more baking: Black & White

So first the sponge:

6 eggs, separated
150g caster sugar
115g plain flour
25g cocoa powder
40g melted butter

Whip the egg whites with half of the sugar until stiff, then in separate bowl whip egg yolks with remaining sugar until creamy and fluffy.  Add butter to the yolks, add 1/3 of the whites to loosen up the mixture. Add sieved flour and cocoa, mix together. Add the rest of the whites and fold gently. It's important not to knock out the air. Pour into a lined baking tray (I used square 12in one with loose base). Bake for approx 30 min or until inserted stick comes out dry.

In a mean time prepare gelatine - 2 leaves or 2 heaped tbs just cover with hot water and let it dissolve.

For cream in a classic it is just 500 ml double cream and 2 tbs of icing sugar. However I changed it and used 200 ml of double cream and approx 250ml  of stracciatella yogurt. Whipped the cream, added the yogurt and the gelatine.

When the sponge was ready I cut it in half, used the plum vodka to soak it, put the cream on the bottom layer, top it up with second layer and put chocolate ganache on top. Chill it in a fridge for at least 2 hours, or even better overnight.

Chocolate ganache: 100ml of double cream- heated, 100g of dark chocolate (74%) melt in the cream and pour all over the cake.

Enjoy.

Have been quiet

for a couple of days. Just been very busy.

Saturday my daughter and I went shopping. Finally got pair of jeans that fit me (marks and spencer). Had a coffee break in shop trawling thought.

Sunday was my husbands birthday and we had very wet walking day. But I managed to do his cake. And as it was his it had to contain some cheesecake :-)

Monday and Tuesday were Uni days and I had some work as well.

And today is Open day in possible secondary school for my daughter. So just got back home and have couple of minutes to type, before I will have to run for some more work.

I promise to write some more, but it would be wonderful to get some comments. Even nasty ones just to know that someone is actually reading it.

Birthday cake in the making :-)

So decision made, and because any recipe is just a suggestion I decided to mix and match.

My cake is going to be 2 tier thingy, bottom made of chocolate sponge and top of a poppy seed one. Where I came from poppy seed cakes are essentials for Christmas and Easter, so given my birthday is just a week from Easter - why not. Both cakes will be layered with white chocolate ganache and blackcurrant jam made by my friend. And maybe some of my raspberry curd (homemade of course).
So chocolate sponge:
6 eggs (separated)
150g caster sugar
115g plain flour
25g cocoa powder
40g melted butter (cooled)
pinch of soda bicarb
Vanilla (paste, extract or whatever you want)
All ingredients must be in a room temperature (not straight from the fridge- eggs, or boiling hot- butter).
Whip the egg whites till stiff, in separate bowl whip the yolks with sugar till creamy and light in colour, add melted butter top yolks and keep mixing. Add yolks with butter to whites and gently mix, add flour, cocoa and soda. Mix until smooth but still with lots of air. Prepare the baking tin, line it with paper or parchment. Put the mixture in a tin and bake @180C (gas mark 5) for about 30 min (or till stick comes dry). Then cut it into 3 layers. Et Voila.

Poppy seed sponge
5 eggs (separated)
150g caster sugar
2 tbs ground almonds
120g fine sponge flour
2 tbs corn or potato flour
1 tbs of baking powder (I give 1 heaped tsp of soda)
200g dry poppy seeds (blue ones)

Whip the whites till stiff, add the caster sugar, make sure its properly mixed. Add the egg yolks, keep mixing. Sieve the flours, powder and almonds, add poppy seeds, mix gently not to knock out the air from egg whites. Put in a baking tin (lined again) and bake for 45 min (or till stick comes dry) @180C (gas mark 5). When baked cut it into 3 layers again.

Then, spread jam on the chocolate cake, then put cream on it, and next layer.

And again, and again until you use all the cake layers, or cream, or it will get too high to fit in your fridge. Then spread cream on the top layer, decorate it the way you want and can. Enjoy.

ps. Poppy seed cake can be very dry,so it would do it good if you moisten it with alcohol of some sort (brandy is good) or lemon juice mixed with water and maybe some syrup.

pss. My ganache is definitely my take on recipe, as everywhere they say that you should melt chocolate in cream and the whip it when cool, with white chocolate it was always dieseaster. So I whip the cream until firm then add melted chocolate. At least it keeps its shape.

Birthday Cake

I know it's unorthodox to bake oneself a birthday cake, but here we go again. I don't like shop bought stuff (I like to know what exactly goes in it), and noone in my family can do it yet. My Daughter is too young (despite her best efforts to cook), and my husband who can cook - can't really bake. So I am off again, trawling internet for inspirations. My fave recepies website is http://www.mojewypieki.com/ it's entirely in Polish, but google translator can help a long way. So now I just need to decide which one to bake. And then in two weeks time I will have to bake another one, as it will be my husbands birthday :-) yummy.