Dark Chocolate and Amaretto Cake

So, I have an ever growing list of cakes I've baked recently, not for orders but just for fun that I plan to post on the blog along with the recipe and what I thought of the bake. Some of these cakes I made quite a while ago, some recently however sometimes these get pushed to the back of the list for even more recent cakes I've made, this is the case today.

The reason for this is I got a new cake book and after a brief browse and 1 bake I can already tell that it's going to be a firm favorite. The book people came to my work last week and even though I had made a promise to myself not to purchase any more cookery books I couldn't help myself and came away with a copy of The Clandestine Cake Club Cookbook. The recipes in the book are from different members in all the different factions of the club all over the UK  and some abroad. and after reading about the club it sounds so much fun and a really great concept. I mean any club based on cake is a great concept right?

 I'm so glad I broke my own promise to myself though as it is a beautiful book filled with inspiring recipes and I think I want to bake them all. Boyfriend and one of my best friends have already had a look through and picked about 7 or 8 cakes between them for me to bake next haha.

There were so many cakes in the book I wanted to bake first however my choice was based on the fact I had a big bag of Amaretti biscuits that needed using as well as most of the other ingredients required so I decided on the Dark chocolate and Amaretto cake which was a recipe from Carmella Hayes, part of the Northampton and district CCC. The recipe itself was really well written and the cake came out perfect and full of flavour. Here it is :

I apologise for the terrible photo, I was a tad rushed as boyfriend really wanted a piece before it had even finished cooling.

Dark Chocolate and Amaretto Cake:

This cake is best mixed by hand to retain the best texture.

4 large eggs
50 g Caster Sugar
200g Self raising flour
100g Ground Almonds
1 Sachet of pane degli angeli ( An Italian vanilla flavored raising agent) or 1tsp baking powder with 2tsp Vanilla extract.
200g Butter, Melted
200g Good quality dark chocolate, chopped
200g Amaretti Biscuits  crushed
2 tbsp Amaretto liqueur

Pre heat the oven to 180 deg C and grease and line a 23cm round cake tin.

In a large bowl beat the eggs and sugar using a wooden spoon. Add the flour, almonds, baking powder and vanilla (or Pane degli angeli) and melted butter and mix well. Stir in the chocolate, Ammaretti biscuits and Amaretto liqueur, mixing well.

Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 45 - 50 minutes until the top is firm to touch and a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes, the transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Any way that's all for now, I'm off to plan my next bake

Kris xx

Double Chocolate and Raspberry cake

I'm being very bad and abandoning my blog again but time seems to get away from me so fast, I can't believe its soon time to start thinking about Christmas baking, ok I might have already started thinking about it haha.

Any way the list of cakes I've made and not had a chance to post about yet is growing so I thought that it's long overdue for an update.

Over the whole of this summer I have had an abundance of raspberry's from the garden (and they're still growing) so quite a lot of the recipes I have tested have has a few raspberry's thrown in at some point.

Any way what seems like a long time ago now Asda posted a recipe to their facebook page for a Double Chocolate Raspberry cake and who couldn't pass up an opportunity for a chocolate and raspberry combination!

The same recipe is also posted on goodtoknow.co.uk so I'm not sure where it originally came from. It's not the best written recipe, for instance it doesn't say the quantities of which to divide the white chocolate but I made enough chocolate curls to cover the top then put about a good tablespoon of white chocolate into my filling (any more seemed to make it too runny) and then used the rest as drizzle.

Any way here's my cake:

And here's the recipe:

200g self-raising flour
25g cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
225g butter, at room temperature, plus a little extra for greasing
225g caster sugar
4 eggs

For the filling: 

200g white chocolate
300ml double cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
300g fresh raspberries

Preheat the oven to 160°C.
Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder into a bowl. Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl  until pale and fluffy.

Beat in 1 egg then a spoonful of the flour mix. Continue adding eggs and flour alternately until it has all been added and the mixture is smooth.
Spoon into your desired greased tins (i used 2 shallow 8 inch tins as it saved cutting the cake in half)

Smooth the top of the cake so it's level then bake for 35-40 minutes (as I used 2 shallow tins this was more like 30 mins) or until the top feels firm and a skewer comes out cleanly when inserted into the centre of the cake.

Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile unwrap and soften the block of white chocolate in the microwave on full power for 10 seconds.  With the flat side of the block of white chocolate facing upwards, shave off chocolate curls by running a swivel-bladed vegetable peeler over the top. If the curls are very tiny, microwave the chocolate once more then try again. Chill the curls.

When the cake is cold, break the remaining chocolate into pieces and melt in a bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water.

Whip the cream in a second bowl then fold in two thirds (i used a couple of table spoons but not to much or the cream may go to runny) of the melted chocolate and the vanilla.

Cut the cake into two layers if needed, put one of the layers on a serving plate, spoon over half the cream then sprinkle with half the raspberries. Add the other cake half and repeat the layers.

Drizzle the remaining melted chocolate from a spoon in zigzag lines over the top of the cake and finish with the chilled chocolate curls.

and that's it chocolate and raspberry, perfect! And it didn't last long (cakes with white chocolate don't tend to around me). It's also a great looking cake that wows guests, if not a little tricky to cut with all that cream.

any way that's all for today, next time I will update you on my very first wedding cake I recently and nerve wreckingly made

cupcake Kris 

Lots of cakes to keep me busy

Just a quick post today as I have been really busy recently, lots of baking amongst other things and gearing up to make my first weeding cake (eeek)

But I thought I'd update with a few pictures of some cakes I've been baking recently and then I promise I'll try to update with a recipe by the end of this week

any way first was a friends the Flash themed birthday cake:

Then I had an order for two extra chocolaty cakes covered in chocolate fondant and decorated simply but however I liked. here they are:

First one decorated with giant white chocolate buttons.

Next one was a bit of a rush job with the decorating and I wasn't sure what to do but went with fondant roses and chocolate vines.

Then I had an order for some lemon cupcakes for a baby shower.:

I wish I would have been able to make more of these cute little feet but I was short on fondant.

And lastly was an order for some cupcakes for a saints and sinners theme hen night!

Chocolate and Vanilla

Are you a saint?

Or a sinner?

So that's it , no recipe for today but a lot of pictures. I have another bust few weeks coming up with weddings birthdays and lots of plans but as ever it will involve a lot of baking. then hopefully I'll get time to bake some new things for me just in time for Christmas (blimey where has the year gone! )

Until next time

Cupcake Kris