berry bakewell cake

I'd like to start off by saying a huge thank you to everybody who left advice on my last post regarding my not so successful bundt. The general consensus is that I should invest in some cake release spray so that's what I'm going to try next. I shall not be defeated by that bundt tin!

Hello photogenic plugs and sockets.

Now onto a cake which was a total success, woohoo! My Mum is a huge fan of almondy, bakewell flavours so I decided to make this pimped up Victoria sponge for her birthday last week.

It's a very simple cake but the addition of ground almonds and berries make it that bit more special. Basically if you love victoria sponges and bakewell tarts then you'll love this cake.

The nephews are excellent fire extinguishers.

I used frozen berries in this cake but I imagine fresh would taste even better. I was a bit worried about adding too many in case they would all sink and make the sponges soggy but thankfully this wasn't the case. If anything I think I could get away with adding a few more next time.

We have red blinds in our kitchen so if you're wondering why all my photographs are rose tinted that's why. I haven't gone all instagram toaster filter on you.

Ahhh just looking at that photo makes me want to bake the cake again. Apparently the last slice tasted even better the following day.

Berry Bakewell Cake

I naturally bake in imperial measurements (I'm old school like that) but I've converted the weights into grams. I hope they're right!

8oz/ 225g caster sugar

8oz/ 225g margarine (I used Vitalite as I wanted to make the cake dairy free)

3 large duck eggs (hen eggs are fine, as long as the overall weight is roughly 8oz)

8oz/ 225g self-raising flour

1 oz/ 28g ground almonds

a few drops of almond essence (add to taste)

roughly 2-3 ounces/ about 75g mixture of berries (fresh or frozen) for scattering

a few tablespoons of strawberry jam

Icing sugar for dusting

Grease and line two 20cm round cake sandwich tins. Preheat the oven to Gas 4/180C. Beat together the sugar and margarine for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a tablespoon of the flour if the mixture starts to curdle/split. Add a few drops of almond essence (to taste) along with the rest of the flour and ground almonds and mix until everything is fully combined. Divide the mixture between the two cake tins. In a separate bowl, give the berries a light coating of flour to stop them sinking in the mixture (you can cut some of the heavier berries such a blackberries in half to reduce weight.) Lightly press the berries into the surface of both cakes. 

Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for roughly 25 minutes or until both sponges are golden, well risen and spring back to touch. Leave to cool in the tins for a few minutes before turning out onto a wire cooling rack. Once cold, sandwich together with a generous amount of jam and serve with a dusting of icing sugar on top.

help please!

Some constructive criticism or advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm at the stage where I might start spelling my bundt tin with a "c".

I've produced yet another half-turned-out cake which is becoming increasingly frustrating. I followed the recipe to the letter, and this is described as a good cake for not sticking, but it still stuck. I greased the tin with Wilton cake release oil (along with a coating of flour) which is the same combination I used for my successful lemon, almond and poppyseed bundt. I bought more of this oil as I hadn't used it for my last two (failed) bundts and I assumed that's where I was going wrong.

So......

Should I have left it to cool longer in the tin before turning out?

Should I only grease the tin with the cake release oil? (No coating of flour)

Is cake release spray better than cake release oil? I tried to find some in Lakeland last week but only came across the oil.

Or should I throw the bundt tin out the kitchen window? I'm mighty close to having a Ballistic Bob moment (a nice bit of Scottish TV for you!)

On the upside, despite the ugly appearance this is a very tasty cake: great banana flavour and packed with oozy chunks of milk chocolate. If I could get it to turn out the tin properly I would definitely bake it again.

everything will be fine...

Despite having the most amazing weekend EVER seeing the Strictly Come Dancing Tour in Glasgow, I have returned home entirely run down with a coldsore threatening to take over my face and a mobile phone potentially on its death bed. It's not the end of the world, I can go back to using my prehistoric pink flip phone, but it's an inconvenience and I was hoping February would involve less hassle than January.

Life isn't all doom and gloom though, it's hard to feel sad when a lovely bunch of flowers are on my sunshine yellow formica table. Here are some other photographs I've taken which make me smile.

My yellow Taunton Vale canisters look rather lovely next to Mary Bee the kitchenaid (please excuse her filthy mixing bowl!)

Tidying up china after photographing and eating the maple and walnut cake.

Patterned tins in a row. There's nothing stored inside, I just like looking at them!

I've been living out a suitcase for the last few weeks as the majority of my possessions are packed away in the attic while my bedroom is getting a massive make over. I've kept some nice pieces of jewellery out to jazz up outfits so I don't become entirely bored of my smaller selection of clothes.

A cute birdy brooch mum bought for my christmas last year. Today is the first day I've worn it!

So yes, everything will be fine. My coldsore will go away, I at least have a basic functioning phone to use and my room is going to look fantastic when it's finished.  I also have a bake planned for the weekend which is another thing to look forward to.

What's keeping you cheerful in February?