'Who doesn't love this classic cake? It's perfect just as it is with a cup of tea or coffee, but you could also try decorating it with candied violets to add a little visual 'oomph'
Rachel Allen, 'Bake', p67
OK, spot the deliberate mistake. That's obviously not my carrot cake - it all got eaten before I remembered to take a photo. You'll just have to trust me that I did make it! One day in the summer holidays, Evan had 3 of his best pre-school friends (and their mummies) round to play. The boys had a wonderful time running around, and splashing in the paddling pool... even though it wasn't very warm. We mummies shivered just watching them, had a good chinwag and of course, ate cake!
I'm not going to put the recipe here, as it's such a classic, most people have probably made something similar. It's such an easy recipe - more or less throw it all in. Grating the carrots is a bit of a faff, but the rest is simple. Mind you, I have made carrot cake before and it didn't turn out so well. I think I was a teenager then, the sponge turned out fine but I didn't beat the cream cheese well enough. I was left with cheesy lumps in the icing, not pleasant! Anyway, this time I made sure to give it a good beating and it was much better! I didn't have time to try the candied flowers, but promise to try them out sometime as part of this challenge!
Right, on to yesterday. If you read my previous blog post, you'll know that I was going to have lunch with Rachel herself! We enjoyed a 2 course menu, both of which were Rachel's recipes...
Wow, what an amazing lunch! I've never eaten Quinoa before, but definitely will again. The lamb koftas had a lovely warm combination of spices. And a delicious pudding too, the blueberries cutting through the richness of the bread. As the event was sponsored by Bottlegreen drinks, the custard had Bottlegreen cordial running through it - an unusual touch but one I really liked.
After lunch, Rachel came out and did a talk about life at Ballymaloe; her new book; and the challenges of balancing a hectic working schedule with family life. Following that, she was signing copies of her new book, 'All Things Sweet'. Mum treated me to a copy as an early Christmas present, hooray lots more bakes to try. Just need to magic up some more hours in the day! Then on to the book signing. I rather cheekily presented Rachel with both my new book and my copy of 'Bake', by now a bit tatty. As soon as Rachel saw it, she said she loved how well used it was... which led me to talk about the blog. She seemed genuinely interested, so much so that she now has the blog address. Eek, no pressure or anything! My 'Bake' book now has a very special addition...
What a lovely touch, I will treasure it always! As expected, Rachel was very easy to talk to and didn't seem to mind answering my baking questions. I asked her why the fruit failed to sink in my Dutch Apple Cake... apparently floury apples such as Cox's don't sink. Oh, and a question about my Almond Praline Cake... but I haven't blogged that one yet!
On that high, Mum & I spent a lovely few hours shopping in Cheltenham before returning to collect Megan from Great Granny's house. She had been a little star for Grandpa and Great Granny, so a good day all round!
So after all that, I feel I have a new impetus for my challenge (which had slowed up a bit). Rachel if you do by any chance read this, I really appreciated your time and hope I'll do 'Bake' proud.
Back soon, with some 'new school' biscuits, almond praline cake and red velvet cake. Tatty bye!
No comments:
Post a Comment