Gem and Jo Bake Again

So if you saw our last post you'll know that we had a BBQ to celebrate the end of summer. For dessert we decided to keep things simple and we baked brownies and chocolate chip cookies. When we say keep things simple, we really kept things simple and we decided to use easy to bake items. These really cut down on the time need to make them and they turned out really delicious. Also Gem cannot cook without burning the whole house down so easy bake is the way to go!

We decided to begin with making the Home Cook Chocolate Fudge Brownies as these required a bit more time in the oven than the cookies. These were super easy to make. We just added all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and blended them together. What was great about the Home Cook brand was that it came with it's own baking tray that could be thrown away when the brownies were baked. This meant that we didn't have to do much washing up, and if there's one thing that we despise with the intensity of a thousand suns, it's washing up.

After taking the brownies out of the oven and perhaps eating one or two while they were still hot, we started to make the cookies! We picked up Odlum's Quick Chocolate Chip Cookie mix.These too were super simple to make (well in reality all you really do is mix!). Like the brownies, you only need a few ingredients such as some water, butter or margarine and mix it all together! Simples! 

The next part is the best! You get a hand full of dough and roll it into a ball in your hand, then stick it down on a lightly greased tray and press a little with your finger tips! 

Then stick the tray in the oven and bake them puppies until golden brown!

Both of these easy bake products were simple and easy to bake and tasted amazing when they were done! We will definitely be getting the Odlums Cookies again, they were absolutely delicious and had just the right amount of vanilla! 

Check out Odlums Here

Check out Home Cook Here

Both of these websites have tons of recipes and baking tips that will have you baking like a master in no time! 

Thanks for reading guys, let us know if you've tried either of these recipes or if you have a favourite recipe by Odlums or Home Cook! 

Until Next Time, 

Gem and Jo Make Cookies

                         

Now it's a well known fact among our friends and family that Gem should never, ever be allowed near an oven or cooker or any sort of electrical equipment but lately we discovered Betty Crocker's Easy Bake range and hallelujah!

All you have to do for these baked goods is add an egg, water and oil. Then you stick it in an oven (with guidance if you're Gem) for about 20 minutes, give or take, and voila! You have cookies! 

Here's how we got on with Betty Crocker's Easy Bake Choc Chip Cookies: 

                                 

So this is what the box says you need: 

1. A medium egg( preferably free range!) 

2. 2 tablespoons of water

3. 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil (we had none so sunflower had to do, oops!) 

4. Of course, the cookie mix you get in the box. 

                             

After you mix everything together into a stiff dough, slap a blob onto a non greased baking tray or some parchment paper and stick 'em in the oven at 190 for 10-15 minutes depending on your desire of crispy-ness! 

                       

Enjoy the wonderful, wafting smell of cookies throughout your home and after 10 minutes and some icing sugar you'll have these bad boys:

                          

Now if you're a more experienced baker you can attempt to mold these into pretty little shapes before you bake them but we went with the ole original round shape! (Mostly because we tried to mold them and it was a little bit of a disaster, maybe next time!) 

If you are like Gem and would like to bake cookies without killing family and friends and burning your house down, why not try Betty Crocker's Easy Bake Range! It is seriously as easy as it sounds! 

The hardest part is mixing it into a dough, that takes some serious arm muscles! 

Thanks for reading and happy baking! 

Until next time, 

Gem and Jo Take on Lemon Cupcakes!

So the other day we decided to bake some lemon cupcakes! Jo's brother was coming to visit and they are his absolute favourite so Jo thought that it would be a nice treat for him as she doesn't get to see him that often. Aww!
So here's how you make these lemony pieces of heaven!

Here's what you'll need:

For the Cupcakes:

• 8 oz of butter
• 8 oz of caster sugar
• 4 eggs
• 11 oz of self raising flour
• the zest of one lemon 
• 4 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons of milk

For the lemon icing:

• 6 oz of butter
• 12 oz of icing sugar
• 3 table spoons of lemon juice 
• 2 table spoons of hot water
• a few drops of yellow food colouring (if wanted)

So here's what we did:

1. Beat the butter and caster sugar together with a mixer, until it is a creamy consistency. 

2. Add the lemon zest to the mixture

3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. 

4. Add the sifted flour to the mixture and mix well 

5. Add the lemon juice and milk and again mix well (that's super important, if you hadn't guess from how many times we've mentioned it!)

6. Put the mixture into a cupcake tray lined with cupcake cases (gotta love some alliteration) and bake at 170 degrees Celsius for about 15 minutes.

Now onto the icing! 

7. While those bad boys are cooling combine the sifted icing sugar and butter into a bowl and mix well (yep there we go again!)

8. Add the lemon and water to the mixture bit by bit so as not to make the mixture too wet (for want of a better word).

9. Next add as much food colouring as you desire and the put the icing into a piping bag.

10. When the cupcakes are fully cooled (and we mean fully, or else the icing is just going to melt right off and you'll end up with a lemony mess rather than a perfectly formed cupcake), pipe the icing onto the cupcakes et voilá! you have yourself a lemon cupcake with lemon butter cream icing 

 This recipe makes about  24 cupcakes (boys eat a lot!!).

Thanks for reading and happy baking!
Until Next Time!

Gem and Jo Take on Brownies

To go along with the cheesecake that we made on Friday, we decided to make brownies too! Now this recipe belongs to Jo, it is her creation and so we ask that you do not claim it as your own, that would be mean.

Here's what you'll need:

3 oz. of dark chocolate, the brand of your choice.
4 oz. of butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
6 oz. of caster sugar
2 large eggs
4 oz. of plain flour
half a teaspoon of baking powder
pinch of salt.

These are some of the brands we used!

 So to create these little squares of deliciousness, this is what you'll have to do:

1: melt the butter and chocolate together, now you can do this either in the microwave or on the hob. We used the hob because chocolate can burn really easily in the microwave!
Plus you can eat it while it melts on the cooker!!

2: Add the sugar into the chocolate-butter stuff with a wooden spoon.

3: beat 2 eggs together and add to the mixture!

4: sift in the flour, salt and baking powder.

5: mix it all in really well and mix in the spoon of vanilla essence too!

6: pour the mixture into a baking tin, which is lined with baking parchment. (The parchment stops it sticking to the tin!)

7: Bake it in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees Celsius, (or for those using the imperial system:  356 degrees Fahrenheit!) for 20 minutes!

We recommend checking them after 15 minutes so you don't burn those beauts!!

8: After they've cooled, sprinkle some icing sugar on top and chop into squares!

Voila, you've created awesomeness!

Here's what ours looked like:

om nom nom!!

Don't forget to follow us by email and on twitter, @gemandjo. Thanks for reading! Until next time!!

Gem and Jo Take on White Chocolate Cheesecake

For our friend's birthday we had bought a her gift online, however it hasn't arrived yet and the party is today, (!!) so after a slight panic attack and a mental breakdown or two, we decided to make her a cheesecake to bring instead!  Now, for all you copyright obsessors the cheesecake recipe does not belong to us! We found it online a long time ago and adapted it to be made with chocolate! No stealing of recipes here!

Heres what you'll need:

               

• 500ml of fresh cream
• 600g of Philadelphia or other cream cheese brands
• 250g of butter
• 400g of digestive biscuits
• 1 pack of cookies (without nuts)
• 3 (150g each) bars of white cooking chocolate  
• 1 sachet of gelatin 

You will also need an array of bowls, spoons and a cake tin for the cake to set in.


1. First you need to mash up the biscuits and cookies into a fine dust for the base.

 2. Melt the butter in the microwave until it is all liquid and pour into the biscuits, mix until all biscuits are covered in butter, the mixture should be sticking together. Put this into the cake tin and press hard with the back of a spoon until solid. We used a potato masher and it was soooo much easier!

3. You should start melting all the chocolate now as it needs to cool slightly before its added.

4. dissolve the gelatin as per instruction on the box (follow them VERY carefully because we did not and now everything is sticky, everything...)

5. When the gelatin and chocolate are cooled a little, add them and all the tubs of cream cheese to a mixer and mix that shtuff up! Mix it gooood! 

6. While thats mixing, you should whisk the fresh cream until it is stiff (and try not to eat it all!) 

7. You should now fold the cream and chocolate cheese mixture together and add it on top of the biscuit base! 

8. Put it in the fridge for a good 4 hours and voila, chocolate cheesecake without the use of a hot oven!

Thanks for reading and happy baking! 

Until next time!!