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Coconut and chocolate chunk flapjacks

Coconut and chocolate chunk flapjacks

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I really fancied flapjacks yesterday. I’m not a huge breakfast person, but I do like a little something to nibble on with a cup of tea mid morning, and biscuits get a bit boring. You can easily make these vegan by substituting the butter, checking that the golden syrup you use is vegan (Lyle’s definitely is), and using vegan chocolate (did you know that Galaxy do vegan chocolate bars, including flavours like Caramel and Sea Salt and Smooth Orange? I’ve only ever seen it on Amazon though). Add coconut chips or dessiccated coconut, plus peanut butter, chopped nuts or dried fruit if you want. I love that as long as you keep the basic fat/sugar/oats ratio, you can personalise them as much as you want. If you want to go mad, substitute your favourite chocolate treat for the squares… Rolos or even slices of Mars Bar would be amazing!

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Easy no knead white bread

Back to basics: easy, no knead white bread

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I love making bread. I love the smell of the loaves baking that fills the house house with that feeling of warmth and comfort (and hell, don’t we all need a bit of that right now?) and I love the fact that it’s a hell of a lot cheaper than buying artisan loaves from bakers (although I love doing that too). What I don’t like is kneading, so you won’t see any of that in my bread recipes. I know some people love it (and I’ve gone through stages of making bread like that), but I prefer the ‘bung it all into the machine’ method. All the flavour, none of the arm ache. This easy, no knead white bread recipe makes two loaves. They don’t last long enough in our house, but if you want, you can eat one fresh, then slice and freeze the other one. It’s perfect for toasting.

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Peanut, coconut and chocolate chip flapjacks

Peanut, coconut and chocolate chip flapjacks

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If you’re looking for a sweet treat to bake at home right now (and if you’re lockdown parenting, something to keep the kids occupied for a while too), then look no further than these peanut, coconut and chocolate chip flapjacks. They weren’t supposed to have chocolate chips in, but Charlie requested them at the last minute, and they’re so good, I’ll definitely be adding them from now on. As long as you keep the basic fat/sugar/oat proportions in this recipe the same you can add or substitute ingredients for what you have handy at home. For the fat element, you can use butter, or coconut oil or plant based spread if you want to keep it vegan. Oh and if you don’t want to use peanut butter, just up the fat content to 175g.

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Pastry jammy cakey things

Pastry jammy cakey things

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I’m sure I’ve talked about this before, but when Mr Wiggo was little, his mum used to make these things called ‘pastry jammy cakey things’ - literally just what they sound like: jam tarts with a sponge topping. I’ve made them tons of times over the years, including a Christmassy clementine and cinnamon mince pie version, but the original is still his favourite, especially with orange in the pastry. You can make them with any jam you like, and flavour the sponge with anything: vanilla, more orange… you can even substitute a tablespoon or two of the flour with cocoa and make chocolate ones (which are fab with a marmalade centre).

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A Christmas baking roundup

Weekend wishlist: the Christmas baking roundup

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Seeing as tomorrow is Stir-up Sunday, and you know how much I love a bit of bakeware, I couldn’t resist doing a little Christmas baking roundup - there are so many incredibly lovely bits and pieces of cookware around at this time of year, plus if someone you love is keen on cooking and baking, they make the best pressies too.

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How to make chocolate chip blondies

How to make chocolate chip blondies

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After the somewhat epic Nutella cheesecake with smashed Ferrero Rocher that Charlie chose for his 21st, I was kind of hoping for something easy from Sam. He didn’t disappoint when he went for blondies (yes, it has actually taken me a complete month to get round to posting this recipe). What’s a blondie? Well, think of it as the soft, fudgy, butterscotchy little sister of the brownie. Instead of chocolate, the blondie gets its flavour from brown sugar and vanilla, resulting in squidgy, sweet, chewy bars that are perfect for sharing. I feel like there are two types of blondie recipe: cakey ones or squishy ones and this is definitely the squishy variety. Fancy baking these delicious, chewy, vanilla-scented beauties? Here’s how to make chocolate chip blondies - you won’t believe how easy it is.

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Nordic Christmas shortbread - perfect for gifting

Nordic Christmas shortbread

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I’m a bit addicted to these gorgeous Nordic Ware tins. I’d totally forgotten that I’d even bought this one until I was looking back on my Christmas posts from last year. This Nordic Christmas shortbread is better, I think, baked slightly thinner, so this recipe actually makes two lots. You can stuff it all in if you want to, but it makes some pretty mammoth slabs of shortbread, which I don’t think are quite as nice as these thinner, more delicate ones. If you don’t have a fancy schmancy tin, press it into a loose bottomed cake tin, then mark the slices out with a knife, cutting about half way through the mixture.

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Lemon curd drizzle cake

Lemon curd drizzle cake made with real tears

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So this weekend it was Mr E’s birthday. If you follow me on Instagram, you will probably know all the drama that went with this cake, but if not, and if you’ve got five minutes, I’ll fill you in. The day started well, with pressies and that sort of thing, and as usual, being the birthday person, he got to choose his dream birthday cake. When the kids were little they always chose chocolate fudge cake, then when they turned into teenagers, they would spend hours trying to come up with the most difficult, complicated thing they could possibly think of (we basically invented the technical challenge long before Bake Off was around). I particularly remember a whole day spent constructing a black forest gateau, and another layering up chocolate fudge brownies with buttercream, which was both the most delicious, and the most sickly cake I’ve ever eaten. Anyhoo, Mr E likes a lemon drizzle, which is easy enough, but wanted it layered up with whipped cream. Again, no problemo. But then it all went wrong, and that’s why his lemon drizzle ended up being lemon curd drizzle, but actually tasted really nice anyway, even though it was a bit of a disaster. Let me fill you in…

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My elderflower recipes for Belvoir

My elderflower recipes for Belvoir

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It’s no secret that this time of year is my favourite. Wandering through the Chiltern Hills with Lyra, the bees are buzzing, the grass is emerald green and the air has finally warmed up enough for me to discard my parka. We always look out for the first elderflowers: for me, they’re a firm favourite - the scent reminds me of early summer weekends at the cricket club, making elderflower crowns with the clusters of tiny, star-shaped creamy yellow flowers. We’ve spotted some over the last couple of weekends, and Mr E and I are dying to make elderflower tempura with the new blooms. To celebrate elderflower season, I’ve teamed up with Belvoir Fruit Farms to create some delicious elderflower recipes using their lovely range of delicious cordials: some pillowy soft elderflower marshmallows, fragrant elderflower scones and an indulgent elderflower and ginger cheesecake. Read on for the recipes!

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Easy mini bakewell tarts

Easy mini Bakewell tarts

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I had some pastry left over after wildly overestimating the amount I was going to need for an apple tart, and decided to try my hand making some mini Bakewell tarts. I kid you not, these babies are delicious and were completely demolished in less than five minutes. If you want to go all Mr Kipling, feel free to slather them in really thick icing. I prefer just a drizzle and - of course - a cherry!

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Chocolate orange drizzle muffins

Chocolate orange drizzle muffins

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I do love a good muffin, don’t you? Here’s a quick muffin vs cupcake factorama for you: muffins are different from cupcakes because a) they don’t have a big swirl of icing or frosting on top (but they can be glazed), b) the texture is denser (wet ingredients are stirred briefly into dry, rather than creaming butter and sugar) and c) they tend to be much less sweet. Anyway, I wanted to do something with a bit of a Halloween twist involving the cupcake’s less sweet, denser, unfrosted cousin, but I’m absolutely no good with novelty things (as evidenced by these rather clumsy Halloween cupcakes back in 2013), so I decided on chocolate orange drizzle muffins basically because chocolate orange is my favourite flavour combo and also because the drizzle seems suitably autumnal and pumpkin-coloured (I’m always thinking about the ‘gram). I used cacao powder because I think it gives a better chocolatey hit than cocoa, but feel free to use either.

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Rosemary rye bread toasties with avocado, pesto and mozzarella

Easy home made rosemary rye bread

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Last week, I mentioned my need for a few little calming rituals, like my coconut chai tea. My brain is particularly whizzy at the moment (hence, I went to my first yoga class this week - and loved it), and if I’m up really early, I quite like to go downstairs, say hi to the dog and have a little potter in the kitchen. At the moment I’m a bit obsessed with baking bread - I tend to bake two loaves at a time, using my standard, lazy recipe (which doesn’t involve any kneading at all). I’ve mentioned before that rye is really good for you - I don’t make 100% rye bread, which we find too strong, but when mixed with white flour, this is our absolute favourite. Another bonus of home made bread is that it lasts ages when compared to shop bought, which seems to go mouldy very quickly. This particular recipe has rosemary added, which is surprisingly delicious. Here’s how to do it:

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Vanilla breakfast muffins

Vanilla breakfast muffins

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It’s SO cold!! I know we should probably all be ‘clean eating’ or whatever it is that we all do to make ourselves feel even more miserable’ at this time of year, but for me, mornings start best when they involve baked goods and a bucket of tea. These vanilla breakfast muffins use real butter and that old fashioned ‘wet into dry’ method. Feel free to add whatever you like to the recipe: chocolate chips are a favourite here. I like to add blueberries, then top the muffins with a sprinkling of granola, which makes them feel extra breakfasty. Remember, with a muffin recipe, you need to assemble the dry ingredients, then the wet ingredients, then stir the wet into the dry, making sure you don’t overmix (a bit of flour visible is absolutely fine).

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Orange and sultana rye bread

Orange and sultana rye bread

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I love this lazy time at home between the hustle and bustle of Christmas, and the excitement of the New Year. We’re lucky, nobody is working and we’re all enjoying spending time at home together, watching films and eating too much chocolate. Yesterday we went to the Royal Albert Hall with my Dad for the Christmas Spectacular. It was wonderfully festive - there was a bit of ballet, a bit of opera and some modern classics like John Williams’ incredible Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Today we’re just pottering at home (see what I did there?). I wanted to share this really lovely, easy recipe with you. It’s a half rye/half strong white flour mix (I find rye a bit overpowering), scented with oranges (or at this time of year, leftover clementines) and sweetened with honey. I think 2017 is the year we’re all going to be embracing our homes and families, simplifying our lives and counting our blessings, and pottering in my beloved kitchen, baking those I love a delicious, home made treat comes high up in my priorities. Here’s how to make my orange and sultana rye bread:

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Honey and blackberry flapjacks

Weekend baking: honey and blackberry flapjacks

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If you follow me on Instagram stories you’ll see that our mad whippet, Lyra, absolutely ADORES blackberries. I’ve been out picking with her several times and she’ll actually beg for blackberries (and pick them off the lower branches herself). Still, when I’m not competing with the dog for them, I’ve actually been able to pick quite a few. These honey and blackberry flapjacks came about after I offered to make some for Mr E’s work - he’s always complaining that everyone else brings in home made cakes, etc and I never bake anything. He then went on to say, but only do flapjack if it’s ‘full ‘fat’.

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Maple leaf pumpkin spice biscuits

Maple leaf pumpkin spice biscuits

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Happy Saturday! Phew, we made it. Time to kick back, chill out, enjoy your home and family and carve a pumpkin or two. I’m up early this morning and it’s lovely outside: misty and cool, with dew covered cobwebs and scattered leaves and birds eating berries. I love this time of year, and how better to celebrate everything autumnal than with warmly spiced leafy biscuits? These maple leaf pumpkin spice biscuits came about after I found this fab maple leaf cutter in HomeSense when I was shopping for Halloween things. It’s even got a little extra bit so you can press the leaf pattern into the cookie!

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