Cherry Cake
How awesome is that?!! I would just like to point out here that I have NEVER made cherry cake before, this was my first ever attempt!
Again, I used my British Book of Baking. As with all their recipes, this seemed a tad faffy but, having read all the horror stories of the cherries sinking etc., I followed it word by word and look at how beautiful it is! As I say, it was very faffy, having to sift the flour onto baking parchment (never good when you're back door is open!) and then cleaning the cherries (three times!) and chopping them.
The ground almonds help hugely here, as they provide enough texture to stop the cherries sinking however this won't work unless the cherries are thoroughly rinsed!
I chose to use a loaf tin rather than a cake tin, which didn't really affect it at all however it did reduce the cooking time which I couldn't argue with!
Unfortunately I didn't get to taste this, but my Yaya raved about it!!
Vanilla Sprinkle Sponge
A few weeks ago I had a real craving for the sort of cake I used to get in first school, a moist vanilla sponge with thick icing and lots of sprinkles and custard.
I struggled to find a really good vanilla recipe, and found that this one wasn't really up to scratch as it failed to rise and it burnt very easily (after the first 10 mins!) but it worked. I also ran out of icing sugar so this kind of just failed from the start!
This recipe was from AllRecipes.co.uk but I'm still struggling to find a really good sponge recipe, I wonder if a regular sponge recipe would work? Please help my cake disasters!
Cherry Cake- adapted from The Great British Book of Baking
Ingredients:
200g best quality glace cherries- natural colour if possible
200g self raising flour
a pinch of salt
175g unsalted butter, soft but not runny
175g caster sugar
3 medium eggs, room temp, beaten
50g ground almonds
a 20cm round deep cake tin, greased with butter and lined with greaseproof paper
Method:
-Preheat your oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3- I have a fan oven so usually knock off 20 degrees. Grease and line your tin of choice, I like to use a loaf tin for this cake
-Cut the cherries in half and rinse them under a hot tap (this removes the sticky syrup), leave to dry
-On a piece of greaseproof paper, sift the flour and salt together. Set this aside and continue by beating the sugar and butter until light and creamy
-Add the eggs slowly and beat after each addition to stop the mixture from curdling. Gently fold in the ground almonds
-In a bowl, toss the cherries with a tablespoon of the flour. Sift the remaining flour into the mixture and fold, then add the cherries and mix until combined. You need to add the flour from the cherries in here too
-Spoon the batter into your prepared tin and level evenly. According to the recipe, making a slight hollow in the centre of the cake allows it to rise evenly, this works brilliantly
-Bake for around an hour or until golden and firm to the touch. Once cooked, allow to cool on a wire rack
Enjoy!
Vanilla Sprinkle Sponge- adapted from AllRecipes.co.uk
Upon reviewing this recipe, I feel it may work best as cupcakes but I'll leave this down to you!
Ingredients:
200g sugar
115g butter
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
200g flour
1 and 3/4 tsp baking powder
120ml milk
Method:
-Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4- again, reduce by 20 degrees for a fan oven
-Grease and flour a tray bake tin or, if making cupcakes, line a bun tin with cupcake cases
-Cream your butter and sugar until creamy, add the eggs one at a time and beat with the vanilla until combined
-Sift in the flour and baking powder and fold well. Add in the milk and continue to beat until smooth
-Spoon the mixture into your tin or cupcake cases
-Bake for 30-40 minutes or for 20 to 25 for cupcakes
Enjoy!
