5 last minute cake Recipes

mixed dried fruit, sultanas, raisins, lemon , juice and rind of, grated, black treacle, port wine or 150 ml sherry wine, whole wheat flour, plain white flour, mixed spice, ground cinnamon, butter, dark brown sugar, eggs, glace cherries, sliced almonds

muffin pans, a special metal baking pan , sometimes referred to as a muffin tin, with 6 or 12 cup-shaped depressions. most often this pan is made from aluminum., muffin cups are, standard muffin cup is about 2 1/2 inches in diameter and holds 1/4 to 1/3 cup batter., giant or texas-size muffin cup is about 3 1/2 inches in diameter and holds 5/8 cup batter., muffin cup is about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter and holds 1/8 cup or 2 tbsp batter., muffin-top cup is about 4 inches in diameter but are only 1/2 inch deep ., substituting a different size muffin cup, substitute another size muffin cup for original size listed in recipe. if substituting a larger size muffin cup the recipe will yield fewer muffins and if using smaller size muffin cup the recipe will yield more muffins. the bake time will be changed also. bake a larger muffin longer than the original time and smaller muffins a shorter time., tips on baking muffins, grease muffin cups by spraying each cup with no stick cooking spray or using a paper towel dipped in shortening to grease each cup., use paper liners in muffin cups for easy clean-up., if muffin cups are filled more than 3/4 full the muffins will have flat, flying saucer tops. if sufficient room is not allowed for muffins to expand before reaching the top of the cup the muffin will flatten on top., if some muffin cups will remain empty during baking , put 2 to 3 tbsp water in the unused muffin cups to keep the pan from warping., if baked muffins stick to the bottom of the muffin cup, place hot muffin pan on a wet towel for about two minutes., source : land o lakes, all about muffins, are you eating muffins or cupcakes, hot breads are always a hit and muffins are 1 of the easiest to make. they are more quickly and easily made than biscuits and no kneading, rolling or cutting is required. they can be a savory, last minute dinner muffin or a sweet delicious breakfast muffin. made using whole-wheat flour, wheat germ, bran, honey, fruits and nuts they can be very nutritious. but like the healthy granola craze which turned into candy bars, muffins also can quickly turn into cupcakes. eating cupcakes for breakfast is your choice, but don tsp tell yourself you are eating healthy breakfast muffins. a recent magazine article revealed some muffins available in new york delicatessens were claimed to be low fat, but actually contained up to 23 g of fat. that s more fat than two egg mcmuffins., what is the difference between muffins and cupcakes, some say cupcakes have frosting. a basic formula for muffins is 2 cups flour, 2-4 tbsp sugar, 2 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 egg, 1/4 cup oil, shortening or butter, 1 cup milk. when the fat, sugar and egg ratio in a recipe reaches double or more than this, you have reached the cake level., other technical difference between muffins and cupcakes, method of cooking is different for muffins and cupcakes. the muffin method is by far the fastest and easiest. flour, sugar, baking powder and salt (all the dry ingredients) are mixed together. this is where the leavening can be uniformly dispersed into the flour. sugar is mixed with the flour to prevent the flour from lumping when combined with the wet ingredients., making and baking muffins, in a large bowl, oil (or melted butter) and egg are beaten together to form an emulsion to disperse the fat more uniformly. then the milk is stirred in. this much mixing can be done ahead and held. the two are combined just before baking., combine, cut and fold liquid into the dry ingredients. mix only to combine. batter will be lumpy but no pockets of dry ingredients should remain. the general rule is only 12 strokes., bake as soon as it s mixed. when filling cups, do not mix batter between scoops. excessive mixing causes loss of leavening., cake method for making muffins, sometimes muffins are made using the cake method , i.e. cream the fat and sugar, add eggs, add the dry ingredients and milk alternately. this is more time consuming but produces a lighter, more tender, cake-like muffin., perfect muffin, perfect muffin has a thin brown crust , a slightly rounded top with a pebbled appearance and a moist, even interior. there should be no peaks, no tunnels which are usually caused by excessive mixing and too much liquid (muffin batter should not be fluid)., more leavening is not better, just because a recipe is in print does not mean that it is in balance. a guide for leavening 2 cups of flour in a recipe is either 2 1/2 tsp double acting baking powder, or 4 tsp fast acting baking powder, or 1/2 tsp soda plus 1 cup buttermilk (for the acid) and 1 1/4 tsp baking powder. excess baking powder and soda taste bitter., here are a few tips for altering muffin recipes, substitute 2 egg whites for 1 egg in the recipe. if these are stiffly beaten and folded in at the end it will produce a lighter muffin with less fat., use non-fat milk instead of whole milk ., use salad oil in place of butter. in place of the fat in the recipe , use 1-fourth of the oil and replace the other three-fourths with fruit puree such as applesauce. jars of baby food fruits provide a quick choice of purees other than apple. adding non-gluten grain products (bran, germ, oatmeal, corn meal) for part of the flour makes a more tender muffin., create your own taste sensations, begin with the basic formula and change 1/2 cup of the flour to corn meal, bran, wheat germ, rye, oatmeal or leftover cooked cereal. add 1/2 to 1 cup chopped apple, dates, prunes, raisins, apricots, figs, blueberries, cranberries, cheese, nuts., make your favorite muffin mixes by measuring the dry ingredients twice (or more ) into two separate bowls. use 1 and package 1 with the list of wet ingredients to be added when mixing at a later date.

these vintage cake icing recipes are taken from mom s old recipe scrapbooks , circa 1929. mom often used these easy cake frosting recipes to decorate cakes for birthdays and everyday use., seven minute icing recipe, egg white , 3/4 cups white sugar, 1 tbsp corn syrup, 1/4 tsp cream of tartar, 3 tbsp water, 1/2 tsp vanilla. combine all ingredients, except flavoring, in top of double boiler and beat; place over rapidly boiling water and beat 7 minutes or until frosting is fluffy and will hold shape; remove from stove, add flavor and beat 1 minute longer; spread immediately., easy vanilla icing recipe, butter , 1-1/2 cups icing sugar, 1-1/2 tbsp milk, 1/2 tsp vanilla; beat., vanilla butter cream icing recipe, butter , 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tsp vanilla, 3 cups icing sugar, 1/4 cup milk. combine all ingredients and mix., butterscotch icing recipe, in a saucepan combine 3 tbsp butter , 3 tbsp milk, 1/2 cup dark brown sugar. heat till dissolved, beat in 1-2/3 cups icing sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla; beat till creamy., icing recipes, these old-fashioned , homemade icing recipes are taken from the white house cook book by hugo ziemann, steward of the white house, and mrs. f. litre. gillette, a celebrated 19th-century cookbook author, published by the saalfield publishing company, new york, in 1913., cake frosting tips, in the first place , the eggs should be cold, and the platter on which they are to be beaten also cold. allow, for the white of 1 egg, 1 small teacupful of powdered sugar. break the eggs and throw a small handful of the sugar on them as soon as you begin beating; keep adding it at intervals until it is all used up. the eggs must not be beaten until the sugar has been added in this way, which gives a smooth, tender frosting, and 1 that will dry much sooner than the old way., spread with a broad knife evenly over the cake, and if it seems too thin, beat in a little more sugar. cover the cake with two coats, the second after the first has become dry, or nearly so. if the icing gets too dry or stiff before the last coat is needed, it can be thinned sufficiently with a little water, enough to make it work smoothly., a little lemon juice , or half a teaspoonful of tartaric acid, added to the frosting while being beaten, makes it white and more frothy., flavors mostly used are lemon , vanilla, almond, rose, chocolate, and orange., if you wish to ornament with figures or flowers, make up rather more icing, keep about 1-third out until that on the cake is dried; then, with a clean glass syringe, apply it in such forms as you desire and dry as before; what you keep out to ornament with may be tinted pink with cochineal , blue with indigo, yellow with saffron or the grated rind off an orange strained through a cloth, green with spinach juice and brown with chocolate, purple with cochineal and indigo. strawberry, or currant and cranberry juices color a delicate pink., cake in a cool oven with the door open to dry, or in a draught in an open window., almond frosting (marzipan icing recipe), whites of three eggs, beaten up with three cups of fine, white sugar. blanch a lb of sweet almonds, lb them in a mortar with a little sugar, until a fine paste, then add the whites of eggs, sugar and vanilla extract. lb a few minutes to thoroughly mix. cover the cake with a very thick coating of this, set in a cool oven to dry, afterwards cover with a plain icing., chocolate frosting, whites of four eggs , three cups of powdered sugar and nearly a cup of grated chocolate. beat the whites a very little, they must not become white, stir in the chocolate, then put in the sugar gradually, beating to mix it well., plain chocolate icing, put into a shallow pan four tablespoonfuls of scraped chocolate , and place it where it will melt gradually, but not scorch; when melted, stir in three tablespoonfuls of milk or cream and 1 of water; mix all well together, and add 1 scant teacupful of sugar; boil about five minutes, and while hot, and when the cakes are nearly cold, spread some evenly over the surface of 1 of the cakes; put a second 1 on top, alternating the mixture and cakes; then cover top and sides, and set in a warm oven to harden., all who have tried recipe after recipe , vainly hoping to find 1 where the chocolate sticks to the cake and not to the fingers, will appreciate the above. in making those most palatable of cakes, chocolate eclairs, the recipe just given will be found very satisfactory., tutti frutti icing, mix with boiled icing 1 oz each of chopped citron , candied cherries, seedless raisins, candied pineapple, and blanched almonds., sugar icing, extra-refined sugar add 1 oz of fine white starch ; lb finely together and then sift them through gauze; then beat the whites of three eggs to a froth. the secret of success is to beat the eggs long enough, and always 1 way; add the powdered sugar by degrees, or it will spoil the froth of the eggs. when all the sugar is stirred in continue the whipping for half an hour longer, adding more sugar if the ice is too thin., take a little of the icing and lay it aside for ornamenting afterward. when the cake comes out of the oven, spread the sugar icing smoothly over it with a knife and dry it at once in a cool oven., ornament the cake with it, make a cone of stiff writing paper and squeeze the colored icing through it, so as to form leaves, beading or letters, as the case may be. it requires nicety and care to do it with success.

chocolate espresso cake, when it comes out of the oven the cake should still be moist - sticky even - in the middle. as it cools the cake will sink slightly and the crust will crisp., on cooling , the outside of the cake becomes sponge-like, whilst the center remains dense and fudgy., fine dark chocolate, chopped, a small espresso (about 3 tbsp very strong coffee), butter, diced, eggs, separated, golden caster sugar, cocoa powder, all-purpose flour, line the base of a 8-9 inch shallow springform cake pan with silicone baking parchment paper, buttering the pan lightly to hold it in place., melt the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. as soon as it starts to soften, add the coffee and leave it for two or three minutes. stir very gently, then when the chocolate has melted add the butter. stir until it has melted., meanwhile , beat the egg whites with an electric mixer till stiff, then fold in the sugar. mix the baking powder with the cocoa powder and flour. remove the chocolate from the heat, quickly stir in the egg yolks, then slowly, firmly, and gently fold the melted chocolate into the egg whites. lastly sift in the flour and cocoa mixture., stir the mixture tenderly with a large metal spoon, taking care not to knock out any air. it should feel light and wobbly. do not overmix - just enough to fold in the flour. scoop into the lined pan and bake in an oven preheated to 350of for thirty-five minutes. leave to cool in its pan, then turn out.