Top 3 Easy Baking Recipes

If you’re children fancy doing some baking, these are our 3 favourite recipes to do with the kids (and they are easy to follow!)

Hedgehog Rolls

PREP: 20 MINS
REST: 60 MINS
COOK: 15 MINS

Ingredients

• 500g pack brown bread mix (you can buy from the flour or baking section of most supermarkets)
• 25g butter
• plain flour for dusting
• 12 raisins
• 6 flaked almonds

Method

1. Make the bread mixture with the butter following pack instructions. It’s easiest to use a stand mixer but not difficult to do by hand. Leave the dough to rest for 5 mins, then knead for 5 mins.
2. Cut the dough into six pieces. Dust the surface with a little flour and shape each piece into a ball by rolling it between your hand. Now make it hedgehog-shaped by pulling one side out a little and squeezing it gently into a snout. Be quite firm or it will bounce back.
3. Put the hedgehogs on a baking sheet, cover with a damp tea towel and leave to rise for 1 hr.
4. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Using kitchen scissors (supervise younger children), carefully snip into the dough to make the spikes on the backs of the hedgehogs. Press raisins in for the eyes and push a flaked almond into the end of each snout.
5. Bake for 15 mins or until the rolls are risen and golden. Will keep for two days in an airtight container.

 

Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes

PREP: 30 MINS
COOK: 30 MINS 
COOL: 60 MINS

Ingredients

• 200g butter
• 200g plain chocolate, under 70% cocoa solids is fine
• 200g light, soft brown sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 250g self-raising flour
• Smarties, sweets and sprinkles, to decorate

For the icing

• 200g plain chocolate
• 100ml double cream, not fridge-cold
• 50g icing sugar

Method

1. Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3 and line a 12-hole muffin tin with cases. Gently melt the butter, chocolate, sugar and 100ml hot water together in a large saucepan, stirring occasionally, then set aside to cool a little while you weigh the other ingredients.
2. Stir the eggs and vanilla into the chocolate mixture. Put the flour into a large mixing bowl, then stir in the chocolate mixture until smooth. Spoon into cases until just over three-quarters full (you may have a little mixture leftover), then set aside for 5 mins before putting on a low shelf in the oven and baking for 20-22 mins. Leave to cool.
3. For the icing, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Once melted, turn off the heat, stir in the double cream and sift in the icing sugar. When spreadable, top each cake with some and decorate with your favourite sprinkles and sweets.

 

Little Jam Tarts

PREP: 15 MINS
COOK: 15 MINS

Ingredients 

• 500g Just Roll ready made sweet shortcrust pastry
• 20 tsp jam (any flavour)

Method

1. Roll out the shortcrust pastry on a lightly floured surface to just under the thickness of £1 coin. Stamp out 20 x 5cm circles using a pastry cutter and line 2 mini muffin tins with the circles (or make in 2 batches).
2. Prick each with a fork and spoon in 1 tsp jam (apricot, blackcurrant and strawberry all work well). Stamp out shapes from the leftover pastry to decorate the tarts, if you like.  If you don’t have cutters, you can experiment by cutting round various objects with a knife.  Always take care though!
3. Bake at 200C/180C fan/gas 6 for 12-15 mins, until the pastry is golden.

 

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