This month’s bake is one for Dads. Well, Dads and their kids. It’s got everything a mum wants for Mother’s Day (cake and chocolate) and it appeals to kids too (cake and chocolate). The idea is that dad and the kids make this while mum has a well deserved rest. Most of all it looks good, tastes good and is easy to make. Please bear in mind this is about a two hour job start to finish. A lot of that is ‘waiting’ time which can of course be filled with cleaning the house, and /or foot rubs. Hmmm, I wonder if my husband will read this.
Ingredients:
- Caster Sugar: 150g
- Butter (softened): 100g
- Vanilla Pod
- Eggs: 2
- Plain flour: 200g
- Baking Powder: 3 teaspoons
- Vanilla Extract: 1 teaspoon
- Desiccated Coconut: 100g
- Double Cream: 100ml
- White Chocolate: 200g
- Raspberries: 1 punnet
- Dark Chocolate or Milk Chocolate: 50g
Method:
Make sure the butter is out of the fridge for a while beforehand so it’s soft. Put butter and sugar together in a bowl. Take vanilla pod and cut in half. Cut in half again, lengthways this time and put the rest away for another time. Scrape out the seeds into the butter and sugar.
Cream the butter and sugar together, use an electric whisk if you have one. Kids love to use them and it makes life easier. Crack in one egg at a time and beat into the mixture. Sift in the flour and baking powder and put in your teaspoon of vanilla extract. Beat in again. Give the kids a beater to lick and put the mixture in your choice of tin. I always use a loaf tin as it’s one of those silicon ones that make it really easy to get the cake
out.
Put in the oven for about 45 mins of 180C or gas 6. If you’ve got a fan oven it’ll take about 5 mins less. Meanwhile make the white chocolate ganache
Break up the white chocolate into small pieces and boil the cream in a pan. As soon as it boils take off the heat and chuck in all the chocolate. Mix it like mad till all the chocolate has melted and put in the fridge.
Once the cake is out, put on a cooling rack and leave to completely cool. Your ganache should be OK by then, pourable but very thick and sticky. Pour all over the cake and then put the raspberries on the top. If loads of ganache has run off then spoon it over again. It’s meant to look messy! Melt the dark chocolate in a bowl over some hot water and drizzle over the top of the cake.
Make sure you (or the kids) do the washing up too. Voila. One happy Mum.
The weather's great and what better way to spend it than with friends having afternoon tea in the caravan? My very creative friend and neighbour Frome Maid (who has her own lovely blog by the way www.fromemaid.com/) came over with three great new tea cosies for us to photograph. We are planning to run a workshop with the brilliant Millie Moon milliemoonshop.co.uk/ giving customers the chance to make their very own vintage style tea cosy, eat as much cake and drink as much tea as they like! Frome Maid will be on hand to demonstrate how to make these lovely creations whilst you eat lovely treats on fine vintage china. You'll then be given access to the machines to make your very own cosy. Victoria will be on hand all evening to assist with the sewing and I'll be around to ensure there's plenty tea flowing. All materials needed for the tea cosies are of course included in the price. Full details can be found at http://www.teancake.co.uk/index.php/events/make-and-cake/ These tea cosies are perfect for 2012. How much more British can you get? I have already bagged a London one for my Jubilee party! Why not come along and make your own? Once you've got the pattern and the know how, you can make a whole bunch of them. Perfect presents!
