The Joy of Baking

I baked again! It's like I've found this new hobby and I can't get enough! This time I made another batch of gingerbread (but it didn't come out as nice as before - either the oven was a little too hot or the self-raising flour wasn't quite right.) I also made chocolate brownies and Rice Krispies Squares and OMG they're fab!!! I have the ingredients to make millionaire's shortbread but I think I'll make that later on.

The recipe I used for the brownies came from Joy of Baking, a great recipe website I came across just the other day. Here it is:

Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients:

• 140g bittersweet chocolate
• 115g unsalted butter
• 15g cocoa powder
• 200g granulated white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 95g all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 125g semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 175*C and place the rack in the center of the oven.
2. Butter an 20 cm square pan.
3. Melt the chocolate and butter in a large bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the cocoa powder and sugar.
5. Whisk in the vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Stir in the flour, salt and chocolate chips.
7. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a little batter and a few moist clumps clinging to it. Do not over bake.
8. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Gingerbread Recipe

Here is the gingerbread recipe I used in my fabulously yummy gingerbread! It came from "Maw Broon's But an' Ben Cookbook" which OMG is amazing! Beautifully Scottish and amazingly comical. *lol*

Gingerbread

Ingredients:

• 1 lb self-raising flour
• 1 teaspoon mixed spice
• 2 teaspoons dried ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 ozs brown sugar
• 1 cup golden syrup
• 6 ozs butter
• 2 ozs crystallised ginger, finely chopped
• 4 ozs sultanas
• 2 eggs, separated
• 1 cup buttermilk

Method:

1. Sieve the flour and spices into a bowl.
2. Melt the butter and syrup.
3. Separate the eggs. Beat the yolks with the sugar and add to the milk.
4. Add the melted butter and syrup.
5. Pour into the flour and mix well.
6. Add the crystallised ginger and sultanas.
7. Beat the egg whites till firm and fold into mixture.
8. Pour into a greased 12-inch yorkshire tin (or two loaf tins as I did) and bake at 350*F for about 45 minutes.
9. Test with a skewer. Cool on a rack and cut.