Back to school chocolate cake.

As the Summer days draw to a close and kids pack their bags for the school year, it's nice to have a liitle treat to keep yourself motvated during the long school days. I made this smooth rich chocolate cake as a little treat for the lunch box.

Ingredients: For the Pudding:
1/4 oz veg-gel or agar agar
2 1/2 ozs milk
5 ozs sugar
3/4 oz cocoa powder
3/4 tsp salt
12 ozs milk
2 tsps vanilla extract

For the Devils food cake:
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
¾ cup cocoa powder
2 cups caster sugar
1 cup hot coffee
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups of chocolate chips

For the icing:
1 cup soft unsalted butter
4 cups icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup cream

Pudding: In a medium bowl, combine the veg-gel and the 2 1/2 ounces milk. Whisk to ensure no lumps remain. In a small sauce pan, combine the sugar, cocoa, salt and remaining milk over medium low heat. Stir continuously until smooth and the mixture beings to bubble around the edges, about five minutes.Pour the hot mixture through a sieve and into the bowl of veg-gel. Stir in the vanilla.Set the bowl, uncovered, in the fridge. After fifteen minutes cover the pudding with a sheet of cling film pressed against the surface and refrigerate until fully thickened, about 2 hours. While that's setting make the cake. Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F Gas mark 3.)Place the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the coffee, oil and buttermilk and mix until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix for another 2 minutes. Add the Pudding mixture and chocolate chips into the bowl. Pour Batter into a 26cm (10") bunt tin, bake for 30 minutes. Leave to cool for 10 minutes before transfering onto a wire tray, while it's cooling make the icing. Combine the butter, cream and vanilla, add the sugar and mix untill smooth. Spread over the cake and decorate as you please.

Banoffee Pie

This is a delicious, crunchy banoffee pie with a smooth whipped cream topping. I used a chrunchie bar topping but if you can't get your hands on them plain milk chocolate works fine. I love the taste of the condensed milk after it has been boiling for two hours. I always try a spoonful (or two) just to make sure it's not poisonous but it's all part of the process, right?

Ingredients:
397g condensed milk
230g digestive biscuits
125g melted butter
2 bananas
200ml of cream
3 crunchie bars broken into pieces

Pour water into a saucepan just enough to cover the can of condensed milk boil for two hours. Put the digestive biscuits into a plastic bag and tie it. Put that bag in another one and tie it (just in case one pops.) Now take out a rolling pin and smash the biscuits untill finely crushed, untie the bags and mix with the melted butter. Put the mixture into a 20cm round tin and leave to cool for two hours. Take the condensed milk out of the water and leave to cool. Open the can and pour all over your biscuit base. Chop up the bananas and arrange on top of the condensed milk, put in the fridge. For the top whisk the cream untill desired and slop on top of your banoffee, sprinkle with crunchie and enjoy!

Cheescake Brownies

I know I know, they sound completely bonkers I thought the same thing but I tried them and Oh my gosh I love them! This recipie involves a tiny bit of work and a bit of washing up but trust me they are so worth it.

Ingredients:
100g (4oz) dark chocolate chips
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
125g (5oz) soft butter
275g (11oz) caster sugar
75g (3oz) self-raising flour

Cheescake top:
200g (8oz) mascarpone
2 egg yolks
75g (3oz) caster sugar

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) Gas mark 4. Grease and line a 20cm (8") at least 6 1/2cm (2 1/2") deep. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir the chocolate untill completely melted and smooth, take the pan off the heat. Break the eggs in to small bowl and beat them. In a seperate bowl combine the vanilla, butter, sugar and eggs. Add the flour and cocoa and mix well. Stir in the melted choclate. In a different bowl mix together the cheescake mixture untill smooth, blob on heaped spoons of the mixture on to the brownie and swirl together using a skewer. Bake for 35 minutes or untill a skewer inserted comes out ever so slightly wet. Leave in the tin to cool for 10 minutes before turning on to a wire rack. Cut into slices and enjoy!

Chocolate layer cake

This is a lovely chocolate and strawberry cake perfect for birthdays or Confirmations which is what I made it for. Altough the red food colouring is optional I think it adds a really nice colour to the filling.

Ingredients:

225g (8oz) self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

4 eggs

225g (8oz) butter

225g (8oz) caster sugar

2tbs cocoa powder

Filling:
2 eggs
75g (3oz) caster sugar
Handful of strawberries
50g (2oz) butter cubed
Red food colouring (optional)

Icing:
100g icing sugar
1 tbs water

 3 20cm (8") round cake tins

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) Combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, butter and sugar. Break the eggs into a different cup, beat them in one at a time. Pour the mixture into the 3 well greased tins. Bake for about 20 minutes or a skewer inserted comes out clean. Leave for 5 minutes and then turn over on to a wire rack.

The filling now, break the 2 eggs into a heatproof bowl. Add sugar, strawberries, butter and if using food colouring. Place the bowl into a pan over simmering water, stir the mixture untill it thickens, 20 minutes should do it but if it doesn't coat the back of the spoon keep stirring till it does. Take off the heat. Spread half the filling over 1 cake, place another on top and spread the rest of the filling on top. Finally place the last cake on top.

Sift the icing sugar into a bowl add the water and stir untill smooth. Spread the icing on the top of the cake, it doesn't matter if it drips down the edges. Decorate how you please.

Vegan cupcakes

This is a really simple yet very tasty cupcake recipie. For my first recipie I posted something quite tricky so with this I'm going back to basics. I used strawberry essence but you could use vanilla, lemon, rose anything really.  This recipie made me 16 cupcakes but it will depend on how big your cases are.

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups caster sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup vegetable  oil
2 tsp essence (any flavour)
2 tsp distilled white vinegar
1 cup water

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Place the cases in a muffin tray. Mix together ALL the ingredients untill smooth. Put the cupcakes in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Frosting is optiantal, I just whipped some cream added icing sugar, strawberry essence and red food colouring, but if you want to add actual frosting here are some recipies.

Cream cheese:
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup (1 stick) lightly salted butter
1 lb (4 cups) icing sugar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

 Let butter and cream cheese soften at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes. Cream butter and cream cheese together until light and fluffy (about 1 minute). Add vanilla. Mix on low until vanilla is incorporated. Add icing sugar gradually, still mixing on low.


 Buttercream:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
6 to 8 cups icing sugar
1/2 cup milk or cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter until light, about 3 minutes on medium speed. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, 3 to 5 minutes.Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the frosting is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency. You may not add all of the sugar.

1 stick  Wegmans Unsalted Butter, softened to room temp
1 Tbsp  Wegmans Pure Vanilla Extract
4 cups  Wegmans Powdered Sugar, sifted
1 Tbsp  nonfat dry milk powder
3-4 Tbsp water, divided - See more at: http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10052&catalogId=10002&productId=710495#sthash.TYKYpE1a.dpuf

1 stick  Wegmans Unsalted Butter, softened to room temp
1 Tbsp  Wegmans Pure Vanilla Extract
4 cups  Wegmans Powdered Sugar, sifted
1 Tbsp  nonfat dry milk powder
3-4 Tbsp water, divided - See more at: http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10052&catalogId=10002&productId=710495#sthash.TYKYpE1a.dpuf

1 stick  Wegmans Unsalted Butter, softened to room temp
1 Tbsp  Wegmans Pure Vanilla Extract
4 cups  Wegmans Powdered Sugar, sifted
1 Tbsp  nonfat dry milk powder
3-4 Tbsp water, divided - See more at: http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10052&catalogId=10002&productId=710495#sthash.TYKYpE1a.dpuf