A few months ago, gripped by baking fever, I purchased Mary Berry's Baking Bible. I quickly decided to embark upon a mission to bake everything in the book, and turn myself from an occasional baker into a bit of an expert. My Grandad Ern was a Master Baker by trade; the man responsible for introducing Danish Pastries to England in fact, and I wish it had occurred to me to spend more time learning from him, rather than simply enjoying the fruits of his effortless labours. This project is almost a way of making amends for that; I'd like to follow in his footsteps (if not in my career, at least as a hobby) and continue the proud heritage of baking in my family.
I credit my friend Rachel with the idea to write a blog about my baking exploits, hoping that there will be more successes than failures as I attempt all 213 of the Queen of Baking's recipes.
So as not to bore the husband with a monotonous diet of sponges, followed by weeks of biscuits, I've decided to tackle the recipes by selecting the first bake from each chapter, followed by the second recipe and so on. I'm not going to pick and choose; I'm determined to face my baking demons and learn how to do everything baking-related, even if the consequences are disastrous!
Everything will be photographed, with comment about how I found baking it, and a husband rating (to be taken with a pinch of salt as he has a very selective cake-tooth).


Sunday 23 April 2017

92. Double Orange Cake

This week (yes! I'm baking weekly!), I decided to give husband the choice of which cake to bake, from the highlighted list of bakes suitable for child interference. This was his choice, and I was really pleased to see that the only additional ingredients I needed to buy were two oranges.
Apart from the initial faff of lining the tin, this was a really easy recipe, once again following the all-in-one method. The highlight for Elizabeth was juicing the oranges (the zesting bit is too difficult/dangerous at the moment); so much so that I had to sacrifice an extra orange, just so she could juice it. She did at least drink the juice though, and I enjoyed nibbling the flesh from the oranges as well.
The method suggested baking for 35 minutes, so I plumped for 25 minutes, but although it had risen well and was springy to touch, a quick skewer test proved that it wasn't cooked through, so I put it back in for 5, and then an extra 5 minutes. It was perfectly baked by then, so this must be one of the only bakes which required the full time in our erratic oven!
The icing bit was simple enough, although I did make it a fraction too runny and lost a lot over the sides, which I kept scooping back on. I was a bit too early with the orange shreds - I learnt why the icing needed to have set before you decorate: they sink into the icing! Luckily I kept some in reserve, to do it properly.
The recipe suggested it was best served the day it was made, so Joe had a small slice that evening. The rest was saved for a brunch date with some mum friends the next day, but three days later, we're still eating it and it's still very moist and flavoursome.
Baker's verdict: really simple to make, apart from a bit of fiddling with the oranges, and very tasty.
Husband rating: 9/10 -  I love this sort of cake; quite similar to lemon drizzle in a lot of ways; lovely, moist, citrusy sponge and the icing on top went really well with it. Would be 10/10 if it was a bit more orangey.
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