Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake

I haven’t baked for a couple of weeks as we are busy refitting the kitchen.

Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake
Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake

However the new oven is all connected and our new hens have just started laying eggs so a cake was in order. I find that a lot of recipes for Lemon and Poppyseed Cakes turn out to be uninspiring loaf cakes. This recipe turns a run of the mill Lemon and Poppyseed Cake into an indulgent Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake!

But first a giggle – the recipe calls for 4 large eggs! Five of my girls lay medium eggs and one seems to lay enormous eggs. I picked two of the huge eggs and two medium ones thinking that would balance out to about 4 eggs. The first two huge eggs I cracked into the mixture were double yolkers! A fab surprise but not quite what I was looking for in my cake. I had enough yolk but probably not enough egg white, so I threw in one egg white and crossed my fingers. As you can see the cake worked out well, and is very yellow. My ladies are fairly free range and love a bit of corn every day so in turn we get very golden eggs!

Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake

Ingredients

Cake:
225g Stork
225g Self Raising Flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
100g Golden Caster Sugar
100g Light brown sugar
4 large eggs
zest of 2 lemons – finely grated
20g poppyseeds

Filling:
Half a jar of Lemon curd
75g softened butter
250g sifted icing sugar
splash of milk

Method

Heat the oven to 160c fan.
Grease an line 2 x 18cm cake tins.
Put all the cake ingredients into a bowl and mix until smooth and creamy.
Divide the mix evenly between the two tins and cake for 20-25 minutes.
Remove from the oven when baked and left in the tins for 5 minutes before turning out onto cooling racks.

Whilst the cakes are cooling make the buttercream filling. Put the butter and icing sugar in a bowl and mix together, slowly add a splash of milk until the butter cream is soft and creamy.

When the cakes are completely cooled cut each one in half with a sharp knife. A very sharp bread knife is good and cut lengthways through from edge to edge. You should now have four circular thin sponge cakes.
Pick one to be the bottom and place onto a plate. Cover the top of this one generously with lemon curd.
Next sandwich the next sponge slice on top of the lemon curd. Smother the top of this one with a generous helping of buttercream.
Nestle the next sponge slice on top of the buttercream and cover this slice generously with lemon curd as you did earlier.
Finally add the top layer and cover it with the rest of the buttercream.

 

There you have it Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake.

Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake
Lemon and Poppyseed Layer Cake

Bakewell Tart

I adore Bakewell Tart and go out of my way to hunt a good one down. My

Bakewell Tart
Bakewell Tart

absolute favourite outside of Bakewell itself is from Malton Relish. When Sophie, my good friend and owner of Malton Relish comes to visit she brings some up to Skye especially for us!

But as I am now so far away from my favourite Bakewell Tart I thought I had just better make my own. And as I am also and avid lover of marzipan, I supercharged the frangipani with some extra marzipan! So below is my version of Bakewell Tart.

Continue reading “Bakewell Tart”

Blueberry and Almond Cake

After an impulsive blueberry purchase in the supermarket this week I thought

Blueberry and Almond Cake
Blueberry and Almond Cake

it best to bake a Blueberry and Almond Cake. There are so many recipes out there for Blueberry Muffins or Lemon & Blueberry Cake so I thought it would be good to have something a bit different. So here’s my recipe was a delicious Blueberry and Almond Cake with a cream cheese filling and frosting. Continue reading “Blueberry and Almond Cake”

Red Velvet Cake

Last week I bought some cream cheese to make a frosting for an Apple Cake I

Red Velvet Cake
Red Velvet Cake

made. The Apple Cake wasn’t the success I hoped so I didn’t ice it. So what to bake to use the cream cheese, well it could only be Red Velvet Cake!
Red Velvet Cake is one of those cakes that ticks all the boxes – chocolate, moist and covered in frosting – what more could you want. So here’s my recipe for Red Velvet Cake. Continue reading “Red Velvet Cake”

Honey Cake with Orange Buttercream

As it is my birthday this week my hubby said he would bake me a cake instead

Honey Cake with Orange Buttercream
Honey Cake with Orange Buttercream

of me baking one. Not going to argue with that! After a bit of mooching through some recipes we found the perfect one. From the book Scandinavian Baking by Trine Hahnemann, Honey Cake with Orange Buttercream. This is a book we’ve had a while but not yet tried a recipe from but this one has a lot of my favourite flavours in it. So whilst hubby baked I was snapping photos so I can share this bake and recipe with you. Continue reading “Honey Cake with Orange Buttercream”

Orange Olive Oil Cake

This recipe for Orange Olive Oil Cake was inspired by Twitter and my recent purchase of a 12 Mini Bundt Cake tin from Lakeland. The recipe has been adapted from one shared with me by a Twitter friend in Portugal and the original recipe by Leite’s Culinaria can be found here. Made with navel oranges and fruity olive oil the cake has a deep, rich orange flavour.

Orange Olive Oil Cake
Orange Olive Oil Cake

Continue reading “Orange Olive Oil Cake”

Christmas Cake

It still isn’t too late to make your own Christmas Cake. I usually make mine in

Iced Christmas Cake
Iced Christmas Cake

September and then spend the next few months “feeding”it. This loosely translates to pouring more brandy over it as it matures. My recipe for Christmas Cake is adaptable to your own tastes and preferences, which I’ll point out as we go. Continue reading “Christmas Cake”

Christmas Pudding

Stir up Sunday is an annual tradition when you make your Christmas Pudding.

Christmas Pudding
Christmas Pudding

Usually the last Sunday in November which in the Anglican calendar marks the last Sunday before theĀ  start of Advent. When I was a little girl my Mum started to make her own Christmas Pudding and they were amazing. My own adult life always seemed too hectic and crazy so to make my own so I stuck to shop bought. That was until recent years when I was prompted to make my own. Continue reading “Christmas Pudding”

Guinness Fruit Cake

The weather here on Skye has taken a turn for the better so after weeks of rain it’s time to get outside. We decided Saturday would be some gardening

Guinness Fruit Cake
Guinness Fruit Cake

and Sunday a hike. These plans meant I needed to bake a robust cake that would survive a trip in a rucksack, wrapped in tinfoil. It calls for a Guinness Fruit Cake, any stout, or very dark ale will do but we always have Guinness in the fridge.

If like me you aren’t a beer drinker fear not you will still enjoy this Guinness Fruit Cake. You taste the richness of the stout rather than the hoppy beer flavour!

Continue reading “Guinness Fruit Cake”