Frosted chocolate cake with almonds

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Hanna

We’re serious about our cakes and other baked goods in Sweden, but sometimes I roll my eyes at the names the cakes get. This cake is called ‘Success Cake’ in Swedish, don’t ask me why, and I just refuse to call it that in English, but the more describing name frosted chocolate cake with almonds, doesn’t really do it justice either.

I mean, yes, it is a frosted chocolate cake, but a very yummy one. Just go ahead and make it and see for yourself!

Frosted chocolate cake with almonds, serves 10

150 g salted butter
180 g caster sugar
1 1/2 eggs
75 ml cocoa
90 g plain flour
3/4 tbsp vanilla sugar
1 tsp baking powder

Frosting:
150 ml double cream
120 g caster sugar
1 1/2 tbsp golden syrup
100 g dark chocolate
75 g butter

Decoration:
50 g almond slivers

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Butter a normal sized baking tray.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Remove from heat and add sugar and eggs. Mix cocoa, flour, vanilla sugar and baking powder in a bowl. Add the dry mixture to the butter mixture and incorporate well. Pour into the tin and bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes.

Mix cream, sugar, syrup and chocolate in a saucepan. Let it simmer until the frosting has thickened and the chocolate has melted, it takes about 15 minutes (less on a gas hob). Remove from heat and add the butter in chunks and beat it into the frosting. Pour the frosting over the cake, spread it evenly, decorate with almond slivers and place in the fridge to set.

Sponge cake with vanilla filling

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Hanna

In Sweden a sponge is as common as here in the UK, even though we normally make them without butter which gives you an airier lighter cake.

This cake is just like that, a simple airy sponge but with a very simple filling adding both moisture and lots of flavour. It is incredibly simple to make, and yet wonderful to eat.

I got the recipe from my mother, and although I remembered it was very good I was surprised how good it actually is! And needless to say it went down a treat in the office as well…

Sponge cake with vanilla filling, serves 8

Cake:

3 eggs

300 ml (240 g) caster sugar

300 ml (180 g) plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

100 ml lukewarm water

Filling:

125 g butter (I used salted)

100 ml milk

3 tbsp icing sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Beat eggs and sugar until pale and pluffy. Sift in the flour and baking powder and stir it in. Add the water and incorporate well. Pour the batter into a buttered springform tin, lined with parchment paper in the bottom. Bake in 200C (180C fan) for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin while preparing the filling.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the milk and let it simmer for a few minutes. Remove from heat and add the icing sugar and vanilla. Leave to cool slightly.

Loosen the cake from the tin and cut in half. Place the bottom piece on a serving plate and pour over the filling. Place the other sponge on top while still warm. Decorate with icing sugar and serve.

Raspberry gateau

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Hanna

Last time I baked for the office I made Mary Berry’s fantastic white chocolate cheesecake and this traditional Swedish gateau.

It is easy to be home blind, and I didn’t realise how much cream we use in Sweden until I moved here. We have it in a sauce instead of gravy and in or with pretty much any cake.

This is a pretty standard gateau with jam (crushed berries with sugar works too), custard and cream. The sponges are made without butter and that makes them slightly less moist, but also less crumbly and lighter, so it is very easy to assemble this cake.

Raspberry gateau, serves 8-10

Sponge:

4 eggs

200 g caster sugar

1 1/3 tbsp water

160 g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

Flling:

150 ml thick custard

150 ml firmly whipped cream

200 ml seedless raspberry jam

To decorate:

300 g whipped cream

20 g fresh raspberries

Beat sugar and egg until pale and fluffy. Add the water. Mix flour and baking powder and incorporate well. Divide the mixture between two even sized spring forms, greased and lined with a round of parchment paper. Bake in 175C for about 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let the sponges cool completely before assembling the gateau. Mix custard and cream. Spread raspberry jam on top of the first sponge base then slather with the custard cream mix. Spread jam underneath the second sponge and place on top. Cover the whole cake with cream and pipe decorations on top. Decorate with fresh raspberries.

White chocolate cheesecake

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Hanna

The March cakes for the office were only two as some people took time off to have a longer Easter break. And since we had burgers for lunch the same day I expected some cake to be left over. But no, they went down a treat!

Especially this white chocolate cake courtesy of Mary Berry was very popular! It is not too sweet, and that is probably part of the success. That, and using good quality chocolate. There are so many bad and far too sweet versions of white chocolate in the shops. I used Green & Blacks and it was good enough to eat plain and really worked in the cheesecake too.

I decorated my cake with Easter eggs as it was the Thursday before Easter, but other choccies or some fresh berries work well too.

White chocolate cheesecake, serves 8

Adapted from Mary Berry’s recipe.

Base:
50g butter
25g dark chocolate
150g digestive biscuits, crushed

Filling:
300g white chocolate, broken into pieces
400g full fat cream cheese
150 ml soured cream
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

To serve:
Dusting of cocoa powder

Pre-heat oven to 160°C. Grease and line the base of a Ø 20 cm spring form cake tin with non-stick paper. Melt butter and chocolate in small saucepan over a low heat. Stir in crushed biscuits and press evenly over the base of the tin – chill in the fridge.

Break the white chocolate into a bowl and melt very gently over a pan of hot water (do not allow the chocolate to become too hot), stir occasionally with a spoon until runny and smooth.

Whisk the cream cheese and eggs together in a large bowl until smooth, add soured cream and vanilla and whisk again until completely smooth with no lumps. Stir in the melted chocolate and mix together.

Pour in the tin and spread evenly over the chilled base. Bake in preheated oven for about 45 minutes until firm around the edge and just set in the middle. Remove from the oven. Using a small palette knife run the knife around the edge of the tin and then allow to cool and chill. Remove the outside ring and lift base onto serving plate.

Chocolate cheesecake

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Hanna

It really annoys me that I didn’t take a picture of this lovely cake. Note to self: the camera doesn’t work without a memory card. So above is a borrowed picture.

I always trust The Hummingbird Bakery’s recipes, and especially their first book is utterly brilliant, but I still wasn’t sure if I needed a chocolate cheesecake in my life and repertoar. But it turns out I did. I see this cheesecake more as a delicious chocolate cake that happens to be a cheesecake then just a cheesecake. The cream cheese makes it creamy yet still light in texture but the flavour focus is the chocolate, so it is important to choose a good quality chocolate for this. I don’t like mine too bitter so 60-70% cocoa solids is perfect for me.

Chocolate cheesecake, serves 8-10

Adapted from the The Hummingbird Bakery’s recipe.

Base:

200 g digestives

2 tbsp cocoa

150 g butter, melted

Filling:

900 g full-fat Philadelphia

190 g caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla

4 eggs

200 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

Preheat the oven to 150C. Roughly break up the digestive biscuits and put them in a food processor with the cocoa powder. Process until finely ground. Add the butter and mix until you have the consistency of wet sand. Press the mixture into the base of a round springform (about 20 cm Ø), using the back of a spoon works well. Refrigerate while you make the topping.

Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla extract with an electric whisk on slow speed until you get a very smooth, thick mixture. Add one egg at a time while still mixing. Scrape down the sides in between.

Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (don’t allow the base of the bowl to touch the water). Let it cool a little. Spoon a little of the cream cheese mixture into the melted chocolate, stir to mix then add a little more. This will even out the temperatures of the two mixtures. Eventually you can stir all the cream cheese mixture into the chocolate mixture until combined.

Pour the mixture onto the cold base. Cover the base and sides of the tin with tin foil and put it inside a deep baking tray and and fill with water until it reaches two-thirds of the way up the cake tin. Bake for 40 -50 minutes, checking regularly after 40 minutes. Don’t overcook, it should be wobbly in the centre. Leave to cool slightly in the tin, then cover and refridgerate overnight before serving.

Buttermilk sponge cake with sourcream chocolate frosting

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Hanna

When I went to New York for the first time last summer, I was actually shocked over the portion sizes in some restaurants, although of course I knew what to expect.

And the same thing happened to me with this cake. It is an American recipe so I expected a large cake. But not this giant. Oh well, it doesn’t matter as it went down a treat and disappeared very quickly at the office despite its size.

And no wonder. The sponges are very light and super moist (thanks to the buttermilk in the batter). And the very strange frosting, consisting of little else but dark chocolate and sourcream, is neither too rich nor too sweet.

All in all, I would say this is a pretty perfect cake!

Sponge cake with buttermilk, 2 large round cakes

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s recipe.

480 g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

225 g unsalted butter, softened

400 g caster sugar

2 tsp vanilla

4 large eggs, at room temperature

475 ml buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 175C. Grease to springforms, about 22 cm in diameter and cover with a round of baking parchment in the bottom.

Mix flour, baking powder, bicarb and salt in a bowl. Beat butter and sugar creamy in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer. Add the vanilla. Then add the eggs one at the time. Mix well in between each and scrape down the sides. Then add the buttermilk and don’t over-mix. Add the flour mixture in batches.

Divide the batter between the two tins. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tins and then let cool completely on wire racks.

Chocolate frosting with sourcream, enougn to cover a large cake with two sponges

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s recipe.

425 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

530 ml sourcream – N.B! at room temperature!

ca 60 ml corn syrup, to taste

3/4 tsp vanilla

Melt the chocolate over a bain marie. Leave to cool until at room temperature.

Mix sourcream with corn syrup and make sure it is at room temperature. Add the tepid chocolate in batches. In case of lumps use a wire whisk and they should disappear. Leave to set in frdge for about 30 minutes or until spreadable without being runny.

Place one sponge on a cake plate and cover it with frosting. Place the other cake on top and cover the top and sides with frosting. Keep in fridge until serving.

Key lime cheesecake

Posted on March 7, 2013 by Hanna

Yesterday’s cake spread at work!

Just with salads vs. soups I must say that this time of year anything fresh wins over heavy. And this cheesecake is indeed fresh with the tangy lime juice and slight sourness from the cream cheese. Admittedly it contains heavy ingredients but the result is a light, yet very creamy, cheesecake.

I kept the base thin too, as it only serves as a mere ‘resting place’ to the cake; it doesn’t need the biscuit base to cut through the sweetness, because the citrus is doing that on its own.

I found the recipe at the ever wonderfully Smitten Kitchen and actually followed it exactly, with some minor adjustments when converting the measurements and the fact that I made one large cake instead of mini ones. And I omitted the mango.

OK, I almost followed it. And it turned out really well.

Key lime cheesecake, serves 8-10

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s recipe.

Base:
140 g digestives
55 g butter, melted

Filling:
450 g full-fat Philadelphia
250 g caster sugar
175 ml freshly squeezed lime juice
120 ml sourcream
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 tbsp plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
3 eggs

To decorate:

200 ml whipping cream

3 lime slices

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Mix the biscuits into crumbs in a food processor. Add the melted butter and mix until it resembles wet sand. Press onto the base of a 20-22 cm springform. Bake the base for 8 minutes, then leave to cool.

Lower the oven temperature to 140C.

Beat the Philadelphia fluffy with an electric mixer, then add the sugar. Incorporate lime juice, sourcream and vanilla. Then add flour and salt and then all the eggs at once. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix thoroughly. Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake in the oven (preferably in a bain marie but it works without as well, just watch it closely) until the cake has just set and is still wobbly in the middle. About 1 hour in a bain marie, about 30 minutes withour. Leave to cool and refrigerate over night.

Before serving, whip the cream and spread on top of the cool cheesecake (this also covers any cracks) and place the lime slices on top. Keeps in the fridge for 2-3 days.

A repeat: the best frosting ever!

Posted on March 3, 2013 by Hanna

I know, I know, cupcakes are SO 2010.

But since I have a preference for bite-sized food and pixie versions of any kind, I can’t let go of them completely. If they’re good I mean.

There are so many bad recipes for cupcakes out there, and some are focused more on the decorations (urgh for sugarpaste) than the flavour. But I have two great recipes for you.

The chocolate cupcake from The Hummingbird Bakery is first class (and I thoroughly recommend their first cookbook) and this frosting recipe which is totally weird (you start with a roux) is utterly delicious and not too sweet or sickly.

Dan Lepard’s carrot, orange and pistachio cake

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Hanna

When baking for the office last month, I thought I’d accommodate the detoxers with this carrot cake.

I mean, it is still a sweet cake but containing nuts, tahini and pomegranate molasses it seems a lot healthier than a creamy Victoria sponge.

The list of ingredients is rather long for a carrot cake, but it is still a straightforward recipe. The spices makes it taste like any decent carrot cake, but the extra ingredients gives it a lot of depth. It just tastes more than your ordinary carrot cake.

I tried photographing it without a memory card (doh!) so no photo this time…

Dan Lepard’s carrot, orange and pistachio cake, serves 10

Adapted from Dan Lepard’s recipe.

75 g tahini

125 ml sunflower oil

3 tbsp pomegranate syrup or treacle

zest of 3 oranges, and 100ml juice

225 g light soft brown sugar

3 large eggs, separated

200 g carrot, grated finely

100 g chopped pistachios

175 g plain flour

2½ tsp baking powder

2 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground cloves

½ tsp nutmeg

Butter a large round cake tin and line the base with a round of baking parchment. Heat the oven to 180C. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the tahini, oil, syrup, orange zest and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in one whole egg plus two yolks (reserving the whites) until combined, then stir in the grated carrot, pistachios and juice. Sift the flour, baking powder and spices together, then stir them through the mixture. Whisk the egg whites until white and fluffy, then fold through the mixture. Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven, leave to cool in the tins, then cover with a simple icing made from icing sugar and a few drops lemon juice.

Scandelights

about the love for food and my native Scandinavia

Category Archives: Cakes/Cookies

Frosted chocolate cake with almonds

Sponge cake with vanilla filling

Raspberry gateau

White chocolate cheesecake

Chocolate cheesecake

Buttermilk sponge cake with sourcream chocolate frosting

Key lime cheesecake

A repeat: the best frosting ever!

Dan Lepard’s carrot, orange and pistachio cake

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