Another year, another cake!

Well, here it is! Teen boys birthday cake and this year it was Nigella's Chocolate Gingerbread. And what a cake! I'm not saying it was my brilliant baking but the whole cake was just a yummy mouthful after mouthful. It was enhanced by the fact that I had got hold of a couple of tins of Tate and Lyle treacle. Now, I much prefer the taste of our Aussie golden syrup (it's less sweet to my tastebuds!) but I just don't think that you can beat the taste of good old Tate and Lyle for treacle.

Anyway, if you haven't tried it then just go ahead and give it a go as I'm really sure that you won't be disappointed!

Chocolate Gingerbread

175g unsalted butter

125g dark muscovado sugar

2 tbsp caster sugar

200g golden syrup

200g black treacle

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

1 1/4 tsp bicarb of soda

2 eggs

250ml milk

275g plain flour

40g cocoa powder

175g chocolate chips

Icing

30g unsalted butter

1 tbsp cocoa powder

60ml ginger beer

250g icing sugar
Oven to 160C. Line a tin with baking paper.

Melt butter with sugars, golden syrup, treacle and spices. Remove from heat. Dissolve the bicarb in 2 tablespoons water and add to the melted butter along with the eggs and milk. Stir in the flour and beat well. Fold in the chocolate chips. Bake for about 45 minutes.
It will be slightly damp under the top. Cool.

For the icing melt the butter, cocoa and ginger ale. Sift in the icing sugar and top the bread.

We're on the Rocky Road!

Just a quick one! Here's a photo of our family's rocky road. I think that everyone has their own version and this one is ours. It's very simple and I'm happy to share it with you.

Our Rocky Road.

1 large block of Whittakers Coconut chocolate (if you can't get this then a large block of milk chocolate and some dessicated coconut will do)
1 small block of dark/plain chocolate
mini marshmallows
red jelly frogs, chopped!
scotch finger biscuits, crushed
sprinkles of any colour for the top.

Line a tin with cling film. Melt the chocolates in a large bowl over a pan of boiling water and when runny add the other ingredients. Keep adding while the ingredients are able to be well coated with chocolate. Tip into the prepared tray and add the sprinkles. Put into the fridge to harden and then chop into chunks. It may last long enough to be put into a tin but that doesn't happen here!