Zucchini, Date and Walnut Cake

Have put this recipe on my blog to share with my dear friend Stav who really enjoyed this cake as did her husband. Its very simple to make and tastes fantastic too.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup canola oil
3 eggs
400g  coarsely grated zucchini, squeezed of excess moisture 
2 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1 cup walnut halves, coarsely chopped
1 cup dried  dates, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

For the icing:
250g  cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup icing sugar
2 tsp finely grated lemon rind
2 tbs fresh lemon juice

Method:
Preheat oven to 180°C
Grease and line a 28cm x 18cm slice pan with non-stick baking paper.
Beat the sugar, oil and egg together in a bowl until pale and creamy.
Add the zucchini, flour, walnuts, dates, bicaronate of soda, cinnamon and nutmeg and stir until well combined.
Pour into prepared pan.
Bake for 50 mins or until cooked through.
When cooled completely top with the cream cheese icing.

To make the icing, beat together the cream cheese, icing sugar, lemon rind and juice until thick and creamy and thoroughly combined.

Jewish Honey Cake

My Mum used to buy this delicious Honey cake when I was a child. Its a dry cake and is devine if you spread a little butter on it. Had searched high and low for a recipe and I adapted this one from a few different recipe books and Googling. I love it and can't get enough of it-maybe because it reminds me of my childhood!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup plain flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 eggs
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/8 cup canola oil
1 cup good honey
1/4 cup espresso, cold
flaked almonds to decorate

Method:
Pre-heat oven to 175 degrees and grease and line a 28cm x 18cm slice pan.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
In a seperate bowl beat the eggs and sugar until combined then beat in the oil, honey and espresso.
Mix in the wet ingredients into the dry ones and pour into prepared pan.
Sprinkle with flaked almonds.
Bake in oven for 45mins or until cooked.


Its tastier with lots of almonds on top.                                     But prettier with them as flowers!

  

German Black Forrest Cake

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

3 cups self-raising flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 cup milk

pinch salt

 

For the Mousse:

150g good quality dark eating chocolate

3 eggs, separated

1 Tbs brandy

2 Tbs sugar

 

425g can stoneless black cherries, drained & cherries halved

1/4 cup brandy

3 tsp cornflour

 

300ml cream, whipped

3 glace cherries, halved, to decorate

chocolate, to decorate

 

Method:

For the Cake:

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Grease and line a deep 20cm round cake pan.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and creamy.

Add eggs, one at a time and beat until combined.

Add sifted cocoa and salt and mix until combined.

Add sifted flour and milk and mix alternately until combined.

Place mixture into prepared cake tin and bake for approx 1 hour or until skewer comes out clean.

When cool slice top off cake to level it.

Slice the cake into 3 layers.

 

For the Mousse:

Melt chocolate in microwave in short bursts and stir until melted, cool a little.

Beat the egg yolks and brandy with a fork.

Using an electric beater beat egg whites until firm peaks form then add the sugar and continue beating for a further min.

Stir in the egg yolk mixture into the cooled melted chocolate.

With a metal spoon stir in 1/3 of the egg white mixture into the chocolate/egg yolk mixture. (this will lighten the mixture to make it easier to fold in the rest of the egg white)

Fold in the remaining egg white and transfer into a bowl and refrigerate for 2 hours.

 

Drain the cherries, reserving liquid.

Mix the cornflour with a little of the cherry syrup to make a paste then add more of the cherry syrup to make up to 200ml.

Cook in microwave until thickened then cool.

Add any remaining cherry syrup with the brandy and brush all over the layers of the cake.

Place one layer of the cake on a plate and evenly spread the chocolate mousse.

Place another layer of the cake on the mousse and top with the drained, halved cherries.

Pour on the cooled cherry syrup mixture then top with final layer of cake.

Place in fridge for about 1 hour to allow all layers to set.

 

Finish decorating the cake by spreading whipped cream all over the top and sides, completely covering.

Decorate with chocolate (I used a bag of 'Cadbury' flake) all around the sides of the cake and pipe 6 small rosettes on top of cake and place halved glace cherries on top.

 

 

Mango Mousse Gateau

Ingredients:

185g butter

1tsp vanilla extract

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 cups self-raising flour

1/2 cup buttermilk

 

For the Mousse:

125g block Philadelphia cream cheese

1/2 can Condensed milk

200g mango, pureed

2 1/4 tsp gelatine dissolved in 1 Tbs boiling water

1/4 cup cream, whipped to soft peaks

 

For the Jelly Topping:

3/4 cup pureed mango

1 Tbs icing sugar

1 1/4 tsp gelatine dissolved in 1 Tbs boiling water

 

cream, dessicated toasted coconut and mango slices

 

Method:

Using an electric mixer beat the butter, vanilla and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.

Stir in sifted flour and buttermilk and stir until combined.

Bake at 180 degrees for 60 mins or until cooked through.

Once cool remove the middle of the cake leaving a 2cm ring of cake.

Cut the base of the cake to 2cm and place into the cake ring.

Cut another two 2cm layers of the cake.

 

For the mousse, beat the cream cheese until light then add the condensed milk and beat until combined.

Add the pureed mango and beat until combined.

Add the gelatine mixture and beat until combined.

Fold through the cream.

 

Pour 1/2 mousse mixture into hollowed out cake then top with another layer of cake and the other 1/2 of the mousse mixture and a final layer of cake.

 

Mix together pureed mango and icing sugar until combined then stir in the gelatine mixture.

Evenly spread the mango jelly mixture on top of the last cake layer. Refrigerate until set.

 

Whip the cream and smooth around the cake then sprinkle with toasted dessicated coconut.

Top cake with sliced mango.