Day 92 - 1 April 2012 - My Reflection

Hello!

Day 92 sees me starting the April Photo A Day challenge. The first subject is My Reflection.

I sat on the bathroom bench and took a self-portrait with my iPhone.

Did you want to join me in the April challenge? Here is the list, you just need to tag your photos with #photoadayApril, wherever you put them (Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc).

I did more playing with Instagram today. I was making Lamingtons with the kids. Actually, we used bought sponge cake, so we "assembled" lamingtons rather than made them, LOL!

 I used the old Tupperware beetroot keeper to dunk the cake in the chocolate mix.

The kids did the rolling in the coconut.

They were happy. I was happy we didn't make too much mess.

:-)
Michelle

Day 64 - 4 March 2012 - ANZAC biscuits

Hello!

Day 64 was a baking day. Trying to get enough food made to keep my insatiable 9 year old going all day at school. She swims five days a week, and she's growing, so her appetite is massive.

Today I was a bit nice and made some sweet things. Today's photo is of the ANZAC biscuits I made.

They taste good.

I'll give you the recipe while I'm here. Those of you who are Australian or New Zealander will already know this recipe, I'm sure!

ANZAC Biscuits

Ingredients
1 cup plain flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup dessicated coconut
1 cup raw sugar (I usually only use 3/4 cup)
125g butter
1 tablespoon golden syrup
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons of boiling water

Method
Mix all dry ingredients together (except bicarb soda)
Melt butter together with syrup
Pour boiling water over bicarb soda, mix, then add to butter mixture.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well.
Roll 1 tablespoon of mixture and flatten slightly on baking tray.
Bake in slow oven (about 150c) until golden brown. About 20 minutes.

I made a double batch today. I'm a popular Mummy/wife tonight.

:-)
Michelle

Day 57 - 26 February 2012 - Sweetness

Hello!

It's Day 57! I can't believe I'm managing to keep up with this daily photo business! Today's post is also my entry into this week's Photo Friday Challenge, where the theme is sweetness.

Today was the day of our morning tea for my mother-in-law's birthday. I made quiche, chocolate slice, macarons and cupcakes. The cupcake recipe you can find on yesterday's post.  I should give you the macaron recipe too, because they were DELICIOUS. It was my first time making them, and I'll be making them again. Looking at this photo, I wish I'd chosen my white tablecloth instead of my Italian lemon one, LOL!

I actually used a couple of different recipes to make the macarons. The first one I looked at didn't tell me how or when to mix the egg white mixture with the almond mixture! Following here is my adaptation of the recipes I looked at:

Macarons
Ingredients
150g icing sugar
75g ground almonds (almond meal)
2 large egg whites (room temperature)
35g caster sugar
food colouring

Method
Preheat oven to 170c/325F and line two baking sheets with non-stick baking paper.
Sift the icing sugar and almond meal together.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Then add caster sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and continue beating until the eggwhite mixture is stiff and glossy.
Mix colouring and almond meal and icing sugar into the egg mixture. Mix it in well (you aren't gently folding here, you are making sure it is all mixed together). The mixture should be thick but still wet.
Place the mixture into a piping bag with a plain nozzle and pipe circles onto the baking paper.
Set aside for at least 30 minutes to allow the mixture to settle and for a "skin" to form on top of the macarons. (One recipe I read recommended setting them aside for 5 hours! Which I didn't do.)
Place in oven for 9 - 10 minutes. Remove from oven and leave to cool on the tray.

You can join these with jam, cream, buttercream, or ganache. This time I used the buttercream from my cupcakes (see my cupcake recipe), but next time I think I might make a ganache, the buttercream was a bit sweet for me. The macarons by themselves were divine!

Here's another photo:

Have I made you hungry for sweets?

:-)
Michelle

Day 56 - 25 February 2012

Hello!

A day of housework. We are having morning tea for the hubby's Mum tomorrow, so the house is cleaned and I've been baking.

I made Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Cupcake. I Googled the recipe, and the one I used is this one:

Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcakes:

·         1 1/2 cups self-rising flour

·         1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

·         1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

·         2 cups sugar

·         4 large eggs, at room temperature

·         1 cup milk

·         1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Icing:

·         Vanilla Buttercream, recipe follows

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line 2 (1/2 cup-12 capacity) muffin tins with cupcake papers.

In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.

In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in 3 parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not over beat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended. Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about 3/4 full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

Cool the cupcakes in tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

Vanilla Buttercream:

The vanilla buttercream we use at the bakery is technically not a buttercream but actually an old-fashioned confectioners' sugar and butter frosting. Be sure to beat the icing for the amount of time called for in the recipe to achieve the desired creamy texture.

·         1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

·         6 to 8 cups confectioners' sugar

·         1/2 cup milk

·         2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency. You may not need to add all of the sugar. If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly. (Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.) Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Yield: enough for 2 dozen cupcakes or 1 (9-inch) layer cake

This is a massive batch of cupcakes. I only used a half quantity of the buttercream recipe. The full quantity would cover more than four dozen cupcakes, I'd say. The batter made 24 cupcakes (big ones in muffin cases). The cupcakes were light and fluffy and delicious.

:-)

Michelle