A Visit From The Caked Crusader

   Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!

   I had a visit from the Caked Crusader!!!!

My hero and her sidekick

   Well, okay. She did not visit this blog. This blog is not yet open to visitors. She visited The World We Live In and commented on my fudge pie entry. Even though I felt rather embarrassed because my photos are not as great as the ones in her blog, and my 'products' are definitely amateurish and so kindergarten-ish compared to her professor-like cakes, I was delighted. Delighted. Truly.

   The Caked Crusader is one of my most (note the 'most') favourite food blogs, apart from A2K, Tinned Tomatoes and many more besides. I don't remember how I came to stumble upon her site, but I fell in love with it the moment I did. Why?

   Well, to start she is a TRUE lover of cakes. While I love cakes, I'm afraid there are many things that I've done during my baking sessions that the CC would probably have been horrified about. She has this list of ten commandments about baking or cakes, which is funny and a must-read. I confess. I've probably broken more than half of them.

   But what I truly love about her cakes is how homey they look. They're so unpretentious and next-neighbour-ly. I don't suppose you'd understand, but whenever I look at most food blogs I feel so inferior and small because the pictures are so lovely and too good to be true. I love looking at  good pictures, but it makes me feel like I could never attempt any of the recipes.

   However, CC's blog is different. Looking at them , I feel like I have some small hope of trying to produce some of the cakes or other stuff she makes. I don't mean her cakes aren't beautiful or that her photos aren't pretty. What I mean is that she doesn't dress her cakes up too much with fondant and whatever things that always leave me wondering whether they're edible. 

   I'm getting sillier and sillier. But I have to go on. Another blog I like is Whisk Kid, but her amazing photos leave me wondering whether I could even call myself a baker. They're like superstars that you see on tv. But CC's cakes are like friends. And let me say that in matters of life and death, between celebrities and friends, I'd choose friends. [Is eating cake considered a life-and-death issue? Haha) I still really like Whisk Kid's blog, though. 

      I think I've probably gone through nearly all of CC's entries. (That says a lot, in case you don't know. Not all blogs get that honour from me). It was lovely to just sit and stare at the photos, read the ingredients and the instructions and just... fall in love. Here are links to some of the recipes that I hope to, one day, be able to make.

   1. Charlotte Royale
       (I think I made a version of this years ago, using a Chef Wan recipe. The bavarian cream was chocolate flavoured, I think)

   2. Jam Roly Poly Bread and Butter Pudding
       (I cried of happiness as I read through the recipe. Well, no. I didn't but I remember feeling extremely happy)

   3. Vanilla Custard Tart
       (If I ever succeeded in making this, I will definitely cry of happiness. If I don't, I'll just eat and glow inwardly at my success)

   Looking at list, I suddenly realise that I'm a little too ambitious, but oh well. My friend's Mum once said, aim for the stars because if you can't get to the stars, you still have a chance of landing on the moon!

   Below is the second recipe that I've attempted from The Caked Crusader! I hope I haven't broken too many rules. If I have, do accept my apologies, I hope to do better next time!

[I'll post about my first attempt on a recipe from TCC in another entry]

****************************************************

Ramblings on the Recipe

The only decent photo I managed to take of the cake

   This is my first ever attempt at making a two-layered cake out of two cakes. What I mean is that before this, I'd just take a cake and cut it in half, before sandwiching the two pieces together with chocolate. I've always admired how tall CC's cakes are. 

   One problem that I have is that we don't have a lot of cake tins. Most of them are battered and well-used, but I was determined to try making this cake anyway. As I only had one 20cm cake tin, I had to bake the first cake first, wait for it to cool, then take it out of the tin and bake the second cake. By the time I'd put the second cake in I was both physically and mentally exhausted! I also happened to be fasting that day and I didn't have my sahur (which is an early meal that Muslims have in order to prepare for fasting, if you don't know) which explains my exhaustion a bit.

   I took the recipe for the sponge cake here and adapted the recipe for the buttercream from here. The buttercream and jam looked so divine together in this picture and I just had to make the same thing. I also reduced the amount sugar (this will soon become a habit, it seems) but the final product is still sweet enough to please my Dad, which means that it was very sweet. Hehe.

****************************************************

The Recipe


Victoria Sponge Cake


[click HERE for original cake recipe]
[click HERE for original buttercream recipe]


Ingredients:


Cake:
250g unsalted butter at room temperature
200g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
4 eggs
80ml milk
300g raising flour


Buttercream:
75g butter
100g castor sugar


Jam:
aSteffi's Choice Blueberry Jam
(certified Halal by the Halal Food Council, South East Asia)
'as much as you need'




Method:


1. Preheat oven to 180C ( i had mine at 170C).


2. Line the base of the pan using baking paper. Dab some butter on the pan so that the baking paper will stick to the bottom.


3. Make the cake: 
-Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
-Beat in the eggs. 
(CC advises adding a little flour if the eggs start to curdle, but it didn't happen so I didn't do it)
-Beat in the milk.
-Stir in the flour until mixture is well mixed and smooth.
-Pour into prepared tin (or tins if you have two). The batter is quite thick so you might want to smooth the top a bit, but don't worry it'll level down once it starts to cook in the oven.
-Bake for about 30 minutes. Test cake using a skewer or toothpick. You know the drill.
-Leave to cool.


4. Make the buttercream
Cream butter until light and fluffy
Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy


5. Assemble cake
-Spread buttercream on top of one cake. Leave about two tbsp for decoration.
-Spread as much jam as you like on top of the buttercream.
-Place the second sponge on top of the first one.
-Spread the rest of the buttercream on top of the cake, in the centre.
-Dab some jam on top of the buttercream.

****************************************************

The Episode of TRUTH

Truth Number 1:

   We didn't have raising flour, so I used all-purpose flour. I searched on the internet and found that 1 cup of all-purpose flour plus 1 1/2 tsp baking powder could be substituted for 1 cup of raising flour> At first I tried to calculate the exact amount that I would need for 300g flour, but I got confused and finally just bunged in whatever amount I felt would work. Which is perhaps why both cakes cracked a little but not too much. 

Truth Number 2:

   The buttercream was a little grainy. I blitzed up the sugar using a blender but maybe I didn't beat the buttercream well enough. I also omitted the vanilla essence because it turned the buttercream a slightly murkish colour which I didn't like.

   

Truth Number 3:

   I violated one of CC's Ten Commandments- I used vanilla essence. However, I have reason for this, which I will explain in a special entry soon.

Truth Number 4:

   Lining your pan with baking paper helps a lot! I discovered a long time ago but only started putting the knowledge to use recently- I bought a roll at Tesco and love it.

****************************************************

Verdict:

   This is probably the prettiest cake I've ever made! Which I suppose means I've still a lot to do. I had fun doing it though. Mum thinks it's a little too sweet (because I sprinkled sugar on top) and so do I, but Dad and Abang loved it so that's okay! Adik gave the cake an 8! Good-oh!

   Thanks CC. You will continue to become an inspiration. I promise to continue drooling over your cakes. 

Yum!