Ruby's crumbs of wisdom
When Ruby Tandoh applied for last year's Great British Bake Off, she could never have predicted the level of attention she would receive.
The philosophy student's bakes proved a hit in the tent, but she came under fire from viewers who accused her of flirting with judge Paul Hollywood and weeping her way to the final. Even French chef Raymond Blanc waded in, reportedly appearing to accuse her of being too thin to appreciate good food.
Instead of burying her head in her mixing bowl, Tandoh fought back, taking on the Twitter detractors (even calling one a "bitter old witch"), landing herself a highprofile newspaper column, and writing her first cookbook, Crumb.
"Obviously, the general motto should always be ' just ignore it', but every now and again, someone's going to say something that's particularly unfair, and I don't think there's any harm in answering back," says the softly-spoken 22-year-old.
"It was really uncomfortable at the time, and it does kind of put a downer on some of the experience. But it's not scarred me for life."
As for the suggestion that Hollywood fancied her, the former model - who has tucked herself away in the quietest corner of a restaurant for our interview - laughs.
"I think it was purely paternal. The accusation that I was flirting, and the counter-accusation that he was fancying me, were both ridiculous and unfounded. It was quite funny in a way, because I found it so absurd..."
The recipes for Crumb, which "focus on flavour, not frippery", were tested in the North London flat she shares with three fellow students. She's just started her second year of a philosophy and history of art degree, having taken a year out to write the baking book.
"The kitchen's always grimy," Essex-born Tandoh confesses with a smile. "It doesn't matter how many times I clean it; it's like a magnet for grease."
Her debut features a mix of new flavours and old favourites, but you won't find any pictures of glittery pink cupcakes or sugary sweet cake pops (although there is a recipe for simply iced camomile and vanilla cupcake).
"I'm as big a fan of trashy, kitsch stuff as anyone, but when I'm baking, I don't want to go to those lengths," says Tandoh, who recently tweeted a snap of a hammer attacking a cupcake dur- ing National Cupcake Week.
"Obviously, there are things you can do to make [food] look nicer, and I'm all for that, within reason. But if you're spending longer on decoration than on the actual baking, then I think you're doing it wrong."
She intends to keep juggling baking and studying, and has already filled another notepad with recipes. As for Bake Off, she's still in touch with her fellow contestants, and has been tuning into the latest series.
"It's a lot more pleasant to watch now I'm not in it," she admits. "I feel a lot calmer."
Got the baking bug? Here are some recipes from Tandoh to try at home.
Banana bread Makes a 900g loaf 125g unsalted butter, soft 110g agave nectar (if you'd rather make this with normal sugar, swap the agave for 140g of caster/light brown soft sugar and add 50ml milk with the rum or brandy) 2 medium bananas, well mashed 2tbsp rum or brandy 2 large eggs 190g plain flour 11/2tsp baking powder 1/2tsp cinnamon 1/4tsp salt 4 cardamom pods, seeds only, crushed For the glaze: 100g icing sugar 25ml water Preheat the oven to 180C/fan160C/gas mark 4. Grease and line a 900g loaf tin with baking parchment.
Cream the butter then stir in the agave nectar. Beat in the bananas and rum or brandy, then the eggs and a couple of teaspoons of the flour. Beat until smooth, but don't worry if it looks a little curdled at this stage. Combine the remaining flour with the baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom and salt in a separate bowl then add this to the wet mixture. Fold the ingredients together then stir lightly until fully combined.
Spoon the mix into the prepared tin and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
While the cake is in the oven, make the drizzle icing: add the water to the icing sugar, a teaspoonful at a time, until combined. Set aside.
Once the cake is done, let it cool in its tin for five minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack set over a tray (to catch any drips of surplus icing). Spoon the icing over the top of the cake while it's still hot. It'll cover the top and run down the sides in thick rivulets, but will set to a cracked sugar crust as the cake cools. Chorizo and kale flatbread (Serves 2) 250g strong white flour 1tsp instant dried yeast 1/2tsp salt 175ml lukewarm water 5tbsp olive oil 100g chorizo, diced 125g kale or cavolo nero, stalks removed and finely shredded Combine the flour and yeast in a large bowl, stir in the salt and add the water, along with one tablespoon of the olive oil. Mix with your hands until well combined then tip out onto a clean surface and knead for 10 minutes, or until elastic and less sticky.
Let it rise for an hour or so; you're looking for it to double in size.
While waiting for the dough to rise, bring a pan of water to the boil and add the kale or cavolo nero. Boil for just one minute, then drain and run through with cold water. Once cool, gently press out any excess water from the greens.
Knead just under half of the kale into the risen dough. It'll be a little tricky, due to the residual moisture on the leaves, but there's no need to worry about it being perfect.
Preheat the oven 190C/fan170C/gas mark 5.
Tip out the dough onto a floured surface, dust it with more flour and roll out to around 20cm in diameter. Now you'll have to
to use your hands to stretch the dough the remaining distance: when held up by one edge, the rest of the dough should stretch downwards under its own weight. It will tend to shrink back a little as it rests, so just carry on stretching the dough until it's approximately 22 x 33cm after shrinkage. Don't worry if some bits are a little thicker than others. Also, it's not a disaster if there are one or two holes in the bread - think of it as rustic.
Grease the bottom of a 22 x 33cm baking tray, Swiss roll tin or roasting dish with two tablespoons of the remaining olive oil and lay the dough down.
Let the bread prove at room temperature for 15 minutes then sprinkle over the remaining kale and then the chorizo. Gently pat the toppings down then dimple the dough using your fingertips. This is particularly useful here, as it helps to semi-embed some of the topping, securing it to the dough.
Let prove for a further five minutes, then drizzle over the final two tablespoons of olive oil and bake for 20 minutes.