Iced Ginger Cake (courtesy of Mary Berry)

                                                                Iced Ginger Cake 

I always bake several of these gorgeous cakes towards the end of October each year... It's funny how ginger & treacle seem to be the flavours I remember most of all around Halloween & especially Bonfire night here in the UK.  This cake has all those treacly warming flavours that go so well with cold, damp dark nights that we all enjoy before the onset of winter.  

I baked mine in my 8inch ring mould but the recipe can also be made in an 18cm /7in  deep square cake tin greased & lined

I used Wilton cake release from Lakeland in my unlined mould .

Set the oven at 160c/325f gas 3

If you prefer to measure your ingredients here's a handy Conversion Chart

THE CAKE

4oz/ 100g margarine (I used stork)

4oz /100g light muscovado sugar (Brown Sugar)

2 eggs

5 oz /150g Black Treacle Or Molasses

5oz/ 150g Golden Syrup or Corn Syrup

8oz/ 225g plain flour (All purpose)

1 heaped tsp ground ginger

1tsp mixed spice (Pumpkin Spice)

half tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tbsp milk

>

TO DECORATE
6oz  175g icing sugar (Confectioners Sugar)

2 tbsp stem ginger syrup * see below

3-4 tsp water ( to mix to a smooth but thickish glaze)

either 1x1 in piece stem ginger chopped finely & mixed into the icing

or sliced as I have with a few added halved cherries

* if you aren't using jarred stem ginger then just add 2 tbsp of corn syrup mixed with a little ginger powder

>

METHOD

Whisk the margarine/butter, sugar, treacle, syrup and eggs together until really well combined

Fold in the sifted flour & spices.

Add the bicarb to the milk mix then add to the batter and stir in.

Pour into your chosen tin.

Bake for 1 hour @ 160c and then turn down to 150c/300F/Gas 2 for a further 15 to 30 mins until firm to the touch.

Cool in the tin for around 10-15 minutes

Turn out & cool completely before icing

>

Sift the icing sugar into a bowl, add the ginger syrup and water, Mix till smooth.

Either add the chopped ginger now and pour over the cooled cake or drizzle down the sides of the ring cake and decorate as I have done.

If you would like more posts like this then please help &  leave me a comment below 

Cauliflower & Broccoli Tempura with Pickled salad and Sweet Chilli Sauce

Cauliflower & Broccoli Tempura with Pickled Salad & Sweet Chilli Sauce


Here's a great little lunch or starter for 4 people.  You shouldn't ever think that deep fried food is unhealthy. If cooked at the correct temperature the minimum amount of oil is absorbed leaving a fabulously crispy tempura with a slight crunch to the cauliflower & broccoli...  a pure delight.  Of course you can adapt this recipe for most vegetables of your choice.

Try making the salad first and leaving it to 'pickle' for an hour or so if possible. The vegetables then soak up the marinade making a crisp, yet flavoursome dish in itself.

You will need either a deep fat fryer with temperature control or a wok/ deep frying pan and a thermometer. I used Sunflower oil to fry but just use what you have to hand. 


The Salad

1 tsbp soy sauce
1 tbsp Rice Vinegar (or red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar)  
1 tbsp Mirin 
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp wasabi powder or paste
pinch of chilli flakes
1" piece of fresh ginger finely chopped
1 tsp black onion seeds (optional)
1 tsp palm or brown sugar

mix all the above ingredients together

6 radishes thinly sliced
6" piece of cucumber sliced thinly
1   red pepper                "        "
1 red onion                    "        "

place everything in a bowl, toss together with the marinade and refrigerate until needed 


You will need 

1 small Cauliflower broken into florets
1 head of Broccoli     "          "         "
Steam over boiling water for 3 minutes. I recommend that you don't boil the vegetables as you want them to be as dry a possible before frying.   


For the Tempura Batter ( do not make until you're absolutely ready with everything else)  

3 oz/85 gms self raising flour
2 tbsps Cornflour
½ tsp salt
1 tsp Wasabi powder or Colmans Mustard powder
1 tsp baking powder
enough fizzy water to produce a double cream consistency ( should cover the back of a spoon without immediately running off it ) 

Sieve together the dry ingredients 
Very quickly combine everything together... do not over mix ...it doesn't matter if there's still a few lumps in it


Now heat up the oven to around 120c/250f  and place a tray lined with paper towel in it .. just to keep the batches of tempura warm whilst the rest is cooking...leave the door slightly ajar so the tempura doesn't go soggy


To Fry

Heat the oil  to 190c/375f

NB ...Fry in small batches...do not overload the pan ... and make sure the oil gets back to temp before adding more tempura

Quickly dip small batches of the vegetables in the batter and fry until beautifully crisp & light brown in colour
remove with a slotted spoon to the lined oven tray to keep warm whilst you cook the rest.



Serve while it's still hot along with the pickled salad and some shop bought sweet chilli sauce and a sprinking of chopped chives or coriander (cilantro) 
  

Dor's Rhubarb & Ginger Cheesecake

Rhubarb & Ginger has to be one of my favourite combinations so it wasn't too hard to figure out how to use up some of the glut of rhubarb that I had in the garden. Along with that I found 3 tubs of Philly in the fridge, I'm always tempted to buy too much when there's a supermarket offer going.

I usually make this baked Cheesecake with a digestive (Graham Cracker) base but I used Ginger Nuts (ginger cookies ) to add to the ginger flavours in the topping.

The recipe will make around 12 portions but just 6 of us managed to polish this one off in one sitting. Okay we're just damn greedy but we don't eat it every day.

This is a plain cheesecake that will work so well with many other toppings.  Try mixing sliced strawberries with a little icing (confectioners sugar)  They will get a lovely sheen on them and top the cheesecake with them... you can do the same with most berries.  Or try adding lemon zest and sultanas to the cheesecake mixture to make a wonderful old fashioned dessert.

Here's the RECIPE :-

You will need a 9/10" loose bottomed Springform tin, greased then lined with parchment paper to come about an inch or so above the tin.

If you prefer to use cups & spoons for measuring then here's some easy Conversion Charts

For the base

a 300g packet of Ginger nuts / ginger cookies crushed to a fine crumb
100g unsalted butter melted
3 tbsp.sugar

Mix well together, press into the bottom of the tin and refrigerate to set it (about 40 minutes)

For the Filling

750 gms of Philly or another good quality whipped cream cheese
300ml of sour cream or double cream if you can't get it
6 eggs separated
150g caster sugar
the zest of 1 lemon
1 dessertspoon of vanilla extract
2 tbsp. of corn flour (corn starch)
a sprinkle of sea salt ( about ½ tsp)

Using a hand whisk, place the egg whites in a bowl and whip until stiff but not dry
in another bowl place everything else and using the same whisk beat until smooth.
Fold in the egg whites making sure there's no white bits of egg white to be seen
Place the batter over the biscuit base to about 1" below the top of the tin
There may be a little too much batter so don't overfill your tins just pour it into a dish and bake later (cooks treat)

Place in the centre of a pre-heated oven 170c/325f/gas 3 for around 1& 10 mins hour. Don't be tempted to open the door, keep a keen eye on it though in case it browns too quickly. Turn the oven off and leave cheesecake in the oven for a least a couple of hours to really set up. There should be no wobble at all at this stage.
 Place on a wire rack to cool completely and leave in the baking tin until you are ready to serve it.
I left mine in the fridge well wrapped overnight and it was perfect the following day.

For the Rhubarb topping

1lb young rhubarb stalks
150g or so of caster sugar
around 2 level tsps of cornflour or arrowroot to thicken the juices
1 tbsp redcurrant jelly
around 4 or 5 pieces of crystallised ginger chopped
or 1 tsp of ginger powder added to the rhubarb before cooking

Chop around 1lb/500g washed rhubarb into about 1½"/ 3cm pieces and place in a non metallic oven dish with around 150g of caster sugar (according how sharp you like your rhubarb) and 1 tbsp of water.
Cover with foil and bake at 180c/350f/gas4 for around 30 minutes or until soft
Baked this way the rhubarb holds it's shape.
Place the rhubarb in a sieve and collect the juices. You'll find that it will keep making a little more as it sits.
Place the juices in a pan and add a little slaked corn flour/starch/arrowroot and the redcurrant jelly and cook until it starts to thicken. It should be of a thickened but still pourable consistency

To assemble

remove the cheesecake carefully from the tin and remove the parchment paper.
Place on it's serving plate
Arrange the rhubarb over the top.
Scatter over the chopped ginger
Carefully spoon over the slightly cooled thickened juices and serve.