Chocolate Crunch Slice

I has taken me ages to get this recipe!  My Grandma used to make this Chocolate Crunch Slice when I was a little girl.  I think it is delicious and I find it hard to stop at just eating one piece.  In fact, I remember sneaking pieces out of the tin when she used to look after my brother and I during the school holidays.

I’ve been after the recipe for years.  I think she sent me a copy once (when I was about 10, my grandparents moved to Australia) but I lost it and then years later when I asked for it again she wasn’t too sure what I was asking about.  She sent a really old cook book over with a similar recipe in it, which I made, but it wasn’t quite the same.  Sadly, my Grandma isn’t very well anymore and has recently been moved into a care facility, so the days of sharing recipes have ended.

But, a few months back, our flatmate Harry came home from work with some different bits of baking one of his colleagues, Marta, had made.  This slice was amongst the treats and it is exactly how I remember it.  Marta was kind enough to pass on the recipe to Harry for me, so now I can make the slice whenever I want.  It puts a smile on my face as it brings back memories of my Grandma and school holidays spent at her house.  The plate in the pictures is one from her old tea sets.

Ingredients:
Slice:
3 Weetbix, crushed
1 cup desiccated coconut
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup cocoa
180g butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Icing:
50g butter, softened
3 - 4 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
2 cups icing sugar
½ cup desiccated coconut

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C.  Grease and line a 20cm square tin.
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Add the melted butter and vanilla essence and mix well.
Press the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
Set aside to cool.
To make the icing, combine small amounts of the water with the butter, icing sugar and cocoa powder together in a medium sized bowl, mixing until you have reached a smooth consistency. Spread the icing over the top of the cooled slice and sprinkle the coconut over the top.
Once the icing has set, but into pieces and serve.  Store in an airtight container.

Dreamy Lemon Slice

I’ve made this a Lemon Slice a few times now – we have a tree bursting with lemons to be used.  It’s absolutely delicious and very easy to make.  I’ve made this to share with my colleagues and made some for Simon and Harry (our flatmate) to take to work and everyone loves it.  In fact, I met up with a friend for lunch the other day and he paid for lunch so that I would owe him more Lemon Slice as pay back!  It’s soooo good!

Ingredients:
350g packet plain biscuits, crushed (use what you like – I found Farmbake White Chocolate Chip biscuits to be the best though!)
150g margarine or butter, melted
3 eggs
395g can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup lemon juice (approx. 3 lemons)
¼ cup desiccated coconut

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180˚C.  Grease and line a 20 x 20cm square baking dish.
Mix the biscuits and melted butter together.  Press the biscuit mixture into the prepared tin.
Separate the eggs, keeping the yolk.  Add the yolks to the condensed milk and mix until combined.  Add the lemon juice and mix again.  Pour over the biscuit base and bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, until set.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin.  Sprinkle the desiccated coconut over the top of the slice.  Refrigerate for at least an hour before cutting into squares and serving.

*If you thought this was really easy (because it is) try outDirk’s Lemon Meringue Pie, which just has an extra step added onto the end and uses up the egg whites.

Easy Peasy Cheats Cheesecake (Peach Cheesecake)

I first tried this cheesecake while Simon and I were staying at my Nana’s place in Tauranga – she loves it and had made it especially for us (and she might even be able to view the recipe on her iPad we were setting up for her – exciting!).  It uses a pre-made cheesecake mix so there really is no fuss; just make the base, whip up the filling and you’re basically done. 
My Nana had made it using apricots, which I ate and really liked, but I’m not usually an apricot fan so in my mind I was thinking of what else it could be made with.  Funnily enough, my Nana said my Dad hates apricots too, so my Mum and her didn’t tell him what was in the cheesecake and he happily ate quite a bit when my parents visited on a previous occasion!  Anyway, I re-made the cheesecake using peaches and it was delicious.  You can use whatever canned fruit you like in this cheesecake and I am sure it will be delicious!
This is the perfect dessert to whip up if you want to receive a lot of praise without a lot of effort!

Ingredients:
200g biscuits (I used Arnotts Farmbake White Chocolate ones, but something like SuperWine’s or similar will work well too)
75g butter, melted
410g can of fruit (I’ve tried apricots and peaches, but any fruit will work)
500g pottle of cheesecake filling (I used Meadow Fresh)
Zest of one lemon or the grated rind of half an orange

Method:
Place the biscuits in a food processor and process until crumbed (alternatively, place in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin).
Mix through the melted butter, then press into a 20cm circular loose-bottomed tin.
Drain the can of fruit and chop the fruit roughly.
Prepare the cheesecake filling according to packet directions.
Mix the fruit and the cheesecake mix together to combine.
Spread the cheesecake mixture over the prepared biscuit base.  Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or until set.  Garnish the top of the cheesecake by sprinkling the lemon zest over the top.  Cut into wedges and serve.

Lemonade Scones

So, the other weekend I was hanging out at home and it just felt like one of those days where there should be scones for lunch.  It just sort of felt like a day that if I went back in time to when I was six or seven, that my grandma would be serving up some scones, with jam and cream.  Is that weird, or do you know what I mean?

Now, truth be told, I have never made scones myself.  People say they can be tricky, which I think is what had put me off making them in the past.  My mum makes Lemonade Scones so I decided to give them a go, and man are easy! I should have not been so sill and made them much sooner! I thought I would try out using Lemonade made using my Soda Stream for the recipe and it worked perfectly.  The scones were so light and fluffy, and were an absolute hit in my house.  I’ll definitely be making this recipe again and again!

Ingredients:
4 cups self raising flour
Pinch of salt
300 ml cream
300 ml lemonade (or, try soda water or L&P)

Method:
Preheat the oven to 220°C and line a tray with baking paper.
Starting with the flour, place all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix together to form a soft dough.
Tip the dough out onto a well-floured bench, dust the dough lightly with flour, then roll out into a rectangle approximately 4 cm thick.
Cut the dough into 12 pieces and gently place each piece apart on the prepared baking tray.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from the oven an leave to cool on a wire rack.  Serve with butter, jam and whipped cream!

Want to change up the recipe?  Try out these additions:
- a cup of tasty cheese
- a cup of chocolate chips (I used to love when my mum did this!)
- a cup of dried fruit, like raisins or cranberries

Or, give Courtenay’s recipes for Savoury Ham and Cheese Scones a go – try version one or two.

Nutella Fudge

So, at my wedding (there’s a few pics on our facebook page) my Dad decided to share with everyone what a gross child I was in his speech and how I used to eat Nutella by the spoonful and hide the empty jar under my bed.  It’s a true story, but still.  I remember feeling mortified rather than any nice words he might of said! 

Anyway, we popped around to Courtenay’s place last weekend because it was Max’s 4th birthday party.  (Yup.  Can you believe it?  We’ve been blogging since before he was born!  Want a trip down memory lane?  Take a look back to check out one of the very first pics of him or a very pregnant Courtenay in our old posts.)  While there Simon and I were given two big jars of Nutella to take home since Courtenay’s husband Shane was at the wedding and heard my Dad’s speech and he has decided to try out a Paleo diet.

I decided to use some of it up by making this Nutella fudge.  It is super easy to make and made in one pot, so very little mess.  The fudge has a delicious Nutella flavour and a smooth creamy texture.  I figured I love Nutella and making fudge, so why not combine the two.  Yum!

Ingredients:
1 cup Nutella
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 can condensed milk
250g milk chocolate, broken in to chunks (I used Whittakers Milk Chocolate as I love the smooth, creamy texture it has)
60g butter

Method:
Grease and line a slice tin with baking paper (I used a 20 x 20cm square pan).  Place all the ingredients in a large saucepan.  Place the saucepan of ingredients over the top of a slightly smaller saucepan filled with simmering water.
Melt all the ingredients until the mixture is smooth.  This takes about 10 minutes.
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and refrigerate until set (I left mine overnight but it shouldn’t take anymore that 5-6 hours at the most).
Cut into squares and serve.  Keep stored in the refrigerator.

Pineapple and Coconut Muffins

It’s now Autumn here in New Zealand and it is starting to get a bit cooler in temperature.  But, these Pineapple and Coconut Muffins are the perfect way to add a bit of sunshine back into your life and beat of the Winter blues.  The recipe is made using tinned pineapple, so you can make these all year round and I think they would make a great lunchbox treat.  The pineapple, coconut and yoghurt all work together to give these muffins a light, fresh taste.  The crunchy coconut topping is pretty delish too!

Ingredients:
1 ⅔ cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
50g desiccated coconut
1 egg, beaten
¾ cup brown sugar
100ml canola or sunflower oil
250g plain, unsweetened yoghurt
1 tablespoon milk
250g crushed pineapple, drained

Topping:
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup shredded coconut

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C.  Line a 12 hole muffin tin with muffin papers, or grease well.
In a medium bowl mix the flour, baking powder and coconut together. 
In a large bowl mix together the egg, sugar, oil, yoghurt and milk.  Add in the pineapple and stir through.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until combined.
Divide the mixture between the prepared muffin cases.  Sprinkle brown sugar, followed by the shredded coconut over the top of each muffin.  Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, or until golden and a skewer inserted into the middle of a muffin can be removed cleanly.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

I’ve made this Pineapple Upside Down Cake using this recipe a few times now and it’s a really simple one to whip up.  The cake has a nice sweet flavour and I love the old-school baking look the cake has with the pineapple rings on the top; no fancy pants buttercream icing going on here!
Interestingly, in the history of our blog, this is the first Pineapple specific recipe.  I have another one coming up in a few weeks too, so keep an eye out for that.

Ingredients:
¼ cup brown sugar
5 – 7 pineapple slices / rings
handful of raisins (optional)
1 cup caster sugar
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
⅔ cup plain natural yoghurt
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 ¾ cups self raising flour
½ teaspoon baking powder

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C.  Grease a 20cm round cake tin.
Scatter the brown sugar over the bottom of the cake tin.  Arrange the pineapple slices and the raisins (if using) over the top of the sugar in a pretty pattern.
In a large bowl, beat the caster sugar and butter together.  Mix in the vanilla essence, yoghurt and eggs.  Gently mix through the flour and baking powder.
Pour the mix over the top of the pineapple in the prepared tin.  Bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out cleanly.
Cool in the tin for 20 minutes, before turning out on to a board or serving plate to cool completely.
Cut into slices and serve, either by itself or with cream or yoghurt.

Banana, Bran and Walnut Muffins

I was really surprised by these muffins.  I think of bran muffins as boring little rock cakes – a dense lump and not at all appealing.  But, in an effort to make something not so sweet and a tad more healthy, I gave some a go.  The surprising part is that I love the result.  You can taste the bran a bit, but the banana flavour is there, stopping the muffins from being bland, and in every mouthful you get some slightly crunchy walnut bits.  The thing that surprised me the most is that the muffins still have that crumbly cake texture that I thought I was going to sadly be missing.  I am really happy with these muffins;  I don’t feel guilty eating one for morning tea (or breakfast – I’m writing this post before having breakfast and trying to describe the muffins talked my brain into making me go get one!), they are soft, moist and have a cakey texture, and they have the perfect banana flavour.  Oh, and I made them so they are a simple beat the wet ingredients together, mix through the dry ingredients, pour them in the tins and back recipe.  Really quick. 
I was going to mix through some Chia seeds but completely forgot, so if you try that addition (a couple of tablespoons maybe?) let me know how they go.  I now have bran in the cupboard so I’m going to be experimenting with more recipes soon!

Makes 12.

Ingredients:
1 cup mashed banana
2 tablespoons oil (vegetable, sunflower or canola)
2 eggs
100g butter, melted
½ cup milk
1 cup bran
½ cup sugar
1 cup flour
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup chopped walnuts

Method:
Preheat the oven to 200°C.  Grease or line a 12 hole muffin tin with muffin papers.
In a large bowl, beat together all the wet ingredients (the banana down to the milk on the list).  Add in the dry ingredients, excluding the walnuts, and mix through to make a smooth batter.  Fold through the walnut pieces.
Divide the mixture between the prepared muffin tin holes and bake for 10 – 15 minutes, or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre of a muffin can be removed cleanly.
Remove from the oven and leave standing in the tin for 5 minutes, before removing and placing on a wire rack to cool completely.

5 Minute Microwave Fudge Brownie by Kenrick Rhys Photography

Hi, I’m Kenrick Rhys and I am pretty stoked to be able to share my love for food with you all!  I’ve been good friends with Melissa and Simon for a few years now and was lucky enough to meet Courtenay (and Lydia) at the Picnic High Tea that they held.  I’m going to be sharing a couple of recipes while Melissa is on holiday.

I love good food, I guess I always have.  When I left school at 18, I trained as a chef and worked for a few years in various kitchens. I was usually in the entree and dessert section but another passion was baking, mostly breads and pastries.  When my wife and I sold everything and travelled around the world, I ended up working in a big international kitchen in central Amsterdam.  While there I also spent time developing my other passion, photography.  I carried my camera and took photos whenever I could.  We are now settled back in New Zealand and I am the name behind Kenrick Rhys Photography.  Check my wedding and portrait work out, and if you love it, I’d love to buy you a coffee and have a chat.

 

Today I am sharing a recipe that my Mum used to make, for a quick and easy, moist, American-style brownie.  It’s so easy I’d bet I could make it in 10 minutes from start to finish!

 

Ingredients:
100g butter, melted
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
¾ cup flour
¼ cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder

 

Method:
Melt the butter in the microwave.
In a large bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla.  Sieve flour, cocoa and baking powder into the bowl.  Mix gently until just combined.
Pour the mixture into a microwave safe dish and place in the middle of the microwave.  Cook on high for 4 - 7 minutes depending on your microwave.
Let cool and sprinkle with icing sugar.

Kenrick’s Tips:

• The brownie should have risen and be not overly wet on top, although slightly moist on the sides.
• It may take a few attempts to get the cooking time perfect for your microwave power/wattage, but you will soon see how you like it.  I like my brownie soft and sticky so go for a lesser cooking time.
• I have successfully cooked this brownie in glass Pyrex dishes, silicon flan dishes, and plastic bunt pans.
• You can add chocolate chunks or buttons to this recipe, they will sink to the bottom during cooking.

Check out the Kenrick Rhys Photography website and like them on facebook.

Chocolate Sprinkle Refrigerator Cookies

I made these Chocolate Sprinkle Cookies to take to Lydia’s Cookie Swap and I was really happy with how they turned out.  I think the fluro sprinkles (which I bought from The Pretty Baker) look awesome!  I had the idea for them, but thought executing them would be hard.  I wanted a smooth cookie that I could coat with chocolate and I didn’t know where to start.  I ended up making refrigerator cookies which are super simple; mix, roll and refrigerate, then slice and bake.  You could ditch the cocoa from the recipe if you don’t want chocolate cookies and you could leave off the sprinkles if you want something slick and sophisticated looking.

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
250g butter, softened
1 cup icing sugar
2 ½ cups flour
25g cocoa powder

To decorate:
300g chocolate melts
Sprinkles or your choice

Method:
Beat the butter and icing sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.  Stir in the flour and cocoa in two batches.
Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth.  Divide the mixture in half and roll each half into a 25cm log.  Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for an hour.
Preheat the oven to 180°C.  Line baking a couple of baking trays with baking paper.
Cut the logs into 1cm slices.  Place about 2.5cm apart on the trays and bake for 10 minutes.  Leave to cool on the trays for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. 

To decorate:
Melt the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl on high; stir every 20 –30 seconds until it is smooth.  Pour your sprinkles into a small bowl.
Dip half of the cookie into the chocolate.  Give the cookie a bit of a shake to remove and excess chocolate, and scrape the chocolate off the bottom of the cookie too.
Press the top of the cookie into the sprinkles, then roll the side around in the sprinkles until the chocolate has been coated.  Place on a wire cooling rack to set.

Which colour would you choose?

Raspberry and Vanilla Mini Muffins

These Raspberry and Vanilla Mini Muffins are so cute, and so yummy!  They are quick and easy to make and are a great little treat.

Makes 24.

1 ½ cups self raising flour
⅓ cup caster sugar
1 cup reduced fat vanilla yoghurt
80g reduced fat margarine or butter, melted
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
½ cup frozen raspberries

Preheat the oven to 180°C.  Grease two 12 hole mini muffin tins.
Mix the flour and sugar together in a large bowl.  Add the yoghurt, margarine, egg and vanilla to the flour and stir until combined.
Roughly chop the raspberries, and then fold through the mixture.
Fill the muffin holes with the mixture.  Bake for approximately 18 minutes or until the tops of the muffins are golden.  Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.  If you like, dust with icing sugar before serving.

Surprise Cookies

These are another recipe inspired by Pinterest, I stumbled across them while looking for ideas for a cookie swap I am going to next month. From what I have read, the original idea came from domestic goddess Martha Stewart. They are a lovely soft cookie and once iced you have no idea about the treat hidden inside!

Ingredients:
Cookies
2 cups flour
½ cup cocoa
½ teaspoon baking soda
sprinkle of salt
115 grams butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12-14 large marshmallows, cut in half horizontally

Basic Chocolate Icing
2 cups icing sugar, sifted
¼ cup cocoa, sifted
25 grams butter, softened
4-6 tablespoons of hot water

Method:
Preheat oven to 180C and line x2 baking trays with wax baking paper. 
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add egg, milk, and vanilla, and beat until well combined.
Sift in flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt, mix on low speed until combined.
Using a tablespoon or small ice cream scoop, drop dough onto your lined baking trays, about 5cm apart.
Bake until cookies begin to spread and become firm, 10 to 12 minutes.
Remove baking trays from the oven, and place a marshmallow, cut-side down, in the centre of each cookie, pressing down slightly.
Return to oven for 2 minutes so that the marshmallows begin to melt.
Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
To make the chocolate icing place butter in a medium sized bowl with the icing sugar and cocoa, add hot water and stir with a large spoon to combine.
Place about 1 tablespoon of chocolate icing on the centre of each cookie (over the marshmallow), spread it outward until marshmallow is covered.

These are easy, delicious and cute! If you wanted to do a gender reveal (and were having a baby girl or could locate/make blue marshmallows) and cakes aren’t your thing these would be a great alternative. Regardless of the reason for making them these special cookies masquerading as a run of the mill chocolate cookie are sure to impress!

Easy Muesli Bars

With school having been back a week already (crazy how fast time goes), I thought I would share another muesli bar recipe.  These Easy Muesli Bars make a great addition to any lunchbox and the recipe makes quite a few, so hopefully you’ll have some for a few days at least!
You can throw whatever nuts and seeds you like into this recipe.  I lazily scooped pre-mixed nuts and seeds out of the bulk bin at the supermarket to use, but you could buy individual quantities of just your favourites.  I added in dried cranberries, but again, you could swap these for your fave dried fruit; apricots, banana chip pieces, sultanas…

2 ½ cups rolled oats
½ cup shredded coconut
2 cups mixed nuts, chopped
1 cup mixed seeds
¼ cup chia seeds
¼ cup chocolate chips, optional
1cup dried cranberries
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup honey
½ cup peanut butter
½ brown sugar*

Preheat the oven to 180°C.  Grease and line a 22 x 22 cm tin with baking paper.
In a large bowl, mix together the oats, coconut, nuts, seeds, chocolate chips and cranberries.
In a medium sized saucepan over a low heat, mix together the salt, cinnamon, vanilla, honey, peanut butter and sugar until smooth.
Pour the syrup mixture into the dry mixture and mix through until all the dry mixture has been coated by the syrup.
Press the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 30 minutes, until the top is golden.  Allow the muesli slab to cool in the tin before cutting into bars.  Store in an airtight container.

*I used Billington’s Light Muscovado Unrefinded Cane Sugar.  You can use normal brown sugar if you wish.

Baking Basics eBook!

We are so excited to announce that we have produced a Baking Basics eBook that is available for purchase.  The eBook covers some of the basics of baking biscuits, cupcakes and muffins, cakes and slices, what equipment you should have, troubleshooting guides for when things go wrong and 12 easy to follow recipes for those who are new to baking.

This is something we have been working on for a little now.  We are both really proud of the finished product and hope that you love it as much as we do.  Usually, you can purchase your copy here for $8, but, because we love you and want to thank you for the awesome support you show us we are offering a special introductory price of $5 for the next 48 hours!

We want to give a special thanks to go to our family and friends who proofread and gave us feedback on the eBook.  Also, thank you to Amanda from the Vintage Table who lent us some of the lovely pieces you will see our cakes displayed on in the book.  You should also all know that Mel did all the design work for the eBook - isn't she a clever cookie?!  Thank you, if it was left up to me it would have looked pretty boring!

So, want to get yourself a copy?  Or give one as a gift?  Click here to be taken over to our shop.

Chocolate Fudge Biscuit Slice

If you are after something simple, easy and full of chocolate goodness then this is the slice for you! It is so simple to whip up you could even have the kids make it as a Mother’s Day treat…

Ingredients:
Slice
100g butter
½ cup caster sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons cocoa
¼ teaspoon vanilla essence
1 packet of round wines, crushed

Chocolate Icing:
1 tablespoon butter, softened
2 tablespoons cocoa
1½ cups icing sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons hot water

Method:
Place saucepan on your stovetop and melt the butter on a medium heat.
Once your butter has almost melted add your sugar and stir until it has dissolved into the butter then remove from the heat and set aside to cool for about 10-15 minutes.
Add the egg and vanilla essence and mix well.
Add the cocoa and mix to ensure all the ingredients combine.
Stir through the crushed biscuits ensuring that they are coated in the chocolate fudge mix.
Press into your prepared slice tin and refrigerate until set (approx 3-4 hours).
Top with chocolate icing. To make the chocolate icing place butter in a medium sized bowl with the icing sugar and cocoa, add hot water and stir with a large spoon to combine.
To serve cut into squares and enjoy. Any left overs should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Banana Chocolate Brownies

These Banana Chocolate Brownies are amazing – trust me I know.  I’ve made them a few times now as I lost the recipe I scribbled down while I was making them the first time, so I had to make them again to make sure I had remembered it correctly.  Simon took the second batch to work where they were a huge hit, and I received some very complimentary feedback.  The recipe is pretty easy to make and the banana adds a delicious flavour twist to your traditional brownie.  I think making this recipe is my most best baking discovery so far this year.

Ingredients:
175g dark chocolate
175g butter
150g brown sugar
2 medium sized bananas
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
100g self raising flour
2 teaspoons cocoa
¼ cup chocolate chips (optional)

Method:
Preheat your oven to 180°C.  Grease and line a 20cm square tin with baking paper.
In a large saucepan over a medium heat, melt the chocolate, butter and sugar together, stirring until smooth.  Once melted and mixed together, remove from the heat.
In a bowl, mash up the bananas roughly with a fork (I like to have chunks of banana in the brownie).  Add the eggs, bananas and vanilla into the chocolate mixture and stir until well mixed.
Sift in the flour, cocoa and chocolate chips (if using) and mix well.
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 30 – 35 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the tin before cutting into squares and serving.

*I used Whittakers 50% Cocoa Dark Block chocolate to melt in with the butter and sugar, and when I have added chocolate chips I have used Nestle Chocolate Bits as they hold their shape and do not melt into the mixture.

Easy Creme Egg Cupcakes

These cupcakes are a great idea if you want to do some baking and whip something up quickly for Easter.  They are really easy to make, yet oh so decadent.  I baked mine with mini Easter eggs hidden inside them, but you can leave them out if you like – just skip over this part in the recipe.

Makes 12.

Ingredients:
Cupcakes:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 – 5 teaspoons cocoa
1 ½ cups sugar
¾ cup oil (sunflower or canola)
1 cup water
3 tablespoons vinegar (white or malt)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
12 mini Easter eggs (optional)

Buttercream and Decoration:
125g butter softened
2 ½ cups icing sugar, sifted
2-3 tablespoons hot water (warm icing makes the colour take better)
½ teaspoon vanilla essence
food colouring (optional)
6 Creme eggs

Method:
Preheat the oven to 190°C.  Line a 12 hole muffin tin with baking cups.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl with a fork.  Add the oil to the dry ingredients, but don’t stir.
In a small bowl, mix together the water, vinegar and vanilla essence.  Pour into the dry ingredients and mix together thoroughly with a fork.
Fill the baking cups ¾ of the way full with the mixture.  Place a mini Easter egg into each muffin cup so that it is just covered by the cupcake mixture.   Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the buttercream, cream butter in or with a mixer until pale. On a low speed add icing sugar alternating with hot water and vanilla essence. Continue to beat until light and fluffy or until it’s reached a consistency you are happy with. If you want coloured buttercream, add a few drops of food colouring and mix through.
Pipe a circle of buttercream around the outside of the top of each cupcake (use your favourite piping tip or simply make a piping bag out of a snap-lock bag and snip off one of the corners).  Cut the Creme eggs in half along the join.  Place a Creme egg half on top of each cupcake in the middle of the circle of buttercream.