Read The Pink Whisk Brilliant Baking Step-by-Step Cake Making Online
Authors: Ruth Clemens
The Pink Whisk Brilliant Baking Step-by-Step Cake Making (19 page)
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Cardamom works really well with banana but it is a leap of faith for some – it can be left out completely if you prefer.
1 Follow the same method as Chocolate Orange Brownie Cake, but add the crushed cardamom seeds to the pan with the chocolate and butter, and add the mashed banana in place of the orange.
Jewelled Fruit Loaf
Packed with fruit and nuts this cake is a real gem when you slice it up. Soaking the fruit overnight plumps it up so it’s sweet and juicy – but don’t worry if you forget, there’s a magic trick for that!
Makes one 900g (2lb) loaf cake
Prep: 20 minutes plus overnight soaking
Bake: 1 hour 10 minutes
Oven:160°c (fan)/180°c/350°F/Gas Mark 4
Ingredients
50g (1
3
⁄
4
oz) dried apricots
100g (3
1
⁄
2
oz) sultanas (golden raisins)
70g (2
1
⁄
2
oz) dried cranberries
35g (1
1
⁄
4
oz) dried cherries
300ml (10fl oz) pomegranate juice
45g (1
1
⁄
2
oz) glacé (candied) cherries, halved
45g (1
1
⁄
2
oz) whole almonds, roughly chopped
75g (2
3
⁄
4
oz) butter
125g (4
1
⁄
2
oz) caster (superfine) sugar
1 large egg
225g (8oz) self-raising (-rising) flour
15g (
1
⁄
2
oz) nibbed sugar
Equipment
900g (2lb) loaf tin (pan), 18.5 × 11.5cm (7 × 4
1
⁄
2
in)
Medium pan
1 Chop the apricots into pieces roughly the same size as the sultanas and mix together with the sultanas, dried cherries and cranberries in a bowl. Pour over the pomegranate juice, stir and cover. Leave to soak overnight.
2 By the next day the fruit will be lovely and plump and have absorbed the majority of the juice. Not only does the soaking of the fruit make it flavoursome and tender but it also stops the fruit from absorbing moisture from the cake batter, making the finished cake dry.
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Forgot to soak your fruit or want to bake straight away? No probs! Place the fruit and juice in a small pan and heat very, very gently. Keep your eye on it: you don’t want it to boil. The fruit will start to absorb the juice and plump up. Keep heating until the juice surrounding the fruit is reduced by two thirds. Remove from the heat and you’re ready to go. Just be careful when you add the egg – be sure to allow the mixture to cool sufficiently otherwise you’ll have cake mixture containing scrambled egg!
3 Preheat the oven to 160°C (fan)/180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Line a loaf tin with baking paper or a paper liner. Add to the fruit mixture the halved cherries and roughly chopped almonds and give it a good stir. (These are added after the overnight soaking because they wouldn’t slurp up any of the juice anyway!)
4 Place the butter and sugar in a medium sized pan and heat gently until the butter has melted and the sugar is starting to dissolve.
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Nibbed sugar is much easier to lay your hands on these days but if you can’t find any take a small handful of sugar cubes and crush roughly in a plastic sandwich bag with a rolling pin and use to scatter over the top of the loaf cake before baking.
5 Remove from the heat and add the fruits and juice. Mix it well, this will cool the mixture enough so that the egg can be added safely without cooking in the heat of the pan. Add the egg and stir until evenly worked in.
6 Add the flour and mix well again. Place the mixture into the prepared tin, roughly level with the back of a spoon and scatter the nibbed sugar over the top.
7 Bake in the oven for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a skewer when inserted comes away clean. Cover the top of the cake with a sheet of foil after 40 minutes to prevent it from browning too much. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely. Serve.
Teabread
A classic loaf cake to have in your repertoire, the wholemeal flour in this recipe gives the loaf a delicious nutty taste too. Great if you’re a tea fiend like me!
Makes one 900g (2lb) loaf cake
Prep: 20 minutes plus overnight soaking
Bake: 1 hour 10 minutes
Oven: 160°c (fan)/180°c/350°F/Gas Mark 4
Ingredients
140g (5oz) sultanas (golden raisins)
120g (4oz) raisins
40g (1
1
⁄
2
oz) currants
300ml (10fl oz) strong tea
75g (2
3
⁄
4
oz) butter
125g (4
1
⁄
2
oz) soft light brown sugar
1 large egg
225g (8 oz) plain (all-purpose) wholemeal (whole-wheat) flour
2 tsp baking powder
15g (
1
⁄
2
oz) demerara sugar
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Use your favourite tea for this loaf cake – a strong, flavoursome tea like Twinings Everyday or Yorkshire Tea works really well but you could try Earl Grey, Assam or a fruity Lady Grey.
1 Soak all the fruit overnight in the strong tea. Then follow the method for the Jewelled Fruit Cake. You’ll need 2 tsp of baking powder to go along with the wholemeal flour though – don’t forget! Scatter with demerara sugar before baking for 1 hour and 10 minutes, and make sure you cover the top with a sheet of foil after 40 minutes to prevent it from browning too much.