Chocolate Chiffon Cake

Chiffon cakes is the number one cake I turn to if making a celebration cake with fruit and cream.  Its light airy layers are simply a delight to eat and sandwiched between luxuriant cream and fragrant fruit it gives you a feeling of real indulgence!  Of course you can eat chiffon cakes as they are - plain.  The moist yet light, springy texture slips down easily and you crave for another wedge! ;)

I saw several chiffon cakes posted recently (well, as in within past 3 months :p ) and it re-ignited an urge to bake a chiffon cake.  Since then I have lost count of how many I made.  Let's think now...  There was a vanilla one with cream and fruit for my niece's 3rd birthday... a chocolate one with chocolate cream for my mumma friend's birthday... I had a mango one with mango and cream... I made a plain lemon gluten-free one as a treat for a friend (she in turn asked me to make one for her partner's birthday, another gluten free lemon chiffon but decorated with cream and fruit)... I made a plain banana one for my mum to enjoy at work... and today I hastily whipped a chocolate one for my neighbour's birthday.  They had invited us to a BBQ at theirs and I don't like going to friend's places empty-handed.

It's my trusted chiffon recipe that I now tweak here and there to suit the flavour I'm making.  I think I rushed this one as it did fall out of the tin whilst cooling (which incidentally, NEVER happens).  I could have been upset about it but frankly, it was going to be filled with cream and topped with chocolate - it wasn't going to be a show-stopper but I believed I could patch it with cream and it'd be OK - edible at least. :)

Cream and ganache - a wonderful duo for hiding inconsistencies!

The recipe is originally from Sea Dragon: as I say, I tweak bits, but essentially, it's based on his recipe.  I have tried to take photos along the way to describe the stages as I know some people are daunted by chiffon cakes.  Below is what I used today.

Chocolate Chiffon Cake

Cake:
4 egg yolks
60g caster sugar
85ml sunflower oil
30g cocoa powder
125ml water
100g plain flour
2 level teaspoons baking powder
4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Filling and topping:
50ml double cream
100g milk chocolate (broken into squares)
150ml double cream
2 small (37g) bags of Malteasers (chocolate covered honeycomb balls

Preheat oven to 180 deg C.  I used a 10" round springform tin as I was willing to sacrifice depth of size of cake.

Sift flour, cocoa and baking powder 3 times and set aside.

Using a stand-alone mixer, or an electric hand-whisk, whisk egg whites until foamy (think large washing up bubbles).  Add cream of tartar and continue to whisk until thick and white. Add the 120g sugar a quarter at a time while whisking until meringue is glossy and thick. The mixture should be able to hold its shape but not be too stiff or dry, the whites will not fall out of the bowl if inverted either.  If the whites are too stiff and dry, it will take a little more effort to combine them into the cake batter.

Whisk egg yolks and 60g of sugar until pale, thick and creamy.  The mix should leave a trail for a couple of seconds before disappearing into the mix when the whisk is raised.  Slowly add the oil as you continue to whisk - it will still stay lovely and thick.  Mix in the water.  Sift in the flour mix in 3 batches and fold in until combined.

Add 1/4 of the meringue into the cake batter and using a large spoon (I use a serving spoon), mix in the meringue to loosen the batter.  Add another 1/4 of the meringue and fold gently until combined.  Repeat until all meringue is incorporated into the cake batter.

Pour into the cake tin.  (If making a plain chiffon I use a chiffon tube pan, if decorating with cream I tend to use a 9" or 10" round springform tin so I don't get a hole in my cake from the tube.) Lift the cake tin about 2 inches above the counter top and drop tin on counter.  This helps remove any large air bubbles.

Bake for about 40 - 55 minutes until a skewer inserted in middle comes out clean.  Immediately turn the tin upside down with the cake still in it to cool.  You can support the tin on the edge on tin cans to allow air to circulate under the cake.  If using a chiffon tube, I insert the hole of the tube onto a wine bottle (with liquid in it!!!) and allow the cake to balance on the neck of the wine bottle to cool.  Leave to cool completely.

Put 50ml cream in a microwaveable bowl.  Heat in microwave for 30-40 seconds until cream is hot but not boiling.  Add the squares of chocolate and stir.  If there are still lumps of chocolate that won't melt, place in microwave for further 10 seconds.  Stir until smooth, then leave aside.  This is chocolate ganache.

Whisk the remaining cream until firm but not stiff peaks.  Using the side of a large bladed knife or a rolling pin, crush one bag of Malteasers until broken.  Fold Malteaser pieces into the cream and chill.
When cake is completely cold to the touch, split into 2 layers and sandwich with the Malteaser cream.

Give the ganache a stir before pouring ontop of cake and spread to cover.  Decorate with remaining bag of Malteasers.  Chill before serving.

The chiffon is usually higher than this but I think I measured my flour out wrong!

As I mentioned, my cake fell out of the tine during cooling.  I flipped the tin the right way up and tried to put the cake back into the tin.  The cake somehow cracked into 3 wedges!  I ran a thin spatula round the inside of the tin to loosen the edges before removing the springform collar.  I then slid the spatula under the cake to remove it from the base of the tin.  I assembled the wedges the best I could before proceeding to split, fill and decorate the cake.  I was hopingthe cream and ganache would patch and hide the cracks!  It wasn't the best looking chiffon I'd made but resembled a whole cake at least!

I'll do a post with step-by-step pictures and a separate post of chiffon cakes I've made - some decorated - some plain. :)

Looking back through my chiffon pictures on my blog - you can see where I have made a more successful Chocolate Chiffon!

Chocolate Refrigerator Cake

Can't believe how quickly time passes!  My last Blog Entry was almost 6 months ago?!?!  Naughty me!

I will have to learn to write short posts and I dunno, edit photos so they are a collage of pictures in one post?  I hate waiting for the upload time :p

Chunks of moreish Refrigerator Cake :)

OK, this chocolate confection goes by many names: No-Cook Cake, Chocolate Tiffin, Chocolate Biscuit Cake (Prince William's favourite apparently), Rocky Road and of course, Chocolate Refrigerator Cake.  Needless to say, many names means many recipes.  I was inspired to make this after seeing a Facebook post from this lady, Jo Wheatley, winner of Great British Bake Off 2.  She has a Facebook page which I have been following.  Her picture of these decadent goodies made me want to make this...

When I make something, I now have an annoying habit of googling the name of the item and reading different variations of the recipe before I make my mind up which to follow.  If it's measured in grams opposed to cups, then I'm more likely to try it - just because I put my bowl on the digital scales and throw things in as I need to. 

I used this Annabel Karmel recipe as my base and used Jo's ideas to create my refrigerator cake.  It is delicious with crunchy and gooey textures and quite rich!

The chocolate mix turned out into my swiss-roll tin ready for chilling

Chocolate Refrigerator Cake

Ingredients:

150g/5oz milk chocolate

150g/5oz dark chocolate

100g/3½oz unsalted butter

150g/5oz golden syrup

small bag of Malteasers (honeycombe balls covered in chocolate 37g bag)
small bag of Minstrels (chocolate buttons encased in a candy shell 42g)
small bag of White Chocolate Buttons (70g)
8 biscuits (rich tea, ginger snaps, digestives, oat biscuits ~ any would work)
50g rice pop cereal
10 marshmallow lumps - quartered (could use mini-marshmallows too)

I made this cake with one bowl, one spoon.  Minimal washing up!  I put my bowl (microwaveable) on my digital scales and added things as I went along - it saved getting separate bowls messy and having lots to wash up :)

Break chocolate into pieces into a microwaveable bowl.
Add the cubed butter and the golden syrup to the bowl.  

Microwave at 100%  (mine is 800watt) for 30 seconds.  Take out and stir the contents.  If there are any remaining lumps of chocolate, microwave again for 15 seconds.  The mixture does not need to be hot, just warm enough to melt the chocolate.  Stirring continuously will help.
When the mix has all turned to liquid, tip in your Malteasers, Buttons, Minstrels, rice cereal, marshmallows and snap the biscuits up as you add them in too.  You can put these in a bowl and bash lightly with the end of a rolling pin if you like - but do not turn it into crumbs - lumpy is fine.
When everything is thoroughly coated in chocolate, tip out onto a shallow tray (I used 20cm x 30cm) lined with cling film (make sure there is excess cling film off the edges to wrap the cake).

Level out as best you can with the back of a spoon. 
Fold the excess cling film over the cake and place in fridge to set (1-2 hours).  Cut into small pieces.  It is quite rich so you do not need a big piece :)

I decorated the top of my cake with drizzles of white and dark chocolate before cutting it up :)
Melt one bar of white chocolate (100g).
Melt remaining dark chocolate left over from making refrigerator cake (50g) - left over milk chocolate is for stress-related emergencies >.<
Drizzle, squiggle, splodge the melted chocolate over the cake as your creative talents allow :)  Replce in fridge for a few mins to harden before chopping into as large/small pieces as you like :)

The beauty of this cake is you can adjust the ingredients as you like.  Add chopped dried fruit (raisins, apricots, dates, stem ginger, sour cherries, cranberries, list is endless...) and nuts (hazlenut, brazil, pistachio) if you prefer.  Or soak the dried fruit in alcohol for 24 hrs prior to making this if you want it to be an adult-only treat!

See the soft, gooey marshmallow, crisp, crunchy Malteaser?

Bagged and ready as a birthday gift to my neighbour :)

Hi!

I've not disappeared!  Just enjoying time as a mum and watching little "leaf" develop into a funny little, cheeky, lovable chappie!  So I apologise for not keeping you all posted! 

Minh's first birthday has come and gone and I will have to load up some photos of his grand day.  We decided to get caterers for the food but I made all the desserts.  This was a mighty affair!  We had: Lemon Cheesecake; Blueberry Cheesecake; Fresh Fruit and Cream Gateaux; Tropical Fruit salad (ok, this one was bought in!) and Minh's crowning glory, a 3-tier birthday cake!  Tiers were: lemon with homemade lemon curd, vanilla with homemade jam and to top, a gluten-free carrot cake with lemon butter icing!  I also made iced biscuits for the children's party bags!  Yes!  It was hard work especially as cakes cannot be made too far in advance!  Can you understand why we had caterers in now? 


Just thought I'd share a Steamed Bun recipe - it's a favourite of mine as it uses baking powder as the raising agent - not yeast which I find can taint the taste of steamed buns.  (I'm sure I'd promised to share the recipe?)  Little Leaf and Daddy Leaf enjoyed the buns and its lovely to see them sat on the bottom step opposite the door to the kitchen sharing a bun.  (Little Leaf doesn't eat the filling - he's a bit funny like that!)

Still not quite as white and cloud-like as restaurant buns but tasty all the same :)

Steamed Barbecue Buns

Ingredients:

Bun Dough

250 g (2.5 cup) Special Bun Flour  (I use chinese bun flour as the UK supermarket flour makes an off white dough and doesn't result in a white fluffy bun)

18 g (3.5 tsp) baking powder

45 g (3 tblsp) caster sugar

30 g (2 tblsp) white vegetable fat (Trex) or vegetable oil (or lard)

120 ml (1/2 cup) water (approx)

1/2 teaspoon white vinegar

Method:

• Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl add sugar and mix, rub in the vegetable fat/lard with your fingertips until evenly distributed. (If using oil, just add oil with the vinegar and water.)
• Add water and vinegar together and knead until a fairly soft dough.
• Shape into a ball and let it rest, covered, for 30 minutes.

To make the buns

• Divide the dough into12 portions.
• Mould each into a smooth ball.
• Roll each out on a lightly floured surface to a circle about 4 inches across.
• Put a heaping teaspoon of filling in the centre and gather the edges inward, folding and pleating to make a neat join.
• Twist dough to seal.
• Put each bun, join upwards, on a flattened paper cake case, in a steamer.
• Cover and steam for 15 minutes.
• Serve warm.

The filling for today's buns was Barbecue Pork -  I'm fortunate enough to have a supplier for this - also known as my mum, "Mrs Plum".  Here's how I made my filling:

Barbecue Pork Filling:

160 g barbecue roast pork (thinly sliced into 1cm sized pieces)

1 shallot (very finely diced)

100 g water

1.5 tsp Lee Kum Kee “Char Siu Sauce”

1 tsp oyster sauce

15 ml water

1 tsp cornflour

Fry shallot in a little oil, add finely sliced barbecue pork and fry gently for 2 minutes. Add water, char siu sauce and oyster sauce. Simmer for 3 minutes. Thicken with cornflour/water mix. Taste sauce for seasoning. Allow to cool slightly before using as bun filling.

Recipe adapted from www.recipezaar.com/11087

I will upload some piccies of the steamed buns later - the buns have disappeared so quickly I'm off to make another batch!

Hot steamy action!

I hope you are enjoying the festive period and are enjoying time with friends family and some great food!

My two taste-testers!  If the son & hubbs approve it must be good! :D

Lemon & Blueberry Macarons

Macarons are still all the rage in the baking world.  These little beauties look so cute but are difficult to master!  There are many recipes and blogs out there teaching you the basics but I think its something you probably need to see and feel to know you are getting it right. 

My first attempt was laughable.  More like an almond gooey cookie.  See I took some photos of shame - they are at the bottom of this post, Macaron Madness.

My second attempt I thought were great until I tried to peel them off the paper.  Hmmm...wet bases.  Also, they were rather flat.

You can just about make out the green tea mac's atthe back.  I split the batch and made two flavours.

Attempt number 3 was lemon macarons.  I need to practice the piping too!

Filled with lemon butter icing and a lemon curd centre - lemonicious!

Attempt number 4 was blueberry.  These were filled with fresh blueberry coulis and lemon butter icing.  These macaron shells I managed to cook perfectly but forgot to push in the 'tails' on my blobs.  These had an amazing chewy texture, the warm fruity gooey blueberry centre and a refreshing lemon flavour!  Oh my!  I can understand how people get addicted to these! :D

Blueberry & Lemon - these were soo good!  Again lemon butter icing but with a fresh blueberry coulis.

When I tasted the lemon one I thought, "Hmmm....nice."  After my teeth sank into the chewy macaron shell of the blueberry one and my mouth was filled with taste and texture sensations, a slow smile spread across my face.  "Yeah!  This is what macarons are all about!"  I've still yet to try a bought macaron.  They don't do them here in my town - I'd have to go to the food hall of Selfridges or Harrods in London I think.  But for now, these will do! ;)

Aren't they just cute?

Rhubarb Crumble Cake

I took Minh to a local farm last weekend as I'd been up since 8am and even though it was approaching lunchtime, Daddy had not surfaced.  The farm grows its own food to sell and use in the cafe and also to feed the animals on the farm.  The animals provide meat for sale in the farm shop and cafe too.

We had a lovely walk around (well, Minh did - he was in the baby carrier hanging off my shoulders!).  I wish I'd put on proper footwear that morning as flip-flops were not the best choice for a walk!

Anyway, I saw some lovely red rhubarb stalks in the farm shop - all grown on site.  I bought them thinking I'd make a crumble.  They sat at home for a week before I put them to good use.  I wanted something cakey but with a juicy rhubarb filling.  I came up with a Rhubarb Crumble Cake.

Sponge Base:
125g unsalted butter (softened)
125g caster sugar
2 free range eggs
125g self raising flour (sifted)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Rhubarb Topping:
200-250g rhubarb (about 2-3 stalks)
3 tblsp sugar (or to taste)

Crumble:
100g plain flour
75g butter (cold and cut into small cubes)
30g caster sugar

A little demerara sugar to sprinkle (optional)

Wash the rhubarb stems and chop into 1 inch/2 cm pieces.  Place in a saucepan with 2 tablespoon of water and 3 tablespoons of sugar.  Stir as the water boils then cover and simmer for 5 mins.  The rhubarb should be beginning to soften but you do not want it all to be mushy.  Taste and sweeten if necessary.  If too sweet, add a squirt of lemon juice.  Cake is sweet and so is crumble so a little tartness is ok, but not mouth-puckering!!  On to cake making!

Preheat oven to 180c/350f/gas 4.

Grease a 7x7 inch square non-stick baking tin (I'm sure a 8 inch round will be fine) with buttery paper.  Sprinkle some self raising flour in then tip the flour to coat the inside of the pan before banging the excess out.

Beat the butter and suager together until it is soft, light and fluffy.  It gets lighter in colour the more its whipped and gives the cake a lovely light texture.

Add the vanilla to the bowl.  Crack in one egg, add a tablespoon of the (measured) self raising flour.  Mix until just combined.  Add in the remaining egg, another tablespoon of flour and again, mix until just combined.

Change to a large metal spoon (so you don't bash out that lovely air you created when beating butter and sugar), tip in half the flour and fold in.  Then tip in remainder and fold in.

Spoon mixture into the tin and using the spoon spread the mix to cover the base and a little way up the sides (to keep the rhubarb in).

Blob in the rhubarb covering the surface as best you can.  There will be gaps don't worry!  If you put too much rhubarb in, you may get a very soggy cake!

Tip the plain flour in a bowl, add the cold cubes of butter in and rub with your fingertips until it forms crumbs.  Stir in the sugar.  Use the crumble topping to cover the rhubarb.  Sprinkle the demerara sugar on top.

Place in oven and bake for 35-45 minutes.  The edges of the cake will be brown and test the centre by poking a skewer in the middle.  There shouldn't be any sloppy cake mix sticking to the skewer. 

Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes before turning out to cool on rack.  To turn out, loosen edges of cake with a palatte knife.  Place a plate over the tin and flip over the cake tim onto the plate.  The cake should plop out onto plate.  Remove the tin, place rack on the bottom of cake and flip back to right side.

And Taaa-Daah!  :)

I used double the quantity as I made one for my neighbours too.  The cake went down well with my hubby (Mr Leaf) and he has been taking chunks of it to eat at work!

Princess Doll Cake

I think I may have bitten off more than I could chew when I took on this cake order.   My friend asked me to make a pink & girly cake after seeing my Two-Tier creation and I jumped at the chance!  I suggested a Fairy Mushroom, Castle or Princess Cake.  The Princess won.

I've never made such a thing before but have seen a few on the internet.  Had no idea how I was going to 'dress' the doll so this was all off the cuff.  There are imperfections but by and large I'm glad I completed it.  It did take a staggering 4 hours to decorate!

I hope my friend is happy with the cake for her daughter!

As for me, well, I'm absolutely shattered so I bid you all goodnight!

Swiss Buttercream

Apologies for lack of posts....now Minh is getting older he demands more of my time and attention.  (It doesn't get any easier!!)  I can't always put him down and leave him to play as he will turn around, see I'm gone and cry.  Such a sad unhappy cry too.  It breaks my heart & I have to rush back to give him hugs!
I also found that I couldn't leave him on sofa anymore as he would lean over too far and roll off.  Too many times I've heard a Thud!  2 second silence.  Waaaah!  WAAAAAAAAAAH!!  He has rolled off bed too!  He is far too active! :0)

Anyway, since my last birthday cake (for my niece) I've received another cake order.  This time for my old school pal.  Her daughter will be 4 later this week and I've been asked to make a pink and girlie cake.  I've come up with a Princess Cake as I've wanted to make one.  Only thing is, there is a special bell shaped tin called a Tiffin' tin that is used for the dress shape.  I can't justify buying a tin for every shape and size so I thought I'd use a stainless steel mixing bowl.  Shape wasn't quite right.  I used a pound cake recipe (4 eggs) and it's not enough to fill the bowl.  Hence a flat slightly domed shape.  Like a bump rather than a dress.  Only way round it is to imagine the Princess is seated and the dress is fluffed out around her.  Well.  I can't disappoint an old school friend!  As I'm quite new to making cakes for orders I need to make sure each one is of a relatively high standard if I am to attract new customers and future orders.  So I was out today to buy a pudding basin.  

Cake is a better shape and is cooling right now.  I plan to sandwich with jam and buttercream, cover with buttercream and partially cover with rolled fondant icing.  My two-tiered cake used a French Buttercream which was buttery and rich.  As I used my own free-range eggs from my hens, the buttercream was lemon coloured.  I want a pale cream colour so decided to try Swiss Buttercream.  It is easier as there is less faff with boiling sugar syrup to certain temperatures and the result is light, fluffy and a pale colour.

Wendy (Table for 2)  has a great tutorial on Swiss Buttercream here.  I found her site a great source of information but I decided to use something a little more simple as I don't have to work with tropical heat and humidity here.  I used this recipe here. 



Buttercream is chilling in fridge and excuse me while I finish putting the cake together.  I PROMISE I will share with you the details of this Princess Cake (making it up as I go along really) and also the Mango & Strawberry Flower Cake I made as well as the Two-Tiered Birthday Cake!



Hope you all have a lovely Easter & don't eat too many chocolate eggs!