DOES your Victoria sponge come up to scratch?
Does your own fluffy batter take a beating in any contest?
A blueberry and marzipan fancy always pushes the buttons around here - when we decide to get the whisk out. While our annual honey and almond effort scoffs at other scoffables.
But if you think you can do better, now is your chance to put your money where your cakehole is.
Writer and television presenter Cherry Healey (clue is not in the name) is returning Liverpool for the second year to guest judge the O-Very Cake Bake and back North West Cancer Research’s (NWCR) O-Very, Ovarian Cancer Awareness Campaign.
Nice work if you can get it: Judges deliberating last time
This Friday, 22 March, bakers from across the North West are invited to enter their cake with a chance at being crowned O-Very Cake Bake Champion 2013.
Returning to the O-Very Cake Bake judging panel for a second year will be Wirral-born Claire Lara, the first woman to win BBC2’s Masterchef: The Professionals. It will also see Leaf proprieter Natalie Raw both judging and creating a special tea blend for the occasion.
O'Very nice indeed.
There are eight categories: Loaf tin cake, Cupcake, Occasion cake, Scones, Cheesecake, Biscuits/cookies, Victoria sponge and macaroons. All the stuff you need to know is directly below.
*The O-Very Cake Bake is 22 March at LEAF (65-67 Bold Street, Liverpool L1 4EZ). Entrants can enter from 11am-2pm and there is a £5 entry fee per cake. The winners will be announced at 5.30pm and the eight category winners will receive a £30 Lakeland voucher.
To find out more about North West Cancer Research, the O-Very Cake Bake and the O-Very Ovarian Awareness Campaign please visit www.nwcr.org
'Silent killer'
Ovarian cancer affects nearly 7,000 and kills almost 4,400 women every year and while other cancers are more openly talked about ovarian cancer remains a taboo subject.
Best known for her successful documentaries on BBC3, NWCR say they were keen to work with Ms Healy again to raise awareness of the disease and its symptoms.
She said: “I am very excited to return to the North West to guest judge the O-Very Cake Bake and support the campaign.
“Genes causing ovarian cancer can be passed down through families so the more we learn to talk about it the more cases we can diagnose early and hopefully treat. This is why I am especially honoured to meet some young women from St Julie’s and talk to them about the symptoms of ovarian cancer.”
Money raised by NWCR has been funding world-class research at University of Liverpool that uses fruit flies to investigate the role of proteins in the spread of ovarian cancer.
Anne Jackson, Chief Executive of NWCR said: “Although figures are improving in England and deaths from ovarian cancer have fallen by a fifth in a decade there is still work to be done. Detecting the illness at an early stage is crucial and by working with Cherry we hope to raise awareness of the symptoms and enable women to know the warning signs."
Dubbed the silent killer, ovarian cancer presents itself with symptoms such as abdominal pain, fatigue, distension and a loss of appetite.
