My Family.

Healthy

Ok so usually I post cake recipes and desserts on here but I am not much of a sweet eater unless it is a piece of Chocolate. But I am in love with this recipe and this website and this Chef. Teresa Cutter AKA The Healthy Chef. http://www.thehealthychef.com/
Here is a recipe of hers that I have made over and over the last couple of months a great on the go breakfast. Or just a snack. Hastings Loves them and so do I and they are very healthy and easy to make. I use half apple and half banana, I have used Hazelnut flour and I have tried Almond meal as well but desiccated coconut makes these more kid friendly and cheaper to make. I also make them into Muesli bar shapes and little muesli bar shapes for the little one. Enjoy

Apple + Cinnamon Breakfast Cookie

180 g (6   1/4 oz / 1 full cup ) smashed ripe banana or apple puree (unsweetened)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
200 g (2 cups / 7 oz) rolled oats or barley + a little extra for decorating
50 g (1/2 cup / 2 oz) ground hazelnuts ( or if you want to make this nut free – use desiccated coconut)
50 g (2 oz)  rasins
50 g (2 oz) dried chopped apple
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract.
60 ml (2  fl oz /1/4 cup ) macadamia nut, almond or light flavoured olive oil

Preheat your oven to 160 C. 320 F – fan forced.
Combine smashed banana or apple puree, vanilla with the cinnamon, oil and honey.
Add oats, hazelnuts, rasins and dried apple.
Mix together well with your hands, squeezing the mixture together until it starts to bind.
Form into 12 cookies and roll them in some oats for decoration.  I like to use a small ice cream scoop for this, but you can also use a tablespoon or your hands.
Flatten slightly.
Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until golden.
Cool and enjoy.
Makes 12 cookies
Will keep for 5 days wrapped in a sealed container.

Sweet

Here is a gift from my lovely Husband. Any one who knows me knows I love Christmas so he has brought me this beautiful advent calender. It is full of delicious goodies. I am on a diet so I have to share but I will enjoy one every now and then.

Cupcaking and an Update

I don't do these posts here all that often these days but here is a quick one photos of vanilla cupcakes with vanilla bean butter cream frosting and Mocha cupcakes with espresso butter cream (yumo) and some photos of the kids on our recent adventures

The Babies

Hastings, the big one is now 18months old. This is just crazy. It feels like just yesterday I held his newborn little naked body in my arms for the first time. He is growing and learning so quickly. He mimics sounds, copies actions and follows instructions. It is amazing to see his brain at work. We are seeing him do new hinges every day and new words fly out his mouth. I wouldn't change anything about the 18 beautiful months I have had with him. It has gone so quickly soon he will be 2 next thing I know he will be 18.

Ok so Calloway, the little one is 3 months. He is a happy baby and I believe he gives the most beautiful smiles in the world. He loves his cuddles and his sleep. He is sleeping through the night and that makes for a very happy mum. I have so much love for my babies they make my day. I have ultrasound photos of them on my night stand just as a reminder of how amazing the miricle of having a child is.

Cupcaking

Raspberry Pistachio Cupcakes with Raspberry butter cream and pistachio crust

Its been so long

Sorry it has been so long. I have been giving my little business legs and it has been kept me running. I am lucky that before even starting as an official business I had a pretty solid customer base.
Since I have opened online, I was asked to do a set of cupcakes for a cafe, not for eating, but for a photo shot. The cafe that did this are bring out a range of drinks and are going to use my cupcakes on their posters that will be advertising the drinks. The cupcakes are the same flavour as the drinks. I can not say anything until they start advertising then I will put up my copy of the photos.
I have also had a few orders for little events and business parties and I have more in the pipeline which is more than exciting.

Ok so that is the second most important thing in my life now to the first most important. MY BABIES. Hastings is growing up so so quickly the kid just absorbs information. We are getting new words every other day. He is also a big of a neat freak, he puts rubbish in the bin like it is a game he puts his books away on the shelf and wipes the table after he eats if I give him a cloth. He just amazes me. He is such a caring big brother. He watches and checks on Calloway when they are at the playhouse and I am at the Gym. The ladies are always telling me how he goes and checks on him and if he gets upset he runs over to him.
That was the big one now for the little one. He will be 3 months old next week what the??? It has gone by so so quickly. We are getting probably 5 full nights of sleep a week sometimes less sometimes more. He is feeding well about every 4 hours some days he has a big of a feeding frenzy which is nice it makes me feel so wanted. I am big on getting kids into a routine but I definitely know that here is a balance to it. It doesn't hurt to make them wait a little while but not too long they are so little and precious. I don't make him wait until it hits 4 hours but I do try and settle him in other ways if it is early. If he settles from that he wasn't very hungry and if he does not then I will feed him. He gives the biggest most beautiful smiles it is an amazing heart swelling thing to see.
We are yet to decide if we will have more kids we are both so happy with the 2 little men we have and we can see the financial and time advantages with only to kids. Especially with family overseas it will be near impossible to afford to take more than 2 kids over to America. But at the same time we have both talked about having more kids as a possibility, and the idea that this is the last time I will see a first smile or first steps or kiss a brand new baby forehead, is a hard thought to swallow. Then again I hate pregnancy so much I know it has a major reward at the end but pregnancy has been rough on my body I am not sure how I would cope if we were to do it again. If we do do it all again it won't be for at least 3 years we need that cooling off period.

Ok so here are my babies. It was nice to catch up I hope to see you all again soon

My littlest

My baby is 9 weeks old and he is amazing. 

He sleeps well

He eats well 

He travels well.

He smiles amazingly.

We love our sons they are the greatest things ever to bless my life

Sickidy sickidy

Hastings got goastro, then Hubby got Gastro then I got gastro then Uncle got gastro then Gramps got gastro.

Everyone has been ill and it is horrible. I was almost in tears when I was going through it I cant believe my baby had to go through it.

YUCK YUCK YUCK

Cupcaking

 Milo Cupcakes, malt chocolate cake with whipped chocolate ganache and a milo top

Cupcaking

Today's adventures
Musk cupcakes with vanilla Swiss meringue butter cream and macaroons with butter cream filling, strawberry and orange.

Cupcaking

Here are some lovely fresh strawberry cupcakes that I have made for a fishing trip... yes that's right a fishing trip with cupcakes who knew.

I dont usually bother to do this but I have had some requests for some recipes so here it is

For the cake:

1 cup butter
2  1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon red food coloring
1 & 1/4 cups pureed strawberries
3 cups cake flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch Salt
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liners and set aside. In a large bowl, beat butter with sugar for 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, then the vanilla, food coloring and strawberries, beat for another 3 minutes.

Sift dry ingredients and add to butter/egg mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until combined.

Fill cupcake tins 2/3 of the way up. Bake for 18 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Let sit for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.

For the frosting:

 (makes enough for 24 cupcakes)

5 egg whites

1 1/2 cups white sugar

400g butter at room temp cubed

1/4 cup strawberry puree

Combine egg whites and sugar in a stand mixer bowl and place it over (not on) simmering water. Heat mixture to 160 degrees F while whisking constantly.
Transfer mixer bowl to stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment and beat on medium high speed until mixture cools, doubles in volume and forms stiff peaks; about 10-12 minutes.
Add butter in one piece at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition. The mixture may appear clumpy and almost curdled looking at first—this is normal. Keep mixing and it will become even and smooth again.
add puree and mix to combine.

My men

Hastings loving his little brother Calloway, He is so gentle with him and any time Calloway wakes up I hear this resounding WALLOWAY down the hall.

Here is Hastings with his new trick, let me tell you my life will be shortened by these boys new tricks.

Cupcaking

Here we have the lovely and dare I say healthy... no I don't, Honey cake with green tea Swiss meringue butter cream frosting

Bragging

Just a quick brag I have the big baby who sleeps through the night and the little one only gets up once at about 3or 4 has a feed and is straight back to sleep. At three and a half weeks old I have been blessed with amazing sleepers. I will be complaining about this in 15 years when I can't get them out of bed.
But for now thank you sleepy baby men

Cupcaking

Neapolitan cupcakes- chocolate, strawberry and vanilla   

Cupcaking

Sorry this is so late. Here is my fruit tingle and Nutella cupcakes.
A few notes for the week.

- A horror story, at the playground I over hear a mother say to her 2 year old. Come on time to go, the toddler screams and cries, Mother says OK just 2 more minutes (cause 2 year old's are great at time management), 2 minutes later, come on time to go, toddler screams, Mother then says Ok come on if you come here we will go and get McDonald's..... toddler comes on over.
This is horrible, bribing a tantrum toddler with McDonald.... what the heck

- Going well with my health and weight loss and ultimately very very happy. 

- These cakes are yum