Battenberg Cake - No Eggs In the Cake

 I seem to have fallen into a pattern of neglecting this space and giving excuses for that. However, my husband and daughter do not agree and push me hard enough to post here once in a few months or so. They try hard to coax me to make an attempt to keep this going.
 My daughter, especially, goes that extra step to persuade me by sharing her cooking and baking. This is one such post that was 100% hers. She baked this cake a few days ago for their weekend snack and shared her photographs. They were so eye catching that I asked her to make a blog to be put up here.
 She said that when they moved to the new city and she was still getting her home in some order, she wanted to do something enough to break the boredom. While she was looking through recipes to bake, the Battenberg cake caught her fancy. Since they both like chocolate and the flavour of coffee, she alternated for the traditional bright colour layer with the brown checkers.
 Known by many names, like church or chapel window cake, chequerboard cake and domino cake, the Battenberg cake is said to have been named in honour of the marriage of Princess Victoria, grand daughter of Queen Victoria to prince Louis of Battenberg in 1884. However, there are some early examples of this that go by a variety of names. The Neapolitan roll, a similar cake contains more squares than four.
 The American version of the battenberg cake is the checkerboard cake that gets the name because while sliced it resembles the board of the game. a typical one alternates vanilla sponge and a chocolate cake and is covered with rich chocolate buttercream icing.
 My daughter made the cake as well as the marzipan without eggs. For the cake, she followed this recipe posted here sometime ago. she used the recipe for one cake but divided it in two half cakes to make the layers. She had used parchment to separate the cake batters and baked them in one cake tin. She said she was not able to take pictures of the process.
I found Traditional Battenberg in Mandi Mortimer's Blog very descriptive, with pictures of how to bake, layer and roll in the marzipan, the post is very helpful.

Battenberg Cake - No Eggs Recipe

The following is my daughter's mail that I have copied verbatim

This recipe is a twist on the traditional Battenberg cake, which is usually made with an almond white cake, and the pairing sponge is a pink one made with a couple of drops of red food color in the white cake batter. I didn't want to be using artificial food coloring, hence the dark chocolate cake. 

You can use any cake recipe you'd like - as long as you can get the size of the cakes right.

Ingredients: 

For the cakes:

All purpose flour - 200 grams.

Cocoa powder - 2 tablespoons. heaped

Sweetened condensed milk - 1 tin (13.6 oz)

Butter - 100 grams

Baking powder - 1 teaspoon

Baking soda - 1 teaspoon

Aerated soda - 150 ml (reserve an extra splash to slacken the chocolate batter if needed)

Almond extract - 1/2 teaspoon

For the marzipan:

Almond flour/meal - 2 cups

Granulated sugar - 1 cup

Icing sugar - 1 cup 

Splash of milk (approx. 1/8 cup) to bind

To assemble:

A jam of your preferred flavor 

Method: 

- To start, make the marzipan. Sift into a big bowl, the almond flour and icing sugar, to get rid of lumps. 

- Add the granulated sugar and mix well 

- Add the milk and knead till the dough comes together

(The marzipan may be quite sticky - if so, add a little more almond flour as you knead) 

- Store in an airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to use

Making the cakes: 

- Preheat the oven to 350F and grease an 8in square tin. Fold a long piece of parchment paper in half along its width, and form a pleat the same height as your tin, to partition your square tin into two equal rectangles. You will be able to bake both cakes side by side.

- In a big mixing bowl, beat together the condensed milk and the butter. 

- Add the almond extract 

- Sift together the flour, baking powder and the baking soda 

- Add the flour mixture and soda alternatively to the beaten butter and condensed milk, beating well after each addition 

- Separate the mixture into two equal parts - use a weighing scale to do this accurately, so that your cakes are even when baked 

- Fill one half of your prepared tin with the white cake mix 

- To the remaining half, fold in the cocoa powder. If your mixture feels a bit stiff, add a little splash of the remaining soda to slacken (you could also add a tbsp. or two of espresso instead, if you'd like - dissolve instant coffee in hot water and add it once it is cool)

- Fill the second half of your tin with the chocolate mixture 

- Bake the cakes for 45-50 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean 

- Cool the cake slightly in the tin, and transfer on to a wire rack to cool completely 

To assemble the Battenberg:

- Trim the cakes, and stack them one on top of the other. 

- Using a serrated knife, slice the cakes along their lengths into batons. Depending on the size of your tin, each cake can be sliced into 2 or 3 pieces 

- Line up the batons, alternating the colors to form a checkerboard, and stick them together with a slathering of the jam 

- To roll out the marzipan, sprinkle your work surface generously with icing sugar, and roll into an approximate rectangle. It needs to be wide enough to cover the length of the cake, and long enough to wrap completely around. 

- To ensure the outside of the marzipan is clean and free of icing sugar, once rolled, I flipped it over so the sugar dusted side is on the inside of the cake 

- Place the cake in the center, and slather on more jam, to help the marzipan to stick 

- Bring the marzipan up from both ends, to meet at the top of the cake, and join the ends. 

- Trim off any overhangs, and flip the cake so that the seam is at the bottom. 

- And you have a beautiful checkered cake with a mildly sweet marzipan icing.

- The cake is best stored in the fridge, and will keep well for about a week in an airtight container.

Enjoy the cake with your favourite cup of tea.

Tender Ridge Gourd Salad with Nuts

I complain time and again that I do not find here, in Togo, most vegetables I might walk into my green grocer and pick up back home. The variety is so small that I might repeat the same fare week after the other. Though the variety is limited, I find most of the vegetables year around and that I am happy for. Many times the available vegetables are not quite fresh, but when you do get some fresh and tender, I will grab those, only to stock up inside the refrigerator. The vendors have standard prices and they would refuse to sell just the quantity I offer to take. I have no choice but buy a whole bunch. That said, I have learnt to freeze certain  vegetables and use when I choose to.
On my last visit though, i found very tender ridge gourd on a rare occasion and took them home. As I was trying to check them for the bitterness, which might be common with these gourds, they tasted so fresh, tender and almost sweet. I might be wasting the tenderness by cooking, I thought. Also in my supply I had cherry tomatoes and somewhat sour green grapes. Thus, the idea of this salad came up. Toss in a handful of favourite nuts and a colourful salad with crunch of nuts is ready to be consumed.

There is no specific recipe to share. It is upto one's own choice of vegetables to go in and nuts to add to. Nonetheless, I might share a basic recipe which anyone may build on.

Tender Ridge Gourd Salad with Nuts 
Serves two people 

Ingredients:
2 very tender ridge gourds
8-10 cherry tomatoes
10 slightly sour green grapes
A fistful of mixed toasted nuts
Chilli flakes just a little to add heat

Method:
Cut the ridge gourd in small size cubes.
Halve the cherry tomatoes.
Halve the green grapes and remove the seeds. I had grapes with thick skin and thus peeled it also.
In a salad plate arrange all the above and toss in the nuts. Mix in the chilli flakes.
I had sour grapes so it balanced the heat. If necessary squeeze the juice of limes as desired.

Serve freshly put together salad.
The No Croutons Required Event is jointly hosted by Lisa and Jacqueline. This month's event is being held at Lisa's Kitchen. This salad is being sent to the same.

Sprouts and Vegetable Salad with Nuts

Over the past week I have been making one pot meals for lunch and salads to go with. Salads are often included in my menu though my husband is not particularly interested. I am wary of the leaves though. I have not taken to the raw taste of lettuce and such, so I opt to exclude them. On a visit to the market, I picked up a small pack of cherry tomatoes, green grapes and tender ginger. Most times I snack on sprouts for my mid morning snack, thus, I have on hand one thing or another.
This is a simple salad with no fancy dressing but loaded with nutrition. A simple lime juice and ground ginger was all I needed to take the taste one notch higher.

Sprouts and Vegetable Salad with Nuts
Serves two people
Ingredients:

1/2 cup sprouted green gram
12-15 cherry tomatoes
20 green grapes
1 carrot
A table spoon each of walnuts, goji berries, slivered almonds and pistachios
Salt
1&1/2 teaspoon lime juice
1 teaspoon ginger paste

Method:
Slice the carrot as desired, cut into two the cherry tomatoes and green grapes.
If the grapes are seedless variety use them as is, otherwise remove the seeds.
Toss the sprouts, above vegetables and all the nuts in a serving bowl.
Add salt, ground ginger and the lime juice.
A quick salad is ready to be served
.