Holiday Cakes and Cupcakes. Carol Deacon

element on your mixer. Whisk the egg whites until stiff then whisk in the confectioners' sugar. Remove the whisk and put the beater attachment back on.

      9 Tip the chocolate mixture into the egg whites and mix together on a slow speed. It will look dreadful at first but the two will mix smoothly together eventually.

      9 Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and bake immediately.

      10 When the cake is ready there will be no bubbling noises. To be sure, insert a knife or metal skewer. (You may have to cut a small chunk out of the cake’s crust to do this). If it comes out clean, then the cake is done. If there’s mixture on the skewer, cook for a little longer.

      TIP: Unless you have a very big mixer, it may be easier to make the largest sizes in two separate batches then gently stir together. Have everything weighed out beforehand though as this mixture needs to be cooked immediately.

      RECIPES FOR ENGLISH-STYLE FRUITCAKE

      In the UK, it is traditional to have a rich fruitcake for Christmas. The dried fruits should be soaked overnight in brandy or fruit juice before cooking so that they’re plump and moist. The cake should be made in October to allow it time to mature and for the flavors to develop… In the real world, even if you just threw this cake together on Christmas Eve with fruit straight out of a packet, you should still end up with a cake that is tasty and moist plus a house full of spicy Christmas aromas.

      1 Line both the inside and outside of your cake pan. (See page 14 for how to do this)

      2 Pre-heat the oven to 300˚F (150˚C)

      3 Beat the butter and sugar together until they are soft and creamy. Then beat in the eggs one at a time.

      4 Sift the flour and spices into the bowl and gently stir them. Stir in the ground almonds. If you are using a mixer, use the slowest speed. If you’re mixing by hand use a metal spoon.

      5 Stir the lemon zest and slivered almonds into the soaked dried fruit. Tip the fruits into the cake batter and stir in by hand.

      6 Close your eyes and make a wish.

      7 Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and gently smooth the top.

      8 Place the disc of waxed paper with the hole cut out on the top of the mixture. Don’t press, just let it lie on top.

      9 Place the cake in the center of the pre-heated oven and bake. Remove the paper off the top about 15 minutes before it’s due to be done. Lightly prod the top of the cake, if it feels very soft and you can still hear a lot of bubbling it is not cooked. If it looks done and feels firm to the touch and is silent, insert a skewer or sharp knife. If it comes out clean–the cake is cooked. If it’s not, give it another 15 minutes of cooking and test again. All ovens vary so don’t panic if yours cooks in a shorter/longer time than that suggested.

      10 Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan before turning out.

      MICROWAVE CAKES

      If you need to bake a cake really quickly, a microwave cake may be the answer. They will look a little pale and interesting when cooked because they won’t have browned on top but nobody will notice once they’re covered with frosting. These amounts are for a 7-inch (18 cm) round microwave baking pans. Don’t use your normal metal one.

      Microwave Vanilla sponge Cake

      ½ cup (120 g) butter

      ½ cup (120 g) superfine (caster) sugar

      2 large eggs

      1 teaspoon vanilla extract

      ¾ cup (120 g) self-rising flour

      ½ teaspoon baking powder

      1 Grease the pan or bowl and place a disc of greaseproof paper in the base.

      2 Beat the butter and sugar together until creamy.

      3 Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract.

      4 Sift the flour and baking powder together and stir in.

      5 Scrape into the prepared pan and bake on full for four minutes.

      6 Let stand for 10 minutes. Slide a knife around the pan edges to turn the cake out.

      Microwave Chocolate sponge Cake

      ½ cup (120 g) butter

      ½ cup (120 g) superfine (caster) sugar

      2 large eggs

      ⅔ cup (90 g) self-rising flour

      2 tablespoons cocoa powder

      ½ teaspoon baking powder

      1 Follow steps 1-3 as above leaving out the vanilla extract.

      2 Sieve and sift the flour, baking powder, and cocoa powder together into the mixture and gently stir in. Then follow steps 5 and 6 as above.

      stock syrup

      If your sponge cake is not going to be eaten as quickly as you’d like, you can add a little stock syrup to the sponge to ensure it stays nice and moist. It’s made of sugar dissolved in water and is dabbed onto the cake sponge before frosting.

      1 Place ½ cup (100 g) of superfine (caster) sugar and ⅔ cup (150ml) of water into a saucepan and stir together.

      2 Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes until the sugar has dissolved.

      3 Alternatively, place the ingredients into a heatproof bowl and microwave for a couple of minutes until the sugar is dissolved.

      4 Allow the mixture to cool before using. It will keep in a container in the fridge for up to a week.

      How to use stock syrup

       When you are ready to ice your cake, slice the cake horizontally into layers as normal. Before applying the buttercream, lightly dab some stock syrup over the top of each slice using a soft pastry brush. Do not saturate the sponge or you’ll end up with trifle. Then spread buttercream over the layers and assemble your cake as normal.

      Melting Chocolate

      It’s easy to melt chocolate, the secret is not to get any water into it or it will turn gritty. so if you are washing up a bowl prior to using it, make sure you dry it really well.

      In the Microwave

       Break the chocolate into squares and place in a heatproof non-metallic bowl. Place the bowl into the microwave and heat on full power for about a minute. Give it a stir and repeat in 30-second bursts until the chocolate has melted.

      On the Stove top

       Break the chocolate into squares and place in a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl on top of a saucepan of gently simmering water. The base of the bowl should not be touching the water. Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted.

      CHOCOLATE CAKE POPS

      This is a delicious way of using up the bits of cake you’re left with when you slice the top off a cake to level it or a bit of cake that is perhaps just a little bit past its best. In fact, they are so scrumptious and easy that you may find yourself baking a cake just to destroy it to make a large batch!

      1 You can use a combination of any type of chocolate—milk, semi-sweet (plain), or white and any type of cake—Madeira, chocolate, or fruit.

      2 Crumble the cake in a bowl into and weigh it. Use about 1 ounce (30 g) of chocolate to every 1 ounce (30 g) of cake crumb. Then weigh out the same amount of chocolate. So if you have 4 ounces (120 g) of crumbs you need 4 ounces (120 g) of chocolate.