Monthly Archives: December 2015

A Festive Favourite: Baileys Chocolate Mousse

We absolutely adore Baileys Irish Cream here at Freathy; not only does it taste delicious as a drink (neat or over ice) but also adds a velvety rich whiskey smoothness to so many dessert recipes including cheesecakes, cupcakes, gateaux, ice cream and all manner of sweets and truffles. But our absolute favourite has to be Baileys Chocolate Mousse…….

 

 

Combining the sweet flavour of Baileys with the rich intensity of chocolate to make a deliciously light, fluffy mousse is our idea of heaven and perfect at any time of year, but we think it adds an extra special touch to Christmas festivities.

Try it for yourself with our favourite recipe from Cathy Trochelman, author of our go-to blog for recipe inspiration Lemon Tree Dwelling

PREP TIME
15 mins
TOTAL TIME
15 mins

Serves:6 (1/2 cup) servings

INGREDIENTS
• 2 teaspoons unflavoured gelatin
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• ¼ cup boiling water
• ½ cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1½ cup double cream, very cold
• ½ cup Bailey’s, very cold
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Before starting to mix the mousse, prepare the bowl and beaters by placing them in the freezer for 15 minutes to chill.

2. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a small bowl; stir and let it stand for 1 minute to soften.

3. Add boiling water and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Let stand to cool.

4. Stir together the sugar and cocoa in a small mixing bowl and add the double cream.

5. Beat at a medium speed until stiff peaks form. Gradually pour in the Bailey’s, vanilla and the gelatin mixture, beating continuously at high speed until the mixture is well combinedand soft peaks form.

6. Spoon into serving dishes and put in the fridge to chill. (For a faster setting mousse, chill the dishes before filling them).

7. Chill for 1 hour or until ready to serve.

A Winter’s Afternoon Craft Project: Mini Lavender Cushion

Our ‘crafter in residence’ Jill Amanda Kennedy has come up with this great little crafty project, perfect for whiling away the chilly days of winter.

 

Simple and quick to make, this cute little lavender-filled cushion project is ideal for using up scraps of leftover fabric and trims and can easily be adapted to suit a room’s colour and decor scheme.

Instructions:
1. Cut 2 squares of linen fabric 6” x 6” (15cm) square.

2. Find the centre of the fabric and mark out a 5 ½ “ (14cm) square – this will be your stitching line.

3. Using rubber stamps (Jill chose a tea cup) and a black ink pad, print directly onto one piece of the fabric on the left hand side, away from your sewing line.

4. Now stamp the words “Tea Time” above the tea cup, and leave it to dry.

5. Pin a pretty strip of fabric along the right hand side of the printed piece of linen fabric and lay ribbon and lace strips either side of this, covering up any raw edges. Pin them in place and carefully machine stitch them down.

6. Picking out the colours in your pretty fabric strip, add more decorative trim on top to complement, and sew in place.

7. With wrong sides facing each other, place both pieces of square linen together.

8. Place a piece of ribbon, folded in half, into one of the top corners of the square, making sure the fold is pointing towards the centre.

9. Machine stitch a ½” seam around 3 sides only, catching in the ends of the folded ribbon.

10. Turn right sides out and press flat.

11. Stuff the cushion with wadding and add dried lavender into the centre of the wadding.

12. Turn under a small seam along the unstitched side of the cushion and hand sew this closed.

Hang it on a door handle, pop it in a drawer, or place it next to your sewing machine for an instant scented lift, refreshing the fragrance with a few drops of lavender essential oil when necessary.

These would also make perfect little stocking filler gifts too!

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