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Bluey

This is what I just found rustling in my office. A blue tongue lizard. Glad I had a big brave son to help me catch him. We released him out in our front garden. Im sure he will be happier there!

Is there something significant about the number 17 today?

This was what I opened my laptop to this morning. 10 to 7 which is 17. 17 degrees outside. On the 17th! Is that not pretty cool?

Edmonds Ginger Cake

I am not a big cake fan but every now and then I get a cake hankering. Flicking through my new Edmonds Cookbook yesterday, I saw a Ginger Cake recipe. Hmm, haven't had one of Those for a while! I have a tried and true ginger cake recipe that I have been using for, oh, forever. But I thought I'd give this one a try. Not sure if it was my oven or the recipe but it did need a little longer in the oven that the recipe stated. And I have a fan force oven, so not sure what was going on there. Anyway, here's a share. Try it and let me know if it's as good as yours!



125g butter
1/2 cup sugar (I used brown but I'm sure white is as good)
3 Tbs golden syrup
2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp mixed spice
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup chopped crystallised ginger (I'm greedy on ginger, so I added a bit more)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup sultanas (in ginger cake?! I think not. I omitted these)
1 tsp bi-carb soda (baking soda)
3/4 cup milk (I warmed the milk)

Cream butter, sugar and golden syrup until light and fluffy. Sift flour, baking powder, ginger and mixed spice together. Add sifted dry ingredients to creamed mixture alternately with beaten eggs.
Stir in ginger, walnuts and sultanas. Dissolve baking soda in the milk and stir into the mixture.
Line a 20cm cake tin with brown paper, followed by baking paper. (I used 3 layers of baking paper).
Pour mixture into tin. Bake at 180c for 35 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Leave in tin for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.

Dust with icing sugar and serve with a lovely cup of Tetleys!

Munchkin Slice

I 'took a day off' today from officework to do a little baking. I had my bestie in New Zealand send me an updated copy of the infamous Edmonds Cookbook as my old one was falling to bits. The Edmonds Cookbook is every good cooks bible! It is full of those good wholesome nana foods. The new one has a pile of new recipes as well as the oldies, so I tried a slice that wasn't in my old Edmonds. It's called Munchkin slice and although it's not gluten free, it is chock full of goodness for kids with just a hint of sugary naughtiness to glue it all together.
I also made a ginger cake (for me! mmmmm) but it's still in the oven doing its thing, so I'll share the slice recipe while I'm waiting...
I've gone and got a 'baking' mark on my book already. Not sure if I'm proud that my book has been christened with baking goodness or whether I'm ticked that I messed up a brand new cookbook! The dilemnas of baking!
Anyway, the recipe...

1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp mixed spice
100g butter
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup apricot jam
1/2 cup coconut
1/4 cup golden syrup
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup sultanas (optional)
1 cup pumpkin kernels

In a saucepan, melt together the sugar, butter, apricot jam and golden syrup.
Combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well. Pour in melted mixture. Mix together. Press firmly into a greased 20x30cm baking tray.
Bake at 180c for 25 minutes or until golden. Cool slightly and cut into bars. Makes 18.

That's it! Took me all of, say, 10 minutes to throw it together and slap it in the oven! Too, too easy. With a little supervision over the stove, even the kids can make this one!
And how healthy is it? This one is a keeper for the school lunch box!