Martha Brennan

MARTHA and her GUINNESS CRUFFIN 🍀 Martha is one of those people whose humble kindness just immediately disarms you. If she’s helped you from behind the pastry counter you know what I mean. I can’t tell you the number of messages and emails I’ve received since she started a year and a half ago praising our sweet lovely Irish girl 🥹Aside from being a hospitality queen, we’ve gotten to spend a lot more time with her in the back over the last few months and that has been such a treat. She jumped in so naturally, and I have loved watching her find her own rhythm in the kitchen, always asking questions and rapidly improving her skills and confidence, jumping in wherever she can without being asked. Martha is a writer, grinding out articles in between shifts, running and swimming and more, and still finds time to bake constantly in her free time and treat us to her efforts. It all felt like it came together with this cruffin, watching her take ownership over the whole process and find a way to make her vision come together made me so proud!!!! Martha says “Working at B&C comes with no shortage of fun experiences, but one of my all time favorites has been getting to develop our own pastries for International Women’s Day. I moved here from Ireland a few years ago, so I always try to use the opportunity to bring a little piece of home to the bakery. This year, I wanted to experiment with Guinness, which is definitely a taste that’s acquired over a few years of sipping what we call ‘the black stuff’. But the flavors of stout are actually big crowd-pleasers: malt and dark chocolate. I feel like we really managed to hone the strong flavors of Irish stout in a muted but impactful way. This cruffin turned out indulgent but balanced, and I love how you can taste the Guinness notes without it being overly sweet. I hope everyone else enjoys it too! Sláinte 💚” Cruffin filled with a coffee Guinness diplomat cream with a malt ganache, tossed in cocoa sugar

Chocolate Guinness Cake 🍻 Number 15 and counting this year… #chocolatecake #guinnesscake #irishbaking #cakerecipe #cake #baking

Writing about the best sourdough in San Francisco this week and got inspired. White loaf with a little extra salt and four folds. Forgot about her for an hour but she made it through 🥖 #baking #bread #sourdough

Queen Vic 🍓 BBC Good Food sponge (great for pared-down, classic recipes), vanilla cream, and homemade strawberry jam. Easy frozen berry jam: - Toss 2 cups of frozen berries into a bowl (about 300g) with 1/2 cup of sugar (150g) and a tablespoon of lemon juice. - Leave overnight (or for two nights if you’re forgetful like me) - Simmer until thick. - The jam should reach 220F/104C on a thermometer when set. Or just put some on a cold plate to test. #baking #recipes #easyrecipe #easybaking #cake #irishfood #jam

A little late but last month marked my one year anniversary at @butter.and.crumble !! What I thought would end up being a fun side gig while I took a break from news writing has ending up becoming such a big part of my life. I can’t begin to explain how much I’ve learned from the many superwomen in this crazy land of butter and dough, but I can tell you how lucky I feel to now call them my friends. Can’t wait for all the rolling, proofing, and avoiding high gluten flour to come 🥐🍰🧈

Papaya and pineapple smoothie bowl 🌺 - 1/2 Frozen banana - 1/2 Ripe papaya - Handful of chopped frozen pineapple - 1 tsphoney - 1/2 cup coconut milk - Pinch of shredded coconut - 1 inch of grated ginger and a squeeze of lime Blend and top with homemade granola, berries, bee pollen, seeds and honey. #breakfast #recipes #easyrecipe #smoothie

It’s not a dinner party until someone finally buys a bread knife… Menu: - Walnut and Guinness soda bread and Ballymaloe yeast loaf with brown butter, pesto, and honey butter. - Caesar salad Parmesan cups. - Roasted leg of lamb with crispy potatoes, honey drizzled carrots, and balsamic tomatoes. - Vanilla strawberry sponge cake with chantilly cream. #dinnerparty #dinner #lamb #bread #ballymaloe #cake #butter #potatoes

Crowned viccy sponge 🌸 I used @rubybhogal ’s princess cake recipe for the sponge (amazing) along with some chanitlly cream and too many strawberries 🍓 It did not stop @gina__rain from leaving. #baking #cake #dessert #cakedecorating

A moment for the bread 🥖 #baking #bread #easyrecipes

Vanilla Oreo cake with a litttttle extra crumb… This was a really easy recipe from @preppykitchen , I skipped the ganache and used two 8 inch pans with the same cooking time. Trust the lumpy dough and add an extra layer of Oreos on the inside for good measure. #baking #cake #oreo #oreocake #recipes #food

Easy Irish scone recipe ☘️ - 350g flour - ½ teaspoon of salt - 4 ½ teaspoons of baking powder - ¼ teaspoon of baking soda - 80g sugar - 75g of Kerrygold butter - 2 eggs - 200ml buttermilk Method: - Preheat the oven to 200C/425F and line tray with parchment paper. Place it in the oven to heat. - Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. - Cut butter into small cubes and rub into flour mixture with your hands until the dough resembles fine crumbs. - Add in any fruits or toppings you want to incorporate. (I like using a cup of blueberries and the zest of a full lemon). - Mix with your hands and make a well in the center. - In a separate bowl, whisk the milk with one egg. Pour into the dry ingredients and slowly stir everything together using your hand. - Turn dough onto a heavy floured surface and lightly pat down into a round about an inch thick. - Stick stamper or the top of a small glass into the flour and stamp out scones, gathering any trimmings back together as you go. - Transfer to the hot tray. - Whisk the other egg into a small bowl and use it to brush the tops of the scones. - Bake for about 15 minutes until golden. Full Recipe: /crumbchronicles/post/authentic-irish-scone-recipe

A recent order for an office potluck - Spiced chocolate chip pumpkin bars 🎃 - Guittard brownie bites 🍫 - Brown butter cookies with sea salt🍪 #baking #cookies #brownies #sanfrancisco #dessert