Mustering

On Sunday there was a spot of mustering to do.

All the cows and calves from the big paddock needed to be yarded ready for the vet to preg test.

The boys were dead set keen.

I had other things that would be my priority for the day.

Like Mstr MDK's birthday cake!!!! And the favourite pot lasagna for dinner!

so I gave the Mstr MDK my Iphone, as he'd forgotten to take his and asked him to take some photos for me. The first 3 are some of what he got the time to take.

The ones that had to be mustered

Itty Bitty MDK going at it hammer and tongs

He loovs that teeny weeny quad

and here's the girls in the yards

 So I think you've got one in you, but how far along might you be?

and who's your mamma??

Up above a Wedge Tailed eagle was soaring, looking for its prey

I got a call to bring 'smoko' QUICK!!!!- even though no one 'round here smokes!!!

Mr MDK was a bit worried he was going to be sitting around watching our mustering help eat his morning tea and they'd have nothing to eat.

So thermos, cups, tea bags, milo, milk, 3 packets of Arnotts biscuits in hand and off I went.

I think they appreciated it.

Whilst all that mustering was going on, back at home, Miss MDK and I were trying to get a birthday cake cooked and lunch organised.

I loov this Chocolate Fudge Dessert cake so much, it's so easy.

As usual I have quadrupled the quantities to make it use a whole can of sweetened condensed milk, coz if I didn't I'd just eat the rest.

Yep ALL of it.

Straight out of the tin too.

But I'd probably have to fight the kids off first.

Mmn if I was doing it on my own I probably wouldn't even let them know it was there.

This is a real secret people, and I've never shared it before, only with 1 special sis. Coz I make tons of them for fetes and special people only, and I don't need the competition.

Into a big pot, on low on the stove, place

600g butter and slowly melt it.

400g Dark Chocolate, I use the Plaistowe couverture (but any dark cooking choc will do!), melt it in

3 cups(480g) of lightly packed brown sugar

1 whole tin of sweetened condensed milk

2 cups of chocolate topping

remove this from the heat, when it looks like a nicely dissolved, melted blend,

you don't want it to get too hot.

let it cool down a bit.

Next you'll need

1 cup of cream

4 eggs, lightly beaten

3 cups(450-500g) Self Raising flour

mix the cream and egg and add with the flour to the chocolate mix, I use a hand mixer to mix it all in the pot it was melted in. Coz I can and it means less washing up, yee hah.

mix it well and pour into any combination of tins

this day I used a 26cm springform and a Bundt.

in the past -4x 20cm springform (great for fetes)

1 x 28cm and 1x 24cm tin (great for a wedding cake or stacked for fancy parties, school birthday cakes with lollies, snakes, smarties etc, covering it, no icing, ganache or anything else!)

just try out what you've got, I'm sure it would even work in muffin cases, though I haven't tried it, yet.

So if your tins fall short then fill up some muffins, or if you don't have two ovens like me just use the 1/4 quantity in a 20cm tin, and eat the other 3/4 of the tin of condensed milk, hahaha.

leave about an inch at the top for it to rise.

sometimes, it'll rise up then sink when it's done.

place the 2 big tins into a pre warmed oven at 165 degrees Celcius for about 1 hr 10 mins.

or if you are using 20 cm cake tins then place it at 170 degrees Celcius for 40 - 45 mins

let it cool in the tin, (unless its a bundt- only leave these for a little cool off, or you may never get it out!)

 this is one of the most forgiving cakes ever!

it's fudgy and moist and adults and kids just looov the flavour of it.

 Mstr MDK wanted something that was like a volcano and Miss MDK had made a jelly to be the lava flowing out, but my ganache filled up the middle. So jelly and cream goes on the side!

  

It's moist and fudgy and soooooo rich. Serve it with cream and perhaps some strawberries or raspberries and it's utterly delicious.