In The Kitchen: Easter Nest Cakes

These easy, no-bake, Easter* classics always go down a treat.

 The simplicity of these yummy treats is exactly why I thought they would be the perfect make for the first time Sebastian joined in with some 'baking' in the kitchen.  Other than melting the chocolate (which I did before he came into the kitchen with me!) there is nothing hot and no need for anything sharp. Damage limitation!

 My expectations weren't particularly high.  He's only 17 months old and while some bloggers and instagrammers would have you believe that their 17 month old is capable of creating a triple tier chocolate cake, I kept it in my mind that Sebastian will more than likely make an almighty mess and probably get quite frustrated when I inevitably have to stop the fun.  Also, despite not having genetic testing, I am fairly sure my son has gannet in his DNA.  He loves his food and is incredibly a bit possessive over it. The idea of not being allowed to eat the entire mixture before it was spooned into the cases and put in the fridge was likely to be panic-inducing.

 You'd think that having thought all that before beginning, I just wouldn't have bothered and picked up a pack of the ridiculously addictive mini egg nest cakes from Tesco instead.  But no, I decided to do it so at least I can say we have tried...

I was right.  He devoured large amounts of the mixture at various stages of creation and there were globules of sticky rice krispies e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e.  As long as he was shovelling the mixture into his gob and flinging the mixture up the wall, he was happy.  Of course this had to come to an end so the meltdown commenced.  Trying to clean off the stickiest mixture known to man (serves me right for adding extra marshmallows and golden syrup!) whilst Sebastian's world was falling apart was stressful enough that he is now having a little nap and I am sipping coffee, regaling the joyous experience here before I forget the wonderful memories we have made.

Ingredients

40g Butter
150g Chocolate
2tbsp Golden Syrup
Handful of mini marshmallows
80g Rice Krispies
Mini Eggs

I feel it a little insulting talking you through how to make it because everyone knows how to make it and if you don't it is painfully simple.

1. Melt the butter, chocolate, golden syrup and the marshmallows in a bowl over hot water.  A bain marie if you will (a term far too posh for this recipe!)

2. Stir in the rice krispies and mix thoroughly.

3. Serve into cake cases.

4. Decorate with a little cluster of mini eggs.  I did one with marshmallows instead of mini eggs for Sebastian.

5. Pop in fridge for at least an hour.

6. DEVOUR!

The finished product was well received by Sebastian and both mummy and daddy. I'll let this photo testify just how tasty they were...

* Yes, I know Easter has been and gone.  I was very slow off the mark getting the photos off the camera.  These tasty treats can be enjoyed at anytime of the year though, so who cares!

Little Person, Little Bird.

I found myself in Mothercare a few days ago and whilst I was failing to find a suitable car seat,  I spied the new Little Bird range.  Be still my beating heart!  Created by Jools Oliver, the better half of the chef man (You know the one who murdered turkey twizzlers and is a pro on breastfeeding!) it is a beautiful range, full of colour and retro vibes.  A good selection of their pieces are ideal for both boy or girl, I love this and feel you don't see this anywhere enough.  Below is a little selection of my favourite items that I would just love to add to Sebastian's summer wardrobe.

Look at those shorts (deffo my favourite!) - what a lovely colourful collection! 

Mother's Day 2016 - A walk on a hill.

Mother's Day began at a really rather reasonable 8am (or was it 7am?  I can't actually remember... It wasn't 5am - huzzah!)  And what better start than to be woken by a small person clambering into your bed to sprinkle his croissant crumbs over the sheets.

Not having a great deal planned for the day, we decided to go for a walk around Crickley Hill, a lovely little spot that overlooks a large part of Gloucestershire.  Owned by The National Trust, Crickley Hill is a popular spot for families and dog walkers as there is lots space to walk, run, play, explore, chill, whatever verb you fancy participating in.  There are picnic tables and bbqs, perfect for summer feasting and on a sunny, clear day the views are particularly stunning.  Of course, it was pretty dismal weather and a fine rain persisted for most of our walk.

Oh, look! There is a hill!

And another one!

While it was good fun, I couldn't help thinking back to the times when we used to walk the dogs up there, child-free and just how easy going for a walk actually was.  

Things I learnt whilst walking on the hill: 

1. Slightly too big wellies are not a good idea for a toddler. On feet/Lying on floor ratio is around 50:50.
 
2. A tired and slightly snuffly toddler will have not even enough tolerance to fill a teaspoon. 

3. Sebastian loves dogs. Every single one has to be greeted with a squeal and an eye-poke even if said dog wants to devour his face. 

4. For my toddler, the best thing about going for a walk in the fresh air, grass and beautiful scenery is obviously the car park, the gravel and the cars.

5. Putting a toddler into a car seat after having fresh air and freedom will be tantamount to torture and being on one of the highest points in Gloucestershire, their cries will resound around the county and be greeted with eye-rolling from every dog walker, dog and dogger in the vicinity.

When walking is just too much, lie on the floor and take in the views.

A sad looking little boy who was put out when we denied him exploring the sheer drop to the car park just beyond the trees.

The Beginning - Hello!

My name is Rebecca and my life revolves around my partner, our 17 month old little boy human and our unhinged, black cat, Lenny.  It's a rather nice life, simple and uncomplicated (usually...)  Over the years I have learnt that simple and uncomplicated is exactly what I like.

Stop Biting The Cat is to be my little space on the internet to document my pretty ordinary life.  I warn you now, there will be no accounts of a fortnight holiday to some hard to pronounce island with glistening blue seas, no posts showcasing photographs of saccharine moments in which we are 'making memories' and there will more than likely be a moderate amount of sweariness and iffy photographs captured on my crappy phone.

As the half completed scrapbooks and baby record books stack up and gather dust I wonder if I can preserve the 'special moments', here on this blog, like a real 21st century mummy. Just the every day moments, as they are the ones you forget.

I am more than just a mummy though, honest!  Hopefully, this space will allow me to share other things I like to indulge in.  The serious and the not so serious (mainly the not so serious...)

Bear with me.  I will tart this page up in the weeks to come, but for now it's going to be kept simple.  I have lots of posts swimming around in my head, so I am going to focus on that first.

This is a shit introduction.  But, at least I have introduced myself and this blog and I believe there is no better greeting than a great big 'HELLO!'