Tag Archives: books

That’s (Not) Mine, Anna KangGah.  This book.  So…we kept its predecessor, You Are (Not) Small.  I think that one deals with relativity with effective and punchy humour.  We really liked it.  It manages to showcase disagreemen… Continue reading →

Smoke – Dan Vyleta Published by Hachette New Zealand If sin were visible and you could see people’s anger, their lust and cravings, what would the world be like? Set in Victorian England, Smoke is the story of an alternative … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Tiger Lily, Jodi Lynn AndersonWhat a pleasant surprise.  This is kind of like Tuck Everlasting told by Lemony Snicket; it’s so moving and sad whilst being dark and playful.  Like the tale that inspires it, it’s a story of loss.  I went i… Continue reading →

New Zealand baking icon, Edmonds, have released a new edition of their classic Best of Baking cookbook.  In a new fully photographed format, Edmonds Best of Baking is full of all your tried and true favourites plus a few new additions which reflect New Zealand’s evolving tastes.

I’m taking part in the Edmonds Blog Tour to share with you a newly added recipe to Edmonds – Macadamia Nut and White Chocolate Biscuits.  Macadamia nuts are everywhere in Hawaii and while we’ve only been home a few days, I’m pining for everything Hawaiian so this recipe was an obvious choice to share with you.

Here is the super easy, fail safe recipe which makes a nice variation on your standard Chocolate Chip!

Macadamia Nut and White Chocolate Biscuits
Ingredients:
200g butter, softened
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
3 cups Edmonds standard flour
2 teaspoons Edmonds baking powder
100g chopped white chocolate
1/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Method:
Cream butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Beat in essence.
Sift flour and baking powder.  Stir in to creamed mixture along with chocolate and nuts.
Take heaped teaspoons of mixture and roll into balls.
Place on greased oven trays, allowing room for spreading.
Flatten slightly with a floured fork.
Bake at 180° for 15-18 minutes until golden.
Cool on wire racks.
Makes 40 biscuits.

Notes:
I halved the recipe and got over 30 biscuits.
I used baking paper instead of greasing an oven tray.

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Cruel Beauty, Rosamund HodgeWell this was evocative! *fanning face with hand*  Also…Immediately the narrative is coloured with heavy foreshadowing and references to unwanted and violent sex (after an unwanted marriage).  This means my guard… Continue reading →

Yours Sincerely, Giraffe – Megumi Iwasa To be published by Gecko Press in August 2016 Giraffe is bored, as usual. He’d love a friend to share things with. So he writes a letter and sends it as far as possible … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chocolate War, Robert CormierEugh.  Cormier makes me want to shower.  I bought or traded for a second-hand copy of this book because I hear and read about it all the time.  Plus I thought The Rag and Bone Shop was a profound discussi… Continue reading →

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? Mindy KalingThis series of “essays” (this term is used very loosely, in this case) is exactly the kind of memoir I was hoping for from Kaling.  The final third was lacking the oomph of the first two thirds, but … Continue reading →

My nana was an atrocious cook but an utterly amazing baker. Her cream sponges and Neenish tarts were phenomenal, and she made the best griddle scones in the history of the world. I can remember her battered, tattered, splattered old … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Ahh… Friday afternoon, … cup of coffee, … a comfy corner to sit and read, … an AWESOME new book to peruse thanks to my lovely sister. After a busy week, this little sit down is well deserved if I do say so myself.  I got interrup… Continue reading →

The Sorcerer’s Daughter, Terry BrooksI have been meaning to sample Terry Brooks for a long time but felt overwhelmed by the Shannara canon; a commitment to explore his work the way I imagined I would explore it meant a commitment to forego reading othe… Continue reading →

The Raven Cycle, Maggie StiefvaterThe accompanying sensation as I gobbled up Maggie’s Shiver series was a li’l like Twilight’s read-easy-buzz, truth be told.  Then I read Maggie’s The Scorpio Races with a reverence similar to the kind I hold for E… Continue reading →