Festive Gingerbread Cookies December 24, 2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are great to make yourself or with some help from the children. Lovely as they are, decorated or you can even top cupcakes with small ones. The decorated ones above are what Freya, my 4 year old  Granddaughter did 🙂

Makes approx 60, depending on size.

 

Ingredients

 

5 1/2 cups plain flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp ground cloves

1 cup lard ie: Trex (shortening)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/4 cups treacle

2 eggs, beaten

 

Method

 

Preheat oven to 190C/gas 5.

Thoroughly mix flour, baking soda, salt and spices. Melt lard in large saucepan. Cool slightly. Add sugar, treacle and eggs to saucepan and mix well. Add 4 cups dry ingredients and mix well.

Turn mixture onto lightly floured surface. Knead in remaining dry ingredients by hand. Add a little more flour, if necessary, to make firm dough.

On floured surface, roll out 1/8 to 1/4 in. thick for cut-out cookies. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet, small and medium-sized cookies for 6-10 minutes.

Substitute 1 1/4 cups golden syrup for treacle to make lighter, slightly sweeter Gingerbread.

If you want to make these for hanging on the Christmas tree, make a hole near the top with a skewer before baking, to thread ribbon through and bake them for 10 – 15 minutes.

Have fun!

 

 

 

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Monkey Face Cupcakes September 14, 2012

Happy monkeys for happy children!

 

This is the same cake recipe as I used for the Animal cupcakes.

 

Ingredients for the cupcakes

 

175g/6oz softened butter

175g/6oz sugar

3 beaten eggs

4Tbsp golden syrup

225g/8oz self raising flour

2tsp ground ginger

1 pinch of ground cloves

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 Tbsp ground almonds

1 – 2 Tbsp milk

 

Method

 

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Place 12 paper cases in a muffin tin. Beat the butter and sugar together until soft and creamy. Gradually beat in the eggs and syrup.

Sift in the flour and spices and gently stir until combined. Stir in the ground almonds and milk until smooth.

Spoon the mixture into the cases and bake for 20 minutes until golden and springy to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before placing onto a wire rack to cool completely.

 

To decorate I made up a small amount of buttercream:

 

7 oz icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 1/2 oz butter, softened

Combine the icing sugar, vanilla extract and butter in a bowl and beat until light and fluffy.

Spread over the top of the cupcakes. Dip the edges of the cupcakes in chocolate sugar strands, add mini chocolate beans for the eyes and corner of the mouth then add a smile with a tube of writing icing.

 

Animal Cupcakes September 13, 2012

 

Simple yet fun. A big thank you to my lovely 3 year old Granddaughter for lending me her Play Doh cutters to make these xx

If you do borrow you child’s/Grandchild’s cutters please do make sure you wash them before using 😉

 

Ingredients for the cupcakes

 

175g/6oz softened butter

175g/6oz sugar

3 beaten eggs

4Tbsp golden syrup

225g/8oz self raising flour

2tsp ground ginger

1 pinch of ground cloves

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 Tbsp ground almonds

1 – 2 Tbsp milk

 

Method

 

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Place 12 paper cases in a muffin tin. Beat the butter and sugar together until soft and creamy. Gradually beat in the eggs and syrup.

Sift in the flour and spices and gently stir until combined. Stir in the ground almonds and milk until smooth.

Spoon the mixture into the cases and bake for 20 minutes until golden and springy to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before placing onto a wire rack to cool completely.

 

For the animal cupcakes I made up some icing, as follows:

Sift 6oz icing sugar into a bowl and add 1 1/2 Tbsp of lemon juice plus 1 Tbsp of water. Mix well until smooth, then pour over 6 of the cupcakes. I had an amount of Fondant, so just coloured small amounts with different colours before rolling out and using the cutters, then place them on the iced cupcakes before the icing goes too hard.

Big Soft Ginger Cookies May 16, 2012

These are just what it say’s, big, soft, ginger, cookies.

 

Ingredients

 

280 g plain flour

4 g ground ginger

5 g bicarbonate of soda

2 g ground cinnamon

1 g ground cloves

2 g salt

165 g butter, softened

200 g granulated sugar

1 egg

15 ml water

60 ml molasses/treacle

25 g granulated sugar

 

Method

Preheat oven to 350 F /175 C/gas mark 4. Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses/treacle. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly with a fork.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Honey and Chocolate Biscuits April 29, 2012

Try different types of honey to vary the flavour of the biscuits.

 

Ingredients

 

60g/2 1/2 oz caster sugar

15g/1/2 oz butter

125g/4oz honey

1 egg, beaten

pinch of salt

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

225g/8oz plain flour, sifted

1/2 tsp baking powder

75g/3 oz milk chocolate

 

Method

 

Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7, 10 minutes before baking.

Line 2 baking sheets with baking parchment.

Heat the sugar and honey together in a small saucepan until everything has melted and the mixture is smooth.

Remove from the heat and stir until slightly cooled, then add the beaten egg with the salt and beat well.

Stir in the ginger, cinnamon, cloves and the flour with the baking powder and mix well until a dough is formed.

Wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 45 minutes.

Place the chilled dough on a floured surface, roll out to about 5 mm/1/4 ins thickness and cut out small shapes.

Place onto the prepared baking sheets and bake for 8 – 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly, before moving onto a cooling rack.

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Alternatively, melt the chocolate in the microwave, carefully, until smooth.

Either spread the melted chocolate over the biscuits or dip them in it, leave on baking parchment until completely set.