Baking Day

Today was Baking day. Having watched the recent series on BBC called The Victorian Farm, I quite like the idea of each day being a day for a different chore, although I doubt very much I would have the energy of a Victorian Farmers wife to be able to live!

This in mind and the fact my friend Shan is coming to stay tomorrow for a night I decided to bake a cake and some biscuits.

The biscuits were fiddly and I don't think much success but the cake I have made before and is lovely. I make it with Bournville Cocoa so not to sickly but the sweetness is in the butter icing. The recipe is from English Teatime recipes, one of those little booklets published by Salmon.

Derbyshire Chocolate Cake

3 oz drinking chocolate

4 oz self raising flour

6 oz margarine

6 oz caster sugar

3 eggs, well beaten

1 tablespoon hot water

filling and topping

2 oz margarine (I use butter)

2 oz drinking chocolate

4 oz icing sugar

warm water to mix.

Method-

Set the oven at 350'F or gas mark 4. Grease and line two 2lb cake tins or 8" sandwich tins. Sieve together the flour and chocolate in a bowl. In another bowl cream the margarine and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, adding a tablespoon of the flour mixture to prevent curdling. Fold in the remaining flour and chocolate mixture and stir in the hot water. Put the mixture into the tins and smooth the tops. Bake for 25 minutes or until surface springs back when pressed lightly. Remove from tins to cool on wire rack.

For the filling, mix all the ingredients together adding water to bind until smooth and light. Sandwich cakes together and smooth the rest on top.