A British classic with a twist

A few of my March makes

1st April


So March has gone and we enter a new quarter.  I must be becoming older as I feel the days, weeks and months are moving faster and faster along.  Looking back at March, it was a great creative month and I had a lot of fun.


In our family we have many favourite meals, dinners, nibbles, puddings and cakes  and we think about food a lot.  We love food and it has always been one of our forms of entertainment.  At weekends when there is slightly more time to be creative and have fun, we decide on what to cook together as a family and we all muck in.  Sometimes by all of us helping out throughout the creative process or by someone taking the lead and the others helping, or by each of us having responsibility for a dish.  When the children have friends over too, they are expected to join in as well.  We hope by doing this that our love for good food is passed to the children and help make them more independent and interested and interesting.

Last time I shared a cake recipe with you, it was Jack's banana cake, see link here: http://eclectichomelife.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/baking-family-favourite-cake.html  and this time, I share with you a cake that my daughter aways makes, so far, touch wood, it has been a fail safe, go to cake, when we have been in a hurry but want to impress; it is based on the British classic Bakewell tart, but is actually a Bakewell cake. 

Bakewell is a market town in north England where the tart originated, although there is some dispute as to who started it and when; it was either invented in 1820 or 1860 according to various versions, but what is consistent is that the tart was a mistake and the important ingredient, jam, was put at the bottom by the pastry, rather than on top and was served up without realising the mistake.  It is now an incredibly popular tea time treat here in the UK.  Our version is actually not a tart, but a cake and the jam is not near the bottom but in the middle.  Apart from that, the ingredients are the same, the cake is moist and tastes and looks great to us.  A real tea time favourite.  In our house, to add to any confusion, we call it...Ella's tart!



Ella's Bakewell tart

Ella's tart     



You will need:  Pre heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius

For the cake:
♥200g softened butter
♥200g caster sugar
♥100g ground almonds
♥100g self raising flour
♥1 tsp baking powder
♥1/2 tsp almond essence ~ optional, Ella prefers it without!
♥4 large eggs
For the filling:
♥1/2 jar of morello cherry jam
♥175g icing sugar
♥5-6 tbsp lemon juice ~ you can use water
♥1 tbsp lightly toasted almond flakes

Mixture divided equally between tins and ready for the oven

Grease and line two round tins of 20cm diameter   

Beat all the ingredients together until smooth

Divide mixture equally between two tins, levelling them  

Bake in oven for approximately 30 minutes or until golden.  DO NOT open oven before 25 minutes

Cool on wire rack

The jam will seep through the cake
making it even more moist

When cold, spoon jam onto one half of the cake bases

Place other cake on top, smooth side upper most.

 

Make up the icing with the lemon juice and spread carefully over the cake

 

Sprinkle with the toasted flaked almonds   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All ready to eat and enjoy!






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This recipe was originally from the BCC Good Food website and can be found here: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/9074/cherry-bakewell-cake



 

 

 

Below are a selcetion of my photos from the first quarter of 2014, hope you enjoy them as much as I do! I'll let them do the talking...

 

 

Finally this is my Mood Blanket 2014 after the first quarter, only 9 more months thill it is finished.  Already it is heavy and keeps my legs warm as I crochet.  Each row takes approximately 20 mins, luckily for me, I am still in love with the colours and patterns, and I am going strong so far...