by Jane Brocket
tres leches cake 125
upside-down pineapple
cake 134–35
queen cakes 112–13
raising agents 10
raspberry jam cakes 106
red velvet cake 188–89
rich seed cake 31
rock buns 94–95
rubbing in 18
Sachertorte 124
scones 56–57
scraping down 18
sifting 18
silver & gold cake 146–47
Simnel cake 170–71
simple chocolate cake 46–47
sour cherry muffins 62–63
sponge kisses 166–67
sticky date cake 26
sticky toffee pudding cake 70–71
stollen 184–85
strawberry shortcake 144–45
sugar 8, 10
Swedish tosca cake 77
Swiss roll 140–41
tea loaf 74–75
techniques 17–19
tipsy cake 164
treacle 10
treacle cake 81
tres leches cake 125
upside-down pineapple
cake 134–35
Valentine’s cake 186–87
Victoria sandwich cake 54–55
Welsh cakes 58–59
whipped cream cupcakes
with vanilla frosting 115
whisking 19
yeast 17
useful addresses
As vintage cakes originated in times when ingredients were less varied and kitchen equipment was more basic, they generally depend on relatively few ingredients and minimal specialised equipment. In fact, you can buy everything you need for all but a few cakes in this book in most major supermarkets and homeware shops. These days, supermarkets offer extensive ranges of all the staple ingredients (butter, sugar, eggs, flour) as well as the important additional ingredients (spices, chocolate, jam, syrup, treacle, raising agents, flavour extracts). And now they have better-thanever selections of the lovely finishing touches (decorations, paper cases, icing sugars). As many have also started selling essential cooking and baking equipment, you really don’t need to go far to find what you need. Alternatively, John Lewis, Debenhams, House of Fraser and BHS are good-value stockists of equipment.
SPECIAL INGREDIENTS:
There are a few ingredients that were once widely available but are now difficult to find, plus several more modern baking ingredients that are worth seeking out.
WHOLE FOODS and HOLLAND & BARRETT
and other health food shops are good for malt extract and fine oatmeal. www.wholefoodsmarket.com www.hollandandbarrett.com
KINGDOM or DEVON GOLD label curd cheese
is available in larger branches of the major supermarkets. It is also sometimes sold at the deli or cheese counter of supermarkets. Or try a good deli (Polish delicatessens usually sell curd cheese).
BART SPICES sell a good range of spices by mail order.
www.bartspices.com
Alternatively, most supermarkets offer a good range of ground and whole spices, but markets and specialist Asian food shops are great places for cheap quantities of individual spices if you use them frequently.
LAKELAND is always worth looking at for good-quality flavour extracts.
www.lakeland.co.uk
AMAZON is also worth looking at for good-quality vanilla and almond extracts and also food colouring pastes.
www.amazon.co.uk
WILTON and SUGARFLAIR are the widely available brands of food colouring paste, which comes in so many brilliant colours that there is no need for the pale, watery food colouring liquids.
www.wilton.com
CAKE CRAFT SHOP sells Wilton food colouring pastes.
www.cakecraftshop.co.uk
CAKE CRAFT WORLD sells Sugarflair food colouring pastes.
www.cakecraftworld.co.uk
THE SUGAR SHACK has a range of pastes on offer.
www.sugarshack.co.uk
SQUIRE'S KITCHEN sells its own brand of paste in an amazing range of colours.
www.squires-shop.com
CAKES, COOKIES & CRAFTS is a treasure trove of decorations and fripperies.
www.cakescookiesandcraftsshop.co.uk
(All these websites are also good for cake decorating supplies.)
EQUIPMENT:
The following all stock general baking equipment as well as more specialised items:
JOHN LEWIS
www.johnlewis.com
LAKELAND is brilliant for tins and trays, as well as huge rolls of baking parchment, cake-tin liners and basic decorating equipment.
www.lakeland.co.uk
THE SUGAR SHACK
www.sugarshack.co.uk
JANE ASHER
www.janeasher.com
SILVERWOOD
www.alansilverwood.co.uk
MORE DIFFICULT-TO-FIND ITEMS:
De Cuisine and Divertimenti stock Angel Food/tube tins and madeleine trays.
www.decuisine.co.uk
www.divertimenti.co.uk
NISBETS and AMAZON have dariole moulds.
www.nisbets.co.uk
www.amazon.co.uk
KITCHEN CRAFT sells a wide range of silicone moulds.
www.kitchencraft.co.uk
VINTAGE CHINA, CUTLERY, KITCHENWARE AND TEXTILES:
Vintage china and textiles are becoming increasingly sought-after, which means you need to be wary of being overcharged by sellers. It’s still possible to find plenty of wonderful bone china, beautiful vintage cutlery and cheerful hand-embroidered tablecloths at bargain prices if you are prepared to do the seeking out yourself. It also has to be said that eBay is an amazing place for vintage finds. However, vintage kitchenware is already expensive, as are some very collectible designs of china, and anything ‘mid-century modern’ is going up in price, which puts it beyond the budget of most non-specialist collectors.
The best way to build up an assortment of vintage items is to buy the things you like at a price that seems fair and reasonable, rather than looking for specific pieces; that way you are more likely to have pleasant surprises and happy coincidences, and a healthier bank balance. One of the great charms of ‘vintage style’ is that an element of deliberate mismatching looks good, which means it’s worth buying individual items as you find them, rather than waiting to chance upon a full set.
The best places for good-value vintage homeware are charity shops, flea markets, antiques fairs, weekend street markets and local auction houses, and eBay (www.ebay.co.uk) is fantastic for browsing in the comfort of your own home. The BBC’s 'Homes and Antiques' magazine has useful listings of many antiques fairs.
acknowledgements
Many thanks to Jacqui Small and Jo Copestick for their vision and flair, to Kerenza Swift who did an amazing job of co-ordinating all the elements of the book and keeping everything on track, and to Abi Waters who brought her careful eye to bear on the recipes and text.
Creating this book has been very much a team effort, and I was incredibly fortunate to work with three very talented people during the photoshoots. I am delighted to have Polly Wreford’s beautiful photographs of my cakes in this book, and I must also thank her for seeking out and turning up some great vintage bargains. I’d also like to thank Malcolm Menzies who was Polly’s hard-working assistant, and I am enormously grateful to Sarah Rock who not only kept all the shoots on course, but also contributed many lovely visual and styling details, and is responsible for the fabulous design of the book.
Jane Graham Maw and Jennifer Christie at Graham Maw Christie have been as helpful and as generous with advice as ever, and I thank them for all their support.
I also want to acknowledge and thank the people who have been encouraging me to bake since I could first stand on a stool to help my Nana in her kitchen. When I was growing up, my Mum let me have free run of her kitchen and larder, and my siblings – Roger, Matthew and Kate – were always willing consumers. Ever since I met him, my husband Simon has been
happy to eat what I bake, so a cake book was welcomed, and he has been wonderfully patient and understanding during the hard work it has entailed – I can’t thank him enough. As for our three children, they have been stalwart supporters ever since they could sit on a kitchen work surface and help me bake cakes. Thank you, Tom and Alice.
And Phoebe, of course. Phoebe is my right-hand woman in the kitchen, my recipe-checker, a reliably calm, firm and sensible presence, and a very entertaining one, too. She is a natural, creative baker who has helped and inspired me throughout the writing of this book, and I dedicate it to her with many thanks, and much love.
For Phoebe
First published in 2012 by
Jacqui Small LLP
An imprint of Aurum Press Ltd
74-44 White Lion Street
London N1 9PF
Text copyright © Jane Brocket 2012
Photography, design and layout copyright
© Jacqui Small LLP 2012
The author’s moral rights have been asserted.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, electrical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the Publisher.
ISBN: 9781909342316
A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library.
E-book conversion by Integra