Saturday 12 April 2014

A Bit of Self Indulgence...

I've been feeling a bit under the weather this last week, so in an attempt to get my creative juices flowing and make myself a little get well pressie, I made a rhubarb and custard cake...

Not like any cake I've made before but definitely worth it as it's delicious ;)

Here's the recipe if you want to have a crack yourself...


Rhubarb & Custard Cake

Serves 8

400g rhubarb, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
2 Tbs caster sugar
1 pear, lightly poached and chopped
250g/9oz unsalted butter, softened
250g/9oz caster sugar
4 eggs
250g/9oz self-raising flour, sieved
1tsp baking powder
icing sugar to dust
200ml ready made custard

1.  Pre-heat oven to gas mark 4/180˚. Add rhubarb and caster sugar to a pan. Heat gently until rhubarb softens. Add poached pear and put to one side to cool.


2.  Beat butter and caster sugar until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating in between each and adding a little flour as you go. Then fold in the remaining flour and baking powder.


3.  Stir in the rhubarb and pear and slowly fold in the custard. Pour the cake batter into a prepared 8” loose bottom, spring-form cake tin. Put in the oven for 1-1½ hours (cover with foil if it starts to colour too much). Test to see if it’s cooked by inserting a skewer; if it comes out clean, it’s cooked. If not cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, leave for 10 minutes then loosen around the edge of tin with a knife and release spring. Leave to cool before removing from the tin. Dust with icing sugar, slice and serve. 

Tuesday 1 April 2014

Mother's Day Lovliness...

This year I treated Mama Button to a lemon and elderflower drizzle cake which I made following one of Ruth Clemmons recipes...AKA The Pink Whisk. Ruth was runner up in series 1 of The Great British Bake Off. 

I have been itching to try one of Ruth's recipes and she didn't disappoint ;) The loaf was delicious x

If you are interested in having a go yourself, here's the review...enjoy x

Lemon & Elderflower Drizzle Cake

Serves 12

175g/6oz unsalted butter
175g/6oz caster sugar
Zest if 2 lemons
Juice of 1 lemon
3 large eggs
160g/5.5oz self-raising flour

For the topping
Juice of 1 lemon
2tbsp elderflower cordial
110g/3.5oz caster sugar

1. Preheat oven to gas mark 4/180 degrees (160 degrees for a fan oven). Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add lemon zest and mix until evenly combined. Add eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition.
2. Fold in self-raising flour until cake mix is even. Stir through juice of o e lemon.
3. Full loaf tin with cake mixture. Level top roughly with back of spoon and bake in oven for 50 minutes. Check after 35 minutes and if crust is going very dark, cover it with a sheet if foil for the remaining baking time.
4. Remove cake from oven and mix together drizzle - lemon juice, elderflower cordial and sugar, stirring well to combine. Sugar will still be granular. Keep the cake in the tin and, using a skewer, prick holes right across and all round top of cake - aim to go three quarters of the way through, not right to the base. Spoon drizzle over top of cake slowly, allowing it to rundown the skewered holes before adding another spoonful. Set the cake aside to cool completely then remove from tin and serve.