A Show about Cake

In April I took myself off to the Cake International show at the London Excel Centre (only to be met by not just fellow enthusiastic bakers, but also by a few thousand marathon runners, registering for the 26.2 mile challenge of endurance. It was the day before, after all).
It was the first time I have been to such a show, and I must say, I had a thoroughly wonderful time. Being in a place which is dedicated to baking and decorating, with a whole myriad of goodies to see and buy, is my idea of heaven. It is my equivalent of a child being in a sweetie shop. These kind of shows serve as inspiration because the products on offer can open up a whole world of ideas to try. I made a few purchases, but honestly, I could have gone home laden down with bags full of treasures!
However, I showed remarkable constraint, and took home with me what I knew would be most useful now, and in the near future.

Unbeknownst to me, there was also an exhibition of decorated cakes made for competition, which was a lovely surprise. Oh my, there is so much talent and creativity in this country. I was in absolute awe at some (well, actually all) of the cakes on show, and below are my personal favourites that I wanted to share with you.

 

 

  An idea for next Easter

Beautiful Wedding cakes.....

.....and wedding favours

Two of my favourite stalls



And what came home with me.....

I hope you have enjoyed my little resume of my day out, and I am already looking forward to the next show. 

Salted Caramel Flapjacks

This weekend was all about a quick bake that would be easy to transport, as the result is going overseas this week as a gift for my German family. 

If I bake for this side of my family, I always want to make something that is not found in German baking, and is therefore unusual to their tastes. What is familiar for us in the UK then becomes something special for them.

I decided upon flapjacks because I've not made them for a while, and they would fulfil my brief. This is not my usual recipe, but one I rediscovered while spending a happy hour recently leafing through my huge file of recipes torn out of magazines over the years. This particular one is from a Sunday magazine from 3 years ago.

I was drawn to this recipe really by the presence of two words: salt, and caramel. I don't know anyone who can resist this combination of flavours. I know I can't. They would be more special than the usual plain variant, and therefore, a bit of a treat.

I cut these flapjacks smaller than I would usually because they are very rich, quite sweet (though not too salty, despite the name) and a little sticky. Cut them larger and you might find that there can be too much of a good thing!

Give these a try, and let me know what you think.

240g salted butter, diced
180g light muscovado sugar

225g tinned caramel, or dulce de leche

Small pinch of salt

350g rolled oats

50g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

You will also need a 23 cm square tin, greased and base lined with baking paper

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.

2. Put the butter, sugar, caramel and the pinch of salt in a saucepan over a low heat and stir occasionally until the butter has melted and the sugar dissolved.

3. Take the pan off the heat, add the oats and mix together.

4. Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and level the surface using the back of a metal spoon.

5. Bake for 20 minutes until lightly browned, take out of the oven and leave to cool in the tin. Loosen the sides of the flapjack with a palette knife (or an ordinary knife if you don't have one) while it is still warm so that it doesn't stick to the sides when you turn it out.

6. When it is cold and firm, remove from the tin.

7. To decorate, melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a saucepan with a little simmering water.

8. Drizzle over the top of the flapjack with a teaspoon in a random fashion, or, (for aesthetic
purposes), pipe diagonal lines in a criss-cross pattern, as I did.

9. Leave the chocolate to set for a few hours before cutting into approximately 25 squares.

My my, at Waterloo Napoleon did surrender.......

Next weekend sees the yearly extravaganza that is the Eurovision Song Contest. Love it or hate, you can't escape it. Personally, I love it. It is my absolute guilty pleasure and every year nothing will stop me from settling down in front of the television and giving up 3 hours of my life to revel in both its weird and wonderfulness. I even find all the cheeky block voting that goes on (regardless of how rubbish the song), and hardly anyone voting for the UK entry anymore, quite amusing.

You might well be wondering what place Eurovision has on a baking blog. Well, I will tell you. Eventually. 

It is 40 years since the Swedish group Abba won the competition with 'Waterloo'. On the the 6th April 1974, in Brighton, to be exact.

I can't believe that it was that long ago that, in shiny flares and platforms, they entered our consciousness. I was only small at the time and I suspect my knowledge of Eurovision was non-existent. However, a couple of years later, while living abroad, the power of the BBC World Service was such that I soon became aware of this Supergroup, and I have been a fan ever since. Can I add though, that in my opinion, Mamma Mia (the film version, that is) was shocking, and I wish I'd known that all of the best bits were in the trailer before I got excited and paid good money to see it.  

To celebrate this anniversary, I wanted to revisit 'The Nordic Bakery' book, (by Miisa Mink) and whip up a cake that caught my eye. Here is the classic Swedish cake, 'Tosca Cake', or, in Swedish, 'Tosca Kaka'. I actually hadn't heard of it before but when I saw it in the book I knew that one day I would bake it. It is a whisked vanilla sponge with a caramel and almond topping and is absolutely my kind of cake. Simple, not showy, but with a little added interest. A lot like my favourite clothes, in fact.

This cake definitely goes under the header of 'new favourite', and one to be made again and again. Light, moist, buttery, with a hint of vanilla. The nutty caramel topping adds crunch, and is very, very moreish.

I cut myself a slice while it was still slightly warm, and poured over some cream (only because I had some leftover, and I hate waste you understand!). It was so good. If you were to add some berries, and Scandinavians do love a berry or two, it would make a delicious pudding. 

Or, just have it cold. Either way you won't be disappointed.

For the cake

4 medium eggs
170g caster sugar (I used my preferred golden caster sugar)
200ml double cream
100g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp baking powder
260g plain flour 

Tosca topping
75g unsalted butter
75 g caster sugar (again, I used golden)
50ml double cream
3 tbsp plain flour 
75g flaked almonds, toasted

29cm/11inch springform cake tin greased, and  base lined (I used a 25cm/10inch tin because that is what I have)

Serves 6 - 8

Preheat oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6

1. Put the eggs and sugar into a large mixing bowl and whisk with a handheld electric whisk until the mixture is very thick, pale, doubled in size, and there is a trail in the mixture when you lift the beaters out of the bowl. This should take about 10 - 15 minutes. Do not rush this part, however bored you may become. It is imperative that the mixture is whisked for this long because it is the air that gives the cake its lightness.
2. Add the cream, melted butter and vanilla extract and fold in gently using a metal spoon.
3. In a separate bowl, sift the flour and baking powder together then fold into the egg mixture with a metal spoon again. Do this gently so that you don't knock out the air that you took so long to whisk in.
4. Pour into the prepared tin and bake in the pre-heated oven in middle of the oven for 30 - 35 minutes.
5. While the cake is cooking make the Tosca topping. Put all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil over a low heat, stirring all the time.
6. Remove the baked cake from the oven, spread the Tosca topping evenly over the top and 
return it to the hot oven for a further 10 - 15 minutes or until the topping is golden and slightly caramelised.
7. Leave the cake in the tin for about 10 minutes before turning out and leaving to cool completely.