A Cabinet Complete!!!

Well Hello again and Happy Friday to you!! Please come through to the loo won't you......

                                                                                   

Look!! Look up on the wall!! No, not at the great big dirty cobwebs....the cabinet!! THE cabinet...the one that sat about taking ages to paint, then sat about some more waiting to be hung on the wall.....

                                                                               

But look at her...she is up and looking rather pretty I think.....

                                                                                 

The paint job is definitely not one of my best and that is saying something  but I love the colour and am so pleased I decided to leave the handle in all it's rusty glory....I also love how it seems to have made great friends with one of my fave mirrors......

                                                                                 

Watcha think?? I

                                                                               

 Wishing you a fun and fab weekend.......

Over and out from the bathroom........


                                                                 Janelle  xx                                                                        

Chocolate Christmas Puddings......

Hello! It's Thursday, which of course is let's-get-baking-day...surely....
So today I'm sharing the farm's version of Christmas pudding. Which isn't exactly Christmas pudding. At all. To be frank I loathe do not really care for Xmas pudding or any type of pudding, cake, food of any type with dried fruit in it. I have tried my whole life to like and accept the humble sultana, raisin, prune, you name it but the gag reflex in my mouth just will not come to the party on this. Soooo......an alternative was needed.
Enter.....                                                                          

                                                                                   
Yep...the good old chocolate cake. The perfect alternative to pretty much anything and everything!?!
These little lovelies are simply a chocolate cupcake smothered in vanilla icing with a few smashed up candy canes thrown on top. Easy as yes??

                                                                                     

So let's get down to business and get recipe writing......

                                                                                 

                                                         Chocolate Cupcakes   

Ingredients

115 gms butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar (I use raw but use whatever you have/prefer)
1 teaspn vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
2 heaped tablspns cocoa powder

Method    

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees

2. Beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla until it is lovely and pale

3. Add your eggs and beat well

4. Now sift in the flour and cocoa powder and mix through. Alternate with pouring your milk in, this will make it easier to stir in.

5. If this all seems like a bit too much hard work I have been known to throw everything in the bowl at once and beat it all for a few minutes. Seems to work just fine!

6. Ok, spoon your mixture into cupcake papers (I stick the papers in a muffin tray so they hold their shape nicely) and pop them in the oven for approx 12-15 minutes

7. Take out when cooked and allow to cool on a cooling tray

                                                                                   

Once your cakes are cooled right off strip off their little papers and whip up a batch of vanilla icing. Once again I do not have an exact recipe to share with you of how to make my icing as I have always just winged it. I basically toss some icing sugar in a smallish bowl, add a teaspoon or so of margarine then add enough hot water to soften this and mix through with the sugar. I then add vanilla extract. I just keep adding more icing sugar and water until I have the amount and consistency that I need.
Now spread that icing right onto those little brown cakes......

                                                                                 

Once you've done this go and grab your candy canes (if your children haven't sniffed out your stash and helped themselves to the whole packet in a pre-xmas frenzy) and get smashing.....

                                                                               

                                             

Little tip for you here.....it's a good idea to pop the canes into a plastic zip-lock bag before going forth with whacking your rolling pin about as this will prevent your kitchen floor, bench and any other nearby surface from being sprayed with sticky green and red pieces of sugar candy. Just saying.......

                                                                                   

Right....last thing to do is simply sprinkle your cakes/puddings with pretty pieces of lolly. If you are the precise type you may like to carefully place particular chosen pieces of green and red candy in strategic spots of your cake...or if you're anything like me you will simply stand back and throw. I like to call it my creative outlet.

                                                                                   

And there we have it...a simple yet effective alternative to the Christmas pud. You like??!?

                                                                                 

It will do our family this year anyway....if anyone is wanting the real-deal they may have to go and search the supermarket shelves!!!!

                                                                               

I'm now off to enjoy one of these with a cuppa, then mop my kitchen floor.....

                                                                               

Have a fab day won't you!

Happy Baking......

           
                                                                    Janelle  xx                                                                                  

                                                                                                                                             

Let the festive cooking begin!!!

Hey there!!

                                                                                 

We have broken out the Christmas cookie cutters and the festive baking has begun!!

                                                                                 

The house is currently smelling deeeelicious and all gingerbreadish.......

                                                                               

Recipes will follow shortly.....

                                                                                   

In the meantime....

                                                                                 

Enjoy your day!!!


                                                   Janelle  xx                                                                              

Chocolate Fudge.............

Hello! Happy Monday!! Now quick.....let's get ourselves in that kitchen...........

                                                                                 

                                                                                   

Actually you know what...this one is so ridiculously easy you could almost drag your microwave into the living room, stick your feet up on the sofa and just press a few buttons. A little mild stirring is really the only physical activity required....

                                                                             

This recipe I have stolen from my lovely niece. With her permission of course!! It has A.L.O.T of sugar in it which kind of makes my teeth ache and my mind start tallying up dentist's bills but really...I think a little of this does go a long way and would make a perfect Christmas present, a great just-because treat or even a self-indulgent late night snack. Whatever it's purpose it is definitely eeeeeaaasssyyyyy to make....

                                                                           

Okay.....here we go......

                                                                                 

 

                                         
                                                             Chocolate Fudge                                                          
Ingredients

3 cups brown sugar ( just look away and pour it in.....)
1 tin condensed milk
250g cooking chocolate (I used white. Please use whichever colour or shade you fancy)
140g margarine or butter

Method

1. Place all ingredients EXCEPT for the chocolate into a glass/china cooking bowl

2. Microwave on high for 3 minutes, give it a stir, then pop it back into the microwave to cook for another 3 minutes

3. Break up your chocolate into smallish pieces and throw in the bowl and then microwave for a further 2 minutes.

4. Stir it gently and pour the mixture into a lined shallow slice tin

5. Pop in the fridge for at least a few hours

6. Cut into pieces

7. Eat

                                                                             

I mean seriously....how easy????!!

                                                                                 

I'm so glad I now have this recipe in my recipe stash as I can see how handy it may be for last-minute parties, entertaining, satisfying a sweet craving that can occur unexpectedly at any given moment.......

                                                                                 

So off you pop....dust off those microwaves, stock up on the sweet stuff and let me know how you go!!!

Have a fab week folks.......


                                                       Janelle xx    

A little more Christmas craft........

Well Good Afternoon there!! It's Friday (yay!) and I can feel a little more craft coming on. Christmas craft that is.  A little knitting project to be exact.....

                                                                             

I knitted up one of these little Christmas trees a week or so ago and now cannot seem to stop!!

                                                                                 

They are so quick and easy, perfect for whipping up in a matter of hours and then sitting back to admire your handy work with an over-inflated feeling of smug self-satisfaction!! Love it.

                                                                                 

I don't feel I can really post the pattern on here as it isn't mine but it is, once again, taken from the beautiful book "The Knitter's Year" by Debbie Bliss. Obviously I am very much loving this book at the moment! These trees are simply 3 seperate pieces which are a kind of rectangle shape which you stitch up into triangles then just thread the ribbon through the 3 pieces to join them and make your Christmas tree. So simple and so cute!!

                                                                                 

I'm thinking I need a few more and then will hang them on our Christmas tree.

                                                                                   

I am loving the Christmas craft this year! Just call me Martha!!

Or not.

Have a fab weekend folks......


                                                           Janelle  xx                                                                                    

Christmas Craft Fun........

Hello there!! Not a great deal to report today but how's about a little show and tell??

                                                                                 

I've been getting my Christmas craft on lately and the latest project being this quite fabulous Xmas stocking. I have to say this is actually pretty simple to do, just takes a little concentration to keep track with the pattern. It is from the gorgeous super-styled book "The Knitter's Year" by Debbie Bliss. Highly recommend!!

                                                                                   

So how about you guys?? Are you up to your eyebrows in Christmas craft or going the see and buy way this year?? I'm somewhere in between......

                                                                                   

Enjoy the rest of your Wednesday won't you?!!



                                                             Janelle  xx                                                                              

Ginger Kisses......

Hello there!! Fancy a little weekend baking? On a Tuesday?? Of course you do...come on in......

                                                                                   

So today I thought we could start tip-toeing into the Christmas baking arena. Game?!?? Of course these biscuits are meant to be, and indeed should be, baked and scoffed at any time of the year but the fact that they are ginger and I have shoved a bright red towel underneath them I figured that this made for the perfect addition to our Christmas recipe book. Because we all have one of those don't we? Ahem.....

                                                                                 

I came across this recipe whilst visiting my sister recently. She was busy mixing, scooping and cooking while I was chatting and eyeing off all that was being mixed, scooped and cooked. And it looked good. So good that I promptly copied out that recipe, checked we had all the necessary ingredients in the pantry, then set about whipping up a batch myself. Success!!!

                                                                               

What I love most about these cookies is that not only are they delicious, easy to bake, my children love them and they are that perfect texture sitting somewhere between a cake and a cookie BUT the recipe makes so many!! So at least once you have gone to the effort (which seriously isn't much!) and made up a batch then  iced the two biscuits together you are still left with a very decent amount of cookies. Always a good thing around here.....

                                                                               

Okay.....let's get on with the all important recipe shall we?? Yes, I think we shall......

                                                                 Ginger Kisses    
Ingredients

225 grams butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar (I used less, about 1/2?)
1 egg
1 tablspn golden syrup
2 1/2 cups plain flour
2 teaspn ginger powder
1 heaped teaspn bi-carb soda

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 160 degrees

2. In a bowl place the butter and sugar and beat until pale and creamy

3. Add the egg and golden syrup and beat some more

4. Now sift and fold in the remaining dry ingredients

5. Scoop a heaped teaspoon  of mixture onto a greased or lined baking tray. I kind of then squished them into a roundish shape with my hands.

6. Throw them in the oven for approx 10 minutes

7. When they are out and completely cool ice together with vanilla icing

8. That. is. it.

                                                                               

Easy as pie. Well, easIER than pie really aren't they....

                                                                                 

When I bake these again I think I'll dust the top of them with a little icing sugar to pretty them up a tad but honestly, they really don't need much messing about with....they are pretty damn good as they are!!

                                                                                 

And with that I must get flying out the door. How ridiculous is this time of year???!!? A good ridiculous though. Most of the time....

Take care and let me know if you have a go at these. And you really should have a go you know!!?!

Enjoy!!


                                             Janelle  xx                                                                

Friday Flowers..........

Good morning!!

                                                                                 

And hello pretty pink roses......

                                                                                 

A few Friday flowers just for you........

                                                                                 

                                                                                 

Home grown and given with love!!

                                                                                 

Have a fantastic weekend won't you?!!!

See you soon............



                                                                    Janelle  xx                                                                                  

A White Rose......

Hey there!! How's the day been treating you?? I've having a bit of a start. stop. start. stop. kind of one. I'm in a stop stage at the minute. So....fancy some roses? White roses? White climbing out of control roses???

                                                                                 

So this is what the front area of our house is looking like at the moment. Very white. Very 'rosey'....

                                                                                 

                                                                                 

And I'm kind of liking it like that.

                                                                                   

And in amongst it all.....my fave bench seat. This area always catches the morning sun and it is really lovely to sit here on a Summer's morning, catching a few rays, cuppa in hand, of course.

                                                                             

The dappled shade it creates is perfect.

                                                                                 

Now we just need a little more sun so I can enjoy the 'dapple'!!!

                                                                                   

I'm off to wait........

and wait......

Have a fab day wherever you are..........



                                               Janelle  xx