Fudge Cake

Ingredients

60g low fat margarine
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups SR flour
2 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup low-fat milk
1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Chocolate Icing

1 cup icing mixture
1 tablespoon cocoa
1-2 tablespoons boiling water

Method

1. Preheat oven and grease 20cm deep round cake pan
2. Cream marg and caster sugar with electric mixer until smooth and light
3. Beat in egg into mixture
4. Sift flour and cocoa into creamed mixture alternating with milk, starting and ending with flour
5. Combine water and bicarbonate of soda and fold gently into mixture
6. Pour into prepared pan
7. Bake 35-40 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean
8. Cool on wire rack
9. Make chocolate icing by combining all ingredients until smooth and spread over cooled cake.

I made this on the weekend for cousins and iced with the chocolate icing and cut strawberries. Everyone loved it and it was so easy to make. Although it is called a 'Fudge Cake' it is not too heavy and a nice cake to have seconds of!

Felicity

Honey ginger buttons

Ingredients

60g butter
1/2 cup golden syrup
1/4 cup honey
1 3/4 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
3 teaspoons milk

Icing
See below

Method

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat, increase heat to medium-high.
2. Stir in golden syrup and honey. Bring to the boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
3. Disolve bircarb in milk.
4. Sift flour and ginger together into butter mixture. Add milk mixture and stir until well combined.
5. Cover and set aside for 1 hour or until dough is firm.
6. Using a heaped teaspoon of mixture, roll into balls and place about 3cm apart on lined baking tray.
7. Bake for 5-10 minutes (180 deg C oven). Allow to cool on trays.
8. Make icing and spread on biscuits after biscuits are cool.

I made the icing as I normally do (not what was in the recipe). I use icing mixture, enough water (or butter) to make a paste then add colouring and/or essence. If the icing is not thick (does not stay on the spoon) add some more icing mixture. I made white icing and pink icing for these biscuits.

This recipe was from the Taste website, originally from Super Food Ideas magazine. I took these biscuits to rehearsals the other night and everybody loved them.

Shape biscuits

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
can add cocoa to chocolate biscuits

Method

1. Mix butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla thoroughly
2. Stir in flour, baking powder
3. Chill for at least 1 hour (this REALLY needs to be done). Make sure you cover with glad wrap or it will dry out. I usually put the mixture on glad wrap not in a bowl. 
4. Pre-heat oven to 180-200 deg C
5. Roll out dough on floured surface and cut shapes with cookie cutters
6. Bake for 6-10 minutes or until golden brown
7. Decorate biscuits with icing

This recipe was from a Spotlight book called 'The essential recipe guide - your favourites' and I use it all the time. If you don't leave the mixture in the fridge for 1 hour it is really hard to roll. When you take it out of the fridge it is a bit greasy.

Felicity Caterer

Mars bar slice

Here is another one for Easter. Really easy to make for gifts.

Ingredients

3 regular mars bars (not low fat) and not the mega size ones (around 65g each)
3 cups rice bubbles
85g butter

Method

1. Melt mars bars and butter
2. Add to rice bubbles
3. Press into a greased (or lined) tray
4. May be iced with chocolate icing or melted chocolate

Pamela Caterer