Peanut Butter and Nutella Cookies

I recently made cookies for the first time; I usually make biscuits and a rather leaden shortbread. Anyway, I amalgamated a number of recipes in order to bake some peanut butter and nutella cookies. They worked out so well that when I offered them to my colleagues at work, they were all begging for the recipe. The best thing about this recipe for peanut butter and nutella cookies is that you don’t need a weighing scale. Also, don’t be put off by the name; the resulting cookies have a subtle flavour which tastes more of orange, nuts and caramel. Here it is in all its glory. It’s a rough recipe so don’t feel that you have to stick with it exactly and if you discover any ways to improve it then please leave a comment!

You will need:
Approximately 100g of butter – I didn’t have weighing scales so I used just under half of a 225g pack of butter
One cup of caster sugar – a small coffee cup should do (not a mug)
3 tablespoons of nutella
One orange with the skin on
2 tablespoons of peanut butter (crunchy or smooth, you’re call)
One egg
At least half a pack of plain flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder

• Mix together in a large bowl the caster sugar, butter, nutella and peanut butter. You can use a wooden spoon and your muscles or a whisk. I just used a spoon and it was fine (and I’m a small woman).
• Once you have a smooth mixture, grate in the skin of the orange. Mix some more.
• Whisk the whole egg.
• Add half the egg to the main mixture. Add about one cup of plain flour (sieved) with one teaspoon of baking powder.
• Mix until smooth.
• Add the rest of the egg and more sieved flour as necessary. The flour doesn’t have to be measured exactly. Just keep adding small amounts of flour until you have a firm, smooth dough which isn’t too sticky.
• Cover the mixture and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Take out the mixture and shape into 1 inch dough balls. Place them on a plate. Put topping on them. I put half an almond on some and a lump of chocolate on some (just normal Cadburys chocolate).
• Refrigerate the uncooked cookies for another 15 minutes. You don’t have to put the dough in the fridge but if you want soft, chewy cookies; I’d advise doing it. If you don’t refrigerate them then you will get a more crisp biscuit.
• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Place the cookies on baking paper – do not grease it.
• Put them in the over for about 15 minutes but check them regularly. You are aiming for them to be gently baked on the outside and slightly soft inside.
• Let them cool and store them in an airtight container.

This is a great recipe because you can play with it. I am adding nutmeg to my next batch!

Top Five home made gifts

Ok so there's a recession etc etc and we should all be out there making gifts for each other and not spending our money. I don't know about you but I am fed up of being told that if I make gifts or buy from charity shops then I can weather the recession. Normally these lines are said by people who know nothing about financial difficulties or finance in general.

On a different note though you should consider making home made gifts because they are fun, personal and useful for when your cash flow is a bit tight. This top five list only contains items that someone would genuinely enjoy receiving and that someone with basic artistic skills could make. You will have to buy some stuff to do them.

1. Sentimental photo frame.
Yes you will have to buy a photo frame but nowadays with shops like Primark and Ikea that shouldn't cost too much. You will then need to find a friend who has a printer that can print photos or pay out for the print out of a photo. On the plus side though you can spend a few happy hours searching for a particularly touching photo. This gift is guaranteed to be appreciated as it shows thought, love and will bring back happy memories. Alternatively, if you are giving this gift to a friend or sibling, perhaps you should dig out their most embarrassing photo and put it in a nice cheesy frame. Something like this would work:

2. Bead bracelet.
Buy some cheap but attractive beads or recycle some from old jewellery that you no longer wear. Buy some elasticated string (go to a craft store). Arrange the beads on the string in an attractive design. Tie a knot. Put a blob of glue or clear nail varnish on the knot to seal it. Great gift for little girls and big girls - everyone loves jewelry.

3. Fudge

This is a great recipe http://www.waitrose.com/recipe/Vanilla_Fudge.aspx

Put it in a nice box with a hand made card.

4. Your time

Offer one night of free babysitting to people who have children. Offer to cook dinner on a night of your friend's choice. If you have a skill in something then offer to give a tutorial in it. It's surprising how many people don't know how to use excel or how to sew. This is a perfect gift to give if you are a student and have no money.

5. Make a hamper

Get a small cardboard box from your local supermarket. Wrap it in attractive paper. Revisit your supermarket and buy lots of things that they would like. They don't have to be expensive. For example you can get them things that only you know they like such as polos, earl grey, coconut body lotion, figs - whatever you want. Hampers are great to receive and can be a gift you enjoy for a long time. Plus hampers are usually very expensive to buy ready-made. Hampers are also a great gift for men.

So that's my top five list. I will be adding more to it soon.