Coco Pops Bear Cake

 

This is a fun and easy cake to make for a child's birthday cake, for a party or just for the family at home. My son helped me put this together for his 3rd birthday. That's right I've pulled this one out of the archives, but I really loved how cute it was. We had the cake for a teddy bears picnic themed party which is so easy to create.

Enjoy xxx
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Chocolate Chip cookies for Santa

Three more sleeps till Christmas, so now is the time to decide what you are going to leave out for Santa and the reindeers on Christmas eve.

Depending on where you live Santa might need something to warm him up or if its a hot night in Australia Santa is often left with an ice cold beer to quench his thirst. I wonder if anyone ever leaves Santa a healthy snack option on Christmas eve?

In my house Santa often gets a plate of cookies and a cold milo. The reindeers get a bucket of water left out the front for them and a bunch of carrots.

This year Santa is getting some chocolate chip cookies. These cookies are quick and easy to make and store well for up to a week (or so I'm told - mine have never lasted that long).

Enjoy & Merry Christmas xxx
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Chocolate Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These cupcakes have not been 'dressed up' for Christmas but they taste great.

Whenever my bananas are over ripe in the fruit bowl and if I don't have time to bake I just put them in the freezer where they turn completely black. Then when I'm ready to use them in my baking I take them out and within an hour they are ready to use.

This super moist cupcake recipe is lovely. It combines the sweetness of ripe mashed bananas with cocoa powder and to make it even more heavenly, the cake is frosted with a smooth and creamy  cream cheese frosting. These cupcakes are very popular in my house and I'm sure you will love them to.

Enjoy xxx

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Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes with Choc-Peppermint Twist Buttercream Frosting

 

 

Its a winning combination every time. Whether its a slice, a biscuit or a cake,  chocolate and peppermint are always a hit.

The cupcake itself looks intensely rich but when bitten in to is light and fluffy due to the butter milk and not overly chocolatey either (is that a word?)

 

The icing is choc- peppermint twist. The effect is created by taking a piping bag and half filling it with chocolate buttercream and then taking a second piping bag and half filling it with peppermint buttercream. The 2 bags are then placed in a larger piping bag fitted with a pipping nozzle and piped together, creating the twist. To finish it all off I placed a mini chocolate mint biscuit on top.



Enjoy xxx
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My Favourite Chocolate Buttercream for Cupcakes

 

I know that I'm saying that this is my favourite chocolate buttercream for cupcakes and it has been for quite sometime, but that doesn't mean I'm not open to other recipes.

There’s just something about the buttery, satiny smooth and sublime taste of this frosting. The combination of butter that is whipped, just enough icing sugar, and a moderate amount of chocolate makes this positively dreamy. It makes me want to lick the frosting off of the cupcakes and pass on the cupcakes themselves. It’s really that good.

You can easily play around with this basic recipe to make a milk  or white chocolate frosting. I just love everything about the texture and flavour ratios of this frosting. The key is giving the butter a good whipping before adding any other ingredients – it creates a fabulously soft and melt-in-your-mouth frosting.

Enjoy xxx
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Peanut Butter & Choc Chip Slice

School holidays are over here in Melbourne and the children are back at school Monday. While I love having my son home from school and I love not rushing to be at kinder by 8.15 in the morning, after 2 weeks I'm ready  to get back into a routine. Its hard work trying to 'enjoy' the school holidays. Between doing activities with the children, keeping up with the day to day jobs and work,(let alone blogging), I'm still tired. I did manage to get some baking done over the holidays I guess I had to feed the children something - boy can they eat!

Last weekend was the AFL grand final. Most people that are interested in football end up at a bbq or something similar to enjoy the game and catch up with family or friends. The children and I headed to a close friends house for lunch and a few drinks. Whilst my husband headed off to a work colleagues function. Never one to arrive empty handed I set about making some slices and a dessert to take along.

I am always trying new recipes as I get tired of making the same things. When I'm preparing a few things for friends or family I normally mix it up a bit, a few old favourites and one or two new things. I mention this because I just want to point out that I am not an expert cook but I can confidently say I cook decent and edible food. No cook is perfect and even professional chefs have their share of disasters and mishaps in the kitchen, and I am no exception. I also have visual proof for you!

For  once  in my life I actually followed a recipe and look what happened. It was late, (well after midnight) by the time I got around to doing the chocolate top on this slice. I even checked the recipe twice because I had a feeling there wasn't enough copha melted in to the chocolate. However I forged ahead anyway and the next morning when I went to cut the slice the top cracked. I definitely wasn't putting this slice on the platter but it still tasted good and was eaten by my family within 3 days. I will make this slice again, with some minor adjustments to make it presentable and pass it on to you. In the mean time though here's a recipe that actually works!

Enjoy xxx
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How to make a chocolate shell for your giant cupcake

A popular cake at the moment is the giant cupcake. Several companies make the pans for this cake, I have seen Wilton, Ecko, Bakers Secret, Fox Run and a silicone moulds available in shops. I have been walking past this tin in the shops for some months now and finally gave in a bought a Wilton giant cupcake tin in early September. Eager to try out my new purchase I volunteered to make my sister-in-laws birthday cake (she turned 21 again this year, lucky girl!).

A favourite cake combination of mine is chocolate and peppermint. So what better way to suprise people then to cut through a white chocolate shell to find chocolate cake and then to take a bite and discover that your pink roses are peppermint flavoured. Delicious.

Enjoy xxx
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Sunday Morning Pancakes

Every Sunday morning at my house pancakes are on the menu for breakfast. Sundays are special family time in our house. Sunday is the only day we are all together for breakfast as my husband leaves well before 7am each morning and works most Saturdays also.

On a Sunday morning at least one of my children will crawl in to my bed and whisper not so softly in my ear, "mum, how long until pancakes?". I normally roll back over at this point and pretend to go back to sleep until a second child arrives in the room asking, "mum, how long until pancakes?". At this point I put my head under the pillow and prepare myself for my youngest to wake up. She never says good morning, the first words out of her mouth in the morning is always, "I'm hungrine Mumma". One of her siblings will then tell her that we are having pancakes and she then proceeds to jump up and down saying' "yay! pancakes!, come on Mumma". At this point there is no avoiding it I have to get up, it is pancake day after all!

Enjoy xxx
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Chocolate Fudge & Coconut Slice

My mum has been making this slice for as long as I can remember! It was a regular in our lunch boxes and at family gatherings as we were growing up.

Its a quick and easy slice that everyone loves as it is not overly sweet,  and who doesn't love chocolate.
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