Sunday, 28 January 2024

A baking weekend

 

So far I've still not bought any treats (sweets, chocolate, crisps basically no ultra processed foods) this month and been satisfying my snack peckishness with home baked from scratch goods.  Yesterday I made this amazing carrot cake loaf!  Recipe HERE.  I changed the cinnamon to mixed spice (I don't like cinnamon!) and left out the walnuts as I didn't have any.  It's the best carrot cake recipe I've made for a long time! πŸ˜‹

Since I've been eating a lot of sweet treats lately,  I decided I needed to make some savoury ones.  I made some oatcakes with seeds (Lidl's mixed seeds that have been lurking in the cupboard) to have with some cheese.  Recipe is one I've used before HERE.  It uses very little ingredients and is VERY tasty!! πŸ˜‹πŸ˜‹

I've popped them into a jar so I'll see how long they last!!

I started a sourdough loaf that I'll bake first thing tomorrow morning.  It always looks awful when you first mix it!  It just gets left on the worktop all day and roughly every hour I'll give it a wee stretch and turn.  No kneading required!

I fancied cauliflower cheese for my tea last night so I got the frozen cauliflower out the freezer.  There wasn't a single 'normal' sized floret in the whole bag!!!  That's a teaspoon for reference.  I was really annoyed!  They look like the leftover bits from the conveyor belt in the packing factory!! 

I didn't have milk so once again used the Marvel dried milk to make the cheese sauce.  I did plan to bake it in the oven to get a crispy top but it looked good enough to eat without it so saved money by not putting on the oven!!  I added some chunks of gammon I had in the freezer and it was a very tasty meal! 

Luna is booked into puppy day care tomorrow (Monday) so I've got a long list of errands to do including a dentist appt and coffee with a friend.  I'm planning to spend my Nectar points in Sainsbury's so I'll be doing a storecupboard audit tonight!!

15 comments:

  1. That all looks delicious. I do wish I had the patience to make my own bread. I don't plus I can't stand anything sticky on my hands which makes it even more of a challenge.
    I've also been baking, using up some frozen bananas in vegan flapjacks - a resounding success. I'm about to try coffee ground cookies - the dough is resting in the fridge as I write. I'll let you know how they turn out.

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    1. Ooo, those cookies sound interesting!! :-) xxx

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    2. Hmm. They sounded interesting but on first taste not so much. I may have overcooked mineπŸ€” they are meant to be chewy and my smaller ones are quite dry and crumbly. OH likes them so all is not lost. 😁 Perhaps they will softer tomorrow.

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    3. Worth a try though! :-) xxx

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  2. Hi Ali. Is your sourdough still gluten free? I have your page bookmarked from July 2022 to try it out but I still haven’t got to it! I tried reintroducing wheat to my diet recently (I’m not coeliac, just intolerant of wheat) but it didn’t go well πŸ™ so I need to work on my GF breadmaking skills instead. Thanks, Ellen

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    1. No I'm no longer gluten free although I still try to avoid eating commercial wheat products. And I still use GF pasta. I can usually tolerate home made stuff if I use organic wheat flour and don't eat too much of it! :-) xxx

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  3. I know what you mean about the frozen cauliflower! Sometimes there’s an enormous bit too which has to be defrosted and chopped before it can be cooked. Thanks for the carrot cake recipe-I’ll have a go at that when I get the ingredients. Catriona

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    1. I was so annoyed about the cauliflower!! I had a few bendy carrots to use up so it had to be carrot cake. This mixture can also be made into muffins, info is right at the bottom of her recipe :-) xxx

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  4. That carrot cake looks delicious. I didn't realise you are cutting out crisps as well as bought in sweet treats.........I am a bit addicted to bags of crisps in the evening as a treat....... perhaps I'll have to try a handful of raw nuts......
    Alison in Wales x

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    1. I'll still eat crisps without additives (ready salted I guess) I just haven't bought any for ages. I can eat a whole 'sharing' bag far too easily so best I just don't buy any!! I'll maybe pick up some nuts in Sainsbury's for a more savoury snack and roast them myself :-) xxx

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  5. You have been busy! I made oatmeal bars today and that will keep my sweet tooth satisfied for a week or so.

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    1. Oats are brilliant all rounders for sweet and savoury treats! :-) xxx

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  6. I've used the Cranks carrot recipe for years, it's so good and reliable I've never bothered with another one. It has coconut and raisins in it too, but adaptable. I don't mind the wee cauliflower bits - they cook quicker, and if you've a wee freezer, the bag is more bendy to squash it in lol

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    1. I used to have a brilliant carrot cake recipe I used all the time but cannot for the life of me remember which one now!! Lol! :-) xxx

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  7. Those oatcakes look delicious ... and in a glass jar you'll be seeing them and dipping in every time you're in the kitchen. Well I would, maybe you have more self-control. :-)

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