M&M’s Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: “Bolo de M&M’s”

This cake is very easy to assemble. All you need is a little patience to place the M&M’s. You can also use Smarties if you prefer. Prepare the “Onda Chocolate Cake”, (follow the link). Push a straw through the middle of the cake and cover it with chocolate. Place the M&M’s on the cake and up the straw. Finally place an empty M&M’s bag on top of the straw “glued” with a dab of chocolate.

Children just love it!

Onda Chocolate Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: “Bolo Onda de Chocolate”

Cake:

450ml/2 cups water

100g/1 cup cocoa powder

225g butter

560g/2 ½ cups sugar

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

360g/2 ¾ cups flour

2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp baking powder

Frosting:

350g/2 ¼ cups chopped chocolate

3 cups icing sugar

¼ cup + 2 tbsp cocoa powder

160g butter at room temperature

200g cream cheese at room temperature

250ml/1 ⅓ cups heavy cream at room temperature

2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

Prepare the cake:

Heat water until it begins to boil and remove from heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until dissolved. Leave to cool at room temperature.

Grease and flour two round pans.

Pre-heat oven to 180ºC/350ºF.

Mix butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla for 8 to 10 minutes until creamy and fluffy. In another bowl mix flour, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. Gradually add flour mixture and cocoa liquid to the egg mixture alternating between the dry and liquid and mixing only as needed to incorporate all the ingredients. Divide batter evenly between both pans. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let it cool for 10 minutes, remove from pan and place on a rack and leave to cool completely before frosting.

Prepare the frosting:

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, stirring occasionly. When completely melted remove from heat and leave to cool a bit. In a small bowl mix the heavy cream with the lemon juice and leave to rest for 10 minutes. It will thicken and curdle. In a small bowl mix sugar and cocoa powder and set aside. In a bigger bowl (so many bowls!) beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Add sugar with cocoa and mix well. Add melted chocolate, heavy cream with lemon juice and vanilla and mix only as much as necessary to blend all the ingredients. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before using.

To assemble the cake:

Cut each cake in half so you have 4 layers. Place one of the layers on a serving platter. Spread 1 cup of frosting over the layer and top with another layer. Spread another cup of frosting over the second layer and repeat until all 4 layers are assembled. Frost the top and sides of the cake and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Banana and Caramel Cheesecake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Cheesecake de Banana e Caramelo"

In Canada and the USA, cheesecake is by tradition oven-baked and then covered with fresh fruit or jelly. Then there is the non-baked cheesecake that needs only to be refrigerated. This recipe takes some time to make because of the time needed to rest in the refrigerator, but don’t give up yet and try it, it’s worth the while. If it’s too much for one day, or if you don’t have much time, you can make the base and caramel one day and the cheesecake on the other.   

For the base:

180g digestive biscuits

75g melted butter

Caramel:

1 can/395g sweetened condensed milk

125g butter

125g/ ¾ cup brown sugar

Cheesecake:

400g cream cheese

4 bananas (3 mashed + 1 sliced for decorating)

200ml heavy cream

3 tbsp sugar

Freshly squeezed lemon juice

Prepare the base:

Crush the biscuits until they resemble sand. You can use a food processor or you can place the biscuits in a plastic bag and bash them with the rolling pin. Place the crushed biscuits in a bowl, add the melted butter and mix well.  Grease a springform pan and line with parchment paper. Place the biscuit mixture into the pan and spread evenly. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Prepare the caramel:

Melt the butter in a pan and add the sugar. Mix until sugar is dissolved. When mixture begins to bubble add the condensed milk. As soon as it starts to boil lower heat and keep stirring for about 5 minutes until a thick caramel is achieved. Turn off the heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes (not more or the caramel will harden and be difficult to spread). Pour the cooled caramel over the chilled base and spread evenly. Refrigerate for 1 ½ hours.

Prepare the cheesecake:

In a large bowl beat together the cream cheese and 1 tbsp of lemon juice until creamy. Add the mashed banana and mix again until a smooth mixture is obtained. In a separate bowl beat the heavy cream with sugar until stiff and add to the cheese and banana mixture. Pour the mixture over the cheesecake base, spread evenly and place in the fridge for 3-4 hours to set. Remove the cheesecake from the pan and transfer to a serving plate. Slice a banana into the remaining lemon juice and decorate the top of the cheesecake.

Hazelnut Magic Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Bolo Mágico de Avelã"

4 eggs, separated

100g/1 cup icing sugar + enough to dust cake after baking

296g/1 cup hazelnut spread

2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla

125g/½ cup butter, melted

100g/¾ cup flour less 1 tbsp

500ml/2 cups milk, lukewarm

Preheat oven to 160ºC/325ºF. Grease an 8in x 8in/20cm x 20cm baking pan. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in hazelnut spread, cocoa powder, butter and vanilla. Sift flour and add to the egg mixture until fully incorporated. Gradually add milk and mix well. The batter will be very liquid. Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually fold egg whites into the mixture. Batter should be lumpy. Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 50 to 65 minutes.  Check on it after 50 minutes and test with skewer. Skewer should come out clean, if not, leave until skewer comes out clean. Let cool completely before turning out onto a serving plate. Cut into squares and dust with icing sugar.

Caramel Magic Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: “Bolo Mágico de Caramelo”

Another month means another Magic Cake recipe: this time of caramel flavour. I hope you like it!

125g/½ cup melted butter

170g/1 cup brown sugar (50g+120g / ¼ + ¾ cup)

4 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

115g/¾ cup flour

500ml/2 cups lukewarm milk

Icing powder for dusting

Preheat oven to 160ºC/325ºF. Grease an 8in x 8in/20cm x 20cm baking pan and line with parchment paper. Place the butter along with 50g/¼ cup brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat mixing constantly for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and leave to cool. The mixture will not be smooth and the sugar will be slightly crystalized.

Beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the butter and sugar mixture, vanilla and stir well. Sift flour and add to the egg mixture until fully incorporated. Slowly add milk. The batter will be very liquid.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually fold egg whites into the mixture. Batter should be lumpy. Pour batter into baking pan and bake for 45 minutes until lightly golden. Test with skewer and if necessary leave for an extra 5 to 10 minutes. Let cool completely before turning out onto a serving plate. Dust with icing sugar and cut into squares.

Red Velvet Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Bolo Red Velvet"

¾ cup milk
1 tbsp vinegar

2½ cups flour
2 cups sugar
3 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp/28ml red liquid food colouring

"Cream Cheese Buttercream” (click on link or search blog files)

Pre-heat oven to 180ºC. Grease and flour 2 round 20cm in diameter baking pans. Line bottom with parchment paper.

In a small bowl mix vinegar and milk and leave to curdle for 5 minutes. In a large bowl place all dry ingredients and mix well with a wire whisk. In another bowl place the eggs and beat lightly with a wire whisk.

Add all wet ingredients, including milk and vinegar mixture, and mix well. Pour mixture into bowl with dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly incorporated. Divide batter between both pans. Drop pans on counter twice in order to help release air bubbles trapped in the batter. Place pans in the oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove cakes from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans. Leave to cool completely. Place one of the cakes on a serving platter and top with some “Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting”. Place the other cake on top and frost completely with the buttercream. With the back of a spoon make peaks all over the cake.

Tangerine Marbled Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Bolo Marmoreado de Tangerina"

100g butter at room temperature

250g sugar

1 tsp vanilla

4 eggs

120g milk

300g flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup “Tangerine Curd” (click on link or search in blog files)

Icing sugar to sprinkle over cake

Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Grease and flour a rectangular tin. Place butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs and milk into the TM bowl and combine 1min/speed 6. Add flour and baking powder and mix 15 sec/speed 3. Pour the batter into the tin. Distribute spoonfuls of tangerine curd over the cake batter. With the help of a knife make spiral movements in the curd so that it mixes lightly with the batter. Place in the oven for 25 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Let it cool, sprinkle with icing sugar and cut in squares.

Magic Coffee Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Bolo Mágico de Café"

If you like coffee then I'm sure you’ll love this version of the Magic Cake! Just like the others it has three distinct layers: a layer of fluffy cake, a layer of creamy custard and a layer of dense moist cake.

4 eggs, separated

150g/ ¾ cup sugar

125g/ ½ cup butter, melted

115g/ ¾ cup flour
500ml/2 cups milk, lukewarm

20g instant coffee

Preheat oven to 160ºC/325ºF. Grease an 8in x 8in/20cm x 20cm baking pan. Place  ⅓ of the milk into a saucepan and heat. Add coffee and mix until completely dissolved. Remove from heat and add remaining milk. It should be lukewarm, if not set aside to cool. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in butter. Sift flour and add to the egg mixture until fully incorporated. Slowly add milk with coffee beating until well mixed together. The batter will be very liquid. Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually fold egg whites into the mixture. Batter should be lumpy. Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 35 minutes until lightly golden. Skewer should come out clean, if not, leave another 5 minutes. Let cool completely before turning out onto a serving plate.

The other versions of Magic Cake:

Brownie Magic Cake

Tangerine Magic Cake

Onda Limoranja Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Bolo Onda Limoranja"

4 eggs

¾ cup sugar

1 cup orange juice

½ cup vegetable oil

Zest of 2 oranges

1 ½ cups flour

1/8 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp cornstarch

For filling and frosting:

400ml heavy cream

½ cup sugar

Strawberries

½ cup “Lemon Curd” (click on link or search in blog files)

Pre-heat oven to 180ºC. Grease and flour 2 round baking pans. Beat the eggs with sugar, salt and orange zest. Add the liquids and mix well. Add dry ingredients and mix again. Divide batter between both pans and place in the oven for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Leave cakes to cool completely before removing from pans.

Meanwhile prepare the whipped cream. Beat heavy cream until it begins to thicken. Add sugar and continue beating until thick. Place one of the cakes on a serving plate. Cover with a third of the lemon curd. Place a generous amount of whipped cream over the lemon curd.

Slice a few strawberries and place on top of the whipped cream. Spread a third of lemon curd on bottom of the second cake and place over the strawberries. Spread remaining lemon curd on top and cover entire cake with whipped cream and decorate with strawberries.

Brownie Magic Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: "Bolo Mágico com Chocolate e Nozes"

Another Magic Cake recipe! Last month I published the tangerine version (follow the link "Tangerine Magic Cake" for recipe), and had promised to be back with another version. This "Brownie Magic Cake" shows 3 very distinct layers. I hope you have fun baking it! Enjoy!

4 eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla

150g/ ¾ cup sugar

125g/ ½ cup butter, melted

115g/ ¾ cup flour
30g/ ¼ cup cocoa powder

500ml/2 cups milk, lukewarm

80g/ ½ cup chopped nuts
50g chocolate chips

  

Preheat oven to 160ºC/325ºF. Grease an 8in x 8in/20cm x 20cm baking pan. Spread the nuts and chocolate chips on the bottom of the pan. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in butter and vanilla. Sift flour and cocoa powder together and mix it into the egg mixture until fully incorporated. Slowly add milk beating until well mixed together. The batter will be very liquid. Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually fold egg whites into the mixture. Batter should be lumpy. Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 40 minutes until lightly golden. Skewer should come out clean, if not, leave another 10 minutes. Let cool completely before turning out onto a serving plate.

Tangerine Magic Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: “Bolo Mágico de Tangerina”

My tangerine tree is loaded with tangerines! So, besides making freshly squeezed juice to drink every morning, I decided to make a twist on the Magic Cake recipe using tangerine juice and it turned out great! During baking the Magic Cake cleverly divides itself into three distinct layers: a soft genoise top layer, a custard layer in the middle and a moist but dense layer on the bottom. It’s easy to play with this recipe using different types of flavours. I promise to be back with another version of this easy to make and easier yet to eat Magic Cake!

4 eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla

150g/ ¾ cup sugar

125g/ ½ cup butter, melted

115g/ ¾ cup flour

250ml/1 cup milk, lukewarm

250ml/1 cup tangerine juice

  

Preheat oven to 160ºC/325ºF. Grease an 8in x 8in/20cm x 20cm baking pan. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in butter and vanilla. Add flour and mix it in until fully incorporated. Slowly add milk and juice beating until well mixed together. The batter will be very liquid. Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually fold egg whites into the mixture. Batter should be lumpy. Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 40 minutes until lightly golden. Skewer should come out clean, if not, leave another 10 minutes. Let cool completely before turning out onto a serving plate.

Chestnut Delight

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: “Delícia de Castanha”

800g chestnuts

500ml/2 cups milk

5 eggs

250g/1 ¼ cups sugar

75g/5 tbsp butter, melted

2 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp ground fennel seeds

100g chocolate broken into small pieces

100ml heavy cream

1 tbsp Port wine or sherry

Slit the chestnuts on the side lengthwise and place in a pot with cold water. Place on high heat and let boil for 5 minutes. Remove the shells and weigh 500g/3cups of cooked and shelled chestnuts. Return to a clean pan and add milk. Let simmer for 30 minutes until they are soft. 

Mash the chestnuts roughly, then process them to a thick paste. Set aside to cool for about 15 minutes or until just warm. Pre-heat oven to 180ºC. Mix egg yolks with sugar, then add butter and mix well. Add this mixture to the chestnut along with baking powder and fennel and mix well.

Beat the egg whites until fluffy. Add a third of the egg whites to the chestnut batter and mix well. Fold in remaining egg whites gently. Grease and line a 23 centimeters in diameter pan and pour in the batter. Place in the oven for 35 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Let it cool and remove from pan.

Prepare the ganache: in a double-boiler melt the chocolate with cream and Port wine stirring until creamy and shiny. Pour over the cake.

You can also line muffin tins with paper cups and make cupcakes. 

Black Beetroot Cake

Para versão Portuguesa clique aqui: “Bolo Negro de Beterraba”

For the cake:

2 beetroots medium size, peeled and cut in quarters (about 300g)

4 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups brown sugar

1 ½ cups flour

⅓ cup bran

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 ½ tsp ground ginger

2 ½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cloves

¼ tsp nutmeg

2 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp orange juice

2 tsp baking soda

For the icing:

4 tbsp butter at room temperature

¾ cup cream cheese at room temperature

3 cups icing sugar

1 tbsp lemon juice

Pre-heat oven to 170ºC. Grease and line a 23cm/9in diameter pan.

Cake:

Grate beetroot into a bowl. Add eggs and mix well. Add sugar and mix. Add oil and mix. Add flour, bran, cocoa, spices, vanilla and mix thoroughly. In a cup mix the baking soda with the orange juice and add to batter. Combine gently. Pour batter into baking pan and place in the oven for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Let it cool completely before frosting.

Icing:

Beat butter and cheese together until creamy. Add sugar and lemon juice and mix well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before frosting. Place icing over the top of the cake spreading it so it falls over the edges.