Multicoloured Sweet Popcorn (Gluten-, Egg-, and Dairy Free) with Video!

If there's something that kid's particularly love, it's sweet things. And if there's something they love more than that, it's brightly coloured sweet things! Although, sometimes adults like it too.. especially this adult.

This is a simple way to make frosted popcorn of any colour you have available, that doesn't require a sugar thermometer: all you need is a microwave and an oven, and you'll have multicoloured popcorn in under 15 minutes.

If you want to add flavourings, you can add any flavouring oil or essence to the sugar syrup before tossing the popcorn. My companion likes popcorn that is sweet and salty, so I usually add a good few pinches of salt for that sweet/savoury experience.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing and using a microwave

TIME

Under an hour

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes enough popcorn for 6 people

3 ounces (85 grammes) popped popcorn kernels
3 ounces (85 grammes) caster sugar
3 tablespoons (45 millilitres) water
Liquid food colouring

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FREE FROM

Eggs, nuts, dairy, gluten, yeast

CONTAINS

Maize, refined sugar

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STORAGE

Best eaten on the day it's made, but can be eaten the net day if kept in a airtight plastic bag or container.

Pull-Apart Pumpkin Cake (Dairy-Free Sponge Recipe) with Video!

If you are planning a Halloween party for entertaining, you will always need some kind of cake as a centre piece for the party table. Layer cakes, like the Bat 'n' Burg, will always impress older kids and adults, but little children are much more easily impressed. So, if you're entertaining little ones, you don't need to go to so much bother: this pull-apart cake will make your life easier, and will make sure everyone has a piece of cake that's the same size.

This video demonstrates how to make a pumpkin themed cake, but you could do anything like a bat, or a ghost. It's completely up to you!

 

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing and piping icing

TIME

About 2 hours

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes 12 cupcakes

4 ounces (115 grammes) white spelt flour

½ teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) cocoa powder
2 medium (US large) eggs

2 ounces (55 grammes, 60 millilitres) sunflower oil

2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar

2ounces (55 grammes) soft light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

To decorate

Melted milk or dark chocolate, roughly 3 ounces (85 grammes)
12 ounces to 1 pound (340 to 455 grammes) buttercream icing, coloured orange, made using margarine for a dairy-free option

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FREE FROM

Dairy, nuts, wheat, yeast

CONTAINS

Spelt, eggs, refined sugar

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STORAGE

These keep for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container at room temperature.

Coco-Lime Cream Soda (Naturally Free From)

You can't have a party without something to drink, and when party food is usually sugary and fatty, you want something nice and refreshing. Enter in this Thai inspired soft drink: the Coco-Lime Soda! A zingy lime syrup, mixed with rich yet light coconut milk, and topped off with sparkling water. The coconut milk and sparkling water create a wonderfully spooky frothy head...

This would appeal more to adults than children, especially if you decided to take this Thai delight to the West Indies and add in some white rum!

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing and using a microwave

TIME

Under an hour

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes roughly half a pint (285 millilitres) of lime syrup

6 fluid ounces (170 grammes) fresh lime juice, roughly 6 or 8 limes

Rind of 2 limes, peeled into strips with a vegetable peeler

6 ounces (170 grammes) caster sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Green food colouring

Pinch of salt

To serve

Light coconut milk, in a can (about 20-25% coconut), or full fat coconut milk if you're feeling decadent

Sparkling water

Green sugar
Optional: white or spiced rum

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FREE FROM

Dairy, nuts, gluten, eggs, yeast

CONTAINS

Refined sugar

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METHOD

• In a microwave safe jug, place the lime juice, zest, sugar, and salt. Microwave for about 20 minutes, stirring half-way through. Allow to cool completely.
• Strain the syrup into a bottle; discard the zest. Chill completely before assembling the drinks.

To serve

• To mix a drink, wet the rim of a highball glass and dip in green sugar. Add 1 part lime syrup, 2 parts chilled coconut milk, and 3 parts sparkling water. If you pour the water from a height, you will get plenty of foam.
• Serve with a straw. If you like, you can put ice in the glasses first.
• Alternatively, you can make the drink in a punch bowl, rather than mixing individual drinks.
• To make an alcoholic drink, mix 1 part lime syrup, 2 parts coconut milk, 2 parts rum, and 2 parts sparkling water.

Báirín Breac, a.k.a. Barm Brack: Traditional Irish Fruit Bread

Hallowe'en as a holiday originates in Ireland: Oíche Shamhna was the original Gaelic new year's eve, where the division between the living world and the spirit world would open for one night only to permit the dead to pass over. Sometimes, though, pesky spirits would accidentally (on purpose) take people who were still alive into the spirit world, where they'd get stuck forever. To prevent this from happening, the living people were advised to disguise themselves as ghouls, goblins and sprites to fool the spirits into thinking they were some of their own, and prevent their apprehension.

Once the Irish migrated en-masse to the United States, Hallowe'en became part of the American consciousness, and was popularised worldwide through American television. How the Irish celebrated Hallowe'en was always a little bit more ghoulish and pagan when I was a kid, and not as holiday-fied as the American Hallowe'en, but over my lifetime it has lost popularity and has become completely overshadowed by Christmas. Seriously, we have Christmas stuff in the shops from September.

So, in the spirit of sharing our traditions, I will share with you a recipe for barmbrack, or báirín breac in Irish, which is a fruited bread often eaten at this time of year. Hidden inside the loaf are a few trinkets that have symbolic meaning: a ring for marriage, a coin for wealth, a stick for poverty, a pea for spinsterhood, and a relic for a religious life. Nowadays, it's usually only a coin or ring. And yes, even the ones in the shop have the trinkets hidden inside; I understand in America it's illegal to sell food that contains foreign object, but not here!

I tried making this the traditional way, with a home-cultured yeast and tea-soaked fruit, but it was really really difficult: making your own bread starter is a tricky business, and I personally find it too sour, and using soaked fruit made a complete and utter mess. Instead, I've somewhat adapted the traditional bread recipe to make it a tad easier.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires bread making

TIME

About 5 hours

RECIPE RATING

Experienced

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes one large loaf, weighing roughly 1½ pounds (680 grammes)

6 fluid ounces (170 millilitres) strong black tea, hot

10 ounces (280 grammes) raisins or currants, or a mixture of both

2 teaspoons (10 grammes) brown sugar

12 ounces (340 grammes) white spelt flour, plus up to 2 ounces (55 grammes) extra for dusting

1½ teaspoons (7 grammes) salt

1 quarter-ounce (7 gramme) packet of dry active yeast

1 ounce (30 grammes) caster sugar

1 medium (US Large) egg, or you can use more tea

1½ ounces (40 grammes) unsalted butter, soft, or margarine

Demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Eggwash

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FREE FROM

Nuts, wheat

CONTAINS

Spelt, dairy (italics show alternatives), eggs (italics show alternatives), refined sugar, yeast

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METHOD

• In a large jug, mix the fruit with the hot tea and brown sugar. Heat in the microwave on full power for 1 minute, stirring half way. Allow the fruit to cool to hand-hot, which will take about 20 minutes
• Strain all the liquid out of the fruit, pressing as much liquid as you can out of the fruit. Set the fruit aside for later, and make sure the tea is still hand-hot: it should feel like nice bathwater. If it's too cold, heat gently in the microwave until it's hot enough again.
• In a large mixing bowl, sieve in 8 ounces (225 grammes) of the flour, and add in the yeast, the sugar, and salt. Mix in the egg, and only enough of the strained tea to make what looks like a thick pancake mixture. Cover loosely with a tea towel or cling film, and allow to rise for about 20 minutes to half an hour. This will help the strengthening of the gluten.
• Once the dough has risen, add in the remaining 4 ounces (115 grammes) of flour and mix to a very soft dough; it will be a little bit tacky. Sprinkle some of the premeasured flour onto the work surface and knead until smooth.
• Add the butter and fruit into the dough, and knead again until the dough is very smooth and supple, and passes the window-pane test. The whole kneading process from adding the flour to finished dough might take up to 20 minutes and will be incredibly messy, so prepare yourself and don't be afraid to flour the surface often (making sure not to add more than 2 ounces (55 grammes). If you have a standing mixer with a dough hook, it'll be ready in half the time.
• Roll into the dough into a ball, return to the bowl, and allow to rise for about an hour to two hours, or until just over doubled in size.
• Grease and flour an 8 inch (20 centimetre) deep, round cake tin. You could also use two 8 inch (20 centimetre) sandwich tins to make shallower loaves.
• Once doubled, press the air out of the dough and shape again to a ball, making sure the surface is very smooth and tight. Put into the prepared tin and flatten out until the surface is level. Cover again and allow to rise once more until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. In the last few minutes of rising, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4).
• Brush the surface of the loaf with eggwash and sprinkle with Demerara sugar. Bake the loaf on the centre shelf of the oven for 30 to 45 minutes: the top will be a beautiful golden brown, and to test the doneness take the loaf out of the tin and knock the bottom, and if it sounds hollow it's done.
• If the top is browning too quickly, cover with a tin foil hat. Ovens turn loaves of bread into conspiracy theorists sometimes.
• When cooked, carefully remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack. If you want to enjoy it freshly baked, allow it to cool enough to handle before cutting, but it's best cut at room temperature.

STORAGE

These keep for up to 3 or 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature. Do not store in the fridge!

Gingerbread Skeletons (Egg Free) with Video!

About two or so years ago, a friend of mine came to visit me around Halloween time, and she brought to me a small gingerbread man with a skeleton iced onto it; it was branded as a "Jack the Skeleton" biscuit, which made me chuckle. Ever since then, I've been curious about making some myself, but have had difficulty finding a gingerbread recipe that mimicked the soft, chewiness of the Jack the Skeleton biscuit.

This recipe, unlike the usual recipe I use, has a high ratio of sugar and syrup to flour, which renders the need to use egg as a binder redundant. Also, if you replace the butter with some good ol' margarine this recipe can be completely vegan! The icing is a very simple mix of butter, icing sugar, and water, so this doesn't use the traditional royal icing decoration. 

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing, rolling out, and cutting shapes

TIME

About 3 hours

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes six 3 inch gingerbread men

4 ounces (115 grammes) white spelt flour

¼ teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ginger

1 teaspoon mixed spice

One pinch to a ¼ teaspoon ground cloves, to taste

2 ounce (55 grammes) unsalted butter, or margarine

2 ounces (55 grammes) golden syrup

2ounces (55 grammes) dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

To decorate

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) melted unsalted butter, or margarine
2 ounces (55 grammes) icing sugar, sieved
Water, to mix

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FREE FROM

Eggs, nuts, wheat

CONTAINS

Spelt, dairy (italics show alternatives), refined sugar

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METHOD

First, make the biscuits

• In a jug or bowl, heat the butter, syrup, and sugar in the microwave at 50% power for a minute at a time until the butter has melted and the syrup is runny. Mix well.
• Sieve the flour, salt, spices, and baking soda into a mixing bowl, make a well in the centre, and pour in the melted butter and syrup mixture. Mix with a spatula or spoon until you have a very soft dough.
• Pour the dough out onto a piece of cling film, and wrap it up. Pop it into the fridge for an hour, or until firm.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4), and line one or two flat baking trays with non-stick paper.
• Roll the dough out on a floured surface to a quarter inch (5 millimetres) thick, and cut into gingerbread man shapes. Re-roll the scraps, trying not to mix in too much of the flour dusting.
• Lie the gingerbread men out on the tray(s), and chill for about 10 minutes before baking on the centre shelf of the oven for only 6 to 7 minutes for soft chewy biscuits, or up to 9 minutes for crispy biscuits.
• After the biscuits are baked, remove the tray(s) from the oven and cool the biscuits on the tray for about 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.

To decorate

• Mix the icing sugar and melted butter together in a small bowl, adding only enough water to make a thickly flowing icing.
• Make a small baking paper piping cone, and fill halfway with icing. Snip off the end, and pipe on the skeleton bodies.
• Allow to set for about 30 minutes before serving.

STORAGE

These keep for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container at room temperature.

Spooky Mummy Sausage Rolls (Wheat Free)

 

Sometimes I like to take a little break from sweet things, and like to dabble in the world of savoury treats! Now, a lot of people will be looking at this photograph and think Oh God, this needs puff pastry, which is super fiddly, but fear not: this uses rough puff pastry, which is a much simpler version of the recipe. This way you get the best of both worlds: the delicious flakiness of puff pastry, but the simplicity of shortcrust pastry.

I used ketchup to make the eyes, but you could also use brown sauce, or mayonnaise. Or, you could even use something like sesame seeds.

These little guys will be starring in my upcoming video, Sweetie Pie Throws a Party!, airing next week....

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing, rolling out, and cutting shapes

TIME

About 3 hours

RECIPE RATING

Intermediate

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes 8 or 10 sausage rolls

8 ounces (225 grammes) white spelt flour, cold

Salt and pepper

3 ounces (85 grammes) butter, very cold, cut into cubes

3 ounces (85 grammes) white vegetable fat, cold, cut into cubes

4 fluid ounces (115 millilitres) cold water

8 ounces (225 grammes) sausage meat, for a vegetarian option use prepared sage and onion stuffing

Eggwash, which is egg beaten with a little water

Ketchup, to decorate

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FREE FROM

Nuts, wheat, refined sugar

CONTAINS

Spelt, dairy, eggs, meat

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METHOD

• In a mixing bowl, season the flour with a little salt and pepper. Add in the butter and fat, and break up with your fingers until you have a very coarse mixture with big chunks of butter and fat: they could be about the size of peas.
• Using a knife, add in the water a bit at a time and mix through gently. You might not need all the water, so only add about a tablespoon at a time. The mixture will be very rough and shaggy, with dry and wet parts and big chunks of fat. This is necessary.
• Turn out onto a floured work surface, and begin the turning and folding process: roll the mixture out to about half an inch (1 centimetre) thick, then fold up into third like a letter, then turn through 90 degress. Repeat this process once more, then wrap up and pop in the freezer for 10 minutes. This will be quite difficult at first because the mixture is a mess, but don't stop believing!
• Remove from the freezer, and do two more folds and turns. Wrap up again, and either pop back in the freezer for another 10 minutes if you want to do another two folds and turns; or, pop into the fridge for about 45 minutes if you want to use it to make the sausage rolls.
• Roll the pastry out to about a quarter inch (4 or 5 millimetres) thick and cut into 8 (or 10) squares. Visualise each square divided into thirds, and fill the middle third with an eighth (or tenth) of your desired filling, meat or stuffing mix.
• Follow the instructions below to braid the squares, but leave a little gap to show the faces. Place the squares on an ungreased baking sheet and chill for 20 minutes in the fridge.

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F, Gas Mk.6), brush each roll with a little egg wash, sprinkle with coarse salt and black pepper if you like, and then bake the sausage rolls for 20 minutes.
• Once baked, allow to cool on the tray for about 5 minutes to make them easier to remove. Serve hot or cold, using ketchup to make glowing eyes.

STORAGE

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days only.

Bat 'n' Burg Cake (Wheat and Dairy Free)

 

In my world, everyday is Halloween: I usually wear black with spiders and bats and spikes (gotta love a Goth stereotype), but when it's actual real-life calendar accurate Halloween, it's essentially my Christmas.

So, as my first offering of the Halloween season, I present to you this punderful delight: the Bat 'n' Burg! I think it's appropriate in two ways, as this is a delicious seasonal retelling of a traditional tea time classic, and also the name is a nice visual homage to Dr Frank 'n' Furter, who--for those of you in the know--is so fittingly seasonal. Credit to my lovely companion for coining the name of this delight...

Although this is a mini cake which would give a little slice to four people, a bigger version would be a delicious centre piece for any party table! Speaking of a bigger version, keep your eyes peeled for this Bat 'n' Burg's bigger brother in my upcoming Halloween video!

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DIFFICULTY

Requires cutting cake into layers,
shaping, and coating with marzipan

TIME

About 3 hours

RECIPE RATING

Experienced

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INGREDIMENTS

For each 4 inch (10 centimetre) cake

2 ounces (55 grammes) white spelt flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar

1 medium (US Large) egg

1 fluid ounce (30 millilitres) sunflower oil

1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) milk

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

A few drops almond essence

Green and orange food colouring

To decorate

6 or 8 ounces (170 to 225 grammes) white marzipan, bought or homemade

Purple and black paste food colouring

Raspberry or apricot jam, warmed

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FREE FROM

Dairy, nuts, wheat

CONTAINS

Spelt, eggs, refined sugar, almonds

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METHOD

First, bake the cakes.

• Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease the bottom and sides, line the bottom of the tin with non-stick baking paper, and flour your 4 inch (10 centimetre) round deep cake tin.
• Separate the egg, put the whites into a mixing bowl, and mix the yolk with the oil in a jug.
• Whip the egg white, adding the sugar gradually, until you have a meringue that holds soft peaks. Mix in the vanilla, a few drops of almond essence, and orange food colouring. You want a nice shade of colour, but the colour will darken slightly after baking.
• Sieve in the flour and baking powder and add the milk, then fold gently until well blended, making sure not to knock out the air.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and tap a few times on the work surface. Bake in the centre of the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the surface feels springy to the touch, and a cocktail stick poked into the centre comes out clean.
• Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack before loosening from the sides of the tin and turning out onto the rack to cool completely.
• Wash the tin so you can grease, line, and flour it for the next cake. If you have two tins, you can cook both cakes together.
• Repeat the whole procedure for the second cake, this time colour it with the green colouring.

Next, decorate!

• Cut the domes off both cakes and cut evenly into two layers each: all layers should be very close in height.
• Using a 2½ (6 centimetre) inch and a 1½ (4 centimetre) inch cutter, cut each layer into concentric circles. Take the concentric circles apart, brush the insides with warm jam, and put them back together again with alternating colours.
• Take the best three layers, and sandwich them together in alternating colours, using the jam to join them. Brush the entire cake with jam.
• Dust the surface with icing sugar, and pinch off a tiny bit of white marzipan to use later. Knead purple colouring into the rest of the marzipan. Roll it out to about a quarter inch (5 millimetres) thick, and cover the cake completely and evenly. Cut off the excess.
• Knead some black colour into the remaining marzipan and roll it out again to the same thickness. Cut out two wings, two eyes, two heat shapes, and a smiley mouth. Stick a cocktail stick onto the wings and fix in place with some more marzipan. Fix some cocktail sticks onto the hearts, making sure the pointy end is pointing out, and then pinch the two rounded bits together to make ears. Leave everything to dry completely before assembly.
• Using the little bit of white marzipan, put shines on the eyes and make two little pointed teeth.
• Assemble the bat face, fixing the black marzipan on with water. Stick the wings and ears into the cake using the cocktail sticks.

STORAGE

This cake will keep for up to 10 days in an airtight container at room temperature, but is best enjoyed within a week of making.

Strawberry Malt Shake Cupcakes

Here in Ireland, there are a few American style diners, the biggest chain used to be Eddie Rocket's before there was a big fallout and the franchises fell to pieces. Now, the only Eddie Rocket's restaurants are near to Dublin, our capital.

There used to be an Eddie Rocket's in Limerick (which is Ireland's third largest city) and they used to make absolutely sinfully delicious malted milkshakes. But now the new franchise has taken over, it's just not the same.

I decided to capture my delight in these malty pink delights my making a super fluffsome fairy cake topped off with swirls of super pink strawberry flavoured Ermine icing. You can use any kind of icing recipe you like, as long as you follow the instructions below to make it strawberry malt flavoued.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires the ability to make icing

TIME

About an hour

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

12 vanilla cupcakes, in pink paper cases

1 pounds (455 grammes) cupcake icing of your choice, prepared as below

Strawberry milkshake powder, for icing

Barley malt extract, for icing

Pink decorations

6 pink paper straws

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METHOD

Make a good cupcake icing of your choice, such as traditional buttercream or Swiss meringue buttercream, but replace a quarter of the sugar with strawberry milkshake powder. Add some barley malt extract to the icing a teaspoon at a time to your taste, and beat very well. Adjust the consistency of the icing with milk or cream.

Fit a piping bag with a closed-star nozzle, and pipe swirls or roses on top of your 12 cakes. A pound (455 grammes) of icing is enough to generously ice 12 cakes, but if you're in doubt you can make another half a pound (225 grammes). Decorate with pink sprinkles or dragées, and then cut the paper straws into halves or thirds to decorate the cakes.

STORAGE
These will keep an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, or at room temperature for 3 to 5 days.

No More Soggy Bottom Pies! Part 1: Blind Baked Bottom

It's apple harvesting season! Right up into October, people will be venturing outside to choose the nicest apples of their trees, or just going to the shop to reap the fruits of somebody else's labour, for cooking, making into jam, or simply eating out of hand.

But one of the best fates I believe an apple can have is ending up in a nice apple pie, made with delicious buttery pastry! There's nothing better than rolling out the pastry, loving chopping up the apples and sugaring them up, popping it into the oven, and smelling the delicious, cinnamony goodness waft around the house as it bakes... you open the oven, take out the pie, cut a lovely slice out and--

The bottom is a soggy, mushy, mess. It breaks your heart.

However! This doesn't have to be your pie! There are a few ways to avoid a soggy bottom, and over the next few days, I'll be sharing the benefit of my knowledge with you, starting right now with my most recent adventure: a blind baked bottom crust.

Simple bake the bottom crust separately before assembly, and you'll have gorgeous, crispy crust all the way through!

Pros of Blind Baked Bottom: no soggy bottom, repeatable every time, bottom can be baked in advance and frozen for another time

Cons of Blind Baked Bottom: a little more time consuming, a little fiddly, and you run the risk of an undercooked filling.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires experience with baking shortcrust pastry

TIME

About 2 hours

RECIPE RATING

Intermediate

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes one 9 inch (22 centimetre) round pie

About 1 pound (455 grammes) shortcrust pastry, premade or shop-bought

1½ pounds (680 grammes) of Granny Smith or Bramley apples, peeled and halved

4 ounces (115 grammes) light brown sugar

Zest of a lemon

Juice of half a lemon

4 tablespoons (60 millilitres) cornflour

1 ounce (30 grammes) butter, soft

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon (1 millilitre) ground cloves

¼ teaspoon (1 millilitre) grated nutmeg

Eggwash, for assembly, or use flour and milk

Demerara (Turbinado) sugar, for assembly

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CONTAINS

Gluten if using shop-bought pastry, eggs, dairy, refined sugar, pectin from apples

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METHOD

First, make the bottom crust

• Take roughly two-thirds of the pastry and roll out on a floured surface to quarter of an inch (5 millimetres) in thickness. 
• Using the rolling pin to support the dough, lift it up and drape into a 9 inch (22 centimetre) pie dish, pressing down gently into the dish. Trim the excess, and then chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
• After chilling, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4). Take the pie dough out of the oven, line tightly with tin foil, fill with a layer of dried beans or rice, and blind bake on the centre shelf for about 20 to 25 minutes. You want it cooked all the way through and dry to the touch, but not browned.
• Once cooked, allow to cool slightly, but leave the oven on for the next step.

Then, finish off the pie

• Slice the peeled, halved, and cored apples into quarter inch (5 millimetre) slices, and mix in a mixing bowl with the rest of the filling ingredients.
• Roll the remaining dough out to the same thickness as the base to make the lid. If you want to make a decorative lid, cut the pastry as you need to.
• Brush the baked crust liberally with eggwash, or you can mix some flour into a slurry with milk or water and use that instead, add in the filling, and drape over the lid.
• Firmly press the lid onto the edge of the base crust, then trim off the excess. If your lid is whole and uncut, cut at least one slash in the top to allow for steam. Eggwash the top, or brush with milk, and sprinkle with Demerara sugar.
• Return to the centre shelf of the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the crust is a beautiful golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving hot, or allow to cool completely for serving cold.

STORAGE

These will keep in an airtight container for up to three days in the fridge.

Flapjack Bars with Yoghurt Topping (Wheat- and Egg Free)

There are very few things in the world of bakery that scream "I am an Englishman!" as much as an oaty flapjack. As far back as the 16th century, the word flapjack has been used in the English language to refer to a variety of different baked things: pancakes, tarts, biscuits, and more. Nowadays, though, it conjures up an image of a buttery, golden syrupy, oaty traybake.

Here in Ireland, flapjacks can be bought individually as breakfast bars, and often they have a yoghurty topping. I have travailed for many days to bring to you the perfect recipe for a yoghurty topping.

Only after I failed in the attempt of developing the recipe. Four. Times. I eventually got it, though. The flapjack was harder than the icing, it has to be said.

The yoghurty topping requires a little experience of sugar boiling, but it's nothing too complex. If sugar boiling is a no-go for you, you can use any other icing you want, or leave it out altogether.

If you have a flapjack recipe you prefer, feel free to use it! I used this flapjack recipe more as a vehicle and an excuse to demonstrate the yoghurty topping, if I'm going to be completely honest.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires experience with sugar boiling stages

TIME

Over 6 hours

RECIPE RATING

Intermediate

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

INGREDIMENTS

Makes one 8 inch (20 centimetre) tray of flapjacks

For the flapjacks

12 ounces (340 grammes) porridge oats

6 ounces (170 grammes) butter, salted or unsalted

4½ ounces (130 grammes) soft brown sugar

1½ ounces (40 grammes) golden syrup

1 fluid ounce (30 millilitres) water

Cinnamon, to taste

Vanilla essence, to taste

For the icing,

8 ounces (225 grammes) caster sugar
4 ounces (115 grammes) Greek yoghurt
4 ounces (115 grammes) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence

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FREE FROM

Eggs, nuts, wheat

CONTAINS

Oats, dairy, refined sugar

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

METHOD

First, make the flapjacks.

• Line an 8 inch (20 centimetre) square tin with non-stick baking paper. Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2).
• Take a quarter of the oats and grind to a flour in a blender or food processor. If you don't have heavy machinery, you can replace a quarter of the flour with instant oat cereal, like Ready Brek.
• In a saucepan, melt the butter, sugar, syrup, and water together and bring to the boil. Once boiling, remove from heat and add in the porridge oats and the ground oats. Add in the cinnamon and vanilla essence to your liking.
• Spread the mixture into the prepared tin and bake on the centre shelf for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack until cooled enough to handle.

Then, make the icing. 

• Cook sugar, yoghurt, and half of the butter over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the butter has melted. Simmer to soft ball stage, about 118 to 120°C (235 to 240°F), stirring all the time.
• Remove from heat and allow to stop bubbling, then begin to beat the icing: every time is thickens, add a quarter of the butter. 
• Once the butter is completely beaten in and the icing has thickened, pour as much as you'd like over the still warm flapjacks. If you have icing leftover, store it in the fridge for another project.
• Put the flapjacks in the fridge for about 4 hours to set the icing. Allow to come up to room temperature after the icing has set to cut easily. Cut into as many pieces as you'd like.

STORAGE

These will keep in an airtight container for up to two weeks. If you live in a warm region, keep them in the fridge to stop the icing from melting.

Yayeee! I'm Back, and Here to Introduce a New Collaborator....

Hello again, all!

I feel refreshed after my break, and as you can see things look a bit different around here! ...

... but not in the way I had planned.

Over the past four weeks, I've tried out several free web designing platforms, and I was also researching how to get a domain name and hosting. However, it's a lot more complicated than I thought. Designing websites is fiddly, and I'm not a very 2D visual person when it comes to inventing web layouts.

Also, getting domain names and hosting is a) much less straightforward than I had imagined, and b) much more pricey than I had imagined. I think it will be a while until we see a brand new web design and a new URL. Although, I do have a good friend who is a trained IT programmer and web designer. I think I may be able to seek her help, with the promise of cake and payment.

She is not the collaborator I want to introduce, however: I want to introduce you to Sweetie Pie's newest companion, Bibbit!

I felt that if Sweetie Pie were to host some upcoming videos (hint, hint) she would need a little companion. And also in the general running of the blog. From much sketch booking, I came up with Bibbit, a little kawaii froggo.

Bibbit is green with a yellow tummy, rosy cheeks, and enjoys sweets and cakes. He is also a handy guide on how difficult recipes are:

He has yet to be fully coloured and finished, but he is no less cute as a black and white sketch! I'm really pleased with how he turned out, and am very happy to introduce you all to him.

This week, I'll be uploading my first recipe since my sister's birthday at the beginning of August. I'm happy to be back, but I was also happy to have a break.