Delicious Cakes

[jassheela]

INGREDIENTS
BANANA CAKE
3 medium bananas, ripe if possible (approx. 400g / 14oz)
300g / 10oz self-raising flour
150g / 5oz soft butter
150g / 5oz Demerara sugar
2 medium eggs (at room temperature)
80g / 3oz walnuts or sultanas
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
CAKE TOPPING
125g / 4½oz full fat soft cheese
75 g / 2½oz butter
200g / 7 oz icing (confectioners) sugar
Half a teaspoon of vanilla essence

PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes

COOKING TIME: 50 minutes

DIFFICULTY LEVEL: Easy

FREEZE? No

SERVINGS: 1 cake

COOKING EQUIPMENT:
1 large bowl to mix the ingredients.
900g loaf tin (see picture below). Size (measured at the top) is 25cm by 11cm and 6½cm deep.
Small amount of greaseproof baking paper.

PREPARATION
The butter must be soft. The best way to achieve this is to measure out the butter an hour or so before it is needed and leave it at room temperature. If

this is not possible, break up the butter with a fork and beat it for a minute or so. If all else fails, put it in a bowl and float the bowl in warm water.

Turn the oven on, setting it to 180°C / 350°F / Gas Mark 4.

Next, grease the loaf tin with margarine or butter, and line the tin with greaseproof baking paper. It's not essential to cover 100% of the tin but make sure

that it lays as flat as possible on the inside of the tin.

RECIPE INSTRUCTIONS
STEP 1
Peel the bananas and mash them with a fork until they are really mushy. It's easier if the bananas are ripe but not essential.

Chop up the walnuts reasonably finely (click picture on right to enlarge). Sultanas can be used as an alternative if you have a nut allergy.

 
STEP 2
Place the butter and Demerara sugar into a mixing bowl and blend together with a fork. The idea here is to mix the two ingredients thoroughly and at the same

time incorporate as much air into the mixture as possible.
Mixing with a fork in a figure of eight shape will help to incorporate air into the cake mix.

 
STEP 3
Stir in the bananas and chopped walnuts or sultanas and mix thoroughly. Add one egg and sift in half of the flour. Mix thoroughly in a figure of eight. Add

the remaining flour, egg and lemon juice then mix again in a figure of eight.
Now the magic touch! Add the two tablespoons of olive or vegetable oil and mix thoroughly again in a figure of eight with a fork. The oil will keep the cake

moist.

 
STEP 4
Pour the mixture into the loaf tin, smooth it level and place in the oven for 50 minutes. Go to the next step to make the topping.
After that time take it out and test that it is cooked by piercing the cake with a fork and if it comes out clean it's cooked. If not cook for another 5

minutes and retest (see below).

 Some people have commented that this banana cake takes 1 hour 15 minutes to bake so don't be concerned if it's the same for you. Different ovens and

slightly different ingredients are probably the cause of this. Just keep checking every five or ten minutes.
When you remove the cake out from the oven, take it out of the tin and place it on a wire rack or something similar. This will stop the cake sweating and

getting damp - it really does make a difference.

Allow the cake an hour or so to cool down before icing it.

STEP 5
Make the icing by pouring the icing sugar, soft cheese, butter and vanilla into a bowl and mixing it all together with a fork.
Spoon the icing onto the cake and spread it evenly with a knife. Pop a couple of cherries or walnuts on the top if you want to decorate it.

[jassheela]

Ingredients

About 1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) butter or margarine, cut into chunks $
About 1 cup all-purpose flour $
About 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar $
1 teaspoon baking powder $
2 large eggs $
1 cup fresh or frozen unsugared blackberries $
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
Preparation

1. Butter and dust with flour a 9-inch cake pan with removable rim.
2. In a bowl, combine 1 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup butter. Slowly beat with a mixer to blend, then beat on high speed until well mixed, about 3

minutes.
3. Add 1 cup flour, baking powder, and eggs. Stir to combine, then beat on high speed until the stiff batter is well blended, about 2 minutes.
4. Scrape batter into cake pan and spread top smooth.
5. Scatter berries evenly over batter. Sprinkle fruit with 1 tablespoon granulated sugar.
6. Bake on the center rack of a 350° oven just until cake begins to pull from pan rim, 55 to 60 minutes. Run a thin-bladed knife between cake and pan rim.

Let cool at least 10 minutes or, if making ahead, wrap cake airtight when cool and let stand at room temperature up to 1 day.
7. Remove pan rim, dust cake with powdered sugar, and cut into wedges.

[jassheela]

Ingredients:

Flour: 1cup
Butter : 1 cup
Powdered sugar : ½ cup
Castor sugar : ½ cup
Cocoa powder: 1 tbsp.
Walnuts(sliced into tiny bits): 1 tbsp.
Dates(sliced into tiny bits): 1 tbsp.
Thick curds: 1cup
Baking powder: ½ tsp.
Baking soda: ½ tsp.
Rind of one lemon
Juice of one lemon
Milk to get the required consistency

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200 deg. centigrade (390 F).

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the curds and cream some more. It may curdle a little, don’t worry. Sift the flour, cocoa powder,

baking powder and baking soda twice. Mix the fruits in a tbsp. of sifted flour and keep aside. Gradually fold in the sifted flour into the creamed mixture

alternating with the fruits mixture. When all the flour has been added, mix in the lemon rind and lemon juice. The dough should be of dropping consistency.

If not, add little tepid milk (not very warm) to get the right consistency.

Pour into a 9" dia baking dish (well greased and dusted) and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes clean.

My cake came out just right. Fluffy and soft and melting in the mouth.

[jassheela]

Eggless strawberry cake
Ingredients:
3to4 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
 11/4 cups plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract/vanilla essence
1/2 cup sugar + 1 tsp for dusting strawberries
2 1/2tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup fresh strawberries chopped
a few drops of lemon juice

Method:
Sprinkle 1 tsp sugar and lemon juice on chopped strawberries and keep aside. This will make them a little moist and juicy. Sift together the baking powder,

salt and flour.Next, whisk the butter and sugar to creamy texture. Then add a little flour to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix it and then add a little milk

and mix. This way, add all the flour and milk little by little stirring to avoid lumps formation throughout. Finally, fold in the strawberries to the batter

using a spatula. Grease and dust baking pan with butter & a little flour to prevent cake from sticking. Bake in a 375 degrees F preheated oven for about 35-

40 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool before cutting pieces.
Enjoy sliced cake  with tea or just as it is!
Note:1.peach,apple,any kind of berries,pineapple and cherries can also be used for the cake with little variations the recipes of which i will post

later.Also the quantities are dynamic for sugar.
2.People who try this can also try this recipe of mine

[jassheela]

Ingredients

Honey - ½ cup
Hot water - ½ cup
Butter - 2 tbsp
Maida - 1 cup
1 tbsp - fine semolina
Baking powder - 1 ½ tsp
Powdered sugar - 1/3 cup
Chopped dates - ½ cup
Raisins - ½ cup
Cashew nuts, chopped - ½ cup
Mixed spice powder (cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg) - 1 tsp

Method

1.Mix together honey, hot water and butter and stir till butter is melted.

2.Allow the mixture to cool  completely

3.Mix together Maida, semolina and baking powder and add to the honey mixture followed by  dates, raisins and cashew nuts.

4.Mix and pour in a greased microwave cake dish.

5.Cook on medium Hi (70% power) for 5 minutes.

6.Then Cook on Hi (full power) for 1 to 2 minutes if needed

[jassheela]

Ingredients
2 cups Wheat Flour
1 and 1/2 cup Powdered Sugar
2 tbsp Milk powder
2 tbsp Cocoa Powder
4-5 medium-sized chocolate chip cookies
1/2-1 tsp Baking Soda
1 and 1/2 cup Milk
1/2 cup White Unsalted Butter (you can use regular yellow butter too if you don't mind the salt) 1 tsp Vanilla Essence
1/2 cup grated semi-sweet chocolate

Method
Take a bowl and mix half of the milk, butter and essence properly. Seive the wheat flour, sugar, milk powder,cocoa powder and baking soda. Now add this to

the milk and butter mixture and beat properly in one direction. Whisk continuously for 5-7 mins till the mixture starts to fold and form peaks. If it's too

thick, add the reamaining of the milk slowly while stirring till desired consistency is achieved. Take a microwaveable dish and grease it with oil or non-

stick spray. Dust it with some flour and pour the mixture into it. Bake in the microwave oven for about 8 mins, or until done. You can test this by inserting

a toothpick in the center of the cake and see that it comes out clean. Remove from the microwave, let it cool for some time. Meanwhile, crush the cookies in

a grinder. Then garnish the cake with the crushed chocolate chip cookies and the fresh shredded chocolate. You can also use dessicated coconut shavings. They

go well with chocolate too.

There, in less than 15 mins, your delicious (eggless) sponge cake is ready.

[jassheela]

Ingredients
 
1 cup condensed milk
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp soda bi-carb
2 tsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
 
Method
1. Sieve the flour, baking powder and soda bi-carbb.
2. Mix the flour mixture, condensed milk, melted butter, essence, water and beat it well.
3. Pour the mixture into a greased and dusted tin.
4. Bake 400 F for 10 mins. Then reduce the tempreture to 300 F and bake another 10 mins. After 10 mins check the cake.

[jassheela]

Ingredients

Raisins - 1 cup
Water - 2 cups
Butter - 1 /2 cup
Flour - 1 3/4 cups
Soda - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1 cup
Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
Nutmeg - 1/2 tsp
Nuts - 1 cup

Method

1.Boil raisins in water for 10 minutes

2.Add butter and allow it to cool

3.Add the remaining ingredients and mix well

4.Bake  in  a greased 10 x 10 inxh pan for 35 minutes at 350 degrees

[jassheela]

2 c. self-rising flour
2 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 c. Wesson oil
3 eggs
2 jars baby food plums with tapioca
1 c. chopped pecans

Beat eggs, add oil, plums and sugar, mixing together thoroughly. Sift all dry ingredients together and add to liquid; mix well. Add pecans. Bake in greased

bundt pan 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees.

PLUM CAKE ICING:

1 c. sugar
1/2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 tbsp. white syrup
1/2 tsp. soda

Fifteen minutes before cake is done, mix all ingredients and cook for 15 minutes. Pour over cake while in pan and let cool in pan.

[jassheela]

Ingredients

Topping:
1 cup of firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 can (20 oz) of pineapple slices

Cake:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
6 Tbsp cake flour
6 Tbsp of ground almonds (from about 2 oz of whole almonds)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups of sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
4 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup sour cream
Method

1 Start by making the caramel topping. Take brown sugar and butter and combine and melt in a saucepan on medium heat until sugar dissolves and the mixture is

bubbly, this should take several minutes. Pour mixture into a 10 inch diameter stick-free cake pan with 2 inch high sides. Arrange pineapple slices in a

single layer ontop of the caramel mixture.

2 Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Whisk the flours, almonds, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to beat

the sugar and butter together until light. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add dry ingredients alternately with

sour cream in 2 additions each, beating well after each addition. Pour cake batter over caramel and pineapple in pan.

3 Bake cake until tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake

out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 12 to 14 servings

[jassheela]

1 (18 1/4 ounce) package chocolate cake mix
1 (12 ounce) can coconut pecan frosting
3/4 cup vegetable oil
7 egg whites
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup butter or 3/4 cup margarine, melted
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup water
2 (12 ounce) cans vanilla frosting
8 maraschino cherries
Directions:

1. This recipe is simple, it just takes a lot of ingredients and mixing/sitting around time to complete. Pop in a movie while making the cake to help pass the time.
2. This recipe can easily be made for those who do not consume dairy by making sure the frosting and cake mix you use do not contain dairy. Which is easily

done, I being dairy intolerant myself.
3. And lastly, this cake is for fun. It is for the nerd in all of us that just wants to sit down with a bunch of friends, and eat. This cake is perfect for

that. Heck, you could all bring food and call it a Lies and Deceit Pot Luck, and LAN your way through the meal!
4. Warning to the wise: this cake is VERY rich. Don't cut it into eight slices, cut it into sixteen. Regular sized slices will just make people sick to their

stomachs because of how rich this cake is. So do eat carefully.
5. The night before, mix 2/3c cocoa powder with 1.5 cans of vanilla frosting. Save the remaining half can of vanilla frosting for later.
6. Next day: remove mixed frosting and vanilla frosting from the fridge and set to the side. Also place the cherries and chocolate chips to the side. They will not be used until the cake is completely done.
7. Pre-heat over to 375 degrees F.
8. Lightly butter two 9 inch cake pans.
9. In one bowl combine all remaining dry ingredients.
10. In larger bowl, combine all liquid ingredients and egg whites. Mix thoroughly.
11. Slowly sift dry ingredients into the large bowl of liquid ingredients. Mix thoroughly.
12. Pour half of the batter into one prepared cake pan, and the rest into the second cake pan.
13. Cook for 30+ minutes, until a knife can be removed cleanly from the cake.
14. When done cooking, allow the cake to cool for at least one hour.
15. Remove top quarter inch from one cake round. Basically, let it have a completely flat top so that the second layer can rest smoothly on top. I suggest using a bread knife.
16. Use the coconut frosting as the inner layer.
17. Place second layer on top of first layer.
18. Frost with the cocoa powder mixed frosting. Warning: this stuff is stiff, so it takes a little work.
19. Coat entire cake with chocolate chips, press them lightly into the frosting to get them to stay. The recipe suggests one cup, I would suggest just taking

from the bag. Measurements are just suggestions for chocolate chips.
20. Using the remaining vanilla frosting and a tablespoon, dallop eight circles around the top of the cake.
21. Place the eight cherries on top of the eight vanilla frosting circles.
22. Treat your friends to a meal of Lies and Deceit.