Finds of the day

 

 

 

1. 

 

 

 

Baxter Boots in black via Beginning Boutique. I need to get me these (drool..)

 

2.

Coco Daydream candles are to die for!

 

3.

Karen Walker cat ring via Beginning Boutique. Meow.

 

 

4.

Meow for Measuring cups via One Hundred 80 Degrees . These are too cute!

 

5.

She's got Purse-o-nality via Modcloth. Oh my god this makes me giggle.

 

 

I am having a quiet weekend this week finishing off some university assignments and doing boring stuff like clean. Happy Saturday.

Wholemeal Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

Wholemeal Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

using my mama's recipe

 

Bake and freeze. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Cupcake Ingredients
200 grams butter, unsalted
200 grams caster sugar
4 eggs
50 ml skim milk
180 grams self-raising wholemeal flour
1 teaspoon vanilla abstract

Icing Ingredients
125 grams butter, unsalted
250 grams icing sugar
60 ml skim milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract/ powder

Method
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees and line a cupcake baking tin with cupcake papers. Melt the butter in a separate bowl and add the sugar and whisk together. Add milk to the butter mix. Sift flour into a mixing bowl and add the butter mix. On a medium speed, add the vanilla extract and add the eggs in one at a time. Once the mixture is smooth and glossy, add to baking cups and pop it in the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

To make the icing, add the butter ( at room temperature) into the mixing bowl with the milk and vanilla. Start mixing on a medium to high speed whilst adding the icing sugar into the mix in small portions. Continue until the icing sugar is added and the icing is fluffy and almost stiff.

This cupcake recipe works for me every time I use it. Today I used wholemeal flour and they still tasted perfectly light and fluffy. The icing isn't like your typical icing made with water, it is creamy and almost meringue-like.

 

Happy Baking dolls.



Pumpkin and Chia Muffins

The other day my best girl Nicola sent me a photo of her Pumpkin and Chia Muffins she baked using Sarah Wilson's I Quit Sugar recipe from her 8-week Detox Program and Cookbook.  They looked so fab I asked her for the recipe and a photo so I could share it with you all!

 

 

Fluffy Pumpkin and Chia Muffins

Baked by my girl, Nicola



 

Batch and freeze. Makes 12.

 

Ingredients

100 g pumpkin

2 cups of gluten-free flour

1 cup almond meal

Sprinkle ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking powder

Handful of basil leaves, chopped

Fistful of chia seeds

2 eggs, separated

2-3 tablespoons of granulated stevia

2 tablespoons olive oil

Handful of pepitas

 

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line each cup of a 12-cup muffin tray with a 10cm square of baking paper (or use cupcake papers). Grate the pumpkin using a food processor with a shredding disc - you need 1 cup grated pumpkin. Combine the pumpkin, flour, almond meal, cinnamon, baking powder, basil and chia seeds.

 

In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks, stevia and olive oil using a stick blender, then add to the pumpkin mixture. Stir in enough water to make a consistency. Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form and stir into the pumpkin mixture. Spoon into the muffin tray and pop in the oven. After about 5 minutes, sprinkle the muffins with the pepitas. Bake for about 10 minutes. Serve warm or cold.

 

Yummo! I am yet to try these, but maybe I should just get Nicola to make me another batch instead cause hers look ahh-mazing. Happy Baking dolls ♥  

 



Happy Snaps.

I spent the day at my Mum's place last week. It was such a beautiful, sunny day I couldn't resist taking some pictures while I was there. I might have got a bit carried away with snaps of my family cat, Puss. He's just so photogenic.

Happy Sunday Everyone!

Just a bit of gardening: part 2

Seedlings Update
It's been a month since I first posted about the seedlings my best friend bought as part of her anniversary gift to me (read here). On the package it said it would take up to 12 weeks for the seedlings to blossom into beautiful flowers and I am 4 weeks into that process. Here is an update.

Day 1

 

Day 5

 

1 month

 

 

I'm having fun watching my seedlings grow and change literally every day. It's quite an inspiring process having seen them start as just small seeds to now growing into vibrant flower bushes. I'll keep you updated on their progress. 

 
Bye dolls.