Wellbeing Tent

Cherry and Almond Rock Buns from Carol Redpath, Carer Wellbeing Facilitator

Ingredients

• 8oz/200g self-raising flour
• 4oz/100g low fat spread or butter
• 2oz/50g caster sugar
• 1 size 3 egg, beaten (large)
• 2-3 tblsp/30-45 ml semi skimmed or skimmed milk
• ½ oz/15g flaked or ground almonds
• 1½ oz/40g glace cherries, finely chopped
• Few drops almond essence (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C/Gas mark 6.
2. Sift flour into a bowl.
3. Rub in the low fat spread/butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
4. Stir in the sugar.
5. Add the egg and a little milk to produce a stiff dough.
6. Mix in the cherries, almonds and essence.
7. Place in spoonfuls on a lightly greased baking tray. You can also use baking paper to prevent them sticking.
8. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

Cooking Tips

These buns are best eaten within 1-2 days and are ideal for lunch boxes.

They can be frozen for later use.

The mixture can be made into 12-24 buns depending on how big you want them.

Anyone can help make these buns and they are delicious when warm with a little low fat spread, cream or jam on them.

Enjoy and let us know what you think of them!

Carrot Cake Recipe - from Jo Wilson, Carer Wellbeing Facilitator

Serves 16, so half the mixtures for a smaller cake as this is really big and dense

650g grated carrots
220g Dark brown sugar
170g sultanas or raisins
4 eggs
300g caster sugar
250ml vegetable oil
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
250g pineapple chunks cut into cubes
375g plain flour
1 ½ teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon of salt
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
120g chopped walnuts

1. In a medium bowl combine the grated carrots and dark sugar. Mix and set aside for 60 minutes then stir in the raisins.
2. Preheat the oven to 180 C/ Gas mark 4. Grease and flour two 25cm cake tins ( or one and cook two separate cakes )
3. In a bowl, beat eggs until light. Gradually beat in the caster sugar, oil and vanilla. Stir in the pineapple.
4. In another bowl but large combine the flour, bicarb, salt and cinnamon, then stir the carrot mixture into this bowl and then finally stir in the carrot mixture making sure that it is mixed properly as sometimes the flour does not mix in.
5. Pour into tin or tins half in each.
6. Bake in the oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until the cake is baked, you will know this if you put a skewer or sharp knife into middle and there is no mixture on it when you pull it out.
7. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes and then lay on a wire rack to cool completely.

Butter Cream icing to cover.

600g icing sugar
300g block butter left out to room temperature

1. Mix the icing sugar and butter together. This is a messy job so do half and half but add 3 – 3 tablespoons of boiling water to soften this up.
2. Cut some tinned nectarines up small and mix in the amount you would like and possibly if using real oranges then add the zest of the orange into this.
3. The mixture should be soft enough to spread onto cake but not too hard, sometimes you have to add more icing sugar.

Lastly, enjoy the cake and eat it.

Enjoy and let us know what you think of them!