Cake #152 - Birthday Cake

Friends First Friday Cake - Birthday Cake.

I was ordered this cake for a Sweet 16 Party of two girls, for 50 people. Wow!

Chocolate cake was what they wanted and I also learned that both girls are very musical and love singing. That's why the notes Happy Birthday to You - and the cute little sugarpaste microphones and stereo which my daughter shaped.

The cake had been a success at the party so I can be happy! I wish I could make these cakes more often as it was a very inspirational challenge. And a learning experience, too - I piped the notes three times before I was just about satisfied with the result...

The 5+ kg cake filled and covered with chocolate before decorating it.

Cake #151 - Lemon Cat Cup Cake

Thursday Cat Theme Cake - Lemon Cat Cup Cake with Lemon Jam and Ice Cream.

No excuses. It was a hectic day and I nearly did not bake any cake at all as I rather do so than bake c**p. Then I remembered the very, very nice Nutella cake in a mug and I also remembered this cat mug warmer I knitted last year.

Again, I was amazed you can actually bake a yummy cake in a mug in the microwave within minutes after making the batter.

The recipe is from here. I did not make any sauce but instead, enjoyed the cake with lemon jam (lemon curd would have been better but I did not have any!) and vanilla ice cream. Good, good!

Cake #150 - Fruit and Nut Loaf

Wednesday Natural Ingredient / Healthy Cake - Dairy-Free Fruit and Nut Loaf of Dates, Apricots, Walnuts, Sunflower Seeds and Pumpkin Seeds.

Another brown cake. Pathetic. When I look at pictures of my cakes from the past week they all are brown and very dull-looking. Of course they are more colourful in real life! Like this one - the orange apricot really has a bright orange colour but in the picture it does not show up. Dull. Maybe I should change the background somehow. Or create more colourful cakes. After all, I am more a baker than a photographer.

The recipe for this cake is from here. I used sunflower oil instead of butter so therefore I can call it dairy-free. And I also used a little different fruit and nuts compared to the recipe - dates, dried apricots, walnuts, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds but otherwise followed the recipe carefully. Worth baking and works well as a morning boost, too!

Cake #149 - Ricecake Cake

Tuesday Humour Cake - Ricecake Cake, piled ricecakes with Peanut Butter and Nutella in-between and melted milk chocolate on top.

My daughter absolutely wanted to name the pile cake Holy Grail!.- And she wanted to take some to school for lunch as ricecakes are... ok to have in your lunchbox. Oh, well.

Cake #148 - Spicy Raisin Cake

Monday Mood Cake - Spicy Raisin Cake.

A little Christmassy aromas - but I do miss Christmas. And when it is cold and frosty outside, warm spices are a good way to create warmth. Comfort eating? Yes, that, too!

Spicy Raisin Cake
100 g raisins
150 ml buttermilk
3 eggs
150 ml granulated sugar
150 ml (dark) syrup
150 g butter, melted
450 ml plain flour
1,5 tsp bread soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground ginger

1. Soak raisins in buttermilk for an hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 175C / 350F and grease and flour a 2-litre bundt cake pan.
3. Beat eggs and sugar until white and fluffy.

4. Fold in flour, spices and bread soda together with melted butter, syrup and the raisins with the buttermilk.

5. Pour into pan and bake in the oven for about 45 minutes.

6. Let cool a little before removing from pan.

7. Enjoy with a warm cuppa wearing your warmest woollen socks and maybe a hat, too?

Cake #147 - Revamped Banana Bread

Sunday Classic Cake - Revamped Banana Bread with Home-Made Caramel and Whipped Cream.

I think banana is one of the most versatile fruit to be used in baking. I tastes good the way it is but it goes well with various spices, too. Do not throw overripe bananas into the bin - rather throw them into the batter! Cakes, muffins, bread, cookies.

How about deep-fried bananas? This revamped banana bread and the caramel really remind me of deep-fried bananas. I wonder if we have any vanilla ice cream in the freezer...

Sponge
175 g soft  butter
150 g soft light brown sugar
2 bananas, very ripe, cut into small chunks
3 eggs
150 g self-raising flour
75 g ground almonds
1 tsp baking powder
50 ml natural yoghurt

Caramel
200 g soft light brown sugar

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160 C / 340 F and grease and flour a 2-litre square pan .
2. Then make the caramel by tipping the sugar into a frying pan, shaking it to an even layer.  and heating it gently until it melts. Once melted to a golden caramel, pour it onto a baking sheet and leave to cool, then smash into small pieces.
3. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Add the bananas and beat in with the eggs, flour, almonds, baking powder and yoghurt until smooth.
5. Stir in 1/3 of the caramel and spoon into the pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes until the cake is golden and a skewer comes out clean. Let cool.

Decorate the cake with whipped cream and caramel pieces.

Cake #146 - Serrano Ham and Feta Cheese Ring

Savoury Saturday Cake - Serrano Ham and Feta Cheese Ring.

Make a small batch of your favourite pizza dough, roll it and cut it into 10-12 triangles. Place the triangles so that you form a circle in the middle. Fill each triangle with tomato puree, ham and cheese (I used serrano ham and feta), then lift each corner to cover the filling. Glaze with egg, sprinkle some poppy seeds on top and bake in the oven at 200 C / 400 F for about 15 minutes.

Try with puff pastry or even ready-to-bake croissants for a fast savoury snack!