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On these pages we will be posting some of our favourite recipes,
which we hope you will enjoy as well.
************************************************  CHOCOLATE COLA CAKE
Serves 8
250g butter, plus some for greasing 250g self-raising flour 300g golden caster sugar 3 heaped tablespoons cocoa Generous pinch of bicarbonate of soda 200ml cola drink 75 ml milk 2 eggs, beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
FOR THE TOPPING 60g butter, softened 200g icing sugar, sifted 2-3 tablespoons cocoa 2 tablespoons cola drink
FOR THE SAUCE (OPTIONAL) King-sized caramel chocolate bar Splash of double cream 2 tablespoons mini marshmallows (optional)
Pre-heat oven 180C/350F/gas 4. Grease a 24cm loose-bottomed cake tin or line with one piece of paper!!
Sift the flour, add to bowl with sugar, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda.
Gently melt butter and cola drink together in a pan. Then add to dry ingredients, together with the milk, eggs and vanilla essence. Mix gently but thoroughly, then pour into cake tin.
Bake for about 40 minutes or until skewer comes out clean. Remove from oven and leave to cool in tin for about 15 minutes.
To make the topping:- beat the butter, icing sugar and cocoa together until blended. Beat in the cola drink to combine. Spread over the cold cake and allow topping to set.
To make the sauce:- melt the chocolate bar gently in a pan with a splash of cream (you may want to add a little warm water to achieve a pouring consistency) then stir in the marshmallows if using. The sauce is rich and sweet, as is the topping, so you may want to serve with one or the other rather than both. ***********************************************
Carrot and cardamom jam if
you dont have a preserving pan you can improvise with an enamelled cast-iron
casserole dish (Le Creuset for example) that is wider than it is deep. This
ensures that heat is conducted quickly so that the jam reduces quickly, retaining
its fresh flavour. Ingredients 500g young Carrots, peeled and sliced into 2cm strips 3 Lemons, finely grated zest of 2 lemons, juice of all 3 1 large Orange, finely grated zest and juice 1 tbsp cardamom seeds, (split open the green pods of the cardamom to find the seeds) 1kg granulated sugar 125g liquid pectin
Method 1. Place 3 saucers in the freezer to chill - you'll need them later to test the setting point of the jam. Sterilise some jam jars by washing 3-4 jars in soapy water and rinsing them in clean warm water. Allow them to drip-dry, upside down, on a rack in the oven set to 140C/Gas 1. Leave them there for at least half an hour while you make the jam.
2. Cook the carrots in saucepan of boiling water for 10-15 minutes, or until tender. Drain and chop finely.
3. Put the carrots, citrus zest and juice, and cardamom seeds in a preserving pan. Add the sugar, and simmer over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved.
4. Increase the heat and boil the mixture for 5 minutes.
5. Add the pectin, return the mixture to the boil, and cook for a further 2 minutes. To test if the jam is ready, dollop a teaspoonful of the mixture onto one of the saucers from the freezer and leave for a few seconds. Push the mixture with your finger and if it gives a little and has started to set, the jam is ready.
5. Once the jam has reached setting point, leave to cool for a further 10 minutes, then stir well. Pour into the hot sterilised jars, seal and label. The jam will keep for up to three months if stored in a cool, dry place and if the jar is sterilised correctly. ************************************************
LEMON SYRUP CAKE
115g / 4oz softened butter OPTIONAL TOPPING 175g / 6oz self-raising flour finely peeled zest of 2 large 175g / 6oz caster sugar lemons or oranges 2 eggs 2 tablespoons sugar 4 tablespoons milk 4 tablespoons water Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon 3 heaped tablespoons icing sugar
1. Preheat oven 180C / 350F / gas mark 4
2. Lightly grease a 900g / 2lb loaf tin with butter. Sprinkle with a little flour, then turn upside down and give the tin a tap to get rid of any surplus.
3. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine butter, flour, sugar, eggs, milk and lemon zest. Beat thoroughly with a wooden spoon until well combined 2 -3 minutes, or use a food mixer till smooth.
4. Spoon into the prepared tin and bake in the middle of oven for 50 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into middle of cake comes out clean.
5. With a knife, loosen the edges of the cake from the tin. Mix together 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice with the icing sugar and pour evenly over the hot cake. Leave to cool in the tin before turning out.
6. To make the optional topping: - Candied Peel topping Cut the zest into thin silvers or use a lemon peel zester. Blanch in a pan of boiling water for 3 minutes, drain, refresh with cold water and drain again.
7. Put sugar and water into small pan and bring to simmering point. When sugar has dissolved, add the blanched zest and simmer for 2 3 minutes until translucent. Spread out on a wire rack to drain for an hour. Scatter on top of the cake. *************************************  Hummingbird cake
Prep time:25 min Cook time: 25 min Serves: Makes 10-12 slices Similar to carrot cake, hummingbird cake contains bananas and pineapple to keep it moist and packed with flavour
· 300g caster sugar · 3 eggs · 300ml sunflower oil · 270g peeled bananas, mashed · 1 tsp cinnamon, plus extra to decorate · 300g plain flour · 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda · 1/2 tsp salt · 1/4 tsp vanilla extract · 100g tinned pineapples, chopped into small pieces · 100g chopped pecans, or walnuts plus extra to decorate Cream cheese frosting · 600g icing sugar · 100g unsalted butter, at room temperature · 250g cream cheese, cold
1.
Preheat the oven to 170C/Gas 3. *********************************************
Microwave Ginger sticky cake
100g butter 175g black treacle 75g soft brown sugar 3 tablespoons ginger preserve 3 ½ fl oz milk ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 100g self raising flour 2 teaspoons ginger powder 100g wholemeal flour 1 egg, beaten
1. place butter, black treacle, brown sugar and ginger preserve into microwavable bowl and microwave for 1 ½ minutes (850W) 2. warm milk in jug in microwave for 20 seconds. Stir in bicarbonate of soda. 3. sift self raising flour and ginger powder and add this gradually to the warmed butter mix. Beat well. 4. add wholemeal flour, egg and milk mixture and beat till smooth and runny. 5. line with baking parchment a 16cm microwavable dish with high sides (7cm). pour in mixture. 6. cook in microwave for 8 minutes turning a Ό turn after 4 minutes. 7.
stand
for 5 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack. *********************************************
Lemon CurdMakes three 1 lb (350 ml capacity) jarsIngredients grated zest and juice 4 large juicy lemons 4 large eggs 12 oz (350 g) golden caster sugar 8 oz (225 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small lumps 1 level dessertspoon cornflour
MethodBegin by lightly whisking the eggs in a medium-sized saucepan, then add the rest of the ingredients and place the saucepan over a medium heat. Now whisk continuously using a balloon whisk until the mixture thickens about 7-8 minutes. Next, lower the heat to its minimum setting and let the curd gently simmer for a further minute, continuing to whisk. After that, remove it from the heat. Now pour the lemon curd into the hot, sterilised jars, filling them as full as possible, cover straightaway with waxed discs, seal while it is still hot and label when it is cold. It will keep for several weeks, but it must be stored in a cool place ********************************************** When I made this sponge I did not make the cheesecake topping or filling, instead I use some Lemon Curd as a filling and dusted the top with icing sugar and it was scumptious!
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