Hummingbird Cake with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

Firstly, I'm really sorry about the bad quality photos on this post. This weekend was very hectic and I just didn't find time to photograph this cake in natural daylight and as it was quickly shot on my phone camera they really don't look that great.

But apologies out of the way, because this cake is absolutely delicious and super easy to make, as is the frosting. Really, you just dump everything in a bowl, mix it together and then bake. There's no butter in the batter which did worry me at first, however after tasting you really cannot tell - the banana keeps it so moist and the 4 eggs seem to make up for the lack of any other dairy. As Julie Powell once said "Think it over, any time you taste something that's delicious beyond imagining and you say 'what's in this?' the answer is always going to be butter" - but not this time Julie!

A hummingbird cake isn't usually frosted with chocolate, but as I have started a diet today I wanted to pack in as many possible calories yesteday and went all out, and I think it worked wonderfully. Adding a spoon of chocolate spread is an easy cheat to get a rich chocolatey frosting when you have forgotten to buy some chocolate to melt in... oops. If you would prefer, just omit the cocoa and chocolate spread so you have a vanilla frosting instead.

Hummingbird Cake with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
Adapted from a recipe by Paula Deen
Serves 12-16 people

Hummingbird Cake Ingredients
375g self-raising flour
200g light muscovado sugar
200g caster sugar
170ml vegetable oil
50g pecan nuts, finely chopped
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
200g crushed pineapple and it's juice (from a tin)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
4 eggs

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
500g icing sugar, sifted
3 tbsp cocoa powder
200g full fat cream cheese, at room temperature
100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp milk
1 heaped tbsp chocolate spread

Hummingbird Cake Method
Preheat oven to 170 C / 325 F, then grease and line three 8" baking tins and set aside.

Place all the cake ingredients into a large bowl and mix until well combined.

Divide between the three tins and bake, rotating the tins after 15 minutes, for 25-30 minutes until the tops spring back when you gently pressed with your fingertip.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes before removing from their tins and placing on a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting Method
Make sure your cream cheese and butter are at room temperature or you will have lumpy frosting!

Place all ingredients into a large bowl and mix until smooth and creamy and of a good spreadable consistency.

Cake Construction
Using a serrated knife trim the tops of the cakes so they are all flat.

Place the first layer onto your cake plate and spread on 1/4 of the frosting. Place on the second layer bottom side up and spread with another 1/4. Place the last layer on top, bottom side up again, and use the remaining frosting to cover the cake.

Notes
I reserved some of the frosting for piping on decoration and added a homemade florentine cookie as I had some left from earlier, but the cake looks just as lovely smoothed over and sprinkled with some more chopped pecans.

This cake is best kept refrigerated because of the cream cheese in the frosting - just remove it from the fridge 10-15 minutes before serving to take off a little of the chill.

I used this recipe from Delia for the florentine cookies, which were a present for Pete's Grandad on his birthday, but I added a little chopped stem ginger to them too!

Lychee Cupcakes with Rose & Mascarpone Whipped Cream Frosting and Rose Syrup Tuile Curls

Ladies and gents, prepare yourselves for a seriously girly recipe. Pink in colour with a creamy floral flavour, these are some very ladylike treats. Reminiscent of turkish delight, but with a cheesecakey edge to the frosting thanks to the mascarpone and whipped cream. The pureed lychees keep the sponge cake wonderfully moist, although I must admit that their perfume like flavour didn't come across as much as I'd like, so I added some to the frosting to amp it up a little. I do find it difficult to get more delicate fruit flavours to come through in cake batter - watermelon is another flavour that baking seems to cancel out.

The rose syrup tuile curls are like little flowery brandy snaps. Unfortunately they don't hold their crispness for too long so it is best to bake these and add them to the cakes just before serving so they keep their shape and crunch.

It may seem silly to some people to bake a batch of little cookies just to decorate some cupcakes, but that's just how I roll. A dessert on top of another dessert? Yes please! To be honest though, they were more of an experiment to see if I could make a rose version of this cookie from Dorie Greenspan's wonderful book Baking: From My Home To Yours. A real treasury of delicious treats and a must have for the avid baker, Dorie's book shows how to prepare these little cookies using maple syrup; but seeing as I had a lovely bottle of rose syrup on hand I thought it a good chance to have a play around and hopefully make a tasty and unusual cupcake topper. I think I succeeded!

I quartered the recipe from the book and still came up with too many tuile cookies, but adjusting it to make any fewer cookies would result in some seriously difficult ingredient measuring and I would never be averse to eating ten or so little leftover rosey curls...

The curl batter needs to be made the evening or morning before as it needs to refrigerate for at least 3 hours before baking. Of course they are optional, and could be replaced with a simple icing rose if anything at all, although the glitter is a must to create the required ludicrously girly visage.

Lychee Cupcakes with Rose & Mascarpone Whipped Cream Frosting and Rose Syrup Tuile Curls
Makes 12 standard American sized cupcakes

Rose Syrup Tuile Curl Ingredients
15g unsalted butter, at room temperature
15g light brown muscovado sugar, packed
30ml rose syrup
15g plain flour, sifted

Lychee Cupcake Ingredients
180ml pureed lychees (skinned and pitted)
60ml milk, at room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
200g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
110g butter, softened
400g caster sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 large egg whites, at room temperature

Rose & Mascarpone Whipped Cream Frosting Ingredients
80ml pureed lychees
1 tbsp rose syrup (or see notes for an alternative)
75g mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
100ml double cream
300g icing sugar, sifted

Rose Syrup Tuile Curl Method
Mix the butter, sugar and rose syrup until well combined and then gently stir in the flour until just incorporated. Cover the dish with cling film and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 1 week.

When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 200 C / 400 F while you line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and then wrap some more greaseproof around a rolling pin.

Spoon small hazelnut size scoops of the tuile batter onto the tray leaving around 2 inches space between them (they spread a lot) and then bake for 5-7 minutes until the edges turn golden brown but the centres are still a deep pink.

Remove the tray from the oven and leave the cookies to cool for about 10 seconds. Then take a thin flat palette (such as you use to smooth frosting) and gently slide it under a cookie seperating it from the paper. Gently life the cookie from the sheet and place it over the greaseproofed rolling pin - it will wrap around it making the required curl shape. If the cookies on the sheet become solid before you can curl them over the pin, just place the tray back in the oven for a few seconds so they soften up and become pliable again.

Repeat with the other cookies and leave them to cool on the rolling pin while you bake the next batch. When cool place on a piece of greaseproof paper in a safe area where they won't get knocked or broken while you bake the cupcakes.

Lychee Cupcakes Method
Preheat oven to 180 C / 350 F and line a tin with a dozen standard American cupcake liners or muffin liners.

Mix the pureed lychees withthe milk and vanilla extract and set aside. In another bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. Cream the butter for 2-3 minutes and then gradually add the sugar. When well combined and fluffy add the egg and egg whites and mix until just combined. Now add half of the flour mixture and blend, then add the lychee and milk mixture and combine before adding the final portion of flour. Mix until just combined.

Divide the batter between the cupcake liners and bake for 22-25 minutes until the tops are lightly golden and spring back to the touch. Leave to cool for ten minutes in the tray, then remove to a rack to cool completely before frosting.

Rose & Mascarpone Whipped Cream Frosting Method
Whip the double cream to stiff peaks and set aside. Beat the pureed lychees, rose syrup, mascarpone and vanilla extract and then gently stir in the whipped cream until just combined. Now fold in the sifted icing sugar until you reach the required spreadable/pipeable consistency - you may not need it all.

Spread over the completely cooled cupcakes and top with a tuile curl or your decoration of choice.

And a sprinkle of glitter. Don't forget the glitter.

Notes
I bought the rose syrup from my local supermarket in the ethnic foods section. It can also be found in many Asian and Indian supermarkets.

The rose syrup is necessary to make the tuile curls but for the frosting you could substitute the same quantity of rose water and a few drops of pink food colouring.

I think these would look beautiful with little fresh pink rose petals or buds on top, or a little cube of turkish delight would also be very fitting.

I know these seem outrageously feminine, but they got the thumbs up from some nice gents in my office. If you like turkish delight, I'm pretty sure you'll like these.

Chamomile and Spiced Apple Cupcakes with Honeyed Cinnamon Nutmeg Frosting

I'll start with an apology as this recipe is nearly a week late in being posted. Pete and I have spent the last seven days trying to finish decorating our flat so I just haven't found the time to blog - one room left to go! It's been a pretty epic task and we're both all tidied out, but I'll be posting a second recipe tomorrow to make up for it! Something delicious, savoury and tall, it's a good one I promise.

These cupcakes were inspired by a new tea I've been having at work, it's chamomile, apple and cinnamon - one of those fruit and herbal infusions. It's meant to be calming - believe me I need all the help I can get, the civil engineering trade is mighty stressful at the minute. It's a really nice blend and while I can't claim it has completely helped keep me calmer I always find a nice smelling hot drink by your side to be comforting.

I've taken elements from two of my previous cupcake recipes to produce this one - the milk infusion method from the earl grey and the main batter method from the fresh strawberry. It's not often that a first time recipe comes out perfect but I think these turned out beautifully - nice moist cake with a good high domed top. The chamomile flavour isn't immediately apparent but is a nice undernote that comes through a little more in the after taste. The spiced vanilla buttercream is really lovely, leaving a soft warmth on your palette - they are probably more of an Autumn time treat, but I'm sure I'll be making them again before September.

Chamomile and Spiced Apple Cupcakes with Honeyed Cinnamon Nutmeg Frosting
Makes 12 standard American size cupcakes

Chamomile and Spiced Apple Cupcake Ingredients
1 tbsp butter
1 large (or 2 small) golden delicious or cooking apple, peeled, cored and cut into a half cm dice
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 chamomile tea bag, contents removed and ground as fine as you can in a pestle and mortar
2 tbsp apple juice (from concentrate gives a more pronounced flavour)
80ml milk
2 chamomile tea bags
200g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
110g butter, softened
400g caster sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 large egg whites, at room temperature

Honeyed Cinnamon Nutmeg Frosting Ingredients
115g butter, softened
3 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
500g icing sugar
2 tbsp runny honey - preferably manuca honey

Cupcakes Method
Preheat oven to 180 C / 350 F and line a tin with a dozen standard American cupcake liners or muffin liners.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan and then add the diced apple, cook on medium heat for a minute or so and then add the brown sugar, cinnamon and ground chamomile tea. Cook for a further minute before adding the apple juice. Lower the heat and cook until the apples soften enough to be lightly mashed with a fork. Set aside to cool while you infuse the milk.

In a seperate saucepan heat the milk with the two chamomile tea bags until it just comes to a simmer, then turn off the heat and leave to infuse until the milk is at room temperature and then remove the tea bags. The milk will have reduced down - you need around 60ml so measure what you have left and if you need to top it up with more plain milk. Mix with the stewed apples and set aside for a moment.

In a mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. Cream the butter for 2-3 minutes and then gradually add the sugar. When well combined and fluffy add the egg and egg whites and mix until just combined. Now add half of the flour mixture and blend, then add the stewed apple and milk mixture and beat before finally adding the second half of the flour. Mix until just combined.

Divide the batter between the cupcake liners and bake for 22-25 minutes until the tops are slightly golden and spring back to the touch. Leave to cool for ten minutes in the tray, then place them a rack to cool completely before frosting.

Honeyed Cinnamon Nutmeg Frosting Method
Cream the butter, milk, vanilla essence, cinnamon and nutmeg until well combined and then gradually mix in the icing sugar. You should be left with a smooth creamy white frosting flecked with the spices.

Spread or pipe onto your cooled cupcakes and then drizzle over the runny honey.

I believe the picture below shows one of the best ways to eat a cupcake... cakey sandwiches y'all!!!

Whiteout Cake with White Chocolate Cream Frosting

I must apologise for the lateness of this blog, I try to post every Sunday but unfortunately this week I got a nasty case of food poisoning from some mussels! Boo to them, it's definately put me off shellfish for a little while! Is it completely sad that the main reason my food poisoning upset me was because I couldn't blog? Hmm... shall I grab the geek glasses and scrunchie now?

I think I was mainly disappointed as I have been looking forward to trying this recipe ever since I bought BAKED - New Frontiers In Baking by Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito. Flicking through this book you can't help to salivate at all the gorgeous looking recipes and beautiful photographs. Next on my list to try is the Root Beer Bundt Cake with Root Beer Fudge Frosting - my man is a real root beer enthusiast and I've never made a bundt cake before - how exciting!

Now anyone that knows me well will be able to tell you I have a slight white chocolate obsession. I just love that super sweet creamy taste but I have found it is often drowned out by other flavours in baking even if that's by accident. This cake really is the opposite. The cake is just a vanilla cake with a bit of a twist in the baking but the frosting is a white choccy lovers dream! I think that is the main thing that drew me to this book, the recipes all use very different techniques than I am used to - I am sure that my whole life will be spent looking for the perfect cake recipe.

Just a warning - do not leave the frosting unattended for long while it's cooking - I did and had to deal with the consequence of scrubbing burnt sugary goop from the bottom of my saucepan!

Whiteout Cake with White Chocolate Cream Frosting
Adapted from BAKED - New Frontiers In Baking by Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito

Whiteout Cake Ingredients
350g cake flour (please see below notes for how to make this if you cannot buy it in bags)
35g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
110g butter, softened
110g vegetable shortening (such as Trex)
350g caster sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
360ml ice cold water
3 large egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar

White Chocolate Cream Frosting Ingredients
150g white chocolate, roughly chopped
300g caster sugar
35g plain flour
375ml milk
80ml double cream
330g butter, soft and cut into small pieces
1 tsp vanilla extract

Whiteout Cake Method
Preheat the oven to 190C / 325F.

Butter three 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with greaseproof baking paper. Sift the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a large bowl and set aside.

Beat the butter and shortening on medium speed until creamy for about 3 to 4 minutes, then add the sugar and vanilla and beat on medium speed until fluffy, about another 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl, add the egg, and beat until just combined. Mix on slow speed and add the flour mixture, alternating with the ice water, in three separate additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Scrape down the bowl, then beat for a few more seconds to make sure everything is well combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form making sure not to overbeat and then gently fold them into the batter.

Divide the mixture into the three pans and smooth off the tops. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean.

Transfer the cakes to a wire rack and let cool for 20 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the rack, remove the pans, and let cool completely. Remove the parchment.

White Chocolate Cream Frosting Method
Melt the white chocolate and set it aside to cool - I use a microwave but you can do it over a double boiler if you prefer.

In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk the sugar and flour together with the milk and cream and cook over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until the mixture comes to a boil and has thickened, about 20 minutes - keep your eye on it or you'll get a burnt brown goop!

Transfer the mixture to a metal bowl and beat on high speed until cool. Reduce the speed to low and add the butter, mixing until thoroughly incorporated. Increase the speed to medium/high and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy - about 3-4 minutes.

Add the vanilla extract and cooled white chocolate and continue mixing until combined. If the frosting is too soft, put the bowl in the refrigerator to chill slightly, then beat again until it is the proper consistency. If the frosting is too firm, set the bowl over a pot of simmering water and beat with a wooden spoon until it is loose enough.

To Assemble The Cake
Refrigerate the frosting for a few minutes until it can hold its shape well.

Place one cake layer on a serving platter, use a knife to flatten and smooth out the top then spread a good amount of the frosting on top. Add the next layer, cut and frost it the same way, and then add the third layer. Coat all over with a thin layer of frosting and then place the cake into the fridge for 15 minutes to set.

Now frost the sides with two thirds of the remaining frosting, smoothing to a nice rustic finish. Spoon the remaining frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large closed star nozzle and pipe little stars of frosting all over the top of the cake. Sprinkle with a bit of edible glitter if, like me, you are easily pleased by sparkly things.

Notes
This cake will keep in a tin at room temperature for up to 3 days. If your room is not cool, place the covered cake in the fridge for up to 3 days, removing it to warm up slightly about 2 hours before you plan on serving it.

If you cannot find cake flour you can make your own - 120g /1 cup cake flour can be substituted with 85g plain flour plus 2 tbsp of cornflour.

I buy most of my cake decorating items such as edible glitter and cupcake cases from the following online stores - www.cakescookiesandcraftsshop.co.uk and www.makeawishcakeshop.co.uk

Chocolate Frosted Banana Loaf Cake

Waste is one of my pet peeves. If I roast a chicken I will make it last at least two meals and I will usually use the carcass to make stock. It's not being cheap, it is being sensible and sensitive of the fact that there are millions of people all over the world that have no food at all. I know my not throwing away chicken bones isn't helping them but it helps me remember to be grateful for what I have.

Bananas are a thing that goes to waste a lot, we buy them in big bunches and then when their yellow skin is splodged with brown and they are too ripe to eat as is we just throw them away. No no no! There are lots of delicious things you can make with over ripe bananas - milkshakes, smoothies, bannoffee desserts, slice them and cover them in lovely warm creamy custard... the list goes on. But as I am so often inclined, I take the cake road.

Banana bread is a teatime staple but is very often overlooked as an old fashioned recipe. This version is beautifully moist and fills your whole house with the sweet, spicy smell of baking. It is not a traditional banana bread, more a banana loaf cake and the slather of dreamy chocolate frosting offsets the light spicing wonderfully.

If you can manage to, wrap the cooled loaf in cling film and then frost the next day. The beautiful dampness seems to intensify if you leave it overnight.

Chocolate Frosted Banana Loaf Cake
Serves 8-10
Adapted from a recipe in The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook by Tarek Malouf

Cake Ingredients
200g ripe bananas, mashed (this is about 2 large bananas)
140g slightly salted butter, melted
280g plain flour
230g light brown sugar
40g dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Frosting Ingredients
60g slightly salted butter at room temperature
100g milk chocolate, melted and slightly cooled
1 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 heaped tbsp cocoa powder
300g icing sugar, sieved

Cake Method
Preheat the oven to 170C / 325F.

Beat the sugar, vanilla and eggs until well mixed and then add the mashed banana and stir again.

Next add the dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg - and mix thoroughly until no lumps remain.

Slowly pour in the melted butter while mixing and beat until smooth. Pour into a greased 23 x 13 cm loaf tin and smooth over the top with a spatula or palette knife.

Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for an hour or until a knife slid into the centre of the cake comes out clean with no raw batter on it. Leave to cool in the tin for around fifteen minutes before removing and placing it on a cake platter. If you can, leave covered in cling film overnight before frosting.

Frosting Method
Beat the butter, milk and vanilla extract with the cocoa powder until smooth, then add the slightly cooled melted chocolate.

Mix until well blended and then add the icing sugar one tablespoon at a time until a spreadable consistency is achieved. You may not need to use the whole 300 grams.

Spread rustically over the cooled banana loaf cake and then, if you wish, decorate with little icing flowers and a little edible glitter.

Cheeky Extra Recipe
Take two medium or three small ripe bananas, roughly chop and put into a blender. Add one large scoop of vanilla ice cream, a small cup of milk and a heaped tablespoon of honey. Blend until smooth and you have a delicious and (fairly) healthy milkshake!

Baking Update and Wonderful Tea!

Just a quick update of some of the orders I've had recently...

Chocolate and vanilla mini cupcakes.



Chocolate mini cupcakes.



Vanilla mini cupcakes.



Double chocolate layer cake.



Pink vanilla macarons with milk chocolate ganache. My first attempt at macarons!



And this is just a photo of the coolest tea around! Mr Scruff tea!!! My friends Jon and Sarah bought it from a local health store, Mr Scruff is a musician you should check out if you don't know who he is.