Becky BakesWell Taste Test 2 coming soon...

Mother's Day Baking

In honour of my mum, this Sunday's baking session was focused on making her a delicious cake.

My mum is not a big fan of iced cakes and I was in the mood for making something honest, humble and homely - the sort of cake that you would find at a country fete. My mum loves custard and I have been mulling over ideas for a custardy take on a Victoria sponge, so today felt like the day for a bit of kitchen pottering. 

I had originally decided to use rhubarb jam to sandwich the cake halves together, but couldn't find any when I went to the supermarket. So - let's be honest here - the better option was to buy some lovely

pink forced rhubarb and stew it to create my own intense rhubarb compote.

Here's the finished cake in its custardy, sweet-sour glory. It is a tall, greedy looking cake and I'm pleased that it looks a little like a Lily Vanilli cake in style. This was unintentional, but certainly a happy occurrence!

If you're not familiar with Lily Vanilli's cakes, here's a link to her site.

http://www.lilyvanilli.com

Taste Test #1 Results

MOBILE USER? CLICK ME TO WATCH THE FILM.

The results are in from Taste Test #1 - Cheap eggs v Posh eggs! Click on the video above to see the test and my findings. The result is based on 4 rounds of blind taste tests and the decision was unanimous...



Have you watched it now? Was the result as you expected it to be? Feel free to use the comments box to ask me questions about the test or to let me know what you think.

Watch out for Test Taste #2 soon!

Taste Test #1 Cheap eggs v Posh Eggs

Eggs perform several vital roles in making a successful sponge cake, so I thought it would be perfect to start here with my first taste test. In this first test, I am focusing on how the chosen eggs affect the quality of the cake's rise, its taste, appearance and its crumb structure.  The prices of eggs have increased dramatically over the last three years and due to this, it can be tempting to cut corners and buy cheaper eggs of a lesser quality than to buy organic free range eggs.

However, I find that every time I am tempted to reach out for the economy battery hen eggs, my conscience stops me. To meet the requirements of my taste test I needed to use cheap eggs. So after some consideration, I decided to use the cheapest free range eggs I can find which are from Aldi and are priced at 99p for half a dozen. 

At the other end of the scale, Posh Birds eggs are the brand I have chosen as my premium range eggs. Retailing at £2.50 for half a dozen, these duck eggs are marketed as 'perfect for light and fluffy sponges.' The brand also touts its eco-credentials with birds that have access to better living conditions and are free to feed and roam in fields on demand.


So, will the posh eggs produce a superior quality sponge or have I been seduced by clever marketing?
Do you think there will be any noticeable differences in quality between the cakes? Feel free to make any predictions in the comments box below.


Pop back tomorrow to find out the results...

Becky BakesWell x

taste tests

I'm quite excited about the new series of posts coming up over the next few weeks - Taste Tests. It is easy for people to think that because a supermarket can produce a cake cheaply, then a baked-to-order cake should also be similar in price. However, using good quality ingredients will inevitably affect the overall cost of a cake made to order. I have decided to create what I think is the ultimate Victoria sponge cake and taste test the core ingredients over the next few weeks using economy range ingredients and premium range ingredients side-by-side to evaluate how the quality of ingredients affects the finished product. 

Watch out for the first post in the series this weekend...

Becky BakesWell x