A few months ago, gripped by baking fever, I purchased Mary Berry's Baking Bible. I quickly decided to embark upon a mission to bake everything in the book, and turn myself from an occasional baker into a bit of an expert. My Grandad Ern was a Master Baker by trade; the man responsible for introducing Danish Pastries to England in fact, and I wish it had occurred to me to spend more time learning from him, rather than simply enjoying the fruits of his effortless labours. This project is almost a way of making amends for that; I'd like to follow in his footsteps (if not in my career, at least as a hobby) and continue the proud heritage of baking in my family.
I credit my friend Rachel with the idea to write a blog about my baking exploits, hoping that there will be more successes than failures as I attempt all 213 of the Queen of Baking's recipes.
So as not to bore the husband with a monotonous diet of sponges, followed by weeks of biscuits, I've decided to tackle the recipes by selecting the first bake from each chapter, followed by the second recipe and so on. I'm not going to pick and choose; I'm determined to face my baking demons and learn how to do everything baking-related, even if the consequences are disastrous!
Everything will be photographed, with comment about how I found baking it, and a husband rating (to be taken with a pinch of salt as he has a very selective cake-tooth).


Thursday, 9 February 2012

5. Fork Biscuits

I've decided to stray slightly from my order of baking by making these biscuits; I wanted to bake something but thought the two rather decadent chocolate cakes I've got to make warranted an occasion more special than a same-old, same-old Thursday! I'm so excited by this project that I threw a wobbly this week because I needed an extra baking sheet for these, and then it was too late in the evening to be eating biscuits, so I didn't bake anything. I think I had withdrawal symptoms, feeling bereft without my apron! 
So, these are the first biscuits in the biscuit chapter, simply called 'Fork Biscuits' (note the fork marks), apparently derived from an old Cordon Bleu recipe. They only contain three ingredients: butter, self-raising flour and caster sugar. I keep having crises of confidence about what constitutes 'softened butter' (as daft as that sounds; I did have a cheese straw disaster before Christmas because the butter was too soft), but I braced myself for a disaster and happily it didn't happen. The dough took a while to form; it began as lots of flaky crumbs but I was eventually able to work it into the required 'balls'. They took just over 15 minutes to bake, smelt lovely and buttery and, despite being a bit 'rustic' looking, acquired a nice golden colour.
Baker's verdict: easy to make, with a bit of faith; lovely taste and a texture much like shortbread.
Husband rating: 8.25 - really, really tasty but could've been more perfect in appearance. Tried and tested by colleagues who asked for second helpings.

P.S. Since starting my blog, I've had two comments about it being an inspiration to bake!
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