You don't have to know how to cook in order to cook

If I had waited till I knew what I was doing before I tried cooking something, I'd have been even skinnier than the 80's expected me to be. As it was, I had a penchant for eating, not much in the way of money and a never dwindling case of the munchies that led me (and my friends) to eat - well, nearly anything really.
Thus began my journey of trial and error.
These days I'm a fuller figure than way back then, and the munchies come from prescription medication. Although money doesn't have the driving influence of the heady days of poverty-induced vegetarianism, I can find myself still cooking up a lentil meal just because I like it.

There was nothing like being desperate for a pancake at 11pm at night to help you figure out what you can substitute for eggs, milk and sometimes even flour...
Showing posts with label orange poppy seed cake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label orange poppy seed cake. Show all posts

Tuesday, 21 May 2013

Moist - emphasis on moist - Orange Poppy Seed Cake

I still haven't got around to explaining the purpose of this blog.... bear with me. Perhaps if you read and see my madcap way of cooking, it'll dawn on you.  Nobody has to be a good cook in order to cook


I love this cake, but although it takes minutes to slap together, the "boiling oranges" bit can take a fair whack of time (and the 'boiled orange' is where we get the moistness of this cake - you can choose not to, but you'll just have an orange poppy seed cake then, not a moist orange poppy seed cake).  

But I just found out I can microwave the oranges!!!  Never one to shirk a good nuclear blast, I currently have my oranges in the microwave for 8 minutes (that's a long time to be nuked).  

HOW TO MAKE THE CAKE 

I turned the oven on.  You know - the usual moderate oven thingy
170deg C/350F.    

I also readied my cake tin.  I have recently upgraded from my tiny little, rusty-round-the-edges cake tin, to a high-top spring form pan.  THIS IN ITSELF TRANSFORMS YOU INTO A COOK WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE DOING.  The cake tin needs to be oiled/buttered OR... my personal favourite: spray the crap out of it with cooking oil spray - IT DOESN'T MATTER which oil.  It's just to stop it sticking.  You can, if you want (and it always looks good) cut out a circle of baking paper the same size as the bottom of your cake tin.  Put it in the tin - no point cutting it out and putting it anywhere else.  It too will aid in the smooth transition from tin to cake cooling rack after it's holiday in the tropics of the oven. 



Don't worry yourself over your cutting out abilities.  I have never had a cake complain.


The actual cake recipe:

2 oranges – boiled twice with fresh water for 15 minutes OR microwave as below.  Then roughly chopped, skin & all (boiling it twice with fresh water takes the acid taste away - which will be interesting to see if the microwave version can eliminate that taste..)  185g butter, melted or 1 cup of vegetable oil  3 eggs  1 cup castor sugar  1 ½ cups self-raising flour - it doesn't matter if it's Gluten Free or 'normal'  2 Tablespoons poppy seeds
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