2010

Although December and the end of 2010 was rather quiet on Teen Baker, 2010  had been a good year. And just before we get properly into the grand heights of 2011 and all the new, exciting things I hope it has to offer, I thought it was time for a reflection. Month by month, my highlights of 2010. Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and have a brilliant New Year and I wish you the best for 2011!
January – Glazed Fruit Rolls
Sticky, irresistible, crunchy on the outside, melting and soft on the inside. 2010 opened with a classic and sometimes it just doesn’t get much better.
 February – Cheese Straws
A rare savoury appearance on the blog, perfect for parties but pretty hard to stop yourself munching on any time.
March – Rhubarb Tart
This tart was the first delicious taste of summer, even though made when still in spring. The colours and flavours wake you out any winter stupor and truly brighten the day.
April – White Chocolate Cookies
A surprise top-blog hit, made with a great friend, celebrating the end of a No Chocolate month and dangerously moreish. Four months in to the year and a great cookie was found. And now, I think it is definitely time the cookie is repeated…Up for it, P?
May – Vanilla Pannacotta with Strawberries
Reaching the summer season and it is time to create something silky smooth, fruity, and make something I had previously thought I didn’t like. Turns out as a success!
June – Roasted Tomato&Thyme Soup with Twice Baked Potatoes
A mouthful of a title but a scrumptious savoury mouthful cooked up in June with my sister. It may have been the summer but a hearty soup always wins.
July – Brunch with Alice Hart at La Fromagerie
Not a recipe for July, but a chance to meet the author of a delicious cookbook, sample delicious food cooked by her and hear her tell my Dad about the wonders of food styling v. being a lawyer.
August – Blueberry Muffins
My Dad’s favourite, inspired by a great summer holiday and enjoyed back home really rather quickly…
September – Celebration Chocolate Log
I celebrated my blogoversary a little late but with something truly amazing, rich, decadent and above all – tasty. You cannot beat a chocolate overload. Fab.
October – Banana Cake
The controversial banana (in my house) was used in my baking for the first time with colourful and tasty results :)
November – Ricciarelli
Got to finish the year on a high, which for me means something addictive, delicious, perfectly flavoured and textured and just all round ‘mmm’.

December – Nutmeg Custard Creams
Perhaps there is not the largest selection here, but these were still a lovely bake and finishing the year on the Biscuit Challenge seemed like a yummy enough idea to me.

Nutmeg Custard Creams

When I began my Biscuit Challenge here on the blog, a long time ago, I constantly refrained from attempting the infamous custard cream. Bourbons, digestives, snickerdoodles and most recently ricciarelli, amongst others, have all been made as part of the Biscuit Challenge and have all been tasty. They haven’t been exact replicas of the shop bought original, but when baked with regular ingredients and care – plus with delicious results – does this really matter? When I finally attempted custard creams, I decided to step a little bit further away from the original.Marcus Wareing, a Gordon Ramsay trained and Michelin-starred top chef, is renowned for his nutmeg custard tart, which has been served to the Queen. Taking this success and running with it, he’s adapted his recipe to create what he calls Nutmeg Custard Cream Yo-yo’s. The biscuits were easy to make, and the final product was ultra rewarding. The nutmeg makes the final cookies spicier and warmer than your standard custard cream and when I make these next (which I definitely shall do) I think I’ll add even more. The biscuit itself had the best texture – sandy yet crisp and very moreish.  When I made bourbons I missed the firm square of chocolate cream filling – which I think now you can only properly get with shop bought biscuits which can use preservatives and E-numbers – but with these the soft and creamy custard filling was delicious and perfectly flavoured. Mmm. Just right to fill that 4pm biscuit craving :) The only change I made to the recipe was that instead of forming a log of cookie dough and slicing it up, I found the dough much easier to roll out and cut with a cookie cutter. I also added more custard powder to the biscuit dough, as I wanted to be sure the flavour would clearly some through which, happily, it did. You can find the recipe here, and I hope you do attempt the British biscuit tin favourite – and enjoy!