Baking Fiasco (or How Shazmina LOST the Xmas Spirit)

Ok, so yesterday was the day I was to make the THREE Xmas cakes I had decided to bake for gifts to some of my peeps. What a DRAMA it turned out to be!

1. Was aiming to start the process EARLY Sunday morning. First fatal mistake, forgot to buy Treacle. Made an early morning (9am) dash to local Franklins, no treacle. Ok, made a dash (9.37am) to local Woolworths, not open until 10am. WHAT THE F*****! Waited for it to open. Purchased missing ingredient and a couple of extra things, did some quick xmas shopping and returned home by 11.15am.
2. Started step one, which involved boiling Guinness and treacle and soaking fruit. Second Fatal mistake, had to wait until the mixture was room temperature to go to next step. Do you know how long it takes for something to go to room temp in the middle of the day in summer??? TWO HOURS MINIMUM!
3. First time I have baked in the oven in my apartment. Fatal Mistake Three, trying to bake TWO cakes at a time in an untested oven.
4. After 45 minutes of the baking time, the cakes had blackened edges and bounced back to the touch AND skewer came out clean (very weird). So I pulled them out. Fatal mistake Four, they were very well cooked on the outside but not on the inside. Top of cakes collapsed under the strain.
5. TWO delicious Guinness fruitcakes ended up in my bin. What a waste! All that beautiful Guinness, treacle and fruit and it ended up in the bin! And the people who were going to get these cakes, will miss out on their deliciousness :( Luckily they didn't know they were receiving them!

What about cake number three I hear you ask? Well I cooked it on a lower heat and checked it every 15 minutes and it came out beautifully! AND it is all mine!!! MWAHAHAHAHA! After all the work I put in, I figure I deserve it all to myself! Ok, I may share a piece or two with you guys, but they will be very small pieces and you only get one each!! MWAHAHAHAHA!

So there you have it. Sunday 10th of December 2006 will be forever known as the Xmas Cake Disaster of 2006 (or how Shazmina spent a quiet Sunday sweating over a hot stove FOR NOTHING!!!)