When I first decided I wanted to have a go at writing, and that food would be the central theme running through it, there was one person who inspired me above all others. To read anything by Nigel Slater is to be led into a world where every flavour sparks a memory. Every new taste …
Tag Archives: #cake
Cardamom, apple & nut cake
When I first started to bake, the recipe was everything. I had to have each stipulated ingredient, I had to adhere to every step of the process and the oven time couldn’t be a minute more or less than what was stated on the page. But things are different now Partially it’s down to experience, …
Can I get you a dessert menu?
I hadn’t intended to go down the dessert route. So says the glutton who’s long since lost all sense of direction when it comes to sweet treats. But it’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Or is that the sugar on my fingers? We’d gone out for lunch, a midweek trip to use a …
Fyriskaka
As much as I admire the sentiment and applaud those taking part, Veganuary and Dry January are passing me by again. I know there’s been the inevitable overindulgence during the holiday period, not helped in my case by having a January 1st birthday. All of this followed by a week where ‘we better just finish …
Carrot & Mango Cake
It would’ve been my Mother’s birthday today and I’ve no doubt at all if she was still here there would have been cake. The sweet things were always her favourites, I’m sure that’s where my indulgent streak comes from. She was one of those people who always looked at desserts first on a menu, making …
Unexpected flavours
One of the things I most enjoy when baking is dropping in unexpected flavours. Flavours that on paper probably shouldn’t be there. But when you eat them you’re glad they are. It’s great to watch the look of surprise on someone’s face when what you’ve served them turns out to be more than they expected. …
Back to baking
After a few weeks of chaos, things are slowly getting back to normal here. The kitchen refit is done, all that’s left now is to sort out some decorating for the few areas of the wall not taken up with cupboards and units. It was always destined to be a lengthy project and discovering halfway …
You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.
When Joni sang ‘you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone’ she probably wasn’t thinking about baking. The problem I have is that with our kitchen refurb underway, baking is gone, at least for the time being, and now it is all I’m thinking about. From Bake Off German week, with some fascinating challenges, …
Continue reading “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.”
Bake Off dessert week
With the possible exception of bread week, there’s a case to be made it’s always dessert week on Bake Off. However this time it officially was. The week you can guarantee more than any other that every challenge is going to be sweet, sticky and indulgent. My mum would have loved it. Whenever she ate …
Bake Off is back.
There’s no surer sign of the onset of Autumn than the return of Bake Off. As the evenings get darker and the curtains pulled earlier it just feels like perfect television for this time of year. A little bit of calm amongst the madness of rising gas prices, unnecessary petrol shortages and the many other …
David in the kitchen. 