If a picture paints a thousand words here are 4000!
Not sure what to add really – I am so pleased with Jess’s 8th birthday cake. When I think back to my first attempts at a giant cupcake, how long it took, the stress, the result – what a long way we’ve come!
If you would like to order one for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, a special birthday or anniversary then please email me linda@filledwithlovecupcakes.org
What do you think?
Linda x
Starting work at 5.30am the day stretched before me with the potential to achieve so much. Which was always going to be necessary thanks to the huge number of orders from you all – thank you!
It may be a cliche – time flies when you are having fun – but I have no idea where 17 hours went as I baked and modelled and iced and rolled and filled and kneaded and tasted and tested – and washed up.
Sitting down tonight to look through the photos of the day I wasn’t sure if I had actually achieved a great deal, but I’ve been assured I have, even if pics of the Caribbean Cake, Apple Pie (to die for…!) and Truffles are missing.
So here we go – what came out of the FWL Kitchen today?
First up – I’ve been looking forward to baking these for a while now. Whilst someone (who shall remain anonymous) insisted twiglets would make better antlers I am very pleased with the pretzels. Coco the cross eyed reindeer will be available exclusively at Coco so do get down there and meet him!
Now these I just love. A special order for a girlie get together I wanted to offer a twist on the classic Christmassy Cupcake. The holly leaves are my current favourite jade green, and the berries a bright pink to match the cake cases. Sprinkled with “Goldust” I am looking forward to the reaction when they are collected tomorrow 🙂
And finally – if we don’t count the Christmas Cookies, Cake, Apple Pie or Truffles – here are two of the four Christmas Cakes I iced this week. Excited to be packing them in to hampers with the truffles (Apricot, Raspberry or Lime and Coconut…), cookies and perhaps a cupcake or two!
Ooops – how could I forget this order that went out today too?!
White Chocolate and Cranberry, Sticky Toffee and Salted Caramel Buttercream, Strawberry and Vanilla – mmmmmm……
Pretty much booked up now until the New Year but if you do have an order it is always worth dropping me an email – I love to hear from you!
Linda@filledwithlovecupcakes.org
There is a difference between cake decoration and baking. This was emphasised to me today when someone pointed out I bake far fewer vanilla cakes covered with fondant and sugarpaste flowers!
Followers of Filled With Love will have recently seen the sticky toffee cakes with salted caramel buttercream. Today I would like to share my updated version of sweet potato and cardamom cake…
The photo lacks something simply because I forgot to take a picture before I went on my rounds delivering taste samples! It was only when I got home that I realised I wanted to capture them on my camera so that I could describe them here.
The flavour is similar to the Halloween cakes shown recently but this time around the butter is creamed with brown sugar instead of being melted with honey. I believe the cake is lighter and fluffier as a result – and having studied some food technology around acidity and bicarb as a raising agent I think I have perfected the recipe – watch this space!
This is not a new recipe. Beetroot and Chocolate has been reinvented as a cupcake with a raspberry filling and chocolate frosting. Be warned – this is a rich cake with a slightly “earthy” taste according to one customer. It is very rich and very moist – perhaps one to share?
Finally – and I do apologise for the poor quality photo – we have the ultimate mince pie cake!
Watch this space – they are SO tasty with a sweet shortcrust pastry, mincemeat filling, orange sponge and fondant, and cranberry fondant topping.
Orders being taken now – £12 a box for what has to be a very special Christmas gift, ideal for taking to friends/family over the festive season.
Until the end of November a very special price of £10.50 for six including free gift box – order now by emailing linda@filledwithlovecupcakes.org
More soon including some very special gluten and dairy free cakes ready to be posted!
This is what all the fuss is about! Sticky toffee cupcakes baked with soft brown sugar, unsalted butter, free range eggs, dates and – of course – my favourite Ndali Vanilla.
Topped with buttercream blended with home made caramel. More butter, sugar and (shhhh….) condensed milk.
So many people have been asking after them – and they fly off the shelves at Coco – that I would like to spread the love a little.
As a special offer you can order six of these scrumdelicious cakes to be delivered anywhere in the UK for the bargain price of £15.
That includes basic packaging only (no gift box – sorry!) but they will be posted first class so you can enjoy them at their very best.
This order is not available online – email linda@filledwithlovecupcakes.org if you are interested.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Linda
PS: Cooks perks…. can you guess what else I’ve been baking this week…?
I should first of all admit I found this image on the Morrisons website. Much as I would love to have Happy Hens running around in our back garden we do live in an area where foxes roam at night and I would lose sleep worrying about them. So many thanks to David and Helen on Meg Bank Farm who I am going to try and get hold of next!
This photo isn’t mine either – but it easily could be. Well, not that easily as I struggled to find fairly traded white chocolate – especially of the cooking variety – anywhere today.
We went to the cash and carry first – where I looked in wonder at the shelves of chocolate. Massive bars and packs of 5kg at ridiculously appealing prices. Yes it was tempting – the profit I could make on caramel shortbread, chocolate chilli cupcakes, devil’s food cake and many other cakes would immediately increase…
Likewise the eggs. Whilst I recoiled in horror at the price increase on my regular purchase of 4 dozen large free range eggs the “catering” variety were screaming “buy me” and at half the price…
We adjourned to a major supermarket only to be faced with a similar dilemma. “Chefs eggs” at rock bottom prices, the free range variety at a premium. I was thrilled to find white cooking chocolate on special offer until I searched in vain for the fair trade symbol – to no avail. Even the make produced with British sugar would have cocoa butter of dubious origin as one of the ingredients!
Why didn’t I buy cheap eggs and cheap chocolate? Would customers really notice the difference in taste?
Maybe – probably – or perhaps – they would. But that isn’t the point.
I’ve said this so many times but I still believe that cooking – and in this case baking – offers us a huge number of choices as to where we source our ingredients.
If the price is low and I make more profit then somewhere along the line someone or something else has had to pay. Whether that is a cocoa farmer that has never tasted chocolate, or a hen that has lived it’s life in cramped conditions, I don’t want that on my conscience.
So – wherever and whenever I can I will continue to buy fairly traded and ethically produced ingredients. And if that means FWL Cupcakes cost a little bit more then I feel sure my customers will understand.
I hope so …
filledwithlovecupcakes 