warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 20, 2009 (edited) I decided to have a go at making a cake for Christmas. Took me ages to find all the ingredients as the stupid supermarket keeps changing where they put everything on the shelves just to annoy me!!! Anyway i eventually found everything i needed so proceeded to follow instructions!! The first long job was cutting up loads of almonds! almonds And then mixing all the dry ingredients and the masses of fruit!!! the cake is more fruit than anything else it seems!! Fruit mixture I then did the sugar and butter which i had to beat until "fluffy"!!! Erm.... i had to get someone to explain that to me as to me fluffy is like cats/bunnys fur and i couldnt visualise how a cake should be fluffy!!!! But i got there in the end. Fluffy mixture I then mixed it all together and added the brandy!!!! it seems quite a lot of brandy!! and i am supposed to add more in the next few weeks. cake mix I then had to grease the tin. Now the instructions didnt tell you what kind of grease and i couldnt see any "Grease" for sale in the shop!!! I was thinking of the copper grease in the garage but its toxic and doesnt taste very nice so i didnt use that!! I rung someone up and asked them to find out then spooned it all into the pan. cake tin And then to the oven for hours!! the oven!! After 2 hours i had to bring it out for greaseproof paper to go on top cooking cake!! And i then had to test it with a spike until it came out clean, then i let it cool down on a wire rack!! done I have to foil wrap it once its cool and then feed it with more brandy over next few weeks!!! :robbie: :robbie: :robbie: Edited November 20, 2009 by warrenpenalver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bid Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Wow!! Bid Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Karen A Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Loooks very good. Mr Supermarket may well be making ours this year. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sonj186 Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Well done it looks fab ive been putting off making mine i will probably get good old Mr supermarket to make mine too Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justine1 Report post Posted November 20, 2009 I dont really eat fruit cake but seems like I can smell yours from here,it looks so yummy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pearl Report post Posted November 20, 2009 So that's what you've been up to! I am seriously impressed. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Thanks everyone!! got another 2 cakes to make!! then i need to work out how to make a nice shortcrust pastry for mince pies as from what i understand you just go nuts with pasty, throw in mince, top with pastry then burn in the oven. so in theory should be simple............. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Well done! Great photos too - it's almost like a step by step guide in a recipe book. What did you do with the rest of the brandy? That's made me think I ought to make one now. I love making Christmas cakes - can't resist that wonderful spicy smell as it's cooking, Haven't made one for years. K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baddad Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Keep feeding... and feeding... and feeding... When it is three times it's current (currant?) weight and size and sloshes about when being moved it is ready for drinking eating, Bon Appetit (hic) and well done Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pearl Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Pastry is easy - buy it ready made. I do it the hard way & don't buy it ready rolled, so I can still claim my pies are home made *waits for outraged comment from bd* Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baddad Report post Posted November 20, 2009 Pastry is easy - buy it ready made. I do it the hard way & don't buy it ready rolled, so I can still claim my pies are home made *waits for outraged comment from bd* Nope - no outrage here... pastry is one of the few things I see absolutely no point in making yourself. Well, puff pastry anyway... Shortcrust - well, it depends on time, mood etc, but ANYONE who makes their own puff in this day and age should be dragged out into the street and pelted with frozen mashed potato Still waiting for a ready made GF puff pastry or even a working recipe. I made a Beef Wellington last Christmas while Ben was testing his GF diet and he absolutely loved it. He's moaned at least half a dozen times since about not being able to have it again Oh - one other thought - If you buy tins of Fray Bentos steak and kidney pie filling then top that with frozen pastry that really is pushing the concept of 'home made' to extremes. By the way, do you still use your false teeth for crimping the edges of the pie or have you learnt to do it with your fingers now? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pearl Report post Posted November 20, 2009 By the way, do you still use your false teeth for crimping the edges of the pie or have you learnt to do it with your fingers now? Nope - I use the communal 'grabber' which is standard issue in the Home for Bewildered Librarians. You've got to be quick though - it has many uses, not all of them hygienic .... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted November 21, 2009 ANYONE who makes their own puff in this day and age should be dragged out into the street and pelted with frozen mashed potato. It may interest you to know that I actually managed to make some decent mash FROM SCRATCH for the first time a couple of weeks ago - so there. It was an emergency - I had no frozen mash so had to make do with raw spuds. Actually my other half said it was very nice. Now I can die happy. Still waiting for a ready made GF puff pastry or even a working recipe. Haven't forgotten. K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baddad Report post Posted November 21, 2009 Nope - I use the communal 'grabber' which is standard issue in the Home for Bewildered Librarians. You've got to be quick though - it has many uses, not all of them hygienic .... There's an old joke abouit a cake factory with a broken washbasin in the gents toilet. An inspector goes round and notices that all the male staff are carrying cake tongs and have a piece of string tied to the zipper of their flies... the string is for pulling the zip up and down... You can work out the significance of the tongs for yourself... Kathryn - decent mash from scratch? I use a masher myself! The really funny thing is if you watch cookery shows they all make crappy mash too these days! They either use a 'ricer' and make something that looks more like a bowl of maggots, or when they do mash it mith a proper masher they make it far too runny and watery, and then drizzle that with even more liquid by adding olive oil. If my mum had served either version with our bangers we would have flung it back at her! Not that she knew about olive oil in those days (except for earache!)... you fried stuff in lard or butter. She had two types of seasoning in the cupboard - one in a pot with an 's' on the top and another in a pot with 'p'. And there was a grubby looking nutmeg banging about somewhere in the cutlery drawer for those occassions when she knocked up a rice pudding - I think my gran gave it to her as a wedding present (the nutmeg, not the rice pudding). If we had chicken she would make the sign of the cross over the paxo to drive the demons out of the sage... That said - it's amazing how much you can do with a bit of salt and pepper, and she made the spottiest spotted dick in the whole of Kent. She did it proper, too, in a muslin cloth boiled for hours on top of the stove - you don't get puds like that anymore. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 21, 2009 I have 2 rolling pins so i want to make my own pastry!!! I dont want the cake to be sloshing with alcohol!!!!! Wouldnt want to get done for drink driving after one slice Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pearl Report post Posted November 21, 2009 Fear not Warren, if you buy your pastry in slabs you can roll away to your heart's content - very therapeutic. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tally Report post Posted November 21, 2009 What an impressive cake! Is it your first cake? Christmas cake is a complicated one to start with. Shortcrust pastry is fairly easy. You shouldn't have any trouble making mince pies. As for GF pastry, you must add xanthan gum, else it completely falls apart. DS make a frozen shortcrust pastry, but it contains milk. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jo4themo Report post Posted November 21, 2009 Hi Warren I made Christmas cake for the first time last year and had way too much mixture so ended up making 2 - one for me (no one else in my family likes it) and one for my friend and her family. I was worried about all the brandy as well but the cake tasted lovely. This year I made 4 little cakes (too much mixture again!). As for mince pies, I have yet to make them with shortcrust pastry that doesn't get burnt so this year I have bought some ready-to-roll puff pastry instead. Am planning on making some tomorrow. Your cake looks scrumptious, BTW, and good luck with the mince pies! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 21, 2009 Fear not Warren, if you buy your pastry in slabs you can roll away to your heart's content - very therapeutic. ahh but thats cheating!!! plus im not in control of how it tastes them!! its how the company decides its meant to taste. plus im not impressed when you see the rip off price for premade pastry compared to making your own. What an impressive cake! Is it your first cake? Christmas cake is a complicated one to start with. Yes its the first cake ive made!! I have made crumble before though. As for GF pastry, you must add xanthan gum, else it completely falls apart. DS make a frozen shortcrust pastry, but it contains milk. erm whats wrong with using milk?? As for mince pies, I have yet to make them with shortcrust pastry that doesn't get burnt Why does it burn?? I shall have the fire extinguisher ready Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NobbyNobbs Report post Posted November 21, 2009 if you have cold hands you'll make good pastry as long as you follow the recipe. if you have hot hands you'll probably never make good pastry. when i was a small child my parents would fight to hold my hand when it was cold they're so hot. needless to say, i make rubbish pastry! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 22, 2009 Cake No. 2 CAAAKKKKKEEEEEE Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bid Report post Posted November 22, 2009 (edited) How are you going to decorate your lovely cakes, Warren? You can also buy ready-to-roll white fondant icing or you can use make-it-yourself royal icing which you 'rough up' to look like spikey snow! You need a layer of marzipan first to go under both sorts of icing. Then you can do loads of different things to decorate the top. I like a simple teeny wreath of artificial leaves and berries, but you'll find loads of ideas online or in recipe books Have fun, and do let us see your finished cakes Bid Edited November 22, 2009 by bid Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted November 22, 2009 As for GF pastry, you must add xanthan gum, else it completely falls apart. DS make a frozen shortcrust pastry, but it contains milk. That's strange - pastry doesn't need milk, just water. I tried making GF pastry but it was a disaster - broke up and was completely unrollable. I forgot that the gluten in the flour is what keeps it together and elastic. Can one buy xanthan gum? If so, where? K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tally Report post Posted November 22, 2009 You can get xanthan gum from health food shops and Tescos. It comes as a powder. You must mix it well with the dry ingredients before adding anything wet. I looked at the DS frozen pastry ingredients, and I couldn't see where the milk is. I'm guessing they have used something derived from milk, rather than actually adding milk. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 22, 2009 I was planning on making my own marzipan and fondant icing. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pearl Report post Posted November 22, 2009 Why am I not surprised? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted November 22, 2009 You can get xanthan gum from health food shops and Tescos. It comes as a powder. You must mix it well with the dry ingredients before adding anything wet. Thanks Tally. Does it say on the packet how much you need to add to the flour? K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tally Report post Posted November 22, 2009 I don't know whether it says on the jar. I add about 1 teaspoon to 250g flour (in cakes) or 1 teaspoon to 100g flour (in pastry) and it seems to do the trick. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 24, 2009 Why am I not surprised? have you seen the price of the stuff in shops??? you really pay a premium for what is basically mostly sugar!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Canopus Report post Posted November 24, 2009 If you happen to have a probe thermometer you could cover the cake with American frosting. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jo4themo Report post Posted November 25, 2009 Why does it burn?? I shall have the fire extinguisher ready Warren, I think it's just mine that burn! I can make cakes fine but mince pies, nope! I made some on Monday and the first lot were OK although the mincemeat leaked a bit, but the second lot burnt. I should have learnt by now to just stick with Mr Kipling! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted November 25, 2009 I don't know whether it says on the jar. I add about 1 teaspoon to 250g flour (in cakes) or 1 teaspoon to 100g flour (in pastry) and it seems to do the trick. Thanks again Tally. Nothing beats homemade mince pies. Preferably with a big blob of brandy cream. K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 25, 2009 shop mince pies are grim compared to proper ones!! Even the M&S ones arent that good! I remember from like 14 years ago the ones my legal guardians would make with a homemade shortcrust pastry that was yummy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted November 26, 2009 Cake no 3!!! Cake no 3 Still got ingredients to make 1 more!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warrenpenalver Report post Posted December 21, 2009 (edited) xmas cake SEMTEX cake!!!! and mince pies! Mince pies Im quite pleased for first attempts Edited December 21, 2009 by warrenpenalver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billabong Report post Posted December 23, 2009 xmas cake SEMTEX cake!!!! and mince pies! Mince pies Im quite pleased for first attempts Ooh yummy! But aren't you meant to cook mince pies? Sorry, couldn't resist that. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted December 23, 2009 They look good Warren. I'll be making mince pies tomorrow - have made the pastry already. K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites