Cider Cake and a belated Bake Off round up

Cider Cake

In this cake bicarbonate of soda reacts with cider to make it rise. Mine rose too much in the middle like a child's erupting volcano science project. This cake has an apple-y tang and is surprisingly boozy. Next time I won't eat it for breakfast. 

The recipe came from some Paul Hollywood recipe leaflets my grandma saved for me from The Telegraph - thanks Nona! If you want to try it, you can find the recipe here. 

Some people think Paul Hollywood is a bit of a silver fox but I think he is plain creepy. I had to hide his piercing eyes under a pile of books. 

Things I baked whilst watching Bake Off

For the first episode I made Ruby Tandoh's Alfajores. These were really difficult to roll out but definitely worth it. I'm more that a bit of a fan of condensed milk so these biscuits went down a treat

Pies and Tarts week I made a (wait for it) Walnut, Apricot and Tuaca tart. Oh my. I adapted the recipe from the Pecan & Bourbon tart recipe in the Popina Book of baking and felt pretty clever about it. 

For the final I made an orange thyme and oilve oil cake (also from a Ruby recipe) but replaced the thyme with rosemary from the garden/yard. This got a good review from my housemate for its grown-up savoury but sweet flavour.

Newsflash! Ruby Tandoh's recipes are as good as her faces. Woah.

My first poached egg

In an attempt to lead a more pleasure-driven life I've been learning to get better at making cooked breakfast. This process generally entails making myself cooked breakfast for dinner, when I'm more alert. In time I'll be a bleary-eyed breakfast making pro. Right now, I've got a lot to learn - its a timings thing.

I used to think I only liked eggs 'in things' but a good friend and breakfast chef has recently turned me on to the joy of eggs.

I followed Felicty Cloake's method from her 'how to make the perfect...' column and whilst not perfect (lost some egg white in the whirlpool) it was a passable first attempt.

crumpets > toast

My first Bundt!

When I finished my masters I bought myself a bundt tin to congratulate myself. At £2.99 from ALDI my place as one of the last of the big spenders is secured - woop woop! I've been meaning to use it for a while but since I've moved home and Mum is also about baking things I've had to wait for an opportune moment when the house was not already full of baked goods. I've never used a bundt tin before so I wanted to practice in prepartation for making something spectacular for Christmas.... watch this space!

I adapted the recipe from Brendan Bakes Spiced Apple Pecan Bundt Cake halving the ingredients because my bundt pan is only 1 litre rather 2. I still used 2 eggs because 1 and a half eggs is not practical and I used two pears and one apple as we had some pears that had seen better days that needed using up. The smaller bundt took 35 minutes rather than an hour to bake.

Turning it out the bundt is a little bit nerveracking. I found a combination of easing a knife around the edge, hitting it with a rolling pin and swearing helps.

All that effort for a cake... with a hole. This recipe turned out well, the spices could have been a bit stronger so I'll add more cinnamon next time. 

I'll leave you with one of my favourite moments from My Big Fat Greek Wedding - 'there's a hole in this cake!'

Rhubarb and Ginger Jammin

My grandfather's rhubarb patch was a healthy jungle of giant leaves. Pushing them aside Nona and I tugged at the stems and (careful not to fall backwards!) we pulled the rhubarb from the ground. The captain says that rhubarb leaves are poisonous and so must not be composted. Consider yourselves warned.

Rhubarb haul wrapped in the Torygraph

I gathered inspiration from BBC Good Food and adpated the recipe as per the constraints of what was in the house.

1.9 kg rhubarb

2kg granulated sugar

juice of two satsumas and half a lemon

2 teaspoon tried ginger

8cm of fresh ginger grated

vanilla essence

The process of mixing fruit with a load of sugar is called macerating. Leave it overnight and in the morning...

it will look like this. 

The jam didn't really set - oops! It turns out rhubarb doesn't have much pectin in it. Mum says that I could call it 'conserve' or 'compote' but I think jam is jam however jammy it is. This is good on toast (who'd a thunk it?) stirred into yoghurt or mixed with fizzy water to make a gingery rhubarb drink!

This is the first time I've made jam on my own and I was so filled with jam-pride I even made labels!

Vegan Earl Grey Shortbread

My first foray into vegan baking and the results are pleasantly surprising. I was skeptical because, well, baking is all about butter, right?!

The recipe is from the Cake Liberation Front, a social group in Manchester who aim to push the boundaries of vegan baking and challenge stereotypes about dry flapjack. Check out their slick-looking website complete with awesome slogans like 'Rise Up!' and 'Flour Power!'

I followed this recipe but I translated it from (pesky) cups to grams with the help of the conversions here. So, quantities in metric are: 

112g vegan margarine
75g icing sugar
150g plain flour
1/8 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
contents of 3 earl grey teabags

The method involves mixing, rolling and baking. You know the drill.

They look a bit funny because they are speckled with bits of tea. Freeing the tea from the teabags was superfun!

Guest what? These biscuits are good with tea. Biscuits are good with tea. Full stop.

I think I'll be doing more vegan baking, if only because I have loads of margarine left and I'm curious. Watch this space...

P.S. Let butter know I don't love her any less.

P.P.S. I'm still stacking like a boss *grin*

Malteser Cake... on a boat!

I made Heather a malteser cake for her birthday and we all partied on her boat and it was magical. I followed this recipe from a lovely blog called poires au chocolat which you should check out. I just made one layer of sponge so it was just white inside like a malteser. Cutting maltesers in half may count as a newly acquired skill, but its probably not c.v-worthy. Heather's boat, however, is seaworthy - how cool is that?

Kneeling in front of someone with a cake looks a lot like a proposal. I propose that you continue to be totally awesome, Happy Birthday!

Pistachios and Pearls

My parents celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary on 13th February. Their love is big and real. I can't really get my head around what it must feel like to have been alive that long, let alone love somebody for that duration of time. Crazy stuff.

I mentioned to a friend the other day that I don't want to get married - its patriarchal and oppressive! But, I secretly look forward to my friends getting married. An occasion with family, friends, dresses, dancing, booze, cake and awkward conversation... Weddings are a good excuse for a party and I am all for partying. The question is, do we really need archaic institutions to celebrate our love?

Pearls are the traditional gift for a 30th anniversary. Pistachios are land pearls (metaphor alert!) so I baked a pistachio and orange cake with creme fraiche orange zest icing. 

I found a ludicrously kitsch heart shaped sparkler to decorate it with. Cake + indoor fireworks = wooo we have something to celebrate here!

Sprout Wars!

Me and my little bro having a sprout-war / morris dance on Christmas morning. This was right before we had a sprout-popping race which Bob won. Anyone would think we hailed from Diss, sprout capital of the world!?

Also, I made cranberry sauce for the first time! I didn't take a picture because it just looked like a jar of red jammy stuff but it tasted awesome. I followed this recipe with port and orange because its Christmas and that means everything should be cooked boozily!

Sweet Potato Falafel

It is October and I want to eat orange things. I stumbled across this recipe for sweet potato falafel. They are baked not fried which is good because deep frying things is a hazard!

Making falafel sounds like a faff but actually its not. Roast sweet potatoes, scoop out the flesh, mix with chickpea flour, ground coriander, cumin and garlic. Leave the mix in the fridge for a while then shape them into balls - the mix is satisfyingly sticky, tacky and cool so this bit is fun. Bake. Eat.

I ate them with some tzatziki I put way too much garlic in and some fried mushrooms and tomatoes.

Marvellous Marrows

The greengrocer was telling me how tasty marrows are stuffed with mince but then thought I was probably vegetarian, a fair assumption since this guy knows the full extent of my vegetable habit, I've got curly hair and I wear a lot of green. I'm not keen on mince so I searched for a vegetarian recipe on the bbc website and found Nigel Slater's Marvelous Marrow. Marvellous marrow, you say? A recipe that sounds like a children's story book - count me in! The marrow is roasted in a greaseproof paper parcel with feta, cherry tomatoes and chilli. Tasty stuff.

Student life is... cooking for five and then remembering you only have three pairs of knives and forks. Ooops. 

Constantly risking absurdity and death every time I ride my bicycle

Cycling in Brighton is significantly more frightening than in Norwich. Lewes road is hazard perception world of adventure. Buses stopping or pulling out, cars turning left and coming out at you from side roads, pedestrians everywhere. Luke's top tip is to be paranoid and know what is going on behind you. Great in theory, but when I look behind me the danger of swerving into the line of traffic is a bit real. I've been going round the park looking over my shoulder until I get giddy and/or spook out the dogs and the children.

I've just ordered myself a book called Cyclecraft. It sounds like a wheely form of witchcraft but its actually 'the complete guide to safe and enjoyable cycling for adult and children' I'll have you know. Driving theory but for bicycles, just what I need.

Meet Willow the Wisp and/or Sir Walter Raleigh since I am yet to ascertain the gender of this machine. Regardless, I think I'm in good company in my choice of cycle - take a look at these other cool ladies who ride Raleigh Wisps!

In this picture you can't see the sticker on the bell (that I affixed myself!) that reads 'I heart my bike.' You can, however, see my socks tucked into my trousers ready to ride!

And, for the record Mum, I AM LOOKING OUT FOR BUSES! 

How do you like them apples?

Sunday 25th September was not a day like any other. It was a special day, a day set aside aside for celebrating the apple harvest and all things apple-y. I tried to convince my house-mates to come along  - 'There will be juice and tasty food and apple-themed fun. You can take a rare apple to an expert who will identify it for you!'

They pointed out how none of us has an apple that eludes identification in the first place and I went to apple day on my tod.

For my lunch I had some spiced pumpkin and apple soup with a beetroot and cheese pasty. Pretty yummy. 

The highlight of the day was the Apple Play performed by the brilliant Brighton Mummers. Check them out! The plot involved the exploits of a cantankerous worm and a sausage king. There was suspense, silliness and some songs too. Afterwards I came over with a sudden urge to go home and put a colander on my head - what more can you want from a show?

I cycled home on the Bike Train it creates 'a fun, visible and more protected environment within a mass ride.'  Its good to cycle with other people and music, and, hey, it makes a change from being constantly undertaken on Lewes road! I'm still at the stage with my cycling that returning home alive is cause for genuine celebration. Everything tastes lovely when you are alive. Which I totally am! Wooohoo.


I'm currently reading Andrea Levy's The Long Song the book thats been chosen for the Brighton City Reads project. I'm trying to get to the end before term starts and Aristotle, Hobbes and Habermas beckon me. That and I'm doing some volunteering at the Old Market for the events they're putting on and I'll look a bit of a plonker if I've not read it!

Chocolate and Beetroot cake - the first cake I've baked in Brighton!

The little flat above the greasy spoon is starting to feel like home. But, as per usual in my life I've got only one problem. Whilst the flat has double glazing (ah so energy efficient!), good sized rooms, trees and grass out my window and most importantly no mould (yes, no mould!) there is a sizeable vent by window. Between the hours of 8am and 2pm, the vent emits the smell of bacon, chips and other unidentifiable fried objects. The air is sweet and savoury and heavy with fat, the opposite of what you want when you open the window to get some fresh air. I'm getting used to it but bacon, bacon is the enemy! 

Its also the first time I've used the funky purple scales Anna got me for Christmas. The colours are all  synchronized.

 I don't know much about being a grown up but I reckon it involves making as much mess as you like and then tidying it all up. Flinging chocolate at this cake by way of decoration was satisfying! 

P.S. The thermostat on the oven is totally fine. Massive relief after the infamous roasting veg at 60 C oven in Magdalen street.

Mama's Birthday

I made Ma a massive chocolate cake with silver balls on top for her ketchup birthday. The recipe is from a new book I picked up in Oxfam called 'Bake and Decorate' by Fiona Cairns. 

Ground almonds are the secret ingredient in this case and approximately 83% of all other cases. 

I like the candle smoke in this picture. Hmm, birthdays smell good!  

I got that Leuven feeling...

Thanks to my incredible friend Susie, cycling instructor par excellence, I've been riding a bike since January. So, this summer I figured the most adventurous thing for me to do would be to go off on my own somewhere and ride my bike in a foreign land, and that's exactly what I did.

First I thought I'd go to Holland since its renowned for its flatness, cycling, tulips etc. But, Ma mentioned that Dutch countryside is a bit dull and suggested getting the Eurostar to any Belgian station, specifically Leuven. When she told me its a lively Medieval student city with lots of pubs (a bit like Norwich) I was sold.  

I stopped of in Antwerp on the way to go to their new state museum. It was full of things and stuff including a Narwhal horn. The architecture of the building was more impressive than what's inside but, hey, maybe I would have got more out of it if I could read Flemish.

Curvy windows at the MAS Museum in Antwerp

 I hired a bike! Armed with a map of cycle paths around Leuven and repeating the mantra 'remember to ride on the right' I set off on a tour of the surrounding countryside. I am ludicrously proud to report that I didn't even fall off. I almost did. But I didn't!

Leuven Botanic Gardens complete with birds and bees. Animals are definitely a novelty when you are only expecting plants.


Crazy beetle on a pin sculpture outside the beautiful university library that made me very jealous.


The remains of possibly the best roast chicken I've ever eaten at Kiekekot, a tiny restaurant with two tables where the owner has been roasting chicken to perfection for 49 years. Consumed after I had left the hostel with plans to go to a vegetarian restaurant. Je ne regrette rien!

Israel: the land of milk and honey

Actually, I read in the Hebrew phrasebook I picked up in the library that the expression used to be 'land of milk and date jam' because for a long time the Rabbis were arguing about whether honey was kosher or not. They kinda decided it was at some point. Interesting, huh?

Anyway, I was super lucky to be able to tag along on Mum's business trip to Tel Aviv. We spent a few days in the city and took a bus to Jerusalem to see the sights there also. It looked a bit like this...

Silliness. We went back to this cafe when it wasn't closed for Shabbat and I ate pumpkin quiche whilst Mum fretted about needing to paint her nails for work.

Clock Tower in Old Jaffa

Tel Aviv is closer to the equator than the UK so the sunset is blink-and-you'll-miss-it fast. Although I probably learnt about this in Geography at some point, I was totally amazed to see the sun fall into the sea at such a speed every evening.

Holy Land of Toy Soldiers. Israel is no place for a pacifist. 

At the airport. There is no escaping McDo.

Joy the Baker recently made Green Israeli Couscous salad. This is my take on it. I used Palestinian couscous from Zaytoun a fantastic fairtrade co-op that aims to create a UK market for the goods of Palestinian farmers. Check them out here and support them when you can. Cook the couscous then mix with roasted red peppers and courgettes, some feta and a dressing of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and mint.

 Cook the couscous then mix with roasted red peppers and courgettes, some feta and a dressing of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and mint.

P.S. Guess what? In Tel Aviv we ate the most amazing hummus, the real deal. Om nom nom. 

Even artichokes have hearts...

Susie came over after Foodcycle and left an artichoke in my bed.

The next day I cooked it with olive oil and lemon then ate it... in my bed. My lips went all tingly. Delicious.

Lovely day

Sunshine. Playing with friends in the park. Hula hooping. Learning to spin poi (hold the fire!). Back at Magdalen street and a barbecue feast on the terrace. Then, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting from the Hummingbird Bakery book. Life is good. 

Also, this guy makes musical instruments out of carrots and other instruments. The internet never ceases to amaze me. 

Easter!

In my family at Easter we wear yellow. You probably don't need to see that. Mum still hides eggs in the garden for us nearly six foot tall children. There is not an age when egg hunts stop being super-fun. Am I right? 

The final prove of the hot cross buns. Ignore all Dad's booze on the floor.

Good Friday breakfast. Keep your nose tidy, eh?

Venetian Carrot Cake a la Nigella - recipe here. This cake is made with ground almonds instead of flour so its gluten-free and crazy tasty and it has pine nuts on top!

Mum's famous Victoria Sandwich. I found these tiny chickens to put on it but they kept drunkenly falling over in the icing sugar snow. Too cute. 

Cinnamon and Blackberry Cake

By special request, something cinnamon-y  for the birthday girl Heather. Fun things are rocking up at a party and proceeding to whip cream whilst wearing your favourite frock. Also, decorating said cake with symmetrically placed berries. No pictures this time but this was a good'un. Thank you Dan Lepard! Love you Dan Lepard! Recipe here.