Decorating for a chocolate addict

We all know one and some of us are one. What a better way to feed someone's or your chocolate addiction then by making a treble chocolate cake.

In my previous posts I have shown you how to make a basic chocolate sponge  and the basic chocolate butter icing. 

Now for the decoration.

I have made this cake two different ways. The first one I made was for my boyfriend's Dad, a self confessed chocolate addict and someone who shares their birthday with Jesus Christ...and his name is Chris. As some people don't like to share their birthday I all ways make a fuss of Chris before exchanging presents with anyone else in the family. I tried to pack as much chocolate in this cake as possible I also made two layers of sponge, this was the result:

I have lots of ribbons and this one looked best on this cake. It was easy to do as you just had to press the chocolate to the butter icing for a while but I would recommend doing this as soon as you have applied the butter icing.

I have seen this type of cake going around the internet but what I like most about it is that you can change it to who you are giving it to.

Take Two

My brother in-law is also a chocolate addict and when he saw the cake above I believe he fell in love (just a little bit). He was also mortified that he couldn't have any but then promised him I would make one like it for his birthday.

I made this cake with only one sponge but it was a thick piece. I knew the amount of people eating it would be smaller so this didn't matter.

Here are a few photos of how I did it*:

As you can see I used different chocolates which shows that this cake can be versatile. He was also very pleased with the cake, if not with the number on the candles. What would you have on yours?

Happy Baking

Ms B 

xx

*apologies for the poor photo quality, I really need to start using my camera and not my phone. 

   

Basic chocolate butter icing

Those of you that bake may make your butter icing from scratch but if you are just starting out there are many brands out there that can be the perfect topping for your cupcake or cake.
I personal find these a time saver and they work well as a cake filler. However, I also find them a bit rich and sometimes the consistency is not what I am looking for.  

For a filling or a cake you can achieve this by using a whisk but if you want stiff icing for cupcakes it will take a long time by hand so I would invest in an electric hand mixer.

Ingredients: 

50g/1 3/4 oz dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids) it will state this on the back of the bar, don't be fooled it doesn't have to be cooking chocolate either.
100g/3 1/2 oz unsalted butter
200g/7oz icing sugar

As all ways I measure out my ingredients before I start and let the butter come to room temperature.
There are two ways to melt the chocolate in a bowl over a sauce pan or in the microwave. In this post I have used the microwave method.

Method:

•  Break up the chocolate and place in a microwave safe bowl. 

• My microwave is 800W so I only put the chocolate in for 30 second intervals, siring every time. When you think it's almost ready, it's ready. There is not much time between it being ready and being burnt which makes the chocolate bitter.
• Place the butter in the bowl and whisk until smooth.

• Add the icing sugar a bit at a time. If you are using an electric whisk stir the icing sugar in a bit first before putting the power on other wise your kitchen will look like a crime scene looking for prints.  
• Once all the icing sugar is incorporated add the melted chocolate and whisk again.
• If you are using an electric mixer place it on the highest setting for 2-3 minuets. If you are using a manual whisk then use some elbow geese until your hand become tired.

• If the mix looks too thick you can loosen it with a splash of milk.  
• Decorate you cake using a palette knife (a butter knife will do the same job if you don't have a palette knife  :)

I've not had a good relationship with icing sugar since my first time baking. I all ways had to buy extra even when buying packet mixes. The rule I have found that works is that you have twice as much butter as chocolate and twice as much icing sugar as butter...e.g.

2g chocolate = 4g butter

4g butter = 8g icing sugar.

This is just an example as it would be a cake crime to use this little butter icing! So why not try making your very own basic chocolate butter icing to add to your basic chocolate sponge?

Happy baking,

Ms B 

xx

Cake International 2014

A few months ago my co-worker mentioned that there was a cake show going on in Manchester, this show was Cake International - The Sugarcraft,Cake Decorating & Baking Show.

I was so excited the first thing I did was phone my boyfriend’s Mum and Sister and asked them to come with me, they didn’t take much persuading and they were just as excited as I was.

We set off early (7:30am, on a Saturday!) but it was well worth it. We were in a good spot in the queue where we saw the star guests Mich Turner and Mary Berry opening the show (I will apologies in advance for the poor photos, I didn't have batteries for my camera so I had to use my phone.)

  

When we entered the room we were so excited we didn't know where to go first. It was fairly quiet during the morning which was nice as we could chat to the stall holders. Everyone we spoke to was very friendly, shared tips and didn't try the 'hard sell' which I felt was most important.

I spoke with  Arty Cakes their decorations were amazing, as you can see below.

This woodland wonder took Art Cakes 2 days straight to make. It was worth all that hard work. They also won gold in the cupcake category with these lovely cakes.

Here are some of my favorite cakes from the show:

I love vintage and even got treated to a cameo mold, so hopefully I will be making a cake like this soon :) 

There was a lot of this lace effect at the show

This took my breath away

A very talented youngster won the under 12's birthday cake category 

This was my favorite out of the wedding cakes <3

My favorite childhood toy in cake form, how could I not love this?

The fox had such a personality 

I spent the most time looking at this masterpiece, there's even condensation on the can of 'Cake' by Vicki Smith 

 You can find more photos from the cake show on my Facebook page  

You can't attend a show like this and not have a little taste of something. We chose this yummy Malteser brownie. 

Highlights

My top 3 highlights were: 

Meeting the one and only Mary Berry, it was worth the wait!

Meeting Lindy Smith, who just happens to be the author of Bake me I'm yours. I have talked about this book in my 'The basic chocolate sponge' post.  

And of course spending time with my boyfriend's lovely Mum and Sister, some lovely girly bonding :)

All in all it was a fantastic day, the tickets were a very resalable price at just £10 pp and £5 for a workshop. I would probably only book a workshop next time if it's practical. The one I attended was very good but I would have liked to get my hands dirty.

I would highly recommend this show and if you missed Cake International in Manchester you have a chance to go to it again in London 10th - 12th April, or in Birmingham 7th - 9th November 2014.

The basic chocolate sponge

After playing around with a few recipes I found one that was perfect for me. 
Bake me I'm yours...cupcake was given to me on one of my birthdays and it's brilliant for cupcake design as well as having the basic sponge recipes.
This chocolate sponge mix is meant for cupcakes the book notes down how many cupcakes you can make out of the mix whether it be big cupcakes or little ones.
I have used this recipe for cupcakes but I believe it works just as well for a whole cake.
In this post I used a 10" non- stick springfrom cake baking tin which made one thick layer. (I have also used this mix with smaller tins to make a sandwich cake.)

Ingredients:

175g (6oz) of slightly salted butter (I use unsalted then add a pinch of salt)
175g (6oz) of caster sugar
115g (4oz) self-raising flour
30ml (6 tsp) coco powder (make sure this is coco and not drinking chocolate)
1.5 tsp (7.5ml) baking powder 
1 tsp (5ml) natural vanilla extract
3 medium eggs (free range if you can)

Method:

Make sure that your eggs and butter are at room temperature before you start.

• Pre-heat your oven to 170◦ (338F/ Gas 3-4)

• Line your tin with a thin layer of butter, place the tin on top of some baking paper and draw round the tin, cut out and place in the bottom of your tin. (The butter will act like a food glue).

• Measure out all your ingredients ready to use. (you can measure as you go along). 

• Place your butter in a mixing bowl, you can cut the butter up in to squares if you wish but I find it's soft enough at room temperature. 

• Add the sugar and cream them together with a wooden spoon until it becomes a pale colour. 

• Sift the flour, coco powder and baking powder (after measuring) I place all these in the same bowl to save on washing up.

• Crack the eggs into a mug or small bowl, if some shell sneaks in there and it's is easier to remove then if it was in the mix. I also add the vanilla extract to the eggs.
• Add and the ingredients bit by bit until it looks like this:  

• Dip a tea spoon or your finger (make sure it's clean!) and do a taste test. If the mix seems too dry or think add a tablespoon or warm water.
• Place in the prepared baking tin and place int he oven for 40 - 50 minuets. 
• You can test if the cake is ready by inserting a skewer or a toothpick in the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean your cakes is ready. 

It can be tricky to tell when a chocolate cake is ready as the colour doesn't change, just remember not to open the oven door too soon or too quickly as this will result in your cake having a dip in the middle!

Some people like to leave the cake in the tin to cool then remove, but I like to remove it as soon as it's out the oven. I do this by running a butter knife along the outside of the cake, release the spring tin, place a serving plate or cake stand on top of the cake and carefully tun it over. This has ended in disaster a few times and I'm sure there is an easier way to do it but this is how I do it now. The next step is to remove the parchment paper and leave to cool.

While your chocolate cake is cooling you can make a lovely chocolate butter icing, but that's another story...

Do you have a favorite chocolate sponge recipe? 

If it's your first time why not try this one and share how you got on.

Or if you are not so confident yet why not start with a chocolate cake packet mix?

Happy baking,

Ms B 

xx