Little Box Brownie

A Baking Blog from Melbourne, Australia

Chocolate

Chocolate pin wheel bread

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There is nothing more inviting than freshly cooked bread, that sweet aroma wafting through the house on a cold winters day. I remember many moons ago my parents were selling one of the many family homes I lived in as child, we moved around a lot. Dad decided to bake some bread, as after all thats what they tell you to do when selling a home. I guess its suppose to make it homely and invite you in and say sure sit down, this is where you can see yourself living. Well my dad isn’t much of a baker and he burnt the bread, so the house didn’t have that warm inviting smell instead it stank like a burnt oven. Luckily we had time to open the windows and let the burn vapours dissolve away. Someone did buy the house and we moved to our next home. When one door closes another opens they say.

3 1/2 cups plain flour 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/4 cup white sugar 
1/4 cup chocolate chips
2 teaspoons dry yeast 
1 egg 
1 cup milk 
50g melted butter
 
Filling
1 cup Nutella
 
Place the flour, salt, sugar, chocolate chips and yeast into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the egg, milk, and melted butter, and stir until the mixture forms a dough.
Remove from the bowl and kneed on a floured surface for 10 minutes or until smooth, sprinkle with flour as needed. Place in an oiled bowl and cover with cling wrap, let it rest in a warm place until it doubles in size.
 
Pre heat oven to 180°C
 
Roll the dough out on a floured bench into a rectangle with a thickness of about 1cm. Spoon the Nutella onto the dough, and spread it over. Roll the dough up from its longest end, and then cut into slices of about 2.5 cm in thickness.
Place the scrolls onto a greased oven tray so that they are grouped together and touching. Cover with a damp tea towel and let rise for 30 minutes.
Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes.
 
Makes 9

Celebration Chocolate Cake

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This past year has flown by, one year ago today Little Box Brownie was born. I started the blog with no idea how it would go, how long it would continue or where it would head. In fact the first 6 months I kept Little Box Brownie to myself as I was unsure about the whole idea. It wasn’t until the start of this year I actually started to tell people the blog existed and put it out there into the big wide world for others to see. I am so overjoyed to see how people have responded to Little Box Brownie and how they have embraced it. I wanted to say a huge thank you to each and everyone of you for all your support and words of encouragement over the past year. If anyone anywhere is thinking of starting a blog all I can say is go for it!! It has been so rewarding. I know the whole idea is daunting and you think wow how could I ever put myself, my words and my work out there. But really its amazing how people respond and where your photos pop up in the world wide web. One step at a time, is all it takes, all you have to do is start.
So I leave you with this decadent little chocolate cake to celebrate our 1st Birthday. 


Chocolate Cake

2 cups plain flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups white sugar

 

1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoons vanilla essence
1 cup hot instant coffee
 
Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder together add the sugar and stir through. In a separate bowl combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, essence and coffee. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Pour into two lined 20cm cake tins, and bake for 40minutes or until cooked.
 
250g chocolate
200g butter at room temperature
2 cups icing sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
 
Heat the chocolate in the microwave until melted, then leave to cool slightly.
Place the butter in a bowl and beat with an electric beater, sift in the icing sugar and cocoa powder and beat until smooth and fluffy. Pour in the chocolate and beat until smooth. 
 

 

Chocolate Mocha Cookies

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Afternoon pick me up? I always need one, don’t you? It baffles me how some people have so much energy all the time, they’re like little energiser bunnies, always go, go, go. I used to think maybe its the food they eat but you know what I think its just the way they’re programmed.
If you’re like me and need a pick me up or suffer from three-thirtyitis and need something to get you through the rest of the day, well at least until dinner, I’ve got the thing for you. I have combined all the wake me up foods into one cookie, coffee, chocolate and sugar. Drum roll please………
Mocha Cookies. They’re soft and gooey, just the way I like my cookies. Be warned they do have a bit of a coffee hit though.
Enjoy xx
Sophia

Mocha Cookies
 
200g butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant coffee
 
Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together until light and fluffy the add the eggs in one at a time beating after each addition.
 
Sift in the flour, baking soda, cocoa and coffee together and add to the mixture. Stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours.
 
Pre heat the oven to 150C
 
Roll the dough into balls and place on a lined baking tray, bake for 10 minutes or untill cooked.

Peanut Butter Oat Cookies

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Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy do I have a treat for you today. Peanut butter oatty cookies, she says as she devours the last one. These were so good, I am dreaming about making them again. And bonus they really can’t be that bad for you, lets see.
Peanut butter – good
oats – good
egg – relatively good
chocolate- super good
brown sugar- not so good, but way better that white sugar
This is my kind of super food.
Ahh who am I kidding this is after all a baking blog, you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t have a sweet tooth and enjoyed the odd baked good once in a while.
So enjoy!!
 
Oat Cookies
 
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2/3 cup oats
3/4 cup chocolate chips
 
Pre heat the oven to 180C
 
Cream the peanut butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the egg and vanilla essence. Stir though the baking soda, oats and chocolate chips. Roll in to balls and place on a baking tray, press down lightly with the back of a fork, place in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until cooked.