The Rose Cottage Recipe Book

Ingredients

Method

1. Heat oven to 180℃ (160℃ fan). Grease and line a 20 x 30cm baking tray with baking parchment.
2. Put the dates and milk in a small pan and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat and set aside for 15 mins to cool.
3. Whizz the date mixture to a smooth purée in a food processor or blender, then scrape into a large mixing bowl.
4. Tip in the butter, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, eggs, mixed spice and vanilla. Set aside while you prepare the apples.
5. Quarter and core the apples, then slice quite thinly, tossing in a little lemon juice as you go.
6. Quickly beat together the cake ingredients with an electric whisk until smooth, then scrape into the baking tray.
7. Arrange the apple slices, overlapping in rows, on top of the cake - you should be able to get 3 rows lengthways down the tray.
8. Bake for 45-50 mins until a skewer poked into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the tray.
9. Put the toffees in a small pan with a good splash of milk and gently melt, stirring until runny.
10. To finish, dust the cake with a little icing sugar. Drizzle the sauce all over the cake. Cut into squares or slices to serve.

(Amounts can be halved and you'll still get plenty!)

You'll need a large mixing bowl (with a mixing spoon) plus a baking tray (and tea spoon).
A wire cooling rack would also be useful.

Ingredients

Method

Preheat the oven to 175°C.

1. Cream the butter (or margarine) and sugar in a large bowl then blend in the eggs and vanilla.
2. Add the flour, cocoa, baking soda and stir the mixture together.
3. Stir in the nuts, if desired.
4. Drop the mixture, by teaspoon, onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes.
   Do not over bake. The cookies will be soft. They puff up while baking and flatten while cooling.
5. Cool on the cookie sheet until completely set (about 10 minutes) then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Ingredients

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients in a mug.
2. Microwave on full for about 40 seconds. (It should still be a bit gooey afterwards.)

Ingredients

Method

1. Mix the flour, baking powder together and rub in the butter to “breadcrumb” texture.
2. Stir in the sugar, vanilla and beaten egg.  
3. Mix to a smooth dough and knead for 2 minutes.
4. Add in the chopped chocolate.

This may be eaten as 'dough', or...

1. Refrigerate for 15 mins, in a 5cm diameter roll.
2. Preheat the oven to 190℃.
3. Chop into slices, and place on a greased baking sheet.
4. Sprinkle with a little sugar.
5. Cook in the oven for 10 mins or until brown.
   

Ingredients

Method

Prep: 10 mins. Cook: 15 mins.

1. Preheat the oven to 170℃. Grease baking trays or line with parchment.
2. Sift together the flour, bicarb and salt. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and caster sugar until well blended.
4. Beat in the vanilla, egg and egg yolk until light and creamy.
5. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended.
6. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon.
7. Drop cookie dough onto the prepared baking trays, with each cookie around 4 tablespoons of dough (for smaller cookies, drop 1 rounded tablespoonful and adjust baking time as necessary). Do not flatten the dough. Cookies should be about 8cm apart.
8. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted.
9. Cool on baking trays for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.