Strawberry Lemon Shortcake

Ingredients:

Make Ahead Instructions

Ingredients:

Directions:

• 2 x 85 g pkts Raspberry Jelly Crystals
• 60 g Butter
• 1/2 cup Caster Sugar
• 1 tsp Vanilla Essence
• 1 Coles Free Range Egg
• 1 cup Self-raising Flour
• 1/2 cup Milk
• 2 cups Coles Desiccated Coconut

1. Make jelly according to packet instructions. Place in the fridge for about 1½ hrs, or until slightly thickened (it should be like unbeaten egg white).
2. Preheat oven to 180°C or 160ºC fan. Grease 2 non-stick, 12-hole, shallow patty tins (2 tbsp capacity each hole). With electric beaters, beat butter, sugar and vanilla until creamy. Add egg and beat to combine.
3. Sift flour over mixture and gently fold in the milk. Spoon batter into prepared tins and bake for about 8 mins, or until risen, golden brown and firm to a gentle touch. Stand in the tin for 3 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack. Cool completely.
4. Spread coconut on a plate. Working one at a time, dip a cake in the jelly, letting it soak in slightly. Drain off excess, then roll in coconut to coat. Place on a tray. Repeat with remaining cakes, coconut and jelly and refrigerate for 1 hr, to set.

• CAKE
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups fat-free milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• FILLING
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 cup fat-free milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 teaspoons rum extract
• TOPPING
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons rum extract
• 2-4 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon (optional)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. In a 13x9-inch baking pan, grease and flour bottom and sides; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat all cake ingredients together until just combined. Pour evenly into prepared pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Allow to cool for 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile in a medium bowl, whish together all filling ingredients; set aside.
5. Once cake has slightly cooled but still hot to the touch, pierce the top using a long-tined fork approximately every half-inch apart. See bottom of this post for a visual.
6. Pour the 3-milk (tres leches) mixture evenly onto the cake. Loosely cover and refrigerate up to 3 hours or until majority of the tres leches has been absorbed.
7. In a large chilled bowl, beat topping ingredients until stiff peaks form.
8. Once cake is ready, spread whipped cream over cake and lightly sprinkle with cinnamon. ENJOY!

Strawberry Shortcut Cake with Basil Whipped Cream

Strawberry Shortcut Cake with Basil Whipped Cream
Makes one 8−inch cake

Basil Whipped Cream
¼ cup packed fresh basil leaves
1 cup heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Shortcut Cake
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pan

¾ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon fine salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the pan
1 large egg, beaten
½ cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Rosy Strawberry Filling
1 pound fresh strawberries (reserve 5 berries for garnish)
1 recipe Rosy Strawberry Syrup (recipe at bottom) or Fresh Herb Syrup (recipe at bottom), prepared

Garnish
Fresh basil or other herb leaves

For the basil whipped cream, combine the basil leaves and cream in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Heat the cream until bubbles form around the perimeter of the pan, then remove the pan from the heat, cover it, and let the cream infuse for 30 minutes. Strain out the basil leaves and refrigerate the flavored cream until you are ready to assemble the cake.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter the bottom and sides of an 8-inch round cake pan. Line it with a parchment paper circle, butter the paper, and dust the pan with flour. Tap out the excess flour.

For the shortcut cake, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt, then whisk in the butter, egg, milk, and vanilla until almost smooth (there can be small lumps). Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 22 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Using a knife, loosen the cake from the sides of the pan and invert it directly onto the wire rack to cool completely.

For the rosy strawberry rilling, set aside five strawberries for the garnish. Hull and finely chop the remaining strawberries. Heat the rosy strawberry syrup in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat until it begins to bubble at the edges. Add the strawberries to the pan and cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until the berries are slightly warm and glistening. Remove the pan from the heat and set it aside to cool for 10 minutes.

To assemble the cake, cut the cake in half horizontally, using a serrated knife. Begin to cut the cake in half until you reach the center of the cake, then turn it a quarter turn and keep cutting and turning until you reach your original cut mark. Use the knife to help separate the layers. Place the bottom layer, cut-side up, on a cake plate. Spread the layer with the strawberry mixture. Top with the remaining layer, cut-side down. Arrange the five reserved strawberries on top of the cake.

Cake of the Day: Double Choc Cheesecake with Berry Sauce

Every day, Yahoo Food features delectable cakes. They taste good, they look good, and they’re made by good people — talented bakers from around the world. Today, Katie Quinn Davies of the award-winning blog, What Katie Ate, shares a recipe from her second cookbook What Katie Ate on the Weekend, a collection of her favorite simple dishes for weekend entertaining. 

Double Choc Cheesecake with Berry Sauce
Serves 8

In Australia I use Arnott’s Chocolate Ripple biscuits for the cookie base here, but you could use Oreo cookies; just bung them in whole, there’s no need to scrape off the cream in the centers first. If you don’t want to use amaretto, you can substitute with 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract. Leave some of the cherry stems attached for a nicer presentation, if you like.

Cake
9 oz plain (un-iced) chocolate cookies, such as Oreos
¾ cup blanched almonds
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
½ cup good-quality dark chocolate
½ cup good-quality milk chocolate
2 cups, plus 1 tablespoon cream cheese, softened
1 cup light sour cream
4 free-range eggs
1 cup, plus 2 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
1¼ cups heavy cream, plus extra, whipped, to serve
4 teaspoons amaretto

Berry sauce
9 oz fresh cherries (pitted, if you like) or sour cherries from a jar, drained well
9 oz strawberries, hulled and halved
5½ oz raspberries
4 teaspoons lime juice
3 tablespoons superfine sugar

Preheat the oven to 325°F and grease and line the base and sides of an 8½ inch springform cake pan. Wrap the outside of the pan with foil, sealing it securely. Whiz the biscuits and almonds in the bowl of a food processor to fine crumbs. Add the butter and pulse to combine. Press this mixture evenly into the base of the prepared pan and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Melt the dark and milk chocolate in a heatproof bowl that fits snugly over a saucepan of gently simmering water, then set aside to cool slightly.

Beat the cream cheese and sour cream in a stand mixer on low–medium speed for 1–2 minutes until smooth and combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until incorporated. Add the brown sugar, cream and amaretto and beat on low speed for 1 minute. Beat in the melted chocolate until combined.

Pour the batter onto the cookie base and tap the pan gently on a countertop to remove any bubbles. Place the cake pan in a large roasting pan and pour enough cold water into the roasting pan to come 1 in up the sides of the cake pan. Carefully transfer to the oven and bake for 1½ hours or until set at the edges with a slight wobble in the center. Leave in the switched-off oven to cool for 1 hour with the door slightly ajar, then remove and cool to room temperature, before chilling in the fridge for 1 hour. 

Meanwhile, for the berry sauce, place all the ingredients in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low–medium and simmer for 3 minutes or until the fruit is soft but still holding its shape. Drain for 5 minutes over a bowl, reserving the syrup. Place the syrup in the pan and simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes or until thick and glossy, then gently fold into the fruit and set aside to cool completely.

Sit the cheesecake on a large plate and remove the pan, then top with berry sauce and serve with whipped cream.

Banana Split Ice Cream Cake

Yield: 10 to 12 servings
Prep Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 12 hours

Ingredients:

For the Crust:
20 Oreo cookies, crushed into crumbs
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 to 3 bananas, sliced ½-inch thick
For the Strawberry Layer:
1 pint strawberry ice cream
1 cup strawberry ice cream topping (make sure it's a pourable consistency, warm briefly if necessary)
For the Chocolate Layer:
1 pint chocolate ice cream
1 cup hot fudge sauce, at room temperature (make sure it's a pourable consistency, warm briefly if necessary)
For the Vanilla Layer:
1 pint vanilla ice cream
½ cup pineapple ice cream topping
For the Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
To Garnish:
Maraschino cherries
Chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Spray an 8x3-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line the bottom and sides with parchment paper; set aside.
2. Assemble the Crust: Combine the Oreo cookie crumbs with the melted butter, tossing until all of the crumbs are evenly moistened. Press into an even layer in the bottom of the prepared pan. Top with the banana slices. Place the pan in the freezer for at least 15 minutes.
3. Assemble the Strawberry Layer: Top the banana layer with the strawberry ice cream. Use an offset spatula to spread the ice cream into a smooth, even layer. Place the pan back in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
4. Pour the strawberry topping over the strawberry ice cream and gently spread so that it covers the entire ice cream layer beneath. Return to the freezer for at least 1 hour, or until completely frozen.
5. Assemble the Chocolate Layer: Top the strawberry layer with the chocolate ice cream. Use an offset spatula to spread the ice cream into a smooth, even layer. Place the pan back in the freezer for at least 30 minutes, or until firm and set.
6. Pour the hot fudge sauce over the chocolate ice cream and gently spread so that it covers the entire ice cream layer beneath. Return to the freezer for at least 1 hour, or until completely frozen.
7. Assemble the Vanilla Layer: Top the hot fudge layer with the vanilla ice cream. Use an offset spatula to spread the ice cream into a smooth, even layer. Cover with plastic wrap, return the assembled cake to the freezer and freeze overnight.
8. Final Assembly and Garnishment: At least 1 hour (and no more than 12 hours) before serving, unmold the cake. To release the cake from the pan, invert the cake onto a plate or cardboard round the same size and wrap a hot kitchen towel around the cake pan, keeping it there for 30 seconds, or until the cake loosens and slide the pan off. Remove the parchment (and bottom of pan if using a springform). Top with a serving plate and turn the cake right side up. Return to the freezer for at least 10 minutes.
9. While the cake is in the freezer, make the whipped cream. Combine the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until the cream is light and fluffy and holds a medium to firm peak, 2 to 3 minutes.
10. Just prior to serving, pipe the whipped cream into mounds around the outer edge of the cake. Top each mound with a maraschino cherry. Fill in the space in the middle with the pineapple topping and top with chopped walnuts. A hot, dry knife will yield the cleanest cuts. Dip your knife in a glass of hot water, wipe it clean with a towel, and cut a slice. Repeat between every slice. Store leftover slices in airtight containers (or covered with plastic wrap and foil) in the freezer.
Note: If you are making homemade ice cream, your best bet is to time the assembly so that you can add the freshly-churned ice cream right onto the cake. It will be the perfect consistency. If you will be using already-made ice cream, pop it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before you plan to need it and then mix it really well with a spatula so that it is smooth and spreadable.

(Recipe inspired by Sweet Anna's)