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).


Tuesday, 3 April 2012

12. Chocolate Fork Biscuits

Not much to say about these biscuits really. They're not actually on my list because they're just a variation on the ones I've already made. They were made spontaneously; I decided at the last minute that it would be nice to take some biscuits to a family get together to tide us over before going out for a meal. I had the ingredients to make these and knew they were really easy as well. It's really satisfying being able to knock something out quickly, and even more satisfying baking something which makes the kitchen smell delightfully chocolatey when the husband didn't even realise I was planning to bake! It wasn't easy to tell when they were done, because 'browning' isn't really visible when cocoa's involved, but they came out a lovely crumbly texture, so I think I got it right. An in-between 18 minutes sufficed.
Baker's verdict: nice to feel I've mastered something - I'll soon be making these little beauties blindfolded!
Husband rating: 8.25 - nice and chocolately, melt-in-the-mouth and moreish.

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