Sunday 29 April 2012

Salted White Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cookies


As I probably mentioned before, my good friend Rhian and I love making cookies whenever we get together for a girly night in. Usually, we pick up a packet mix and make it a  quick bung-in-the-oven job so we can eat them fast! But this time neither of us was equipped... so I took to scaling my favourite blogs for a good cookie recipe.

I came across these beauties, which sounded gorgeous and didn't require a trip to the shops (although the original recipe incorporated pretzels too, which I didn't have in the cupboard).

Although they caught a little at the edges, they were a great consistency - soft and chewy - and the sea salt added a potent aftertaste unlike anything I had ever experienced in a cookie! Can't recommend these enough.

Charlotte

Me adding the melted white chocolate and peanut butter...

... and Rhian having a good mix!

Rhian's retro-style photography

Tuesday 24 April 2012

Summer's Vertical Stripes

Top, £13 (sale price), Jane Norman; shorts, £14.99, H&M

If you've been following fashionwaffle for a while, you'll know how much I love vertical stripes. There's just something about them - they have that sort of retro feel, and at the same time, they're smart and stylish. 

For a while I've been wanting to track down the perfect monotone vertical stripe top. Yes, there are many options on the high street at the moment, but I have found that every top I come across is sheer, and I just don't want the hassle of having to wear another one underneath it to cover up - especially in the warmer months! So when I spotted this jersey version (above) in Jane Norman's closing-down sale, I was on cloud nine. Paired with my new high-waisted H&M shorts, it's adorable!

Below are some of the quirkier tops I discovered on my internet browsing through Topshop and River Island. Will you be wearing vertical stripes this summer? And do sheer tops frustrate you as much as they do me?!

Charlotte



£18, River Island

£32, Topshop

£25, River Island

£55, Topshop

Friday 20 April 2012

Espresso Cake with White Chocolate Curls


Lately, I've been making a lot of lemon stuff. Everyone seems to have a passion for lemon and so I've had loads of requests for lemon birthday cakes. So, when I asked my mum what kind of cake she would like as a belated birthday cake, and she gave me the options 'lemon... or coffee', I went for coffee.

The last coffee cake I made used a Nigella Lawson recipe, so this time I chose a stronger, espresso cake recipe from the Hummingbird Bakery book 'Cake Days'. The recipe was actually for a batch of cupcakes, but I made the equivalent in birthday cake form. It suggested decorating with chocolate-covered coffee beans, but I already had white chocolate curls in the cupboard, which I thought would sweetly offset the overwhelming espresso taste.

I finished with a dusting of cocoa powder - always extremely decadent-looking, I find, when sprinkled over contrasting white chocolate curls.

Charlotte




What to do with extra frosting... spread it on an Oreo, of course!

Sunday 15 April 2012

Jade's Birthday Gift


Last week was the first time I had seen Jade in a few months, so I could finally give her her very belated birthday present - and share it with you here!

Jade loves vintage-inspired, shabby chic pieces for her room (which you can check out here: http://fashionwaffle.blogspot.co.uk/2011/07/little-birdies.html).  So I chose a cute teacup-shaped frame and a decorative hanging bird, of which she already has a few, both from Next.

More recently, I found the hanging stuffed heart decoration from a vintage market in Winchester. I thought it would compliment the red, white and blue in Jade's room perfectly, and being slightly larger than the birds, could make a statement on its own.

I wrapped the three together with a white ribbon, and attached a red bow to offset all the white, before wrapping in cute cat-printed paper from one of my favourite stores, Paperchase.

Charlotte

Tuesday 10 April 2012

Snickers Muffins


What do you make for the man who loves peanut butter?

Simple: Snickers Muffins.

The recipe for these, which I made for my friend Tom's birthday, was taken from Nigella Lawson's 'How to be a Domestic Goddess', and as usual, she made it pretty easy and fun. Nonetheless, after tasting, I thought these needed more Snickers, more chocolate... just more indulgence! Would have been amazing if I had added a blob of peanut butter to the centre, I reckon.

Still, they got a great response, which was reassuring!

Charlotte

Mixing in the peanut butter

Chopped-up Snickers bars

Thursday 5 April 2012

Rainbow Cake


And here it is! After my friend Gemma spotted this amazing cake on blog French for Cupcake, it was decided that this was something we would have to try. After Gemma purchased the colour gels needed, she, myself and my friends Tori and Emma set to work on making this multicoloured wonder. You can find the recipe here: http://www.frenchforcupcake.com/2012/02/someday-well-find-it-rainbow-connection.html

The cakes themselves were extremely easy to make, although some of the colours didn't quite work out as planned (check out the dodgy purple on the bottom layer...)! Thankfully the frosting was  straightforward too, and delicious - cream cheese of course. To decorate, we used giant white chocolate buttons and Hershey's Cookies & Creme Kisses.

One things for sure... this cake will feed plenty!

Charlotte