Coffee AND Walnut Cake

The Great British Bake Along Challenge begins, because I may be pants but I want to get involved anyway! I love The Great British Bake Off, what great characters and bakes, so let’s celebrate another season has started!

During my aptly named Great British Bake Along Challenge I plan to bake along with the contestants every week based on the themes laid out in the show. I am but a lowly amateur so won’t necessarily bake exact recipes however will use them for inspiration and stick to the episode themes tightly (until it gets too tough and then loosely, very loosely)!

Week one in the Bake Off tent: CAKE WEEK

Oooo who doesn’t like a light fluffy sponge covered in sugary smooth icing or chocolate. No one worth listening too that is! This week’s technical challenge was Mary Berry’s walnut cake, but if you going to make a walnut cake I reckon you may as well go the whole hog and make a coffee and walnut cake. I also wasn’t too sure about that meringue nonsense.

 

I went with a simple recipe from a trusted source, my student baking book! Shhh Paul put away those disappointed eyes! If anyone is desperate for the recipe I’ll post it up but with baking every week don’t have time to do them all. Pesky day job!

Evaluation? Oh ok then.

A nice easy bake to start this challenge covering all the basics. Good recipe and I would make again! I would give myself a whooping nine out of ten. There was a good distribution on my walnuts (cut into eighths!) and they didn’t sink to the bottom hurrah! Cake rose well and evenly and most of all tastes delicious! I suppose it could have looked a little prettier *sigh*

Star taster this week goes to… Jackie! That lovely colleague commented “It’s really lovely Brenda, not too sweet” – Oh but you are!

Until next week!

Very lime-y lime cupcakes

Everybody’s good at cooking something, I’m good at cooking crumble…well no cupcakes actually! I hope most of you get that BGT reference, that lady’s given me some inspiration.

Bored of chocolate and vanilla cakes, want something summery, citrusy and different? What about that poor neglected LIME! This idea didn’t pop out of thin air because I neglect the lime as much as the average brit, but in my wonderful baking book I have a recipe for margarita cupcakes (it’ a student baking book if you hadn’t guess). You know a key flavour in margarita’s? Yep lime. My logic starting to make sense now I’d hope.

These are really simple to make, turn out light and fluffy and pack a punch. Perfect for a summer BBQ.

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Ingredients                                                            Equipment

175g Self-raising flour                                                 Mixing bowl
225g Caster sugar                                                       Cupcake tin and cases
2 limes, juice and zest                                                Electric whisk
115g Unsalted butter at room temperature             Measuring spoons & scales
2 large eggs
4 tsp orange juice

One. Cream together your butter and sugar. I find the easiest way to do this is add the sugar to butter in three instalments making sure everything is happily combined before moving to the next batch. This takes some arm muscles and time – I might try popping it in a mixer next time I try and I’ll post an update.

Two. Add two large eggs or three medium ones to the mix. Crack out the electric whisk and give the whole thing a quick mix together.

Three. Add the lime juice/zest, orange juice and flour to the mix. Now fold the mixture together until just combined.

Four. Spoon the mixture into the cases and cook in the oven for 15 minutes. If you are making larger cakes (like American cupcakes) increase the cooking time to 25 minutes. I got rather excited at being able to use my green poka dot fairy cases! I made 18 cupcakes and they filled the cases perfectly. Some might class them as fairy cases so look at the pictures and make the call yourself – If you are only getting 12 cook for the longer time.

Four. Once cooked take out and allow to cool completely then ice.

Making a lime buttercream adds a lot to the flavour and isn’t much more effort than normal!

Ingredients                                                          Equipment

150g icing sugar                                                       Mixing bowl
1 lime, juice and zest                                               Wooden spoon
2tsp Orange juice                                                    Measuring spoons & scales
55g Unsalted butter at room temperature

Cream together the icing sugar and butter using a wooden spoon – you’ll need to engage those arm muscles again. Do this slowly by adding the icing sugar a little at a time. If you are struggling add a teaspoon of orange juice to help. When happy that everything is combined use the electric whisk to whip the mixture until bale and fluffy. Add lime and orange juice and continue to whisk. After the icing is on the cakes sprinkle the zest of one lime over the top to finish off the look.