Sunday Recipe 7/2010

This week I thought I would give rolo tarts a try and unfortunately the rolos didn't melt as I thought they would, so instead I'm going to give you the recipe for:

WHITE CHOCOLATE AND MASCARPONE TARTS

Ingredients

For the Pastry

250g plain flour

125g butter

3 tbsp caster sugar

1 lrg egg

For the Filling

200g white chocolate

450g mascarpone cheese

150ml double cream

Topping

Soft fruit like Strawberries or Raspberries

Mint leaves

Preheat Oven to 200C (Gas Mark 6)

Method

1) Place the flour, butter into a bowl and rub with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs

2) Add the sugar and egg and mix until it comes together in a ball

3) Roll out the pastry and cut out with a cutter, line your tart tins with it and chill for 20 mins

4) Line the pastry cases with baking cases and fill with baking beans. I use a small cupcake case and fill with dry rice.

5) Bake blind for 10-12 mins, then remove the paper and cook for a further 5 mins, remove from oven and cool.

6) For the filling, place the white chocolate and 125g of mascarpone in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water and stir until melted.

7) Remove from the heat and add the remaining mascarpone and whisk briskly until smooth, then whisk in the double cream

8) Pour into the pastry cases and chill for 3 hours or until softly set

9) Arrange the berries and mint on the top when ready to serve.

Something very delicious on a Summer Day

xxx

Tag! You're it!

I've been tagged today by Kate at Glamourpuss today, which is lovely, Thank you.


So the rules of the game are:

1. open your first photo folder
2. scroll to the tenth photo
3. post the photo and the story behind it
4. tag five more people


Its as easy as that, so my photo is



I took this photo of Grace when we got her Bridesmaid dress to check it fitted and send a photo to her Grandma, as you can see it fitted and she looked beautiful, and at the Wedding she looked like a proper little princess.


This is a lovely idea and I can't wait to see what photos are showed by:


Sarah at The Other Mousie


Vikki at GiddyStuff


Sam at PantsandPaper


Lynsey at SwirlyArts


Zenia at Handmade By Zenia


Can't wait to see the stories behind those photos


xxx

Friday Favourites 8/2010

This weeks Friday Favourite is a very good friend of mine Zenia at HandmadeByZenia (also known as todayscrisisis on Twitter). She has been making dichroic glass jewellery for a while now but has only recently got herself a kiln so is now creating her own glass to make her jewellery. Hopefully she will be on Folksy & Etsy soon but why not follow her blog for now.

You see the piece at the bottom of the kiln, the clear square with the blue & red accents & the wire tree well I now have that as a necklace and its lovely!

Don't forget to pop back for another Friday Favourite next week

xxx

Friday Favourites 7/2010

Todays Friday Favourites is going to be all about FELT, I love felt but especially the soft snuggly felt, I love the colours you can get and the items you can make, the fact it doesn't fray and that if you don't mind a little mess you can make it yourself. And in no particular order:

My first Felty Favourite is Sarah at Paper and String, her felt is really soft and comes in different sizes, she also has a new workshop which I'm extremely jealous of, and she has a wonderful blog with a great giveaway each month.

Second on my list is Laura (Lupin) at Bugs and Fishes, again her felt is gorgeous, her items she makes are beautiful and sometimes quirky and her blog is entertaining!

Third is Jenny at The Felted Rainbow, her felt is what I have used for Albies Hat, it is recycled and comes in lots of colours.

Lastly is Clara from the rainbowroom, lots of gorgeous supplies to make your own felt, lots of lovely handmade felty goodies and lots of rainbows!

Hope you have enjoyed my Felty Friday Favourites

xxx

Shortbread Extra

Not so long ago I wrote my Shortbread Recipe and today I have been asked for the recipe for the topping I use for Millionaires shortbread, so here it is, I will add the photos later when I get a chance to make it, which I'm sure won't be long as it is a favourite in our house!

MILLIONAIRES SHORTBREAD

Ingredients
2 x Shortbread Mixture
175g Butter
115g Golden Caster Sugar
3 tbsp Golden Syrup
400g can condensed milk
350g plain chocolate (my family prefers milk chocolate so I use that instead)

I use my trusted ceramic roasting dish as its just the right size. You will need something thats approx 30cm by 20cm and approx 5cm deep.

Preheat oven to 180C (Gas Mark 4)

Method
1) Grease and line the baking dish
2) Make the shortbread as in the recipe but this time press it into the baking dish and smooth the top.
3) Bake for approx 20-25 minutes or until golden
4) Meanwhile, to make the filling, place the butter, sugar, syrup and condensed milk in a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar has melted.
5) Bring to the boil and simmer for 6-8 minutes, stirring constantly until the mixture becomes very thick.
6) Pour over the shortbread base and leave to chill int he refridgerator until firm.
7) To make the topping, melt the chocolate and leave to cool, then spread over the caramel.
8) Chill in the refridgerator until set
9) Cut and serve!

I cut into quite small pieces as it is very moreish and we always go back for more!

If you enjoy these or any other recipe on here then please leave a comment as I would love to hear what you think, Thank you

xxx

Myfanwy & Martyn's Wedding

This weekend we have been to Wales for Robs sisters wedding. Not going into the ins and outs of the in-law issues but needless to say nothing changes!

So the wedding, it was a Wonderful day, Maf looked beautiful, her dress was antique gold with lots of embroidery, pearls, seqenes and sparkle, like a real princess. Maf is also Graces Godmother so it was lovely that she asked Grace to be a bridesmaid especially as we don't see Robs family very often as they live so far away. Unfortunately things didn't go completely to plan, Grace didn't exactly want to be bridesmaid, now if you know Grace you know she is very shy and really doesn't like crowds especially people she doesn't know, so this didn't really come as a surprise to me but it didn't go down too well with the MIL! In the end it all went well until the evening when Grace decided enough was enough and became rather ill! Anyway, I thought you would like to see my beautiful Princess!

xxx

Sunday Recipe 6/2010

So I've been promising twitter friends something chocolatey ready for the half term well I hope this will satisfy your chocolate needs!

CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

Ingredients
100g chocolate
2 large eggs
125g softened butter
275g caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
50g Self Raising Flour
25g Plain Flour
2 tbsps cocoa powder
100g chocolate chips or chopped nuts (I use a mix of chocolate chips due to the kids not liking nuts)
Preheat oven to 180C (Gas Mark 4) and grease and line a 20cm square cake tin that is at least 6.5cm deep

Method
1) Melt the chocolate
2) Put the butter, sugar and vanilla extract into a large mixing bowl and beat them until fluffy.
3) Add the eggs a little at a time beating between each addition.
4) Sift both flours and cocoa powder into the bowl.
5) Add the melted chocolate and chocolate chips (or nuts) and stir all the ingredients together until they are well mixed
6) Spoon the mixture into the tin and smooth the top with the back of a spoon
7) Bake for approx 35 minutes. They are ready when risen slightly and a crust has formed on top but they will be soft in the middle.
8) Leave the brownies in the tin for 20 minutes, then cut into squares.

If you enjoy these or any other recipe on here then please leave a comment as I would love to hear what you think, Thank you

xxx

Friday Favourites 6/2010

This weeks Friday Favourite was a difficult one to choose as there are still soooo many people out there I want to mention but this lovely lady has been helping me in another venture so have been wanting to post about her but until recently she didn't have her shop open but this changed recently!

So for this week my Friday Favourite is Vikki at GiddyStuff, she is in to lots of different crafts, jewellery, felt, sewing, knitting, you name it she does it! Not sure how she fits it all in with family and working but she does and manages to twitter too! You can find her on folksy and Misi

xxx

Sunday Recipe 5/2010

I always try to have something in the house for the children to eat other than chocolate and this is one of their favourites.

FLAPJACK

Ingredients

110g soft brown sugar

100g butter

1 rounded dessertspoon golden syrup

175g whole porridge oats

75g raisins or sultanas (or perhaps you could try cut apple or apricots, most fruits work)

Preheat oven to 150C (Gas Mark 2)

You will need an 18 or 20cm square baking tin at least 4cm deep, lightly greased

(I use double the quantity and use a large ceramic roasting dish)

Method

1) Place the sugar, butter and golden syrup in a saucepan and heat gently until the fat has melted, stirring every now and then.

2) Take the saucepan off the heat and stir in the porridge oats and fruit

3) Pour the mixture into the prepared tin

4) Press it out using the back of a tablespoon or your hand (I use my hand as I find it flattens easier)

5) Bake for approx 40-45 minutes

6) Allow the mixture to cool in the tin for approx 10 minutes, then cut into oblong bars

7) Leave in the tin until cold before removing them

8) Store in a tin

These are perfect for lunch boxes and after school munchies

xxx

Friday Favourites 5/2010

Last week I had a lovely tweet from a very lovely lady, she is an inspiration to all of us as she works out of a shed at the bottom of her garden in all weathers without proper heating!!!

I hope that I bring you a variety of items within my Friday Favourites, and I continue to expand the range with Gabriella from Moobaacluck. She is a painter and illustrator and has over recent years expanded from greeting cards and childrens books to handpainted gifts, perfect for that personal touch and you can find her on her own website and also on NOTHS.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend and that you will come back on Sunday for another recipe.

xxx

Albie Kit is in my shops now

You have probably guessed from the title of this piece that the long awaited Albie Kit is now in my folksy and etsy shops, he comes with a variety of colours for his hat so all you have to do is choose which one is your favourite.

Am currently working on a few more kits but we shall have to wait and see how it all works out.

xxx