The Daring Bakers: Lamingtons

I joined the Daring Bakers about six years ago, when I first moved to the US. It's such a great idea - home cooks, at all different levels, commit to complete one baking challenge once a month. The idea is that you step out from your own kitchen and in to someone else's, trying someone's grandmother's recipe from the other side of the world, learning how to make things from scratch, and widen your horizons when it comes to flavor and execution. I haven't been active in years, but thought it would be fun to get back into it. So, here it is, the Daring Bakers May Challenge: Lamingtons.

 

Honestly, I had never heard about Lamingtons before this challenge. I've now learned that it's a national Australian dessert, a light corn flour based vanilla sponge cake, that is dipped in a chocolate syrup and then rolled in shredded coconut. It's very simple, but oh so delicious.

 

There are a few variations on this traditional dessert - some people like to have a little strawberry jam or lemon curd in between two layers, others use whipped cream. Since the cornbread, chocolate and shredded coconut are all so sweet, I used some of my home made salted caramel sauce to balance the sweetness. And because, who doesn't think that vanilla, chocolate, caramel and coconut are a match made in heaven? 

 



 

 

I know I many times use the word "easy" when explaining the baking process. Many of you have said that the recipes look complicated, so just to make sure you believe me, I'll show you how easy it is to make these yummy treats. And messy. Be prepared to get your hands dirty!

 

This is an old family recipe from Marcellina in Cucina, and is sure to make your tummy happy.

 

Lamington Sponge Cake
from Marcellina in Cucina
Servings: 24
 
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (240 ml) (225 gm) (8 oz) castor (superfine) sugar
Pinch salt
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups (300 ml) (200 gm) (7 oz) cornflour (cornstarch)
1 ½ teaspoons (8 gm) baking powder
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (15 gm) (½ oz) butter, melted (optional)
2¾ cups (660 ml) (250 gm) (9 oz) unsweetened desiccated coconut, to assemble


Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
2. Prepare a 4 ½ cm (1¾ inch) deep, 23cm x 33cm (9”x 13”) baking pan by lining with non-stick paper. I sprayed a little cooking spray between the pan and the parchment paper, to make sure it stayed in place.
3. In a stand mixer bowl place eggs, sugar and salt. Using the whisk attachment, beat on high for 15 minutes.

4. While the eggs and sugar are beating, sift the corn flour and baking powder at least 3 times.

5. After 15 minutes add vanilla and beat on high for another 5 minutes. The mixture should have at least tripled in size, be light in color and very foamy.

6. Sift flour mixture over the egg mixture. If you are using butter, thoroughly fold it in now but lightly.

 

7. Spread mixture into your prepared pan and smooth out evenly.

 

8. Bake in preheated moderate oven for 22-25 minutes. The sponge will rise quite a lot but then settle back down. Don’t be tempted to open the oven to peak. When baked the sponge will have shrunk very slightly from the sides and should feel springy when pressed gently.

9. Turn the sponge out immediately onto a wire rack to cool and reverse sponge so as not to mark the top. Allow to cool. It is best to keep the cake for a day before making the Lamingtons as the cake will be easier to handle.

 

For the salted caramel recipe, please go to this blog post.


Chocolate icing

3 ¼ cups (780 ml) (400 gm) (14 oz) icing (powdered) sugar
1/3 cup (80 ml) (40 gm) (1-1/3 oz) cocoa powder
1 tablespoon (15 gm) (15 gm) (½ oz) butter, melted
½ to ¾ cup (120 ml to 180 ml) milk


Instructions:

Sift the icing sugar and cocoa into a heatproof bowl.

Stir in the butter and ½ cup milk. Set the bowl over a pan of hot water. Stir until icing is smooth adding more milk to thin the icing if needed. I find I need more than ½ cup but not quite ¾ cup of milk.

To assemble the Lamingtons:

Cut the sponge cake into 24 rectangular pieces – 6 across and 4 down. You can trim the crusts to make the square more even. Plus, you just have to make sure it tastes good, right?

Keep the icing over the hot water to keep it melted. Place the shredded coconut in a shallow bowl.

Add the filling and arrange the squares on top of one another.

Dip each piece into the chocolate icing. I used a fork to lift the sponge cake bites.

Allow excess to drip off then toss gently into the coconut. Stand cakes on a wire rack to set, about one hour.

Enjoy!

 



Speckled Easter Cake



 

 

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. Not only is it a key celebration in the Christian faith, but it's also such a bright and colorful holiday. The heavy jackets have been put away (depending on where you live), the trees are budding, colorful tulips and lilies are standing on our tables, and most importantly, it's a time for family to come together. Oh, and candy. Lots of candy.

This year we were invited over to our friends Brandon and Sarah's house for an Easter potluck, and I just had to bake a cake. Well, I didn't have to bake a cake, but this was a great excuse. I'm always browsing on Pinterest for some inspiration and remembered how impressed I'd been with a speckled cake I saw from the Cake Blog. It's not your traditional fluffy bunny butt cake or hatching chicken cupcake. I had never seen anything like it, and as a learning baker, I love a challenge.

 



 

 

As a base, I used this incredibly moist and rich coconut cake recipe. I baked this cake for my husband a couple of months back, and he swears it was the best cake he has ever had. To keep it light and fresh, I made a pineapple curd filling. Oddly enough, there are not a lot of recipes for pineapple curd out there (let me know if you have one!), so I tried the one that had the best reviews. Unfortunately, it came out a little too sweet for my taste, so I ended up making a lemon curd and mixed the two together. The tartness from the lemon cut the sweetness from the pineapple, and vice versa. It worked perfectly.

Now, a cake needs frosting. Before I found this buttercream recipe, I was walking around thinking I was a cream cheese frosting kind of girl. Because, frankly, how appealing does a butter spread on a cake sound? But I was wrong, it's delicious. This recipe is not overly sweet and has a nicely hidden salty note in it. It's definitely a crowd pleaser. 

 

A tip though, when using gel food coloring, be careful to not put in too much. The frosting will get darker the longer it sits. My light aqua cake turned a lot darker within just a few hours.

 

The eggs were the easy part. I just dyed some fondant and then rolled them into the shape of eggs. Make sure you put them in the fridge to cool so the fondant hardens. That way they will keep their shapes nicely when they're on top of the cake.

 

The most fun, and the messiest, part was speckling the cake to look like an egg. I used a clean paint brush and then gently dabbed it in a small bowl of water and cocoa. Then I splattered the cake to get the effect I wanted. My hubby laughed at me, because not only did I get cocoa spots all over my kitchen counter, cabinets and stove, but I also ended up looking like a polka-dotted version of myself! Next time I'll remember to put down some towels first.

 

So, if you're looking for a delicious springtime cake recipe, this one's great. It's light and has a perfect balance between sweetness and tartness. You'll love it!

 

 

 

 



Incredible Coconut Cake 

from Taste of Home

5 eggs, separated

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2-1/4 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups flaked coconut, chopped - I used finely shredded coconut
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar


Instructions:

1. Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. 
2. Preheat oven to 325°. In another large bowl, beat sugar, butter and oil until well blended. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. 
3. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition. Stir in coconut. 
4. Add cream of tartar to egg whites; with clean beaters, beat on medium until stiff peaks form. Fold a fourth of the egg whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites. 
5. Transfer to three greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

 

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
from add a pinch

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
3 - 4 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla
pinch salt
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream


Instructions:

1. Place softened butter into the bowl of a stand mixer that has been fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn the mixer on a medium setting and cream the butter until it is smooth and has lightened in color, about 3 minutes.
2. Add confectioner's sugar, ½ a cup at a time. After each cup has been incorporated, turn the mixer onto the highest speed setting and for about 10 seconds to lighten the frosting.
3. Add vanilla and a pinch of salt and combine until well-incorporated.
4. Add heavy cream until the frosting has reached the preferred consistency. For a firmer frosting, add more confectioner's sugar, a ¼ cup at a time. For a softer frosting, add more cream, a tablespoon at a time.

 

 

Fantastisk Kokostårta

från Taste of Home

5 ägg, separerade

4,7 dl socker
113 g smör, rumstemp
1 dl veg olja
1 tsk kokosnötextract
1/2 tsk vaniljextract
1 krm mandelextract
5,4 dl mjöl
1 tsk bakpulver
1/2 tsk bikarbonat
1 krm salt
2,4 dl buttermilk (mjölk + 1 tsk vinäger. Låt stå i 10 min före användning)
4,7 dl kokosflingor

 Vaniljsmörkräm Frosting
från add a pinch220 g smör, rumstemp
7-9 dl florsocker, siktat
2 tsk vaniljextrakt
nypa salt
2-3 msk grädde