Live webchat with Mary Berry - Tues 21 May 10-11am

annodomini

Mary, why do the cherries sink to the bottom when I bake a cherry cake and what can I do to prevent this disaster?

To make a cherry cake it's always best to add something to stabilise the flour. This is sometimes ground almonds, or rice flour. This supports the cherries and the mixture needs to be fairly stiff before adding the cherries. Cut the cherries in half and wash excess syrup away and dry them well before adding.

CariGransnet

On which note - we would all like to know how you can eat so much cake and stay so slim. We are rather fond of cake at GNHQ so any tips are desperately needed would be greatly appreciated

My mantra is Have a small slice, enjoy every moment of it and don't go back for a second. No tidying up in the cake tin when an odd piece falls off, no eating the half flapjack that the children leave.

Gally

Hello Mary!
Over 20 years ago 2 friends and I opened a coffee shop in our small village. It became very successful and ran for nearly 8 years until we ran out of puff and sold it as a going concern. Everything was home made (except for the rolls which we got from our village bakery). I relied totally on your recipe books for all my tray bakes and cakes - my piece de resistance was the Easy Chocolate Cake made with milk, oil and plain flour. It's the only sponge I make which will rise and is absolutely delicious!! So, I just want to say a Big Thank You for your, up to now, unacknowledged help in making a success of a small business which literally started with an investment of £300 from each of the partners. Thank you and long may you continue to enthuse the cake makers of the the world!

This is the sort of post that makes my day. I just love baking and it's very rewarding for me when I get a lovely post like yours. Tray bakes certainly are so easy to make for numbers and as for that chocolate cake, I make it so often and it's one of my top favourites. I'm so pleased that you had such success with your shop.

eGJ

Your new recipes all now have butter which has been softened. Can we use all your "old" recipes which say soft margarine and substitute softened butter? Your books nearly fill one shelf and my first book of yours is Marry Berry Cooking at Home which I think I bought in 1983!!

For the all in one method of making cakes either use a spread such as Stork for Cakes or softened butter. My reason for changing to softened butter was that so many people, by mistake, were picking up low fat spreads and getting very poor results, whereas Stork gives excellent results.

Mamie

Hello Mary
I have always enjoyed your recipes and I think I first watched you in the TV programme Houseparty, which is indeed a very long time ago now.
Although I enjoy watching and reading recipes from many cooks, I find that I return all the time to the same great writers; for me, probably Jane Grigson, Marcella Hazan and Madhur Jaffrey would be the top three.
So my question is about your favourite cookery writers. Who has had the most influence on you over the years? Or to put the question another way - which are the most bespattered books in your kitchen?

The most bespattered books in my kitchen are from Katie Stewart, who used to be Cookery Editor of the Times and had her feet firmly on the ground, and her recipes were excellent. I was inspired by Elizabeth David and Jane Grigson.

closetgran

Do you ever get sick of cake?

I don't get sick of cake but I am a little bit tired of over-iced cupcakes. Lemon drizzle is my favourite.

whenim64

Mary, I've been a fan for years and the GBBO is my idea of heaven. Can you recommend a good recipe for two 4/5 year olds who love flinging flour and eggshells around. I think they're getting bored with cookies, brownies, cupcakes and bread. I do allow them to switch the mixer on and off and add ingredients under (very) close supervision. Thanks

Why not try to make pizza? They'd love handling the dough. Use fast action yeast or even a scone dough and let them choose the toppings you know they will enjoy, and the bonus is they can have it for lunch.

shysal

Congratulations, Mary and the team, on winning a BAFTA award. For the first time in my life I actually felt compelled to vote. I thought you looked lovely on the night, your sense of style is perfect, do you agonise over what to wear to achieve the balance between modern and classic, or does it come naturally? I wish I could achieve the same effect, but have no flair!

Just like most people, I agonise on what I'm going to wear. I try and choose something that is colourful, not too tight, suitable for my age without being frumpy. I'm glad you liked it. The jacket I felt was almost part of the dress and you couldn't see my floppy upper arms!

ursulaminor

I also have a baking question. Which is better - oiling or greasing with butter? I've had a few sponges stick using both so not sure where I am going wrong

For greasing tins I always use butter because it is easier for the parchment paper lining to stick to it. Oil doesn't have the same adhesion.

getmehrt

Hi Mary and welcome to Gransnet,

I hate the taste of baking powder. I feel I can always detect it. It tastes metallic and distinctive to me.

When baking powder is called for, can you usually substitute self-raising flour, or do I just have to do without those recipes?

I always use self raising flour for cakes. When I'm using the all in one method I add a little extra baking powder because the mixture isn't beaten so much. The secret is not to add too much - if the recipe says a teaspoon, it's a level teaspoon.

muriel

Hello Mary,
I've been an admirer of yours for many years, the way you juggle your career and family is to be applauded.

My question is do you feel under pressure to constantly re-define yourself given the ever increasing number of 'celebrity' chefs or do you think people like tried and tested classics?

Personally I prefer the classics!

I don't feel I have to reinvent myself. You just get me as I am. I try to be as fair and encouraging on the Bake Off as I can and when I write recipe books I just try to give you more detail in each recipe so that you get success with your home cooking.

Hattiehelga

Bake Off is the best cookery programme ever and I love your style of no nonsense good home food and have had great success with your recipes. My fruitcakes (birthdays and Christmas) taste great but have you an idea why they are crumbly even though moist and don't slice cleanly. I look forward to more and more of your tips and recipes.

Most fruit cakes need time to mature. If you cut them within a few days they are crumbly. Make quite sure that you use either butter or a full fat spread such as Stork for Cakes because a low fat spread will make it crumbly. Good luck.

iMac

Hi Marry. I don't watch cook shows often, but when I do, I'm always amazed when chefs say 'add a pinch of salt' and then just free pour half the contents of the salt mill! And a glug of oil or whatever is always a third of the bottle...

What advice can you give those following recipes at home?

When following recipes at home from a cookery book for the first time, read the recipe a couple of times to check you've got the ingredients, then follow it exactly and the results should be the same as the picture. The second time, make your own amendments if you wish, for example adding more oil, butter, salt.

plinkplonk

Hello Mary - I am so excited about having the chance to 'talk' to you!!! Can I ask you a question about salmon? I recently bought a side (on offer in Tesco!) and wanted to bake it in foil in the oven - but then had a panic about it being raw in the middle so chopped it into fillets and cooked individually

Can you advise me on how long I should cook a side or even a whole salmon in foil in the oven and at what temperature (fan)? And is it really true you can cook salmon in the dishwasher?! Thank you so much - book looks brilliant - off to preorder!

To cook salmon in the oven in foil, wrap it in one layer of foil and put it in your roasting tin. Put it in a preheated oven at 160(fan). The cooking time will vary according to the size of salmon, usually about 30 minutes. Open the foil to check for doneness, lifting the salmon away from the bone along the backbone. When it is flat pink colour, not shiny, it is done. Leave it to cool in the foil, removing the skin while it's still warm.

CariGransnet

The first "grown up" cook book I ever owned (in 1978) was the Hamlyn All Colour Cookbook. I made your chilled lemon flan recipe for my O level practical (I got an A ) and I make it still for guests and it's always a hit. So thank you!

But yesterday while making one (in your honour!) I noticed for the first time that it's supposed to serve 4. I make it in an 8" dish rather than a 7" one so use 1 1/4 x the ingredients but it generally serves at least 12 (very rich). Please tell me it's a typo!

I'm glad you've enjoyed my lemon flan, it's one of our great favourites. I too have been making it for the last forty years. I think I was a bit generous saying 'serves 4'. It certainly could serve 6, it just depends on the size of your appetite.

LullyDully

My grandchildren have been turned on to baking by the Bake Off.

Why do you think suddenly it is trendy for men to bake cakes? Do you think there is a change coming even if it is slow? My mum always baked cakes and Dad made bread.

The Great British Bake Off certainly has got everyone baking and that includes men. As we're in recession many more men are at home and are with the children and they all watch the Bake Off and want to have a go themselves, so sometimes it's bread but the young always want to have a go at the cakes.

MaureenM

Hi Mary. I loved watching the GBBO. I wondered if you had ever tried baking with silicone bakeware? I was bought a set and have made a few cakes with it, but I'm not convinced they are the best they could be.

There are various brands of silicon bakeware. Some are very good and some are not so efficient. The cheaper ones are too flexible and haven't got such good non stick properties.

carow48

When I make a Victoria sponge, the cakes rise well, but on the top they have what I can only describe as "blisters", rather than a nice smooth surface - can you help please?

Make sure you're using the correct fat, either softened butter or Stork for baking, and take care not to overbeat. You only need mix until it's beautifully smooth, then straight into the tins.

flopsybunny

My sponges sometimes come out of the oven with too dark a crust but not cooked that much all the way through. Do you know where I'm going wrong?!

Thanks

Geraldine

All ovens vary. Try cooking at a lower temperature for longer and you should get a pale golden, evenly cooked Victoria sandwich.