Cookies and Mallow Chocolate Heaven Cake

Cookies and Mallow Chocolate Heaven Cake

The plan had been to make the best carrot cake in the world for my birthday. However after eating most of the original cake myself and having a good amount of the one I made for Jeff's mum, I wanted to try something else for my birthday.

The idea was for a cookies and cream cake. And I kid you not, I had a dream that I used the marshmallow icing and woke up thinking it was a wonderful idea!

I used recipes from the Primrose Bakery recipe book. For my first attempt, I used normal cake tins and made a two tier cake with icing in the middle and on the top. Second time round I thought I'd try out my Wilton Heart Cake Tins which I haven't used since the Candy Cake. I doubled up the cake recipe and made two batches of the icing to do it all. However, I think this cake is a little too soft and moist to hold it's shape with the heart insert. Plus it was gigantic!

Heart Insert

So here's the basic recipe for the two tiered cake I made.

Chocolate Cake

• 115g good quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
• 85g unsalted butter, at room temp
• 175g soft brown sugar
• 2 large eggs separated
• 185g plain flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp bicarb of soda
• Pinch of salt
• 250ml semi skimmed milk at room temp
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 170C (fan) and grease and line 2 cake tins.

Break the chocolate and break into pieces and melt. I use the microwave on 30 second blasts, the stir until it is completely melted. You can use a bowl over simmering water though.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is pale and smooth.

In a separate bowl with clean beaters, beat the egg yolk for several minutes.
Slowly add the egg yolks to the creamed mixture and beat well. Next add the melted chocolate to the mixture and beat well.
Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
Combine the milk and vanilla extract in a jug.
Add a third of the flour to the chocolate mixture, beat well.
Pour in a third of the milk and beat again. Repeat these steps until all the flour and milk have been added.
In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks start to form. Carefully fold the egg whites into the batter using a metal spoon.
Divide the mixture into the 2 cake tins.
Cook for 20-25 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean after being inserted in the centre of one of the cakes.
Leave them to cool in the tins for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool. Peel the greaseproof paper from the bases of the cakes.

Marshmallow Icing

• 120g granulated sugar
• 80g golden syrup
• 1 1/2 tbsp water
• 2 large egg whites

Cook the sugar, syrup and water in a saucepan over a high heat until the mixture reaches the soft-ball stage (115C). This took a few minutes.

Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, in a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks start to form. With the blades still beating on a low speed, slowly pour in the hot sugar syrup in a steady stream on the egg whites.

Continue to beat on a low speed until all the hot syrup is in the mixing bowl.

Increase the speed to medium high and continue beating the mixture until it becomes thick, glossy and cool.

Spread a layer of this icing in between the two layers of cake and spread or pipe the rest on top.

Cookies!
Because I wanted this to be a cookies and cream cake, I added 6 crushed oreos on top of the first layer of icing. And I took out the centre of about 6 oreos and blitzed the biscuit then sprinkled it on top of the cake.

This is the basic 2 layered version

I would love to hear what you think of this cake. Please leave a comment.

Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Squares

Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Squares

This week's sweet treat is a minor adaptation of Nigella's Marshmallow Crispy Squares. I used these before when making the Unikitty Treats. They are great for kids and adults, but incredibly moreish, so beware! These treats would be ideal for cake stalls and fundraising, with Comic Relief coming up...

Ingredients

• 45g butter
• 300g mini marshmallows
• 180g Rice Krispies
• 300g cooking chocolate, maybe even more

Method

• Melt the butter in a large, heavy-based saucepan over a low heat.
• Add the marshmallows and cook gently until they are completely melted and blended, stirring constantly.
• Take the pan off the heat and immediately add the cereal, mixing lightly until well coated.
• Press the mixture into lined 32cm x 23cm tin. I cover it with baking paper and press into the corners as it is very sticky. I also use a rolling pin over the top of the baking paper to make sure it is flat.
• Then carefully peel off the top layer of baking paper and leave it to cool completely in the tin.
• Cut it into small squares.
• Melt the cooking chocolate.
• Cover the squares in chocolate, let the excess drip off. Then lay them on a piece of baking paper, silicon baking mat, or even in individual cupcake cases to make them a little more special.

I did not manage to cover all of my marshmallow crispy squares with the 300g of chocolate. But the treats are lovely without the chocolate, so I was happy to have a mixture. You might want to use more chocolate if you want them all covered.

The girls were able to help make these treats. Their jobs were to stir the mixture until melted. Then when they were set and cut up, the girls did all the chocolate work. It was a great mess!

If you tried the chocolate marshmallow crispy squares, let me know what you think. Leave a comment below.
Also, I'm always looking for new ideas for baking/cooking, if you have any suggestions, leave a comment!

Birthday Cakes

Cakes, Cakes, Cakes

I've been challenging myself to be creative when it comes to birthday cakes.
I've made some progress as you can see.

Elizabeth's 2nd birthday January 2012

Vanilla Layer Cake from Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery

Elizabeth's 3rd Birthday Cake, January 2013

Chocolate Layer Cake from the Primrose Bakery

My birthday, May 2013

same as above

Rebecca's 2nd Birthday, November 2013

This is Lorraine Pascale's "I can't believe you made that cake" from Baking Made Easy. It's a great cake, really yummy and looks fab. Elizabeth insisted I make it for her next birthday too. I now constantly see variations of it on the internet.

What I learned from Elizabeth's cake Jan 13, was to leave the smarties until serving. If you put them on the cake too far in advance the shells lose their crispiness.

My birthday, May 2014

Red Velvet Cake from Lorraine Pascale's Baking Made Easy. I think I made the medium cake. I did NOT use enough red colouring, so it was really just a chocolate cake.

This was my first attempt at using Fondant Icing. I got the ready to roll stuff! I didn't make the flowers.

Jeff's Birthday, October 2014

And, of course there's the Candy Cake I made for Jeff's birthday last month. It's funny because since then it seems that "surprise cakes" are the in-thing! I got my idea from a conversation with Elizabeth about pinatas, and thought it would be cool to combine the cake with Jeff's love of sweets.

Rebecca's 3rd Birthday, November 2014

Finally, last week's Mystery Machine Cake that I made for Rebecca's birthday.

I think I've made some progress!

Fudge Slices - Traybake

When I was about 17 my after school job was looking after two early teenage girls. I would go to their house everyday after school until either their mum or step dad got home.

My little sister, Janis would also come to their house so that I could look after her too when my mum was working.

On Wednesdays we had half days at school, finishing before lunch. I got into the habit of buying Janis and I some lunch from a deli that was up the road from my school. We would have a roll each and a fudge slice. Their fudge slices were lovely. I don't think I had ever had them before and I don't really remember seeing them since until I was working in a school in Aberdeenshire.

At Mintlaw Academy, Aberdeenshire, the Business Studies classes would have to come up with an Enterprise Initiative every year. One year they came up with the idea of creating and publishing a recipe book. They invited all the members of staff to contribute a favourite recipe or two. I was very much into savoury cooking then, and  I added a Chinese recipe that I loved.

What was great about the book was that the recipes were tried and tested by home cooks. A lot of the recipes were family favourites, probably passed down from previous generations. Included amongst them was a recipe for fudge slices.

It had probably been 15 years since I had a fudge slice from the Deli in Currie, just up the road from the High School. But I thought these ones were a pretty good likeness. Regardless of whether or not they were the same, they were bloody delicious!

I've made this recipe A LOT, my mum now makes it and I've passed it on to Janis and my sister in law. I don't know anyone who doesn't like these. Elizabeth and Rebecca got one in her their lunches this week, and Jeff took some in to his work for his birthday.

I've made my own tweaks to get them just right.

Ingredients

• 4oz soft margarine
• 2tbsp sugar
• 2tbsp golden syrup
• 1 small tin of condensed milk
• 9oz biscuits blitzed in the food processor
• 1 pack of milk chocolate, melted to spread on top

Method

• Melt the marg, sugar, golden syrup and condensed milk in a pan over a low heat.
• Bring it to a gentle boil.
• Let it boil for at least 5 minutes, until the colour has darkened to a caramel colour.
• Take it off the heat and beat it with the electric beaters until it has thickened - when it's coming away from the sides of the pan. This will probably take about 5 minutes.
• Add in the biscuits and mix well. The mixture should all come together like a dough.
• Press and spread the mixture into a baking tray. I use a 30cm/20cm deep tray. I also line it in advance with clingfilm so that the edges are nice and smooth and it's easy to lift out of the tray to chop up when it's set.
• Spread the melted chocolate evenly over the top.
• Put it in the fridge to set.
• Cut it into squares or rectangles, whatever takes your fancy. Small might be best because they are very morish!