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Coconut Lemon Cupcakes

How do you make a lemon cake even more delicious!? With the addition of coconut!!!! Arrg, these are mind blowing – I thoroughly suggest you give them a whirl!!

I made these on a rainy Sunday with some Belle and Sebastian pumping and my little helper Dash assisting (by assisting I mean yelling and whining, but he was adorable nonetheless!!). They’re really moist with the addition of coconut milk. I will be making these again!!

Here is the recipe – I adapted it from this one at Serious Eats. I added lemon rind for an additional flavour, but you can leave the lemon out if you would prefer plain coconut.

Ingredients

250grams unsalted butter, very soft
1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons coconut milk
1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut flakes
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
Rind of one lemon

For Frosting

1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons coconut milk
Additional coconut flakes for decorating

Method

Preheat over to 180 degrees Line 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Whisk butter, sugar, and salt in large bowl until creamy and light. Use an electric mixer to whisk in eggs, one at time, until combined. Whisk in 2/3 cup coconut milk, lemon rind and 1/2 cup coconut.
Add flour and baking powder to the bowl and then whisk until just combined. Spoon batter into cups and bake until just set, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool in pan 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely before icing.
To make icing, stir confectioners’ sugar and remaining 2 tablespoons coconut milk in bowl until smooth. Adjust with more sugar or milk to achieve a thick glaze consistency. Add a drop of vanilla or coconut flavoring if desired.
Spoon icing over cupcakes and sprinkle with coconut flakes.

Lindt Chocolate Brownies

Happy Easter!!! What better way to spend a rainy Easter Saturday than baking brownies and listening to Al Green, with my little Sous Chef Dash!!

In the spirit of Easter, I thought today’s baking post should most definitely be chocolate themed!!

Poor little fella really wanted to sample the goods, but unfortunately wasn’t so lucky!! No chocolate for this bubba!!

I used this recipe by Jamie Oliver – to make it super chocolately I used Lindt 70% Dark Chocolate, and dutch coca (it’s Easter time after all!!). They were easy to make, and tasted delicious (although extremely rich!!)

Ingredients

250 grams unsalted butter
200 grams Lindt 70% cocoa dark chocolate
80 grams cocoa powder
65 grams plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
360 grams caster sugar
4 eggs
** you can also add additional ingredients such as raspberries, walnuts or whatever you fancy!!!

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease and line a square brownie tin with baking paper
Melt chocolate and butter in a large bowl over a pot of simmering water on the stove (make sure your bowl does not touch the water)
Sift flour, cocoa, sugar and baking powder into a seperate bowl
Add melted chocolate mixture to dry ingredients
Beat eggs and add to mix, stirring until consistency appears silky
Bake for 30 minutes

Top – Country Road

Enjoy your Easter long weekend!! How will you spend it? Eating chocolate? Sleeping in? Chocolate induced naps? All of the above sounds pretty good to me!!!

Beauty Review: Mac Fast Response Eye Cream

Now that I’m a sleep deprived mother, the dark circles under my eyes seem to be getting darker by the day!! I decided I needed a new eye cream to try and create the illusion of a good night’s sleep (which I may not get again for many years!!).

I’ve tried a few different eye creams over the years but wanted something that specifically addressed circles and puffiness and had heard good things about Mac Fast Response Eye Cream. It’s $55 AUD which is pretty reasonable compared to other eye creams.

The texture feels nice, and it makes a great primer for concealer (which I also need a lot of!!). After putting it on in the morning, I definitely notice decreased puffiness and less of my signature under eye circles.

It contains caffeine, which as well as helping us feel awake, also is a power ingredient in eye creams for dark circles.

I will definitely keep using it!! What are your go-to “make me look like I’ve slept eight hours” products? Do you have a favourite eye cream?

Travelling with a baby

Travelling with a bubba sounds like a terrifying concept. “Will I be blacklisted from Qantas Airlines after my baby has the meltdown to end all meltdowns,” I wonder, as I book a flight with trepidation. Luckily since Dash was born, we’ve been able to make the most of taking him on some short holidays around Australia (and I haven’t been escorted off any planes for creating a ruckus). Travelling with a small baby is not easy by any means, but I’m gradually improving at being organised and making sure I’m prepared! Dash has now been on 10 flights (and slept through most of them!!). Here are a few tips I’ve picked up along the way.

Lemon and Ricotta Pancakes

I rarely digress from my standard peanut butter and toast in the morning, but this morning I decided for something special I’d make pancakes!! As a child I would make pancakes every weekend for my mum and brother, but haven’t made them in years….to make them a bit more exciting than the standard kind, I opted for a ricotta and lemon flavour…and they were awesome!!!

I served them with extra ricotta cheese and maple syrup. The recipe makes a large quantity of batter so you can easily save some for another day.

Here is the recipe – adapted from this recipe from taste.com.au

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups milk (I used almond milk in mine)
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups self-raising flour
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/3 cup caster sugar
25g butter, melted – for frying
2/3 cup smooth ricotta cheese
finely grated zest of 1 lemon rind

Method

Whisk milk, egg and vanilla together in a jug. Sift flour and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Stir in sugar. Make a well in centre. Add milk mixture. Whisk until just combined. Stir in ricotta and lemon rind.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Brush pan with butter. Pour a generous spoon into the pan and cook until bubbles appear on surface before flipping. Brush pan with butter between batches pancakes.

Do you have a Saturday morning breakfast ritual in your house? What is your go-to Saturday breakfast?

How you respond to your baby can predict academic success years later

A new study by Raby et al (2014) has found that sensitive parenting, including responding to a child’s signals quickly and appropriately during the first three years of their life can lead to increased academic performance and better outcomes, even into the child’s 20’s and 30’s.

Researcher’s observed parents and babies during the first three years of the babies’ lives. Following this, standardised academic tests were administered. Results showed that the children who received sensitive parenting, showed increased academic performance.

This highlights the importance of interactions between parents and babies in the early years of their childhood!!

What’s your parenting style?

Sleep Better

Having trouble waking up feeling refreshed? A good night’s sleep makes life a whole lot better!! Since the arrival of our new bubba, unfortunately my sleep routine is not as good as it used to be and I find myself reaching for a second (and often third coffee) most days.

“If only I could get another hour sleep…..if only my hair looked this good every morning”

Whilst for the short term my sleep may remain disrupted, here are some tips to help improve your sleep routine – having a good sleep routine and sticking to good habits before bed can help you to get to sleep and stay asleep easier.

Make your bedroom dark. Consider using curtains with a thick backing, or installing blinds or shutters. Light coming in from street lights, other houses and apartments can play havoc with your sleeping patterns. Artificial light can mess with our Melatonin levels (the chemical that helps us sleep!) and confuse our biological clocks.
Keep the temperature cool. If you are too warm (or too cold) you may have trouble sleeping. A slight drop in body temperature facilitates sleep. Avoid excessive layers or using heating if it isn’t necessary.
Eliminate electronic devices such as televisions and computers. Avoid falling asleep with the television or radio on. Get rid of devices with bright lights and alarm clocks with LED lighting.
In the hour before you go to bed, avoid overly stimulating activities – try and minimise television and computer use as this will stimulate your brain making you feel more awake. Try quiet activities such as reading instead. Try dimming the lighting in your house/apartment in the hour before bedtime, to reduce artificial light and to signify to your body that sleep time in near.
Avoid stressful activities before bed!! Just before bedtime is not the time to reply to emails, finish assignments or homework or engage in a discussion about finances! Avoid discussing potentially stressful topics before bed as this is likely to leave you tossing and turning. Keep stressful discussions for the morning when you’re at your full alert level and have the resources to engage in problem solving.
Establish a “before sleep” routine. By performing a routine before bed each night, your mind will begin to associate this routine with sleep. For example, this might be having a cup of herbal tea, putting on your pyjamas, reading for 20 minutes, washing your face, brushing your teeth, dimming the lights etc. Establish a “bed time” and waking time. If you go to sleep at 10:30pm every night and wake up at 6:30am every morning, your body will become used to this sleep pattern.
Reduce caffeine from the afternoon. Avoid coffee, black tea and cola after about 3pm as these stimulants may affect your ability to get to sleep at night.
Reflect on your alcohol use. Excessive drinking can disrupt your sleep patterns. Whilst alcohol can make you feel tired, it produces both stimulant and depressive effects. If you’re drinking on a nightly basis, considering having alcohol free nights during the week.
Ensure you have exposure to natural light during the daytime. Exposure to natural light during the day ceases the production of melatonin, a chemical produced by the body which facilitates sleep. During the darkness, the body then produces melatonin which causes drowsiness and sleep.
Keep the bedroom for sleep and sex only. Avoid other activities such as working in bed, doing homework in bed, watching tv, studying etc for other rooms. Otherwise you may begin to associate bed with work/stress etc!!
Keep your bedroom clean and free of clutter and distractions. Take the time to create a peaceful and serene environment that facilitates rest. Try decordating with soft textiles, warm blankets, lots of cushions and scented candles!!

Do you have a pre-sleep ritual? Would you try some of these tips? Sweet dreams!!

Kimono and eye mask - Peter Alexander

Cushions - Country Road

Dairy Free Flourless Orange Cake

What better to do on a rainy day than to bake a delicious (dairy free) treat!!! I’m still on the dairy free bandwagon and am running out of ideas (that aren’t lemon themed!!!). It’s also gluten free, which is even better.

This was super easy to make – and the fun thing? You boil the oranges, then puree them whole, skin and all!!! Best thing – you can make this cake with just one bowl and there are only five ingredients.

Here is the recipe – taken from SBS Food Network.

Ingredients

2 oranges, washed
250 grams caster sugar
6 eggs
250 grams almond meal
1 teaspoon baking powder
icing sugar, to serve

Method

Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Wash the oranges and cook in the boiling water for 2 hours. Drain, allow to cool to room temperature. This step can be done ahead of time.
Preheat the oven to 160°C. Grease and line a 22 cm cake tin with baking paper (or grease with dairy free spread such as Nuttelex and coat with flour).
Beat the eggs and caster until well combined. Add in your oranges (cooked and whole!!). Use a barmix to pulverise the oranges into the mix (you will find they break down really easily once cooked).
Stir in the almond meal and baking powder. Pour the batter into the prepared tin. Bake for 1-1¼ hours, until the top is golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Allow to cool in the tin. Dust with icing sugar

New study claims parents may contribute to narcissism in children

Everyone seems to be talking about a new study by Brummelman et al (2015), conducted in the Netherlands, which showed that children who are told that they are special and superior to other children are more likely to become narcissists. In turn, parents of narcissistic children may over-value the abilities of their children and make claims about the children’s abilities that may not be true.

The study calls for parental training, to encourage parents to develop healthy self esteem in children through parental warmth and encouragement, rather than inflating the children’s egos!! For example, children who are frequently told they are loved are more likely to have high self esteem, but not narcissism.

The researchers state:

“People with high self-esteem think they’re as good as others, whereas narcissists think they’re better than others”

Narcissism has it’s roots in genetics and temperamental traits, but this study shows that narcism may also be shaped by early socialisation experiences.

With this in mind, how do you foster healthy self esteem in your kids? Here are a few of my suggestions!!!

Provide praise for specific accomplishments and achievements, such as working hard on a project or practising a skill
Reinforce task mastery rather than task outcome – for example, if your child practises tennis every week but loses his game on the weekend, reinforce the process of mastering the skill of the game through each practice session, more so than the outcome of the game
Reward your child for prosocial behaviour such as sharing or helping others
Model fairness through your own behaviour

What would you try?

How to use your signature strengths

Are you looking for ways to boost your sense of well-being?

Research shows that people who are aware of their strengths and who regularly use and apply those strengths, have greater levels of well-being (Govindi & Linley, 2007).

Do you know what your signature strengths are?

Try the Values in Action questionnaire online for free, to find out what your top 5 strengths are!! Once you identify your strengths, ask yourself the following questions:

How can I use one or more of my strengths on a daily basis?

How can I apply my strengths to one of my work tasks today?

Photo by RnR photographers

References

Govindi, R. & Linley, A (2007) Strengths use, self concordance and well-being: Implications for Coaching and Coaching Psychologists. International Coaching Psychology Review, 2(2), 143-154