#16 Chewy ginger orange cookies with dark chocolate

Haven't updated the blog for a while...BUT! It doesn't mean I'm not baking these days! I may feel lazy when I think of reading journals (I'm kidding ;p) or doing sports (that's true) but for baking, seriously, I will never feel bored. NEVER.

I baked these cookies for the last baking society get-together. The theme is Christmas of course and I chose this recipe from my Secret Santa. Yay~I wrote a recipe about apple cinnamon cupcake but the one who picked it didn't turn up...Will try by myself sometimes :)

I didn't like ginger very much because of its special spicy taste. But after coming to UK, I just started to love it probably after I tried some gingerbread :) It makes you feel warm and can make the cookies more special. What's more, you can taste the fragrance of orange and the richness of dark chocolate. Hmmm Yum yum!

The edge of the cookies is a little bit hard but the centre is soft and moist. I really like the change of mouthfeel, making the cookies more tasty. Pick a cookie and have a cup of tea! Nice! It's also a good choice as a winter gift or for Christmas :)

Photo by Serena

The original recipe is from Ruby Tandoh (http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/oct/25/syrup-loaf-cake-ginger-chocolate-orange-cookies-recipe-ruby-tandoh)

#15 Homemade macaroon

So...after the fourth try, I finally manage to make macaroons! They may look a bit flat but they taste good! Can't forget how excited and amazed I am at the moment when I took them out of the oven ;p

These little desserts are so popular in China and every baker has 'try to make macaroons' on their to-do-lists. So do I. I tried twice when I was in China and...failed. I thought it was the problem of the ingredients (not excuse!) but then...I failed again with ingredients I bought from one of the most expensive supermarkets here. 

You wouldn't imagine how I feel...upset, desperate and don't want to talk to other people...haha just kidding! Then after recalling the whole process, I realized I did something wrong to cause the failure. I'm so happy I don't give up and give a forth try. Otherwise I couldn't know I can succeed and experience a different kind of happiness. A great sense of achievement, I would say.

Macaroons are sweet, which can make me think of sweet and beautiful things. 
Happy memories, here and there, now and then, you and me.

Okay, Christmas is coming. And it's the last month of 2014. Time flies, really.

Hope something good will happen in the last days. Looking forward to it.

I got this little toy on Black Friday when most girls were buying clothes crazily but I bought myself more baking equipment. Am I just a little bit obsessed with baking? Haha, but I'm willing to do it. It's so good to see people's smile when they eat my bakery. I really like this girl because it looks like me :)