Chocolate Utopia Oxfordshire

Today’s Top Tip Tuesday is all about ordering 😊
⭐️Please order your cakes in plenty of time! I usually need at least 3-4 weeks notice for most orders, especially now as it’s Wedding season so I’m busy with wedding cakes throughout the summer. 🌟Occasionally I do have an odd quieter week here or there so no harm in enquiring for a last minute order, but I hate to disappoint so please do try get in touch as soon as you know the date of your celebration/party.
... ⭐️In order to be able to give you a quote I need to know;
1. The date of the celebration so I can check my diary for availability
2. How many people you need the cake to feed
3. Cake style, colours, theme. (Don’t worry if you’re not sure on this part yet- I can help you design your cake)
4. If you’d like any extras such as- bespoke chocolate artwork, macarons, flowers, fruit, gold leaf, etc.
See More

A huge 10” chocolate overload for Josh’s 16th. What a delicious way to celebrate! 🤤🙌🏻
Chocolate fudge sponge with milk chocolate ganache, white drip, milk chocolate sails and crammed full on top with all his favourite chocolates.

Sorry, afraid this isn’t a motivational post at all this week!! 😆
Anyone feeling like this today... 🙋🏻‍♀️😂

Cake for a French bulldog lover and Harry Potter fan.
I don’t often make 3D sugar-paste models (as chocolate is my preferred medium) but I did enjoy making this little bulldog cutie and all the little HP items.
I wanted to tilt his head slightly and raise his eyebrows, the way dogs look at you when you are talking... (when really they are just hoping you have food!) 🤣
... Lemon & Elderflower Sponge with lemon drizzle and Lemon & Elderflower buttercream
See More

A Midsummer Night’s Dream
I loved making this Shakespeare themed cake for Charlie’s special Birthday, featuring one of the famous poems from the play. Hand painted silver tree onto black ganache, dark and milk tempered chocolate shards with white chocolate writing.
... Inside; Chocolate fudge cake with Belgian chocolate ganache and homemade dark cherry jam
See More

TOP TIP TUESDAY
As it’s Mental Health Awareness week I wanted to post something to remind us all to take care of ourselves, take a break, (put your phone down!) talk to your friends and family, do something you enjoy, reading, cycling, canoeing, maybe even bake a cake.. 🎂
When I started my business I was suffering with severe PND following the birth of my son, it was one of the toughest times of my life but baking really helped me get through it and I’m proud to say I have ...come out the other side stronger and happier than ever ☺️🙌🏻 I could not have got better without the love and support of my family & friends 💖
❤️Talk, listen, share, feel, love ❤️
See More

WORK WEDNESDAY
🍫💖🍫💖🍫💖 For today’s work Wednesday, I’ve got a few Belgian chocolate bars which are made and ready to find tummies 😆
... I had to make some bars for a custom order this week so I made a few extra for you lovely lot- drop me a message if you’d like one 🍫💖 (Also see previous post about reduced salted caramel bars at only £1.60 each)
1 x full-size Salted caramel pretzel bar £4 2 x mini Salted Caramel pretzel bars £2 each 1 x full-size Dark mint madness bar £4 6 mini dark mint madness bars £2 each 5 x mini smarties bars £2 each
Remember you can always order any of my Belgian chocolate bar range if you miss out today. (I’m sure most of us have eaten our way through our Easter stash by now and need a top-up 😂) Click on ‘photos’, then ‘albums’ then find ‘Chocolate bars’ to browse through the full range 😊👍🏻
See More

REDUCED CHOCCIE BARS! * NOW SOLD *
I’m selling these mini bars at a bargain of £1.60 each (normally £2) as they have a few cracks (I accidentally rested another plate on top, whoops) Does not affect taste- they still taste delicious! These are Salted Caramel Pretzel Bars. I only have these 4 which are damaged. Message me to reserve yours ASAP 😊
... I also have one full size bar for £4 and 2 mini bars for £2 each (these are non damaged items)
See More

TOP TIP TUESDAY
FLAT CAKE TOPS
I hope you all had an enjoyable bank holiday weekend, and are easing yourself gently back into the working week.
... Today my tip is about achieving lovely, flat, golden tops on your cakes. This is similar to last week's tip; I've said it many times before but I'll say it again- bake your cakes SLOW & LOW! I bake mine at 140c fan, they take quite a while to cook but a cake should be treated with care, gently baked, S L O W L Y - why rush it?! I also wrap the edges with Wilton's fabric strips (can't think what their actual name is) these need to be soaked in water at least 20 mins before putting on the outside of your cake tin.
The other tip is once out of the oven, leave the cake to cool completely in the tin before removing, with a clean tea towel over the top; this helps lock in moisture.
Once out of the tin, reverse your cake so the bottom is now at the top- this should give you a perfect flat top. Now you can split, fill, ice and decorate as you wish ☺️
Got any top tips? Share your ideas below, share the love! (Doesn't have to be baking related 😁)
See More

“Guess How Much I Love You” Christening cake for Nico.
I really enjoyed creating this one, particularly capturing the adorable little characters in chocolate. I also had a chance to use my new letter stamps and edible art paints to paint directly onto the cake, for the soft meadow effect. Such a lovely theme for a Christening cake.
Cakes are 8” Chocolate Fudge with milk chocolate ganache and 6” Victoria sponge with jam & vanilla buttercream

Have a great Bank Holiday weekend everyone 😆🍫🍺🍸🍾🍿🍷🍩🍪

THEME THURSDAY
Today’s theme is Children’s Chocolate Parties. 🍫🍫🍫
You may not be aware that I run chocolate making parties for children aged between 4-12, they each get to make 2 colourful chocolate lollipops and decorate 2 edible art blocks (1 milk and 1 white chocolate). ... They also get to decorate their party bag with pens, crayons and stickers.
These are only £12 per child so no breaking the bank, and great fun for the children. You just need to provide the venue, the children- minimum number 8 children- and the date & time you want me. I provide everything you need for chocolate making fun. The workshop lasts around 1hr.
Contact me if you’d like any more information! 😊
See More

WORK WEDNESDAY
Sorry it’s a bit late posting, but here goes; today I didn’t want to post about my work, so instead, this is a post dedicated to all the the lovely parents, grandparents, teachers and children who baked, made, and decorated all these lovely cakes and cupcakes to sell and raise money for our fantastic village school today.
It’s things like this that make me really love and appreciate the fantastic community spirit we have here.
... Well done to all those involved! ☺️👍🏻
See More

TOP TIP TUESDAY
Today's top tip is about making perfect cupcakes 😁
Here's my recipe and technique for delicious vanilla cupcakes.
... Weigh eggs with shells on, then weigh all other ingredients to same weight, for example;
Eggs with shells on weigh, 200g Margarine 200g Caster sugar 200g Self raising flour 200g Vanilla extract 1 teaspoon Milk 1 tablespoon
Cream Marge & sugar in mixer on high speed until pale. Beat eggs in a jug using a fork, add the vanilla extract and milk to eggs. Add eggs & vanilla/milk to Marge & sugar mixture a little at a time, alternating with spoonfuls of sifted flour, whilst mixer is on low. Once all eggs are added and well mixed in, turn off mixer then add rest of flour and fold in gently until fully mixed.
Oven to 140C fan - this is my number 1 top tip- cook cupcakes SLOW & LOW! They will take a little longer to cook but they will have perfect flat tops and a light golden colour. They should take between 18-25 mins to cook (ovens vary massively so check from 18 mins) Another top tip- weigh your cake mix into the paper cases, this will mean they will require cooking for the same amount of time and should come out evenly, all the same perfect size. I weigh mine at 40g for a standard sized paper cupcake case. This is easiest to do using digital weighing scales; pop the paper case onto the scales, zero it then add spoonfuls of cake mix until it reaches 40g (35g for smaller cake cases) then continue until you've filled all the cake cases in this way. Don't worry about smoothing or flattening off the mixture- it will level itself off as it cooks. When they are perfectly baked you should be able to lightly touch the tops of the cupcakes and they will spring back. Remove from oven and leave to cool fully before icing.
I hope you've enjoyed my cupcake top tips today. I would love to see your baking efforts- post your bakes below- I won't judge I promise! 😁👍🏼
See More

Mondays 😴☕️👊🏻

🤣🤷🏻‍♀️🍰

THEME THURSDAY
Good morning all! Today’s theme is Wedding Cakes 👰🎩 💖
... I have quite a few wedding cakes booked in this year which is really exciting, and 2020 is starting to get busy too. If you are thinking of tying the knot here’s what you can expect from me;
🍰 A cake consultation and tasting where you’ll taste 6 cake flavours and we will discuss in detail your designs, ideas and theme. There is no obligation to book with me following a consultation. This would be followed by detailed full-colour drawings of your cake design. Delivery & set up of your cake to your wedding venue on the big day is also included in the price.
🌼I specialise in delicious buttercream and ganache cakes, there are three main icing styles to choose from; naked cakes, semi-naked cakes and full buttercream cakes.
🌸Some examples of extras you can choose to decorate your cake with are; chocolate artwork, buttercream/fresh flowers, hand painting, gold/silver leaf, meringues, macarons and chocolate shards.
🌺Cost; I price my cakes depending on the amount of guests, the size of the cake, type of icing style and the amount of work involved. I try to be fair and budget-friendly.
I’ve attached some pictures of my most recent wedding cake, as well as a favourite cake which I made for a photo shoot showcasing a beautiful cascade of chocolate artwork flowers.
See More

WORK WEDNESDAY
So as stated in previous post, Wednesdays will now involve me posting a couple of pictures showing some of my work in progress.
Today I’m working on making some logos in chocolate (60 logos) for some business cupcakes later this week...
... I hope you enjoy a little glimpse at what I do when making my chocolate artwork! ☺️
See More