Get ready for The Kiltwalk Cakebake Challenge 2014

It was Jim Hart who said to me "it's the way they do things up here, it’s very community orientated". This was his answer when I enquired about a Kiltwalk fundraising picture he’d taken in the lead up to last year’s Speyside Kiltwalk. It meant that by the time Karen Smith ran her event, to raise money for her 2012 Great Wall of China Kiltwalk, I knew what it was all about.

I am of course referring to the phenomenon that is the "soup and sweet", where the locals bake an endless amount of cake and serve it in the local hall, with soup, as a starter. What a great way to catch up with friends and raise some cash into the bargain.

Making cake and bringing it to events is definitely a North East thing, another reason why I loved my trips to Speyside, Aberdeen and Angus. As the Mitchell’s, Coull’s and several others descended upon the walks with tins packed full of homemade cake, where the trick is to make sure you're in the right place, at the right time, so as not to miss the delights inside these magical tins.

One such tin is the one shown above, which was full to the brim with what I can only describe as Caramel Shortbread meets Malteser Cake. It was an absolute delight where every mouthful was an immediate sugar rush injection.

The tin belonged to Elaine Coull and I just couldn't believe my luck when she pulled this out of her bulging bag of goodies and started to offer it around. I was also lucky enough to be 'on hand' when round two and round three came and boy was it tasty.

My keen sense of 'cake' and pure brass neck then spied that Oor Elaine Mitchell was also brandishing a cake tin, so I sauntered on over to 'enquire' if it was "as good as Elaine Coull's". It was like waving a red rag to a bull as Elaine M opened her box and proclaimed that hers would be "just as good, if not better" so I just had to try a bit, making it my fourth piece of the day. Well hour would be more accurate.

This got me thinking about next year and I must remember to run it by the team at Kiltwalk Towers, however I think it should be mandatory to have a Kiltwalk Cakebake stall where the locals bring their best efforts for tasting and the best cake wins a Kiltwalk prize. I also believe I'm suitably placed to "judge" such an event, therefore put myself forward for selection and election.

Therefore, ladies and gents of the North, get your baking skills refined and bring your entries along :-)

Finally, you may wonder how I managed to be the proud owner of the fabulous contents of the Elaine Coull cake tin? And the answer is, “it's Holly's fault”, well I'm blaming her anyway.

You see as I walked in munching cake, I grudgingly gave Holly a small morsel of this fabulous wonder and as her eyes light up as the taste sensation hit her, I knew I had to get her a piece of the prized cake all to herself.

So as Elaine got ready to leave. I wondered on over and asked if she “would be so kind as to provide me with one more piece for Holly”. This resulted in Elaine deciding to hand over the entire tin. What a result, or so I thought.

I made the mistake of leaving the tin in the back of the car and it would appear that I have mice in the back seat as the tin was significantly lighter when we arrived back in Glasgow. It would also appear Holly and Scott were suffering from “car sickness” as when I offered them a piece of the amber nectar, they declined saying they weren’t hungry. I wonder why?

Finally a quick message for Mrs Coull. I can report that your tin is empty, but safe and sound and I'll bring it along to the next Kiltwalk and swap it . . . for a full one :-)