Wordless Wednesday

just hanging with little-miss-e

Random Vegetables...

So, I got a bit excited yesterday. There was a bag of random vegetables on discount at the supermarket. All I could really tell was that there was fennel included. And I have recently fallen in love with fennel. So I joyfully brought it home and now I have to work out what to do with it all!

The fennel was easy - I made fennel, potato and cannellini soup. It was so delicious, we ate it all up in one sitting, even little-miss-e enjoyed it.

But the issue is what to do with the rest of the vegies, and what they are! I have two turnips, a Lebanese eggplant and something else. I think it might be witlof? But I am really not that sure. So I have very little idea what I am going to make. But I really hate throwing out vegies, so I'm off to try and find some inspiring turnip recipes. Wish me luck!

bootie pics...

They're finished! YAY! and even better, finished before the bub arrives!

Now I've just gotta find some time to pop them in the post and get them across the ditch to their new home.

Playing along with Leonie's show and tell!

take three

A good friend of mine is due in a few weeks and I wanted to make her little bub something. Instead of making the easy-peasy booties I've made before, I thought I'd try something a little more challenging - crocheted baby ugg boots. But after a many frustrations and a redoings, all I had to show for my time was this:

Not really very ugg-boot like - more slouch boots that were never going to stay on a little ones foot...

So, take two: I found another pattern, that looked lovely - cute and simple booties. I began enthusiastically but, typically, without really paying attention to size, tension, hook size, wool ply - you know those things that all important when following a pattern. The net result being a finished bootie that would barely fit a doll.

So, take three: Adjusting the pattern size to make up for the fact I couldn't find the right sized hook and getting out one of little-miss-e's old booties for comparison, and so far take three is a winner!

Now the challenge (as always) is to finish the booties before the baby arrives!

Playing along with show and tell and with my creative space.

Wordless Wednesday

Amazing French Fudge Cake

Ok, so this cake is amazing! There is no other way to describe it. It is amazingly easy, amazingly gluten free (amazingly you'd never notice) and amazingly delicious. In fact it has trumped every other cake I make (to the point that it is the only cake my lovely husband ever chooses!). It's so amazing you don't even need a photo! (Which you can also read as "it's in the oven at the moment and I haven't taken a pic of it yet"). The recipe comes from an amazing friend, but is on a scrappy bit of paper and I always struggle to find it and then worry that maybe I've lost it. So I thought I'd share it here with you and then I won't lose it and you get the chance to make it too!

Amazing French Fudge Cake

Gently melt together:

• 200g dark chocolate
• 180g butter
• 3/4 C caster sugar

Mix well, then add

• 3 tbls gluten free self raising flour (or you could use normal flour) and mix well
• Add 3 eggs and mix well

Place in greased cake tin and cook for about 10 min at 200 degrees Celsius.
Reduce heat to 180 degrees C and cook for a further 30 min.
Turn off oven but leave the cake in the oven for a further 10 min.
Once cool, cut into squares and dust with icing sugar.

Amazing!

rsi and gluten free bread

Well, I've been on essential-only duties for the last week or two as I managed to flare up my RSI. So, try as I might, I just couldn't add crochet to my "essential" list and so have been craving the creating. It has pretty much settled down now, so I am back with the hook making something entirely new but more on that another time.

Whilst I have been out of crochet action, there are a number of other things that stayed on my essential duties list. And one of those is making gluten free bread. Having a bread maker (which I have due to said RSI), makes making bread easy and gluten free bread is easy too.



I make this one at least once a week. It is a combination/made by me recipe loosely based on a gluten free recipe from the book that came with my Breville bread maker. I've been playing around with gluten free breads and bread mixes for a while, and this is hands down the easiest one I make. Here's how:

Rice Flour Gluten Free Bread

In a measuring jug mix:

• 400ml (approx) of water with 2 tbls of Greek yoghurt to make a total of 450ml of yoghurty-water

add:

• 3 tbls oil
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar 
• 1 tbls golden syrup (or you could use honey)

in a large bowl mix:

• 2 1/4 C white rice flour
• 1 C brown rice flour
• 1 tbls Xantham gum
• 2 tsp yeast
• 1 small handful of gluten free seed mix (or pumpkin seeds)
• 1 tsp salt

add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.
Spoon into bread tin. Put bread maker on the largest loaf setting with a dark crust (my machine has a 1250g setting). Press go and walk away. Come back when finished and enjoy your bread!

 
As with most GF breads, this works better reheated as toast the day after making.