Wednesday 16 August 2017

Strawberry Jelly Poke Cake.



Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Basically my favourite parts of a trifle in cake form.
But first, apologies for the lack of new recipes recently.
It's August and we are all in holiday mode. Routines are upside down and in this house, that has meant less blogging than usual. I've also been suffering from wisdom toothache which has not been fun. I had one wisdom tooth taken out five years ago but now the other side is playing up. Apparantly, I have two wisdom teeth growing on one side which is quite rare. I'm currently waiting for an appointment to get them taken out too. So, until then my aim is to get one recipe up every week until the Autumn when things, Insha Allah, get back on track.
This week's offering is this strawberry jelly poke cake. It's a cake that I first baked back in June 2016 and as I said at the beginning, it contains all my favourites from a classic strawberry trifle.

Starting with the vanilla sponge. A classic trifle is made with those dry sponge fingers. Fun fact: when I was younger, I was convinced those sponge fingers were raw and couldn't be eaten until they had been soaked in jelly. It's only recently that I realised they're perfectly edible as they are which has meant that a few of them end up being snacked on whenever we make a trifle. I love the cakey bit of a trifle and our poke cake starts with literally one of my favourite vanilla cake recipes ever. Honestly guys, it's a good one and is packed with lots of vanilla which means it's really well-flavoured as well as being really soft.

My next favourite part of a trifle is the jelly. Preferably strawberry, please. I poked my cold cake all over before soaking it in a layer of thick jelly which set up beautifully after an hour in the fridge. Once set, the cake is spread with plenty of freshly whipped vanilla cream which is my final favourite part of a trifle (apologies to all the custard fans out there!). To make the most of all the summer berries, I threw on sliced strawberries to give the cake a little freshness. Make it all Summer long and enjoy!

A Simple List of Ingredients:
1. Plain Flour
2. Cornflour
3. Baking Powder
4. Salt
5. Butter
6. Caster Sugar
7. An Egg
8. An Egg White
9. Vanilla Essence
10. Vegetable Oil
11. Milk
12. Strawberry Jelly Crystals
13. Boiling Water
14. Double Cream
15. Vanilla Essence
16. Icing Sugar
17. Strawberries

Bismillah, let's begin!

First things first, get the oven on to 180C. Grease and line an 8x8 inch square tin. I got mine here!

So that they're ready later on, let's prep our dry ingredients. Into a bowl, sieve:
175g Plain Flour
22g Cornflour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt

Give them a stir and set aside for later.

Now, let's begin the cake batter. Into a large bowl, measure 115g Butter, at room temperature.

By hand or with an electric mixer, beat it well until it's pale and creamy.

Scrape down the sides of your bowl.

And, throw in 220g Caster Sugar.

Beat the two together until they're both really well combined.

Then, crack in 1 large Egg and 1 large Egg White. It's best if they're both at room temperature.

Beat them in. If things curdle, it's fine.

Next, add in 3 teaspoons Vanilla Essence and 2 tablespoons (22ml) Vegetable Oil.

Beat to combine. The mixture will thicken a little but that's to be expected.

Finally, we're going to alternately add in our dry ingredients and a little milk. 

So, beat in about half of the dry ingredients.

Then, beat in 115ml Milk.

Things may curdle but don't panic!

Beat in the last bit of the dry ingredients until you can no longer see any flour.

What you'll end up with is one of the most beautiful cake batters ever. Seriously love this recipe so much!

Scrape the batter into your tin.

Smooth out!

And, throw in to bake at 180C for 30-35 minutes or until golden, risen and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Leave the cake to cool completely in the tin. It will sink a little as it cools.

Once the cake is fully cool, let's poke! 

To make big holes, I used the handle of a wooden spoon.

And, to make a few smaller ones, I used a toothpick.

The cake holes may crumble a little as you poke - not to worry, we'll be covering them all up with jelly and cream.

Speaking of jelly, let's stir some up. I used my favourite which comes out of these trifle boxes. 

Take 50g Strawberry Jelly Crystals. You can use other flavours too. A little note here: the measurement of jelly and water is only for this brand of jelly. If you're using another brand, just add enough hot water to the crystals until you get a thick mixture.


Dissolve the crystals in 200ml Boiling Water. Don't follow the instructions on the packet as it will make a jelly that is too watery for our cake.

We want our jelly mixture slightly thicker so that it won't make our cake too soggy.

Work fast now, as the jelly will begin to set almost immediately.

Pour or spoon the jelly all over the cake.

Spread it evenly all over and into all the edges and holes of the cake.

Then, pop the cake into the fridge to chill and set. This should take about 1 hour, if not less.

Once the jelly on top has set, carefully move the cake onto a cake stand.

Love that layer of jelly! 

To finish off our cake, whisk together the following until you have soft but slightly stiff peaks:
150ml Double Cream
1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
 1 tablespoon Icing Sugar

Dollop the cream onto the cake.

And, spread out!

You could spread the cream onto the sides too, if you wish.

Finish the cake off with plenty of sliced Strawberries on top.

And, the cake is done! It's best eaten at room temperature but you could chill it in the fridge to let the cream set up a bit.

When you've taken enough pictures, let's slice!

Can we just take a moment to appreciate the set on that jelly? The holes in the sponge ensure that some of the jelly gets into it too. Not that it really needs it though. This sponge recipe is one of my all-time favourites. Really sweet and simple!

The perfect cake for your Summer days! Make it and be sure to share a picture with me! I love seeing your creations! 

Strawberry Jelly Poke Cake.

Prep Time: About 30-40 minutes plus extra time to chill.
Bake Time: About 30-35 minutes.
Serves: Slices into 9 large squares.

Ingredients

For the Vanilla Sponge
175g Plain Flour
22g Cornflour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt
115g Butter, at room temperature
220g Caster Sugar
1 large Egg, room temperature is best
1 large Egg White, room temperature is best
3 teaspoons Vanilla Essence
2 tablespoons (22ml) Vegetable Oil
115ml Milk

For the Strawberry Jelly
50g Strawberry Jelly Crystals
200ml Boiling Water

For the Vanilla Whipped Cream
150ml Double Cream
1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
1 tablespoon Icing Sugar

To Finish
Fresh Strawberries, sliced

Bake the cake:
Pre-heat the oven to 180C. Grease and line an 8x8 inch square tin.

Into a bowl, sift in the plain flour, cornflour, baking powder and salt. Whisk and set aside for later.

In a large bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer or by hand for a few minutes until pale and creamy. Add in the caster sugar and beat well for another few minutes. Beat in the egg and egg white. Beat in the vanilla and oil. The mixture will thicken and may curdle.

Alternately mix in the dry ingredients and milk until both are finished and you have a batter in the bowl. The batter may curdle a little but will bake up fine.

Scrape the batter into the prepared tin and smooth out. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden, risen and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool completely in the tin - it will sink a little as it cools.

Poke the cake:
Once cool, poke the cake all over. I like to use a the handle of a wooden spoon for the big holes and a toothpick for the smaller holes. The cake holes may crumble a little as you poke - not to worry, they'll be covered up with jelly and cream.

Jelly time:
Stir together the jelly crystals and boiling water. The mixture will be thick. Immediately, pour or spread the mixture over the cake, making sure to get it into all the corners. Chill in the fridge until the jelly is cold and has set - about 1 hour if not less. Gently remove the cake from its tin and on to a cake stand.

Strawberries and cream:
Whisk the double cream, vanilla and icing sugar until soft but slightly stiff peaks form. I used an electric hand whisk. Spread the whipped cream over the jelly. You can cover the sides of the cake too but I chose not to. Decorate with sliced fresh strawberries. Chill the cake in the fridge for another hour or until you're ready to serve.

Serve:
This cake is best served at room temperature so take it out of the fridge about 15 minutes before you want to serve. Slice and enjoy!

{adapted from how sweet eats}

Strawberries with Cake, previously:
 strawberry shortcake squares.

strawberry cake.

fraisier cake.

Keep me in your duas please, and enjoy your poke cake!

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!


Spice Enthusiast
© copyrights This Muslim Girl Bakes, All Rights Reserved. Branding & Blog Design by Sadaf F K.