Happy Easter friends! I was strolling through the quaint little country town by my house this morning, and turned a corner to be met by the warm, spicy smell of fresh hot cross buns floating through the crisp air from the bakery nearby. My gosh it was lovely. For me, the start of Autumn is marked by dark and misty mornings, gentle forest rain and a warm hot cross bun, dripping with melted butter, aside a tall steaming mug of tea.
Nothing beats a classic; except when you take a classic and throw dates and walnuts at it and it becomes an addictively scrumptious, surprisingly wholesome and completely heartwarming little scone. My Nan used to always bake date scones, and her favourite recipe used lemonade, which gave them a wonderful fluffiness. I’ve gone for this buttermilk version (admittedly to use up the leftover buttermilk I had in the fridge), and they turned out wonderfully! The wholemeal flour, sweet, juicy dates and crunchy walnuts promise tantalising texture in every mouthful, and you could happily experiment with any dried fruit and nuts you have in your pantry. Think apricot and almond, cranberry and macadamia, sultana and pecan…
Nothing makes you more eager to get out of bed than the promise of a good breakfast. These warm, fluffy scrolls are filled with juicy apples and crunchy walnuts, and are dripping with sticky icing…they had us all grinning on Christmas morning as we handed out presents. They need to be refrigerated for 8 hours, or overnight, before being baked, so were perfect to whip up on Christmas Eve, and I swear they taste better than anything you can buy from the bakery. I’m not a maker of breads, so was a bit sceptical about the dough, but it was really easy and they turned out to be delicious. Perfect for a special breakfast, brunch or afternoon tea, I hope you’re tempted to give them a try! Continue reading
I know I’ve been cooking a lot with coconut lately, but it’s just so darn delicious! Not to mention versatile; there’s coconut milk, water, cream, essence and oil, you can buy it shredded, dessicated, shaved or whole, and you can eat it fresh, toast it, stir it into batter or sprinkle it atop any cake or slice for a magical, sweet crunch. Oh and it’s not that bad for you either! This Coconut and Banana Bread recipe is moist, dense, moreish, and just generally scrumptious. The crunchy topping I made provided a perfect contrast to the very soft bread, and made the whole thing even harder to resist. Continue reading
one perfect mess 