Date, Chocolate and Peanut Butter Flapjacks

Treat yourself to a yummy tea break this week with these moreish little bites…with just a little hint of that naughty snickers bar taste!

Makes: 12 squares

Prep: 10mins
Cook: 30mins

Ingredients: 300g porridge oats, 150g of butter (or vegan alternative), 150g of golden syrup, 135g of brown sugar, 80g of pitted chopped dates, 2 tbsps. of peanut butter, 50g of dark salted chocolate (or vegan alternative).

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 150°C fan
2. Weigh out your butter, sugar and golden syrup and melt gently in a pan until runny and all ingredient combined
3. Pour the wet ingredients over your oats and dates and mix well until the oats are completely coated in the buttery mixture
4. Swirl in your peanut butter and pour into a lined baking tray so that the flapjack mixture lays an inch thick
5. Pop in the oven for 30mins
6. Allow to cool
7. Melt your chocolate and drizzle over the flapjacks, leave to set or cut into 12 squares and eat straight away…
8. Enjoy!

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Wholemeal Banana Muffins

DF, Low Sugar

Whipped up a batch of these yesterday, great for lunch on the go, lunch box treats or after school snack. This recipe is dairy free and low sugar, making these a great addition to your weekend baking, as well as using up those overripe bananas!

Makes: 12 Muffins

Ingredients: 200g wholemeal flour, 4 overripe bananas, 2 eggs, 100ml of oat milk, 50g of brown sugar, 1 tbsp. of olive oil, 2 tbsp. of oats, 1 tsp. of baking powder, 1 tsp of baking soda, 1 tsp. of honey.

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180F
2. Combine all of your wet ingredients except the honey and mix well,
3. Add to all of the other dry ingredients
4. Mix well until smooth
5. Mash your bananas in a separate bowl and then add to the muffin mix
6. Mix well and then finish off by stirring in the honey
7. Fill a 12 hole muffin tray with muffin cases and fill equally with the muffin mixture
8. Pop in the oven and bake for 15 -20 minutes until the muffins have risen and are golden brown
9. Allow to cool and keep in an airtight container until ready to eat
10. Enjoy!

Just when you thought Banana Bread couldn’t get any sweeter… Banana Bread with Dates and Chia Seeds

Just when you thought Banana Bread couldn’t be any sweeter… the addition of the chia seeds and dates makes this moorishly good! Don’t worry if you don’t have chia seeds or dates just add some raisins and it will still taste great! 

Makes: One large loaf

Prep: 10mins
Cook: 45mins – 1 hour

Ingredients: 285g of wholemeal flour, 4 ripe bananas (mashed), 200g of sugar, 2 eggs, 100ml of olive oil, 85ml of milk, 1 tsp. of bicarbonate soda, 1 tsp. of baking powder, 30g of chia seeds, 50g of pitted dates (chopped), 1 tsp. of vanilla extract, pinch of salt.

Method: 

1. Preheat oven to 180C
2. Combine the flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder in a bowl
3. Mix the eggs, oil, vanilla extract and milk together then add to your dry mix
4. Mix well, then add the dates, chia seeds and mashed bananas and fold all together
5. Pour into a deep lined baking dish and pop in the oven for 45mins to one hour until golden brown on top
6. Allow to cool…
7. Enjoy with a cuppa

The Lockdown Larder Easter Baking Ideas

Want to make some treats over the weekend but can’t leave the house as you’re on Lockdown and keeping those supermarket trips to a minimum? Then I have some ideas for the long weekend to keep you going.

What about Nan’s Jam Tart for starters? I used to love making this with my own Nan as a child and still make it with my daughter.

Who knew homemade pastry was so easy!

Nan’s Jam Tart

Serves: 6

Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 30mins chill time/20 mins in the oven

Ingredients: 100g salted or unsalted butter, 200g self raising flour, 1 egg,

For the filling: jar of jam (your choice but I used one from the St. Dalfour range, as it has less sugar).

Method:

1. Mix the butter and flour into a breadcrumb like consistency, then add one egg to combine the mixture, make into a ball and leave in the fridge for 30mins
2. Pre-heat your oven to 180F
3. Roll out your pastry to the thickness of a pound coin
4. Grease a cake tin ( I used one with W20cm), place the pastry on top, gently pushing down, cutting off any excess which you can use for decoration,
5. Make a few fork marks across the base and now spread your jam all over
6. Bake in the oven for 20mins…
7. Eat hot or cold, served with custard, ice cream or just a nice cuppa!

Cookies are always good right? Try these easy recipes below and adapt additional ingredients to suit what you have in, don’t have dried apple then use other dried fruits such as raisins and dates, don’t have peanuts then use some other nuts instead as long as the quantities are right all will be well.

For recipes go to:

Easy Oaty, (with a little bit of dark chocolate), and Dried Apple Cookies

Inspired by Nigeria: Peanut Butter, Coconut and Banana Chip Crumbly Cookies

Back to School Lunch Box/After School Treat Ideas

And not forgetting the more recent Lockdown Larder Chocolate Flapjacks – just click the link  The Lockdown Larder – Chocolate Flapjacks

 

Got some packets of jelly in the cupboard and some frozen berries in the freezer? Then make up a batch of fruit jelly for your inner child, just make up the jelly as per packet instructions and drop about a cup of frozen fruit in before popping in the fridge to set yummy!

 

 

 

 

Finally, want to do some savoury baking instead and finding it hard to get fresh bread, then my Chorizo Loaf could be the recipe for you: Inspired by Portugal – Chorizo Loaf

 

I hope some of these recipes help make Easter a little sweeter this weekend, please get in touch if you have any other suggestions or have had a go at making some of these recipes.

Stay Safe, Stay Home 

x

The Lockdown Larder – Chocolate Flapjacks

Fancy making a batch of these yummy treats with what you already have in? Then try these chocolate flapjacks as porridge oats aren’t just for breakfast and also uses up any bits of chocolate you have left at home! 

Makes: 12

Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 15mins plus cooling time.

Ingredients: 225g of oats, 125g butter, 125g of brown or white sugar, 2 – 3 tbsps. of honey, on any type of syrup that you have, 40g/50g of any left over chocolate you have in the house white, dark or milk!

Method: 

1. Preheat oven to 180F
2. Put the sugar and butter into a pan and melt over a medium heat
3. Turn off the heat and stir in the oats and honey or syrup
4. Pour into a lined baking tray (roughly 18×28 cms)
5. Cook in the oven for 15 mins
6.  Allow to completely cool, then melt your chocolate on the hob or in the microwave for about a minute and drizzle all over your flapjack
7. Allow the chocolate to cool then cut into 12 pieces
8.  Enjoy!

Baking Bread…Corn Bread!

We are running low on bread this morning and as we are only going out when really necessary I thought I’d experiment with making my own…and here it is freshly baked cornbread with scrambled eggs and chilli oil…I’ve never made it before but was so simple and have loads left to keep me going, I searched a few different recipes online and managed to find one using what I already had in the cupboard!

Have a look online for loads of ideas and different types, I just added a bit of strong grated cheese to mine before popping it in the oven.

Let me know how you bake yours…

Happy Sunday x

Say Happy Valentines with Austrian Butter Biscuits – Iced with Love

Showing someone you love them shouldn’t cost the earth, so why not make a batch of these lovely little biscuits and get creative with your icing and sprinkles.  

These are made using a recipe given to me at Christmas by my friend Maya, for full easy, cheap recipe please click the link and adapt the recipe by using lots of heart cookie cutters instead and dashings of red icing! Fun to make with little ones too…

Inspired by Austria – Maya’s Butter Biscuits

Happy Valentines

x

Easy Oaty, (with a little bit of dark chocolate), and Dried Apple Cookies

My daughter came home from school today feeling tired, a bit run down and in need of some comfort and asked ‘Mummy can you make me some cookies’, I raided the cupboards and these were the results – yummy! 

Makes: 10 -15 Cookies

Prep: 10mins
Cook: 10mins

Ingredients: 75g of flour, 75g of oats, 50g of caster sugar, 40g of dried apple rings, (broken into pieces), 25g of dark chocolate, 1 tsp. of baking powder, (broken into small pieces), 75g low fat spread or vegan substitute, 1 tbsp. of agave syrup, 2 tbsp. of milk or vegan substitute.

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180′ degrees
2. Mix all of the dry ingredients together
3. Melt the wet ingredients
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well, until all combined
5. Make 10 – 15 dollops on a lined baking tray, making sure you leave plenty of space in between each cookie
6. Cook for 10mins
7. Allow to cool
8. ENJOY!

Cheats Mini Lemon Meringue Tarts

These are so easy to make and great as part of a little dessert tray or just with a cuppa!

Makes: 14 Mini Tarts

Ingredients: 100g salted or unsalted butter, 200g self raising flour, 1 egg, 1 jar of Lemon Curd, 8 mini meringues

Prep: 15 – 20 mins
Cook: 30mins chill time/14 mins in the oven

Method:

1. Mix the butter and flour into a breadcrumb like consistency, then add one egg to combine the mixture, make into a ball and leave in the fridge for 30mins
2. Pre-heat your oven to 180F
3. Roll out your pastry to the thickness of a pound coin
4. Cut out 14 disc, using cake cutter or top of a cup
5. Press these down into a muffin/cupcake tray prepared with cases
6. Add cases on top of the pastry and add your blind baking beans, (I actually just used out of date lentils for this)
7. Cook in the oven for 10-12 mins
8. Take off the blind baking beans and cases and prick the pastry all over with a fork and pop back into the oven for 2 mins
9. Take out of the oven and allow to cool
10. Fill each pastry case with 2 tsp. of lemon curd and top with crumbled mini meringues
11. Eat hot or cold, served with custard, ice cream or just a nice cuppa
12. Enjoy!

This recipes uses the pastry from my previous recipe: Nan’s Jam Tart which can be found by clicking the link. 

 

Inspired by Madagascar – Vanilla, Banana and Tumeric Muffins with Sea Salt and Vanilla Glaze

Serves: Makes 10 muffins

Prep: 15mins

Cook: 20-25 mins

Ingredients: 200g self raising flour, 2 ripe bananas (mashed), 125ml of milk, 125g caster sugar, 1 egg, 60ml of olive oil, 1 tsp. vanilla essence, 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. baking powder

For the glaze: 3 heaped tsp. of icing sugar, 1 tsp. of vanilla essence, small amount of sea salt.

Method: 

1. Preheat your oven to 180F
2. Mix all of your wet ingredients together for the muffin mix until light and blended well
3. Now start folding in the flour and other dry ingredients
4. When all combined add the mashed banana and mix well
5. Divide equally between 10 greased muffin trays and pop into the oven for 20 – 25 minutes until nice and golden
6. Allow to cool before adding your glaze
7. For the vanilla glaze, mix 3 heaped tsp. of icing sugar with 1 tsp of vanilla essence and 1 tsp of water
8. Brush the glaze over the top of the muffins and sprinkle with a little sea salt
9. Enjoy!

Even though 80% of all vanilla comes from Madagascar, 3 out of 4 people live in poverty, with children suffering from stunted growth and many out of school, with Madagascar ranking fifth in the world for the number of out-of-school children.  Save The Children have been working to provide a better future for these children and future generations by collaborating with vanilla suppliers to improve the livelihoods of farming communities…to find out more please visit:

 https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/where-we-work/africa/madagascar

Remember all recipes are created for you not only to enjoy, but to also raise awareness of the struggles these countries face on a daily basis, so if you would like to make a donation to Save The Children who are working everyday to support children around the World, please visit my just giving page by clicking the link Just Giving for more information.

Thanks x