Hello From Claude

• Name: Claude
• Age: About 3-4 years old
• A little about me: I'm very playful and I love the younger kittens at the cat shelter. I can get in trouble sometimes because I don't always remember my own size but I never mean any harm. Sadly I'm not very good at looking after my own fur and I don't like it when they try to brush me so sometimes they have to shave me. It makes me look a bit silly but I can carry off the look with my vastly superior handsomeness and cuteness. 

Muffins with Dates and Walnuts

The weather has been wonderful all day today and it made me in the perfect 

mood to bake what I had planned. 

Some lovely muffins with dates and walnuts. They are sweet and perfect. 

So, to make these little lovelies you will need:

• 250 grams chopped dates
• 2 1/2 dl water 
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp butter
• 220 grams flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• A small handful walnuts
• 225 grams sugar
• 1 whisked egg  
  

Preparation time is about 15 minutes and it will make about 16 muffins.

Preheat the oven at 165 °C.

You will have to start with the dates and get them ready. I usually buy about 300 grams of dates 

because you have to remember that there are stones in them and you'll have to take them out. 

~ 1st step: The sticky step in other words. Pit all the dates and make sure you have 250 grams ready. Then chop them all roughly and place them in a pan with the water. 

Bring the pan to a boil and then take it off the heat. Add the baking soda and butter and stir it well. Let that sit for the time being and move on to the second part.

~ 2nd step: Grab the walnuts and start chopping! Chop them as small or big as you want them. I usually have them medium chopped. 

Sift the flour and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. 

Add the walnuts, sugar and the egg and lightly start to mix it together.Once you've done this you can add the datemix and stir it together to an even mixture. 

If it smells sweet and feels sticky you're doing it right. 

Now I hope you left some of the chopped walnuts!

They are super to sprinkle on the top of the muffins before you put them in the oven. 

Fill your muffin liners about two thirds and sprinkle some walnuts on top. 

 

Put the tray in the oven for about 20 minutes. Check on them once in a while to make sure they are nice and comfy. Now, because of the dates they will be soft and fluffy and you will keep going back to them thinking that they aren't getting baked all the way through, but don't worry, the last few minutes they pull themselves together and will be perfect. 

Just to make sure though you can grab a barbecue skewer and stick it through the middle of one of them. If it comes out cleanly with no mixture on it then they are ready to come out. 

 

And tuck in!

Hope you all enjoy!

If you have any questions then feel free to leave a comment and if any of you decide to try it out then I would love to hear your opinion and maybe see a picture or two. Good luck!

So what will this week bring?

Well, I'll be baking tomorrow and I'm really looking forwards to it. I was walking around town looking for dates to use and I couldn't find it anywhere. That's the main problem with living in a small town next to the Swedish border south in Norway. Whenever something is slightly out of season there is a possibility that you wont see it for another year or so.

But! In the end I found some. So tomorrow I'll be baking some Date and Walnut muffins. They really are some of the best muffins I've ever tasted and they last for days without going stale. 

On Wednesday I'm going to the cat shelter to take care of the fluffy creatures and on Thursday I will be doing a little Cat Profile of Claude. (top right corner)

And also introducing Miss!

Miss is my own little girl. She became ten years this February and now that the sun has come out she's loving it outside. I spent ages with her yesterday out in the sun rolling around and playing. Such a fluffy little ball. 

Welcome to my brand new blog!

I'll be updating with news from the cat shelter, crafts, photography, baking and maybe a tutorial or two.

To start it off I thought I should just introduce you to some of the small creatures I know who have huge hearts. Markus, Zoki, Lobo and Simen. 

Markus (top left corner) is with us at the cat shelter because his owner is having a hard time. So, he's not up for adoption (yet) but with us he's finally getting the care and love that he needs. He's a "paws on" type of cat and will give you good headbutt if he thinks you're not cuddling him enough.

Zoki (top right corner) came to us only a few months ago and is doing loads better. She's not shy at all and all she really wants is a lap to curl up on. I hope she gets a good home sometime soon where she can love and be loved. 

Lobo (bottom left corner) has been with us for over two years now and has improved drastically since he arrived. He had been living on the street all his life (he's about 5-6 years old) and two winters ago it got so cold that the people in his neighbourhood couldn't watch any longer as he struggled to get by. He's the Rambo of all cats. But even though he's tough and strong he's also one of the loveliest cats there is and loves to have company and loads of cuddles. 

Simen (bottom right corner) is one of the newest cats at the shelter and is starting to find his place in his new, and hopefully temporary, home. This guy wont let you sit for long before he wants your love and attention and you can just forget about reading the papers or a book because if there is something you're reading he's going to want to sit on it. He can get a bit testy with the other cats sometimes, but he's starting to fit right in with the others who just want to play.

I hope to be able to share with you the lives of some of my friends at the shelter and I hope you will fall in love with them as much as I have.