AlphaBakes "M" Round up

Welcome to November's "M" Roundup. It's great to see so many of you joining in with AlphaBakes this month. We've had a wide variety of entries from sweet to savoury and a few new ingredients I've not heard of before. I am excited to see what December brings as we have already used 'X' this time and there's not many letters left so let's hope it's a good one. Be sure to check out Caroline's blog on 1st December to find out.

Caroline's mum Jacqueline sent in a chocolate marble cake. I love marble cakes and this looks pretty and delicious. 

Next we have Mushrooms on toast with Garlic and Thyme by Kate from Veggie Desserts. This is a delicious breakfast/brunch which is quick and easy to make. The mushrooms have lots of flavour from the herbs and the toast helps to absorb all those lovely mushroom juices. 

My co host Caroline from Caroline Makes baked Lavender Macarons which she packed in a box to give to her mum. You can read about Home Bake Box where she got the ingredients from on her blog. I am always impressed with anyone that bakes macarons as I'm terrible at them myself!

Suelle from Mainly Baking baked a delicious Marzipan and Cherry Loaf for her husband who wanted one from Waitrose. Why buy one when you can bake one at home and I'm pretty sure this tasted better than the shop bought ones. The cherries look really pretty and are beautifully and evenly spaced out. Check out her blog for her very helpful tip on how to prevent the cherries sinking to the bottom.

On to something savoury now with Maftoul with Roasted Harissa Rainbow Carrots from Shaheen from A2K - A seasonal Veg Table. Maftoul is made from sun-dried bulgar wheat and hand rolled into tiny, chewy balls. It absorbs flavours very well and is served with gorgeous roasted rainbow carrots.

Johanna from Green Gourmet Giraffe made a beetroot and caramelised onion galette with vegan mozarella. It made for a perfect end to a day full of ups and downs and I'm sure balanced out all the bad in the day! It's such a versatile recipe as you can change the filling and serve it warm or cold. 

Caroline is back with a Brazilian Condensed Milk Cake also known as Bolo de Leite Condensado. Caroline thought she got a can of caramel but had a can of condensed milk instead so decided to find a recipe to use it up. Unfortunately she didn't really like the texture of the cake as it was rubbery in texture but was not too bad when served with custard. The bundt tin makes the cake look really pretty. 

Kate from Gluten Free Alchemist made Mini Mouthful Jam Tarts with Pate Sucree which are of course gluten free. Pate Sucree is sweet French tart pastry which is sweetened and enriched shortcrust pastry perfect for sweet patisserie. Her is topped with a fresh raspberry which makes it look so pretty and oh so tempting!

Next is my own entry with a Chocolate Mint Cake made as a suprise for a friend's birthday. The sponge is chocolate mint and it has a creamy, minty cream cheese filling with chopped up Aeros. The cake is topped with a chocolate ganache and decorated with more Mint Aero's. If you like chocolate and mint then you'll love this cake! 

Dom from Belleau Kitchen baked a Gluten Free Apple and Medjool Date Cake which looks delicious and virtuous. Dom's not so sure about it as he feels it lacks something naughty but it went down well unsurprisingly! I'm sure it would be a great recipe for the upcoming festive season especially for those who are gluten intolerant.

Choclette from Tin and Thyme baked Strawberry Marshmallow Fluff Cookies and says they are the best cookies ever! I don't doubt her for an instant and would really like to try one or two of them. They are moreish on the outside and chewy on the inside and has ooey gooey marshmallow fluff baked in the cookie. 

Stuart from Cakeyboi made a very seasonal dessert, perfect for autumn and Thanksgiving with an unusual ingredient and a very clever kitchen gadget. I am of course talking about his Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Toasted Marshmallow. It's full of seasonal spices such as ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves which I'm sure smelt heavenly whilst baking. 

Next we have Golden Oat Raisin and Almond Cookies by Kat from The Baking Explorer. They are made with Marriage's Master Millers Golden Plain Flour and are packed full of almonds, raisins and a touch of golden syrup. It's unsurprising really that they went down a treat and I'm sure there will be requests for more! 

Caroline is back with French Toast Stuffed with Cream Cheese and Caramelised Pecans. She got the inspiration from her trip in America and served it with a little bottle of maple syrup, a souvenir from her trip. It sounds absolutely delicious and would make for a very indulgent brunch.

Caroline's final entry is White Chocolate, Banana and Walnut Gluten Free Muffins. She was recently named Writer of the Year at work - congratulations Caroline! and baked these muffins as a celebration. She made them gluten free so everyone could enjoy them.

Next we have Kerene from The Dream Baker with her Strawberry Cheesecake Mousse. It's an easy no bake dessert which is great for using up leftover cream cheese and whipping cream. I love the addition of strawberries and her presentation is beautiful. 

Our final entry is Green Beans with Mushrooms and Shallots by Grace from Life can be Simple. She wanted to make side dishes that she liked and that were also on the healthy side and came up with this. Looks delicious and nutitious!

That's the end of the Magnificient and Marvellous "M" round up! Thank you to everyone who participated. Remember to check out Caroline's blog tomorrow to see what letter we are using next and I will see you all back in January 2016!