This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
by Sarah Vaughan
You could say that my love of baking stemmed, in part, from my reluctance to deal with glitter. At home with two small children there were two main ways of being creative: craft, or cakes. I can do junk modelling, painting, play-doh, even sewing. But glitter and glue? The constant sprinkling of confetti-like shards of glass; the upending of a tube on the carpet to get my attention? The itch of it in a child’s hair, down a nappy, even nestling in my cleavage? The absolute refusal of PVC glue mixed with glitter to shift?
Far better to bake, I quickly realised. To do something that let my children play and mix and get messy while creating something delicious we could eat. From the sensuous experience of licking out the cake bowl to the smell of melted butter and sugar rising from the oven to the sense of pride when a golden sponge emerged, baking proved to be something we could all enjoy together. It was relatively cheap; could easily be varied; and provided quick gratification. And I felt I was doing something good and wholesome; I was nurturing my children as we baked.
Through baking with children I began to mull on whether there was an idea here for a novel. I’d always wanted to write one: I’d been a journalist for fifteen years but had never had the nerve to write more than a 2,000 word feature. My head was too crammed with news; and, besides, what did I have to say?
Motherhood – and the time at home to bake with my children – changed all that. Suddenly, I knew I wanted to write about nurture; about our need to be cherished; about the overwhelming nature of mother love; about how the past shapes us; about demons and secrets.
The Art of Baking Blind is about why we bake – but I hope readers feel that there’s more to it than delectable descriptions of food. Having said that, I loved writing those bits. Several bakes are important: a Battenburg; tarte au citron; rabbit pie; and gingerbread men. And – the bake that teases Karen, the baker who never tastes – a carrot cake.
Exclusive Carrot Cake Recipe from The Art of Baking Blind
A carrot cake sits on the opposite counter, its frosting sparkling. Fat sultanas wink at her from the orange crumb: she breathes in the sugar, the spice, the egg. It teases her this cake, like a cocksure teenager, leaning against a street corner. “Come on. You know you want me. Just a little nibble? A taste of my icing? Tell me, darling: where’s the harm in that?”
The carrot cake Karen makes at the start of The Art of Baking Blind is a mix of two recipes by Rachel Allen and Jamie Oliver, with the nuts removed – my children won’t eat them – and sultanas, not raisins, though either are fine. I love making carrot cake as I can pretend that, with its lack of butter, and use of carrots, it’s healthy. Jamie Oliver’s mascarpone topping slightly undermines that.
INGREDIENTS
140 ml vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing
2 eggs
200 g light brown sugar
300 g grated carrots, (grated weight)
100 g raisins or sultanas.
180 g self-raising flour
1 pinch salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp mixed spice
100 g mascarpone cheese
200 g full-fat cream cheese
85 g icing sugar, sifted
zest and juice of 2 limes
1. Preheat the oven to 150C/gas 2. Oil and line a 13 x 23cm loaf tin with greaseproof paper.
2. Beat the eggs in a large bowl and add the oil, brown sugar, grated carrot and raisins.
3. Sift in the rest of the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.
4. Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin, and bake in the oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for about five minutes before removing. Cool completely on a wire rack before serving.
6. Beat the cream cheese and mascarpone together in a bowl until well combined, then add the sifted icing sugar and zest and juice of two limes. Spread evenly over the cooled cake.
The Art of Baking Blind by Sarah Vaughan is out now.