Beginner's Pluck: Rosanne Hewitt-Cromwell

Rosanne inherited a love of baking from her mother. After college, she worked in the fashion industry, in fashion retail management, until 2011, when she accepted redundancy. Meanwhile, her husband Jay was out at college three nights a week, leaving Rosanne alone and bored.

“My mother died before I was 21. Baking helped me to remember her. Then two years ago, after reading a lot of blogs, I decided blogging would be a good way to keep track of my baking and to reference things. I write as if I was talking to friends and telling them stories. I had a call from a literary agent; I put a proposal together, and we got a deal.”

Who is Rosanne Hewitt-Cromwell?

Date/place of birth: Feb 6, 1981/Dublin

Education: Maryfield College in Drumcondra; Marketing Institute of Ireland; Ballymun DIT.

Home: Lusk, County Dublin.

Family: Husband Jay; my dad and two sisters.

The Day Job: Blogger, baker and writer.

Interests: Reading, photography, walking.

Favourite Writers: Tessa Kiros; Maura Laverty. And I love Nigel Slater and Nigella Lawson. The way they describe food makes you want to lick the page.

Second Book: I’m thinking of one. I want to combine baking and cooking.

Top Writing Tip: To write in your own natural voice and not force a style that doesn’t come comfortably to you.

Web: www.likemamusedtobake.com.

Twitter: @likemamuse2bake

THE DEBUT

Like Mam Used to Bake. Mercier, €17.99; Kindle, €14.72.

After the success of The Great Irish Bake Off, there is a new surge of interest in baking. This book, written in memory’s of Rosanne’s mother, is a wonderful mixture of everyday recipes, and some hugely original treats; many of them have her own exotic twist. For example, there’s a delectable chocolate trifle and a mint crisp pie. And the recipes are easy to follow.

“I’m not a pastry chef. Everything I do I create in my tiny kitchen. You don’t need space and time in order to succeed.”

The Verdict: Fabulous! My copy is covered in flour and butter.