Too busy to blog!

This really is a flying visit to my little blogosphere to say a thousand apologies for not keeping up with my blog but I seem to have become a victim of my own success!
Since setting up Back Of Beyond Baking 'the business' and returning to my day job, I seem to have very little time to write about the cakes I make. I am not experimenting with new recipes because I am busy making the standard sponge cakes either for celebration cakes or themed cupcakes! The great news for me is that my decorating skills are being regularly tested and expanding and if I do say so myself; improving quite quickly! I have had only two weeks where I have had no cake orders and most weeks I have had multiple cakes to make. Out on the farm, lambing has been and gone, the hedgerows are finally showing signs of life and spring is most definitely sprung, and to be honest I have missed it all in a whirl of fondant, ribbons and lots and lots of cake!
During the course of my absence from this corner of the back of beyond I have made my first rainbow cake for Master Vander-Cave's Birthday, along with ombre icing in shades of blue (his request), made my first motorbike out of fondant and gum paste and used rice krispie treats (or RKT as they are known in cake decorating circles!) for modelling under fondant. So lots of firsts. There was one other cake related first, which I will dedicate a whole blog post to soon. I attended my first Clandestine Cake Club meeting and met lots of lovely bakers, got to try some gorgeous cakes and take some cake away with me! That was a real highlight for me and something I will definitely be making time for in the future!
In the mean time I will keep all my cake creations updated on the Cake creation page

Hooray for Hummingbird Bakery!

Sorry I haven't posted in ages but I have been so busy making cakes that writing about them has taken a bit of a back seat. I started this post at the end of February and here we are over half way through March!

This year Valentines Day passed in a blur of baking for others and tending to the very poorly Mr V-C so there was little in the way of romance in the barn and I was the only one without a card or a gift. To cheer myself up I bought myself the new Hummingbird Bakery recipe book "Home, Sweet Home".  This is undoubtedly the best Hummingbird book so far (in my humble opinion) and one of the best gifts I have ever bought myself! This book has slightly more complicated and time consuming recipes and for any novice bakers I would suggest starting with the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook as it contains lots of easier/basic cupcake recipes before moving onto Home, Sweet Home.

I spent the next couple of days salivating over the book trying to decide which recipe to try out first. In the end the chocolate and coconut cupcakes won but closely followed by the jolly jammer cupcakes.
Both recipes turned out beautifully but it's worth noting that the jolly jammer cupcake biscuit toppers went soft when left on top of the butter cream after a day. Also I had enough biscuit dough left to make lots of extra biscuits as you can see from the picture. Both recipes say makes 12-16 cupcakes, but my batch made 14 of each with quite a bit of frosting left over.

Jolly Jammer Cupcakes 
Makes 12-16
For the cookies:
100g unsalted butter, softened
140g  caster sugar
1 egg
200g plain flour
1/4tsp cream of tartar

For the sponge:
70g unsalted butter, softened
210g plain flour
250g caster sugar
1tbsp baking powder
1/2tsp salt
210ml whole milk (I used semi skimmed)
2 large eggs
1tsp vanilla extract

For the frosting:
660g icing sugar, sifted
210g unsalted butter, softened
60ml whole milk
1/2tsp vanilla extract
pre heat oven to 170c

Line a baking tray with baking parchment and 2 cupcake trays with 14  paper cupcake cases.

First make the jam and cream cookies. Place the butter and sugar in a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or use an electric hand held mixer and cream together until light and fluffy and well mixed.  Add the egg and mix until fully incorporated.

Sift together the flour and cream of tartar then add to the butter mixture. Mix on a slow speed until a dough forms. Don't over mix.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured board to about 3-4mm thick. Using a 3.5cm fluted cookie cutter cut out 32 cookies and using a small circle cutter measuring roughly 1cm, cut out circles in the centre of half the cookies. Place all of the cookies onto the prepared baking tray and any excess dough can be used to make more cookies.

Bake the cookies for approximately 10-13 minutes or until they start to change colour around the edge. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack to use later. While the cookies cool make the sponge.

In a mixer with a paddle beater or with an electric whisk mix flour, butter, sugar, baking powder and salt together until a breadcrumb consistency is obtained.

In a jug mix together milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. With the mixer on a slow speed, gradually pour in half of the liquid and mix until thoroughly combined. Raise the mixer speed to medium and mix until the batter is smooth and thick with no lumps. Scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Once all lumps are gone turn mixer speed back down and gradually pour in the remaining liquid, continuing to mix until the batter is smooth and combined.

Spoon the batter into the prepared cases, filling them two-thirds full.
Bake for approximately 20-25 minutes or until the cupcakes are golden brown and the sponge bounces back when lightly touched. Remove from tin and leave to cool completely.

Now make the frosting; mix icing sugar and butter together in an electric mixer on a slow speed until combined and there are no lumps of butter. gradually pour in the milk and vanilla extract while the mixer is still on a slow speed. When all the mixture is incorporated, turn the mixer up to a high speed and continue to beat until light and fluffy.

To assemble the cookies, place a small amount of the prepared frosting in a piping bag with a small round nozzle. Warm the jam until it is runny.  Pipe a small amount frosting on the base of one of the cookies then spoon a small amount of jam on top. Place one of the cookies with a hole in the middle on top and press down gently.

Once the cupcakes are cold, use a sharp knife to carve a hollow in the centre of each cupcake and retain the cut out piece of sponge. Spoon a teaspoon of frosting into the cake top with a teaspoon of jam. Replace the lid, trimming to fit and press down gently.
Spoon a generous amount of frosting onto each cupcake then smooth and swirl with a palate knife. Top with a jolly jammer cookie.

Enjoy!

Full steam ahead!

My new advertising bag!

I  really do not know where to start with all the goings on here in the Back Of Beyond over the last few weeks. We had the family wedding of the year which entailed the making of the 6 inch cutting cake and 65 cupcakes.  Prior to that I tried out the Cakesaway postable cake box and since then made cakes for my nanny girlfriends, invited the environmental health inspector round to approve my kitchen and also produced Valentines Day cupcakes in a gorgeous cupcake handbag. Oh and bought www.backofbeyondbaking.co.uk so you can find me easily!

Let's go back a couple of weeks to the postable box. This little box is the cupcake makers dream. It allows one to post 6 cupcakes to anywhere via Royal Mail (special delivery recommended) and have the cupcakes arrive in perfect condition with the recipient. The secret is the domed pod that the cupcake sits in and the manufacturers provide cupcake cases so that the cupcakes are the correct size and will sit happily in their pod.  If tipped upside down the cake won't slide into the lid. I was a little suspicious about these claims which is why I sent my dear friend Gem a box to test one out. The last thing I wanted as a new business was to send out cakes that ended up squished in transit! I made gluten free cupcakes which are particularly fragile and decorated them with a variety of toppings to check the best topping to transport as the ultimate road test. I waited with baited breath for Gem to get in touch once she recieved her cakes. Well I should not be such a doubting Thomas because the picture she sent me was almost identical to the photo I had taken prior to posting!

Before

After! Can you spot the difference!

From this trial Back Of Beyond Baking cupcakes by post has been born! I have already had two orders posted out and 3 more due next week. 

All set up and ready to go, more photos on the cake creation page

So Moving on to the wedding which really has galvanised the desire to make cakes for a living. In the weeks leading up to it I was fairly nervous but developed a plan of action for the cake making days and stuck to my plan. By 10am on the day of the big cupcake bake I had all the cakes out of the oven and then the production line of producing the finished item started. I had Mr V-C on washing up duty and then as the hours ticked down I had him buttercreaming  the cakes and kneading fondant ready for rolling. He was an absolute star and I couldn't have done it without him. By 4pm we had 72 cupcakes baked and decorated (including 6 for the nannies decorated with buttercream hydrangea flowers and chocolate hearts). Poor Mr V-C had the unenviable task of driving us the 150 miles to the wedding venue with all the cakes on board. I had prepared for possible mishaps with a spare large rose and small flowers, roses and fondant icing all ready for repairs. Thankfully all travelled beautifully, no repairs necessary and we definitely breathed a sigh of relief when we delivered and set up the cake. The Bride and Groom were very happy with their cake and apart from a few timing issues at the beginning of service the day  passed smoothly. In fact I can happily say it was one of the best days I've had in over a year! And more importantly I recieved tons of compliments on the cakes! Having now done this I feel more confident in my ability to cope with a big order in future, so bring it on!

And finally this week I have had enviromental health visit to check my kitchen which was a bit underwhelming (I had scrubbed my kitchen from top to bottom and she didn't swab anything!) and was swiftly certified as satisfactory for manufacturing cakes. Sadly I am exempt from the new rating system so don't get any gold stars but the officer was quite happy with everything I have in place and my cleaning practices. I will just have to give myself a gold star! So now officially I am in business!!

For details about how to order  delicious cakes and cupcakes  please click here

New Adventures for a New Year

2013 looks set to be an exciting year for us here in the back of beyond.  First up is the challenge of returning to work after my year of illness that marred 2012. I am very lucky that my employer is allowing me to have an extremely gentle phased return back into the work which therefore still allows time for my baking and cake decorating which has become something of a passion for me.

Secondly, the wedding that inspired my new love of cake decorating is now only 10 days away and I am looking forward to (and being anxious about in equal measure) the challenge of a 6 inch cutting cake and 65 cupcakes all individually decorated with handmade roses, I am starting to look at what my next challenge will be after the vows are exchanged and the cake is cut. I have been playing around with the idea of going into the bakery business for a while now and have finally taken the plunge and asked the local environmental health to inspect and certify my kitchen for commercial use. Once this is done I plan to advertise my services for cupcake and occasion cakes as well as general biscuit and cake baking for the local area.

I have already had my first enquiry for a box of cupcakes delivered to the south west of England, some 90 odd miles from us here in the back of beyond! Now, as one to enjoy a challenge, I have managed to find some packaging that claims to transport cupcakes via post with no damage to the cakes whatsoever. Watch this space for my testing of this product when it arrives!

To help extend my decorating skills and practice my fondant work I have tested out cakes and my skills on a batch of cupcakes for my darling niece's baby shower. She is due to have her second baby in mid March and already knows that she is having a boy  I was able to theme the cupcakes appropriately, with lots of buttons and booties in shades of blue. I also created an fondant icing model of Elmo as this is her family pet name.

My second cake challenge of the week has been buttercream roses. I have seen lots of lovely pictures recently of cakes decorated with buttercream flowers which looks fabulous.  After a quick trawl of Youtube I found that they are extremely easy with the right nozzle (a Wilton 1m nozzle ), a piping bag and a large quantity of buttercream.

For the sponge I used the Great British Bake Off - (How To Turn Everyday Bakes Into Showstoppers) recipe for simple sponge cake. I had this book for Christmas from Gem and have been bursting to try out some of the recipes! This recipe was really simple and turned out a nice cake so definitely one to keep. I used my standard buttercream recipe with the addition of 50 grams of Cocoa powder. You can find the recipe for the buttercream here: http://backofbeyondbaking.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Vanilla%20butter%20cream

Simple Sponge cake

250g unsalted butter, softened
250g caster sugar
1tsp Vanilla extract
4 large free range eggs, beaten
250g self raising flour, sifted
50g cocoa
pinch of salt
3 tablespoons of milk
Preheat the oven to 180c
grease and line a 20cm round cake tin

Place the butter into a large mixing bowl or stand mixer bowl. Beat until very creamy with either a wooden sponge or electric mixer (I used my Kenwood with the K beater).
Gradually beat in the sugar and then the vanilla. Continue to beat until the mixture is pale in colour and very fluffy in texture.

Gradually beat in the eggs a tablespoon at a time. Add 1 tablespoon of the weighed flour with each of the last  2 portions of egg to prevent the mixture curdling.

Sift the remaining flour, cocoa and salt into the bowl and fold in using a big metal spoon. Fold in the milk until a soft dropping consistency is achieved.

Transfer the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 60-70 minutes or until a cake skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Decorate in anyway you wish!

The Cake creations

From Now on all my Cake creations will be on this page.

Arts and crafts cupcakes

Arts and crafts cupcakes

Giant cupcake blue theme

baby shower cupcakes

Marathon runner cupcakes

My 40th birthday cake. Yes I made it myself!

sweet 16 cake.

My version of the many Minnie mouse birthday cake's images availble on the web!

The bike is modelled on a photo of the bike belonging to the recipient of this cake.

Cake for a pony ride party.

This was a sugar free banana and raisin cake

some of the many Mother's day cupcakes I produced.

My 1st birthday cake commision

Girly cupcakes for a 2year old

Spotty cupcakes for Alice.

Birthday Cupcakes

Red Velvet Cupcakes by post

Chocolate and Vanilla cupcakes

Birthday Cupcakes by post.

Valentine's day Cupcakes

Welcome home cupcakes by post.

My big Sisters Birthday cake

Gluten free cakes to trial cakesaway postable cupcake box

Cupcakes for the girls

Cupcakes and cutting cake 

The cupcakes for Sean and Sammi

A impromptu hen party cake with dark chocolate decorations

Slightly post Christmas Yule Log

This year our Christmas celebrations were the biggest we've ever hosted. 12 grown up bodies and 4 little bodies and 1 dog. I did as much prep as I possibly could during the weeks leading up to Christmas so the actual feeding of 16 was much easier than it sounds. Everybody with the exception of Mr Vander-Cave (he developed a migraine) had a brilliant time, even if we were all bursting out at the seams of our little Barn and all felt a little worse for wear on Boxing Day morning. By the time our guests left on Boxing Day afternoon, I was glad of the peace and quiet. Master Vander-Cave was not so keen to be left alone with his boring parents and proclaimed that he 'missed everyone so much and would jump up and down with joy if they all arrived back now' (15 minutes after they had left!).

After a couple of quiet days gorging on all the leftovers and Christmas chocolates, we geared up again for another round of entertaining but this time on a much smaller scale! Our friends from South Gloucestershire came for the day on the way to collect the latest addition to their large family, a cute puppy. They already have 4 children, 2 cats and 2 rabbits! Seeing pictures of their new puppy did make me long for a pup of my own, but thankfully good sense prevailed shortly afterwards and I am now looking forward to fussing theirs on our return visit to them! In honour of their visit I decided to continue the festive feel and made a Yule log. For Christmas I received 3 books by the baking Gods Mary berry and Paul Hollywood (look out for lots of recipes from them in future posts!). The  book contained two very different Yule logs/Buche Noel which   were different again from the one Mary made on the Christmas edition of Great British Bake Off. In the end I went for the Bake Off TV version and was pleased with the results. I didn't have any holly or a robin to decorate my log as per Mary's instruction!

Mary Berry's Yule log.

For the chocolate sponge
4 large free-range eggs
100g/3½oz caster sugar
65g/2½oz self-raising flour
40g/1½oz cocoa powder

For the chocolate ganache topping
300ml/½ pint double cream
300g/10½oz dark chocolate (around 35-40% cocoa solids), broken into small pieces
For the cream filling
300ml/½ pint double cream, whipped

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Lightly grease a 33x23cm/13x9in Swiss roll tin, and line with non-stick paper or baking parchment, pushing it into the corners.

For the sponge, in a large bowl whisk the eggs and sugar using an electric hand whisk until the mixture is pale in colour, light and frothy. I used my Kenwood with the balloon whisk.

Sift the flour and cocoa powder into the bowl and carefully cut and fold together, using a spatula, until all the cocoa and flour are incorporated into the egg mixture. (Be careful not to beat any of the air out of the mixture).

Pour the mixture into the lined tin and spread evenly out into the corners. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 8–10 minutes, or until well risen and firm to the touch and the sides are shrinking away from the edge of the tin.

Place a piece of baking parchment bigger than the Swiss roll tin on the work surface. Dust with icing sugar generously. Carefully invert the cake onto the paper and remove the bottom lining piece of paper.

Cut a score mark 2.5cm/1inch along one of the longer edges. Starting with this edge, begin to tightly roll up the sponge using the paper. Roll with the paper inside and sit the roll on top of its outside edge to cool completely.

While the cake is cooling, make the ganache topping. Heat the cream in a pan, just so as you can keep your finger in it. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate, stirring until it is melted. Cool to room temperature, then put into the fridge to firm up (this icing needs to be very thick for piping).

Uncurl the cold Swiss roll and remove the paper. Spread the whipped cream on top, and re-roll tightly. Cut a quarter of the cake off from the end on the diagonal. Transfer the large piece of cake to a serving plate and angle the cut end in to the middle of the large cake to make a branch.

Put the chocolate icing into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. Pipe long thick lines along the cake, covering the cake completely so it looks like the bark of a tree. Cover each end with icing or, if you wish to see the cream, leave un-iced. Alternatively, just use a palette knife to spread on the icing and create rough bark texture with a fork.

Dust with icing sugar and garnish with fresh holly or a little robin.

Christmas creativity in the Back Of Beyond.

Gluten free Christmas cake.

This week has been all about the Christmas cakes. I have iced four in the past week which has given me plenty of practice with fondant and royal icing. The most creative design was the gluten free Christmas cake which I iced first to reduce the risk of cross contamination. I liked the idea of making a Christmas present cake as this would indeed be a Christmas gift. After the rigmarole I had had with my previous bow attempts for my sisters cake I found a different Youtube clip showing an easier way to make a fondant bow. Ha ha ha! They might look easy in the video clips but do not be fooled. Anyone who says you can work with fondant shapes a few hours after making is fibbing. It needs to be left over night to totally harden otherwise it is just too fragile. So after 2 attempts at the bow for that Christmas cake I decided to revert to an easier design for the other three!

The Vander-Cave family cake.

As well as the full sized Christmas cake I also produced some Santa and snowmen cupcakes from a design in the latest free Sainsburys Christmas magazine. Again I would question their instructions which states all you need is some fondant icing in a selection of colours and a round and serrated edge cutter. In reality I used at least 2 of my fondant tools for making Santa's beard. Although having looked at the BakingMad.com site which the recipe initially originated from their Santa has simpler styling.
For anyone who wishes to attempt these the instructions can be found at: http://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/cupcake-recipe/christmas-cupcakes

Snowmen and Santas.

I used my own Vanilla cupcake recipe which you will find below!

Vanilla cupcakes 
makes 12
125g unsalted butter at room temperature
125g caster sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
125g self raising flour sifted
2 tsp vanilla extract
2tbsp milk

Preheat the oven to 190c. Line a cupcake pan with paper cases.

Beat the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy (at least 5 minutes).

Add the eggs, flour, vanilla and milk and beat until smooth and a soft dropping consistency. If the mixture is a bit stiff add an extra drop of milk.

Divide the mixture between the cupcake cases and place in the oven. Cook for 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Decorate in any way you please!

Number 3 trying out my new snowflake cutters!

 Snowflakes sprayed with pearl spray on number 4!

                                              Happy Christmas Everyone!