Genoa Cake Recipe James Martin

GENOA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 150C / 130C fan / Gas 2Put a paper liner in a loaf tin approx 21 x 11 x 6 cm or line it with greaseproof or baking paper.
• Put the currants, sultanas, mixed peel, cherries, chopped almonds and lemon zest in a bowl and stir in a little of the measured flour to stop them sticking together. Set aside.
• Sift the rest of the flour with the salt then set aside.
• In a large bowl and preferably using electric beaters, beat together the butter, sugar and almond extract until soft and light.Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary during this and subsequent steps.
• Beat in the eggs one at a time along with 1 tbsp of the measured flour each time.
• Beat in the milk a tablespoon at a time with another scant tablespoon of the measured flour each time.
• Gently fold in the rest of the flour along with the dried fruit mixture until everything is just combined.
• Spoon the cake mixture into the prepared loaf tin and smooth the top.Cover the top with blanched almonds.
• Put the tin in the oven and bake until a skewer comes out clean: approx 55-65 minutes.
• Put the tin on a wire rack until cool enough to handle.
• Take the cake, in its liner, out of the tin and leave until completely cold.Remove the paper when cold, slice and serve.Cake should keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container.

GENOA CAKE

Steps:

• 1.Cream together the butter or margarine and sugar, then beat in the egg yolks, almond essence and orange rind.
• 2.Mix the fruit and nuts with a little of the flour until coated, then stir in spoonfuls of the flour, baking powder and cinnamon alternately with spoonfuls of the fruit mixture until everything is well blended. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, and then fold them into the mixture.
• 3.Spoon into a greased and lined 23 cm cake tin and bake in a preheated oven at 190 oCgas mark 5 for 30 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 160 oC gas mark 3 for a further 1.5 hours until springy to the touch and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin.
• 4.Decorate with whole almonds and glace cherries.

GéNOISE SPONGE WITH BLUEBERRY COMPôTE AND VANILLA CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Grease and line two 22cm/9in round cake tins.
• For the génoise sponge, place the sugar and eggs into a large bowl and whisk with an electric whisk until thick and pale.
• Gently fold in the flour and melted butter until smooth. Divide between the prepared cake tins.
• Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the cakes are risen and springy to the touch. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely.
• To make the blueberry compôte and vanilla cream, place the blueberries, sugar and four tablespoons of water into a small saucepan. Place over a medium heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool and thicken.
• Place the cream into a large bowl and add the vanilla seeds. Whip with a whisk until thick.
• To serve, spread the cooled compôte over the top of one cake and top with the whipped cream. Place the other cake on top and dust with icing sugar.

PAUL'S GENOISE SPONGE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Brush 2 x 20cm cake tins with melted butter, line the bases with baking paper, then dust well with flour tipping out any excess. Set aside.
• Put the sugar and eggs in a large heatproof bowl, then set it over a pan of barely simmering water. Whisk with an electric hand whisk for about 7 mins or until the mixture is pale and has trebled in volume. Remove from the heat, then slowly pour in the butter folding it in as you pour until it is completely mixed in.
• Gently fold the flour and a pinch of salt into the egg mixture, then pour into your prepared cake tins. Cook for 25 mins until the cake is golden and risen - a skewer pushed into the cake should come out clean. Allow the cakes to cool for a few mins in the tin, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack.
• Meanwhile, whip the cream until it just holds its shape, then set aside. Whizz about a quarter of the strawberries with 1 tbsp sugar until smooth, then fold this purée through the cream so you get a ripple effect.
• To assemble the cakes, cut each one in half horizontally. Put one sponge on a serving plate, spread a quarter of the cream mix on top, then dot a quarter of the blueberries and raspberries around the edge. Repeat this step two more times, put the last layer of cake on top (save a top half of cake for the top layer), spread the remaining cream over, then put the blueberries and raspberries around the edge and pile the strawberries in the centre. Dust with icing sugar just before you serve.

OLD-FASHIONED CHERRY CAKE

Steps:

• Begin by preparing the cherries. If they're dripping in syrup, pat them dry with kitchen paper, then slice each one into four. For the cake, cream the butter and sugar together until light, pale and fluffy. Now gradually beat in the whisked eggs a little at a time. Then sift the flour and baking powder together, and carefully fold this into the creamed mixture using a metal spoon. Toss two thirds of the cherries together with the ground almonds and carefully fold these into the cake, adding one or two drops of almond extract and the milk. Now spoon the cake mix into the prepared tin, level off the top with the back of a spoon, then sprinkle over the remaining third of the cherries and poke them just under the surface with a teaspoon. Bake the cake near the centre of the oven for 50 minutes, then cover with foil and continue cooking for a further 10 minutes, or until the centre is springy to touch. Cool the cake in the tin for 15 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight tin.