Food News: Amelie's House

Amelie's House

Recently I stumbled across this lady when trawling the web, and her work completely puts mine to shame!
Using her skills as a textile designer, she makes the most beautiful illustrated creative cakes.
As well as serious cake eye candy, her beautifully presented blog is full of little scraps of textile design (if you pardon the pun, aha.) and seasonal baking for every holiday and festivity. I particularly like A Christmas Hooty Tale...
So if you're into super cute and aesthetic conscious baking, check her out.

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Cupcakes of the Week...

I've been a busy girl- and I'll be a master baker in no time!
Check out http://www.blogger.com/www.chez-nu.blogspot.com for the whole of yesterday's baking collection. All of the sugar paste decorations are made by me. I love the bear! Not really my style, but I really enjoyed modelling with the fondant...
Go take a look- I hope you like them!
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Eye Candy!

'Somewhere in a secret kitchen, new forms of confectionary are being brought to life. Armed with a dizzying array of edible glitters, powder pigments and a host of magical ingredients, the Curious Confectioner’s creations disregard the traditional confectionary forms in a bid to entertain new possibilities of both form and function. Employing a hand and eye for artistry, a healthy dose of humour and a desire to innovate and subvert, this Confectionery wizard is on a mission to take the artistry of sweet delights where it has never been before and to share his adventures with the world'.

When I first set up LouLovesFood, I introduced you to Cupcake Junkie, the photostream of pretty and inspired cupcake porn. After attending the Experimental Food Society, I am now a regular lurker of my new favourite food crush- The Curious Confectioner.

These cakes don't just look good enough to eat. His chocolate bird-topped creations are filled with pomegranate, violet and rose fondant filling.

Other cakes include Burger and Fries muffins and a dead rodent cake. Obviously.
(Actually, I wish I had the thought of that. It's not something you would really expect to have an obvious target audience but I'm sure it would send my sister into a paroxism of joyful squeels...)

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Let Them Eat Cake!

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'National Cupcake Week' may have drawn unwillingly to a sticky end- but fortunately it's always cupcake week in the house of LouLovesFood!
I spent the morning practising my butter-cream frosting (I think I can be bold enough to say I have that down...) and made a mismatched batch of cupcakes to experiment with all the new edible glitters and sparkly girly things I had ordered in that fell on my doorstep this morning (to my great excitement).
Expect plenty more cakes and bakes in the next few weeks..!

Chocolate-cherry brandy with chocolate cream. The best. The best thing ever.

The appropriately titled 'Little Louise' - Vanilla with a layer of strawberry jam!

Raspberry ripple with vanilla butter-cream frosting

Coconut cream muffin with sparkling coconut frosting
I love the topping on this- the mixture of desiccated coconut with shimmering white and baby pink...

... And last but not least, a simple vanilla cupcake!
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My food crush: Outsider Tart

I know I'm always falling in love with food and food shops, I have truly fallen head over heels in love with my current big food crush, the Outsider Tart... Oh my.



Designed by David Lesniak, one half of 'the two David's' who own the little boutique bakery, it is a design nerds dream. Candy striped counter tops, £3,000 cake stands and wooden shelves. I particularly love the oversized jars filled with nuts.

The cakes, I can assure you, are irresisitable, and all American; a chocolate cherry cheesecake brownie that was both verbally, and literally, quite a mouthful. The two layered brownie with a cookie topping was novel and whatever the crumbly, nutty slice I ate was, it was, to use a tired old cliche- to die for. I hold no apologies!

As well as cakes, they also sell a range of savoury snacks and sandwiches- pulled pork rolls and pastries stuffed with sweet potato. There are also shelves of American deli produce, including Aunt Jemima syrup and Fluff marshmallow and cereals.

It's the kind of place that makes you want to quit your job, sell your house, relocate and make new friends, just so you can have the pleasure of a leisurely walk down for a Saturday morning coffee.
If my ineloquent gushing's (and frankly shoddy photography) haven't swayed you yet, check out their gorgeous website, where you can see a huge array of cupcakes and brownies, or 'keep up with the tarts' via their blog.
http://www.outsidertart.com/

Outsider Tart
83 Chiswick High Road, London, W4 2EF
020 7 096 0619

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Cox, Cookies and Cake

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Cupcakes are grimly clinging to the top of the food trend league. Despite whoopie pies briefly threatening to topple them, they have resolutely held tight to the title and are still popping up all over the shop.

The name on everyone's sticky, crumb-specked lips right now is that of Cox, Cookies and Cake- the latest addition to London's ample cupcake scene.

When I think of cake shops, I instinctively envisage silver cupcake trees and tiny fondant roses with lavender icing, served on gold trimmed plates.
Expect no such thing from Cox, Cookies and Cake.


In a sudden move away from fashion and into food, 'Cox..' is the venture of shoe designer Patrick Cox and baker Eric Lanlard. Nestled between sex shops and strip clubs, Cox is situated right in the heart of Soho's gay district- and it doesn't look at all out of place.
At first glance, it could easily be mistaken for a Prowler; all black sequined walls and neon lights.
The cakes in the window are black, sparkly and bedecked with oozing red-eyed skulls, winking shamelessly from glowing toxic green constructions. Music thumps from inside, which resembles a cocktail bar more than a cake shop. (One of those cocktail bars that are a bit too dark, a bit too loud and a bit too sleazy... But a lot more fun.)

The cupcakes themselves are monstrous- tit cakes, beef cakes and cupcakes decorated with Dali-esque lips. Flavours include vanilla with blueberry compote and double chocolate stuffed with raspberry compote.
There is no ambiguity over the creative intention of Cox- the whole enterprise oozes sex and glamour. It is a perfect homage to the vibrant and unique neighbourhood. (this seems like the moment for a simile to drive home how well it fits in, but in this instance, I couldn't think of a single analogy that wasn't R rated...)

I have a suspicion that these cakes may be more style than substance- But it's worth trotting along just for an oggle. The staff are generally friendly, and usually happy to pose for a photo!

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Focus on: Notting Hill

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(...Or How to Spend the Perfect Day)

If you're looking for the perfect foodie day out, you would be hard pressed to do better than Notting Hill.
Crammed with cafes and chocolatiers, Notting Hill and its neighbouring Portobello are also home to numerous specialist cuisine stores with delis and restaurants as famous as many of its residents. Follow my footsteps in a food tour that will tick the boxes for all curious food fanatics...
Start the day on Westbourne Grove with a visit to Kitchen Ideas. Crammed to the rafters with cake moulds, casserole dishes and chef knives, the place resembles a pound store more than a specialist equipment shop. Surprisingly good value, it is a worthy supplier for both amateur and professional cooks- and is even recommended by the cookbook of nearby deli Ottolenghi's.

Cross the road and you will find yourself at Artisan Du Chocolat, flanked by tables resembling slabs of chocolate. This is an elegant chocolate boutique selling silver coated chocolate moulded stilettos (too beautiful to contemplate eating!) and their famous liquid salted caramels. With chic Chanel-esque branding, these little round chocolates come in a range of experimental flavours, from sage and thyme (No.15) to Madagascan pink peppercorns (No.4).
(A full review and more flavours will follow in a chocolate blog... Coming soon!)

Stop here to peruse their amazing cafe menu, offering a number of stunning sounding chocolate based cocktails, or buy a Red Fruits and Violets O and No.7 Liquid salted caramel. You will find out what it's infused with when you try it...

Visit the first of Notting Hill's many Delis- Travola. Small and beautifully presented, its highlights include huge flat breads, tubs of soup and homemade gellati. The rustic decor includes a wall of sweet decorative plates reminiscent of a french farmhouse.

Trot onwards to DaylesfordOrganic for the fresh fruit and veg, or to pick up a recipe card (Beetroot soup, if you're quick.) Recap on this season's freshest produce- not only displayed in wooden crates, but listed on the walls.

For a change from the rustic-chic vibe projected in most modern delis, head to Tom's, a sweet and nostalgic Enid Blyton-esque shop decked out with St George's Flags.
Bright, busy and British, it stocks old style sweets, lollies and cakes, including the oh-so-fashionable and ever so English Pistachio and Rose Cake.

Before breaking for lunch, finish off the morning in The Grocer on Elgin, for a wide range of ready meals- Notting Hill style.
As well as beautiful bread and sandwiches, The Grocer caters for high end pre-made dinners such as Teryaki Chicken and seafood risotto.

For lunch, remortgage your house, don your Sunday Best and - remember...to...breath.
Ottolenghi's is situated on Ledbury Road, and with the window piled high with enormous, beautifully coloured meringues and tarts, its hard to miss.
Inside, huge wooden bowls are laden with a vast range of salads. Mains include seared tuna, rare steaks and marinaded salmon fillets- all from recipes featured in the Ottolenghi cookbooks.
This small deli is unsurprisingly rammed at lunchtime, so LouLovesFood recommends taking Ottolenghi's offering out onto the streets and finding a bench to enjoy your lunch in some of London's most elegant streets.


Now you are a member of the 'Church of Ottolenghi', celebrate by heading to 'Melt...'
Displayed 'how a chocolate shop should be' and with caramels to rival Artisan's, Melt... is lined with bowls of chocolates, their flavours written in chalk on blackboards mounted onto the walls. Watch the chocolatiers at work, hand piping their chocolates ar the back of the shop before buying a Melt... Ice cream, made in-situ with 50% fruit.

With your ice cream (and chocolate dipped wafer cone!) in hand, make your way to Portobello Market. Whilst exploring the endless antiques shops, you will naturally stumble across the Hummingbird Bakery- if the smell of baking doesn't draw you to it first.
The Hummingbird Bakery looks as good as it smells and sells all manner of loveliness- from red velvet muffins to thick wedges of carrot cake.
If you're really impressed, pick up a copy of The Humming Bird Cookbook. (Good enough to eat!)


Dip into Garcia's- a deli dealing exclusively in Spanish produce- smoked meats, olives and all manner of tinned Spanish supermarkets produce. On a clammy day Garcia's is a cool and fragrant respite from the heat. Wind your way through the market stalls and take in the kind of bread fresh fruit and veg you would expect to find at one London's quality markets.


Crossing the road by an incredibly stocked spice and herb shop on Blenheim Crescent, you will find yourself at the piece de resistance- Books for Cooks.

Need I say more? Let your geek out amongst hundreds of recipe books for all tastes, cuisines and palates.
Take your time- this is where your tour ends. (I for one couldn't take much more excitement, and I wouldn't want to be responsible for any cardiac arrests. Or am I the only one..?)

... You're welcome.

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