Chocolate chip muffins

2 cups plain flour
4 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
100g butter, melted
3/4 cup Caster Sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 cup milk

- Preheat oven to 180 deg C
- Mix all ingredients with electric beater. Do not overmix or muffins will be tough.
- Put in muffins cups or greased muffin tray.
- Bake for 10-15 mins or until golden - I think mine took 20 mins

Lime slice

3/4c plain flour
1/2tsp baking powder
60g softened butter
1/4c icing sugar
3 eggs
1/2c castor sugar (I used normal sugar)
2tbsp flour
Juice & zest of two limes (I only used juice, because I didn't have actual limes)

-Preheat oven to 180 deg C. Grease or line a 20x20cm baking dish (ideally smaller, I used this size and the base doesnt quite go that far, it cracked)
-Either rub butter into flour or beat well, add baking powder and icing sugar.
-Pat into the tin and bake for 15 mins or until cooked. Let cool.

-Beat eggs and sugar for approx 5-8 mins until pale and creamy and volume has increased (I didn't read this bit, so I did it after I added the flour)
-Add flour and lime juice. I also added vanilla essence as the original recipe called for 'vanilla infused castor sugar')
-Pour over the cooled base and bake for another 18-20 mins. It should be golden and set.


Hmm well my egg/sugar mixture didn't thicken, and it turned out very flat and chewy and a bit bitter! not the worst thing I've ever made though.

Tararua banana cake

Thanks Tararua for this recipe... http://www.tararua.net.nz/recipes/The-Best-Banana-Cake?r=8&i=4

2 1/2 cups Edmonds Self-Raising Flour
1 tsp Edmonds Baking Soda 
1 cup caster sugar
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups of mashed bananas (about 4 ) 
1 cup oil

- Preheat oven to 180 deg C
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl, mix well.
- Bake cake for approx 90 mins

Icing
250g Cream Cheese
100g Butter
2c icing sugar

Mix all ingredients thoroughly (butter stays lumpy for awhile, keep mixing) and spread over cooled cake.

I made this in two loaf tins, so I could take one cake to work and leave one for Tom. It was delicious, as always! It never dries out, always rises, this is the most fool-proof banana cake recipe EVER. It's worth using a ridiculous amount of oil, I promise.

Chewy chocolate chunk cookies

2c flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
170g melted butter, cooled
1c brown sugar
1/2c sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
2tsp vanilla
Chocolate chips/chunks

- Preheat the oven to 165 deg C
- Mix flour, baking soda and salt
- Combine the melted butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until well mixed
- Add dry ingredients, stir well
- Add chocolate chips
- Place on lined baking trays and bake for approx 15 mins until browned. The darker the cookies, the crispier they'll be