A low calorie look at life, writing and cake.

Friday, 11 May 2012

Fifty Shades of Fat

Call me a glutton for punishment – well, just call me a glutton really – but I have gone and done it again. Oh yes, having perched and protruded on a zillion rickety chairs in a million church halls being preached to about syns, calories and points along with all the usual fascist (fattist?) teachings of a perfectly proportioned leader - I have joined yet another slimming club. To say this is a road already well-travelled would be a slight understatement as my reputation goes before me in the world of pounds and puddings. As a serial slimmer I am notorious with every slimming club leader within a fifty mile radius of my home. We all know there is little hope - me and slimming clubs are to fat what Liz Taylor and Richard Burton were to true love. Like those star-crossed Hollywood lovers, I keep going back, seduced by promises that this time it will be different. But just like Richard and Liz, the passion soon dies, reality sets in and I'm faced with failure, disappointment and divorce.  

So as a shiny new member of a slimming club (again) I'm ignoring lessons from the past and devouring pictures of cake porn while imagining warm scones slathered with cold butter. All the time I'm filling my hungry head with obsessive internal maths: ‘If I lose 2 pounds a week then in six weeks time I’ll be blah...’ Unfortunately ‘blah’ is a good way of describing my waistline right now. It’s sort of fat and meaningless. But my life isn’t – it’s fun and full and busy and happy – so why do I feel the need to drag myself to a cold prefab on a warm day and pay to sit zombie-like in front of someone who's telling me stuff I already know? Why? Because I am in thrall to freshly baked, crusty bread, red wine and gooey Brownie heaven in a way I never could be with an apple – no matter how ‘crisp’ and ‘green’ and ‘fresh.’ Does chocolate taste as good as slim feels? No, it damn well doesn't, the chocolate tastes so much better. When I want stick-to-the-roof-of-my-mouth chocolate goo - I want it now! And I will never, in that single, lustful moment, equate what I’m putting in my mouth with the consequences to my hips. This is why, for most of my life I have worn varying shades of fat.

 But I will go on, swimming against the tide, joining slimming classes year on year like some crack head looking for a cure. And over the next few weeks I’ll count syns, points, calories pounds and proteins in an OCD checking fashion while wondering why I’m so obsessed with food (!!).  But what else can I do? I know slimming clubs aren’t the real answer, but failing an intervention from Jillian Michaels, the alternative is too horrific to bear. Left to my own devices and desires I would embrace the heavily buttered warm scones and engulf deep chocolate cake harbouring whipped, fresh cream without guilt or self flagellation. Oh but I already did that  ...and trust me the results ain't pretty.

So it’s rickety chairs in church halls and confessional classes filled with guilt and envy and maths and Summer’s coming and I can’t do another sweaty holiday of black jersey and bulging bingo wings.
And if I eat 1,000 calories a day I could lose two pounds a week and then in six weeks I could be ...blah?

I’ll keep you posted....


Friday, 16 December 2011

Strictly Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes!

Having enjoyed Russel Grant more than anyone else in this year's Strictly, (he will always be my winner) - I want to celebrate the final of Strictly Come Dancing and share my recipe for Chilli Chocolate Cha Chas. This fairy cake recipe is from the 'Strictly Collection,' as made by Stella, the heroine of 'Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes' and is a sparkly little titbit to be enjoyed while watching Chelsee Pasha, Harry & Aliona and Jason & Kristina dance under the glitter ball at Blackpool Tower on Saturday night. So as they Rumba, Salsa, Tango and Jive their way through  the evening, put your feet up, pour a large glass of wine and enjoy your own kind of cha cha!  

So here it is - put on your dancing shoes - get in the kitchen and create a slice of strictly with this little twinkle-toed-tit-bit from Stella’s recipe collection.
 Chocolate Chilli Fairy Cha Chas with Spangly Frills
These simple-to-make cheeky little fairies are lively, sweet and just a little bit spicy. The heat is in the buttercream, so if you are baking for children or don’t like chilli, just bake the cakes as directed and leave the chilli out of the buttercream... they are still cha chas, just a little more restrained.

Now before you begin just let your hips sway very slowly, feel that music and just let those Latin rhythms pulse through the body as you cha cha round the kitchen collecting the ingredients.  Makes about 12 cha chas!

 N.B The recipe is in the back of Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes – so if you haven’t quite finished reading it stay ‘strictly’ with the recipes – and no peeking to see what happens at the end!


Ingredients

 2 free range eggs

110g or 4oz caster(?) sugar

110g or 4oz self raising flour

110g or 4oz butter melted

½ tablespoon cocoa powder

12 red metallic paper cases (they remind me of strappy scarlet dancing shoes).


Chilli Buttercream

70g or 2 ½ oz butter, softened

140g or 5oz icing sugar

25g or 1oz cocoa

1-2 tablespoons milk

¼ level teaspoon chilli (or to taste)

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ tablespoon milk

Red sparkly bits and edible red glitter


Method
Cha cha over to the oven and turn it to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and fill cake tins with paper cases.
Now whisk the eggs and sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy – all the time swaying those hips and taking little cha cha steps (it improves the texture, trust me). Slow down the tempo now and fold in the flour, cocoa and melted butter.

 Spoon mixture into scarlet stilettos (or shiny red paper cases)and bake for 20-25 minutes until springy to the touch.

 For the frosting
When the cakes have chilled out on their wire rack – they will be ready for their dancing dresses.

Beat the butter in a large bowl until soft. Add half of the icing sugar and beat until smooth.

 Add the remaining icing sugar, chilli and cinnamon and the milk and beat the mixture until creamy and smooth. Check the taste and add a little more chilli if you fancy something hot, hot, hot and beat in extra milk, if necessary, to loosen the mixture.

 Now top those cha cha fairies and throw on some red sparkles and bling, take a big chocolate chilli bite and dance the night away.

This recipe along with many others – including the outrageously Christmassy, ‘Inebriated Christmas Tarts,’ and ‘Cranberry and White Chocolate Christmas Fairies,’ can be found in ‘Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes.’ The book is available in paperback and kindle from Amazon, all good online booksellers and in some Waterstone’s stores.


http://www.fatgirlsandfairycakes.co.uk/




The Chocolate Chilli Cha Cha in her spangly red frills.

Tuesday, 6 September 2011

Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes Goes Live!

Well it's about to happen -  Fat Girls and fairy cakes is out on Thursday and the ebook is available now. I'm excited and delighted and worried that no-one will buy it and if they do they might not like it and..... oh all those things a new writer (probably any writer) goes through before a book comes out.
Anyway I'm very lucky - I have had a ton of support from everyone. Thanks to Rickshaw Publishing who have nurtured my writing and given me my own happy ending by realising my dream. I have also had lots of encouragement and cake from all my family and friends - not to mention my lovely literary tweeps at Love a Happy Ending. And a big thank you to all the magazines who have provided such lovely reviews this week - Take a Break, Closer, Now, Bella and Candis have all said wonderful things about Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes.
I'll be doing signings at Waterstone's stores around the country in the next couple of months and once I've finalised my 'Fat Girls on Tour' schedule I'll post it here in the hope that someone who reads my blog will come and say hello!

Hope you buy the book.....hope you like it! x

A sparky, Funny debut novelthat combines a cute chick-lit tale with cake recipes. What's not to like about that? Bella

Don't read this on an empty stomach! Book of the Week in Now

You'll want to devour this smart and fabulously funny read in one go! Closer ****


Sue Watson’s debut novel is as every bit delicious as the cakes she describes. With an obnoxious boss and a demanding family life, you’ll be rooting for the fabulous heroine right up until the last pages. Treat yourself to this engaging read, and make sure you’ve got a glass of wine and a sugary treat to hand – you’ll feel very hungry otherwise!”Take a Break


“Laugh out loud funny ...this is a thoroughly enjoyable debut novel that will have you reading bits of it to anyone within earshot." Candis Magazine

Saturday, 13 August 2011

Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes ... the reviews so far!

I haven't blogged this week -  in the light of all the riots and fear I felt my twittering on about cake and books would probably be a little shallow even for me. Now the riots have died down however, I can reach new depths of superficiality in this latest blog - all about ME. Yes forget about war-torn Britain, the Global Economy and who's actually going to be in Celebrity Big Brother (though I'll admit that one's got me going).
The biggest thing that's about to happen is less than a month away - the publication of my chicklit tome Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes!
On 8th September my  tale of love, loss, friendship and cake will finally hit the shelves online and off and I may be visiting a Waterstones near you - so watch this space!
Meanwhile, to whet your appetite I thought you might like to know what some lovely magazines have already said about my life's work;

"You'll want to devour this smart and fabulously funny read in one go!"
Closer Magazine
“Sue Watson’s debut novel is as every bit delicious as the cakes she describes. With an obnoxious boss and a demanding family life, you’ll be rooting for the fabulous heroine right up until the last pages. Treat yourself to this engaging read, and make sure you’ve got a glass of wine and a sugary treat to hand – you’ll feel very hungry otherwise!”
Take a Break

“Laugh out loud funny ...this is a thoroughly enjoyable debut
novel that will have you reading bits of it to anyone within earshot."
Candis Magazine






Monday, 1 August 2011

Pink Champagne and Fairy Cakes


My friend and writing teacher Sue Johnson launches her novel Fable's Fortune today. A contemporary romance built on a fairytale structure – with a touch of new age magic, it's available from Amazon and a fabulous read. Sue is currently celebrating her book launch with a fountain of champagne and cheeks-full of cherry liquers (yum). This has made me think of my own book launch (have I already mentioned that Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes is out on 8th Sept... I think I might have?) Anyway, I'm thinking bathfulls of champers and acres of fairy cakes. I'm also planning a Fairy Cake cocktail recipe which I will reveal nearer the time.

Saturday, 9 July 2011

Sex, Cake and Videotape - or My Thursday Afternoons Locked in a Hotel Room with Sir Terry Wogan

"I remember Sue Watson with great affection as an excellent,good humoured and ever "flexible" producer. Thank Heaven she has kept what really happened at Cliveden to herself, otherwise it might have been super-injunction time! Wish her blockbusting success with her book. I'll be reading..."
Terry.

(Sir Terry Wogan) 

 
One of my favourite memories while working at the BBC was renting a hotel room by the hour with Sir Terry Wogan. Every Thursday afternoon we would meet in the hallowed portals of Lady Astor’s former home, Cliveden and as the twinkling eyed Sir Terry entered the bedroom I would greet him from the four poster bed, ready and waiting for our time together.