yumm!

I made these tonight http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/02/thick-chewy-oatmeal-raisin-cookies/

Will update later with exact recipe and hopefully some pics! :)

Better get back to the baking. YUM!

Caramel slice

I made this the other day, and it was choc-caramel mini cups. You made it and put it in cupcake trays to make little cups of chocolate caramel goodness. However, I decided to make it as a slice! And I've slightly simplified it.

Ingredients:
1 packet Arnott's butternut snap biscuits
1 tin condensed milk
2tbsp golden syrup
75g butter
30g butter
30g copha
200g melting chocolate

Alternatively if you are lazy, cut out the condensed milk, the 30g butter and golden syrup and use a can of Caramel Top N Fill instead. (Or use both and mix together mmmmm!!!)

OK. So throw the biscuits in a blender or food processor and crush them into crumbs. Melt the 75g of butter and pour it in and mix well.
Press it into a lamington tin or cake tin of a similar size. You probably don't need to grease it because of the butter, but lining with baking paper wouldn't hurt.
Then put the condensed milk, golden syrup and 30g butter into a saucepan and heat through. Do it nice and slow, and stir it well. It might go a bit lumpy, but it's ok, it still tastes good. Heat it till it simmers for a few minutes and goes a nice golden brown. If you just use the Top N Fill, heat it so it goes runny. Or, as I did tonight, use both and mix together, mmmmm!

Pour the caramel mix over the biscuit base, and then bake for 20 mins in the oven at 175C.

Take out of the oven and cool.

Heat the copha on the stove till melted, then add the chocolate and melt it all, stirring well.

Pour chocolate over the cooled slice and then refrigerate until set. Cut into nice small pieces as it's quite rich.

I will post photos later, as mine is still setting in the fridge!

This recipe needs to keep refrigerated, and will last a few days, if you can manage not to eat it all!

yummy pretty cake

Well I saw this cake here and I was inspired. The original cake was an almond cake with cherry filling but I didn't like the idea of that, so I made it choc/vanilla/choc with the same icing.

I used a packet mix, just a cheap home brand one. 2 x choc and 1 x vanilla. I think any plain cake that isn't too strong a flavour will work well - from scratch or from a packet mix. Vanilla and choc worked well, probably mud - choc and vanilla would work well too but may be a bit strong in flavour. That's why I like the generic brands as they aren't too strong.

Anyway, make 3 cakes of the same size and let them cool.

Trim the top of the cakes so they can stack on top of each other.

Get your cake stand and put 1 choc cake in the middle. Add some Nestle Caramel Top n Fill as the middle layer, then add the vanilla, more caramel and then the 2nd choc cake.
If you can't get Caramel Top n Fill, use a tin of condensed milk , take off the label, and put in a saucepan filled with water. Make sure the tin is covered. Boil this for 4 hours, let it cool and open it. Voila, you have caramel sauce!

Meanwhile you need to make the buttercream icing!

Whip 4 egg whites in a mixer till light and fluffy. Then mix 1 cup sugar with half a cup of water and heat on the stove and stir till it's dissolved. Once dissolved, let it boil for approx 5 mins till it thickens a little and becomes syruppy. I don't have a candy thermometer, so that's how I did it. Otherwise, till it gets to approx 240F.

Turn on the mixer again and whip the eggwhites, while slowly drizzling in the candy mixture. Do it nice and slowly and it should partially cook the egg from the heat! Once it's all mixed in, add 1 1/2 cups of butter (not margarine) at room temperature, 1tbsp at a time. Mix on medium-high till it's all mixed in then put up to high. It may curdle and look a bit like ricotta cheese, but mix it on high and it will go nice and creamy after a few minutes. You will need to be mixing for about 15 mins all up probably - so an electric stand mixer is best!

Once that's done, ice your cake neatly and wipe off any spills from your platter.

Then you decorate it!
I bought some royal/white icing from the shop and coloured it with food colouring and then cut it out with the cookie cutter. I left them overnight in cupcake trays so they could keep their shape. 2 days is better time to dry as overnight had them dry but soft. Still yummy though.

Decorate to your hearts content!!!