

A three tiered fudge cake with tempered white chocolate decoration

 

 Harry Potter/Les Miserable/Wimbledon Cake (weird combo, I know)

 

Cheese, Chilli and Sweet corn Muffins