Sometimes only a square of shortbread will do. When I need comfort or a little afternoon pick me up, it’s hard to resist the call of a buttery, crumbly piece of shortbread – even more so if I can find some with dark chocolate chips in it. Good ol’ Marks and Spencer is my usual failsafe haunt in times of need, but finding myself stuck at home during the lockdown, meant I needed to find a different way to get my fix. I first started making shortbread while working at Pendennis Castle Coffee Shop back in my student days. It…
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Continue ReadingAs soon as I saw Cox Cookies & Cake by Eric Lanlard and Patrick Cox, I had to buy a copy. As a designer myself, I couldn’t help but love the padded cover, pink edged pages and ‘sexy, seductive’ photographic styling – and the tongue in cheek, slightly smutty humour tickled me too. A collaboration between master pâtissier Eric Lanlard and footwear designer Patrick Cox, the book documents some of the popular bakes sold in their Soho shop, including the Buff Man Cakes, Cheeky Cakes and Titty Cakes. Definitely buns with va-va-voom! With a visit to a sweet obsessed friend…
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Continue ReadingConsidering my love affair with all things chocolate mint, it’s not exactly a surprise that these cupcakes are a regular fixture within my baking arsenal. I’ve long been a fan of the mint Aero, with its crisp chocolate shell and delicate green-hued bubbly interior, but it took a longing stare into the vending machine at work for me to cotton on to the fact that it would be a rather chic decoration for a cupcake! These were first created as a birthday treat for a colleague, affectionately known as Monty – which has since earned them the name of Chocolate…
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Continue ReadingBeing a huge fan of both mint and chocolate, especially when they’re combined, I couldn’t resist giving the Grasshopper Pie from Nigella Lawson’s Kitchen a try. I shouldn’t really admit that crème de menthe is a permanent fixture in my kitchen, but I have a little soft spot for the lurid green alcoholic liquid that manages to warm and cool all at once. If you’ve not yet tried it in a hot chocolate on a cold day, you’re in for a treat, although be warned, the innocent flavour of this kitsch liqueur still packs a punch. Having the most important…