For the past couple of weeks I have been dreaming of cake. While my oven wasn't working properly I was a bit loathe to bake anything like a cake in it because I was afraid of it not turning out and wasting ingredients. I love having a cake in the house to enjoy with my morning cuppa. I did pick up some Twinkies at Costco the other day, but they just didn't cut it.
This is a cookbook that I have had for quite a while now. Published in 2011, I have made quite a few things from it. All week I kept looking at that cake on its cover. If a recipe is good enough to put on the cover of a book, I contend that it must be a really good recipe!
The engineer came and replaced the computer panel in our oven yesterday and so today I wasted no time in getting into my kitchen and baking that cake that had been tantalising me all week.
I am a person who really loved basic plain cakes most of all. My mother always used to make me a plain cake when I was a child, I have a copy of her recipe that she called Alice's Plain Cake. (My family always called me Alice, which is my second name. Too many Mary's and Marie's.)
Mom always came from the school of thought that children's stomach's couldn't handle too much in the way of flavor and spice and that simple was best. I don't know if that is correct or not, but I do know that I appreciate always the extra attention my mother gave towards making sure we were well cared for.
The original recipe, as per the book was for a very simple vanilla butter cake, with a chocolate variation included. My husband is not fond of chocolate cakes, but I did want to charge it up a tiny bit . . .
So I added some ground cardamom to the cake itself. Cardamom and vanilla go very well together. I didn't add a lot, just 1/2 tsp. The flavor is there but it doesn't smack you in the face.
Its very subtle, but you can certainly add more if you want more of a hit.
I also added some cardamom along with grated orange zest and orange juice to the creamy icing which tops the finished cake.
Its a lovely cake with a beautiful texture The recipe says it takes 45 minutes to bake, but mine took an additional 10 to 15 minutes. When I tested it at 45, it was still very wet in the middle, although it did look baked from the outside.
It has a beautiful crumb . . . and went down very well with a hot cuppa . . . the icing was beautiful as well . . .
A bit of sweet without being too much . . .
I have cake tin liners that I use. They look like big cupcake papers. I have them in two sizes. 8 inch and 7 inch.
They make it very easy to life the cake out when done. Personally I like them. They do leave a funny pattern around the edge however that some people might not like to see.
Personally it never bothers me in the least. A good cake is quite simply a good cake.
Yield: 8 servings Author: Marie Rayner
Vanilla & Cardamom Cake
prep time: 15 minscook time: 45 minstotal time: 60 minsA simple, light and fluffy cake, flavoured with vanilla and ground cardamom with an orange icing. Perfect for enjoying with a hot cuppa or a scoop of vanilla ice cream!ingredients:
- 200g butter, softened (7 ounces or 1 cup less 2 1/2 TBS)
- 170g caster sugar (14 TBS)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 3 large free range eggs, beaten lightly
- 185g self raising flour (1 1/2 cups)
- 110g plain flour (3/4 cup)
- 125ml milk (generous 1/2 cup)
- 155g icing sugar (scant 1 1/4 cups) sifted
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- the finely grated zest of one orange
- 1 1/2 TBS butter, softened
- milk or orange juice as needed (1 TBS or more)
- Add 4 TBS sifted cocoa powder with the flour and increase the milk by a TBS
instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 1808C/ 350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a deep 8 inch round cake tin and line with baking paper. Set aside.
- Beat the butter, vanilla, cardamom and sugar together until light and creamy. Beat in the eggs, a bit at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift both flours together. Fold the flour in alternately with the milk until well combined.
- Spoon into the prepared cake tin, smoothing over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched. (Mine took closer to 55 minutes.)
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before lifting out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the icing, sift the icing sugar into a bowl along with the other ingredients, only adding enough orange juice or milk to give you a thick but spreadable icing. Spread over the top of the cake.
Oh I am one very happy camper now, seeing as my oven is sorted and back to working as it should. I hope it lasts me another 8 years before I have to have it fixed again! Happy Sunday!
