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3 amazingly easy cake recipes to try this weekend
While there is no contesting a classic chocolate, here are some alternative recipes to soothe your dessert cravings and expand your baking skills
“If eating cake is wrong, I don't want to be right,” said Lorelei Gilmore in Gilmore Girls and it's a motto we are willing to own. Sometimes, cake is all you need after a long day and with the quarantine turning most us into avid chefs and bakers, some recipes that let you hone your new skills and that afternoon tea are always welcome. Self-taught culinary genius Shivesh Bhatia's second cookbook, Desserts For Every Mood features 100 recipes from his repertoire for home bakers. On the eve of the release, he shares three of them with us, which are quick, easy, and perfect for weekend baking.
1. Recipe: Eggless mango cake with cream cheese frosting
“I love eating and baking with mangoes, and if there’s one cake I could eat all summer, it would be this one! Moist, fluffy and bursting with flavour! When it comes to frostings, there are several options, but my personal favourite is cream cheese frosting. From sheet cakes to cupcakes, I can frost anything and everything with it.”
Ingredients for the cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup caster sugar
1 cup mango puree
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup milk
Ingredients for the topping:
1 cup cubed mangoes
½ cup freeze-dried raspberries
1 cup cream cheese frosting
Ingredients for cream cheese frosting:
1 cup cream cheese
½ cup butter
Beans from half a vanilla pod, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups icing sugar, sifted
Method for the cake:
1
Preheat the oven to 180° celsius. Line a nine-inch round cake pan with parchment paper.
2
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and baking soda, and set aside.
3
In another bowl, beat together the oil and sugar until the mixture is pale. Add the mango puree and vanilla to the oil and sugar mixture. Mix together and combine everything.
4
Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in three batches, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and alternating with the milk. Do not over mix.
5
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 40–45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
6
Allow the cake to cool on a wire rack.
7
Un-mould the cooled cake, top with the cream cheese frosting and decorate with cubed mangoes and freeze-dried raspberries.
Method for cream cheese frosting:
1
In a bowl, beat the cream cheese with the butter until it is light and fluffy. Make sure the butter and cream cheese are well-incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Add the vanilla beans or the extract.
2
With the mixer still running, add the icing sugar in batches. It is necessary to sift the icing sugar as it may contain lumps.
3
Beat the frosting until it is smooth and fluffy.
4
This recipe makes one cup of frosting.
2. Recipe: Mini lemon chiffon cakes
“I love chiffon cakes! The addition of lemon in this recipe gives the perfect zing to these light and airy confections.”
Ingredients for the cake:
4 eggs, separated
¾ cup caster sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon zest
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 cup meringue frosting
Method:
1
Preheat the oven to 170° celsius. Generously grease a six-cupcake pan with oil.
2
In a bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed until they become foamy. While the mixer is still running, gradually add ¼ cup sugar. Keep beating until the egg whites form stiff peaks.
3
In another bowl, combine ½ cup sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the egg yolks, lemon juice and vegetable oil. Mix with a spatula until everything is combined.
4
Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the mixture in batches. Be careful not to mix vigorously and knock out the air.
5
Transfer the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20–25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
6
Once the cakes have cooled, pipe the meringue frosting on top and toast it using a kitchen torch.
3. Recipe: Vanilla cake with blueberry compote
“Whether you’re hosting an elegant dinner party or simply want to finish your weekend family lunch with an easy dessert, this layered vanilla cake with blueberry compote is sure to hit the sweet spot!”
Ingredients for the cake:
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup vegetable oil
1½ cups caster sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1½ cups Greek yogurt
½ cup milk
Ingredients for blueberry compote:
3 tablespoons cornflour
6 tablespoons water
1 cup frozen blueberries
½ cup sugar
Ingredients for cream cheese frosting:
1 cup cream cheese
½ cup butter
Beans from half a vanilla pod, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups icing sugar, sifted
Method for blueberry compote:
1
In a small bowl, dissolve the cornflour in water to make a paste. Set aside.
2
In a saucepan set over medium heat, cook the frozen blueberries with the sugar until they become slightly tender. Add the cornflour paste to the blueberries and let the mixture come to a boil and thicken. This may take a few minutes.
3
Take the compote off the heat and allow it to cool before using.
4
This recipe makes 1 cup of compote. It can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Method for cream cheese frosting:
1
In a bowl, beat the cream cheese with the butter until it is light and fluffy. Make sure the butter and cream cheese are well-incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Add the vanilla beans or the extract.
2
With the mixer still running, add the icing sugar in batches. It is necessary to sift the icing sugar as it may contain lumps.
3
Beat the frosting until it is smooth and fluffy.
4
This recipe makes one cup of frosting.
Method for the cake:
1
Preheat oven to 180° celsius. Line three six-inch round pans with parchment paper.
2
In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda.
3
In another bowl, beat together the oil and sugar until the mixture is pale and light. Beat in the vanilla extract and yogurt.
4
Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two batches, alternating with the milk. Mix until everything is just combined and no large flour pockets are visible. Do not over mix.
5
Divide the batter equally between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 30–35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
6
Allow the cakes to cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.
7
Generously top a layer of cake with a dollop of cream cheese frosting and spread some blueberry compote over it. Place another cake layer on top of it and repeat the process until all the layers are done. Decorate with fresh blueberries and edible flowers.
Shivesh Bhatia's cookbook, Dessert For Every Mood will be coming out soon
Also read:
5 mood-boosting recipes that you need to try if you're feeling low during the lockdown
2 healthy desserts that you can make in under 20 minutes at home
5 easy-to-make vegan smoothie recipes to try during quarantine
