Rhubarb Custard Crumble Cake

My colleague has an abundance of rhubarb in her allotment this year and has been generously giving them out. I'm not a huge fan of rhubarb but decided I could bake something with it. I've seen rhubarb and custard cakes previously and whilst searching for a recipe I came across this rhubarb custard crumble cake which sounded heavenly. It's the perfect cross between cake and pudding and if you're indecisive like me, you get cake, custard and crumble all at once! 

The cake was absolutely delicious and received high praise at work. The sponge was light and moist and the custard layer sandwiched with rhubarb and crumble was divine. It's definitely changed my mind about rhubarb and I can't wait to make this again! 

Of course this fits in nicely with this month's AlphaBakes which I am hosting this month. The letter is R for rhubarb. Caroline from Caroline Makes is my co-host who will be hosting next month. 

I'm also sending this to Made with love Mondays hosted by Javelin Warrior. This cake is made entirely from scratch including the custard. 

Rhubarb is definitely in season currently so I'm also sending it to Simple and in Season hosted by Ren from Ren Behan.

 rhubarb... 

 ...coated in sugar 

 cooking the custard 

 ready to assemble the cake 

 start with a layer of custard on top of the sponge mix 

 add a layer of rhubarb 

 and finally the crumble mix 

 fresh from the oven 

 You can see the different layers in the cake - perfect with more custard or ice-cream or just on its own! 

Recipe from Bake for the Border

The only changes that I made was: 

1. To use 1 vanilla pod for the custard instead of vanilla extract 

2. To use approximately 350g rhubarb instead of 800g as that was all I had and it worked out fine. If you prefer more rhubarb and less cake then I would suggest halving the sponge recipe and using 700-800g rhubarb or use a very deep tin so all the layers will fit! 

Banana cupcakes with peanut butter cream cheese frosting

This is a quick and simple recipe and perfect if you have ripe bananas to use up. The yoghurt makes the cake really moist and slightly healthier to balance the peanut butter cream cheese frosting! You can of course eat these as muffins minus the frosting for a healthier snack.

I'm entering these to the Breakfast Club hosted by Elizabeth's Kitchen. The theme this month is high fibre and bananas contain soluble fiber. I know cupcakes are not traditional breakfast foods but I'd happily eat one for breakfast :) This challenge was created by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours.

I'm also entering these to Credit Crunch Munch hosted by Anneli from Delicieux this month. The challenge was created by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and Camilla from Fab Food 4 All. This is a great recipe to use up leftover bananas and yoghurt.

 peanut butter, yoghurt, cream cheese, bananas 

 I found these cute chocolate banana sweets during my trip in Asia. They taste of banana and I think they look really cute on top of the cupcakes!

Makes 12 cupcakes
For the cupcakes
155g plain flour
1.5 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 ripe bananas
150g yoghurt
1.5 teaspoon vanilla extract
140g caster sugar
113g butter
1 egg
1 egg yolk

For the frosting
185g icing sugar
200g cream cheese
113g butter
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
• Add in the egg and then the egg yolk and mix well. 
• Sift all the dry ingredients into a bowl.
• Alternate adding flour mixture and yoghurt to the mix.
• Add vanilla extract and mashed bananas.
• Spoon into cupcake cases and bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
• Allow to cool completely before frosting.
• To make the frosting, place all ingredients in an electric mixer and beat until smooth.

Carrot cake with orange cream cheese frosting

Carrot cake is one of my colleague's favourite cake. I kept promising to make one but I couldn't find my grater so I bought one but was then too busy to make the cake. Anyway, I finally got round to it and she declared this the best carrot cake she's eaten! It's a simple mix all in one recipe which had the right balance of spice, nuts, raisins and carrots. I think the olive oil added to the flavour and smoothness of the cake - I remember using it for an apple cake previously and decided to give it a try here. The icing on the cake (literally) was the orange cream cheese frosting. 

I'm entering this to Tea Time Treats hosted this month by Kate from What Kate Baked and co-hosted by Karen from Lavender and Lovage. The theme this month is layer cakes and this 2 layer cake will do nicely. 

I'm also sending it to Made with Love Mondays hosted by Javelin Warrior as this cake is made from scratch and with plenty of love. 

And finally to Credit Crunch Munch hosted by Anneli from Delicieux this month. The challenge was created by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and Camilla from Fab Food 4 All. This is a great recipe if you have leftover ingredients to use up as you can vary the fruit and nut mix of the recipe and if you're anything like me, you'll always have a carrot or two in the fridge!

wholemeal flour, olive oil, raisins, muscovado sugar, ground cinnamon, ground mixed spice, orange, cream cheese, pecans, carrots. 

 adding carrots, chopped roasted pecans and raisins to the mix

 ready to go in the oven

 2 layer cake

For the carrot cake

150ml olive oil

150g muscovado sugar 

3 eggs

220g wholemeal flour

1.5 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon mixed spice

zest of 1 orange

100g raisins

250g carrots, peeled and grated

100g pecans, toasted and roughly chopped

For the orange cream cheese frosting

300g cream cheese

50g butter

150g icing sugar

zest of 1 orange

1-2 tablespoons fresh orange juice (depending on consistency of icing requred)

• Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line 2 x 18cm sandwich tins. 
• In a large bowl, whisk the olive oil, sugar and eggs until the sugar has dissolved and the eggs are slightly fluffy. 
• In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, bicabonate of soda and spices and add to the egg mixture.
• Add in the remaining ingredients and mix well. 
• Divide the mixture evenly between 2 tins (I usually weigh them to get even sized cakes)
• Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes or until the cake springs back from the edge and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
• Allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes before turning out to a wire rack to cool completely. 
• Meanwhile make the frosting by beating all the ingredients in an electric mixer until smooth.
• Sandwich the cakes with frosting and spread a thick layer on top of the cake.
• Decorate with orange zest as shown or pecan nuts. 

Raspberry and pistachio financiers

I've had this recipe bookmarked for ages so I'm pleased that I finally got a chance to make them. I've seen financiers on a lot of blogs but have never made my own so when the letter for this month's AlphaBakes was chosen as 'R', I knew exactly what I was going to make. This is a recipe from Edd Kimber The Boy Who Bakes. I love the use of brown butter and pistachio in this recipe as it really makes this a special treat. The pistachios were really fragrant and paired well with the tart raspberries. The financiers were light, nutty and moist. An absolute treat! 

I'm entering this to AlphaBakes which is hosted by myself this month and Caroline from Caroline Makes on alternate months. The letter is R for raspberries. 

I'm also sending these to Jacqueline from Tinned Tomatoes for Bookmarked Recipes as I've had this recipe bookmarked for ages.

As raspberries are in season, I think they will also fit in nicely for Simple and in Season hosted by Ren from Ren Behan.

This is my second entry to Four Seasons Food  challenge as raspberries are in season and these little treats are perfectly portable for a picnic. The theme is Picnic Food & Outdoor Nibbles. This challenge is hosted this month by Anneli from Delicieux and on alternate months by Louisa from Chez Foti.

I've just noticed that this month's One ingredient challenge is raspberries which is perfect for this recipe too! I've not participated for a few months so it's fortuitous that Nazima from Franglais Kitchen who is hosting this month chose raspberries for June. This challenge is co-hosted by Laura from How To Cook Good Food.

 pistachio nuts, ground almonds, raspberries 

 My lovely financier mould which has been sitting in my cupboard for months!

 ground pistachio nuts and icing sugar 

 ready to go in the oven 

 yum! 

Recipe reproduced with permission from the author

Makes 12
120g butter
100g pistachio nuts
120g icing sugar
50g ground almonds
50g flour
pinch of salt
4 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
24 raspberries
Icing sugar to serve

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Put the butter in a medium pan set over medium heat and cook swirling the pan occasionally until the butter turns a medium brown.
• Remove from the heat and pass through a fine sieve into a small bowl 
• Put the pistachio nuts and icing sugar into the bowl of a food processor and process until finely ground. 
• In a medium bowl mix together the pistachio nut mixture, almonds, flour and salt. 
• Add the egg whites and vanilla and mix together.
• Mix in the warmed brown butter a little at a time until combined.
• Divide the financier batter evenly between the muffin cups and top each with 2 raspberries, pushing them in slightly.
• Bake for 12-15 minutes or until springy to the touch and lightly browned around the edges. 
• Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely 
• Dust with icing sugar to serve. 

Lemon and Blueberry Cupcakes

Lemon and blueberry is one of my favourite combinations. I had some leftover yoghurt and blueberries that needed to be used so I came up with these little treats. The cakes were moist and light and packed full of blueberries. They are pretty healthy if you omit the icing as it has little fat, low fat yoghurt and lots of fruit! 

I'm sending this to Made with Love Mondays hosted by Javelin Warrior as it's made from scratch and definitely made with love. 

I'm also sending this to Credit Crunch Munch hosted by Anneli from Delicieux this month. The challenge was created by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and Camilla from Fab Food 4 All. This is a great recipe if you have leftover yoghurt and fruit to use up. 

As blueberries are currently in season in the UK (June -September), I'm also sending this to Simple and in Season hosted by Ren from Ren Behan. I've not participated for many months so I'm glad to be joining in again particularly as this is the 2 year anniversary of Simple and in Season! Congrats Ren on hosting a fabulous challenge.

I'd also like to enter this to a new blogging challenge this month called Four Seasons Food Challenge created by Anneli from Delicieux and Louisa from Chez Foti.  It's hosted by Anneli this month and the theme is Picnic Food & Outdoor Nibbles. These cupcakes are perfect for a picnic and as mentioned blueberries are very much in season.

And another new blogging challenge I've just been told about called Feel Good Food hosted by Victoria from A Kick At The Pantry Door. The idea is to share recipes that are healthy, delicious and nutritious.  There's a different theme each month and this month the theme is blueberries so these are perfect for the challenge.

 I found these fancy cupcake cases in America and couldn't wait to try them out! 

 adding lots of lovely lemon zest 

 push a few berries on top of each cupcake

 fresh from the oven 

 I'm impressed that the blue cupcake case retained it's colour after baking 

 These made the perfect gift for a friend - I hope she enjoyed them :)

Lemon ad Blueberry Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes 

Omit frosting and eat it as a healthy muffin if you want to reduce the calorie count!

Lemon and blueberry cupcakes

200g self raising flour

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

75g golden caster sugar

200g blueberries (reserve 24-36 for pushing on top of cupcakes before baking)

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

2 eggs

150mls low fat yoghurt

50mls sunflower/vegetable oil

Lemon buttercream icing

100g butter

200g icing sugar

juice of 1/2 lemon

• Preheat the oven to 170C.
• Sift flour and bicarbonate of soda in a medium bowl.
• Stir in sugar, blueberries and lemon zest. 
• Add eggs, yoghurt, oil and lemon juice in the centre and mix well. 
• Divide into 12 cupcake cases and bake for approximately 16-18 minutes or until well risen, golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
• Allow to cool before serving. 
• To make icing, mix all ingredients in an electric stand mixer until smooth.
• Pipe or spread on top of cupcakes and decorate as desired. 

AlphaBakes June 2013

Welcome to June's AlphaBakes. In case you missed the amazing round up of K entries from last month, do head on over to Caroline's blog to check them out - I was really impressed by the creativity of entries last month! We've had a few difficult letters in a row so I'm sure you'll all breathe a sigh of relief when you find out what this month's letter is.

We also have a great prize lined up for 1 lucky entrant this month. It's a giant cupcake mould sponsored by find-me-a-gift.

Prize available to UK entrants only so if it's not obvious on your blog, please let me know where you are based in your email. A winner will be selected at random - good luck!

So without further ado, the letter for June is ....

R

The usual rules apply, a quick reminder below. The most important is to email your entries to alphabakes@gmail.com by midnight (GMT) 25th June 2013.

1. Post your recipe on your blog and link it to The More than Occasional Baker and Caroline Makes, stating the relevant month's host. If you do not have a blog, email us a picture and a brief description of your entry which we will include in the round-up at the end of the month.

2. You can use your own recipe or someone else's recipe. The recipe can be sweet, savoury or a mixture! Anything goes as long as the random letter is predominantly featured in the recipe as one of the main ingredients or flavours or in the name of the bake itself (i .e . not as a garnish , or using 'flour' for the letter F!) You can also republish old posts/recipes but you must include the information for this challenge as stated in these rules.

3. Add the logo to your post and add 'alphabakes' as a label to your post.

4. Email your entries to alphabakes@gmail.com by midnight (GMT) 25th of each month. Please include:

• Your name (that you want included in the round up or we will use the name of your blog)
• Your blog post URL
• Recipe title
• Photo of recipe (to be included in the round up)

5. You can submit as many entries as you like.

6. You do not have to participate every month to join in.

7. You may submit your entry to other challenges as long as it complies with their rules.

8. If you use twitter, please use the tag #alphabakes and mention @bakingaddict and @Caroline_Makes. We will retweet all those that we see.

9. Have fun! :)