Recipe by Lakeland (blog.lakeland.co.uk/recipes)Recipe by Lakeland (blog.lakeland.co.uk/recipes)16 baking heaven APRIL WWW.FOODHEAVENMAG.COM
Chocolate Easter
nest cakes
MAKES 12
For the cupcakes
200g (7oz) plain fl our
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
300g (10½oz) caster sugar
50g (1¾oz) cocoa powder
80ml (3fl oz) vegetable oil
1 large free-range egg, beaten
2 tsp vanilla extract200ml (7fl oz) milk
2 tsp coffee granules or powder
180ml (6fl oz) just-boiled water
For the frosting
100g (3½oz) butter, slightly
softened
200g (7oz) icing sugar
20g (¾oz) cocoa powder
3 tbsp warm water
To decorate
2 fl aked chocolate bars, crumbled
sugar-coated mini chocolate eggs1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark- In a large mixing bowl, combine the
flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and
cocoa powder.
2 Beat together the oil, egg, vanilla
extract and milk. Dissolve the coffee
granules or powder in the boiled water
and add to the oil mixture. Pour into the
dry ingredients and mix well.
3 Pour the mixture into a large jug, then
share evenly between the holes of the
Lakeland 12-hole loose-based mini
sandwich tin. Bake for 20-22 minutes,
or until a fine skewer inserted into the
centre of the cakes comes out clean.
Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn
out carefully. Cool completely on a
wire rack.
4 To make the frosting, beat the butter,
icing sugar, cocoa powder and warm
water together until smooth and
creamy. Spoon into a piping bag fitted
with a star nozzle. If necessary, trim the
tops off the cakes to level them slightly,
then pipe the chocolate frosting around
the top edges of the cakes to make
them look like nests.
5 Sprinkle the frosting with flakes of
chocolate, then fill the ‘nests’ with mini
chocolate eggs.Mini striped Easter
cheesecakes
MAKES 6
25g (1oz) butter
6 digestive biscuits, fi nely crushed
1 sachet of powdered gelatine
80ml (3fl oz) just-boiled water
350g (12oz) cream cheese
80g (3oz) caster sugar
1½ tsp vanilla extract
120ml (4fl oz) double cream
2-3 drops of yellow, pink and bluefood colouring
To decorate
100ml (3½fl oz) double cream
sugar-coated mini chocolate eggs1 Melt the butter in a saucepan over a
low heat. Remove from the heat and
mix in the biscuit crumbs, stirring to
coat. Divide between six of the holes in
the mini sandwich tin and press down
with the back of a spoon to give even
layers. Chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.
2 Sprinkle the gelatine powder over the
just-boiled (not boiling) water in a small
jug. Stir well and leave to dissolve into a
clear liquid for 5-6 minutes.
3 Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese,
sugar and vanilla extract together. In a
separate bowl, whip the cream until it
holds its shape. Fold into the cream
cheese mixture. Slowly pour in the
gelatine liquid, stirring it in thoroughly.
4 Divide the mixture into three equal
portions in separate bowls. Add
2-3 drops of yellow food colouring to
one bowl, pink colouring to the second
and blue to the third, taking care not to
add too much, and mix until the colour is
evenly combined.5 Share half the yellow mixture
between two of the holes containing
biscuit bases, half the pink between
two more, and half of the blue into the
last two. Carefully spread out into even
layers, trying not to get the mixture up
the sides of the tin.
6 To make your cheesecakes multi-
coloured, add a second layer of
contrasting colour to each hole. Level
the tops of the cheesecakes by drawing
a knife across the surface of the mini
sandwich tin. Chill for 1-2 hours.
7 Carefully turn out the cheesecakes by
pushing the bases upwards from
underneath. To decorate, whip the
double cream until it holds its shape,
then spoon into a piping bag fitted with a
star nozzle. Pipe swirls on top of each
cheesecake, then fill the centre of each
swirl with mini chocolate eggs. Keep
chilled until ready to serve.Tip You could freeze the cheesecakes
in the tin – you may find that they are
easier to remove (they’ll thaw in about
45 minutes). If you want to make
12 mini cheesecakes, simply double the
quantity of ingredients.Pour the mixture into a large jug, then
share evenly between the holes of thePour the mixture into a large jug, then
share evenly between the holes of the