Roasted plum and nutmeg custard cake

More cake today. This time with fruit which totally makes it healthy. And with big gooey pockets of custard which makes it more healthy. Custard’s good for you right? Lots of calcium, good for strong bones. Ahem. The idea for this cake has been kicking around for a while now going through various transformations in my head before it ever even hit the mixing bowl. The first seed of inspiration came from Dan Lepard’s Short and Sweet, an encyclopaedia of all things good, which has a recipe for apple and walnut cake dotted with custard. I pinched the custard element and reduced the sugar since his recipes always turn out too sweet for my tastes. The cake is a basic sponge made with both caster and soft brown sugar for a caramel depth and spiced with nutmeg, the traditional and perfect flavour pairing for creamy custard and a good match with plums.

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Whisky cake with chestnut and chocolate ganache

Hip hip hooray! Today is T and Cake’s 2nd birthday! Wow, where have the last two years gone? So much has happened over that time and hopefully there are many more adventures to come. My new kitchen units have arrived (all 120 boxes) and hopefully I’ll soon be busy experimenting with new toys and fancy settings on the oven. I’ve also had the good fortune to get an allotment which will require rather a lot of heavy duty digging over winter but should provide some beautiful fresh ingredients come next summer. But what is a blog without people to read it? Here’s to you, kind readers. Thank you for stopping by, leaving comments and making this blog what it is. I’m sorry not to be able to share this birthday cake with you in person but we can celebrate in spirit. Cheers!

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Almond cake

I like a fancy cake as much as the next person, probably more so. Crumbly tops, fruity fillings, chocolate, they all float my boat. But so do basic, unassuming cakes, ones that seem almost dull in their simplicity. In fact, the more simple the cake, the better it has to be; there are no whistles or bells or, you know, lashings of frosting, to hide behind. It doesn’t get much more easy than this one-step cake and, to my mind, it doesn’t get much better.

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Apricot and ratafia cake

Hmm, for a blog with cake in the title it feels like it’s been a while since I posted a cake recipe. It’s been a whole seven weeks since the Portuguese orange cake and my afternoon mug of tea has been missing its usual partner in crime. I’m nibbling on the last slice of this most recent cake and sipping a giant mug of Yorkshire tea as I write and trying in vain not to get too many crumbs over the desk, the keyboard and myself. It’s not a massively crumbly cake, the moist apricots help hold things together but I’m genetically destined to be a messy eater, just ask my mother. As a child I had cake crumbs in my tummy button more often than not.

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Portuguese orange cake

I know I’m very late to the party in buying David Leite’s wonderful book The New Portuguese Table but better late than never eh? Since treating myself last month I’ve been working my way through some Portuguese delights such as a lighter version of mayonnaise flavoured with ginger and corriander and an unusual but delicious milk liqueur. We’ve been through quite a number of eggs, a lot of chorizo and dozens of oranges and enjoyed every recipe. Unfortunately for the UK cook, the recipes all use cups – not a problem if you have a set but it does create more washing up. I’ve been converting to grams as I go so the following recipe is scale-friendly.

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Clementine and linseed buns

While I’m still trying to eat a tad more healthily, I’m a firm believer that a little of what you fancy is good for you. If you deny yourself all forms of treats sooner or later you’re going to give up or break down and over indulge. If you fancy cake, why not make some little buns, just a few bites can give you the sweet treat you fancy and, if you’re clever about it, you can fiddle the ingredients to make them that bit more wholesome. These buns, for example, are not just mini bites of sweet, moist cake with a delightful citrus tang; they are also vegan, high in fibre and a good source of those pesky essential fatty acids that my fish-defficient diet is rather lacking. These clementine cakes are positively perfect!

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Stollen buns

One of my favourite seasonal treats is a slice of stollen. The German Christmas cake is made from bread dough enriched with sugar and eggs, dried fruit, spices and candied peel. At its core runs a thick seam of marzipan which any almond aficionado will revel in. A true stollen is also be finished off with a blizzard of icing sugar. This year, rather than make a full-sized loaf for slicing, I though it would be fun to make something a bit more portable, easier to share and a whole lot cuter to boot. Hello mini stollen buns!

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Raspberry and orange brownies

Walking down the chocolate aisle at my local store (always a dangerous task!) I noticed how many bars there are that contain fruit. We’re way beyond the classic Cadbury’s Fruit and Nut with bars featuring lemon meringue, banana, strawberry, cranberries and dates. I’m not sure I’m really too convinced by some of the pairings, I tend to find chocolate and fruit don’t always go but some are rather fab. Montezumas make the most amazing orange and geranium dark chocolate bar and the brilliantly named Sea Dog bar with sea salt and lime. And I love Divine‘s  70% chocolate dotted with tart raspberries.

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Banana and caramel loaf

Is it just me or does anyone else get recipe inspiration from the weirdest things? I’ve already accepted the fact that my mind is constantly on food but it still manages to surprise me from time to time. Take for example the inspiration behind this recipe: a serious documentary on the safety of nuclear power. A nuclear physicist was explaining the low-level background radiation we live with every day illustrated by some Brazil nuts and a slice of banana cake (which contains potassium 40). And what do I think? ‘Mmm, I’ve not made banana cake in a while’. Inappropriate much?

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Pear parkin

Aye up! Last week we escaped to a little cottage on the edge of Yorkshire and the Peak district. We replaced the rolling green hills and thatch of Devon with rugged, heathery peaks and pretty villages built from yellow-cream stone. Yorkshire has a flourishing food scene and we happened upon several excellent farmers’ markets and food festivals. The pubs within walking distance of our cottage all served the most delicious, local grub and ales; I feel like I’ve put on about a stone in weight! So no surprise that I wanted to stave off the post-holiday blues and recreate a little bit of  ‘up North’ at home.

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