I managed to bake this little loaf on the weekend before the entire family came down with an epic cold; worse than a regular cold but it can't legitimately be labelled as the flu. So I apologise in advance for typos but I've been cooped up in the house all week with sick children, sniffling and feeling sorry for myself. The kids have watched so many episodes of Peppa Pig that they've started snorting in unison and I'm beginning to display cabin fever like symptoms. 

I had a packet of dates to use up and we were feeling chocolate-ed out. My mum's baked this loaf for years and I asked her to email the recipe to me.  Half way through mixing I halted everything and phoned her up saying she'd forgotten to write the amount of eggs required. There isn't any. 

Loaves and breads can be the humble counterpart at the cake shop and rarely the star of the show, they are often reserved for morning teas and breakfast. I prefer to amp up every cake that I make. A dollop of ice-cream and a pouring of butterscotch sauce made this into a dessert of its own, sticky date without the fuss. 

Date & Pecan Loaf - Preheat oven to 180c (non fan forced) 

Line a 20 x 10cm loaf tin

1 cup dates 150g / 5.3oz
1 cup boiling water 250ml
1 cup brown sugar 120g / 4.2oz
1/4 cup butter 65g / 2.2oz
1 cup plain flour (I use orgran gf) 130g / 4.6oz
3/4 cup self raising flour (I use orgran gf) 90g / 3.1oz
1 tsp bi-carb
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped pecans or nut of choice 

Rinse and chop the dates into small pieces, sharp scissors work well or pulse in a food processor. If you like the date flavour without the chunks make them finer. 

Add the brown sugar and pour over the just boiled water. 

Add the butter and essence, stir until melted. 

Mix in the flours and bi-carb.  Pour batter into prepared loaf tin and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. 

Cool in tin for ten minutes before removing. Allow to cool slightly before slicing and serving. 


Wishing everyone the best of health through these frosty winter months. Now I'm off to search some savoury food blogs for a decent chicken soup recipe. 

I bought Nutella last week; it called out my name while I was cruising past the peanut butter. My hand hesitated for the briefest moment before I placed it in the trolley (under the lettuce) and I promised myself that this time I would exercise a sense of restraint. Two days later and I'm not just spooning it from the jar to my mouth but I'm dunking it in the peanut butter first. It tastes just like Reeses' I say, my husband rolls his eyes and I know it has to go. 

So I made these awesome brownies. Sweet, fudgy, thick, Nutella brownies. Oh and some ice-cream too. 

These cute little cups of goodness are much easier to make than they look. They have a crunchy macaroon like base and a healthy chocolate filling. You could pour something unhealthy into these bases, however this "ganache" is like thick pudding and when it's chilled, a rich chocolate mousse, without the pending heart attack. It's actually better for you if you eat these, than if you don't eat them. 

I have always loved a traditional baked cheesecake but recently I've been making cheesecake slices and it has rekindled the love affair so to speak. It seemed like cheesecakes had become an extravagant celebration cake reserved only for the most special of occasions, mainly because they took a good few hours to create and are usually so large they seem birthday or anniversary worthy. 

If you've been diagnosed as a coeliac for a while then you've probably had a friand or ten, they are usually listed as the gluten free option at coffee shops. I'm quite partial to almonds so I don't mind a friand but sometimes they can be a bit heavy and just too much to bite through. This slice is baked in a 25cm by 15cm shallow baking tin so it's wide but not too tall, that means per bite there is less friand and more flavour.

Lets face it, Valentines Day ain't exactly Christmas or one of the real  holidays so I don't want to spend hours slaving away in the kitchen. If you do, then congratulations, but if you feel like cheating this year then this is the recipe for you. The hardest part will be driving to Target and buying a heart shaped silicone baking pan, luckily I had one in the cupboard so it was a super lazy day for me. 

If you are busy and you think you don't have time to pull of an impressive dairy and gluten free dessert for your sweetheart then think again because you do. This "panacotta" has only 3 ingredients all of which I pulled out of the pantry. My husband and kids devoured them a week early because they had to taste test of course. 

We always end up with some left over rice and the other night there was a whole cup. I hate throwing food out so of course I had to make some rice pudding, but I wasn't in the mood for regular rice pudding. As much as I love the traditional version I needed a chocolate fix.