Serves: One 8 inch cake
I was never really a baking/cooking kind of person till one day when I decided to make something for my father’s birthday! So my mother taught me how to bake a cake, my first cake, a simple vanilla cake. From that very day I fell in love with baking. I came a long way from my mother explaining to me why you couldn’t mix all the ingredients together and stir it at once to me explaining new types of desserts to my mother. This recipe is close to my heart and I would like to share it with you all. It is often said that if you can nail a vanilla cake you can nail any cake! It really forms a base for all other cakes and it helps you understand the different techniques there are to baking. This picture is the first vanilla cake I baked for my father’s birthday.
INGREDIENTS:
1. 2 cups flour
2. 3 tsp baking powder
3. ¼ tsp salt
4. 1/3 cup butter
5. 1 cup sugar
6. 1 tsp vanilla
7. 2-3 eggs
8. 2/3 cup milk
9. Assorted nuts (optional)
10. Gems for decoration (optional)
METHOD:
1. In a bowl mix the flour, baking soda and salt.
2. Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl till fluffy. Fold it into to the flour-soda-salt bowl.
3. Beat in vanilla and eggs. Add milk slowly and continuously stir the batter. One smooth, add in the nuts and combine well.
4. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees Celsius.
5. Bake for 35-40 minutes or till the skewer test turns out dry.
6. Decorate with gems or icing of your choice. (For different icings, check out my other recipes!)
TIPS: You can pour the batter into cupcake moulds and make delicious vanilla cupcakes with vanilla icing. This makes about 12 cupcakes.
Recipe by: Sukanya Saha