It's Official!

The big news this week is that I am now officially a self employed person with a business bank account, The Gower Catering Company is up and running! It is still a very small enterprise but I am hoping to build it into a full time job by the time my son goes to full time school, he is 2 now so i've got the best part of 2 years. I am very excited but also very apprehensive, running your own business is not easy but I hope that with hard work and an equal amount of luck I can do it!

My first official order was for an 18th birthday cake, ordinary you might think but no, this cake was to be Pokemon themed featuring Pikachou who was the recipients favourite character. Now, being a shade over 18 myself (just a few months you understand) I had only a vague notion of what this was basically I was aware of its existence but that was about it! Fortunately I am a bit of an expert at internet searching so was able to get plenty of images that were very useful in the design process. This led me to wondering, how on earth did we function before the internet was so widely available? The cake was ordered 3 days before it was required, having no idea what this character looked like or what its show was like I would have really struggled to find in a library what was instantly available to me online. I  have become totally dependent on the world wide web, and i'm certainly not alone. If I can't get a 3G connection (or preferably wifi) on my iphone I am in a state of semi panic, the power of that instant knowledge is addictive and I no longer have the ability to wait for anything.

Fortunately for me I do have an excellent broadband connection so was quickly able to learn enough about pokemon to produce a cake that greatly pleased its recipient, and I must admit i was pretty pleased with it too!

8" chocolate cake, covered in sugarpaste with mexican paste model.

Low fat cheesecake!

I had some friends over for dinner on Friday night, this is something I do regularly since I became a mum as it is often difficult for me to get out, that and I love cooking and feeding people! What with it being the first week of January we are all naturally on diets so I was ordered to cook something low in fat. The main course was easy I simply roasted a chicken and served it torn into big chunks (looks so much more appealing than carved) with a huge bowl of salad and some homemade balsamic vinegarette. It sounds virtuous and it was but after all the heavy winer food we'd all eaten last month (last year even!) a crisp, colourful salad was enjoyed by all. The dessert I had a more difficult time deciding on after all puddings are meant to be a treat and are generally calorie laden, I eventually decided upon a lime and ginger cheesecake. I have made many a cheesecake in my time and always used mascarpone cheese, its creamy richness is just perfect for dessert whether as a cheesecake or served with a lemon tart it is a delightful substance. It is however, full of fat which is public enemy number 1 at the moment. I decided to use philadelphia extra light as a substitution, I had never tried it before and when I mixed the topping I was rather concerned that it was a lot runnier than mascarpone and that it would not set. I needn't have worried, it did set although it took longer than mascarpone (I would recommend making the day before) and it tasted delicious, so if you are trying to cut back but need a treat here is the recipe, its not without its sins but it is a lot more saintly than the mascarpone version.

For the base
200g ginger nut
50g unsalted butter

For the filling
500g philadelphia extra light
65g icing sugar
2 limes (juice and zest)
2 pieces stem ginger in syrup (finely choppped)

Method
Crush the ginger nuts (I used a food processor but crushing inside a plastic bag works just as well), when completely crushed add the melted butter and mix well. Transfer mixture to an 8" cake tin (loose base or spring form) and spread to form an even layer that completely covers the base, use a light pressure to ensure biscuit is tighly compacted.
Combine cheese, icing sugar, lime and ginger (I used a mixer but a wooden spoon would do the job just fine and burn a few calories in the process!) stirring until well mixed.
Transfer mixture to the prepared cake tin and smooth over the base with a spatula.
Place in fridge and leave to set for at least 10 hours, preferably overnight.
Use a knife to loosen sides and gently remove cake from tin.
Sit back and enjoy!

Losing weight.

I know millions of people say it every year but i am determined to lose weight. I was always a size 8 until I had my son where I put on 5 stone and ballooned beyond recognition. I managed to lose most of the weight but had a pretty shitty 2011 and put a lot back on, I am not huge by anyones standards but for me I am too big and don't fit in any of my lovely clothes.
I am currently a size 12 and weigh 10 stone (like i said not huge, just huge for me) and am aiming to regain mt pre baby weight of 8.5 stone and fit in my pre baby wardrobe, frankly having given up work I can't go wasting money on a whole new wardrobe!
So, on January 2nd the new regime started, I am being realistic and not crash dieting I am sensible enough to know these will never work in the long run. I am changing my eating habits, vastly reducing the amount of fat in my diet, limiting the amount of carbs and increasing the amount of lean protein, vegetables and fruit that i consume as well as drinking alot more water. I have managed to stick to this quite easily for 2 days and hope that putting it all in writing on this blog is going to give me the motivation to do so, I am even considering a weekly weight confessional.
Time for a sloe gin now I think......

New Year, New Me (again)

As its January 4th and i've only just gotten around to starting this blog, by way of introduction I shall plough straight in with my New Years Resolutions:
1. To be more organised.
2. To spend more quality time with my husband and son.
3. To get my business up and running enough to generate an income (more about this later, a lot more).
4. To lose weight and get fit (of course, I hear you all cry!!)

On the organisational front I am half getting there, I am currently in the process of organising my husbands admin and getting the accounts up to date for the dreaded tax man. I do this quarterly, however this time (remember, New Year New Me) I am going to get everything neatly filed so that a)We have everything we're supposed to have and b) I know where it is. Doing this would benefit me and the business greatly but it is just so easy for the control to slip away leaving me with paperwork scattered here there and everywhere getting a sweat on at the end of every quarter....but not any more!

Regarding the quality time, its the usual situation of getting the work life balance right. I have addressed this by quitting work and setting up my own home based business, I now have the work-life balance right (no more 50 hour weeks for me) how the money-life balance is going to work out remains to be seen. What can I say, I took a leap of faith and am hoping it works out.

The business situation it thus, I have decided to turn my passion for all things foodie (and sometimes drinkie) into a career by setting up a catering company that provides canapes, buffets and cakes for all corporate and private events (just incase you are looking for such a person, its called the Gower catering company amd I am soon to be online at http://www.thegowercateringcompany.co.uk/). So far the cake side of the business has been good, I was inundated with Christmas orders and even managed to do a couple of produce markets and buffets in the run up to Christmas.

And now for the most important resolution of them all I hereby pledge to lose 1.5 stone by the summer (ideally by the big 3-0 in Feb) and get fit, not 'olympic athlete' fit you understand just a bit more fit 'light jog' fit would do me just fine.

So thats just a little bit about me, if you've read this far well done and thanks, I hope you'll come back again for more of my ramblings.