There is a lovely lady who lives in my village who is gluten intolerant, and was one of my first customers when I initially launched WendyBakes. Whenever I advertise any special offers, such as Mother's Day biscuits, or Easter treats she is the first to respond and place an order, and is one of my best repeat customers.
Recently, she has been SUPER busy at work, but when they have family events and she offers to bring dessert she still wants to take something delicious and home made that she can enjoy, but will also suit the rest of the family, who are able to eat gluten. So her strategy is to call on me!
I just love these commissions, because they are always bespoke, and they usually require me to recreate an old family recipe. Basically, she has a mental list of puddings she remembers from her childhood which she has not been able to enjoy since she was diagnosed, and describes them to me so I can bake her a gluten free alternative! How fun is that?
The latest challenge is something I have never eaten myself. In essence it is a shortcrust pastry pie case, filled with an unbaked cheesecake mix, and topped with fresh fruit (a la French patisserie kind of vibe). I'm thinking I might need some sort of barrier layer to stop the pastry from going soggy whilst the cheesecake sets, and think I may go off brief and add a jammy barrier in between the layers...but we shall see.
I do enjoy making tried and tested bakes that I know are going to work every time, but it is also fun to experiment with different ideas and get my creative juices going in the kitchen. It would never do to get bored, so hope she doesn't run out of family favourites any time soon! !