When the Great British Bake Off started in 2010 it was just another of the cooking shows that I watched, but this time it triggered something in me.  I’m not usually one for the reality shows that seem to have become so popular in the 00’s but with GBBO I was hooked. I sat there week after week talking at the screen when something went wrong, amazed at the new ideas for the simplest bakes and whether or not I could do it. It wasn’t until the third series in 2012, that I decided to do something about it.

It all started with the Technical challenges. The contestants on the show were being tested on their baking skills, so I decided to do the same.  Every weekend I made the same technical bake as the show, especially if it was something I had never made.

The following year the idea got bigger as I decided to start a blog about the bakes. I documented every challenge with photos and wrote honestly about each outcome.  The aim, to give a truthful portrayal of what each technical actually involved, rather than the polished version on the TV.

After a few years of just the technical challenges, there was a need to crank up the heat with the following year so along with technical I chose to stretch myself with the signature bakes too.  I’ve never really made up recipes before so this really stretched the creative muscles!

At the end of 2014 I got engaged, which meant there was a wedding to plan.  The result meant I’d have less time to dedicate to the GBBO challenge. Instead of doing the two challenges, I chose to cut it back to just one, the Showstopper! Thinking this would be less time consuming I was certainly in for a shock!

The showstoppers were the ultimate test of my skill!