Vintage tea cups & chocolate crackles

 

The last couple of weeks have flown by. There is so much paperwork to be done and authorities to be visited. I even bought a second hand car, after our old one broke down recently.......Never thought I would be doing things like this, can't say I like it, but I manage, we manage.
We have all taken up our lives again, but while we go on, the sadness remains. I hope we will get our sparkle back one day.

I believe that this week was the start of better times to come. My youngest daughter passed the three exams she had, with high grades. I am so very very proud :-)!

While coming home from work today, I was welcomed by a delicious smell. My two youngest daughters have been infected by a virus called The Great British Bake Off. The kitchen has been taken over. They made Chocolate Crackles from the book Bake Off, How to bake, by Linda Collister. The crackles were absolutely delicious! Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Thought I would share some photo's with you.

The crochet cat was made by my friend Ilse, who has an Etsy shop called Eigenhandig, where she sells her beautiful handmade animals, Christmas decorations and other treasures. 

Hopefully I can show you the crochet wrap I am working on next week. It's almost finished and I am incredibly pleased with the result!

Thank you once more for you sweet words on my blog. You are all so very kind! Wishing you a lovely weekend! Hope the sun will shine on you.

Love,

Madelief x

Ingredients:

100g dark chocoloate (70% cocoa solids)
100 g unsalted butter
150 light brown muscavado sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
175g self raising flower
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of sugar
2/3 tbsp icing sugar 

Break the chocolate into pieces and melt in a glass bowl, over a pan of simmering water. Once the chocolate has melted, take the bowl from the heat and stir in the butter. When the butter is smoothly incorporated, stir in the sugar. Leave to cool for about 5 minutes. When the mixture has cooled, beat in the egg and the vanilla extract. Sift in the flower and bicarbonate of soda and mix for one hour. After one hour preheat the oven to 200°C and grease two baking trays. Divide the biscuit mixture into 30 pieces and roll each piece into a small ball. Place the icing sugar in a shallow dish and roll each biscuit dough ball into the icing sugar until well coated. Place the balls on the baking trays and then pop in the the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove and leave to cool on a wire rack. You can store them in a tin or airtight container and eat them within five days.
They only lasted one day in our home!