Although I’ve sampled many of the sweet treats on offer at Hotel Chocolat, I had somehow managed to overlook their intriguing Cocoa Cuisine collection. A celebration of what cocoa and chocolate can contribute in the kitchen, the range includes everything from dips, dressings and desserts to cookies, cakes, cocoa pasta, chocolate spreads and much, much more.

When I was sent a tub of their Salted Caramel and Pecan Chocolate Spread, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it. Kick back, relax, and use a big spoon to eat the whole lot in one sitting. Unfortunately, I had promised them I would do something a little more creative.Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Cake

So, I dug out my trusty loaf tin, mixed up a basic batter, and produced a marvellous marble cake! Think vanilla infused sponge with mesmerising swirls of salty, sweet and nutty chocolate spread. Are you salivating yet?

The flavours seemed to intensify during baking, resulting in a cake that tasted far more complex than it looked. Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Cake

You could of course make this with regular chocolate spread or salted caramel, but I’d urge you to at least consider the innovative ingredients on offer at Hotel Chocolat. The combination of flavours elevated this bake from what would otherwise have been a fairly plain cake to something far more impressive.

For obvious reasons, anything from the Cocoa Cuisine collection would also be an ideal Christmas gift for those that enjoy spending time in the kitchen {hint hint}. Did I mention that there’s gin?Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Cake

Back to the bake. Adapted from an ancient American recipe for pound cake, the method is simple. You layer the batter and the chocolate, swirl them together and slide the pan into the oven for just over an hour. Go on, give it a try.

You will need:

  • 200g plain flour
  • 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 220g unsalted butter
  • 160g caster sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel & Pecan Chocolate Spread

1. Preheat the oven to 160C/gas mark 3. Grease and line a 9×5 loaf tin.

2. Using a handheld or freestanding mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. This should take around 3-5 minutes. In a jug, lightly beat the eggs with the vanilla. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Gradually beat the egg mixture into the butter and sugar until fully incorporated. Add the flour mixture in three batches, beating slowly between each addition, until just incorporated. Continue to beat for a further thirty seconds.

4. Spread one third of the batter into the prepared pan, and then carefully spread half the caramel and pecan chocolate on top. Repeat with another third of the batter and the remaining spread. Top with the last of the batter. Lightly swirl the two mixtures together with a knife. A few swipes through the pan should do it, be careful not to over mix.

5. Bake for around 1hour and 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes before turning out. The loaf will slice better if you wait for it to cool completely {around 2 hours}, but who’s got time for that? Cut yourself a slightly crumbly piece and enjoy!

Love Audrey xxx

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Love Audrey
Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Marble Cake
Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Cake
Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Cake
Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel, Pecan and Chocolate Cake
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May in photos 🤳

1. Finally, some Franky weather. One of the best things about this month has been dusting off my summer dresses and being able to wear sandals ☀️

2+3. Coronation weekend. So many thoughts 💭 But the food was good! I made a vegan version of my mum’s famous coronation chicken and it was delicious.

4. Jesse staying upbeat during yet another trip to hospital. That steroid buzz though. IYKYK.

5. Some of the food served at the first meeting of Bristol Cook Book Club since 2020. It felt so good to get this going again. I can’t wait for our next feast!

6. Me among the cow parsley, snapped by Jesse.

7. I’ve been thinking about creativity a lot this month while working through the ‘The Artist’s Way’. 

8. Breakfast outside.

9. {Still} scrapbooking December. Fingers crossed I can finally wrap up this project in June 🤞🏻

10. Izzy’s final show at The Tobacco Factory. After tonight, she’ll be done with college {and compulsory education} forever 🤯

We packed a lot into this month. Enough to fill two carousels! This might explain why I’m so tired! I’m looking forward to June though. Everything’s better when the sun shines ✨
@_charlieswift has been raving about ‘The Artist’s Way’ by Julia Cameron for years. I finally caved, ordered the book and agreed to work through the course with her and some other artists. 

The book focuses on ‘guiding you through the process of recovering your creative self’ to ‘help you unleash your inner artist’. It’s early days {I’ve only read as far as week two and I haven’t even started my morning pages yet - IYKYK}, but I’m enjoying the process so far. 

Today I took myself on my first Artist Date - ‘a block of time… especially set aside and committed to nurturing your creative consciousness, your inner artist’. I decided to treat myself to a solo cinema trip to see ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.’ The film was brilliant and taking time out midweek to do something just for me felt… kind of naughty? And fun! It definitely filled my creative well {again, IYKYK}.

Have you read ‘The Artist’s Way?’ Where would you go on a date with your inner artist?!
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Franky weather ☀️🌅🔆🌻✨

That’s it, that’s the caption.
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April in photos 🤳

1. Our trip to London over Easter was a definite highlight this month. Here’s the obligatory ‘flowers outside Liberty’ shot.

2. Finally! Some sunshine! More of the same please, Mr. Weatherman ☀️

3. Dressed for a day of sightseeing in my new favourite pink jacket. It’s Boden and I bought it in the sale 💖

4 + 5. Scenes from a trip to the big Waterstones in Piccadilly. This poem by @charlycox1 floored me. Crying in a bookshop. Not awkward at all.

6. I was proud of these steps, so I’m posting them here for posterity 🚶🏼‍♀️🥄

7. The Easter holidays also featured lots of lazy days 🎮😴

8. We bought a nutribullet and I’m officially in my smoothie era.

9 + 10. Dinner and drinks at @thecoconuttreeuk with our IzzyBee. Taking your daughter out for cocktails is a season of parenting I’m very much enjoying.

Not pictured: a family funeral and the chest infection I’m still getting over 🤒 How was April for you?
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Easter weekend in my hometown 💃🏼

No trip to London is long enough for me to see all the people and do all the things I want to do while I’m there, but we always manage to pack a lot in. It’s 17 years since I moved away, but somehow it still feels like coming home. Here’s some of what we got up to…

1. Being tourists.

2. Shopping at Westfield.

3 + 4. Hanging out and eating at Southbank.

5. Refuelling in Chinatown.

6. Enjoying the big Waterstones in Piccadilly.

7. Admiring the spring flowers outside Liberty.

8. Visiting the Imperial War Museum for the first time since I was a child.

9 + 10. Seeing Elton John at the O2 with my mama 👓🎹🎤🪩✨

I hope you’ve managed to enjoy the long weekend, whatever you’ve been up to! That sunshine though!☀️🤩
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March in Photos 🤳

1. How it’s going…

2. How it started.

3. My in-laws were involved in a terrible car crash earlier this month. They’re very, very lucky to be alive. It was a horrible time, so I’m grateful there was a happy ending.

4. My husband sent me this photo of a photo from our wedding day while he was visiting his parents. Turns out his mum carries it in her purse ❤️

5. While I was waiting for news from Derby, I took myself out on a walk and ended up in @thesmallcitybookshop. It was like my feet knew books would bring me comfort.

6 + 7. Just spring things.

8. Vegan lemon and almond loaf and a green smoothie from @theorchardcoffeeco 🍰🌱

9. I bought it 🌸

10. Other music? I don’t know her. 

How’s March been treating you? Personally, I’m ready for April and spring PROPER!
There is a past version of me who cannot believe I get to do this every day 💭📝💻

She’s around 12yrs old, working on her first novel in a little ring-bound notebook, dreaming up stories, devouring books and trying to imagine a life filled with words. Everything that makes my business possible now barely existed then, so even she’d struggle to conjure up  an image of what my life looks like now.

I’m grateful that I get to do this, for the clients who trust me to find the right words, and I’m grateful to that past version of me too. Without her, I wouldn’t be here now. Sure, she’d probably want me to hurry up and get back to that novel, but I think she’d be proud of the business I’ve built and the way I’ve managed to create a life filled with words.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
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Lockdown memories, three years on 🦠⏳

Very little of my life made it on to the grid in 2020, so this is the first time I’ve shared these images. They’re all from the first lockdown and most were taken between March and May. I think the arrival of spring will always remind me of this strange time.

When Boris made his announcement on the 23rd, our children had already been out of school for a week. Jesse, who was initially deemed clinically vulnerable, spent the next 6m shielding. He left primary school one day not realising he’d never go back. He did not see another child his age until the summer. Like many kids and adults in the same situation, the experience had a deep impact on his mental health. 

Izzy was in Year 10. As the pandemic raged on, she did most of her GCSEs online, celebrated her 16th birthday via Netflix Party, finished secondary school with minimal fanfare and missed out on prom completely. When she finally had a normal night out with friends in the winter of 2021, I cried quietly in the kitchen when she got home. Seeing her so happy and animated after a simple ‘cheeky Nando’s’ only highlighted everything she’d missed out on in the previous 18 months.

It’s easy to forget how little we knew about the virus in the beginning and how frightening that was for everyone involved. We had it easy in comparison to some, but I still marvel at the way we coped with it all. The way we isolated, home schooled and kept our businesses ticking over. My goodness it was hard! As my children often joke, I hope we’re done living through major historical events for a while.