Easy Black Forest Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups white sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup strong brewed coffee, cold
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling
• 1/2 cup cherry liqueur
• 3 cups whipped cream or topping

Instructions:

• Preheat your oven to 350° F
  
• Grease and flour two, round 8-inch cake pans.
  
• Make sour milk by combining milk and vinegar. Set aside.
  
• Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
  
• In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, coffee and vanilla. Stir in the sour milk. Gradually beat in the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated.
  
• Pour batter into the prepared pans. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
  
• Allow cakes to cool before filling.
  
• Combine the cherry pie filling and cherry liqueur. Spread over one cake layer. Top with whipped cream. Top with second cake layer. Repeat.
  
• Frost with the remaining whipped cream and garnish with grated chocolate.

Serve and enjoy!

Ingredients

To cover the cake

• 20cm fruitcake, see 'Goes well with'
• 5 tbsp apricot jam (optional)
• 750g golden marzipan
• 750g white ready-to-roll icing

To decorate

• three 5-pointed star cutters - small, medium and large
• 30g pack small gold balls
• approx 65cm length of wide ribbon

Method

1. Lift the cake onto the cake board or a plate and cover with jam, marzipan and – brushing with water around the sides of the cake only – ready-to-roll icing. Trim at the base.
2. Press star cutters gently into the icing, stopping when you get to the marzipan. Pull the star shapes out with the cutter, or ease it out with the tip of a knife. Stamp out a couple of small stars from re-rolled trimmings of icing (from icing the cake) and sit them inside the large star-shaped spaces.
3. Sprinkle the gold balls into the gaps and tie the ribbon around the cake. Can be decorated up to a week ahead.

Ingredients

• 400g white sugar cubes
• 100g preserving sugar
• 3 tbsp edible pearly balls
• 1 egg white, lightly whisked
• edible silver glitter

You will also need

• 1 20cm-wide Christmas cake (see 'goes well with')
• ribbons
• shop-bought decorations (optional)

Method

1. Once the cake has been removed from the oven, increase the heat to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Leave the cake in its tin. Put the sugar cubes in a large bowl and crush with the end of a rolling pin to a sugary rubble. Mix in the preserving sugar, pearly balls and egg white – it should have the texture of wet sand. Tip the mixture on top of the cake and level the surface. Bake the cake for 5 mins to set the sugary crust, then remove and leave to cool.
2. Once completely cooled, remove from the tin and peel off the baking parchment. Sprinkle the top with edible glitter, tie ribbons around the side and decorate with your favourite figurines, if you like.

Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F and line two cupcake tins with paper liners .

Combine the flours in a small bowl.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and beat for about three minutes.

Add the eggs, one at a time and mix thoroughly.

Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk and vanilla.

DO NOT OVER MIX!

Spoon the batter into the liners until they are 2/3 full. Do not overfill. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool the cupcakes for 15 minutes in the tins then remove them and place on wire racks to cool completely.

A Vanilla Frosting Recipe:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 6 to 8 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl.
Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla.

On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency. You may not need to add all of the sugar.

If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly. (Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.) Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Yield: enough for 2 dozen cupcakes or 1 (9-inch) layer cake.