Pudding time

Yesterday my friend Liz hosted a BBQ at her house.  We met Liz and her husband at our ante-natal classes, and we've been hanging out with the rest of our group on Tuesdays since our babies were born.  Well actually thats not quite true, Liz was hanging out with us before her baby was born, her boy was the last of our group so Liz was our tea and coffee girl while we veged on the couch with very little babies.  Anyway, once again I am off track.  Liz's kitchen flooded before their baby was born and so they spent a long time getting the whole bottom floor of their house dried out and fixed, and to celebrate the 'new' house they held a BBQ.  I asked Liz what pudding aka dessert I could bring and she said I could choose, oh the options!

For those of you who know me, you know I love to bake, actually I love cooking in general, but I love love love to bake.  So I spent this week pouring through my cookbooks, canvasing opinions on FaceBook and generally getting my knickers in a twist because I couldn't decide what to make!  In the end I went with three desserts, two of which I've made before and one that Andrew had.  I would have loved to experiment, but a BBQ with people I don't know is not the time to take risks.

The first pudding I made was Chocolate Guinness cake from Cake Days from the Hummingbird Bakery.  I have both their cookbooks and they are well thumbed, the recipes are very very tasty.  This cake is rich, dark and moist, and most of all ridiculously easy.  I may even post the recipe later on in the week!  The most amazing thing to me about this cake is that it only contains cocoa powder, no chocolate!

 This is the outside, it has a cream cheese icing which is is really yum!  I made this cake for my friend Patrick's 30th a couple of weeks ago and it was also a huge hit then!

I'm sorry but after trying a bajillion times to post this photo the right way up, I give up!

The second dessert was for my friend Jo, who can't eat wheat, so no flour.  I'm really enjoying experimenting with cooking gluten free food for her (well cakes and cookies anyway) so I knew she'd love this Pavlova.  Pav as it is more commonly known in NZ (where it was first created!) is our national pudding and everyone has their version.  Most New Zealander's would put kiwi fruit on top or crumble a flake chocolate bar or slice strawberries.  Not me, I love my pav with raspberries, which is what we had.  Essentially a pavlova is whipped egg whites with sugar added, a meringue cake(ish).

The final dessert was profiteroles, and I have to say, I think they may become my dinner party staple.  So so easy!  Andrew made these for me on Mother's Day, and well if he can make them, I certainly can!  On Friday night I made the choux pastry and piped and baked the 'balls'.  On Saturday I filled them with cream and iced them with a classic chocolate icing.  Mmmmm!

PS  My friends bought me the cake stand as a party of my baby shower presents, not your typical present but very loved!  

 

And now post of mine would be complete without some baby photos, this is Chicken in her party frock.  Unfortunately she wasn't as lady-like as a wearer of such a frock should be.  From stealing her boyfriend's toys to scratching the host of the party on the face she did it all and had a great time, coming home with grass stains all over the feet of her frilly bottom tights.

Books from my childhood

A couple of weeks ago I was in a second hand book store and was browsing in the kids section, looking for books for Chicken when I came across a couple of titles that took me straight back to my childhood.  They were Five on Finniston Farm, and Anne of Green Gables.  I've since read these books again and I think I enjoyed them even more as an adult.  This got me thinking about books I want to find for Chicken to either read to her or have her read when she is older.  I realise that this is a long long way away, but hey, you can never start too young!

I think I first read Anne of Green Gables and the subsequent series when I was fourteen as a part of my high school English class.  Luckily I went to a girls school, as cool as Anne is, I can't see boys getting into it!  I do remember watching the TV series before that, and wanting to wear my hair in a pouf like Anne when she got older.  I just love her character, her feistiness, caring nature and the love story that develops between her and Gilbert, whoops did I give too much away?  Maybe this is why I feel the need every couple of years to dye my hair red?  I also found myself crying like a baby (and I can't even blame the hormones) when something sad happens at the end, even though I knew it was coming - does anyone else do that?

I starting reading Famous Five books when I was much younger, we used to go camping a lot but I was very jealous of four children who were allowed to go off by themselves!  Somewhere at my parents house there are probably quite a few of these books hidden away.  Recently these books were given a modern makeover, and I think that the one I read was one.  I have to say, I'm not a fan, the classic language is all part of the charm of these books, and when I try and track down the others (for Chicken of course...) I'll aim for books published before 2010.

I think I'll also be on the lookout for Charlotte's web, Bridge to Terabithia, No One Went to Town, and quite a few others.  First though, we'll start with picture books, Dr Seuss' The Lorax or Where the Wild Things Are anyone?