Mr S and I went to the New Forest yesterday, and it was our first book group with chickens. Disappointingly, they had not read the novel, though they did have a little peck at my toes. Once again we were given triumphant cake — the best Victoria sponge I have ever eaten. There was much cake related discussion as the village show is on Saturday and the feared lady from the WI is judging once again. Last year, the cakes were scored publicly and the written reviews presented for all to see… comments included ‘next time, turn out your sponge onto a tea-towel NOT a wire rack as otherwise you will have faint wire lines on the base of your cake’… ‘I’m sorry to say that technically a Victoria sponge must be spread with raspberry jam not strawberry jam’. A strawberry jam sponge cake is an Abomination not a Victoria. Who knew?
Sweet peas
Mr Rosenblum's Garden
A fabulous party
Novel giveaway...
The writing shed needs an upgrade
Dreaming at Durdle Door
Scary!! enough to put you off entering any cakes at all!
lyn
x
I know! Don’t think I’d do very well. My 9 year old niece scored my latest effort at 4 out of 10 and told me that she was being kind…
Bimey, didn’t know there were cake-fascists…
Ah, lines must drawn in the icing sugar. Standards must be maintained. You clearly don’t have the attitude to be a baking champ, Alis…
An update to the cake saga as reported by Natasha. As the 2010 fete opened for entries, I bravely carried my own lovingly baked and iced offering into the village hall and set it out on the table. So keen was I that it was the first entry to arrive. With trepidation I returned that afternoon to find out my fete! There was my beautiful delicious cake uncut on the table surrounded by 8 or so equally beautiful cakes sliced open for all to see their soft squidgy middles. My comment simply read ‘uneven cake’! It was so below pare as to not warrent being sliced open and its centre examined. Sadly it would seem that cakes unlike books can be judged by their covers.
I retired to lick my wounds, however the joy of family and friends is that they saw beyond the slightly lopsided appearance and devoured the cake asking for seconds. My son lovingly informed me that hence forth chocolate sponge cakes are now to be refered to as uneven cakes.
Oh my God Hannah! I think that might be the saddest thing I’ve heard… That is a chocolate cake travesty.
I didn’t know that cakes were supposed to be even.
Hannah! I bet it was the best tasting and they never even knew. I should enter next year, with my baking talents the judge would retire in disgust :O) Problem solved!
How did our other Book Group members fair?