First of all, I am very disappointed in myself for not writing on here sooner, but it just shows how busy I've been this past week! I must admit, being back home has been LOVELY - the snowdrops are here, I've seen a few daffodils poking their heads out and there've even been some lambs about! Can I go as far to say...Spring is officially here! Of course, as predicted, seeing my beloved home oven in action has been the highlight of my stay so far and has certainly lived up to my expectations. But actually, I haven't had time to do much baking. In fact, I mainly seem to have been eating other people's baking instead! That is one of the reasons I do love coming home and being treated to endless cups of coffee and the occasional cake in one of those gorgeous little cafés that just don't seem to exist in France. Parents are for treating you. And as I've not seen them for a good two months I think they're allowed!
I must just tell you about two of said cafés though, because they are the type of place that I would just love to own one day. And they bake pretty good treats as well. The first is more like a deli and café combined, in Chapel Allerton, an area of Leeds not too far from me. It's called Crust & Crumb and I will definitely be going back there (and actually, this wasn't my first visit!). The lunch menu looked delicious too, but we just went for a coffee and I chose a vanilla shortbread biscuit to go with it, which was just right and just what I wanted. I would recommend it! Although I get the impression that they probably change what they have on offer quite regularly so there may be another tasty treat on offer on your visit. The baskets full of an assortment of breads were very tempting too! So many different flavours and displayed beautifully. Why are there not more places like this? Friendly staff, a buzzy atmosphere and yummy baking were all the right ingredients for a lovely afternoon back in England.
Crust & Crumb
110b Harrogate Road,
Chapel Allerton,
Leeds,
LS7 4NY.
The next place I'm going to tell you about is a little more further afield. I couldn't come back home and not venture out into the Yorkshire Dales so we went on a walk around Grassington area. And the main thing that was keeping me going was knowing that we'd be stopping for a drink halfway round! And what turned out to be a gorgeous homemade cake as well. It was actually in Grassington village, a little place called Café Maison. None of us could decide which cake to have so we chose three and shared them which was possibly the best decision ever! (May I also point out here that I don't usually go for one of those massive slices of cakes that they sell in cafés, but which always look so tempting. We had just been walking though, so it seemed justified!). Between us we had a carrot cake, a coffee and walnut cake and an iced lemon cake. They were all equally delicious and I couldn't tell you which one I liked best! Perfectly light and moist, with exceedingly tasty icing and so unexpected too. If you're ever in Grassington, go to this café to try a cake and you will thank me forever!
Café Maison
51 Main Street,
Grassington,
Skipton,
North Yorkshire,
BD23 5AA.
Go on, take my advice and treat yourself to a coffee and a cake at a café! Or better yet, get someone else to treat you!
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