A cake to make me less narky: Barefoot Contessa's Apple Spice Cake

So, I am justifying the inclusion of this truly wonderful cake into my ‘do things better’ agenda for the following reasons: It has apple in it, so surely must be one of my five a day. It is made with vegetable oil and not butter so that has to make it a ‘better’ cake, whatever that is. It is packed with spices and of course they have oodles of medicinal qualities, and lastly, a bit of what you fancy does you good, and the opportunity to sit down with a slice of this with a cuppa turns a narky Stella into a less narky one. Only one slice mind…

If you want a really really reliable, decadent, frankly scrumptious cake, you open a Barefoot Contessa book and turn to the section marked ‘desserts’. There you will find cake heaven. And it was in her ‘Make it Ahead’ cookery book that I found this. Don’t be put off by the amount of spices; go buy them if you haven’t got them because you will be making this cake more than once. I promise.

I very rarely alter a Barefoot Contessa recipe because they are usually perfect. However, I have made a couple of alterations, mainly due to the fact that I didn’t have any golden raisins, but I did have some pretty jewel like sultanas which did the job just nicely. I also didn’t have the exact size pan as indicated in the recipe, so I split the mixture between two smaller pans.

If you don’t fancy my chosen way of eating this, with a cuppa, then serve some slightly warm with some ice cream. And swoon…

APPLE SPICE CAKE from ‘Make It Ahead’ by Ina Garten

serves 12

An American recipe, so uses cup measurements (which I quite like…)

INGREDIENTS

1 cup pecans, chopped

1/2 cup rum

1 cup golden raisins (I used sultanas)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup dark brown (Muscavado) sugar

3 large eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp grated orange zest

2 1/2 cup plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp ground cloves

3 (large) to 4 (small) Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and 1/4 inch diced

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9x13x2 inch baking pan, or a pan(s) that will take the amount of mixture.

Toast the pecans on a baking sheet for 5 to 10 minutes. Watch the nuts like a hawk. They burn in the blink of an eye. Set aside.

Add the rum and raisins to a microwave-safe bowl and cover with a sheet of plastic wrap; microwave for 1 minute, then set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla, and orange zest on medium speed.

Once combined, add the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves; mix until smooth. The batter will be very thick.

Drain the raisins before adding them to the batter. Drink the rum.

Add the apples and pecans too, then use a rubber spatula to fold them all into the batter.

Spread this batter in your prepared pan, smoothing it out.

Bake the cake for 35 to 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Let the cake cool until it’s barely warm or room temperature before cutting into squares.

Enjoy!

What overripe bananas were made for! Banoffee Cake

 

It is almost worth letting your bananas go black, just to make this cake. Personally, bananas have to be perfectly yellow if I am going to eat them. If there are black spots on them then they are too ripe and sweet to eat. Luckily, ripe bananas make great cakes and this is a lovely recipe which makes a cake that stays moist for several days if you keep it properly.

I have been looking forward to blogging for the European Day for Multilingual Blogging and trying out my French for a real purpose. There is a French version of this blog post here if you are interested. Since I studied French (and German) many years ago, the times to use my French have been seldom and it is only since I have started visiting France regularly again that I have realised just how much I really love France. To write in French once again is a pleasure, even if I do get some of the words wrong! It is odd, but for a long time I preferred the German language (and I was better at it), but now, I prefer French.

Anyway, from one interest to another. There are not enough cakes on this blog so here is another one. It is from ‘The Birthday Cake Book’ by Fiona Cairns and is a banana sponge topped with delicious toffee frosting. I tried to decorate the top with dried banana slices but I couldn’t find any, so I picked out some chewy toffees to decorate. Not recommended if you have loose fillings.

Banoffee Cake adapted from ‘The Birthday Cake Book’ by Fiona Cairns

 Ingredients:

120g unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the tins.

250g self raising flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

160g brown (light muscovado) sugar

3 extremely ripe, large bananas

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons whole milk

For the toffee buttercream: (Note: I halved the quantities to produce enough buttercream to sandwich then top the cake).

240g unsalted butter, softened

60g brown (light muscovado) sugar

2 tablespoons golden syrup

1 tablespoon double cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

200g icing sugar, sifted

Banana chips, or toffee sweets for decoration.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180c/350F.

 

Butter two 20cm round cake tins. Ensure they are tins with deep sides, (3 or 4cm, maybe). If necessary, create a collar of a double thickness of baking parchment to come up above the sides.

 

Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

 

Cream together the butter and the sugar in a mixer until soft and fluffy. Meanwhile, mash the bananas with a fork.

 

 

Add the eggs, vanilla and milk to the butter mixture with a spoonful of flour to prevent the mixture from splitting.

 

Fold in the remaining the flour mixture, then the bananas, and then pour the batter into the tins.

Bake for about 40 minutes or until a skewer placed into the middle of the cake emerges clean. .

 

 

 

Remove the cake from the oven and run a knife around the sides. Take the cakes out of the tins and allow to cool.

 

 

 

To make the buttercream, melt 80g of the butter, the brown sugar and the syrup over a low heat until it is a deep caramel colour. Take the mixture off the heat and add the cream and the vanilla extract. Keep stirring the mixture. Allow to cool.

 

In a mixer, beat the remaining butter until soft then and fluffy add the icing sugar and beat the mixture for at least five minutes, or until light and creamy.

 

Add the cooled toffee mixture and beat in well.

 

Use the buttercream to sandwich the cakes together. Then top the cake generously with the remaining buttercream.

Decorate with banana chips, or with toffees.

Dinner for one - Sea Bass Fillets with Spinach, Tomatoes and Ouzo

Yes, dinner for one. Phill was away this weekend which means fish for dinner. Normally fish is off the menu, which is such a shame so when it is just me to be looked after and I can make the kids their favourite pasta and I can settle down to something just for me. And it always has to be fish.

I think my favourite fish is sea bass, though to be honest it would be a really difficult choice. It reminds me of Greek holidays and being sat at a beach side taverna, nursing a Mythos and watching the sun down, devouring some wonderful Aegean sea bass with a piquant sauce. Absolute heaven.

There are so many recipes that involve the whole fish but I wanted something involving the fillets, seeing as I had the fish already filleted in freezer I also wanted something tasty, quick and fresh tasting. This was a recipe that I found whilst mooching on the internet and as I had all the ingredients I would have been a fool not to have given it a whirl. And, guess what... it's relatively healthy too, that is 'healthy' compared to most of the recipes on this blog. 

The recipe calls for 'anise' flavoured liqueur, of which there are several. Ouzo was my drink of choice.

You could eke this out to serve two by the addition of rice or potatoes, but I just wanted fish and only fish, so for that reason this served one.

Sea Bass with Spinach, Tomatoes and Ouzo, adapted from The Essential Diabetes Cookbook by Antony Worrall Thompson

Serves Mum, but could serve another with an accompaniment.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Small pinch of dried chilli flakes

250g spinach, tough stems removed, shredded

Small pinch of grated nutmeg

2 fillets of sea bass, about 175g each, skin on

1 1/2 tablespoons ouzo

1 1/2 tablespoons dry white wine

1/2 tin chopped tomatoes

A sprinkling of flaked almonds

1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Heat half the oil in a large saucepan, add the garlic and, over a gentle heat, cook until the garlic turns golden. (but not burnt; watch carefully!) Add the chilli flakes then the spinach and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle on some nutmeg and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Set a colander over a bowl and drain the spinach well, pressing to remove as much liquid as possible. Retain the liquor and set aside, and keep the spinach warm.

Meanwhile, in a frying pan heat the remaining oil and cook the fish skin-side down over a medium heat for 4 minutes until the skin is golden and the flesh has nearly cooked through. Turn the fish over then add the Ouzo and white wine and cook until the liquid has nearly (but not totally!) evaporated. It won't take long so watch carefully.

Remove the fish and keep warm.

To the fish pan, add the spinach liquor and boil vigorously to reduce a little. Add the tomatoes, flaked almonds and tarragon and cook for 15 minutes until slightly thickened.

Taste and adjust the seasoning appropriately.

Pile the spinach on a warmed plate and rest the sea bass fillets on top. Spoon the sauce over the fish and around the side of the dish.

Preparing for St Patrick's Day? Need some cupcakes? Here is the answer: Guinness and Gingerbread cupcakes.

Readers of the recent Guinness and Chocolate Cake post will realise that after adding some of the black stuff to the mix, there is half a can left. Not a catastrophe by any means as all I would do is reach for a glass from the cupboard and voila! Problem solved. However, if drinking in the afternoon isn't your bag and you are still in cake making mode then frankly you could do such much worse than making these lovely little things.

I remember perusing Amazon and seeing this recipe book with the most gorgeous looking cake on the front and thinking that really I would like to have it on my shelf. As I have no semblance of self control I bought the recipe book, which is entitled 'Tea with Bea' and is chock full of lovely things all begging to be made and devoured. I was intrigued by this recipe which Bea describes as being somewhere between Lebkuchen and beer, and she is sort of right. Depth of flavour, moist, with the warmth of ginger = Yum.

The other thing that I like about these is their understated sense of drama. Cupcakes are often about prettiness, a certain girliness which I don't think these possess that much of. I measure this by Phill not looking too odd whilst eating one. If there is a handsome cupcake, here he is!

A note about quantities and frosting here. The recipe says it makes 24; I got 18. The frosting iced 14 of my cupcakes, but I am nowhere near an expert when it comes to decorating cakes and tend to be somewhere between generous and heavy handed. The 4 that were 'un-iced' I see as 'cook's perks'.

So, without further ado, I present:

Gingerbread Guinness Cupcakes, taken from 'Tea with Bea' (Recipes from Bea's of Bloomsbury)

Ingredients:

250ml Guinness

250g black treacle/molasses

1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

280g all purpose flour

1 tbsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground allspice

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 ground cardamom

1/4 ground cloves

3 eggs

100g caster sugar

100g dark brown (muscavado) sugar

1 tbsp finely grated peeled fresh ginger

200ml sunflower oil

chopped crystallised ginger, to decorate

For the frosting:

225g cream cheese

60g unsalted butter, softened

175g icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp golden syrup

Method:

Preheat the oven to 170c/Gas 5 and line a cupcake tin with papers.

Pour the Guinness and the treacle into a saucepan with tall sides (you will see why shortly)

Bring the mixture to a boil (over high heat to allow the treacle to 'melt' into the Guinness. Take off the heat and add the bicarbonate of soda. The mixture will fizz up and then dissipate, but be ready for it.

Let this mixture stand until completely cool.

Combine the eggs, both sugars, the grated ginger in a bowl (or in the bowl of a mixer as I did). Gradually add the oil, mix to combine, then add the Guinness mixture and mix until just combined.

Add the flour, baking powder and spices to the mix and stir until well blended but don't over beat.

Spoon the mixture (which is very runny - next time I would probably transfer to a jug and pour it) into the prepared cupcake cases. Fill about 4/5ths full as there is little rise whilst the cakes bake.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 - 25 minutes or so, until they feel springy to the touch. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the frosting: Put the butter and cream cheese on a bowl and mix thoroughly until it looks glossy. At this point add the icing sugar and beat until fluffy. This may take a while. Add the vanilla and the golden syrup and then mix to combine.

I used a large star nozzle to pipe the icing on. I piped reasonably swiftly in a circular motion. To finish, bedeck with a little jewel of crystallised ginger.

Slightly tropical - Barefoot Contessa Hummingbird Cake

I know I am deluding myself but I am trying to desperately to justify the making and devouring of this cake as an act of healthy eating, being that it is made with oil and packed with fruit and nuts, and it's a nice idea but I know the truth. However, I am sure that in the midst of anybody's healthy eating plan there is a room for a smidgen of this cake which is wondrously tasty and moist and not hideously bad for the diet in the grand scheme of things.

Striving for good health (!), I elected not to cover the whole cake in cream cheese frosting and merely sandwiched the cakes together and then swirled some frosting on top. I don't think it needs to be covered, and as with all Barefoot Contessa recipes, the quantities in my mind are quite generous.

This is a lovely, easy cake to make, the only faff in my mind being the initial roasting of the pecan nuts before they are chopped and added to the cake. Yes, it's faff, but it makes the house smell good and I have never had a warm, roasted pecan nut before. To be honest it is a wonder that any of them made it into the cake.

I am a big fan of Ina Garten's recipes. In my experience they have always turned out well, and are enough to feed hordes of people. This cake is no exception and luckily there is enough left for the inevitable second helping.

Hummingbird Cake adapted from Barefoot Contessa

(American recipe - therefore uses cup measurements)

Ingredients

• Unsalted butter, for greasing
• 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour (plain flour) plus more for dusting
• 1 cup pecan pieces
• 3 ripe bananas, chopped
• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh pineapple (though I used tinned)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups caster sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil

For the frosting (I halved the quantity listed here)

• 2 packages cream cheese (8 ounces each), at room temperature
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans and line with parchment paper. Butter the parchment and dust with flour.

Beat the eggs and caster sugar in a separate bowl with a mixer on high speed until thick and light, 5 minutes. Gradually beat in the vegetable oil.

Spread the pecans on a baking sheet and bake until fragrant and toasted, about 8 minutes. Let cool slightly, then roughly chop. Toss with the bananas, pineapple and 1/2 cup flour in a small bowl.

Whisk the remaining 2 1/4 cups flour, the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, baking soda and salt in a bowl.

Sprinkle the flour mixture over the egg mixture, then gently fold to make a thick batter. Fold in the pecan-fruit mixture, then transfer the batter to the prepared pans.

Bake until the cakes are firm and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes. Cool in the pans on a rack, 25 minutes, then invert the cakes onto the rack to cool completely. My cakes did dome so I trimmed the tops to try to get them flat. Schoolboy error!

Make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese in a large bowl with a mixer until fluffy, then gradually beat in the butter until combined. Sift the confectioners' sugar over the cream cheese mixture and beat until smooth. Add the lemon zest and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy.

Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread about half of the frosting on top, then cover with the other cake layer. Spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake, or as I did with hlaf the quantity of frosting, just swirl some on top.

Enjoy!