Showing posts with label Cakes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cakes. Show all posts
At the weekend I baked a Chocolate Cream pie because I was craving something naughty and sweet. I used what should have been a pretty reliable recipe, but for some reason the chocolate didn't set up at all. I ended up flushing it. Shame really.
Anyways, I was still craving something sweet and so today I decided to turn to one of my old reliable recipes, and I baked us a Date and Coffee Sponge Cake.
I also love its beautiful texture. It is dense and incredibly moist.
Don't get me started on the dates. I adore dates and this cake is loaded with lots of bits of sticky date throughout!
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The recipe is one which I adapted from the cookery book by Tamasin Day Lewis, entitled Supper for A Song. Tamasin Day Lewis is one of my favorite cooks.
She is the sister of Daniel Day Lewis the actor and she cooks plenty of non-pretentious, every day, delicious food. I would call her the Elizabeth David of our day. She writes regularly for Vogue, Saveur and Reader's Digest.
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Good food for good people. I love her recipes. I own several of her books. This one is filled with back-to-basics, eating well, waste avoiding, healthy comfort food. Food that is deliciously satisfying and easy on the budget as well.
Another one of my favorite recipes from this book is Bread Soup. This is the most delicious soup ever, despite being made from a few very simple ingredients.
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This delicious cake is the same, using a very few ingredients, put together in the most delicious way. It's a cake to fall in love with.
I guarantee this is a recipe you will find yourself turning to again and again, especially if you love dates! And Coffee! The two together are quite simply a fabulous taste combination!
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE DATE AND COFFEE SPONGE CAKE
Very simple kitchen store cupboard ingredients.
For the cake:
- 3/4 cup (180g) butter (1 1/2 sticks)
- 2 tbsp very strongly brewed coffee
- 2 large free-range eggs
- 3/4 cup (150g) soft light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups (scant) (200g) plain all-purpose flour
- 2 level tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup (125ml) full fat milk
- 1 cup (160-200g) pitted dates, chopped into quarters
.JPG "Date and Coffee Sponge Cake")
For the glaze:
- 1 cup (130g) icing sugar
- 1 1/2 TBS butter, melted
- 2 TBS strong brewed coffee
- 2-3 tsp boiling water, if needed (I didn't need any.)
.JPG "Date and Coffee Sponge Cake")
I made my coffee quite strong for this. I think I used about 2 TBS instant coffee and 5 TBS of water. I don't normally drink coffee, so when I use it to cook with, its always a bit of a guessing game for me.
It made a lovely coffee flavor for the cake as well as the glaze and gave both a really nice dark color that I thought was quite pretty when set against the dates!
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HOW TO MAKE DATE AND COFFEE SPONGE CAKE
This really is a very easy cake to make. I highly recommend, if you are looking for a simple cake that is super pleasing!
Preheat the oven to 300*F/150*C and spray a 9-inch square baking tin with non-stick spray. Line with paper, leaving an overhang to lift the cake out.
Melt the butter in a small pan and set aside.
Whisk the eggs and sugar using an electric mixer, until thick and creamy. Add the flour, baking powder, melted butter, milk and 2 TBS of the coffee. Whisk until well combined and then fold in the dates by hand. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, making sure the dates are evenly distributed.
Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Place the tin on a wire rack to cool, while you make the glaze.
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For the glaze, measure the icing sugar into a bowl and give it a quick whisk to get rid of any lumps. Melt the butter, and while it is still hot, pour onto the icing sugar, followed by 2 TBS of coffee. Whisk everything together until smooth. The consistency should be thick, so you know the glaze will set as it cools. (If it seems too thick, add 2-3 tsp of boiling water to thin.)
Pour the glaze over the cake in the tin and spread it out gently. There will be just enough to cover the cake. This is not meant to be a thick icing.
This delicious cake will have you thinking about it long after it's gone. I guarantee it is destined to become a true family favorite!
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MAPLE CAKE - A maple syrup flavored snacking cake with a lovely brown sugar fudge frosting that everyone loves. Dense and delicious.
SPANISH CAKE - This is my all time, absolute favorite cake. So much so that I also recreated it in a small batch version. This cake is so good that I once baked it about three times in one week! It has a lovely moist crumb, flavored with cinnamon and that brown sugar penuche frosting is to die for. It is the absolute best!
Yield: 8 - 10
Date and Coffee Sponge Cake
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 40 Min
This is a really lovely, quick to make cake that is moist and delicious. Flavored with coffee and studded with sticky chunks of date, it boasts a not too sweet coffee crackle glaze! It goes perfectly with a hot drink!
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 3/4 cup (180g) butter (1 1/2 sticks)
- 2 tbsp very strongly brewed coffee
- 2 large free-range eggs
- 3/4 cup (150g) soft light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups (scant) (200g) plain all-purpose flour
- 2 level tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup (125ml) full fat milk
- 1 cup (160-200g) pitted dates, chopped into quarters
For the glaze:
- 1 cup (130g) icing sugar
- 1 1/2 TBS butter, melted
- 2 TBS strong brewed coffee
- 2-3 tsp boiling water, if needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300*F/150*C and spray a 9-inch square baking tin with non-stick spray. Line with paper, leaving an overhang to lift the cake out.
- Melt the butter in a small pan and set aside.
- Whisk the eggs and sugar using an electric mixer, until thick and creamy. Add the flour, baking powder, melted butter, milk and 2 TBS of the coffee. Whisk until well combined and then fold in the dates by hand. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, making sure the dates are evenly distributed.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Place the tin on a wire rack to cool, while you make the glaze.
- For the glaze, measure the icing sugar into a bowl and give it a quick whisk to get rid of any lumps. Melt the butter, and while it is still hot, pour onto the icing sugar, followed by 2 TBS of coffee. Whisk everything together until smooth. The consistency should be thick, so you know the glaze will set as it cools. (If it seems too thick, add 2-3 tsp of boiling water to thin.)
- Pour the glaze over the cake in the tin and spread it out gently. There will be just enough to cover the cake. This is not meant to be a thick icing.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
One thing that I really fell in love with while I was living in the UK was their cakes. They are quite different than the cakes we have in North America.
Most are sturdy cakes, not dissimilar to pound cakes. Meant to be enjoyed with hot cups of tea. As you know the British love their tea, and what is a hot cup of tea without a bit of cake to enjoy on the side!
There is a great abundance of tea rooms all over the UK. We used to often visit National Trust Properties and they always had a tea room attached where you could enjoy a hot cuppa and a slice of cake after exploring the gardens.
One of my favorite places to go was always Scotney Castle. I also loved visiting the gardens at Sissinghurst, and a slice of cake afterwards was a must. I especially loved the fruited cakes.
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Cakes such as this delicious Sultana Cake I am sharing with you today. This lovely cake makes the perfect teatime cake.
Lightly flavored with lemon and studded with lots of sweet sticky sultana raisins. It is a simple cake for sure, but don't let that simplicity fool you into thinking its not special!
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It truly is the simple things in life which bring us the most pleasure and this cake is proof positive of that. Not too sweet. Just sweet enough.
And perfect, enjoyed with a nice hot drink and a friend.
A hot cup of tea. A slice of a delicious cake. The company of a good friend. A most brilliant combination! One of my favorite things for sure!
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE A SULTANA CAKE
Simple everyday ingredients. There is nothing out of the ordinary here.
- 3/4 cup (minus 3 tsp) (140g) butter, at room temperature
- scant 3/4 cup (140g) castor sugar (finely granulated sugar)
- 3 large free-range eggs
- 2 cups (225g) self-rising flour
- 1/4 tsp lemon extract (optional)
- 1 1/4 cup (170g) sultana raisins
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Feel free to use margarine instead of butter if you wish. I just always use butter. Either way make sure it is at room temperature.
Caster sugar is a finely granulated sugar. Our granulated sugar here in Canada is nice and fine so it works beautifully. If your regular granulated sugar is too coarse, give it a quick whirr in the food processor to break it down a bit.
Ever see a cake with brown speckles on it? That's sugar that hasn't completely melted into the batter.
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The lemon extract is entirely optional. You can also use finely grated lemon zest in its place. I think the flavor of the lemon goes very well in this cake.
If you are using lemon zest why not use a handy tip I learned from baking with Dorie Greenspan. Rub your sugar and lemon zest together before incorporating it into the batter. It helps to release the oils from the zest in a phenomenal way!
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I can appreciate that self-rising flour is not something which is available to all, or might not be something you have in your house at the moment. This is easily rectified. You can make your own.
I always do. Just whisk together 1 cup of flour and 1 1/2 tsp of baking power and 1/4 tsp of salt for every cup of self-rising flour needed. Works a charm.
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Not overly fond of sultana raisins? You can use an equal amount of mixed dried fruit, or even currants. All work wonderfully.
Typically, sultana raisins are smaller than regular raisins. They are also a bit sweeter, jucier and lighter in color than regular raisins. No sultanas? Use regular raisins.
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Nothing could be easier. This cake employs the one bowl method of mixing.
Preheat the oven to 340*F/170*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a 2-pound (9 by 4) loaf tin and line with baking paper.
Measure the flour into a bowl.
Measure the sultana raisins into a bowl. Add a TBS of the flour and toss to coat. Set aside. (This helps to keep the raisins evenly distributed and from sinking to the bottom of the cake.)
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
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Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, making sure they are thoroughly incorporated before you add another one. If the mixture begins to curdle, stir in a TBS of the flour. Stir in the lemon extract if using.
Sift the flour over top of the creamed mixture and gently fold in with a metal spoon to combine. Mix in the sultanas, making sure they are evenly distributed. Spoon into the prepared loaf tin, smoothing over the top.
Bake for about 1 hour, until risen, golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then lift out onto a wire rack to finish cooling completely. Store wrapped tightly. Cut into 1-inch-thick slices to serve.
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This truly is a lovely cake which seems to improve in flavor as each day goes by. It will keep for quite a few days in a tightly sealed container and also freezes very well.
If you are looking for a delicious cake to enjoy with a nice hot cuppa, I don't think you can really get much better than this!
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QUICK FRUITED TEA CAKE - Buttery, dense and deliciously moist, stogged full of bits of fruit and lightly spiced, this cake pleases on many levels! This is a great last-minute cake. It's nice for Christmas, but actually it's pretty special any time! A real teatime treat!
DEEP, DARK & DELICIOUS GINGERBREAD - This is the kind of gingerbread cake that sonnets could be written about, poems . . . novels. This is the kind of gingerbread cake that you could imagine Meg, Amy, Jo and Beth sitting down to enjoy on cold winter's evening while the fire burns low in the grate, whilst Marmee reads to them the latest missive from their pa . . .
Yield: 8
Sultana Cake
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 1 HourTotal time: 1 H & 15 M
This loaf cake has a similar texture to a pound cake. It is moist and delicious and studded with plenty of sultanas. Perfect with a nice hot cuppa!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (minus 3 tsp) (140g) butter, at room temperature
- scant 3/4 cup (140g) castor sugar (finely granulated sugar)
- 3 large free-range eggs
- 2 cups (225g) self-rising flour (See notes)
- 1/4 tsp lemon extract (optional) (See notes)
- 1 1/4 cup (170g) sultana raisins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 340*F/170*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a 2-pound (9 by 4) loaf tin and line with baking paper.
- Measure the flour into a bowl.
- Measure the sultana raisins into a bowl. Add a TBS of the flour and toss to coat. Set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, making sure they are thoroughly incorporated before you add another one. If the mixture begins to curdle, stir in a TBS of the flour.
- Stir in the lemon extract if using.
- Sift the flour over top of the creamed mixture and gently fold in with a metal spoon to combine. Mix in the sultanas, making sure they are evenly distributed.
- Spoon into the prepared loaf tin, smoothing over the top.
- Bake for about 1 hour, until risen, golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then lift out onto a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- Store wrapped tightly. Cut into 1-inch-thick slices to serve.
Notes
If desired, you can add the finely grated zest of half a lemon instead of the lemon extract.
You can easily make your own self-rising flour. For every cup of flour, whisk in 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
I have the family coming over for dinner today and so I wanted to make them a delicious dessert to go along with the Mississippi Pot Roast I will be serving. I haven't made that pot roast for them yet, so I am really excited to be able to introduce a new taste to them all.
I really hope that they enjoy it. I love it, but you never know how some people's tastes are going to be. I predict my sister and Dan will love it, but I have my doubts about Dad. He tends to like the same thing over and over again, with little or no variation.
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I will serve the roast with fluffy mashed potatoes and some vegetables on the side. If I have time, I will make some rolls. Probably just the refrigerator type as they are quick and easy, and I do have church in the morning.
This cake makes the perfect dessert for a family meal such as that. It is light and fluffy. The icing is lush and creamy. The cake is quick and easy to make. You can't go wrong!
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The recipe is a magazine print out. I can't say which one, but it does call for a cake mix. I won't name brands. Yes, it is a bit of a cheat because it uses a cake mix.
But sometimes a cake mix can be a very good thing. I don't mind using one every now and then, especially for the sake of expediency. And when the cake turns out delicious and moist like this one always does, nobody will complain!
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Sour cream in the batter makes for an especially tender and moist crumb. I expect you could use any cake mix and end up with a similar result.
Light, fluffy, tender and moist.
The real star is the frosting, however. It is light and creamy and oh so chocolatey, goes together quickly with the help of an electric mixer and is the perfect topper for this beautifully delicious cake!
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This is a cake I made often when my children were growing up. The page is splattered with lots of stains. That, to me, speaks of an excellent recipe because it means that it has gotten a lot of use.
My children loved this cake. It was one that I used to bake at the weekends for them. It wasn't a great lunchbox cake because of the frosting, too messy, but come the weekend, it was the star of the show!
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE EASY SOUR CREAM CAKE
Just a cake mix and a few other standard kitchen ingredients.
For the cake:
- 1 (2 layer sized) yellow cake mix
- 4 large free range eggs
- 1 cup (120g) dairy sour cream
- 1/4 cup (60ml) water
- 1/3 cup (80ml) canola oil
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
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For the Creamy Chocolate Frosting:
- 6 TBS (86g) butter, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (34g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted (not drink mix)
- 3 cups (390g) icing sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup (80ml) evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed)
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Make sure the cake mix you use is a two-layer cake mix. In the UK, I would use Betty Crocker. Here in North America, we are spoilt for choice. Just use your favorite brand. Don't use one with pudding in the mix.
I have used plain natural thick yogurt in the place of the sour cream in the past with great success. I like Greek yogurt.
For the frosting do make sure you use cocoa powder. The one that is specifically for baking, not the cocoa that is used to make hot chocolate or chocolate milk. It should be unsweetened.
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HOW TO MAKE EASY SOUR CREAM CAKE
This really is a doddle, both the cake and the icing. You will need an electric mixer. I used my electric hand mixer but a stand mixer also works well.
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a 9 by 13-inch baking tin really well, or spray with baking spray. Set aside.
Mix all of the cake ingredients together in a large bowl, using an electric mixer. Mix on low for about 30 seconds, and then on medium for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape the bowl occasionally.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
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Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. When done the top should spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Leave to cool completely in the pan.
Cream the butter for the frosting in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and creamy. Add the remaining ingredients. Beat on low to combine for 30 seconds and then beat on high until the mixture is fluffy, creamy and smooth.
Spread evenly over the cooled cake. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.
This really is a lovely cake, one that I am sure the whole family will fall in love with. I suspect my father will want to squirt whipped cream all over his. Totally unnecessary, but at his age we do like to humor him.
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Some other really delicious cakes that your family might enjoy are:
QUEEN ELIZABETH CAKE - We are especially fond of this old, old recipe for Queen Elizabeth Cake. I don't expect there is a Canadian community cookbook without a version of this in it. It goes way back.
It is a simple and delicious cake! The dates make it incredibly moist. It is also studded with plenty of toasted walnuts. Topped with a sweet caramel icing and sprinkle of coconut, this is a real treat!
BUTTERMILK CHOCOLATE CAKE - What cake recipe collection would be complete without at least one chocolate cake recipe and this buttermilk chocolate cake is the best of the best!
This recipe is four generations old. It is fabulously old fashioned one-bowl chocolate cake, and perfect for family celebrations! Moist and delicious as one would expect. It also boasts a lush chocolate frosting!
Yield: 12
Easy Sour Cream Cake
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 40 Min
This cake is an old family favorite from my Big Blue Binder. It always turns out moist and delicious and that creamy chocolate frosting is the perfect addition on top.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 (2 layer sized) yellow cake mix
- 4 large free range eggs
- 1 cup (120g) dairy sour cream
- 1/4 cup (60ml) water
- 1/3 cup (80ml) canola oil
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
For the Creamy Chocolate Frosting:
- 6 TBS (86g) butter, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (34g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted (not drink mix)
- 3 cups (390g) icing sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup (80ml) evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a 9 by 13-inch baking tin really well, or spray with baking spray. Set aside.
- Mix all of the cake ingredients together in a large bowl, using an electric mixer. Mix on low for about 30 seconds, and then on medium for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape the bowl occasionally.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. When done the top should spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Leave to cool completely in the pan.
- Cream the butter for the frosting in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and creamy. Add the remaining ingredients. Beat on low to combine for 30 seconds and then beat on high until the mixture is fluffy, creamy and smooth.
- Spread evenly over the cooled cake.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container.
Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
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