Chai Tea - morning and night

I really do love the idea of giving handmade gifts ... and there are soooooo many things to make and create and assemble that can reflect some more creative thought and love ... normally time (aka bad planning) is my enemy. But I got it right this time!! Woot!!

This gift basket is lined with a floral apron (the ties of it are the bow around the front)

CHAI TEA SYRUP

I used this recipe to make the syrup. Actually, I used it twice! The first time I let it boil ... and for a while (I may have got distracted!) and it tasted very bitter! I turfed that and tried again. I added way more sugar than the recipe suggested and found the syrup generally to be a little 'weak' (which is why I suggested 2 parts syrup to one part milk/water rather than the other way around as indicated in the recipe). My only experience of Chai Tea is the powdered, sweet stuff so I don't really know if it tasted as it was intended. There's a lot of room for experimenting and adjusting the various spices and flavours. Go crazy!!

SCRIPTURE MUGS

So, all you have to do is write on the mugs with a Sharpie and then 'cook' them for 30 mins in a nice hot oven. My hand isn't particularly steady and, particularly on the rounded, slippery, awkward surface, I was a little all over the place with direction and sizing etc. GOOD NEWS!!! Before it's been baked on, just a wet cloth or paper towel will wipe it off!!! Yay! I ended up with a cotton bud dipped in water to fix little bits so I didn't have to re-do whole sections.

I looked for a verse to encourage in the morning and one to affirm at night.

These are the 'start' of the verses ...

... and the ends ...

... and the references.

It was a fun project to put together. I'm looking forward to doing some 'tweaking' of the idea for other gifts in future. 

Ice Cream Cake

This tasty treat was the latest adaptation of one of my most well-used recipes.
It's "Cheats Ice Cream" ... a simple base-recipe that gives you freedom to experiment and manipulate it in all manner of delicious ways.

It's SUPER simple ... like REALLY simple ... are you ready?

Beat a 600ml bottle of cream until thick (stiff peaks and all that) and then mix in a tin of sweetened condensed milk. 

And ... that's it! Told you it was simple!!

Modify it by adding in all manner of yummy ingredients ... chopped up chocolate bars (Cherry Ripe, Boost, Twix, Bounty ... note that some fillings such as Peppermint Crisp or Aero bars will just dissolve into the ice cream - tastes good but you lose its texture), broken up biscuits, fruit, nuts or coconut, essences (coconut, peppermint, orange etc), cookie dough ... etc etc ... you get the idea - the sky's the limit!!

Freeze it in any container or in individual glasses/dishes - covered.

nb the ice cream doesn't freeze super hard and it defrosts reasonably quickly because it doesn't have any "stabilizing" ingredients ... but it freezes without icing up and - as previously stated - it's super simple!! :)

This particular creation was made in a springform tin. I lined the bottom with foil and then the sides with Malto Milk biscuits (remember them?). I crushed up 6 Crunchies into the icecream, covered it in foil and froze it overnight.

I rushed a ganache together using a block of Crunchie chocolate and approximately 1/2 cup of cream - I melted them together in the microwave, which I think is against ganache making conventions but it worked out alright.

You need to return the 'cake' to the freezer but not so long before serving that the ganache would freeze.

So there you have it. You really can't go wrong and you're almost guaranteed a grand reception!!

I'd love to see what you make with it!

Banana "ice cream"

Ice cream with one ingredient and only two steps?!?! I'm in!!!

Cut the banana in pieces and freeze.





Blitz in the blender.




Yep, that should do it!! :)

nb It takes a bit to move from the chunky lumpy stage to the smooth and creamy part - be patient! :)


A VERY healthy and refreshing treat. Great for your dairy-intolerant types! And quite nice with a dollop of chocolate ganache on top ... or so I'm told! :)

Indoor Breakfast Picnic

My quarterly 'dinner party' for my fabulous PST (Prayer Support Team) was forced to move to the breakfast time slot last month. There's a lot more pressure on a 'daylight' dinner party ... the ambience created by soft candle light also covers a multitude of sins! :)

I went with an indoor picnic theme. Simple and fresh.

The lilies were fresh from my enormous bushes in my backyard - which totally makes me sound like a real gardener!! I love that! :)
(Note to non-gardeners - lilies cannot be killed - trust me, they never die - get on it!!)

 The cutlery and napkin pouches are made with simple brown lunch bags, paper doilies and Ikea's version of washi tape (red with white spots).

 The savoury course consisted of baked breakfast bowls (ham, mushrooms, caramelised onions, capsicum, corn and eggs in a hollowed out bread roll that I baked to get it crispy and solid) - the bacon 'flowers' were a happy accident - trying to work out how to put 24 pieces of bacon in the oven to grill!! :) - the hashbrown balls were baked in muffin tins.

Breakfast quesadillas were inspired by this post and were delicious - slices of bread spread with cream cheese, rolled up and then dipped in melted butter and cinnamon sugar then baked in the oven -  poached pears and peaches.

I love hosting this amazing group of people! They are the most grateful 'customers' and always great company. I'm already planning our next menu and 'theme'. 

Packing Progress

I am fortunate enough to travel interstate and overseas fairly regularly. I'm blessed to have seen some amazing parts of the world - such diverse experiences, cultures, landscapes, people ... and packing requirements!!!

In the neverending quest to pack the perfect suitcase I chanced upon a 'brilliant' idea before my last trip ... and it worked!! :)

These are in the "SKUBB" range at IKEA - (www.ikea.com/au/en/catalog/products/40192634/) -only $9.99 for the whole set (they also come in other colours).

I had one each of the large and small of these left over from use in my drawers and put them in my suitcase.

The smaller one I used for my 'smalls' ...

And the larger one I used for miscellaneous things that have a tendency to 'wander' around the suitcase in transit. Books were kept snugly (no dog-eared corners), adaptors, spare tissues, large jewellery pieces, hairbrush, zip-lock bag of nail polishes etc, medicines, face wipes ... and on the way home? A whole lot of chocolate, fudge and nougat! :)

The first win was keeping all those things neatly contained. The second win was providing a bit of structure to the rest of the suitcase. I found that even when the suitcase wasn't completely full (on the way OVER) things didn't move around so much.

I just dumped the contents of these out so I could quickly share them with a friend who's going overseas tonight. I'll get her to report on the success (or otherwise) when she's back! :)