Recent bakes - Orange and White Chocolate Cake
With all our trips around Norfolk, you may be wondering if I've had time to do any baking recently. The answer is: a bit! With the return of the Bake Off, who can resist a bit of cake baking and with a visit from friends a few weekends ago, I had the perfect excuse to bake something yummy.
When I'm baking, I tend to stick to a few tried and tested cakes that I know everyone will like but this weekend, I decided to move away from the norm and try something from The Clandestine Cake Company Cookbook, which my sister bought me for my last birthday (I notice there is also a new book out). Isn't the cover beautiful? The recipes inside are too!
I love the idea of a secret cake club where everyone bakes and shares their baking. This book has a range of recipes from Lynn Hill and other CCC members, including classics, celebration and creative cakes. Some recipes are themed, for example a Blue Velvet cake which was made to go with a film noir themed evening. There is also a list of blogs to follow up on and some notes about cake wrecks and how to rescue them - an excellent addition to the book! Anyway, enough about the book, I want to tell you a little about the cake I chose - Orange and White Chocolate Cake. I always think a citrus based cake is nice in the summer (Mary Berry's Wimbledon Cake is delish) and they often feel a bit lighter than your traditional sponge. This was a little more fiddly than I can usually be bothered to make but not difficult. The time consuming bit was zesting the oranges but with no pressure to get the cake prepared, I quite enjoyed taking my time.
The final sponge had a lovely texture and flavour but it was probably the white chocolate filling that was the most delicious part, being both sweet and creamy whilst a little sharp because of the orange. There is a warning at the top of the page about making sure the chocolate has cooled before adding it to the buttercream which I was glad to notice - those of you in a rush be warned, your icing will separate if you're too eager and you will have to start again.
The only thing I wasn't sure about was the syrup which you pour over the two sponges. The recipe didn't say which side to pour the syrup or whether to prick the sponge. In hindsight, I think I poured it in the wrong place and probably should have zested the orange a little more finely. (I also couldn't get orange blossom water or Cointreau, so this probably made a big difference to the flavour). Anyway, the cake was still delicious and very popular with our guests and my husband, who shares my love of cakes...this picture probably doesn't do it justice but it didn't stay on the plate for very long!
I love the idea of a secret cake club where everyone bakes and shares their baking. This book has a range of recipes from Lynn Hill and other CCC members, including classics, celebration and creative cakes. Some recipes are themed, for example a Blue Velvet cake which was made to go with a film noir themed evening. There is also a list of blogs to follow up on and some notes about cake wrecks and how to rescue them - an excellent addition to the book! Anyway, enough about the book, I want to tell you a little about the cake I chose - Orange and White Chocolate Cake. I always think a citrus based cake is nice in the summer (Mary Berry's Wimbledon Cake is delish) and they often feel a bit lighter than your traditional sponge. This was a little more fiddly than I can usually be bothered to make but not difficult. The time consuming bit was zesting the oranges but with no pressure to get the cake prepared, I quite enjoyed taking my time.
The final sponge had a lovely texture and flavour but it was probably the white chocolate filling that was the most delicious part, being both sweet and creamy whilst a little sharp because of the orange. There is a warning at the top of the page about making sure the chocolate has cooled before adding it to the buttercream which I was glad to notice - those of you in a rush be warned, your icing will separate if you're too eager and you will have to start again.
The only thing I wasn't sure about was the syrup which you pour over the two sponges. The recipe didn't say which side to pour the syrup or whether to prick the sponge. In hindsight, I think I poured it in the wrong place and probably should have zested the orange a little more finely. (I also couldn't get orange blossom water or Cointreau, so this probably made a big difference to the flavour). Anyway, the cake was still delicious and very popular with our guests and my husband, who shares my love of cakes...this picture probably doesn't do it justice but it didn't stay on the plate for very long!
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