The Great British Bake Off returns! The amateur baking competition saw a huge increase in sales of baking utensils. It seems that we are all crazy about cake. However, I've been crazy about doughnuts since childhood. It's actually one of my passions, not one of mine vices.
Cake and I have a long history of friendship. We used to bake fairy cakes in school's home economics class. I felt the whole process was like magic to me. The creaming of butter, sugar, and eggs all combined into a joyous frenzy. It is why I love baking. This is a great lesson in life: even humble beginnings can lead to magnificent ends. It's like a love letter to a lover. I get emotional writing about it. Its scent and the sensation of its touching my lips are tangible to me.
Its rich history is part of what makes it so appealing to me. Our long-standing love affair with cakes dates back hundreds of years. Food historians believe that carrot cake was derived from carrot puddings, which were eaten by Europeans during the middle ages. At that time sugar and sweeteners were scarce and carrots were used as a substitute.
The ancient Egyptians loved to bake and the early Greeks loved cheesecake. It seems that the Romans enjoyed fruitcakes in their early days. The sponge cake we know today was not created until the 19th Century.
Samantha Bilton, a food historian, says that the original recipe for the cake consisted of two sponges sandwiched together with jam. Cream was added in the 20th century. The lemon drizzle cake is a recipe that Queen Victoria often mentioned in her journals. It was first published in the Jewish Chronicle in 1967. It is light, moist and full of flavour. Lisa Smith, the Ginger Bakers' owner, adds that it can be served warm with custard if it does not work out.
I love cakes with a little whimsy. They are nostalgic and remind me of childhood romance. My 10th birthday was the first time I can remember ordering my cake from the bakery. The 1 should be purple, and the 0 should be pink. This was a very important decision. It was my first major executive decision. Here is a photo I took of me looking at the cake before I lit the candles. My friends are amazed that the cake came in two colors.
The whimsical idea of cake is linked to its frivolity. Life is too serious. Despite that, I enjoy how serious baking can be. Paris was home to a patisserie which took my breath away. It was huge and gilded. It was a miniature Versaille with grand ceilings. As if they were precious pieces of jewellery, the pastries and cakes were kept in glass drawers. A millefeuille is a Monet, as the French know.
As if they were precious jewellery, the pastries were kept in glass drawers.
It was the first time I felt like someone took cake as seriously and I felt it. It was very refined in the way it was presented and eaten. It was a box of pastel- and golden-coloured jewels that looked like macarons. It was pure romance. Imagine me lying on a chaise longue with waiters around me carrying silver trays filled with delicious delights. This was seduction of the finest quality.
Smith believes that the GBBO is why baking is so popular among both men and women. However, we are more critical of other food groups than they are of baking. This can cause us to feel guilty about what we eat. We are rightly passionate about the ethics behind certain foods, such as foie gras and veal, but what about cake? It can be a drama if it is offered. This is a tiny portion.
Food can be simplified, good or not. You can find many other sugary foods with high fat contents. Why is cake so bad? It could be because cake is an indulgence. We don't eat it when we are hungry, and it doesnt have any nutritional value. Marie Antoinette reportedly said inanely, "Let them eat cake!" when French subjects didn't have bread to eat. The sinful definition of cake is that it exists to satisfy a desire and be eaten. A plate of sausages will never be as lascivious as a small platter of petit fours. Cake can be dressed up in stilettos and extravagantly decorated.
I was looking at the cakes in the supermarket when a stranger whispered to me: You'll get fat. I ended up buying two cakes, instead of one. While I was stuffing my face, I thought of the words of strangers as I munched on them. To some, cake is a reminder of the importance of measuring your desire with the same precision as the ingredients used to make it. These beautiful, edible works of art reflect so much of our morality. It has become a symbol of all the human weaknesses: greed, gluttony and sin. Accepting a slice of pie has become a moral choice.
Here is where I would like to introduce you to one of my heroes. Joan of Arc is inspiring, as well as Aunt Sally from the 80s children's show Worzel Gummidge. Aunt Sally married ol Worzel so that she could eat wedding cakes. She is unapologetic, just like me. Her refreshing attitude is a refreshing contrast to Hollywood stars who live grueling, measured lives. She is flawed, but that makes her more interesting.
When I think about cake, I also think of my aunt and the love it takes to make it.
Cake is a sweet treat that's always on the naughty side of things. It comes out on weddings, birthdays, and christenings. Bilton states: Queen Victoria wrote that the christening cake was "beautiful" in her journal of 25 January 1842, when she was writing about her oldest son, Bertie. I would guess that christening cakes were a common thing during her reign.
Cutting cake feels to me ceremonial. It doesn't matter if it is my birthday cake, or a special slice for me on a rainy Monday afternoon. Despite its sinister nature, sharing a cake is a sign of love. My aunt Martha would always invite me to her home whenever I returned from university. You can bake me a cake, shedsay (code for: I love) These words make me teary, as she died at the age of 36. Aunt Martha was the first person to bake me a cake. When I think about cake, I can't help but think about Aunt Martha and the meaning of being loved.
I find the proverb "You can't have your cake and eat" absurd. It is a logic fallacy. If you don't want to eat the cake, what is the point? However, I know the deeper meaning. You can't have two things that are incompatible. This is exactly what cake is: a combination of the incompatible. There is the joy (of eating it), and then there is the guilt (after eating it). Contrary to popular belief, you can have your cake AND eat it. You can have your cake and eat it, please.
The cake hall of fame: A slice of the action
Fairy cake The history of this cake is rooted in the appearance of the cupcake in American Cookery at the end of 1700s. This first American cookbook, American Cookery, describes it as a small-sized cake that can be baked in tiny cups.
Battenberg cake Also known as checkerboard cake or church window cake. One theory is that the cake was made in honor of the 1884 marriage of Princess Victoria and Prince Louis of Battenberg.
Coffee cake thought to have been invented in Europe in 17th century. Europe was well-known for its sweet-tasting yeast breads at the time. With the invention of coffee, the recipe to make coffee cake became possible.
Every Tuesday at 8pm, Channel 4 will broadcast the new series of Great British Bake Off.
@KiranSidhu41
