Where on earth does the time go? Over a week without posting here- oops! I didn’t intend for that to happen, though I knew last week would be busy, what with starting a new job and schoolwork piling up (and no, I don’t mean just baking for my classmates). Apart from my planned Valentine’s dinner (Dana’s lasagne went down a treat- you really must try it), my meals recently have been a mix of old standbys and fridge-cleaning experiments. Read more…
I should begin with a caveat: I’m not really one for birthday cakes. Oh, I like eating them alright, but I rarely make the things, for myself or anyone else. I wish I could be like Deb or Dana, both of whom take the birthday cake tradition seriously, whipping up multi-layered, lusciously iced concoctions for their loved ones. Or even like my sister, who made a tasty, if untraditional orange bundt cake for her 30th this year. For heaven’s sake, I don’t even think I’ve ever even made a birthday cake for my boyfriend, though I have produced several batches of much-appreciated birthday brownies. Read more…
Eeek, Thursday already! How did that happen? I’ve been busy with a freelance photography job this week, and between that and getting ready for my upcoming Italian break, I’ve barely had a moment for blogging. Any second that wasn’t spent taking, uploading or editing photos was automatically bookmarked for restaurant research, laundry and last-minute purchases. Do we think four bottles of sunscreen is enough for five days? Read more…
This blog is such an enabler. Here I am, in the middle of my early-summer “yikes-it’s-skirt-and-tank-top-weather-when-did-that-happen?” health kick, and finally sticking to a running schedule for the first time in months, and what do I do? Bake, of course. Why? Because my blog needs sweets. Read more…
There was no farmer’s market around here yesterday; cancelled due to the 30th annual London Marathon. Usually, I welcome this once-yearly break from the norm and watch the festivities from my living room windows. But this year I slept through the whole thing, and didn’t even have the possibility of fresh veg to cheer me up after. Read more…
Every Christmas morning, my mum or sister will bake blueberry muffins. A strange choice for the time of year perhaps, but they’re made with frozen berries that Mum buys, freezes and hordes during the warmer months. For me, the origin of the berries is a moot point; my disinclination for cooked fruit means that I get two muffins made especially for me- before the offending berries are added. Oh, how I love my blueberry-less blueberry muffins. Read more…
I’ve already mentioned my dislike for cooked-fruit desserts here on Kitchenist. It’s the texture: fruit should be crunchy (apples), or crisp (grapes), or at the most pleasantly yielding (bananas), but never a soft, mushy mess. Try as I might, I’ve never been able to get over this hangup. As a consequence, pies have been off the menu for most of my life. Sure, I’ll take a lemon meringue one or a yummy chocolate version, but an old-fashioned apple pie? Forget it. Read more…
I noted on the weekend that I haven’t been posting many desserts lately, and vowed to step up my game. True to my word, I got right to it yesterday; I was in a cake-baking mood and had some berries from the market, so a strawberry-topped cake seemed just the thing. Read more…
Those of you who follow my Sunday shopping posts will know that I’ve been buying a lot of strawberries lately. I can never resist them at the market- all plump and red and juicy, mocking me with their deliciousness. Well ok, maybe they’re not mocking me, exactly, but it does seem that they have some particular hold over me. And a little fruit personification never hurt anyone, right? Read more…