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Cooking, Recipe and Food Blog

Le Gateau Sans Rival

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True to its name, this cake is certainly “ without equal “! I’ve loved this cake for many years, and I have to say that it deserves a special occasion to have this on the table.

Although it has a French name, because it was adapted from a French cake called Dacquoise, it is an all-time favourite Filipino cake. A Dacquoise cake is made of almond and hazelnut meringue layered in between luscious butter cream frosting and some fruit. Another variation of this dessert cake is the Marjolaine, which uses chocolate butter cream and chocolate ganache.

Sans Rival on the other hand is made with the same principle of its French counterpart, but uses ingredients readily available in a typical Filipino pantry and supermarket. So instead of almonds and hazelnuts, a Sans Rival cake would have cashew nuts or plain ole peanuts used in the recipe and just layers of butter cream.

The cake is a bit tricky to prepare especially on high humidity days and can be a quite a challenge to cut. Even so, almost every coffee shop and cake shop in the Philippines serves this. Don’t be discouraged with the word meringue, as every cook and chef knows how delicate making meringues can be. With a little practice, I’m sure you can get the hang of it and proud yourself with this gateau. It’s worth every drop of sweat because it is just tres deliceux!


SANS RIVAL CAKE

Ingredients:

Meringue:

6 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 ½ cups cashew nuts, chopped
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

• With a pencil, draw 2 rounds on a piece of parchment paper each round measuring 9 inches. Turn the parchment paper on its reverse side and place on lightly greased cookie sheets. Whip the egg whites until it form stiff peaks. Slowly add the sugar a little at a time, while continuously whipping. Carefully fold in the nuts and vanilla, making sure not to flatten the meringue mixture. You may choose to put this in a icing pipe bag and pipe the mixture thinly onto five 9 inch rounds . Bake it at 350 deg F until it is golden brown. Turn off the oven but leave the baked meringues in the oven for another 2 hours until they are dry and no longer sticky.

Butter cream Filling

Ingredients:

¼ c water
2/3 c sugar
6 egg yolks
1 c butter, room temp
½ c cashew nuts chopped or slivered almonds

Instructions:

• Bring water and sugar to boil until it spins a thread. Pour the sugar mixture gradually over well beaten egg yolks and continue to beat until it forms a thick consistency. Transfer to a bowl and let it chill for about an hour. Cream the butter and add in the chilled egg mixture. Take out your meringue rounds from the oven and start assembling layers.
• Start with the first layer of meringue and fill it with butter cream, repeat with the next meringue layers. Finish the cake by frosting it from top and sides with butter cream and sprinkle it with chopped nuts all over. Chill the cake for another 2 – 3 hours before slicing and serving.

 

Photo Credit: museinthecity

Photo Credit: gtrwndr87

Photo Credit: rbjbrothers

Union Jack Cake

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With a British Royal Wedding coming up in a few weeks, what better way to celebrate than by baking this cake!

Union Jack Flags

If you can’t find coloured Icing, add some colouring to white ready-to-roll icing – you’ll need Red, White and Blue for this cake.

To Serve 12
225g Self Raising Flour
75g Plain Flour
300g Butter, Softened
225g Caster Sugar
4 Large Eggs
4tbsp Milk
150g Icing Sugar
1tsp Vanilla Extract
4tbsp Raspberry Jam
5tbsp Apricot Jam
1500g Ready to Roll Icing, coloured Red, Blue and White

1. Preheat an oven to 160C, and line a twenty centimetre square baking tin.
2. Sift the Flours into a large bowl, and in a separate bowl cream the two hundred and twenty five grams of the Butter and all of the Caster Sugar together, then beat the Eggs in, one at a time.
3. Fold the Flours in along with three tablespoons of the Milk until evenly mixed. Put into the Tin, and level the top.
4. Bake in the Oven for an hour and fifteen minutes, or until the top springs back when gently pressed. Turn out onto a wire rack and leave until completely cooled – or the Icing won’t set properly on it.
5. Beat the rest of the Butter with the Icing Sugar, a tablespoon of Milk, and the Vanilla until light and creamy. Cut the Cake in half through the centre and sandwich with the Buttercream and Raspberry Jam.
6. Heat the Apricot Jam in a pan with a tablespoon of water until melted. Brush over the cake.
7. Mix up the Icing with the appropriate colours, then roll out on a lightly dusted work surface – use Icing sugar to dust the surface, or the texture won’t be right. Drape over the cake, in the correct patterns to make the Union Jack flag – or what flag you wish!

Photo Courtesy of: garryknight

Lemon and Coconut Cake

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Layers of Lemon and Coconut goodness, this dish is so decadent and delicious, you’ll want to make more than one!

Lemon Coconut Cake

Very easy to make, and the Cake could last up to two weeks before going stale. Not that you’ll be able to resist eating it all before then!

To Serve 10
225ml Milk
6tbsp Lemon Juice
Zest of 2 Unwaxed Lemons, finely grated
100g Desiccated Coconut
300g Plain Flour
1 1/2tsp Baking Powder
1/2tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
225g Butter
4 Large Eggs
100g Unsalted Butter
100g Icing Sugar
300g Soft Cheese
1/4tsp Vanilla Extract
150g Lemon Curd

1. Heat an Oven to 180C. Grease and line three shallow cake trays, each about twenty centimetres across. Put the Milk and a tablespoon of Lemon Juice into a Jug and stir. Leave to stand for at least five minutes
2. Put four tablespoons of the Lemon Juice into a pan with seventy five grams of the Caster Sugar, heating gently until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat, then stir in the Lemon Zest and Desiccated Coconut, before setting to one side.
3. Sift the Flour, Baking Powder and Bicarbonate of Soda together.
4. Cream the Butter and the rest of the Caster Sugar together, before beating the Eggs in, one at a time.
5. Fold the Flour and Milk Mixture into the Eggs, transfer to the baking trays. Level the tops off, and bake for twenty five minutes, or until the tops spring back when lightly pressed. Cool on a Wire Rack.
6. For the filling, cream the 100g Unsalted Butter with the Icing Sugar, before beating in the Soft Cheese, Vanilla and Lemon Juice. Sandwich the Cakes with the Lemon Curd and two thirds of the Filling. Spread the rest on top, and decorate if wanted.

Photo Courtesy of: jamieanne

Toffee Apple Cakes

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Small, soft and juicy, these golden caramelised treats are so succulent and flavoursome that you’ll be making batch after batch and eating them as soon as you can.

Toffee Apple Cakes

Make them small enough to be party-treats, but big enough to get the slices of Apple on the top and when cooked, they’ll caramelise nicely!

To Make 12
2 Eating Apples
1tbsp Lemon Juice
250g Plain Flour
1 1/2tsp Baking Powder
110g Light Muscovado Sugar
70g Unsalted Butter, plus extra for greasing
100ml Milk
100ml Apple Juice
1 Egg, beaten
2tbsp Single Cream

1. Preheat the oven to 200c, and grease a twelve-cup muffin tin, preferably a non-stick one.
2. Core and coarsely grate one of the Apples, and slice the other into half a centimetre thick wedges, and toss in the Lemon Juice. Sift the Flour, Baking Powder and Cinnamon, before stirring in seventy grams of the Sugar and Grated Apple.
3. Melt the fifty five grams of the butter, and mix with the Milk, Apple Juice and Egg, then stir In the Liquid Mixture with the dry ingredients, mixing lightly until combined.
4. Spoon the Mixture into the prepared muffin tin, then arrange two slices of the Apple on top of each.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for twenty to twenty five minutes, or until risen, firm and golden brown in colour, before running a knife around the edge of each bun to loosen, before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
6. Place the Single Cream, forty grams of Muscovado Sugar and the remaining Butter in a pan, and heat until the mixture has dissolved. Increase the heat, boil rapidly for two minutes, or until slightly thicker and syrupy. Drizzle over the cakes, and leave to set.

Photo Courtesy of: jamieanne

Devil’s Food Cake

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Sweet, Chocolaty and full of calories. But so tasty, so tempting and definitely lives up to the name!

Devils Food Cake

Serve it with some Fresh Cream, or a dollop of Vanilla Ice Cream to really top it off!

To serve 10
140g Plain Chocolate
100ml Milk
2tbsp Cocoa Powder
140g Unsalted Butter, plus some extra for greasing
140g Light Muscovado Sugar
3 Eggs, separated
4tbsp Soured Cream or Crème Fraiche
200g Plain Flour
1tsp Bicarbonate of Soda

For the Frosting
140g Plain Chocolate
40g Cocoa Powder
4tbsp Soured Cream or Crème Fraiche
1tbsp Golden Syrup
40g Unsalted Butter
4tbsp Water
200g Icing Sugar

1. Heat the Oven to 160c, and grease two eight inch sandwich tins, and line the bases with some non-stick Baking Paper.
2. Break up the Chocolate and place it in a bowl along with the Milk and Cocoa Powder then sit it over a pan of simmering water, heating gently and stirring continuously until smooth and melted, then remove from the heat.
3. IN a large bowl, beat the Butter and Muscovado Sugar until pale and fluffy. Beat in the Egg Yolks, then add the Soured Cream in too. Slowly add the Melted Chocolate and Milk mixture, then sift in the Flour and Bicarbonate of Soda and fold in evenly.
4. In a separate, clean, dry bowl whisk the Egg Whites until stiff enough to hold the peaks, then fold into the mixture lightly and evenly.
5. Divide the Mixture between the two cake tins, smooth them level, then bake in the pre-heated oven for thirty five to forty minutes, or until risen and firm to the touch. Cool for ten minutes, before turning out onto a wire rack to cool further.
6. To make the frosting, place the Chocolate, Cocoa Powder, Soured Cream, Golden Syrup, Butter and water into a saucepan, and heat over a low heat, stirring until melted. Remove from the heat, stir in the Icing Sugar, and stir until smooth. Allow to cool, stirring occasionally until the mixture begins to thicken.
7. Using a sharp knife, split the Cakes in half so you have four layers. Sandwich the layers together with about a third of the frosting, then spread the rest over the top and sides of the cake with a Palette Knife.

Photo Courtesy of: serenejournal

Raspberry and Orange Pancake Bundles

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An unusual mixture for Pancakes, this dish is served with a rich, sweet cream inside, flavoured with Ginger, Apricots and Nuts. The Orange and Raspberry sauce is the topping on this dessert – it’s very simple, very easy and very tasty.
pancake
To Serve 2
60g Plain Flour
Pinch of Salt
1/4tsp Ground Cinnamon
1 Egg
135ml Milk
Butter (for frying)

For the Filling you will need:
1 1/2tsp Plain Flour
1 1/2tsp Cornflour
1tbsp Caster Sugar
1 Egg
150ml Milk
30g Chopped Nuts
45g Apricots, chopped
1 Piece Stem Ginger, finely chopped
3tbsp Raspberry Preserve
1 1/2tbsp Orange Juice
Rind of ¼ Orange, finely grated

1. To make the Pancakes themselves, mix the Flour, Salt and Cinnamon in a large bowl, and make a well in the centre of it. Break the Egg into this (making sure you don’t leave any shell behind), and mix well, slowly adding the Milk until you have a smooth mixture
2. Melt a small amount of Butter in a pan, and when hot, pour in just enough Batter to cover the base of the pan, cook for two minutes on one side, until golden brown underneath, then turn and cook for a further minute on the other side.
3. For the filling, mix the Flour, Cornflour, Sugar and Egg together. Heat the Milk gently in a pan and beat two tablespoons of it into the mixture. Transfer the rest of the Flour mixture into the Saucepan, cook over a medium-low heat, stirring until thick. Remove from the heat, and leave to cool.
4. When the mixture is cooled, beat the Nuts, Apricots and Ginger into the mixture, and put a large tablespoon of it in the centre of each Pancake. Gather up and squeeze the pancakes to make a bundle, then cook in a preheated oven (Set at 180C) for fifteen to twenty minutes, until hot but not too brown.
5. To make the sauce, slowly melt the Preserve with the Orange Juice before straining. Return to a fresh pan, then add the Orange Rind before serving.

Photo Courtesy of: shawnzrossi

Lime Cheesecake

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Fresh, fruity and full of flavour – there can’t be many more words to describe how amazing this Cheesecake is beginning with the letter ‘f’!

Lime Cheesecake

To Serve 2
30g Butter
30g Dark Chocolate
90g Digestive Biscuits, crushed
Rind of 1 Lime
90g Curd Cheese
90g Low Fat Soft Cheese
1 tsp Powdered Gelatine
1tbsp Lime Juice
1 Egg Yolk
45g Caster Sugar

1. Grease a two small (around eleven centimetres across) or one medium (about eighteen or twenty centimetres across) flan tins very well.
2. Melt the Butter and Dark Chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of boiling water – tip: Make sure that the bowl isn’t in contact with the Water – until smooth and well combined. Slowly mix in the Crushed Digestive Biscuits, before evenly spreading them across the base of the Flan Tins evenly, levelling the tops of them. Place the Flan Dishes in a refrigerator and chill until well set.
3. To make the filling, mix the Curd Cheese and the Low Fat Soft Cheese with the Lime Rind, and beat well until the mixture is smooth and evenly blended. Dissolve the Gelatine in the Lime Juice in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water.
4. Beat the Egg Yolk and Sugar together, until thick and creamy. Mix it into the Cheeses, before mixing in the Gelatine and Lime Juice. Pour over the set Biscuit base, and level the top off if needed.

To Serve, top the Flan with some Whipped Cream, slices of Kiwi Fruit and a Sprig of Mint. Carefully remove from the Flan Tin (or tins), and enjoy!

Photo Courtesy of: Zen Me

Christmas Pudding

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It’s Christmas! So what better way to get in the mood than by making a traditional Christmas pudding, it’s best to start making one now, as needs to be refrigerated for anything from two to eight weeks. This recipe has no nuts in as well, but please check on the packaging for anything that you buy (especially for the dried fruit), to make sure regarding allergies.

Traditional Lit Christmas Pudding

To Serve 4
200g Currants
200g Raisins
200g Sultanas
150ml Sweet Cherry
175g Butter
175g Brown Sugar
4 Beaten Eggs
150g Self Raising Flour
100g Breadcrumbs
50g Blanched Almonds, chopped
Juice of 1 Orange
Grated Rind of ½ Orange
Grated Rind of ½ Lemon
½ Tsp Ground Mixed Spice

1.       In a large glass bowl, put the Currants, Raisins and Sultanas, and pour the Sherry over the top. Leave to set for at least two hours – more if you can help it.
2.       Mix the Butter and Sugar in a bowl, beat the Eggs into the mix and fold in the Flour.
3.       Stir in the Fruit and Sherry mix, as well as the Breadcrumbs, Almonds, Orange Juice, Rinds and Mixed Spice.
4.       Grease a basin and press it in, leaving a gap around an inch at the top. Cut a circle of greaseproof paper about one and a half inches wider than the top of the basin. Secure with string, and cover with two layers of foil.  Place the basin into a pan of boiling water, which reaches two thirds of the way up the basin, and simmer for six hours, topping up with water when needed.
5.       Remove from the pan, and leave to cool. Change the greaseproof paper and foil, and leave in the fridge for two to eight weeks. Before serving, steam for two hours (as before – in a pan of boiling water).

To serve, you can light it, making sure you blow it out before serving.

Photo Courtesy of: Anina2007

Christmas Pudding Cakes

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Christmas Pudding cakeFruit and Gluten Free, these chocolate puddings are a great alternative to the more traditional mince pies as a treat.

They look just like Traditional Christmas puddings, and can be decorated in a variety of ways – such as using left over Icing Sugar to create Holly and Berries, or Iced fruits.

To Make 6

75g Dark Chocolate (minimum 70% Cocoa Solids)

50g Unsalted Butter

75g Ground Almonds

3 large Eggs, separated

40g Caster Sugar

130g Icing Sugar

3 or 4 tsp Water

Red and Green Food Colouring

1.       Heat the oven to 180 C or Gas Mark 4, and lightly grease six pudding tins or rounded bottom ramekins, and line with baking paper.

2.       Break the Chocolate into pieces, and put into a large bowl, with the butter.

3.       Put the bowl over a pan of hot water, making sure that the water doesn’t touch the base of the bowl or the Chocolate and butter mix will burn. Stirring occasionally, wait until the chocolate has melted, and then remove from the heat, leaving to cool for five minutes.

4.       Stir the Ground Almonds in, before adding the Egg yolks. Beat well to combine.

5.       Whisk the Egg whites until they form stiff peaks, whilst adding the Caster Sugar, one teaspoon at a time. Fold a third of the Egg whites into the Chocolate mix, to soften it.

6.       Fold the rest of the Egg whites into the Chocolate mix, before dividing equally into the six baking tins.

7.       Bake for twenty minutes, before removing from the heat to cool on a wire rack. Mix the Icing sugar with the water, and drizzle most over the top (to look like snow), and mix some red into a small amount of the left-over sugar, and green into another amount. Cut into Holly and Berry shapes, and decorate with these

Photo Courtesy of F0t0Synth

Rich Fruit Cake

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This Christmas Classic can last for up to three months if you don’t ice it – so it’s a great treat to take to family gatherings, parties or to have ready to eat at home for those days where you just want to eat junk! You’ll also need a few extra things for making this cake – some string, baking paper, brown paper, and a large cake tin – quite a deep one, and it can be round or circular! This recipe makes enough for around twenty people.

Rich Fruit Cake

It takes about two weeks to make (with the setting and absorbing of the alcohol) so get making them now!

Makes 1 Cake

500g Dried Mixed Fruit

500g Sultanas

250g Currants

180ml Rum, Brandy or Sherry

125g Glace Cherries

275g Plain Flour

2tsp Ground Mixed Spice

225g Softened Butter

5 Large Eggs

Zest of 1 Medium Orange

Zest of 1 unwaxed Lemon

100g Ground Almonds

1.       Put all of the Mixed Fruit, Sultanas and Currants into a large bowl, and pour 90ml of the alcohol over. Cover the bowl with cling film, and stir occasionally over a twenty four hour period.

2.       Line your cake tin with three layers of the baking paper, and wrap the outside of the tin with a double layer of the brown paper.

3.       Heat the oven to 150 C or Gas Mark 2

4.       Rinse the Cherries in some warm water, before patting dry and cutting in half.

5.       Sift the Flour and Mixed Spice together.

6.       Cream the Butter and Sugar, before adding the Eggs one at a time, with 1tbsp of the flour mixture. Make sure you beat the mixture well before adding the next egg.

7.       Grate the zest of the Orange and Lemon and stir it into the mixture with the rest of the Flour mixture, Ground Almonds, Cherries and the Dried Fruit (with the alcohol)

8.       Spoon the cake mixture into the tin, and make sure the top is level. Pat the top with damp fingertips, but make sure you don’t transfer too much water over – you don’t want to get it wet.

9.       Bake for an hour, before reducing the heat to 140 C or Gas Mark 1.

10.   Bake for a further three hours or until a skewer comes out clean from the centre of the cake.

11.   Remove the cake from the tin and cool on a wire rack.

12.   Once cold, wrap in foil and store for a week, before piercing with a skewer. Drizzle over two tablespoons of the liquor, re-wrap and store. Repeat twice over the next two weeks.

Photo Courtesy of I Don’t Know, Maybe.

Peach and Redcurrant Cake

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This cake has a different taste, with these two little-used ingredients creating an interesting and mouth watering combination. It can be stored in a cake tin for up to two days, or served fresh and warm when out of the oven.

Peaches and Redcurrants

This cake is great as part of a picnic, as it can be easily stored and transported. It’s also great fresh and warm out of the oven with thick slices being covered in lashings of cream.

Quark is a type of cheese, but closer to yogurt than the more traditional cheese. In the Americas, it’s quite hard to find, and only a few specialist retailers carry it, but have a look at ‘baking cheese’ if you’re able to find it.

To Serve 10

150g Quark

3tbsp Milk

3tbsp Sunflower Oil

2 Eggs

75g Caster Sugar

Zest of two Oranges

100g Redcurrants

250g Self Raising Flour

3 or 4 Ripe Peaches

1tsp Brown Sugar

1.       Heat the oven to 190 C (Gas Mark 5). Line a nine inch round cake tin with baking paper.

2.       Place the Quark, Milk, Sunflower Oil, Eggs and Sugar in a large bowl, and beat until smooth.

3.       Stir in the Orange Rind, half the Redcurrants and the Flour, making sure there are no lumps.

4.       Spread the mixture evenly across the cake tin, before slicing the Peaches and scattering over the top of the cake mix, with the remaining Redcurrants. Sprinkle the Brown Sugar

5.       Bake for forty five minutes, until golden brown, and cooked through.

6.       Leave to cool for ten minutes, and then remove from the cake tray and take the paper away.

7.       Serve warm or cold, with single cream.

Photo Courtesy of: Martijn Van Exel

Flaky Pie Crust

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This light pie crust comes out of the oven nice and crisp, and suits so many types of pie – both sweet and savoury.

Pie Crust

Makes a ten inch shell

1 ½ cups Plain Flour

2 tbsp Sugar

½ tsp Salt (optional)

2 ½ tbsp Cold Vegetable Shortening

1/3 cup Cold Butter

¼ Cup cold Water

1.       Mix the flour, shortening agent and sugar together. If you’ve got a blender, use this to make sure it’s mixed thoroughly.

2.       Start to add the water. Add it in slowly, until you get pieces sticking together the size of a pea.

3.       Roll out the dough to an even thickness, until it’s just an inch or two wider than the pan you’ll be using.

4.       Place the flattened dough into the pie pan. Don’t worry if it breaks in small areas, they can be fixed by using some of the leftovers with a small amount of water to ‘seal’ the breaks.

5.       Ready to be filled, and then put in the oven to cook!

Lemon Meringue Pie

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Mouth-wateringly good, soft, light and not too filling. Great served warm with cream, or cool on it’s own.

Lemon Meringue Pie, courtesy of Kasia (Flickr)

To serve 4:

For the Pastry
– 150g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
– 85g butter, cut into small pieces, plus extra for greasing the pan
– 35g icing sugar, sifted
– Finely grated rind of ½ lemon
– ½ egg yolk, beaten
– 1 ½ tbsp of milk

For the Filling
– 3 tbsp cornflour
– 300ml water
– Juice and grated rind of 2 lemons
– 175g caster sugar
– 2 separated eggs

1. Sift the flour into a bowl, and mix in the butter with your fingertips, until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Mix in the remaining pastry ingredients and knead briefly on a lightly floured surface, before leaving to rest for 30minutes

2. Heat the oven to 180 C/350 F/ Gas Mark 4, and grease a 20cm pie dish with some butter. Roll the pastry out to 5mm thick, and line the base and sides of the dish. Prick with a fork, line with baking paper and baking beans. Bake for 15minutes then remove from the oven, taking out the paper and baking beans. Reduce the heat to 150 C/300 F/ Gas Mark 2.

3. For the filling, mix the cornflour with some of the water. Pour the rest of the water into a saucepan, and stir in the lemon juice, rind and paste before bringing to the boil, constantly stirring the mixture. Cook for 2 minutes, then lower the heat. Add 5 tablespoons of the sugar, egg yolks and pour into the pastry case.

4. Whisk the eggs in a clean, dry, grease-free bowl until stiff. Add in the rest of the sugar, and spread over the pie. Bake for 40 more minutes, before removing from the heat, allowing to cool and serve.

Red Chilli and Chocolate Brownies

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Chilli? And Chocolate? Sound like a random mix? It goes remarkably well together, so give it a go! The heat and flavour of the chilli will complement the richness of the Chocolate, so it needs to be good quality to taste right.

Chocolate Brownies

For 16 to 18 squares:
– Butter (for greasing the pan)
– 300g good-quality dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa Solids)
– 250g hard butter, cut into cubes
– 5 eggs
– 325g caster sugar
– 200g plain flour
– 2 medium red chillies, seeds removed and cut into small strips
– 120g plain chocolate chips

1. Heat the over to 180 C/ 350 F/ Gas Mark 4. Try to avoid using a fan setting. Line the sides of a baking tray with the butter.

2. Melt the dark chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Make sure that the bottom of the bowl isn’t in the water, because it will damage the chocolate if it gets too hot

3. When fully melted, remove from the heat and allow to cool. Whilst waiting, mix the eggs and sugar together, and slowly pour the chocolate and butter mix on top, combining well.

4. Sift the flour and gently fold into the mix. Add the chocolate chips and chillies into the mix, and then pour into the buttered tray, then bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the brownies look cracked on top, but slightly undercooked. The chocolate will set as it cools, and the brownies will start to firm up.