Apps and the good old fashioned printer are ways to preserve the past and family memories, writes Rosalind Erskine.
I’ve always loved baking, something that I attribute to my mum and spending time with her in the kitchen as a child making cakes and biscuits. I even supplied baked goods to a local cafe in Glasgow many years ago, and harbour dreams of one day being on the Bake Off. But one thing I sadly no longer have are family recipes from those no longer with us.
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My great gran, who, along with my gran and aunt looked after me regularly after school, made a wonderful clootie dumpling as did my cousin’s gran (known to us all as nanny). She also made light as airy fairy cakes, empire biscuits and rock buns and would appear at my aunt’s house, where inevitably all us children were, with a huge tupperware full of baked goods.
My aunt would be the first to admit she’s no baker, so we never asked for these recipes and along with the wonderful ladies who made them, they’re gone. Lost to the memories of childhood and my dad’s occasional wondering if I can replicate the clootie dumpling, if nothing else.I have tried but it’s beyond my attempts so far.
But now, there are modern ways and means to keep these recipes alive. Scran app, which launched earlier this year, is a wonderful example. Users can scan recipes into the app via their phone and choose a format which works best for them to view the recipe. These can then be stored on the app, creating a personalised digital recipe book.
In more analogue ways, TV star Lorriane Kelly has recently teamed up with HP to launch The National Book of Bakes – a nationwide project to find Britain’s treasured family baking recipes and preserve them in print.
It’s too late for my family's clootie dumpling but I’m going to make sure my mum’s recipes are in an app for use with my nephews, the next generation of keen bakers.