Tag Archives: Baking

Canada and cup cakes

I’ve just come back from an amazing three week holiday in Canada.

Our friends have been relocated to Barrie, near Toronto for two years, so for the past year we have been saving our pennies so that we could go out to see them and also explore some of the area. Until we started planning our route I had no idea it was such a vast place, we did as much as was possible, and yet only covered a tiny corner of Ontario.

The Canadians seem very adapted to living with the wildlife. We saw many chipmunks. My son who is six years old rescued one from a trap at a campsite at Tobermory, where the little fellow had obviously been deemed to be a pest. Finley was quite upset seeing him trying to lift the door to escape, so we casually left the two of them alone so that he could help him out. He was incredibly pleased with his endeavour!

The bear warnings we had were real, there had been sightings, but it was quite early in the year for them and they eluded us. As did the moose. My best spot was a hummingbird at Killbear Provincial Park, it was so beautiful.

My lasting thoughts of Canada will be the hugeness of everything: the sky goes on for ever and the lakes have no far shore and are tidal, so look like the sea. Oh, and the meals. They are huge too! A popular Canadian dish is called ‘poutine’. Living in Yorkshire I am quite used to people asking for chips and gravy, but ‘poutine’ is chips, gravy and curd cheese. It looks incredibly sloppy, must be loaded with cholesterol, but tastes lovely!

Birthday baking

I have come home to Birthday plans for my daughter Elena, who is now the ripe old age of four.

For her party she has requested not a big traditional birthday cake, but some buns. This may sound a simple enough request to you, but I know that what she is expecting is the finest pink cup cakes lathered in butter icing and decorations that I can make. No longer can I quickly smudge some icing on the cakes with a knife, she expects piped swirls. Hundreds and thousands will not do, I have to use glitter sprinkles.

Apologies if I sound as if I am moaning about this expectation, for actually I shall quite enjoy my afternoon’s work and the delighted children’s faces as they receive one each to take home after the party.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Maybe this Orange Ice Cup Cakes recipe will do the trick.

Pretty as a picture and quick too!

A Good Food Fast recipe that takes just 25 minutes to prepare and bake!

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

For an adult treat try these delicious Honey Flapjack Cookies.

Guaranteed to disappear before the end of the day!

Another great Good Food Fast recipe.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Take care.

Karen
The Dairy Diary Team

Become a fan

Honey Flapjack Cookies

Both wheat and dairy free, these little oaty crunchies are completely irresistible.

Time 25 minutes plus cooling
Calories per cookie 72 Kcal
Fat per cookie 4g of which saturated 0.5g
Makes 30 cookies
Suitable for vegetarians

Porridge oats 125g (4½oz)
Medium oatmeal 50g (2oz)
Light soft brown sugar 110g (4oz)
Heather honey 2 tbsp
Vanilla extract a few drops
Vegetable oil 110ml (3½fl oz)
Egg 1, beaten

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4 and line two large baking trays with baking parchment.

2 Put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Then put heaped teaspoonfuls of the mixture, well spaced apart, on the baking sheets and flatten slightly with the back of the spoon – you should be able to make 30 cookies.

3 Bake for 12–15 minutes until they are a rich golden brown. Leave them to cool for 10 minutes on the baking trays before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Cook’s Tip
For the best results, choose a stronger tasting variety of honey and add a teaspoon of cinnamon or ground mixed spice for a different flavour.

A Good Food Fast recipe.

Become a fan

Raisin Parkin

Perfect with an afternoon cup of tea.

Makes 20 squares
Time 1 hour 10 mins
Calories 120 per portion
Fat 4g of which 2.2g is saturated
Suitable for vegetarians
Suitable for freezing

Plain flour 175g (6oz)
Oatmeal 50g (2oz)
Bicarbonate of soda 1½ tsp
Ground ginger 1 tbsp
Brown sugar 75g (3oz)
Butter 75g (3oz)
Golden syrup 50g (2oz)
Black treacle 50g (2oz)
Egg 1 medium, beaten
Milk 150ml (¼ pint)
Raisins 110g (4oz)

1 Preheat oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas 3. Grease and line a 20cm (8in) square cake tin. Mix together flour, oatmeal, bicarbonate of soda and ginger.

2 Gently heat sugar, butter, syrup and treacle in a pan. Add egg and milk and mix together. Beat in dry ingredients then stir in raisins.

3 Pour into prepared tin and bake for 1 hour until firm to touch. Cool in tin, then cut into squares.

A Dairy Diary recipe.

Become a fan

Danish Pastries

A super-speedy way to enjoy an indulgent breakfast or coffee-time snack.

Time 30 minutes
Calories per pastry 281 Kcal
Fat per pastry 18g of which saturated 6.1g
Makes 8 pastries
Suitable for vegetarians

Ready-rolled puff pastry 425g packet
Egg 1, beaten
Apple sauce 8 tsp
Golden marzipan 110g (4oz)
Apricot jam 2 tbsp, warmed and sieved
Flaked almonds 15g (½oz), toasted

1 Preheat the oven to 220°C/Gas 7 and line a large baking tray with baking parchment.

2 Unroll the pastry and cut into eight equal-sized squares. Brush each with beaten egg and then add 1 teaspoon of apple sauce on to the centre of each.

3 Form the marzipan into a sausage-shape about 5cm (2in) long and slice into eight. Lay a piece on top of the apple sauce on each of the pastry squares. Fold up the corners of the puff pastry squares to meet in the middle over the marzipan, forming a mitre shape. Pinch each of the corners to seal.

4 Transfer to the baking tray, brush the top of the pastries with more egg and cook for 15–18 minutes until risen and golden.

5 Transfer to a wire rack, lightly brush with the sieved jam and sprinkle with a few almonds. They are best served warm.

Cook’s Tip
Use the same cooking method, but vary the fillings, such as canned fruit, jam or squares of chocolate.

Rceipe taken from Good Food, Fast.

Become a fan

Rich’s Fruit Cake

The perfect cake for afternoon tea.

Makes 12 slices
Time 2 hours
Calories 396 per portion
Fat 12g of which 5.7g is saturated
Suitable for freezing
Suitable for vegetarians

Mixed dried fruit 350g (12oz)
Glacè cherries 150g (5oz), roughly chopped
Mixed peel 50g (2oz)
Walnuts 50g (2oz), roughly chopped
Brown sugar 175g (6oz)
Butter 110g (4oz)
Mixed spice 1 tsp
Bicarbonate of soda ½ tsp
Milk 300ml (½ pint)
Self-raising flour 350g (12oz), sifted
Eggs 2, beaten

1 Preheat oven to 160°C/325°F/Gas 3. Place all ingredients except flour and eggs into a pan. Bring up to boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Cool slightly.

2 Add flour and eggs and stir well. Line a deep 20cm (8in) cake tin with greaseproof paper. Tip cake mixture into tin and level top.

3 Bake for 40 minutes then reduce heat to 150°C/300°F/Gas 2 and cook for 40-45 minutes or until skewer comes out clean.

4 Allow to cool in tin for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Remove paper and leave until cold.

Recipe taken from Dairy Diary 2011.

Become a fan

Have a Happy Easter Break

Holidays take on a whole new dimension when you have children.

Many of us grown ups look forward to having a rest. But children don’t rest, they get bored.

If you had asked me ten years ago what my plans were for the four day weekend, they would probably be to have one day cleaning up my home, the next visiting my relatives, then to have a day or two of chocolate eggs for breakfast, followed by a pub lunch and some afternoon drinking.

Not now. I find myself instead mixing up flour and water to stick strips of coloured paper to yogurt pots with to make mini-nests, into which I can put cute mini chocolate bunnies and chocolate eggs.

Simnel Cake
Old habits die hard, so I don’t just put these together for the children! We do all have to grow up sometimes though, and my nod to that is also to make a Simnel Cake, a traditional Easter cake with marzipan (my favourite!) for which there is a good easy to follow recipe in the ‘Around Britain Dairy Cookbook‘ if you should have it.

Easter Biscuits
However, no doubt when my children get wind of my planned afternoon of baking the cake shall be replaced with the much easier and child-friendly Easter Biscuits from the ‘Year Round Dairy Cookbook‘. Is that a problem? I shouldn’t think so… even the Grandparents like to indulge in a hand-made biscuit!

Have a Happy Easter

Karen
Dairy Diary Team

P.s. The wonderful weather continues, so this is the perfect time for gardening. Fancy winning a copy of Seasonal Garden Ideas?

To enter simply complete the form on our website www.dairydiary.co.uk/competitions.html and don’t forget to “Like’ the page for an extra chance to win!

Become a fan

← Previous 1 … 14 15 16 17 Next →

Dairy Diary Chat

Tag Archives: Baking

Canada and cup cakes