Baking day

It had to be done, baking to feed the hungry hoards.

 A dozen blueberry muffins.

Fifty two Anzac biscuits.

 

Two boiled fruit cakes.

 One loaf of wholemeal bread.

Anne  xx

Christmas biscuits

Hello everyone, I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas and have enjoyed getting together with family and friends.  I wanted to share with you a recipe for Christmas Biscuits I came across a few years ago, the same biscuits I was making when I chopped the end of my thumb.  Fortunately Miss G. was on hand to take over so we were still able to enjoy them on Christmas Day.

Christmas Biscuits/Cookies

Preparation time: 25 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Makes about 50 - 60 biscuits

Ingredients:

100g macadamia nuts (almonds would work too if macadamias are too expensive)

125g dried apricots

180g white chocolate

250g unsalted butter

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup caster sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla essence

2 eggs

2 cups plain flour

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 cup of craisins

2 1/2 cups rolled oats

1.  Preheat oven to 180C.  Line baking trays with baking paper.  Using a large sharp knife, roughly chop macadamia nuts and put in a mixing bowl.  Roughly cut apricots with scissors and add to nuts.  Roughly chop chocolate (under no circumstances allow your fingers or thumb to make contact with a very large, very sharp kitchen knife), and add to nut and apricot mixture.

2.  Chop butter into small pieces and put in a large mixing bowl.  Beat with an electric beater until soft and creamy.  Add brown and caster sugars and beat until the mixture has increased in volume and the sugar has dissolved.  Add vanilla essence and eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition.

3.  Sift flour and bicarbonate of soda and add to the creamed butter and sugar mixture.  Add prepared nut, fruit and chocolate mixture, craisins and rolled oats and stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture is well combined.  

4.  For each biscuit measure about two teaspoons of the mixture and press into a round shape.  Mixture will be sticky.  Allow for biscuits to spread on trays.  Bake for 10 - 12 minutes.  Remove cookies from the ray and stand on a wire rack until completely cold.  Enjoy.

Anne xx

Sticking out like a sore thumb

Christmas is an exciting time for many people.  The anticipation of family time, good food, perhaps a gift or two under the tree, the decorations etc.  I did mention good food didn't I?  I was in the middle of making some yummy Christmas biscuits (I'll share the recipe after Christmas), when the top of my left thumb decided to make contact with the big kitchen knife while I was chopping chocolate into pieces.  Fantastic timing wouldn't you agree?  :)   The day before Christmas.   Fortunately Miss G. was home and was able to get me a face washer to press against my thumb in an attempt to stop the profuse bleeing.   The pain was, well, rather bad. *@##*@***!!!

 

Fortunately my neighbour was home and was able to drive me to the G.P. and have the nurse look at it for me.  No stitches were required, phew, although I have some pretty impressive bandaging to stop any further bleeding and perhaps to remind me to ask for help in the kitchen.  Although I think the throbbing will be all the reminder I need.  Washing the dishes can be done one handed, but it's perhaps not the most thorough dish washing  I've ever done. :)

I still managed to get most things done before our Christmas visitor arrived.  My apron was still on when I took this photo and as you can see, I can still type.  :)

Sweet Christmas Eve dreaming everyone,

Anne  xx