Wednesday 25 April 2012

Caprese Cake

No this is not a recipe for the popular salad with mozzarella and tomatos, it is for one of the more delicious cakes that you might ever wish to eat. Its chocolaty and light and goes great with a dollop of fresh cream or even better fruits like strawberries and raspberries. So hopefully, you have forgotten all about that nasty salad. This makes a 10" cake will serve about 15 people depending on how greedy you are.


Ingredients:

500g of Ground Almond
35g Cacao Powder
250g Sugar
8 Eggs
125 g of high couverture dark chocolate
250 g of softened butter

You need to start by putting the butter, sugar, and eggs in an appropriate sized bowl and mixing them together. After you have reached a nice consistency you need to slowly add the ground almond and the the cocoa powder. Then once it is mixed add in the dark chocolate. You cook it at 150 C for 30 minutes.

When you are done let it cool, and resist that urge to dive right in. You can add some powdered sugar on top for look and it adds a nice sweetness to what is a large amount of dark chocolate. So happy cooking and enjoy!

Thursday 19 April 2012

Who is Family Cakes?

As a company we struggle to really show you the true lengths that we are going for our customers. Most of you know the basics, we make cake, we are in King’s Cross etc. But I have doubts that you know the real Family Cakes. Hopefully this will shed a bit of light on what we do.

Now, some may know this and others not, we here at Family Cakes, admittedly don’t have a storefront.We have a little office and a small but mighty bakery. Our specialty is making cakes and delivering them to your door or office with speed, and care. But we implore you to understand that we are not just some factory that turns out the cakes that you see on the website. We can fulfill your every cake-y desire.

We also now have the technology that will allow you the convenience of figuring out what we can do for you. If you want to know if we can do it, just ask, and within less than a day, we can get a design to you, you dont like it, we'll try again or you can move on. There is no charge to enquire.Here is one example of a design drawn up for a client and sent to them via email. Its quick, easy for the consumer, and unlike anything any other company will offer you. This truly means the possibilities are endless.


So see, we are not some factory that only has twenty different cakes that it makes, if we were then what is the difference between us and the local grocery store. Every cake is a new creation to us. 

Whether you want a five tiered wedding cake or you want to put a picture of your dog on the top of a cake we can do it for you. Your imagination is the only thing holding you back, give us a call, and let us make what’s in your head an all too delicious reality. 

Friday 13 April 2012

Orange Drizzle Sponge

Here is another one straight from the vault. Its popular, easy, and its great for the summer time. Our recipe makes a 10.5" by 15" tray.

Cake Ingredients 
  • 130 g of Compound Orange
  • 12 eggs
  • Salt
  • 700g Sugar
  • 300ml double cream
  • 560g flour
  • 20g baking power
Syrup Ingredients
  • 50g light brown sugar
  • 100g orange juice
  • 20g orange compound


You start by whisking together the orange compound, eggs, salt, and sugar for the cake. Then you stir in the cream. After that is done, sift together the baking powder and then then thoroughly mix it with your wet ingredients and transfer to a lined tin. You then bake it for 30-45 minutes at 160C or until a nice golden brown. 

While its cooking you should take the time to mix together the syrup. Put all the ingredients in a smal pan and slowly bring to a boil. When the cake is ready allow a few minutes to cool and then brush the whole cake with the syrup, if there is any left slowly drizzle the rest to your taste. Allow it to soak for 30 minutes and then and only then can you finally enjoy it. If you feel like bing fancy you can top it with orange peals or zest as shown in the picture but its not necessary, this cake is good no matter what form it comes in or how pretty it looks. 

Happy Baking Everyone!

Wednesday 11 April 2012

Cake History: It's Older Than You Think


The term "cake" has a long history. The word itself is of Viking origin, from the Old Norse word "kaka." Although clear examples of the difference between cake and bread are easy to find, the precise classification has always been elusive.

The most primitive peoples in the world began making cakes shortly after they discovered flour. In medieval England, the cakes that were described in writings were not cakes in the conventional sense. They were described as flour-based sweet foods as opposed to the description of breads, which were just flour-based foods without sweetening.

Bread and cake were somewhat interchangeable words with the term "cake" being used for smaller breads. The earliest examples were found among the remains of Neolithic villages where archaeologists discovered simple cakes made from crushed grains, moistened, compacted and probably cooked on a hot stone. Today's version of this early cake would be oatcakes, though now we think of them more as a biscuit or cookie.

Cakes were called "plakous" by the Greeks, from the word for "flat." These cakes were usually combinations of nuts and honey. They also had a cake called "satura," which was a flat heavy cake.

In ancient Rome, basic bread dough was sometimes enriched with butter, eggs, and honey, which produced a sweet and cake-like baked good. The Latin poet Ovid in his first book of exile, Tristia, mentions a birthday celebration for him and his brother. One of the main things he mentioned was cake.

Early cakes in England were also essentially bread: the most obvious differences between a "cake" and "bread" were the round, flat shape of the cakes, and the cooking method, which turned cakes over once while cooking, while bread was left upright throughout the baking process.



Cakes were usually baked for special occasions because they were made with the finest and most expensive ingredients available to the cook. The wealthier you were, the more likely you might consume cake on a more frequent basis.

By the early 19th century, due to the Industrial Revolution, baking ingredients became more affordable and readily available because of mass production and the railroads. Modern leavening agents, such as baking soda and baking powder were invented. That is really what brings us to today. Cake is an extremely old entity but we are constantly trying to invent new ways to make it fun and exciting. 


Sources: Whats Cooking America, Wikipedia, and our own genius minds 

Wednesday 4 April 2012

Easter Cakes!


Everyone, I am sorry to inform you that Family Cakes will be closed on Friday and through the weekend due to the Easter Holiday. You can now all take a second and observe the standard moment of silence.

But hey, things are not all bad. We still have time to get you and your family the perfect holiday cake or cupcakes. Sheep, bunnies, or maybe something with more of a personal touch, its your choice. If you order soon we can get it for you tomorrow and you can store it in the refrigerator for the time being or if you just cant resist the temptation celebrate Easter just a little bit early.

So remember just because we wont be open does not mean that you cannot get something to sweeten the holiday weekend!

Here is just a little reminder of some of the things we offer.