CAKES AND CONVERSATION

I hosted my annual charity coffee morning to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support. Billed as the World's Biggest Coffee Morning, it's an event held on the last Friday of September to bring people together for coffee, cakes and conversation and to raise funds to enable Macmillan Cancer Support. I always try to entice people to my home by offering homemade cakes and over the past three years, my chocolate brownies, or rather Nigella's chocolate brownies (I use her recipe - it's the best I know), have become very popular. I'm not a great cake-maker, but brownies are so easy that I always make them. I also made Forgotten Cookies (see separate post) and could not resist buying a Battenberg cake from M&S, as it's one of my favourites.

It was lovely to gather a small group of friends together for coffee, cakes and conversation, and I was struck, not for the first time, at how lucky I am to have such a nice group of friends: many are women I have met through the primary school, or through my teaching (or both), or my bookclub, or are friends made in my "previous life", when I worked in publishing.

I think those who attended would agree with me when I say that the highlight of the morning was Claire's chocolate macaroons. These were not dainty, Laduree-type macarons, but random discs of chewy chocolately almondy loveliness, sandwiched together with whipped cream and blackberry conserve. They were so popular that hardly any of the other cakes were eaten, and I was able to take a generous tin full of Forgotten Cookies and brownies to supper with friends in the evening.

A big thank you to everyone who joined me on Friday morning and for your generous donations, in person and online at Just Giving. I have raised nearly £200 so far!

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