Gooey Cream Egg Brownies | Recipe

Yep, it's that time of the year again. The supermarkets are flooded with everything from Malteser bunnies to giant 4kg easter eggs...no joke it's like a full isle of chocolate and i'm not complaining. So recently I saw a Instagram post of some amazing looking cream egg brownies from one of my favourite instagrammers 'itslittlelauren' I instantly knew I had to make them. I based this recipe on my go to brownie recipe and added some cream eggs, a little vanilla and salt to make these perfect little things. Enjoy!

Ingredients: (Makes 9 large brownies)

185g Unsalted Butter

185g Dark Chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids)

85g Plain Flour

40g Cocoa Powder

3 Large Free Range Eggs

275g Golden Caster Sugar

5 Cadbury Cream Eggs

Pinch of salt

1tsp Vanilla Extract

 Method: 

1. Preheat your oven to 160 degrees and line a 9 inch square baking tin with some greaseproof paper. Set aside for later. 

2. Now melt together your measured butter and dark chocolate in a heat proof bowl either in short bursts in the microwave or over a pan of hot water. 

 3. In a separate bowl, whisk together with an electric whisk the caster sugar, eggs and vanilla  till they have doubled in volume and look very pale. This takes around 5-8 minutes so be patient.

 4. Now add your chocolate mixture to your egg mixture, to do this by knocking as least air out of the egg mix as possible add it all in one area down the side. This keeps the brownies nice and light. Fold this through gently till fully combined.

5. Now add your measured flour, cocoa powder and salt, this is best sifted in then fold until completely smooth. 

6. Once the brownie mix is fully combined, pour into the baking tin. I level the tin out to help with the cooking. Bake for 15 minutes. 

 7. Take out of the oven after 15 minutes and add the halved Cadbury cream eggs in rows of 3. Pushing them gently into the surface.

 8. Return back to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the brownies look to be cooked on top but when a knife is inserted in the middle it comes out clean. If your brownies have a slight wobble to them this is good. Take them out of the oven and cool in the tin completely so when they set they go all fudgey.

9. To serve the brownies I find it easier to remove the whole thing on the baking paper and then cut them into 9 squares on the paper. 

And there we have it. Warm, fudgey Cadbury Cream Egg Brownies. These genuinely are amazing either fresh out the oven, on their own with a cup of tea or slightly warmed with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. They truly are perfect. Be sure to give these a go this Easter, it's great to get everyone involved and a way to stop you eating all your cream egg's at once.

Enjoy, 

Luke. 

ASDA Homewear Haul

So recently I found myself watching a video on YouTube of a haul Tanya Burr was doing on the "Mums Eye View" channel. In the video, she shows all the items she picked up from the ASDA home section. ASDA always have a great selection of home items, so when I saw the video I knew I was due a trip to see what they had. You can watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihW9KHuS-cQ

The first item I picked up was this lamp. It is called the 'Globe Lamp' and I genuinely think that it was made for me. I used to have a desk lamp which was this great big burley thing and it did the job but was no where near as cool to look at compared to this.

Globe Lamp £15

It was £15 and I think it's a bargain. It has this chrome effect on the base and a huge glass surround that projects light around your room. Here is a link where you can pick up this lamp: http://direct.asda.com/George-Home-Glass-Globe-Lamp/001762665,default,pd.html?cgid=D26M01G01C07S04

 I then had a wander down the textiles type section and saw these two cushions. The first was featured in Tanya's haul which is the map cushion. It has a neutral look to it but a robust feel which I think would look great in anyones room. The link is here: http://direct.asda.com/George-Home-Map-Cushion/002040741,default,pd.html?cgid=D26M02G02C01 The second cushion purchased was the the one with American flag printed on it, again it has a really robust feel to it and with it being a different shape it adds more interest. Unfortunately I couldn't find the link for the cushion on the website but if you have a look in the home section, you may still be able to find it.

Map Cushion £7
Flag Cushion £7

The next item too is from ASDA however it was a purchase made last year. It is a London themed small cushion which was £5. I'm not sure if they sell it anymore but it's great for softening up spaces in your room where a lot of furniture sits.

I have been on the search for a new duvet set for a while now, this one immediately caught my eye. It has a skyline print which covers the full duvet and the words NYC are printed on the front which I really like. It completely brightened up my room and fits with all the images I have on my wall behind of traveling.

I would say that the print is reversible which I think is a really great idea. So if you get bored of the original print you can just flip it over and you have a whole new set. I went for some plain white sheets and pillow cases which were really inexpensive. Here is the link to the set, it was £12 for a single set.  http://direct.asda.com/George-Home-NYC-Manhattan-Skyline-Duvet-Range%C2%A0/GHManhattanSkylineDuvetSet,default,pd.html

There are still a few items that I want to buy, but they didn't have them in store so I picked up a catalogue to oder them online to pick up. I saw these binoculars on Tanya's haul and really liked them. Sticking with the travel theme, I think they would look great on my shelf with my camera and some books.

Binoculars £8

Then I saw a globe which I have always wanted but never really found one. I have looked in charity shops but when I saw this in the ASDA magazine I knew it had to be added to the list. I think it looks great with the rustic background and really would fit in placed on my desk.

Globe Ornament £15

All the items listed are available in store or on ASDA direct. I think they really have some great pieces and if you don't have the budget to completely re-do your room, adding some little touches can really make a huge difference. I think these will look great when I go to Uni next year too. 

As ever thank you for reading,

Luke. 

A day out in Leeds

I'm one of those people who hates routine, getting up, going to work/college, coming home, having something to eat and then going to bed. I think sometimes it's really nice to do something different. When my friend said they were going to Leeds for a University interview I jumped at the chance to go, purely for what I had heard about Leeds. A 2 hour car journey later, getting lost a couple of times and we made it. Here is what I got up to.

So our first point of call was Nandos. Something about spending two hours in a car makes you crave chicken...or maybe that's just me? As non-adventourus as we were going for a Nandos it didn't dissapoint. I tried to Peach Iced Tea and it was so good! 

 In true Nandos style I went for a single hot chicken wrap with peri peri chips and garlic bread. Doesn't get any better than that! Kinda wish we were a little more patient because we found a Byron Burger and a Wagamama soon after which would have also went down well!

After asking the waiter in Nandos where the best places were to shop, we found our way to the Trinity Centre and well...it all went down hill for my bank card then.

The centre was HUGE! It had literally every shop you could want both inside and out. We ended up spending nearly three hours here so it's no surprise I spent so much money! 

I thought the Urban Outfitters in Newcastle was good but genuinely this is the best I've been in. It literally had everything. From vintage, re-claimed shirts to a music room and a whole section of cool books and homeware items, it was great. Could have spent hours in there...and probably hundreds of pounds if I didn't stop myself. I found a baseball T with burgundy long arms perfect for layering, so I snapped that up and left before I could buy anything else.

  Then of course it had to happen...we found a Topman. Again, Newcastle's Topman is big, but this one was huge. They had a suit department, longline T's, a whole section for boots, shoes and bags I was in my element. I ended up settling for a oversized longline white T with tartan detailing on the bottom. Perfect with some black skinnies and sneaks.

 We then found ourselves in River Island and with two purchases already in the bag, I was on the lookout for something different. After wanting a bomber jacket for a while, I was so surprised to find one in the sale for just £15. It fit perfectly so I had to snap that up! I also was looking at their jeans which gave me an idea to rip some of my old black skinnies instead of buying some.

 Feeling the strain of all the shopping, it was time for a coffee stop.

 We opted for Cafe Nero for a change. I had gotten 9 stamps from buying coffee's before so my 10th drink was free. I went for the banana and caramel frappe and it was unreal. Literally so sweet but perfect none the less. Made it taste even better knowing it was free.

Surely we could squeeze a couple more shops in before we had to go back? We ducked into H&M and I had to restrain myself from buying another T-Shirt which I liked but probably didn't need. I opted for a smart layered look with a trench and shirt/jumper combo. I thought ahead so didn't go for a heavy thick coat and some comfy boots for walking. I'm wearing: 

Coat Boohoo Man

Jumper ASOS

Shirt ZARA

Jeans Topman

Boots Boohoo 

Bag ASOS

 The LUSH window display looked too good not to have a wander in. Sure enough we caved and bought some bath bombs. I chose the Fizzbanger which reminded me of sherbet lemons I used to eat when I was younger.

 The workers in the Leeds store were super friendly, giving us demonstrations of the bath bombs. I always look at the gift sets because they look so good!

 Wandering back from a serious shop, I found myself in the American section of Tesco where they sold all kinds of crazy flavour sweets. I went for some S'more flavoured Pop-Tarts and some white chocolate vanilla Oreos.

 I think I'm a little bit in love with Leeds and definitely will be going back soon. It was so nice to have a day off from college and have a wander around somewhere new. Leeds, I'll soon be returning!

Thanks for reading,

Luke. 

Salted Caramel Brownie Milkshake

Genuinely I think I have to take the time to admit that I might have a slight addiction to milkshakes. I probably drink wayyy more then I should but let's be honest, who can blame me. There is nothing better than taking your favourite sweet treat whether that be a chocolate bar, brownie or cookie, and blitzing it up with some milk and ice cream. It doesn't get any better. I used to love a milkshake shop in town where I used to live and they served any kind of milkshake imaginable, the day it closed I was actually gutted. So...I have to get my fix somewhere, thus is bring you "The Chocolate and Salted Caramel Brownie Milkshake".

Ingredients: (Makes 1 large glass)

3 scoops of good quality Vanilla ice cream 

150ml of Milk

5-6 small chunks of brownie (save some for the topping)

Whipped Cream

Salted Caramel Sauce (Or regular caramel sauce & a pinch of salt)

Equipment:

Any kind of liquidiser or blender

Method:

1. First start by scooping three scoops of your ice cream into your blender. 

 2. Then measure out 150 millilitres of milk into a jug and pop that into your blender.

 3. Now take your brownie chunks, I got these from ASDA for £1, you can make your own of course and put those into the blender too. You might want to break them up slightly if your blender isn't very powerful.

 4. Now add your caramel sauce, This is Starbucks own but I also have M&S salted caramel which would also work really well in this shake.

 5. I added a banana to mine for extra flavour but by all means you can leave this out. Maybe adding some chocolate sauce would be nice but this is completely customisable. Blend the shake till all of the mixture looks smooth. You can just pulse it so you keep some whole brownie chunks, that works well too.

 6. Now drizzle your cup with caramel sauce, this is completely optional but looks great once you pour your milkshake into the glass.

6. Top your shake with whipped cream, as you can see I went a little bit over board but you can never have enough whipped cream in my opinion. 

7. Top the shake with some of the remaining crumbled brownie pieces and a drizzle of caramel sauce.

I know this probably isn't the healthiest drink out there but it's good to treat yourself now and again. This would be really nice with some Malteasers in or even replace the vanilla ice cream for a truly indulgent shake! 

Be sure to take a picture and tag me in this if you make this drink,

Enjoy,

Luke.