MiNaScope

The MiNaScope microscope stage with various "biological" samples.

Yes, I know it's been a very, very long time since we've posted anything. I've had this one saved in the drafts folder since August and just haven't had the time (or motivation) to finish it off. Better late than never I guess!

A few months ago, Na sent me an email about the "Great Microscopy Bake-off 2013" held at The University of Sydney. The brief was to make a science or microscopy-themed cake, cupcake or biscuit. This was right down our alley and we really wanted to make a joint submission. We brainstormed and came up with various ideas, being so like-minded we actually came up with very similar ideas so it made the final decision easy. As we are both microscopists, we felt very strongly about making something microscope-related but a microscope seemed too obvious. In the end we decided on a microscope stage and various "biological" samples, this way we could easily make the components separately and then arrange them together on the day.

The MiNaScope microscope stage was chocolate brownie on the inside covered in basic vanilla buttercream and fondant. I bought the white icing at the supermarket and black fondant at The Essential Ingredient. Na's gingerbread cookies were covered in royal icing and decorated using a feathering effect described here. The writing on the "glass slides" was achieved by using a pen with edible ink.

Anthea Leonard from Sweet Art was there to judge the cakes and we came second! How amazing is that? Mi xo

Gingerbread cookies with "fluorescent cells" made by Na.

"Bacterial plate"gingerbread cookies made by Na.

Gingerbread "glass slides" made by Na.

Freckle Biscuits

I cannot take credit for these colourful beauties. My sister made them after seeing something similar in a  cafe. The classic chocolate treat "Freckles" have always been a favourite but they're so much better in biscuit form. My sister decided to make a shortbread for the base and used Lorraine Pascale's "Dreamlike Shortbread" recipe. The full recipe can be found here. Once the biscuits have cooled completely, dip the tops into some melted chocolate and then into a bowl of hundreds and thousands. Easy as you like! Na xo

Brown Sugar-Pecan Shortbread

I love shortbread! The soft, buttery goodness that just melts in your mouth. Last Christmas, my sister gave me David Lebovitz's Ready for Dessert cook book. As I flicked through the pages salivating at all the recipes before me, I came across one for brown sugar-pecan shortbread. YUM! I had to make this. What I love about David's recipes is that they are always very simple such as the one for Coconut Macaroons and the result is pure deliciousness! Be sure to check out his website for many more amazing recipes. Mi xo

Rainbow m&m Cookies

Another rainbow creation for the lovely Miss T Bunny! I used the same cookie dough recipe as seen in my earl grey tea cookie post. I omitted the tea leaves and added an extra half teaspoon of vanilla extract. To get the rainbow effect, I divided the dough into five equal portions, coloured each portion with Wilton gel colours, rolled each colour into a thin log and then joined the five logs to form a large rainbow log. Chill the cookie dough in the fridge until hard (I left mine overnight), slice and place a mini-m&m on each coloured segment. Mr Mi was nice enough to sort the m&m's into single colours for me! Bake as usual until slightly golden on the edges and there you have it perfect crispy, buttery cookies with pretty colours that make people happy! Mi xo

Mad Hatter's Tea Party!

This Christmas will be MiNa's second Christmas, can't believe it's been almost a whole year since we had our first baking collaboration together Christmas cupcakes which eventually resulted in MiNa's Food Adventures! The theme to our work Christmas party this year was Mad Hatter, so Na and I decided to make Mad Hatter/Alice in Wonderland themed sugar cookies. We used the sugar cookies recipe from Na's teapot and teacup post and the royal icing recipe from Bec Loves Baking blog which uses pavlova magic instead of egg whites, this can be found at your local supermarket. I found the quantity to be to much for 45 - 50 sugar cookies so I think I will halve the recipe next time. Na made the gorgeous teapot, teacups and teabags and I made the hearts, clocks and hats (which I was told looked a bit like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle!). I used an edible food pen to write the numbers and hands on the clock cookies. No Christmas party would be complete without a gingerbread house, so along with a couple of colleagues from work we decided to make a castle for the Queen of Hearts as well! Needless to say, I think we have reached our baking quota for the year! Mi & Na xoxo

Green Tea and White Chocolate Cookies

You may recall from a previous post that my Mum doesn't really have a sweet tooth and loves green tea hence the green tea cupcakes for her birthday. I've had recent success with making earl grey tea cookies and since my mum was visiting on the weekend I thought to myself why not try making green tea cookies. I used the same recipe for the earl grey tea cookies, using matcha instead of earl grey and a handful of white chocolate chips (about 50 g). I rolled the cookies dough into a log, wrapped in baking paper, placed in the fridge for about an hour, sliced and baked. Easy. If you enjoy green tea and want to try something a bit different this is the cookie for you. Enjoy! Mi xo

Chocolate and Walnut Oat Cookies

I had a hankering for a biscuit that incorporated oats and chocolate so I tinkered with my favourite chocolate chip cookie recipe and came up with this! They're slightly crispy on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside, which is just how I like them!

Teapot and Teacup Sugar Cookies

I love cookie cutters and hope to one day have quite a collection but until recently, all I had were circles, flowers and gingerbread man shapes. The other day I found myself in a situation where I was faced with a wall of cookie cutters! All shapes and sizes! There was so much to choose from but once I saw the teapot and teacup shaped cookie cutters, I knew they were coming home with me that day. 

Earl Grey Tea Cookies

I was recently in a Steampunk inspired production of The Mikado and wanted to make something in theme to give to the cast and crew as thank you presents. I came across these amazing Steampunk Cookies, she used this recipe to make Earl Grey tea cookies. At first, the thought of using tea leaves in a biscuit did seem a bit strange to me but trust me you will not be disappointed by the result. The biscuits were buttery and crispy with a slight hint of Earl Grey...not too strong. I tried to re-create the cog shape using two circle cookies cutters and a small rectangular one, it was not very successful...the cookies spread quite a bit as they cooked and so turned out a little bit more like flowers! Oh well, I guess it's the taste and thought that matters the most. Mi xo

Gingerbread Men

I was on a quest to find the perfect recipe for thick and soft gingerbread, did a quick search in google and found this great recipe Thick and Chewy Gingerbread Cookies. I had some trouble finding molasses at first, but it was well worth the wait. This recipe is everything it promises to be, thick, chewy with the wonderful dark colour and flavour of molasses. Thanks Mark Manguerra! Mi xo

Minim Gingerbread

My two favourite things in life combined music and gingerbread! I couldn't find any molasses so used golden syrup instead, they still tasted delicious. I bought these super cute cookie cutters from The Raspberry Butterfly. Mi xo