Summer Berry Drizzle Loaf Cake

Sometimes, an irresistible baking urge will creep over me, and I am left with no choice but to bake. However, this means overcoming an annoying (all be it probably practical) rule put in place by my Mother to prevent me baking every single day; I am not allowed to bake without an excuse.

An excuse soon cropped its head up though, in the form of six hungry men doing a days work on a farm together. My Dad was more than pleased when I offered to bake a cake for him to take along, so I went for something simple and portable.

This cake definitely isn't a visual stunner, but it gets 10/10 from me for taste. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

175g very soft butter 

175g golden caster sugar

250g self raising flour 

2 large eggs 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

175g mixed summer fruits, stoned (I used strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and a few cherries.) - I actually used closer to 275g and the cake turned out perfectly... 

140g granulated sugar 

1-2tsp lemon juice 

Method:

Heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (160 fan). Grease a 900g loaf tin and line the base and ends with a long strip of baking parchment.

Put the butter, sugar, flour, eggs and vanilla extract into a large bowl and beat with an electric hand mixer for 5 minutes until pale an creamy. The mixture will be very thick. 

Spread one third of the mix into the tin, then scatter over some of the fruit. Carefully dot and spread over another third of the mix, and scatter with some more fruit. Dot the rest of the mix over and gently spread with the bake of a spoon. You will have some fruit left but this will be used for the topping. Bake for 1 hour.

Remove the cake from the oven. Dot all over the top with a skewer. Put remaining fruit in a bowl with the granulated sugar and the lemon juice and mash/stir. Spoon over the cake. Leave in the tin until the cake is cool and the topping is set and crisp.

This is such a super simple summer bake that you really have no excuse not to bake it. Although I didn't get a chance to guzzle more than half a slice before my Dad whipped it away, I bet it would be beautiful with a dollop of whipped cream or creme fraiche.

Strawberry Cheesecake Cupcakes

A weekend home of recuperation before the dreaded exams is just what I needed, so here I am, curled up on my sofa at home in my dressing gown, spaniel at my side, looking forward to a weekend of sleeping and baking; I really am an extreme student.

Oxford is currently in the middle of exam chaos. There are despairing freshers and jovial finalists everywhere! I can't walk down Turl Street without bumping into someone looking either thoroughly panic stricken in sub-fusc (formal exam clothing), or trashed from head to toe.  By "trashed" I mean covered in silly string, confetti and more than likely, cheap bubbly. This is what your friends do to you [in the nicest way possible] when you finish your exams for the year. Another bizarre but wonderful Oxford tradition. 

Personally, I can't wait to be showering off all that trashing muck in the knowledge that my exams are over and summer is here. That first glass of Pimms on grove quad next Friday is going to taste like FREEDOM. 

But for now, the only way possible to escape from the stress of modernist literature and Old English wisdom poetry, is to bake. So bake I will. 

Here's one of the yummy things the Lincoln lot are going to be treated to on my return this week, courtesy of the Hummingbird Bakery Book: strawberry cheesecake cupcakes.

Ingredients: 

For the cupcakes:

120g plain flour

140g caster sugar

1 and a half tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

40g unsalted butter

120ml whole milk 

half a tsp vanilla extract

1 egg 

12 large stawberries, chopped into small pieces 

100g digestive biscuits (the recipe says 200g, but this I found was WAY too much)

For the icing: 

300g icing sugar

50g unsalted butter

125g cream cheese

Method:

Line a muffin tin with pretty paper cupcake cases. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius.

Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter in a bowl and beat together with a handheld electric mixer until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined.

Pour in the milk and vanilla extract and beat on medium speed until all the ingredients are well mixed. Add the egg and beat well for a few minutes.

Half fill each cupcake case with the batter. Then add a few pieces of strawberries, before topping up the cupcake case with more batter on top. (I then added a few pieces of strawberry on top too, for extra fruity goodness... these are practically healthy.)

Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until light and golden. The sponge should bounce back when lightly touched. Leave the cupcakes to cool before turning onto a wire rack. 

To make the icing: beat together the butter and cream cheese. Beat in the icing sugar. Chill in the fridge until cool enough to pipe. 

Break up the digestive biscuits and put them in a food processor. Whizz them up int fine crumbs. When the cupcakes are cool, pipe the icing onto them (or spread, if you prefer). Sprinkle with digestive biscuit crumbs and top with a strawberry quarter! 

Indulge without guilt. (especially if you have exams and are extremely stressed!)

Apologies for the lack of photos on this post folks, being the wally I am I forgot to charge my phone so didn't have it to take photos with until half way through the baking process! These Mini Strawberry Daiquiri Cupcakes are a slightly more grown up treat, and you could also try some summery Strawberry Jam Cupcakes.