home made – Page 5 – Baking with Gab

Peanut butter slice and broken ovens

This little slice was created at a time when I thought that I had no oven. The oven in my rental property had been smoking like crazy for no apparent reason at all. So I stopped using it while we tried to get the issue sorted.

Some people could cope with just a stove top to cook on…I can’t.

Ovens are kind of integral to what I do here at Baking with Gab.

So in the week that I went without an oven I went Pinterest crazy on no-bake recipes. I was amazed at the amount of food that people get away with not cooking! Lots of fudges are no bake, I almost made a cake batter dip, and there are so many raw desserts that I want to try. Continue reading “Peanut butter slice and broken ovens”

Pretzels and new things

I have a confession to make. I don’t like pretzels. Those little salt-laden little knots that always make their way onto dip platters. I just can’t stand them. They’re too salty and brittle – they dry out my mouth with such speed that it creeps me out.

I know, I’m sorry. But in the interest of full disclosure, I needed to let you know!

So when I set out to make my own, I knew that they weren’t going to be spindly and hard, they were going to be plush, pillowy little tangles of dough. And without too much salt!

These little knots do not disappoint. (I refrained from writing “do knot disappoint,” just fyi.) Continue reading “Pretzels and new things”

Alfajores and discoveries

One of the surprise outcomes of the World Cup was that it made me experiment with my baking. It made me research Brazilian recipes and find out more about the kinds of food that they bake. I found lots of caramel, coconut and chocolate desserts. One of the recipes which caught my eye was alfajores. Gorgeous dulce de leche, book-ended by shortbread biccies.

So much deliciousness!

So I was Googling dulce de leche stockists in Sydney and stumbled across Vivi’s Facebook page. She’s an Argentinian girl living in Sydney who makes delicious, authentic dulce de leche and other amazing Argentinian foods. I can honestly say this has been my number one food find this year. Continue reading “Alfajores and discoveries”

Roast eggplant soup and Snoods

I have almost worn out my favourite snood in this chilly weather. If I could somehow permanently attach the snood to my neck, I would. It’s glorious.

When it’s not festooned around my neck, it drapes itself over my knees at work. It makes me look like a nanna, but my knees are so damn warm that I don’t even mind. The days that I leave the snood at home, I feel like a part of me is missing. My décolletage, exposed, catches the frosty weather and longs for the snood.

I really love my snood. Continue reading “Roast eggplant soup and Snoods”

Sticky orange cake and vitamin C

Continuing my Brazilian theme, I’m testing out some more gorgeous Brazilian bakes. This particular cake (so my Googling tells me) is called Bolo de Laranja, which simply means orange cake. I renamed it so that it’s slightly more accurate!

I’ve been having a citrusy few days – I made my lemon and poppy seed cake last week and have been self-medicating with lemon, ginger and honey tea. It’s cold season and I’ve not escaped the onslaught. Luckily I’ve not lost my sense of smell or taste yet, so I can enjoy in a slice or two of this beauty in the interest of ingesting lots of vitamin C! Continue reading “Sticky orange cake and vitamin C”

Chocolate sprinkle cake and sprinkle love

In my last post I talked about Brazil’s love of sweetened condensed milk. That lead me to discover a woman in Sydney who makes and delivers authentic dulce de leche. Needless to say, I purchased two jars – one for experimenting with, and one for eating. While I await the delivery of those delectable jars, I’m continuing to explore Brazilian recipes.

Not the most appetising imagery, but it’s kind of fun! It’s no secret that I love sprinkles, (check out my brigadeiros, doughnut cake or my home made sprinkles to see aforementioned love) they’re tiny, sugary crunches of joy. Continue reading “Chocolate sprinkle cake and sprinkle love”

Lemon poppy seed cake and processes

I made this cake without the aid of Penelope, my mixer. I use her to do everything because it’s just so effective! Today, however, she stayed at my house while I visited Norman and mum. Faced with the prospect of no mixer and an urge to make a delicious cake, I decided to simply hand mix the ingredients.

I thought that I would begrudge it, but I really enjoyed it. I found that I paid so much more attention to what was going into the batter, and noticed the effect that certain ingredients had when they were added. Continue reading “Lemon poppy seed cake and processes”

Almond berry cupcakes and favourites

These cupcakes are officially my new favourite thing. I love experimenting with lots of different kinds of sweets, but there are a handful that I could cook at the last minute and know that they’d be a hit. There’s mum’s sticky date, cinnamon scrolls and Nutella fudge, just to name a few. These are recipes that I can always rely on to be brilliant. And I know them like the back of my hand, which helps! Continue reading “Almond berry cupcakes and favourites”

Blueberry crunch biscuits and goodness

These biscuits are dangerously close to being healthy…sort of. Everybody always assumes that oats and coconuts make for a healthier alternative. I put in enough chocolate chips to solve that problem though! I solemnly believe that biscuits were made to be indulgent – if you’re trying to be “healthy,” you’d pick something without loads of sugar and butter in it.

Everything in moderation, right? Continue reading “Blueberry crunch biscuits and goodness”

Honey choc tops and wanderlust

I’ve been having a bit of a Sweden-athon recently. My Pinterest is filling up with with beautiful, dramatic landscapes and gorgeous Scandinavian design… and I’m stuck indoors working as the Sydney gets gloomier by the day.

All of this pinning is dangerous, it’s making me yearn for a country that I’ve never even been to. It’s on my bucket list, because I’ve only heard amazing things about Sweden. For the moment, however, I have to make do with my own little Swedish baked goods and eat my wanderlust into submission. Continue reading “Honey choc tops and wanderlust”