Seasonal plums cooked in batter and topped with demerara sugar heated under the grill to give a crispy, crunchy lid. This dessert is simple, opulent and as romantic as the French name implies. Perfect make-ahead dessert for guests.

Spelt Plum Clafoutis – Dairy Free

Gavin Wren Baking, Dairy free baking, Recipes, Spelt & ancient grains

I can’t write at the moment due to a heavy duty psychological blockage that I need to clear, even though my life is utterly fantastic currently. Perhaps that’s the problem, that it’s harder to accept praise than it is to be negative. Anyway, I’m going to let the pictures do the talking for this dairy free spelt plum clafoutis, but I will say one thing – it’s fucking delicious.

Take care

Gavin
x…come and read more…

Soft and tender spelt blackberry and apple muffins, a recipe created from seasonal fruit picked directly from the plant, a dairy-free recipe using delicious spelt flour and the perfect natural pairing of blackberries and apples.

Spelt Blackberry and Apple Muffins

Gavin Wren Baking, Dairy free baking, Recipes, Spelt & ancient grains

This post is a recipe for soft and tender spelt blackberry and apple muffins, created from seasonal fruit picked directly from the plant, a dairy-free recipe using delicious spelt flour and the perfect natural pairing of blackberries and apples.

As September started, I had recently returned from a week of singing, yoga and relaxation at a camp near Glastonbury. My sleeping bag and tent were purposefully residing in the hallway, causing a very minor detour to the loo and at worst, an awkward trip hazard. Their placement wasn’t due to tardiness on my part, the sleeping bag had already been crammed back into it’s right-sized gap in the spare wardrobe, then removed again.

A peculiar feeling had risen up inside me, calling me back to the tent, despite an openly professed hatred of camping. At first, a presently underwhelming feeling suggested that I grab this bundle of synthetic…come and read more…

Spelt choux paste (otherwise known as Pâte à Choux) is an amazing pastry which puffs up when cooked, leaving hollow buns or pastries which can be stuffed, filled and topped however you desire! Whether it's eclairs, profiteroles or a croquembouche which you want to bake this weekend, you can extend your patisserie skills with this amazing spelt pastry.

Spelt Choux Paste (Pâte à Choux)

Gavin Wren Baking, Basic Ingredients, Recipes, Spelt & ancient grains

Suddenly, inspiration hit me. I want to make a croquembouche, a spelt croquembouche and it needs to be a massive one made up with loads and loads of little spelt choux (pronounced ‘shoe’) balls.

Croquembouche is one of the most spectacularly decadent culinary creations in existence. It’s a celebratory sweet used in French cuisine at special occasions, comprising choux pastry balls into the hundreds, stuffed with cream then piled high in a cone shape and bound together with large splurges of caramel. It’s the kind of recipe that should have The Samaritans’ phone number attached, especially if you’re making it to a deadline, or for the first time, because I could easily induce some kind of nervous breakdown.

As the saying goes, there’s no use trying to run before I can walk. The first step in this adventure is to make, and become comfortable with choux pastry. Also known as…come and read more…

Dairy Free Pastry Cream, otherwise known as Crème Pâtissière is a sticky sweet custard filling for eclairs, profiteroles, doughnuts, cakes and any other patisserie or bake you care to make! It's made with just eggs, dairy free milk, sugar and flour, which gives a lusciously silky sweet sauce to create a sweet treat or dessert for your friends and family.

Dairy Free Pastry Cream (Crème Pâtissière)

Gavin Wren Baking, Basic Ingredients, Dairy free baking, Recipes, Sauces

I’m tackling a patisserie basic today, luscious crème pâtissière, that thick, sweet, yellow cream found in the most amazing patisseries treats and tarts. This version here has undergone a lactose free tweak, making a dairy free pastry cream that everyone can enjoy.

“Krem pat”

Don’t worry, I’ve not adopted a peculiar language or speaking in tongues. It’s how I first heard crème pâtissière referred to during a croissant making workshop. The instructor was demonstrating other uses for the lovely, flaky, layered, enriched dough, working through pain au chocolat, before mentioning we could make pain au raisin.

He suddenly shouted across the kitchen to his assistant “Can I use some of your krem pat?”. She said “sure! It’s in the walk-in”. As I blankly wondered what the hell this krem pat was, he went on to explain crème pâtissière, or pastry cream as it’s also known.

I love…come and read more…

It's said that our sense of smell invokes profound feelings and emotions within us. Baking this spelt cinnamon bun cake put that to the test and confirmed that a tantalising aroma can put my brain into sensory overload. This recipe is loaded with cinnamon and cardamom infused with soy milk to make a sweet bake which is a traditional Scandinavian treat and for good reason, because it's utterly irresistable!

Spelt Cinnamon Bun Cake

Gavin Wren Baking, Recipes, Spelt & ancient grains

It’s said that our sense of smell invokes profound feelings and emotions within us. Baking this spelt cinnamon bun cake put that to the test and confirmed that a tantalising aroma can put my brain into sensory overload.

The Road Less Travelled.

When talking of food, it’s easy to lapse into trite, oft-repeated phrases, loaded with food-friendly adjectives. An author’s job is to track down the scent of unique expression, rather than propping up the bar with descriptions that we’ve all heard before. Originality provokes interest, I often ponder over how to construct the description of a recipe, without resorting to the usual suspects of ‘simple’, ‘rich’, ‘tasty’, ‘easy’, ‘quick’. Rich brevity is the key to success.

It takes a deeper analysis of the food, a bear-hug of emotional connection with it and an expansive relationship with the English language to venture beyond the obvious… come and read more…

Today I'm sharing what might be the very first recipe that I ever wrote down. An easy baking recipe for ginger biscuits which I have now modified to include spelt. These spelt ginger biscuits are so simple that a five year old could make them (and probably has, judging by the writing).

Spelt Ginger Biscuits

Gavin Wren Baking, Recipes, Spelt & ancient grains

Today I’m sharing what could be the very first recipe that I ever wrote down. It’s an easy baking recipe for ginger biscuits which I have now modified to include spelt. The resultant spelt ginger biscuits are so simple that a five year old could make them (and probably has, judging by the writing).

Emancipation.

My parents are clearing their home, having finally taken the decision to sell the house that my brother and I grew up in, after years of my parents living in it alone. Well, I say alone. It has mostly been just the two of them, aside from my occasional sojourns there, when I have been between flats, relationships, or both.

This residential emancipation is divulging a trove of souvenirs and relics, not only from my parent’s lives, but also from mine, my brother’s and those who went before us. Having lived there for… come and read more…