Midweek at the Cottage

Hello lovely figs! I am slacking a bit this week and for that I apologize. Today I'm amalgamating my usual Tuesday and Wednesday posts into one delicious, pretty post. Here we go!

This week, after finishing my plush heart and babouska rose square, I decided to have a go at a different knitting pattern called Ten Stitch Zigzag by Frankie Brown. It was a bit fiddly at first, getting used to a new technique but the pattern is rather easy and well written. Primarily worked in garter stitch, the nice thing about this pattern is that it looks equally pretty in solid or variegated yarn, and there's a neat little stockinette edge that separates each zigzag strip. Here's a shot of my progress so far. I have an idea for a future design that will incorporate this technique, and will be sure to share my progress.

As a detour from the knitting, I got out my cross stitch supplies this week and have been working on this little piece. It will be a rather lumpy character from one of my favourite animated shows. Can you guess which one? :) Totally improvised, I'm not working from a pattern. I just sketched the shape right onto the fabric with light pencil lines and filled in the shape. The purple fill is almost done, and then I will outline and add the face/other features.

OK! Now on to the tasty part. Today I'm sharing what is probably the easiest cookie recipe EVAR. Super fast to make, and does not require (oven) baking. I've been making these for years and they're a nice option when you want something sweet but don't want to spend 30+ minutes in the kitchen. Darling figs, I give you.....

3 MINUTE NO BAKE COOKIES!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 3 cups quick oats

Instructions

• In a medium/large saucepan, combine the butter, milk, sugar, and cocoa.
• Stirring frequently, bring mix to a boil over medium heat. Allow to bubble for a couple minutes.
• (Keep a close watch on it, once it starts bubbling you'll need to keep stirring so it doesn't burn.)
• Remove from heat and stir in oats.
• Drop by tablespoons onto wax or parchment paper.
• Let stand until firm. (You can put them in the fridge to help them set more quickly.)

 And that's it! Have a great day! ♥

Bake Day: Chewy Ginger Cookies

Mmmmmmm, soft ginger-packed cookies are my absolute favourite. Normally I save making them for christmas but the weather here has been so dreary of late that I think I may have to make them again very soon. These cookies take more work than the ordinary chocolate chip or peanut butter cookie, but the sweet spiciness of them is sure to warm and comfort you. They are a labour of love, and they are SO worth the effort.

Ingredients

• 2¼  cups all purpose flour
• 1½ tsp baking soda
• 2½ tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ tsp ground cardamom
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• ½ cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped 
• 2 tsp fresh ginger root, peeled and finely grated
• ¾ cup (packed) dark brown sugar
• ½ cup butter, room temp
• ½ cup vegetable shortening
• ½ cup molasses
• 1 large egg, room temp
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup of raw or sanding sugar

Instructions

1. Arrange racks in lower and upper thirds of oven, then preheat to 350F.
2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper (or use a silpat if you have one).
3. Chop up the crystallized ginger into fine pieces and put aside.
4. Peel the fresh ginger (I use this method), then finely grate it and put aside.
5. To a medium bowl add flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, salt, and pepper. Give these ingredients a good whisking and then put aside.
6. To a large bowl, add butter, shortening and brown sugar. Beat on medium/high speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy (about 2 minuets). Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and mix again for a moment.
7. Add the grated ginger, vanilla, egg, and molasses to the large bowl. Beat on low speed until just combined. I switch from electric mixer to wooden spoon at this point, but it's optional.
8. Add the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until just combined. 
9. Finally, add the crystallized ginger and stir through. The dough should be soft and sticky.
10. Put the raw/sanding sugar in a bowl, and prepare to get your hands a bit dirty!
11. With a regular teaspoon, scoop dough by the heaping spoonful and drop into the sugar bowl. Turn to fully coat each blob, then gently roll each one into a nice ball.
12. Place balls on cookie sheets, 2-3cm apart, fitting 12 to a sheet.
13. Put in both sheets, one on the top rack, one on the bottom rack, and bake for 12 minutes.
    
    Make sure you rotate the cookie sheets halfway through baking!!
14. Cookies are done when the edges are firm and the centres appear cracked. Transfer to wire racks and let cool. Let the sheets cool a bit before putting new cookies on them.
15. Repeat steps 11-14 until dough is used up. Feel free to have a sample or two while you bake the rest. If you run out of raw/sanding sugar, don't despair -- use plain white sugar, or leave them naked!

These cookies freeze very well, so they are a great option to make ahead of a special occasion or event. I hope you love them as much as I do! Happy baking. ♥

Bake Day: Magic Banana Bread

Hi there, come on inside and pull up a chair at the kitchen table! Today I'm going to share one of my favourite (and most frequently used) recipes, Magic Banana Bread. I say magic because out of all the banana bread recipes I've tried, this one is the favourite of all who live here at Fig Cottage. Sometimes I let a bunch of bananas go brown on purpose, just so I can make this loaf. Gleaned from a selection of other recipes (including an older one from my mom), and lightly spiced for extra goodness, this recipe is quick to whip up and usually disappears very quickly.
It's magic!

Ingredients

• 4 or 5 medium bananas, mashed (approx 2 cups)
• 1 large egg
• ½ cup butter, melted
• ¼ cup milk
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour + 2 Tbsp
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground allspice
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground cardamom
• ½ cup of chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a loaf pan by lightly greasing then lining it with parchment paper. Allow some overhang of the paper, for ease of removing later. 

In a large bowl, beat egg, mashed banana and melted butter until thoroughly blended, then stir in milk. (This mixture will seem fairly runny, but do not despair.)

Mash 'em good!

Add sugar, flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and the three spices to your bowl. Stir until just moistened. If using walnuts or pecans, add them now and gently stir to combine.

Empty your bowl into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. The top will be a rich golden colour.

Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for about 5-10 minutes. Remove loaf from pan, peel away parchment, and let cool fully on a cooling rack.

Before...

... and after!

And that's it!

If your family is anything like mine, you'll probably find a few slices are (magically!) missing before the loaf even finishes cooling off. Enjoy! ♥