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a christening cake

15 August 2012 by Dominic Franks

… lincolnshire bloggers are a rare breed… there’s Gary up to the north of the county and Em over to the west but like the proverbial london buses there are four in a very tight cluster just south of Louth… if you like to read about adventures in the kitchen there’s me, of course… who could forget?… if beauty with words is your thing then The Viking may be the one… if you like something left-field… and I’m talking WAY over to the left… there’s The Owl Wood… and then in a comfy corner of a sleepy village there’s the rather wonderful and fiercely scone-competitive Elaine from The Pear Tree Log…

… Elaine celebrated the christening of her grand-daughter Francesca Esme Clarkson in style on Sunday with a garden party… it was like something out of a thoroughly old-fashioned British novel set sometime between the wars… the weather was fine, the lawn was green, an old-fashioned gramophone played scratchy records and the food was sublime with a hunk of ham, freshly baked bread, wedges of Lincolnshire Poacher and lashings of scones and strawberry jam … and of course I wanted to contribute in my own special way…

blackcurrant ripple christening cake

whilst I realise that ‘pink for girls’ is not particularly politically correct I really couldn’t help myself… the food colouring was calling to me and I had a splash of inspiration about the rippled icing from Great British Bake Off hero Edd Kimber’s brilliant The Boy Who Bakes cook book… he recreates the raspberry ripple with a fresh cream icing but I only had a block of butter and blackcurrant jam in the fridge and so the blackcurrant ripple cake was born…
for the sponge
i created a classic victoria sponge with the ‘weigh the eggs’ method but added a dash of food colouring in the final whisk… as you can see I decided to trim the edges of the cooked cake as they came out a dark pink colour that wasn’t particularly inspiring… the recipe for my victoria sponge can be found here
for the butter cream ripple icing
200g butter – room temperature
250g icing sugar
a little milk
2 tablespoons blackcurrant jam
– whisk the butter into a frenzy then gradually add the icing sugar till you have a nice, thick consistency
– add one tablespoon of blackcurrant jam and whisk in
– add a little milk in needed to make the consistency spreadable and use half to sandwich the cake and with the other half, spread on top in a circular motion and then take the remaining jam and, using a knife, swirl it in to create the ripple effect
eat and of course, enjoy!

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Filed Under: Everything else Tagged With: butter cream icing, christening cake, victoria sponge

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Comments

  1. little macaroon. says

    15 August 2012 at 8:18 am

    Perfect garden party fodder!

  2. Victoria says

    15 August 2012 at 8:23 am

    this is gorgeous

  3. From Beyond My Kitchen Window says

    15 August 2012 at 9:11 am

    What a perfect Christening cake. After having made your Victoria sponge I can say without doubt that the Christening cake was delicious. I'm all for pink when it comes to cakes for girls.

  4. Gary says

    15 August 2012 at 9:12 am

    Thanks for the mention Dom. I don't think i've seen a pinker cake, looks delicious

  5. Elaine says

    15 August 2012 at 9:17 am

    The pink cake was perfect. Thanks, Dom. Garden parties are such fun on those rare days when our weather permits, we were lucky. A garden and good food are nothing without good friends.xx

    PS My new oven arrived half an hour ago, it is just being checked out and then I shall have a baking session…scones, Victoria Sponge, biscuits, bread…see you at the village show, on Saturday. πŸ˜‰

  6. Kavey says

    15 August 2012 at 9:23 am

    I'm not a pink person but that's just beautiful!

  7. Marmaduke Scarlet says

    15 August 2012 at 10:19 am

    This is an absolute beauty (but then I am a very pink person!) BTW, I watched GBBO last night and was really disappointed that you weren't there!!!

  8. Jo says

    15 August 2012 at 10:26 am

    Love it Dom, can't wait to make this, I'm really craving a slice right now! Good work! xxx

  9. the gannet says

    15 August 2012 at 11:11 am

    Absolutely beautiful. LOVE.

  10. Susan Lindquist says

    15 August 2012 at 11:41 am

    Oh! Another beautiful cake! And you KNOW howI am when it comes to lovely cakes! What a picture you paint of that sweet christening party … did you get a chance to snuggle with the guest of honor?

  11. bellini says

    15 August 2012 at 11:49 am

    This is an inspiring dish Dom. Slowly but surely I have discovered 4 local area bloggers, some are writers and some are passionate about food.

  12. Jenn says

    15 August 2012 at 12:37 pm

    I love garden parties! They always do remind me of such a simpler time! Too bad we don't' get too many of those here in the desert πŸ™‚
    The cake looks absolutely stunning! I bet it tasted even better than it looks!

  13. Laura loves cakes says

    15 August 2012 at 1:48 pm

    There's nowt wrong with pink for a girl! This cake looks gorgeous and I love the look of the blackcurrant ripple!

  14. Katy Salter @ Pinch of Salt says

    15 August 2012 at 2:02 pm

    Gosh that's a beautiful cake – love the different shades of the ripple icing.

  15. Susie @ Fold in the Flour says

    15 August 2012 at 4:02 pm

    Oh Dom, this does look great and I partocularly love the ripple effect of the jam swirled through the buttercream! Lovely and scrummy! πŸ™‚

  16. Sue/the view from great island says

    15 August 2012 at 4:22 pm

    That's delightful! The color of that jam-swirled frosting is fantastic!

  17. Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes says

    15 August 2012 at 6:13 pm

    I love that you made a pink cake for little Francesca's christening! It looks delicious, and I love the way you swirled it! Beautiful!

  18. The KitchenMaid says

    15 August 2012 at 6:30 pm

    That is adorable. I'm still green with envy over Elaine's pics of YOUR garden, I can't bear the thought of a party at hers. Our garden is more suited to a party of jungle explorers…

  19. Phil in the Kitchen says

    15 August 2012 at 10:22 pm

    Wow, that colour isn't hiding its light under anything. A great cake for a summer on the lawn.

  20. Magnolia Verandah says

    16 August 2012 at 7:21 am

    Wow that is Pink! Mind you I love a bit of pink! What other colour for a girlie christening on a summer afternoon, I don't care for politically correctness, especially when you can dish something like this up, who would dare complain? Fresh cream raspberry ripple is probably exceptional but do like a man who is adaptable in the kitchen! Looks like butter and jam did the job. Love it – it could be a birthday card!

  21. Please Do Not Feed The Animals. says

    16 August 2012 at 7:47 am

    Oh that looks yummy.
    I love blackberries and we're just coming up to their season – yay.

  22. The Owl Wood says

    16 August 2012 at 10:29 am

    Left field indeed!

    I am currently working hard fetching coal and working the bellows to keep Elaine's (Pear Tree's) new Patent Steam Oven up to temperature. I feel like an orc, burning the woods of Middle Earth – and all in the name of scones!

    Have given Elaine – with some reluctance – my own secret recipe for scones. Tis a winner.

  23. Shu Han says

    16 August 2012 at 5:29 pm

    Look at those colours! Been trying to track down a spot where I can forage for some of this season's blackberries. Once I get my free hoard, I'm going to do this x

  24. Choclette says

    16 August 2012 at 6:40 pm

    It looks spectacular Dom, just love that ripple effect and the colour and I bet it tasted fantastic too. Garden party also sounds splendid and so lucky with the weather. I love a good garden party, the weather likes to thwart us though. Good luck with those scones!

  25. Baking Addict says

    16 August 2012 at 7:57 pm

    Stunning, absolutely stunning!! Love the colour as it's so vibrant and appealing. I tried this recipe once but I didnt quite manage the ripple effect – will have to try it again!

  26. Janice says

    16 August 2012 at 7:59 pm

    Looks divine, love the swirly thing XXX

  27. John Gray says

    16 August 2012 at 8:59 pm

    I have never seen a purple cake
    (never when sober anyhow!)

  28. Fabulicious Food says

    17 August 2012 at 6:52 am

    Gawwwwjous! What a beautiful cake and perfect for the perfect-sounding British garden party πŸ˜‰

  29. Emily (@amummytoo) says

    17 August 2012 at 8:50 am

    I love the swirly ripple effect on this – really eye catching (and thanks for the mention!)

  30. Karen S Booth says

    17 August 2012 at 10:58 am

    FABULOUS and FUN Dom – pretty in pink and I bet it tasted pretty divine too! Karen

  31. Chele says

    17 August 2012 at 6:13 pm

    So now you have me wanting to bust out my fave 'classic' novel (which is Little Women by the way!) and enjoy what sounds like a wonderful christening party. Such a lovely cake for the occasion too.

  32. Brownieville Girl says

    17 August 2012 at 9:35 pm

    The garden party sounds wonderful – so civilised.

    Perfect gift to bring along – so pretty.

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About Dom In The Kitchen

My name is Dominic, I am a cook, food writer and creative event producer. I write the food blog Dom In The Kitchen and also write a monthly recipe column for Lincolnshire Life Magazine and Good Taste Magazine. I also run creative event production company The Persuaders, producing global events for brands since 1997. I am based both in the small village of Belleau in Lincolnshire and the smaller village of London! Read More…

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