White chocolate lace cupcakes

I recently made these gorgeous cupcakes for a family party. I wanted something that would transport well in the heat and would look good when I got to the party and that I could make in advance.
It is a really easy recipe as the wet ingredients are melted together and then mixed in with the dry so there is no whisking or beating.
 I found this recipe in an Australian Women's Weekly publication.  The recipe makes a dozen cupcakes.

Ingredients

250g/ 10oz butter
150g/6 oz white eating chocolate ( I used Green and Blacks as it is really got a good vanilla taste)
250g/10oz caster sugar
250ml/9floz milk
300g/12oz plain flour
125g/5oz self raising flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs

Baking time - approx 50 minutes

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees C/ gas mark 3. Place your cupcake cases into a 12 hole cupcake tin.
 Chop the butter into small pieces and break up the chocolate. Combine the butter, chocolate, sugar and milk in a saucepan and melt over a low heat stirring until the mixture is smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and allow to cool for 15 minutes.
 Whisk in the sifted flours, vanilla extract and lightly beaten egg.  Divide the mixture between the cake cases. It will be quite liquid but don't worry it is meant to be like this.
Bake the cupcakes for about 50 minutes until they are firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the cakes comes out clean.
The cupcakes will develop a thick sugary crust whilst baking and some cracks may appear but this is fine.
 Cool the cupcakes on a wire rack.

The cakes will keep for a week in an airtight container or can be frozen for for 3 months.

To decorate.

 I decorated the cakes with a chocolate ganache. This is a mixture of melted chocolate and cream. It is easy to make.

White Chocolate Ganche
360g/11.5 oz white chocolate
125 ml/5floz pouring cream

Break the chocolate into pieces.
Bring the cream to the boil in a small saucepan and remove from the heat.
Add the chocolate to the cream and stir until smooth and all the chocolate has melted.
Cool to room temperature and then cool in the fridge for about half an hour.
Beat with an electric mixture until the mixture becomes fluffy and spreadable.

Use this mixture to spread across the top of the cupcakes as your first layer of decoration.

To Ice the Cakes

Knead some ready made icing on a surface dusted with a little cornflour.
Roll the icing until 5mm/ a quarter of an inch thick.
Using a textured embossing mat roll on top of the icing to make a pattern. Use a rolling pin to firmly press and the pattern onto the icing. Using a 7 cm/2.5 cutter cut out 12 rounds from the icing. Carefully place the rounds onto the cakes.
Place the cakes into some lacy cupcake wrappers to hide the plain white cupcake cases.

"Crunchie" Cupcakes

3oz ( 75g) dark chocolate broken into pieces
8oz (200g) butter
8oz (200g) caster sugar
3 eggs
½ teaspoon baking powder
6oz (150g) flour
1oz (25g) cocoa powder
2oz (50g) honeycomb chunks ( or 50g of crunchie bar smashed into small pieces)

Frosting
8oz(200g) milk chocolate ( melted over hot water)
4oz ( 100g) butter( softened)

Makes 24 small cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 200ᵒ C/ gas mark 6. Line a cupcake tin with cupcake cases.

Melt the butter and chocolate together in a bowl suspended over a pan of hot water.  Allow to cool for a few minutes.

Stir in the sugar until well blended. Lightly beat the eggs in a small bowl and gradually add to the chocolate mixture stirring well until you have a smooth batter.

Sift in the flour, cocoa and baking powder into the batter and mix until smooth.

Fold in the honeycomb chunks.

Fill the cases to ¾ full.

Cook in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cakes comes out clean.
 Leave to cool in the tins for a few minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Frosting

Cream the butter until light a fluffy using an electric mixture or wooden spoon.

Add the melted chocolate and beat until you have a creamy frosting.

Decorate the top of the cupcakes. Sprinkle with more honeycomb bits, broken crunchy bar and chocolate chips.

Banoffee Brownies

This recipe was created so that I could use up that one banana that was lying around in the fruit bowl!
I am expecting a crowd of people over the weekend so thought these would be good to have with cups of tea or even as a dessert with ice cream. That is if they last that long.......

Ingredients

1lb/400g granulated sugar
8oz/200g butter -softened
1 medium banana- mashed
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
4 eggs
10oz/250g self raising flour
2oz/50g cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4oz/100g fudge chunks
4oz/100g chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade/gas mark 6
lightly greased 13" x 9" pan

Method

Using an electric mixer or hand held electric whisk combine the sugar and butter and beat on a medium speed until light and fluffy.
Add the mashed banana and vanilla extract. Beat until well blended.
Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt and beat on a low speed until blended.
Stir int the fudge chunks and chocolate chips.

Spread the mixture into the prepared pan and level the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan.


When completely cold spread with ready made dulche de leche. This is a ready made caramel spread which is available in supermarket. Cut into even sized squared to serve. This should make about 32 brownies.

Chocolate and Amaretto cake with Raspberries

I made this cake at the weekend for my daughter's 17th Birthday. We were having the family over for Sunday lunch so I wanted something that would double up as a dessert too.

There was 9 of us for lunch so I made a starter of Halloumi cheese wrapped with parma ham and vine leaves and baked in the oven which we had with some warm pitta bread and hoummous.

For main course I made a leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic which I basted with white wine and honey so by the time it had finished cooking it had made its own gravy.

I served this with some crisp roasted garlic and rosemary roast potatoes and a medley of green vegetables including asparagus, green beans and baby lettuce which I cooked in a little white wine and stock until the vegetables were tender.

We then had the cake for dessert with some pouring cream.

 

I doubled this recipe but it was a huge cake and I do still have half left!

 

Ingredients

Serves 8

 

9oz/225g unsalted butter - this needs to be really soft as you will cream all the ingredients together in one bowl.

9oz/225g self-raising flour
1tsp baking powder
9oz/225g caster sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2oz/ 50g cocoa powder

For the filling

10oz/250g mascarpone cheese

10floz/300ml double cream - lightly whipped

2oz/50g caster sugar

1teaspoon vanilla extract

2fl0z/60ml amaretto liquer
8oz plain chocolate -melted over hot water and allowed to cool slightl

raspberries and chocolate nibs to decorate.

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade/ 350 degrees farenheit/gas mark 4. Butter two, 20 cm/8" round sandwich tins and line the bases with baking parchment.

 

To mix the cake you can use a bowl with an electric whisk or an electric mixer. Sift the flour cocoa powder and baking powder into the bowl, then add the softened butter,sugar and eggs. Mix together until well blended but do not over mix as then your cake will not be light. Divide the batter between the tins and level the top of the mixture. Bake for about 20 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean with no uncooked batter.

Loosen the cakes by running a knife around the edge of the tins and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

 

To make the filling place the mascarpone into a bowl and beat it to soften it slightly. Fold in the double cream, sugar and vanilla extract and the cooled melted chocolate.

To assemble the cake cut the two cakes in half horizontally to make four layers. Place one cake on a plate and sprinkle with the amaretto. Take about a quarter of your mascarpone cream mixture and spread it over the base cake. Place the second tier on top. Repeat the process with the other cake layers. Spread the top of the cake with your mascarpone cream and decorate with raspberries and chocolate nibs. Chill for about an hour before you are ready to serve.

Blueberry Bundt Cakes

I bought some bundt cake tins a while ago and had not got round to using them. I felt like baking something nice on this very rainy day so decided to make some blueberry bundt cakes.
It took a while to perfect the mix and balance of flavours but I think they have come out great.
The first batch I made stuck to the bottom of the tin even though I had thoroughly greased and floured the tin. It was a bit disappointing but my daughters still managed to eat the stuck on bits with a spoon straight out of the tin!
When making the second batch I said a little prayer before putting them in the oven. Again they came out of the oven smelling really good and evenly risen. This time I decided I would allow them to cool in the tin before turning them out and they came out perfectly. So my tip is let them cool down first!!!

Makes 12 bundt cakes

120g/ 6oz blueberries
150g/5oz butter - softened
400g/14oz caster sugar
2 eggs lightly beaten
300g/10 oz plain flour -sifted
225ml/ 8floz buttermilk
1tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Icing
juice of 1 lemon
100 g of icing sugar -sifted

Cream together the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs a little at time until they are incorporated into the mixture and then add the buttermilk and vanilla extract.

Fold in the flour and the bicarbonate of soda and then gently fold in the blueberries.

Pipe or spoon the batter into the prepared tins and bake in a preheated oven, 180 degrees centigrade/ gas mark 4 for 15 to 20 minutes until risen and golden brown.

Allow to cool in the tins before turning out onto a wire rack.
To make the icing blend the icing sugar with the lemon juice until you have a smooth but not too runny icing. You may need more or less icing sugar to get the right consistency.

Allow the cakes to cool completely before drizzling with the icing.

Filo Pastry Pie with Spinach, Feta and Herbs

I made this recipe today as I had some spinach which I wanted to use up.  I wanted something a bit more substantial for us to have for lunch rather than a traditional spanakopitta so came up with this recipe which is a sort of amalgamation of a spanakopitta and a quiche. In Greece and Cyprus there is a similar version of this pie which is made using wild greens which are foraged from the mountainside. I used other types of green stuff which I thought would be a suitable substitute. Even my children loved it which I was quite surprised about as it had so much "green" in it!

1 pack of filo pastry sheets -about 200g -( the one I used had 8 sheets of filo)
3 tablespoons of olive oil

1 onion chopped

100g of chicory chopped
100g wild rocket
200g spinach

25g fresh mint - leaves picked and chopped
25g fresh dill- chopped

200g feta cheese crumbled
200g ricotta cheese

4 eggs lightly beaten
80g melted butter
50g breadcrumbs
salt and pepper
a good grating of fresh nutmeg.

28cm/11" round tin with a removable base

Heat the oven to gas 180 degrees centigrade/gas 7

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large pan. Add the chopped onion and cook over a low heat until the onion is soft. Add the chicory, rocket and spinach and allow all the greens to wilt down for about 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped herbs, crumbled feta cheese and ricotta. Mix in the eggs and lightly season with salt and pepper ( as the feta is quite salty) and the nutmeg. Set aside.

 Place on sheet of filo pastry into the base of your tin and brush with melted butter. Layer another 3 sheets into the pan allowing the excess to hang over the sides of the tin. You will need to fold these over to enclose the filling later. Brush each sheet with melted butter as you go. Sprinkle the base of your filo pastry with the breadcrumbs. These will absorb any excess moisture which will come out of your greens and ensure your pie does not have a "soggy bottom".

Pour in your prepared filling and fold over the excess filo pastry. Make a top for your pie by lightly "scrunching" the remaining filo sheets and lightly placing them on top of the filling. Again brush each sheet with melted butter.

Place your pie on a baking sheet and cook in the preheated oven for about 50 minutes to an hour. Keep an eye on your pie. Check it after about half an hour and if it is browning too quickly lightly cover the top with a piece of foil.

When your pie is cooked remove from the oven and allow it to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before removing the side of the tin. Serve hot or cold cut into wedges.

Semolina and Almond Syrup Cake

Semolina and Almond Syrup Cake

This is a very traditional Greek cake and different variations of this cake can be found across the Middle East. The use of syrups in these cakes was used to preserve the cake when refrigeration was not available.

 When you mix the cake it will appear quite dense but will rise in the oven. The use of semolina gives a sandy texture and allows the cake to absorb the syrup.

The use of oil means that you can make this cake if you are dairy intolerant. Just leave out the milk and add some orange juice instead.

This cake keeps beautifully and can be served as a dessert with some mascarpone and berries.

 It is a really easy cake to make with no complex method so a good recipe for someone new to cake making.

 6oz/150g caster sugar

7floz/175ml corn oil

4 large eggs lightly beaten

1tsp vanilla essence

100ml/4 floz milk

grated rind of an orange

3 level tsp baking powder

400g/1lb ground semolina

50g/2oz ground almonds

50g/2oz blanched whole almonds

For the Syrup

300g/12oz caster sugar

450ml/ 3/4 pint water

2tsp orange flower water

4 whole cloves

1 cinnamon stick

A shallow rectangular baking tin 13 x 9x2 " lightly greased

Oven gas 6/200 degrees centigrade

In a large basin mix together the sugar and the oil. Next gradually beat in the eggs. The mixture will thicken. Add the vanilla essence, milk, orange rind and baking powder and mix again. Finally mix in the semolina and ground almonds.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and level the top with a knife. Decorate the top of the cake with the whole almonds.

Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 45 minutes until it has risen and is golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Whilst the cake is cooking make the syrup. Heat all the syrup ingredients together for about 5 minutes and allow to cool. Discard the spices.

When you remove the cake from the oven spoon over the cooled syrup. It will seem like you have a lot of syrup but the cake will absorb it. Allow the cake to cool in the tin before cutting it into portions. Squares work best or sometimes the cake is cut on the diagonal to form diamond shapes.





My Mums Orange Cake

My Mums Orange Cake

This is a gorgeous cake which my mum always made us on the weekend. It is made using corn oil which creates a dense crumb and the cake keeps well as it is so moist.

To ring the changes you can also make what my mum used to call a geography cake. Half the mixture is removed after it has all been mixed together and mixed with some cocoa powder then swirled together with the plain mixture to create a marbled effect.

Ingredients
7 floz of corn oil or sunflower oil
6oz caster sugar
4 large eggs separated
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons brandy
7floz fresh orange juice(approx
2 large oranges)
12oz self-raising flour
2 level teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest



Beat the oil and sugar together until well blended.   You will see the mixture thicken as the eggs and oil become amalgamated. Add the egg yolks one at a time mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract, brandy and orange juice.
Add the flour and baking powder and mix well until combined. Fold in the zests. Whisk the egg whites to form soft peaks and fold into the mixture.

Pour the mixture into a ringed tin 10" wide or an 8" round cake tin. Bake in a preheated oven Gas 6/200 c for 45 minutes or until golden brown and when a skewer inseted into the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes and turn out onto a wire rack to cool.