Baking Mad.com - everything you want to know about baking

Our friends at Silver Spoon and Macmillan Cancer Support are collaborating to run an exciting competition for fantastic foodie bloggers in the UK.

 They’re looking for keen bloggers who love to bake to enter their favourite recipe to win a chance to feature in the new edition of Macmillan Cancer Support’s Little Book of Treats 2013.

The book will be on sale in M&S Cafes throughout August and September and 100% of the proceeds will go towards people affected by cancer.

To take part in Macmillan Cancer Support’s World’s Biggest Coffee Morning, follow this link to register your event – http://coffeeregister.macmillan.org.uk/mvc/coffee/register2013?key=AHH1304_SS

The recipes should be -

- Innovative and exciting.
- Easy to replicate with everyday kitchen utensils and widely available ingredients
- Visibly pleasing to the eye with fellow bakers left inspired.
- Taste great!

The winning recipes will appear along with your name and blog name in the book. They will be tested by a home economist and photographed professionally.

How to Enter

To enter e-mail emma.chamberlain@thesilverspooncompany.co.uk with the title ‘Little Book of Treats‘ in the subject header. Include the following in your e-mail:

- Recipe title
- Recipe ingredients
- Size/how many portions
- Recipe method
- A picture
- Your full name
- A link to your blog

Competition closes on the 5^th April 2013. Full terms and conditions are below.

Little Book of Treats Terms and Conditions

• Acceptance of the rules is a condition of entry and entry instructions form part of the rules. Your personal data will be held by Silver Spoon.
• This competition is open to UK residents only aged 18 or over and excludes any person whom in the competition organiser’s reasonable opinion, should be excluded due to their involvement or connection with this competition.
• No purchase necessary for entry.
• One entry allowed by each entrant only. Entries must be made personally. Entries from agents/third parties are invalid.
• Entry indicates acceptance of the terms and conditions.
• Entries must be received no later than midnight (GMT) on 5th April 2013. Entries received after this date will not be entered.
• The winners and runners up will be selected under independent supervision by the 11th April 2013, and will be notified by e-mail by the 1^st May 2013.
• The prize is that your submitted recipe appears in The Little Book of Treats, a recipe book created by Silver Spoon and Macmillan Cancer Support. The prize is non-transferable. There is no cash alternative.
• It is a condition of the entry that the competition winners agree to be available for, and participate in, any public relations activity arranged by the Organiser.
• The Organiser’s decision in all matters relating to the competition is final and legally binding on all entrants and no correspondence will be entered into.
• The Organiser reserves the right to alter, amend or foreclose the competition without prior notice.
• The Organiser reserves the right to amend submitted recipes if deemed necessary.
• Professional photographs of winning recipes will be taken in the style most suited to appear in the Little Book of Treats, no correspondence will be entered into.
• Silver Spoon will have full ownership rights to all professional photos taken of the competition entries.
• Organiser: Silver Spoon
• Events may occur that render the competition itself or the awarding of the prize impossible due to reasons beyond the control of the Organiser and accordingly the Organiser may at its absolute discretion vary or amend the promotion and the entrant agrees that no liability shall attach to the as a result thereof.
• Entries not submitted in accordance with the rules, illegible, incomplete or altered will be disqualified.
• The promotion and the website are subject to English law and the jurisdiction of the English courts.
• Silver Spoon and any associated or subsidiary company and their agents or subcontractors in any way connected to this site make no representation that the materials contained within this website are appropriate for any country outside the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, not that they comply with any local laws relating to advertising or this type of promotional activity.

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You may have noticed that our recipes now feature Stork, this is because…

Since its launch in 1920, Stork has established itself as one of the most trusted names in home baking, offering baking advice and recipes for over 90 years. When Stork soft tub margarine was introduced in the 1970s, it pioneered the all-in-one method of making sponge cakes, which made baking quicker and easier.

Whether you’re baking cupcakes for tea with the girls, a light and fluffy Victoria sponge for a picnic or rustling up some delicious cookies, Stork contains just the right fat content for baking many types of cakes, biscuits, crumbles, puddings and pastries.

Product benefits:

• Use Stork block in a foil wrapper for perfect pastry, scones, biscuits and crumbles. Its firm texture is especially good for rich fruitcakes, helping to keep the dried fruit evenly distributed.
• Use Stork in a tub for deliciously light and fluffy cakes. It can be used straight from the fridge for easy creaming, and to whip up the yummiest icing.

Stork tips:

• Baking is scientific, so measure ingredients and follow recipes exactly.
• Make sure pans don’t touch each other or the sides of the oven.
• Use an oven thermometer to ensure the temperature is always accurate.
• Allow three quarters of the cooking time to pass before opening the oven door or the cake will sink.
• Cakes are ready when an inserted skewer comes out clean.
• Droops and dips can be caused by using too much baking powder, syrup or treacle.
• Having your oven set too high or opening the oven door too early can produce a sunken cake. It can also be caused by over-mixing, particularly when using a food mixer.
• Test your cake is cooked by lightly pressing the top – if it’s firm and springy, it’s ready; if soft, it needs a little longer in the oven. Use a metal skewer for larger cakes; the skewer should come out clean with no uncooked mixture sticking to it.

FAQ’s

What do I do to make sure my cake is fluffy and light?

Sieve your flour to help air get into the mixture. Cream the fat and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in the eggs gradually and carefully fold in the flour with a metal spoon or spatula.

What do I do with a burnt cake?

Don’t worry, all is not lost! Cut off the burnt edges and smother in icing to cover up the imperfections.

My cake has sunk in the middle, what did I do wrong?

This can happen if you open the oven before the cake is ready. Try not to open the oven to check on the cake while it is baking as it is important to keep a consistent temperature.

My cake sticks to the tin. How do I prevent it?

Grease with oil, bottom line the cake tin and grease again.

My cakes always stick to the tin and I can’t get it out. How do I prevent this in future?

Always grease your tins with Stork and line them with baking paper. When you remove the cake from the oven leave it for about 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack. They should slide out easily.

Can I substitute Stork packet or tub for butter/oil in any recipe?

No it depends on the recipe. We do not recommend Stork packet or tub to be used for puff or flaky pastries or deep-fat frying.

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Shrove Tuesday (or Pancake Day as it is wider known) is knocking at the door, and what better way to celebrate the day of pancakes, than to whip up a delicious batch (or two) for friends and family?

To make the day a true pancake success, remember to top your batches with Askeys Treat!

There is already a flavour for every taste, but why not get creative and get mixing?

Make it a fun experience by setting up a pancake and Treat station for the kids, and don’t forget the sprinkles!

 We understand that buying ingredients can sometimes get a little expensive, so we have ensured that your major supermarkets are on your pancake topping side. Treat is on promotion in your major retailers, so grab the offers while you can.

Happy Flipping!

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Here at BakingMad.com we like to offer our members exclusive discounts and here’s our latest one…

If you haven’t already bought your tickets for The Cake & Bake Show Manchester 2013, make sure you quote code “BM0313″ when you are booking and you will get a fantastic 20% off of your tickets.

You need to book by 1st March 2013 for this code to be valid as it won’t be accepted after that date.

Click here to buy tickets

Look forward to seeing you at the show!!

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Click here to enter the survey

BakingMad.com KitchenAid Survey Terms and Conditions

The prize consists of a KitchenAid Mixer (colour may vary from image shown) There is no cash alternative. The competition is only open to people aged 18 or over in the UK. The competition is not open to employees of AB foods (The Promoter), their subsidiaries, families, agents, their affiliates or anyone involved in the competition. The winner will be the first entry drawn at random on 11.02.13 and will be notified by email. Only one entry per person. Only correct & completed entries will be entered into the prize draw. Closing date for entry is 4pm 07.02.13. The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. The prize is awarded conditionally upon acceptance and if a winner is unable to be contacted after a reasonable period or if any prize is unclaimed or declined within a reasonable period, the prize shall be deemed as unclaimed or unaccepted and a supplementary winner may be drawn at the Promoter’s discretion. No purchase necessary. AB Foods reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of its choosing which has a value the same or greater than the original prize, in the event of circumstances outside its control. There is no cash alternative to this prize. The prize is subject to availability and change. Any queries and comments should be directed to info@bakingmad.com .The name and county of the winner may be obtained by sending a signed handwritten request along with a stamped self-addressed envelope detailing your request to BakingMad.com Sugar Way, Peterborough, PE2 9AY, and marked with the name of the Prize Draw. Entry into the prize draw will constitute acceptance of these terms and conditions.

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Christmas is my favourite time of the year… I love the build-up to the big event, even if every year it seem to start that little bit earlier!  There are so many parties to attend, so much food to be eaten or cooked and of course it’s the busiest time of the year for baking.

Even as a French man I adore a good Christmas cake.  Each year we bake more and more Christmas cakes at Cake Boy, our boutique in London, and each year as soon as we start to bake our rich fruit cakes the customers rush in saying they can smell the baking from across the river.  There really is nothing like the smell of a Christmas cake baking, it’s so festive!

My tips for a great Christmas and a great Christmas cake are:

1. Don’t do too much in advance … the best time to start your Christmas cake is mid-November as if you start to early the nuts in the cake will spoil.

2. Always use unrefined sugar in your Christmas cake, the best and my favourite is Billington’s.  Billington’s Dark Muscovado and Molasses give rich dark flavours and colour to your cake.

3. Roast your nuts before adding to your cake mixture for extra flavour and crunch.

4. Use good quality dry fruits; they should be plump and seedless.  Make sure you use natural glace cherries.

5. Use good quality cognac in your Christmas cake or if you fancy experimenting try an orange liquor or rum.  Feed your cake an extra tablespoon of alcohol roughly every two weeks before baking but don’t over-do it as it will become soggy.

6. If you are going to ice your cake do it the week of Christmas so your icing doesn’t dry or lose its colour.

7. I always make my Christmas cake very flamboyant and use it as a centre piece on the table instead of flowers.

8. Serve your cake with a cheese platter in the evening, accompanied by port or champagne … a perfect combination.

9. For Boxing day I make a quick dessert by crumbling left-over Christmas cake over good quality vanilla ice cream.

10. In mid-November I bake a batch or two of mini mince pies and pop them into little gift boxes as a gift for people who visit my house over the festive season.  Or you can gift them when visiting someone else’s house … they are cute and delicious hot and because they are small you don’t feel too guilty eating them.

11. To keep the children entertained over Christmas I’ve for the last few years set up a cupcake decorating station for them in the kitchen.  I give them a selection of baked cupcakes, bowls of multi-coloured icing and plenty of decorations.  The children love it and the adults get a bit of time to be together.

12. Last year for pre-Christmas dinner party I baked Christmas ginger biscuits and used them as name place tags.  You can pipe everyone’s name onto the biscuit with festive coloured icing.  Just make a little hole in the biscuit before it goes to the oven and use it to tie it up to the napkins with a festive ribbon.

13. Another great Christmas pudding is Christmas Panettone Pudding.  It’s basically a bread and butter pudding using the light Italian cake, Panettone instead of bread.  Make it with lots of fruits, soak overnight in Amaretto and serve piping hot from the oven with vanilla custard.  It’s heaven on a cold winter’s day.

The main things to remember over Christmas is to be organised, only use the best ingredients, don’t be too ambitious and mostly enjoy the season as it will go as fast as it came!

JOYEUX NOEL  

Eric xx

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1. Sugar Paste – if you have any sugarpaste leftover after decorating you cake of making cake decorations wrap it up tightly in cling film and store it in an airtight container. It will keep like this for weeks until you need to use it again

2. Royal icing – if you have decorated you Christmas cake using royal icing or made some up to do some piping you can keep any leftover icing in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

3. Buttercream – if you’ve made a bit too much buttercream don’t throw it away it will keep in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks

4. Bread dough – if you have made a bread dough but only need to use half of it you can freeze the rest of the dough, just wrap it up in cling film or place in a freezer bag and pop it in the freezer until you need another loaf. The just defrost and bake.

5. Cupcakes/Sponge cakes – if you’re organised and baking ahead cupcake and sponge cakes will freeze really well, just wrap up in cling film and freeze. This is also a great idea if you’ve made too many cupcakes.

6. Gingerbread dough – if you’re making gingerbread and have some dough left over, wrap it up tightly in cling film of a freezer bag and pop it in the freezer until you need it again.

7. Pastry – pastry dough freezes really well, just wrap up any leftover pastry when you’ve made a pie or some sausage rolls and place it in the freezer until you need it again.

8. Cookie dough – if you’re making cookies but don’t want to make too many, just wrap up the leftover cookie dough and put it in the freezer until you want to make some more

Happy baking!

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