Over the weekend we had another birthday in the family, and even twenty year old boys like a bit of fuss! When it comes to cake, we definitely have our favourites, and coffee cake is right at the top of the list. But it’s always nice to give things a bit of a tweak now and then, so what could be better than to combine two favourites? Coffee cake and coffee ice cream.
You could of course make your own ice cream if you want to be virtuous, but sometimes you need a little help. In the interest of time management, I picked up a tub of double cream mocha on my way round the supermarket – oh, and some of those mikado chocolate sticks to add a bit of glamour.
This sponge recipe is one that I use time and time again and it never lets me down. It’s great because it uses the cup method to measure, and light olive oil and natural yoghurt instead of butter which makes it nice and moist without being heavy. The basic ingredients stay the same and you can just use different flavourings like coffee, lemon zest or cocoa powder to change the cake.
It was quick and simple to assemble about an hour before I wanted to serve and I kept it in the freezer until the last minute when I added the final touches. The combination is perfect; cold, creamy and delicious.
- Using a standard 1 cup /250ml measure.
- 1 cup of natural yoghurt
- 1 cup of light olive oil
- 1 cup of sugar (this is a reduced amount, some people might prefer 2 cups)
- 3 cups of self raising flour well sifted
- 3 medium eggs
- 2 dessert spoons of strong espresso coffee powder mixed with a little hot water.
- 1 box of mikado sticks (a sprinkling of broken walnuts would be much healthier!)
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 4 / 180 c and line the cake tins with greaseproof paper.
- The thing I love about this cake recipe is that all you do is whisk the ingredients together in a large bowl.
- The mixture should be a soft gloopy, dropping consistency.
- Divide the mixture evenly between 3 x 8' sandwich tins for a 3 layer cake, or more generously just between two for two thicker layers.
- Bake in the middle of the oven until it is well risen and firm to touch, turning golden brown and coming away from the edges of the tin.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- When you are ready to assemble the cake, put it on a plate that you cake easily fit in you freezer. Allow the ice cream to soften a little before dividing it and spreading it between the layers. Return it to the freezer until just before you want to serve, and put the final touches of mikado sticks and birthday candles on at the last minute.
- Use a good knife to serve it, which can be warm in warm water just before, to make cutting easy.
- Return any leftovers to the freezer, cut it into slices and wrap individually in cling film, so that you don't have to defrost it all at the same time. Just allow each slice 10 -15 mins defrosting time for the sponge to soften.
Great cake and birthday celebration! Thanks for sharing at Inspire Me Monday at Create With Joy!
Look forward to seeing what’s inspired you this week! 🙂
This cake is fabulous! Hope you are having a wonderful day and thanks so much for sharing your awesome post with Full Plate Thursday!
Miz Helen
Such a great cake!
This looks so yummy! Thanks for joining us at the #HomeMattersParty and I hope you’ll link up with us again next week!
I love the coffee flavor in baked goods. This looks delicious! So glad you shared it with us at #FoodieFriDIY!
Coffee cake is the most requested in our house, I love this idea with the ice cream and I’m interested in the yoghurt and oil recipe, I’ll give this a try next time, see how it compares to our old favourite!
What a cute idea!!