I'm still here

It's the end of the uni semester and I have 4 assignments all due next week. I am feeling a little snowed under right now, but I have 2 finished and the other 2 started so it's not all bad.

I am also heading away in just over a week for a conference for work and then to see my sister in London! So while i am desperate to get to my sewing machine, I just can't seem to find the time. I have placed a pattern and some material next to our desk so I am constantly being reminded of what is waiting for me when I finish all my homework!

Otherwise, I am looking forward to a BIG day of craft later in June with all the Craft Room girls. I have a couple of quilts that need binding which I think will be perfect for that day.

PS - I LOVED my teaching round and am so excited to be moving my life in a new direction. I just wish I could start full time already! Thanks for your lovely wishes on my last post

back to school...

Tomorrow is the day. I am going back to high school - but this time as a teacher (well a student/training teacher!). I am pretty nervous, but also incredibly excited about my first placement. I am almost certain that I made the right choice by going back to uni to change my career, and I hope that these coming few weeks cement that certainty. I can't wait for tomorrow to come so I can get started!

We've been doing a bit of cooking this weekend including these 'blondies'. I had never had a blondie before but I had a bag of butterscotch chips that my sister-in-law had bought for me in the US, and this was the first recipe I found that used them. They have a lovely chewy edge and the coconut is a great addition - but they are very sweet! Although I suspect they will be great for my school lunch box tomorrow, the perfect morning tea treat for my first day.

Chewy, Chunky Blondies

2 cups plain flour (I used wholemeal)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt / fleur de sel
225g butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup shredded coconut

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees C. Butter and line a 9×13-inch baking pan.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add both sugars and beat for another 3 minutes, or until well incorporated.

Add the eggs one by one, beating for 1 minute after each addition, then beat in the vanilla.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until they disappear into the batter. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chips, nuts and coconut.

Scrape the batter into the buttered pan and use the spatula to even the top as best you can.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the blondies comes out clean. The blondies should pull away from the sides of the pan a little and the top should be a nice honey brown. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for about 15 minutes before turning the blondies out onto another rack. Invert onto a rack and cool the blondies to room temperature right side up, before cutting into squares or bars

Recipe from Dorie Greenspan, Baking: From My Home to Yours