Cake Making Client Event

Accountancy Action asked us to set up a cupcake decorating workshop for their regular client networking event. It was such a fun evening. The cocktails flowed freely and the guests quickly relaxed into their cake making activity. Most of them worked in HR or Finance so don’t get much chance to be creative in their day to day roles. They were amazed by how quickly they picked up the various buttercream swirls and loved the variety of sprinkles and edible decorations that we had on offer. It was a great ice breaking activity and created a real bond between the participants. Many of whom had arrived as strangers and left as friends. All in all this cake making event was a great success.

Red Velvet Cookie Class & Recipe

I had a lovely time teaching a private baking class to Imer and her daughter Emine. They anted to learn how to make red velvet cookies and chocolate fudge cupcakes. I’d never tried making this flavour of cookie before but soon realised that I could easily adjust my class is cookie recipe. I have to say that the results were absolutely delicious. So I thought I would share the recipe with you.

Red Velvet Cookies (double quantity)

2 tbsp milk

2 tsp vinegar

3-4 tsp red food colour

2 tsp vanilla extract

225g/8 oz butter, room temperature

340g/12 oz granulated sugar

85g/3oz sof dark brown sugar

2 eggs

425g/15 oz self raising flour

200g/7 oz white chocolate

Preheat oven to 190/375/Gas Mark 5. You will need a large, heavy, ungreased baking sheet.

Add the vinegar, food colour and vanilla to the milk. Set aside to curdle. Cream together the butter and sugars, then add the eggs, one at a time.

Now add the 'buttermilk' mixture alternating with the flour, mixing well between additions. You should now have a soft dough. Chop the chocolate into small pieces and add to the dough. Now use a spoon or ice-cream scoop to portion up balls of cookie dough. Place these  inches apart on the baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until they are just cooked/dry on top but still wet and gooey under the top layer. Leave to cool on the baking sheet for 10 mins then place on a wire rack to cool fully.

Baby Shower at The Lanesborough Hotel

Although Celeste Bickle now lives in Ireland she decided to host her baby shower in Central London. That way all her closest friends could be there. Bryony and the whole team at Entourage Collection had done a fantastic job creating a beautiful space for the baby shower event. They had covered every detail perfectly. Each of the place names at the dining table had a unique portrait of the guest on them. Due to the fact that Celeste had watched my cake making and cake decorating tutorials on YouTube she was really keen that I host the event. Initially I didn’t think I could do his as that week before Christmas was incredibly busy for us with a variety. In the end I managed to move things around so that I could be there for the first hour before handing over the workshop to the lovely Nadia. She was really thrilled that I’d managed to make it as I kept it as a surprise. The cake making activity was a huge hit with her guests. They did a fantastic job and loved all our new sprinkles including rubber duck sprinkles as well a baby elephants and bunnies. It was a great ice breaker for the ladies who didn’t know each other already. All in all the cake making class was just perfect for a fun baby shower activity. Celeste was such a delightful lady and her friends were very warm and relaxed. Attending the event was an absolute pleasure.

Cupcake Baking Class

We had a great time on Saturday's half day cupcake baking workshop. The cake making class was attended by four passionate bakers. Tina and Sophie were old friends who shared a passion for cake baking. Sophie treated Tina to the class as her birthday treat. They both work in theatre so were pleased to find a date that fitted in with their busy schedules. Tina will soon be off on tour with world famous celebrity Peppa Pig! The other two attendees were Irit who is a talented pianist and singer and Anam who works with children with special needs. They were all very focused which ensured they got fantastic results. Their cupcakes came out perfectly light and fluffy and they soon picked up the various cake decorating techniques. They loved doing the rose swirl and as it was a small class I was able to work individually with each of them. This ensured that they all managed to create perfect buttercream swirls. They loved getting their hands on our huge box of sprinkles and edible decorations. The glitter was an especially big hit. At the end of the 3hr session they had a great sense of achievement, each leaving the cake making class with a box of a dozen delicious cupcakes to enjoy with their friends and family.

Rose Swirl Cake Class

It was great to have a couple of students whom had come all the way from the Netherlands to take part in our cake making class. They have been friends since Uni days but like so many of us don't get to see enough of each other now their lives are filled with work and children. So, every year they come to England to meet up for the weekend, stay in a hotel and plan some fun activities. Usually involving some form of cake baking or cupcake decorating. We were very pleased that on this occasion they chose to come to us. What a delicious excuse to get together with old friends!

During the class the students each made their own cake mixture and baked the cakes themselves. They then made a delicious buttercream icing whilst the cakes were cooling. After that they trimmed the cakes using a cake cutter. Then they filled and crumb coated them. Once they had done this they created a stunning design by piping on two tone buttercream rose swirls all over the cakes. They looked absolutely beautiful and the students were thrilled with what they achieved. Hopefully the ones that were flying back to the Netherlands survived the journey.

Polly's Hen Party

Polly's hen was a fun mixture of tasteful and tacky. Her girls did a great job decorating our Covent Garden Venue with vintage style banners and bunting. They ensured there was a light sprinkling of smut with her 'cupcake boobies' apron and other naughty 'bit's and pieces?! (Maybe you can spot some in the pics)'. The cupcake workshop hen party was a lovely mix of girls including her mum and a cross section of friends from school, work and uni. They absolutely loved the class and did a great job with their cupcake decorating. As you can see they were very focused on their cake making. Loving the edible decorations especially the hearts and glitter. There were a couple of anatomically correct creations which lead to much hilarity amongst the ladies who had by then got stuck into the bubbly. After they had finished their cupcake making they went to the private room next door where they sat down to a delicious meal and more party games.

Fun Cupcake Class

What a lovely way to start the weekend spending time with these gorgeous girls teaching them my cake baking and decorating techniques. This group was nice and small so I got to spend lots of one to one time demonstrating the tricky Rose Swirl. Everyone in the class was fairly new to cake making so they gained a lot of knowledge in this 2hr class. We worked with delicious cream cheese frosting and piped a variety of swirls. All the girls were thrilled with their cupcake decorating technique by the end of the class. As long as they go away and practice their Rose swirl technique they will all be ready to move on to my intermediate class soon. I'm really looking forward to seeing them again soon. http://www.cookiegirl.co.uk/empty-land/