Yesterday was my maternal grandma’s 80th birthday. Known to her 7 grandchildren as Nanny, this was a celebration that deserved a very special cake! I bought a new tin to make the numbers – but it will come in useful for years to come. An alphabet tin, it is divided into 28 equal segments, and…
Month: September 2012
My First Macarons!
On my trip to London last week I was lucky enough to be given a beautiful box of bright coloured macarons, which were very quickly devoured in the office. Loving their sweet, crunchy shell, chewy inner and moist, rich filling, I set out to find more about making them for myself. For meringue-style macarons such…
Autumnal Golden Ginger and Chocolate Cupcakes
My second bake for National Cupcake Week – well, it does only come round once year! You can view my first batch of cupcakes here. Inspired by a big piece of root ginger that’s been in the kitchen for sometime, I wanted to make something tasty but beautiful! The cupcakes were a basic sponge mix…
Happy as a Hummingbird
National Cupcake Week. London. Time to spare before my train. It could only mean one thing… a visit to the cupcake mecca that is Hummingbird Bakery! I went to the branch in Spitalfields as it was closest to the exhibition I’d spent the day at. A short walk from Liverpool Street station, it’s also incredibly…
Nearly-Neapolitan Mini Cupcakes
Back from a lovely weeks holiday, relaxed, tanned, and itching to get back into the kitchen! We’d been home all of about an hour before I dreamt up a good unpacking-avoidance technique of making some mini cupcakes, and they’d be the perfect thank-you gift for our lovely cat-sitters. It was the first day of National…
Dulce de Leche Millionaire’s Shortbread
After making my banana and caramel cupcakes, I still had about half a tin of yummy dulce de leche caramel left. Whilst I was happily sneaking a tiny taste every time I went to the fridge, I decided it was probably time to use it for something more substantial. You know those tubs of mini…
A Trip to Tiffin Teahouse
On a fresh, late summers morning, in a leafy suburb of Nottingham, chaos descended as I met some friends for brunch aka cake-for-breakfast, at the delightful Tiffin Teahouse. Tiffin is located on Abbey Road, amidst only a handful of shops, but a mere minutes walk from the hustle and bustle of Central Avenue. There’s ample…
Hello Kitty Butter Biscuits
About a month ago I stumbled across this amazing Hello Kitty dessert display, and immediately wanted to make something Hello-Kitty-esque of my own! A quick search on eBay soon found me some super-cute cookie cutters. The down-side? They were coming from Hong Kong and took about a month to arrive. The up-side? They cost the…
Banana and Caramel Cupcakes
I have a confession to make. These photos have been on my computer for nearly a month, and I very nearly forgot what was in the cupcakes! They were made for the same housewarming as my New Home Biscuits so in all fairness I had such a busy time of baking and decorating that it’s…
Easy-Peasy Pavlova – Red Berry with Dark Chocolate Ganache
Last Friday my parents and grandma came over for dinner. I needed a dessert that could mostly be prepared ahead, didn’t require much cooking on the night (as I’d be working all day), and was quite light – to follow a big course of fish and chips! Still having a lot of eggs left and…