The Bake-it list

Have you seen the film The Bucket List? Basically, the two main characters write a list of all the things they want to do before they die, and set of crossing everything off.

Now although baking and dying don't go hand in hand for me (thankfullly), I nonetheless thought that it might be a rather nice idea to commit to the page all the things that I keep saying I'd like to have a go at making, to encourage myself to branch out, rather than making hundreds of increasingly random cakes and cupcakes, which seems to be my default setting. I may well add to or update this list over time, but for a starter, here's my bake-it list for the rest of 2012, in no particular order...

1. Meringue. I have never actually made meringue, but my mum used to make me little meringue mice with sugar string tails when I was a nipper. I'd almost forgotten about them until I was in a cake shop last year and saw a tray full of meringue mice and had a chilhood flashback. So maybe meringue mice, and maybe just meringue in general. We'll see.

2. Viennese Whirls. I used to like the Mr Kipling variety of these when I was younger, and ever since I saw these on one of my favourite blogs, Time to Cook Online, I have been obsessed with the idea of making some. [27th July 2012]

3. Spinach roulade of some description. I like it when savoury goods look as delightful as sweet ones.

4. Vegetable terrine. It seems like an awful faff, but I love the simplicity of the terrine form, even if I don't like the idea of how complicated it is to make. Anyhoo, Mary Berry has a bit to say on these, so I shall trust in her expertise and give it a go!

5. Bread. Proper bread that I've kneaded myself, and not the cheaty Beer Bread that I tend to favour (basically, whack a bottle of beer and some flour into a tin in the oven), and not produced in the bread machine. I really love the idea of home-baked bread, but never make it for a series of reasons. Firstly, I've got a recurrent issue with tennis elbow, so kneading isn't my favourite hobby, and even sugarpaste kneading can be painful. Secondly, and probably most importantly, I am hideously impatient. The idea of waiting for the dough to proove fills me with the jitters. But I'll get over it, right? Also... foccacia.

6. Praline. Despite my preference for making sweet treats, I'm not such a big eater of them. However, there are two sweet treats that I would choose over savoury ones any day. The first is creme brulee. The second is praline. Food of the gods! Highly naughty, decadent, calorific, and entirely satisfying. My mouth is watering even now...

7. Rainbow cake - 7 layers, each a different colour (?and flavour?). What's not to like? [15th July 2012]

8. Savoury cheesecake. I have actually made this before, but I pulled the oven shelf out too enthusiastically, and it turned upside down on the bottom of the oven. Gutmans. Definitely worth another go though. Probably involving spinach, and maybe pine nuts.

9. A coffee and walnut cake that people will enjoy. No, I'd probably never choose it myself, either, but I like the idea. Hopefully decorated with chocolate covered coffee beans.

10. ???????????

I've decided not to add an arbitrary tenth target, but I am very much open to suggestions. So if you have any ideas for what other recipes you would like to see on my blog, then please feel free to comment below!