3 Berry Black Forest Gateau

If you can make choc cake its just a case of whipping cream and assembly for dramatic results!

 grating coolate and preping berries.

Make standard choc cake in to sandwich tins(cadburys milk powder recipe)

 to assembly:

1. Place holes in bottom cake and pour Kirsch into them(I used kirsch from jar of cherries in Kirsch).
   
2. Whip 2 cartons of yeo valley double cream, with 3 T of sieved icing sugar and 1t of vanilla extract.
3. Spread half of the cream onto the cake.
4. Grate G&B dark cooks choc onto cream on cake.
5. Place  raspberries on edge and cherries from kirsch jar into centre(this is to hide them from dd who wont eat cherries!)
6. Place top layer cake on.
7. Decorate as before with an extra layer of grated choc b4 spreading on cream.
8. Decorate top with raspberries and strawberry slices.
9. Dust with vanilla sugar powder.

Baileys Cookies

Great with coffee!

Don't turn your back or they will all disappear very quickly!!
Best to make the coffee whilst in oven ;)

Method and Ingredients:

4oz softened unsalted butter beaten with
2oz soft light brown muscovado sugar
Beat in 1 beaten egg.
Add 1 T Baileys Irish Cream and
1 t Vanilla extract
Gently fold in 5 oz plain flour and 1/2 t baking powder.
Add about 2-4oz of a mix of white, milk and or dark chocolate chips.
Place 1 t of mixture onto baking sheet lined with paper.
Cook on 180degrees C for 10 minutes.
Cool and enjoy!

These cookies can be made by omitting the Baileys for teetotalers.

Fruit n nut cookies - with or without egg

Ingredients:

150g soft butter
1/2 cup soft dark brown sugar
1/2 cup soft light brown sugar
1 T dessicated coconut
2 T flaked almonds
2 T dried cherries
2 T chopped dried apricots
1 T pumpkin seeds
1 cup plain flour
1 t baking powder
2.5 cups oats
1 egg or 1/2 cup whipped double cream

Method:

• cream butter and sugars
• add egg or lightly whipped cream
• add flour
• add fruit n nuts n oats
• roll into balls and flatten
• cook at 160 deg C for 20 minutes
  

Almond Cookie, Cherry Cookie, Pecan Nut Cookie, Macadamia Cookie

Almond Cookies Masquerade:

It is an almond cookie:

Is it a pecan cookie?

Is it a cherry cookie?

Is it a macadamia cookie?

No. It is all an Almond Cookie Masquerade.

Quick Healthy Chocolate Fruit n Nut Brownies

This recipe has been requested by many who have tried them. Made healthy by adding lots of dried fruits and 'good fat' nuts.

In a bowl add:

• 150g golden granulated sugar
• 100g dark muscovado sugar
• 75g ground almonds
• 65g cocoa powder
• 100g SR flour

A handful of each or either of:

• pumpkin seeds
• milk chocolate chips
• white chocolate chips
• dried cranberries or sour cherries
  
• dried bluberries or raisins
  
• dried organic apricots
• pecans or walnuts
• chopped hazelnuts or brazil nuts
  Mix these together (the bold is my preferred combination) and then add:

• 200ml rapeseed oil
• 2-3 t vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
  
  

Mix dry with wet and tranfer to a rectangle cake tin lined with greaseproof paper and cook at 160C for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in tin before cutting into desired pieces. Great with coffee!

Photos to follow with next batch. I keep giving them away and my family miss them so its back to the baking bowl.

Cheese Scones

Cheese Scone Flower

Mmmmmmmmm! So cheesy and moreish warm out of the oven.

Ingredients:

80z S.R. flour
2oz (salted) cold cubed butter
1/2 t mustard powder
1/2-1 t freeze-dried chives
1 pinch smoked paprika
1 pinch salt
1-2 grinds of pepper mill
3-4 0z red leicester or cheddar grated cheese
5-6oz full-fat cold milk

I had a lazy moment and used my food processor to grate cheese for baked potatoes. Now I had lots of grated cheese left over plus a dirty food processor!
Solution!
Make cheese scones without having to do the mix the butter and flour into breadcrumbs stage by hand.

Method:

• Process together dry ingredients with the butter and 2oz of cheese
  
• Transfer to a bowl and remaining cheese
  
• Add milk as needed and mix into a dough by hand
• Divide mixture into even sized balls and gently shape by hand and place on floured baking tray
• In oven for 10-12min at 180C
• If cheesy topping wante, remove and add grated cheese to top and place back in oven at 180C for 2 further minutes
• Eat warm:) with organic butter and watercress,rocket and spinach salad dressed with maple syrup and lime juice.
  

Spanakopita: filo pastry, spinach and cream cheese

This is a great way to get the kids to eat Spinach. Put it in a filo pastry pie with some creamy cheesy mixture(cream cheese or ricotta for a lighter healthier option), with sauteed red onion and nutmeg.

Choc Cake Recipe

Sponge

• 6oz SR flour

• 6oz cadbury's drinking chocolate and 0.5 t baking powder

• 6oz soft butter

• 6oz light brown muscovado sugar

• 4 large eggs

• Optional 1-2 T chocolate chips(milk and dark choc)

1. Cream butter and sugar together
2. Add beaten eggs one at a time
3. Add sieved dry ingredients
4. Divide between 2 cake tins and bake at 180 deg. C for 20-25minutes
5. Cool and ice.

Icing

• 7oz good quality milk choc

• 3oz good quality dark choc

• 1 standard carton organic double cream( about284 ml)

• 1 t vanilla extract

1. Melt the chocolate pieces in a glass bowl placed over boiled water in a pan.
   
2. Stir from time to time, and cool a little once melted
3. Add cream and vanilla extract and beat together
4. Use to sandwich cake and ice.
   

Cakes, cakes and more cakes!

I think I may have to change my blog title to something more cakey soon! I just can't resist posting cake pictures! A request has been made (via phone) for the strawberries and cream cake.

Basic sponge cake recipe

It is a basic sponge cake recipe. I usually use the all in one method and the important thing is too have all ingredients at room temperature and the butter does need to be very soft. All ingredients I use are organic where possible.
You need:

6oz soft unsalted soft butter
6oz caster sugar
3 large eggs
6oz self-raising flour(Or plain flour with 1t baking powder and 0.5 t bicarb)
1 t vanilla extract

Mix all together and transfer into two sandwich cake tins and bake on 180 deg.C for 20-25 minutes. Cool and use as you wish.

For the strawberries and cream cake I sandwiched together using homemade rhubarb and raspberry compote and butter icing. Top iced with double cream and vanilla dusting sugar and decorated with organic strawberries.

Lemon and vanilla Cheesecake

Recipe coming soon.

Cake Stall

Our story

It all started with mixing.

Add dried fruit to make them healthier and ease your conscience

Prepare for the masses.

Henny Penny helps to keep the eggs at room temp for those impromptu midnight baking sessions!

Feeling bare?
Quick, cover us up before the kids see the fruit.

Ahhhh! That's better.

Can I eat just one?

Cherry and coconut loaf cake

Coconut and Cherry Cake

This cake came about from a sleepless night. You know those times when you go to bed so wired and tired and all sorts of random thoughts come to your head. Well I could not get the glace cherries lurking in the back of my fridge out of my mind. Why have I not made cherry and coconut cake yet!?! This used to be a childhood favourite as my dad was quite partial to it. I was close to getting out of bed at 1.30am to make it but thankfully I waited until the morning. Afternoon to be precise. It was out of this world delicious and I had to blog the recipe in case It goes out of my head, until the next sleepless night.




Ingredients:
5oz soft butter
1oz margarine (ran out of soft butter)
6 oz caster sugar
3 med-large eggs whisked with 1 t vanilla extract
2-3 T milk
8oz plain flour
1t baking powder
1/2 t bicarbonate of soda (half)
2-3 drops of almond essence (extract would be nice but horses for courses)
1oz of glace cherries mixed with 2oz of dessicated coconut
( I find the crazy jack organic coconut variety to be the tastiest and closest to freshly grated.)

• cream together fats and sugar
• add everything else and mix( Although I did add the cherries and coconut after first combining other ingredients.)
• Place in two 1 lb loaf tins lined with greaseproof paper and bake in a preheated oven 180 degrees C for 40-45 minutes.
• Cool and eat after 4 hours( tastes even better I found)

Very more-ish and hard to share, but you must!

Choco Cupcakes

It was a hot day today. I had warm eggs that needed using up(you know when you leave them out of the fridge in case you want to bake). So which cake? Well I decided to check on how much soft butter I had and then one thing led to another and this recipe was born. They are very more-ish and easy to make with minimal washing up!

In a bowl add:

• 4oz very soft butter
• 4oz caster sugar
• 1oz ground almonds
• 1oz cocoa powder(put through a small sieve)
• 2oz self-raising flour(put through the same small sieve)
• 1t vanilla extract
• 1T white chocolate drops(mini buttons for cookies)

Mix everything together with a spoon and divide into 12 cupcake cases in a muffin pan.
Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes at just under 180degrees.
Cool and eat warm with a strong cup of coffee or tea:)

Strawberry & Coconut Muffins

Dry Ingredients:
225g pln flour
100g caster sugar
2t baking powder
25-50g of good quality dessicated coconut(I used crazy jacks organic)
1 small punnet chopped strawberries-about 150-200g

Wet Ingredients:
8floz milk
4floz rapeseed oil
1 large egg
1-2 t vanilla extract

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix to combine only(that is do not overmix)
Spoon into 12 muffin cases in muffin pan
20 minutes at 180C in fan oven.

They were a big hit with all the family:)


Yes, even with the little Miss!

Apples for Jam- Berry & Buttermilk Cake

This is a cosy recipe book by Tessa Kiros. It has been recomended on many blogs and when I found it at my local library it was a no brainer! Berry and Buttermilk Cake called out to me first. It does not disappoint.
My SIL is always adding less sugar to her cake recipes in order to make them healthier and this one does not require that. I think adding the lemon zest to the batter makes up for the smaller amount of sugar- what a great idea!

Yes its on the brown side, but thats how I like it!
I topped it with Organic blueberries & strawberries.

More Cake!

Lets not forget the boys:

Cut it quick...before it melts!

Chocolate Birthday Cakes

For the younger girl:....

and the older girl:

Eggless Chocolate Cake For a 25th Wedding Anniversary

What lies beneath:

Blueberry Muffins

Quick American Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients

225g pln flour
100g caster sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 large egg
1 packet blueberries 150-250g
1/2 tspn cinnamon
8fl oz milk
4fl oz rapeseed oil
1 t Vanilla Extract or paste

Method
Preheat oven to 180C
Grease a 12 hole muffin tin or stand paper cases in muffin tin.
mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and blueberries in a large bowl.
Mix the milk, oil and egg in another bowl using a fork.
Make a little hollow in the flour mixture and add the liquid ingred.
Stir together till all the dry things are mixed in but DON'T overmix- it should still be lumpy.
Using a big spoon, fill the bun tins or paper cases nearly full and bake in oven for about 20 minutes.

Organic fruit n Nut Brownies

Warning: these are very more-ish but you can feel that you are eating a health bar as it is packed with dried fruit n nuts! All ingredients were organic. My little munchkins helped to make these! Helping mom to bake is sure to entice them away from cbeebies or computer games...atleast at the ages of 2 & 6! Make hay while the sun shines.
Ingredients:
1 bar of dark choc-I used G&B hazelnut & currant choc
just under 1/2 packet of butter-about 120g
100g dark brown Muscovado sugar
100g golden granulated sugar
1T generous coco powder
2 large eggs
1T rapeseed oil
1t vanilla extract
100g plain flour
1-2T mixed nuts crushed
1/2 a bar of white choc

Method:
Preheat oven to180C or 350F
line 7-8inch square pan with greaseproof paper
Melt over hot water the choc and butter
In a bowl add muscovado sugar using back of spoon to remove lumps
Add other sugar, cocoa powder, eggs, oil and vanilla and mix well
Add melted choc mixture and mix
Add flour in batches mixing inbetween additions
Add 2-3 tablespoons of crushed nuts-hazelnuts,brazils,almonds,walnuts etc.( I Blitzed the overenthuiastic purchase of X-mas nuts in a small food processor-effortless)
Add 1T of raisins or sour cherries- I did raisins but would like to try the cherries
Add pieces of white choc n mix thru
Pour mixture into pan and bake for 21 minutes
Leave to cool for 10mins before cutting into pieces. (This is the hardest stage, if ignored, you could end up with brownie crumbles!)
Very yummy in your tummy!!