Rich Fruit Cake

INGREDIENTS
250g currants
750g raisins
500g sultanas
250g dried apricots
250g glace pineapple
250g dates
250g pitted prunes
125g glace cherries
125g mixed peel
½ cup overproof rum or whiskey
½ cup brandy
500g butter
1 cup castor sugar
1 cup brown sugar
10 med eggs
4 cups plain flour
1 level tsp bicarb soda
1 level tsp ground cinnamon
½ level tsp ground nutmeg
½ cup ground almonds
1 tsp parisienne essence
125g blanched almonds chopped
2 to 3 Tbsp Cointreau

METHOD
Put currants, raisins, sultanas, cherries and peel in punch bowl.
Chop other fruit and add.
Pour over rum and brandy, mix through and leave for a few hours or overnight.
Prepare cake tins by lining with two layers of brown paper, then a layer of baking paper.
Cream butter and sugars in large mixing bowl.
Add 8 eggs one at a time.
Sift flour, soda and spices together, add almond meal.
Stir in parisienne essence and fruit.
Add 2 remaining eggs.
Mix thoroughly, may need to use two bowls for final mixing.
Bake in a slow oven at 150 C for 4 to 4 ½ hours for large cake, 3 to 3 ½ hours for smaller tins, but only 3 hours for smallest cake.
Test with skewer ½ hour before time is up.
Pour liqueur over cake when done and still in tin.
Remove when cold, taking off paper and wrapping in 2 layers of gladwrap and 1 of foil.
Leave for two weeks before cutting.
Best after 4-5 weeks.

SERVINGS
Serves 50 to 60 for anniversaries, birthdays, Christmas or weddings
Makes 1 X 25 -28cm cake or 2 X 20 -22cm cake or a 1 X 23cm cake plus a small 15cm cake for a two-tiered wedding cake

SOURCE
Mum

Bernie's Muesli Slice

INGREDIENTS
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup rice bubbles
1 cup coconut
4 crushed weet-bix
1/2 cup mixed dried fruit
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup honey
125g butter (or 80g for a low fat version - yeah right!)

METHOD
Mix oats, rice bubbles, coconut, weet-bix and dried fruit in a large bowl.
Place butter, sugar, peanut butter and honey in a saucepan over medium heat.
Stir until melted and bubbling.
Stir into dry ingredients.
Press into lamington tin.
Refrigerate for about half an hour before cutting into squares.
Leave in the tin and refrigerate until hard.

COMMENTS
Pure evil, so more-ish!!!
You could probably reduce the amount of sugar since it also has honey.

SERVINGS
30

SOURCE
Aunty Bernie

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

INGREDIENTS
Cake
1/4 cup poppy seeds
1/4 cup milk
185g butter
1 1/2 tbsp lemon rind
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cups flour
3/4 cups SR flour
1/2 cup ground almonds
1/3 cup orange juice

Icing
500g cream cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbsp grated lemon rind
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice

METHOD
Cake
Grease deep 22cm round cake pan, line with baking paper.
Combine seeds and milk in a bowl, stand 20 minutes.
Cream butter, rind and sugar until light and fluffy.
Beat in eggs one at a time, beat until combined.
Stir in sifted flours, nuts, poppy seed mixture and juice.
Spread mixture into prepared pan.
Bake in moderate oven for 45 minutes.
When cool, split cake into 3 layers, sandwich layers with half the icing, then cover whole cake in remaining mixture

Icing
Beat softened cream cheese, cream and rind until smooth.
Add sifted icing sugar and juice, beat until smooth.

COMMENTS
Also makes delicious muffins!

SOURCE
AWW mag

Carrot Cake

INGREDIENTS
3 eggs
1 cup white sugar
¾ cup cooking oil
1 1/3 cup self raising flour
½ tsp salt
1 1/3 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
½ cup nuts
2 cups grated raw carrot
1 tsp vanilla essence

METHOD
Grease an 8 inch square tin and heat oven to 150C.
Beat eggs and sugar till fluffy and add oil.
Stir in all dry ingredients.
Lastly, fold in carrots, nuts and vanilla essence.
Bake for about 1 hour, and ice with cream cheese icing when cool.

ICING
Beat together 4 oz softened cream cheese, ½ pound icing sugar, 3 tbsp butter and 1 tsp vanilla essence until cool and creamy.

Baked Cheesecake

INGREDIENTS
250g biscuits, crushed
125g butter, melted
500g cream cheese, softened
¾ cup caster sugar
½ lemon, rind finely grated, juiced
4 eggs, separated
125mls thin cream

METHOD
- Preheat oven to 180C.
- Grease 20cm springform pan with melted butter.
- Combine biscuits and butter, mix well and press into springform pan, refrigerate.
- Beat cream cheese on low til smooth and creamy. Do not over beat, as this will unnecessarily aerate the mixture.
- Add caster sugar, essence and lemon, beat further 3 minutes to ensure smooth consistency.
- Add egg yolks, one at a time, until well combined.
- Add cream.
- In separate bowl, stiffen egg whites with clean beaters.
- Fold egg whites into cream cheese mixture.
- Pour mixture into pan, bake for 1 hour, or until set. Check the cake after the fortieth minute, until cooked.
- Turn heat off, leave cake in oven with a wooden spoon placed inside the oven door to cool cake slowly.
- After one hour, remove cake and place on bench for a further hour.
- Once at room temperature, refrigerate overnight, or until chilled.

COMMENTS
Juliette's specialty!

Chocolate Fudge Square

INGREDIENTS
6 oz butter
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp cocoa
1 tbsp golden syrup
2 cups plain flour
1 cup coconut
2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt


METHOD
- Melt butter, sugar, cocoa and golden syrup in saucepan to nearly boiling point; cool
- Add flour, coconut, baking powder and salt
- Press into tin
- Bake @ 350F (180C) for 15-20 minutes
- Ice with chocolate icing and sprinkle with coconut


SOURCE
Granny's Tried and True!

Chocolate Brownie

INGREDIENTS
½ cup melted butter
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
½ cup self raising flour
¼ cup good quality cocoa
¼ cup chopped nuts (macadamias, almonds, hazelnuts etc, or ground almonds for texture)

METHOD
- Sift flour and cocoa into bowl, add nuts and sugar, mix well.
- Add melted butter and egg, stir until well combined.
- Press into round 20cm cake tin, bake at 180C for approx 25 minutes.

COMMENTS
Very more-ish!

SERVINGS
15

CATEGORY
Slices

Special Lemon Delicious Cheesecake

INGREDIENTS
250g speculaas, crushed
125g butter, melted
500g cream cheese, softened
¾ cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced
4 eggs
125mls thin cream

METHOD
Preheat oven to 180C.
Grease 20cm springform pan with melted butter.
Combine biscuits and butter, mix well and press into springform pan, refrigerate.
Beat cream cheese on low till smooth and creamy. Do not over beat, as this will unnecessarily aerate the mixture.
Add caster sugar, extract and lemon, beat further 3 minutes to ensure smooth consistency.
Add eggs, one at a time, until well combined.
Add cream.
Pour mixture into pan, bake for 1 hour, or until set.
Check the cake after the fortieth minute, until set.
Turn heat off, leave cake in oven with a wooden spoon placed inside the oven door to cool cake slowly.
After one hour, remove cake and place on bench for a further hour.
Once at room temperature, refrigerate overnight, or until chilled.

SERVINGS
Lots!

SOURCE
Juliette

Chocolate Banana Bread

INGREDIENTS
2 cups plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup caster sugar
3 bananas, mashed
125g unsalted butter, melted
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup dark choc-chips
icing sugar, to dust

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Grease a 24 x 13 x 7cm loaf pan.
Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl.
Add the caster sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine the bananas, butter, eggs, vanilla and choc-chips.
Add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
Pour into the loaf pan.
Bake for 1 1/4 hours.
Dust with icing sugar, serve warm.

SERVINGS
4 (large!!!)

SOURCE
Bill Granger Bill's Food

Nutty Choc-Orange Cake

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups blanched almonds
2 1/2 cups walnuts
200g dark eating chocolate, chopped coarsely
250g butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup caster sugar
5 eggs, separated
1 tbs finely grated orange rind

METHOD
Preheat oven to slow (140C).
Grease deep 23cm square cake pan.
Line base and sides with baking paper.
Blend or process nuts and chocolate until chopped finely.
Beat butter, extract and suagr in a small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy.
Add yolks, one at a time, beating until just combined between additions.
Transfer mixture to large bowl.
Stir in chocolate mixture and rind.
Beat egg whites in a small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form.
Fold in chocolate mixture, in two batches.
Pour mixture into prepared pan.
Bake, uncovered, about 1 1/4 hours.
Cool to room temperature in pan.
Cover, refrigerate 3 hours or overnight.
Cut cake into squares and serve dusted with icing sugar.

SERVINGS
25

SOURCE
Women's Weekly Party Food and Drink

Chocolate Mud Cake

INGREDIENTS
400g dark chocolate, chopped
6 eggs
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup thickened cream, whipped
2 tbsp Cointreau or fresh orange juice

METHOD
Grease a deep 19cm square cake pan, line with baking paper.
Melt chocolate in microwave, in one minute bursts on medium heat (remember to stir each time, as chocolate holds its shape when melted otherwise).
Beat eggs and sugar until thick and creamy.
Fold in combined cream and liqueur, then chocolate.
Pour mixture into pan, stand pan in baking dish with enough boiling water to come halfway up sides of pan.
Bake in moderate oven for about 1 hour, or until cake shrinks slightly from sides of pan.
Remove pan from baking dish, cool cake in pan, then refrigerate till cold.
Dust with sifted icing sugar or high quality cocoa and serve with fresh whipped cream and strawberries.

COMMENT
Also delicious as mini mud cakes - halve the recipe, cook in mini patty cases for 8 minutes. Absolutely divine!

SERVINGS
12 (30 mini-mud cakes)

SOURCE
Jules

Chocolate Raspberry Pudding Cake

INGREDIENTS
185g self-raising flour
30g cocoa powder
250g unsalted butter
2 tbs creme de framboise
95g caster sugar
95g light muscavado sugar (or light brown sugar)
250g good quality dark chocolate
3/4 cup brewed black coffee
3/4 cup water
2 eggs, slightly beaten,
250g raspberries, plus extra to serve
Icing sugar, to dust
Thick greek yoghurt or whipped cream (if desired), to serve

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Grease a 22-23cm springform cake pan and line the base with baking paper.
Cover the bottom and sides of the outside of the pan with a layer of foil.
Sift the flour and cocoa powder together into a bowl and set aside.
Put the butter, framboise, sugars, chocolate, coffee and water in a heavy-based saucepan.
Stir over low heat until everything melts and is thick, glossy and smooth.
Stir into the flour and cocoa.
Beat well until smooth and glossy again.
Beat in the eggs till runny.
Pour into the prepared pan until you have covered the base with about 2cm of mixture.
Cover with raspberries.
Pour the rest of the mixture on top (push raspberries back under cake batter by hand if necessary).
Bake for 40-45 minutes until top is firm and slightly cracked.
Take the cake out of the oven and place on a rack.
Leave in pan for 15 minutes then turn out.
Just before serving, dust with a little icing sugar pushed through a tea strainer.
Serve with lots more fresh raspberries and a dollop of yoghurt or whipped cream, if desired.

SERVINGS
8

SOURCE
Nigella Lawson How to Eat

Rich Butter Cake

INGREDIENTS
Cake
2¼ cups self raising flour
½ cup custard powder
2 cups caster sugar
1 cup milk
4 eggs, lightly beaten
250g butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla essence

Icing
125g butter
1½ cups icing sugar
2 tbsp milk

METHOD
Cake
Grease a deep 25cm square cake pan, cover base with paper, grease paper.
Combine sifted flour and custard powder with remaining ingredients in large bowl of electric mixer.
Beat on medium speed for 10 minutes, or until mixture is thick and creamy.
Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake in moderate oven for 1¼ hours, or until lightly brown and cooked when tested.
Let stand in tin for five minutes, then turn onto wire rack to cool.
Ice with rich icing, and decorate as desired (great for birthday cakes!).

Icing
Combine butter, milk and sugar until smooth and creamy.

COMMENTS
Very nice tasty cake

SOURCE
AWW