GTBBO Week 10: The Finale
The Great Taisty Bytes Bake Off
Welcome to #GTBBO - The Great Taisty Bytes Bake Off! 🍰
With the new season of Bake Off gracing our screens, I thought why not join in on the fun and attempt as many of the weekly challenges as I can? It’ll be a great way to push my baking skills in real time, try new recipes and give me the perfect excuse to create some chaos in the kitchen!
For more info and to see how Week 9: Pâtisserie went, check out this post:
Hello friends and welcome back to the final Great Taisty Bytes Bake Off!
Well, it’s certainly been an eventful couple of weeks. If you follow my Notes, you’ll know that our downstairs renovations put the kitchen out of action for a few days. Then, just as I was gearing up to tackle this last challenge, I went and snapped something in my wrist. Bloody typical, isn’t it?
Note to self: don’t try to lift something at a funny angle that’s almost 80kg. Seriously, Mark - what were you thinking?
Thankfully, our final signature bake of the season was much kinder to me than some of the previous weeks’ challenges. Two batches of filled scones: one sweet, one savory. It felt like a nice, cozy way to round off this challenge.
And while I might not have gone for any grand showstoppers this time, I can safely say that this challenge was the perfect chance to reflect on how far I’ve come. Later this week, I’ll be sharing a bumper post reviewing the past 10 weeks: diving into my favorite bakes, the lessons learned (both in and out of the kitchen), and maybe even a little sneak peek at what’s next here.
I also managed to rustle up my very first batch of rustic mince pies! ‘Rustic’ in the sense that I may have overfilled them… but what does it matter when they’re devoured in a single bite anyway, right?!
Right, let’s crack on with today’s post, shall we!
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Week 10: Final
Signature Challenge: Scones
First up - sweet scones!
Earlier this year I had a go at making my first ever scones. They were also… rustic, to say the least, but still totally delicious.
I’ll never forget the comment someone left on that post, calling them an ‘unforgivable crime.’ My first, and thankfully only, taste of troll behavior here on Substack. I laughed about it then and I still laugh about it now, thinking that if slightly wonky scones are my greatest baking crime, I think I’m doing okay!
We also had a lively discussion on the post about whether people are cream-jammers or jam-creamers:
So, needless to say, I thought that this week was a good excuse to practice the aesthetic side of my scone craftsmanship!
I decided to stick with tradition and go for fruit scones filled with strawberry jam and clotted cream - a classic combo, I’m sure you’ll agree.
I followed a recipe by Mr. Handshake himself, Paul Hollywood. Because if anyone knows their way around a scone, it’s Paul, right? He suggested that 00 pasta flour is the best to use for scones as it creates a much more delicate crumb.
A delicate crumb it definitely did have, but I also found that it made for a slightly denser scone, too. Now, this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing - they still tasted great, just with a little more heft to them.
I think I’ll stick to all-purpose flour for future scones, but it was good to give this one a go.
Next up - savory scones!
Okay, full disclosure: I’d never had a savory scone before. Not once. Which makes it even more amusing that I decided to go rogue and not follow a recipe for these.
I still had half a bag of 00 flour to use, so I adapted Paul’s recipe to make cheese scones. I left out the sugar and fruit and added 100g of finely grated strong mature cheese instead. It worked perfectly!
Full of flavor, well-risen, and slightly more moist than the fruit scones (I’m guessing that’s thanks to the cheese) - I’m happy to report that my first-ever taste of a savory scone was a happy experience!
For the filling, I went for a combination of cream cheese and fig chutney - a pairing that thankfully turned out to be absolutely spot on.
And so, my final bake - although not the most exciting - felt like a fitting way to bring things full circle. It was a couple of simple recipes, but it reflected just how far I’ve come this year.
The perfect end to the most fun 10 weeks.
Well, that’s all from me today, friends. Thanks for stopping by.
Later this week I’ll be back with a post reviewing this challenge; reviewing my favorite bakes, the things I’ve learned and a sneak at once to come.
As always, feel free to leave a comment or just say hi. I love hearing from you!
Until next time,
Mark
I wish I could taste test for you! I love scones! Sounds like you had a fabulous year!
Amazing bakes Mark. What I want to
know is what are you doing next now that your Bake Off challenge is done? Can’t wait to find out!! I would love to bake more but there would only be me who eats them!