Food for thought

When I was younger I used to love helping my mum bake cakes. Every week she would make a Victoria Sponge or a batch of fairy cakes. She also made tasty apple crumbles and black forest cheesecakes and would use the left over Philadelphia on top of digestive biscuits for us as a treat. The best part was being allowed to try the mixture before it went into the oven, or better still, lick the bowl! Then of course, there was the fun part of mixing food colouring into icing sugar and adding it to the cakes with hundreds and thousands and jelly diamonds.

Even today, I still love to bake, although I don’t do it as much as I should. However, every now and again you will catch me making chocolate cornflake cakes or my Granny’s cheese straws. She has even given me her recipe for Christmas cake, mince pies and coconut ice which I am beginning to master the art of, although the latter still needs a bit of work!

My Granny always bakes. Whenever we visit she has a couple of homemade cakes ready for us. Walking into her house you are instantly hit by that sweet smell and seeing them displayed on the kitchen table always brings a smile to my face. I spent this weekend with her and my Mum and we indulged in her infamous delights, fresh pots of tea and home made marmalade on toast, along with traditional Sunday roast and glasses of pink champagne with more of my family on Mother’s day.

Nothing can take away the warm feeling I get when I am with my family, both near and far. Every time we are together we create another memory to hold on to and savour so when we look back and reminisce, it feels just as special as when it was created.

Without them, life just wouldn’t be the same.