Time for....some Danish Baked Goods!

Hello there!

Happy Sunday! Hope you're feeling tea-riffic today!

So....I walk passed Ole & Steen on Haymarket rather frequently, but I'm always on my way somewhere else and have never popped in despite the scrummy looking window displays! If you've not discovered Ole & Steen before, its a Danish bakery who has been handmaking their breads and cakes for 20 years, with eight sites across London.

They open from early to late and no matter what time of day, they always have something tempting in their windows. When walking passed at about 9:30pm one Saturday night we spotted the following in the windows...

So many pastries and cakes....I had to go in! 

I was surprised at how busy it was at night time, but discovered that they offer an all day menu as well as the sweet treats you can see above. You can enjoy a range of Focaccias, sandwiches and stews during the day and into the evening.

As it's bakery, Ole & Steen offer a take away service a well as the eat in option....so you know what happened next....yes treats were purchased!

I decided a cinnamon swirl would be perfect for my Sunday morning treat the next day and I'm so pleased that I finally bought something from Ole & Steen! 

This Danish pastry swirl is crafted with cinnamon, marzipan and a vanilla custard. Considering I ate mine the day after I bought it, I was very impressed. The delicious pastry was still crisp and fresh and the inside was velvety and scrumptious! You couldn't taste the marzipan, but it added a wonderful texture to the swirl. The swirl was flavoured with the perfect amount of cinnamon and it went really well with my morning coffee.

The inside of the swirl....

At £3 per swirl it is a treat, but the quality of the bake was brilliant (even the next day) and the size was generous….

I'll definitely be heading back to try more treats out as this swirl was delicious! 

Do you have a favourite bakery or a favourite baked treat? We'd love to hear about them!

Thanks for popping by today,

Rachel

Time for Tea.....Gail's Artisan Bakery, Farnham

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends.

Last week I noticed a new bakery has opened in Farnham, on Castle Street. Gail's has bakeries across London, the first of which first opened in 2005 and its exciting to see one open just around the corner from home! Gail's are passionate about artisan bread, and also serve cakes, pastries, teas and coffees. 

On this occasion I had popped into Farnham on my lunch break and so I decided not to eat in, but take some treats home with me. As I stood in the queue, waiting to be served I had time to decide what I wanted to take home from the counter heaving with goodies! I opted for a pecan and maple scone and two little madeleines.

Sweet treats from Gail's Artisan Bakery 

 The service was quick and friendly and my goodies were well packaged for the journey home. This little lot cost me just under £4.

The scone was rustic looking, with a good maple glaze on top. It was a good size too. The madeleines were well risen and had a lovely lemony aroma.

Scone and madeleines from Gail's Artisan Bakery

As I cut into the scone I was impressed with the amount of pecans inside - no scrimping here...

The scone was already flavoured with pecans and maple, and so I decided to dress it just with clotted cream and I left the jam off this time. 

I really enjoyed the sweet and nutty flavour of this scone - the glaze on top was wonderful. The scone also had a good texture and held the cream well. A lovely afternoon treat!

The madeleines were light and lemony - perfect!

All in all this was a lovely treat and I can't wait to go back to Gail's to sample more of their treats! If you'd like to know more about Gail's, pop by their website.

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel