Winter Outfit Idea...

My favourite high street shops are probably New Look, Topshop and River Island! This post is going to have some outfit ideas for this winter period.

In winter I love a grey top/jumper and New Look have so many different variety's at the moment and I was stuck between two for this outfit so I decided to include both and let you choose which would suit you best.

So first of I came across this  Dark Grey Ribbed Turtle Neck Long Sleeve Top for only £8.99, it seems quite thin and is a simple basic top but add a patterned scarf and a coat it would go brilliantly as part of an everyday outfit.

However, if you wanted something more cosy and thicker I suggest this Brave Soul Grey Knitted Cowl Neck Sleeveless Jumper for £17.99, yes this is more pricey but its thicker and personally I find it more suitable for a warm winter outfit.  But with this top you won't need a scarf because of the thick knitted cowl neck.

To go with these I found some MOTO Dark Grey Rip Joni Jeans from Topshop at £38.00. Obviously you can find cheaper alternatives but I find Topshop jeans are better quality and last a lot longer than others so I think they are value for money.  Also, if you aren't a fan of ripped jeans there is also the option of MOTO Dark Grey Joni Jeans which are £36.00 as an alternative from Topshop.

Now, recently I have noticed New Look's scarf collection - I love all of them! I think with the thinner top you need to add a scarf as the main part of your outfit because it's plain so I saw the Stone Check Fringed Scarf at £9.99 and fell in love this has some lovely, warm neutral colours in it then will match perfectly with the Dark Grey top.

I think a leather jacket would go perfectly with the scarf and grey tops so I found this Black Leather-Look Biker Jacket at £34.99 from New Look but there are loads of different types in all shops currently so go have a look, I chose a basic plain'ish jacket but it depends on the style you like. There are defiantly more pricier ones you could choose and some inexpensive ones if you hunt for one. But like I said this part of the outfit is all down to your style because this then could be incorporated in a lot of other outfits too.

Finally I thought I would finish off this outfit with some Black Chelsea boots I found in River Island priced at £38.00, yes these are more pricey but River Island boots are usually long-wearing and better quality so is defiantly worth the money! However, there are cheaper alternatives from New Look and other high street shops if you are on a budget.

So that is one of my many outfit ideas from high street stores. Comment down below if you would like me to do more outfit ideas.

What is your favourite outfit idea from high street stores?

Gingerbread Cake with Caramel Biscuit Icing...

This cake is perfect for Christmas but could also be used for any other event like Birthdays and Anniversaries because you can change the decoration to however you would like.  This beautiful, mouth watering cake is easy to make.  It has a light, fluffy inside with a delicious sweet icing.  I made this as a Christmas Day Special Homemade Cake and my family all loved it! I hope yours do too:)

What You Need…

Ingredients for the Cake:

·         150ml full-fat milk

·         3 tbsp black treacle

·         225ml vegetable oil

·         375g plain flour

·         3 tsp baking powder

·         1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

·         275g light brown sugar

·         1 tsp ground cinnamon

·         1 tsp ground ginger

·         300ml buttermilk

·         3 free-range eggs

·         3 tbsp dark rum (optional)

·         2 tsp vanilla extract

Ingredients for the Icing:

·         250g slightly salted butter

·         600g icing sugar

·         300g full-fat cream cheese

·         2 tsp vanilla extract

·         200g smooth caramelised biscuit spread

·         Edible glitter (optional)

·         White chocolate stars (optional)

Ingredients for the Gingerbread Decoration Cookies:

·         350g plain flour (plus extra for rolling)

·         1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

·         2 tsp ground ginger

·         1 tsp ground cinnamon

·         125g butter

·         175g light soft brown sugar

·         1 free-range egg

·         4 tbsp golden syrup

Ingredients for the Gingerbread Decoration Cookies Icing:

·         Cutters of your choice

·         Pre-made icing from shop

   

What You Need To Do...

Step by Step instructions on how to make the Cake:

1.       Preheat oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4

2.       Pour the full-fat milk and the treacle into the saucepan

3.       Bring to a gentle simmer and stir until combined then set aside to cool

4.       Now grease and line 3 circle cake tins

5.       Put the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, sugar and spices into a large mixing bowl

6.       Mix all the ingredients together with no large lumps of sugar

7.       In a large glass bowl whisk the oil, buttermilk, eggs, rum and vanilla extract together

8.       Then add the milk and treacle mixture you left aside to cool and mix well

9.       Add the dry and wet ingredients together and whisk into a smooth batter

10.   Divide between tins and cook for 20-30 minutes, at 20 minutes check them and swap the cakes around so they get cooked evenly.

11.   Cool the cakes in the tins for 10 minutes then transfer to the cooling racks and leave to cool

Step by Step instructions on how to make the icing:

1.       Soften the butter then mix with half of the icing sugar (300g) in a mixing bowl now whizz it together with an electric hand whisk and just use a balloon whisk

2.       Add the remaining icing sugar, cream cheese, vanilla extract and biscuit spread and mix together until smooth

3.       Now start to use the icing to cover and stack the three cakes

4.       Put the cake in the fridge to chill

Step by Step instructions on how to make the Gingerbread Decoration Cookies:

1.       Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4

2.       Sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon

3.       Add the butter and blend until the mix looks like breadcrumbs

4.       Stir in the sugar

5.       Lightly beat 1 egg and golden syrup together then add to the mixture until all clumped together

6.       Tip the dough put and knead briefly until smooth then wrap in clingfilm and leave to chill in the fridge for 10-15 minutes

7.       Line two baking trays with greaseproof paper

8.       Roll dough out to ¹/₂ cm thickness

9.       Now use the cutters then place them on the lined trays

10.   Bake for 12-15 minutes, leave on the tray for 10 minutes until moving them onto the cooling rack

11.   When cooled decorate with icing and decorations of your choice.

Step by Step instructions on Decorating the Cake:

1.       Place the gingerbread biscuits around and on top of the cake

2.       Now decorate your cake however you like, I used silver edible glitter and white chocolate stars and covered it.

I hope yours turned out perfectly! Leave a comment if you tried it!

Original Recipe: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/gingerbread-cake-caramel-biscuit-icing

  

What You Need To Do…