Halloween Spiced Pumpkin Cake

Last week my dad brought round some of the harvest from his allotment – in the form of 3 huge pumpkins, the largest of which weighed a whopping 5 stone! We went through one of the smaller ones last week, which Rob carved into a cat: We wanted the monster pumpkin to display outside at…

GBBO Final – Salted Chocolate Pretzels

All good things must come to end – and this week was sadly the last in the series of The Great British Bake Off. As much as the finalists creations looked fab, sadly I had neither time nor occasion to make a 3-tier wedding cake this week! Instead I opted for pretzels, using Paul Hollywood’s…

The Walk Cafe Nottingham – Reopened and Reviewed

A few weeks back I learnt that one of my favourite tea rooms in Nottingham had been taken over and reopened – of course I had to go and see for myself! Located on Bridlesmith Walk, the cafe is right in the centre of town, but tucked away in an unassumingly serene little arcade, providing…

Caramel and Apple Opera Cake

This week my parents came over for dinner, providing a perfect opportunity to try out another dessert from The Great British Bake Off, as part of The Great Bloggers Bake Off. The choices from the semi-final program were a Charlotte Royale ‘brain cake’ from the technical challenge, or a rather more appealing layered Opera cake….

Malory Towers Castle Cake

Yesterday was the latest event for Derby Clandestine Cake Club, with the brilliant theme of Enid Blyton, sprung up from a conversation about Mr. Moonface at the summer’s event! I was a big fan of Enid Blyton books when I was little – from the Magic Faraway Tree and Wishing Chair series, to the Famous…

Silver Spoon Designer Icing – Review

Last week the lovely folks at Baking Mad contacted me to ask if I’d like to test out some of their products, and no sooner than I’d sent them and emphatic yes, the postman brought me a great package the very next day. I decided to start on with the Designer Icing – big, toothpaste-sized…

Low(er) Sugar Chocolate & Cognac Cake

A couple of weeks back we were very kindly invited to spend the weekend in a holiday cottage Rob’s parents had rented. Never one to turn down a free holiday, we kindly accepted, and I set thinking about a cake that would survive the 4 hour drive (as if I could turn up empty handed!)…