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, 14 February 2019

112. Rich Cheesy Biscuits

I'm trying really hard to honour the commitment I made to myself to bake every week, so in a bid to digress from all things cake, I decided something savoury was in order. The introduction to the recipe mentions their suitability for accompanying 'drinks'; sadly no canape-inducing opportunity was planned, but I knew between us (and my parents), we'd dispatch 32 of these little beauties without too much difficulty.
They were very easy to make, but time-consuming. It basically involved making a pastry dough, then chilling it, then rolling and cutting. It was nice to be left alone in the kitchen and not feel rushed though, so the fact that they took a while to prepare was all good with me! It had been a bit of a mission to find either sesame or poppy seeds to sprinkle them with, but I'm glad I made the effort, as the poppy seeds were a nice finishing touch. I baked them for 12 minutes at 170; some of them went a little bit browner than the others, but I was otherwise pleased with how they turned out.
I don't think you can beat the taste of warm, cheesy pastry; so we of course had to try some fresh out of the oven. They were equally lovely once they'd crisped up a bit too. Husband thought they were a bit too salty, so if I make them again, I might omit the salt altogether. There's salt in the butter and the cheese anyway. They were very popular with the girls; we're still munching the last few several days later. Mary suggests popping them back in the oven; I suppose that would sort the chewiness of stale pastry out.
Baker's verdict: easy but a bit time-consuming to make; delicious. Would make again, though, and definitely if a little gathering for drinks was in the offing.
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