HER grocery shopping list this week included 500 eggs and 60 blocks of butter. Gemma Lewis has been busy baking hundreds of brownies ahead of Jamie Oliver’s The Big Feastival this weekend.
Gemma works from her kitchen in Lower Parkstone, and has built up a strong following through her presence at food festivals and markets around Dorset.
But she admits she doesn’t have a background in baking.
“The reason I started baking was because I started having anxiety attacks when I was at university – I found baking a lovely, therapeutic thing to do.
“I like the whole, methodical, physical process of baking,” she explains.
And so her mobile business, Dark Matters, specialising in brownies and truffles, was launched last year.
“People always said they enjoyed them so I started selling them at markets and the brownies were always the best seller.”
Now she makes a wide range of brownies such as Queen of Sheba, almond and rose and pistachio, Salty Dog, baked salted caramel, Unholy Trinity with jaffa cake cookie dough, Lady Marmalade and Big Softy, as well as gluten-free varieties too.
“I try to change the menu each week and to keep it season when I can.”
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