Why a girl needs emergency chocolate cake stashed in the freezer...

I do and I'm a girl, well a grown up mummy lady but I do *need* emergency chocolate cake stashed in my freezer.

Sometimes only chocolate cake will do and I am well apt to cope with what life throws my way if I know there is a chocolate sponge ready to be slathered in chocolate buttercream available to defrost at any given time I may need it.
It's a simple strategy really, whenever I make chocolate cake (Nigella's all in one recipe in Feast is my go to), I make a double batch, that is four sandwich layers rather than two and bung two of them in the freezer *in case of emergency*.  It works for me as my local Sainsburys only sells sour cream by the 300ml tub and the basic recipe requires half that amount.  It is sensible then to use it all up, no? Besides I am a double, triple, quadruple batch type of a cook.  It's practical and means I can justify using huge pots and long handled wooden spoons. Any excuse for that in my kitchen makes me a happy haggis.

I also make sure I have a supply of luxurious dark chocolate in my baking drawer and I'm good to go.

 My boys love their chocolate cake and it is always their choice if they fancy some cake resting in the kitchen, on a cake stand or pretty vintage plate, ready to be sliced after school.

I like mine with a cup of tea served in a lovely cup.

If there was no emergency chocolate cake it would take so much longer to use my scrummy dark chocolate up or use pretty cake stands or vintage china or eat alongside cornishware teacups and saucers or make my boys happy after a hard day at school.

Emergency and essential  chocolate cake stashed in my freezer is a must!

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Find me on Twitter and Instagram as jammypudding.

April showers of a baking kind.

For me, April hasn't showered rain so much as flour and icing sugar.  I've been a busy ol' bee with birthdays and things and when I look at my Instagram feed (I'm jammypudding on there by the way) there is an abundance of bakes.
Back at the beginning of April I turned 39 and had a lovely, lovely day which was made all the lovelier for having this...

 Lemon cake decorated with handmade daisies.  It tasted so so so good.  I'd take lemon cake over all others (maybe?...might have to think about that claim) and it was kind of nice making myself a cake for my birthday.  Eldest Biscuit was outraged by the idea!
My father-in-law's birthday quickly followed mine so I made him his favourite coffee and walnut cake but this time I used my cool tin from Lakeland.  It has straight sides for individual cakes so you can make small versions of large cakes.  I was very pleased with how they turned out and will have to make mini Victoria sponges soon.

 The lead up to the end of the Easter hols meant I had to re stock the freezer with some bakes for my boys' lunch boxes.

Banana bread and

marble cake cut up into ickle pieces.  Sponge freezes really well and even though baking ingredients can be expensive by the time they are cut up small and used up, they work out quite cheap and although not exactly health food, better than processed and I do think cake makes people happy.  In my head my Biscuits are able to get through an afternoon of school with the help of their little cakes of happiness made with love by me.
I also made chocolate cheesecake for a friend as part of his Christmas gift of bakes throughout 2012.  I couldn't encourage a heart bypass so he didn't get a whole cheesecake, a few pieces were leftover for us.

 Oh my this cheesecake from Nigella's 'Feast' book is simply heaven in every mouthful and whenever I have it I feel I am in one of those old Flake adverts, having a special moment in a field of wild flowers. So good!

Last week I made madeleines for the menfolk as an after school and work snack (and of course a few for me too).  If you have never made them or let alone eaten one, please do.  Apart from the specialised tin (Lakeland sell one for under a tenner) they are very very easy wee cakes to make and quick too.  You can pretend, if you have a need to, to be refined and delicate whilst nibbling on one. I find it essential to drink tea from a china cup and saucer whenever I have one. Look at them, *sigh*!

 And finally, Eldest biscuit turned eleven yesterday.  All you parents out there will understand when I say I do not know how that happened so soon after him arriving but eleven he is.  I managed to convince him not to have his usual novelty sugarpaste clad birthday cake ( a 3DS this year) in favour of a chocolate cake made with chocolate from Hotel Chocolat. It's surprisingly cheaper weight for weight than Green & Blacks.  The self sacrificing mother that I am had to go into their shop in Edinburgh, forcing myself to take their free samples whilst shopping for his cake.  The things we do.
I didn't want to use my everyday, all-in-one cake (again from 'Feast') so opted for a luxury buttermilk one from 'Tea with Bea'.  This book is really lovely with seriously decadent bakes. It isn't a book for beginners I think but if you are a confident baker it's worth a looksee.  Here's how it turned out...

 I layered it with vanilla buttercream (which to be fair didn't compliment the sponge I feel, you live and learn) and covered it with chocolate buttercream.  I sprinkled over fudge pieces, Minstrels, smarties and gemstone drops from Hotel Chocolat.  I also made the bunting to decorate and little flags for these...

...mini vanilla cupcakes.  Eldest Biscuit likes to share his cake with family and friends so these were for those not so keen on a rich chocolate cake.  Too cute!
And of course there were the obligatory and traditional number biscuits.

For Christmas 2000, whilst pregnant with EB, I got Nigella's Domestic Goddess book from Mr Biscuit (he wrote inside "who's to say you're not already" sweet or what?) and knew when I saw these biscuits that I wanted to make them [for our cooking baby + any more] every year for birthdays and so far I have.  We joke that as grown men, my boys will still expect them. I followed the 'Biscuiteers' way for the icing and am getting to grips with icing bags and plastic bottles.
Here's a photo of my boy making a wish.

Oh my what a calorific month!  Just as well it wasn't all for me.  Yet I am dreaming of more.  I got a new book yesterday to sigh over and consider "What to bake?".

Indeed "What to bake?" .

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The 52 Marvellous Makes Madness Challenge - Weeks 35 - 40!

Hello and welcome to the next batch of marvellous makes...

Week 35

Butterfly and bunny key rings.

Made for a schoolfriend of Eldest Biscuit to take along to her Saturday night party.  Can't remember the last time I was invited to a party on a Saturday night!!

Made up from felt, fabric and buttons from their respective stashes.  A bit of making fun!

 Week 36

Owl egg cosy.

Made from a tutorial from LucyKate for one of the Nursery Nurses where I help out (pretend I have a career as a Librarian) of a Wednesday morn.  Last year I made her an owl brooch for her birthday not knowing she has collected owly things for years and years so this year when I spotted this cosy I knew who would love one.  

Week 37

Bread.

I make bread often but I thought homemade bread deserves to be in this as it is indeed a marvellous thing to make.  Have tried many different recipes but always come back to Jamie O.

Week 38

Bunny egg cosy.

Made from a Little Cotton Rabbits pattern.  Made for youngest Biscuit's teacher at Easter.  Eldest Biscuit didn't agree that his [gorgeous, young] male teacher would want one.  Made with various 4 ply from my wool stash.

 Weeks 39 and 40

  

Chocolate cake - again and again.  

 Seeing how my craft making mojo was being a fickle friend...

 Made as week 39 only to be required the next week very last minute for a work friend of Mr Biscuit.  I didn't take any photos of the second one, last minute like I said, so am making up for it by the above photo compilation extravaganza.

Only 16 makes left!  

Have a lovely weekend peeps and if praying to a God of Weather would help, please let this incessant rain stop and let there be sun.  I like a bit of rain but c'mon!!!

edit  3pm  -it has rained here for the last two weeks.  Not all day but enough to make hanging out washing risky and a nice seat out all but impossible.  Oh and it's been cold....

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It's Friday Ali! Why so forlorn?

 The chocolate cake is finished!

...sob

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The 52 Marvellous Makes Madness Challenge - Weeks 25-27

and how are you all?  I have a new toy.  A toy to help me enjoy my sewing machine more, a deal I made with myself that I would do this year -  (the above picture is of me having ' a go' with paper - too tight to practise on fabric for the first try).

For a wee bit of fun with freehand embroidery.  Have to have a ponder over what marvellous make I can craft with it.....

Here is another batch of makes, actually from weeks ago but only just got around to organizing myself into posting about it.

Week 25...

sofa cushions

The green crochet one was a previous make (week 15 ) and is now happily together, making friends and offering tea and cake, with four other cushions.  Two made with thrifted tartan fabric and the other two made with a lovely green cotton, covered with cream aran crochet fronts.  Still I am in shock when I sew something that turns out how I had imagined.

Week 26...

crochet front for a floor cushion

For my Biscuits' bedroom.  They are still in 'talks' about which colour fabric they want behind in.  It measures 26" by 26" and I have to say I loves the vibrant colours emboldened by the black borders.  

 Week 27...

Not any old chocolate cake but one from my favourite book - Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery!  Quite an involved process including one of my favourite kitchen jobs; separating eggs.  I love doing it and learned at the feet of my Dad many many years ago.  I have, I confess, been a bit fascinated by egg shells since I was small.  Love breaking one handed and love peeling boiled ones too!   For some reason doing anything with eggs makes me feel very proficient and Goddess like in my kitchen.  This cake includes whisking the whites and adding at a later stage and I am always enthralled watching the whites, well become white.  It was a wonderfully moist cake and deserves a place in any Chocolate Cake Hall of Fame.

I've already got another few makes done and cannot believe I'm past the halfway mark.  It really has been fun documenting some of the things I make each week.

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A week.....

...it has been.  

Up and down which is usually the way with school holidays.  Moments of pleasure shared with my boys, moments when I consider the legalities of locking them out the house until their Daddy comes home from work.

The bad - after being away at cub Camp all weekend and banning Youngest Biscuit and I from watching Doctor Who (A Crime!!!) until Hubby and Eldest Biscuit came back, aforementioned Eldest woke up very poorly on Monday morning, lay on the sofa for two days, so no going out, and since has been in a mood most foul, many arguments and strops and sending/stomping off to his bedroom have ensued.  It hasn't been pleasant.  To top it, Youngest Biscuit's bestest wee friend was away so that spoiled his whole life apparently so many arguments and strops and sending/stomping off to his bedroom have ensued.  Yes it's been repetitively horrid, yet there have been.....

The good - I received my birthday present from Hubby.........

Martha

Is she not beautiful?  Look at that face!

She is from The Vintage Magpie and I love her.  Deeply.  I feel like a little girl just looking at her and a delighted, heart glad one at that.  Go look, but be warned!  Your purse may empty!

Time has been spent in the garden mainly to bang my head as I hang out washing but we did spot our first Ladybird of the year....

It was huge and it was like receiving a magical present when we spotted it.  It even did that wonderfully freaky wing opening thing that reminds me of the DeLorean from Back to the Future.

I even managed to get my blog giveaway goodies posted to their recipients and was very touched by how welcome those goodies were.

My bunnies...

of Ali's knitting bag, are!!

..and lastly to chocolate cake as, in my opinion, there can never be enough photos of cakes.  Not never, not no how!!

and I got to be girly and my Biscuits still ate it!

I must face my demons now, i.e clean the effing bathroom but there are good things this weekend.  Tonight I am making vanilla ice cream to go with Sticky Toffee Pudding for tomorrow as we are having the postponed birthday meal for my gorgeous Father-in-law.  We are on a mission you see.  Many moons ago, in a former life it feels at times, we ate a meal at Charlotte Square in Edinburgh in the National Trust For Scotland restaurant and were served the best, the most delectable Sticky Toffee Pudding that there ever was.  The sauce tasted of childhood memories of jaw sticking McGowans Toffee and ah we had our benchmark.  We have yet to find a recipe that has reached it, so tomorrow I will be trying a James Martin recipe in hopes of it being that good.

I confess, in a way I hope to never find it as one I wouldn't want to negate that fine, fine memory and two to lose the excuse for continuing to feed everyone and myself one of the best ends to a meal.

Enjoy your weekend!

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Fragmented randomness of thoughts on a Saturday morn when I have no business being on my laptop as I should be doing other things....

I was playing in my room last week, taking photos, thinking "Are bed knobs not really lovely?"  Then it hit me....mine look like Fred.  Who's Fred I hear you say?  Fred is Mr Homepride and looksee......

I confess I am food obsessed.  I am also baking chocolate cake today.

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