ORANGE YOGURT HEARTS WITH VIOLET GLAZE & RASPBERRIES
❚ 300 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour
❚ 1 tsp baking soda
❚ 250 g (1 1/4 cups) superfine sugar
❚ 1/2 tsp salt
❚ 160 g (2/3 cup) unsalted butter, melted
❚ 250 g (1 cup) Greek-style yogurt
❚ 4 large eggs, lightly whisked
❚ Finely grated zest of 1 orange
❚ Violet glaze:
❚ 350 g (3 cups) icing sugar
❚ 60 mL (4 tbsp) warm water
❚ 2 drops pink OR red food colouring
❚ 1 or 2 drops violet extract (optional, see note)
Bits & pieces:
❚ 1 punnet fresh raspberries, sliced in half
❚ 1 quantity Vanilla Sour Cream OR Yogurt Mascarpone Cream (recipes follow)
❚ Finely grated orange zest (optional)
1. Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F) if using convection (177°C/350°F for conventional). Grease and flour a 12-hole mini cake pan well.
2. Briefly whisk the flour, baking soda, sugar and salt in a medium mixing bowl to combine. Add the butter, yogurt, eggs and zest, then whisk until smooth. Carefully fill the moulds threequarters of the way and bake for about 25 minutes until golden brown. As soon as the cakes come out of the oven, tip the tray upside down onto a wire rack and shake out the cakes. If you leave them too long, the sugars settle and you’ ll have trouble unmoulding them without leaving bits behind. Allow to cool completely before icing.
3. To make the glaze, combine the icing sugar, water, food colouring and violet extract in a small bowl, and whisk until smooth.
4. Add more water if you prefer a runnier, translucent consistency like I do. Transfer to a piping bag and snip a 2 mm (1/16 inch) hole off the tip. Slowly run the glaze in concentric circles working from the centre of each cake outwards, so you can control the drizzle effect running down the sides. Top with a few raspberries.
5. Serve with your choice of dolloping cream and, if you’d like to bolster the orange flavour, finely grate a smidgen of orange zest over the top. (You can keep any un-iced cakes in an airtight container for up to 5 days.)
Note: Violet extract is available online or at specialty shops.
Makes: 12 mini cakes
VANILLA SOUR CREAM
❚ 300 mL (1 1/4 cups) sour cream
❚ 30 g (1/4 cup) icing sugar, sifted
❚ 1 tsp vanilla extract OR vanilla bean paste OR vanilla essence
1. Combine the sour cream, icing sugar and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl, and stir with a spoon to combine. Makes: 300 mL (about 1 1/4 cups)
YOGURT MASCARPONE CREAM
❚ 250 g (1 cup) mascarpone cheese
❚ 250 g (1 cup) Greek-style yogurt
❚ 50 g (1/2 cup) icing sugar
❚ 1–2 tsp vanilla bean paste OR vanilla extract
1. Combine all the ingredients in a medium mixing bowl, and whisk until smooth. This will keep perfectly for up to 2 weeks in the fridge, seeing as both the cheese and the yogurt are cultured forms of dairy. Makes: 500 mL (about 2 cups)