Sophie Conran Boards Product Review

I was approached recently to see if I fancied working with the Sophie Conran website by doing a product review. I said yes (it was a no-brainer!) as I’ve been a fan for a long time of Sophie’s Portmeirion range of dishes, plates, mugs and glass ware. Indeed I know some of my readers have spotted the distinctive white beauty of them before on le blog.

Anyhow, Sophie Conran has recently branched out into a few different areas, and one of the newest ranges she has designed is her wood boards by T&G Woodware, made from natural beech wood, harvested and manufactured in Europe.

There is a great selection of different boards to suit every taste and need:

Small, medium and large paddle boards, there are also medium and large versions of these with a band motif.

Small, medium and large rectangular boards in two colour ways, greys and blues. The shades of grey/ neutral are called Chalk, Dove and Seal. The blues Forget-me-not, Bluebell and Violet.

Lovely round ones, the medium one says ‘Made with love’ and the large ‘Beautiful day’.

Then there is my favourite the Dot and Dash design, how pretty to display bread or biscuits on. Love the cricket bat shape.

I was sent a board, like the one Sophie is holding here, and I love the idea of having a wooden cake board. It makes for such a pretty presentation.

These boards are lovely, to use, serve on or just to make something look good. The Sophie Conran range is synonymous with style, so of course they make for very stylish presentation. A final note, is that if you are in the habit of taking food pictures they’d make for great blog pictures too. Full range available at

 http://www.sophieconran.com/

Next Up: John Whaite Bakes at Home 

Sally's Baking Addiction Cook Book - Review

Sally's Baking Addiction Irresistable Cookies, Cupcakes & Deserts for your Sweet Tooth Fix by Sally McKenney. Published in 2014 by Race Point Publishing.

I collect cookbooks, but it would be fair to say I’m obsessed by baking books, I can’t get enough. I don’t think a baking book is a waste if I never use it, I’m happy to read them too. This one however, most definitely falls into the category of ‘a book to bake from’ too.

Do note that as this book hails from the U.S. the measurements are in American cups, though often, helpfully, grams are given too for things like flour and sugar. Recipes are cleanly laid out and easy to follow. The pictures are fabulous, and all say eat-me-now!

Chapters are *Bread & Muffins * Breakfast * Brownies & Bars * Cakes, Pies & Crisps * Candy & Sweet Snacks * Cookies * Cupcakes * Healthier Choices*.

Some of the bakes on my to-do list are: Mint Chocolate Fudge Brownies, Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars, Oatmeal Scotchies, Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies, Apple Cinnamon Raisin Breakfast Cookies and Dark Chocolate Butterscotch Cupcakes.

I find Sally’s website http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/ really appealing, it is so easy to browse and find something yummy to look at and then bake. The book is just the same, a pleasure to flip through and each time I pick it up I see something else I’d like to bake. That coupled with the bakes turning out really well is the mark of a fabulous baking book. My daughter picked it up and oohed and ahhed about what she would like to make too.

It was really hard to actually choose a first make, as so many things looked tempting, but the day it arrived I HAD to make something, and I already had a baked something or other under the cake dome, so I plumped for granola!

Here are the things I’ve made so far.

Death by Chocolate Brownies

These were so good, moist and slightly gooey with the chocolate chips in them when warm and just as good cold. My hubby warmed one up in the microwave for desert one night, and it came out as if it had been freshly baked. I’ve worked my way through a number of brownie recipes down the years, and these are our new favourites.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blondies

I do like a blondie, and these were lovely especially with the macadamias providing a nice crunch.

Maple Pecan Granola

The name says it all. I made this for my hubby, but I should really warn you that if you make this one, it’s hard to stop nibbling it whilst it’s cooling down! Lovely with some apple compote and Greek yoghurt.

Chocolate Glazed Orange Macaroons
The coconut ones (as opposed to the French macaron). These were great. Not too sweet, but a nice orange flavour and a little chocolate drizzle on top to bring the orange and coconut together.

Next Up: Next up: Sophie Conran product review

Next Book Review: John Whaite Bakes at Home

Sally's Soft Gingersnap Molasses Cookies

Here is a little bonus before the proper Sally's Baking Addiction Cook Book review in a few days.

A recipe from her fabulous website.  I printed off this one (and three more while I was looking!). My friend Jodie of Jo Blogs, Jo Bakes ( http://joblogsjobakes.wordpress.com/ )  pointed me in the direction of these, a couple of days ago, and loving ginger as I do they had to be made!  Here is the link for Sally's recipe. 

http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2012/11/26/soft-gingersnap-molasses-cookies-4-ways/