An Aussie wedding cake for Meghan and Harry
Two cakes – one Australian, one British – to celebrate the royal wedding this weekend.
Honey for Ray
The combination of lemon myrtle, fennel and honey syrup creates a creamy, floral finish. I like to decorate this cake with Australian native flora and eucalyptus, and a handful of crumbled shortbread. It's soft and lush, just like its namesake, my baby boy Ray Lou.
Note: This recipe makes one tier with two layers. To create the cake pictured, as a guide you'll need to triple the ingredients; as well as a 20cm cake tin, you'll need one 23cm and one 25cm cake tin.
INGREDIENTS
3 tbsp ground lemon myrtle* (or lemon thyme or lemon balm)
3 tbsp fennel seeds
500g unsalted butter
330g (1½ cups) raw sugar
6 eggs
250ml (1 cup) milk
600g (4 cups) plain flour
4 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
80g (½ cup) finely grated fennel
Honey syrup
125ml (½ cup) freshly squeezed lemon juice
500ml (2 cups) honey
375ml (1½ cups) water
Honey icing
4 tsp honey
600g icing sugar
100g unsalted butter, softened
250g cream cheese, chilled
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 175C. Lightly grease and line two 20cm round cake tins with baking paper.
Toast the lemon myrtle and fennel seeds together in a saucepan over a medium heat until fragrant. Remove from the heat, transfer to a large mixing bowl and leave to cool completely.
Once cooled, add the butter and sugar to the bowl with the toasted lemon myrtle and fennel seeds and cream together for 2 to 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and continue to beat until incorporated. Stir in the milk, then sift over the flour, baking powder and salt and fold together to form a batter.
Using your hands, squeeze the grated fennel to remove any excess moisture, then add it to the batter and stir together gently to distribute evenly. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared tins and bake for 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean.
Meanwhile, make the honey syrup. Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan set over a medium-high heat and stir together until the honey dissolves. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat. Set aside.
While the cakes are hot and in their tins, prick the tops with a fork and ladle over 250ml (1 cup) of the honey syrup. Cool on a wire rack.
To make the honey icing, beat all the ingredients together in a bowl using a hand-held mixer, or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until smooth.
Place one of the cooled cakes on a serving plate or stand and spread with half the icing, then place the second cake on top. Spread over the remaining icing and serve with the remaining honey syrup.
Serves 6-8
*Lemon myrtle is an Australian native ingredient with subtle eucalyptus notes. It can be substituted with lemon balm or lemon thyme.
Pimm's, cucumber and borage cake
I went through a big phase of making cocktail-themed cakes. During that time mojito, tequila sunrise and champagne bellini-inspired creations were my boozy remedy for summer wedding cake orders. Similarly, this pound cake packs a fruity alcoholic kick, though the cucumber and borage syrup lends it a bright, refreshing finish.
INGREDIENTS
1 cucumber
5g (¼ cup) peppermint leaves
515g (2¼ cups) castor sugar
455g unsalted butter
zest of 2 oranges
zest of 1 lemon
9 eggs
450g (3 cups) plain flour
3 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
185g (¾ cup) sour cream
150g (1 cup) fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
Cucumber borage syrup
1 cucumber, cut into rough chunks
200ml Pimm's
10g (½ cup) fresh borage flowers
100g castor sugar
3 tbsp orange juice
Pimm's icing
600g icing sugar
100g unsalted butter, softened
250g cream cheese, chilled
1 tsp Pimm's
zest of 1 orange
To decorate
whole strawberries
orange wedges
mint sprigs
thin cucumber slices
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 175C. Lightly grease and line a 22cm round cake tin with baking paper.
Peel the cucumber, reserving the peel. Using your hands, rub the peppermint leaves and cucumber peel into the castor sugar in a bowl until well combined. Add the cucumber flesh to a food processor and blitz to a puree. Set aside.
Cream the butter, orange and lemon zests and sugar mixture together in a bowl using a hand-held mixer, or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until fluffy. Mix in the eggs one at a time followed by half the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in the sour cream and cucumber puree, then add the remaining dry ingredients and mix to form a batter.
Folding gently, drop the strawberry pieces into the batter in small handfuls until evenly distributed. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 1½ hours, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
While the cake is baking, make the syrup. Pass the cucumber pieces through a juicer. Transfer 100ml of the juice to a high-sided saucepan with all the remaining ingredients and cook over a medium heat, stirring, for about 6 minutes, or until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is thick and syrupy.
Once cooked, remove the cake from the oven and transfer to a wire rack. Pour over the syrup evenly and leave to cool slightly, then remove from the tin and leave to cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the icing. Add the ingredients to a bowl or a stand mixer and beat together until smooth.
Place the cooled cake on a serving plate or stand, spread with the icing and decorate with whole strawberries, orange wedges, mint sprigs and cucumber slices.
Serves 10-12
This is an edited extract from Sticky Fingers, Green Thumb by Hayley McKee, published by Hardie Grant Books, RRP $29.99, available in stores nationally and online.