And here we are again, a new year, a new start, an opportunity to undo all the less than nutritionally dense treats we’ve consumed all in the name of celebration and festivity. READ MORE
How are the resolutions going? This year I decided to absolutely not make any new year’s resolutions. I’ve made many in my time and have found, after a good few years of research, that they are more often than not, pointless. READ MORE
Nothing but nothing is prepared and it’s almost (gasp) December. This has never happened before. At least, if it has, I have blanked it out. I have a few stocking fillers. I have a list of possible gifts to buy. I have a box of Christmas cards and some silver bells to attach to the presents I haven’t bought yet. But that’s it. What’s wrong with me? READ MORE
These are not easy to make.
They involve a lot of stages.
They require you to boil sugar.
They ask you to hunt out a sugar thermometer.
They get through almost a kilogram of chocolate.
You also need a stand mixer.
So really, all in all, I’m trying to manage your expectations. It’s not that I don’t want you to make them. I do. These are good. Oh my, they are GOOD. You could make yourself sick eating the whole lot and still want to go back for more. However, they’re a bit of a pain in the backside.
But like my good friend Kitty says about women – all the best ones are a bit of a pain in the backside. In my opinion, the same applies to chocolate-peanut snacks.
P.S. Please, please, please don’t sub the dry roasted peanuts for salted peanuts, or, heaven forbid, unsalted peanuts. They need to be dry roasted. I know it seems wrong, but just trust me on this one.
I made a lovely video with the Scoff folks to show how to make these homemade Snickers. You can see the vid on my YouTube channel and also the Scoff one. You can watch it below too.
Lots of great recipes like this in my book, Recipes from a Normal Mum, out now… on Amazon, The Works, at Waterstones, WHSmith, The Book Depository and many smaller outlets.
One year ago: Florentine quiche and Flourless chocolate cake and Cadbury Creme Mini Egg chocolate flapjackand School fair rocky road
Two year ago: White chocolate & cranberry hot cross buns and Cadbury creme egg mess and Banoffee pecan mini pavs
Three years ago: Easter Apostles scone loaf and Carrot cake in a cup for Mother’s Day and Cranberry oaty biscuits
Four years ago: Mini chocolate birds nests and Puff pastry and Walnut bread
Homemade Snickers
Ingredients:
For the chocolate layers:
For the nougat:
For the caramel
Oil a tray size 30 x 40cm (ish) with a little olive oil and cut a piece of non-stick baking parchment to fit the bottom. Melt half the milk chocolate with 1 tbsp olive oil in the microwave until molten. Tip into the tray and level out by tapping the tin on the work surface. Leave to set in the fridge.
Once the chocolate has set, make the nougat by placing the granulated sugar, honey, liquid glucose and 230mls cold water into a saucepan over a low heat until the sugar dissolves. Turn up the heat and boil until it reaches 150°C (use a sugar thermometer).
Whisk the egg whites in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment until you achieve soft peaks, then when the sugar thermometer is at 160°C slowly pour the boiling sugar into the egg white mixture with the whisk rotating at a medium speed. Try and aim the sugar at the egg whites rather than at the edge of the bowl.
Let the mixer whisk for about 3 – 4 minutes at a high speed until the mixture is very thick, starts to pull away from the side of the bowl and the stand mixer feels like it might be struggling. Stop the mixer then add the peanut butter and stir with a spatula or spoon then tip onto the chocolate layer. Straight away, tip the dry roasted peanuts over the top evenly and then press down with a piece of oiled non-stick baking parchment. Leave to set.
Make the caramel by heating the cream in a pan until boiling point. At the same time heat the golden syrup and the granulated sugar in a large pan until 155°C (use a jam thermometer), then remove from the heat and stir in the just boiled cream with a wooden spoon. Be careful as it can spit. Leave off the heat for 5 minutes. Then put back on the hob and heat until 127°C. Once this temperature is achieved remove from the heat and stir in the butter – be careful as it bubbles up a fair amount. Leave to cool in the pan for 20 minutes.
When cool but still spreadable, pour over the peanut layer of the snickers bar and allow to set in the fridge. Use a knife to eek it over the peanut layer if you need to. When the caramel has set (give it at least an hour) melt the other half of the chocolate with 1 tbsp oil (as before) and pour over the caramel layer. Leave to set.
Once completely set use a knife to cut into squares/bars. You can dip the knife into hot water before cutting to achieve cleaner cuts.
I’ve been to LA. I’ve been to New York. I’ve been to Miami, albeit briefly. I have been to San Francisco many, many times. If I were to visit an American pal for Thanksgiving this is what I would take. Though I doubt it’d stay frozen what with the long transatlantic flight.
More recipes like this in my book, Recipes from a Normal Mum, out now… on Amazon, at Waterstones, WHSmith, The Book Depository and many smaller outlets.
I made a lovely video with the Scoff folks to show off how to make this pie. You can see the vid on my YouTube channel and also the Scoff one. You can watch it below too.
One year ago: Chocolate hazelnut truffles and a Delicious microwave Christmas pud
Two years ago: Mini Yorkshire pudding canapes and Christmas pudding fizz and Brandy butter icing and Lemon drizzle secrets
Three years ago: Lime meringue pie with chocolate pastry and Christmas scones and Ginger cake with gingerbread Christmas cottage and Bonfire night treacle toffee and My festive take on cheesecake
Four years ago: Moonuts (forget cronuts… these are fab and much easier), Cheese biscuits and Parsnip soup and a Steamed cherry and pecan pudding
Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Blitz the Oeros in a food processor until they resemble fine breadcrumbs. Add the butter and blitz again. Press into a 28cm wide pie dish or tin and bake for 5 minutes.
Whisk the double cream to stiff peaks then in a separate bowl mix the cream cheese, peanut butter, sugar and vanilla seeds until really smooth and well combined. Fold in the shipped cream using a large metal spoon and a cutting motion. Pour into the pie crust and freeze for 1 hour. Just before serving dribble with melted chocolate and a couple of Oreo biscuits crumbled over the top.
P.S. To sign up for my free monthly newsletter just click here. It has a baking SOS, recommendations on bits of kit I can’t live without, my kitchen catastrophe of the month, a sneak preview of a recipe coming up on this blog and a letter from me telling you what I’ve been up to. Remember to check your inbox for a confirmation email and also to add my email recipesfromanormalmum@gmail.com to your contacts. Otherwise I could go to spam.
We’re back from France. Mildly café au lait coloured in skin tone, a respectable amount of tanning for any factor 50 obsessive mother with an eye on Vitamin D intake. I don’t want to give the wrong impression, I don’t want to sound spoilt or in any way ungrateful, because really, I’m not. Here comes the but…
I can’t help but think everyone would have been happier at home. More toys, less being dragged around castles, less long distance drives with Thomas’ Misty Island Rescue songs resounding from the portable DVD player, less of me asking ‘so boys what’s the best part of the holiday?’ Less moaning about the heat from the kids, less ridiculous exclamations of ‘some children never go on holiday and all you can do is moan about missing your friends’ from me. Gosh, we sound a miserable lot.
So to be a bit more Pollyanna about it, perhaps I should count the blessings of the static caravan holiday to France. There was wine, loads of it – and red too. Tick. There was cheese, loads of it – and stinky too. Tick. There was sun, loads of it – and hot too. Tick. And there were lots of dresses with no waistband, so that I barely noticed my girth increasing as I swigged and nibbled away. Perfect. Plenty of things to be glad for.
These oaty peanut butter cookies are nigh on the perfect guilt free treat. No, they are not in any way ‘diet’ – I don’t really make low fat biscuits, I just eat less when I feel the need. But they are full of oats and peanut butter; two ingredients to be glad for I’d say. Low GI oats and high potassium peanut butter. Just ignore the butter, sugar and more sugar.
One year ago: Lemon and coriander turkey burgers and Lemony, minty, halloumi, bean and asparagus salad
Two years ago: GBBO white loaf and Lemon cupcakes with Italian meringue buttercream
Three years ago: Carrot fritters and Fruit yoghurt lollies and Classic Victoria sponge
Oaty peanut butter cookies
Makes 20
Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Line 3 trays with non stick baking paper. Cream the butter and sugars together until light and creamy – about 4 minutes in a stand mixer with a flat beater or a little longer by hand. Add the egg and mix well with the flat beater or wooden spoon. Add all the other ingredients and mix until combined – don’t go crazy and mix for ages. You just want the ingredients to come together. Scoop walnut sized blobs onto the lined trays spacing at least 5cm between blobs as these cookies spread quite a lot. Bake for 8 – 12 minutes until browned and puffed up. When removed from the oven they will puff back down. If you like a brittle cookie bake until very well tanned. If you like a chewy centered cookie then bake until just blushed with tan. Cool on the trays before moving.
Holly Bell 