Genoa Cake Recipes

GENOA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 150C / 130C fan / Gas 2Put a paper liner in a loaf tin approx 21 x 11 x 6 cm or line it with greaseproof or baking paper.
• Put the currants, sultanas, mixed peel, cherries, chopped almonds and lemon zest in a bowl and stir in a little of the measured flour to stop them sticking together. Set aside.
• Sift the rest of the flour with the salt then set aside.
• In a large bowl and preferably using electric beaters, beat together the butter, sugar and almond extract until soft and light.Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary during this and subsequent steps.
• Beat in the eggs one at a time along with 1 tbsp of the measured flour each time.
• Beat in the milk a tablespoon at a time with another scant tablespoon of the measured flour each time.
• Gently fold in the rest of the flour along with the dried fruit mixture until everything is just combined.
• Spoon the cake mixture into the prepared loaf tin and smooth the top.Cover the top with blanched almonds.
• Put the tin in the oven and bake until a skewer comes out clean: approx 55-65 minutes.
• Put the tin on a wire rack until cool enough to handle.
• Take the cake, in its liner, out of the tin and leave until completely cold.Remove the paper when cold, slice and serve.Cake should keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container.

GENOA CAKE

Steps:

• 1.Cream together the butter or margarine and sugar, then beat in the egg yolks, almond essence and orange rind.
• 2.Mix the fruit and nuts with a little of the flour until coated, then stir in spoonfuls of the flour, baking powder and cinnamon alternately with spoonfuls of the fruit mixture until everything is well blended. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, and then fold them into the mixture.
• 3.Spoon into a greased and lined 23 cm cake tin and bake in a preheated oven at 190 oCgas mark 5 for 30 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 160 oC gas mark 3 for a further 1.5 hours until springy to the touch and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin.
• 4.Decorate with whole almonds and glace cherries.

PAUL'S GENOISE SPONGE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Brush 2 x 20cm cake tins with melted butter, line the bases with baking paper, then dust well with flour tipping out any excess. Set aside.
• Put the sugar and eggs in a large heatproof bowl, then set it over a pan of barely simmering water. Whisk with an electric hand whisk for about 7 mins or until the mixture is pale and has trebled in volume. Remove from the heat, then slowly pour in the butter folding it in as you pour until it is completely mixed in.
• Gently fold the flour and a pinch of salt into the egg mixture, then pour into your prepared cake tins. Cook for 25 mins until the cake is golden and risen - a skewer pushed into the cake should come out clean. Allow the cakes to cool for a few mins in the tin, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack.
• Meanwhile, whip the cream until it just holds its shape, then set aside. Whizz about a quarter of the strawberries with 1 tbsp sugar until smooth, then fold this purée through the cream so you get a ripple effect.
• To assemble the cakes, cut each one in half horizontally. Put one sponge on a serving plate, spread a quarter of the cream mix on top, then dot a quarter of the blueberries and raspberries around the edge. Repeat this step two more times, put the last layer of cake on top (save a top half of cake for the top layer), spread the remaining cream over, then put the blueberries and raspberries around the edge and pile the strawberries in the centre. Dust with icing sugar just before you serve.