Vanilla cake

1.5c standard flour
1.5 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2c (120gm) softened butter
1c sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla (I used 1)
1/2c milk (dark blue)

- Preheat oven to 200 deg C
- Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl (ideally in a cake mixer bowl)
- Add butter 1tsp at a time until it looks like bread crumbs
- Add sugar 1 tbsp at a time until it looks like damp sand
- Beat in eggs one at a time
- Add vanilla and milk and mix until just combined. Don't over-mix!
- Pour into an 8inch cake tin which is greased and lightly floured
- Bake for 30-35 minutes

Peanut butter muffins

Ingredients:

2 1/4 Cups Flour

2 Teaspoons Baking Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

2/3 Cup Brown Sugar

85g Melted Butter

1/2 c Peanut Butter

2 Eggs

1 Cup Milk

3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips

- Preheat oven to 180deg C

- Combine flour, baking powder, salt and brown sugar in a bowl.

- In another bowl, mix butter, peanut butter, eggs and milk.

- Combine all ingredients, whisk and add chocolate chips

- Spoon into muffin cups and bake for 17-20 minutes 

Maple walnut muffins

2c flour
1tbsp baking powder
1tsp salt
1/2c (125g) butter
1/2c packed tightly brown sugar
1/2c maple syrup
2 eggs
3/4c milk
1/2c walnuts

- Preheat oven to 180deg C
- Sift four, baking powder and salt
- Cream butter and sugar, stir in maple syrup and beat in eggs.
- Add flour mixture alternately with milk until well combined
- Spoon batter into muffin cups about 3/4 full (this recipe made 15 muffins for me)
- Bake for 20 mins or until toothpick comes out clean.

These turned out rather well, even though I'm not a huge muffin fan. I'll admit, I ate a couple, and I rarely eat any of my own baking (go figure!) Boyfriend particularly loved them, it makes a nice change from chocolate or banana muffins, that's for sure!

Marble cake

Ingredients
225g butter , softened
225g caster sugar
4 eggs
225g self-raising flour
3 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cocoa powder

- Mix all ingredients together except cocoa.
- Separate into two bowls, add cocoa to one bowl.
- Add alternative spoonfuls of mixture to greased cake tin, and swirl with a skewer
- Bake at 180deg C for 45 mins

I added chocolate chips to the chocolate part, and this cake turned out quite well. Not as good as mud cake, or banana cake, or carrot cake... but I liked it :) I liked it best when it was warm, but it curbed the chocolate cravings that I've been having since I gave up eating chocolate (bars) a week ago. Success!

Chocolate mud muffins

I forgot to record the recipe I used... but they were delicious, and here is photographic proof!

Vege frittata

8 eggs
6-12 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 onion, diced
4 button mushrooms
Frozen spinach (thawed)
Frozen peas (thawed)
Grated cheese
Salt & pepper
3/4c milk

-Lightly brown onion and mushrooms in a buttered fry pan. When browned, throw in cherry tomatoes for 30 seconds or so.
-Pour into the bottom of a lined baking dish, mine was about 25x15cm. Add spinach and peas.
-Whisk milk and eggs, add salt & pepper to taste. Pour into baking dish.
- Top with cheese. I also put cheese in the egg mixture, but not as much as I would normally add to cheese sauce.
-Bake at 180deg C for 30 mins

Brookies (brownies + cookies)

Cookie dough:
1c + 2 tbsp plain flour
1/2tsp salt
1/2tsp baking soda
115g softened butter
1/2c brown sugar
1/4c white sugar
1 egg
1tsp vanilla
160g choc chips

Brownie batter:
115g butter cut into cubes
3/4c plain flour
1tbsp cocoa powder
1/2tsp salt
140g chocolate, chopped (I used chocolate chips)
3/4c white sugar
1/4c brown sugar
3 eggs, room temp
1tsp vanilla

Make cookie dough:
- Add flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl, stir to combine and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix butter and sugars until smooth and creamy. Add egg and beat, and add vanilla.
- Slowly add flour mixture and beat to combine. Fold in chocolate chips.
- Cover bowl and refrigerate for 3 hours.

Make brownie mixture:
- Combine flour, salt and cocoa powder in a bowl.
- Put 2 inches of water in a large pot and bring to the boil. Set a heatproof bowl on top (make sure bowl isn't touching boiling water) and melt butter and chocolate. Take off the heat, but keep bowl on the pot, and add sugars. Leave to cool to room temp.
- Add eggs, whisk until just combined. Then, using a spatula (to avoid too much air in the batter) stir in the vanilla and fold in flour. Do not overmix!
- Pour into a greased muffin tin, have each muffin hole halfway full. Put in fridge for 1 hour.

- Preheat oven to 190deg C and place rack in centre of oven. Take brownie batter out of the fridge.
- Roll cookie dough into small balls and flatten into a disc, and then press discs on top of the brownie batter.
- Bake until cookies are golden, 17-19 mins ish.

Okay, these didn't cook properly. It may have something to do with me not leaving everything in the fridge for long enough, but it also may be our oven as 3 down one side cooked and the others didn't. Might be worth trying again, but given how many ingredients went into it, it was kind of a waste and I might be too scared to try again! but they smelt INCREDIBLE and they looked so cute!

You live, you learn.