Song of a Baker

Continuing with a Saxon theme (vaguely), when it comes to burning food I could give Alfred the Great a few tips. One work lunchtime, I once decided that as a change from cheese buttys I'd toast a few crumpets. The elderly office toaster struggled with this and decided to cremate the crumpets instead. This is in turn set off the alarm and was the signal for the Fire Brigade to arrive with helmets and hatchets all set to tackle the raging inferno (que cheap jokes about hot crumpet etc).  I can only be thankful we don't have an office sprinkler system.
  
 Recently I thought I'd have a dabble at baking, and what better choice to start with than a few rock cakes. Baking in our house isn't as straight forward as one would seen. First of all, my wife Sue, is a coeliac, which means that any food stuffs which have a trace of wheat in them, from cereals to sauces, are a no-go. Fortunately, there is a range of excellent gluten-free recipes available, including one for rock cakes. My three year old daughter Jodie, also offered to 'help'. Jodie, although brimming with enthusiasm, still needs to learn a little finesse, and an extra large mixing bowl is required to prevent  the walls and surfaces being decorated with flying cake mix. After a while, she decided that watching 'Grandpa in my Pocket' was more interesting than helping Dad make cakes, so she skipped off and left me to finish . Twenty minutes later (and no King Alfred style burnt offerings) the smell of baking filled the kitchen and a tray of rock cakes lay cooling on the side.

 And there they are - a little rustic looking perhaps - but not bad with a cup of English Breakfast tea. Somehow I don't think I'll be entering the Great British Bake off just yet though!