Monday 25 May 2015

Two new Macbeth clips released

Two new clips have been released for the new adaptation of Shakespeare's play, Macbeth. With Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard in the lead roles, this is sure to be an exciting take on the classic story. The film also stars also stars Paddy Considine and David Thewlis and is directed by Justin Kurzel (Snowtown).

Macbeth is set for UK cinema release on 2nd October 2015.

Here are the clips:



Gluten-free vs dairy-free: Marble Limoncello Cupcakes

I'm coming up to a year now since I gave up eating gluten and cow's milk (turns out, they were not my friend!) and it's taken me that long to - I think - finally master the gluten- and dairy-free cupcake.

When I still ate wheat and milk, I made a mean limoncello cupcake. It wasn't all that surprising then that I decided to try and figure out how to make a gluten- and dairy-free alternative when I changed my diet.

But it wasn't nearly as easy as I thought it would be. I looked up recipes and they were all so complicated! No more just throwing things into a bowl, mixing it up and VOILA!

The first thing I discovered - even after finding a gluten-free flour that had all these fancy extras built in - was that gluten-free food is so much drier than gluten-full food. You have to counteract it with a sizeable dash of milk (which, as I no longer used it, had to be almond milk). These cupcakes also require a lot more elbow grease. They had weird little bubbles in them if I didn't whisk the pre-flour mixture into submission.

Then, just when I thought  I had cracked it, I found one more ingredient that really completed the cupcake: Cacao. Chocolate in its purest form and entirely free of dairy.

So, after all this trial and error, here's my recipe for my gluten- and dairy-free marble limoncello cupcakes.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:
150g Doves Farm Gluten-free White self-raising flour blend
150g dairy-free margarine
150g caster sugar
3 eggs
(Approx) 3 tablespoons of almond milk (or a non-dairy alternative if you have a nut allergy!)
A dash of vanilla essence (a teaspoon should be enough)
A sprinkling of Cacao powder

For the decoration:
Icing sugar
Limoncello

1. Mix the margarine and sugar together with a wooden spoon.
2. Whisk the eggs then add slowly to the batter, mixing as you go.
3. Add a dash of vanilla essence and the milk and mix in.
4. Whisk this all together for a minute to make sure that all lumps have gone.
5. Add the flour and fold it in slowly with a metal spoon.
6. Spoon a little of the mixture into cupcake cases, leaving room for more to be added.
7. With the remaining mixture, sprinkle on the Cacao powder - be careful not to add too much as the mixture then becomes too thick. You want just enough to make it turn light brown.
8. Add another dollop of this batter to the cupcakes, causing the marble effect.
9. Bake in the oven at Gas Mark 6 for around 15 minutes, checking to make sure they are not burnt. Do not open the oven before the fifteen minute mark as they are likely to sink!
10. When they are ready, take them out and place them on a plate or chopping board to cool.
11. When they have cooled, stab each of them in the middle with a fork and then, using a spoon, dribble on a little of the limoncello, letting it seep through into the sponge.
12. Add icing. (If you want to make these really boozy then use limoncello, not water, to make up the icing too!)
13. EAT!

So there you have it: a bit of elbow grease, a touch of chocolate and a hint of alcoholic lemons and you have yourself a delicious gluten- and dairy-free cupcake!

Do let me know if you give them a try!


Sunday 17 May 2015

New trailers for Minions, The Intern and She's Funny That Way

As the summer months start to get closer, there are lots of trailers landing to get film fans excited for what we have coming up at cinemas.

Here are three that have just recently arrived:

1. Minions
There might just be a BANANA! shortage soon...!



2. The Intern
If you like your films a little less for the children in your life (or the inner child in yourself!) then there's also a new trailer for The Internship, which stars Robert De Niro (as the intern!) and Anne Hathaway.



3. She's Funny That Way
Alternatively, if you want something adult but a little bit silly then this trailer is the one for you.



Which are you looking forward to out of these three?