Traditional Icelandic Cake

March 6, 2024 Forestwood

As I get a little older, watching the waistline becomes mandatory. Weekends are more the time to indulge in baking and eating sweet treats. Rabbit rations are for the working week.

I was reminded of the wonderful ‘Hjonabandsaela’ or Blessing of the Marriage cake at a recent lunch! It is not only light and delicious, it is traditional comfort food at its best, and – it originates from Iceland!

And I am heading to a Thai wedding shortly. It’s an informal second wedding so a Bring a Plate concept is included. So to add some ‘Scandi flair,’ for which I am renowned. I will make an Icelandic cake.

Icelandic Wedding Traditions

Fridays are the traditional wedding day in Iceland.

The pagan Icelanders believed the day was dedicated to Frigga, who just happened to be the goddess of marriage! Engagements sometimes last for 3 -4 years, so after waiting that long, it is little wonder that cake features prominently in the celebrations!

At the wedding feast itself, a ‘Kransekake’ or traditional Scandinavian wedding cake, is eaten. This the wonderfully Scandinavian stack of crispy, concentric almond-based pastry rings, decorated with icing and flags, which looks and tastes incredible.

Another Icelandic tradition is for a groom to send presents to bride’s family, on the morning after the wedding. Whilst the ancient tradition is by and large, forgotten in modern times, it is still customary for a bride and groom to exchange personal “bed gifts and cake.” The traditional religious ritual, the ‘Blessing of the Marriage’ is undertaken by the priest, after the wedding couple leave the wedding feast, when the bride and groom are finally alone! This is the cake for such an occasion!!!

This weekend’s sweet treat!

Recipe – Hjonabandsæla -Blessing of the Marriage

Ingredients:

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup plain flour

1 cup dark brown sugar

150 gram butter

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda/baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cardamon (optional)

Rhubarb jam or other not very sweet jam such as cranberry.

Mix thoroughly softened (not melted) butter with the sugar. Add flour, bicarbonate of soda and oats

Press 3/4 of dough into greased tin. Spread jam on top, sprinkle the rest of the dough on top.

Bake in medium hot oven approx 30 -40 minutes.

To Make your own Jam

Bring to boil:

2 cups chopped rhubarb

juice of 1 orange

1/2 cup strawberry or cranberry (lingonberry) jam

2 tablespoon sugar

Cook 10 minutes and allow to cool. You can add more sugar if you think it is too tart.

NB Tips:

If mixing by hand, use quick cook rolled oats, instead of whole oats.
Instead of rhubarb jam, you can try cranberry, blackberry or plum jam.

building

Lots of Lemon Cake

April 9, 2023April 9, 2023 Forestwood

Although I am more than partial to a good Hot Cross Bun, we don’t tend to have such a traditional Easter celebrations anymore with chocolate eggs, as there are no small children around, so this Easter Sunday I was hunting for a good Lemon cake recipe to bake.

I know that I have made many during my ‘blogging career,’ but somehow this post that was drafted in 2020, escaped publication. So here it is Australia’s best Lemon Yoghurt Cake.

Happy Easter!

Lemon Tree

Do you remember the lemon tree, called,’Lots of Lemons,’ I planted at the Home by the Sea, a few months back? Due to the poor quality of our soil, we planted it in a pot in the backyard. I remember Chris was curious as to how it would grow.

It is budding a small lemon, just one, but it is its first year living at our home.

UPDATE 2023: the lemon tree is now in a garden bed and is over two metres tall.

In honour of the first lemon, and a large tub of yoghurt to use up before its use by date, I made a Lemon Yoghurt Cake. And it was light, tangy and delicious.

Australia’s Best Lemon Yoghurt Cake

The following recipe makes one large ring cake, two sandwich pan cakes or around 2 dozen cupcakes.

Adapted from bestrecipes.com.au

Lemon Yoghurt Cake Recipe

Ingredients

1 and 3/4 cups sugar – I only used 1.5 cups
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp lemon juice
Zest of 2 lemons
3/4 cup oil
1 cup natural yoghurt
2 cups self-raising flour (If you don’t have Self-raising flour in your country you can make it by adding 2 teaspoons of baking powder to each cup of Plain flour)

Method

In a bowl, mix rind, oil, eggs and sugar with a fork.
Add remaining ingredients and combine well.
Pour into your selected cake tin – I use a ring tin and bake at 180C for 30- 40 minutes.
Leave to cool for 10 minutes then turn out
Prick holes in the top of the cake and dribble lemon juice over the top. This gives it a tangy flavour.
Dust with icing sugar and serve.

food, health

Weekly Cake Recipe Rich Chocolate Orange Cake

November 7, 2020 Forestwood

One Cake A Week

Do Chocolate Cakes in your house disappear all too quickly?

Then your household will love this Chocolate Orange cake. It has the flavour of Chocolate with a hint of orange juice goodness. Better than chocolate!

Chocolate Orange Cake Recipe

Ingredients

125g butter (softened)
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 3/4 cups Self Raising Flour (equivalent to plain flour with 3 teaspoons of Baking powder added)
1 1/3 cup castor or fine white sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup Orange Juice
1/4 cup water

Method

Preheat Oven 180 Celsius or 375 Fahrenheit.
Grease and flour a 20 cm/8 inch bundt or round cake pan.
Combine all ingredients in an electric mixer adding wet ingredients last.
Beat on low speed until all ingredients are combined.
Increase mixer speed to medium and beat for 3 minutes or until the cake mixture changes colour and is smooth.
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 50 – 60 minutes.
Leave stand for 5 minutes before turning out.
Dust generously with icing sugar before serving.
Optional: Ice with Choc Orange frosting, if desired.

Chocolate Orange Frosting

60 grams or 4 tablespoons soft Butter
1 tablespoon grated Orange rind
1 1/2 cup Icing Sugar
2 Tablespoons Milk
1 Tablespoon Cocoa

To Make Frosting:

Beat butter and rind in small mixer bowl until light and fluffy.
Add icing sugar and milk gradually.
Divide frosting mixture in half, stir sifted cocoa into one half and mix well.
Top cake with spoonfuls of orange and chocolate iceing.
Swirl icing with knife to give a marbled effect.

I am making #onecakeaweek at the Home by the Sea. Join me in collating a recipe blog list by leaving your link in the comments below.

More HbtS Cake Recipes. There is plenty to choose from.

food

Sticky Date Pudding Recipe – My Way

September 1, 2020September 1, 2020 Forestwood

Ingredients

Pudding:

1 and 1/4 cups pitted dates, chopped
1 and 1/4 cups boiling water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
60 g or 2 oz butter, softened
3/4 cup soft brown sugar or dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup self-raising flour (All-purpose flour with 1 tsp baking powder and well sifted)

Butterscotch Sauce

2 cups brown sugar
250 ml or 2.5 dl cream
50 g or 1.75 oz butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Preheat oven to 180 celsius (375 F) – slightly cooler for fan-forced.
Grease and flour/line a base of a 20 cm cake pan.
Combine the dates, boiling water and baking soda in a bowl. Allow to stand for 30 minutes.
Cream butter, brown sugar and vanilla until creamy with an electric mixer.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add the date mixture and flour and mix until well combined.
Pour into the prepared cake pan.
Bake for 35 – 45 minutes or till a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean

To Make Butterscotch Sauce

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over a medium heat on the stovetop.
Stir regularly and bring to the boil.
Simmer for 1 minute until butter and sugar have dissolved.
Pierce pudding all over with a skewer. Pour sauce over warm pudding. Stand for 10 minutes.*
Serve warm with ice cream or as you prefer.

^Variation:

I served the pudding as it was out of the oven. I let it cool slightly and then cut it into wedges, to serve with the sauce and icecream. Pouring the sauce over immediately prior to serving.

* The recipe recommended letting the sauce sit and permeate through the whole pudding, however, I prefer a slightly firmer texture better, than a soggy pudding.

It is up to you how you tackle that!

#onecakeaweek

Follow this blog for more recipes. They are posted weekly at the Home by the Sea

food, health, home

Lemon Blueberry Bread

August 23, 2020September 3, 2020 Forestwood

#onecakeaweek

The cake for this week is a bread that is really a cake.

Blueberries are in season here at the Home by the Sea. Blueberries the so-called Superfood packed with antioxidants means this bread-like cake can legitimately claim the label of a healthy home-baked food.

You will find it especially delightful served warm with a cuppa.

Recipe for Lemon Blueberry Bread

Ingredients

1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup light or low-fat milk
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Glaze

2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° F or 175° C
In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, lemon juice and eggs.
Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir into egg mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition.
Fold in the blueberries, nuts and lemon zest.
Transfer to a greased 8×4-in. loaf pan.
Bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack.
Combine glaze ingredients; drizzle over warm bread.

Recipe Variations

Because of its lemon base you can replace the blueberries with raspberries or any other bey in season. Or you could turn this into an orange cranberry bread by using orange juice and cranberries. Cherries and almonds also pair beautifully with either lemon or orange.

Using full fat milk, will mean the bread will keep moist for longer.

food, health

Cinnamon Spice cake

July 21, 2020July 21, 2020 Forestwood

I do look for recipes that use cinnamon, as it is has so many health-giving benefits:

Cinnamon Spice

contains calcium, iron, vitamins, fibre
assists with a variety of digestive ailments such as gas and bloating
has a mild anti-inflammatory effect.

Studies have shown improved insulin sensitivity and blood glucose control by taking as little as half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day. Improving insulin resistance can help in weight control as well as decreasing the risk for heart disease.
[Source: cinnamonnutrition.com/ ]

Initially I adapted a Danish Spice cake recipe posted by Ted at Recipereminiscing, but halved the recipe as it makes quite a large cake, used butter instead of margarine, and replaced the cloves with mixed spice. Then I added a few currants, because I had a slight oversupply of currants in the pantry and I thought it might work will with the spices.

The cake turned out well but I preferred another version of the Danish spice cake, one that is evocative of Christmas and all those aromatic spices. I have posted both Ted’s and my recipe below.

Danish

Spice Cake

In Australia, we do not have easy access to the wonder that is a range of fermented milk products, so I substituted sour cream and plain probiotic yoghurt, in place of cultured milk.

Ted’s Danish Spice Cake

2,1 pint / 1 l flour
1,6 pint / 7.5 dl sugar
3 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
1 teaspoon cloves, ground
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 egg
1,6 pint / 7.5 dl cultured milk (see note below)
5,3 oz. / 150 g margarine

[1] Set the oven at 390 F / 200 C.

[2] Melt the margarine.

[3] Mix all the dry ingredients.

[4] Mix the eggs with milk and margarine, and stirred into the dry.

[5] Bake in pan for approximately 30 min.

Note:
Cultured milk or soured milk is a food product produced from the acidification of milk. It is not the same as spoiled milk that has gone bad, commonly but incorrectly called soured and which may contain toxins.

Acidification, which gives the milk a tart taste, is achieved either through the addition of an acid, such as lemon juice or vinegar, or through bacterial fermentation. The acid causes milk to coagulate and form a thicker consistency, and inhibits the growth of harmful bacteria and thus improves its shelf life. Soured milk that is produced by bacterial fermentation is more specifically called fermented milk or cultured milk.
Wikipedia

Amanda’s Danish Spice Cake

Ingredients:

2 dl Dark Brown sugar
0.5 dl White sugar
4.5 dl Flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp Ground Cardamom
2 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp Ginger
2 tsp Clove
1 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Ground Nutmeg
2 tbspn Cocoa Powder
Pinch salt
200ml Buttermilk or Yoghurt
2 Eggs
100ml melted Copha/Coconut oil/Vegetable oil

Method:

Mix all the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon.
Ensure melted Copha and buttermilk is at room temperature and add to the dry ingredients.
Mix well, but not too much. If the Copha solidifies, place the bowl over a hot water bath and gently fold until even.
Pour into greased cake tin, I used a ‘kugelhof’ or bundt mould.
Bake in oven 175° celsius (350°F) for about 40 minutes.
Cool 10 mins before turning out.

For extra decadence (entirely optional):

Drizzle melted butter over the top and sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar/dusting sugar.

Tips for measurement conversions:

American

1 cup = 8 fl oz = 2.4 dl = 24 cl = 240 ml

British

1 cup = 10 fl oz = 2.8 dl = 280 ml

Australian

dl – 1 deciliter = 6 (scant) tablespoons

Reasons to Indulge in this Cake:

It doesn’t require heavy lashings of icing, and the less sugar we eat, the better for us, right? (There is plenty of sugar in the cake itself, so why add more?)

While we are eating it, think of all the good things the spices are doing for our bodies!

Another tasty cake recipe using cinnamon is Apple and Cinnamon Bread.

Find more about the healthy benefits of Cinnamon.

#onecakeaweek

Have you posted a recipe for a cake? Post your link in the comments below.

food, home

Walnut Streusel Cake

April 16, 2020April 17, 2020 Forestwood

Finding an energy-dense food that is not only rich in fibre and omega-3 fats but also contains higher amounts of antioxidants than most other foods and could improve brain health, sounds like a valuable addition to our diet. If we aren’t allergic, we can gain these benefits by adding walnuts to our diet.

Even though walnuts are rich in calories, studies indicate that they don’t increase obesity risk when replacing other foods in your diet… [and they] are the only nuts that contain significant amounts of Alpha Linoleic Acid or ALA. ALA is considered especially beneficial for heart health. It also helps reduce inflammation and improve the composition of blood fats.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15514264

If you don’t like simply snacking on Walnuts, and there is only so much Waldorf Salad you can eat, incorporate walnuts in a sweet baked delight such as Streusel Cake.

Streusal Cake Recipes

113g Butter
198g Sugar
2 Eggs
240g Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
227g Yogurt
2 tsp Vanilla

Streusel Mix Topping

100g Sugar – I used a mix of brown and fine white sugar
2tsp Cinnamon
Minimum of 1/2 cup of Walnuts, chopped

Prepare a 8 inch bundt pan or 9″x9″ pan and pre-heat oven to 350F – 175 C
Cream together room temperature butter with the sugar, eggs and vanilla.
Mix together dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

Fold flour mixture into the creamed butter, alternating flour and yogurt until well mixed.
Spoon half of the batter into a prepared pan, sprinkle with half of the streusel and cover with remaining batter.

Sprinkle remaining streusel on top. *(I omitted this step)
Bake at 350F for 30 to 40 minutes or until cooked through.

Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out.

Variations to the Recipe:

I am going to increase the ratio of brown sugar to white sugar in the streusel topping mix and put in a thin layer in the bundt pan first, before adding the cake batter. That way, the cake will turn out with a streusel topping insitu.

I used a mix of fermented kefir and vanilla yoghurt, and it worked fine, so I am pretty confident any yoghurt, or even sour cream, will work with this recipe.

Here is how my variation turned out. Simply Delicious.

For full enjoyment, break out a gourmet leaf tea to accompany like this Royal Ritz flavour from The Tea Centre.

Thanks to Sandy for her recipe which was originally sourced from King Arthur’s Flour.

Linking to a Virtualteaparty over at Su’s blog

building, food, home

Ju-Lyn’s Orange and Blueberry Cake

March 15, 2020March 23, 2020 Forestwood

Firstly, this is not a post about Corona, so if you want something a little juicier, you might check out some recent posts on StPA.

Ju-Lyn’s wonderful Orange and Blueberry Cake

Truthfully though, I have to admit that I was tempted to call this Corona cake, not just because I cooked it for the first time, in these panic-ridden days, when the Corona virus is causing havoc around the world, but primarily because of the stunning way my blogger friend, Ju-Lyn presented it. There are several layers to this cake and it is decorated with blueberries like a crown – (hence the reference to ‘Corona’, which means ‘Crown’). But then, I was worried that Ju-Lyn might take offence at my referencing something like that, so I will call it- Ju-Lyn’s Mini Cakes.

Ju Lyn blogs at All Things Bright and Beautiful and very kindly shared her recipe for this delicious sounding cake with me, before it was posted on her own blog. That is a measure of her kindess. Thanks, Ju-Lyn!

Cake Recipe

I have to admit that I changed the original aesthetic slightly, as I was a little pushed for time, and I am not a big fan of butter cream icing, even though the Moth, (the “Man of the house”), just loves it. [He does better to watch his calories, you see.]

Ju-Lyn’s Orange Blueberry Mini Cakes

Ingredients

130 g Self Raising Flour
110 g Caster Sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
Zest of one orange and a little juice
Pinch of Salt
150 g Sour Cream
40 g melted butter
50 g fresh blueberries
Few extra blueberries for cake toppers

Method

Mix flour sugar and baking powder together in a bowl
Mix together eggs, the zest of orange and a little juice – I used a teaspoonful
Add wet ingredients to dry and mix throughly
Mix in melted butter and sour cream.
Gently fold in the blueberries
Place in muffin trays, lined with paper cases, if you wish.
Scatter a couple of extra blueberries on top of each cake.
Bake at 160 degrees Celsius for 25 minutes
Testing with a skewer to see if the cake is cooked.
Allow to cool and serve with a dusting of icing sugar if desired.

Insider Tips:

You can make one large cake with this mix but bake for 40 – 50 minutes.
Double the ingredients for a layer cake and ice all over with buttercream.

More Cake Recipes

I have previously posted another of Ju-lyn’s wonderful recipes for Honey Spice Cake, which is now a staple on Sunday mornings, at the Home by the Sea.

blogging, building, home

Join me for Tea – Spice Cake

December 22, 2019February 29, 2020 Forestwood

Tomorrow it will be six weeks since I moved into the Home by the sea and I haven’t really cooked a lot since then. Besides working and unpacking, and showing visitors around my new home, I haven’t found time to do any leisure baking. By that I mean more than what is required to sustain life!

I travel a long way to work so I often get back home late in order to avoid the peak hour traffic jams. On those nights, the MotH [Man of the House], improvises or uses the spouse-approved, (and proven), C.Y.O. method. Read: (cook your own).

First cake in the New Home

Having a quiet morning this week, meant I was ready to bake something and Ju-Lyn, over at All Things Bright and Beautiful, provided the final piece of motivation I needed to get me started, posting her Honey Spice cake recipe, (which she had adapted from Anita Bean).

I was determined to try it this morning. The MotH loves having a morning tea with freshly baked treats to the point that morning tea, with him, has become something of an art form.

Sitting together over a cuppa gives us a good chance to talk in a way that we don’t do, for the rest of our busy day – he is often at the hardware, Hi-fi shop, or pet store and I am busy pottering about getting the house in order, if I am not at work.

So back to the delicious cake. It was a throw-it-all together kind of recipe – they are really the best kind, aren’t they? No stress and it cooked beautifully in my new Westinghouse oven. [smile]

I was a little short of ground almond for this recipe, so I topped the measure up with a little extra flour. The recipe adapted beautifully.

With a light dusting of vanilla or icing sugar on top, to serve, this Spice Cake is light and tasty and just the perfect accompaniment for tea.

Ju-lyn had topped the cake with lemon icing, whereas I added a dollop of home made lemon butter, on the side, for a decadent indulgence.

As the recipe worked so well, I was thinking I could even be a little adventurous and add walnuts, next time. Or even try a gluten free version for my diet conscious son.

Will you try it?