Creme Egg Muffins!

This was a recipe that I found on one of my favourite websites and have been waiting ages for Easter to arrive as that is the only time of the year when mini creme eggs are available.

This is an interesting recipe as the mini creme eggs are baked with the muffin dough and did not melt at all in the oven. If you pull some dough over the mini egg when you place the mini egg on top of the dough, the dough puffs up and cover the mini egg completely as you can see in the picture.

This is actually a really nice surprise when you bite into the muffin as you would not be expecting anything inside!

I gave 4 to my brother-in-law and family and the Husband's niece and nephew seem to really like them. Another 2 was given to the parents-in-law, I ate one and the reminder 5 were taken to the office, where they were well-appreciated.

I have bought another 4 bags of mini eggs on sale to bake them again!

Choc-Cherry Lollipops!

I had a stash of glace cherries that I brought on sale, so I was looking for a recipe that will use as many glace cherries as possible. I also wanted to include chocolate as it was for Easter Monday, which is usually a holiday but not for hardworking Scottish companies!

I found this recipe and it was a surprise hit with the Husband and the office. Most people found it quite cute that the cookie was on an ice-cream stick, just like a big lollipop.

The cherries and chocolate pieces are meant to be pushed into the cookie dough after each cookie has been rolled and pressed into a round on the baking tray. I did not realise how well the cookie will spread when baking which is why the cherries and chocolate bits look so sparse on the cookie. Lesson learnt meant subsequent batches have more cherries and chocolate bits than before.

The recipe also stated it will make 30 cookies but I am quite sure I ended up with at least 50 cookies on sticks.

Cookies on sticks were finished in a day!

The Chocolate Cake Winner!

And this is the chocolate cake winner! As you can see, this is the chocolate raisin sandwich cake decorated with sugar butterflies and sugar stars! This cake also kept really well as even 5 days later, it was still quite tasty!



And the birthday cake all lit up! I was really glad that my friend was really impressed with the cake when he came to pick it up as I think he did not expect me to have decorated it as well.



And the happy birthday girl!



And here she is tucking into her chocolate cake!

Photos reproduced with kind permission from her parents.

Maple Yogurt Loaf!

This is a really tasty loaf that smells brilliantly too when baking! From its name, you can guess there is maple syrup and greek yogurt in this loaf, which makes it really moist, almost like a sponge cake but lighter.

I baked this because I had a pot of yogurt I wanted to use up but of course, I did not have enough yogurt and end up using a bit of sour cream instead, which I do not think affected the taste at all.

My dinner guest loved it so I sent her home with a couple of slices. I took the bulk of the loaf into the office though!

Chicken Casserole with rice!

My first attempt at proper cooking! I managed to convince a friend to be my guinea pig and be the first to try my cooking. This is the starter from the Cooking School I attended that I just doubled up to make into a main course. Also, rather than making the puff pastry, I just cooked rice instead.

To my delight, she actually seemed to really like it and it actually turned out quite tasty without much seasoning, which is what I really cannot judge i.e. what does 'salt and pepper to taste' mean?

The photo does not look too appetising probably because I have already started eating it before I remembered to take a picture!

I cannot believe how long it took though. From weighing, chopping, dicing to finishing the actual cooking, it took an hour and a half! Maybe if I do it everyday, it gets easier and quicker but in the meantime, I think cookng can only be an weekend option.

Now, I just need to convince the Husband to try...

Cherry & Sultana Loaf!

A lovely fruity loaf with rum! I baked this on a Friday evening as I wanted something fruity for breakfast for the weekend. It is really moist and full of glace cherries and sultanas. I am sure most people are aware I am a huge fan of sweet stuff and sultanas are the best thing for baking.

The receipe states 60ml of rum which means you can really taste the rum when you eat the cake. Good for people who like a strong flavour.

Fruit cakes keep really well though which is another reason why I like baking them. People in the office really like the high fruit content and the fact it is healthier than store-bought cakes!

Chocolate & Raisin Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Icing!

Chocolate cake candidate No. 4 is the winner! For people who have been reading my posts, you will realise chocolate cake No. 4 is basically a combination of cake No. 3 and icing from cake No. 2. I only made 1 layer as a taster and the actual cake for next Wednesday will be a sandwich cake. Seriously yummy!