Sunday 2 August 2015

What a cake!

So Thursday one of my friend met up and have picnic at Crowthrone and wondered to a cafe and had hot chocolate then next discussion was what cake to make for my friend birthday so we got pen and paper to write ideas down.

Can you see where this is coming?

So the next day, I can't really say morning as I didn't get up till 12:00pm it must because I read my book far to late again. Well it is the holiday or shall I say a more well deserved break. So I got the washing to do, and the boring chores at of the way, Got one of my Mom's crockery books out came Nigella Lawson book who has a whole chapter of chocolate cakes. Asked my friend to come to mine and bake a cake. We made the chocolate Malteaser cake this recipe was from the Nigella Lawson book Feast book.

Now lets begin the fun. Well ish you know measuring the ingredients before in-case you need to pop to the shop to get anything. Mom kitchen as a few cooking things. There were only three things to get which were the Coco since I used Mom for making hot coco, butter and Horlicks. I made cakes numerous of times but never came across using Horlicks in cakes before. I also remembered the chocolate tip that Martha suggested last year, if you're making chocolate cake and use cocoa you would also need the chocolate for a more deeper chocolate flavor. 

So we finished measuring the ingredients out. While my friend Tia was greasing the tins I was grating the chocolate. Who needs the gym these days while you can make cake? OK you might put on weight that you just loosed. 

Tia and I helped each other during the baking process. We divided the mixture between two cake tins. This is where I thought oh no because the mixture didn't look enough to fill the cake tins. But you know the oven as magical powers to rise cakes? So we were praying that cakes would rise. While the oven was doing it's magical powers Tia and I were washing up. The boring bit. Well before the boring bit we had some some chocolate bits that couldn't be grated those managed to find a way in a mouths. Who can't resit a bit dark chocolate?

So you know the oven as magical powers? I'm afraid ours is lacking magical powers.  We put the cakes out of the tins to the wire racks and let them cool down. At last minute thing we made another layer for the cake as the first batch was very thin and we are not happy with it. This time it was just made by coco and all in method as it was the easiest and quickest. Again a quick pop to the shop for some things. 

This time the oven definitely had magical powers. It was at the top of the cake tin. So our oven as definitely proved us wrong. We let it cool down then worked out how to use my Mom's processor to make the icing. We also had a go at piping the icing. A new skill that Tia has learned. 

Now comes the bit where the cake comes to life. You know decorating the cake without eating it? Oh by the way, just watch those Malteaser's rolling off the cake to the floor. You can eat those. Five second rule.  We put chocolate fudge icing between the layers of the cake then the homemade icing around the cake. Oh shall I say that was the general idea. If time was on our side I would pipe the icing around the cake. Though time was not on our side.  


Photos time 

Making the cake 




Tia working out how to use baking parchment 

Tia cracking one of the many eggs 

Me beating the eggs and sugar

Tia folding the mixture 
Now the cake is in the oven. You know what that means don't you? Indeed it is. Time to eat the bowl not literally but lick the mixture that is left and get chocolate everywhere. Who said you can't be toddler again and get chocolate everywhere.

Time to get chocolate everywhere


Tia licking her fingers

Big spoon vs little spoon

Tia eating the bowl

me eating the ladle

Oven didn't do it's magic


Two little cakes


Time to do another layer of cake


Tia with the second cake
Now that is what I call a chocolate cake!!

Time for making icing

Tia putting the grated chocolate in the food procesor

The final touches, and the result is this!

What a cake!


Um success? 


I gathered up my poems that I either did or been given by my wonderful friends. Some who are no longer with us. Such as Martha but she wrote such a wonderful poem that I would like to share with you all.

If our relationship was a cake
What ingredients would it have?
How long do we have to bake
To get the desirable taste of love

An ounce of respect and care
A handful of faith and grace
This kind of cake is rare
So be careful not to waste

Those of you who want to have a go at this cake. Here is the recipe for the top and bottom layer.

For the cake
150g soft brown sugar (muscavado sugar is best for flavour)
100g caster sugar
3 large eggs
175ml milk
15g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons Horlicks powder
175g plain flour
25g cocoa, sieved
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Take whatever you need out of the fridge so that all the ingredients can come to room temperature (though it's not so crucial here, since you're heating the milk and butter and whisking the eggs.

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 3/170C. Butter and line two 20cm loose-bottomed sandwich cake tins with baking parchment.

Whisk together the sugars and eggs until light and frothy. Heat the milk, butter and Horlicks powder in a small saucepan until the butter has melted and the mixture is hot but not boiling. Beat the milk mixture into the eggs a little at a time. Fold in the dry ingredients thoroughly. Divide the cake batter evenly between the two tins and bake in the oven for 25 minutes, by which time the cakes should have risen and will spring back when pressed gently. Let them cool on a rack for about 5-10 minutes and then turn them out of their tins.

And here is the recipe for the middle layer

200g caster sugar
200g softened butter (or out of the fridge just put it in the microwave about 30 secs)
4 eggs, beaten,
200g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking power
2 tbsp milk
I think we put about 2tbsp of Coco

Now comes the easy bit of the recipe. All you need to do is put everthingi n the large bowl, beat all the cake ingredients together until you have a smooth, soft batter. In the oven it goes about 30 mins just check to see when you put a knife if it comes clean then it is done if not in the oven for another minute until it comes clean.

Now the recipe for the icing

For the icing and decoration
250g icing sugar
1 teaspoon cocoa
45g Horlicks
125g soft unsalted butter
2 tablespoons boiling water
2 x 37g packets Maltesers
if you want to cheat you can buy a chocolate fudge icing to put between the layers of the cake

Once the cakes are cold, you can get on with the icing. I use a processor just because it makes life easier: you don't need to sieve the icing sugar. So: put the icing sugar, cocoa and Horlicks in the processor and blitz to remove all lumps. Add the butter and process again. Stop, scrape down, and start again, pouring the boiling water down the funnel with the motor running until you have a smooth buttercream.

Sandwich the cold sponges with half of the buttercream, and then ice the top with what is left, creating a swirly pattern rather than a smooth surface. Stud the outside edge, about 1cm in, with a ring of Maltesers or use them to decorate the top in which-ever way pleases you.

We put the icing around the cake using the knife. If time is on your sides and you feel comfortable using a piping bag you can pipe around the whole cake on the sides to make a more spectacular effect. Just be careful not to show your friends otherwise you will get friends asking you to bake a cake for them.

Best of all have fun being a toddler when licking the bowl.

Makes 8-10 slices.

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