Traybakes and Cookies

Christmas Squares – Gluten Free version included

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

These squares are a cross between a brownie and a blondie and are pretty addictive! I love that if you use different coloured sweets, you can make this recipe for most of our celebrations. If you want a Gluten Free version, there are sweets that are a few varieties such as the ones from Aldi and the Dairy & Dam in Health Stores are gluten free. Regular Smarties are NOT gluten free.

I’ve popped a few variations of these delicious squares in the recipe below for you to try and as usual, I’ve reduced the sugar as they are quite sweet with the M&M’s and the chocolate chips. They turned out still sweet and very delicious! Quick and easy to make, easy to adapt …. what’s not to love??

Continue reading →

The Perfect Biscuit Recipe!

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

This biscuit recipe is the bees knees! It is very simple to make and creates the most wonderfully, soft and easy to use dough that cuts out shapes beautifully. It’s so easy to adapt too. I’ve given a few hints at the bottom of the recipe but I’m sure you will have lots of your own ideas.

I’ve used cutters but also used the push down shapes too and everything just works. Love it!! Definitely one to keep and use again and again with lots of different flavours.

Continue reading →

Homemade Custard Cream Biscuits

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

These are not perfect copies of the original Custard Cream biscuits but they taste amazing! A real treat is they taste even better the next day as the cream and biscuit blend beautifully together. They are pretty straightforward to make and will go down very well with everyone.

I know that we all try to eat more healthily and to reduce refined sugar in our diets and especially when baking and/or cooking for younger people but at least when you bake your own treats, there are no hidden ingredients and you know exactly what you’re serving up. It’s about having one or two and putting them away till the next time. Everything in moderation!

Continue reading →

Coconut Macaroons – Gluten Free

~ cozebakes ~ 2 Comments

If you want to make something really delicious in a very short time, then these macaroons are the answer. You can make them in different shapes and sizes depending on the occasion but they never fail to please!

Just 3 simple ingredients (well four if you count the chocolate drizzle on top) and 10 minutes to put together with 18 in the oven. That’s it! The fact they’re gluten free is a bonus!

Continue reading →

Viennese Shortbread Mini Cakes

~ cozebakes ~ 1 Comment

These sweet, pretty bakes are a lovely buttery and delicious shortbread biscuit which are made in paper cases for a different look from the traditional Viennese Whirls. You can use strawberry, raspberry or apricot jam in the center. They are quick and easy to make and look so pretty presented together dusted with icing sugar.

Little bites of melting heaven …. For a Festive feel, spoon some delicious homemade mincemeat in the centre 🙂

Continue reading →

Toffee Apple Cake

~ cozebakes ~ 2 Comments

Ooooh where do I start??! It’s a delicious take on a traditional Toffee Apple and adding the toffee sauce just sends it into another dimension. A wonderfully moist and spicy cake which is surprisingly easy to make.

If you don’t like dates, don’t worry. You can’t taste them. They add moistness and that great sticky toffee flavour.

toffee apple cake, bonfire night recipe, halloween recipe, autumn cake, cozebakes Continue reading →

Cranberry Flapjacks – Gluten Free

~ cozebakes ~ 1 Comment

I got such a shock when I saw the original recipe lists 225g of sugar for these flapjacks! I’m not sure you would taste anything other than pure sweetness if that was to happen so I changed it a bit. Originally I left out two of the ingredients thinking I was adding sweetness by using them but as they are not great at holding their shape, I would change that next time. I wanted to keep these flapjacks lower in sugar and so I greatly reduced the sugar from the original recipe and left out the chocolate but next time all the sugar will be left out!

 

cranberry flapjacks, gluten free flapjacks, cozebakes, low sugar flapjacks Continue reading →

Pecan Pie Blondies

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

I love everything pecan and pecan pie is up there with the best of them. This blondies version just goes up a notch with the addition of white chocolate. It just gets better and better. Originally a recipe from Baking Heaven, it’s a classic Pecan Pie flavour with delicious cinnamon and vanilla. The glaze to finish is a touch of genius so don’t leave it out.

Continue reading →

Popcorn Caramel Brownies – Gluten Free

~ cozebakes ~ 1 Comment

This is not for the fainthearted! It’s rich, decadent, luxurious, delicious and quite sinful. But it’s oh so worth it! Originally I saw a video from Dr. Oetker showing how to make this and managed to get the ingredients listed and method tested to get a result. Oh and did I mention it’s gluten free?! Yes indeed you won’t believe it but it is!

If you like your chocolate very rich and full on then use all dark chocolate or for a slightly less full on chocolate effect, you can opt for half dark and half milk. If you only use milk chocolate, it will probably be too sweet when combined with the caramel layer.

There are a couple of options with the ingredients if you can’t get the original ones and they all worked for me so that makes things a little easier. It’s not a complicated recipe but is made in stages so you need a little more time.

popcorn, caramel fudge brownie, brownies, Dr. Oetker, cozebakes, fudge brownie, carramel brownies, caramel popcorn Continue reading →

Oat & Blueberry Cookies

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

In no time, bake a batch of these lovely soft and slightly chewy cookies using fresh or dried blueberries. They are full of oaty goodness and I’ve reduced the sugar substantially from the original recipe. They still taste lovely! If you like, you can drizzle melted white chocolate over the top of each cookie for a very pretty display.

For a change, why not add dried cranberries, sweet sultanas or raisins and keep everyone happy. When using these dried fruits, I find they are plenty sweet enough so the need for processed sugar is not required.

oat cookies, blueberry cookies, cozebakes, healthy cookies, reduced sugar cookies, oat and blueberry cookies Continue reading →

Chocolate Orange Cookies

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

There’s a lovely baker called Jane who adores anything that has the combination of chocolate and orange and she regularly uses Terry’s Chocolate Orange to create wonderful recipes! I find Jane’s Patisserie a great source for those recipes that tend to create lasting memories and her Chocolate Orange Cookies are certainly one of those!

They are a wonderful combination of crispy edge and soft, chewy centre and are seriously, seriously good! I bought a second box so I could place a wedge on top of each cookie but that’s up to you. They do add something very special to the finished product though ….

Continue reading →

Nutella Chocolate Traybake

~ cozebakes ~ Leave a comment

I’ll give you a little warning before you make this cake. It’s rich, it’s full on and it’s for true chocolate lovers. It’s really gooey and has a surprise centre of soft, creamy Nutella just for extra decadence!

I make this recipe in a baking tray so it can be cut into squares to share out.

You need 16 tablespoons of Nutella and it’s easiest to spray the measuring spoon with some oil beforehand to make it simpler to measure out without ending up covered in sticky Nutella 🙂

chocolate nutella squares, nutella, chocolate, traybake, nutella squares Continue reading →