Northants Clandestine Cake Club February 2014 event

Since 1895 the Gallone family has produced ice cream in Northampton and, when it opened an ice cream parlour last year, it created an ideal venue for our local Northampton & District CCC event.

With around 40 flavours of ice cream and sorbets being made on the site, they made a perfect foil for our ice cream flavour cakes. Gallones use traditional recipes in their factory together with the finest of ingredients and, we are told, years of know-how and a great big dollop of love!

Eighteen bakers attended on the night with some splendid cakes, all suitably ice cream flavoured or themed.  We had a Raspberry Ripple, Salted Caramel, Raspberry, Vanilla and Chocolate, Rocky Road, 3 Neapolitan bakes, Mint Choc Chip, Chocolate, Cookies and Cream, an Ice cream Sundae, Raspberry, Vanilla and Chocolate, Strawberry and Blueberry, as well as everyone’s favourite Vanilla - have I missed any out?

Towards the end of our evening, some naughty children set a fire in an adjacent empty building and we had the spectacle of a fire engine arrival, together with a hunky crew of firemen. Needless to say, these gallant men from the rescue service were invited in to join our ice cream extravaganza and our ‘unexpected guests’ enjoyed the cakes so much that they have invited us to join them at their Fire Station Open Day in the summer. Watch this space!

So, thank you, Gallones and staff, the ice cream parlour is a real bonus for Northampton, and thank you members and your bakes for another lovely evening of cake and chat, and thank you fire fighters for keeping us safe in our homes and businesses. Until next time…….happy baking.

Mary v. Paul - scones

Buttermilk scone ingredients

Since 1994 my baking bible has been Mary Berry’s Ultimate Cake Book and I have always used her scone recipe. Then, last year, I started to use her newer version which, apart from the usual ingredients, also contained buttermilk. However, I am always on the look-out for a ‘best ever’ result and so I decided to put Mary up against Paul Hollywood by way of a challenge.

Mary's buttermilk scones

As you can see, with the addition of buttermilk, Mary’s light scones turned out well, with a soft, moist and crumbly texture, and they had a satisfying slightly crunchy exterior. 

Paul's scone dough

Paul’s published recipe, however, uses strong bread flour, with the usual butter, sugar, eggs and milk and the method is, of course, very similar.  They also rose very well, kept their shape, had a slightly closer texture but had a good flavour - I was pleased with the result.

As usual, my scones were at their very best when eaten still slightly warm from the oven and served with butter or cream and, in this instance, last year’s home-made wild plum jam.

And which version came top? Well, to be honest it was a difficult choice but, controversially, I think that Paul may have just pipped Mary at the post by a nose, just for good looks, but I will happily use both recipes in the future – depending on which ingredients I have in the cupboard at the time!  

Paul's recipe

Nutella and Coconut Palmiers

Like it, or loathe it, I was amazed recently to find a 5 kilo jar of Nutella being sold on Amazon. 

I just couldn’t imagine the need to buy such a large, almost £50 in cost, jar but the Italian makers certainly produce it in this gigantic size, so I suppose someone must buy it!

Very occasionally, over the years, a small jar of this sweet hazelnut and chocolate paste has somehow, miraculously - despite a little voice inside my head saying ‘no’ - made its way into my shopping basket - particularly when my daughter was young when a chocolate sandwich was high on the ‘favourite’ list.

And so to last Christmas, when I was given a book shaped like a Nutella jar, which contained many delicious recipes for using Nutella and also included colourful photos of Nutella-produced items in all their resplendent glory. Damn it, I could almost smell the Nutella oozing from the pages! Now this, for me, was something new – cooking with Nutella.

Unsurprising, it didn’t take me long to nip to the supermarket, returning with a large sized jar – well, there are so many recipes to try – and I made some Nutella and Coconut Palmiers. Such a simple idea and I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of it before but the ease of the task will now make it a favourite for future afternoon tea bakes.

Further Nutella ‘trials’ will follow!

Roll out puff pastry, spread Nutella liberally.

Roll long sides to centre and then chill.

Cut and place on baking parchment covered sheet.
Sprinkle, if liked, with dessicated coconut. Bake.

When cooled, they didn't last long!

Left-over marzipan

Apricot and marzipan tart served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream

If, like me, you haven’t been able to resist buying a pack of much-reduced marzipan from the supermarket after Christmas or, indeed, have some left over from covering your festive cake, then now is the time to use it up.

Searching the internet, I found quite a few recipes that I could use but I decided to opt for one that I had seen Mary Berry demonstrate at the last Good Food Show Winter in Birmingham - Apricot and Marzipan tart.  However, as her recipe serves 8-10, I halved the filling quantities for our small household and put half the sweet pastry in the freezer for later use – not realising I had inadvertently made yet more left-overs, ah well!!

Apricots placed on top of marzipan

Many fruits could be used – fresh (when in season) cooking apples, plums, etc. – but in this instance Mary suggested using canned apricots. A quantity of sweet pastry was produced and chilled before cutting in half and rolling out two large circles. The grated marzipan was scattered centrally on one pastry circle and then the apricots were placed cut side down on top. Finally, the second pastry circle was placed on top and the edges sealed and trimmed.

Baked until golden brown

The tart was cooked on a hot baking sheet (to avoid a soggy bottom!) at 220C, 200C fan or gas 7 until golden brown on top and underneath for 25 minutes or so. Dusted with icing sugar it looked, and tasted, a treat!

Bake ahead Christmas 2013 - Part II - Edible gifts

Christmas hamper

This year, I made jars of apricots which had been simmered slowly in vanilla syrup – perfect for eating with a scoop of ice cream, or used as a topping on porridge or cereal. I also included cellophane cones of white chocolate, dried cherry and pistachio ‘Snow Bites’ – the basic recipe was courtesy of Ruth Clemens (The Pink Whisk) but with one or two touches of my own. 

Mincemeat cakes

Then, rather than biscuits which I made last year, I opted to bake several Mincemeat Cakes, which is a Mary Berry recipe that I have had for some time. It is such a simple mix but it produces a fabulous, quickly produced but moist cake, which could easily be eaten as a Christmas Cake or perhaps made using left-over mincemeat, baked and then frozen to be eaten in the New Year. 

Christmas patchwork bauble

Finally, I opted to include one home-made crafted decoration – a patchwork bauble.

I do hope my little foodie treats are well received – there’s something rather nice about sending out a little bit of homespun goodness in the spirit of goodwill.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!

CCC 'Christmas Sparkle'

Cakes on parade

Our latest Clandestine Cake Club meeting last week certainly lived up to the theme of the evening in that we had the most glittering, twinkling shimmering, shining and sparkling array of cakes brought by 18 fabulous and enthusiastic member bakers. Our lovely hostess, Carmela, welcomed us to her home and we all nibbled the beautiful and tasty Italian savouries that she had prepared, before we actively demolished our festive cake display.

 

It was such a relaxing evening for me and so heart-warming to welcome members, old and new, to such a happy occasion.

Our bakes contained all the numerous styles and flavours of Christmas, including warm spices, tangy oranges, delicious chocolate, cool peppermint, as well as an abundance of classic dried fruit and nuts which are synonymous with this time of year. It was so hard to know where to start and, more importantly perhaps, when to finish!

Thank you, Carmela, for your warm hospitality, and thank you members for your continued support this year. Rest assured, I have many more fabulous venues ‘up my sleeve’ for us to visit in 2014 but, meanwhile, I do wish all Northamptonshire cake clubbers a truly happy and healthy Christmas.

Happy baking! Gillian x

PS A few photos taken at the event can be found here: http://clandestinecakeclub.co.uk/2013/12/17/northampton-district-christmas-sparkle/

Bake ahead Christmas 2013 - Festive Welsh Cakes

Festive Welsh Cakes ingredients

OK, it’s 1^st December, so it’s time for me to plan a little Christmas ‘bake-ahead’ baking. However, as I am still attempting to lose a few pounds before the big day and, not having a great iron will, I am not too keen on having too many sweet treats in my cupboards ahead of time. So, one of my fail-safe recipes is my version of Festive Welsh Cakes. It’s an ideal tea-time favourite when unexpected visitors call, as they take less than 30 minutes or so to prepare and cook. They are best eaten straight away when warm but they will happily also store in an air-tight tin for several days. Even better would be to freeze a batch, as they can be defrosted and warmed briefly in a microwave. 

Festive Welsh Cakes

250g self raising flour

Pinch of salt

125g butter (I didn’t have any today, so I used marg.)

75g light soft brown sugar (or caster if you prefer) plus a little extra for topping

Zest of 1 orange

1 beaten egg

1 tablespoon mincemeat

½ tsp cinnamon or mixed spice

Milk if needed

Sift the flour, salt and spice into a large bowl then rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Add the sugar, zest, and mincemeat, along with the beaten egg. Mix to form a soft dough. If necessary, add a drop or two of milk. 

Ready for rolling

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to about 1cm thickness. Using a scone cutter, cut into rounds, re-rolling any trimmings.

Cook for 2/3 mins each side

Heat a heavy-based frying pan or griddle on a low/medium heat - NO NEED TO GREASE. Cook the cakes in small batches for two to three minutes each side, or until golden brown.

Dust with caster sugar whilst still warm.

Ready to enjoy!