Ten in 10

Lori aka Recipe Girl has started a wonderful challenge for the new year called Ten in 10. The aim? To get healthy, whatever healthy means to you! I had already decided I was going to make January a detox month, now I am committed to a full 10 weeks of getting healthier, fitter and stronger.

I SO need this challenge. I am still 10 kilos heavier than I was pre-pregnancy which means my clothes don't fit, I get tired more easily and I have pudgy bits that are getting me down. Not cool. While I desperately want to lose those 10 kilos I am keeping my goals health oriented. I know the weight will come off in the process and I won't get fixated on the scales.

My goals are:

1. To eat consciously (watch my portion size, only eat when hungry, stop when I'm full and keep track of what I eat)
2. To exercise for 30 minutes daily
3. To live like a healthy, active person ie. getting up off the couch and out of the house!

To help kickstart my Ten in 10 I will be taking a break from all baking groups for the month. That means no TWD, Daring Bakers or Daring Cooks. But make sure you check back on Tuesday - I couldn't miss the TWD 2nd anniversary!

I will be posting every Saturday with an update. There are over 200 participants from around the world so to join or check in and see how everyone's going, click here.

Christmas Cookies: Florentines

Hard to believe but there are only 5 weeks until Christmas ... 5! We are planning on making most of our gifts this year and I am going to tackle jam making for the first time which i'm looking forward to. I'll be posting about all the goodies we make over the coming weeks.

I first made florentines as a child and have fond memories of very sticky fingers from both the making and the eating! It is the perfect Christmas biscuit made with with cherries, dried cranberries and of course chocolate. I must admit they were pretty messy to make in the current weather. Humidity and chocolate are not friends! But the end result is absolutely worth it.

This post is my submission to the second annual Eat Christmas Cookies Event run by Susan at Food Blogga. Click here for all the details on how to participate and make sure you visit the round up page to see all the scrumptious submissions by clicking the logo below:

Florentines
This is a Karen Martini recipe which I copied down while watching Better Homes & Gardens back in September

250g cornflakes
380ml (1 tin) condensed milk
2 tbs honey
150g roasted peanuts
100g dried cranberries
60g glace ginger
100g glace cherries
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
zest of 1/2 lemon
250g dark chocolate

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line 2 trays with baking paper and set aside.

Combine all the dry ingredients in a very large bowl then pour over the honey and condensed milk. Stir well to combine. You can start off with a spoon but you may need to use your hands as it will be very sticky.

Using a 6cm cookie cutter as a guide, spoon the mixture onto the prepared trays. Allow space between them as they will spread a little. (I made half this way and the other half on a biscuit tray).

Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the trays. Don't try to move them until they are completely cool because they will crumble and break apart.

While the biscuits are cooling, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Allow to cool slightly.

Using a palette knife, spread a little melted chocolate over the base of each biscuit and then place chocolate side up on a cooling rack to set. This will take around 20 minutes.

Makes approx 30. The biscuits will keep for a week in an airtight container, if they last that long!