Bank Holiday Bells and Baking

There’s something that goes hand in hand with bells and baking really.  Many a #bellringing meeting takes place after some actually bellringing, but more importantly what is known as a Bellringers Tea. 

A bellringers tea consists of a mountain of sandwiches, savouries, the rare sighting of a salad, but the most important ingredient, and one that teas are often, silently judged on, is cake.  Lots and lots of cake.  Preferably homemade cake at that.

I’m not sure what came first for me, bellringing or baking?  Probably baking actually.  Watching my grandad bake and mum having a Sunday afternoon bake up.  I do remember a sibling competition on who could make the best choux buns.  I seem to remember winning that one!

Anyway, today I did a bit of both.

As usual for Friday mornings, I joined my sister’s group as we practiced some more Wells Surprise Minor and Cambridge Surprise Major, the methods of the month for my Thursday night sessions, that she wants some extra goes at. 

As part of the BakedIn baking club, I sent off for the Chocolate Orange Hot Cross Bun kit, and they really had to be made today for the Easter weekend.  They were quite straightforward to make, and I cheated by using the kneading hook on my Kenwood rather than busting a wrist trying to knead the dough.  C and I decided to go whole hog and add the chocolate chips AND the raisins that were part of the kit as an alternative.

Whilst the buns were on their second prove, I attended a virtual bellringing meeting with the survival and recovery steering group.  Lots of good things coming.  During the middle of that I had to check on the buns, so before I muted my mic and video, I declared that the answer to everything whilst I was away was “no”, just in case they had any funny ideas about giving a load of actions whilst I wasn’t there to defend myself.

Buns were now in the oven and meeting resumed.  Lots more good things discussed and planned.  Then I had to rescue the buns from the oven and glaze them, so made another hasty disappearing act. I was quite disappointed that the buns had spread rather than risen too much.  They looked ok.  They smelled ok.  And when we taste tested them, they tasted ok too.

Someone suggested toasting them and slathering butter all over them.  That sounds quite disgusting, but then I don’t like butter, or similar, anyway.