Luckily the weather is not too hot, high twenties rather than thirties, as taking part in a cooking competition with no kitchen, a portable oven and a request to produce something for 40 people, would have been a sweat too far. We knew that the local method for cakes involves a Japanese origin mix of cassava flour, sugar and baking powder - or floating powder as it is known. There is very little fat added, just some liquid and eggs. We did not feel confident to try it and stuck to the classic butter, sugar, wheat flour recipe. There was pleasure and relief when we found butter in the supermarket. But it blew the budget, being more than three times the cost of everything else in total. So that's why our methods won't work here except for fun and to win second prize!
The Vietnamese style decoration is perhaps not one you want to try at home but chilli flowers are just essential for proper presentation here.
Retro but good Pineapple Upside Down Cake
A good sweet pineapple prepared and sliced - you may not need all of it.
100g plain flour
100g castor sugar
100g flour
2 level tsps baking powder added to the flour
2 eggs
A little extra butter and sugar
8 in/20cm round or square tin
Oven at 175/ 5
Bake 30 mins or until risen, golden and a skewer comes out clean. Let it rest a few minutes and then turn out carefully onto a plate so your pineapple is the topping. Eat warm with cream or just as it is.
For true Vietnamese class, decorate the serving plate with green leaves, from something edible like mint, and two chilli flowers. You make these by scissoring small red chillis into strips, leaving the stem intact and then leaving them in cold water till they curl. If you just do it while the cake is cooking they open up enough but an hour or so will give you dramatic flowers.
The Vietnamese style decoration is perhaps not one you want to try at home but chilli flowers are just essential for proper presentation here.
Retro but good Pineapple Upside Down Cake
A good sweet pineapple prepared and sliced - you may not need all of it.
100g plain flour
100g castor sugar
100g flour
2 level tsps baking powder added to the flour
2 eggs
A little extra butter and sugar
8 in/20cm round or square tin
Oven at 175/ 5
- Butter the tin and sprinkle the bottom of the tin with sugar. If you use brown sugar for this it adds oomph.
- Put your pieces of pineapple as decoratively as you can on the bottom of the tin. Don't worry about filling in all the gaps. If you want to be really retro, add some glace cherries as decoration.
- Cream butter and sugar till light and pale in colour, using a mixer or hand held whisk or wooden spoon.
- Beat in eggs one at a time.
- Fold in the flour. If using a mixer or electric whisk, do this quickly on a slow speed.
- The mixture like all cake ones should be light and drop easily from your spoon. If it doesn't seem to have this 'dropping consistency', add a few drops of milk, about a dessertspoonful.
- Spread lightly and evenly over the fruit but don't worry about it being in all the corners as it will spread.
Bake 30 mins or until risen, golden and a skewer comes out clean. Let it rest a few minutes and then turn out carefully onto a plate so your pineapple is the topping. Eat warm with cream or just as it is.
For true Vietnamese class, decorate the serving plate with green leaves, from something edible like mint, and two chilli flowers. You make these by scissoring small red chillis into strips, leaving the stem intact and then leaving them in cold water till they curl. If you just do it while the cake is cooking they open up enough but an hour or so will give you dramatic flowers.
Comments