I go to Cakecraft School

My parents came up trumps for my birthday this year and sent me back to school!  Only this time, it was sugarcraft school.  The location - Paul Bradford's Truly Scrumptious Cupcake Cafe Bar in Linlithgow.  See his website for the amazing pieces of art he creates with his very talented team!  http://www.designer-cakes.com I am in awe!!

We started with the basics before building up to creating the fabulous bow cake that we all got to take home with us.  Paul taught us how to cut the cake, ganache it so that we had a perfectly smooth base on which to place our sugarpaste - and which we then built up the cake from.  We iced the board (never been able to do that before!), created lovely little glittery stars on sticks to decorate the cake with and then put the bow in it's rightful place, slap bang in the middle of the cake, as a crowning glory!  I came home sticky with icing sugar, chocolate smeared and glittery with red hands from the food colouring - but I was very happy and grinning like a Cheshire cat!  Can't wait to go back and learn more.  I have the sugarcraft bug so watch this space as I start to produce my own creations1

I could go on for hours and hours about the wonders of my day - from the skills I learnt, to my great classmates but, I won't!  I'll let you see some of the pics I took.

My classmates' cakes.  How talented a bunch are we!! Mine is the pink one in the front row! :)

Bow and star detail from above.  (admire the very smooth surface!)

Pink glittery star and curled wire detail

Glitter works on everything you know! Sparkly ball detail around base of cake

I had to cut it, as painful as that was.  Would have been a waste of cake otherwise!   It's a lovely rich, moist chocolate cake with a hint of Baileys.  Yum!

Crail Food Festival

Crail Food Festival this weekend!  Lots and lots of lovely things to try, demonstrations to watch and people to meet.  The Festival takes over the whole of the village for the weekend and will be a grand day out.  I'm at Old House Interiors this afternoon (Sat 18th June) with some cupcake samples.  Pop in for a chat and a wee tasty morsel of course!

Made the desserts for the supper with King Creosote & Friends last night which was amazing!  Fabulous food and great music - can an evening be more perfect! A trio of raspberry desserts - crananchan, raspberry tart and raspberry cheesecake brownies- ended the meal.  It started with a heavenly East Neuk chowder style soup laden with mussels and huge chunks of fish (yum!), made by The Honeypot Tearoom (http://www.honeypotcrail.co.uk ) and then a Beef Bourguigon and rosemary roasted potatoes followed, courtesy of La Petite Epicerie in Anstruther (http://www.la-petite-epicerie.co.uk ), which was  rich and chunky and gravy laden!  Whilst the music began, a glorious cheeseboard supplied by The Guid Cheese Shop of St Andrews (http://www.guidcheeseshop.co.uk ) appeared on the tables to munch whilst you listened to the tunes coming from the stage!  Honestly, an evening really couldn't have been more wonderful!!

Have a look at the website for details about the festival:  http://www.crailfoodfest.co.uk

Pics and things next week - when I have five minutes to think!! Been a busy old week!  :)

The Angus Show

It's time to get your Hunter wellies out again, grab the waterproof jackets and prepare to admire the handsome farmers - only in Angus not Fife this time!! Only a matter of hours until the Angus Show arrives - Friday 10th and Saturday 11th June are the dates for your diary.  The place to be is Brechin Castle, Brechin. I'll be in the Showcase Marquee so please do stop by to say hi!  Check out the website for more details about the show including who will be there (apart from me!) and what will be going on:  http://www.theangusshow.com  It'll be a grand day out!

My amazingly talented friend Lindsay will be there with her fabulous equestrian art.  Make sure you hunt her out to admire her work and maybe place a commission! She doesn't just paint horses - her talents are so much broader than that so, pampered pooches and spoilt cats feature in her repertoire amongst other things!  She will be based near me in the Showcase Marquee.  To tempt you, have a look at her blog: http://mathersart.blogspot.com or her website: http://www.mathersart.com

In the meantime, my kitchen is a steamy, icing sugar laden, sweet smelling heaven!  Lots and lots of tasty treats are being baked to tempt the most un-sweet-toothed!  There will be cupcakes galore, rocky road, brownies, (ooh - rocky road brownies - they sound interesting!  may try that!!)  home-made tablet, flapjacks and oh so much more ...... Few pics to show you my works in progress:

Coconut tart slabs, just cut and ready to wrap.  Moist coconutty topping, home-made jam and light, crispy pastry.  Who doesn't fancy a bit of that?! 

Carrot Cake cupcakes, straight out of the oven.  They are just waiting to be dressed in a scrummy cream cheese frosting and a pretty flower!

Rocky Road - still squidgy and warm.  Resist if you can!

You know it's been a busy day when the egg shells mount up!   All free range of course.  They are destined for the wormery as a tasty treat for the worms and the allotment to keep the pesky slugs off my lettuces!

A lovely tempting tray full of local (Blacketyside of Leven), juicy, strawberries.  My storeroom smells of summer!  They are destined for Strawberry Shortcake cupcakes amongst other things.  

To remind you:

The Angus Show

Friday 10th and Saturday 11th June

Brechin Castle, Brechin

Showcase Marquee

See you there!! It'll be fun!!

cupcakes and cocktails

I have a love of cocktails.  I mean who doesn't??!!!  I love everything about them - the taste (obviously!), the combinations, the colours, the wee paper umbrellas and plastic-y palm trees.  Fabulous!  It made me think, why wouldn't the flavour combinations work in a cupcake?  A Cup-tail if you will.  So, I've started experimenting - and my gut feeling was correct.  They work!
So far I have a Pina Colada - a scrummy pineapple chunk and coconut laced sponge with a swirl of coconutty buttercream and a cocktail brolly added for good measure.  I'm thinking a swig of Malibu may be worth trying too.  Yum!
I've also been working on the Strawberry Daiquiri - heaven in a glass so a perfect cupcake too?!!  I've mastered the white rum and strawberry laced sponge cake with a white rum and lime buttercream swirl topped with a tasteful decoration of a whole juicy strawberry and a sprinkle of lime zest too.  It makes me want to be sitting on a beach in the sun.  In fact, they both do!! :)
In true Carrie Bradshaw tribute, The Cosmo has featured too.  An orangey, cranberry filled sponge with a twist of lime topped with a cointreau and lime buttercream swirl and dried cranberries and gold glitter.  All you need are the Manolos to go with them!  
I'm thinking Whisky Mac and Margaritas next.

Cosmopolitan Babycakes looking all glam and Sex and the City like

The Strawberry Daiquiri and Pina Colada Cup-tail!

Did I say that I think one at least will feature at the Angus Show next week?!   Date for your diary - I'll be at the Angus Show in the Showcase Marquee on Friday 10th and Saturday 11th June.  Details next week!