With all the beautiful blossom on the trees recently I started to think about making an apple blossom cake. I searched for recipes but couldn’t find one that used actual apple blossom and then I discovered that it should only be eaten in moderation as it could be poisonous! With a lack of other flowers in the garden at the moment I decided to continue with my apple blossom theme, making a light sponge with apple and Calvados buttercream filling and decorating with sugarpaste blossom. It makes me feel spring is here even though it was too dull a day to take a decent picture!!!

I used a basic sponge recipe:

175g SoftenedButter

175g Caster Sugar

3 Large Eggs

175g Self Raising Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

I followed the usual method for making a sponge and then baked in two 7″ tins for 25 minutes until firm to the touch and golden brown.

I then made an apple puree using four Pink Lady apples, peeled cored and chopped. I put the chopped apple in a pan with a little water to cover the bottom of the pan and 1 tablespoon of caster sugar. I simmered gently until they were soft and then mashed them until resembling a puree.

I also made Calvados buttercream using 150g butter, 200g icing sugar and 2 tablespoons Calvados. Beating gently at first and continuing for about ten minutes until really soft and creamy.

When the cakes were cool I used the apple puree and some of the buttercream as a filling and placed the cakes one on top of the other. I then used the rest of the buttercream to cover the top and sides of the cake, smoothing well. The cake was then placed in the fridge for a few minutes so that the buttercream hardened a little.

I then rolled out enough sugarpaste to cover the cake and placed this over the top of the cake and down the sides. Finally I used blossom cutters in four sizes and three colours to make the decorations.

The sponge was deliciously light and the apple and Calvados buttercream had a gorgeous flavour – I would totally recommend trying this! The flavour combination would make lovely cupcakes too

Tea Time Treats

This month Lavender and Lovage  is hosting the Tea Time Treats event and the theme is Floral Flavours and Flowers. Although this bake isn’t floral flavoured it is decorated with flowers and is inspired by apple blossom so I’m entering it into the Tea Time Treats roundup. What Kate Baked and Lavender and Lovage run this monthly event and it’s really worth a look at all the lovely entries!