WELCOME TO BAKE BRITAIN
It comes around like summer, sparking raised spirits, a change of diet and a new outfi t – in this case, aprons all round. Yes, The Great British Bake Off has returned to our screens and we are, for a few sweet weeks, a nation of bakers.
The programme, starring judges Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, presenters Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc, and a dozen hopeful home bakers, certainly is a phenomenon. In 2010, its BBC Two debut drew two million viewers. Now promoted to BBC One, the fi rst episode of this, the fi fth series, began with 7.2 million, peaking at a whopping 7.9 million. Quite a rise.
The programme’s format is wonderfully British. There’s the Carry On-style humour and innuendo: ‘To be commended on your nuts by Mary Berry... you’ve had a great day!’; ‘I’m ganaching my buns.’ There’s the battalion of pleasingly eccentric, plucky amateurs battling the odds, Home Front-style, against wilting meringues, soggy pastries and Paul Hollywood’s parade-ground put-downs. There’s Mary Berry… and then there’s the fact that it’s all helped down with a spoonful of sugar.
But then baking has become a national pastime, among all age groups. A recent Mintel survey found that four in 10 25- to 34-year-olds now bake from scratch every week, making them the country’s most enthusiastic bakers. Something homely, traditional and comforting has become contemporary, fashionable and, dare we even say it, ‘cool’. It’s the new knitting.
The catalyst for this home-baking renaissance is doubtless the recent recession when the make-do-and-mend culture of wartime Britain was embraced once again by households across the nation. But it now has plenty of big-name standard bearers, from Lorraine Pascale and Delia Smith to Gizzi Erskine and Rachel Khoo.
And then there’s Dame Judi Dench, who certainly makes a magnifi cent bread and butter pudding (for which you’ll find the recipe overleaf) using Italian panettone instead of the usual stale white bread. It’s ‘delicious and provides the perfect solution for what to do with those dry Italian cakes you get given at Christmas,’ she says.
Dame Judi recently donated the recipe to a campaign to raise £25,000 for the Hospice in the Weald, in Kent. The Weald’s Biggest Bake Off staged a major event in May in support of the hospice – which provides compassionate, individualised care for all patients with terminal illnesses, their families and carers – but the campaign is still running and you can help by baking cakes, biscuits or bread and butter puddings of your own.
But what are the big baking trends likely to be this year? Well, The Great British Bake Off can certainly trigger a fad. When freeze-dried raspberry powder (we’re not entirely sure what it is either) was featured in the last series, sales shot up by 97 per cent in some shops. This time, we’ve been tipped to look out for edible fl owers, paneer cheese and praline paste. Expect all to sell out in a supermarket near you soon.
And keep a close eye on what Mary Berry’s wearing. In 2012, when she appeared on the programme in a £29.99 fl oral bomber jacket by Zara, it swiftly sold out, reappearing on online auction site eBay for a rather pricier £200.
Before we get too ambitious here at The Lady, though, we’re going to focus on perfecting Dame Judi’s pudding. We’ll let you know how it goes next week. Now, where did we put that nutmeg?
Recipes from www.wealdsbiggestbakeoff.org.uk/celebrityrecipes – for more information on The Weald’s Biggest Bake Off campaign, in support of the Hospice in the Weald, telephone Sara or Maddy on 01892-820586 or visit www.wealdsbiggestbakeoff.org.uk
What you’ll need
What you’ll need
The programme, starring judges Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, presenters Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc, and a dozen hopeful home bakers, certainly is a phenomenon. In 2010, its BBC Two debut drew two million viewers. Now promoted to BBC One, the fi rst episode of this, the fi fth series, began with 7.2 million, peaking at a whopping 7.9 million. Quite a rise.
The programme’s format is wonderfully British. There’s the Carry On-style humour and innuendo: ‘To be commended on your nuts by Mary Berry... you’ve had a great day!’; ‘I’m ganaching my buns.’ There’s the battalion of pleasingly eccentric, plucky amateurs battling the odds, Home Front-style, against wilting meringues, soggy pastries and Paul Hollywood’s parade-ground put-downs. There’s Mary Berry… and then there’s the fact that it’s all helped down with a spoonful of sugar.
But then baking has become a national pastime, among all age groups. A recent Mintel survey found that four in 10 25- to 34-year-olds now bake from scratch every week, making them the country’s most enthusiastic bakers. Something homely, traditional and comforting has become contemporary, fashionable and, dare we even say it, ‘cool’. It’s the new knitting.
The catalyst for this home-baking renaissance is doubtless the recent recession when the make-do-and-mend culture of wartime Britain was embraced once again by households across the nation. But it now has plenty of big-name standard bearers, from Lorraine Pascale and Delia Smith to Gizzi Erskine and Rachel Khoo.
And then there’s Dame Judi Dench, who certainly makes a magnifi cent bread and butter pudding (for which you’ll find the recipe overleaf) using Italian panettone instead of the usual stale white bread. It’s ‘delicious and provides the perfect solution for what to do with those dry Italian cakes you get given at Christmas,’ she says.
Dame Judi recently donated the recipe to a campaign to raise £25,000 for the Hospice in the Weald, in Kent. The Weald’s Biggest Bake Off staged a major event in May in support of the hospice – which provides compassionate, individualised care for all patients with terminal illnesses, their families and carers – but the campaign is still running and you can help by baking cakes, biscuits or bread and butter puddings of your own.
But what are the big baking trends likely to be this year? Well, The Great British Bake Off can certainly trigger a fad. When freeze-dried raspberry powder (we’re not entirely sure what it is either) was featured in the last series, sales shot up by 97 per cent in some shops. This time, we’ve been tipped to look out for edible fl owers, paneer cheese and praline paste. Expect all to sell out in a supermarket near you soon.
And keep a close eye on what Mary Berry’s wearing. In 2012, when she appeared on the programme in a £29.99 fl oral bomber jacket by Zara, it swiftly sold out, reappearing on online auction site eBay for a rather pricier £200.
Before we get too ambitious here at The Lady, though, we’re going to focus on perfecting Dame Judi’s pudding. We’ll let you know how it goes next week. Now, where did we put that nutmeg?
Recipes from www.wealdsbiggestbakeoff.org.uk/celebrityrecipes – for more information on The Weald’s Biggest Bake Off campaign, in support of the Hospice in the Weald, telephone Sara or Maddy on 01892-820586 or visit www.wealdsbiggestbakeoff.org.uk
DAME JUDI DENCH’S PANETTONE BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING
What you’ll need
- butter (for greasing and buttering the bread)
- 1 panettone
- 10g candied lemon or orange peel ( nely chopped)
- 50g currants
- 275ml milk
- 70ml double cream
- grated rind of 1 small lemon
- 50g caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- freshly grated nutmeg
Heat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Butter a 1-litre oblong enamel baking dish. Slice the panettone and butter it. Place one layer on the base of the dish, sprinkle with the candied peel and half the currants. Add another layer of panettone and sprinkle with the remaining currants.
Put the milk and cream together in a measuring jug, stir in the lemon rind and sugar. Whisk the eggs in a small basin and add to the milk mixture. Pour the whole lot over the panettone and sprinkle with freshly grated nutmeg.
Bake in the oven for 30-40 mins and serve warm.
JO BRAND’S FRUIT AND NUT CAKE
The comic also donated a recipe to the Hospice in The Weald’s campaign.What you’ll need
- 180g plain our
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3 tsp mixed spice
- 180ml sun ower oil
- 180g soft brown sugar
- 3 beaten eggs
- 60g ready-to-eat chopped pitted prunes
- 60g rough chopped walnuts
- 180g peeled weight nely grated carrots For the frosting
- 180g cream cheese
- 255g icing sugar
- 3 tbsp soft butter
- 1 tsp grated lemon ring
Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and spice into a large bowl and mix well. In a food processor or electric beater, or even an arm with a spoon attached, combine the oil, brown sugar and eggs.
Beat until the mixture is light and then stir this, the fruit, the nuts and the carrots into the dry ingredients. Fold everything together lightly but well, and pour the mixture into a greased 2lb loaf tin.
Bake in a preheated oven (180C/gas mark 4) for 50-60 mins. The cake is done when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool on a rack and ice when cold.
For the frosting, beat everything together until light and fluffy, then plonk on the top of the cooled cake.