Freshly baked pizza

Me and my brother really wanted to have pizza today, but after a rummage through the fridge we realised we didn't have a pizza base so I thought I would try and do one from scratch.

 
I've seen how to kneed dough on The Great British Bake Off where they made bread. So I found a recipe for pizza dough on the internet and started cooking. something I didn't realise about making dough is the amount of time it takes to rest, prove etc.  

The actual prep and kneeding didn't take long, it was pretty quick, the thing that took time was waiting an hour for it to double in size, then rolling it out and having to wait another 20 minutes before popping it into the oven. 

Once it went in the oven it only took 10 minutes to cook and it looked really good. I went for plain toppings, just tomato, basil and cheese. Once it was done, I drizzled a bit of olive oil and top and ground some pepper. It was delicious and something I would most definately do again. 

Todays pizza turned out to be a bit of a thin base, next time I want to try a thicker base and maybe even a stuffed crust.  

This time was a trial and next time I try it out I'm going to make more and experiment with some different flavours. Doing food from scratch is really satisfying and gives you that little bit of pride when you know that you made something out of nothing.


Lots of love

MLP 

Pumpkin pie

Today I made pumpkin pie.

I've had two firsts today. It's the first time I've made a pumpkin pie and it's the first time I've made a base from scratch. It was alot harder that just getting a store bought base and pouring the mix in but I like to think it was worth it.

The pumpkin pie was alright it was really different from anything I've had before. Normally I'd either have chocolate or sponge cake. This was soo different to what I'm used to. Overall it turned out quite well. The only problem is I don't know what pumpkin pie is meant to taste like so I dont know if I did it right or wrong. It tasted pretty decent thought so I guess it was a success.

Since the base only needed the yolks of egg I seperated the whites and had my second attempt at making meringues. Lets just say it's the second time I've failed at making chewy and crisp meringues, but each time I'm learning that little bit more so fingers crossed next time I attempt to make meringue that I do it perfect from start to finish and have a new thing to add to my list of baking.

Baking seems to help with things, but I've realised it only helps when I'm alone in the kitchen, when there's someone else there it stresses me out because they always mess with my plan and it throws me off and instead of helping, it makes me more stressed and agrivated. Everyday I'm learning new things about myself and the person I am. Baking only takes my mind off things when I'm alone and doing things at my own pace.


Lots of love

MLP

A little taste of gourmet

Tonight I actually managed to get home earlier than usual and was greeted with the warm aroma of freshly baked bread. Mum always manages to surprise mewith her sudden urges to bake.

With the smell of fresh bread in the air I decided I didn't want the spaghetti bolognaise that was on the table I wanted something a little bit light and fresh. In the end I made myself an open sandwich, that was just a touch gourmet. I remembered the open sandwich I had at the organic restaraunt a few weeks back and thought I'd give it a try. There was avocado in the fridge and light philly too so I whipped up an open sandwich turned turned out quite well,almost as good as the one at the cafe. Mine was a bit more hearty because I had chunky slices and extra avocado. The only thig missing was a bit of balsamic, but I managed with olive oil instead.

It was pretty tasty and when you make something that your really proud of it you just want to share it with everyone. Mum a dad shared a slice and they liked it so I think it's something I'm going to do more often and add to my list of things I can put together. Lately I keep thinking about food and all the different things I want to make and try out. Now that I finally have my appetite back I want to experiment with new flavours and new textures. Finding my feet in life doesn't seem to be happening anytime soon so maybe you guys can atleast join me on my journey through all the different tastes.


Lots of love

MLP

Treacle tart and homemade custard

Today on my way home from work I popped into the shops and get a few things for baking. I got myself a baking tin for flan/quiche/fingers crossed tart, a pumpkin which whose fate is still undecided, some unsalted butter for a pumpkin pie.

At work it's been a bit of a long day, which felt like it was going no where. No matter how much I worked it was working I was moving in slow motion and time was flying by. SInce it was a complete waste of a day I decided to do something productive with the rest of my evening. I baked...

I've had treacle tart on my mind alot lately ever since I had some at a coffee shop once. It's so sweet that it would go perfect with a nice custard maybe even with a sweet tea after a l ong day at work, so here I am with a treacle tart and homemade custard about to brew myself a cup of tea(I sound really English for saying this, but you honestly cant beat a cup of tea in the evening).

Okay I won't lie, the treacle tart is store bought and ready made, I just stuck it in the oven, but the custard is all me. I'm a real beginner when it comes to making things from scratch. Normally I would just put custard powder in a bowl add milk, sometime I even buy the cake mix and just follow the instructions. After the great success I've had with the chocolate chip brownies I'm going to try and bake more.


Lots of love

MLP

Halloween is almost here

It's my favourite time of year...its halloween!! A great excuse to have a party, dress up and decorate the house,not to mention all the great accesories you can get.


Not long to go...There's are only 2 days to go and I'm super excited. I'm thinking to do a bit of halloween baking with spooky pumpkin pie and creepy cupcakes. My halloween outfit is already sorted and I've found a few great makeup ideas to bring it a bit of spooky yet fashionable look.  

Since I have to go to work during halloween I can't go overbaord with my outfit, so I have to be subtle but I think overall its going to be good. I might take a few pictures of my look and share them with you. 

Tomorrow I'm going to buy myself a tart tin and check out the web for some pumpkin pie recipes, it's something I've never tried before so who knowshow it will turn up.


Lots of love

MLP      

New phone

Today I thought I  would try and use my brothers new phone to blog...

It's taking a while to get the used to the touch screen. Its been ages since my last blog and I think I'm going to blame my job. Lately I've been considering upgrading my phone so I can blog on the move. I can't be bothered to charge my laptop all the time so the upgrade seems inevitable. The picture looks a little bit off but I'm still getting used to the settings and buttons... 

The Samsung galaxy note seems pretty good, I just need to learn how to use it properly it might be great for me plus the autocorrect and auto predict the is accurate because I must admit I'm a pretty bad at typing. 

Lots of love

MLP

My first brownie

Tomorrow is bake off day. Every other week we do a bake off and one person bakes something and brings it in to the office. It's week 42 and my turn to go to the kitchen and bake. 


So far we've had banana loaf, walnut bread and lemon drizzle layer cake. I decided to go very  indulgent and luxurious by making double chocolate brownies.  

Chocolate brownies with white chocolate chunks. They are soo chocolaty that only a small piece is enough to give you a sugar rush. Perfect with a glass of milk, I must admit I am really pleased with how they turned out. It's the first time I've baked them and I was really nervous. I only had enough ingredients for one batch but they are turned out great.


I've had a  taste of them while they were still warm and gooey and they were pretty good. Now I've had a bite once they've cooled down and they actually seem to taste better, so I can't wait to  see what they're like once at they make it to the office tomorrow.

There look great and taste lovely but there are a few tweeks I'm planning to make for the next time, just little things to do with the measurements and the timings so that I can get them even better.

The kitchens a mess but overall totally worth it. There are a few more things I want to try and who knows maybe baking is my thing and I can have it as a proper hobby. 


Lots of love

MLP