Fast and Easy Nutella Cake

Ingredients: (A) 250g butter (softened) 200g soft brown sugar 4 eggs (lightly beaten) 300g self-raising flour (sifted) 5tbsp milk (B) 6tbsp or more Nutella chocolate hazelnut spread 60g hazelnuts (i used walnuts. chopped coarsely) Method: Put all the ingredients in (A) for cake into a mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy Pour 2/3 portion of the cake mixture into a greased and lined 22cm/9" round baking tin and spread evenly to level. Spoon the Nutella chocolate hazelnut spread in six blobs (sorry but i'm not gonna just settle with six blobs! MORE please shouting out loud in me!) Top with the remaining 1/3 portion of the cake mixture, swirl a few times with a skewer, then smooth the top. Sprinkle coarsely chopped walnuts on top of batter and bake in a preheated oven at 180deg C for about 45minutes to 1 hour or until cooked and golden brown. During baking, cover the cake with a piece of aluminium foil if it starts to brown too quickly.

Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients: (makes roughly 2 dozen) 90g Unsalted Butter 100g Caster Sugar 1 Egg 180g Self-raising Flour 2 Tablespoons Dutch Cocoa Powder Teaspoon Salt Method: 1. Cream butter and sugar till light and creamy, add egg and orange liquor then beat till combined. 2. Fold in flour mixture (sifted flour, cocoa powder and salt together) in the egg till it forms a dough. 3. Turn dough on lightly floured surface and knead gently until soft dough is formed. 4. Divide the dough into two portions, flatten each portion on between sheet of baking paper and place in fridge for 30 minutes. 5. On floured surface, roll dough out to half a cm thick, cut into shapes using festive shaped cookies cutters. 6. Re-rolled leftover dough and cut again. 7. Baked in preheat 180 degree oven for about 8 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. 8. They will be soft when come out of the oven but will set as they cool.

Ingredients For Royal Icing: 65g Icing Sugar 1/2 Egg White 1/4 Teaspoon Lemon Juice Assorted Food Colourings Assorted Christmas Theme Sprinkles, optional Method: 1. 1. Sift the icing sugar and set aside. 2. Beat the egg white till foamy then add in lemon juice and icing sugar in a few batches till smooth. (about 5 - 8 minutes, it must be a spreadable consistency) 3. Divide the icing into a few portion then mixed with your desire colours. 4. Spoon icing into disposal piping bag, snip the tip off and pipe decorative outlines and design on each biscuit.

MARBLE CAKE
Ingredients: (makes 7 - 8 mini loaves) 227g Unsalted Butter, softened 220g Caster Sugar 4 Large Eggs, 60g each 225g Self-raising Flour 3 Tablespoons(50ml) Fresh Milk 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Essence 2 Tablespoon Dutch Process Cocoa Powder Some Valrhona 70% Dark Chocolate, chopped into bite size pieces Method:1. Preheat the oven to 180 degree and line cake tin with greaseproof paper. 2. Cream soft butter and sugar in a big mixing bowl till light and creamy (about 2 - 8 minutes on medium low speed). 3. Next beat in egg one at a time, mixing well after each addition. 4. Fold through the flour, milk and vanilla essence until the mixture is smooth. 5. Divide the mixture between 2 bowls and stir in sifted cocoa powder into one of the bowl. 6. Take 1 - 2 spoons of the chocolate and vanilla cake batter alternately into the prepared tin. 7. When all the mixture has been used up, tap the bottom on the tin on your work surface to ensure that there aren't any air bubbles. 8. Take a skewer and swirl it around the mixture in the tin a few times to create a marbled effect. 9. Bake the cake for 25 minutes (using my mini loaf tin) until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 10. Turn out onto a cooling rack and leave to cool. Will keep for 3 days in an airtight container or freeze for up to 3 months.

Ingredient: (make 20 - 25) 150g Top Flour 125g Butter, cut into small cubes 1 Tablespoon Icing Sugar 20g Milk Powder 1/2 Egg Yolk 1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla Essence Method: 1. Sieved flour, milk powder and icing sugar in a mixing bowl. 2. Rub in butter until mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 3. Beat egg yolk and vanilla essence together before adding into the dough. 4. Quickly mix everything to form a soft dough, divide it into two portion in separate plastic bag and chill in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes or so. 5. Roll dough out to 0.5cm thickness on a lightly floured tabletop and cut out with assorted heart shape cutters. 6. Place cut dough on baking tray that is layered with baking paper, pop the whole tray into the fridge while waiting for the oven to preheat to 180 degree. (keep the dough in the fridge after cut out will retain it's shape) 7. Bake the cookies for about 15 - 20 minutes (depending on the size of the cookies/oven type) till slightly golden brown. 8. Remove from oven, and rest the cookies on the tray for about 2 minutes before transferring them to wire-rack to cool completely before doing the icing/decoration.