Wednesday 17 December 2014

❅ all is bright

this month at Cake Club 
the idea was to bake something you'd
like to trial for Christmas
this recipe was in a book owned
by my friend Cheryll
and it ticked all the boxes!
despite all the seemingly complicated steps
it's really easy to make and proper delicious
as the ladies of cake club will agree ....
they renamed this cake
sexy log! 

apple & butterscotch {sexy} log


you will need ....

for the sponge ~ 
75g caster sugar
85g self raising flour
4 large eggs separated

preheat oven to 180c/ gas 4
line and grease a swiss roll tin {25 x 38cm}
sift the flour into a bowl

in another bowl
beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale
sift the flour once more onto this mixture 
and fold in gently
beat the egg whites to stiff peaks
add a third to the yolk mixture
then gently fold in the rest
pour into the swiss roll tin
and bake for 6-8 minutes until golden
cool in the tin for 2 minutes 
then place on a rack and cover with a tea towel
for the caramel apples ~
2 apples
a small knob of butter
50g soft light brown sugar

peel & core the apples and cut into 1cm cubes
add them to a pan with the sugar and butter
cook on a high heat for 10 mins or so
until apples are slightly soft and brown
cool completely
for the butterscotch cream ~
450ml double cream
100g butter
200g soft light brown sugar
50g icing sugar

place 150ml of the cream, butter and brown sugar in a pan
bring to a boil then lower to a simmer
cook for 5-10 minutes
until thick and golden
leave to cool completely
put the remaining cream and icing sugar
in a bowl and whisk until thick
fold in the cooled butterscotch sauce

putting it together!
carefully remove the baking paper from
the sponge, either put it onto the tea towel
or cut a fresh piece of baking paper
spread a thin layer of butterscotch cream 
all over the sponge
then spoon the apples along one edge
using the tea towel or paper to help
start to roll up the log
tightly as you can
once rolled, cut a piece off at an angle
this will be a 'branch'

put the log onto a plate or board
cover it in the remaining butterscotch cream
using a fork or skewer to make bark effects!
adorn with festive pieces 
shower with icing sugar
happy holidays!

Friday 12 September 2014

☼ seasons

when your local market or supermarket 
sells good things
it's time to find a recipe to bake
not with these huge juicy grapes 
but with figs

fig & almond torte {gluten free}

you will need ....

2 figs, thinly sliced
75g unsalted butter ~ heated in a pan, browned and cooled
150g ground almonds
80ml honey
a teaspoon ground ginger
a dash of vanilla extract
an egg yolk
flaked almonds
grease a 7" round loose bottomed tin
then
in a large bowl mix all the ingredients
except for figs and flaked almonds

put this mixture into the greased tin
spreading it evenly
top with the sliced figs 
sprinkle with flaked almonds
and put in the freezer for 30 minutes

preheat the oven to 150c/ gas 2
bake the torte for 25-30 minutes until golden
leave to cool completely in the tin
 delicious on it's own or with cream
recipe from London Bakes
~

Friday 28 March 2014

▹► your mother should know

 did I tell you I've been going to cake club?
once a month, local ladies meet up
to eat our bakes
this months theme was Mothers Favourites
now mine likes lemon drizzle
but I decided to make it with the flavours I like
after all I am a Mama too :-)

lime, ginger and coconut cake

you will need ....

200g butter
175g caster sugar
200g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
50g coconut
1 tsp ground ginger
3 eggs
lots of limes {I used 4}
4 balls of stem ginger {chopped}
2 tbsp milk
a pinch of salt

for the drizzle ....
3 tbsp of the syrup from the ginger
3 tbsp caster sugar
the juice of two limes

heat the oven to 180c/gas 4
line a loaf tin with greaseproof
in a large bowl
mix butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy
add the eggs one at a time
beating well in between each
add the grated zest of 3 of the limes
and the pinch of salt

stir in chopped ginger and coconut
then fold through flour, baking powder,
the juice from 2 limes and the milk
until smooth

spoon into prepared loaf tin and bake for an hour or so
test for doneness with a skewer

cool the cake for about 5 minutes 
meanwhile mix together sugar, ginger and lime juice
make holes in the top of your loaf 
and drizzle drizzle drizzle 
cool in the tin completely 
then remove and cut and devour!
happy mothers day

Monday 17 February 2014

๛ long time no cake

goodness it's been a while since 
I posted a recipe hasn't it?

it's easy to resort to old favourites when baking
but when you have ingredients to use up
then it's time to invent


cherry & ginger loaf

you will need ....
175g plain flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
75g soft brown sugar
75g butter
4 or 5 balls of stem ginger ~ chopped
1 tablespoon of the syrup from the jar
50g glacé cherries ~ chopped
6 tablespoons milk

line a loaf tin with baking parchment
preheat the oven to 180c/gas 4

put all the dry ingredients into a large bowl
 rub in the butter until it looks like sand
stir in the chopped cherries and ginger
add the milk and ginger syrup
 mix to a stiff dough
gently push into the tin 
bake for 1 hour then leave to cool
delicious!