The Cake

 It's my mister's birthday. That means wrapping paper and presents and surprises and cake.

I love cake. I love tiny cupcakes that are like little pieces of love wrapped in paper. I love the smooth creamy decadence of cheesecakes. I love bold warm chocolate cakes. I love buttery fruitcakes. I love silky red-velvet cakes. But most of all I LOVE the almost-smokey, dense deliciousness that is caramel mudcake.

It all starts with the sensual goodness that is melted butter and brown sugar. Swirl in vanilla and golden syrup and.......wait for it....... yes, that's right - white chocolate.

I understand if, at this point, you need a moment to sit and stare in awe at those words. It is the most inspiring collection of delicious things combined in one wholesome warm saucepan of happiness.

But it doesn't end there. There is more, so much more. The lashing of white chocolate cream in the centre. The drizzle of caramel frosting over the top and the strawberries to compliment the entire glorious combination of flavours.

This is perfection for me. The delicate balance between melting and burning, simmering and boiling, whisking and combining. I promise it is worth the wait.

Happy Birthday My Love!


How to do it

200g butter
1 cup brown sugar
200g white chocolate
180ml hot water
2 tablespoons golden syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup plain flour
1 cup SR flour

Heat the butter, sugar, water, golden syrup, vanilla extract and chocolate in a saucepan until melted and well combined.

Let this mixture cool to room temperature (I placed mine in a sink of cool water to help speed this up). Once cool, whisk in the eggs. Sift in the flours and gently mix until combined.

Pour the mixture into a cake tin (at this point I divided mine in half and cooked each half separately so that I could sandwich the two halves together with white chocolate cream). As usual, bake times always vary. I could say 45-60 minutes or I could say until the smell of your kitchen makes you smile and the top of your cake bounces back.

Once out of the oven you MUST let it cool. This is the part I always struggle with. Self control and cake should never be said in once sentence but at this point it is necessary and to help pass the time make some ganache and white chocolate cream

White Chocolate Cream
100g white chocolate
250g cream

Melt the chocolate and let it cool down. Add the cream then mix with beaters until there are soft creamy waves beginning to take shape. You might want to eat this directly from the bowl spread the cream between layers of your cake or serve it on the side with some strawberries. Or do both of these things.

Caramel Frosting
I always struggle with frosting.....always. 125g of butter and 1 cup of sugar melted. Add 1/3 cup of milk and bring to the boil. Let cook for a short time and then allow to cool. Add enough icing sugar to thicken....this took a long time for me and I feel as though the universe was just against anything thickening for me at the time I did this. Eventually I got bored with mixing and waiting and just  tipped it all over the cake, which was delicious messy.