280 Bakes
  • Home
  • Cakes
  • Blog
  • Letterbox Cake
  • About
  • Contact

Sweetly Does It

5/1/2021

0 Comments

 

You know i love to partner with other small local businesses... Well, Here's what I've been cooking up over the festive break!

Picture
Sweetly Special Breakfasts is a small Bristol business, run by a lovely lady called Lilly. She delivers delicious breakfasts to people all over the city, focussing heavily on sweet treats to start special days off with a good feeding. That's where I come in! 

Lilly firmly believes (and I agree!) that special days like Mothering Sunday or birthdays should be memorable from start to finish. Hampers from Sweetly start the day off perfectly, and keep you going throughout the day, enough goodies for lunch, elevenses, afternoon tea, supper... The delivery includes fresh flowers, balloons, tea and coffee, a personal card and of course, cakes. And if you're vegan, your home baked cake comes from me at 280 Bakes! If you're ordering for a child, the package also includes a party bag.

The main product I am helping Lilly (see her sunny face below) with is the Perfect Gift Breakfast - see above to the left - and is now available!


Picture
Picture

Check out Sweetly on Facebook and find them also on Instagram. Marballoons, a balloon artist in Bristol, also work with Sweetly, so it's a real team effort!

Support local business and why not shop with Sweetly next time it's a special day in your household - it'll be like sending a hug to your favourite person!

Louise
280 Bakes
​
Picture
0 Comments

Thank Fudge It's Christmas!

16/11/2020

0 Comments

 

Fab Fudge are probably my favourite Bristol business of mine, and not just because they gave me their Christmas fudge to review!

Picture
Imaginative. Delicious. Dairy-free. 

Those are the three words I would use to describe what comes out of the kitchens of Fab Fudge. You can find out more about Fab Fudge on a blog I wrote back in 2017, but what you need to know is right here: Their (plastic-free!) fudge is UNBEATABLE.

The company's founder, Jill, started her business in 2016, two months or so behind me, and we met at a local networking event. Since then, we've been working together every so often to help each other out, and keeping each other in sweet treats! 

​Jill and her team have released their Christmas selection for 2020, and I was lucky enough to taste the first batches off the shelf. 


Picture

Gingerbread Fudge

At the time of writing, Gingerbread fudge wasn't available on Fab Fudge's online store, but it's coming - and you'll be glad it did! I am a late convert to ginger flavoured things, but I'm really into it now. My firey gingerbread is YUMMY! So when Jill said she had a ginger delight up her sleeve, I jumped on it! Smooth, melt-in-the-mouth, and (like all Fab Fudge) 100% vegan. The ginger kick is subtle, but the creamy taste really won me over. 
​

Christmas cake fudge

Christmas cake may be my favourite cake, and the fudge version didn't disappoint. I love the triple layer fudge design - new for 2020. Rich, fully-festive, and it looks just like a mini slice with actual marzipan and icing! Christmas Cake fudge is my new favourite (sorry apricot fudge!). 

If you're looking for the perfect gift, I can only say, GO FAB FUDGE!! Even Theo Paphitis is a fan - you simple have to try something new with Fab Fudge's dairy-free fudge. 

Thanks Jill, and I hope it's not too early to wish you and yours a very merry and profitable Christmas. 

Louise
280 Bakes
Picture
0 Comments

Cake is my happy place

5/10/2020

0 Comments

 
-- A personal blog today, and I'm attaching a trigger warning right here. --
​
Picture

Part of the joy of Baking has always been that it's often a bit of (free!) therapy for me, and this week i've definitely needed it. 


We've had a lot of great news lately in our family - three of us getting new jobs, El Husbandio's residence being confirmed, our house move progressing... But a tragic event knocked me a bit sideways last week: a very good friend of mine's partner passed away unexpectedly. 

Cake isn't the answer to everything, but baking for her, my customers, and my other friends and family managed to take my my mind off such horrible circumstances for a short while. 

There's something cathartic about mixing, baking and decorating a cake; ​I've always baked when I feel sad or low. It helps me stay productive, it's a great way to find a 'flow' state of mind (a recognised tactic in mental health - Very Well Mind explains it better than I can), and I can share the cake with friends and family. I remember saying to my housemate several years ago, when a boyfriend had broken up with me, that I was going to bake my way through the shock and pain. And since it's World Mental Health Day today, I thought it was time I posted about my therapeutic kitchen fun. 

Distraction tactics are very useful sometimes, and my lil' business certainly provides that, for which I am grateful. So if you need some cake, don't be shy, drop me a line, I need to keep busy! 

Contact me today!

Does anyone else bake to keep the dark away?

Louise
280 Bakes

P.S. No part of me is using a tragic event to capitalise on here, that would never be my intention. I'm simply sharing how important baking is to me and how it's helped my mental wellbeing. I'm a supporter of mental health awareness - I guess you may be sick of me talking about it if you know me!

​A, you've left broken hearts behind you in wonderfully caring and loving people. You'll be missed. 
0 Comments

Hot Ideas and hotDogs!

4/3/2019

0 Comments

 

We'll be at a local event this week, serving hotdogs and home baked cake!
​

We're working with Highways England and Sustrans to feed the community at this special event. Come and learn what's happening in the BS11 area of Bristol in terms of new cycle paths and sustainable transport options - and come hungry!

Hot ideas and hotdogs! - local event poster
280 Bakes - cake menu for event

Our Catie and Louise will be there, and bringing some of the delicious home baked cakes we're known for. Do say hi and tell us you saw the post on our blog!

More event details on this Facebook event page. 

See you there!

The Team @ 280 Bakes

View my profile on LinkedIn
0 Comments

Lemon Drizzle: The Nation's Favourite Cake?

28/9/2018

2 Comments

 

This week the news was that Lemon Drizzle is the nation's favourite cake. We're here today to test that!


It was announced that Protein World had carried out a survey revealing that 40% of British people said Lemon Drizzle was their favourite cake. Chocolate Brownie, Chocolate Fudge Cake and Carrot Cake were close contenders for the top spot apparently, but I had to investigate. 

What do my circle of friends and family prefer, and do they conform to the national preference? I sent a quick poll to a few people on WhatsApp, chosen purely because I thought they'd reply!

Here's my (unscientific) findings...

Chocolate cake x6              Cherry cake
Cinnamon cakes x2           Rosewater and Pistachio cake
Spiced Apple cake             Carrot cake x5
Fruit cake x2                        Lemon Drizzle x5
Red velvet x2                       French Fancies
Battenberg                          Coffee cake

Interesting! Of the 28 people who responded (I discounted those who reeled off a list of cakes the loved!), Chocolate cake was the front runner with 21% of the vote. Lemon Drizzle was a meer 17% of the vote, joint second with Carrot cake. That's a little reflective of the national vote in terms of types of cakes, if not the popularity of each, but poor old Brownies didn't appear once in my poll. 

280 Bakes - chocolate cake slice
280 Bakes - Carrot Cake
280 Bakes - Lemon Cake

​Maybe I roll in more cake-educated circles, or with people who are a bit more adventurous with their food choices (Rosewater and Pistachio!!). Maybe 280 Bakes has helped people close to us realise there's more to life than Lemon Drizzle. I certainly hope so!

Oh, and my personal favourite? Mango Yoghurt cake. Or Carrot cake. No, Christmas cake! Argh, see, I'm as bad as you!!

What's YOUR favourite cake? Let me know in the comments below. 

Have a great weekend, 

Louise
280 Bakes
​

View my profile on LinkedIn
2 Comments

How to celebrate a business birthday in style

1/6/2018

0 Comments

 

We celebrated our second birthday today, and this is how it went down!

First, we announced an expansion in our business!
From today, we have bakers based in Stroud, Gloucestershire, who are delivering our cakes in the town. Find out more here, including how to join our team of bakers.

Then, we actually WENT to Stroud!
Given the main part of our birthday celebrations was the above announcement, we decided to surprise a business in Stroud with a cake. This is where Spacehoppers Co-working came in - we delivered a 280 Bakes branded cake (see the logo and BRIGHT PINK nature of said cake in the picture below!) to three entrepreneurs who were at the time working in the shared office space. A complete surprise to all and a welcome tea break from their hard work!

We chose Spacehoppers because we've had previous experience in co-working environments and we love the vibe from entrepreneurs who work in such places. A big 'HELLO AND THANKS' goes to Ben at BeKagool who tweeted us a photo of the cake being enjoyed in the office after we left.

280 Bakes - birthday celebrations

Finally, we popped along to St Andrew's Park, Bristol...
We had to celebrate on 'home turf' too, of course! Word got to us that the Bristol Vegan Parents Group was meeting with the kids for a half term get-together, so we took them some complimentary cupcakes to sort out a snack for that lovely lot. The meeting point was "by the coffee hut in the centre", so cake and coffee worked out perfectly!

Order some vegan cupcakes yourself!

A fabulous day - we feel well and truly celebrated!

Thanks to all our willing cake eaters and our hard-working team. Here's to another successful year at 280 Bakes!

Louise
Owner of 280 Bakes

View my profile on LinkedIn
0 Comments

Demo-ing at the Bristol Foodies Festival

18/5/2018

0 Comments

 

we were SUPER excited to be asked along to speak at the Bristol Foodies Festival this month!

Louise, 280 Bakes

The Foodies Festival is an annual event in Bristol (and around the UK), bringing chefs and foodies together over a fantastic weekend of talks, music, demonstrations, classes and food stalls.

Our Louise went along to speak at the cake and dessert stage in Bristol on the Friday afternoon (21st May 2018). She demonstrated how to make a vegan chocolate Guinness cake and shared samples to a willing and hungry crowd.

"It was so much fun, a totally different thing for us to be doing," said Louise.  "And I felt kind of 'Madonna' walking around with a head mic set on!"

Well done Louise, maybe this is a start of something HUGE! More demos please....


Louise demonstrating cake baking
Picture
Picture
Picture

Missed out on trying a sample from the Foodies Festival? We've posted the recipe for the vegan chocolate Guinness cake on our blog so you can try it yourself. And if you don't fancy baking, just contact us to order one!

Order a vegan chocolate Guinness cake

Big thanks to Charlotte White at Restoration Cake and the Foodies Festival team for inviting us along. See you again, we hope!

The Team @ 280 Bakes

View my profile on LinkedIn
0 Comments

Flood Aware with the Environment Agency

24/3/2018

0 Comments

 

Our biggest corporate cake yet was baked this week for the Environment Agency's flood conference. 

James Bevan, John Curtin, Louise, cutting the Arc-boat cake
The third annual Flood & Coast conference, organised by the Environment Agency, was held this week - and we were there! Our Louise was asked to make a cake in the shape of a remote controlled river monitoring boat, an "ARC-boat". It's a surf board-like craft worth over £16,000, used to measure speed and depth of rivers, and other data to aid flood management efforts.

​The Agency had sold it's 100th boat, which gave them a fabulous reason to celebrate. 

​The cake was cut by the Chef Executive of the Environment Agency Sir James Bevan, the Director of Flood and Coastal Risk Management John Curtin, and Louise. 

Feedback on the cake, a chocolate sponge decorated in an eye-catching lime green to mimic a real ARC-boat, came... flooding in, post event on our Twitter.


Order a corporate cake today!

​Thank you to the Environment Agency and in particular, Nick Everard, for the opportunity to bake for the occasion. We're more flood aware than we were before, that's for sure, and a small part of the flood family. 

The Team @ 280 Bakes

View my profile on LinkedIn
0 Comments

Our Event Calendar: Spring 2018

30/1/2018

0 Comments

 

The team will be out and about this season with our cakes - come and find us at the following local events!

Spring events calendar - 280 Bakes

Subject to change, but we'll be there if we most possibly can.
We do take pre-orders, if you'd like anything in particular - save yourself delivery and enjoy the community event at the same time!

The Team @ 280 Bakes


View my profile on LinkedIn
0 Comments

A Postcard From Costa Rica

19/1/2018

0 Comments

 

Our Louise has just come back from Costa Rica, bearing photos of cakes from the Latine American country. No tasters, but the photos look awesome!

So, Costa Rica s not known for its cake - or really, even its food. You might think of beaches, wildlife, music, before you think of the food from that area, but there really is so much lovely goodness to try, and cake is no exception. Take a look at some of my photos below ... Let me know if you've ever baked these yourself!

A true baker snaps photos of cake while she's on holiday...


Chocolate Turtle Birthday Cake
Costa Rican Cake Ingredients
Passion Fruit Cream Cake
Bread Pudding
Victoria Sponge
The white cake to the left was made in a cake shop for another birthday party we went to on our short break. It's 'very Costa Rican' (in my opinion) because of the creamy style icing they use. Fondant doesn't do so well in the heat! This kind of cake is kept in a fridge, unlike our traditional birthday cakes in the UK. It's decorated with local Passion Fruit, and the sponge is a sweet, vanilla cake. Doesn't it look delicious?

Pictured below the Passion Fruit cake is what Costa Ricans call  'Pudding', a type of bread pudding. It's found in cafes all over the country, and is perfect for cake lovers who like something moist and spiced. Bake your own using our recipe!

Finally, the cake to the left is, believe it or not,  a Victoria Sponge I attempted to make with local ingredients: Guava Jam and Caramel Sugar. It came out quite different, (especially with the absence of a sandwich style tin and very little icing sugar!)  but tasted fab!


Look out for more cakes from abroad, whenever one of our bakers goes on holiday. You can follow our 'cake holidays' on #280ontour on Twitter.

Thanks for reading,

Louise & Team.


View my profile on LinkedIn
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Author

    Welcome to the 280 Bakes blog! Most posts are by myself, Louise, but if you fancy guest blogging, give me a shout!

    Archives

    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016

    Categories

    All
    280 On Tour
    Baking Tips
    Baking Workshops
    Birthday Cakes
    Blog Recommendations
    Boozy Bakes
    Business
    Celebrate With Us
    Christmas
    Community
    Cupcakes
    Customer Stories
    Fairtrade
    Friends Of 280 Bakes
    Gluten Free
    Guest Blog
    Halloween
    Home Baking
    I'm A Mum
    Just For Fun
    Lockdown Special
    Low Fat
    Low Sugar Cakes
    News
    Recipes
    Special Offer
    Summer Bakes
    Team 280 Bakes
    The Great British Bake Off
    Tre
    Vegan Bakes
    Wedding
    Well Being
    Work For Us
    Zero Sugar Cakes

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Cakes
  • Blog
  • Letterbox Cake
  • About
  • Contact