Baking Xmas gift guide

Uh oh.... there's only a few days to go until Christmas. I felt it festive to build a small bakers gift guide.... for whether you're trying to figure out what to buy for your baking enthusiast friend, or come up with ideas for your own wish list (which you can then post to your friends/dearest ones/people that buy you stuff). For those of you who don't bake or are new to baking...I even added pictures!!! :) 1. Anyone that's ever had to stand in their kitchen and cut out 20 separate letters by hand will understand the importance...

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Mini modelling tutorials

Being away from home shouldn't stop me baking right? urm... riiiight. Have you tried working with fondant in 40 degree heat? (that's if you can find it in the first place). So, with that in mind, I'm going to treat you guys to a couple of cute, quick AND easy fondant tutorials to keep you busy.... I've even thrown Santa in for good measure :) Being so near Christmas, it would have been rude not to post this brilliant Santa step-by-step tutorial from www.clayus.com. So they're using modelling clay? fondant will work just the same! Because...

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City Sights cake

  So for this cake I'm gonna try a new step-by-step format, so please feed back your thoughts on the layout peeps!!! The hard bit of this cake wasn't the cake itself, but the painting. You need an arty hand (or someone that has one).   YOU WILL NEED 1 Round cake Ready to roll fondant Black powdered food colouring Vodka!!! Red and Green gel colouring      Step 1: Roll out your white fondant ( I do this on a white plastic mat so that it doesn't stick to my bench). Once rolled, I smooth it out...

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The cute EDF guy

So... this wee guy was something I did a while ago for a birthday order. It was actually one of my easier cakes...but the result was great!!!   You need:  Round sponge cake x2  Butter cream  Filling of your choice  Ready roll fondant  Black fondant  Orange gel colouring  Cake board Bake your cakes with excess batter in the centre so that they have a rise in the middle. Most bakers will find they get a slight rise the in middle anyway when they bake. Slice the tops of both round...

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http://iwanttomakethatcake.tumblr.com/

It's been a little quiet on the thizizhowibake scene. Being away from home is making it tough to bake, but I have a new post coming soon! In the meantime, check out my new sister blog on tumblr; http://iwanttomakethatcake.tumblr.com The new blog is a lighter 'mood board' style blog (with small tips) aimed at peeps that are just looking for a bit of inspiration rather than a full step by step guide. This week's theme...HALLOWEEN of course!!!...

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Double Dino Cupcake Cake

Righty, so I'm throwing you in at the deep end here... but everyone's gotta start somewhere with fondant right? urm...right. I've chosen this cake as it's my best selling one. It took a while the first time I did it (getting colours right, fiddling with shapes etc), but once you done it once you can tinker with it so that it suits anyone.... SO HERE GOES.... YOU WILL NEED 1 Cake board 1 round cake 2 cupcakes Fondant Green, blue, red, yellow, black colouring Butter cream Your chosen filling Step 1: Make your cakes! You're...

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Easy double choc finger cake

I decide to publish this cake first because its a really nice easy one to get started with. The ingredients are simple, and I can whip one out pretty fast... YOU WILL NEED 1 Cake Board 1 Round cake Buttercream of your choice Jam (optional for filling) 2 x boxes of Chocolate Fingers 1 or 2 bags of M&Ms 1 meter of ribbon Step 1: Make yourself a basic chocolate cake, cut in half and fill with whatever takes your fancy (see my recipes section for sponges and buttercream) Note: It doesn't need to be a chocolate sponge, but...

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Basic Recipes

What cake blog would be complete without a basic recipe page? I'm not a fan of sites that drone on and on about the basic sponge recipe in every step by step guide. I know how to bake a sponge (and you'll end up getting the hang of it soon enough). My blogs, I plan to keep simple; they'll tell you to have your sponge ready before the decorating gets going....it's all about the decorating. So here are a few 'needs' to get you going. A nice basic vanilla sponge/cupcakes This recipe can be used for a standard cake or for basic vanilla cupcakes. You're gonna need... 150g caster sugar 150g butter/stork, softened 150g self-raising...

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Equipment

Before you get yourself all excited about baking, there's some things I think should treat yourself too. Some of them are essentials/things I wish I'd known about when I first started baking, some of them are just things that'll make your life a damn sight easier guys and gals... ESSENTIALS 1.  Mixing bowl. Pretty self explanatory I'd have thought. Though buy yourself a deep one if you can, because I make a total mess every time I whisk something! 2. Scales. Again, self explanatory 3. Sieve. Do you see a pattern here... 4....

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Intro

Lots of people have been asking me where I learned to make cakes... the answer is that I Googled and You Tubed my butt off! I'm self taught, but I found it really difficult to find sites that did step by step photo instructions for a full cake. So... in this wee blog I hope to do just that for you. simple, simple, simple (well...sometimes) Please Note: Reading through blogs before, there always seems to be some an angry know it all who has to point out how something isn't right. I don't claim my ways to be the only ways...they're just what worked for me...no haters please :) Sarah...

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