mixed berry and lemon drizzle cake

A fresh, fruity and zingy cake. Perfect for a sunny, socially distanced summer picnic in my mum and dad's garden a few weeks ago.

It's based on this recipe, another classic from BBC Good Food's website which I've baked before. I actually made the original version (with lime) the previous week and thoroughly enjoyed it but then fancied trying it again with lemon instead.

The recipe states to use an 8" square tin but like the previous times I've made it I used a 9" round tin (it holds the equivalent volume) as I find round cakes easier and more pleasing to slice.

Usually I buy fresh berries for baking but this time I used a bag of frozen mixed berries (a mixture of blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and red currants, maybe even blackcurrants?!) as that's what I had to hand. This worked really nicely and was also a lot cheaper. I'll definitely do this again.

And for the first time ever the berries didn't all sink to the bottom. I don't know if this had something to do with using frozen over fresh or the consistency of the batter. Regardless, I did a little happy dance when the cake came out the oven.

As far as I'm concerned this is a complete winner of a cake. It's a decent size too for feeding a family, although no judgement from me if you plan to eat it all yourself. 

The tale of the blueberry muffins

Let me tell you all a story...

On the 1st of April I got up early to bake blueberry muffins to deliver to my parents' house as a surprise morning treat during lockdown. I used my Great Aunty Lizzie's recipe, which I hadn't used in years, and they turned out beautifully.

I let them cool for a few minutes then popped them in a tin, nestled in a tea towel, and rushed out my front door.

Then the clumsy arse that I am dropped the tin as I walked down the hill towards my car. I hadn't fully closed the lid as the muffins were still warm, so the muffins landed face first at the edge of the pavement. Although I was obviously gutted it was also hilariously funny. An eerily quiet, empty street with me on my knees swearing rather loudly at a heap of crumbs. Quality entertainment for any neighbours looking out their windows.

I rescued what I could but a lot was claimed by the pavement. This is what I was left with:

At least the birds got a good feed that day.

Banana and blueberry pancakes

A few months ago I came across a recipe for sugar free banana and blueberry pancakes on Nickki's blog SomethingSweetSomethingSavoury. I love both bananas and pancakes so needless to say I had to try them.

It was a bit of a Goldilocks situation perfecting these pancakes. The first time I made them my griddle was too hot, so the pancakes ended up nearly burnt on the outside and undercooked in the middle. Easily rescued with a quick blast in the microwave though. The second time I overcompensated with heat and and they took ages to cook and didn't colour particularly well. Then finally on my third attempt I got them just right. Practise makes perfect.

I absolutely love blueberries in bakes as they turn such a vibrant colour of purple and create lovely, juicy pockets. They've stained my griddle though which I'm less delighted about but I'll forgive them. After all, this is the most action my poor griddle has ever seen! As much as I love pancakes I hardly ever make them.

In my three attempts I also experimented with different ripeness of bananas and I'd say the riper the better like banana cakes. If you only have one sad banana in your fruit bowl, which isn't enough for a cake, then this is a great way to use it. The batter makes 4 small pancakes/drop scones which I've found makes a decent breakfast for one person.

Although the pancakes tasted absolutely fine as they were I couldn't resist adding a drizzle of honey. I have a sweet tooth and since there's no added sugar in the batter I felt I could add some on top guilt-free. There's something so satisfying about a honey or syrup-soaked pancake.

I'm tempted to try swapping out the blueberries for other berries or possibly even chocolate chips next time I make these pancakes. There are so many possibilities!

The only change I made to the original recipe was to use one 1 large egg as I hardly ever buy medium sized eggs. Here's a link to the recipe if you also fancy giving it a try. Nickki has loads of great recipes on her blog so she's worth following if you haven't come across her before.

blueberry and pecan crumble loaf

This cake was so close to not getting photographed. Each time I came back to the cake tin another slice was missing so I thought I'd better take a few snaps before it disappeared completely.

Admittedly I have baked and documented this cake before, but that was surprisingly a long time ago in my first year of blogging so I thought it was worth sharing again. The cake has a lovely soft crumb, bursts of bright purple blueberries and a satisfyingly spiced, crunchy crust. The blueberries all sink to the bottom, regardless of a light flour coating, but it doesn't spoil the cake.

I was having an absent minded moment when I was measuring out the ingredients so I have a feeling I added 25g/1oz too much butter. I was rushing to get the cake in the oven before last week's episode of the Great British Bake Off so I was probably thinking about how much I loved Matt the fireman. It's a good job I had a freshly baked cake after that episode as I was very sad about the outcome.

The cake took far longer to bake than the 50-60 minutes stated in the recipe but I see I had exactly the same experience the last time I baked this cake.  It easily needed another 20 minutes.

Not much else to add, other than that it's a relatively quick, easy cake to bake and the addition of cinnamon and crumble gives it a comforting autumnal quality. I bet it would be good with custard. Mmmm, custard. Custard on everything.

Recipe from Hummingbird Bakery "Cake Days" book, first blogged here.

blueberry and lemon layer cake

This felt like a purely selfish bake. I had no reason to bake a triple layer cake, which I usually feel deserves an "occasion", I just really wanted one.

It was only 6 inches in diameter though. A satisfying size and height of cake without being massive.

I based this cake on a tasty cake I ate in Edinburgh earlier in the year and also one I bookmarked on Sweetapolita ages ago. I loved the look and flavour of a lemon layer sandwiched between blueberry studded layers. Although my layering isn't as distinct as Sweetapolita's I still think it makes an attractive cake.

I couldn't decide whether I wanted to use lemon curd or blueberry jam with my lemon butter icing between the layers. In the end I went with both: jam between the bottom and middle layer and curd between the middle and top. They both offer something different flavour wise so I think that was a good choice.

I also toyed with the idea of going for a smooth icing coverage to finish the cake. After a few attempts I came to the conclusion that I don't own a large enough palette knife, I don't have the patience (or skill?) required and ultimately I don't particularly care! I actually really like textured icing. It looks homely and inviting and takes me less time to do therefore I get to eat cake quicker. And that's the most important thing, right?

Flavour wise this cake is a real sharp, sweet and tart sensation for the taste buds. Mum even declared "this is one of the best cakes you've made in a while". I'll take that compliment! I must admit I prefer sweet and sour flavour combinations to sweet and salty, although I'm expecting people may throw their cooking utensils at me for admitting that. Don't get me wrong, salted caramel is good, but I find it hard to go past a sharp and sweet lemon bake.

Now if you excuse me I'm going to go and scream into a pillow. It has been one of those days...

Blueberry and lemon layer cake
I baked this a couple of weeks ago and stupidly didn't write anything down so my memory of this is a bit sketchy. I think this is what I used though!

200g caster sugar
200g stork margarine (or butter)
3 large eggs
200g self raising flour
zest of 2 lemons
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp milk (I think!)
2 small packets of blueberries (I think they were about 150g each)

icing and filling:
450g icing sugar
150g butter (I use slightly salted)
lemon juice to taste
lemon curd
blueberry jam

Preheat the oven to 180C/170 fan/Gas 4. Grease and line three 6 inch round cake tins. Beat together the sugar and margarine/butter for 5 minutes until pale, light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well between each addition. Sift in the flour and add the lemon zest and 1 tbsp of lemon juice and milk. Mix until everything is smooth and fully combined. Divide the mixture between the three tins. Coat a packet of the blueberries in a small amount of flour (to stop them sinking in the mix) and lightly press the blueberries into the surface of two of the cake mixes. I can't remember if I used the whole blueberry packet, but I basically just pressed in enough to roughly cover the surface. 

Bake in the middle of the oven for about 20 minutes until risen, golden, springy to touch and the edges of the cake have come away from the tin. I only have two tins so the plain lemon layer was baked separately afterwards. If I remember correctly, I think the blueberry sponges took longer to bake, possibly up to 30 minutes, probably due to the addition of the blueberries to the mixture. Once cooked, leave to cool in the tins for a few minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

For the icing, beat together the icing sugar, butter and enough lemon juice to achieve a nice spreadable consistency. Use to sandwich between the cakes (along with the jam and/or curd!) and coat the top and outside of the cake. Decorate your cake with any remaining blueberries.
 

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.

The forgotten cakes of 2012

It's not often that bakes slip through the net as I like my blog to run relatively on time. I know it's not life threatening if I post something late and it slides into another month, but for some reason it irks me.

My first forgotten bake is a chocolate cake I made as a test run for my sister-in-law's birthday cake.

As it was a tester I halved the recipe and baked the mixture in two 18cm round tins. I think I also used two medium eggs instead of 1.5 large eggs. If you like the Primrose Bakery recipe but don't fancy such a massive cake then this worked really well.

Also almost forgotten is a lemon and blueberry drizzle cake which I took to my brother's. Shoddy picture quality courtesy of my mobile phone.

 

I can't remember which recipe I used, but I remember feeling disappointed that all the blueberries sank to the bottom.

Lastly, not a cake, but a pie! If I don't post this lemon meringue pie from New Year's Eve dinner then it may get forgotten.

I love the contrast of sharp lemon and sweet meringue. It's a wonder I haven't made a lemon meringue pie before (probably because I have an inexplicable fear of making meringues!) The only complaint I had with this Delia recipe was that there was a lot of juice sitting in the bottom of the dish which turned the pastry a bit soggy after a while.

So how's 2013 treating everybody so far? To be honest I'm glad to see the back of 2012. I'm not a resolution maker but have decided to set a few projects in motion to make 2013 more interesting. What are your resolutions for this year, if any?

Blueberry and almond tart

Oops, apologies for my unintentional blogging absence! I'll try to catch up on everyone's blogs soon. In the meantime, here's a blueberry tart which I baked for my parents' (32 year!) wedding anniversary two weeks ago.

I don't bake tarts often, probably because they require a little extra time faffing about with pastry, but when I do I always feel they're worth the effort. There's something a bit fancy about a tart and I thought an anniversary deserved a fancy bake.

I think it's safe to say that the tart went down very well, it barely lasted 24 hours. Those who managed to snaffle the remaining slices said it tasted even better the second day. I'm sad I missed out!

 

Apologies to the almond haters out there as the tart's filling is bursting with ground almonds! The lack of flour means it packs a rich, almond punch. My family loves almond/bakewell flavours, so we were very happy with it.

Such a pretty slice. I love how blueberries burst with flavour and colour.

I think I may have infuriated my family at this point by going "no, no, just one more photo, one more photo please!" But see, isn't it nice seeing all the slices on their plates? The occupational hazard of a food blogger...

The recipe can be found on BBC Good Food, although I made a different shortcrust pastry. I think I used the following measurements for the pastry:

 

200g plain flour

a pinch of salt

1 teaspoon of caster sugar

125g fat (I used half unsalted butter, half lard. Both chilled and diced.)

ice cold water

 

Rub the fat into the dry ingredients with your fingertips in a large bowl until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Using the end of a knife,  stir in enough ice cold water to bring the mixture together into a firm dough (if it goes too sticky just add a bit more flour). Wrap the dough in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.

 

Once chilled, roll out on a lightly floured surface into a large circle big enough to completely cover your tin. Carefully roll half of it up on a rolling pin and slide the removeable base of the tart tin underneath so that it's positioned in the centre. Unroll the pastry, then carefully fold it into the centre, on top of the tin base, then plop the base back into the tart tin and fold back the pastry to cover the sides of the tin. I've found this is the best way to avoid stretching the pastry in the tin. Make sure to press the pastry into all the nooks and crannies, and trim the edges by rolling the rolling pin across the top of the tin. Prick the base of the pastry a few times with a fork then leave to chill again in the fridge for 20 minutes.

 

Once chilled (again!) cover the tart in a layer of greaseproof paper/tin foil weighted with baking beans (to stop the pastry shrinking) and bake in a preheated oven at 190C/Gas 5 for15-20 minutes until lightly golden and just firm. Make your filling while the pastry is baking.

Raspberry and blueberry lime drizzle cake

This is summer in cake form. It's the sort of cake I can imagine eating outside in the sunshine, probably whilst swatting flies away and running away from bumble bees, but that destroys the dreamy picnic image.

This is a zingy, juicy, refreshing cake. I loved the combination of fruity flavours: sharp bursts of raspberry, sweet hits of blueberry and tangy lime.

Surprising for some perhaps, but I've never baked with limes before! If you're not such a fan of lemon drizzle, you may actually prefer lime as it has the tang but without such a sharp, sour hit as lemon.

Only three berries managed to stay near the surface of this cake! The rest all sank to the bottom, despite coating them in flour before adding to the batter, but thankfully they didn't form a soggy mush.

This is definitely on the to-bake-again list, I love a good drizzle cake! The recipe can be found here on BBC Good Food. My changes to the recipe were:

I baked the cake in a 9" round cake tin instead of a 8" square.

I only added 1-2 tbsp of lime juice to the batter as I felt it already had a good dropping consistency.

I only had three limes so was a couple of tablespoons short of juice for the syrup but I was perfectly happy with my results so I don't think an extra is necessary.


On a separate note, is anyone else experiencing problems uploading photographs to Blogger? After reading advice on the troubleshooting section I disabled pop-ups on Blogger which allowed me to upload this post but it still put up a fight. ARGH! Technology.

Blueberry crumble loaf

Another tasty recipe from the Hummingbird Bakery Cake Days book. I was actually going to make the coconut jam sandwich bars this weekend (I'm sure I will get round to it eventually) but noticed we had lots of blueberries in the fridge and instantly felt an urge to do something with them. I love baking with berries.

The cake has a really lovely texture, little chunks of pecans, juicy blueberries and a crumbly topping. The mixture also made a lot of batter, so I got to make a few buns with the excess (any excuse for a bun!)  I would maybe put slightly less cinnamon in next time, but that's just me, Mum loves it as it is. She says I can make it again anytime!

I also have some VERY exciting ebay purchases to share with everybody next week, so watch this space!

Blueberry crumble loaf from Hummingbird Bakery "Cake Days"

For the sponge

190g (7oz) unsalted butter, softened, plux extra for greasing

190g (7oz) plain flour, plus extra for dusting

190g (7oz) caster sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

25ml (1fl oz) whole milk

100g (3 1/2 oz) fresh or frozen (and defrosted) blueberries

50g (1 3/4oz) pecans, chopped

For the crumble topping

25g (1oz) plain flour

10g (1/3 oz) unsalted butter

15g (1/2 oz) soft light brown sugar

20g (3/4oz) chopped pecans

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 170C/Gas mark 3 and grease a 8.5 x 17.5cm loaf tin with butter and dust with flour. To make the crumble topping rub together the flour and butter with your fingertips until it has a breadcrumb texture. Add the remaining ingredients and stir together. Set aside.

For the sponge, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and make sure everything is incorporated. In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon, and add in three stages to the butter and sugar mixture, pouring in the milk after the second batch has been added. Mix well after each addition and mix until the batter is smooth and even. Stir in the blueberries and chopped pecans by hand and pour the batter into the tin. (I had enough excess batter for 5 regular buns.) Scatter the crumble mixture on top and bake in the middle of the oven for 50-60 mins (mine took 1hr 15-20 mins so keep an eye on it). It is ready to take out the oven when a skewer/knife inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Let the loaf cool a bit before removing from the tin.

semolina berry cake and weekend purchases

This has got to be one of my favourite summer cakes. I found the recipe in a newspaper supplement, although I can't remember which one as it was a few years ago. The colours of the berries look stunning and it has such a fresh, juicy flavour. A perfect summer dessert, polished off with a nice cup of tea and extra berries.

Semolina berry cake

175g self-raising flour

100g semolina

175g caster sugar

175g butter, melted

juice and rind of 1/2 a lemon

2 large eggs

200g(ish) of berries (e.g. raspberries, blueberries, blackberries. As long as it's not strawberries)

Preheat the oven to gas mark 4. Mix together the dry ingredients (flour, semolina, sugar). Melt the butter then pour into the dry mixture. Add eggs one at a time, then juice and rind of 1/2 a lemon. Mix together and spoon into a 24cm greased springform tin. Scatter berries over the top and gently press them in a little. Bake in the middle of the oven for approx. 45 mins or until golden on top and firm to touch. (Have a piece while it's still warm, it tastes amazing!)

And onto the weekend purchases.... I was in town on Saturday and couldn't resist buying these shoes. Not only was I seduced by the cute bow and colour, but they were also £10 in the sale. Hurray! It's also great to buy pretty shoes for a change rather than plain work shoes which support my feet (as I'm on them all day).

I have been lusting after this tin for quite a while online, so when I saw it in town I just had to have it. Here it is casually sitting on my Cath Kidston bedding :)

I love the colour, the font, the handle on the lid, even the feel of the tin (hmm, starting to sound creepy. I don't go round shops rubbing tins, honest!)

A girl can never have too many pretty shoes or cake tins can she?

Blueberry muffins

What do you do when it's after midnight and you've just had a nice shower? Bake in your pyjamas of course! There were blueberries in the fridge which needed using up soon so I thought I'd make muffins using my Great Aunty Lizzie's recipe. I like having old family recipes, my Granny and her sisters were amazing bakers.

I got very excited taking them out the oven, they were oozing berry goodness. What a great colour!

Aunty Lizzie's muffins

8oz plain flour

4oz sunflower oil

4oz caster sugar

1 large beaten egg

1.5 level teaspoons of baking powder

1 teaspoon of vanilla essence if liked

a little milk

Sieve flour, sugar and baking powder (although I rarely bother sieving) together into a bowl. Add vanilla essence, beaten egg and oil with a pinch of salt. Beat thoroughly and add milk to make a fairly soft mixture. Add blueberries, a dollop of jam, mincemeat, raisins, chopped chocolate, coconut - whatever you like! Fill cases about 3/4 full. Bake at gas mark 4 for 20-25 minutes. Mixture makes around 9 muffins.