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Tag Archives: clandestine cake club

The No bake, Oh wait I baked it Pumpkin Pie

24 Tuesday Oct 2017

Posted by Fiona in events, Food, Free From, Recipes

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Tags

50 shades of autumn, Autumn, cake club, cakes gone wrong, camden, clandestine cake club, coconut cream, dairy free, gluten free pumpkin pie, look bad taste good, pumpkin puree, raw banofee pie, raw cakes, themed cakes

The nights are getting darker, the clocks are going back next week, it’s safe to say it’s officially autumn and with that it seemed pretty fitting to have 50 shades of autumn as the theme for Cake Club this month.

When I first found this out, I thought right I’m going to make something ambitious this time, some sort of pie or cake perhaps, different shades in colour with leaves made out of rolled icing which I would paint gold. That doesn’t sound too amazing but for the past few months with cake club I’ve always found that I’ve either forgotten the date and it’s got to the day before and I’m like crap what can I make so have whipped up something simple or have just picked quite safe options.

So, I thought about what I would make and then, a week before as I was looking into pumpkin pie recipes I thought, as Amanda who comes to cake club is dairy free, I would make a cake so that she could have another option to eat, rather than just her own. I have made raw cakes and some gluten and dairy free cakes in the past which actually turned out quite nice (you can read about my adventure with the banoffe raw cake I made at Easter!) so I thought I’ll find a dairy free pumpkin recipe to make and I can still decorate it and make it look fab!

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Treat yourself with this Raw Snickers Cake

08 Tuesday Nov 2016

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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cake club, camden bars, camden lockside, clandestine cake club, favourite chocolate bar recipes, ferrero rocher cake, gianduia cake, gluten free, goodfoodgoddess, halloween, healthy snickers cake, kit kat cake, lockside, peanut butter cake, raw cake, raw recipes, Raw Snickers Cake, Snickers cake, whittakers coconut slab

snickers-raw-cake_ raw-cake-snickers raw-snickers_cakeOur Clandestine Cake club fell on Halloween for the month of October however we decided to go against tradition of making Halloween/scary/pumpkin cakes and the theme instead was favourite chocolate bars.

As a terribly indecisive person, usually when I learn of the theme for cake club I spend a good bit of time deciding on what to make (there can always be so many options) and then end up changing my mind last minute.  However, this month as soon as I learnt what the theme was I chose my chocolate bar straight away which meant I just needed to find/think up a recipe for it.

For me I am a huge chocolate lover and have many favourite chocolate bars, turnock caramel bar (yes please) whittakers coconut slab & that new dairy milk bar with white, dark and milk chocolate (yum!),  however one bar which I love in both its bar form and as an ice cream is snickers. Continue reading →

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Pistachio and Olive Oil Cake

08 Sunday Feb 2015

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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Tags

ask, cake club, clandestine cake club, ditch the sugar, ground pistachios, naturally ella, pistachio and olive oil cake, pistachio flour, savoury cakes, savoury desserts, sugar free cakes, the franco irish kitchen

pistachio and olive oil  cake pistachio & olive oil cake

The theme for this month’s Cake Club was savouries due to the idea of everyone trying to be good in January after an indulgent Christmas. I joined cake club this time last year and there were some delicious savoury cakes as well as a few sweetish ones such as courgette cake. I do like my savoury but have a huge sweet tooth and therefore wanted to think about a sweet cake that could fit in with a savoury theme which hadn’t been done before.
It just so happened that the week before Cake Club I went for dinner at Ask and they had a new dessert option which was Pistachio and Olive Oil Cake. A huge lover of pistachios, especially pistachio ice cream, I was straight away curious to see what it would be like. Turns out I didn’t actually end up getting Pistachio Cake but at least I now had a cake to find a recipe for for Cake Club!

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Christmas Spiced Parsnip & Maple Cake

23 Tuesday Dec 2014

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

alternative christmas cake, Berlin, cake club, chocolate orange macaroons, christmas cake, clandestine cake club, home made marshmellows, mincemeat and ricotta tart, parsnip and maple cake, spiced parsnip cake, vegetable cakes

IMG_7453parsnip and maple cakemaple & parnsip cake

December 15th was the last Clandestine Cake club for year 2014 and it was definitely a merry and festive occasion. I was in two minds as to whether I was going to be able to attend it as it was taking place the day after I arrived back from Berlin, two days before I was due to set off to Australia, I was suffering from tooth ache and finally the 15th was also my Christmas Day with Craig. However somehow or another I managed to fit it in and I’m so glad I did. Continue reading →

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Art Masterpiece’s at Camden Cake Club

02 Tuesday Sep 2014

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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2 for 1 cocktails, alone cake, Art masterpiece cake, arty cakes, bar 55, be mine cake, camden bars, camden cake club, Chocolate cake with vanilla and meringue frosting, clandestine cake club, frosting, highgate press, home sweet home, hummingbird bakery, layered cakes, light cake, marble design, passion fruit cheesecake, picasso cake, rainbow pound cake, romantic cakes, sugar thermometer

Chocolate cake with vanilla meringue frosting

This month’s Clandestine Cake club theme was Art Masterpiece and wow were there some beautiful looking cakes! I arrived at Bar 55 in Camden (one of my favourite cocktail bars in London) and at 6.30 on a Monday it was already buzzing. The fact that cocktails are two for one all night on Mondays was probably a big reason for this! As I knew I was going to be scoffing my face with cake I decided before arriving that I wasn’t going to have alcohol- well that pretty much went out the window! As soon as I saw the others with Mai tai’s, Stawberry daiquiri’s and other delicious looking cocktails I knew I had to get one! Fiona, one of the cake club members ordered a beautiful looking raspberry mojito and despite the 50 times or so I have been to Bar 55 I have never had it so opted for one and it was sweet, refreshing and too easy to drink!

We had a table reserved in bar 55 and although a little cramped we managed to all squeeze on and place all our cakes on the tables. There was a chocolate Salvador dali clock cake from Fiona, Jelena’s humungous beautiful chocolate and vanilla cake, mini cheesecakes from Kasia , a rainbow pound cake from Lisa, an almond Picasso cake from Cat and finally an aboriginal chocolate and mango cake from Kristina.

Salvador Dali Chocolate cakePassion fruit cheesecakesBeautiful layered cake Because you are mine cake Chocolate and Mango CakeRainbow Pound cake

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Easter Celebration Cakes for Cake Club’s first Birthday!

12 Monday May 2014

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

banana and coconut cake, chocolate and vanilla sponge, chocolate sponge, clandestine cake club, creamy caramel cake, Easter celebration cake, easy cake recipes, layered cakes, simmons bar, woman and home magazine


082 (1024x683)
089 (1024x683) Easter Celebration Cake
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Chocolate Easter Cake

Last Monday was Easter celebration theme for Clandestine Cake Club. This was to mark not only Easter just happening but to mark Camden’s first year as a club! Since 12 months ago the club has gone from having only 3 members to over fifteen!

It was a smaller turn out this time as there were upcoming holidays and a certain wedding dress to be fitted into. Also it did fall very close to Easter so perhaps some couldn’t deal with eating more sweet things so soon after.

Despite this there was still a good turn out and some varied and delicious cakes to try. We met at a lovely little pub just near Mornington Crescent called Simmons. I have walked past it hundreds of times and never noticed it but it is situated on the corner and serves wine for the bargain price of £2.50 and tasty wine at that! It also is a lot bigger than it looks and even has an old school nintendo where you can come and play mario supercars.

I wasn’t sure what to bake this time round so opted for a cake that was actually called Easter Celebration Cake (very apt) which was featured in Woman and Home Magazine. I loved the look of the cake as soon as I saw it with its four layers however I do tend to make chocolate cakes a bit too often so was a little undecided. The good thing about this cake it that although it looks extremely chocolately it is a vanilla sponge with hints of orange and almond which make it not too indulgent but give a lightness to it.

Here’s how it’s made:

Ingredients

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  • 350g (12oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 350g (12oz) golden caster sugar
  • 6 large free-range eggs, beaten
  • 400g (14oz) self-raising flour, sifted
  • 100g (4oz) ground almonds
  • juice and grated zest 2 oranges

for the chocolate fudge filling

  • 250g (9oz) plain dark chocolate
  • 100g (4oz) butter
  • juice 1 orange
  • 3 free-range egg yolks
  • 250g (9oz) icing sugar

for the topping

  • 300ml (½pt) double cream
  • 3tbsp caster sugar
  • 200g (7oz) dark chocolate, finely chopped
  • chocolate eggs, to decorate

you will need:

  • 2 x 23cm (9in) round cake tins, lightly oiled and bottom-lined with baking parchment

PREPARATION

  1. Heat the oven to 170 C, 150 C fan, 325 F, gas 3. Cream the butter and sugar together, until pale.006 (1024x683) - Copy
  2. Mix in the eggs, then fold in the flour, almonds, orange zest and juice.015 (1024x683) - Copy008 (1024x683) - Copy
  3. Spoon the mixture into the cake tins and bake for 45 minutes, until risen and firm. Remove from tins and cool on a wire rack.022 (1024x683) - Copy
  4. Meanwhile, make the fudge filling. Melt the chocolate and butter, and mix with the orange juice. Cool for 5 minutes, then whisk in the egg yolks and icing sugar in batches.031 (1024x683) - Copy020 (1024x683) - Copy
  5. For the topping, heat the cream and sugar in a pan until steaming. Pour over the chopped chocolate in a bowl, and stir to combine. Cool for 10 to 15 minutes.039 (1024x683) - Copy
  6. When the cakes are cool, cut both in half horizontally. Spread one cake layer with a third of the filling, top with another layer of cake and spread with a second third of the mixture. Add a third layer, spread with the rest of the filling, and top with the final layer.029 (1024x683) - Copy
  7. 034 (1024x683) - CopyWhen the topping is cool, apply it to the cake with a palette knife. Pile the chocolate eggs in the middle and serve. The cake will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge.

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Easter Chocolate Cake

The sponge was very simple to make. The only thing I did wrong was not level out my mixture as best as I could so when the sponge was baked they were very lopsided! I tried to rectify this when cutting the layers but it still turned out pretty wonky!

Thankfully the cake went down well at the club and was a pleasant surprise to Jelena as she wasn’t expecting the orange flavour. I liked it but as I made it on Saturday, by Monday I felt that the sponge had got a bit dry so in future I will try and keep it in a better airtight tin.

Debs made an Easter battenberg cake which despite my dislike of marzipan I still managed to scoff the whole slice. Jelena’s creamy caramel cake was melt in your mouth delicious. Beautifully presented too it was easy enough to keep coming back for more. I also loved Mel’s cake as it contained two of my favourite ingredients, banana and coconut. She also only baked it a few hours before the event so the sponge was still soft and moist.

Our next cake club theme is Eurovision which should be pretty fun! I better start thinking what to make, something cheesy I suppose!

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It’s Pure Romance for Clandestine Cake Club

02 Sunday Mar 2014

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

abbey tavern, cake club, chocolate and strawberry cake, chocolate finger cake, chocolate layered cake, clandestine cake club, easy chocolate cake recipe, I can't believe you made this cake, Lorraine Pascale, passion carrot cake, red velvet cake, swiss meringue buttercream, wedding cake

Chocolate finger Strawberry CakeI can't believe you made this cakeI can't believe you made this cake

Last Monday was the second Cladenstine Cake Club of the year and as February was the month of Valentine’s day, the theme of the night was Pure Romance. I was super excited as with pure romance being the theme, surely there must be  must be some chocolate cake and also it gave me a chance to try out a cake I had never made before. 

A few took my fancy, from a  passion cake recipe by Sarah Cook to a chocolate and coconut layer cake but as soon as I saw the ‘I can’t believe you made that cake’ by Lorraine Pascale, I knew I had to give it a go. A two layered chocolate buttercream cake with raspberries or strawberries on top and lots of chocolate cigarillios round the outside, it looked beautiful.

There was more appeal in making it in that the recipe didn’t look too difficult. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

  • vegetable oil or oil spray
  • 200g/7oz butter, softened
  • 200g/7oz caster sugar
  • 4 free-range eggs
  • 140g/5oz plain flour
  • 60g/2½oz cocoa powder
  • pinch salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 400g/14oz plain, milk, or white chocolate cigarillos (about 75–80 in total) This are usually bought online so if you can’t get them in time you can use chocolate fingers or matchsticks instead
For the buttercream
  • 250g/9oz butter, softened
  • 500g/1lb 2oz icing sugar
  • 100g/3½oz good dark chocolate (at least 70 per cent cocoa solids), melted and slightly cooled
For the decoration
  • strawberries or raspberries

002 (1024x683)Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 180/C/350F/Gas 4 and line a 20cm/8in round deep cake tin with baking paper and brush or spray with oil.
  2. Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until they begin to go pale. Add half of the eggs and half of the flour and mix well.

005 (1024x683) Continue reading →

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Scrumptious Savouries for the Clandestine Cake Club

30 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

cake and bake, cake clubs, cake group, chat about cake, clandestine cake club, devil's food cheesecake, juniors cheesecake, new york, polenta cakes, roasted vegetable cake, savoury cake recipes, scrumptious savouries

Polenta, Ricotta, Prosciutto & Tomato CakePolenta, Ricotta, Prosciutto & Tomato CakeOn Monday night I went to my first Clandestine Cake Club event and it was such a fun evening! I first came across the Clandestine cake club when I attended the cake and bake show back in September. I thought it was a fantastic idea and couldn’t wait to attend one. The Club was founded in the summer of 2010 by Lynn Hill who thought there needed to be more events out there which involve a chance to meet and talk with others and eat cake! The club has proved to be a great success and what started as one club has now led to over a hundred clubs being formed.

To take part in a cake club event you need to register on their website http://clandestinecakeclub.co.uk/ and then can look and see what club is in your area or if there isn’t one you can set one up! The idea is that each individual must bake a cake and bring it to the event so that everyone can meet, mingle and share a slice of each other’s delicious cakes. The events are held monthly and each event is held in a different venue and has a different theme.Scrumptious Savouries In light of over indulging over the festive period, the theme for January’s Cake club was Scrumptious Savories’. I had never made a savoury cake before and it took me a while to find a cake that I fancied making. When it comes to sweet cake I spend far too long deciding which one I want to make because I have too much choice but for savoury cakes I was a little stuck. I thought of a sweet potato pie but as it’s a cake club, rules are you can only make cakes, no muffins, no pies, just cakes.019

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About Me

Hi I’m Fiona, a twenty something foodie living in London who loves nothing more than cooking, eating, listening to stories and exploring. I created Tea and Takes as a way of bringing my two loves together: food and film.
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