Corbin Pam - The River Cottages cakes handbook

In memory of lovely Philippa

Bloomsbury Publishing
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This electronic edition published in 2018 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

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First published in Great Britain 2011

Text copyright 2011 by Pam Corbin

Photography 2011 by Gavin Kingcome

Pam Corbin has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this work.

All rights reserved
You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

For legal purposes the and photography credits constitute an extension of this copyright page.

No responsibility for loss caused to any individual or organization acting on or refraining from action as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by Bloomsbury or the author.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication data has been applied for.

ISBN: 978-1-4088-0859-7 (HB)
ISBN: 978-1-4088-9634-1 (eBook)

Project editor: Janet Illsley

Designer: Will Webb

Photographer: Gavin Kingcome

The publishers would also like to thank Sam Carlisle for his assistance.

While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this book, in no circumstances can the publisher or the author accept any legal responsibility or liability for any loss or damage (including damage to property and/or personal injury) arising from any error in or omission from the information contained in this book, or from the failure of the reader to properly and accurately follow any instructions contained in the book. The recipes supplied in the book are for personal use only. No recipe may be used for commercial purposes without the express permission of the author.

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Contents

You may already know of Pam Corbin through her wonderful River Cottage Preserves Handbook, or perhaps you have attended one of her preserving courses down here at Park Farm. Her expertise relating to jams, jellies, chutneys, cordials and liqueurs is unsurpassed, and her down-to-earth way of sharing that knowledge has made her one of the most popular members of our team. Thats why, when Pam agreed to channel her considerable talents into a book dedicated to cake, I was filled with pleasure and, indeed, greedy anticipation. You wont be surprised to hear that I stepped up to my professional responsibilities and made myself available for sampling as the book progressed. It was a tough job Now, having read the book, cooked a number of the recipes for my family at home, and eaten many others hot from Pams tins (or picked up from my special cake sample drop box at River Cottage HQ), I would venture to say that this may be the only cake-baking book youll ever really need.

What I love about Pam is that shes a champion of the art of the possible. Having proved that there is nothing mysterious or arcane about the art of preserving, and that fabulous preserves are within the reach of any cook, Pam has performed a similar magic on the subject of baking. While many of us enjoy whipping up a batch of muffins or a chocolate sponge and many more need very little encouragement to sample the results a lot of cooks are under the misapprehension that theyre not great cake-makers, or somehow lack the special touch needed to produce great results. If that strikes a chord with you, then this book should set you right. Not only is it an invitation to rediscover an enormous range of delectable cakes and biscuits, its also a confidence-inspiring demonstration that we can all create them if we want to.

There are literally thousands of different cakes, bakes, scones, biscuits and cookies that Pam might have chosen to showcase here, but I think theres something rather brilliant about the range she has selected. Shes combined a raft of wonderfully nostalgic regional recipes, such as Cornish fairings, Grasmere gingerbread and Dundee cake, with some intriguing and often rather sophisticated options, such as Italian certosino or her delicate little marzipan-filled Simnel cakelets. There are a few surprises I absolutely love Pams Veg patch gnome cakes and her homemade Jammy dodgers. But all the recipes are based on the principles we try to stick to at River Cottage: many focus on seasonal ingredients, several use up leftovers and, of course, Pam encourages us to make use of local produce, including herbs and fruit we might have growing in our own gardens.

You wont find elaborately decorated cakes here, or swathes of fondant icing and sugarpaste and thank goodness, I would say. Pam never goes down the route of novelty for noveltys sake, which is very liberating for the cook. Who wants to worry about piping and moulding when theres cake to be eaten? And it doesnt mean these cakes and bakes arent beautiful to look at. As Pam says, she simply believes in allowing a cakes natural charms to speak for themselves. The result is that while Pams cakes always look stunning to me, theres nothing here that doesnt taste at least as good as it looks

Its got to be said and I think this is very sad that cake has rather fallen out of favour in some quarters. It can be seen as an over-indulgent foodstuff without nutritional value. But, with the best homemade cakes, thats just not fair. While Im not suggesting we should all be cramming ourselves with macaroons and Battenberg every day, I think sweet baked treats have an important part to play in a well-balanced, life-enhancing diet. There are cakes for special occasions, of course the birthday cakes and Christmas tree biscuits, or Pams elegant pudding cakes such as the Seville orange polenta cake but plenty of others which fulfil a more everyday need. A slab of fruity Elevenses lumberjack cake, a slice of Banana bread or a chunk of Pams lovely Bird table bread cake are all fantastic ways to fill a hungry gap between breakfast and lunch, or to fuel yourself on a long walk. And Pam packs so many of her cakes with fruit, seeds and vegetables, as well as the obvious eggs, milk and flour, that she demonstrates time and again that cake can be a sustaining, wholesome option, not just empty calories.

Pam also has an eye on the clock. She understands that, while its lovely to spend an entire afternoon ensconced in the kitchen, turning out Swiss rolls, tray bakes and buns, its not always possible. Consequently, there are plenty of cakes here, including the divine Banana and chocolate cake as well as the classic Victoria sandwich, which you could have on the table, warm and irresistible, within the hour. And I also love the fact that many of these cakes are great keepers: invest a little time in mixing and baking them, and theyll sit happily in a cake tin for days, even weeks in a few cases, months improving all the while.