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This is a great place for recipes to try, to read my blogs about life, see me progress with my photography and find out what my next project to help others is. Becky Lipp is ALL about love, a place of positivity, reflection and beauty. Thanks for taking the time to join me.

Tuesday 25 October 2011

Rainbow Cake






This is MY take on the stunning rainbow cake.  I found the recipe on the Martha Stewart website but the cake was actually created by Whisk Kid.  The Marth Stewart recipe can be found here and she also has a video of them making it on the page if you want to watch it before you begin. I have made a few changes but nothing major.
There are a HEAP of ingredients, so this isn't a cheap cake to make, and certainly not a cake to eat if you are watching your weight.  In saying all that, when I cut into the cake I was so delighted and the kids 'oooohhhed'  and 'aaaahhhedd' which made the hours of preparation worth it!

Cake Ingredients
3 cups of standard flour
4 tspns of baking powder
1/2 tspn of salt
225 grams of butter at room temperature
2 1/3 cups of sugar
5 large egg whites at room temperature
2 tspns of vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups of milk at room temperature
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple GEL food colouring

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and brush an 8 inch round cake pan with butter.  Line the bottom with baking paper and then brush again with butter.  I used an 8 inch pan instead of the original recipe which uses a 9 inch pan as I wanted the sponge layers to be thicker, so up to you which size you want to use.
Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.  In a mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar then slowly add egg whites until well combined.  Add vanilla and mix again until it is well combined.  Add a 1/3 of the flour mixture into the creamed mixture and beat slowly, add 1/3 of the milk and beat again, do this until all the flour and milk has been added.  Mix until well combined.
Divide batter evenly into six bowls and add enough of each food colouring colour to each bowl, then whisk.  The colour of the mixture will be the colour of the baked cake so add enough colouring to get the desired look you want.  It is SO important to use gel colouring otherwise the colours won't be vibrant enough.  I purchased my gel colouring from Millys.  Transfer each colour to a cake pan and bake for about 10-15 minutes (I cooked mine for 10 minutes but it will depend on your oven).  You can test by inserting a fork or tester into the middle, it is cooked if it comes out clean...no gooey mixture on it.  Make sure to spread mixture out evenly before cooking.
Remove cakes from oven and transfer onto a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes then turn over and let it completely cool.  Use a serrated knife to trim tops if you need to make them level.  I didn't need to do this with mine.
Starting with purple, lay the cake on baking paper, spread about 1 cup of buttercream filling over the entire layer, keeping it level, repeat process with blue, green, yellow and orange.  I even put a thin layer on top of the red cake as I had enough mixture and then I went around the sides and filled in any gaps and leaving a thin layer over the entire cake, all nice and smooth.
Lastly add the frosting layer over the top and sides.  I then used a hot dry knife (I dipped the knife in a bowl of boiling water then dryed) and slowly smoothed out the frosting.  Refridgerate until set.

I kept mine in the fridge until a few hours before the party.  I decorated with M&M's in the shape of a number 2 as this was for my little man's birthday.


Filling Ingredients
9 large egg whites
1 3/4 cups of sugar
450 grams of butter cut into small pieces at room temperature
2 tspns of vanilla extract

Cook egg whites and sugar in a small pot over a medium heat, whisking constantly until sugar is completely dissolved.  Test by rubbing some in between your fingers, if the mixture is smooth (no sugar grain) then it is ready.  Transfer to a mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment and mix on high for about 10 minutes or until the mixture has soft peaks like a pavolva mix.  Turn down the mixer to medium and add the butter one piece at a time, mixing well after each addition.  This takes time but don't rush it as you will have lumps of butter through the mixture at the end.
Remove whisk attachment and switch to paddle, increase speed to high and beat until the buttercream comes together (about 5 minutes) then add vanilla.

Frosting Ingredients
5 large egg whites
1 cup of sugar
225 grams of butter cut into small pieces at room temperature
1 tspn of vanilla extract


Cook egg whites and sugar in a small pot over a medium heat, whisking constantly until sugar is completely dissolved.  Test by rubbing some in between your fingers, if the mixture is smooth (no sugar grain) then it is ready.  Transfer to a mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment and mix on high for about 10 minutes or until the mixture has soft peaks like a pavolva mix.  Turn down the mixer to medium and add the butter one piece at a time, mixing well after each addition.  This takes time but don't rush it as you will have lumps of butter through the mixture at the end. 

This isn't necessarily a hard recipe, more time consuming but so worth it! Good luck and if you make it, post up a photo on my facebook page www.facebook.com/beckylipp - yay!

Monday 17 October 2011

Easy Pavlova


This recipe was given to me by my lovely neighbour Angela, and it is a hit, as the name suggests, because it is so easy.  Instead of the usual fruit on top, my son Billy decided that we need to sprinkle over 100's & 1000's...hence the photo...usually it would have strawberries or kiwifruit but I let him decide.

Ingredients
2 egg whites
1 1/2 cups caster sugar
1 tspn white vinegar
1/3 cup boiling water
1/2 tspn vanilla essence
1 tspn cornflour

Place ALL ingredients in a bowl and beat for 15 minutes....DONE!  Well ... place mixture on a sheet of baking paper in a round shape and bake at 175 degrees for 10 minutes and then turn down to 125 degrees and bake for 1 hour...then DONE!

You can add more eggwhites to the mixture for a bigger pavlova but you will need to bake for longer.

Add whipped cream and top with fruit, grated chocolate, 100's & 1000's....whatever you like really.

Wednesday 12 October 2011

Potato Fritters


So in my attempt to get my boys to eat some vegetables, I thought I would try something other than mashed potatoes.  Light bulb...why not try something different with potatoes...fritters!  Well... they went down well with the boys PLUS my hubby LOVED them.  I think they will be a big hit for bbq season coming soon.  They are easy to make and super tasty.

Ingredients
2 peeled potatoes
6 tbspns standard flour
2 tspns baking powder
2 cups tasty cheese
a dash of milk

Simply grate the potatoes (I squeeze out the juice a little in my hands) and then add the flour, baking powder and cheese.  Stir together and then a little milk, just enough to make the mixture consistent.

Fry on a BBQ or on a hot pan until golden brown and crispy. Enjoy!

The great thing is you could probably grate some carrot or kumara and either substitute or add in, as well as maybe some onions...yummy!