Holiday

I'm off on a holiday for 2 weeks. I'll be back on the 9th of May...

I've scheduled some posts for the next 2 weeks. Just some cakes/cupcakes/cookies that I have recently made... 

Upon my return I'll be baking up a storm...

Recipe of the Week - Orange & Pecan Loaf Cake

My mum came home a couple of weeks ago with 2 loaf pans... Then on the weekend, we were shopping and she bought another one.

I think it was a hint.

So I made this...

I originally wanted to make it lemon, but for some reason our lemon tree is only growing green lemons. I guess it's just not lemon season yet. Hoping we had some oranges, I looked in the fridge and found one lone one. Phewf! I think maybe someone put it in there saving it for themselves... But I took it. You have to be quick in my family!

Orange & Pecan Loaf Cake.

[Printable recipe here]
You can make it in just a normal tin if you so desire.
You Will Need...
175 Grams Butter
3 eggs
1 Cup Sugar
1 Orange (I found it wasn't very orangey.. So if you like orange, make it 2 oranges!)
2 Cups Plain Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Cup Plain (thick greek style) Yoghurt (or sour cream)
1 cup pecans roughly chopped (Save some for the top)
1/4 cup sugar (extra)
Juice from the orange(s)

Grease your loaf tin, and preheat the oven to 170 degrees celsius.
Grate the orange, until you have as much orange zest as possible.

Place the sugar, butter and zest into a mixer, and beat until creamy.
Add the eggs 1 at a time, and beat after each one until fully incorporated.
Add the yoghurt and continuing beating.
Mix in the flour, baking powder and pecans. (Remember to save some to put on top)
Spoon the mixture into your tin, and place pecans all over the top.

The cake mix will be very thick. It's a dense cake!
Place in the oven for 40-50 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Once cake is cooked, leave to cool in tin.
Place in a saucepan, the extra 1/4 cup of sugar and orange juice.
Stir until sugar has dissolved, and then let boil for 1-2 minutes.
While the cake is still in the tin, drizzle the orange syrup all over. Allow the cake to soak up as much syrup as possible before turning out onto a plate.

Serve slices warm with cream for dessert. Also perfect cut into slices the next day.

Super Mario

I love playing Super Mario. It is definately one of the best inventions in the world... I made this cake for my brother's birthday. I intended to buy him Mario Galaxy on wii for a present, but all the shops I went to didn't have it! (That's what happens when you leave birthday present shopping down to the last hour)

I used this cake recipe, and covered it in Baileys buttercream and fondant. (I also left most of this down to the last hour... Note to self - improve your time management skills.)

He liked it.

Boys are silly...

Michael Jackson

I made this cake for a friend's birthday. She's a huge MJ fan...

Pizza & Yogo...

This is my neice Kayla. I think she was turning 3 when I took these..
"Hrmm.. Do I like pizza?""I'm not quite sure...""Maybe if it was a dessert pizza...""Yogo.. MUCH better"
"Yum, Yum, Yum"Finger - Licking Good..

Recipe of the Week - Lemon Cheesecake

We used to make this cheesecake when we were little. I remember crushing up the biscuits for the base..
It was a recipe that came on the back of the Philly Cream Cheese packets, but they don't have it on there anymore. I went searching on the Kraft website and found it.

Perfect for Easter Sunday lunch.

You Will Need..
1 1/4 cups biscuits crushed (I used milk arrowroot, and I used almost 2 cups because our cheesecake plate is huuugge)
80 grams butter - melted (If you're using 2 cups, you need more butter, I probably ended up doubling this..)
500 grams Philadelphia Cream Cheese
400 gram can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 teaspoons gelatine, dissolved in 1/4 cup boiling water
1/3 cup lemon juice (worked out to be 1 1/2 medium lemons)
2 Tablespoons grated lemon rind (I used 2 lemons)

Crush your biscuits until they are like breadcrumbs. (Place your biscuits in your food processor, or in a bowl and crush with the end of your rolling pin)
Combine the melted butter and biscuit crumbs.

Press evenly into the base of your pan.
Chill in the fridge until you've made the filling.

Beat the cream cheese until smooth.

Beat in the condensed milk and geletine mixture until smooth.
Add the lemon juice and rind and beat until its all mixed together.
(I added everything at once. I sometimes fail to read recipes completely before starting.. It's a bad habit!)

Pour the cream cheese mixture into your prepared dish and smooth out evenly.

Add some left over lemon to the top if you wish...

Place in the fridge to set for 3 hours or overnight. Enjoy!