messing abouts in the kitchen

finally, this girl has had an opportunity to mess little about in the kitchen....g's kitchen to be exact (thank you sweetie! *grin*) and i am glad to say that it has been quite a bit of fun. there's always that bit of uncertainty and risk when it comes to cooking (or baking in this case) and i guess that's what makes each and every attempt a totally different experience.

i kinda eased myself into things with a somewhat easy first dessert...rocky road. couldn't really go quite wrong with this one, just combining off the shelf digestives, marshmallows, chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate! plus it was fun to make with nephew on hand as sous chef! customer satisfaction on this one was a big yes, especially from those with a particularly sweet tooth. apparently it is perfect with a cuppa (pak law would drink an extra cup just to have a piece!) so i'll definite get more going soon..maybe this time with some brandied cherries!

next attempt was the mini meringue. i have never made meringues before, always afraid of under beating and or over cooking...but i decided this three ingredient dessert really couldn't be that difficult, so i busied myself one saturday evening and viola! discovered hey, this girl can make quite a mean meringue! quick disclaimer though, attempt two at the meringue was not so good. the original plan was for a hazelnut tri-layered meringue for the gang who was coming by one six b..but it didn't quite pan out *blush*

taking a step back following the botched meringue attempt, i decided to head back to the basics and put together a chocolate terrine for g's housewarming. slightly time consuming but definitely worth the effort. just imagine the fantastic flavours of creamy white, classic milk and bittersweet dark chocolate in each and every bite of this dessert...be warned though..it is ultra rich so thin slices were a must!

i've kept my most proud attempt for the last...being a huge fan of crumble, i decided to have a go at making my very own from scratch.(with the help of mr jamie oliver of course!) having been spoilt with the fantastic crumble desserts served up by auntie ta, i was kinda afraid that my try wouldn't really quite make it...but thirty minutes later, i tucked into my very first apple crumble and impressed even myself! while the apple filling could have been improved upon with cooking apples, the crumble topping was yummy...just the right texture and combination of buttery saltiness and sweetness. auntie ta will definitely be proud! more crumble will definitely be coming out of that power teka oven!