Wednesday 30 October 2013

*Swizzells Matlow Halloween Range & My 'Trick or Treat' Cake!

So with Halloween looming and very soon to be upon us, i was asked by the lovely people at Swizzells Matlow if i would review some of their Halloween Range!

Swizzells Matlow kindly sent me these:
Chew Crew
Scary Mix
Trick or Treat Lolly Mix

They are all perfect for little Trick or Treaters on Halloween night and host a great variety of both the originals; Fizzers, Parma Violets, Love Hearts, etc and also new twists on the flavours! Such as: Double Lollies featuring monster pictures and Orange flavoured Drumsticks!
In my opinion, they are the perfect mix for Halloween and who can beat a family favourite?

"British Confectionary Giant, Swizzells Matlow, the king of the trick or treat season, is gearing uup for a sell out Halloween season with a horrific host of new products.
This Year's new ghoulish party delight is Trick or Sweet which includes a selection of Double Lollies, New Refresher bars, Parma Violets, Love Hearts, Fruity Pops, Fizzers and Drumstick Lollies.
Swizzells Matlow's other frightening fancies include Trick or Treat Lolly Mix - available at Morrisons which includes; Monster Double Lollies, orange & black Drumstick Lollies and pumpkin themed Fruity Pops.
Spooky Trick or Treat Mix tub available at Tesco is perfect for celebrations over the spooky season, it's stocked full of all your Swizzells Matlow favourites!

I decided to mix the Halloween theme of sweets and my business of cake to make a sweet-toothed treat for the kids on Halloween :)

So with this in mind, this is the Trick or Treat cake that i made:

It features the Trick: Coffee Flavoured sponge (which in general kids seem to Hate the thought of Coffee!)
and the Treat: the lashings of sweet icing and Swizzells Matlow sweets!

Swizzells Matlow are available at a host of National Supermarkets- be sure to go grab yours before it's too late!

*Swizzells Matlow compensated me for this post by sending me the above products to try, taste and test. However all above opinions are my own

Monday 21 October 2013

Reese's White Peanut Butter Cups Miniatures!

Whilst doing the weekly food shop in ASDA this morning i thought i might just pop into the sweets/chocolate aisle to browse.. (as you do!)

I always like to take a look as sometimes it gives me inspiration for my cupcakes and i was so excited when i came across these!

I love Reese's products and as you can probably guess i'm a peanut butter lover!
I had never tried the miniatures before but just couldn't resist the white chocolate ones as i'd never even heard of them before - they're on sale in ASDA for only £1 right now too so i'd grab them whilst you can!

The inside of the re-sealable pouch looks so inviting.. they're like mini wrapped presents!

I think they'd be just perfect in a christmas stocking!
What i especially love about them is that when you undo the foil wrapped, they actually look like tiny cupcakes too!

I will say when tasting one, they are a lot richer because of the white chocolate and even though i have a sweet-tooth, i can't eat more than 1 or 2 at a time so it's a good job the packet is re-sealable! They are delicious for a little treat though!
They still have quite a thick layer of Peanut Butter in the centre which makes them so soft and delicious! The white chocolate forms a crisp outside shell which provides a fresh and sweet contrast.
They are So delicious in-fact that i thought i might make a New Cupcake with them!

I'm thinking either:
White chocolate sponge with Peanut Butter flavoured butter-icing topped with a White Chocolate Reese's peanut butter cup miniature
OR
Vanilla sponge with a Peanut Butter-filled centre topped with White Chocolate butter-icing and a Reese's peanut butter cup miniature

What do you think? Might be a brand new flavour before Christmas!!

Monday 14 October 2013

30th Birthday Arsenal Cake

So the surprise that i couldn't mention a few days ago can finally be revealed..


This Arsenal cake was my big brother's 30th Birthday Present and although it took a lot of planning, time and precision it was definitely worth it!


The sponge was a plain vanilla made up with 5 eggs and it rose to around 10cm in the oven before being levelled-off. It is the highest risen cake i have made and am so glad it rose as much as it did!
The centre was filled with a layer of strawberry jam and plain buttercream and the entire cake covered with a layer of buttercream before being chilled for 2 hours and covered and smoothed with green fondant.

The next morning i printed an Arsenal badge picture from the internet and traced the separate shapes of the shield, cannon and letters onto greaseproof paper, this enable me to cut the icing in the correct shapes with a guide.
These were then layered onto the cake to create the main badge, i used white fondant to create the look of a 3-0 score in place of the number '30' and finished the design by piping green butter-icing around the bottom of the cake with a large star nozzle.


My brother was so surprised and loved the cake i am so happy to say!
They all say it tasted scrummy too!

Thursday 10 October 2013

Busy week planning.. watch this space!

So i have been extra busy this week Planning.. and more Planning!
I have a special cake to make very soon and unfortunately i can't put the details on here yet as the person may see them!

But i can confirm it is a celebration cake, covered with fondant and with matching cupcakes so watch this space and the details of all of this will be able to be seen on Monday!
I'm so excited about this cake and cupcakes!

I will also be putting a list of fairs i am attending in November up next week so if anyone wants to pop along and try some cupcakes then please do!

These are my practice batches..

Watch this Space!

Tuesday 1 October 2013

Homemade Lemon & Coconut Madeira Squares - Recipe


Today i'm going to share with you my recipe to make:
Homemade Lemon & Coconut Madeira Squares
(Serves 12)
These have enough citrus to have a tang but aren't overpowering and the coconut gives it a lovely crumbly feel when bitten into. They're perfect for enjoying with a cup of tea or coffee when watching the telly at night!

Equipment:
20cm Round cake tin (loose-bottomed preferably)
Handheld electric whisk

Ingredients:
For Sponge
175g (6oz) Softened butter (i use Stork)
175g (6oz) caster sugar
225 (8oz) self-raising flour
50g (2o) desicated coconut
3 eggs, beaten
Grated rind of 1 lemon
For Topping
juice of half a lemon
4 tablespoons of white sugar
A little coconut for sprinkling

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180c/350f, Gas Mark 4 and grease the tin using a pastry brush and butter

2. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk thoroughly for a few minutes until the mixture is smooth and creamy

3. Pour the mixture into the cake tin and level the top as much as possible using a palette knife

4. Bake in the centre of the oven for 45-50 minutes until the cake has risen and is golden - don't worry if the top is cracked!

5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the cake tin for around 15 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely (if you have a loose bottomed tin, after the 15 minutes push the bottom up and set the cake down before sliding the bottom of the tin from underneath the cake then allow to cool completely)

6. When cooled completely cut off the top of the crispy top of the cake so you have a smooth/flat topped sponge, then cut into 12 square/rectangular pieces

7. Make up the topping by putting the lemon juice into a small bowl ad stir in 1 tablespoon of sugar at a time and ensure the sugar crystals are still visible

8. Using a pastry brush, simply brush the topping over the top of cake so it is evenly distributed and then sprinkle some coconut over the top to finish

Enjoy!