Terry's Chocolate Orange Cake

This time I adopted my original Terry's Chocolate Orange Cake recipe so I can prepare it in the Zila Cake Mould. When I purchased my mould, this was the cake I had in mind that would be the best with it. It was much easier to to make the cake and I didn't need the gelatine to harden the cream, as this time the cavities hold the cream together.

Terry's Chocolate Orange Cake

For the sponge
190 g self-raising flour
3 tbsp cocoa powder
210 g butter at room temperature
210 g golden caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
4 eggs
100 g 70% dark chocolate, melted and cooled

For the cream
300 g soft cheese
zest of 2 oranges
juice of 1.5 orange
3-5 tbsp icing sugar
150 ml double cream

orange food colouring

For the decoration
1 Terry's Chocolate Orange

Heat the oven to 180 C. Coat the 12 slice cake mould with a vegetable fat based release agent spray.

Put all the cake ingredients except the chocolate in a  large bowl. Beat them together with an electric mixer until you have a creamy mixture, then fold in the melted chocolate. Add a little more milk if the mix is too stiff- it should fall easily from a spoon.

Pour the cake mix into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until the sponge springs back when pressed.

For the filling, mix all ingredients in a big bowl then add the orange food colouring(the amount you need depends on the brand, so use as recommended), mixing thoroughly and put it to the fridge to harden a little.

Place the filling into a piping bag with a star nozzle. Pipe the cream into the 12 cavities and place a Terry's Chocolate Orange slice in each cream portion.

Enjoy:) Sorry, I don't have any pictures from the actual slices as I took it into my workplace to  my colleagues to destroy:).

Fruity Breakfast Bars

If we go hiking I always make this little miracle bars. Last weekend we went to Isle of Wight  and these bars were life saver in the forest:) Everything you need is in this slice: fruit, nuts, fibre and protein. It is also really quick to make, so there is no excuse any more to carry a Snickers or Mars bar in your back pack.

Fruity Breakfast Bar

Ingredients(makes 16)

310 g ready-made apple sauce or pie filing

140 g ready-to-eat dried apricot, hopped

130 g raisins

50 g demerara sugar

55 g sunflower seed

40 g sesame seed

30 g pumpkin seed/ pistachio

80 g rolled oats

80 g self raising flour

60 g desiccated coconut

3 eggs

50 g dark chocolate chips-optional

Preheat the oven to 200C and line a 20 cm square or rectangle tin with baking paper.

Put the apple sauce in a large bowl with the apricots, raisins, sugar and the sunflower, sesame and pumpkin sees and stir together with a wooden spoon until throughtly mixed.

Add the oats, flour, coconut and eggs to the fruit mixture and gently stir together until evenly combined.

Turn the mixture into the tin and spread to the edges in an even layer. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden and just firm to the touch.

Leave to cool in the tin, then lift out on to a board and cut into bars.

You can replace any of the nuts or fruits if you want so. You can tailor it to your preference.

And this is us during our trip on the Isle of Wight. Surely, we only made it because we had the breakfast bars on hand:)

Rakoczi Curd Cheese Cake -Special /Rákóczi-Túrós

I already made this Hungarian speciality(the original is here), named after a Hungarian mater pastry chef János Rákóczi. It is well famous all over the world and Hungary (whichever party shop you go in Hungary, you will find this dessert among many others). It made up from several layers: biscuit like bottom pasty, curd cheese, apricot and soft meringue. This time I adapted this recipe for my new baking pan: the 8 slice cake moulds.

Rákóczi-túrós in Zila Cake Mould

For the base

250 g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

120 g butter

120 g sugar

1 egg yolk

1 dl soured cream

1 tbsp lemon zest

For the curd cheese filling

2 eggs+1 extra egg yolk

500 g curd cheese/Quark *more on this at the Tricks and Recommendations

120 g sugar

50 g semolina

1-2 tbsp bread crumbs

1 vanilla pod

For the filling

apricot jam

tinned/fresh apricot

For the meringue

2 egg whites

80 g icing sugar 

Shift the flour and the baking powder together in a bowl, then add the butter, sugar, egg yolk, soured cream and lemon zest and work it together. Form a dough ball and knead a little so all ingredients are well incorporated. Wrap it in cling film and rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

In the meantime you can prepare the filling. Mix together the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy, then add in the curd cheese, semolina and vanilla seeds and mix again.

Preheat the oven to 180 °C.On a floured surface roll the pastry to about 5-8mm thick(or to the size of the Zila Cake Mould).

Spray the Zila Cake Mould with a vegetable based releasing agent and pour in the curd cheese filling. With a soft spatula try to compress the filing into all cavities and when finished tap the Mould (placing first on a pan) to the work-surface a few times.
This is very important to avoid empty bubbles when turned up side down after baking

Sprinkle on top the bread crumbs(in case the curd cheese layer would release any juice after turned upside down the breadcrumbs would absorb it). Place on top the pastry, trim the edges and prick with a fork. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the pastry is nice golden brown.

Leave it to cool as we take out from the oven for 10-15 minutes, then turn it up side down. Remove the silicon part and the stainless steel ring and leave it to cool completely.

Place chopped apricots to the cavities and fill them with apricot jam.

In a mixing bowl whip the egg whites to soft peaks then add the icing sugar and mix it to further 5 minutes until the mixture is nice and shiny. Place the meringue in a piping bag and pipe on top of the cake, leaving the slice divider lines exposed, so you know where you should cut it.  

You can either put back the cake into the lukewarm oven until the top hardened or you can use a blow torch(much faster if you ask me).

All left is have a slice and enjoy.