Just The Three Of Us

I have two great loves, and they are both B’s. Bradley and Baking.

Baking is full of comfort. It’s the best smelling hobby, least horrible job and most homely way to share some grub. Of course, I mostly bake cake. And mine and cake’s relationship is a little hate and a lot of love. There are times cake tests my patience and moments she’ll show me how goddamn beautiful food can be. Cake is a she because she is sweet, often round and filled with tempting layers. Cake is my kinda gal.

And Bradley’s my kinda guy. To put it simply, and in terms you might understand … if he were a chocolate he’d be a toffee crisp. A classic, one that never disappoints. Strong and sorta hard to break, but once a little broken … he’s like toffee in your hands … messy but so tempting I just can’t get enough.

Talking of toffee crisp, would it be a totally, utterly bad idea for me to go and buy one? No of course not, I'll pop out on a chocolate run later.

This week’s been busy so far. There’s been Victoria’s Secret pinkness and one of my personal favourite’s … one of those marbley buttercream cakes, dripping in ganache and bursting with popcorn.

I smothered my little 6 inch cake in red and yellow buttercream. After the timeless crumb coat that is. Be brave with your buttercream, scrape it on, and scrape some off and smooth it all around. Practice makes as close to perfect as we’d like!

I whipped up some white chocolate ganache too. I use 3 parts white chocolate and 1 part double cream. That’s 6oz white chocolate and 2oz double cream.

Top Tips:

The better the quality of chocolate, the shinier the finish on the ganache.
Pour the cream over the chocolate and pop it in the microwave for around 1:10 minutes. Stir gently to ensure it’s all mixed and melted.
Don’t let it sit for too long before pouring on your cake, it will surely thicken!

I also think it’s worth knowing that white chocolate ganache is considerably harder to make. Dark chocolate ganache is so breezy to put together. There’s less fat in dark chocolate which makes the company of double cream a little more welcome.

Once it’s all dripping down the sides, ganache tends to scream “sprinkle me with popcorn and other naughty things!” So that’s what I did.

And in other news, me and toffee crisp managed a few days away last weekend … hence my lack of virtual life for a few days. We relaxed and strolled and fine dined at Rushton Hall in Northamptonshire a.k.a. a Downton Abbey within our reach.

It was so peaceful. And our three course meal was just divine. So so yummy. Of course we had one of those “it’s so weird to think people once lived here” conversations. A lovely stay, perfect for foodies, spa goers and people like me, that find four poster beds utterly fabulous.

Photos below are a total mixture, so sorry and you’re welcome.

I leave you with just one thought … if you were a chocolate, what would you be?

Yours Sweetly,

Chocolate Button x

Use your palette knife to gently lead those drips all down the sides of your cake.

Naked.

I don't like cakes like these to look Too busy. It's all about finding that naughty, yummy, easy on the eye balance.

And this one had that. It's freeze dried strawberry border, touch of popcorn and gold leaf details work really nicely together.

Girl heaven alert ...

When people tell me they'd like their cake to be a Victoria's Secret theme, I light up a little inside.

Just like I did when we drove up to Rushton Hall.

It was chilly but warm enough to explore the grounds. We tend to take on the role of explorers whenever we go some place new. Every nook and cranny we shall see!

I guess I am one of those annoying photo people, but it brings me comfort. And I especially like taking pictures of places. When I look back at this photo, I'll always remember my feet getting stuck in the mud moments after taking it!