Chocolate cream pie

Listening to Lucy Rose's Night Bus again. Its always nice to know you are never alone. I love that comfort. Feeling good about everything. Feeling good about holding my baby niece. I am completely in love with her.
So, I felt like making some comfort food last night . Satin smooth chocolate cream with a crumbly, buttery base.  By the time I took the camera out this morning, the pie looked like a mess. It tastes good though! Yummy in my tummy! sigh!


And she takes the night bus home
She's not phased by the darkness in her soul
And you barely catch a glimpse of her
'cause she's wrapped tightly, hiding in her clothes

I'm not alone
She said "I'm not alone."
She said "I'm not alone."

• 
  
• 
  
• Ingredients:
• 
  
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate
• 3 egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 pack of digestive biscuits, crushed and mixed with 3 tbs of butter (Press this mixture down in a pie dish to make the base)

Directions

1. Combine sugar, flour, milk, and chopped up chocolate in 2 quart saucepan. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until mixture begins to bubble. Continue stirring for 2 minutes.
2. Mix a little of the hot mixture into the egg yolks, beating rapidly to avoid cooking the yolks. Stir the warm yolk mixture into the remainder of the chocolate mixture, and cook for an additional 90 seconds. Remove from heat, and stir in butter or margarine and vanilla.
3. Pour filling into pie shell, and chill until set. Top with whipped topping, and a little grated chocolate (I used chocolate chips).

Done!!

Lemon and Honey Cake

For sun kissed days. For Lemon and Happiness. For Honey :)

• 
  
• Ingredients:
• 1/4 cup honey, plus about 1/4 cup extra for the frosting
• 225g unsalted butter
• 1 and 3/4 cup dark Brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, beaten, + 2 egg whites for the frosting
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsps baking powder
• Juice of 3 lemons.

Directions:

Cream the Butter and sugar.

Add honey and eggs.

Fold in the flour lemon and baking powder.

Pour into a  greased baking tin and bake at 190℃ till the fork comes out clean, about 30-40 mins.

• 
  
• 
  

Kahlua, Warm Spices, Orange, Coffee and Pine nuts! These are a few of my favorite things!

 

Coffee, Kaluha, oranges, roasted pine nuts and spices. The perfect blend for warm, summery cookies. Enough said.

 Ingredients

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 and 1/4 cup  brown sugar
• 4 tbs Kahlua
• 2 teaspoons of coffee
• 1 teaspoon ground fennel seed and whole anise
• Rind of one small orange
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup pine nuts

Directions

Roast the pine nuts with the spices. Once toasted, remove the anise and add butter to the hot pan and let it melt gently. Pour into a mixing bowl and add the oil, coffee and orange rind. 

Whisk in the sugar and Kahlua.

Fold in the eggs and the four.

Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap. Shape the dough into an 8-inch-long log. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line heavy large baking sheets with a silpat or parchment paper. Cut the dough log crosswise into 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick slices. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets, spacing evenly apart. Bake until the cookies are golden around the edges, about 15 minutes. Toss in brown sugar and orange rind.

LOVE Biscotti with a hint of vanilla,olive and a whole lot of almonds

 

   Some days just feel pretty and today was one of those. It reminded me of times when you are busy with work but you still had time to take a break, calm down and realise everything is beautiful and everything is going to be okay. I was reminded of coffee shop days. I was reminded me of the smell of vanilla and almonds wafting out of the oven. Today is a pretty day. A day when I realized I don't need much to keep me going. Just a bit of work, a bit of baking and a bit of heart. It's easy to forget what really makes you happy when you are trying hard to make everything seem alright. What makes me happy is that I know now what I working towards. I know what I need to do with my life. I see a direction finally and I finally feel like I have a purpose. Everything is pretty and the way I see it, it all comes from within. 

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 4 tbs olive oil
• 1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon anise or vanilla extract
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• Dash salt
• 1/2 cup chopped almonds
• 2 teaspoons milk
• • Directions:
  • In a mixing bowl, cream butter, oil and 1 cup sugar
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Add eggs.  
• 
• Add the dry ingredients and vanilla extract.
• 
• Stir in almonds.
• 
• 
•  Line a baking sheet with foil and grease foil. Divide dough in half; spread into two 12-in. x 3-in. rectangles on foil. Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch.
• 
• Brush with milk and sprinkle with remaining sugar and bake for 5 more minutes.
• 
•  Remove from oven and reduce heat to 300 degrees F. Lift rectangles with foil onto wire rack; cool for 15 minutes. Place on a cutting board; slice diagonally 1/2 in. thick. Place slices with cut side down on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn cookies over; bake 10 minutes more. Turn oven off, leaving cookies in oven with door ajar to cool. Store in airtight container.
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• 

• Dunk in melted chocolate if you feel like it.
•