Baking Round Up

Well, it's been a while since I sat down to write a blog post. Lots has happened since I last blogged including buying a house with Stevie Feathers and finally flying the comfy home nest. I now have a little kitchen of my own to bake in which means I can make lots of mess without getting in anyone else's way!

Banana Milkshake Cake

The last week in March is always a busy week in the Harden's family for birthdays with my Dad celebrating his on the 30th and my brother on the 31st of March. Naturally, each occasion needs cake! For Dad's cake I took inspiration and recipe from the Primrose Bakery cookbook which I got for Christmas. One of Dad's favourite things to drink is a big glass of banana milkshake so with a little tweaking their strawberry milkshake recipe would be perfect choice for my Pops. The sponge recipe for this cake uses only egg whites rather than the whole egg and also has yoghurt in it which meant the the finished result was very light and moist. The remaining slices are now in the freezer for Dad to have at a time when he choses most likely warm with custard.

Slimming World Brownies

Today's post is a little different to my usual high calorie treats. Back in September I joined slimming world and since then I have lost 3 stone 5 and counting. Since this time there has been a steady decline in the amount of baking I have done because everyone at home is trying to be good and the temptation to have a spoonful of mixture is far too high.

Last week, our wonderful slimming world consultant Rich ask group members to review some of the slimming world recipe books. Instantly I said that if there is a dessert one that's my cup of tea and surprise surprise there is!

So this is the first of a few posts I will do focusing purely on slimming world baking and dessert making with my views on whether they match up to their full fat cousins. I might even have a go at making some of my own slimming world friendly recipes for the keen bakers and pudding eaters, like me who are also trying to watch their waistlines!

If you don't follow slimming world then you don't need to be too concerned about how it fits in to the healthy eating plan however just briefly women are allowed up to 15 syns a day whilst men can have up to 25. Syns are attributed to foods that are generally a little bit 'naughty' (sorry Rich, know that this word isn't usually used) such as chocolate, crisps, sweets, alcohol and ready made sauces to name but a few. So, when deciding what treats to have you should, to stay on plan, tally up the syns and make sure you don't go over. Slimming world recipes are adaptations of 'normal' recipes that makes a few subtle substitutions for healthier alternatives. If you want to know more, you can find your local group on the slimming world website.

Anyway, back to the recipe...

Royal Iced Biscuits

Two weeks ago I went on a baking course that I brought as a present to myself. I have spent many an hour on Instagram and Pinterest looking at the spectacular biscuit creations that can be made using royal icing. So when I saw there was a course to learn how to do them at the Iced Jems kitchen I decided that was an ideal Christmas present to myself. So off I went, lunch box packed, note pad at the ready, to the day long course which was run by Victoria's Kitchen.

I had such a good day! The course was fantastic, the other students were lovely and the setting was perfect! The Iced Jems shop is a wonderful independent baking supplies shop with a teaching kitchen right in the shop window. I left a very happy bunny with a box of iced biscuits to share with friends that evening and a boot full of biscuit cutters and baking equipment from the shop.

The collage of pictures below are just some of my creations from the day.

The finished results from the course.

I couldn't wait to try the skills I learnt again at home. I was eager to try all the different cutter shapes I had and use lots of different colours.  The icing takes a good few hours so I would highly recommend making your biscuits the day before or a couple of days before you would like to ice them.

Chocolate Lollies

For Christmas I was gifted with a chocolate making course from my Mama and Pops at a local handmade chocolate company in Bredon on the Hill. The company is called the Bittersweet Chocolate Company and is a small establishment making homemade high quality chocolates. They also offer workshops to learn how to make solid chocolate and fresh cream truffles. So last Saturday afternoon off I went. I picked up a number of top tips and techniques that will feature on here throughout the year. I would absolutely recommend the workshop. It was relaxed, fun and informative and of course there was lots of chocolate including a chocolate fondue on arrival. Nigel (the creator of Bittersweet) and Kate who also works for the company were very friendly and have a real passion for a good quality product that is made up of local ingredients. Even if you aren't very artistic you can create some lovely chocolates. Unlike other courses, you go home with absolutely loads of goodies!

Back to blogging and back to baking

It seems like a long time ago that I sat down to write a blog post and today could not be a more fitting day to get back to it. Today is the birthday of Stevie Feathers (my boyfriend) and it is also the first birthday of this very blog

Mince Pies

I may be in a minority of people but I'm not actually a fan of mince pies - but, don't let that put you off this recipe! If you can make good pastry, you can make good mince pies, so whilst I might not eat them I'm happy to bake them and give them away.

Christmas Cake

With 6 days until Christmas, believe it or not there is still time to make a traditional, rich and boozy Christmas cake.  Yes, you could have made them in September and had one less thing to do at this busy time but, it's no bother really! 3 days to soak your fruit, a day to bake it , a day to ice and decorate and you'll still have a day to spare!

I seem to have done a lot of Christmas Baking this year but none of it is for me! After already making 5 Christmas Genoa Cakes one of the final things I needed to make was a proper, brandy filled Christmas Cake packed with fruit and nuts. So, yet again I turned to Mary Berry for a recipe that would fit the brief.

Chocolate Orange Christmas Pudding Truffles

Continuing with the Christmas Pudding theme...today I have turned my hand to chocolate making! Something which I will be doing a little more of in the new year... I joined slimming world a couple of months ago and this Tuesday is our Christmas party! Everyone is bringing something 'diet friendly' and these chocolate orange truffles are my contribution. For those down with slimming world lingo they are around 3.5 syns each (70kcal). As they are so rich you really don't need many to get that chocolatey hit. They can be stored in the fridge for up to one week so they could be made any time this week in the run up to Christmas and brought out as an after dinner treat.

Truffles are really simple to make - using the same process but different ratios of cream and chocolate you can make chocolate glaze, chocolate ganache and of course truffles.

Christmas Pud Pinwheels

It's nearly Christmas! Let me start by saying sorry for the lack of blog posts recently - I've been a little busy with a new job, dieting, Christmas shopping and of course Christmas baking. So, in between the strictly comer dancing final as I listen to Michael Bublé I am frantically typing Christmas recipes as there is still plenty time for baking before Santa arrives!

Starting with chocolate and vanilla Christmas pudding pinwheel biscuits. The basic recipe for this was in the November editions of Christmas Heaven magazine, I adapted them slightly to make them Christmas Pud themed.

Mary Berry's Christmas Genoa Cake

As I write this whilst watching BBC Children in Need, it is only 41 days until Christmas!

This is the first of a few festive recipes that will be available on my blog on the run up to the big day. I thought I would start the festive baking with a very special cake that actually, I have been baking all year round. I first made this cake last year and since then I have lost count how many times I have made it. Infact, I will be making another batch very soon as various family friends have requested one for Christmas.

This time last year  I made Christmas cakes for the very first time, they were all individual Christmas cakes that I gave away to family and friends. When long term family friends Christine and Barry received theirs (and gobbled them up before Christmas) Barry said that he was very much looking forward to a full sized cake for Christmas day - and I could not disappoint! Barry loved it and  would not stop talking about it, for reasons I'm not going into here it was great that he enjoyed it and ate every slice. So, since then, every other month or so I have made him another one. His poor wife Christine and the other Grannies (the affectionate pet name we have for my Mum, her friend Christine and her friend Janice) are absolutely sick of hearing Barry go on about how amazing the cake is. I however, love that one cake has brought a lot of enjoyment!

I cannot take credit for the recipe, this is a Mary Berry special. This cake is absolutely packed with fruit however unlike traditional Christmas cakes, it is a light sponge and there is no icing or marzipan in sight, the fruit and nuts is decoration enough. This version doesn't have alcohol in it and I haven't dared tinker with the recipe as I wouldn't want Barry to be disappointed, but you could, if you wanted soak the sultanas in brandy, sherry or another chosen tipple.

So, without further ado, put some festive music on and lets get baking!

Caramel and Thornton's Chocolate Tart

A couple of weekends ago when I had the house to myself, I decided to take advantage of a quiet kitchen to do lots of baking. As well of making chocolate orange genoise cupcakes, I made two different flavours of bread (in three shapes) and to top it all I made a caramel tart topped with loads of Thornton's chocolates. I had planned to make a halloween themed Bakewell Tart using an adaption of the recipe in Luis Troyano book 'Bake it Great'. However after making lots of bread and a pastry case I ran out of steam when it came to the frangipange filling so opted for caramel and chocolate instead.

As I was baking I had a friend visit for a catchup so sent her home with this tart and a bag full of bread. I didn't try any of the tart as I have recently joined slimming world and the thought of calculating how many 'syns' were in a slice gave me a headache. However I was reliably informed that the tart was delicious.

I topped my tart with lots of delicious Thornton's truffles and caramels, however if you don't have a years supply of chocolate to get through you could top it with a chocolate ganache or just good old melted chocolate for a pastry version of millionaires shortbread.

I also cheated and used a tin of ready made caramel that I had in the cupboard. You can use ready made caramel like I did or you can make it yourself. You can find a caramel recipe and instructions here... There is lots that you could experiment with on this recipe, you could flavour your pastry if you wanted or you could flavour your caramel. And of course, add your own touches and style with the decoration.

Anyway, less about me - time to get baking!

Sticky Toffee Trick or Treat

Halloween is upon us and whilst it is not generally a 'holiday' that I get involved in I thought I would bake a little something that just gently nods in the direction of the spooky goings on that occur on the 31st.

Just recently I have had an influx of new baking books including Richard Burr's BIY (bake it yourself). In his book there is a delicious recipe for sticky toffee pudding, one of my favourites! I thought I would tinker with it a little and turn the delicious pudding into a tasty cupcake treats. I added a pumpkin shaped marshmallow as decoration. If this recipe takes your fancy as a last minute bake for any halloween shenanigans you are involved in this weekend then it can be adorned with any spooky decor you like, or not if you prefer.

Baking Round Up

This post is mainly pictures - I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear! Sometimes when I am baking in a rush or when I am baking something I make a lot I don't take many pictures or notes which means I can't share the full recipe. I thought I would do a little baking round up - pictures of the bakes that haven't quite made it onto their own posts. If there are any that take your fancy and you would like to recipe let me know and I will happily write up a full post.

For now though, enjoy the pictures!

Vegan Hot Dogs

A few weeks ago I had a lovely weekend in York visiting my bestie - during a little stroll around Bishopthorpe which is a lovely little area of York not far from the centre, we came across a quaint little cookware shop where we both indulged in some new baking bits and bobs. Amongst the things I brought was a hot dog cookie cutter. It wasn't long and I had already decided that I would use this to create 'hot dogs' having been inspired by the puns and play on words that feature so heavily in Frances Quinns 'Quinntessential Baking'.

These biscuits are a dairy free shortbread flavoured with chilli flakes, drizzled with plain chocolate and some extra chills at one end for those who like a bit of a kick! This batch were also made using gluten free flour so that my sister didn't have to miss out! As they were gluten and dairy free the dough is very soft and tricky to handle as it can very easily become misshapen and tear. So, patience is key with this bake. You can of course substitute the dairy free butter for dairy butter and the gluten free flour for standard plain flour if you wish.









Right - lets get baking!

Chocolate Orange Genoise Cupcakes

Summer has been and gone and Autumn is upon us - my favourite season! I love cosy nights in, autumn colours and knitwear. It has also got me thinking about the upcoming festivities and themed baking including halloween, bonfire night and of course - Christmas. Whilst it is a little bit ridiculous that the shops are full of Christmas chocolates already, I took full advantage of chocolate isle to create some indulgent chocolate orange cupcakes to make a wet weekend all the more enjoyable! These cakes are made using a genoise sponge rather than my go to sponge recipe that features in a lot of my cakes. They are topped with a chocolate orange ganache and finished with a segment of Terry's chocolate orange.

They are really simple to make - the decoration could be changed to suit any occasion - a sweet spider for a halloween party or a caramel shard for any bonfire parties you might be going to.

Loaf Cookery School - Review

Something new for Baked by Rach - A review! I'm not planning on making a habit of reviewing rather than recipe writing and baking but I wanted to share by experience of attending a bread making class at Loaf in Birmingham.

Eton Mess Cake

I am a firm believer that sometimes there is nothing better than a classic Victoria Sponge. However for my 26th birthday I wanted something extra special to tuck in to whilst celebrating with my family. I recently purchased the 2nd book from the Meringue Girls - Everything Sweet and their recipe for an Eton Mess cake was the perfect choice. All the deliciousness of a Victoria Sponge but with a few extras which made it the ideal cake for a celebration.

The cake is actually really simple to make although there are a few seperate components - some of which you can make ahead of time which helps to reduce any on the day baker stress. I would recommend making the meringue kisses in advance and you could also make the strawberry coulis up to two days before as well.

Malteser Macarons

Maltesers are my absolute favourite chocolate, when I am given them as a gift there is no chance that I will be using the resealable tab and I will without a doubt, gobble them all in one sitting. To avoid this with some of my birthday chocolates I decided that I would bake with them. My theory was that this will reduce my malteser intake. My plan worked flawlessly! I made these macarons to take to the ladies at work in honour of the office tradition that when it is your birthday you take goodies in. (I've never quite understood that logic but I am happy to play along to keep my desk neighbours happy). I didn't actually get to try a one of these macarons as they were gone before I had a chance - however they were very warmly received and I was told they were delicious. As far as my aim to eat less chocolate I only ate the four or so maltesers I kept back for photo purposes. I think I'll adopt this technique in the future - bake and give it away to save my own waistline!

Don't be put off giving macaron making a go, it really is quite simple. As long as your follow the steps your guaranteed reliable results each time. The oven we have is a little dodgy - this is the only thing that impacts on the consistency of my baking so I did end up throwing a few shells away as I wasn't happy with them.

This recipe can be adapted any which way you like - just change the chosen confectionary!

Dairy Free Lemon, Blueberry and Almond Muffins

This week I turned 26 (boo), to celebrate we planned a little family tea party complete with home baked tasty treats. I wanted to bake a variety of things that would appeal to all of my family members including a showstopper birthday cake, something dairy free and home freshly baked bread. Having looked through all of my cook books I decided to make an eton mess inspired cake - the recipe for which can be found in the Meringue Girls cooked book everything sweet. I will type up my attempt at this cake including the few changes I made as soon as possible. I was also keen to try my hand at bread making. One of my birthday gifts was a bread making course so I thought I would have a go at making some baguettes to test my abilities before going on the course. I will report back in a few weeks as to how I got on.

For now though, my dairy free muffins. Both my brother and sister in law are vegan so I wanted to make something they would be able to enjoy. I found the basic recipe in a vegan baking book that I have and made a few alterations to make the recipe my own. This recipe can be used as the foundations for any dairy free muffins - just change the fillings and flavours to suit.

The verdict was that these was tasty but that the lemon taste was quite faint (but nice) so if you want a really zesty flavour you can add additional zest or even some lemon juice into the mix.