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Bakes Recipes

Dorset Apple Cake

This time of year finds apples growing on the trees – fresh, crisp and a joy to bite into. Below is a photo of some I picked this week from the trees in our garden.

Having recently returned from a stay in the county of Dorset (see Dorset Calling) I had the idea of incorporating some of our apples in a classic British bake – the Dorset Apple Cake. You can see it in my main photo at the top of this post. It went down well with the family – there were already a few slices cut from it before I could take the photo!

Serve it on its own with a cup of tea, or with a few spoonfuls of Greek Yoghurt.

Servings

Around 16 slices.

Timings

15 mins to prepare, 1h 25 mins to bake.

You Will Need

  • 225g plain flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • pinch of sea salt
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • 140g light brown sugar
  • 150g spread or margarine
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 medium sized crisp eating apples
  • demerara sugar to sprinkle over
  • flaked almonds to sprinkle

Method

  1. Switch the oven on to 160C and grease/line a 20 cm diameter baking tin.
  2. Put the flour, baking powder, salt, and mixed spice in a bowl and stir with a spoon. Add the apple, chopped, and stir again so that all the apple pieces are coated in the floury mix. Add in the sugar, spread and eggs, and use an electric mixer to combine.
  3. Tip into the prepared tin and level with a spatula so it reaches the sides. Sprinkle the demerara over.
  4. Place in the oven for 1 hour.
  5. Remove and sprinkle the flaked almonds over. Put back in the oven, still at 160C, for 20 mins.
  6. Remove and leave to cool off in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into slices (see photo below) to serve.

Customise It!

If you wish to cut down on the sugar content, feel free to omit the demerara topping. I left the peel on the apple so that the cake included a little more fibre, but you can remove it with a peeler if you prefer.

Many countries and cultures have their own recipes for apple bakes, including this one for Austrian Apple Cake posted previously on ADK.

Time to add another track to the ADK Playlist. I saw this band a few weeks back when they were supporting the Arctic Monkeys, and they were great. I did say I would feature them, so here they are: this is The Hives with Hate to Say I Told You So.

Categories
Blog

Dorset Calling

This week, while staying close to the English south coast, I enjoyed a day in the old town of Wimborne in the county of Dorset.

At the centre of the town is the impressive Minster, a church that has stood here since the 12th Century, no less (see my photos above and below). It is still in service and visitors can enter for free to explore its charms.

The surrounding market town is home to many other very old buildings, some dating from the 15th, 16th and 17th Centuries. Many are now independent cafes and delicatessens, with an accent on food and drink produced locally.

Unable to resist its foodie charms, temptation got the better of me and I came back with a reasonable haul of local produce.

Initially I was looking for some Dorset Blue Vinny, a well-regarded local cheese, but opted instead for the less well-known Cranborne Blue from the Book & Bucket Cheese Company. A local producer, they started up during Covid to make use of a nearby farmer’s milk surplus. They are now thriving and winning awards.

I am slowly working my way through the complete range of Dorset Tea, a company with its origins in Bournemouth, and bought some of their Mint Tea blend on this occasion.

Apples feature strongly in foods around here (it is said that Dorset was once home to 10,000 acres of apple orchards). I picked up a Cider Chutney from Southbourne producer Dorset Made Food , and a can of Muddy Scamp from the Purbeck Cider Company.

I couldn’t leave Wimborne without a can of Corbel, a West Coast IPA from the town’s own craft brewery Eight Arch Brewing Company.

Here’s a shot of all this Dorset booty – a memory of a very enjoyable day.

You’ll see that I have included links to the websites of these local producers, so do please feel free to check them out.

I’m pleased to report that, since my previous post (see Cranberry and Pistachio Cookies) the sun has indeed come out again, and that I have been back to the beach for more sea swimming. Music wise, I was ecstatic to get a ticket for Queens of the Stone Age when they tour this November. I have seen them three times before and they bring a lot of excitement to the stage. You can expect this to be the subject of a future post.

All in all, this seems an aptly titled track to add to the ADK Playlist (I can’t recommend the nutrition-free diet that Josh Homme sings about, however): QOTSA with Feel Good Hit of the Summer.

Categories
Bakes Recipes

Cranberry & Pistachio Cookies

What to do on a summer’s day by the beach when the sun doesn’t shine? Why, bake cookies, of course!

Regular readers will know that I do like being by the beach (searching ‘beach’ via my site search bar throws up no less than 10 different posts).

This week I am staying by the beach on the English south coast, and have already been for a dip in the sea. However, today it’s rather overcast and a little drizzly – hey, it is the British summer after all! Sun is forecast for the rest of the week so, for this one grey day, I decided to pursue other activities.

Which naturally involves some baking. Not wanting to stock up unnecessarily on ingredients, I had the brainwave of shopping at the local refillery – Almond & Co in Westbourne. They have a terrific range of staple foods and will sell as much or as little of each as needed, to take away in your own refillable container.

I decided to make a batch of cookie dough, using their organic dried cranberries and organic shelled pistachios. Here is the haul from my visit, all items individually weighed, priced and bar-coded.

I bought just the right amount of organic plain flour, and to make things a little different, added organic buckwheat flour at a ratio of 1:3 to the plain. My dough also contains the zest of one of their organic, unwaxed lemons.

Notice any trend here? Yes, everything sold is organic. As a refillery, they are also free of plastic packaging. I think it’s good to support a shop that is trying to help us all live and eat more sustainably.

I’m pleased with the results – see my main photo at the top of the post. It just shows that being away from home does not have to mean missing out on home baking, as long as there is a good refillery nearby.

Servings

Makes about 18 cookies.

Timings

15 mins to prepare, 15 – 20 mins to bake (shorter if you like your cookies soft and chewy, longer for crisper and more biscuity).

You Will Need

  • 175g spread or margarine
  • 85g caster sugar
  • 170g plain flour
  • 55g buckwheat flour
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 75g dried cranberries
  • 75g shelled pistachio nuts

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 180C.
  2. Put the spread and sugar in a bowl and beat together, using a wooden spoon or electric mixer if you have one.
  3. Sieve in the flours, add the lemon zest and mix again.
  4. Chop the pistachios in 2 and add to the bowl with the cranberries.
  5. At this point you need to get your hands in there and squidge all the ingredients together into a ball of dough. Remove the dough from the bowl, wrap in cling film, and leave in the fridge till the oven is up to temperature.
  6. Line a baking tray with some kitchen parchment. Tear chunks off the dough and shape into a ball between the palms of your hands. Flatten to a disc the width of about 1cm and place on the tray. Place in the oven for 15 – 20 mins until done.
  7. It isn’t necessary to cook all the dough at once. I used half and made 9 cookies, leaving the other half in the fridge to make up another batch later.

Customise It!

This baking idea involves using the resources available while away from your usual kitchen. It is easily adaptable to include other kinds of dried fruit or chopped nuts that you may be able to get your hands on. I swapped in buckwheat flour for a quarter of the plain flour, because the refillery I was shopping in had an excellent range of flours that I wanted to take advantage of. However, you can stick with all plain flour if you wish. I found the buckwheat gives the cookie a slightly darker colour and makes it crisper.

All being well, by this weekend’s post I will be able to report the return of the sun. Maybe I’ll take some cookies to enjoy at the beach. The next track added to the ADK Playlist needs no explanation – Kate Bush with Cloudbusting!

Categories
Bakes Recipes

Blackberry & Coconut Crumble Squares

If you venture down to our local woods at the moment, you may get something of a surprise. No, not those pesky bears picnicking again – the hedgerows are laden with blackberries, and most of them are ripe for picking.

Why is that a surprise? Well, around here, picking blackberries is usually an end of August/early September activity. However, many of these plump beauties have been ripe and ready since mid-July, with plenty more yet to ripen – see my photo below. I should be harvesting these for a few weeks to come.

I mentioned in my recent Plum & Almond Slices post that our plums are also ready much earlier than usual. We hear a lot these days about how our climate is changing, so I guess this is just one more example.

Ever the opportunist, I sprang down to the woods with my bowl and came back with a good 300g, see below.

Within a matter of hours they had been incorporated in a traybake with desiccated coconut, the berries bursting as they bake to release all that lovely jammy juice into the cake. It is topped with a crumble mix and sprinkled with nuts and seeds (see my main photo at the top of this post).

I based this substantially on a recipe I found in BBC Good Food, although it’s been adapted to my tastes in the usual ADK way.

Servings

This makes 20 squares.

Timings

25 mins to pick the berries, 15 mins to prepare and 30 mins to bake at 180C.

You Will Need

  • 300g fresh blackberries
  • 250g self-raising flour
  • 25g oats
  • 140g soft brown sugar
  • 200g baking spread or margarine
  • 75g desiccated coconut
  • 2 eggs
  • a few handfuls of sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and chopped nuts

Method

  1. Wash the blackberries in a sieve under running water, and drain.
  2. Turn the oven on to 180C. Grease and line a baking tray. Mine is 22cm square.
  3. Sieve the flour into a bowl and add the oats, sugar and spread. Mix it all up with the fingers of both hands till it forms little clumps of crumble mixture. Remove about enough to fill a mug or small cup, and set aside.
  4. Add the coconut to the bowl and stir in to mix, then add in the eggs. Stir to combine.
  5. Scrape the mixture into the tray and spread out with a spatula so it meets all four sides. Spread the berries in a layer on top.
  6. Next pick up the pieces of crumble that you set aside and dot them over the berries. Finally, sprinkle over a few handfuls of sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and chopped nuts. Aim for an even and consistent spread of crumble and sprinkles across the whole of the traybake.
  7. Bake for 30 mins or until done i.e. when a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean with no wet mixture attached. Remove and allow to cool substantially in the warm tray, before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.
  8. When cool, cut into squares. Eat while fresh – they will all be gone within a day or two!

Customise It!

A large part of the fun of this dish is picking the blackberries, and then baking and eating them while they are so fresh. If you don’t have blackberry bushes to hand, however, you could still use other soft fruit, like raspberries or blueberries.

You can also vary the sprinkled topping to incorporate any particular faves. Next time I make this (and there will be more blackberries to come) I am tempted to add some broken up squares of white chocolate.

What music has been playing in the ADK Kitchen this week? Fear of Music, the great album by Talking Heads has been having a few plays, as I hadn’t heard it for a while. It really is a classic and I could choose many tracks to add to the Playlist. I’ll settle on this one, which I especially like for Tina Weymouth’s bassline – Cities by Talking Heads.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Summer Squash Roasted Peppers

Summertime patty pan squashes are now starting to arrive in our farm shops and market stalls. They rarely feature on supermarket shelves, however, and consequently many of us are unsure how to prepare and cook with them.

My favourite method is to chop them into a roasting pan drizzled with olive oil, and place in the oven at 180C for about 20 mins. The chopped squash pieces sweeten and caramelise, and can then be used in a variety of dishes.

In this recipe, I have blended them with mashed kidney beans, tomatoes, onions and chilli in a stuffing for roasted peppers. The squash adds texture and sweetness. With the stuffed peppers emerging lightly charred from the oven, it all makes for a splendid looking vegetarian, and vegan, main, served with side veg of your choice.

Servings

4 adult servings.

Timings

20 mins to roast the squash before adding it to the rest of the stuffing mix. Then a further 25 mins to roast the filled peppers.

You Will Need

  • 1 patty pan squash
  • 2 peppers, red, orange or yellow
  • 1 garlic clove
  • half an onion
  • 1 medium red chilli
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • half of 1 onion
  • 1 400g can of kidney beans, drained and washed
  • 1 440g can of chopped tomatoes
  • oil
  • seasalt and black pepper
  • a few handfuls of pumpkin seeds

Method

  1. Peel the patty pan squash and chop roughly into pieces. Place on a roasting tray and drizzle with oil, then roast for 20 mins at 180C.
  2. Heat a little oil in a frying pan, and add the garlic clove, crushed. Chop the chilli and onion and, as the oil begins to sizzle, add it to the pan with the ground cumin. Give it a stir and let it cook for a few minutes.
  3. Roughly blitz the kidney beans in a food processor with blade fitted. Add to the pan with the chopped tomatoes. Give it all a few good twists of seasalt and ground black pepper. Stir to mix, and let it cook for 4 – 5 mins to reduce.
  4. Chop the peppers down the middle to give four halves, and carefully trim out the seeds and white membrane from each, using a sharp knife. Brush the inside and outside of each half with a little oil.
  5. When the patty pan squash is roasted and nicely caramelised, scrape the pieces in to the food processor and lightly blitz. Add to the kidney bean mixture and stir in.
  6. Spoon the mixture into each half pepper, and press down with the back of the spoon to make sure the cavity is filled. Sprinkle a few pumpkin seeds on the top, and place back in the oven, still at 180C, for 25 mins.
  7. Remove and serve with accompaniment of your choice.

Customise It!

As shown in the photo, mine are served with seasonal baby potatoes and sprouting broccoli, but feel free to serve up with other favourite veg or whatever veg you have to hand. Couscous or rice would also make a good side.

I must admit to having a bit of a laugh when I saw the photo I’d taken, at the top of the post. Due to a combination of the background and the lighting, it looks like the stuffed peppers are about to travel off into deep space. However, that isn’t the milky way behind them – it is a roasting tray, and the only place they are about to travel to is a hot oven in the ADK KItchen.

It has given me an idea for the next track for the Playlist, however. It’s a song from the great R.E.M., whose music I have enjoyed for many years, including seeing them play live twice. Here they are with Man on the Moon.

Categories
Recipes Sides

Scallion, Celeriac and Cucumber Slaw

Slaws are very useful dishes this time of year. They’re quick to throw together, and can be made well in advance of mealtime. They can be left to rest in the fridge, their flavours infusing while you take it easy enjoying the sun with an aperitif. Using fresh ingredients means minimal processing and little, if any, cooking.

I like experimenting with different combinations of raw ingredients. This is one I made recently, that delivers a good tasty crunch with sticks of celeriac, chopped scallions (or spring onions, from the garden) and roasted wholemeal croutons. The mayo and white wine vinegar dressing is spiced up with a little Dijon mustard and fresh dill. This is complemented with fine silky slivers of cucumber that bring some cool respite on the tongue.

Fancy giving it a go?

Servings

Served as a side salad alongside a main (such as a quiche) and other side salads, this will be enough for 4 adults.

Timings

10 – 15 mins to prepare.

You Will Need

  • half a cucumber
  • 1tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 3 scallions
  • 200g celeriac
  • 100g slices of wholemeal bread
  • a handful of fresh dill
  • some olive or rapeseed oil
  • 2 good tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • seasalt and ground black pepper

Method

  1. Cut the cucumber lengthwise into cylinder shapes about 10 – 12 cm long, and then cut each into quarters lengthwise. Scrape out and discard the soft, squishy middle. Then, using a veg peeler, shave each piece of cucumber into long, thin ribbons. Place into a serving bowl.
  2. Next, cut the rough, outer edges from the celeriac and discard. Cut the remaining flesh into matchstick size pieces about 3cm long. Add to the cucumber.
  3. Cut the scallions into pieces the same length as the celeriac sticks, and add to the bowl.
  4. Add the wine vinegar and chopped dill, giving it all a good stir to coat the salad ingredients.
  5. Mix the mayo and mustard and add to the bowl. Add a few twists of salt and pepper. Give it another good stir to combine, and then place in the fridge till mealtime.
  6. Finally, cut the slices of bread into cubes, drizzle with oil and roast, spread out on a tray for 5 mins at 180C. Allow to cool.
  7. Just before serving, take the salad from the fridge and arrange the wholemeal croutons on top. Then serve.

Customise it!

Try to keep to the 3 core ingredients but, beyond this, feel free to experiment e.g. cider vinegar if you prefer, or different fresh herbs to replace the dill. Melt parmesan over the croutons while roasting, or add garlic to the dressing. The possibilities are nearly endless!

Next track for the ADK Playlist is a very catchy tune that’s been playing this week in the ADK Kitchen. It will get your toes tapping as you chop those scallions and celeriac sticks. This is The Wiseguys with Ooh La La.

Categories
Bakes Desserts

Summer Berry Burst Muffins

This post sees seasonal summer berries, such as strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, generously packed into a cake muffin. The berries burst with joy as they bake, giving each muffin a unique, jammy appearance (as shown in my photo above) and a delicious, juicy, fruity taste.

It truly is food to put a smile on your face!

Servings

12 muffins.

Timings

15 mins to prepare, 25 mins to bake at 180C.

You Will Need

  • 220g plain flour
  • 3 tsp baking powder
  • half tsp salt
  • 110g caster sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 240ml milk
  • 90ml vegetable oil
  • 60g oats
  • 150g fresh berries (such as strawberries, raspberries, blueberries or blackberries)

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 180C. Prepare a muffin tin or mould for baking.
  2. Sieve the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a bowl. Stir in the berries and ensure all are covered in the floury mix.
  3. Break the egg into a second bowl and add the milk, veg oil and oats. Give it a good stir.
  4. Combine wet and dry ingredients and stir till combined, with no dry ingredients showing. Spoon the batter into your mould or tin, and bake for 25 mins at 180C.
  5. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Customise it!

Other berries or soft fruit can be substituted – but please keep it fresh and local, going with what is in season in your area.

I did say this was food to put a smile on your face, so let’s keep that theme going with our latest musical choice. A Rush of Blood to the Head is still my favourite album by Coldplay. They have done some terrific stuff since, but in my view they have never bettered it. Here’s one of the many great tracks from the album – God Put A Smile Upon Your Face.

Categories
Bakes Mains

Leek, Bacon & Stilton Flan

It’s the time of year for quiche, eaten warm or cold while sitting on the patio in the summer sun. Perhaps enjoying a glass of fresh Elderflower over ice, or maybe even something stronger.

For me, leek, bacon and Stilton cheese is always a winning blend in a dish. The deep oniony taste of the silky, buttery leeks complements the saltiness of the bacon and the creaminess of the cheese. As my photo above (taken in the back garden sun) shows, the greeny blue hues of the toasted topped flan just make you want to tuck into a slice.

Serve this as a main accompanied by some side salads. If you need some ideas, check out Beetroot, Feta and Walnut Salad with Bulgar and Quinoa, Crunchy Fruit and Nut Pilaff, or Royal Blood Orange Salad.

Servings

4 adult portions.

Timings

The whole process takes around an hour: 10 mins to make the pastry, 10 mins to chill, another 10 mins to blind bake the pastry base, and then 25 mins to bake the flan.

You Will Need

  • 225g plain flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 100g spread or margarine
  • 2 – 3 tbsp cold water
  • 2 leeks
  • a knob of butter
  • 3 slices of bacon
  • 100g Stilton cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • 50g milk
  • a few twists of black pepper

Method

  1. Turn the oven to 180C. Grease and line a flan dish – the one I used (in the photo) is 22cm diameter.
  2. Sieve the flour and salt into a food processor with blade fitted, and add in the spread. Blitz until it resembles the texture of breadcrumbs. Add a few drops of the water until it binds into a lump of soft pastry.
  3. Tip out and wrap in cling film. Place in the fridge to chill for 10 mins.
  4. Meanwhile, wash the leeks and chop into a saucepan with the butter. Place over a gentle heat so that they soften in the melted butter.
  5. Chop the bacon into pieces and fry till browned and crispy.
  6. Take the pastry from the fridge and roll out on a floured surface to a size that fits your flan dish. Fit it into the dish and trim off any overhanging excess. Place a crumpled piece of baking paper inside and fill with ceramic baking beans. Place in the oven for 10 mins.
  7. Remove from the oven and discard the paper/ beans, taking care as they will be hot. Spread the softened leeks and bacon over the base, then crumble over the Stilton cheese.
  8. Mix the beaten eggs, milk and pepper in a jug, and pour carefully into the flan. Place in the oven for 25mins until cooked.
  9. Remove and serve hot, if you wish, or let it go cold. Serve it al fresco, with salads and cold drinks.

Customise it!

As I’ve said, I regard leek, bacon and Stilton as a classic taste combo, so wouldn’t change it. However, you could add other green veg for the leeks if you wish – broccoli would go well. You could also add grated cheddar or another favourite cheese, in place of the Stilton.

Music time. Here’s a song I really like from a new artist for the Playlist – Ladyhawke, with Black White and Blue. Maybe not quite the colours of my Leek, Bacon and Stilton Flan, but still a great track nonetheless!

Categories
Bakes Desserts Recipes

Plum & Almond Slices

This week I received a harvest of the first plums of the summer. They are plump, juicy and a magnificent purplish colour (see below). Isn’t nature wonderful – Artificial Intelligence (AI) can do more and more things nowadays, but it can’t produce these (yet).

I will return to the subject of AI in a few moments.

I decided to combine the plums with ground and flaked almonds in a traybake, cut into slices to have with a cup of tea or coffee, as shown in my main photo at the top of this post.

The slightly tart taste of these early plums complements the rich, velvety, amaretto-ish, marzipanny taste of the egg and almonds. Delish!

Servings

16 slices.

Timings

15 mins to prepare, 30 mins to bake at 180C.

You Will Need

  • 125g self-raising flour
  • half tsp salt
  • 80g ground almonds
  • 170g baking spread or margarine
  • 150g caster sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tsp almond essence
  • 300g plums, de-stoned and chopped into rough pieces
  • a few handfuls of flaked almonds

Method

  1. Grease a baking tray and line it with baking paper. The one I used is 22cm square. Turn the oven on to warm up to 180C.
  2. Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl, and stir in the ground almonds.
  3. Combine the spread and sugar in a second bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add in the eggs and whisk, one at a time, and then the almond essence.
  4. Combine the contents of the two bowls and fold in.
  5. Spread a few spoonfuls of the cake mixture over the bottom of the baking dish and spread out so it is flat.
  6. Pour the plum pieces into the rest of the cake mixture in the bowl, and fold in. Add the plummy cake mix to the baking tray. Level it out with a spatula, then sprinkle the flaked almonds over. Press the flaked almonds down gently with the back of a fork, so that they adhere to the mixture.
  7. Bake for 30 mins at 180C. Then remove and allow to cool a little in the tin, before transferring to a wire rack.
  8. When completely cooled, cut into slices.

Customise It!

If you don’t have plums to hand, try other soft fruit, like cherries or berries.

Like me, you may have noticed that we are hearing more and more these days about the growth of Artificial Intelligence, or AI, and that it will be taking over more and more jobs and tasks that are carried out by humans.

Mmmm. I’ve been wondering whether AI could come up with a recipe such as Plum & Almond Slices, and then bake it? Would it seriously be bothered carefully trimming around the stones in a pile of plums with a sharp knife? And if so, would it lick the batter left on the spatula and in the bowl once its put the traybake in the oven? If not, it would be missing out on a special treat, and that certainly isn’t my definition of progress.

Turning to the ADK Playlist, I was intrigued to find out recently that I have a new, AI personalised DJ on Spotify. His name is Xavier and he presents a continuous stream of music curated from my listening over previous years, with new tracks that he thinks I may also like. If I want to skip a track, I just ask him and he moves on to introduce the next song.

He hasn’t completely mastered my tastes so far, but I am sure it is only a matter of time. Interestingly, I didn’t ask for him to start doing this – he just appeared one day on my app.

It reminded me of this track by Leftfield, called Machines Like Me, which contains the line Machines, they’re taking over. Maybe I’ll ask Xavier if he knows it.

Categories
Blog

Happy Birthday

This week my blog is one year old.

Yes, it’s a full 12 months since I tentatively published my first post – Crunchy Fruit & Nut Pilaff. The idea was to blog about my twin loves of Good Food, Great Music, with a name inspired by the title of the first Buzzcocks album Another Music in a Different Kitchen.

Narrative posts would be published here twice weekly on Word Press, with shorter, more frequent updates on Twitter @differentkitch. Posts would be accompanied by a favourite music track, added to an ever growing Spotify Playlist.

113 posts, 382 tweets and 87 songs later, that is pretty much how things have panned out. Followers across my three chosen platforms currently total 1,371 – thanks to every one of you whether you have read, baked, or hummed along.

Total Word Press views have been 3,427, spread well (a bit like the jam shown below) across all kinds of recipe and post. However, the three most viewed posts suggest that you are a sweet toothed lot. Top is The Sweetest Feeling, about afternoon tea at the home of Tiptree jam in Essex, see below.

It is followed by Cappuccino Cake…

and Double Choc Cherry Muffins…

Total Word Press likes have been 2,077. The award for most likes goes to Stairway to Heaven – posted from a famously named canalside cafe, reimagining an inspired Jimmy Page sat there with 12 string guitar and home-made scone.

It is closely followed in likes by Passion Fruit and Lime Pots…

and Selkirk Bannock – a Scottish tea bread that many seem to have found irresistible (and it is)…

I’m grateful to all our guest posters – Eva, Jon, Kelvin, Lesley and Pam for their delicious creations. Here’s Eva’s Austrian Apple Cake as one example…

I’ve posted while on my travels over the year – from the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, from Qatar, Australia (see below), and various parts of the UK. Adding to an international flavour has been the likes and kind comments received from readers in countries all around the world. Thank you! There will be more interesting travel in the year ahead.

The roster of favourite bands whose live performances I have posted about include Roxy Music, Fatboy Slim, Elton John (shown below), Inspiral Carpets, Arctic Monkeys, Muse and Billy Joel. Phew – equalling that list will take some doing in the next 12 months. I will see what I can do.

A reminder that the entire back catalogue of posts and recipes on A Different Kitchen can be accessed from the categories list or search facility at the foot of the home page. Similar posts are also highlighted at the foot of whichever post you are reading. Go explore!

Continuing the birthday/let’s-eat-cake theme, here’s an appropriately titled track for the Playlist: Michael Jackson with Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.

A special shout-out to loyal follower, Nina, whose actual birthday it is today.

Onwards into a second year. I’ll be back on Wednesday with a brand new recipe.