The Story of Nosh II - My brother, the test subject.

The siblings of people who cook are of utmost importance to the whole research and development process of a foodie - particularly during the formative years. Fortunately, my parents had given me a younger brother on which to experiment.

Brothers with bottomless pits for stomachs make great test subjects because they are game to eat, try and taste - just about everything you make and I really mean that.

I was 13 and had just learnt to make sponge cakes and rock buns in home economics*. My brother and I were hungry. On taking a look at our financial resources, we had a few cents enough to buy some flour and butter, or a packet of crisps.

We lived in an apartment building and the local "mama" shop would sell these sundries. Usually they would have big tubs of flour or rice etc... and would package these bulk items into smaller plastic bags of aproximately 100gms to sell for 50cents.

I mixed :
The flour, butter, and caster sugar together with a 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda to make a basic cake mixture - then added raisins and an egg.
I then scooped the mix and divided it in heaped tablespoon portions onto grease proof paper ; setting the oven to 200 deg. to bake what were to be rock buns for about 20 minutes.

Whilst washing the utensils I remember wondering to myself why my hands felt soapy but thought nothing of it ofcouse - afterall, I was washing up!

When the cakes came out they were lovely and well browned. They looked fabulously appetising and I placed them infront of my brother who took one bite.. and gave me a most quizzical look.

"They taste kind of soapy" he said...

Then it all clicked into place - I hadn't bought flour - I had bought washing powder!**



*Now known as Domestic Science

**You might be wondering how daft I was to have bought washing powder instead of flour. Well, the bins in which the flour, rice and (apparently) washing powder were situated side by side. I have no idea why I grabbed the washing powder, thinking it was flour - they were both white to me at the time. I am pleased to say that I haven't made any more soapy tasting cakes to date.