Halloween Poison Toffee Apple Cake with Caramel Peanut Brittle Buttercream and Snow White Apples

Halloween isn't really a big deal here in South Africa, I mean there are a few spooky decorations and the odd ghost-shaped sweet in the supermarkets but definitely not as big of a deal as it is in America. BUT let me just warn you, 'cos it seems to gradually becoming a thing. Last year? Kids came trick or treating at my door and I had NOTHING to give them! The horror! And before you go and say I was tricking them - how could THE biggest dessert-o-holic NOT have sweets in her house, let me just say that it's because I'm an all or nothing kind of gal. Meaning, I eat them all so there's nothing left.

But I digress. This year the lovely folks over at Food & Home Entertaining Magazine asked me and my ridiculously talented sister to do a little something for Halloween. Scary tales was the brief - the spooky side of fairy tales (which frankly are bloody terrifying). This cake is an evil (but delicious) spin on Snow White and the poison apple; layers of spiced apple cake, toffee buttercream, peanut brittle and some snow white apples on top. Sugar, sugar and more sugar - basically, if the poison apple hadn't done the job, this cake certainly would've!

Halloween Poison Toffee Apple Cake with Caramel Peanut Brittle Buttercream and Snow White Apples

Serves 8-10 

210g salted butter, softened

270g Natura Dark Demerara sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp (5ml) vanilla extract

200g self-raising flour, sifted

½ tsp (2.5ml) bicarbonate of soda

1 tbsp (15ml) cinnamon

½ tsp (2.5ml) nutmeg

80ml (1/3 cup) milk

145g finely grated Golden Delicious apples, squeezed well

75g flaked almonds, toasted

TOFFEE BUTTERCREAM

240g Natura Light Demerara Sugar

250ml (1 cup) water

360ml (1 ½ cups) cream

250g salted butter, softened

SNOW WHITE APPLES

8 small lunchbox apples

8 wooden skewers or clean sticks

200g white chocolate, chopped

Peanut brittle, crushed, to garnish

Preheat the oven to 180C (conventional) and grease and line 3 x 20cm sandwich cake tins.

Cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy (about 8-10 minutes).

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well in between each addition.

Beat in the vanilla.

Combine the flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices and stir into the cake batter alternating with the milk.

Stir in the squeezed apple and flaked almonds then divide between the 3 tins and bake for about 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cakes, comes out clean.

Allow the cakes to cool, upside down, completely then remove from the tin.

To make the buttercream, place the sugar and water in a pan and heat gently until the sugar is dissolved.  Bring to the boil and simmer, without stirring, until the mixture begins caramelizing.

Once the syrup reaches a dark toffee-colour (137 degrees celcius on a sugar thermometer), pour in the cream and swirl to combine.

Allow to cool completely and divide the mixture in half.

Cream the butter until very white and fluffy (about 8-10 minutes) then add one half of the toffee sauce and whip to combine – the buttercream should be very light and fluffy. 

To assemble, slice each cake in half to create 4 layers.

Sandwich the layers together with the buttercream, sprinkling a little of the peanut brittle in between each layer, then cover the top and sides with the remaining buttercream.

To make the snow white apples, insert the sticks into the apples then set aside.

Melt the white chocolate gently over a double boiler then dip each apple into the chocolate. Allow to drip thoroughly before placing on a lined baking sheet to set completely.

Place the apples on top of the cake then drizzle with the rest of the toffee sauce, to serve.

TIP: If the buttercream gets stiff while assembling the cake, simply whip again until fluffy.

Caramel Creme Horns

I remember the first time I had to make puff pastry at chef school. Actually, I'm surprised I remember it - what with our brains blocking out horrific events and all. 
No other pastry has a more appropriate name than puff;  you spend what feels like hours just hanging around waiting (for the butter to chill in the fridge), and then there's lots of huffing and puffing as you frantically roll and fold that pastry before that same butter melts. Then the waiting. Then the puffing. And repeat. I mean, it's just a nightmare, and probably the only time butter is annoying. Ever. But, you only have to make puff pastry once to come to the same conclusion I did:

Life is too short to make your own puff pastry. 

Let's add a star thingy to that statement and include phyllo pastry in there too, shall we? Don't even bother trying to make your own paper-thin phyllo pastry. It will end in tears. And tears. Gosh, English is weird. 

But I digress, back to puff pastry. The pastry that won the butter lottery. 

I've had this old box of cream horn moulds for ages which I was given by my Great Aunt and have been desperately wanting to bake a batch. Except, are they still a thing?

Whatever happened to cream horns? They seem terribly out of date these days, but why? Whoever is doing the PR for them, is doing a shoddy job. Doughnuts - still trendy. Pavlova - still trendy. Tarts - still trendy. How can puff pastry and whipped cream be OLD-FASHIONED?! Well, I'm resurrecting them. With a boozy caramel cream that will knock your socks off. I reckon a tiramisu filling (the one I used in my eclairs here) would be mind-blowing too. And before you tell me you need cream horn moulds, you don't - simply cover ice cream cones in foil. The only thing difficult about making these, is figuring out how to eat them gracefully. 

Caramel Cream Horns

Makes 10-12

1 x 400g packet ready-made puff pastry (I used Today's)

Milk, for brushing

White sugar, for sprinkling

1/2 cup (125ml) cream

2 tsp (10ml) almond liqueuer (optional)

1 tsp (5ml) caster sugar

1/2 tin (200g) caramel or dulce de leche (do I need to tell you what to do with the other half)

Icing sugar, for dusting 

Preheat your oven to 200C and grease or line a large baking sheet. 

Spray your cream horn moulds with cooking spray (if you don't have, simply wrap ice cream cones in foil and spray the outside). 

Start by unrolling the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. No need to roll it out with a rolling pin, it's just the right thickness for the cream horns. Less work - yay! Cut 1cm strips lengthwise from the puff pastry then starting at the tip of the horn, wrap the pastry around, making sure it overlaps slightly. Brush a little milk on the end to make sure it sticks then place it on the prepared baking sheet. Brush with more milk and sprinkle with sugar. Repeat until all the puff pastry is finished. 

Bake the horns for 20-25 minutes or until they're a lovely golden brown. Remove from the baking tray (or the sugar will make them stick) and allow to cool on a cooling rack. 

Make the filling by whipping the cream with the liqueuer and sugar until thick then place in a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. 

Whisk the caramel in a bowl until smooth. 

Fill the horns with a little (or a lot of) caramel then pipe the whipped cream on top - do this just before serving so they stay nice and crunchy. Don't forget the dusting of icing sugar! 

Caramel Choc Chip Hot Cross Chelsea Buns

I LOVE hot cross buns - especially when they're toasty and dripping with salted butter. They're just heavenly! But the worst thing about making them is waiting for that pesky yeast to rise - which can take anything from half an hour to half a day! And when you have a craving that is literally forever! So I've cut straight to the chase with this recipe - it's one that comes all the way from my standard 6 Home Economics class when we first made Chelsea Buns using a scone dough recipe. It's so simple, quick and delicious! With no proving, knocking down and what have you. 

My buns (snigger snigger) have swirls of sticky caramel in them along with pockets of chocolate chips, candied zest and flaked almonds - which can easily be tailored to whatever your heart desires! Oooo white chocolate! Chopped Turkish apricots! Pistachios! 

Although all of our focus this week is on Easter, just a reminder that it is also Fairtrade Fortnight. So the Fairtrade SA team challenged me to make a recipe using their Fairtrade chocolate, rooibos tea and a yummy energy drink. Boy, what a challenge! But coincidentally they all fitted quite easily into this recipe - chocolate chips in the buns and rooibos and the drink in the glaze. My favourite part of buying Fairtrade, is that it takes a lot of the guilt out of enjoying a slab of chocolate :) Okay fine, maybe two slabs. Point is, we can make a big difference by making a small choice. 

Caramel Hot Cross Chelsea Buns

3 cups (360g) cake flour

2 tbsp (30ml) white sugar

1 tbsp (15ml) baking powder

½ tsp salt

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground mixed spice

120g butter, cubed

300ml buttermilk 

1 large egg

FILLING

½ tin (200g) caramel spread (like dulce de leche)

½ cup (50g) flaked almonds

2 tbsp mixed candied peel

1 cup (150g) chopped good-quality dark chocolate (I used Fairtrade)

1 tsp mixed spice

1 tsp cinnamon

TOPPINGS

1/2 cup (180g) honey, warmed

1/4 cup strong rooibos tea (optional)

1/4 cup water (I used a Fairtrade drink because of the Fairtrade challenge)

1 cup (130g) icing sugar, sifted

1 tbsp (approx.) buttermilk

Grease and line a 20cm round cake tin. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
Combine the flour, white sugar, baking powder, salt and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl and mix well.
Rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
Combine the buttermilk and egg separately then add to the dry ingredients. Use a knife and cutting movements to incorporate everything until it forms a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead roughly 10 times or until a smooth dough forms.
Roll the dough out into a rectangle about 20cm wide on a lightly floured surface.
Spread caramel over the dough then sprinkle with almonds, peel, chocolate and spices.
Carefully roll your dough up to form a long sauasage and pinch the edges to seal.  Using a sharp serrated knife, cut slices roughly 4-cm thick and pack them together into your lined baking tin. Make sure to pack the buns together quite snugly.
Bake at 200 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until risen and golden. Combine the honey, rooibos tea (if using) and water and simmer until  and brush over the warm buns. 

To make the crosses, mix the icing sugar and buttermilk and place in a piping bag. Pipe crosses over the tops of the buns. 

AS SEEN IN THE SUNDAY TIMES FOOD WEEKLY

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Salted Caramel Coma Cake

A buttery malt sponge sandwiched together with layers of caramel and toffee buttercream with just a touch of sea salt. Can I get an 'Amen?'

 THIS cake is what I think of New Year's resolutions that involve exercising and dieting. Caramel on top of caramel, on top of more caramel - this, can never be a bad thing. 

I've written about my affinity for salted caramel before (although not to be confused with my infatuated love affair with chocolate) and while the world may move on from the salted caramel obsession. I refuse. And there is a very good reason why. 

I'm going to quote myself (can one even do that?! oh well here goes...) from a post I did 2 years ago but only because at the time, in my caramel-induced coma,  I (unknowingly) solved one of the world's greatest problems: Salted Caramel Cake Guilt

cake guilt

ɡɪlt/

noun

1. 1.

   the fact of having committed a specified or implied offence by indulging in too much cake.

"Add a pinch of salt to caramel and you have an earth-shattering combination that is basically the crack cocaine of the culinary world. The reason for this? Consuming fat, sugar and salt all together is a serious sensory overdrive for our brains - it releases dopamine and adrenaline and totally gets our neurons fired up. Exactly the way drugs do.

But before you feel guilty about shovelling another spoonful of caramel straight out the jar, don't, because genetically we're supposed to be attracted to foods with this tantalising trifector. It's a matter of survival, people! We need salt because we can't produce our own. We need fat for energy and our sugar cravings are linked to being able to tell which foods are edible (cave-man days)." 

So, the lesson here is, make this caramel cake and while you drift into a blissful toffee coma, do not feel one pang of guilt, because... you can't fight genetics. 

Salted Caramel Coma Cake
Recipe by Katelyn Williams

260g butter, softened
100g golden syrup
200g brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
250g cake flour
2 tsp (10ml) baking powder
60g malted milk powder (aka Horlicks)
40ml milk

Toffee buttercream
120g white sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) water
3/4 cup (180ml) cream
250g butter, softened

200g (1/2 tin) tinned caramel or dulce de leche spread
Sea salt flakes, for sprinkling
Caramel popcorn, to serve (optional)

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees celcius. 
Line the bottoms of 2 x 15cm springform cake tins and set aside.
Cream together the butter, syrup and brown sugar until very light and creamy (about 8-10 minutes).
Beat in the vanilla and the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. 
Sift in the cake flour, baking powder and milk powder and fold together, adding the milk to form a thick batter. 
Divide the batter between the two cake tins and spread evenly. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean and the cake has pulled away from the sides. 
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely, upside down, on a cooling rack. 

To make the buttercream, place the sugar and water in a pan and heat gently until the sugar is dissolved. 
Bring to the boil and simmer, without stirring, until the mixture begins caramelising. 
Once the syrup reaches a toffee-colour, pour in the cream and swirl to combine. 
Allow to cool completely. 
Cream the butter until very white and fluffy (about 8-10 minutes) then add the toffee sauce and whip to combine. 

To assemble, slice each cake in half to create 4 layers. 
Spread the first layer with tinned caramel then a layer of buttercream and top with the next cake layer. Continue until 4 layers are formed. 
Frost the entire cake using the buttercream (I used some tinned caramel along the bottom of the cake to achieve an ombre affect). 
Place the remaining buttercream in a piping bag (to create a swirled effect, simply smear stripes of caramel in the piping bag before adding the buttercream) then pipe blobs onto the top of the cake. 
Place in the refrigerator to set. 
To serve, sprinkle with sea salt flakes and top with caramel popcorn (if desired). 

TIP: To make a 25cm cake with 4 layers, double the recipe above.

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Caramel peppermint crisp cake

Caramel Peppermint Crisp Cake

 I heard someone once describe our beloved peppermint crisp tart as ‘a lazy version of Italian tiramisu’, which, once you get over the initial offence, is a pretty accurate description really. Four ingredients: Tennis biscuits (don’t even bother asking me if there is an alternative flavour of biscuit you can use because any South African will tell you there just isn’t), tinned caramel (if you’re feeling fancy, boiling a tin of condensed milk will make it ‘gourmet’), whipped cream (well, if you want to be AUTHENTIC it should be that non-dairy Orley whip cream…) and of course the darling of South African chocolates, Peppermint Crisp (those shards of sticky peppermint covered in chocolate are pure bliss!).

I must be honest, I never grew up with peppermint crisp tart. It doesn’t conjure up memories of my grandmother serving it to me as a child, or my mom whipping up a pyrex dish of it for a church bazaar. The decadent dessert was completely left out of my childhood (my mom and I will have words about this!) but that hasn’t stopped me from cramming all the tart I missed out on as a child into my adult life!

I’ve given the dessert it’s fair share of makeovers - from ice cream sandwiches to milkshakes, but this cake is a serious showstopper! It’s not as sweet as it’s traditional counterpart due to the coconutty sponge cake layers in between and it will make a jaw-dropping end to a lekker braai!

Caramel Peppermint crisp cake

Serves 10-12

Recipe by Katelyn Williams

Adapted from Hummingbird Bakery Cake Days

120g butter, softened

400g castor sugar

360g cake flour

1½ tbsp baking powder

40g desiccated coconut, toasted

pinch of salt

3 large eggs

1 tin (400ml) coconut milk

Filling

1 tin caramel

2 cups cream, whipped to stiff peaks

400g peppermint crisp chocolate, crushed

Mini Tennis biscuits , to garnish

Preheat the oven to 170C and line 3 x 20cm sandwich tins with baking paper.

Beat the butter, castor sugar, flour, baking powder, coconut and salt together on a low speed until a sandy texture forms. Whisk the eggs and coconut milk together in a jug then slowly add to the dry ingredients while the mixer is running, to form a batter. Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared tins and bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean, and the cakes are golden. Allow to cool a little in the tin before turning out onto a cake rack. Trim the cooled cakes by levelling the tops then place one cake layer on a plate. Spread with caramel, whipped cream, peppermint crisp and crushed biscuits.  Continue layering finishing with the caramel, cream, peppermint crisp and the mini biscuits. Refrigerate for 1 hour to set then slice and serve.

Peppermint crisp tart milkshake

You may have noticed that I LOVE taking traditional South African recipes and giving them a fresh new twist. There isn't a South African worth their slip slops that will refuse a scoop of peppermint crisp tart at a braai and when I tried to explain this to Italian boyfriend his reaction was 'What is peppermint crisp?' All of my outrage aside, I had not realised until this moment, that the rest of the earth lives in a world without this glorious confection! Can you just imagine? Shame. 

But don't sympathise too long because what this means, is that there's more for us. Yay. 

 I was given this sexy-looking Zoku Slush & Shake maker in September and have been patiently waiting for the perfect scorcher of a day to take it for a spin. This weekend, it finally happened. Thirty degree heat and I was happy, 'cos I could make my decadent milkshake (which is my take on the peppermint crisp tart) and has been in the back of my mind all along. 

The best part of this milkshake, is that it takes forever to melt because it's made in this clever little gadget. You freeze the core of the Zoku (I just keep it in my freezer so when the urge arises, I can whip up a slushie or milkshake) then just pore in your milk mixture or fruit juice and in minutes, it freezes in front of your eyes. You can even add a little bit of booze... I'll just let that sink in while your mind whirls with all the delicious icy possibilities it can create. Magic stuff. And such a great Christmas gift *hint hint*.

Peppermint crisp tart shakes

Serves 2

1 cup vanilla ice cream

180ml milk

1-2 tbsp caramel

1 peppermint crisp bar, crushed plus extra for garnish

Crushed coconut biscuits, to garnish

Blend the ice cream, milk and caramel until smooth then stir in the crushed peppermint crisp. Pour into the Zoku Slush & Shake and stir until thick. Serve garnished with peppermint crisp pieces and coconut biscuits.

*This post has been sponsored by the awesome people at Zoku who make an array of gadgets to whip up icy delights! Visit their website here or like the Facebook page for more yummy recipes. You can find the Slush & Shake makers at Boardmans, @Home and CNA stores or at Yuppiechef.com

Chocolate millionaire shortbread cake

This is one of those 'I've had a horrific week and I need to eat my body weight in copious amounts of chocolate and sugar to make it better' cakes. The cake itself is my absolute favourite and ticks all the boxes of the perfect chocolate cake: moist, not too sweet and easy. It has an absurd amount of water in the batter but rest assured, this is the secret to a deliciously moist cake as the flour absorbs all the liquid when you give it a chance and that's exactly what stops the batter from being dry. It's perfect for tray-bakes for church bazaars or even as cupcakes. 

As if the cake wasn't good enough on it's own, I've piled it with layers of chocolate, caramel and shortbread, inspired by my favourite millionaire treat. If this cake doesn't have the wow factor then I dunno. 

Chocolate millionaire shortbread cake

Recipe created for October issue of Food and Home Entertaining Magazine

Serves 8-10

Chocolate cake

1/2L water

240g vegetable oil

450g brown sugar

200g dark chocolate, chopped

115g cocoa powder

4 large eggs

325g cake flour

5g baking powder

2g salt

10g bicarbonate of soda

Shortbread

500g butter or margarine, softened

1/2 cup castor sugar

200ml maizena or cornstarch

2 cups cake flour

Chocolate topping

450g dark chocolate

1 cup cream

Salted caramel sauce, for drizzling

Chocolate shortbread biscuits, to garnish

Preheat oven to 160C.

Boil water then add oil and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and then pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth. Whisk eggs lightly then stir in the chocolate mixture. Fold in the combined dry ingredients. Let mix stand covered for 1 hour. Place the batter into 2 x 24cm springform cake tins lined with baking paper and bake at 160C for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

For the shortbread, cream the butter or margarine and sugar until light and fluffy.  Gradually add the combined dry ingredients to form a soft dough.  Roll out the dough and cut into a 24cm disc. Place on a greased baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until crisp and golden. 

Assemble the cake by starting with a shortbread layer, spread some salted caramel on the bottom then place the chocolate cake on top followed by the chocolate topping. Repeat this process finishing with chocolate and a drizzling of salted caramel. Decorate with the leftover crushed shortbread.

TIP: Take a shortcut by buying ready-made caramel and chocolate spread instead of making your own!