Vegan Blackberry And Gin Cake Food

VEGAN BLACKBERRY AND GIN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 160C fan/180C/350F.
• Grease and line three 26cm/10inch cake tins, such as the Pyrex Magic spring form.
• In a large mixing bowl sift the self-raising flour and baking powder, mix with a wooden spoon. Add the caster sugar and mix again to combine.
• Measure the almond milk and oil and add to the bowl along with the vanilla essence. Mix until just combined, but no not over mix.
• Carefully add the blackberries and gently mix until evenly distributed.Divide mixture between cake tins and gently tap them on the work surface to release any air bubbles.
• Place in the oven for 35-40 minutes until turning a light golden colour on top. Whilst they are baking, make your gin syrup.
• Place the sugar, water and lemon juice in a saucepan on medium heat. Let simmer for 5-10 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and it has thickened to a syrup consistency. Pour into a small Pyrex jug then add the gin.
• Check the sponges. Place a skewer in the middle of each sponge, if it comes out clean then it's done. If not, leave in for a few minutes longer.
• Remove from the oven and place on cooling racks. Leave them to cool in their tins for 10 minutes first.
• Whilst they are still warm and, in their tins, make lots of holes in the top of the sponges.
• Brush over the gin syrup mixture evenly over each sponge, allowing it to soak in.
• Leave the sponges to cool completely and make your frosting. Whip the vegan butter with an electric whisk, adding the icing sugar a cupful at a time. It should be thick and fluffy. Place in the fridge until you are ready to frost the sponges.
• Make the blackberry jam. Place the blackberries and sugar in a small saucepan on medium heat for around 10 minutes. Once thickened, take off the heat and strain the jam through a sieve so you are left with just a liquid. Don't throw away the jam.
• Level each cake with a cake leveller or serrated knife so they are all flat. Place one sponge on a cake board with a little buttercream to keep in place.
• Spread ¼ of the buttercream on top and swirl in some of the jam. Repeat with the next sponge and then place the final sponge on top. Use a cake lifter if you have one to make sure you are placing them evenly on top.
• Cover all three sponges generously in buttercream. To get the naked frosting look, use a palette knife vertically to scrape the buttercream so you are getting rid of excess buttercream. You will start to get the naked icing effect like the pictures. Continue all the way round, scraping excess buttercream into a separate bowl.
• Place 4-5 cake dowels in the cake to keep it sturdy. Using a teaspoon, place dabs of the liquid from the blackberry jam all over the buttercream. Then using your palette knife as before, carefully scrape over the tops and sides till you get a pretty effect like in the photos.
• Top with some fresh blackberries and flowers. If they are not edible, make sure you rinse, dry and then wrap the stems in cling film before placing on the cake. Then remove before cutting into the cake.
• Serve and enjoy! Will keep in an air tight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.

BLACKBERRY GIN

Steps:

• Tip the blackberries and sugar into a 1.5-litre sterilised jar. Pour over the gin, seal the jar and swirl around to dissolve the sugar. Store in a cool, dark place and turn the jar once a day for the first week.
• After two-three weeks, strain the gin through a sieve. Pour the gin into bottles, and label. The gin will keep its colour for a few months and will be drinkable for up to a year. Use the infused blackberries in a cocktail like a bramble, or in a trifle.

GIN & TONIC CAKE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4. Greese and line 2 x 20cm cake tins. In a freestanding electric mixer, or using an electric whisk, beat together the butter and 200g of the sugar until pale and fluffy, for around 5 mins. Add the eggs one by one, making sure they are fully incorporated before adding the next one. If the mixture looks like it might split, add a tablespoon of your flour, then fold in the rest of the flour. Mix the natural yogurt with the juice of one of the limes and 50ml of the gin, then add this to the cake mixture to make a thick and silky mixture. Split the mixture between the cake tins and bake for 35 mins until a skewer comes out clean.
• Meanwhile, make the syrup. Put the remaining sugar, tonic water, juniper berries and juice of one lime into a saucepan over medium heat. Once the sugar has dissolved, bring to the boil and cook for 5-7 mins, until it's a thick syrup. Cool for 5 mins, strain then pour in the remaining gin and set aside.
• Once the cake is out of the oven, allow to cool for 5 mins, then prick all over with a skewer, then liberally spoon the syrup mix over both of the cakes. Allow to cool completely in the tin.
• To make the buttercream, beat the butter until soft, then add the icing sugar, a little at a time to avoid a sugar cloud! Once fully incorporated, add the milk and the zest of the limes.
• To assemble, place one of the cake layers on a cake board, cover with 1/3 of the buttercream then sit the second cake layer on top. Cover this, too, in just a thin coat of icing then put the cake in the fridge for 30 mins to firm up - this will make it easier to get the rest of the icing on smoothly. Use the remaining buttercream to cover the top and sides of the cake.
• To decorate, mix the lime zest with the sugar. Sprinkle this over the cake and finish with lemon sherbets, lime slices, cucumber ribbons, party straws and any other gin & tonic paraphernalia you fancy.

VEGAN BLACKBERRY CAKE

Steps:

• Place the blackberries into a medium-sized saucepan and sprinkle over the sugar, cornflour / cornstarch and lemon juice.
• Place on top onto the hob over a medium to high heat and bring to the boil. This will take around 5-8 minutes. Keep stirring with a heatproof spatula or wooden spoon to prevent the mixture from sticking and burning. It will start to turn thick. Once thick, remove from the heat and allow to cool before using. As it cools, it will thicken up even more and turn into a jellified sauce.
• Store in a sealed container in the fridge until you're ready to use it. As the compote cools, it'll turn thick. If this happens, give it a vigorous whisk before using.
• Preheat your oven to 180 degrees c fan and line two, 6 inch loose base / push up cake tins with grease-proof paper. Set aside.
• In a bowl, combine the dairy-free milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined. Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan 'buttermilk'.
• In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Mix well to combine.
• Add the oil and lemon zest into the 'buttermilk' and whisk to combine.
• Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix.
• Pour equal amounts of batter into the lined cake tins (it should be around 350g of batter in each tin). Make sure to tap the tins on the worktop to remove any air bubbles.
• Add some of the blackberry compote (approximately 2 teaspoons into each batter), and swirl around the a knife. Don't add too much compote, as this can effect the texture of the cake.
• Pop the cakes into the centre of the preheated oven and bake for around 25-30 minutes. You will know they are done when you put a knife or skewer in and it comes out clean and they are springy to the touch. As the cakes have the compote, they might be sticker than usual when first out of the oven.
• Place the cakes on a cooling rack and allow to cool fully. Once cool, pop them into a sealed container to keep them fresh before frosting.
• In a large mixing bowl, add in the dairy-free butter and cream cheese, whip until creamy. I use a stand mixer with a balloon whisk attachment, a hand mixer will work great too.
• Sift in the icing sugar and add in 2 tablespoons of blackberry compote, whip on high speed for a couple of minutes to incorporate it.
• Pour in the aquafaba and whip for 5 minutes until it turns light and creamy. Don't over whip it or it can become too soft. If it does, just add in more icing sugar until it's thick and creamy. The buttercream should be airy and light. You might need to add in some more butter to get it to the right consistency. Tip- If the buttercream ever looks like it's splitting, add chunk's more butter at a time while its still whipping on medium / high speed. It'll come back together within a minute or two.
• Stack and fill the cakes with some buttercream and compote (watch how i decorate this cake here).
• Place the second cake layer on top. Press it down gently so it sticks.
• Crumb coat the whole cake with a little buttercream, then place into the freezer to firm up. This will take 3-5 minutes. You don't want to actually freeze the cake, just set the buttercream firm. This helps with ease at applying the final coat. If you'd like to learn 'how to ice cakes' and applying buttercream, make sure to pick up a copy of my book. It will really help you!!
• Apply a thick coat of buttercream all around the top and sides of the cake. Use a cake scraper or pallet knife to make it smooth.
• Make decorative lines in the.buttercream using an small off set spatula (watch me do this step here).
• Transfer any left over buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a star tip nozzle (I use a Wilton 2D), and pipe a decorative swirl along the top edge of the cake.
• Cut some fresh blackberries in half and stick them scattered around all over the sides of the cake. Finish with a mint leaf for decoration (optional). Check out the photos on this post for reference.