by Jane Linfoot
I’m laughing at him as well. ‘I think I can deliver on both those promises. So long as you snog me again, right now.’
He’s dropping the sledge rope and pulling me into his arms again. ‘Funny, you’re usually way more cake-orientated.’
By the time we get back to the Manor, it’s so late Poppy’s Christmas cake has already been demolished. We tiptoe back in, hoping no one will notice how long we’ve been away. But when Immie notices my hand in Rory’s she starts to clap. And in the end the roar is loud enough to make the bells on the tree in the hallway jangle.
There’s a lesson for everyone there. If you want to keep things quiet, don’t fall in love at a Christmas party anywhere near St Aidan.
Chapter 42
P.S.
Poppy and Rafe’s son, Gabe, arrives safely just before lunch on Boxing Day, weighing in at a healthy six pounds two. We’re all still at the Manor and toast his arrival with Rory’s special alcohol-free Rockdance beer, so Chas and Immie won’t feel left out. Rory’s promised to name next year’s Christmas brew after him. So long as he’s as angelic as his name. Although Immie’s pointing out that he might need to make two festive brews, because of course, by next Christmas her and Chas’s baby will be here too.
Erin comes out of hospital just after New Year, and Rory and I take Gracie and Teddie for the kind of reunion that’s so happy, however many hankies you have, it isn’t enough. I have a feeling we’ll always see a lot of each other.
When we go back to St Aidan without the children, we finally get to try out Rory’s very own bedroom at the Roaring Waves Barns. I’m able to assure the community, via Immie, that whatever people think, the ‘no curtains’ thing isn’t a problem. Due to the window height in relation to the sea, any passing fishermen will be too far away to focus. Put it this way – we won’t be rushing out for blinds any time soon.
With my job in London, the company are happy to swap my notice period for guarantees of freelance work. So, Jules and I move the photo business straight into the studio at Brides by the Sea, and it’s lovely working with all my friends and being part of the team. If the early bookings are anything to go by, there will be enough weddings and more to share between us.
Some time towards the end of January, we make the trek to London to pack up my room and bring all my boxes back from the storage unit. Rory’s delighted to make some orders while the beer-mobile is parked in Bermondsey. He also claims to be looking forward to having the Roaring Waves Barns and Huntley and Handsome festooned with as many decorations as I can throw at him when next December comes.
And, yes, it might sound like we’ve moved in together very quickly. But some kinds of love are so crazy that when you finally realise you’ve fallen into them, you can’t bear the thought of not waking up next to each other every single day. That’s definitely how it is for Rory and me. He’s still drives me mad calling me Holly Postman and Berry Berry Pink Cheeks. But when I think of being with Rory every day for the rest of our lives … well, somehow, that doesn’t seem long enough.
Coming soon from Jane Linfoot
A brand-new series!
More Cornwall
More delicious bakes
More romance…
The Little Cornish Kitchen
Some Delicious Recipes from Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop …
In Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop, Holly loves dipping in to Poppy’s baking. I’m really lucky because my son’s girlfriend, Caroline Tranter, is a fabulous baker, and she’s recreated some of Poppy’s recipes in real life. (Caroline’s from Bakewell, which is such a perfect place for a cake maker to live, she almost needs a book of her own!) If you’d like fully illustrated, step by step recipes, look out for mouth-watering blog posts around publication time. We’ve included the recipes here too, in case you’d like to try them for yourselves at home.
Here’s Poppy’s recipe for her chocolate orange cake, as designed by Caroline Tranter. This is the cake they are all enjoying the afternoon Holly gets upset remembering the ten-foot-tall Christmas Tree she bought for Luc’s flat the year before. It’s also the cake that’s so delicious Rory won’t stop eating it. When you taste it you’ll realise why.
Poppy’s Festive Chocolate Orange Cake
Makes 1 7inch Cake
Preparation Time: 15 Minutes
Cooking Time: 20- 25 Minutes
Ingredients
Sponge:
• 150g Unsalted Butter
• 150g Caster Sugar
• 150g Self Raising Flour, Sieved
• 3 Eggs
• 1tsp. Baking Powder
• 30g Cocoa Powder, Sieved
• Zest of two large oranges ( put a side a tsp. for the topping)
• Juice of one and a half large oranges
Chocolate Orange and Cointreau Buttercream:
• 150g Butter
• 400g Icing Sugar, Sieved
• 40g Cocoa Powder, Sieved
• Juice of half an orange
• 3 tsp. Cointreau
• 1tsp Orange Essence
Topping:
• 50g Dark Chocolate, Melted
• Edible Silver Glitter (optional)
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 170°C Fan/ Gas Mark 3/ 190°C Electric. Line and grease two 7 inch tins.
2. To make the sponge: With an electric or hand whisk, beat together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
3. Into the same bowl add the flour, eggs, baking powder, cocoa powder, orange zest and juice. Whisk the ingredients until fully combined.
4. Divide the cake mixture equally into the two tins and bake in the centre of the oven for 20-25 minutes. The sponge will come away from the edges of the tin slightly when fully cooked. Once cooked, remove the cakes from the oven and leave on a wire rack to cool.
5. To make the buttercream: Add all the ingredients to a large bowl and with an electric or hand whisk, whisk the ingredients together until fully combined and light and creamy. This will take a few minutes. (Note: For a more intense Cointreau flavour add an extra 2-4tsp. with the addition of 20g of icing sugar to thicken the buttercream).
6. Assembly of the cake: Place a nozzle of choice into a piping bag (This recipe used a Wilton 2D) and spoon all of the buttercream into the piping bag.
7. Take the cakes out of the tins and remove the baking paper. Place one sponge onto a plate or cake board and pipe rosettes on the surface of the cake, filling in any gaps with small piping’s of butter cream.
8. Place the second sponge on top of the first sponge and sandwich together. Cover the top of the sponge with the melted dark chocolate and leave to set.
9. Once the chocolate has set, pipe rosettes around the outside edge of the cake.
10. Finally, sprinkle edible glitter and orange zest over the top of the cake.
Poppy’s Christmas Pudding Muffins pop up throughout the book. And Caroline Tranter has perfected these. They’re actually amazingly chocolatey, but are iced to look like Christmas puddings. If you choose to use chocolate chunks instead of chips, the effect is awesome. Again, they might need to come with a warning. It’s hard not to eat too many!!
Poppy’s (Chocolate!) Christmas Pudding Muffins
Makes 11 Large Muffins
Preparation Time: 15 Minutes
Cooking Time: 20 Minutes
Ingredients
Muffin Mixture:
• 250g Self-raising flour, sieved
• 200g Caster sugar
• 150g Dark chocolate chips (alternatively cut a dark chocolate bar into small pieces)
• 50g Cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. Baking powder
• 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
• 1 Medium egg
• 200ml Semi skimmed milk
• 120ml Vegetable or sunflower oil
Decoration:
• 150g Icing Sugar, Sieved
• 3 tsp. cold water
• Red coloure
d ready to roll icing, rolled into 22 berry sized balls
• Holly leaves, washed
• Silver edible glitter
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan / Gas mark 7/ 220°C Electric. Line a muffin tray with 11 paper cases.
2. To make the muffins: In a large bowl combine and mix the flour, sugar, chocolate chips, cocoa powder and baking powder until equally distributed.
3. In a separate bowl whisk together the vanilla extract, egg, milk and oil until fully combined.
4. Pour the oil mixture into the flour mix and fully combine the ingredients to form a thick consistency.
5. Spoon heaped tablespoons into each muffin case around ¾ full. Bake the muffins in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes until a skewer or toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Once cooked, remove from the oven and leave the muffins in the tin to completely cool down.
6. To decorate: In a bowl, combine the icing sugar and water to form a very thick paste. Spoon a teaspoon of icing onto the centre of each muffin and then spread it out to direct the icing to drop down the muffins.
7. Place two red icing balls onto the centre of the white icing while it is still wet, as this acts as a glue to secure the balls in place.
8. Finally, place a piece of holly leaf on each muffin and sprinkle over the glitter.
Note: Alternatively if you do not have access to holly leaves, or wish to use an edible decoration, using green ready to roll icing and a holly cutter to form leaves works just as well.
Even though they’re not strictly festive, I loved the idea of seaside cupcakes. So Poppy gets to make some for the surfie wedding, and Holly and Gracie both love them. Caroline’s recipe has shells moulded from icing, highlighted with gold spray, with crushed biscuits for the sand. And they look and taste amazing.
Poppy’s Sea Side Cupcakes
Makes 11 Large Cupcakes
Preparation Time: 15 Minutes
Cooking Time: 20 Minutes
Ingredients
Cupcake Mixture:
• 3 Eggs
• 150g Self raising flour, sieved
• 150g Caster sugar
• 150g Unsalted butter
• 1 tsp. Baking powder
Buttercream:
• 250g Butter, room temperature
• 400g Icing sugar, sieved
• Blue food colouring
Shells:
• Ready to roll white icing
• Silicon shell mould
• Icing sugar, enough to coat the silicon mould
• Gold glitter spray
Decoration:
• Silver sugar balls
• 4 digestive biscuits
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 170°C Fan/ Gas Mark 5/ 190°C Electric. Line a deep cake tin with large cupcake cases.
2. To make the cupcakes: Combine the eggs, flour, sugar, butter and baking powder in a large bowl and with a hand or electric whisk, whisk the ingredients for a few minutes until light and creamy.
3. Spoon the mixture equally into the cupcake cases and then place the cupcakes in the centre of the oven for 25 minutes. The cupcakes are done once a skewer or toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
4. To make the buttercream: Using a wooden spoon, cream together the butter and icing sugar until combined. Add a drop of food colouring and then whisk until light, creamy and a pale blue colour.
5. To make the shells: Coat the silicon mould with icing sugar and tap off the excess. Insert the ready to roll icing into the mould and press out onto a plate. Repeat this until there is around 30-35 shells, depending on how many shells you want on each cupcake. Lightly spray the gold glitter over the shells and then leave them in the fridge to harden.
6. Assembly of the cupcakes: In a bowl, finely crush the digestive biscuits with the end of a rolling pin and place to the side.
7. Spoon a teaspoon of butter icing onto each cupcake and spread evenly over the top of the cupcakes. Press the biscuits crumbs into the butter icing and tap off the excess.
8. Place the remaining butter icing into a piping bag with a nozzle of your choice and pipe tall swirls onto each cupcake. (Note: This recipe uses a Wilton 2D nozzle).
9. Finally, lightly press the shells and silver sugar balls into the butter icing.
A huge thank you to Caroline Tranter for all her help with this.
Favourite Cocktails from Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop
In case you’d like to try a taste of Brides by the Sea at home, it’s become a bit of a tradition to include a few recipes at the end of the book. So here’s how to make some of the fab drinks featured in the book. Don’t stress too much about the quantities. At Brides by the Sea it’s much more about sloshing it in and having a good time. As Jess would say, LET THE FUN BEGIN …
POMEGRANATE MIMOSAS a.k.a. TICKLED PINK
A perfect combination of sweet and tart, these ruby red mimosas make a fabulous festive drink with a delightfully humourous alternative name.
120cc of sweetened pomegranate juice
1 bottle of champagne, chilled
Pomegranate seeds to garnish, (or lime slices work well too if you prefer)
Perfect served in champagne flutes. Put a dash of chilled pomegranate juice in a glass and top up with champagne. Float the pomegranate seeds (or lime slices) on top, and you’re ready to go.
CHRISTMOSAS
2 Granny Smiths Apples, cored and chopped
1 cup of whole fresh cranberries
1 cup of green grapes, cut in half
1 cup of pomegranate seeds
1 cup of chilled sparkling grape juice
(1 cup equals 30cc)
1 bottle of chilled champagne (prosecco or cava also work well and can be used instead)
Mix the prepared fruit together a bowl. When you’re ready to serve, add the sparkling grape juice and the champagne. Ladle into wide stemmed glasses, and enjoy!
CHAMPAGNE MARGARITAS
Adding champagne is a great way to give your standard margaritas a festive boost.
15cc (half a cup) fresh lime juice
30cc (one cup) tequila
15cc (half cup) Cointreau or orange liqueur
1 bottle champagne
Lime wedges and salt for glass rims
Place all the liquid ingredients in a large jug or pitcher and stir well to mix. Choosing champagne flutes, run a lime wedge around the rim of each glass, and dip into salt. Fill the glasses, and garnish with lime slices. These are delish. Stair climbing may be difficult after too many!
COCONUT AND VANILLA MILK BOTTLE COCKTAILS
These fun cocktails were served at the ski themed wedding in the book. Their creamy blend of coconut, vanilla vodka and warming nutmeg make them a perfect choice for Christmas parties too. For extra fun, serve in mini milk bottles.
100cc vanilla vodka
160cc coconut cream
1 tablespoon crème de cacao
Half a teaspoon of finely grated nutmeg
2 chocolate wafer straws to serve
Put a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker. Add the vanilla vodka, crème de cacao, coconut cream and grated nutmeg. Shake, and strain into two mini milk bottles. Serve with a rolled chocolate wafer in each.
Cheers!
Love Jane xx
Acknowledgements
A big thank you …
To my wonderful editor Charlotte Ledger, who becomes more talented, brilliant, supportive and lovely with every book we work on together. This series belongs to both of us, and I’ve had the best time writing these four books. To Kimberley Young and the team at HarperCollins, for the fabulous covers, and all round expertise and support. To my lovely agent, Amanda Preston, for being generous, wise, helpful and fun, and adding so much energy, support and inspiration.
To Debbie Johnson and Zara Stoneley, and my brilliant writing friends across the world. To the fabulous book bloggers, who spread the word.
A special shout ou
t and thank you to the most fabulous wedding related people we’ve met over the last couple of years … To Emily Bridal of Sheffield, whose shop and dresses are simply fab. Emily came up with the most amazing wedding dresses for both my girls. I literally get tears in my eyes every time I think of how beautiful she made them as brides. To Jenn Edwards and Natalie Manlove, and the Jenn Edwards Wedding Hair and Make-up Team, who travel nationwide, making women into the most beautiful versions of themselves. Jenn and Natty gave me hair and make-up that made me feel like Sera on the day of Alice’s wedding. I so love it when real life and fiction get mixed up. To Melanie Brunt from Drop Dead Gorgeous Sheffield for fab nail and beauty treatments and expertise. I’ll remember my bright pink gel nails forever. Thanks, and huge admiration go to brave and super-talented photographers Jon Dennis from S6 Photography, Sally from Sally T Photography, and Hannah from CameraHannah. Coming on to the sweet part, thanks to Ashleigh Marsh at Oh No! Delicious, for cakes so astonishing they take your breath away. And thanks to amazing cake baker, Caroline Tranter for bringing the cakes in the books to life, designing the recipes, and for letting us use her fab pictures. To High Street Bride guru, Samantha Birch for sharing her insider knowledge. To Losehill House Hotel, near Edale, and West Mill, in Derby, for two wedding days that could not have been more wonderful. Two very different venues, both spectacular, each perfect in their own way.
Big hugs, to India and Richard, for their amazing wedding, which is where this series began. And more hugs and good luck to Anna and Jamie whose very own Sequins and Snowflakes wedding in February was the happiest of days … complete with surprise snow the day before that almost sent this mother-of-the-bride over the edge. To my entire family, for cheering me on all the way. To my wonderful dad, and my lovely mum, who has been so courageous since she’s been on her own. To Max for being the man about our house, and bringing me cake. To Caroline for the cake. And big love to my own hero, Phil … You know all the down sides of living with a writer, and still hang on in there every day. Thank you for never letting me give up.