I Don’t Like Cake
Well, that is no longer true because I discovered that I like the cake that I make. Recently we have celebrated some birthdays so I thought I might share with you my cakes:
Jeremiah’s Sour Cream Chocolate Cake
I made Nigella Lawson’s recipe for her Sour Cream Chocolate Cake (from How to Be A Domestic Goddess) for Jeremiah’s birthday. At first I halved the recipe but soon realized that to be a proper cake I needed to make both layers. I have been told by my fans that this cake was unbelievably good. I was a bit disappointed because the cake was a bit dry, but nothing I can touch up next time.
Anne’s White on White Cake
Anne is traditional when it comes to her cake of choice. White on white. I turned to my trusty Joy of Cooking to find the ultimate white cake recipe. For this, I halved the recipe (which called for three 8-inch layers), and baked a single (but very plump) layer and dressed it with a simple white icing. Can we say delicious? (Yes).
Kim’s Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes
Kim is a child at heart. She loves her ice cream cone cupcakes. I caved and bought the Betty Crocker mix instead of making my own batter, but I did make a simple icing that we dyed pretty spring-time colours. But now let me tell you that Betty Crocker is not that intelligent when it comes to how to bake the cups. I followed her directions to a T (for the first dozen). She tells us to “Place ice cream cone upside down on batter in each cup.” If you do this, you end up with a very small mound of baked cake at the top of the cone. I followed my intuition and baked the cones right side up in a muffin tin and they filled the cone from the top to the bottom with wonderful cake-y goodness.
Nigella’s Cranberry Upsidedown Cake (from How to Be A Domestic Goddess)
Now I think Nigella used a smaller, less sloped cast iron pan in her recipe but it still tasted delicious. (If you remember our trip to the Cranberry Festival last year, I used some of our remaining — frozen — berries for this cake). Once again our fans thoroughly enjoyed this tasty treat.
Nigella’s Chocolate Cloud Cake
A few weeks ago I stumbled across a site with all the episodes from Nigella’s various TV shows. I was particularly interested in her adapatdation of a flourless chocolate cake. Typically flourless cakes tend to be small and dense (delicious, still). Nigella uses egg whites (whipped) to add extra volume and lightness to the finished cake. No wonder why it’s so delicious.
Note, this photo was taken directly after pulling the cake out of the oven. After it cooled, the center sank (as it is suposed to) and we dolloped fresh whipped cream in the center and enjoyed!
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