No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake

For the base:

300g Crushed Digestives
120g Butter

For Filling:

500g Cream Cheese
100g Icing Sugar
300ml Double Cream

For Decoration:

Strawberries
Whipped Cream
Strawberry Gel

Make base by melting butter in large pan, then mixing in crushed digestives throughly.
Place in 8" loose bottomed cake tin and press down with back of spoon.
Put in fridge to cool.

For the filling, whip the double cream till thick, add icing sugar and cream cheese, and whip again until it forms peaks.

Divide the cheesecake mix into 3 separate bowls.
Add a little red colouring into 2 of the mixes, more in one than the other to have 2 different shades of pink.

When base is cool, spread the darkest pink mix onto base.
Add sliced strawberries around edge ( as shown in picture).
Then spread other pink mix on top gently, then finally white mix.

Decorate top with whipped cream and strawberries and chill in fridge until required.

Enjoy!

My Carrot Cake

Haven't done a large carrot cake in a while, so thought it was time, beautiful and moist, with a cream cheese frosting.

For the cake:

10oz Castor Sugar
10oz Margarine
10oz SR Flour
5 Eggs
2 Medium Carrots (grated)
4oz Chopped Walnuts
4 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Cinnamon 

For Frosting:
1 Tub of Double Cream
1 Tub Philadelphia Cheese
1tsp Lemon Flavouring
1 tbsp Icing Sugar

Make cake, by creaming margarine and sugar till light and fluffy.
Add beaten eggs a little at a time, continually beating with a little of the flour (to prevent mix from curdling).
Add the rest of the ingredients and gently fold in.
Grease and line an 8 or 10" round cake tin, put mix in cake tin and bake Gas 5 till risen and golden brown. Allow to cool.

Make frosting by whipping double cream till thick, add 1 tbsp icing sugar and cream cheese and whisk till forms peaks,

Put 3tbsp of frosting in a small bowl, and 1tbsp into another small bowl, add green food colouring to smallest bowl, and orange colouring to other bowl.

Slice cake horizontally and spread some plain frosting in middle, and cover cake with rest of frosting. Sprinkle with a little of the chopped walnuts and grated carrots.
Put orange frosting into piping bag with plain nozzle and pipe carrots around edge, and use green to pipe leaves.

Enjoy!

Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Hi all, hope all you mums out there had a lovely mothers day, I was spoilt as usual, chocolate, flowers, wine (hic!) oh and a ticket to go and see Harry Potter World near London for later in the year! yay! big HP fan, even at my age.

Been a quiet couple of days here, wasn't raining yesterday, so took my 2 little Chihuahuas out for a walk, needless to say, being so close to the ground, they got their bellies full of mud in the woods.

This Winky and Molly, worn out after their walk!




Today, the cars in for its MOT, so thought I'd make some cupcakes for the home round the corner.



For cakes:

6oz Castor Sugar
6oz Margarine
8oz SR Flour
3 Eggs (beaten)
1 Medium Carrot (grated)
2tsp Mixed Spice
2tbsp Chopped Nuts


For Frosting:

300ml Double Cream
2tbsp Cream Cheese
1tbsp Icing Sugar
1tsp Lemon Flavouring
chopped nuts and grated carrot to decorate

Make cakes by beating sugar and margarine together till light and fluffy, add beaten eggs a little at a time, with a spoonful of the flour mix.
Fold in flour, mixed spice, grated carrot and nuts.
I used an icecream scoop to measure and placed one scoop in each cupcake paper case, (made 18).

Bake Gas 6 until risen and light golden brown.
Place on wire rack to cool.

For frosting: Whisk double cream and cream cheese till thickens a little, add icing sugar and flavouring and beat till thickens.


When cakes cooled, pipe frosting on cakes, then sprinkle with chopped nuts and a little of the grated carrot.

Enjoy!

Raspberry Cupcakes

I used 10 of the cupcakes I made yesterday, and decorated them with cream cheese raspberry frosting.

Frosting:

4oz Double Cream
2oz Mascarpone 
1tbsp Icing Sugar
Pink food colouring
Raspberry Flavouring
Fresh Raspberries

Whip double cream until becoming thick and creamy, add icing sugar, cream cheese and flavouring, and whip until it form peaks.

Put 1/3 of frosting into separate bowl, and add a little pink colouring and mix.

For piping, I used a 3 bag  coupler and a Russian ball piping tube.
I put white frosting in 2 bags, and pink in 3rd bag.
Then piped rosettes on each cupcake, added a raspberry on top, and sprinkled with a little icing sugar.

If anyone would like a demonstration of these piping techniques, add a comment here, and I will do my best :)

Enjoy!

Breakfast Egg Muffins

This is an easy to do recipe, ideal for breakfast or as a snack.
Can be done ahead and frozen.

Ingredients:   Yields 12    

6 Eggs
1/4 Pint Milk
1 Chopped Onion
Chopped Pancetta or Bacon
Grated Cheese

Grease a 12 piece cupcake tray.
Brown off pancetta and onion together, and place on kitchen paper to drain fat off.

Divide bacon mix into the 12 cupcake tins.
Add a little grated cheese on top.
Beat the eggs and milk together in a jug, with seasoning, then pour on top of bacon mix.
Bake in oven Gas 5, till risen and starting to brown.

When done, use a tablespoon to scoop out muffins and place on plate, eat straightaway, or leave to cool before freezing.

Enjoy!

Mini Cheddars

As promised, Mini Cheddars, so easy, and ideal for kids lunch boxes, without the colourings and additives!

95g Finely grated coloured cheese
25g Butter
50g Plain Flour
1/4tsp salt

Mix all ingredients together.
Knead well on floured surface until combined.
Roll out thinly, and cut out with small cutter.
Place on greased baking tray.
Bake Gas 5, for apron 10 mins, until golden brown.
Cool on wire rack,

See, easy!

Enjoy!

Cheese and Onion Pasties

Another use for any large cookie cutter, and even my VERY fussy 6yr old grandson loved these!

Pastry:

8oz SR Flour
4oz Margarine
1/2 tsp salt
cold water

Filling:
2 medium potatoes
2tbsp chopped onions
4oz grated cheese

Boil and mash potatoes (with a little butter and milk)
Mix in cheese and onions.

Mix pastry by rubbing together flour, salt and margarine until like breadcrumbs. Add a little cold water at a time until pastry combined. ( pastry is best made day before, wrapped in cling film, and placed in fridge)

Roll out pastry on floured surface and I used large heart cutter, (2 for each pasty).

Place bottoms on greased tray, damp round edges and put a dessert spoon of cheese mixture in centre,
Place other heart on top and seal edges. Make a couple of little cuts on top, for steam to escape.

Place in oven Gas 5, and bake until golden brown.
Remove, then place on wire rack to cool.

Enjoy!

Individual Cheese and Ham Quiche's

Another use for these fantastic tartlet tins, ( 4") I got mine on sale from Sainsbury's.



Shortcrust Pastry ( as in previous post)

2 Eggs
2 slices cooked ham
100ml of single cream
1 tomato
Grated Cheese

Grease 4 tartlet tins and line with shortcrust pastry ( do not bake blind)
Place the tartlets onto baking tray.

Sprinkle a little cheese on base of tartlets.
Chop ham into squares and share out between 4.
Slice tomatoes and cut each slice into 4, place these on top, then add some more grated cheese.

Mix eggs with cream in jug, add salt and pepper to taste, and gently pour a little at a time in each of the quiches, covering all ingredients as near to the top as possible.

Put quiches into centre of oven and cook for aprox 30 mins, Gas 5/6, until risen and golden brown.

Enjoy!

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Cheese Scones

Makes aprox 10

8 oz SR flour
2oz margerine
1tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
grated cheese
milk
egg( for glazing)

Mix flour, salt, pepper and margarine together till resembles breadcrumbs.
Mix in grated cheese .
add milk ( how much, can depend how much cheese you have added), until all ingredients combined, but not too sticky.

Place on floured surface and knead gently just so there are no cracks, then roll out and cut with scone cutter and place on greased baking tray.

Mix egg with a little salt ( this breaks down the albumen), and brush tops of scones, let rest for 10 mins, then brush again .

Place in top of oven Gas 6, aprox 15-20 mins, until tops are golden brown.

Place on cooling tray, again like the bread taps scone bottoms, they should sound hollow.

Best served with best butter!

Enjoy