Are you joining in with the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning?

The World’s Biggest Coffee Morning, hosted by Macmillan cancer support, takes place later this month.

If you would like to take part and raise money for a vital cause, there are a number of fun and exciting ways you can make your event a huge success.

Here are our top tips for the annual fundraising celebration on Friday, 29^th September.

• Spread the word

The more the merrier when it comes to events like this. Thanks to social media, inviting friends and family and raising awareness is easier than ever. You could set up a Facebook group (either an open or closed group depending how open you’d like the event to be). You could even come up with your own custom hashtag and ask your guests to post updates via Twitter and Instagram. Or, if you’d like to keep things simple, you could get your children or grandchildren involved and ask them to design an invitation which you could then scan and print copies of. Macmillan also has an invitation template you can download from their website.

• Think about a theme

While you don’t have to have a theme, if you’re looking to do something creative and quirky then it’s a perfect opportunity to put your thinking cap on and have a little fun. Themes could include, a certain colour (decorations, dress code and coloured cakes and bakes), an era (vintage tea party or swinging 60s), or fancy dress (something beginning with ‘m’ for Macmillan, for example).

• FUN-draising

How can you make fundraising fun? The idea is to raise as much money as possible for Macmillan, but instead of asking for a donation, you could make it much more entertaining. For example, you could include games, quizzes, or even a sports day if the weather is nice and the sun is shining. There could also be prizes for the best bake (taking inspiration from the Great British Bake Off and awarding a ‘star baker’) or best fancy dress outfit, depending on your theme.

• Make it easy for yourself

You can enjoy a stress-free coffee morning by making it easy for yourself. Our baking kits are expertly created for anyone – whether you’re a complete beginner or confident baker. All you have to do is put your order in on our website and your kit will be delivered to your door. Then you just need to pick up the items on the short shopping list (no more than four) and follow the simple, step-by-step recipe. There’s something for everyone, with favourites including Classic Chocolate Brownie, Coconut and White Chocolate Cookies and Strawberries and Cream Muffins – to name just a few of the flavours available.

We hope this has offered some inspiration for your coffee morning event later this month. We would love to see pictures and find out how much you’ve raised for Macmillan, please remember to tag us on our Facebook and Twitter – happy baking everyone!

It’s official – Britain has gone bonkers for baking!

Home baking has become more popular than ever before and research conducted by The Grocer has revealed why we as Brits have gone bonkers for biscuits and crazy for cakes over recent years.

Unsurprisingly, the Great British Bake Off has fuelled everyone’s new-found interest. When the final series featuring baking queen, Mary Berry, aired last year, 14.8million Brits tuned in and the number of households buying home baking products during the series jumped by more than 1.1 million (9.7%), the sharpest spike of recent years.

The number of Brits who say they bake at least once a week has also risen in the last year, with 19% in 2016 compared to 34% this year. Research demonstrated that home baking spikes in autumn and in the build-up to Halloween and Christmas.

But what do amateur and advanced bakers in the UK enjoy baking the most? The Grocer’s research, carried out by Harris Interactive, revealed the following:

• 75% – Cake
• 39% – Cupcakes
• 37% – Biscuits
• 33% – Pies
• 29% – Bread

Of course, it won’t come as any great surprise to know the top reason people bake a cake is to celebrate a birthday. But there are many other fabulous excuses to have your cake and eat it. For example, Christmas, Easter, anniversary, wedding, christening, passing exams, new job, new home. But then again, who needs a specific reason? Life is short…and here at If I Knew You Were Coming, we believe everyone should enjoy a slice of cake if there’s a y in the day of the week.

If you agree, then take a look at our different baking kits available on our website. If you would like to stay up-to-date with all our latest news, developments and product announcements, remember to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

4 easy and cheap ideas to keep the kids entertained in the summer holidays

Every parent knows the school holidays can be slightly challenging – but we’ve learnt that the trick is to keep the kids busy with a mixture of fun activities and relaxing downtime. This way, they won’t feel too worn out (and neither will mum and dad). There are a number of fantastic easy and cheap ways to keep the kids entertained during the summer holidays. Here are our four favourite baking-themed ideas…

• Host a baking competition with friends
Why not get together with your children’s friends’ parents and host a fun afternoon that you can all enjoy? A baking competition is a great idea to keep a group of kids happy and entertained (especially if the weather is rainy!)

• Pack up some delicious treats and garden games, and have a lovely picnic
If the weather is sunny, you could head over to your local park and enjoy an afternoon in the glorious sunshine. For a super easy and stress-free picnic, you could order a few of our baking kits to prepare some yummy treats in advance. Each recipe has a short shopping list of no more than four ingredients that are available from most supermarkets. Some of our favourite summer-themed baking delights include Lemon Drizzle Muffins, White Chocolate Blondie and White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies.

• Bake some muffins and cookies and deliver them to friends and family who live nearby
This would be a lovely surprise for friends and relatives – you could even create your very own homemade cards for them too, thanking them for being a good friend/grandparent/auntie/uncle.

• Bring a bit of sunshine to somebody’s day in the local community
You could bake some delicious treats for local care homes, homeless shelters, or for the staff at your local animal rescue shelter.

• Create a scrapbook or photo book with all the memories from summer 2017
(Including pictures of the yummy cakes and sweet treats you’ve baked!)

Remember, if you don’t want the baking fun to stop after the summer holidays are over, you can buy one of our brilliant baking subscription boxes. They also make excellent baking gifts!

There are plenty of delicious options to choose from, including:
• Brownie Selection – 3 months, £20
• Champion Cookies – 3 months, £17.99
• Marvellous Muffins – 3 months, £17.99
• Summer Selection – 3 months, £17.99
• The Favourites Selection – 6 months, £40
• The Ultimate Selection – 12 months, £77.99

If you would like to stay up-to-date with all our latest news over the summer holidays, please remember to follow us on our Facebook and Twitter.

Why We Love National Picnic Week

There’s a date in our diary that we look forward to every summer – National Picnic Week – which this year takes place from June 16-25.

But why do we love National Picnic Week? Well, there are two reasons. Firstly, we love any opportunity to spend quality time together as a family. It’s always lovely to leave our phones and laptops at home, pack up the car and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Luckily, as we’re based in Cumbria, there are a number of wonderful spots where we can take some time to relax, unwind and enjoy the great outdoors.

Secondly, we really enjoy helping to take the effort and stress away from those who are planning to bake delicious treats for a picnic, a party, or a gathering of friends and family. Our baking kits are a quick, easy and fun way to create some mouth-watering desserts. They are sent with all the ingredients pre-weighed and measured, with a baking instruction card included. It’s a very simple process to follow to ensure that the bake is perfect every time. All you need to provide are items that we can’t post, such as eggs, butter, milk, fresh fruit, and so on. Thanks to the ease of using the kits, they are absolutely perfect for picnics!

Our Summer Selection – 3 Months Baking Gift Kit (£17.99) has proven especially popular as the weather has warmed up, with scrumptious delights including coconut and white chocolate cookies, strawberries and cream muffins and lemon drizzle muffins. Alternatively, if you would like to give this as a gift, we can send a gift voucher for this fantastic baking subscription.

This summer, we’re looking forward to a day of forgetting about the usual everyday responsibilities, packing a hamper filled with yummy food and drink, and venturing out for a family picnic. As picnicking is one of the UK’s most enjoyable summer traditions, National Picnic Week was created to encourage people to take the opportunity to get together over a picnic and enjoy the warmer months of the year.

We love these fun picnic facts that have been put together to mark the event this year.

• The average person picnics at least three times a year, that’s 94 million picnics per year.
• According to research carried out in 2013, the average family spends £26 per picnic, totalling a cool £2,479,720,000.
• Originally a picnic was a fashionable social event to which each guest contributed some food.
• The French started the modern fashion for picnics when they opened their royal parks to the public after the revolution of 1789.
• The use of the phrase “no picnic” to describe something difficult dates back to 1884.
• The most popular picnic snack 50 years ago was the humble cheese sandwich. Now, it’s a bag of crisps.
• The most popular day for picnics in the US is the 4th July. In Italy, it’s Easter Monday. In France, it’s Bastille Day. In the UK, it’s (weather dependent) rapidly becoming National Picnic Week.
• Fortnum & Mason claims to have invented the Scotch egg in 1738.
• Picnic food is as popular as if it’s ever been. In 2012, an average of ten grams of meat pies and sausage rolls were consumed per person per week.

Are you planning a picnic for National Picnic Week? We’d love to see your photos if so! Share your shots of fun in the sun with us on our Facebook and Twitter – and remember, if you’re stuck for time when planning your picnic, our baking kits will certainly take the hassle and stress out of picnic preparations.

3 brilliantly boozy baking recipes for World Gin Day

Gin lovers rejoice as today (Saturday, June 10) is World Gin Day!

The event is now in its ninth year and is a global celebration of all things gin – whether you prefer yours neat, in a G&T or perfectly paired in a cocktail. The idea of World Gin Day is to get together with fellow gin lovers and enjoy celebrating the day with a tasty tipple or two.

We love a good G&T, here at If I Knew You Were Coming, but something we love even more is the combination of two of our favourite things – gin and cake, together!

That’s why we’ve put together our all-time favourite brilliantly boozy recipes to celebrate World Gin Day. Let the fun be-gin…

Gin and Tonic Loaf – recipe via Good Housekeeping.

Cooking info:

Preparation time – 25 mins (plus cooling, drying and setting)

Cooking time – 1 hour, 10 mins

Serves – 8/10 people

Loaf Ingredients:

• 200g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra to grease
• 200g caster sugar
• 4 medium eggs, beaten
• 200g self-raising flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• finely grated zest 1 lime
• 75ml gin

For the syrup and topping:

• 125g caster sugar, plus extra to sprinkle
• 125ml tonic water
• 31/2tbsp gin
• 2 limes, cut in half through their length and sliced into 3mm (1/8in) half moons
• 100g icing sugar, sifted

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Grease and line base and sides of a 900g (2lb) loaf tin with baking parchment. In a large bowl beat butter and sugar with a handheld electric whisk until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Gradually add eggs, beating well after each addition.
2. Fold in flour, baking powder and lime zest, followed by the gin. Spoon into prepared tin and bake for 55mins to 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
3. Meanwhile, make the sugar syrup: gently heat the caster sugar and tonic water in a small pan, stirring often, until the sugar dissolves. Turn up heat and boil for 1min. Spoon 2tbsp of the syrup into a small bowl and mix in 2tbsp of the gin (this mixture will be used to soak the loaf later). Set pan of remaining syrup aside.
4. As soon as the loaf comes out of the oven, poke holes into the top with a skewer and drizzle over the reserved syrup/gin mixture. Cool loaf in tin on a wire rack.
5. Meanwhile, make the candied lime slices. Reheat the remaining sugar syrup in its pan until boiling, then add the lime slices. Simmer for 10-12min until the slices are translucent.  Lift out slices with a slotted spoon on to baking parchment, then sprinkle both sides of the lime slices liberally with caster sugar. Leave to dry.
6. Make icing by mixing together icing sugar with remaining 1½tbsp gin. Remove cooled loaf from tin, transfer to a board and peel off parchment. Pour over icing and decorate with the dried candied lime slices. Leave the cake to set before serving.

The iced loaf will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days (three days if decorated with lime slices)

Lime and Coconut Angel Food Cake with Pineapple-Gin Glaze – recipe via Gourmet Traveller

 Cooking info:

Preparation time – 20 mins

Cooking time – 45 mins (plus cooling)

Serves – 10/12 people

Cake Ingredients:

• 12 egg whites, at room temperature
• 165g caster sugar
• 165g raw caster sugar
• Finely grated rind of 3 limes, plus extra to serve
• Scraped seeds of 1 vanilla bean or 1tsp vanilla bean paste
• 160g plain flour
• 100g desiccated coconut or moist coconut flakes

For the pineapple-gin glaze:

• 200g peeled pineapple, coarsely chopped
• 500g pure icing sugar
• 30ml lime juice, plus extra for thinning
• 30ml gin

 Method:

1. Preheat oven to 170C and lightly oil the base of a 23cm angel food cake tin (see note), ensuring no oil gets on the sides of the tin.
2. Whisk egg whites, 1tbsp warm water and a pinch of salt in an electric mixer until soft peaks form (2-3 minutes). Whisking continuously, gradually add half the sugars a tablespoon at a time, and whisk to firm peaks, then whisk in lime rind and vanilla to combine and transfer to a large bowl.
3. Sieve flour and remaining sugar together four times, then sieve over egg white mixture in three batches, folding with a large metal spoon to combine between additions. Fold in coconut, then spoon into prepared tin, smooth top and bake until light golden and springy when touched (40-45 minutes). Invert pan onto a wire rack, cool for an hour, then carefully run a knife around sides of pan to loosen cake and turn onto a cake rack to cool completely.
4. For pineapple-gin glaze, process pineapple in a blender until smooth and pass through a fine sieve to yield 80ml juice. Sieve icing sugar into a bowl, stir in pineapple juice, lime juice and gin and stir until thick and smooth, adding a little extra lime juice to thin to a drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cake and serve scattered with extra lime rind. Note Angel food cake tins are available from speciality cake supply shops and online.

Gin Soaked Black Forest Gateau – recipe via Craft Gin Club

Cooking info:

Preparation time – 45 mins

Cooking time – 40 mins (plus cooling)

Serves – 8/10 people

Cake ingredients:

• 300g of butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
• 300g of caster sugar
• 220g of self-raising flour
• 1tsp of baking powder
• 85g of cocoa powder
• 5 medium eggs

For the gin syrup:

• 100ml of gin
• 50g of sugar

For the mascarpone cream filling:

• 600g of double cream
• 250g of mascarpone
• 300g of luxardo maraschino cherries (including some of the syrup)

For the dark chocolate ganache: 

• 250g of good quality dark chocolate
• 235ml of double cream
• 2 tbsp of gin

For decoration:

• 500g of fresh cherries
• 150g of redcurrants
• Sprinkling of icing sugar

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a 26cm rectangular cake tin and line with baking parchment.
2. Put the butter, sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and eggs into a food processor and mix until smooth. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and spread evenly using a spatula.
3. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch. Remove the cakes from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack. Remove the parchment paper and leave the cakes to cool.
4. Whilst the cakes are cooling, make the gin syrup by adding the gin and sugar to a saucepan and set over a high heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and then bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute and then remove the syrup from the heat. Set aside and leave to cool.
5. When you are ready to construct the cake, make your cream filling by adding the double cream to an electric mixer and whisk until stiff. Add the mascarpone and maraschino cherries and whisk further until well combined.
6. When the cake has cooled, cut into three even layers using a long-bladed serrated knife. Place the cakes back on the wire rack and then brush each sponge with the gin syrup.
7. Transfer one of the sponges very carefully to a cake stand and spoon about half of the whipped cream on top. Spread the whipped cream out evenly before topping with another sponge. Top with the remaining whipped cream and spread out evenly. Top with the last layer and place in the fridge which you make your chocolate ganache.
8. To make your ganache, place the chocolate into a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to the boil and then pour over the chopped chocolate and then whisk until smooth. Add the gin and continue to whisk. Once combined, allow the ganache to cool slightly before spreading over the top of the cake.
9. To decorate, top with the fresh cherries and then keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

It’s best to eat this cake on the same day but if you are making it in advance, chill it in the fridge for up to 24 hours and allow to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with icing sugar before serving.

So, there you have it, our three ultimate boozy baking recipes – perfect for World Gin Day! If you make any of these recipes to celebrate the day, share them with us on our Facebook and Twitter – we’d love to see your creations, you could also try and be creative and with one of our baking kits.