Simple almond cake
My very lovely American friend and class mate at Prue Leith Chef's Academy, Heidi, directed me to this recipe. It comes from Nigella Lawson's recipe book "How to be a Domestic Goddess". I love the title of this book, it's what I want to be when I grow up. The cake is a dense sponge made with Marzipan, and flavoured with almond essence and vanilla paste (we will leave a discussion on Vanilla Paste for another time ... it deserves a platform all of its own). There are few things in life that are as comforting to me as marzipan and vanilla. 'My mad-dog friend Hein' will agree with me on this point. I believe that the universe actually does slow down when he is eating this cake. His devotion to the task is admirable. Thank you Hein, it is because of friends like you that baking is such a joy for me.
Red Velvet Cake
The peculiar thing about a Red Velvet Cake is the amount of salt in the cake. The recipe* that I use calls for four times the amount of salt that I would normally use in a regular sponge. Personally, I find that the distinctive saltiness of the cake counterpoises the abounding sweetness of the Cream Cheese frosting perfectly. In addition to the salty flavour of the cake, its texture should be fine and very moist.
* Cakes to celebrate love and life by Callie Maritz & Mari-Louis Guy
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| Red Velvet Wedding Cake |
Chocolate, roasted pecan and coconut cake
My friends fondly refer to this cake as "The Big O" cake. It is a superbly light and moist milk chocolate cake that is layered with a creamy coconut and roast pecan custard. It runs a very close second in popularity to the Red Velvet. The cake is iced with a cocoa buttercream icing.
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| Milk Choc, roast pecan and coconut cake |
