Chocolate Orange Cupcakes

For my birthday two weeks ago, I was given a mini cupcake stand by my lovely friend, Jess and so I obviously had to whack out a cracking cupcake recipe to show it off. So, inspired by my favourite Festive treat, I decided to make some chocolate orange cupcakes. 
These are so tasty and beautifully orange-y and topped with light butter cream icing you feel like you're wafting on a cloud with a much lighter version of a Terry's Chocolate Orange. 
For the cakes you'll need:
175g self raising flour
175g caster sugar
175g soft butter/margarine
3 eggs
2 heaped tablespoons cocoa powder (NOT drinking chocolate)
Zest of two oranges
4 teaspoons orange extract (I used Waitrose cooks essentials)
2-3 tablespoons of milk
Pre-heat the oven to 180oC.
Sift the flour and cocoa into a large bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Using the all-in-one method, whisk all the ingredients together until they form a smooth batter, adding more milk if it seems a little thick. Taste to check the orange flavour- add more if you think it's needed.
Spoon the mixture into 24 lined muffin trays and bake for fifteen minutes or until they spring back when pushed with your finger.
Leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

For the butter cream:
450g icing sugar
60g cocoa powder
zest of an orange
2 teaspoons orange extract
150g soft butter
60ml milk

Gradually whisk the icing sugar and cocoa into the butter until no lumps of butter remain. Add the orange zest and extract along with the milk and beat until light and fluffy.
I decided to pipe my frosting onto the cakes (mainly because I got a new nozzle) but I lost my piping bag so I used a large plastic sandwich bag. I cut a corner off the bag, put the nozzle through and away I went. Easy to use and no washing up required! 

I took some of these to work with me and my mum also took some with her and I now have none left so they must have been pretty good! 
Home-made Christmas gifts coming soon!!
Much love!! 

Homemade pizza and Barbecue chicken cassulet.

Howdy food friends! 
It's been a while and I can only apologise but I've been in a bit of a pit of despair on the old job front. I was inches away from a job which wasn't great but had possibilities of growth but then I didn't get it. And then one of the graduate schemes I applied for also rejected me. Life is hard but hey ho. We move on.
FOOD!! I love it. A lot. 
So, pizza!! I appreciate it's easier to buy a ready made base and them top it, and even easier to get a takeaway. But wheres the satisfaction in that? 
I propose that you spend 40p on a pack of ciabatta bread mix, add oil and water, knead into submission and leave for an hour to rise. You could just as easily use flour, water, yeast and salt, mix and knead but I like the added flavour and texture of ciabatta. 
So, once it's risen nicely, knock it back (punch it) and then stretch it over your baking tray. Top it with anything you fancy- I like to use sun-dried tomato pesto instead of tomato puree and I love love love chorizo in all forms with mushrooms and mozzarella as my toppings. Split it into thirds or quarters so that everyone in your family can pick their own toppings.
Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden and risen and bubbly. Serve with a salad if you're feeling healthy!

So, onto the chicken cassulet! This is a recipe I came across on youtube that I've adapted. You'll need:

2 tablespoons of olive oil
6 boneless free-range chicken thighs, skin on
3 slices of smoked bacon, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon chilli powder
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 x 415g can baked beans, drained
200g smoked sausage, sliced
3 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
3 sprigs of thyme
100ml ketchup
50g brown sugar
250ml chicken stock
1 small red chilli, diced and deseeded
Crushed sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Pre heat the oven to 200°C. Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of the oil and sear the chicken thighs for 1 minute both sides.
Remove from pan and set aside. Put all the remaining ingredients apart from the sausage and beans in a 3.5 liter casserole dish and stir well to combine.
Place the sealed chicken thighs on top, put the lid on the casserole dish and cook in the oven for 30 minutes.
Remove the chicken, stir in the beans and sausage mixture and replace the chicken on top.
Cook, uncovered, for a further 10 minutes. Leave to stand for 5 minutes off the heat before serving.

Enjoy my blogger friends!

Next I'll be doing home-made Christmas presents (edible of course) so keep as eye out!!