Baking day

Question: What do you do with a spare day, with nothing to do and horrible weather outside?

Answer: Put your pinny on, put a bit of Carpenters on the Ipod and do some baking!

As I was making my Apple dessert cake with the damaged apples left over (which my husband refuses to eat if they have the slightest blemish on them) and pelting out the words to "Close to You" it occurred to me that i should have been born in another era, i love nothing more than doing some cooking or baking, escaping into my little bubble in my kitchen. I think i would have like to have been a housewife.
People at work say to me that they would be bored if they didn't work but i would be anything but. I would love to be able to have the time to keep my house in order and still have the time for the past times i love such as baking, sewing, knitting etc. At the moment i have to divide my time between them. But until I can I'll just have to dream and take the opportunities while i can!

So today i made Apple Dessert Cake ( i think it is a Mary Berry recipe, my sister gave it to me) Its great for using up my bruised apples!

 8oz self raising flour
1 level tsp baking powder
8oz caster sugar
2 eggs
half a tsp almond extract
5oz butter melted
12oz apples, peeled and cored
1oz flaked almonds

Preheat the oven to 160oC/ Gas mark 3
Lightly grease a deep 8in tin

Measure the all the ingredients except the apples and the flaked almonds in a bowl and mix together then beat for a minute.

Spread half the mixture in the tin, thickly slice the apples and arrange them on top of the mixture mostly in the middle.

Spread the rest of the mixture on top, then sprinkle on the flaked almonds.

Bake in preheated oven for 1 and a quarter hours until golden.

It is delicious served warm with ice cream or custard, or cold on its own, my sister also has it for her breakfast at times!

I also made some flapjacks, basically i melted butter, syrup and honey together and mixed it together with oats, seeds, chopped nuts, cherries and sultanas, then spread into a tin and baked in a oven 180oC for 30mins. Cut whilst hot. I guessed a bit with the amounts but basically i just lobbed it all in!

I did have a photo but  for some reason my bluetooth isn't cooperating so I'll try to post a photo later!