Crumbs to Crunch

Tomorrow, it's Shrove Tuesday and who doesn't love a day dedicated to pancakes? While sugar and lemon on your pancakes is a classic, it's fun to mix it up once in a while! This year I have been inspired by my trip to Japan to make okonomiyaki, a savoury pancake made with cabbage and drizzled with special okonomiyaki sauce. Okonomiyaki is delicious and really easy to make. I used the recipe from the Japan Centre's website . It can be a little tricky to get your hands on all the ingredients. I used ordinary plain flour and it turned out well. For the okonomiyaki sauce, you can find it in Asian supermarkets or substitute it with Worcestershire sauce as it tastes similar. Okonomiyaki If  Okonomiyaki is not your thing, we did a series on pancakes from different countries so it's time to crack out those recipes again to have the best ever pancake day! For savoury ideas, check out Korean vegetable pancakes or galetttes which are thin pancakes made out o...

Canterbury is such a historic city so I was looking for a traditional place for afternoon tea. Tiny Tim's Tearoom was the perfect place. Housed in a gorgeous 17th century building, this tearoom is particularly inviting with its baked goods displayed in the shop windows. Inside, Glen Miller was playing softly in the background, giving the place a nostalgic, vintage feel. Many British favourites were on offer, such as, crumpets, scones and hearty sponge cakes. I had an excellent coffee and walnut cake which had a wonderfully potent coffee flavour unlike many shop-bought ones. Served with a dollop of cream, ice cream or custard, these cakes are the ultimate comfort food. Tea is also in abundance. I tried Keemun Orchid which was a black tea that had notes of plum, orchid, sesame and pine. There are also more traditional blends for those who prefer more conventional tea. I attended this tearoom alone after a pleasant morning visiting Canterbury Cathedral. However, was I t...

Cake consumption is a serious business so Teacup Kitchen in Manchester's Northern Quarter is not for the faint-hearted! Make sure you're hungry as their cake slices are towers of sponge and icing. Not only are these cakes enormous but also visually inviting such as the blinding rainbow cake and the red velvet in a deep shade of red.  I opted for a huge slab of lemon cake with white chocolate curls. It was a glorious combination of flavours, the sponge was very lemony and the icing was silky smooth. They also offered an interesting range of teas, I had the vanilla cacoa which was a blend of yunan and assam tea with cocoa nibs and vanilla. It had a sweet scent that smelt a lot like a cake you might eat! So if you're looking for a hearty slice of cake, Teacup Kitchen is for you.