Ladies Racing Hat Biscuits

I love Melbourne Cup! On the odd occasion i get to go to the races providing i have no children and a lot of money. This year i have no money and my 2 year old so i am off to an indoor play centre for lunch with a friend.
Last year i made these biscuits for everyone at work and they all loved them. They had better, these biscuits are painstakingly time consuming! I think it was 2 hours this year.

But they are cute.

And they actually taste really good!
The royal icing sticks the marshmallow on and sets hard so they are really easy to eat.
If you have the money, buy proper sugar flowers, it took me ages just to cut my colored fruit sticks let alone assemble these damn things!

• 250g packet marie biscuits
• 1 large packet pascall marshmallows
• Sugar flowers or fruit sticks cut into thin slices.
• 2 egg whites
• 3 cups pure icing sugar
• 3-4 tbsp lemon juice
• Food coloring

The icing makes quite a bit so i also made gingerbread men and used the left over icing for them x

Make the icing: Place egg whites in a bowl and whisk with a fork until just foamy. Add icing sugar and stir until think and lump free. Stir in enough lemon juice until the icing becomes a little thinner and spreadable.
Spoon half the icing into a separate bowl and tint with food coloring. Put glad wrap over the bowl so that it doesn't start to set.
Tint the rest of the icing another colour.
Divide the biscuits in two portions.
Working with one portion, spread a biscuit with icing using a butter knife. Place a marshmallow on top and cover it with more icing making sure to fill the gaps between the biscuit and the marshmallow. Place sugar flowers on side of hat. Leave biscuit out until set completely hard.
Repeat with remaining ingredients. (Allow plenty of time!)
Store in an airtight container.

I Heart My Body 2011

OK. I admit, I got lucky with my body.

Then I had 2 children and got even luckier.

It must be in my genes as my mother was a size 8 after 3 kids and my sister aka Veggie Mama has a 7 month old baby and she could still pose for Playboy if she wanted to! (NOT that she would.) It was my sister that also blogged her body for I heart my body which prompted me to join the club.

I love my body, flaws and all and you should too. (Your own, not mine.) If you don't, do something about it, you only have one and you have it for the rest of your life. Only YOU can change yourself. As Dr Phil always says "You chose the behaviour, you chose the consequence."

Just because i might have today's 'ideal' body does not mean i don't have body issues like everyone else.

I do. A lot.

There are days when i look in the mirror and I'm actually horrified at what i see. Sometimes all i see is the dark pigmentation under my eyes that have gotten darker recently, my freckly face (hence the makeup) my 'coco pop' mole on my back that i wont get removed because i am a chicken shit. My caesarean scar that brought my two children into the world when my body failed to do its natural thing. My *cough* saggy boobs that still have their E cup skin but not enough filling. My spider veins that have lingered since pregnancy and my gigantic feet. (No fair, I'm not even tall!)

But tomorrow is I heart my body day 2011 so I'm supposed to talk about what i DO like.

I love that my body has grown two humans inside it, all by itself. I like my legs, they look good in any outfit that i wear. I like my hair, i don't take care of it, rarely trim it and wash it in $2 ALDI shampoo and it still looks good. (Thank you GHD!). I love my eyelashes, i used to get in to trouble in high school for wearing mascara..... except i wasn't wearing any. I love my bum. So does my husband.

We should all love and be proud of our body. Show it off, accept your flaws and take care of yourself. Remind yourself just how amazing your body is and learn to love it.

Don't laugh at my dodgy bathroom. You are, arne't you?

Marshmallow Mum xxxxx

Choc Mint Sauce

200g peppermint cream dark chocolate block, chopped/broken
1/4 cup cream
4 mint slice biscuits, chopped finely

Melt chocolate and cream in small saucepan over medium heat. Do not boil.
Serve over your favourite dessert and sprinkle with crushed biscuits.

Snickers Sauce

2x 60g snickers chocolate bars, chopped coarsely
1/2 cup cream
Handful chopped peanuts

Place chocolate bars and cream in a small saucepan and melt over medium heat. Do not boil. Sauce should thicken slightly. Stand 5 minutes before serving.

Pour over your favourite dessert and sprinkle with chopped peanuts.

Choc Marshmallow Sauce

 4 x 60g mars bars, chopped finely
300ml cream
100g packet marshmallows

Stir chocolate bars and cream in a small saucepan, over low heat, until smooth. Add marshmallows and stir until melted.

This recipe makes 2 cups so if you don't want that much, just halve it.... or not!

This sauce makes a great fondue sauce!

Cheesymite Pull-apart

Why does Vegemite and cheese taste so good together? I don't know why, but it does, and my kids love it. We spend $3 a pop at the bakery buying cheesymite scrolls so i thought id give it a go myself.
This recipe was very easy and i had everything i needed in my pantry. Yay for me!

• 2 cups SR flour
• 30g butter, chilled and chopped
• 3/4 cup  milk
• Vegemite
• 1 cup grated cheese
• Extra milk to glaze

1. Preheat oven to 220c and line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Sift flour in a bowl and using fingertips, rub butter into flour until mixture resembles breadcrumbs. (Mine looked nothing like breadcrumbs!)
3. Make a well in the centre and add milk.
4. Using a butter knife 'cut' through the mixture until it forms a soft dough (add more milk if necessary)
5. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface and knead gently until smooth (don't over knead)
6. Roll out until you have approximately 30cm x 20 cm rectangle
7. Spread over desired amount of Vegemite and sprinkle with cheese.
8. Roll up firmly and transfer to baking tray, seam side down.
9. Using scissors, cut into top of dough at 3cm intervals without cutting all the way through.
10. Pull slice to the left and right and brush with milk
11. Bake for 20-25 mins and serve. Best served warm!!

Enjoy.... We did!!

Carrot and Walnut Cake

I nearly died when i tried this cake, even the batter was addictive! It seriously tasted like something from an expensive cafe.... Mind you, it cost me around $15 to make! (Soooooooooo worth it though!)
I am no fancy baker so it looks like crap but it was so moist and delicious!

• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups SR flour
• 1 tsp bicarb soda
• 1 1/1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 cups firmly packed grated carrot (approx 3x large or 5x small)
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 block cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven 180c. Grease a round cake tin.
2. Combine oil, sugar and eggs in a bowl and whisk well. Add flour, bicarb and cinnamon and stir gently.
3. Add carrot and walnuts and mix. Pour mixture into pan and bake 50 mins or until cooked.
4. Cool 10 minutes in tin before turning out to cool completely.
5. Make icing: Beat cream cheese, icing sugar and vanilla until thick.

                                                       The kids certainly enjoyed it!

                                                                    I enjoyed mine!