EASY COCONUT CUPCAKES RECIPE

With summer is coming to an end, I often find myself sitting indoors with nothing to do. That's when I decided to raid the cupboards in attempt to find something to pass the time - the end result was creating a yummy coconut cupcake recipe, curing my boredom and at the same time giving me and my family a tasty treat to enjoy. What more could you want? So if you'd like to give this a go for yourself, read ahead. 

INGREDIENTS 

(makes 10 cupcakes): 

115g / 4 oz butter or margarine

115g / 4 oz caster sugar

115g / 4oz self-raising flour

85g / 3 oz desiccated coconut

2 medium eggs

2 tbsp milk

BUTTERCREAM / DECORATION:

55g / 2 oz butter

115g / 4 oz icing sugar

1 tbsp milk or double cream

chocolate squares (optional)

EXTRAS: 

10 cupcake cases

wooden spoon

cooling rack

mixing bowl

cupcake tin

sieve

1. Preheat the oven to 180°c / 350°F / Gas Mark 4 . Place the cupcake cases into the tin. 

2. Add the butter and caster sugar into a mixing bowl and beat together using a wooden spoon until it becomes light and fluffy in texture. Now beat the 2 eggs in a separate bowl and then gradually add into the mix. Sift in the flour and fold in gently. Then begin to fold in 2 oz of the desiccated coconut and the milk. 

3.  Spoon in the mixture evenly into the cases. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. You will be able to tell they are done if they are risen and golden.  Put on a wire rack for them to cool.

Buttercream : 

To make the buttercream all you need to do is add together the butter and icing sugar in a bowl and beat together until pale and creamy. You can also add in some milk or cream to make it a more smooth consistency. 

- Once your cupcakes have completely cooled, spread on some buttercream and then use a teaspoon to sprinkle on the remaining desiccated coconut. You can also add chocolate squares for decoration like I did. - 

I hope you enjoyed this post and let me know if you try out the recipe! I'd love to know your opinions. I personally think they taste delicious. You could always leave out the coconut if you don't like it and add some vanilla or something instead. 

What is your favourite cupcake flavour?

Jem x 

BURT'S BEES LIP BALM AND BODY LOTION

I have always suffered from chapped lips, especially once the cold weather starts to kick in. A lot of the lip balms that I have previously tried never quite seem to work, and in some cases even make my lips worse off than they were to start off with. I decided to try out the Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil by Burt's Bees.

Burt's Bees is a brand that offers a range of natural health and beauty care products. Believe it or not, the company started 30 years ago in a beekeeper's backyard. The products are not tested on animals and contain no ingredients that may harm you.

This lip balm is a welcome oasis for you lips. It is a sweet scented lip balm packed with the antioxidant goodness of Pomegranate Oil. I really love this balm as it doesn't leave the greasy sort of texture that a lot of lip products do. It replenishes moisture, making your lips appear healthy again, while also leaving a subtle pink sheen to give an even toned appearance. You can purchase it for around £3.69.

When I purchased the lip balm, it came in a set along with Milk & Honey Body Lotion. This is a really lovely scented lotion made with Milk, Honey, Vitamin E, Coconut and Grape Seed Oils. The milk nourishes whilst honey helps to soften skin. What I find great about this is that it is non-greasy unlike my other moisturisers. It quickly absorbed into my skin and left it feeling soft all day. You can purchase 70ml for £5.99 .

You can purchase Burt's Bees products in a variety of places including Boots, Debenhams and Holland & Barratt .

what are your favourite lip products?

Jem x

LANCASTER SELF TAN BEAUTY

If only we could all achieve the perfectly bronzed summer glow all year round. You may be lucky enough to have gone on holiday this year, or even just naturally tan already, but for those of us left looking pale - I have found the perfect solution.

For a lot of us, self tanning can be seen as something we are afraid of. You don't want to be left with an overly orange, artificial looking colour on your skin. You don't want to end up with streaks, and you most definitely do not want to be left with the slightly off putting odour that comes with it. 

I have been testing out a few different self tanning products recently, to try and create the best effect possible. You may have seen my St.Tropez review, however that did not go down brilliantly as there wasn't really much of an end result. This week I discovered Lancaster Self Tan Beauty. This is a self tanning jelly for a progressive natural looking glow. There are three shade options, and I went for 01. Light. This is described as a gradual, gentle sheen of a weekend in Capri. 

You can apply the product to both face and body, and it features Tan Colour Adapt technology which allows it to mimic your natural tan colour, leaving a radiant and even result without the orange look. I was really impressed with the results, after just one application I had a noticeable difference. It left me with a natural looking light tan within a few hours. 

Another thing I would like to mention about this product is that it does not have the usual scent of fake tan. It is actually rather appealing. Over all I am really happy with this product and would really recommend it to those of you looking to invest in some decent fake tan. You can purchase a 125ml tube for £24 at Debenhams.

What are your favourite self tanning products?

Jem x

A TRIP TO BRIGHTON

Hey guys, I really apologise for the lack of posts recently. I have been rather busy and having fun for once, but I will be getting back on track with blogging from now. I thought I'd let you know a little about what I've been up to with a quick post about my day in Brighton, which I visited on Tuesday.

Brighton is a really lovely place to visit in England, especially during the summer when the weather is nice. There is beautiful beach and pier, where you can sit and relax or get some fish and chips ( which are really good might I add ). There is also a shopping centre which includes Urban Outfitters, Hollister and Zara, a great place to have a shopping spree. Also, there is a place called The Lanes which is outside that are more unusual boutique type shops.

For chocolate lovers, you may have heard of  a programme called ' Choccywoccydoodah '. The original shop is in Brighton, so be sure to take a look at the amazing creations they have. I couldn't resist getting some chocolate for myself, however it is extremely pricey - so if you don't mind spending £10 for an amazing bar of chocolate then this is the place for you. Even if you don't want to buy anything, its a really amazing little shop.

You may even be lucky enough to spot YouTubers Zoella and Pointless blog along the way...

So that's about it for now! I hope you liked this post and I am sorry it wasn't very long, I will be back soon with another post. Feel free to leave suggestions in the comments below for future posts.

Have you visited Brighton before? What did you think? Where would you recommend I visit next? 


Jem x