All posts tagged: sharing

Pumpkin, Apple and Pecan Bundt

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It’s that time of year again when I get obsessed with all things autumnal, and, in terms of baking, I love spices like cinnamon, ginger and cardamom, and to use apples, pears, and nuts as key ingredients. Of course, I have succumbed to the American invasion of pumpkin, and love to bake with it during the months leading up to Christmas. It used to be near impossible to get canned pumpkin in the UK, but it is slowly becoming easier to find. When I do find it, however, I tend to stock up, just in case. I decided to make another bundt cake recipe that I could top with another favourite ingredients of mine, maple butter. If you cannot get any, simple make an icing with equal parts maple syrup and icing sugar. So, this is a *big* cake. Don’t make it for just you and your friend having coffee together. I used a large bundt tin. I suppose you could half all of the ingredients and make it in a smaller bundt tin, a …

Pea and Mint Ravioli

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If you follow my Instagram account or know me in real life, you will know that my passion goes beyond baking and all things sweet. I love to cook and have done so since I was a child. I have decided to share some of my savoury recipes, and here comes the first one. Ever since I first made my own pasta a couple of years ago, I (and my kids) have become quite fixated by it. Its texture is like no bought pasta, even the fresh pasta in the supermarket. It is smooth and silky, robust and filling, and deeply satisfying and very fun to make. If you have never made your own pasta, then I urge you do so. When I saw peas in their pods in the supermarket, it took me back to my childhood when the only peas my grandma ever served where freshly podded, having been bought from the market and brought home in a brown paper bag. I loved to sit at the dining table with her and pop …

Mocha Coffee Cake

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I came up with this recipe for my old school friend who was coming over for coffee. I asked her what her favourite cake flavours were and she said: coffee, coconut, fruit and dark chocolate. I decided coffee and chocolate was a good way to go. I’ve long been a fan of Annie Bell’s Coffee and Walnut cake. Her coffee and mascarpone cream is so very delicious: it’s creamy but not clawing; and it feels luxurious and decadent, but is incredibly simple to make. The topping is almost identical to Annie Bell’s, so I can’t take credit for how delicious it is. But I decided I wanted to make more of a coffee sponge, incorporating chocolate, and leaving out the nuts on this occasion (though you could always sprinkle chopped walnuts on the top if you fancy). I also wanted to add more flavour and moisture by using a sugar syrup on the cake itself. Ingredients For the Cake: 150g of Butter at room temperature 150g of Golden Caster Sugar 150g of Self Raising Flour 3 …

#instafriends

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I have just sent a private message to a Dentist from New Jersey, telling her (what feels like) half of my life story and almost all of my baking story (as briefly as possible). This was in response to her doing something similar. I have never met this dentist before. In fact, before yesterday, I didn’t even know what she looked like or her real name. Up until yesterday I only knew her as bread @ventures_nj but I knew that she loved to bake and made the most exquisite pasta. Of course, I knew her from Instagram. She and I have followed each other for a while now, and exchanged questions and answers about our respective bakes. Like me, she is a very keen amateur, who squeezes in her “extreme hobby”, as she calls it, around her professional life. We have become friends, #instafriends if you will. We just took our relationship to the next level: we started sending private messages to each other ! 😉 But she is not the only online friend that …