GBBO 2014 challenge week 1 – cherry cake

I am, like many, so excited and delighted to see the Great British Bake Off back for another series … and this time on BBC1! Poor Andrew detests the show – he just cannot understand why anyone would be interested in watching people bake – but he does like to sample any goodies I make, […]

It’s here: The Great British Bake Off 2014

I am feeling just a teeny bit excited about this year’s Great British Bake Off. Well maybe a LOT excited. I love that show! As with last year, I’ve decided to do a Bake Off challenge for the blog, so each week I’ll be making one of the dishes the bakers have to make. Last […]

Nothing says Happy Birthday like a cake covered in Maltesers

I may have mentioned before (once or twice) that I am quite a fan of chocolate. I really like Hotel Chocolat (and think that because it is quite expensive I won’t inhale it so quickly as ‘normal’ chocolate, although that doesn’t always work) but I also love the usual brands you can find in the […]

Celebrating US Independence Day with chocolate Coca-Cola cake

When you are making something to celebrate US Independence Day on 4 July, you can’t go too far wrong than making something which involves coca-cola, the brand that apparently created the red and white Santa Clause we know today. Personally, I have never been a fan of fizzy drinks – it’s one of the few […]

Creamy chicken orzo and mini victoria sponges

When I recently visited my lovely friend Charlotte (recently a new mum to the beautiful Henry, and one of my Alphabet Adventures buddies), her mum Jill made us a gorgeous dinner of creamy orzo pasta with chicken, followed by a lemon fudge cheesecake. Jo, the third in our AA trio, was also there and we had a […]

Beautiful Brugge: Flemish beef stew and speculoos biscuits

This latest blog post has been a long time coming. It is almost one year ago since I went to Brugge (more commonly known as Bruges, but the locals prefer Brugge as it is in the Flemish part of Belgium) on a long weekend break. Andrew and I had actually been there before and had […]

St Patrick’s Day Irish stew, chocolate Guinness cake and Baileys ice cream

It’s St Patrick’s day, and even though I only have the most tenuous link to Ireland (I sit opposite an Irish girl at work), I am happy to take any opportunity to join in with the craic. Plus, it’s not every day you have the perfect excuse to make Nigella Lawson’s chocolate Guinness cake, which […]

A St David’s Day feast of Welsh goodness

I am not Welsh. Well, officially I am a quarter Welsh, as my maternal grandmother was born in Aberdare (although she didn’t sound Welsh, and the only Welsh-ness I really remember from her is her love of Neil Kinnock). Plus my boyfriend is 100% Welsh, despite being born in Ipswich (he says he was born […]