Made six dozen cupcakes for a work colleague's birthday this week. Four dozen that were edible and two dozen that ended up in the bin. Don't mix up the olive oil with the vegetable oil when making cupcakes, blahh, totally disgusting, the smell of them was enough for me to bin them! Anyway, after redeeming myself with 48 successes, the house smelt of vanilla for a couple of days and apparently they tasted good because the feedback was positive, so it all turned out okay in the end.
I am not really a very good baker. I have made some bloody horrid cakes in my time, some really filthy bad ones, the type of shitty cakes that even dogs won't eat. I made a chocolate cake once that so bad even little kids (that claimed to love chocolate when I was cutting it) wouldn't eat it! How woefully bad! Also, since I am gluten free, it is very much in my favour to avoid creating any type of tempting pastry or refined flour based products that may lay around the house for days on end, gently calling out my name in the wee hours, coaxing me with their doughy goodness. It's tough to resist, it is better if I just avoid baking on all fronts really.
I must admit that I have gotten better at baking as the years have gone by, and when the occasion calls for it, I can pump out a reasonably respectable cake, but I never really know what they taste like since I don't eat them myself and that just never really feels right. It kind of feels like being dishonest. What kind of a chef doesn't taste their own food? I'll tell you what kind, a shitty one. If you never actually eat any of the stuff that you bake, you probably aren't that a good a baker, well that's what I tell myself anyway.
I'm not a bad cook though. I have a pretty good repertoire of recipes that I can make well and that I know taste delicious, because I have tried them myself. I also really like the whole 'eye work' dash of this, dash of that, type of a thing that cooking allows for; where nothing has to be exact. Baking on the other hand is a science and science is an exact thing, and I am not known for my exact-ness. More for my round-about, kinda, near enough, something like that-ness; so cooking suits me a lot more than baking.
Perhaps I will have more patience for the science of baking as I get older, but for now I am just happy to watch the Great Aussie/ British Bake Off and admire the professionals doing their thing. I certainly don't feel the need to make another 72 cupcakes again in a hurry that's for sure!
I am not really a very good baker. I have made some bloody horrid cakes in my time, some really filthy bad ones, the type of shitty cakes that even dogs won't eat. I made a chocolate cake once that so bad even little kids (that claimed to love chocolate when I was cutting it) wouldn't eat it! How woefully bad! Also, since I am gluten free, it is very much in my favour to avoid creating any type of tempting pastry or refined flour based products that may lay around the house for days on end, gently calling out my name in the wee hours, coaxing me with their doughy goodness. It's tough to resist, it is better if I just avoid baking on all fronts really.
I must admit that I have gotten better at baking as the years have gone by, and when the occasion calls for it, I can pump out a reasonably respectable cake, but I never really know what they taste like since I don't eat them myself and that just never really feels right. It kind of feels like being dishonest. What kind of a chef doesn't taste their own food? I'll tell you what kind, a shitty one. If you never actually eat any of the stuff that you bake, you probably aren't that a good a baker, well that's what I tell myself anyway.
I'm not a bad cook though. I have a pretty good repertoire of recipes that I can make well and that I know taste delicious, because I have tried them myself. I also really like the whole 'eye work' dash of this, dash of that, type of a thing that cooking allows for; where nothing has to be exact. Baking on the other hand is a science and science is an exact thing, and I am not known for my exact-ness. More for my round-about, kinda, near enough, something like that-ness; so cooking suits me a lot more than baking.
Perhaps I will have more patience for the science of baking as I get older, but for now I am just happy to watch the Great Aussie/ British Bake Off and admire the professionals doing their thing. I certainly don't feel the need to make another 72 cupcakes again in a hurry that's for sure!
THE ANGEL'S SHARE
Release Date: 2012
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 101 mins
The Angel's Share is a sweet Scottish drama, directed by Ken Loach, telling the story of a Glaswegian thug who decides that he wants to turn his life around after he becomes a father. The movie gains it's title from the portion of a whiskey's volume that is lost due to evaporation during the aging process in oak barrels, which I thought was an apt and clever title.
Four friends who are performing community service for their crimes, become interested in whiskey after touring a distillery. Robbie (Paul Brannigan) sees an opportunity to change his thug life and become a proper father to his newborn son.
From very dark beginnings, this movie takes a welcomed turn to a brighter and more hopeful story line. I was personally fascinated with the whiskey tastings and tours, being a huge fan of whiskey myself, and although the Scottish accents are at times extremely heavy and tricky to decipher, this movie is a shiny little gem, lost amid the big names, but very deserving of your time.
FINAL SAY: One to keep, one to sell and one to drink with my friends.
3.5 Chilli Peppers
Release Date: 2012
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 101 mins
The Angel's Share is a sweet Scottish drama, directed by Ken Loach, telling the story of a Glaswegian thug who decides that he wants to turn his life around after he becomes a father. The movie gains it's title from the portion of a whiskey's volume that is lost due to evaporation during the aging process in oak barrels, which I thought was an apt and clever title.
Four friends who are performing community service for their crimes, become interested in whiskey after touring a distillery. Robbie (Paul Brannigan) sees an opportunity to change his thug life and become a proper father to his newborn son.
From very dark beginnings, this movie takes a welcomed turn to a brighter and more hopeful story line. I was personally fascinated with the whiskey tastings and tours, being a huge fan of whiskey myself, and although the Scottish accents are at times extremely heavy and tricky to decipher, this movie is a shiny little gem, lost amid the big names, but very deserving of your time.
FINAL SAY: One to keep, one to sell and one to drink with my friends.
3.5 Chilli Peppers
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