A quick thought on spice.

On second thought, this applies to pretty much any ingredients but you can taste it more with the spices you use.

All due respect to the folks at Greggs and other broad scope companies (Pams etc), but for God's sake don't use their spices in your baking.

Go to The Spice Rack, Spice Trader or somewhere similar and get the real thing. This is especially true with ginger. The difference between standard, bland, generic powdered ginger in your ginger slice and the real, full on stuff from a proper spice specialist is unbelievable.

Some things you can scrimp on, but not that.

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15:19

I don't know about other blokes but I've had trouble with gingernuts.

Not red-headed people, some of my best friends are flame fried carrot tops, but actual gingernuts. Biscuits. A lot of recipes come out soft or without the desired spicy punch.

Enter Doug.

He's the genius that gave me the best biscuit recipe I've tried. I reckon ... and I'm not normally this adventurous ... a pinch of pepper goes a long way with these cookies.

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12:29

Sometimes you faff around for ages figuring out how to get baked goods into a certain shape. For example: heart shaped cupcakes.

So, you can make them and then cut the shape out, or you can go to the local supplier and buy molds (oooh, expensive!) OR you can do this:

Unless you've lost your marbles, obviously.

Side note: I am aware that heart shaped cupcakes are not in any way blokey. But I have daughters and if they want heart shaped cupcakes and there's an easy way to make that happen, then that's what's gonna happen. Take it up with them if you have a problem.

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13:23

You think that just because you have good intentions, everything's going to hum along nicely?

Doubt it.

I grabbed a bag of frozen blueberries from the frozen section at the supermarket thinking that a batch of muffins for the neighbours would be a good way of lifting spirits after a tough week. When I got home I realized those blueberries were actually boysenberries.

Shouldn't matter, right? Berries are berries? The recipe will still work, surely?

Nope. Wrong. Uh-uh.

Muffin fail. Instead of cheering up the neighbours, I ended up making the kids miserable by adding stodgy, purple bricks to their lunch boxes.

There's a lesson here somewhere. You'll have to figure out what it is.

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11:31

I'm like Frankenstein, but without the screaming. The evil genius, that is - not the monster.

The kitchen is my lab and today I created something that, when it came out of the oven, looked so perfect I nearly cried out, 'It's alive!'

Okay - I just read those two lines back and it sounds like I really rate myself. So let me cut to the chase:

I made a Louise slice and instead of using jam I used lemon curd. Lemon Louise, oh how I love her. This was an idea that occurred to me a few weeks back and finally I've done something about it. There's a little lemon in the base and the sual coconut in the meringue and it all works perfectly.

Tips:
1. You could blast the base together in a food processor, but I find it just as quick and easy in a bowl. And it saves on dishes cos you have to use a bowl anyway.

2. Softened the butter, but don't melt it. The easiest way to do that is by zapping it in the microwave on the lowest possible setting for a minute or two.

3. I use dessicated coconut, which is a lot finer. I like the lightness it gives the meringue. But you can use the shredded stuff for a more rustic effect.

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18:24

Oh Lordy, have I ever been getting compliments on the chocolate chip biscuits. I can't take credit for the recipe - that comes from our great fiend Janet. All I did was tweak.

But here's the thing: friends have tried to make these using the same recipe and they don't come out quite the same way. So here are a few biscuit making tips. One of which comes from the mighty Pauline Nunns - baker of international renown. the others are either mine or have been stolen fair and square from who knows where.

1. Cream the butter and sugar properly. Best to use a wooden spoon or table spoon. The thing is, the butter needs to be softened right. SOFT, but not melted. Do not use an electric mixer, and if you're going to use a mixing bowl put the paddle on.

2. Cut in the dry ingredients. Either with a flat bladed knife or a metal spoon. That is, fold around and then slice through rather than stir. Give it a crack - you'll get the hang of it.

3. Bake them a minute longer. You'll think they're done, but just leave them to go properly golden brown and you get the right 'snap' to the biscuits. Crunch on the outside, soft on the inside.

Okay. That's it. It's not that hard ... follow the instructions, feel the rhythm, bake. you'll be great.

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19:18