Photo Gallery! My Dishes!

Simple Birthday Cake!

 I wanted to make my mum a birthday cake for her birthday, I think this is a very easy recipe to follow  i really enjoyed making it and the end result is pictured below. Here is my Recipe and How I made it!

 

You Will Need:

8 oz  Self Raising Flour,

8oz Butter Cut into cubes

8oz Caster Sugar

4 medium eggs

1 teaspoon of Vanilla Extract

 

Method:

Cream together the Butter and Sugar  till light and fluffy, add in the vanilla extract Gradually add the flour and last but not least add the eggs. split into two  9 inch cake tins and  bake at 180C for approximately 15mins or until they look risen and if you  put a skewer into the middle it should come out clean. Turn out onto a baking tray and leave to cool

Then you Will Need:

Jam, Pre rolled icing and a ribbon if desired

cover one half of the cake in jam and sandwich the other on top you may also add some butter cream (icing sugar vanilla essence and butter) then sandwich the two cakes together.  Roll out enough icing  to cover the cake and transfer it onto the cake make sure theres no holes.

You may make some royal icing to pipe  a message onto the cake or some trims like i did. for that just add 2 egg whites with enough icing sugar to form a stiff  pipeable paste

Voila a nice easy birthday cake in less than an hour 😛

THE PITTENWEEM INN

http://pittenweeminn.co.uk

42 CharlesStreet

Pittenweem
Fife
KY10 2QJ

Tel: 01333 311326

 pittenweeminn@yahoo.co.uk

Lunch on Sunday29th Aril2013

Went to the Pittenweem inn for lunch. It is situated in the pretty coastal village Pittenweem not far from Anstruther or Crail even St Andrews is not far away I

must say I was very impressed with both the restaurant and the Staff it is owned by Brian who is a Great chef mad as a box of frogs  and Odette. Who have had the Restaurant for about 3 years.  It is very nicely decorated with nice comfortable surroundings and very pleasant indeed.

We were seated promptly given some menus and we had the special set lunch menu which was very reasonably priced.

1 course £6.95 2 courses £8.95 3 courses £10.95

I had the Fruit platter as a starter it tasted absolutely divine with a kiwi sorbet presentation was also very good.

My friend with whom i was dining with had the St Monans Smoked Mackerel and Horseradish Pate he really enjoyed it

For my main meal i opted for the Bacon Steak with Fresh Caramelised Pineapple and my friend ordered the Salmon and Dill Fishcakes
Fresh vegetables and lemon butter sauce.

I thought this was very well presented and he ensured me  that it tasted absolutely delicious. It certainly looked very well executed.

Then it was time for dessert  and i had the most beautiful meringue with fresh raspberries and  a lovely sorbet and my friend had  a strawberry Shortbread sundae.

One thing i will say about this place is the food is delicious and all the bread is freshly made on the premises and all of their ingredients are sourced locally as far as physically possible. I think this place is well worth a visit if you’re in the area but be warned it can be a very busy little place so maybe worth calling in advance to book so you are not disappointed.

When i am next in the area i will be back thank you for your Hospitality.

Their opening times are as follows
Thursday & Friday – Lunch 12 noon to 1.45pm – Evening Meals 6pm to 8.30pm

Saturday – Lunch 12 noon to 1.45pm – High Teas 4pm to 6pm

Evening Meals 6pm to 8.30pm
Sunday – Lunch 12 noon to 1.45pm – High Teas 4pm to 6pm

Booking Essential for High Tea

The Restaurant can be booked out with these times for private parties

Paper Themes Personalised Cupcake Wrappers

This Company makes Truly unique Bespoke Cupcake wrappers perfect for weddings christenings baby showers birthdays you name it and  they can personalize it!

i think this is a truly nice touch and a truly unique product. After seeing the quality and design of these products for myself i recommend them to you  i feel they are a must for that personal touch and offer the customer something truly unique. with Hundreds of colours and personalisation to suit you  truly a wonderful product.

Here are some of the designs that they currently have I also feel at £12.99 for a 24 pack that they prove very good value for money http://www.paperthemes.co.uk/wedding-cake-accessories/personalised-cupcake-wrappers/ see all their products here  well worth a look

Weird and wonderful wedding Cakes

After  discussing Cake with a friend she told me she wanted live fish  to be incorporated into her wedding cake. So i went on the hunt to find out what kind of products were already out there and how creative people  were with wedding cakes.

I found so many different creative styles and some of the ones i found to have live fish in them still looked very elegant if not a bit weird. quirky i think some people call it.  

So what are your views on fish incorporated as part of a wedding cake is it right or wrong and would you have it at your wedding?

Bella Italia Dunfermline Review and Amazing Service!

Bella Italia

Address: Unit 7a Fife Leisure Park, Whimbrel Place, Dunfermline KY11 8EX

 

Phone:01383 729133

 

also you can follow Bella Italia on twitter @big_bella

 

http://www.bellaitalia.co.uk/italian-restaurant/dunfermline

 

We Went to Bella Italia Dunfermline for dinner on Tuesday the 19th March 2013 around 7pm ish. The first thing i would like to mention is it was quite busy with a really relaxed and calm atmosphere and it had a nice ambience about it.
Our server for the evening was called Craig.

The walls were decorated with mirrors and nick nacks but in a tasteful way the seating was all dark wood and every table had a candle on them

For Starters we ordered a Garlic and Mozarella pizza bread and it came out quickly and efficiently and tasted very nice. For main course i Had Spaghetti alla Carbonara and my friend had an Americano burger, The Carbonara came out with way too much parsley o ntop but as i started to remove it our server Craig asked if i wanted the kitchen to remove it or make me a fresh one i said no it was alright and he asked if i would like parmesan and Black pepper
I had parmesan but no black pepper. I just ordered some diet coke to drink which was served with a slice of fresh lemon. My friend had a Gaelic Coffee,

The Carbonara was to die for the pasta was perfectly cooked and the sauce tasted amazing. I asked my Friend what he though of his dinner it was very well presented on a board with chips in a little white bowl very Rustic and pretty looking. After main courses we had Puddings to share we choose Cookie Dough, Honeycomb ice-cream , and 2 small mini desserts these were a Chocolate torte and a cheesecake with a strawberry on the top they were very well presented and were absolutely divine.

I then mentioned to Craig that i thought the girl who came for our drinks order was a bit stand offish and rude and he told me he was the Assistant manager and apologized. I also went and had a word with the chef as she wasnt very confident but i went to reassure her her name was Laura and she has talent to run the kitchen on her own at a young age.

All in all i was really pleased with the experience and the attention to detail from Craig was wonderful i would recommend here and for a Chain restaurant certainly worth a visit and one of the better ones i have been to. I look forward to dinning there in the future

FISHER’S IN THE CITY!!!

http://www.fishersbistros.co.uk/fishers-in-the-city.php 

58 Thistle Street

Edinburgh EH2 1EN

Tel: 0131 225 5109

I went to fisher’s in the city to work for a day in the kitchen. When I arrived I was shown by the Sous chef what I was required to do.  I really enjoyed working in the kitchen here and it was valuable experience on my food journey. Basically I did as I was told doing jobs like chopping and preparing vegetables, chopping herbs making a béchamel sauce cooking fish taking skin off monkfish .If it’s cooked with the skin on it shrivels up and doesn’t look or taste very nice! I don’t have a lot of experience in a professional kitchen and I am only learning but in time I think I could be a great chef.   I am very interested to go and learn in other kitchens for a day here and a day there. Everybody was perfectly pleasant and although I don’t personally eat fish it is a wonderful place.

This restaurant is situated in Thistle Street, tucked away just off George Street in Edinburgh.  From the outside it looks like a normal restaurant, open the door to receive a warm welcome in nice relaxed settings. Everything was dark wood, very well presented and the service was truly exquisite.

I would recommend a visit to this place its well worth a visit if you happen to find yourself in Edinburgh. They also have an extensive wine list and an a la carte menu to choose from.

Olive Bread with Sage and Oregano

I made this wonderful bread today at college here is the recipe I hope you enjoy making it and eating it it tasted wonderful so much flavour!

 

 

 

You Will need:

12g of Fresh yeast or 4g or Dried Yeast

310ml of milk

825g Strong Bread Flour

5g Sugar

80ml Olive oil

5g Salt

250ml Tepid Water

100g  De-Stoned Black Olives

1tbsp Chopped Fresh Oregano

1tbsp Chopped Fresh Sage

Temperature 200C, Gas mark 6 for 40-45 minutes

Method:

1. Warm the milk to 37C or body Temperature and remove from heat, add yeast and sugar until dissolved, whisk 300g of flour into the mixture and allow to prove for 30 minutes.

2.When mixture has doubled in size add oil, remaining flour,herbs and salt mix well and knead until it turns into a smooth elastic dough.

3. Place the dough in a greased mixing bowl and cover for 30 mins or until mixture has doubled in size. in the meantime chop Oregano, Sage and the olives.

4.Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, knock back, add remaining ingredients including the  olives. Cut the mixture into two and roll dough out into an oval shape, fold in half and place ontoa greased baking tray,allow to double in size.

5. Dust with sifted flour and bake for 40-45 minutes, allow to rest on a wire rack before serving.

Choux Buns with a Chocolate Sauce Recipe!

for the Choux Buns you will need :

250ml cold water

110g/4oz butter,

1 tsp sugar

150g/5oz plain flour

4 eggs

Method :

cold water in a medium-sized saucepan together with butter, cut into small pieces, then place the saucepan over a moderate heat stir with a wooden spoon. As soon as the butter has melted and the mixture comes up to the boil, turn off the heat tip the flour in – all in one go – with one hand, while you beat the mixture vigorously with the other.Beat until you have a smooth paste that has come away from the sides of the saucepan clean –
beat eggs well, then beat them into the mixture – a little at a time, mixing each addition in thoroughly before adding the next. pipe onto a lightly greased baking tray in a circle and cook in a pre heated oven gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C) – for 10 minutes. After that, increase the heat to gas mark 7,(220°C), and bake for a further 15-20 minutes until the buns are crisp, light and a rich golden colour.

for the filling mix fresh cream with a teaspoon of icing sugar and pipe a little into the buns by making a small hole from the bottom.

For the chocolate Sauce :

500ml milk
150g caster sugar
80g plain chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 large egg yolks, beaten
3 tablespoons cornflour (optional)
3 tablespoons water

saucepan over medium heat, melt the chocolate with the milk, sugar and vanilla. Stir to melt the chocolate completely, and allow to gently simmer leave to cool then add eggs stirring continuously to stop curdling Place back over medium heat. Allow to thicken over medium heat, for about 4 minutes, stirring frequently. 5.Only if the custard needs further thickening (it might not!), make a slurry with the cornflour and water, then slowly stir into the hot custard. Cook for a further 2 minutes over medium heat until thickened as desired.

Very Simple Salmon