Quick cookie recipe

Chocolate cherry hazelnut cookies
Ingredients – to make 12 BIG cookies

- 125g butter

- 100g light brown soft sugar

- 30g caster sugar

- 1 egg

- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract

- 50g flour

- 25g cocoa powder

- 1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

- 130g porridge oats

- 75g chopped hazelnuts

- 100g chopped glacé cherries

Heat the oven to gas mark 3. Whip the butter and sugar together in a bowl, then add egg slowly, followed by the dry ingredients - add the nuts and cherries last. Shape into 12 balls and put on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper. Bake for 15 mins. Leave to cool completely then enjoy this chewy chocolaty treat!

I made these cookies last night when I fancied something sweet. They turned out pretty tasty but I think if I had some dark choc chips in place of cocoa powder they would be another level!

In other news my sour dough starter has come to life! After a couple of days it smelled pretty bad and I was tempted to give up on it. I persevered and now it smells bready and looks foamy.. just need to keep it going now til the weekend so I can make sour dough loaves.
If they turn out ok I will post the instructions I followed soon!

Jo 
xx

Homebaked Crusty Bread

2014

One of my goals for this year is to learn how to bake real bread. I love cooking and baking and somehow never tried to make bread. I decided to start with an easy no knead recipe. I remember seeing a recipe on Sandra's blog a while ago and a quick google search found it and clicked 'in english' to get the instructions!

You mix 3 cups plain flour, teaspoon of yeast, salt, 1.5 cups water, finely chopped rosemary in a bowl the day before you want to bake and leave it to prove for at least 12 hours in a bowl covered with cling film - the mixture was VERY lumpy and sticky but it is no knead so I didn't stir it too much.

The next day heat the oven - I have a gas oven so I set it to gas mark 8 and put a pyrex dish with a lid on to warm for 30 mins (Sandra uses a lovely le Creuset oval pot which we don't have so used next best thing in the cupboard!). Then flour the big mound of sticky dough and shape into a round (I used lots of flour at this stage). Very carefully drop bread into the heated dish and put the lid back on. I baked it for 30 mins with the lid on then 15 mins with it off as in Sandra's recipe. This did not look so done so I baked it for another 10 mins with the lid off. Then I put the mini loaf on a rack to cool completely.
I was pretty surprised how it turned out - it was delicious - crusty outside and soft inside.

My next goal is to make a sour dough loaf so I'm off to make my own sour dough starter!

Jo
xx

Bake Off!

I came third in a baking contest at my work and got a lovely rosette from the Mayor of Oldham!
My cake was a lemon sponge covered with old school rainbow drops

Diamond Jubilee baking

Back at home in Suffolk this weekend for the Diamond Jubilee festivities! We are off to a street party this afternoon and taking along these cupcakes made by my sister Jen using the weebirdy.com cake toppers! http://www.weebirdy.com/2012/05/free-printables-jubilee-cupcake-toppers-and-cake-banners.html