afternoon tea – Bakerholics Anonymous

This cake is perfect for the strawberry lover in your life and just so happens to be dairy free! I made this after a very successful haul strawberry picking at Beerenberg Farms just out of Adelaide as we were up to our eyeballs in fresh strawberries.

If you don’t need the cake to be dairy free, substitute the dairy-free yoghurt for a Greek-style yoghurt with a drop of vanilla extract and the dairy-free butter for unsalted butter.

Ingredients (serves 8)
250g fresh strawberries, hulled and cut into quarters
225g dairy-free yoghurt (I used Chobani vanilla oat yoghurt)
3 eggs
100ml canola oil
250g caster sugar
180g plain flour
1½ teaspoon baking powder

Strawberry Icing
50g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
40g dairy-free butter, room temperature
1-1½ cups icing sugar

250g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved, to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 160ºC fan-forced. Line a 30 x 10cm loaf tin with baking paper.

Whisk the yoghurt, eggs and oil in a large bowl until combined. In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar, flour and baking powder together. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the yoghurt mix until just combined.

Spread half of the cake batter over the base of the lined tin. Fold the strawberries into the remaining batter, then spread on top (this prevents all of the berries sinking to the bottom).

Bake the cake for 55-65 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Set aside to cool in the tin for 15min before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the icing, blend strawberries with a stick blender until puréed. Add softened butter to a large mixing bowl and use an electric beater to beat until fluffy (about 1 minute). Add strawberry purée and beat until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula as needed. Add icing sugar ¼ cup at a time and beat after each addition until the icing is thick yet spreadable.

Once the cake is completely cool, spread the icing over the top of the cake with a spatula and top with halved strawberries. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from ‘Strawberry yoghurt cake with whipped yoghurt’ in First, Cream the Butter and Sugar by Emelia Jackson.

This slice always reminds me of my wonderful grandparents. Whenever I stayed with Grandma and Grandpa as a kid, in between playing shop in their walk-in pantry, dress-ups, cuddles and “helping” in the garden or kitchen, this slice made an appearance and never lasted long! I’m very lucky to still catch up with them regularly and can confirm that a piece (or two) of this slice is as delicious as I remember.

Ingredients (makes 48 pieces)
1 cup dates, chopped
½ cup uncrystallised ginger, chopped finely
½ cup white sugar
115g butter, cubed
6 Weetbix, crushed (approx. 2 cups)
225g dark chocolate

Method
Line a 28cm x 18cm slice tin with baking paper.

Cook dates, ginger, sugar and butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat until the butter is melted and the dates are soft. Stir in Weetbix and ensure the mixture is well combined.

Press firmly into lined slice tin and refrigerate 30mins or until set.

Melt the chocolate. Spread a thin layer of chocolate over the top and leave to set at room temperature.

Cut into approximately 48 pieces. Enjoy!