BLUEBERRY CAKE with a crumble topping

Blueberries have been as cheap as chips lately, so ideal to make this yummy cake, clipped out from a magazine many moons ago. I do love clippings, then compiling my own recipe folders. It is great as a dessert served warm, as well as a cake.

You need a 8” x 8” square tray bake tin, lightly oiled and lined with parchment, hanging over the side to help you lift it out later on. Pre heat your oven to 170C

3 oz caster sugar

2 oz SR flour

½ teaspoon cinnamon

2 oz cold cubed butter

Combine the whole then blitz in a processor for a moment until it looks like fine breadcrumbs. Failing that rub in quickly. Keep cool in the fridge while you make the cake.

7 oz SR flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

4 oz caster sugar

2 oz softened butter

1 egg

5 fl oz buttermilk

Cream the very soft butter and sugar, add the egg, then mix in the flour, baking powder and buttermilk.

Spread the mixture into the bottom of your tin.

Sprinkle over 8 oz blueberries, then cover evenly with your crumble mix.

Bake for about 45 mins. Cool in the tin then cut into squares. Just delicious. How easy is that?

Works well with raspberries too.

STICKY STEM GINGER CAKE

The smell as you make and bake this cake is just heavenly. A wonderful mix of sugars, treacle and syrup, plus fragrant stem ginger. I found this recipe in a magazine some years ago while flicking through the pages in the hairdressers! A real find. Over the years I have adapted it slightly though. There is an optional drizzle that does marry very well with the cake, although a light dusting of icing sugar is all you really need - or a dollop of clotted cream!

Lightly oil and line the base of a 7” spring form cake tin. Pre heat your fan oven to 160C

In a large mixing bowl, place:

8 oz SR flour

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon of ground ginger 

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of mixed spice

4 oz cubed butter

Rub the butter in the flour mix until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. 

Finely grate 3-4 oz stem ginger and add to the flour mix, then set the bowl aside for a moment.

In a medium saucepan, place:

9 fl oz of half whole milk and half single cream

4 oz each of, muscovado sugar, black treacle and golden syrup

Stirring the whole while, heat the treacle mix until just BELOW boiling point. No not let it boil.

Add 1 beaten egg into the treacle mix then quickly pour the whole lot into the flour to make a thick batter. Beat well. Place into your preheated oven and bake for about 50 mins - 1 hour. Until firm to the touch. Cool in the tin, until completely cold.

Make a lemon drizzle with some lemon zest, a tablespoon of lemon juice and 2 oz of icing sugar.

Drizzle over the cold cake and ENJOY!

This cake is a great keeper and will be good for up to two weeks in an airtight tin.

HONEY CAKE

A lovely basic easy recipe that has such a delicious texture and flavour, rich in honey - my husband loves it.  Made and baked quickly! It is such a good standby cake, with a toffee honey rich taste that melts in your mouth! You could decorate or fill it to make it extra special! Even slice and butter it!  It keeps quite well too, not that it would in this house!

Bake in a loaf tin, that is lightly oiled and I place a large strip of baking parchment across the long sides, hanging over to help lift it out. For a change I baked this in my 1lb straight sided bread tin, but any small it tin will do, inc a 6” round.

Preheat your fan oven to 150C

8 oz plain flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon mixed spice

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

4 oz softened butter

4 oz light soft brown sugar

1 large egg, separated

4 oz runny honey

a little milk to mix if necessary [I use about 2 tablespoons]

Sieve your dry ingredients together and cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the egg yolk then place your bowl with the mixture back onto the scales and weigh in the runny honey. Mix well. Fold in the dry ingredients and finally whisk the egg white until fairly stiff then gently fold that in too.

Tip into your prepared tin, then sprinkle over a little caster sugar if you wish. Bake for about 50 mins, until firm to the touch.

Plain simple baking does not come better than this. Enjoy!

PINEAPPLE AND WALNUT TRAYBAKE

This is such an easy recipe! And so yummy. No creaming or rubbing in. I approve of that! So fruity and moist with an unusual topping, but it is very rich and almost decadent, so great for a special occasion. This recipe was sent to me by a cousin across the pond, although I have adapted it a little.

You need a 12” x 9” traybake tin. Mine is 2” high. Line the tin with baking parchment, letting the parchment hang over the sides a little, to help you lift out the finished bake. [see photo on my Blog]

Preheat your fan oven to 160C.

In a large mixing bowl, place:

a can of crushed pineapple, inc the juice

12 oz plain flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

½ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

12 oz caster sugar

2 large eggs

½ cup sunflower oil

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste [or extract]

Mix really well - it is far easier to use a hand mixer for this. Then tip the mixture into your prepared tin and bake for about 35 mins, until firm to the touch. Do not take it out of the tin.

Meanwhile -

Place in a medium saucepan:

4 oz butter

6 oz caster sugar

6 fl oz evaporated milk

2 oz desiccated coconut

2 oz chopped walnuts [quite small]

1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste or extract

When the cake comes out of the oven, stir the milky topping mixture until melted, then bring to the boil and simmer for about 5-7 mins until it starts to thicken.

Pour the topping over the slightly cooled cake, levelling it out as best you can, then place half a walnut on the top of where each square will be cut. 4 across and 5 down to make 20 squares.

Allow to cool completely, then careful lift out and cut into the 20 squares. Just scrummy.

Note: you could substitute pecans for walnuts. Keep in an airtight tin. This is a lovely plain cake, if you do not want a topping, halve the ingredients and bake in a 7” round tin. [or make two and freeze one] You may need to adjust the timings. Then dust with icing sugar before eating.

HONEYED PARSNIP CAKE

I do enjoy different cakes, and especially those with veggies as the main ingredient, they are so moist with so much flavour and this is no exception. I have had this recipe, cut out from a magazine, for some time, but never made it until now. I wish I had made it before!! It is absolutely scrummy. As with beetroot, courgettes and carrots it makes a wonderful cake. This is a very easy recipe as well and I made it in a short time - most of it taken up with grating the parsnip. 

Line the bottom and grease well, an 8” round springform cake tin. I cannot see why you can’t also use a 2lb loaf tin or a bundt. Pre heat your fan oven to 160C

In a medium bowl, place:

6 fl oz sunflower oil

3 large eggs

4 oz light muscovado sugar

2½ fl oz runny honey

Mix well for 3 or 4 mins, until pale and thick. This is easiest with an electric hand mixer.

add 7 oz grated parsnip, peeled weight, mix well

finally add:

10 oz SR flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

2 oz desiccated coconut

Mix well, then tip into your tin and bake for approx one hour, checking after 50 mins and turning down if browning too much. Cool in the tin for ten mins before turning out onto a rack.

I have left this undecorated as the cake speaks for itself and needs no extra sugar. But you could split with some buttercream, or decorate the top. I do not think it needs it.