This is my super simple Prize Winning Blue Ribbon Chocolate Cake recipe, this amazing recipe helped me win heaps of first prize ribbons at the Royal Melbourne Show & various Country Shows too.  It's the perfect recipe for a large cake or cupcakes, it's soft,  moist & keeps for a week, I actually thinks it better a day or 2 after its been baked.


Blue Ribbon Chocolate Cake Recipe
Oven Temp 160 C (325 F)
24cm round - Cooking time 1hr
24 cup cakes - Cooking time 25-30min

Ingredients
2 cups plain flour
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon instant coffee
2/3 cup coco powder
185gm butter softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ¾ cups of castor sugar
3 eggs (60’s)
1 cup of water

Prepare you cake tin or cup cake trays
Place all of the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix together slowly to combine all the ingredients then slowly turn the speed up to high beat on high until mixture is pale & has doubled in volume.
Pour mixture in to cake tin or fill cupcake liners 3/4 full
Place in the oven and bake for required time or until an inserted knife comes out clean.

Let me know what you think :)
♥Kerri

Recipe - Mains - Stuffed Pasta with fetta & spinach

A little while ago I made this stuffed pasta, it's a little bit fiddly but well worth the effort.

Stuffed Pasta with Fetta & Spinach.
Serves 4. Prep time 30min. Cooking time: 30min. Oven Temp 200C. 2.5ltr rectangular ovenproof dish
20 jumbo pasta shells
2 x 400gm cans of tomatoes
2 teaspoons of crushed garlic or 2 garlic cloves crushed
180gm fresh spinach chopped
300gm fresh ricotta
125gm fetta crumbled
1 egg
1 cup of grated mozzarella cheese

1:Preheat oven.
2:Put a large pot of salted water on to boil. Place a clean tea towel on a baking tray.
3:In a large bowl break up the the tomatoes with a wooden spoon, stir in 1 teaspoon of garlic. Spread the crushed tomatoes on the bottom of the ovenproof dish.
4:Cook pasta in batches for about 8min or until just tender (don't over cook or they will fall a part). When pasta is cooked use a slotted spoon to take it out, put it into a colander to drain refresh with cold water to stop the cooking. Transfer to the prepared baking tray.
5:Combine spinach, fetta, ricotta, 1 teaspoon of garlic & egg in a bowl. Season with salt & pepper.
6: Spoon the mixture into the pasta shells & a range them in the dish.
7: Sprinkle cheese over the filled pasta shells.
8: Bake for 30min or until sauce is bubbling & the cheese is golden. Stand for 5 min. Then serve with a salad & bread.

*Large pasta shells are available from Italian grocers, delis & some supermarkets.

Enjoy
♥ Kerri