EDIBLE FLOWER CAKE WITH SWEET GERANIUM, BLACKCURRANT & VANILLA
Pressed flowers make beautiful cake decorations (see opposite). Use them with their stems to create a flower garden-style theme or take them off to create abstract patterns. Do plan in advance, as they can take a couple of weeks to press. Sweet geranium is a delightful shrub whose highly fragrant leaves bring a lovely lemony-rose aroma to desserts. If you can’t get hold of it, replace with a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
FOR THE CAKE
225G CASTER SUGAR
4 LARGE SWEET GERANIUM LEAVES, ROUGHLY CHOPPED
225G BUTTER,
AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
4 LARGE EGGS, WHISKED
225G SELF-RAISING FLOUR
2-3 TBSP MILK
FOR THE BUTTERCREAM ICING
225G BUTTER, SOFTENED
550G ICING SUGAR, SIFTED
2 TSP VANILLA BEAN PASTE OR THE SEEDS FROM ONE VANILLA POD
2-4 TBSP WHOLE MILK OR SINGLE CREAM
200G BLACKCURRANT JAM
OR ANY JAM OF YOUR CHOOSING
TO DECORATE
PRESSED EDIBLE FLOWERS,
ABOUT 30-40 STEMS FRESH EDIBLE FLOWERS AND LEAVES (OPTIONAL)
1 Preheat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan oven) gas mark 5. Butter and line two 15cm loose-based cake tins.
2 Pulse the sugar and geranium leaves in a food processor until the leaves are finely chopped and the sugar turns bright green. Cream the butter until smooth. Add the geranium sugar and beat on a low speed until it is combined, then beat until light and fluffy.
3 Add a spoonful of the whisked eggs and beat until the mixture is smooth and combined. Keep adding the egg and beating until it is all incorporated. For the last couple of additions, add 1 tbsp of the flour as well, to stop the mixture from splitting. Fold in the rest of the flour. Mix in the milk. The mixture should be thick but should still drop slowly from a spoon.
4 Weigh the cake mixture equally into the two tins. Smooth the
tops and make a small indentation in the middle of each to counteract a domed rise.
5 Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the cake is just starting to come away from the edge of the tins and a skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes, then remove and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Cut the cakes in half horizontally, as evenly as possible, to give you four separate layers.
6 Now make the buttercream. Beat the butter, then sift in the icing sugar in a couple of batches, along with the vanilla, until incorporated. Add half the milk or cream and beat again. If you need to, add the rest of the milk or cream; the icing should have a spreadable consistency that still holds its shape.
7 Fill a piping bag with three-quarters of the buttercream.
Dot a little buttercream on to the plate or cake stand you are using. (The cake will need refrigerating after the first coat of buttercream, so make sure the plate or stand fits into the fridge.)
8 Put the first cake layer on the plate, remembering how the next layer lines up. Pipe on a swirl of buttercream and use a palette knife to spread it out about 1cm thick. Now pipe a thin circle of buttercream around the top, about 0.5cm in from the edge. This will be a barrier, to keep the jam from leaking. Spoon one-third of the jam inside that line and spread it out.
9 Repeat with the other layers. For the top two, it’s best to turn the cakes upside down, so that you end up with a bottom layer on the very top – this gives a cleaner edge.
10 Once all the layers are assembled, do the crumb coat. This is a layer of icing that locks in the crumbs and evens out the surface before the final coat. Pipe a zigzag all the way around the cake. Use a palette knife to spread it out. Some areas will be thicker than others; the idea is to create a smooth cylinder of cake, filling in any imperfections. Finally, spread icing on top. Make sure the whole cake is covered. Refrigerate the cake for 2 hours (or overnight) to set the icing.
11 Beat the remaining buttercream again for a couple of minutes until it is soft and creamy and will spread easily. Using a palette knife, spread it over the sides of the cake in an even layer, then smooth the surface using the palette knife. Dollop the last of the buttercream on top of the cake, use the palette knife to spread it out and then create a swirl on the top.
12 Now the fun begins. Arrange the pressed flowers on a worksurface and start to select ones to decorate the cake. To attach a pressed flower to the cake, hold it gently against the buttercream and press it in very lightly. Add flowers until you have decorated all the way round.
13 Keep the cake in a cool setting until you are ready to serve. Just before serving, you can decorate the top with fresh edible flowers and leaves. Use cocktail sticks to hold any larger flowers in place.