Easter and back to school baking

Who’s with me on shouting ‘Hallelujah’ from the rooftops to have our precious small people back where they need to be?

Home schooling has, as for just about every parent I know, been challenging in the Mini Mixers household. And we’re all so grateful that a small step has been made towards normality. How are things for you?

I’ll miss the company, but what I won’t miss are the 13 gazillion snack requests per hour – anyone else? Honestly, I think they’d eat me out of sugar and sprinkles in the blink of an eye if we weren’t careful!

But just because they’ve gone back to school doesn’t mean we can’t bake up a storm to give them a treat when they return home after a long day in the classroom. You can always get creative with the lunch boxes too – who says a packed lunch can’t be fun? And with Easter almost upon us, who’s up for some gorgeous Easter treats (both orderable and make-at-homeable) this month?

Packing up a fun and creative lunch

Coming up with creative and interesting ideas for a packed lunch can get really challenging. That’s why we’ve explored a couple of packed lunch ideas to delight your little people and keep the treats a-rollin.

Sandwich kebabs – yes, you read that right.

Make whatever sandwiches you prefer (those containing spreadable fillings might work easiest with these) and cut small rounds out of each sandwich. Next, take a BBQ skewer and alternate the sandwich rounds with slices of banana, grapes or the fruit of your choice. Finish the kebab off with a strawberry with the cut edge facing into the sandwiches (you can even add little edible googly eyes to make it look like a snake or a caterpillar) and place in your lunchbox.

This is a really cute addition to the packed lunch and is lovely and healthy too – win-win.

Orange, oat and sultana cookie – and for dessert?

What kids need most to get through a busy day of education is sustaining, energy-packed sweet treats. We love this recipe for orange, oat and sultana cookies which not only taste amazing but keep small people going until home time.

Ingredients

100g butter at room temperature
1 egg
50g mashed ripe banana
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g light soft brown sugar
½ tsp grated orange zest
100g wholemeal flour
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
100g rolled oats
25g desiccated coconut
50g chopped walnuts
75g sultanas or dark chocolate chips

Method

STEP 1

Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Cream the butter and sugar together until well blended and smooth. Gradually beat in the banana, vanilla extract and egg. Add the zest. Mix well with a wooden spoon until thoroughly blended.

STEP 2

In a large bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder, oats, coconut, walnuts and sultanas or chocolate chips. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet and mix thoroughly until a thick dough is formed. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Drop heaped tbsps onto the sheet, leaving a 5cm (2in) space around each one, and press down lightly. Bake for 15-20 mins until lightly browned. Cool.

This recipe was originally found here.

Sweet treats for Easter

Easter is one of my favourite times of the year – a total free reign to enjoy chocolate and other delicious goodies without guilt.

Here at Mini Mixers, we love creating scrumptious treats for our customers. This year’s offering?

Scotch eggs with a twist. Temptingly moreish, our Easter scotch eggs are available to pre-order for Easter now. Three gorgeous Creme or Caramel eggs for £10 – who fancies ordering some?

Have fun and bake on.