DORSET APPLE CAKE

Hello Everyone,

We are having some dreadful weather here in England .....it has been raining "cats and dogs" all weekend,  so I am going to cheer myself up.

 

 I've put on my apron, switched on the oven, gathered my ingredients and I'm ready to bake.

BUT BEFORE WE START BAKING I promised I would share with you the photo of Ivy's Radiation New World Cooker, and here it is,

Ivy was a champion baker, who won awards for her baking and she achieved her success with this little cooker..... wasn't she amazing! What sort of cooker did your grandmother use, I would love to hear your stories.

Now to the main event,

DORSET APPLE CAKE

THE RECIPE

8 oz (225g) Cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped

8 oz (225g) sultanas (optional)

1/4 pint  (150 ml) of milk (of your choice I used semi-skimmed)

6 oz (175g) soft brown sugar

12 oz (350g) plain flour

2 level teaspoons baking powder

2 level teaspoons mixed spice

6 oz (175g) butter (melted)

1 large egg (at room temperature), beaten

1 oz (25g) demerara sugar

METHOD

Pre-heat oven 170c/325f/Gas Mark 3

Butter and line the base of an 8 inch (20cm) round cake tin with greaseproof paper

Mix together the chopped apples, sultanas, mixed spice, milk and sugar

Melt butter in a saucepan

In a separate bowl, sieve together the flour and baking powder

and pour in the melted butter.

Add the apple and sultana mixture

Add the beaten egg

Mix well until all the flour has been incorporated

Place into the buttered and lined cake tin

and spread evenly with a palette knife.

Sprinkle with 1 oz (25g) Demerara sugar

Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until risen and golden brown.

Check that the cake is cooked by inserting a skewer into the centre of the cake,

it should come out clean.

Leave the cake to cool for 15 minutes and carefully remove from the cake tin.

Place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Serve with whipped double cream

Like so,

MAKE YOURSELF A CUP OF COFFEE,

GO ON ..... CUT A SLICE,

AND ENJOY!

Let me know what you think of this cake, it would be lovely to hear from you.

NEXT WEEK:

I am going to share with you Ivy's recipe book, Phyllis' recipe book and my first cookery book.

There is such a difference in the look and style of the cookery books....you will see what I mean next week.

So until then, have a fabulous week and I will catch up with you next Sunday.... HAPPY BAKING.

Best Wishes,

Daphne xxx



IVY'S CHOCOLATE CREAM ROLL

Good Morning to you,

Here in England, Father's Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June,

WHICH IS TODAY!!

Sadly my father and father-in-law have passed on, but they are remembered, they  live in our hearts, not just today, but everyday.

I would like to wish 

a

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

to 

GEORGE

who has been the most wonderful father to our two daughters

and

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

to

ALL  FATHERS AROUND THE WORLD

HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY!!

IVY'S CHOCOLATE CREAM ROLL

As promised I have recreated Ivy's Chocolate Cream Roll from the 1940's Radiation Cookery Book (unfortunate name I know, but Radiation was the make of Ivy's gas cooker).  What an arm workout I had, not the usual placing of ingredients into a mixing bowl and turning on a switch....this was a real arm workout,

......and here it is!

THE RECIPE

The Sponge

2 large eggs

4 oz castor sugar

3 oz best white flour (plain)

1 tablespoon chocolate powder

1/2 teaspoonful vanilla  flavouring (essence)

1/4 teaspoonful baking powder

2 tablespoonfuls warm water

PLUS

1 very strong arm

and

lots of patience!

The Filling

3 oz butter or margarine (I used butter)

6 oz finely sifted icing sugar

Vanilla flavouring (I used vanilla essence)

METHOD

Pre-heat oven 220c/425f/Gas Mark 7

Line a 23cm x 30cm (9"x12") swiss roll tin with greaseproof paper

Brush with melted butter

1 damp cotton tea towel

Using a bowl and a whisk
(Yes a bowl and whisk...leave your KitchenAid's alone...hide if necessary!!)

Beat the eggs

 Add the sugar

  Placed the bowl over a large pan or bowl of hot water and whisk until the mixture is thick.

(I found this took about 15 minutes.... you have to do this until your arm nearly drops off!!

The benefit is  you have a great work out for your arms!)

Remove the bowl from the pan of hot water and continue beating until the mixture is cold.

(I found as the mixture cooled it became glossy....again, this took about 15 minutes... I placed the bowl onto a cold damp tea towel to stop the bowl moving around.  Also I tilted the base of the bowl when whisking to allow the air to circulate under the bowl to help cool the  mixture a little more quickly.)

Stir in the sifted flour, chocolate powder and baking powder; also the vanilla flavour (or essence) and warm water.

Fold gently 

Pour the mixture into the Swiss Roll tin and spread evenly.

Bake for 10 minutes

While the sponge mixture is baking,

place the butter and sugar into a  bowl and using a wooden spoon beat to a light cream.

Add the vanilla flavouring (extract)

Use a clean damp tea towel and place on your surface

Place a piece of sugared greaseproof paper on top of the tea towel.

(I placed a clean cotton tea towel into a bowl of  hot water and squeezed out as much water as I could.  I lay this on my board and put the greaseproof paper over the tea towel, then sprinkled sugar on top of the greaseproof paper.  Useful tip as the damp tea towel helps prevent the Swiss Roll from cracking.)

(This recipe did not mention cutting off the rough edges of the Swiss Roll, but I did as it made  the Swiss Roll look neater.)

Remove the paper from the sponge

(Invert the sponge onto the piece of sugared greaseproof paper,
carefully remove the first piece of greaseproof paper (the one which was buttered)
and place on the sugared greaseproof paper then roll up
(Yes, roll up whilst hot and without any filling ..... interesting!)

When cold, carefully unroll and spread with vanilla-flavoured butter icing.

(Now this was a little scary, but I found as long as the cake was cooled and using a knife, the cake unravels quite easily..... but be gentle!

Roll up neatly with the greaseproof paper and allow to stand for a few hours before cutting.

IF YOU CAN WAIT THAT LONG

AND HERE IT IS

MAKE YOURSELF A CUP OF COFFEE AND ENJOY

I hope you enjoy recreating Ivy's recipe as much as I did.

NEXT WEEK:

I thought you would be interested to see a photograph of the Radiation Cooker which Ivy used, I think you will be fascinated.

I am going to bake one of my favourite cakes, Dorset Apple Cake, this can be enjoyed hot with cream or custard or eaten cold with cream or eaten on it's own..mmmm.

Until then, have a fabulous week and I will catch up with you next Sunday....HAPPY BAKING.

                 Best Wishes,

                  Daphne xxx

A SCRUMMY SWISS ROLL

Hello Everyone,

I have a confession to make.....yes I love Swiss Roll....yes I have great memories of  Ivy and Phyllis' Swiss Rolls, but do you know, I have never made one before.  Isn't that strange. I have a great love of baking and baked numerous types of cakes, but not this one. 

It has been fun for me recreating their Swiss Roll and the "rolling" proved interesting!  I felt I should tell you that, so that you know that we are walking hand in hand as "newbie" Swiss Rollers!

....... and here it is!

I thought I should tell you, the Method is quite long winded, but I wanted to be sure that I had covered all the bases.

THE RECIPE

The Sponge

3 large eggs

75g (3oz) castor sugar

75g (3oz) plain flour, sifted

1 tbsp warm water

The Filling

75g (3oz) raspberry jam

125ml (4 1/2 fl oz) whipped double cream

100g (3 1/2 oz) raspberries

METHOD

Pre-heat oven 200c/400f/Gas Mark 6

Line a 23cm x 30 cm (9"x12") swiss roll tin with greaseproof paper

Brush with melted butter and dust with flour

Whisk the eggs and sugar in a bowl until the mixture thickens and turns a pale yellow.

The mixture trebles in volume and has a mousse like consistency.

I found this took about 10 minutes with an electric mixer.

Add 1 tbsp of warm water and fold in gently.

Fold in the sifted flour with a metal spoon.

 Pour the mixture into the Swiss Roll tin.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.

Checking to see if the sponge is light and springy and has shrunk a little from the sides.

Cut a second piece of greaseproof paper and sprinkle with sugar.

Invert the sponge onto the piece of sugared greaseproof paper and leave to cool for 10 minutes.

Carefully remove the first piece of greaseproof paper  (the one which was buttered and floured)

and leave the sponge to cool.

Whilst the sponge is cooling whip the double cream,

heat the raspberry jam until warm, this will make it easier to spread.

When the sponge is cooled, use a sharp knife and cut off  the rough edges of the sponge.

Spread the jam onto the sponge, leaving a small gap around the edges,

because the jam, cream and raspberries will fill these spaces when the sponge is rolled.

Spread the double cream as evenly as possible on top of the raspberry jam,

I found the "dolloping" method worked well, then spread with a spatula.

Add the raspberries, they will cut through the sweetness of the jam, then

with the shortest side of the sponge facing you, roll the sponge away from you, using the greaseproof paper to help you roll.  Roll up quickly and as tightly as possible.

Don't worry about any cracks appearing, I feel this adds to the quaintness of the Swiss Roll.

Carefully transfer to a plate and dust with icing sugar and decorate with more raspberries

AND

HEY PRESTO

YOU HAVE A SWISSS ROLL TO EAT AT YOUR LEISURE!

I hope you enjoy recreating this recipe. 

NEXT WEEK:

 I thought I would show you Ivy's version taken from a 1940's cookery book. Ivy beat her eggs and sugar over a large pan of boiling water to thicken the mixture..... it was much more laborious. Weren't our grandmother's and mother's amazing. They didn't have the "electric gizmoes" which we have nowadays, but were able to bake beautiful cakes ..... but more of that next week.

Have a fabulous week and I will catch up with you next Sunday.....HAPPY BAKING.

Best Wishes,

Daphne xx

AN "OH SO" EXCITING DAY ~ DAPHNE'S FIRST POST

Good Morning to you,

Today, on the 3rd June 2012, Ivy, Phyllis and Me! was born. With nervousness, I pressed the Publish key and waited patiently, in the hope, that someone would find my first post interesting.  

I never imagined that 6 years later I would have enjoyed over 270,000 page views. Thank you dear friends, for taking the time, to read and enjoy the words I have written. It is truly appreciated, as to be honest when I had written my first post, I thought that would be that.... but you proved me wrong, to which I am truly grateful.

So on the 6th anniversary of Ivy, Phyllis and Me! I thought it would be fun, to read once again, the very first post which started my friendship with you.

I hope you enjoying reading my words, as much as I enjoyed writing the words.... even though, I freely admit, I was a little nervous.

Enjoy.

With Warmest wishes to you.

Welcome,

Today is the first day of my blog.  Am I nervous.....yes, is my stomach churning..... yes, am I worried that no one will read my blog.... yes, BUT, there is an underlying feeling of great excitement!

Who would of thought this day would actually arrive. I have made this excuse and that excuse, actually, every excuse under the sun not to begin, but I had decided, today was the day I would begin my blog. I even told my daughter, to make sure I followed through, but do you know this morning I started to sidetrack, the sun came out and I decided it was more important to plant the last of my summer bulbs, I could have gone on and on finding other things I really must do, but decided enough was enough and that I really had to take myself to task. I made myself a cup of coffee, sat down, opened my computer, and here I am writing my first post! As I write I am feeling more and more excited, so I hope you will enjoy reading my offerings!

Let me introduce you to my late Grandmother Ivy (known as Nanny to the grandchildren), she was a huge influence in my life.  She was a keen cook and baker and a superb knitter. Sadly she passed away many years ago, but her influence remains. That little cutie in the photo is me....oh such a long time ago!

.....and this is my Mother Phyllis as a young mother.  She cooked and baked for us as children, one of the most memorable cakes was a Swiss Roll.  When the sponge cake was cooked and cooled, I was fascinated watching her spread the jam onto the sponge cake, then using baking parchment, she would roll the sponge cake and finally dust with icing sugar ..... delicious!

So with the thought of that mouthwatering cake in your mind, I will leave you and look forward to chatting to you next Sunday, when I will be showing you how to bake that delicious swiss roll.....don't forget your cup of coffee!

                                     Best Wishes from your new friend,

                                   Daphne xxx