Bake Me I'm Yours - Sweet Bitesize Bakes

I was very excited when fellow blogger and friend Sarah from Maison Cupcake published her gorgeous book entitled Bake Me I'm Yours - Sweet Bitesize Bakes .

I of course ordered a copy straight away and it was invaluable in the holidays as a source of lovely bakes to keep my daughters amused and give treats to friends dropping in for a cuppa.

Small bakes are fab, so dainty and delicate yet saitisfying.  It's great to be able to have a little treat sometimes without devouring a huge wedge of cake.  These morsels are perfect for when you want to appear civilised and/or are watching calories too.

Sarah's book showcases 25 bitesize cake decorating projects with accompanying baking recipes. All the instructions are clear and easy to follow.  You will also learn how to transform pastries and cakes with sugarcraft and fondant icing techniques as well as whipping up delicious fillings such as buttercream, chocolate ganache, marshmallow fluff, lemon curd and crème patissière.

The book makes alll the projects seem achieveable and easy with gorgeous photography and really clear instructions.  Whether you are an experienced cake decorator (like me) or a complete beginner there are recipes and techniques in the book that will prove very useful indeed. 

Some of the delicious recipes and treats featured in the book are: Banana Whoopie Pies, Fondant Fancies, Macarons, Gingerbread Cookies, Madeleines, Red Velvet Cakes, sweet and choux pastry along with many more.

We made the Vanilla Cookies recipe and used teapot, crown, heart and butterfly cutters to add a touch of girliness.  There were avalanches of sprinkles to decorate them with and the biscuits kept really well in an airtight tin for a few days.  We also tried out a few other recipes which I shall blog later.

Here's the recipe (reproduced with kind permission):

Vanilla Cookies

Cookies made from this dough are super easy to roll out and keep their shape in the oven.

This recipe makes 45–65 cookies, depending on their size and shape.

175g (6oz) unsalted (sweet) butter, very soft

200g (7oz) caster (superfine) sugar

2 large (US extra large) eggs, beaten

5ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract

5ml (1 tsp) baking powder

5ml (1 tsp) salt

500g (1lb 11/2oz) plain (all-purpose) flour plus extra for rolling out

Using an electric mixer with a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy then blend in the eggs and vanilla extract.

Stir the baking powder and salt into the flour and gradually mix into the batter to become dough.

Form the dough into two discs and chill for one hour wrapped in cling film (plastic wrap).

Towards the end of the chilling time, preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4.  Grease and line several baking sheets with baking parchment.

Sprinkle a little extra flour on your work surface and rolling pin, and roll out each disc of chilled dough to an even 5mm (3∕16in) thickness.

Cut into shapes as desired, placing them 3–4cm (1–11/2in) apart on the baking sheets.  Bake for 8–10 minutes until lightly golden. 

Allow to cool on the sheet slightly before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Deep Freeze…

If you don’t need as many cookies, you can freeze half of the dough for up to two months.

Easy Does It…

If you use too much extra flour when rolling out, the dough will be less pliable – just a light dusting is all that’s required.



The lovely photo from Sarah's book



Photos from our making and baking session, apologies for the poor quality photos taken on my phone.

I totally adore this book!  It is such a useful addition to my cookbook collection and my daughters love baking recipes from it.  All the recipes that we have tried so far have worked well.  The instructions are so clear and easy to follow which makes it an ideal book for kids as well as adults to cook from.  A fab birthday or Christmas gift for those who love to bake or will love to bake given the right recipe book. ;o)

Sarah blogs over at Maison Cupcake and you can also follow her on Twitter.

2 comments Biscuits, Gift Ideas, Review, Snacks, Sweets