Rhubarb Spiced Cake

Oh What To Do With Rhubarb....

As you may or may not know, my family keeps a gorgeous vegetable patch, providing us with super fresh ingredients to cook with and share with our friends. Around this time of year, we usually have a glut of rhubarb- and unable to face a month of rhubarb crumble (very nice, but wears thin after a while) I went on the hunt for something different. 

I came across this recipe on the Internet, as my cook books were not providing something of interest for once, and I am glad I did. This cake is super moist, reminiscent of the sticky ginger cake I used to love as a kid, and everyone who tried it loved it. Easy peasy recipe by the amazing Mary Cadogan (although I will make some notes at the end) so crack on and enjoy! Very good for those who might never buy rhubarb in their weekly shop.

Rhubarb Spiced Cake

Count Your Cupcakes

Everyone has seen the film Bridesmaids right? You know the hilarious female led film with enough gross bits to compete with any lad film, puppies as party favours and chris o'dowd trynna make it as a big time movie star... WELL there's a scene halfway through the film where kristen wiig has some sort of ex bakery owner equivalent of crying over your ex boyfriend at midnight and decides to bake a cupcake, except she just bakes ONE cupcake, and ever since seeing that film i have been been desperate to know how she just makes enough mixture for one perfect little cupcake. Obviously she has no effing clue. She is an actress. Not a real life baking lady. The cupcake probably tasted like ass.

ANYWAY, pointless examples aside. I finally found a recipe one day when browsing pintrest- i tracked down the source of the picture and found it on a very lovely and exciting baking blog called Bakergirl- A truly scrumptious baking blog from across the pond with tons of delicious recipes and great photography to go alongside- no iphone snaps and instagram filtering in sight which i am incredibly guilty of in regards to this blog.....

Its perfect because sometimes the thought of making 24 cupcakes in an afternoon and then having to ice them all with nowhere to then take them to afterwards can seem a bit of a pointless waste and probably one of the reasons i avoid making cupcakes unless its someone's birthday, because no one NEEDS 24 cupcakes in the house (yes, i did just say that) and theres always too many and not enough icing etc etc.

So here is the recipe for vanilla cupcakes just for 2, they will make 2 if you're using large muffin cases- or 4 with the standard small cases.
The recipe was a quick and easy success- i was a tad worried as baking is like science and when you start messing with quantities and measurements all sorts can go wrong but after about 15-20 minutes in a pre heated non fan oven at 180c they were soft vanilla perfection!
I baked 4 and bought cute cupcake carry boxes from Hertford cake shop and  took them to the boyfriends. They survived a whole train journey to London til they met some womans wildly swinging backpack on the packed W3 bus. She's lucky i didn't see the damage til i got off otherwise it would have been a heavy mock rocco bag TO THE FACE!

Holly x

1 egg white

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup flour- 32 grams in UK

1/4 heaping teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt 
1 1/2 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350°F. (180C and no fan) Line a muffin pan with 2 liners.

In a bowl, add egg white and sugar and whisk until combined. Add in vanilla and melted butter and stir until mixed. Add flour, baking powder, and salt and stir until smooth. Stir in milk. Divide batter equally between the 2 cupcake liners.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cake is set and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Let cool completely & then frost as desired

I was was in the mood for experimenting as i only had 4 to decorate so i made a bright pink creme cheese frosting with smashed up pieces of green and blacks honeycomb choclate and gold edible glitter. Because it was new and i couldn't help myself.

Visit bakergirl's beautiful blog at the budding baketress for this recipe and hundreds of other delicious sweet treats:

Bakergirl

Madness Free Macaroons

Here is the very simple and easy to follow recipe for the very successful macaroons me and rachel made a few weeks back. In the next post below is a bit more detail and tips about colors and flavors and lots more pictures!

Makes 16

75g ground almonds

115g icing sugar

2 large egg whites- left to sit for a few hours at room temp. V important.

50g caster sugar

1.2tsp vanilla extract

food colouring

Filling:

115g soft cheese

1tbsp icing sugar

flavours/colours of your choice

• Place the ground almonds and icing sugar in a food processor and process for 15 seconds.
• Sift mixture into a bowl.
• Line two baking sheets with baking paper.
• Place egg whites in a bowl and whisk until soft peaks are formed.
• Gradually whisk in the caster sugar to make a firm and glossy meringue.
• Whisk in vanilla extract and your chosen food colouring.

If the food colour makes the mixture slightly runny continue to whisk until you have a very thick and stiff meringue mixture- this is so important to make the macaroons thick and fluffy and not leak all over the baking sheet!!

• Using a spatula carefully fold in the blitzed almond mixture one third at a time.

Fold the mixture until its a shiny and thick ribbon like batter then pour mixture into a piping bag. Use a sandwich bag and cut off the corner if you don't have a piping bag. Insert a small nozzle. Our mixture was luckily so thick we didn't need a nozzle fitted and the bag just helped control the amount we put onto the baking paper.

• Pipe the small rounds onto the baking sheets spacing well. You want them to be thick with little peaks.
• Tap the baking sheets firmly onto the counter to get rid of any bubbles and the peaks.

This action helps create the 'frilly foot'- which is the airy chewy level beneath the hard shell of the top!

• NOW LEAVE AT ROOM TEMP FOR 30 MINUTES. This is so important as this is when the macaroons form the hard shell/skin on the top! Check this after 30 minutes very carefully by pressing the top. If its slightly firm and shiny and doesn't stick then they are ready to go in the oven.
• Place in pre heated oven at 160c with NO FAN.
• Bake for about 10-15 minutes.

If after this time the bottoms are still soft and sticking leave for a few more mins with the oven door open!
Cool for 10 minutes or until they are cool and formed enough to peel of the baking paper.
If they are sticking place in the freezer for 5 minutes and they should come away easily.
Leave to cool on a wire rack completely.
Fill with your desired filling and enjoy!

Taken from the easy to follow recipe book Macaroons
Macaroons: 30 perfect bite sized treats