Chocolate Biscuit Cake

(Prince William’s Groom’s Cake)

April 29, 2011: The Royal Wedding Day of HRH Prince William of Wales and Catherine Middleton

Chocolate groom’s cakes are popular in the American South. Across the pond, in jolly old England, Prince William is reportedly having one, too! Alongside the traditional, elaborately-decorated British fruitcake as a wedding cake, the chocolate biscuit (cookie) cake is Prince William’s choice for a groom’s cake. It is a royally rich, crunchy chocolate confection, which is one of his childhood comfort foods as well as his grandmother’s (the Queen’s) favorite tea cake. Many royal wedding watchers and foodies are probably preparing this decadent dessert to celebrate the historic moment when the prince weds a commoner like the rest of us. Then we can get a tiny taste of the rich, royal life—as if we ourselves were attending the fairy tale wedding of the century—and have his cake and eat it, too! Congratulations to the happy couple from HI Cookery!

Recipe

(Adapted from Eating Royally by Darren McGrady)

For the chocolate biscuit cake

• 1 package rich tea biscuits (we used McVitie’s brand 200 grams)
• ½ teaspoon butter (to grease a 6 x 2 ½-inch round springform pan)
• ¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup sugar
• 4 ounces (4 squares) semi-sweet chocolate (we used Baker’s brand)
• 1 egg, beaten

Directions

Break the biscuits into ½ – 1 inch pieces but not into crumbs. Set aside. Butter a 6 x 2 ½ – inch springform pan. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter with the sugar.

In another bowl, microwave the chocolate until it is melted. Pour this into the butter and sugar mixture and stir until smooth. Mix in the beaten egg.

Fold in the biscuit pieces a little at a time until everything is well coated. Line the springform pan with greased parchment paper. Press into the pan until all spaces are filled and flattened. Refrigerate for at least three hours or until firm. On a foil-lined baking sheet with edges, unmold the cake onto a wire rack. Use a spatula to loosen the cake from the springform pan. Peel away the parchment paper. Brush off any crumbs before pouring the chocolate ganache topping over it.

For the chocolate ganache topping

• 4 ounces (4 squares) semi-sweet chocolate (we used Baker’s brand)
• ½ cup heavy whipping cream

Directions

Melt the chocolate. Stir in the cream until well combined. Pour the mixture over the cake and smooth it over the top and sides. Transfer to a cake plate or pedestal. Chill the cake to let the frosting set.

Let the remaining chocolate cool to thicken. Then whip to a firm consistency (it will be a slightly lighter shade of chocolate). Fill a pastry bag with a decorative tip (we used Wilton tip #2D) and pipe borders on the top and bottom edges of the cake. Refrigerate to set. Bring to room temperature before slicing and serving.

Top the cake with additional desired decorations, such as a monogram or bride and groom figures. We used white chocolate/vanilla candy wafers that were melted and cooled in an alphabet mold to make our monograms of the letters W and C for William and Catherine.

Notes

• Thanks always to our dear friend Lisa L. for sending some ingredients from Europe. Unfortunately, the McVitie’s rich tea biscuits that she and her husband John L. (a Welshman) had mailed more than three weeks ago did not arrive in time to make Prince William’s groom’s cake (fortunately, we found the cookies at an English tea shop in town). We also blame the post office for losing our invitations to the royal wedding!!!

Coronation Chicken

Tea Sandwiches

April 29, 2011: The Royal Wedding Day of HRH Prince William of Wales and Catherine Middleton

Take time for tea and watch the royal wedding today (it is inevitable as this historic event will be all over the news anyway until the media frenzy fades away). So sit back and relax, sip on a cup of tea and savor some sandwiches, such as this creamy, curry-flavored one called Coronation Chicken.

We learned how to make this sandwich and other tea time treats (scones, shortbread cookies, tarts, cupcakes, etc.) when we attended a demonstration class together for fun at Bama Pie Kitchen and Cooking School while living in Oklahoma. Since then, we would host a home-style High Tea with Highlander’s family (his father was born in Britain) whenever they visit us.

Make your menu majestic by including Coronation Chicken Tea Sandwiches for royal wedding watch parties, tea time and other special gatherings with family and friends.

Recipe

(Adapted from Bama Pie Kitchen and Cooking School)

• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt, light/lite or fat-free
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 2 teaspoons water
• ¼ – 1/3 cup mango chutney (we used Ohelo’s brand)
• slices of bread, white or wheat

Directions

Poach the chicken breasts by boiling them in a saucepan until cooked through. Cool then chop up or grate the chicken coarsely. In a large bowl, mix the chicken with sour cream or yogurt.

In a small cup, make a paste with the curry powder and water. Stir the curry into the chicken mixture. Add the mango chutney to taste.

Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight to allow the flavors to blend. Spread the mixture between slices of bread. Cut off the crusts (optional) and slice into triangles or rectangles.

Notes

• This version of Coronation Chicken Tea Sandwiches is lighter than its original recipe, which uses mayonnaise instead of sour cream or yogurt. It is also optional to add golden raisins and chopped, dried apricots to sweeten the sandwich.
• Thanks to Islander’s parents for sending Ohelo’s Mango Chutney from Hawaii (formerly named as the Sandwich Islands after the 4th Earl of Sandwich by Captain James Cook in the 1770s).

Royal Scones

April 29, 2011: The Royal Wedding Day of HRH Prince William of Wales and Catherine Middleton

The royal wedding is scheduled for 11 a.m. British time, which means it is even earlier in the morning to watch it on television or the Internet in most parts of America. While our friends in Europe may be having their lunches then, here we are having a basic breakfast of tea and scones. Highlander and Islander have had various scones before (search our blog for recipes), but the one we are featuring is Royal Scones from a royal chef’s cookbook to commemorate the historic day Wills marries Kate!

Recipe

(Adapted from Eating Royally by Darren McGrady)

Ingredients

• 3 ¼ cups self-rising flour
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 egg, beaten
• ¾ – 1 ¼ cup milk
• 1 cup raisins or currants

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and sugar. Cut in the butter and mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add the beaten egg in the center.

Pour in ¾ cup of milk. Mix until it becomes a sticky dough. If it is too dry, add a little more milk 1/8 cup at at time. Add the raisins or currants and combine well. Press the dough into a greased scone pan or shape by hand into a traditional triangle shape.

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, being careful not to burn or brown the edges too much. Remove from the oven. Transfer from the scone pan to a wire rack.

Notes

• If not using self-rising flour, use 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour mixed with 4 teaspoons baking powder.
• For a more muffin-looking scone, roll out the dough onto a floured surface to an inch thick. Use a 2-inch round cookie cutter or rim of a glass to cut out the scones. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet about an inch apart. Brush the tops with one beaten egg yolk. Bake as above.
• Serve the scones warm with butter, jams or clotted cream.
• We bought our mini scone pan from Williams-Sonoma.