Sweet Stuff | Things we make

Browsing All Posts filed under »Sweet Stuff«

Peach and Almond Cake

May 7, 2011

We have built a small raised deck at the end of the garden where a wooden gazebo once stood. I wanted it to be a quiet little place where you could go and sit, away from the house. Somewhere to ponder. So we have planted bamboo around it and an almond blossom tree to give […]

Hot Crosses and Big Buns

April 24, 2011

"24 BUNS! What am I going to do with 24 buns?" I asked myself. I didn't know the answer so I decided to make 8 chunky buns and a huge loaf sized one.

Crazy Frosting

April 3, 2011

I’m a bit of a sucker for trying something that sounds like it can’t possibly work. This ‘frosting’ fell into that category as it starts with a cup of milk and 5 tablespoons of flour…being cooked up in a pan. Now, I’ll grant you, that doesn’t feel like the start of one of the dreamiest toppings. […]

Ed’s Birthday Cake

February 17, 2011

If I ever ask Ed what cake he wants for his birthday, the answer is a victoria sponge, with buttercream in the middle and icing, sprinkles and a cherry on top. Quite specific really. This year though I had an ulterior motive as I wanted to enter a cake into the #nigellaforever challenge. With a […]

“Improve me”

February 3, 2011

This is something that has been on my ‘to blog’ list for a while: Ice Cream Muffins. When I read that you can make muffins by just using Flour and Ice Cream I was intrigued. When you think about it, a good quality dairy ice cream has eggs, sugar and vanilla in it, as well as cream. Add […]

Katie’s Cupcake Tower

January 17, 2011

On 1st December 2010 my very special friend, Katie was 40 years old. A magical masquerade ball was planned at Shottle Hall. Unfortunately due to the massive amount of snow we had in early December the party was postponed. Boo! Not to worry though as it was rescheduled to January and even more people could […]

Chocolate Orange Cake

January 8, 2011

I make this cake quite a lot. It serves many purposes: Using clementines makes it feel a little bit festive George always asks for chocolate cake, but I find chocolate sponges a bit ‘meh’ It lasts for days in a tin It is flourless There is no butter in it The flavour is reminiscent of […]

Brandy Butter

December 23, 2010

Do you think of Brandy Butter as a bit odd? Or does it take you back to childhood Christmases and nicking spoonfuls out of the fridge? I’m in the latter category. In fact I only ever remember surreptitiously eating spoonfuls of it when no one was looking as I have never been a fan of […]

Aunt Caryl’s Ginger Cake

November 30, 2010

I tried some of this cake last year and it was so nice I asked Ed’s aunt Caryl to send me the recipe. It’s a good one so as we are snowed in and I have just made some, I thought I would share it with you…The recipe, not the cake. The collection of golden […]

Saturday Staples – Mars Bar Crispies

November 13, 2010

I thought I’d start a short series of mini, single photo posts about food that we eat regularly. Nothing fancy. Nothing complicated. Just everyday food that takes minutes to make and doesn’t need special equipment or ingredients. These chocolate crispy cakes are a cheap packed lunch standby, or a last minute offering to the School […]

Cookies #2

November 10, 2010

The cookies I wrote about back in 2009 seem so old fashioned and innocent now. Meet my new favourites: Choc and Peanut Chip, it’s taken us to a whole new level of cookie-ness. These ones started their lives when Deb and David brought us a serious stash of goodies back from their trip to America. […]

I Ganache

November 8, 2010

When I ran out of cherries this week, my usual fairy cakes looked a bit forlorn. I was about to rustle up some buttercream when I remembered we had a carton of double cream. Ooh…ganache, I thought. I rummaged round the cupboards to find an equal quantity of chocolate to match the cream. I couldn’t […]

Tea Loaf & Fresh Walnuts

November 7, 2010

Our friends at the Heage Firs Farm, just up the road, have a beautiful walnut tree in their garden. If it wasn’t raining quite so hard and I hadn’t got Market Kitchen heading over later today to film me making cake I would go photograph the tree plus the carpet of walnuts lying beneath it. […]

Chelsea Bunliness

October 28, 2010

If Wendy from Quirky Cookies wasn’t so lovely I would really be quite cross with her at the moment. Because I really don’t need this temptation. A sweet, doughy, baked delicious thing that I will now end up cooking regularly when really I should be doing other things. A thing that (as has been proven) […]

Luxury Scones

October 15, 2010

I have always baked the scone recipe that my mother made. The one from the ancient Dairy Diary cookbook that she bought from the milkman when I was a kid. It was a basic affair, and it did the job, but they were a bit ordinary. I have been trialling different ingredients and quantities and […]

Making Whoopie

September 30, 2010

So far I have managed to resist the urge to make Whoopie Pies. Partly, because they are a bit fashionable but also because a lot of the recipes didn’t make sense to me. Then I saw Mowie’s recipe for red velvet Whoopies with orange buttercream. Here are the factors that led to me making them: I’ve […]

Honey Yoghurt Cheese

September 18, 2010

I like the ridges in this; like a fresh ricotta. You'd really never know that this can be fat-free as it is really creamy and 'heavy'. So there you go. Honey Yoghurt Cheese. Who knew?

Brown Sugar and Yoghurt Cake

September 13, 2010

This Brown Sugar Cake is reminiscent of a brownie, yet it’s not chocolatey. George thinks it’s the best cake ever! He IS my biggest fan. The main flavour comes from the 3 types of sugar: Demerara, granulated and muscovado. Plus some depth from vanilla extract and lemon zest. Then a couple of eggs, followed by flour and […]

Brioche

August 28, 2010

Here is the result of August’s Fresh From The Oven baking challenge: Brioche. As the recipe in The River Cottage Bread Guide says it is a very wet dough. It’s a real ‘stir it with a wooden spoon’ job rather than ‘knead it on the worktop.’ Eventually with the addition of a good handful of […]