Malteser Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

Last week I was heading to a friend's house for a girl's night and I wanted to bring something to show my appreciation. I was stumped, and looked to the remains of the Halloween sweets for inspiration. 

Maltesers had already proved to make delicious cookies and I thought the caramel Chomp bars would be lovely and gooey! Bonus points: these bars take less effort than cookies!

Here's what you need to make a 6x6 tray of cookie bars:
1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup soft brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips
3 funsize bags of Maltesers
4 funsize Chomp bars

1. Line a 6x6 tray with baking parchment, snipping at the corners so it fits properly.
2. Preheat the oven to 180degrees Celcius.
3. In a plastic bag, bash at the Maltesers with a mallet until broken (not crushed).
4. Chop Chomp bars into small pieces.
5. Beat together margarine and sugars until combined.
6. Add vanilla and egg, and mix until combined.
7. Add the flour and mix until combined.
8. On a slow setting, add the chocolate chips and Chomp and Malteser pieces.
9. Place dough into prepared tin.
10. Bake for about 50minutes or until cooked through and golden brown in colour.
11. Allow to cool in tin before slicing.
12. Enjoy.

Come back for more Autumnal recipes this week!

Stay sweet! x

Bloody Halloween Cupcakes

To get you in the mood for Halloween, these spookily decorated bloody cupcakes should do the trick...or treat! (Sorry, couldn't help myself!)

Spider, witch's hat, mummy, ghost, bat, tombstone, broom, skull, pumpkin, Frankenstein's monster, bloody fangs and a bone... All in a day's work! 

I made simple sponge cupcakes but before baking dribbled some strawberry jam on top and quickly buried the jam under batter so it would bake nicely.

The toppers are all handmade out of fondant, I didn't follow any designs or stencils I just fiddled around with sugarpaste until I got a shape I liked. I was too lazy to whip up buttercream so I used a glass tumbler to cut out circles of sugarpaste and used these as a base on the cupcakes. FYI, all the materials I used were featured here as well as an oh-so-fancy cocktail stick, and I painted yellow fondant with red food colouring to get a pumpkin orange colour! I also used an edible black felt tip pen which I found in Brussels for writing/pupils.

Ingredients for a dozen cupcakes:

6oz self-raising flour

4oz caster sugar

4oz margarine

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 jar of jam (strawberry or raspberry)

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius, and line a cupcake tray.
2. Beat margarine and sugar together on a medium speed until combined.
3. Add eggs one at a time and mix until combined.
4. Add vanilla extract.
5. Sieve in flour and beat until combined.
6. Divide batter between cases.
7. Add a teaspoon of jam to each case (trail along), cover this over with batter.
8. Bake for 20mins or until springy to touch.
9. Allow cupcakes to cool before applying a thin layer of jam on top. Place fondant circle atop.
10. Brush fondant with clear alcohol to give shine and allow toppers to stick.
11. Enjoy!

If you're looking for more spooky treats check out last year's post which features a podcast with great ideas from other bloggers!

Looking for costume inspiration? Last year I wrote this article for the UCC Express but I also love Urban Outfitters range! Whatever you get up to, have a great night!

 Happy Halloween, and stay spooky! x

Áras an Uachtaráin

Apologies for the major hiatus this month. You would think that finishing my Master's thesis (and college altogether) would bring some serenity but every day this month has been jam-packed! I've been to Northern Ireland for a residential camp, I've had job interviews, presented a paper based on my thesis at the International Committee of the Red Cross annual conference, and oh, I just visited the President, as you do... 

Since I was a member of Team Ireland at the First Aid Convention of Europe last summer, I was invited to attend a reception at Áras an Uachtaráin. (This also entailed wearing a not-so-flattering uniform, you've been warned!)

What exactly do you eat at the Áras? Well to start with a mini-pint of Guinness, a glass of wine, or orange juice cleanses the palette before aperitifs. The savoury nibbles were delicately assembled from bruscetta to miniature cones filled with pesto and olives to curry marinaded chicken on skewers. Everything was painstakingly arranged and presented on an artist's easel (very cute!)

I'll be honest, I didn't have many aperitifs- there were desserts to be had!Miniature scones were stuffed with clotted cream and a sheath of raspberry- afternoon tea at it's best!

Wafer-thin vanilla pod speckled shortbread was cut into leaf shapes. Wow! Definitely the best shortbread I have ever tasted!! It was so delicate but packed a serious punch- sublime!

My personal favourite had to be the teeny chocolate cups, piped full of chocoalte mousse, sprinkled with glittered lustre dust. So intricate and decadent!

Obviously tea was had (it is Ireland after all) in pristine fine bone China cups with the Irish Harp gilt on the edge, also emblazoned upon the napkins.

Here's a great shot with my sister and President Michael D. Higgins!

Cadbury's Mallows with Turkish

My dad is a huge fan of Turkish Delight! He's not much of a chocolate-lover but can always make room for some Turkish! I love the Cadbury's bar too, it always reminds me of Willy Wonka for some reason- how does the jelly not melt? ;) We're also fans of teacakes in our house, second to Turkish Delight Jacobs' Chocolate Kimberleys often appeared at Christmas or Father's Day.

When I saw this new product I knew I had to try it out!

Unfortunately it's not actual Turkish Delight in the teacake but a 'flavoured jam'- disappointing I'm sure you'll agree! The chocolate-flavoured biscuit was a little too chocolatey for my taste, but the marshmallow and Cadbury's chocolate coating was delicious! 

Everyone seemed to like these, but I still have a hankering for the plain Jane Milka Melo-Cakes!

Have you tried the Cadbury's Mallows with Turkish yet? Let me know in the comments box below! 

Stay sweet! x

Scottish Haul

You may have seen my post on Biscoff or Lotus Spread a while back? In my excitement to feature the glorious spread I failed to mention all of the other goodies my family brought back from Scotland. I've been so busy with my Master's thesis I haven't had a chance to test many of these out but I'll update this when I have a proper review for you all.

In an attempt to lessen the damage to our health, they picked up Natural Red Food Colouring. In my book, anything that can make baking a little easier on the body is a good thing! Find this in Morrison's. 

I love these pastel icing pens. I've used my primary coloured Dr. Oetker ones to death, as you probably realised here and here! There's a beautiful pale pink shade that's so unusual and would be great for a princess themed event. Again, find these in Morrison's.

Sainsbury's loaf liners are a god-send! Instead of greasing a tin or fiddling with baking parchment snipping the corners so it will sink into a loaf tin, whip out one of these bad boys! Exactly like a cupcake liner they are perfect for all loaves... In particular banana bread.

"Cake Angels" sprinkles is a fab pack. Not only are there chocolate jimmies and chocolate-flavoured sprinkles the pack also contains milk chocolate and white chocolate chips. The latter of which are impossible to source in Ireland! As you probably figured when I substituted them here. These ones are from Morrison's but check out the Sainsbury's selection!

Paterson's Shortbread wasn't used for any fancy recipe... My apologies! Thesis stress meant it could only be used for one purpose- comfort food. Shortbread is one of my all-time favourite biscuits and I'm too intimidated to attempt to make it myself... Mostly because my thighs will explode if I find a great recipe! ;) This brand was delicious but not as good as my favourite airplane cookie- Campbell's Shortbread.

Have you found any great products abroad that you wish you could find at home? Let me know in the comments box below!

Stay sweet! x

Something a Little Different....

This week I'm going to try something a little different. Aside from baking, I love finding new products or tasting delicious food locally! Prepare yourself for some hauls, like this one last Christmas... Don't worry I have some great autumnal recipes coming soon! ;)

I love Disney- movies and merchandise, but especially treats! I've never been to Disneyland (it's on my bucket list!) but I love the idea of bringing a piece of fantasy into food.

This new magazine series from EagleMoss is just the thing for sugarcraft Disney aficionados. The magazine itself is well-written, has great content that is suitable for both kids and adults and bonus points, each week you get great kitchen gear! This Mickey Mouse Cookie Cutter and Embosser would be great for presents and a little red lustre dust over these Winnie the Pooh stencils would instantly breathe magic into simple cupcakes.

The equipment seems to be great quality and the products to come with the next few issues look fab (even if some of them would be easily made at home, such as the cupcake and cake surrounds).

Personally, I think I would be inclined to purchase an issue if the freebie was reusable as although the recipes are great that could be due to clever branding such as "Bullseye's Brownies" and "Minnie's Chocolate Crunch". With so many recipes online at the moment, quality becomes paramount when it comes to cookbooks so many would probably prefer a Disney cookbook rather than a magazine series- however kids will probably go crazy for this series!

What about you? Have you purchased the magazine? What are your thoughts on the idea?

Stay sweet! x

Creator of After Eight Mints Passes Away

It's funny how you never relate chocolate to its creator- unless it's a well marketed artisan product or bought at a farmer's market. The Lindt Choclatiers ad  definitely raised the profile of the truffles, but the floppy gild-embroidery hats definitely conjure up images of luxury.

Today I read that Brian Sollit, the man behind not only After Eight mints, but also the Yorkie bar (another favourite of mine, even though 'IT'S NOT FOR GIRLS!'), the Lion Bar and Matchsticks. His first job in the factory, at age fifteen  was piping Black Magic chocolates (which I also love!) This article is a great account of the man's life and he really seems like a man everyone would wish to know.

Another article speaks of childhood memories of After Eight mints. I know I was always a huge fan! Even to this day I tear both sides of the envelopes carefully so I won't rip the flimsy tissue paper to get a flat rectangle of dark tissue. I love folding up the wrapper to make some poor oragami too... At the risk of sounding like a fetish, I love the peppermint scent on those dark papers.Yum yum yum! I love the textured top of the mint, compared to the precise branded bottom. This treat has everything you could wish for!

For St. Patrick's Day I featured my After Eight Cupcakes, so in honour of Brian Sollit, here they are again.