Sunday, April 03, 2011

Dundee Cake: Baked and Delicious



I'm a total sucker for a foodie magazine. My house is over-run with back copies of most of the major food magazines available and I refer to them constantly for inspiration. Despite having numerous handy recipe files, I am hopeless at sorting through the magazines and cutting out the recipes that interest me.

Baked and Delicious

I was excited to hear of a new magazine which has recently hit the shelves of our newsagents. Baked and Delicious is a part-series collection-type magazine dedicated to the art of delicious baking. Each issue is packed with inspiring recipes for traditional cakes, savoury bakes and tarts, breads, celebration cakes, scrumptious desserts, biscuits and patisserie. Each recipe is clearly illustrated and certain more complex techniques are covered in details with step-by-step guides. But most excitingly, each issue comes with an item of silicone bakeware. Collect each issue and soon you'll have a set of cupcake cases, a loaf pan, tart tin, heart-shaped mould and handy accessories such as a silicone spatula and pastry brush.

I was fortunate enough to receive a copy of the first issue for review. I liked the layout of the magazine and the variety of recipes. I also appreciated the tips for variations on certain recipes  and the detail about the origin of some of the bakes. This issue comes with a set of silicone cupcake cases but rather than try the cupcake recipe, I thought I'd try something I hadn't made before. My husband loves fruit cakes and so the Dundee cake was the ideal choice. The recipe was easy to follow and the cake turned out beautifully. I particularly appreciated the tip of making a slight dip in the cake mixture to prevent the cake rising to a point in the middle. Why haven't I thought of that before?! I was initially a little disappointed by the number of recipes in the magazine but, on reflection, I think there are enough. Importantly, the recipes are all very different (Mediterranean tarts, fougasse, macarons, chocolate fondant puddings, lebkuchen, choux pastry) and I am sure I will try a few of the others in the weeks to come.


This would be a great magazine for novice bakers who are keen to collect a great set of bakeware whilst learning a variety of techniques. But it is also suitable for keen cooks, looking to expand their repertoire and try some new bakes.

You can find all the details about this magazine collection on the Baked and Delicious website.


8 comments:

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

This cake looks moist and delicious Antonia. I love it when new and innovative magazines hit the bookshelves.

Caroline said...

It looks like a tasty cake. I've managed to resist this magazine - like you, my house is overflowing with back copies and even the idea of a free gift didn't tempt me! Must be strong....!!! Glad you enjoyed the magazine though - do you think you'll carry on getting it?

Maggie said...

I love a good Dundee cake, an old favourite of mine.
I still haven't come across this magazine, perhaps they don't sell it in my part of the country!

girls who like to gorge said...

MMMM, this looks wonderful. Your blog is so lovely.. and I really like your header! Looking forward to reading your future posts!x

Maria♥ said...

I love my foodies magazine and subscribe to 3. I've heard of this new Baked and Delicious magazine but decided I didn't need! The Dundee cake looks great.

Maria
x

Sarah, Maison Cupcake said...

That cake looks a huge success although I was not a fan of the magazine when I saw it. It's fine paying 99p for a first issue but once they start charging 4.99 for issues beyond the 3rd one, at 24ish pages it starts looking very poor value to me!

Lucy said...

I'm addicted to reading foodie magazines and can be pretty sure I'll be buying this one soon! The cake looks delicious - love the rising tip.

Choclette said...

Looks like a very tasty Dundee cake. I love fruit cake but CT is not so keen, so I made the chocolate puddings ;-)