To think this kind of baking, isn't really baking?

[user8558]

I'm a member of a baking group on FB. Where people take photos of what they've baked that day. That's all. It's nice.

But over half of these creations are based on some other kind of baked good/biscuit/chocolate/confectionery.

Mars bar and Malteser slice, Biscoff and Rolo cheesecake, chocolate orange and Toblerone brownies.

Maybe I'm just hangry.

But it's a bit annoying. Why is everyones baking using branded goods that already exist?!

I'm with you OP. Mashing biscuits and sweets together is not remotely 'homemade'. Just buy the baked goods you actually wanted.

there was a lovelly lemon drizzle yesterday!!

But did you grow the lemons yourself? Like plant a seed, grow the tree....wait on the lemons?

If you did, op says its not proper baking

Possibly they wanted to avoid speculoos in the UK because it sounds like speculum. Makes me think of smear tests, I'm afraid. As for the idea that baking is a middle class affectation, I'd like to have seen anyone tell my granny that!

Why does the factory produced element have to be the centrepiece though?

That's my issue. In the olden days if you only had Toblerone chocolate to hand and you required milk chocolate in your brownie you would just use that. You might even mention you had done that. It's what the pp said about the Toblerone stealing the glory, the homemade brownie is the exciting part.

But now, on this group at least, it's like the brownie is incidental, it's a mere vehicle for the branded confectionary. Like if you had all the ingredients to make brownies but no Toblerones or Mars bars then it would just be a brownie and no point in that.

I just don't understaaaaand.

Well I feel quite hungry now! Baking should be fun with a nice end product .Doesnt really matter how it came about surely? Nowadays People dont always have time for baking ,and packets /sweets etc are fun to make with children as well .Who doesnt love good old Chocolate Fridge Cake? All melted together press in cake tin ,hey Presto! Recipes for cold coconut ice ,no boiling sugar and checking "set" point (As me and my Nan used to do) just condensed milk , Icingsugar and coconut!

So what if the brownie is accidental or a vehicle?

No evidence that the brownie would be pointless without the toblerone?

They made a brownie. Wanted to top it with something. Thats its.

Its baking.

User 8558 Maybe they are hoping for some treats to come their way from the manufacturers!

I think people's creativity should generally be encouraged whatever their starting point.

At the moment it's helping keep everyone doing something.

There are surely more serious sites for the purists.

There are no problems with eggs here (South Coast) didnt even realise they were hard to get in some places .(Maybe those Chickens down your way need a good talking to eh!)

@dottiedodah coconut ice is one of the first things DS1 taught himself to make entirely independently. It's one of his favourite things, although he rarely makes it in the traditional pink and white

Merry house, I'll give puff a whirl! Haven't made it from scratch since home ec. cooking lessons as a pre-teens, but that was in another country and besides, the teacher must be long dead. She reeked of cigarettes and was close to retirement in the mid 1960s. I'll start a thread to report back. Did your DH use Hollywood's recipe or Nigella's or Delia's..?

Not really understanding the anger here. If people want to use brands and such, why does that matter?

DH calls it baking when he makes those premade peppa pig cupcake things with the kids

@Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g, speculum is the same word in Dutch and (with an é) in French, specialist medical terminology is often very similar across European languages. So it doesn't really make sense that Lotus would make the decision for that reason in English and not in other languages. I think it might be more to do with brand name wars. In the US, Trader Joe's make something called 'speculoos cookie butter' which, AFAIK, isn't sold in Europe (except possibly in small American expat shops), so maybe Lotus (which is the largest manufacturer of it in Europe) wasn't allowed to use the name in English. Or maybe Lotus didn't want negative connotations by association with the Trader Joe's product, which is rank and bears little resemblance to what you get in Europe.

Maybe the Dutch are more robust than us, Fink! Lotus is a lovely name, and Biscoff makes me think of Banoffee, which is a good association.

Why is the chocolate being made the centrepiece of a chocolate brownie? What about the shed loads of butter and sugar?? It's the same with a chocolate fudge cake. Always the sodding chocolate front and centre. That's not proper baking....

🤔

New zealand lolly cake is biscuits and sweets combined with condensed milk yet it is all sold in bakers out there. I dont have an issue with using toblerone in a brownie or speculoos in a cheese cake. I just dont likevrecpes that say take a cake mix

I do agree that cakes with an entire giant oreo or four finger kit kat shoved in the top are ridiculous (and never very nice) but they seem to have the wow factor that teenagers in particular enjoy.
That said, chocolate cakes with chocolate fingers around the sides or smarties on the top are exempt.
I can't explain it but you know I'm right :)

@Trevsadick Well said

A friend of DD4's is baking a cake for us tomorrow for a family celebration. It's going to consist of a box lemon cake mix with added ingredients on top of those she will add per instructions on the box. I can't wait.

Things mixed and baked in the oven: baking
Things mixed and cooled in a fridge: not baking

@Waspnest Not sure if it's the same as what the poster the other day made but this is an excellent Chocolate & Guiness cake (obviously it's not 'proper baking' though ) www.jamesmartinchef.co.uk/recipes/chocolate-and-guinness-cake/

@FortunesFaveI see your 'vanilla...vanElla' and raise you 'milk...melk'.

This is a western Great Lakes region thing as far as I can see.

The satisfaction comes from trying new things and getting better (and the eating) surely?

So if you can cook, it’s probably not the group for you. If you aren’t a confident cook or are cooking with children it’s fine to use short cuts.

And I don’t care what anyone else thinks, Oreo cheesecake is awesome.

There is no bad cake

And they may well be in stock in M&S but as I cant afford to shop there it's not really relevant

You can get 6 free range eggs in M&S for 90p so same or even cheaper than anywhere else.

Re ready made pastry, most chefs, TV cooks, food writers etc are of the 'just buy ready made, no-one needs to make their own flaky pastry' school of thought.

Ive just looked at the recipes for things like toblerone brownie and its making a brownie with an added bit of toblerone melted on top , same with speculois cheesecake, so OP i really dont get the issue , why is using a lotus base different to using a digestive base
I got my free ocado toblerone this morning so may have a go at those brownies