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A selection of cake recipes from An Irish Country Kitchen by Mary Kinsella, published by Appletree Press.
TEA & SUPPER CAKES
BASIC CAKE
What makes this such a popular cake is its uncomplicated preparation, durability (it can be made and stored for a week or two), and its adaptability as a base for a whole range of cakes that can be made by simply adding various ingredients. On its own, it can be served plain or decorated with a butter icing.
Serves 10
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 11/4 –11/2 hours
Oven Position: centre
Oven Temperature: gas 4, 180°C, 350°F
Ingredients:
8oz plain flour 225g 2 cups
pinch of salt
6oz butter or margarine 175g 3/4 cup
6oz caster sugar 175g 3/4 cup
a few drops of flavouring
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Method: Line and grease a deep 8-inch cake tin. Sieve flour and salt onto a piece of waxed paper. Beat butter or margarine with sugar, beating for 5 to 10 minutes to a fine white cream. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Fold in the sieved flour and baking powder. Put into prepared tin. Place in oven and bake 11/4 –11/2 hours. Remove and place on a wire rack.
Basic cake: All-in-one Method: Put all the above ingredients in a bowl and beat until mixed together. Bake for 11/4 –11/2 hours in prepared tin.
MOTHER’S CAKE
When making this cake, instead of using the old-fashioned weights, mother put eggs on the scales. We all knew the basic idea of the recipe from the time we could count: add the same weight of flour as eggs and the same weight of sugar as eggs. This simple method produces a result not unlike that achieved by using the basic cake mixture. When it is baked and decorated it looks very good, and mother’s cake always had a great bite to it.
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 11/4 –11/2 hours
Oven Temperature: gas 4, 180°C, 360°F
Oven Position: centre
Ingredients:
cake: the weight of the eggs in butter or margarine
the weight of the eggs in caster sugar
the weight of the eggs in plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
a pinch of salt
1oz cocoa 25g 1/4 cup
1 dessertspoon water
filling: 2oz butter or margarine 50g 1/4 cup
4oz sieved icing sugar 100g 1/2 cup
a few drops of flavouring (vanilla or lemon essence)
icing: 8oz icing sugar 225g 1 cup
2–3 tablespoons hot water
2–3 glacé cherries
one strip of angelica
Method for cake: Line and grease two 8-inch cake tins. Sieve flour and salt onto a piece of kitchen paper. Cream the butter or margarine and sugar and beat until white; add eggs one at a time, adding a tablespoon of flour with each egg. Beat well. Fold in the remaining flour. Divide mixture in two. Put half the mixture into a tin. Blend the cocoa with water; fold this into remaining mixture and put into the other tin. Put tins into the oven and bake for 11/4 –11/2 hours. When baked, remove cakes from the tins and set on a wire rack until cool.
Method for filling: Beat the butter or margarine and the icing sugar together; add a few drops of flavouring and continue beating until white and creamy. Sandwich the layers together with butter icing.
Method for icing: Sieve the icing sugar into a bowl; gradually add the hot water and beat until smooth. Pour icing over top of cake. Decorate with cherries and leaves cut in shape of diamond from angelica strip.
SEED CAKE
As children we were often fascinated by those little dark seeds in cakes an aunt of ours made from home-grown caraway seeds combined with her basic cake mixture. The seeds give a lovely flavour to this cake.
Serves 10
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 11/4 –11/2 hours
Oven Position: centre
Oven Temperature: gas 4, 180°C, 350°F
Ingredients:
8oz flour 225g 2 cups
pinch of salt
6oz margarine 175g 3/4 cup
6oz caster sugar 175g 3/4 cup
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
1oz caraway seeds 25g 2 tablespoons
Method: Line and grease a deep 8-inch cake tin. Make and bake as for Basic Cake; fold in the caraway seeds with the flour.
CHAPEL WINDOW
This cake gets its name from the lattice effect of combining not only white and brown as in the recipe below, but any two contrasting food colours to vary the presentation and the flavour. The cake as a whole is covered and decorated with almond paste, and during the Christmas season green almond leaves and red berries (both made from the almond paste) can be arranged together across the windows to resemble holly.
Serves 8–10
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Oven Position: centre
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Oven Temperature: gas 6, 200°C, 400°F
Ingredients:
cake: 6oz margarine 175g 3/4 cup
6oz sugar 175g 3/4 cup
12oz plain flour 340g 3 cups
3 eggs
vanilla essence
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 tablespoon milk
almond paste: 4oz ground almonds 100g 1/2 cup
4oz icing sugar 100g 1/2 cup
4oz caster sugar 100g 1/2 cup
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon brandy or whiskey
lemon curd or jam
glacé cherries angelica
Method for making cake: Line and grease two 4-inch by 10-inch loaf tins. Cream margarine and sugar until light and fluffy; then beat in the eggs one at a time. Sieve flour and salt. Add to the creamed mixture with enough milk to make a soft dropping consistency. Divide the mixture in half adding cocoa to one mixture and vanilla extract to the other, making two cakes, one vanilla and one chocolate. Bake in separate tins in a moderate oven for 25 minutes. When baked, cool on a wire rack. When cool, cut each cake in half lengthwise, making four cake strips, two vanilla and two chocolate.
Method for making almond paste: Put ground almonds into a bowl and sieve in the sugars. Add almond essence, egg yolks and spirits. Mix to a smooth paste, using hands in preference to a wooden spoon. Turn out onto a board or work table dusted with icing or finely granulated sugar, and knead until smooth. Avoid over kneading as this can cause the paste to become too oily and unmanageable.
Method for assembling cake: Alternate the cake strips one on top of the other, so that there are four strips lengthwise which when stacked together make a checkerboard design on either end. Use lemon curd or jam between the layers to fix them together in one rectangular unit Coat all the sides with lemon curd or jam, but not the ends. Roll out almond paste on a sugared worktop so that it will cover the two sides and top. Cover everything except the ends with almond paste. (Cover bottom if desired.) Decorate with a criss-cross or diamond pattern on the top by drawing a knife lightly over the paste; arrange glacé cherries and angelica as wished.
CHERRY CAKE
The secret of this cake is to roll these lovely syrupy cherries in flour. This keeps the cherries evenly distributed and uses the syrup to enhance the cake’s flavour.
Serves 10
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 11/4 –11/2 hours
Oven Position: centre
Oven Temperature: gas 4, 180°C, 350°F
Ingredients:
9oz plain flour 250g 21/4 cups
pinch of salt
6oz butter or margarine 175g 3/4 cup
6oz caster sugar 175g 3/4 cup
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
1 tablespoon milk
4oz glacé cherries sliced and tossed in a little flour 115g 2/3 cup
Method: Grease and line a deep 8-inch cake tin. Make and bake for 11/4 –11/2 hours as for Basic Cake, adding the 3 eggs with milk; finally add the cherries.
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