Hummingbird Cake

 

 

 

This moist and luscious tropical hummingbird cake is a banana-pineapple-spice cake which is filled with sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting, then topped with crunchy nut brittle. 

Recipe adapted from:  Jamie Oliver's

Ingredients:
200g rice bran oil
350g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 
1/4 tsp salt
200g caster sugar 
350g mashed bananas
260g pineapple, drained and chopped finely 
30g desiccated coconut
3 large free-range eggs 
1 tsp vanilla extract
50g pecans, toasted and chopped coarsely

• Preheat oven to 170 deg C.  Grease and line two 21cm round cake pans.
• Sift flour, ground cinnamon and salt into a large mixing bowl.  Set aside.
• Beat eggs together with sugar until thick and pale.  Gradually beat in oil and vanilla extract. Then stir in mashed bananas, pineapple and desiccated coconut.  Mix until combined and pour into the flour mixture.  Fold until smooth.
• Finally fold in chopped pecans.
• Divide batter evenly between the two prepared pans.
• Bake for about 45 minutes or until cooked.
• Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 minutes before turning them out to cool completely on the wire racks.

Frosting:

400g icing sugar

150g butter, at room temperature

200g cream cheese, at room temperature

zest of 1 lime

juice of 1 lime

• Sift icing sugar into a mixing bowl, add in the butter and beat until pale and creamy.
• Beat in cream cheese, lime zest and lime juice until just smooth (do not over-mix).  Keep refrigerated until needed.

Macadamia brittle:

100g caster sugar

2 tbsp water

50g macadamia

pinch of salt

• Place caster sugar and water in a frying pan over medium heat.
• Swirl the pan occasionally (do not stir it) until sugar dissolved and lightly golden.
• Add in nuts and a pinch of salt, spoon around to coat.  When nicely golden, pour onto a sheet of baking paper to set.
• Once cool, pound the brittle finely using a mortar and pestle.

To assemble the cake:

• Place one sponge on a cake stand and spread with half of the cheese frosting.  Top with the other sponge.  Spread over the rest of the icing. 
• Scatter the brittle over the top.

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Blueberry Cake

Ingredients:

180g butter, softened
130g caster sugar
zest of 2 oranges
250g self-raising flour
pinch of salt
4 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract 
95g sour cream 
50g fresh milk
120g fresh blueberries

• Preheat oven to 170 degrees C.  Grease a 20cm round pan; line base with baking paper.
• In a bowl, rub the sugar and orange zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and the fragrance of orange strong.  Set aside.
• Sift flour together with salt.  Set aside.
• Combine sour cream and milk together in a cup,  Set aside.
• Beat butter with an electric mixer for about a minute and gradually add in sugar mixture,  Beat until light and fluffy.
• Add in eggs, one at a time, beating until just combined between additions. Then add in vanilla extract.
• Fold in flour, alternately with the sour cream mixture, beginning and ending with flour.  Genty, stir in blueberries.
• Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake for about 55 minutes or until a wooden skewer comes out clean when inserted into the centre of the cake.
• Leave the cake in the pan for 10 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool.

Stir-fry Beef With Ginger

Ingredients:

300g beef (skirt steak or tenderloin), sliced thinly
100g ginger, shredded finely
3 cloves garlic
1/4 red capsicum, cut into strips
1 spring onion, cut into 2 cm lengths
1/2 tsp cornflour
1 tsp Chinese cooking wine
cooking oil
sesame oil
pepper

Seasoning:
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
salt & pepper, to taste

• Marinate sliced beef with cornflour and pepper.  Drizzle a little sesame oil.  Mix well to combine. Set aside.
• In a hot wok, saute ginger and garlic until aromatic.  Toss in marinated beef slices and stir fry until just cooked.  Add in seasoning and mix well.  Then add in spring onions.
• Serve hot with steamed rice.