I've been looking for some wall art for the kitchen for a while now, but wanted something food related. Not a tough ask eh? Wrong! Then I stumbled across this at Not on the High Street. It includes all my favourites like cobbler, rice pudding, jam roly poly and sticky toffee pudding! How fantastic!? They have some absolutely beautiful wall art, some of which is custom made to include names, places etc. Mine's sitting above the cooker!
Not on the High Street have also been very supportive with the pop up I am organising with Mummy's Little Peeps to raise money for Bolton Royal Hospital's Special Care Baby Unit. They kindly donated these beautiful vintage style Green Gate cake tins. Buy a raffle ticket on the day for a chance to win these beauties! Join us here.
Remember the baking books you had as a child? Well DK have done a grown up version of that!
This is a huge book. I'm pretty sure that in some countries it may be classed as a lethal weapon. However, no such trouble here. This book has 350 recipes, 80 of which are step by step guides. If you have ever been heard saying 'I can't bake' or 'I'm a disaster in the kitchen'... try this book. The recipes are easy to follow, but there's enough in there for the experienced baker too.
One of the most daunting parts of baking is knowing whether you have done something right. What does creamed sugar and butter actually look like? Define fluffy... I'm confident that even the most nervous baker could create something to be proud of from this book. It starts with your quintessential bakes such as the Victoria sponge and swiss roll, but also tackles pastry, puddings and decoration.
Below is an example of one of the step by step guides. This just shows how easy it can be!
Because I've been ridiculously busy with the Sugar Plum Bakery Pop Up, I decided to enlist a helper with this one. I wanted to make sure that these recipes were reliable before telling you all how super easy they are. So... I enlisted the help of one of my dearest friends, Emma. She's a busy wife and mum so is a little pushed for time too! She does like a good bake though, so she was a perfect guinea pig!
I gave her free reign to make whatever she wanted. I had one caveat... she had to report back in pictures! She had made a beautiful Apple Streusel cake for our last Clandestine Cake Club so was really keen to try a different version. There was masses of excitement when she saw that the topping was grated on. I think you will agree that her finished product looks amazing!
I can report that she found the recipe easy to follow and all was well in the Jones household after that cake was cut! I think we can safely say this recipe was a success.
This is a great all rounder. It's the sort of book that ought to be used as a textbook in schools - I say this through gritted teeth after I made fruit salad, pizza with a pastry base and angel delight in my home economics lessons... Schools... take note!
Also of interest...
One of DK's Step by Step videos - Whoopie Pies.
Step by Step Baking by Caroline Bretherton
Publisher: DK, September 2011
Hardback, £25
Disclaimer: I reviewed this book because I hoped it might give everyone the confidence to bake! I received no payment from the publisher for doing so.
Ay ay aye! This is a spicy little mother! Last year the Horwich Fine Dining Society went on a little trip to London. I had been dyyyyying to try Barbecoa! I absolutely love American-style barbecue food. It didn't disappoint folks. I had the most fabulous pulled pork with jalapeno cornbread! It was deep yellow, quite a coarse texture and very sweet - but lovely. It stayed with me for months. I even had their business card on my monitor at work to remind me...
Then... next thing I know, there is a rumour that a barbecue restaurant was opening in Manchester! Cue Southern 11. Hey guess what? They do pulled pork with jalapeno cornbread. Nearly died. On the spot. Dead. Totally different from Barbecoa, but still one of my favourite restaurants in the area. Their cornbread is a muffin, a smooth texture and a bit spicier!
I attempted to get the cornbread recipes, but neither seemed to get that certain 'sweet yet spicy' flavour and moist texture that I was craving. So I made my own amended version. And of course, it's bundt shaped! Perfect for sharing! It incorporates all my favourite bits of both with my own edge...
Ingredients:
360g plain flour
220g coarse polenta/cornmeal
Two good pinches of salt
4 tsp baking powder
100g golden caster sugar
480ml full fat milk
100g unsalted butter - melted
2 medium eggs, beaten
A jar of green jalapenos - drained (about 215g jar) Note: if you don't like chillies, swap the jalapenos for 150g grated cheddar cheese! Mmmm!
Method:
Preheat the oven to Gas 6/200 C
Grease and flour a 10 inch bundt tin
Mix the flour, polenta, salt, baking powder and sugar into a large bowl
Mix the milk and melted butter together, then tip into the mix
whisk in the eggs
Fold in the jalapenos
Pour into the prepared tin - do not fill more than 2/3 full.
Bake in the middle of the oven for about 45 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Tip: For the last ten minutes, turn the oven down to Gas 4/170 C. This is a large cake so you don't want to dry it out.
The bundt is done when it is shrinking away from the sides and a skewer comes out clean.
This recipe is perfect with chilli. pulled pork or any other spicy dish. If you don't want to make a huge one like I did, half the mix and pop it in a 2lb loaf tin and cook for 35 mins on Gas 6/200C.
Bloggers: Please respect the fact I am sharing my own ideas and recipe. Blood, sweat and many tears have gone into getting this right, so you may enjoy a perfect bundt. If you wish to re-blog a recipe from these variations, please credit my blog and link to this original post rather than pasting the recipe on your own page.
Please see my Creative Commons Copyright information for more details. Thank you.
