Hi guys!
I wrote in January in my Stereotypical New Year's Resolutions post that one of the things I wanted to do this year was bake a Battenberg cake. (I am not one for drastic, life-changing resolutions). Easter Monday was the day and it was a success! The recipe I used was Mary Berry's from her 'Baking Bible' which I got for Christmas and would highly recommend. Easter is all about springtime pastel colours and marzipan (think Simnel cake!) so with the extra day off too, it seemed the perfect time to give the Battenberg a whirl!
To make Mary Berry's Battenberg you'll need:
For the sponge:
100g caster sugar
100g softened butter
100g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
Few drops almond essence
50g ground rice (I used ground almonds and they worked fine)
Few drops pink food colouring (and yellow if you want extra-yellow cake like me)
For the outside:
225g marzipan
3-4 tbsp apricot jam (for adhering cake to marzipan!)
18cm square shallow baking tray + baking parchment
Heat the oven to 160 degrees/fan 140 degrees/Gas Mark 3 and line your baking tray with baking parchment. Mary suggests later on that you pour the two coloured batters into one tray and try to keep the line between them neat. I did not trust myself to manage this so devised a baking parchment wall half-way down the tin (proud of my efforts here).
For the batter, simply put all the sponge ingredients except the two food colourings into a large bowl and beat for around two minutes until smooth. Then divide the mixture into two and add a few drops of pink colouring to one and yellow to the other. Once they are all mixed and even in colour, pour the cake mixes into the two halves of the baking tray and level out. Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes (mine only needed 30 mins so check colour a little earlier).
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. Then, using a sharp knife, slice each of the coloured sponges into two strips of even size so that you have four strips that can create the chequered effect.
Gently warm up the apricot jam (only needs 10-15 seconds in the microwave) and brush onto the sponge strips to glue them together.
Roll out the marzipan to the length of the cake and wide enough to wrap around the whole cake. Brush warm apricot jam onto the marzipan then transfer the cake to the sheet of marzipan. Gently wrap the marzipan around the cake and seal on one corner. Trim the ends of the marzipan off either edge of the cake and you are done!
This cake was a fun challenge to make but definitely manageable and not too much hassle either. It tastes delicious and looks pretty too!
What did you get up to over the Easter weekend? Hope you enjoyed the time off and relaxed in the lovely British weather. Now to enjoy the four day week!
JAM x
I wrote in January in my Stereotypical New Year's Resolutions post that one of the things I wanted to do this year was bake a Battenberg cake. (I am not one for drastic, life-changing resolutions). Easter Monday was the day and it was a success! The recipe I used was Mary Berry's from her 'Baking Bible' which I got for Christmas and would highly recommend. Easter is all about springtime pastel colours and marzipan (think Simnel cake!) so with the extra day off too, it seemed the perfect time to give the Battenberg a whirl!
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For the sponge:
100g caster sugar
100g softened butter
100g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
Few drops almond essence
50g ground rice (I used ground almonds and they worked fine)
Few drops pink food colouring (and yellow if you want extra-yellow cake like me)
For the outside:
225g marzipan
3-4 tbsp apricot jam (for adhering cake to marzipan!)
18cm square shallow baking tray + baking parchment
Heat the oven to 160 degrees/fan 140 degrees/Gas Mark 3 and line your baking tray with baking parchment. Mary suggests later on that you pour the two coloured batters into one tray and try to keep the line between them neat. I did not trust myself to manage this so devised a baking parchment wall half-way down the tin (proud of my efforts here).
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Gently warm up the apricot jam (only needs 10-15 seconds in the microwave) and brush onto the sponge strips to glue them together.
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What did you get up to over the Easter weekend? Hope you enjoyed the time off and relaxed in the lovely British weather. Now to enjoy the four day week!
JAM x
That is immense, I honestly don't think I would ever go to such effort, it looks just like the ones you get in shops. Perfect.
ReplyDeleteLisa that is such a lovely comment, thank you :)! It was a good little challenge but probably not going to be a super regular bake..!! Xx
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