Pumpkin spice and apple cake
Autumn is officially here.
Well, summer didn’t last very long did it? September has felt distinctly chillier so far in Glasgow - my phone tells me it’s 13 degrees today. Pumpkin spice is everywhere again (yes I’ve had my first PSL of the year, more on that later) and I’m here for it.
In the kitchen
I love the flavours and cosy vibes that autumn brings. After a crisp walk this morning, I knew I had to bake something. Katarina Cermelj’s caramel apple upside down cake recipe was exactly what I needed.
My caramel making skills leave a lot to be desired but it came together pretty quickly. With hints of cinnamon and ginger, sticky caramel and non-mushy apples, this is literally autumn on a plate. I even wolfed down two pieces to power this writing session.
(Side note, I am so excited for Kat’s book, The Elements of Baking, to come out next month. It looks proper science-y and I can’t wait to learn from it!)
In other news, we finally got round to organising the kitchen this week. To much distress, we discovered most of the tinned and dry food in the cupboards left by other tenants was a good few years out of date. Most of it had to be chucked, but the wildest find was a selection of herbs and spices that expired in 1997. That’s a whole five years before I was born! We’ve decided to keep them as decoration.
Out and about
🍟 I already spoke about this a bit in last week’s post, but Thundercat on Miller Street deserves a proper recommendation. I was already a huge fan of their range of sister bars, Buck’s, and this did not disappoint.
My mouth is watering just thinking about that chicken parm burger. They also do an absolute steal of a £12.95 lunch offer on weekdays which includes a burger, side and soft drink. I will definitely be back to try that.
🍳 We started off this week with brunch out as a treat. We’d already been to Singl-end in Garnethill quite a few times over the past couple years but this was our first visit to their Merchant City location.
I went for the eggs royale and god, I don’t think I’d ever seen so much smoked salmon on one plate before! Instantly made it worth every penny. The eggs were poached perfectly, not slimy at all. The cherry on top though was the gluten free bread. Big thick slices that didn’t fall apart, I believe they make it themselves.
My partner opted for the full meaty breakfast and I was slightly jealous. The meat eater brekky isn’t suitable to be adapted to gluten free, but the veggie one is so we’ll be returning. If you’re a brunch fan, this is a Glasgow essential - booking is crucial though, as both locations have been very busy every time we’ve gone.
🐱 I know nobody is really going to a cat cafe for the food and drink, but I had to give Trongate’s Purrple Cat Cafe a shout out. The cats are adorable obviously and they even have a litter of sphinx kittens right now. Very relaxing vibes.
I was really feeling the autumn vibes yesterday as I decided to have my first pumpkin spice latte of the year. It was kinda sunny though, so I did have it iced to cling on to the idea of warm weather.
🍞 I fear I’m sounding like a broken record now because I’m speaking about Kilmarnock Road’s Wild Flours Bakery again. Can you blame me? There’s only so many fully gluten free bakeries I can easily get to!
I’d actually not got round to trying any of their bread yet - my sweet tooth definitely takes over whenever I step in there. My partner treated me to a loaf of the cheesy jalapeno bread the other day and it was perfect slathered in butter with some soup for dinner. I’m not usually a huge jalapeno fan but the cheddar in the bread really balanced it out.
🍰 As a bonus, I wanted to mention the online bakery Sponge. My mam ordered me some brownies here as a treat lately and we loved them. They were nice and gooey in a range of flavours.
These would make a great last minute gift as they deliver next day if you order before 3pm. They’re also certified by Coeliac UK now, so no need to worry about cross contamination.
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