Monday 9 May 2011

Black Forest Cake

This cake was my Mums request for mothers day, there was a minor disaster at first.
 I cut the cake on an angle.. so i couldn't do the three layers that i had originally planned to. It all worked out in the end..
The cake is a simple chocolate cake cut in two brushed with kirsch (cherry liquor). Cherry cream in the centre and dark chocolate ganache around the whole cake topped with grated chocolate, cream and cherries.
Have a good one,
Elena xo

Black Forest Cake:

Ingredients:
* 250g butter
*2 table spoons instant coffee powder
*1 1/2 caster sugar
*1 cup milk
*1/3 cup cocoa
*2 1/2 cups self raising flour
*3 eggs
*200g dark chocolate
*600ml thickened cream
*2 table spoons icing sugar
*1/4 cup kirsch (ps: you can find Kirsch at dan murphy's if coles liquor land doesn't have it)
*2x 425g jar of morello cherries in syrup (drained)
*grated dark chocolate

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees, grease and line a 25 cm round cake tin.
2.Place butter, sugar, milk and cocoa(sifted)  in a saucepan over medium heat, cook for about 10 minutes or until smooth. Allow to cool for 20 minutes.
3.whisk flour (sifted) and eggs into chocolate mixture, pour into prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes to an hour.. until skewer comes out clean ,allow to cool in pan.
4.place chocolate and 1/3 cup cream in a saucepan over low-medium heat until smooth. ( do not overheat) put in the fridge for 15 minutes until thickened.
5.use an electric mixer to beat the rest of the cream and icing sugar in a bowl until stiff peaks form. Reserve 1 1/2 cups cherries , halve the rest of the cherries and add to half the cream.
6.cut the cake with a knife through the middle ( make sure its straight!) place the base on a plate and brush with kirsch (top layer too)  Spread the cherry cream over the base then place the top of the cake on. Brush the top and sides with the rest of the kirsch.
7.spread the chocolate over the top and sides of the cake, press grated chocolate onto the sides of the cake. Top with cream and cherries and serve!

Lemon and Lime mini cupcakes

Hey All!!
These mini cupcakes are a coconut lemon base with a lime icing.
I already had some of the pre- made blue vanilla icing for the previous baby shower cupcakes and had some left over.. so i mixed a bit of yellow colouring and lime juice.
vanilla and lemon go quite well together, give it a go! :)

Recipe for Mini lemon cupcakes:

Makes about : 34 mini cupcakes

Ingredients:
*120g butter , softened
*1 cup caster sugar
*2 tablespoons of grated lemon rind
*2 eggs
*1 cup SR flour
*3/4 cup desiccated coconut
*1 cup milk

Method:
1.preheat oven to 180 degrees, (160 fan-forced)
2. Place butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until creamy. Add lemon rind and eggs, beat well with each one.
Sift flour into bowl, add coconut and milk and stir to combine.
3.spoon mixture into the patty cases and bake for 15-20 minutes
4. allow the cupcakes to cool completely and then ice.