Proper Cookies

• 150g soft unsalted butter
• 125g soft light brown sugar (I have subsituted this with light muscovado if I've run out and it works just fine)
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 300g flour (I use Doves organic, it feels like a finer ground flour)
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• about 300g of chocolate chips (I have also subsituted these for the same amount of chopped regular chocolate, sultanas, smarties, m&ms)
• 1 (or 2) large baking sheets

1. Preheat oven to 170c and line baking sheets with greaseproof.
2. Melt the butter (i'm lazy and do it in the microwave).
3. Combine the two sugars in a fairly large bowl and pour the butter over, mix until combined.
4. Beat in the egg a and egg yolk until the mix is light and creamy.
5. Add the flour and bicarb bit by bit until just blended and stir in thr chocolate chips.
6. I normally stick my mix into the fridge for 20 min at this point, its fairly important that until the batter is cooked you don't let it get too warm.
7. Using an ice cream scoop, scopp up the mix and put on the baking sheet you'll get 6-8 on each sheet.
8. Put mix back into fridge/porch/outside! (Under a tea towel or some such, keep those freeloading animals out).
9. Bake cookies for about 15 minutes check at about 12 minutes) or until the edges are firm and crispy but the center is still gooey. Keep a close eye, one minute either way can make a difference!
10. Marvel in the fact youll never have to buy those nasty addative laden cookies from a supermarket again!

I find that the cookies keep really well for about a week before they start to lose their real charm...although after that we have discovered they are quite acceptable with ice cream....

Perfect Chocolate Brownies

• 150g unsalted butter
• 300g light brown muscovado sugar
• 75g cocoa powder, sifted
• 150g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 4 eggs
• approx 150g milk chocolate, chopped into small chunks ( a standard size dairy milk chocolate bar is easiest, or 2 bars of Green and Blacks).

1. Preheat oven to 180c and line a brownie pan with greaseproof paper ( I actually use foil and it comes out just fine but I'm not sure it's a recommended method...)
2. Melt butter in a fair size pan over a gentle heat, when it's melted completely add the sugar and stir until fairly well incorporated.
3. Add the flour, cocoa and bicarb and combine, it will look quite dry at this point.
4. Remove pan fro heat and add the eggs, stir well.
5. Mix in the chocolate and combine.
6. Pour mixture into pan and bake for about 15-18 minutes, when perfectly cooked it will be cooked around the edge, set on top and still wobbly and gooey in the middle.
7. When cooked, remove from oven and leave to cool for 15 minutes until it is a bit more set. Then remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
8. Attempt to have them last in the kitchen for more than 6 hours without friends, relatives and small children snaffling them....