and mudcake, sponge cake, cupcake

and mudcake, sponge cake, cupcake

Not all of my blogs will be about baking. Although, it is one of my all time favourite things to do. I have decided that this Saturday is a baking day. I am not sure what I will make yet. I have some strawberry jam in the fridge and some condensed milk and baking chocolate in the pantry to use, so I will see what I come up with.

Dense fudge White chocolate mudcake.

Adapted from White Chocolate Mudcake

• 375g white chocolate (we use Cadbury Dream white chocolate)
• 250g butter (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon fine table salt with the butter)
• 312ml milk
• 206g caster sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons (25ml) vanilla paste
• 2-3 eggs approx. 130g all up (depending on your egg size, you can beat a few together and divide them that way.)
• 125g self-raising flour
• 188g plain flour

1. Preheat oven to 140 degrees Celsius (125 degrees Celsius fan-forced).
2. Grease a 25cm round cake tin and line the base and sides of the pan with baking paper.
3. Place chocolate, butter, milk and sugar in a large saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat when chocolate and butter have melted, and stir mixture until completely smooth. Allow mixture to cool at room temperature for 15 minutes.
4. Add vanilla and eggs to chocolate mixture and stir until well combined.
5. Stir flours together in a large bowl. Add one cup of chocolate mixture to the flour and stir until a smooth paste forms.
6. Repeat with another cup of the chocolate mixture.
7. Add remaining chocolate mixture and stir until mixture is smooth. This gradual method of combining the wet and dry ingredients helps prevent lumps.
8. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
9. Bake for 15mins then turn up the temperature to 160 degrees Celsius (145 degrees Celsius fan-forced). This well help reduce the amount the cake rises in the middle (top tip).
10. Bake for about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. When the cake is ready, a fine-bladed knife/skewer inserted into the centre of the cake should come out without any batter attached.
11. Loosely cover cake with greaseproof paper or a clean tea towel and allow it to cool to room temperature in pan.

This recipe turned out very dense and fudgy for me but I am not sure if that's actually how it is supposed to be. But it was lovely anyway. You may notice that a few of the ingredient sizes are odd, but that's because it is sized up for the cake tin. There is a link off the website which shows you a range of ingredient quantities for whatever your tin size is. Very helpful since it means you don't have to go out and buy a new one.

Wedding Cake

(Note: messy fondant and ribbons, lucky it was a very casual backyard wedding.)

Here is my no fail sponge cake
Adapted from  Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse Cake

• Melted butter, to grease
• 4 eggs
• 155g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
• 115g (3/4 cup) plain flour
• 35g (1/4 cup) cornflour
• 50g butter, melted

1. To make the sponge cake, preheat oven to 160°C. Brush a round 22cm (base measurement) cake pan with melted butter to grease. Line the base and side with non-stick baking paper.
   
2. Use an electric beater to beat together the eggs and sugar in a medium bowl until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is thick and pale, and a ribbon trail forms when the beaters are lifted.
3. Sift the flour and cornflour over the egg mixture and use a large metal spoon to gently fold until just combined.
4. Add the butter and fold until just combined.
5. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake in oven for 15then turn up the temperature to 180°C.
6. Bake for a further 20-25 minutes or until the surface is dry and the cake springs back when lightly tapped.
7. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Simple right?

I did use the exact recipe I adapted the wedding cake from for a 21st Birthday cake and because the sponge was such a hit I used it for the wedding cake.

Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse Cake

For the buttercreams I just used a basic buttercream recipe for the wedding cake (butter & icing) and then just added some vanilla extract in one and and added Baileys to the other.

Very Berry Cupcakes
Original recipe located at Very Berry Cupcakes

Dried berry buttercake

• 125g butter, softened
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup (150g) dried mixed berries
• ½ cup (70g) slivered almonds
• 2/3 cup (100g) plain flour
• 1/3 cup (50g) self-raising flour
• ¼ cup (60ml) milk

Sugared fruit

• 150g fresh blueberries
• 120g fresh raspberries
• 1 egg white, beaten lightly
• 2 tablespoons vanilla sugar

Cream cheese frosting

• 30g butter, softened
• 80g cream cheese, softened
• 1½ cups (240g) icing sugar

1. Prepare sugared fruit.
2. Preheat oven to moderately slow (170°C/150°C fan-forced). Line 6-hole texas or 12-hole standard muffin pan with paper cases.
3. Beat butter, extract, sugar and eggs in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy.
4. Stir in fruit and nuts, then sifted flours and milk. Divide mixture among cases; smooth surface.
5. Bake large cakes about 45 minutes, small cakes about 35 minutes. Turn cakes onto wire rack to cool.
6. Make cream cheese frosting.
7. Spread cakes with frosting. Decorate with sugared fruit.

Sugared fruit 

1. Brush each berry lightly with egg white; roll fruit in sugar.
2. Place fruit on baking paper-lined tray. Leave about 1 hour or until sugar is dry.

Cream cheese frosting 

1. Beat butter and cheese in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy.
2. Gradually beat in sifted icing sugar.

I actually have the cookbook from which this recipes comes. Its a Women's Weekly cookbook and it is all about cupcakes!

Very Berry Cupcakes

Does anyone else have a no fail recipe?

Love, love Elle.