Almond Praline Cupcakes.

 

The other day I decided to make these Almond Praline cupcakes, another great recipe from my favourite 200 Cupcakes cookbook. I loved how simple they sounded and the lovely addition of the Almond Brittle to the top so, I thought I'd give them a go as I already had most of the ingredients in the cupboard anyway and I am also a big fan of nutty flavoured things and absoloutely love buttercream frosting so I thought nothing could really go wrong with these lovely little cupcakes.

 

Now, I can honestly say, despite having to have two attempts at making the caramel :/, the almond brittle is actually very simple to make and it kind of makes you feel like you are working in a sweet shop too which, is a nice feeling you don't get to experience everyday. My mistake though was assuming that nothing could go wrong with using golden caster sugar to make caramel... ofcourse when making caramel though, you are looking for a lovely golden brown colour to know when your caramel is done but, my caramel was golden from the very begginning so I had no idea when it was actually ready. Anyway, my poor first attempt at making the caramel left me with a sticky, soggy mess, and after a stint in the fridge, a crumbly, grainy praline which, tasted a bit odd and sort of irony :/, I'm not sure how I managed that either. However, on my far more successful second attempt at making caramel I made sure I used white caster sugar and managed to make a much more appealing glossy praline which, had a really yummy candyfloss type flavour to it. Much nicer!

 

As my first attempt at making praline went... well, very... very wrong, I wasn't able to include any in my actual cupcakes as I had already made the mixture so I didn't really want to leave it for too long before baking the cupcakes so, I just made them and they are so yummy. They are the perfect vanilla cupcake for me and together with, the delicious buttercream frosting create a gorgeous, simple, tasty little cupcake. Add in the almond praline and you have cupcake perfection.

 

They look rather sweet too I think with their fluffy frosting and shiny praline topping. I hope you enjoy them too if you decide to try them!

Recipe

Makes 12

sunflower oil, for brushing
250g (8oz) caster sugar
100 ml water
75g (3 oz) flaked almonds
125g lightly salted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
150g (5 oz) self-raising flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Frosting
75g (3 oz) unsalted butter, softened
125g (4 oz) icing sugar
1 teaspoon hot water

Method

Line a 12-section bun tray with paper cake cases. Brush a baking sheet lightly with oil. Put 150g (5 oz) of the caster sugar in a small saucepan with the water and heat gently until it has dissolved. Bring to the boil and boil rapidly until the syrup has turned to a pale golden caramel. Immediately stir in the flaked almonds. When coated, turn out on to the prepared baking sheet, spread in a thin layer and leave until cold and brittle.

Snap half the praline into jagged pieces and reserve. Process the remainder in a food processor until ground.

Put the butter, remaining caster sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, flour and baking powder in a bowl and beat with a hand-held electric whisk for about a minute until light and creamy. Stir in the ground praline. Divide the cake mixture between the paper cases.

Bake in a preheated oven, at 180C, Gas Mark 4, for 18-20 minutes or until risen and just firm to touch. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Beat together the butter and icing sugar with the hot water in a bowl until pale and creamy. Spread over the cakes using a small palette knife. Decorate with the praline pieces and enjoy!

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

 

 

Tuesday Tunes.

 

Song Of The Week : Madina Lake - One Last Kiss.

Now here's a nice blast from the past or at least a little look back at the sort of songs I was listening to back in 2007. My goodness I was only 13. How time flies. 2007 doesn't even seem that long ago. Also, whatever happened to Madina Lake? With my ipod breaking recently :( I have had to go back to the good old ipod nano and as such I have rediscovered some songs I used to love including this amazing song. I love it and I have been listening to it non-stop over the last couple of weeks. I was never a big fan of their first single; House Of Cards which, everyone else seemed to love but, One Last Kiss and Here I Stand were both amazing and I am loving them all over again. Maybe I should look into some of their other songs. They might actually still be going, who knows?

Thankyou for listening!

Love Courts x

Puy Lentil, Cherry Tomato and Haloumi Salad.

 

For a vegetarian who adores pretty much all vegetables, for some reason I have never been a big fan of salads. I think it's because I've never really been fond of raw vegetables in general, I love cooked carrots for example, but can't stand them raw (unless they are in coleslaw ofcourse). I've decided to try and start being a bit healthier though as I'd really like to lose a bit of weight before the summer so, I thought I would start looking for some tasty low fat recipes including some more interesting sounding salads.

I stumbled across this lovely recipe last week and thought it sounded really nice and tasty and very different to the usual bag of lettuce leaves topped with slices of cucumber and pieces of pepper. It got really good reviews on the website too so I thought I would give it a go and I'm very glad I did as I love it! I was a bit worried incase it was going to be a bit bland as some of the reviews said it was and that in needed a bit of chorizo or something added to it to liven it up. Ofcourse I can't have chorizo but, I considered popping some in for my Mum and Dad as I wanted to make sure they enjoyed it but, in the end I didn't and it really didn't matter as this salad had lots of lovely flavour to it.

It was so quick and easy to make too with very few ingredients needed and it turned out to be a really great dish which, I will now be making time and time again. The haloumi was also gorgeous so, I am now a big haloumi fan! I had only ever had it once before and it had been cut thinly and fried which, had made it quite tough whereas, this time I grilled it in chunks so it was still nice and soft. The dish looked great too with lots of vibrant colours which, was nice. The first time I made this salad I served it with a poached egg which, went nicely with the flavour but, it wasn't too necessary and Mum and Dad had it with some fish which, they said tasted delicious with it too. Recently I made this salad again though and took some better pictures of the dish which, I have now added to the post, replacing the old ones and this time I served the puy lentil salad with some tasty homemade Garlic and Basil Ciabatta which, I will soon upload the recipe for and also some delicious homemade Caramelised Red Onion Quiche and Veggie Bacon and Roast Red Pepper Quiche. If you decide to give the Puy Lentil, Cherry Tomato and Haloumi salad a go, I hope you really enjoy it too!

 

Recipe

                       250g cherry tomatoes, halved                 

½ red onion , finely sliced

½ garlic clove , crushed

½ lemon , juiced

                                  1 tbsp. olive oil                                  

                                          150g Puy Lentils                                          

250g pack haloumi cheese , cut into chunks

a small bunch coriander , roughly chopped

Method

1. Toss the tomatoes, red onion, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil in a bowl. Cook the Puy lentils until just tender, drain and add to the bowl. Season well and toss.
2. Grill the haloumi until golden. Stir the coriander through the lentils and serve with the haloumi. Eat as it is or serve with whatever you like; fish, slices of chorizo, quiche, pizza or some warm crusty bread and butter etc.

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

 

 

 

She's Just Waiting For That One To Take Her Hand And Shake Her Up.

 

 

Outfit of the Day:

Grey T-shirt Dress: Topshop

Studded Boots : Ebay (similar here.)

Socks: Topshop

Hat: New Look

 

A nice simple outfit unlike my very hectic room, sorry about that! I need a good clear out. I attempted one in the Summer but, I clearly didn't get rid of alot, if anything by the looks of it :/. This is the dress I bought the other day and I love it. It's very simple which I think is really nice as often I find myself wearing outfits that have a lot going on which, sometimes doesn't always look great or pay off. I think this dress is really cute too and I love the charcoal colour and speckle t-shirt style and it is also really comfy and can be just thrown on to provide a complete outfit which, for £26 isn't too shabby. I think it looks really sweet with my studded boots as well. I wanted these boots for ages but, now I find myself not wearing them anywhere near as much as I should do. I'm still very unsure about them but, I think they go quite nicely with this dress. These Topshop socks are adorable too with the little lace frill and I really like how they look poking out the top of my boots.

 

Also how cute is this song? I love a good love song. I only heard it for the first time yesterday although I do have this vague memory of hearing it somewhere in the past without properly listening to it. Anyway, now I can't stop listening to it. I've also downloaded We The King's whole first album which, sounds really good and nice and cheerful and upbeat which, is always good. It's always nice to find a new band you really like.

 

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

  

 

Wednesday Wish-list.

 

Todays Wednesday wish-list is basically a complete outfit I would really like to own. I think it would look great in the Summer.  Very retro and casual. I love love love this Gene Simmons top. It's so cool and creepy and rock 'n' roll and I also really love baseball tops at the moment which, makes me like it even more. The only thing is I was just watching one on ebay but, chose not to buy it yet as I am supposed to be saving and now I can't find another one anywhere. Just my luck. If only I'd been my usual 'buy now, regret later' self and been willing to spend the not so steep £12 on it. Hopefully I'll be able to find another one at some point though. Then I love this pair of Levi shorts from Ark. I already have two pairs of Levi shorts in black and a sort of medium blue but, I really like the pale colour of these ones and the frayed bottom style as both of my pairs are rolled up at the bottom. These are still available at Ark at the moment so, hopefully I'll be able to get myself a pair as I am in love with Levi's and they are my wardrobe essential in the Summer. I'm just a little worried as the picture is only an example so my pair might arrive and be completely different and I don't want them to be the same colour as the pair I already own.

 

I really want a pair of white converse too. Originally, I wanted the off-white, cream colour but, I can't find them anywhere in a size 4 so, I think I've decided I'm going to go for the white. I think they'll look great in the summer, I just hope I actually wear them as I own a classic black pair and they barely ever touch my feet as I pretty much only ever leave the house wearing my beloved vans. Still, I really like them so, I think I will probably invest in some at somepoint so, fingers crossed I don't regret it. Finally, I adore these sunglasses from Topshop and I have had them saved in my favourites list for weeks but, I just went on the website and noticed that they are now out of stock so, getting my dream summer outfit is going really well at the moment. Hopefully though they will be back in stock soon as it is only January so not really sunglasses weather yet and also they are very on trend at the moment with the oversized, round, 60s style which, I am loving.

 

Now, another item I would really like for the Summer is a Clippy Photo Beach Bag. (I am aware I am sounding far too eager for the Summer when we've barely even started January, sorry about that, it just seems like every item I find at the moment is far more suited to the Summer than it is to now.) I think it's a really lovely concept to be able to decorate your own bag and to fill it with your own pictures. It makes it very personal and creates a really nice bag which, perfectly suits you. It is quite expensive though at £25 so, I may look to see if you can get cheaper altenatives anywhere else but, I do really like the concept of it so knowing me I will probably eventually splash out on one if my funds haven't become too low. For now there is no more spending for me until the next payday though so we'll see if any of these items are still available or back in stock in a few weeks time. There are also other bags, wash bags and make-up cases etc. available on the website for a cheaper price if you also like the idea of having your own special photo bag.

Thankyou for reading!

Love Courts x

Tuesday Tunes.

 

Song of The Week : My Chemical Romance - The World Is Ugly.

 

I figured it was about time I featured a My Chemical Romance song on my blog as they are my favourite band. This is one of their new songs from the new Conventional Weapons album which, is being released as a series of five records each with two songs on. I think it's a really cool, unusual idea and concept and I love this song in particular as it's very emotional with it's theme of heartbreak but the lyrics are also really sweet and romantic. I found that the Danger Days album had alot more softer, more romantic, mature songs on too than any of My Chem's previous albums which, I actually really love. It's a really nice side to them. I heard this song quite a while ago now actually as there was a live version of it on youtube however, I'm ashamed to say that I have only just listened to the other singles on the Conventional Weapons album which, is terrible for a big My Chem fan. This song is featured on the third record and I also love the other song on the record too, The Light Behind Your Eyes which, is very emotional and hard hitting. It's about finding strength and never giving up. My Chem always put great meaning into their songs which, is what I love about them. They are also just a really lovely, normal, down to earth bunch of guys too which, is great and Frank Iero is also the most beautiful man alive which, is another rather pleasing thing about them. I got to see them on the Black Parade Tour when I was 13 and they were incredible, hopefully soon I'll be able to see them again! I hope you enjoy this song if you haven't heard it before and take a listen to some of the others on the album too!

 

Thankyou for listening!

Love Courts x

Pistachio Cream Cupcakes.

 

 

These cupcakes are so cute and delicious. They are actually pretty simple and quick to make too and don't really have too many ingredients to them either which, is always a bonus. Again I found this lovely recipe in my 200 cupcakes cookbook which, is brilliant and has some really lovely, unique recipes in it. If you are a fan of making cupcakes or just baking in general I would deffinately reccommend getting it. Only £3.74 on Amazon, you can't really go wrong. It's a bargain.

 

 

I decided to make these little cupcakes yesterday as I have always been a fan of pistachios and I really liked the sound of the whole recipe. They taste really lovely but, my favourite thing about them is actually how sweet they look. I love the pistachio dusting around the base of the cakes, it's a really sweet idea and I love the colour pairing of the snow white icing and the pastel green chunks of pistachio, it makes the cupcakes look quite elegant and girly.

 

As I said though, more importantly, the taste is really lovely too. In the book the recipe calls for the use of Almond liqueur however, to save money and because I already had some in the house, I just used some almond essence which, worked really well. Obviously though, if you do have the pennies to spare or maybe already have some almond liqueur in the house I would deffinately use it as I bet it tastes delicious! Still, almond essence works well though for the baker on a budget!

Sometimes I feel a bit like an 18 year old going on 80 with my baking addiction and love of making cupcakes, then there are days like today when I wake up with a huge smile on my face and hurry downtairs purely to watch the first episode of the new series of Glee which, makes me feel like I'm a 12 year old again. One of these days I will work out how to act my age.

 

Recipe

 

Makes 12.

 

150g (5 oz) Pistachio nuts

125g (4 oz) lightly salted butter, softened

125g (4 oz) caster sugar

2 eggs

150g (5 oz) self-raising flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

 

To decorate:

300ml (1/2 pint) double cream

2 tablespoons icing sugar

2 tablespoons almond or orange flavoured liqueur or 2 teaspoons of almond essence.

 

 

Line a 12-section bun tray with paper cake cases. Process the pistachio nuts in a food processor until finely chopped (remove the shells and skins to the best of your ability first if necessary).

 

Beat the butter, caster sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder and 50g (2 oz) of the ground pistachio nuts with a hand-held electric whisk in a bowl for about a minute until light and creamy. Divide the mixture between the paper cases.

 

Bake in a preheated oven, 180C, Gas Mark 4, for 20 minutes or until risen and just firm to touch. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

 

Peel away the paper cake cases. Whip the cream with the icing sugar and liqueur in the bowl until only just holding its shape. Transfer half to a separate bowl and reserve. Spread the remainder around the cakes and roll in the remaining ground pistachio nuts to coat the sides. Spoon the reserved flavoured cream on top and decorate with a few pieces of pistachio.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Thankyou for reading!

 

Love Courts x