Apologies

Hmm. I feel like I have been less around here than I should be or would like to be. I would say that life is getting in the way, but I don't have a life so... No it's more like all the reasons that I don't have a life are getting in the way. In the last week I have had a rowing race, in minus three degree weather, and let me tell you I have never been in so much pain. Also, everyone has started setting homework (I was like 'homework? what's that?') and of course there was the three and a bit hour meeting after school on Monday where we planned our trip to Madagascar. Which is great cause I now feel like I am raising money towards something, not just for the sake of it.

Anyway, because of all of this, I haven't really got any big projects on the go (okay, the socks, but I actually haven't touched those since last week, shh.) I have a fair few smaller things on the go though, so I thought I would share those today:

1) My wall, which I am immensely proud of though it's no where near finished:

2) One of the Friendship Bracelets I have been making for (guess what?) Fundrasing:

3) Okay it's not a project, but here's my ticker for Fundraising:



4) I am reading a great book at the moment, which I shall review/talk/gush about in due course (by the end of the week, when I am finished)

5) I have been listening to great music recently and it is making me really happy. Also, my dad and I agreed on the musical theme of our skiing trip next week. It's going to be a fab week of First Aid Kit, Joni Mitchell, Bright Eyes, and Tracey Chapman. (Also the ski trip is a source of great excitement)

(That was a pathetic project list. Most of that was rambling thoughts. Shh)

Mars Bar Squares

So, more baking, more fundraising, more squares. I know, boring, whatever.

Anyway, earlier in the week I made Mars Bar Squares, which I have to say are pretty much the best thing ever, although Lucy disagreed ('Emma, they have chocolate' 'And?' 'And I don't like chocolate' 'YOU WHAT?!?') So that was my shock realisation of the week. I mean, who doesn't like chocolate?

Anyway, these yummy squares are sticking to my ridiculously easy non-baking thing that I have going on. They came out of a book compiled by my grandmother's friends of sandwiches and squares (which has incidently become my favourite cook book. I promise you need nothing else in life. Except tea is nice occasionally)

Okay, for the first bit:

Four chopped Mars Bars

1/2 cup of Butter

3 cup Rice Krispies

Melt butter and Mars Bars on a low heat, mix well with a whisk. Turn off heat and mix in krispies. Press into lined pan. (Also, here's the bit where I tell you that the measurements could actually not matter less. I used about five cups of cereal and five chocolate bars and it was fine.)

And then, heat until melted:

1 cup of chocolate

1/4 cup of butter

And spread over the bottom layer. Then put it in the fridge to set, and cut into squares. And then, you know, eat them.

So Much Baking

So it has been a while, cause I am kind of lazy and I have realised that I am doing far too much. This last week has been insane (Homework, Tests, Fundraising, Sport Stuff, DofE admin...)

Anyway, this post it sort of related to the craziness. World Challenge fundraising this weekend involved (for a change, not) a lot of baking. I held another football match out side the football game with Sophia, which involved a lot of creepy drunks, and some funny ones:

One guy came up to us and gave us five pounds. He asked what he could get for that.

Us - Well, everything is a pound, so five of whatever you want

Him- Right so how many things can I get?

Us- Five...

Him- If I gave you five pounds, how much can I get?

Us- Um, five?

Him- You have had too much to drink

Us- Haha, no.

Him- Yes, you are. You keep changing your mind about what I can get.

Us- ...

Finally he picked up five things. Then he turned around and walked straight into a pole.

Anyway. All in all, the game was a huge success, and we did even better than last time!

I am also really proud of the cupcakes I made:

The next day, I had a far less successful bake sale at my brother's rugby club. It was still nice though, and my muffins were fab.

I'll put up the recipe tomorrow, I am really lazy and don't want to get the cookbook now. It is from Nigella's Feast though, and they are banana and butterscotch, but I used chocolate chips instead.

Treats and Crackers

This past week I have been being a very good child and actually botherd to try to raise some of the 3645 quid that I have to get for a year and a half's time from now. I think I made sixty pounds this week, which is what I am supposed to be doing but... yeah. That's not happening. Anyway.

Part of what I have been doing is selling baked stuff at school, which means that I have been, well, baking.

The two things I have been making are Rice Krispie Treats, and Chocolate Caramel Crack, or Toffee

Crackers, or something of that variation. My family tends to just eat them and not bother with a  name.

Anyway. They are both basically the easiest thing in this entire universe to make, so if you are ever short of time, I would seriously recommend them. That, and you know, they are super yummy.

The Treats are literally the easiest thing. They have all of three ingredients:

6 Cups of Rice Krispies (I bet you never saw that one coming!)
A bag of Marshmellows, which I know is the least helpful measurement ever. I use about 300g.
40g of butter.

Okay, the method is really difficult. Listen close:

1) Over a low heat melt the butter.
2) Chuck in the marshmellows and melt those too

3) Mix in the Rice Krispies and take it off the heat
4) Chuck the whole gloopy mixture into a lined tray with sides thing that definitely has a better name...

5) Take a large strip of waxed paper and with the waxed bit down, press on the gloppy stuff and it will magically even out.
Okay, done. Couldn't be easier.

(That may not be easy to understand. The recipe is also on the Rice Krispie website...)

And then there are the Chocolate Carmel things. Which I still haven't decided what to call.

These are slightly more difficult, but still take about ten minutes.

Okay, Ingredients:
200g Soft Brown Sugar
225g Unsalted Butter
200-300g of Good Quality Chocolate
Enough Saltine Crackers to cover the base of your tray.

1) Pre-heat the oven to 200 C

2) Cover your tray in crackers

3) Over a low heat, melt the butter and sugar, until it starts to boil. Mix with a wooden spoon while it boils for three minutes. now pour over the crackers.
4) Put the tray in the over for 5-6 minutes.

5) Chuck the chocolate pieces on top, and leave it to melt/cool down a bit. Then spread the chocolate and put the whole thing (once it has cooled down) in the fridge overnight. Then just break it up.

Wasn't that easy :)

(Also, my friend Lucy has also been baking for this, but her stuff is ten times more impressive. You should go check it out)

Selling Loads of Cakes and Stuff

Saturday (yeah, ages ago) I had this massive cake sale (which was the one that I made these gingerbread for) with my good friend Sophia. Who is seriously not my twin, I promise we are not at all related. I am talking to you, strange drunk santa guy.

Anyway. We had tons of stuff (I am talking over 200 baked goods) and I was stressing out, because this was my kitchen counter about 10 minutes before I was supposed to leave for Sophia's:

It was kind of my own fault though, because I had been watching SVU with my mum the night before instead of decorating them (unless you are Sophia. In which case, I was totally ready when you called that morning like I said.)

We set up a table, a couple blocks down from the football stadium, at the end of Sophia's road which was closed for foot traffic. Within about ten minutes I could see two Police walking towards us in those bright yellowy green jackets. They were walking super slowly, in time with their hands behind there backs, and it was stressing me out to no end. 

I swear it took them a good twenty minutes to get to us. They stopped in front of us, and I swear I thought I was going to pass out. If they were going to shut us down... I mean, 200+ baked goods people. What were we going to do with that? (actually, it would have been fine. Sophia and I both have brothers.)

So the Policewoman goes, 'What are you selling?'

'We are s-selling, um, cake...' We say looking down.

She looks down to read the sign we had stuck to the table.

'World Challenge, eh?'

'Y-Yes, ma'am' 

'I did that, that was great. Here's two quid. Good luck girls!'

And then the Policeman goes, 'You guys should get a bigger table next time!'

And then the walk off doing their slow walk again. So that was great.

The whole thing turned out great in fact, (well, expect for the sub-arctic temperatures, which made my amazing crushed velvet skater dress an even less appropriate choice of attire, and the afore mentioned drunk santa guy who wouldn't shut up) and we made quite a bit of money to put towards our trip. We also only ended up with a few things left, which I have managed to eat most of, and in the process teach my mum the expression food baby. So, you know. Good stuff.

And then there is the explanation as to why this is about four days late. Well, I wish I could say something interesting (Actually, I could, you guys wouldn't be able to tell if I made something up, but whatever, that would be mean) but basically, I couldn't be bothered to sit up right to type because I was lying on my bed watching Modern Family. For around four days straight. And then I needed a shower. And now I am typing. Yeah, that's all.

Gingerbread Making Craze

I probably have to start by explaining that I am doing World Challenge and I am going on a trip to Madagascar for four weeks in July 2013. Which is really exciting, but also means that I have to raise a ton of money.

To help raise money, I am having a bake sale with my friend outside her house just before a football game. She lives right by the stadium, and they get loads of foot traffic. We are just hoping that some of these people will like cake...

Anyway, that is how I ended up making four times a old Food Tech Gingerbread recipe. Which takes quite a while! I always forget how long it takes to roll out dough.

Once I got the dough sorted, it was really fun:

Above is a nice picture of a cookie being cut out. I now cannot remember why I felt the need to take that picture.

Here is a cookie tray, filled with cookies. Again, fairly self explanatory, but who cares. They look freaking awesome.

And then here are the first few that were done. I think I did around thirty in total, which still leaves a whole ton for me still to do. Not that I have any idea what I am going to do with anymore cookies. I am not joking when I say that half of my freezer is currently taken up by these retched things. And I didn't even get to eat one!

So aside from the fact that I have a few non-helpful pictures and my cookie making escapades were a little flat, here is the recipe, cause it is good and quite easy:

350g Plain Flour

1 Teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda

2 Teaspoons Ground Ginger

100g Butter

170g Light Soft Brown Sugar

4 Tablespoons Golden Syrup

1 Egg

(This is double the recipe. But, that is only cause I still am not sure how we used to make a recipe that called for half an egg...)

1) Heat oven 190 C, and get the tray ready.

2) Put the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ginger into a big mixing bowl.

3) Rub in butter until it gets to breadcrumb consistency, and then add the sugar.

4) In a separate bowl, mix the syrup and egg together. Then add these to the dry stuff. Mix it all loads until it turns into a nice roll able dough.

5) Roll it out, and cookie cut. You can re-roll so don't worry about that too much.

6) Cook till golden brown. Careful, cause they go from white and pasty to singed pretty quickly. The recipe says 12-15 minutes, but mine were starting to burn after around 10.

Have fun cookie making :)