All British Baker articles in April 2008 – Page 5

  • News

    In Short

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    == France tops the world ==France was crowned winner of the seventh Bakery World Cup, at a ceremony in Paris on Wednesday this week. The team beat 11 other nations to the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie. Taiwan came second, and the Italian team claimed third place. Tameside college ...

  • News

    In Short

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    == Genesis gets Crafty on tourism drive ==Northern Ireland bakery Genesis has teamed up with the Armagh and Down Tourism Partnership to promote the region on special packs of its Genesis Crafty range. Genesis customers in Scotland and England will have the chance to win a luxury break for two, ...

  • News

    In Short

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    == Support for charity ==London and South East Master Bakers are sponsoring an Edwardian Breakfast in aid of the Bakers’ Benevolent Society. For anyone who wants to support the event, on Sunday 20 April at 11am at Tithe Barn, Dorking, the cost is £120 for two including five courses and ...

  • News

    In Short

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    == Compass points to positive cost control ==Catering company Compass Group said it was managing food costs in its UK operations "through price increases, supply chain efficiencies and menu planning" in its trading update last week. Strong performance seen in the first three months of the current financial year ...

  • News

    Seasonal seller

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Early English rhubarb is coming into season now. Forced rhubarb has a more delicate flavour and a less woody stem than the outdoor garden type. It is very versatile and, apart from being used in pies, tarts and crumbles, it is also good when added to muffins, cakes, traybakes and ...

  • News

    Rhubarb

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Early English rhubarb is coming into season now. Forced rhubarb has a more delicate flavour and a less woody stem than the outdoor garden type. It is very versatile and, apart from being used in pies, tarts and crumbles, it is also good when added to muffins, cakes, traybakes and strudels. In cakes and muffins the rhubarb can be cut into 2.5cm/½-inch slices and added to the other ingredients, uncooked. Don’t put too high a proportion in, as the rhubarb releases a lot of liquid as it cooks and it can make the cake soggy. To cook rhubarb, sprinkle with sugar and add a little grated orange zest and some orange juice. Cook until the rhubarb is still just holding its shape. This can be easier to achieve if baked, covered, in the oven. Drain off any excess liquid. Ensuring the rhubarb is sweet enough, put the cooked, drained rhubarb on top of an uncooked sponge cake mixture and cover with a streusel or crumble topping before baking. Ginger, whether ground, grated or crystallised is a good partner to rhubarb as is cinnamon. It also works well with other, sweeter, fruits such as strawberries, apples and bananas. Mix cooked rhubarb with dried fruits, chopped pecan nuts, cinnamon and some dry breadcrumbs and wrap in filo pastry for a fresh-tasting strudel. * Fiona Burrell, co-author of Leith’s Baking Bible, from the world-famous Leiths School of Food and Wine

  • News

    Reporting in

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    As part of the British Sandwich Association’s annual industry awards, I have had the dubious honour of sampling some 45 new sandwiches and 40 new ingredients that have been launched into the market over the last 12 months.After such a marathon session, I was not sure I wanted to see ...

  • News

    McCambridge on turnaround track

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Irish bakery McCambridge revealed it has weathered the twin storms of commodity price rises and disgruntled creditors, as it continues to turn around former troubled bakery giant Inter Link Foods. Giving his first interview since being appointed chief executive of McCambridge in February, Gavin Cox, who joined as finance director last year, told British Baker that, nine months after acquiring Inter Link out of administration, the business was back on track.

  • News

    Uniq turns profit in UK but suffers overall loss

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Uniq, the European convenience foods group, returned to profitability in the UK, according to preliminary company results for 2007. However, the group’s overall pre-tax losses stood at £44.1 million after significant items, including restructuring costs.Overall group sales for the full year were up by 2.9% to £736.1m.Uniq said its Northampton ...

  • News

    Slazenger’s latest smash

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Aimia Foods has launched a new range of Slazenger S1 ’hypotonic’ sports drinks in Orange and Mixed Berry flavours.’Hypotonic’ refers to a solution with a lower salt concentration than in normal cells of the body and the blood - such drinks rehydrate you quickly to replace water from sweating, but ...

  • News

    Indulgence spurs the muffin market

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Enjoyment, indulgence and the growth of the café culture are the main ingredients of the recipe for muffins’ booming success. One measure of this is the decision by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) last month to add them to the basket of goods it uses to determine the retail ...

  • News

    Retirement for Hempton

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    One of the most well-respected figures in the Northern Ireland baking industry has retired after 37 years. Mervyn Hempton, operations manager at Allied Bakeries Ireland, worked hard to build the Belfast-based company with his younger brother, Alan.He joined the Sunblest bakery in 1971 and became chief executive of Allied ...

  • News

    The good mixer

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    === 1I am an independent café operator, with limited kitchen space. I buy in many products finished and for bake-off, but I require a mixer for the occasional home-made cake, for batters and for icings. ==="The perfect model for a small independent is the Kitchenaid K50," says Angie Robinson ...

  • News

    Northern Foods shows good signs of recovery

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Northern Foods’ bakery division showed "encouraging signs of recovery", with fourth quarter underlying revenue up 1.1%, according to the company’s latest trading update.The firm, which owns brands such as Fox’s cookies and Holland’s Pies, said improvements in the bakery operation were part of an ongoing elimination of low-value products, ...

  • News

    Go with the flow

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    Well, another financial year has gone and trade has been pretty good. We could always have done with more, but we have eaten regularly. At this time of year, we now start thinking about how we will survive another year.The news is not really good, but, as bakers, we are ...

  • News

    Sussex firm launches text ordering

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    A Sussex bakery has launched a new ’Text your lunch’ service. Customers text the bakery, which then calls them back and takes their lunch order by phone, so that it can be prepared for collection.The Cavendish bakery in Eastbourne already runs a successful online lunch delivery service, which it said ...

  • News

    Free-from fervour

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    When somebody asks you, ’Do you like the taste of hospital food?’, it’s usually because you’ve spilt somebody’s pint in a packed Wetherspoon’s. Last month, British Baker had to ponder this question when we attended a taste test of baked goods, supplied into Southampton University Hospital. And it wasn’t without ...

  • News

    Live News Feeds (RSS

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    The use of RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is growing in popularity, by bookmarking one of our Live News Feeds you can get constantly updated news links displayed directly on your computer screen as soon as they are posted online! Whilst it sounds complicated it really isn’t; it’s much like ...

  • News

    Water taps into eco trends

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    A new English mineral water brand is aimed at ethically-conscious consumers. Iceni Water is bottled at source in Duxford, Cambridgeshire.The water, which is low in sodium and high in calcium, is drawn through chalky soils.Managing director Brett Fleming-Jones said: "Given the UK consumer’s growing awareness of and insistence on good ...

  • News

    Greencore trims up in time for US drive

    2008-04-04T00:00:00Z

    What’s a company to do when it’s wrapped up a quarter of the UK’s manufactured sandwich trade in over a quarter of a decade? Why, take over the US market too, obviously. Greencore’s declared - and frankly, long-awaited - ambition to get involved in convenience foods in the US, a ...