Addicted to Chocolate

Yes that's right.  I am addicted to Chocolate!  My favourite ones are Turkish Delight, Black Forest, Snack and Marble (all Cadbury) mostly because they come in family blocks!


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 Lollies, Chips and all other junk food is not an issue for me.  A pack of lollies can last me over a week but I have NEVER been able to just have one or two pieces of chocolate as many others can - it is quite literally half or a full family block at once.  It is my goto snack during the day and if I don't eat a whole block at once I can certainly eat one throughout the day - a row at a time. 



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So why am I telling you this?  Well as of one week ago today I quit eating chocolate for a while to stop the binges.  So far things haven't been too bad.  I have wanted it (as always) but have been able to control myself when hubby and Chloe have a treat.  The last time I did this I set the goal to last 1year and did, so fingers crossed this time.


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I still remember having chocolate for the first time after the 1 year break.  I found it super rich and could only have a couple of pieces but it was soooooooo good and even more I was so glad to be more than satisfied with those few pieces rather than a whole block.  Knowing I have done it before helps me get through the cravings although I must admit I am not sure how long I am going to go without for this time - at least until the baby is due then I will see how my body feels.

Do you have any food you can't do without?

Macaroon Goodness

After reading about the delicious macaroons you can find at the Lindt Chocolate Cafe stores on Toni’s blog I figured we couldn’t visit Melbourne without tracking down a store. While we were there we bumped into some friends from Tasmania that were in Melbourne to visit the temple and taking advantage of the shopping. They had also stopped by the café to taste the macaroons.





I could resist so I splurged and got just about 1 of every type, Don’t worry I didn’t eat them all myself, we cut them up and shared them amongst the three of us, so that all of us could taste some of the macaroon goodness (As well as share the calories).

The Verdict: We thought the hazelnut flavoured macaroon was the best followed by the passionfruit, but all were really good and strong in flavour. While there I also had an absolutely amazing ice chocolate mmmmmmmmmmmm soooooo good!

BEST Rocky Road Recipe EVER

On Saturday Night we had a fantastic Stake Relief Society Activity . I came back with heaps of fun ideas from all the workshops to get me ready for Christmas (if I only I had more time to do them all!!!) Check out some of inspiration from Nettie or some ideas from Toni.

We also had a HUGE dessert bar to nibble at through the night. YUMMO!!! My sister in Law was one o f the organisers and asked me to make some Rocky Road. I had a few people ask me for the recipe so I thought I would share it here - and as Toni suggested it now has a new name. No longer Rocky Road but The BEST Rocky Road EVER.

Ingredients:
3 blocks of Cadbury family block (1 Black Forest, 1 Crunchie and 1 Hazelnut or other nut variety)

1 pkt (100 g) vanilla flavoured mini marsh mallows
1 ½ cups of mixed fruits and nuts, chopped (I used dried apple, dried apricots, cashews and coconut) or for those who don’t like fruit, use lollies such as raspberries, snakes or other jubes (lollies are preferred to the fruit in our family).

Break chocolate into small pieces,

place into a large glass or metal bowl over simmering water. Stir continuously until the chocolate has melted.

Add mixed fruit, nuts and coconut

Add mallows and mix

Place into a lined slice tin and put into the fridge to set
Cut into small slices (if you cut them small you wont feel as bad for eating them – that’s my thought anyway!)

Now ENJOY!!!

Renos. and Simple Brownies

Okay now with the giveaways over I can post some new things! For those of you that know us will be aware that we have been renovating our home for a little while now. Well today we have had the wardrobe guy over installing built in wardrobes in both the main bedroom and ‘the babies room’ (although she is not really not a baby now! :) ). Yay I am so excited!!! I can’t wait to see the final product and finally get some order in the house!

On another note I also made some brownie cupcakes :). Who doesn’t like chocolate right?! This recipe is PERFECT if you want something that is pretty quick and SO TASTY.

BROWNIE CUPCAKES

1⅓ cups plain (all purpose) flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup cocoa power
2 ¼ cups caster sugar
4 eggs
250g melted butter

Optional extra:
Mini marshmallows
Chocolate chips

Method:
Sift flour, cocoa and baking powder.
Add sugar, combine.
Add eggs and butter, Mix together until smooth.
Place into cupcake pans. The easiest way to do this is using an ice-cream scoop- you will get the same size every time and it makes far less mess! (top with mini marshmallows and chocolate chips)

Place into the oven at 170°C (330°F) for about 25 mins. When cooked, brownie tops will be firm on the outside and a little mixture will stick to a skewer (you want the inside to still be moist!)
If you have topped with marshmallows they will be beautifully toasted. I use this recipe all the time and change it with different toppings such as dried apricots, nuts etc. and usually include some form of melted chocolate (to help the toppings to stick). Another favourite is to top with rocky road once cooked - I will share this recipe at a different time.
Now ENJOY your yummy brownie cupcakes!!!