I LOVE to BAKE….
When I bake I like to use a simple recipe that doesn’t over complicate my life… Read the rest of this entry
May30
Vanilla Cake
Tag Archives: cake
Sep17
Date Cake & Caramel Sauce
The amazing thing about living in Kuwait is that there’s always fresh dates. Tasty and sweet!!
We have a great Palm tree in our garden that blesses us every summer with dates.
Off course with that blessing comes a big responsibility of having more dates than one can handle…. To that I dedicate this fabulous Date Cake that my mother is very famous for and I’ve made it my own.
Enoy!!
DATE CAKE
Ingredients
1 cup Butter 1 ½ Cup Flour
1 Cup Icing Sugar 1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Egg 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 Cup boiled Water ½ Tablespoon Baking Soda
1 Cup Pitted Dates
Instructions:
Step 1 Preheat oven to 300ºF. Spray baking pan with vegetable pan spray and coat with 1 tablespoon flour.
Step 2 In a bowl, Soak Pitted dates in the boiled water.
Step 3 Blend butter, icing sugar & egg
Step 4 Add remaining ingredients (except date & Water) to the butter mixture. Blend well. Add Date & Water mixture & mix until all combined.
Step 5 Bake 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool.
Step 6 Pour Caramel Sauce over cooled cake.
CARAMEL SAUCE
Ingredients
1 cup Sugar 1 tablespoon Yogurt
½ Butter ½ cup Milk
1 teaspoon Baking Soda 1 Tablespoon Honey
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat stirring constantly until it becomes thick & brown.
Pour over cooled Date cake.
This cake is so good that it’ll no doubt be Making life Memorable every bite you take.
Sep26
Chocolate Fudge Cake
I love this cake because it’s extra moist so if I bake it a day in advance it doesn’t dry out by the time I serve it at my girls’ birthdays.
I also use this same recipe as I do my vanilla either 24 cupcakes or 2 layered cake.
Ingredients:
2 Cups flour
1 3/4 Cup Sugar
1 teaspoon baking Powder
3/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 Salt
1 3/4 Cup Water
1/2 Cup Shortening
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 Eggs
3 Squares (3 ounces) Unsweetened Chocolate
Directions:
Preheat oven 175 degrees C (350 degrees F)
Melt the Chocolate in a saucepan at low heat mixing continuously. Make sure you don’t “cook” the chocolate. Remove from the stove and let it cool.
In a bowl mix all ingredients except egg & Chocolate with an electric mixer until completely combined.
Add Eggs and chocolate and mix for an additional 2 minutes.
For cake use two 9inch round pans (greased & floured) Bake fore 30 minutes
For Cupcakes Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners Bake for 15 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool before frosting.
Sep24
Vanilla Cake
My standard Vanilla Cake works well in making either a 2 layered Cake or 24 cupcakes.
It’s really a classic recipe that’s beyond basic but perfect in every way.
The reason I like this recipe is because it’s not too sweet which makes up for the sweetness of the frosting.
Ingredients
3 cups flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 1/2 Cup Milk
1/2 cup Butter (Softened)
2 teaspoon Vanilla
2 Eggs
Directions
Preheat oven 175 degrees C (350 degrees F)
In a bowl combine All ingredients except Eggs.
Mix with an electric mixer until it’s all combined.
Add Eggs one at a time and continue mixing.
For cake use two 9inch round pans (greased & floured) Bake fore 30 minutes
For Cupcakes Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners Bake for 15 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool before frosting.
My favorite ButterCream frosting will elevate the taste to the next level!
Special “Butter” Tip
If you’re anything like me and have to make a cake in between your other daily plans then you generally don’t have time to let butter come to room temperature and be naturally softened.
Use this tip! Slice butter into several cubes and microwave for 20 seconds at a time until its soft but not melted. It’ll also make it easier to measure.
Sep23
Recipe Sharing!!
I hope you enjoyed last weeks series of posts about how you can plan your child’s next birthday with my simple tips.
I still have so much more to add to the theme that I’ve decided to have a follow-up series with more details to birthday planning.
I’ll be posting my best recipes that are great to cook ahead of time so you can be free the day of the birthday to do your last minute setup, decorating and socializing with other parents.
On Saturday I posted the best ButterCream frosting in the whole wide world! It’s fail proof and you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
Stay tuned for my Vanilla Cake and Chocolate Fudge cake. Both are mild in sweetness and go perfectly with the ButterCream frosting.
I’ll also share a few of my signature savory dishes like “Easy Cheesy Pasta bake” and my famous “Pasta in Pink Sauce.”
Creamy potato Salad and my favorite Asian Salad dressing that’s perfect for any type of green salad.
Finally I’ll also share my freezer friendly Chicken strips and meatballs. I usually prepare loads of these recipes since they’re perfect for lunchbox, quick dinners and impromptu play date meals.
The important thing to always remember is that you’re “making life memorable” with all your special moments and food is an accessory to that!
Sep18
Birthday Cake
It’s getting closer and closer to finalizing your child’s birthday party. Now its time to look at the actual Day of the party.
Hospitality and food is a big thing in the Middle East…. So serving just cake won’t cut it in this part of the world! If you can get away with it then good on you 🙂
Since a major highlight of the Birthday is the cake, other than the birthday child off course!I’m dedicating this whole post to be about THE CAKE!
While I see so many bakeries in town (Kuwait) and between every cupcake business is another cupcake business I’ve yet to really find one that are tasty and not horrendously expensive.
Cake for KD70+ (about$250) SERIOUSLY! and something seems to always go wrong. The color, the taste, the flavor, the cake is to dry, the frosting’s too hard and the worst is the filling or frosting that tastes like stale butter. To all you bakeries I’m sorry, I apologies but this is my opinion.
Being big on baking and cake/cupcake decorating I make my own cakes and cupcakes. They might not look that professional but I take pride in them and the girls and guests never complained.
Cake from scratch, buttercream frosting, fondant and all. Now you don’t have to go to my extreme but I really think investing a little time doing the cake and pocketing the money or spending it on something else for the birthday is well worth it.
After having done several birthdays I’ve come to a huge realization….. kids prefer cupcakes!!! So even though I’ve made fancy 3 tiered fondant covered cakes at the end it’s pretty to look at but they reach for the little stuff.
The big cake I make for me….I enjoy it! So I’ve downsized from the past.
As a result the big cake is used for the candles, singing and the adults to eat. While the cupcakes are for kids.
To figure out how much to serve use this general guideline:
12″ round cake serves 28
1.5 cupcake per child
This means for every 28 adults you can add a Tier and for 10 kids make 15 cupcakes. Fairly simple don’t you think?!
As for flavors stick to the basics. Chocolate and vanilla, but make MORE chocolate than vanilla!
The best frosting ever is the basic buttercream frosting. Easy to make and spread or pipe.
As for fondant I make a marshmallow fondant which is easy to mold and roll.
Now if you don’t want to spend all that time in the Kitchen a boxed cake and jar of frosting will do the trick just as much. All you need to do is just add some food coloring here and there, sprinkles, ornaments/décor or my personal favorite cupcake picks!!
(Cupcake picks DIY also coming soon!)
So spend a little time in the kitchen, get your kids to mix and measure with you. It’s not just about the end result it’s how much fun you can have on the way!! That for sure falls under “Making Life Memorable!”
Aug16
Lemon Chiffon Cake
This is about the fluffiest and tastiest cakes that I enjoy making. One that many have asked for the recipe….so happy baking and Enjoy!!
INGREDIENTS
7 eggs
2 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cooking oil
3 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to a 325 degree F ( 175 degrees C)
In a large mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Make a well in the center of flour mixture. Add oil, egg yolks, lemon peels, vanilla, and 3/4 cup cold water.
Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Beat on high speed for about 5 minutes or until smooth.
You’ll find that it’s thick….I have the best helpers that will demonstrate the thickness of the batter in this video.
Thoroughly wash the beaters.
In a very large mixing bowl beat egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed.
Keep beating the egg whites until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight).
Pour batter in a thin stream over beaten egg whites; fold in gently.
Pour into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan. I use the nordic Ware star bunt pan.
Bake in oven for 65 minutes until top springs back when lightly touched. Immediately invert cake (leave in pan); cool thoroughly. Loosen sides of cake from pan; remove cake.
Makes 12-16 servings.