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WHAT'S COOKING?

Maida – 3 cups

Eggs – 2

Refined oil – 1 cup

Cocoa – 1/2 cup

Sugar – 2 cups

Hot water – 1 cup

Curd - 1cup

Salt, a pinch and baking powder – 2 tsp

Double cream – 250 ml

Plain chocolate - 75 gm

Coffee powder – 1tbsp

Boiling water – 8 tsp

Vanilla essence – 4 drops

Icing sugar – 200gm

Chipped chocolate and chopped walnuts (30gm) for decoration.

Sieve maida, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Mix together oil, eggs, sugar, curd and hot water. Add the sieved flour mixture and fold in gently. Pour this into an eight and a half inch round baking dish and bake at 180 degree centigrade for 45 minutes. The cake is done when a skewer inserted comes out clean. Remove from oven and leave it open for 5 minutes. Turn it out on to a wire rack leave to cool.

Pour cream into a small pan and slowly bring it to the boil over a gentle heat. Remove from fire and gradually add chocolate into it and stir well. Leave it to cool in the refrigerator until firm. Slice the cake horizontally in half, sandwich together with this chocolate cream mix.

Dissolve coffee powder in boiling water. Pour this into the icing sugar and vanilla essence mixture and mix well. Pour this icing mixture over the cake and spread evenly on top and on the sides. Decorate with chipped chocolates and chopped walnuts.

Sultanas – 75 gm

Rum or brandy – 2 tbsp

Clear honey – 350 gm

Butter – 45 gm

Water – 3 tbsp and maida – 400gm

Cinnamon powder – 1tsp

Baking soda – 11/2 tsp

Clove and nutmeg powder – 1/2 tsp each

Apple puree – 180 gm (6 oz), nuts chopped – 180 gm, chopped candied orange and lemon rind – 180 gm and dates – 45 gm

Orange glaze – 3 tbsp (put 125 gm orange jam and 3 tbsp water into a

small pan and leave it over slow fire until the jam has melted).

Dried fruits and candied fruits – 400gm.

Put sultanas and rum in a bowl. Leave to soak for 30 minutes. Put honey, butter and water together into a heavy based pan. Set them over a low heat and let them melt, add cinnamon powder and stir well. Sift the flour, baking powder, clove, and nutmeg powder into a heavy based bowl. Slowly pour the honey-butter mixture into it, mix well. Add apple puree, chopped nuts, dates, candied orange and lemon rind and soaked sultana. Fold it in gently.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin (81/2 inch) and bake in the pre-preheated oven for 1 hour at 180 degree Celsius. Remove from oven; turn it out on a wire rack. Peel off the lining paper and cool. To decorate, brush the top of the cake with half of the orange glaze. Arrange the candied and dried fruits decoratively over the cake, then brush once more with the remaining glaze. Leave it to set before serving.

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