Doughnut Muffins

Im a bit partial to the old doughnut. 

Warm, filled with sticky and oozy jam, sweet, crunchy cinnamon and sugar on top- Yummo!

They were one of the foods I craved during my third pregnancy....

in hindsight, I wish I had baked these muffins earlier!

I finally trialled this recipe a few months ago and well, it must be shared. 

I dedicate this one to all my friends and readers (who I don't know) that may live out of town or away from shops, and for those Mums with little children who may not get a chance to leave the house.

It's a sugar hit where one is just not enough!

This recipe comes from the cookbook "In the Kitchen" by Allan Campion & Michele Curtis. As they say in their book, "these muffins taste like doughnuts with a fraction of the work!"

You will need...

250g SR Flour

pinch of salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/3 cup vegetable oil

150g caster sugar

1 egg

2/3 cup milk

75g melted butter

110g caster sugar-extra

1 tsp ground cinnamon-extra

strawberry jam

Firstly, preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius.

Sift together the flour, salt and cinnamon into a bowl. In a jug or bowl, 

mix together the oil, sugar, milk and egg. Add this mix to the flour and stir until combined. 

Spoon into muffin tins or baking cups. 

At this stage, if you would like jam in the middle, only pour half mix into the tin, then a spoonful of jam. Followed by another spoonful of muffin mix. Jam is optional!

Bake in oven for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Whilst muffins are in the oven, melt the btter. Mix together the extra sugar and cinnamon.

Once muffins have finished baking, remove from oven and allow to sit for a few minutes. 

Dip tops into the melted butter then into the sugar /cinnamon mix. 

Allow to cool.....or if you have no self control like me...eat whilst warm!

Things I am Loving at the moment!

1.  Orangina Light Vintage Poster. This is the poster Bec & George on this years Block Skyhigh used in their kitchen. I instantly fell in love with the colours-its so fun....and well, I cant help but imagine that's the glamorous me...one day!

 2. Tulips- I love watching them grow from closed buds and standing upright to day by day, buds opening and stems going floppy. I treat myself to a bunch or two each trip to supermarket. They brighten up our kitchen table! $8 a bunch ($4 on special)...bargain!

3. My new book I purchased online at Booktopia- Decorate Workshop by Holly Becker

Holly has a blog which I love reading called Decor8. A great blog for those who love interior design and blogging. This book guides you through the process of decorating your own space and being confident with your own style.

4. Rhonna Design iPhone App- Have fun editing your photos with this great application. Lots of fonts, frames, backgrounds, filters and digital art to spruce up your photos!

5. Date Night- I really look forward to date nights with my husband. We don't get out much at the moment due to the children being so little still. Its not always though about going out (although that is such a treat especially not having to cook!)....we often have a night in and pretend its date night simply by eating together ( not with the kids) and watching a movie later. We used to play board games but these days Im too tired to concentrate and focus...A cuddle on the couch and a good show is more my thing. I came across this great gift idea- 'Lets go on a date' - from finding joy in the journey blog. There is an envelope for each month which contains an activity to do together, be it dinner out or just a night by the fire at home. What a lovely idea!

Things Im not loving at the moment.....
-Interupted sleep
-Politics
-My never ending basket of laundry
-Sick children
-A messy house!

Enjoy your week...smile and stay warm!

Mama Mia Meatballs!

Dinner time always come along too quickly for me. I used to be 'semi' organised once upon a time when juggling work and home but lucky for me, Im now full time at home and scarily, very unorganised.  The day just slips away and suddenly its half past four and Im madly going through the fridge looking for remnants of food and some inspiration.

My two favourite "OMG Its dinner time..." meals would have to be risotto and these meatballs. We nicknamed them Mama Mia meatballs for our two toddlers- it has a fun ring to it when you are trying to make them eat their dinner!

Every food shop we always buy pork mince which gets placed in the fridge or freezer. All the other ingredients are either fridge or pantry staples. Its also one of those recipes you can add to if you wanted too. It is quite quick (depending on your helpers!) and basically you can be eating within the hour.

So with the help of Miss Three.....please see below how to whip up our Mama Mia Meatballs!

First, some ingredients-

500-600g pork & veal mince (could also use a mix of chicken and veal)

3 slices of day old bread-white, brown or multi

milk

2 teaspoon minced garlic- I cheat and buy my garlic in the jar!

1/4 cup chopped parsley

3/4 cup grated parmesan

zest of a lemon

pepper and salt to taste

plain flour-to dust meatballs

olive oil

Bottle of passata 

Tin of crushed or diced tomatoes

red wine

2 tablespoons of sugar

Pasta- your choice...spaghetti- we like penne!

Other additions might be some diced (fried and cooled) bacon and pine nuts.

Soak bread in some milk and put aside for 5-10 minutes.

Then put mince, garlic, parmesan, parsley, salt & pepper  and lemon zest in a bowl. 

Squeeze bread to remove excess milk and add to mix. 

 Roll up your sleeves and start 'scrunching' away. 

This is a fun job for the kids although may need some Mummy muscle towards the end!

Next job is to roll the mix into small balls- 

size is a personal preference just as long as they are all the same to

 help with the frying process. Ours are generally a tablespoon full. 

Roll in some flour and put aside ready to cook.

Time to hit the fry pan and brown them. 

Best to do a handful at a time and keep turning them so they don't burn.

Once they are all browned, I place the meatballs all back into the pan and add a jar of Passata, 

a can of tomatoes, some red wine (to taste) and the sugar. 

Let it bubble away for 10 minutes and then its ready to eat!

Serve with pasta and grated parmesan cheese...and a glass of red!

Great to freeze and enjoyed by all...including our ten month old too!

Some fun kids projects

Ive been off 'blog air' for a few weeks now as I started  doing a few online courses which have zapped all my 'time off'. Im studying how to use Illustrator Adobe with nicolesclasses.com and reneepearson.com and absolutely loving them. There is just so much you can do and create. My head is spinning with all the information to take in as well as the excitement of being able to make my own designs...eventually!

I digress though....in this blog I thought I would share some photos of some fun children's home projects that I have found in Pinterest. Projects that I would love to make, if I had time....but are 'ear tagged' for when I have a spare moment!

                                                                        source

                                                                           source

                                                                            source

                                                                          source

                                                                           source

                                                                            source

Unfortunately, the shop and bed in the bag don't come with instructions on how to make. They can be purchased from some UK online stores. I just love the concept and think they could be home made and you could add your own touch to it!

Enjoy your day!

Days like these......

I saw this and couldn't resist sharing....... it made me smile.

Each day I wake up with a long list of jobs I would love to complete...... Im often lucky to get a few of them done, let alone have time to make rainbow spaghetti and play dough!

But, on a positive, we are clean, happy and alive!

Enjoy your day!

kx