No cake!

I've just returned from 10 days in Spain. I had quite a lazy time - lounging by the pool and drinking lots of sangria! It wasn't all play though as I took my laptop with me and had some very productive days.

Whenever I go to France, I love to while away the hours visiting patisserie after patisserie. I don't actually buy something from every one I go past, but I do stop and look in every window. I love patisseries and become inspired by them very easily.

Spain isn't quite the same as France, or at least the south (where I was staying) isn't. There was the odd bread shop dotted around, and they were always closed when I went past, but that was it.

Whenever I saw a cake shop, I was quickly disappointed. Cakes tended to be of the pastry variety and full of cream. When you consider the heat in the south of Spain, this seemed a little odd.

To compensate for the lack of cake shops, I took matters into my own hands and whipped up an apricot tart. The pastry was easy to make (flour and butter. Due to the heat, I didn't need any water!) and was of the flaky variety! The creme anglaise was a little by eye (my measuring scales offering a mere guidance as to the weights one required) and the apricots - well, they merely required halving and removing the stones.

The finished tart was proof that you don't need a full stock cupboard or exciting cake shop. With the left over egg whites, I threw together some macarons which more than compensated a cake-free week!