Easter cookies...

After making a batch of cookie dough this morning I seasoned it with cocoa powder, cinnamon and ground cloves for some Easter inspired spice! I rolled out the dough and after using an oval shaped cookie cutter, I squashed up one end of each cookie to make them look more like an egg!

Then I popped them onto a lined baking tray for 10 mins in a hot oven.

My Easter inspired icing decorations :)

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Pickled chilli poppers...

 With soooo many little baby chillies ready to pick I decided to pickle them! This way I could decide what to do with them all at a later date :)

 After picking all the ripe chillies I de-seeded this variety to take away some of the heat. As I've mentioned before, these guys are insanely hot! I then poured boiling water over them and let it sit for 2 minutes before draining and placing the chillies into a jar. This just tenderizes them a little.

  I then placed 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar with 1 tablespoon of white sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt in a saucepan and simmered gently until the granules were dissolved. As the mixture was cooling, I added a teaspoon each of yellow mustard seeds and black peppercorns to season before pouring into the jar with the chillies.

 And walaa! Chillies are pickling! I tried one today and it is just the perfect temperature to pop in your mouth and enjoy! I'll most likely be spicing up some fresh salads with these guys or even an antipasto plate...

Banana breakfast muffins...

Being an early riser is really growing on me, you get so much more out of the day! This morning's whim involved baking some scrumptious breakfast muffins before my other half arose...

I sifted 2 1/2 cups of wholemeal self raising flour with 3/4 cup of brown sugar and a teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg. In a separate bowl I whisked 1 egg, 1 cup of soy milk, a teaspoon of vanilla essence and 2 tablespoons of melted butter. After adding the wet ingredients to the dry and stirring well I mashed 2 over-ripe bananas in a bowl and added them to the mixture.

Creating cafe style muffin cases was as easy as pleating squares of baking paper into the round muffin moulds!

 20 minutes in a fan forced oven set to 180o and they were ready to devour with a strong cup of coffee to wake the sleeping lion :)

Lemon basil blossom and honey tea...

My lemon basil is flowering at the moment and smells delicious so I have concocted a tea to make good use of it :)

You will need:

2-3 sprigs of lemon basil blossoms

honey

a big tea pot

Place the lemon basil blossoms in the teapot and pour boiling water over them, filling it to the brim. Let the blossoms infuse for 10 minutes...

Spoon a teaspoon of honey into your teacup...

Pour the infused tea over the honey, stirring until it is  dissolved...

Enjoy a delicately delicious herbal tea with a subtle fragrance yet surprisingly sweet citrus taste... the perfect solution when your looking for a natural pick-me-up!

Popcorn Macaroons...

Another Adriano Zumbo baking day.

Happy Birthday Sophie!

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Marshmalloroons!

 Macaroons may take a long time to make and just a little time to eat but they are so cute and actually quite easy to get creative with! I love creating new colours and dreaming up decorations to go with my favorite filling... marshmallow! I follow Adriano Zumbo's Italian macaroon recipe and make up the filling's as i go :) After creating the shells, I simply melt marshmallow with some cream and white chocolate, let it set and whip it before piping onto the macaroon shells! This time around I found that pre-decorating caused the shell's to crack, but aside from aesthetics they still taste amazing!