Caramel is not my friend. I’m too impatient. I watch the pan for what feels like hours, and the sugar just stares up at me from the bottom of the pan in its original state. So I whack the heat up and before I know it the bottom has burnt while the top still hasn’t melted. So I throw it away and start again, and usually the second attempt works fine. Let’s make a second batch!
Posted in Apples, Baking, Cake, Double cream, Fruit, Leftover ingredients, Toffee/Caramel | Tagged apple cake recipe, toffee sauce, toffee sauce recipe | 19 Comments »
Just over a week ago, two things happened on the same day. Firstly, I made this cheesecake. Secondly, Chris broke up with me. I’m fairly certain the two are unrelated, just in case you’re worried that this is a cursed cheesecake. Continue Reading »
Posted in Baking, Cheesecake, Chocolate, Dessert | Tagged tia maria, tiramisu, tiramisu cheesecake recipe | 36 Comments »
Christmas! Christmas Christmas Christmas! Did you have a good one? Did you get lovely presents? More importantly, have you eaten bloody loads? We had a slow build up to Christmas (a few biscuits, chocolates and a gingercake), then BOOM, Christmas Eve, time to eat your face off. Non-stop. For the next week. So we’re mid-eating season at the moment and I’ve managed to stuff in loads. Christmas Eve we had a huge meatball lasagne (recipe coming soon) followed by some deep dish chocolate chip cookie puddings (recipe coming when I manage to take a photo before scoffing it. This hasn’t happened yet.). Christmas Day involved the usual massive fry-up mid-morning, followed by constant chocolate eating until the big roast dinner. And now it’s Boxing Day! Click here if you ate loads too
Posted in Baking, Chocolate, Christmas, Cupcakes | Tagged chocolate cupcakes, christmas cupcakes, christmas trees, santa, santa hats | 26 Comments »
Gingerbread is a word which makes me very suspicious. When someone tells me they have gingerbread, I know that in a few moments I will be either ecstatic or absolutely gutted. The reason being that the word “gingerbread” appears to be used both for the squidgy, amazing cake kind and the chewy, slightly rubbish biscuit kind (though Emma tells me these should really be referred to as gingerbread biscuits). Yeah yeah, I know, I’m in the minority here, but gingerbread men do nothing for me. Gingerbread cake, on the other hand, makes me so happy, I just want to lie on a big pile of it and smoosh my face into it’s lovely, sticky insides. I don’t know. Let’s move on. Come in, there’s more!
Posted in Baking, Cake, Gingerbread | Tagged black treacle, Christmas, ginger, ginger cake, golden syrup | 9 Comments »
I am very late to the Oreo party. I don’t know if they’re just not as big a deal in the UK as they are in America, or if I was just sheltered from them due to my mum’s dislike of them (although she loved this fudge as well as these cupcakes so I’m starting to think she knows NOTHING about Oreos). Whatever the reason for me only discovering them about a year ago, it means I am way behind with experimenting with them in recipes. So let’s get started!
Posted in Chocolate, Cookies and cream, Oreos, Sweets (fudge, truffles and candy) | Tagged 3 ingredients, easy cookies and cream fudge, easy fudge recipe | 31 Comments »
Bread has always been one of my favourite things to eat. I am a huge fan of carbs in general (which explains my big fat bum), but bread is my number one favourite. I would always buy fresh bread when I got my weekly shop in, but recently I discovered how ace it is to make your own. You can’t tell from my recent blog posts (because I’ve been a bit lazy getting recipes up) but since I made chorizo and thyme fougasse a few weeks ago, I’ve been on a huge bread kick. Carbs carbs carbs!
Posted in Baking, Bread, Savoury | 11 Comments »
A few weeks ago, I bought a gigantic jar of Nutella. Because I might want to bake with it, or spread it on bananas, or eat it straight from the jar with a spoon. But then I forgot about it, until Chris told me I needed to bake with Nutella because we had three jars. Where did these other two jars come from? How had I not eaten all of it in front of the tv yet? Who bought all this Nutella? Well, me. Let’s buy more!
Posted in Baking, Bananas, Chocolate, Leftover ingredients, Loaf cake | 15 Comments »
I’ve heard lots of things about puff pastry. “It’s difficult”, they say. “It’s time consuming”, they say. “It promises you everything and leaves you with NOTHING”, they say. Possibly. Maybe that’s shortcrust pastry. I’m not a pastry expert. Which probably makes you wonder why I’ve decided to do a step-by-step to puff pastry. But anyway, puff pastry is nowhere near as difficult as I’d convinced myself it would be! Stop! Pastry time!
Posted in Baking, Pastry, Sausages, Savoury | Tagged puff pastry recipe, sausage rolls | 20 Comments »
I cannot believe it’s been nearly two weeks since I last posted. Did you miss me? Did you cry a bit? Did you even notice? You didn’t, did you? Hmph. I’ll just console myself with this ice cream and NOT GIVE YOU THE RECIPE. Just kidding. Please come in!
Posted in Baking, Chocolate, Dessert, Double cream, Egg yolks, Ice cream, Leftover ingredients | Tagged white chocolate | 11 Comments »
So. The Christmas adverts have started. There are Christmas lights in (some) city streets. Christmas cakes are being baked, Christmas lists are being made, some people even have their shopping sorted already! (Not me, I leave it ’til the last minute every. Single. Year.) .
But some people aren’t impressed with these developments. I mean, it’s not even December yet! And the adverts aren’t in the spirit of Christmas, they’re just there to make you panic and spend money. And are those Christmas street lights really necessary? YES. YES THEY ARE. You big humbug. Let’s make Christmas fudge!
Posted in Baking, Chocolate, Christmas, Gingerbread, Sweets (fudge, truffles and candy) | 37 Comments »
Cafe Lula 