Orange and Passion Fruit Chocolate Cake

Orange and Passion Fruit Chocolate Cake

This post is sponsored by Tate & Lyle Sugars

It has been 9 years and 10 seasons of Bake Off since the day I first stepped into that famous tent and it’s still hard to believe that much time, and that many bakers have passed through the tent, it still feels like yesterday when I heard those words ‘ready, set, bake’ for the first time. To celebrate 10 seasons I have paired up with Tate and Lyle sugars to create a recipe inspired by the season 10 finale. As one of the challenges was to make a chocolate cake I wanted to give you a recipe for an impressive chocolate cake that is achievable at home but still gives you the wow factor you’d expect from Bake Off. For that recipe I have turned to a simple one bowl chocolate cake and paired it with an orange and passion fruit buttercream which makes for a delicious flavour pairing. To make it extra special the cake uses a mainstay of the show, a mirror. glaze. Whilst mirror glazes are beautiful they’re often a cocoa powder gelatine mixture that to me isn’t the most flavourful so instead I am using a cheats glaze that is a simple ganache based glaze with some golden syrup to make the glaze nice and shiny. 

Chocolate Cake
250g plain flour
75g cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
300g Tate & Lyle Light Soft Brown Cane Sugar
2 large eggs
100ml oil (you can use something neutral tasting or olive oil)
225g sour cream
225ml hot coffee

Passion Fruit Syrup
100ml passion fruit puree
75g Tate & Lyle Caster Pure Cane Sugar

Orange and Passion Fruit Buttercream
3 large egg whites
240g Tate & Lyle Caster Pure Cane Sugar
Zest of 1 large orange
360g unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp passion fruit puree

Cheats Chocolate Mirror Glaze
130g dark chocolate, finely chopped
250ml double cream
2 tbsp Lyles Golden Syrup
Edible gold leaf, for decoration

To make the cake lightly grease 2x20cm round cake tins (do not use thin sandwich tins, they need to be at least 3 inch deep) and line the bases with parchment paper. 

Sieve the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and Tate & Lyle Light Soft Brown Cane Sugar brown sugar into a large bowl and use a whisk to combine so everything is evenly combined. Make a well in the middle of the bowl and pour in the remaining ingredients and whisk together until a smooth cake batter is formed. Divide the batter between the prepared tins and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes or until the cakes springs back to a light touch and are slightly pulling away from the sides of the tin. Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the syrup place the puree and Tate & Lyle Caster Pure Cane Sugar into a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until simmering and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. 

To make the buttercream place the egg whites, Tate & Lyle Caster Pure Cane Sugar

and orange zest in a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk gently until the sugar has dissolved (you can tell the mixture is ready when you rub a little between your fingers and you can no longer feel any grains of sugar). I use caster sugar for this but if you want a little more caramel flavour you can use Tate & Lyle Golden Caster Pure Cane Sugar. For this cake I wouldn’t use a brown sugar for the frosting as it will mask the fruity flavours we want to be the focus. Remove the bowl from the heat and use an electric mixer to whisk on high speed until the meringue is thick, glossy and cooled to room temperature. With the mixer still running add the butter a piece at a time. When all the butter has been added and the mixture has formed a buttercream like texture add the orange juice and passion fruit puree, beating for a couple minutes until fully combined. 

To assemble the cake use a serrated knife to slice each cake into two even layers. Place one cake layer on a plate or cake and brush with the passion fruit syrup. Spread a thin layer of buttercream on top of the cake and repeat with the remaining layers. Scrape the remaining buttercream on top of the cake and spread over the top and sides of the cake in a thin layer, making it as smooth as possible. Place the cake into the freezer whilst you make the glaze.

Place the chocolate into a jug and the remaining ingredients into a small saucepan. Place the pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Pour the cream over the chocolate and set aside for a couple minutes before stirring together to form a smooth chocolate glaze. Set aside until room temperature but still pourable. Remove the cake from the freezer and place onto a wire rack set on a baking tray. Pour the glaze over the cake, allowing it drip down the sides making sure the entire cake is covered. Allow the glaze to set for about 30 minutes before decorating with the gold leaf. Carefully transfer the cake back to the plate or stand. 

Once assembled the cake will keep for about 3 days although the shine on the glaze will be strongest in the first day or so.  

Baileys Brûléed Pumpkin and Custard Pie

This post is sponsored by Baileys

Straight from farm to my kitchen. Last week I was in the countryside, south of Dublin, in Ireland, visiting one of the farms that produces cream for Baileys. I was there to learn all about how the famous Irish cream liquor is made. We met farmer Joe and his Baileys ladies, his name for his beautiful herd of cows. We wandered the farm, made milkshakes, had dinner in the barn and even milked some cows. I came back full of so many ideas but this pie was the first idea that sprung to mind and a recipe that I had to make immediately. Ireland, true to its stereotype was absolutely beautiful but it also rained everyday really putting me in the mood for autumn and all the autumnal desserts. As I was there with a group of Americans pumpkin pie seemed appropriate but I wanted to blend it with one of my favourite recipes and one that I thought would be great with the addition of Baileys, a custard tart. 

Whilst this recipe looks fancy, what with its layering, and the recipe is a tad long, I promise you its actually easier than it seems. It is basically a classic pumpkin pie with the addition of a pastry cream layer, one thats been infused with the warm caramel like flavour of Baileys. If you make one pie this season, make it this one!

Pie Dough
150g plain flour
1 tbsp caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
125g unsalted butter, diced and chilled
4-5 tbsp water

Pumpkin Pie Layer
1/2 a 15oz/425g can pumpkin
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
85g light brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
125ml double cream

Baileys Vanilla Custard
125ml whole milk
125ml double cream
125ml Baileys
1/2 vanilla pod
6 large egg yolks
75g caster sugar, plus extra for brûlée top
20g cornflour

To make the pastry place the flour, sugar and salt into a large bowl and mix together to combine. Add the butter and toss to coat in flour. Using your fingertips rub the butter into the flour until it is mainly in large flat flakes. Place the bowl into the freezer for 10 minutes for the butter to become hard. Remove from the freezer and drizzle in the water a tbsp at a time, stirring to combine. Once all has been combined the mixture should be coming together as a shaggy dough. Tip out onto the worksurface and use your hands to briefly work into a uniform dough. Press the dough into a rectangle and if the butter is feeling warm, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for 15 minutes. 

On a lightly floured worksurface roll out the dough into a rectangle, roughly 15cm x 25cm (exact size isn’t important) and roll up into a sausage. Press into a flat disc and refrigerate for at least an hour before using. 

Preheat the oven to 200ºC

Remove the dough from the fridge and on a lightly floured work surface roll out until just a little bigger than your pie plate, I prefer a deep 9-inch metal pie plate. Roll the pastry up onto your rolling pin then carefully unroll it, draping it into the pie plate. Gently lift and press the pastry to make sure it is sitting flush in the corners of the pie plate. Trim the excess so about 1-2cm is hanging over the side of the pie plate. Roll up the overhang of the bottom crust so that sits, like a thick rope, on the rim of the pie plate and locks in the strips. 

Using your favourite method crimp the rope of pastry. Line the pie with a crumpled piece of parchment paper and fill with baking beans or rice. Brush the crimped pie crust with egg wash and liberally sprinkle with demerara sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes before removing the parchment and rice and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the bottom of the pastry is golden. Remove and reduce the temperature of the oven to 180ºC/160ºC Fan.

For the pumpkin layer mix together all of the ingredients until smooth. Pour into the pie crust and bake for about 25 minutes or until the edge of the custard is fully set with a little wiggle in the middle. Remove from the oven and set aside whilst you make the topping.

For the Baileys custard place the milk, cream and Baileys into a large saucepan along with the beans scarped from the vanilla pod along with the vanilla pod itself. Over medium/high heat bring to a simmer. Meanwhile whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour, until smooth. When the milk mixture is at temperature pour over the egg mixture whilst whisking to prevent curdling. Pour the custard mixture back into the pan and cook, whilst whisking constantly, until the mixture has thickened. Immediately pour into the pie and spread into an even layer. Press a sheet of clingfilm on top of the custard layer and leave for an hour before transferring to the fridge for at least 4 hours before serving. 

Before serving sprinkle the baileys custard with a light dusting of caster sugar and then using a blowtorch, caramelise until dark. Leave for a couple minutes for the sugar to set before serving.

Kept in the fridge, before bruleeing the pie, this will keep for 3-4 days. Once bruleed the pie is best on the same day. 

Everything Bagel Buttermilk Biscuits

Okay lets agree the name of this recipe is a bit of a mouthful and its not particularly elegant either, but there’s really nothing else to call it. I love an everything bagel, with its pungent garlic and onion, but I don’t always have time to whip up a batch of bagels. When the craving for that flavour hits but the time doesn’t permit these biscuits are the perfect thing. I wanted to replicate the bagel flavouring a little more than just sprinkling on the everything seasoning so the dough has two extra additions, cream cheese and chives, both helping with the bagel illusion. The cream cheese adds flavour, obviously, but it also adds tenderness, as unlike butter the water content in the cheese doesn’t really evaporate, giving flakiness, the fat melts into the dough instead. For the big punch of flavouring though I was recently given a couple jars of Trader Jo’s ‘Everything Bagel Seasoning’ and this is what I used, but for those of you not in the US I have also given a recipe for a homemade version. Whilst I love these biscuits on their own, simply split and slathered with plenty of butter, these would make the most delicious breakfast sandwiches filled with scrambled egg, bacon and cheese. In fact, since I am writing this at 8am on a Saturday morning, maybe that’s what I should make for breakfast today!

'Everything Bagel’ Buttermilk Biscuits
65g salted butter, diced and frozen, plus a little extra for glazing
65g cream cheese, chilled
350g self raising flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 tbsp finely chopped chives
200ml buttermilk
1 large egg yolk, for egg wash
2-3 tbsp everything bagel seasoning (see recipe below)

Everything Bagel Seasoning
2 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tbsp white sesame seeds
1 tbsp dried minced garlic
1 tbsp dried minced onion
2 tsp flaked sea salt

For the everything bagel seasoning mix everything and store in a small jar. It can be used in a whole host of recipes or used as a finishing spice, used to spinkle over dishes like fried eggs, in a salad, on vegetables or even on fries. I tend to use it simply for making bagels or other bread like dishes.

To make the biscuits place the flour and baking soda into a large bowl and mix together. Add the cream cheese and use a rounded blade knife to cut the cheese into the flour, until it is smaller pieces. To rub the cheese fully into the flour you make need to get your hands involved and finish it off manually. Once the cream cheese has all but disappeared into the flour add the diced butter and toss to coat in the flour. Use your fingertips to rub the butter briefly into the flour until the butter is in large flat flakes. Place the bowl into the freezer for 15 minutes or until the butter is solid. Remove the bowl from the freezer and drizzle in the buttermilk a little bit at a time, using the knife to stir to combine. Once all the buttermilk has been added you should have a shaggy dough.

Tip the dough out onto a well floured worksurface and use your hands to bring the dough together, using a folding motion to make sure there are no dry pockets. Roll the dough out into a rectangle that is roughly 20cm x 50cm and fold the dough in thirds, as if your folding a letter. Turn the dough so the folds are facing you and repeat the rolling and folding a second time. Transfer the dough to a parchment lined baking tray and place into the freezer for 10 minutes to chill briefly.

Remove the dough from the fridge and on a well floured worksurface roll the dough out until it is about 1 inch thick. Using a 3 inch round cookie cutter, which has been dipped in flour, cut out as many biscuits as possible. It is best to use a firm downward pressure, avoiding any twisting as you cut the biscuits, which can inhibit the rise of the biscuits. Place the biscuits onto a parchment lined baking tray, nice and close together so they are almost touching. Contrary to what you might think we want them close together as they because the steam released hits the biscuits next to them and helps prevent the biscuits from setting before they’ve fully risen (in a very similar way to how a lot of breads are baked).

You can press the scraps together and cut out more but I don’t like to do this more than once otherwise the biscuits will end up being tough. Brush the tops of the finished biscuits with the egg yolk and sprinkle liberally with the everything seasoning. Bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool a little before serving warm.

Espresso and Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies

Let’s face it, in the world of baking there is little better than a still warm from the oven chocolate chip cookie. Cookies hit all the right notes of nostalgia; texture, flavour and ease of preparation. Even though a classic chocolate cookie is basically my idea of perfection that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t play around with them a little (or in my case a lot). Ever since I tried the chocolate and rye cookies served at Tartine Bakery in San Francisco I have used this grain to give my cookies and cakes a boost and the flavour brought by the flour really marries beautifully with chocolate. For a third dimension of flavour I have added a healthy dose of coffee which makes these extra special.

When it comes to the choice of chocolate I generally stick to something around 70%, not because this is an indicator of quality (it only shows what the chocolate is made with not what the quality of those ingredients are) for these cookies I like to use something around 60%. Because the cookies use a secondary bitter ingredient in the form of the coffee using a slightly sweeter chocolate makes these a little more rounded in flavour and a little less bitter. Of course this is personal preference, feel free to use whatever chocolate you like, a milk chocolate could be amazing in this, I could even imagine a toasted white chocolate being the perfect thing for these cookies.

Espresso and Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 18-20

225g unsalted butter, diced

3 tbsp freshly ground coffee

200g plain flour

200g dark rye flour

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

200g light brown sugar

150g caster sugar

2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

340g dark chocolate, roughly chopped (see note)

flaked sea salt, for sprinkling

To make the cookies place the butter into a small saucepan and cook over medium/high heat until fully melted and just starting to bubble. Remove from the heat and add the coffee, stirring into the butter, setting aside to cool slightly. 



Meanwhile mix together the flours, salt, baking powder and soda and set aside. Pour the butter into a large bowl and mix in the sugars followed by the eggs, yolks and vanilla and whisk together until fully combined and uniform. Add the flour mixture and use a wooden spoon to mix together until uniformly mixed. Add the chocolate and mix briefly to distribute evenly. Press a sheet of clingfilm onto the surface of the cookie dough and refrigerate for at least 4 hours but preferably overnight.

When ready to bake preheat the oven to 180C (160C fan) and line a few baking trays with parchment paper.

Divide the dough into 60g portions and roll into balls, you could also just for these with my favourite tool, the old fashioned mechanical ice cream scoops. Place cookies onto the prepared baking trays a few inches apart and sprinkle with a little flaked sea salt. Bake in the preheated oven for about 14-16 minutes or until the cookies are golden around the outside but still a little paler in the middle. Remove the trays from the oven and allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Kept in a sealed container these will keep for 3-4 days.