Archive for Cake

Making a Christmas cake with brandy soaked fruit.

December 23, 2019 at 4:16 pm · Filed under bed and breakfast, Cake, Christmas, recipes ·Tagged , , , , ,

We have a new Lidl store opened up in Chard and when I visited I noticed they sold mixed dried fruit already soaked in brandy.  I thought just the thing for a Christmas cake and set about finding a recipe.  This is what I came up with:-

Ingredients:

1020g of mixed dried fruit.  (If its not already soaked in brandy you will need to do this the night before with about 3 tablespoons full, so they soak up the brandy)

220g of plain flour

1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg powder and 3/4 teaspoon of mixed spice powder

320g of dark muscovado sugar

320g of soft butter

4 free range eggs

1 tablespoon of black treacle

1 unwaxed lemon and 1 orange finely grated zest only

Marzipan to top the cake

Icing sugar and egg white to prepare royal icing for the top

Method:

Preheat the oven to 140C/275F/Gas1

lightly grease an 8 inch round cake tine and fit a greaseproof cake case or line with greaseproof paper the bottom and the sides.

Weigh and prepare all the ingredients.DSC03626

In a large bowl beat the sugar and butter together until soft

add the eggs one at a time, with a little of the flour and spices mix

add the black treacle and beat in to mix

add the grated zestDSC03627

fold in the soaked dried fruit

tip the mixture into the prepared cake tin and loosely cover with a double layer of greaseproof paper.DSC03628

Bake for 3 3/4 hours or until the cake feels firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Allow the cake to cool in the tin.

When cool, if liked, pierce the cake at intervals with a fine skewer and “feed” with a little splash of brandy.

To store  leave the lining paper on the cake and wrap in a double layer of greaseproof paper and again in foil.  The cake will keep for up to 3 months like this, especially if fed at intervals with more brandy.

Alternatively, spread a layer of apricot jam over the top DSC03673

and roll out your marzipan to a circle to fit and place on the cake.  Smooth with a pallet knife, or the flat of your hand, using a circular motion.DSC03675

When dry add icing  ( I made up royal icing) and spread roughly as if snow.

DSC03676and then decorate as required.

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vacancies in the New Year at http://www.lodgehousebandbsomerset.co.uk

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We have some honey for honey cake

June 9, 2019 at 4:46 pm · Filed under bed and breakfast, Bees, Cake, Honey, Honey cake recipe ·Tagged , , , ,

Neil recently took some honey from a well established bee hive, so for the first time for a long time we have some honey.  Here he is with our friend Emma in their bee suits after moving some bees.

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So I decided to make a honey cake as I’d not made one for a long time, here is the recipe.

HONEY CAKE RECIPE

Ingredients

  • 170g/6oz clear honey
  • 140g/5oz butter
  • 85g/3oz light muscovado sugar (or I have used dark brown coconut sugar)
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 200g/7oz self raising flour, sieved (I used wholemeal self raising flour)
  • water

Preparation method

1.      Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 3 and butter and line the bottom of a 7in/18cm cake tin.

2.      Measure the honey, butter and sugar into a large pan. Add a tablespoon of water and heat gently until melted.

3.      Remove from the heat and mix in the flour.

4.      When fully mixed, add the beaten eggs and mix well

5.      Spoon into the cake tin and bake for 40-45 minutes until the cake is springy to the touch and shrinking slightly from the sides of the tin.

6.      Cool slightly in the tin before turning out onto a wire rack.

7.      If required you can make icing as follows:

For the icing

8.      While the cake is still warm, make the icing by mixing the sugar and honey together with 2-3 teaspoons of hot water. Trickle over the cake.  This dries as a honey crust on the cake.

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My cake was very dark brown because of the dark brown coconut sugar I used.  It made a really delicious cake.

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Guests at our B&B get offered tea and cake if they arrive in the afternoon, so if you want to try our honey cake come and stay with us. http://www.lodgehousebandbsomerset.co.uk

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Simnel Cake

April 19, 2019 at 11:16 am · Filed under bed and breakfast, Cake, recipes ·Tagged , , ,

At Easter I always make a Simnel cake.

Simnel cakes are often associated with Mothering Sunday also known as Simnel-Sunday. According to historian Ronald Hutton in 17th Century Gloucestershire and Worcestershire the custom of live-in apprentices and domestic servants going home to visit their mothers on Mothering Sunday started, checking that their families were well and taking food or money if needed. This was a time of year when food stocks were low, and the high-calorie simnel cake was useful nutrition. The cake later became simply an Easter cake.

The ingredients are as follows:

  • 175g      light muscavado sugar or soft brown sugar (I also use coconut sugar)
  • 175g      butter softened
  • 175g      self raising flour (I used wholemeal)
  • 3      large free range eggs
  • 2      tablespoons of milk
  • 500g      sultanas,  dried apricots pieces, chopped dates, currants, raisins and dried cranberries
  • 1      teaspoon of mixed spice
  • 2      teaspoon of ground ginger

Preparation:

    1. Heat the oven to 160C/320F/gas3
    2. grease  and line the base and sides of an 8 inch round cake tin with baking parchment
    3. beat the butter and sugar together until soft and fluffy
    4. add the eggs one at a time and beat
    5. add the milk
    6. add  the flour and all the dry fruit ingredients and fold in
    7. tip the mixture into the prepared cake tin
    8. place the cake in the oven and bake for 1 3/4 to 2 hours or until golden brown and a skewer or knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.
    9. place the cake on a cooling rack to cool before removing from the tin
    10. decorate  as required (I put marzipan and chocolate eggs on mine)DSC03075

Some people brown the top of the marzipan under the grill but as I have added small chocolate eggs I won’t do that.  There are 11 marzipan balls which traditionally represent the 12 Apostles less Judas.

Not to be eaten until Easter Sunday of course.

Come and share some Simnel cake with us http://www.lodgehousebandbsomerset.co.uk

 

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Banana Cake, using up ripe bananas

February 15, 2019 at 12:30 pm · Filed under B&B, bed and breakfast, Cake, recipes ·Tagged , , , , , , ,

Occasionally we get left with ripe bananas.  Rather than getting rid of them in the compost I make banana cake, and I made one yesterday for our guests. Here is the recipe:-

Ingredients:

125g butter

150g caster sugar (I used light brown caster sugar)

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 egg beaten

2 very ripe bananas, mashed

190 self raising flour (I used wholemeal)

60 ml milk

Method:

  1.  Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin. Melt butter, sugar and vanilla in a saucepan over a medium heat.DSC02826DSC02827
  2.  Remove from heat and add the mashed bananas, mix well.DSC02829DSC02830
  3.  Add the egg, mix well.DSC02831
  4.  Stir in the flour and the milk.DSC02832
  5.  Pour into the prepared tin, sprinkle with a tablespoon of demerara sugar to give a crunch topping if liked.DSC02833DSC02834
  6.  Bake at 170 C / Fan 150 C / Gas 3 for 35 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool and enjoy!DSC02841DSC02842Come to Lodge House B&B to taste a slice, all guests welcome. http://www.lodgehousebandbsomerset.co.uk

 

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A lovely fruit cake for a 64th Birthday

February 4, 2019 at 10:46 am · Filed under Cake, recipes ·Tagged , , , , ,

I made a fruit cake for my hubby for his 64th birthday. DSC02808

Here is the recipe

225g of butter or margarine

225g of castor sugar (I used a mix of light brown and coconut sugar)

4 large free range eggs

225g of self raising flour

1 tsp of mixed spice

1/2 teaspoon of ginger powder

1 tsp of cinnamon powder

1 tsp of baking powder

450g dried mixed fruit (I used sultanas, chopped dates, chopped apricots and cranberries)

Mix the butter and sugar together to form a light fluffy mix. Add the eggs one at a time with a spoon full of flour to stop it curdling.  Add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix slowly not to beat out the air.

Mix in the dried fruit until all is covered. Turn into an 8 inch greased and lined round baking tin and put in the oven at 160 degrees C for one and half hours.  Test to see that it is cooked all the way through, by putting a sharp knife into the middle of the cake and seeing that it comes out clean. If not return to the oven for a further 5 to 10 minutes and test again.

If you are not adding marzipan and icing to the cake you could finish like a Dundee cake by putting sliced almonds on the top of the cake mix before putting in the oven.

Result = Delicious and yummy!!DSC02802

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Neil’s 60th Birthday cake

February 5, 2015 at 4:06 pm · Filed under Birthday, Cake ·Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Yesterday was Neil’s big 60 birthday.  We had a lovely day, visiting a Matisse exhibition in Honiton in the morning and stopping for coffee and cake.  Then in the afternoon we saw a film “The hundred step journey” with Helen Mirren which was a feel good movie and good fun.  In the evening we went to the Candlelight Inn for a meal which was delicious, but also I made Neil a lovely fruit cake for his birthday.

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We lit the candles and Neil blew them out.  I thought numbers would be less of a fire hazard than 60 individual candles.

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The recipe was the same as I used last year see https://lodgehousebandbsomerset.wordpress.com/2014/02/06/my-hubbys-59th-birthday-cake/ except I didn’t have any cherries so used chopped dates and apricots, sultanas and raisins for the fruit. And I topped it with vanilla buttercream icing this time.

Anyway we had eaten too much to cut into it yesterday so we are having some today instead.

Chaos still abounds at Lodge House and the B&B is closed at the moment whilst the builders are in.

http://www.lodgehousebandbsomerset.co.uk

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My Hubby’s 59th Birthday Cake

February 6, 2014 at 4:32 pm · Filed under Cake, recipes ·Tagged , , , , ,

It was my Hubby’s 59th birthday, so I baked him a cake.  I used a recipe for a light fruit cake that I used before, but used a few different ingredients.  I don’t like mixed peel so I didn’t put any in, and when I went to my store cupboard I found I didn’t have any currants so I used other dried fruit.  These are the ingredients I used:

  • 175g      light muscavado sugar
  • 175g      butter softened
  • 175g      self raising flour (I used wholemeal)
  • 1           teaspoon baking powder
  • 3           large free range  eggs
  • 2           tablespoons of  milk
  • 465g mixed fruit I used:
  • 110g      sultanas
  • 55g        dried sweet cherries, quartered
  • 85g        dried apricots, snipped into small pieces
  • 110g      raisins
  • 55g        dates, chopped into small pieces
  • 50g        dried cranberries
  • 1             teaspoon of mixed  spice
  • 2            teaspoons of ground ginger

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I cut up the dates and apricots into small pieces:

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I prepared the flour, sugar, eggs and milk.  I ran out of light muscavado sugar so had to top up with light brown sugar, but I don’t think it makes that much of  a difference if you just add a little.

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Preparation:

  • Heat the oven to 160C/320F/gas3
  • grease  and line the base and sides of an 8 inch round cake tin with baking parchment
  • beat the butter and sugar together until soft and fluffy
  • add the eggs one at a time and beat
  • add the milk
  • add the flour and all the dry fruit ingredients and fold in
  • tip the mixture into the prepared cake tin

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  • place the cake in the oven and bake for 1 3/4 to 2 hours or until golden brown and a skewer or knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.

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  • place the cake on a cooling rack to cool before removing from the tin
  • decorate  as required (I put marzipan and icing and candles on mine)

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Here he is just about to blow out the candles:-

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And thoroughly delicious it was too!!

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