Sifa's finished Tivaevae

My mother in law is very handy with a needle and embroidery thread.  The ladies at her church cut out the design, the backing sheet/s (depending on the size of the design) and get the matching thread.  

 

Too much fun going on here

Al always seems to go the best places while I'm at work

Double Duty

You know when you get to the end of the week and their a heaps of leftovers in the fridge and you think farg! what to do?! as there's never quite enough of anything to make anything.  I had one such week and then that familiar light bulb went off in my head - Quiche, and of course you have to have something to go with it - Apple Pie....muahahahahaha

I had some pastry sheets left over and decided to use them up - worked well on the quiche but not so much on the apple pie.  Note to self - don't take shortcuts when dealing with pastry

Little Miss and her cupcakes

Little Miss A wanted to bake some  cupcakes for her Nana but after they were done she didn't want to share them after all....lol.  She is become quite the baker and she already doing what the judges say on Master Chef - taste, taste, taste; no mixing spoon or whisk or beater prongs is left unlicked when she's around.

Alan's Birthday in May

Its a long standing tradition in our family that everyone gets a cake on their birthday, this year I thought Al deserved a very large cupcake for his. Little Miss A thought it was her birthday too - hmmmmm, lol.

It was made using a silicon mold purchased through Avon last year and this was only the second time I had used it. 

Mothers Day Lunch at PIC Henderson

It was really nice to be a part of this Mothers Day celebrating that, there was so much food we could have stayed there for a few days and still had leftovers.  There are some awesome cooks amongst the church ladies and my little offering didn't even compare to huge variety of foods on offer.

I made banana cupcakes with buttercream icing and marshmallow fondant hearts on the top 

Absent Blogger

A friend asked me recently why I hadn't updated my blog and I really didn't have a good enough answer

Muffin tin Bacon and Egg pies

All winter long I've been thinking about making my own pies. Now back in the day I would have used my pie maker but it only makes two at a time and you know me I bake in bulk.

Ingredients:
Puff pastry
Bacon pieces or rashers (cut into small pieces) - I didn't fry my bacon pieces beforehand
Eggs
Mixed Vegetables - I boiled them first as I wasn't sure they would cook properly from frozen
Seasoning - salt, pepper etc
Large muffin tins

Method:
Cut each sheet into quarters - each sheet will yield 2pies (base and top)
Grease or spray your muffin tins
Press 1/4 of pastry sheet into the muffin tins and mould it so it covers most if not all of the base and sides.
Add egg and break the yolk, then bacon, then vege's and seasoning
Place a pastry on the top and pinch base and top together to create a seal.
Drizzle milk over the top to help the pastry brown while in the oven

Bake for about 25-30mins depending on your oven

Bacon Bread / Loaf

An apt desciption would be: Bacon and Cheese bread made with Buttermilk biscuit dough

I saw this recipe on youtube - thanks yoyomax12, she uses prepackages buttermilk biscuit dough in a pressurised can. Unfortunately on the otherside of the world in Nz we don't have that so here's what I did.

Ingredients:
Buttermilk biscuit dough - heaps of recipes on the internet
Bacon bits, cheese AND wait for it...... Italian salad dressing, yep you heard right, this is what gives your bread/loaf it's herbie flavour.

Method:
Once you've made you dough, simply use a layering technique eg..dough, then bacon and cheese and a sprinkling of Italian salad dressing and repeat.
Bake in the oven for 25-30mins depending on your oven

Can be served warm or cold
Enjoy

Lemon Meringue Pie

I hadn't made one of these in such a long, long, long time. It was one of the very first things I baked as a pre-teen and it started my love affair with baking. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank my former Cooking Teacher Mrs. Webb from Rangeview Intermediate in West Auckland.

I followed the Nz Woman's Weekly recipe. It's easy to follow and most ingredients can be found in your pantry

Strawberry Jam

Yes I'm at it again.....making jam

I love the fact that because I make my own I don't have to buy it from the supermarket. I'm able to reuse the same jars over and over again . I'm not using any artificial preservatives or additives. AND I'm saving money - what could be better than that.

I'm lucky enough that the guy down the road every season sells strawberries for as little as 4 punnets for $5.00, they are locally grown and they are of a very good quality.

Recipe:
Ingredients
900grams of Strawberries - stems removed, cut into quarters depending on size
4 C of sugar
1/4 C of Lemon Juice

Method:
In a heavy bottomed saucepan, mix together the strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice.
** as the fruit begins to soften you can either a masher or a stick mixer to break up the fruit.
Stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved - dissolved completely
Increase heat to high, and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil for 15-20mins and then see if it has reach it's setting point.
* Remove and scum that forms on the top before putting into clean jars.

Sterlising jars and other tips:
Now i'm not huge on following the rules exactly and I've read on different websites that as long as the jars have been cleaned thoroughly beforehand then you don't have to sterilise them just before use, as the hot jam will do that job.
Another trick someone showed me is to turn the jars upside down not to only to check for leaks but to also again to sterlised the lid. According to some sites it also means you don't have to put the jam through a hot water bath.
If you don't get that sealed dip on your lid it doesn't necessarily mean it's not sealed properly as any leaks would have become visual when you turn the jars upside down. I have found no problems with mould etc even after the jam has been in storage for over a year

Beer Bread

I've seen it being made on youtube and on different websites but it really didn't appeal. But with the cost of bread going up and up I thought what the heck, nothing to lose and everything to gain. I think in this loaf I may have left in a bit longer than I should have but I'm happy with the results.

Recipe
Ingredients:
3 Cups of Flour *
3 Tbsp Baking Powder
3 Tbsp Sugar
1 330ml can of Beer (any flavour)
*Some recipes say to use Self Raising Flour only - but if plain flour is all you have available just use it.

Method:
Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl
Add in beer, allow to sit for a bit and the fold all ingredients together. Careful not to overmix

Pop into a well greased loaf tin
Bake for 50-60mins and use the spring back test or if your loaf moves freely in the tin after some gentle shaking - it's done.

You can add extra ingredients eg..cheese, olives etc...
Some youtubers add melted butter over the top before putting the bread in the oven, others wait until 5-10mins before the end.