I love cake and one of my favourite memories of growing up is all the amazing birthday cakes my mum used to make for myself and my siblings. Every year she would put in extraordinary amounts of effort to make the most fantastic and imaginatively designed cakes. Between us we've had everything from huge princess castles, pirate treasure, racing cars... in fact you name it and one of us have probably had it!
After moving out of my parents house and into my own home I decided birthdays just wouldn't be the same without some kind of cake so every year since I have made myself something fancy and delicious. Two years ago I made some wonderful chocolate cola cupcakes with Jack Daniels butter cream icing topped with cola pop rocks! They were delicious, rich and indulgent.
A couple of weeks ago I turned 29 and had quite a low key birthday so I chose a simple sponge. Of course it wasn't a completely ordinary sponge cake. One of my all time favourite cakes that my mum used to make was hot milk cake. I love how super sweet and moist this sponge is so I decided it would be the perfect treat for my birthday. To complement the sweetness of the sponge I also made a zesty lemon and blueberry compote. The lemon juice in the compote balances the sweetness of the cake and makes a perfect afternoon treat with a cup of tea.
For the cake:
2 eggs
200g caster sugar
160g plain flour
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
140ml milk
70g butter, cubed
Preheat oven to 180C and grease a 1lb loaf tin.
Beat the eggs until for about 5 minutes or until thick and lemony yellow. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy. Mix in vanilla extract.
Combine the flour and baking powder and gradually add to the egg mix beating until smooth.
Gently heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan until the butter has melted. Gradually add to the batter and mix until just combined.
Pour into the greased loaf tin and bake for around 30 - 40 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Turn out onto a wire rack and allow to cool.
For the compote:
150g frozen blueberries
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp finely grated lemon rind
1 tsp lemon juice
Add all ingredients to a saucepan and cook for 10 minutes stirring until a syrupy consistency is achieved. Allow to cool.
I'd love to hear if you tried this recipe so leave me a comment and let me know what you thought of it.
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