Crodoughs - Rinkoff Bakery

 

If you appreciate a delicious treat as much as we do here at The Amazing Blog, you will have most likely already have heard about the glorious taste sensation that is sweeping the nation, the Crodough. Perhaps you may also recognise it as the ‘Cronut’ or ‘Dosant’, but yes, we are talking about the legendary hybrid pastry treat, the combination of a croissant and a doughnut.

The Cronut is an invention of the Dominique Ansell Bakery, in New York, and became so popular with our fellow dessert enthusiasts that people began to queue for hours every morning to get their teeth into one, in fact, the delicious concept proved so popular they have even trademarked the name. Thankfully there is no need to fly all the way to New York for a sweet snack as you can now get your hands on your very own Crodough from the Rinkoff Bakery based in Whitechapel, London.

The Crodough is made by frying the croissant pastry, giving a distinct layered texture. Once cooled the Crodoughs are filled with one of three flavours and then decorated. The flavours on offer are: Custard, Raspberry and Toffee Apple Crumble. All of which are wonderful, we can promise you that as we tried them all out just to bring you the most honest review possible...There was no complaining involved in the sampling session. Crodoughs are just as popular here in London as they are in New York, so to get your own make sure to get to the Rinkoff Bakery early to avoid disappointment. You can find the Rinkoff Bakery at 222-226 Jubilee St, E1 3BS and find out more information on their website.

Brownie Box

 

Who can resist a nice, rich and 'chocolatey' brownie?  Well... we here at The Amazing Blog certainly can't. So when we came across the Brownie Box we knew we had hit the jackpot. This cosy family-run bakery is located right in the heart of Earl's Court off Brompton Road.  They offer brownies, cakes, muffins and cupcakes that are each baked fresh daily with a range of flavours that vary from day-to-day.  All of these delights are clearly prepared with care and detail ensuring that each tastes just as good as it looks.

The incredible Brownie Box team was ever so kind and delivered us our very own sample box. The assortment was beautiful and included just enough treats for all of us to try several varieties each. The wide array had incredible flavours such as the original brownie, the peanut butter chocolate blondie, the white chocolate chunk blondie, and the pistachio chocolate brownie as well as many others.  I think the best way to describe all these different cakes and desserts is by simply saying that we finished off every bit within 15 minutes of receiving them - no joke. They were quite literally irresistible. The textures were fabulous as each was moist and sweet without being too sugary or soggy. It was obvious that each treat was fresh. Plus, they all tasted like they were made by our own mothers, which makes sense as each recipe has been handed down by moms from generation to generation. While it's merely impossible to decide on a favourite treat, the group consensus is that the original brownie and the red velvet cupcake were two of the best. But honestly, there wasn't a single treat that was disappointing.

Being in Chelsea we are fortunate enough to be just down the road from the Brownie Box. If you are in the area, stopping by this gourmet baking boutique is a definite must. They are open Monday - Friday 8am to 7pm, Saturday 9am to 8pm and Sunday from 10am to 7am. There really is no excuse to pass this place up, their hours and location are far too convenient. And for those upcoming summer birthdays and celebrations, they offer luxurious fresh baked cakes as well. Get your own delicious indulgences from Brownie Box and check out their website for a complete list all treats, flavours, and cakes.

Güllüoĝlu Turkish Delights

As our readers know, we here at The Amazing Blog love sweets. When samples come through the office we never hesitant to jump on them. But believe it or not, sampling the same flavored treats can become repetitive and a bit of a bore.  So when we learned of Güllüoĝlu Turkish Delights and their exquisite range of flavours, we anxiously awaited the arrival of their samples. And within two days of receiving these delights, the box was completely empty.

With over 150 years of experience, Güllüoĝlu is an authentic turkish brand that maintains a tradition of making the 'finest' and most delicious Turkish Delights possible. Their speciality lies in the unique and untraditional flavours they design. We received some of their most highly rated including Orange Rolled Sultan Delight, Pistachio Rolled Sultan Delight, Walnut Milky Sultan Delight, Cocoa Sultan Delight, and Coconut Pistachio Sultan Delight. At first these combinations may seem a bit strange but don't judge this book by its cover - Güllüoĝlu knows what they are doing. Each blend is perfectly matched to be sweet but not over baring.  The Walnut Milky Sultan Delight (my personal favourite) was unlike any turkish delight that anyone of us in the office had ever seen. Topped with a whole walnut this gorgeous treat was irresistible from the first bite. And the texture reminded me of a gourmet marshmallow. Nibbling on any of these uncommon flavours is sure to be delightful but for those of you that fancy the more traditional route there are classics as well including Rose, Orange and Cherry that are equally delicious.

Güllüoĝlu understands that choosing a single flavour can be quite difficult so they offer a 'Pick n Mix' service on their website that allows you to customized a 1kg box with whichever delights you desire. Starting at £0.24 per sweet, we really recommend this service. It is the perfect option to bring to your next dinner party. And once you find your favourite flavours, there are also pre-packed boxes available, starting at £9.98 each.

Look what the Easter Bunny found!

With Easter fast approaching, I’m sure we are all looking for something to treat our friends and family to. We, here at The Amazing Blog, like to surprise our loved ones with little festive trinkets to help get them in the Easter spirit. Whether it’s a bag of decadent egg shaped chocolates or something to help make our home feel more festive, in this post there is sure to be something for you.

This little bunny is full of bath time fun. The Hoppy Easter Bunny from Lush is full of 7 baths worth of limited edition, Easter themed goodies. Inside the adorable bunny packaging you can find a bright pink Fluffy Egg and the re-usable Carrot bubble bar. Each Lush treat smells amazing and sure to make you, or anyone else, instantly think of Spring. You can purchase this Hoppy Easter Bunny from their website for £11.95.

These candy coloured Nordic House Glass Easter Eggs look good enough to eat. These pretty baubles can be hung from a spring inspired twiggy display or piled high in a glass bowl as a center piece on your dining room table. These eggs are available in several different colours such as white, silver, grey, ochre, green, turquoise, purple and pink, and they can come in either a frost or shiny silvery finish. These eggs are sure to give your home the perfect amount of Easter cheer in the most sophisticated way. You can purchase a set of 3 fro £5.95 off of their website.

Can you think of a better way to serve an Easter Salad? These festive Rabbit Ears Salad Servers are the perfect compliment to any big Easter dinner. Using these salad servers will put you in the Easter mood and are sure to amuse your family and friends as well. You purchase these salad servers from their website for £5.95.

Treat your loved ones, or yourself, to these gorgeous Half Dozen Chocolate Harlequin Eggs by Demarquettes Chocolate. Each pink box contains 6 brightly hand painted Harlequin inspired chocolate eggs, 3 are milk chocolate and 3 are dark chocolate. The use only the finest British ingredients to create a unique and mouth watering chocolate so that each eggs tastes absoltely delicious.  You can purchase these eggs from their website for £12.50.

Looking for the perfect after Easter dinner dessert? Look no further than Farhi’s impressive one kilogram gift box of mini speckled candy-coated praline Easter eggs. These beautifully packaged and presented mini eggs are perfect for sharing and make for the ideal after dinner dessert. There will be enough for everyone, trust us. Go all out and purchase your own box from their website for £19.99.

Finally, we have something that the adults can enjoy. After work on Thursday, March 28th, follow the white rabbit down to Bart's Speakeasy for the Easter event Bart's Mad Hatter's Tea Party. There, you can take advantage of the specialty cocktails, champagne and of course, cupcakes. Then, at 6pm join them for their Easter egg hunt with a twist, the prizes are sharing cocktails as well as Veuve Cliquot. So grab your top hats and tea pots and enter the Wonderland that is Bart's Mad Hatter's Tea Party. You can RSVP at 020 7581 3355 or email them at ariana@barts-london.com.

Award Winning Appleby Creamery Cheeses

 

At The Amazing Blog we are always on the edge of our seat when we receive a new package that contains food samples. We were delightfully surprised when Appleby Creamery sent us a couple of their award winning cheeses. We knew before we even tasted the different assortment of cheeses, that we were in for a treat.

We started out tasting the handmade Eden Sunset cheddar cheese that was jam packed with flavour. The Eden Sunset is a hard-pressed cheese that can be easily sliced into small pieces. The cheese has a buttery taste to it but not too overpowering. When lunch time rolled around, it was the perfect cheese that complimented my whole-grain crackers and left me wanting more. For the last week, we have all shared the cheese on our snack breaks and every time we cannot stop raving about how wonderful it is.

The real treat was the Eden Valley Smoked Brie. I have never really been a fan of Brie, but this was exceptional. After just a small nibble of it and I was hooked. It was perfectly ripened with the gooey texture all the way through - now that's  what I call 'real' Brie! This is the way Brie should be crafted, but rarely is.  I decided to let my friends taste and test the Smoked Brie at supper a couple of nights ago. I serve cheese pre-dessert (possibly just a Spanish/continental thing?!) and they were in absolute heaven when they paired this Brie with the figs and grapes on delicious Bath Oliver biscuits.  Sadly, it was all gone far too quickly...

Take your guests by surprise by serving any of the Appleby Creamery's Cheeses  You truly can't go wrong by purchasing Eden Sunset or Eden Valley Smoked Brie since they have both been awarded the Gold Award at the Cumbria Life - Taste Cumbria Awards in 2013. With the experienced team of 5 cheese makers with over 80 years of experience, they certainly won't let you or your dinner guests down. You can purchase Appleby Creamery's different cheeses on-line. All I can say is hurry up Waitrose and stock these cheeses as you are so missing a trick!