DIY: a sweet lolly flower

After abandoned the blog for so long, I have decided to spring in some ideas from my colourful cap and stick in some fun and easy tutorials for the blog. And here goes...my first tutorial!

Introducing an extremely sweet lolly flower. Yes, the pun is intentional ;) As I was doing some baking for a party last week and had to wrap up a birthday present too, I came across a stash of sweets with brightly coloured lollipops and mini plump marshmallows. Needless to say, an idea came about to turn these sweet treats into perfect girly gifts!

Method:

Step 1:Gather your fairy dust: A lollipop, matching tissue paper of your choice, green card, sheet of cellophane, green wire, handful of marshmallows and ribbon (not pictured), scissors, pencil and cello-tape

Step 2: Using a pencil, sketch out a simple flower shape and cut out shape for all tissue paper

Step 3: should look something like this depending on your artistic skills!

Step 4: Stack up the tissue paper and poke the lollipop through the centre

Step 5: Tip: you may want to make a small snip to allow the "poke" to be tidier

Step 6: Scrunch the petals upwards to create a bit of dimension

Step 7: Admire your half-completed lolly flower

Step 8: Twist the green wire in half if it is too long but remember to leave some for twisting

Step 9: Wrap the wire around the stick of the lolly

Step 10: Keep wrapping and tidy it around the bottom of the lolly stick

Step 11: Mine looks something like this

Step 12: Cut out a leaf shape from the green card, extending one side of it

Step 13: Using some tape, wrap the extended side around the lolly stick

Step 14: Place down your sheet of cellophane, corner touching the lolly, and place your "stem" on top. Sprinkle on a handful of marshmallows

Step 15: Take the bottom corner and fold to the top

Step 16: Take the sides and wrap towards the middle

Step 17: Tape down and secure. Decorate with a cute ribbon.

Step 18: Get a coffee and admire your sweet gift!

I really do hope you will excuse this first tutorial of mine, I really need to decide what materials I will need before photographing it! But for now, go make your Sweet Lolly Flower(s)! Have fun :)

Scotch Pancakes

It has been getting pretty chilly around here in London. The British weather is really kicking in, not that there hasn't been any rain for the past few days...

Nothing better than pancakes to make you happier, eh?!

 Pancakes have always been a favourite of mine. They are so easy to "flip up" and the ingredients always seem to be on hand. Hence why it has been a reoccurring treat that I always make with my mum and sister after school in primary school. What a lovely memory :')

As a pancake-lover, I have already blogged about pancakes in Easter when the daffodils were just springing up in the garden. You can also tell how old the blog post is! 

I think that it is about time to bring fame to these glorious pancakes now - introducing: Scotch Pancakes (also known as drop scones)

They are deliciously soft, hearty pancakes and are great with any topping or just by itself. I, myself couldn't resist munching on a few on its own before I had the chance to get out my toppings! To add a bit of zing to it, you can try sprinkling your favourite spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and mixed spice.

Pictured, I have peanut butter choc chip and honey and crème fraiche. I have also later used some sweet strawberry jam, just for the "summery" side of things in this harsh rainy weather. If only I didn't run out of nutella on my toast for breakfast...

Cook up a batch, its not very hard at all (there really are no excuses!)

Scotch Pancakes

Ingredients:

125g self raising flour

3 tbsp caster sugar

1 medium egg, beaten

150ml milk

vegetable oil to grease

All your favourite toppings! E.g. jam, butter, creme fraiche, peanut butter, choc chips, honey, maple syrup, lightly whipped cream, spices, cream cheese

Method:

1. Mix flour and sugar in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and mix in egg. Working quickly and lightly, add the milk to make a batter consistency like thick cream.

2. Place spoonfuls of the mixture onto a oiled hot griddle or heavy-based frying pan and cook. When bubbles rise to the surface and burst, turn over (about 2-3 mins)

3. Cook for another 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the heat and place onto a clean teatowel. Cover with another teatowel to keep the pancakes moist.

4. Serve warm with your favourite toppings!

Apple Crumble Cake

While everyone in the blogging world is producing these fantastic photographs of autumn goodness, I thought I would get stuck in and bake up something  just as toasty before I skip October and move onto Christmas cooking already!

The warmest and most loveliest teatime treat just as autumn is kicking in. Not only is this an inviting slice of cake but it is compiled of extracts from the harvesting season. Apples.

It is always the smell of cooked apples and cinnamon that makes me feel so at home and comfortable. Whenever I smell this gorgeous scent, there is always the imagery of me snuggling up on the couch with my dressing gown and testing how hot the apple sauce is. Only thing is that in real life, I can only indulge in it whilst writing up another 10-page-essay for my history assignment. or blog post.

This autumn cake is such a perfect combo of both crumble and spongey cake. It is delicious served hot for pudding or teatime but it is as good eaten cold for breakfast. Not that you may have any left.......

This cake is amazing on its own but a drizzle of syrup and a dashing of warm custard completes it for me. And don't worry about health wise, it narrows down to simply oats and apples!

Everyone needs to have a bit of indulgence one time or another! Enjoy :)

Apple Crumble Cake
Ingredients:
Cake:
100g unsalted, softened butter
90g golden caster sugar
2 eggs
100g self-raising flour
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large baking apples

Crumble:
125g plain flour
60g soft brown sugar
50g softened, unsalted butter
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
50g rolled oats

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180C/160 fan/360F/Gas 4. Grease 22cm cake tin with butter and line with baking paper
2. To make the cake, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time whilst beating and then sift in flour, cinnamon and baking powder. Fold in gently and add vanilla extract.
3. Spoon into cake tin. Peel and core apples, cut into fine slices and arrange on top of cake mixture, leaving a gap between the apples and edge of tin.
4. To make the crumble, place all crumble ingredients except the oats into a food processor, process to achieve a rough crumb mixture. Transfer to a bowl and stir in oats.
5. Scatter onto sponge and bake for 30-35 minutes. After baking, stand for 5 minutes then remove tin and paper.
6. Place onto a serving dish with custard or a drizzle of honey or syrup!

Green tea cheesecakes - mini.

Another mini. Another indulging treat..or dessert...or delight. Let me introduce you to my all-time favourite green tea cheesecake. 

Not only does it use everyday ingredients you can find in your kitchen, they require so little skills and a bit of love. The recipe is obtained from raspberri cupcakes here. She does absolutely amazing-licious recipes on her blog where the unthinkable is created. How I wish I had imagination like her!

So I've followed her recipe but instead set them into mini ramekins to create these individual desserts, perfect for hosting a quick dinner party. To decorate these sweet treats, I've sprinkled on a generous amount of a bit of reserved cheesecake base topped it with some fresh berries and without thinking, dusted with icing sugar.

They are ever so creamy and I absolutely love the texture of it, especially with the contrasting burst of the berries!

Don't these just look so dainty?! I didn't mind eating another one for breakfast!

Mid-autumn Festival - 中秋節

It was mid-autumn festival last Sunday. Also known as mooncake festival for all those who adore mooncake.

It is a tradition followed by Chinese people where families would come together and have an a-maaazing meal. And I mean amazing. Maybe that is also why dinner wasn't cooked by me!

In fact, none of the food you see in the whole post was made by me! It was all thanks to my grandparents who are the best chefs in the family. To name a few there was lobster noodles, tofu, duck and chicken. 

To finish off, there was mooncake of course!

They are traditionally filled with a lotus bean paste but a talented friend of ours made some gorgeous mooncakes with a variety of fillings including coconut!

Happy mid-autumn festival.

Thank you, thank you and thank you.

Firstly for your time and effort
Secondly for your prayers
Thirdly for everything you've done to help us get closer to God.

During the weekend, I had busied myself; cooking up a storm in the kitchen to say thanks to my Sunday school teacher as she will be leaving my class and committing herself to other areas of work.

Contributing towards our thank-you-surprise-do for her, I planned to bake an orange flavoured sponge along with a refreshing buttercream. You like the bunting? I thought it added a nice bit of colour to it!

I believe the sponge was quite a success - soft and fluffy. You could even taste the zestiness from the orange! In the middle of the cake, I layered a thick dashing of orange buttercream and then crumbled on some roughly-bashed chocolate digestives. Gives more of a crunch in the buttery softness :P

I've got to say though, the bad side of this is that I didn't realise how small the cake was - not only was there the entire class but also other people who have come following the aroma of hot, sizzling KFC.

The top of the cake is colourfully sprinkled with a bit of dolly mixture and some bashed-up fizzies. And contrasting with this, I've got the elegance of some "lady finger" sponges wrapped around the edge.

And woah-ho-ho-ho....look at the rest of our food....KFC anyone?!

A piece of my heart.

Birthdays = cake. = inspiration.
Sister's birthday = cool cake = lots of inspiration + pinterest.
I had originally wanted to go with a nice sponge and pretty piped buttercream but insisted I stretched it to something people out of the pinterest world would not have seen.

So what you see in front of your eyes is still a birthday cake with buttercream smothered all over it and topped with strange fruit and dolly mix skewers.....and a few mugs and plates from eager cake-eaters.

 ......until you cut it open and reveal a heart in the centre.

Happy birthday to my dearest sister.

[stay tuned for some more pictures!]