NOTD - Poppies

Summer Haul

Hey Guys!

As anyone from England will tell you, our 'summers' are never the same as photos of sunny days and high heats but more cloudy, rainy days with cold winds. However this summer miraculously was scorching hot and beautiful but as we are not used to this the mad rush for real summer clothes began...

 Shorts - Topshop £25

 Shoes - Primark £4

 Top - Primark £5

 Books £10

 Necklace - Clair's Accessories £7 Bracelet - Accessorize £2

Skirt - Topshop £5

What's In My Summer Garden Bag

Hey Guys!

As the weather has been beautiful this summer I have been in the garden almost all the time, blogging, doing my nails, reading, revising and just relaxing so this is what is inside the bag i use and the contents. 

1. Suncream/after-sun - self explanatory but it's been so sunny and hot that suncream is a must!

2. Nail polish kit - the purse containing three nail polishes to, guess what? paint my nails, I love painting them and sunbathing is the perfect way to pass the time whilst they're drying

3. Revision/work - As this was during exam season I had revision to do and doing it outside sitting in a sun lounger somehow makes it a lot better 

4. Books/kindle - If you're a bookworm then reading material is an essential for sunbathing

5. Pencil case - Either for revision, work or drawing I always like to have at least a pen with me

6. Phone - also self explanatory as I always try to have my phone in hearing distance 

7. Lipbalm - I recommend having one with spf in as then you don't need to worry about suncream
8. Hairbands/bobby pins - as it gets hotter I hate having my hair down and so these are a must, I also like to throw my hair up in a messy bun whilst working or revising
9. Ipad mini - An ipad is just like a mini laptop and so is useful for anything but is mostly used for instagram, youtube, tumblr and imessage as a break between revision sessions

This is the bag I use, it's a huge beach bag and so fits everything in so is perfect

Bakes! - Lemon And Poppy Seed Cake

Hey Guys!

For a recent dinner party I was asked to make a cake of my choice, after 'umm'-ing and 'ahh'-ing for a few days I finally decided on a lemon and poppy seed cake from my hummingbird bakery cookbook.

Equipment

24cm Ring mould -greased & dusted.

Various bowls to mix and weigh in

saucepan 

handheld electric whisk and/or freestanding electric whisk

Ingredients

85g unsalted butter

245g caster sugar

grated zest of 1 1/2 lemons

15g poppy seeds (plus extra to decorate)

165ml whole milk

235g plain flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 a teaspoon of salt

3 egg whites

Lemon Syrup

juice and zest of 1 lemon

50g caster sugar

Lemon Glaze

Juice of 1 lemon

250g icing sugar

 Firstly preheat your oven to 170c, gas mark 3.

Cream together the butter, caster sugar, poppy seeds and lemon zest in a large bowl.

Slowly add the milk in stages and beat well (don’t worry if it looks slightly split at this stage).

 

In a separate bowl sieve the flour, baking powder and salt.

Add this to the butter mixture in 3 stages, beating well after each addition.
In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.

Fold this gently into the cake mixture.  Don’t beat or you will lose all of the air that makes the cake light.
Pour into mould and bake for 30 - 35 mins until golden and the sponge bounces back when gently pressed and when you stick a knife/skewer into the sponge it comes out clean.

Whilst the cake is cooking make the lemon syrup by mixing the sugar, lemon zest and juice in a saucepan and gently boiling it until it has reduced by half and a thin syrup has formed.
When the cake is cooked remove from the oven and spoon over the lemon syrup whilst it is still in the tin and still warm.  This makes the cake wonderfully moist and forms a sugar crust on the bottom.  Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes.
Turn out onto a wire rack.
Make the icing whilst the cake is cooling by mixing the icing sugar and lemon juice together until smooth and glossy.
Once the cake has cooled, spoon over the glaze and let it run down the sides of the cake.  Sprinkle with a few poppy seeds.

 Enjoy! :)