Pack & Go Cake

A friend invited me to go on holiday with her. There was only one minor snag. We would be going over the week of her birthday. The only reason this is a snag, is because I am a baker and I am convinced that absolutely everyone needs to have a cake on their birthdays. I ran through the options in my head, decided I knew which cake she would like best and started adapting the recipe so that it could be made in a 'foreign' kitchen with (possibly) the minimum of conveniences. It would be the first time I went to this specific place and I did not know what awaited me in terms of the kitchen.  So let me explain. This blog was started before I went away and finished after I came back. The cake I chose to bake was a chocolate ganache cake.

The recipe comes from the Sabie Valley Coffee Platation.

Let's look at the ingredients first:
The Cake
500 g cake flour (2 cups)
400 g sugar (2 cups)
1/8 teaspoon salt (pinch)
5 ml bicarbonate of soda
125 g butter/margarine (I prefer butter for its taste)
250 ml water
125 ml oil
50 g cocoa powder (100 ml)
2 large eggs
125 ml buttermilk (I prefer Amasi when using butter instead of margarine)

The Icing
75 g butter
30 ml sifted cocoa powder (50 ml)
45 ml buttermilk/Amasi
5 ml vanilla essence
200 g icing sugar (400 ml)

The Prep for going away
The first and most logical step was to mix all the dry ingredients for the cake. I mixed 2 cups of wheat flour, 2 cups of sugar, a pinch of salt, 5 ml bicarbonate of soda and 100 ml cocoa powder in a bowl. I did not bother with sifting, since it wasn't going to be used immediately.

I transferred this dry mixture to a plastic bag, squeezed out the air and bound it tightly at the top with a knot.

I mixed the dry ingredients for the icing in the same way. I measured 400 ml icing sugar and added 50 ml cocoa powder.

This mixture was transferred to a second plastic bag with the air pushed out and tightly knotted.

I marked the bags 'Cake Mix' and 'Icing Mix' respectively.

The Cake
Truth is that I baked the cake when on vacation, but neglected to take photos of the blog. The result is that I had to bake another when I arrived home. You will therefore see no difference in kitchens. I followed the same steps though. Empty the bag with the dry ingredients for the cake mix in a large bowl.

Mix the water, butter and oil and heat it.

Add this mixture to the dry ingredients once it has cooled slightly.

Whisk the buttermilk/Amasi (I prefer the latter as it breaks the sweetness a little) and eggs.

Add this to the mix and beat well.

Spray a pan with a non-stick coating.

Pour the cake mix in the pan. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 40 minutes.

The Icing
Mix the Buttermilk/Amasi, vanilla essence and melted butter in a bowl.

Empty the dry ingredients in a large bowl and add the wet ingredients. Mix well.

The icing should have a smooth consistency when done.

Take the cake out of the oven when done.

Pour the icing over the hot cake and spread it evenly.

I added some cherries and walnuts as this second cake would serve as pudding for my mom's birthday dinner.The cake is brilliant served hot or at room temperature.

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