Cinnamon biscuits? Hell yes!!!

Cinnamon  has to be one of my favourite spices... Warm, slightly bitter and deep... like a nervous "making-up" hug when you knew you were in the right but had to swallow your pride because you love them!
I've been baking and tinkering in the kitchen since I was a little girl. At the age of 10 I was given my favourite toy, a Betty Crocker Easy Bake Oven.

Yes thanks Betty, it was easy but also darn dangerous! The amount of times I burnt my arms removing the red hot cake tins from the oven are way too many to mention but hey, that was the 1980's so toy safety was a little bit different then but what it did was ignite my passion for baking!

The scars quickly healed but what baking gave me in return was worth every blister and burn!!!
You see baking always has a positive affect on my mood. So however down I feel taking time out to produce something sweet seems to put the world in order and my problems in perspective...
Baking can save us a whole lot of heartache plus the bonus is that you get to eat your way back to happy!


Having just returned from mum and dad's in the Algarve I thought it would be nice to share with you guys a great fuss free recipe of something I always crave when I go there on holiday.
So here's my version of the traditional Portuguese cinnamon biscuit which are more a mixture of cake and biscuit rather then a pure biscuit... they sit quite deliciously and contently between the two worlds.

I've added cardamon to add a Scandi flavour to them but for purists remove the cardamon from the recipe. You can also use butter for a richer biscuit but as I'm trying to go vegan I opted to use soya marg instead and it works pretty well. The result is a lighter, airier biscuit but still packed with tasty flavours!

Ingredients:
1egg
1 sachet of vanilla sugar or vanilla essence to taste
1 tsp of powdered cardamon
100g Sugar
110g room temp margarine
300 self-rising flour (or 300g of plain flour and 3 level tsp of baking powder)
Enough cinnamon to roll biscuits in
(makes about 20/24)

1. In a bowl mix the egg, sugars, cardamon, margarine and flour until you get a homogeneous dough. Don't overwork or the biscuits will be quite hard. You can use a food processor for this but I found it just as easy with a wooden spoon.

2. Cover and chill for about 30 minutes.

3. Roll into small balls -about the size of a chestnut. Dust a small plate with enough cinnamon and roll your biscuits in cinnamon until completely covered.

4. Place cinnamon balls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, leaving some space between them as they will double in size if not more.

5. Bake in the oven at 180 ° C for 20 minutes.

Remove with the aid of a spatula and leave to cool on a wire rack.

These biscuits go really well with a cup of tea, chai or coffee! Personally I love them with a strong dark espresso... but I'll let you find your perfect beverage to go with these babies!

Get ready for the heatwave!!!

In the mid 1990's me and a fellow work mate discovered a bar in Soho called the Big Easy which made the most amazing iced cocktails.
This was our pre "hitting the town" place which we visited almost every Friday night and it was there that we fell in love with the Frozen Margarita!

Fresh, zingy, fruity and strong without being a knock out... it has just enough tequila to get you started for a long night of dancing!
I'm sure most people will have at least heard of frozen Margaritas, that's if they haven't ever tried one in one guise or another, but it's a classic which is a favourite in our house.
It's not only a thirst quenching frozen fruit based beverage but I'm sure it also counts as two of your five a day healthy eating fruit and veg deal! OK it's got watermelon and lime but it's got alcohol too so it's as healthy as it can be... and you know what they say "all things in moderation"!
So if you enjoy a little snifter but don't want to be legless then this is the one for you.
Please remember to drink responsibly and especially during a heatwaves you'll also need to drink plenty of water to keep your body hydrated.
This is also a great party alternative for anyone who doesn't drink but likes a pretty alcohol free cocktail to sip! 

Frozen Watermelon Margarita Cocktail recipe...though you can make all sorts of varieties including strawberry which is also delicious!

What you'll need:
A hand or cup blender
Ice cream maker / or a large heavy plastic container which is freezer safe and a fork

Ingredients:
Watermelon
Lime (about 4 if you are making a large jug for plenty of friends)
Sugar syrup -add 2 table spoons of sugar to 3 tablespoons of boiling water. Stir until completely dissolved and leave to cool.
Tequila
Rock salt (I used fleur de sel as it has a softer taste but it's still nice and salty!)
Still water

Instructions:
In a large cup place your chopped and deseeded watermelon and the juice of one lime, blend until smooth. I used a large wedge about 400grams of watermelon which will be enough to make enough granita for a large jug. Though please make sure it fits the capacity of your ice cream maker.
Add the cool sugar syrup and stir well. I purposely haven't added too much sugar as the watermelon I had was already nice and sweet!

Place the watermelon juice into the ice cream maker and follow instructions -you should have a granita setting or instructions in your product manual that will tell you how to do this.
On my ice cream maker it took only 10 minutes.
If you haven't one then follow instruction as above but place your watermelon juice in a large plastic container. Place in freezer, remove every couple of hours and using a fork lift up the frozen watermelon juice to form fluffy ice crystals until it's the consistency of a granita. This will take a little work but it's worth it!!!

Once your granita is ready and you're ready to make your cocktail place 1 measure of tequila per person/serving, the remaining fresh lime juice and top up with cold still water in a large jug and mix. The water will loosen the mix so it's ready to drink but don't water it down too much as you're looking for something that will slowly melt but is nice and thick too.

Take your cocktail glasses and gently squeeze a cut lime segment around the rim of your glass.
In a small plate place enough rock salt to coat a few glasses, turn your cocktail glass upside down and twist over the salt. The lime juice will serves as a glaze and will hold the salt to the glass. Even if you are having a virgin Margarita the salt is still a must... it really does help bring out the natural sweetness of the watermelon!
Pour into your cocktail glass, decorate with a couple of frozen raspberries, a sprig of mint and some cocktail umbrellas or colourful straws.
Cheers!

Guerrilla Bars, food for busy crafters on the go!!!

OK so how much fun would life be if we couldn't sometimes enjoy a little bit of what's "bad" for us?
Not very, hence why I added some chocolate to this otherwise very healthy recipe.
Well chocolate, especially dark chocolate, isn't really bad for you but if you add milk or white chocolate then you are adding extra sugars so that's what makes it "not so healthy" but we truly believe that a little bit of what's bad for you can also be good for you!

To make these Guerrilla Bars you'll need a few ingredients which you may have already in your pantry because of course fighting the war on tat is hard work so I'm sure you're larder is well stocked with edible ammo!
We know you need lots of energy to carry out your amazing tasks so we've used ingredients which are known for their slow release energy properties but also feel free to add your own twist to our recipe and... we're sure you'll love these as they'll keep you sustained during your crafty endeavours.
Enjoy craft lovers!

*For example you can add other ingredients like:
dried cranberries, dessicated coconut, raisins, other dried fruits or nuts of your choice, chocolate nibs (another super food) plus an extra yummy addition is to forgo the seed topping but instead add a layer of chocolate ganache. Ha, that's quite delicious but as you can see from our photos we've been good!!!

To make our Guerrilla bars you'll need...

Ingredients - yields 16 small or 8 larger bars

• 100 g  unsalted butter
• 3 tbsp rapeseed oil
• 50 g light brown sugar - note: feel free to cut back on the sugar and add less if you want a super healthy bar! Maybe add some naturally sweet fruit instead...
• 3 tbsp clear honey *for vegans use dandelion syrup or golden syrup
• grated zest of 1 orange 
• 2 tbsp orange juice
• 100 g dried stoned dates, chopped
• 40 g walnut pieces
• 40g chopped almonds
• 250g porridge oats
• 2 TBS hemp seeds
• generous handful of dark chocolate chips- or push the boat out and add a mix of milk and white chocolate chips if you're feeling super naughty!
• 30 g black sesame seed (for topping) or any seeds you like - pumpkin, sunflower, etc.

 

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180ºC (350ºF // gas mark 4). Lightly grease a shallow non-stick baking tin. I've used a 20 cm (8 in) square tin.
2. Place the butter, oil, sugar, honey, and orange zest and juice in a heavy-based saucepan and heat gently, stirring until the butter has melted.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the dates, almonds, walnuts and hemp seeds. Then stir in the oats, making sure they are evenly coated with the butter mixture. 
4. Leave to cool slightly and gently mix in the chocolate chips.
5. Turn the mixture into the prepared tin, pressing it down firmly and evenly. 
6. Sprinkle the black sesame seeds (or your seeds of choice) over the top and press down again so they are slightly embedded in the surface.
7. Bake for 20 minutes or until deep golden around the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly in the tin, then mark out 16 pieces on the top surface with a sharp knife. Once cooled completely and still in the tin cut along the marked lines.

NOTE: Don't be tempted to cut while still hot as it will crumble! Believe me I know through greedy experience!
You can keep these beauties for up to a week in an airtight container... though I doubt they'll make it past a day or so. I bet they'll be eaten before you can finish your yarn bombing!!!