Here are a couple of great birthday cake recipes, which you can cook up to ensure that, when the day comes, you’ll have plenty of great food to fill all those hungry mouths!
Simple Birthday Cake
You will need…
3 cups of standard flour
2 and a half teaspoons of baking powder
1 and a half cups of sugar
just over 1/2 a cup of shortening.
a couple of pinches of salt
2 medium/large eggs
1 and a quarter cups of milk
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Steps..
First, cream the sugar and shortening together and add the eggs, beat together briskly for about 2 minutes, or until well churned. Mix in the flour, baking powder and salt and while mixing, pour in the milk and vanilla in small quantities at a time, making sure not to add too much at once
Pour this mixture into a greased pan that you have lined with some wax paper, or you can use a decent quanitity of butter if you have none available.
Bake in the oven at 350F/180C for about 30-35 minutes if you are using a flat pan, or increase by about 15 minutes if the cake is thicker. Check the cake center is well cooked before serving by inserting a knitting needle or other sharp, long object, and making sure it comes out clean
Decorate, and serve!
Serves 10 to 12
Chocolate Cake
You will need…
A cup of freshly boiled water
2/3rds of a cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
1 and 3/4 cups of cake flour
a pinch of salt
half a teaspoon baking soda
one teaspoon of Baking Powder (not soda)
3 tablespoons Canola oil
2 cups of granulated sugar
2 and a half teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons of butter, softened for mixing
the white of 3 large eggs
half a cup of non fat plain yoghurt
Firstly, preheat the oven to 350F/180C and add a small amount of oil to two 9-12 inch round cake pans - or you can use a non-stick cooking spray if this is better. Next, dust the pans with the flour, making sure to shake out any excess afterwards
Mix up a chocolate paste by whisking together the boiled water and the cocoa powder. Stir until smooth and leave it to cool for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together the cake flour, baking soda and baking powder and salt
In another bowl, mix together the sugar, the butter, vanilla and the canola oil until well blended. Use a mixer if possible, it’s hard work! Then, beat in the egg whites, one at a time. Add yoghurt and beat further - if you’re using a mixer, set it to high! Blend until the mixture is light and fluffy, for about 2 minutes
Add in about half of the flour, soda, powder and salt and stir on a low setting, whisking quicker as the dry ingredients mix in. Stir more slowly again as you pour in half of the chocolate mixture. Repeat until you’ve used all the ingredients and they’re all mixed in. Scrape any dry powder from the sides of the bowls
Divide between the cake pans and tap the pans to ensure any air bubbles rise to the surface so there are no gaps in the cake. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until you can remove a knitting needle/cake tester from the center of the cake cleanly
After baking, let the cakes cool for about 10 minute, and then, to remove them, using a sharp knife, cut away the cake at the edges of the pan, and tip out the cakes onto a wire rack and allow to cool completely. They’ll keep for up to 2 days in an airtight container - or you can freeze them for 2-3 months.
Serves 8-10