The festive season is just around the corner and of course we are incredibly excited! We love everything about this time of year; woolly jumpers, blustery weather, houses adorned with tinkling lights and the abundance of fantastic flavours on offer! With all this in mind an obvious flavour choice for our next cake with The Happy Egg Co. jumped out at us; after dinner mint! The luxurious combination of dark chocolate and smooth mint cream is a seasonal classic around the Christmas dinner table, and one to share with family and friends while watching winter TV specials! We loved the idea of a decadent cake incorporating the fresh sweet taste of peppermint and the bitter creaminess of dark chocolate. Why not finish a festive dinner with an after dinner mint cake instead? We certainly will; we’re salivating at the thought!
Another thing we adore about combining peppermint with dark cocoa is the vibrancy of natural greens contrasted perfectly next to warm browns and crisp grey whites. They do say that you eat with your eyes first so festive greens and natural browns will help tempt everyone!
You don’t even have to wait until after your evening meal to enjoy such a cake flavour. It’s winter in less than a month so why not indulge and warm up your tummy with a generous slice and a piping hot mug of peppermint hot cocoa! Excited? Watch this space for our truly tempting and taste bud tingling recipe!
Autumn always brings forth some wonderfully warming and indulgent flavours when it comes to food and celebrations. As Guy Fawkes’ Night festivities commence in the United Kingdom this month’s cake is nothing short of a subtle yet sumptuous treat; perfect to enjoy during the Bonfire Night shenanigans! Imagine slicing into a fragrant cake spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves and ginger; covered and filled with home made caramel sauce and scrumptious apple buttercream; and then drizzled with even more caramel sauce! Wouldn’t that be the perfect addition to your dinner table this 5th of November and during the rest of the chilly season! If you’re outside of Great Britain we’re sure you’ll still enjoy this recipe too. The rich spices, tangy apple frosting and sweet caramel pair wonderfully with any autumnal soirée. The little fondant apples sat happily amidst dripping caramel resemble glistening apples bobbing in a barrel of water ready for party games.
Simple Spiced Cake Recipe (makes approximately 3 x 1″ layers of an 8″ diameter round cake)
Cream your butter in a mixer then add the brown sugar. Add in the flour along with half of the happy eggs for around one minute. Once half of the happy eggs are combined add the remaining and the spices to taste. Mix for about 5 minutes.
Pour batter in the pan until 2/3 full and place on the top shelf of a pre-heated oven at Gas Mark 3/325F/170C. Bake for around 30 minutes. Repeat this step to create your second and third layer.
Apple Buttercream Recipe
500g butter (around two packs in the UK)
300-400g icing sugar (keep testing when adding to make sure it is the consistency and sweetness YOU’D like)
6-12 drops of natural apple essence
Add half of the of butter diced into pieces. Cream the butter in a mixer. Then gradually add icing sugar and the remaining butter (cut into cubes) until you get a smooth, creamy texture. Add the flavour to taste.
For more hints and tips see our tutorial on how to make buttercream here.
Easy Caramel Sauce Recipe
260g caster sugar
4 tablespoons of room temp water
140ml double cream
50g butter
On medium heat dissolve the sugar with the water whilst stirring in a saucepan. Raise the heat until the sugar mixture bubbles and turns a lovely golden brown (this should take around 5 minutes). Take off the heat and stir the cream and butter into your caramel sugar mixture. Leave to cool and it’s ready to fill and pour atop of your cake!
To assemble your cake smooth caramel sauce and apple buttercream between each layer of cake. Next apply a thin layer of buttercream over your cake evenly leaving extra buttercream for later. Smooth and leave in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes to an hour. Once chilled smother the rest of the lovely apple flavoured buttercream over the sides and top and smooth with a spatula. Now carefully pour the caramel sauce over the cake and use a clean spatula to push the sauce to the edges so it drips luxuriously! Finally you can decorate the top with little fondant apples, fudge pieces, cinnamon sticks or caramel filled truffles!
We do hope you thoroughly enjoy this warm and taste bud tingling recipe during the ensuing chilly months. Try a generous slice with a cup of spicy chai tea or gingerbread flavour coffee for an uplifting treat!
October is officially here which means burnt reds, oranges and yellows are quickly taking over the leafy greens of summer. Though this is, perhaps, the biggest change when we look through our window here at Juniper Cakery HQ there are also notable changes being made in the food and baking world too. The thought of warming seasoned fruits, soups and desserts have inspired this month’s recipe which is to be a spiced apple cake!
The bittersweet taste of apple and their deep reds and autumnal greens are perfect for this time of year. Their traditional, and much loved, pairing with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and allspice creates a warm, homemade feel perfect for getting cosy in the coming blustery months.
