“Ambassador” sponge cake (with fruit jelly candy)

Ingredients

Batter:

•       6 eggs

•       200 g sugar

•       4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

•       1 teaspoon baking powder

•       150 ml flavourless vegetable oil

                 (vegetable or groundnut oil)

•       200 g all-purpose flour, plus more for pan

Filling:

•       500 ml milk

•       250 g sugar

•       5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

•       250 g margarine (room temperature)

•       250 g sugar coated fruit jelly candy

Decoration:

•       50 g dark chocolate

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350℉/gas 4).

Grease the pan with oil - approximately 40 x 22 cm; dust with flour, tapping out the excess – OR line the baking pan with non-stick parchment paper.

Batter:

Place 6 whole eggs in a mixing bowl and use a mixer to whisk them gradually adding 200 g of sugar (while whipping); 
when the whipped foam of eggs and sugar is made then (still using the mixer) gradually add 150 ml of oil, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 4 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder and 200 g of all-purpose flour.

Pour the batter into a prepared pan. 
Bake, about 40 minutes. 
To test, when it looks like it is done insert a toothpick into the middle of a cake; it’s ready when the toothpick comes out clean. 
Transfer to wire rack and let it cool completely.

Filling:

Divide 500 ml of milk - 1/3 in a sauce pan and 2/3 in a bowl.

Place a sauce pan with 1/3 of milk and 250 g of sugar on a stove top and heat to boil.

Meanwhile, mix the rest 2/3 of cold milk with 5 tablespoons of all-purpose flour (using a hand whisk to mix without any lumps).

Once the milk on a stove top reaches the boiling point add the mixture of milk and flour and keep stirring energetically and constantly (with a hand whisk). 
Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it thickens. 
Remove the sauce pan from a stove top and let it cool completely.

Then, separately use a fork or a mixer to mash the 250 g of room temperature margarine until it turns softened.

Meanwhile, cut 250 g of sugar coated fruit jelly candy into the quarters and then chop them into small pieces.

Finally, using a mixer combine the cooked and completely cooled filling mixture (which you have removed from a sauce pan into a bowl) with a fluffy margarine until it turns creamy and then add (and mix by hand whisk) 250 g of diced sugar coated fruit jelly candy.

Slice the cake in half horizontally.

Place one cake layer on your chosen plate or cake stand and spread over ½ of cream filling.

Top with the remaining cake layer and top/spread over the other ½ of cream filling.

Make a final decoration by grating 50 g of dark chocolate on the top of cake.

Store your “Ambassador” Sponge Cake in the refrigerator.

Family sponge cake (plentiful mild cake)

Ingredients

Yellow batter:

•       3 eggs

•       200 g sugar

•       100 ml milk

•       100 ml flavourless vegetable oil

                (vegetable or groundnut oil)

•       200 g all-purpose flour, plus more for pan

•       1 tablespoon baking powder

Brown batter: 

•       3 eggs

•       200 g sugar

•       100 ml milk

•       100 ml flavourless vegetable oil

      (vegetable or groundnut oil)

•       200 g all-purpose flour, plus more for pan

•       1 tablespoon baking powder

•       1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Filling:

•       500 ml milk

•       200 g sugar

•       1 tablespoon vanilla sugar

•       5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

•       220 g margarine (room temperature)

Decoration:

•       50 g dark chocolate

Preparation

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350℉/gas 4). Grease two pans with oil - approximately 40 x 22 cm each; dust with flour, tapping out the excess – OR line those 2 baking pans with non-stick parchment paper.

Yellow batter:

Place 3 whole eggs in a mixing bowl and use a mixer to whisk them gradually adding 200 g of sugar (while whipping);

when the whipped foam of eggs and sugar is made then (still using the mixer) gradually add 100 ml of milk, 100 ml of oil, 1 tablespoon of baking powder and 200 g of all-purpose flour.

Pour the yellow batter into a prepared pan. 

Bake, about 40 minutes. 

To test, when it looks like it is done insert a toothpick into the middle of a cake; it’s ready when the toothpick comes out clean. 

Transfer to wire rack and let it cool completely.

Brown batter:

Place the 3 whole eggs in a mixing bowl and use a mixer to whisk them gradually adding 200 g of sugar (while whipping); 

when the whipped foam of eggs and sugar is made then (still using the mixer) gradually add 100 ml of milk, 100 ml of oil, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, 1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder and 200 g of all-purpose flour.

Pour the brown batter into a prepared pan. 

Bake, about 40 minutes. 

To test, when it looks like it is done insert a toothpick into the middle of a cake; it’s ready when the toothpick comes out clean. 

Transfer to wire rack and let it cool completely.

Filling:

Divide 500 ml of milk - 1/3 in a sauce pan and 2/3 in a bowl.

Place a sauce pan with 1/3 of milk, 200 g of sugar and 1 tablespoon of vanilla sugar on a stove top and heat to boil.

Meanwhile, mix the rest 2/3 of cold milk with 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour (using a hand whisk to mix without any lumps).

Once the milk on a stove top reaches the boiling point add the mixture of milk and flour and keep stirring energetically and constantly (with a hand whisk). 

Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it thickens. 

Remove the sauce pan from a stove top and let it cool completely.

Then, separately use a fork or a mixer to mash the 220 g of room temperature margarine until it turns softened.

Finally, using a mixer combine the cooked and completely cooled filling mixture (which you have removed from a sauce pan into a bowl) with a fluffy margarine until it turns creamy.

Place one of the cakes (yellow or brown) on your chosen plate or cake stand and spread over ½ of cream filling.

Top with remaining cake (yellow or brown), bottom side down and top/spread over the other ½ of cream filling.

Make a final decoration by grating 50 g of dark chocolate on the top of cake.

Store your Family Sponge Cake in the refrigerator.

Honeyed date truffles (no-bake, egg-free, decorative)

Ingredients

Truffles:

•       250 g dried dates

•       100 g cornflakes

•       50 g ground almonds

•       50 g ground walnuts

•       50 g honey

•       20 g butter (or margarine)

•       1–2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice

•       grated lemon zest

Chocolate coating:

•       100 g dark chocolate

•       2 teaspoons flavourless vegetable oil

               (vegetable or groundnut oil)

Final chocolate decoration:

•       10 g white chocolate

Note: You may reverse this chocolate coating style by using 100 g of white chocolate, 2 teaspoons of oil and 10 g of dark chocolate.

Preparation

Truffle mixture:

Remove the pits from dried dates - cut dates into the quarters and then chop them into small pieces.

Put the cornflakes into a plastic bag and crush them by hand with a rolling pin.

Put the chopped dates, crushed cornflakes, ground almonds and walnuts, honey, room temperature butter (or margarine), lemon juice and zest into the bowl and use the mixer to mix them with kneading bread dough blades at medium-slow speed until a mixture starts to gather into a unique mass (or mix the mixture by hand).

From the truffle mass make the oval shaped truffle pieces (to look like dates) and place them on a cookie sheet which is lined by non-stick parchment or wax paper.

Chocolate coating:

Make the chocolate coating (for dipping) by using a water bath method to melt 100 g of dark chocolate with 2 teaspoons of flavourless vegetable oil.

Let it cool down a bit, and then dip each truffle halfway into the chocolate dipping and return to the parchment/wax paper.

Place the cookie sheet with truffles into the refrigerator until the dark chocolate coating becomes firm (which doesn’t take long).

Final chocolate decoration:

Put 10 g of white chocolate in a plastic sandwich bag and put it in a pan of hot but not boiling water (don’t let any water to get into the chocolate).

After a few minutes, knead the bag to smooth the chocolate and then with a sewing needle make a tiny opening at the tip of the bag.

Zig-zag white chocolate stripes over the truffles. 

Return the cookie sheet to the refrigerator to set the decorating coating.