Tag Archives: Cake

Strawberry & Rhubarb Coffee Cake

Posted on by

(paid partnership post with Gay Lea Foods, recipe contains affiliate links)

Makes 1 sheet cake 9 x 13″

Ingredients

Strawberry & Rhubarb Filling

  • 5 cups frozen strawberry & rhubarb fruit pieces
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup cornstarch
  • 2 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 Tbsp cold water
  • pinch salt

Streusel Topping

Cake Layer

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • pinch salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups Gay Lea Gold Premium Sour Cream*
  • 2/3 cup whole milk*
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

To finish

*Gay Lea Original Sour Cream can be used. If doing so omit 2/3 cup whole milk from the ingredients

Method

  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a 9x13x 3 inch high baking pan with parchment paper and set aside

Strawberry & Rhubarb Filling

  1. In a medium-size saucepan over medium heat, combine the rhubarb & strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and water.  Stir frequently until the cornstarch begins to thicken and the fruit has softened – about 10-15 minutes.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool

Streusel Topping

  1. In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon.  Using a pastry cutter, or your fingers, the butter into the sugar and flour mixture until it resembles coarse sand.  Use your hands to squeeze handfuls of topping together, creating some larger clumps, then place on the fridge to firm up

Cake Layer

  1. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Using a pastry knife or your fingers, cut butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse sand. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, sour cream*, milk* and vanilla. Pour into flour mixture; stir until just combined. Try not to over-mix. The mixture will be quite thick and similar to a loose biscuit batter
  2. Spread half the cake batter evenly into the prepared pan. Top with the strawberry & rhubarb filling. Carefully spread the remaining batter over the fruit. Sprinkle with the chilled streusel topping, squeezing handfuls of topping to make sure there are at least some larger chunks of topping
  3. Bake until cake is golden brown and springs back when touched in the center, about 1 hour. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool slightly. Dust the top with powdered sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into squares, with a good squirt of Gay Lea Real Whipped Cream on the side
Advertisement

Baileys Irish Cream Deep ‘n’ Delicious Cake

Posted on by

Makes 1, 9inch x 13inch sheet cake

Ingredients

Cake Layer

Swiss Meringue Buttercream topping

  • 6 egg whites, large, at room temp.
  • 1 Cup + 2 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1 ½ Cups + 4 Tablespoons butter cubed, room temperature
  • 6-10 Tablespoons Baileys Irish Cream, or similar, to your taste

Method

  1. Make the chocolate vinegar cake as per the recipe, omitting the ganache topping. Set aside and leave to cool while you make the swiss meringue buttercream
  2. In a heatproof bowl set over a pan with some water (making sure the bowl does not touch the water) combine the sugar and egg whites and heat, whisking until the mixture reaches about 150F or the sugar has dissolved and the texture has slightly thickened and its foamy. If you rub the mixture between your fingers you should not feel the sugar granules. This should take about 3-5 minutes depending on how warm your stove is
  3. Add the mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk on medium speed until the mixture has cooled. It will look thick and glossy
  4. Add the butter chunks gradually while running the whisk at medium speed. Wait until previous batch has been incorprated before adding the next. During the course of adding the butter the mixture may look curdled and look like it’s split. Fear no, it all part of the process! Continue to whisk and it will come back together, becoming a lush smooth texture. (*If the butter looks like is separating and looks greasy- it could be because its too warm so place the bowl in the fridge for 10-15 minutes then start mixing again)
  5. Swap your paddle attachment for the whisk attachment and add in the Irish cream liqueur, to your taste preference. Beat on medium speed until fully incorporated
  6. Once fully cooled you can piping or spread the butter cream onto the chocolate layer cake. Dust with cocoa powder, slice and serve. *I pipe it on using an open star tip for that “authentic” look

Schmoo Torte

Posted on by

Makes 1 gateau, serves 8-12

Ingredients

Cake

  • 12 large egg whites, at room temperature
  • a pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 1/3 cups white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup cake flour
  • 1 ½ cups ground, toasted pecans
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

Frosting & Filling

  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream, chilled
  • 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Caramel Sauce

  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To Assemble

  • ½ cup ground toasted pecans
  • Toasted pecans for garnish

Method

Cake

  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F
  2. Add the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment
  3. Whip on low speed until combined and then turn the mixer to high and whip until stiff peaks form
  4. Turn the mixer to medium and mix in the vanilla extract and sugar (adding only 1/4 the sugar at a time), just until combined
  5. In a separate bowl, combine the ground pecans, cake flour and baking powder. Whisk until well combined and remove any large lumps of pecans
  6. Fold in the pecan mixture very carefully with a rubber spatula in two or three additions. Work carefully so as not to deflate the mix
  7. Add the batter to an Angel Food Cake pan and bake at 350 degree F for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean
  8. Cool upside-down until completely cool, and slice into three even layers, horizontally, with a serrated knife

Frosting & Filling

  1. Whip the cream, powdered sugar and vanilla on high speed until stiff peaks form. Set aside
  2. Spread the frosting between the layers of the cake and after you stack the layers, spread the remainder of the frosting over the whole cake

Caramel Sauce

  1. Melt the butter in a medium pot over medium heat
  2. Add the brown sugar and heavy whipping cream, whisking over the heat until smooth and until the mixture reaches a boil
  3. Boil for 2 minutes, whisking constantly
  4. Add the vanilla and remove from the heat, allowing it to cool completely before drizzling it over the top of the cake

To Assemble

  1. Press the ground pecans into the side of the cake, all the way around
  2. Add pecans to the top of the cake in a circular design
  3. Refrigerate the cake in the fridge for 2 hours before serving
  4. Remove and let come to room temperature for 20 minutes. Drizzle with the caramel sauce before slicing. Any additional caramel sauce may be served over individual slices

Irish Tea Cake & Mixed Berry Coulis

Posted on by

Whilst my previous posts have covered the more well known fare of St. Patrick’s Day (Soda Bread; Báirín Breac to name a few) this cake may prove to be lesser-known blast from my childhood past in an Irish kitchen. It’s not the usual image of “Tea Cake” that might spring to mind- chocolate covered, marshmallow packed bundles of sweet joy. This is a “Tea Cake” in the sense of a cake to have with tea; similar to how a “Coffee Cake” can be not so much coffee flavored cake, but rather a cake to have with coffee.

For me the beauty in this bake lies in it’s simplicity. It’s ingredients aren’t extensive, nor it’s method demanding. And as for the results? Sublime in it’s modesty this can be a welcome relief to other “fussy” bakes. The flavor is smooth and buttery, with a close crumb structure (which reminds me almost of a Japanese cheesecake) this is perfectly paired with a Chantilly cream (not very synonymous with Paddy’s Day I know) or in this case a berry coulis.

I wanted something a little bit different than your standard berry coulis here (there’s a surprise huh?) and the additions of mead and birch syrup here offer that adding both sweetness and hint of bitterness. Don’t get to wrapped up on including these though- I’m aware these aren’t exactly pantry staples. They’ll work wonders if you can include them but the coulis will be tasty treat nonetheless without them.

On that note, whatever you get up with this year’s St. Patrick’s Day festivities I hope you enjoy- heck knows it’s long overdue!

Lá fhéile Pádraig sona dhaoibhe!

Irish Tea Cake & Mixed Berry Coulis Recipe #recipe

Ingredients

Irish Tea Cake

  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup confectioners sugar

Mixed Berry Coulis

  • 2 cups mixed berries, fresh or frozen
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 Tablespoons mead
  • 1 Tablespoon birch syrup

Method

Irish Tea Cake

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and line a 9-inch round pan
  2. In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside
  3. In a separate bowl (of a stand mixer), cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 10 minutes)
  4. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and vanilla, mixing until fully incorporated
  5. Stir the dry flour mixture into the batter alternately with the milk. If the batter is too stiff, a tablespoon or two of milk may be added
  6. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan
  7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  8. Cool in pan on a wire rack, then turn out for serving
  9. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve sliced with the mixed berry coulis

Mixed Berry Coulis

  1. In a medium pan combine the mixed berries, sugar and lemon juice
  2. Over a medium heat stir occasionally until sugar has dissolved
  3. Add in mead and birch syrup, reduce to a low heat and simmer for 10-15mins, stirring occasionally. Cool until berries have softened and broken down. Check taste for sweetness and stir in more sugar if needed
  4. Remove from heat and leave to cool for 10 minutes
  5. Using a standard blender or wand blender blitz berry mixture until smooth
  6. Leave to cool fully

Midnight Ginger Cake

Posted on by

So this started as riff on my Spiced Chocolate Cake and grew from there. I absolutely love those chocolate-covered ginger biscuits. You know the ones – those crunchy, brittle ginger-snap like ones that have that slow-burning throaty heat, enrobed in decadent dark chocolate? Yup- I can easily demolish an questionably inhuman amount of them in one sitting! So I thought of recreating that addictive marriage of heat and bitterness in cake form. Not content with just any form if chocolate flavor I wanted an extra oomph! Switching up to using black cocoa not only gives in my view wonderfully deep, earthy chocolate flavor but also the alluring sumptuous midnight-black of the title. Although it does provide a chocolate flavor, it’s a world away from the sometimes cloying richness of a traditional cocoa-fueled cake.

I also thought it would provide the perfect canvas for my newly acquired stock of Rosen Bun’s bun-inspired spreads– here, the deliciously addictive Babka variety, with it’s “deep chocolate flavor with a cinnamon left hook”. The darkly, luxurious flavors of the spread combining with the spicy, gingery antics of the cake. You can rest easy as using the spread here is nothing more complicated than spreading, or rather smearing, it in hypnotic, glossy waves of velvety, sweet goodness over the top of the cooled cake. In fact the hardest part is restraining yourself from scoffing the cinnamony-cocoa spread straight from the jar! Seriously – this is sinfully finger-licking good stuff. Check out the Rosen Buns website for a list of stockists.

Decoration of the finished covered cake is entirely to your own taste. I used dehydrated pear slices as I was experimenting with a newly purchased kitchen gadget. Using the dried pear slices as decoration rather than munching them straight out of the bag providing some form of self-deluding restraint in my mind!

As always with my posts where I mention, or name drop, specific items it’s done from a place of support and elevation. The producing companies are small, local Toronto businesses whose products have earned a special place in this cynical, hungry heart (and I mean LITERALLY). If there has been any compensation, sponsorship or re-imbursement, I’ll clearly flag it up for clarity and yes, it usually still involves me being head-over-heels with the product (case in point here, with the awesome team at Station Cold Brew Coffee).

I hope you enjoy this little exercise and experiment in flavors from me- who knows there may be more to come! In the meantime stay safe, stay home (and bake!) and mask up!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup black cocoa powder
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 tsps ground ginger
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 cup Canola oil
  • 1/2 cup fancy molasses
  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup whole milk
  • 1 jar Rosen’s Babka Spread

Method

  1. Combine the oil, molasses, juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Set it on low heat and stir till the sugar has dissolved. Set aside to cool for about 10 minutes
  2. In a bowl combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and spices. Whisk to combine and set aside until needed
  3. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Grease an 8″ x 8″ square cake pan with oil and line it with baking parchment, allowing allow the edges to overhang for easy removal
  4. Transfer the cooled molasses mixture to a large mixing bowl and add in the eggs, vanilla and milk. Whisk well until smooth and well combined
  5. Fold in the flour mixture gradually into the liquid until incorporated. Make sure the there are no pockets of dried flour mixture. The final batter may look a little lumpy- this is okay
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared tin, level the top and bake for 35 to 40 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If the top is darkening quickly, cover the tin loosely with foil and continue baking
  7. Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then invert, remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
  8. Once completely cool spread the babka spread over the top as you would a ganache. Decorate as you like. Here I’ve used some dehydrated pear slices (for no other reason than I was playing with a new piece of kitchen equipment!)
  9. Slice and enjoy!
  10. Store in an airtight container for about 3-4 days at room temperature