Winter Spice Cake With Chocolate Trees Food

SPICE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Grease an 8x8-inch pan.
• In a large bowl sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl whisk eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until well combined for about a minute. Add oil and whisk until combined. Add applesauce, buttermilk, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Pour the mixture into the flour mixture and mix as little as possible, just until combined and smooth.
• Pour the batter into prepared pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow cake to cool completely.
• Make the frosting: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1-2 minutes. Add 1 cup powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt, and beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then on high speed for 1-2 minutes until smooth and fluffy. If you want a thicker frosting, add 1/2 cup more powdered sugar. Frost cake with the frosting.
• Store cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Cake is best served at room temperature.

WINTER SPICE CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE TREES

Steps:

• MAKE THE CAKE Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Oil and line the base and sides of three 20cm cake tins with baking parchment - if your cake tins are quite shallow, line the sides to a depth of at least 5cm.
• Mix the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, sugar, mixed spice and salt in a bowl.
• Whisk the buttermilk, oil, vanilla extract and 75ml water with the eggs until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until well combined. Scoop about a third of the cake mixture into a tin. If using, mix the food colouring into the remaining batter and divide this between the other tins. Bake for 25-30 mins, or until the cakes have risen and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
• Cool in the tins for 10 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack, peel off the parchment and cool. The sponges will keep, wrapped tightly in cling film, for three days, or wrap and freeze for up to two months.
• NOW MAKE THE ICING Beat the butter with half the icing sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add the remaining icing sugar and the cream cheese, and beat again until combined - don't overmix or the icing may become runny.
• NEXT, ASSEMBLE THE CAKE Put one of the red sponges on a cake stand or cake board, sticking it down with a small blob of icing. Sandwich with the gold sponge, being generous with the icing. Top with more icing and the final red sponge, flat-side up. When assembled, use a palette knife to cover the entire cake with a thin layer of the icing, filling any gaps between sponges, but don't worry about completely covering the sponges at this stage. This is called a crumb coat and ensures that your final layer is crumb-free. Make space in the fridge and chill for 30 mins to allow the icing to firm up.
• MAKE THE CHOCOLATE TREES Melt the white chocolate in the microwave, or in a small bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir in a spot of green food colouring gel if you want to make them green. Transfer to a piping bag and leave to firm up for a few mins (this will make the trees thicker). Line a baking sheet with parchment.
• Snip off the end of the piping bag and quickly pipe the chocolate backwards and forwards in thin lines to create little Christmas trees (ours were 7-10cm tall).
• Decorate with sprinkles and chill until you're ready to decorate the cake.
• ICE THE CAKE Once the crumb coat is chilled, use the remaining icing to completely cover the cake. This is easiest if you pile the icing on top of the cake, then use a palette knife to ease it over the edge and down the sides. You can make it as smooth or as rough as you like. Chill for another 30 mins.
• Meanwhile, for the chocolate drip, melt the white chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of lightly simmering water or in the microwave in short bursts. Pour into a disposable piping bag and set aside to firm up a little - you want it to be pourable but not too runny.
• Remove the cake from the fridge. If you like, you can use an edible gold spray to cover the surface in a thin layer of shimmer. When the white chocolate is the correct consistency, snip off the end of the piping bag and pipe drizzles down the side of the cake. Fill in the top with the remaining chocolate. Push them into the white chocolate topping before it sets.

BROWN BUTTER CAKE WITH SPICED CHOCOLATE GANACHE AND DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• For the cake: Melt the butter in a large shallow saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter starts to brown and smell nutty, 10 to 12 minutes. Scrape the butter and all the browned bits into a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over an ice bath to solidify and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch cake pans with the 1 tablespoon butter (or spray with nonstick cooking spray) and then lightly dust with flour.
• Whisk together the 3 3/4 cups flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl until well combined, then set the flour mixture aside.
• When the brown butter has solidified, scrape it into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat on high speed until very light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and reduce the speed to medium, then add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping the bottom of the bowl to be sure everything is well mixed.
• Add the sour cream and vanilla and beat just until well mixed, scraping down the bowl again. Add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk, beating just until incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and give the batter a couple of folds with a spatula, scraping the bottom to ensure everything is evenly mixed.
• Divide the batter among the three prepared cake pans and bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean with some moist crumbs sticking to it, about 25 minutes. Place the pans on a wire rack until cool enough to handle, then invert them onto the rack and unmold the cakes. Carefully turn the cakes right-side up and let cool completely on the rack.
• For the assembly: Look at your cake layers. If any of them have a dome in the center, cut it off with a serrated knife so the entire top is flat. Place one cake layer on a cake plate or cardboard cake round. Spread vanilla frosting around the outside of one layer and then frost a 1-inch band around the top. Evenly spread half the dulce de leche in the center of the layer until you reach the 1-inch band and then sprinkle with half the sea salt. Add another cake layer and repeat with the frosting and remaining dulce de leche and sea salt. Add the last cake layer and frost the entire cake with a smooth and even layer of frosting. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes until the frosting is set and cold.
• Remove the cake from the refrigerator and place it on a serving plate or cake stand. Using a spoon, create drips with ganache around the outside of the cake from the top edge. Pour the remaining ganache in the center of the cake and spread it with an offset spatula to cover the top. Let the ganache set completely before serving.
• Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Stir together the cream, cinnamon, vanilla and chili powder in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat until it just begins to bubble around the edges, then pour it over the chocolate and let sit for about 10 seconds. Stir until smooth and shiny. Let the ganache sit until it has cooled and thickened slightly, about 5 minutes.

SPICE CAKE WITH CARDAMOM-COFFEE ICING

Steps:

• To make the cake:
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Sift dry ingredients.
• In a large bowl, cream butter & sugars; add eggs one at a time; then vanilla, mixing until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes).
• Beat in dry ingredients alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
• Beat until just smooth, about a minute.
• Pour into two 8-inch (or a 13x9) greased and floured pans. Bake for about 30-35 minutes for layers, 35-40 minutes for 13X9 cake, or until cake tester is removed clean.
• Remove from oven and cool on racks about 10 minutes. Remove from pans and finish cooling on racks.
• To make the icing:
• Heat milk and dissolve espresso powder in it, then allow it to cool.
• Beat together remaining ingredients, add coffee mixture and continue beating until fluffy.
• Ice cake when cool.

CHOCOLATE SPICE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a six-cup Bundt pan, and set aside. Place the grated ginger, water, cranberries, and raisins in a small saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook until the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground ginger. Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture and sour cream in alternate small batches, starting and ending with the flour mixture; beat just until combined. Fold in dried fruit mixture.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into center comes out clean. Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack, and let cake cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Invert the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely.
• Place cake on a cake plate or serving platter, and tuck pieces of waxed paper under the edges of the cake to keep the plate clean. Apply a thick coating of chocolate fudge frosting to cake, using a small offset or rubber spatula. Remove waxed paper before serving.