Dear “Mike”,
How art thou? I hope that the beckoning Spring has been treating you well and that your walking club is going “great guns”.
I’ve been thinking quite a bit about “place” of late – especially with all this business with the Olympics in China. In the past I was very much all about Gold Medal Cakes at the Royal Show and such, but in this world of competitive capitalism and the Americanization of our “teens”, I wonder if coming First is really all that important?
My Bronze Award chutney was quite acceptable in 1982 don’t you think? In the sun on that nice picnic at Hanging Rock?
Anyway, I’ve been back in the kitchen, giving the Sunbeam a whirl and firing up the ol’ Early Kooka – with lovely results I might add.
I’ve returned to the “Golden Wattle” (the 1969 edition) and found that the Second Cake Method is really where my heart is at. Second is in no way inferior to First. I like this idea very much. It is merely “another” way.
I thought perhaps your readers might like to remember that baking and cake making is a real craft, and its not just about following a recipe gram for gram. It is about understanding “Home Science”.
As the “Golden Wattle” reminds us, The Second Cake Method is for richer cakes, and is generally used where half or more fat to flour is allowed such as Queen Cakes, Madeira and fruit cakes. If you want to make scones or sponge cakes – you need to look up the First or Third Methods. But we both know how over-rated a poorly made Sponge can be!
Some cakes making tips:
* Flour should be added last. Stir mixture as little as possible once the flour has been added to avoid a leathery cake.
* For rich cakes it is best to line the tin with paper
* Rich cakes require a moderately hot oven, with a gradually decreasing heat and a low, even temperature maintained after the cake is well risen and brown. The heat bursts the starch cells which then absorb the fat, thus setting the cake and preventing the fruit and such from sinking.
* Avoid slamming the oven door (please!)
* Remember than “stale” cake can be used in milk puddings and trifle later
I have included a “copy” of the Second Cake Method “run-down” straight from the “Golden Wattle”, and trust that it proves handy.
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