Baking Cakes on a Budget

Fredula

I was a little disappointed with my marble cake. It was very greasy. Are they meant to be so greasy around the outside? I used a sillicone loaf tin but I did grease that with butter, would that be why?

Also, my recipe said to use plain flour and baking powder, and only the middle of the loaf had a rise. The rest was level, and it looked odd. Is this the type of tin I used or would it be due to the fact I didn't use SR flour?

skogar

Not much idea about the marble cake. Was the baking powder fully mixed in with the flour? I usually seive baking powder in with the flour.

I'm another tea loaf fan as it requires next to no effort. The recipe I use is almost identical to LV Sue's. No mixed spice in my usual version. I've got fruit in to soak at the moment so may try it with the spice.

It only needs 1 egg and there's no butter in it so the main expense is the fruit. I use sultanas or bags of mixed dried fruit from Lidl. Using Aldi's prices for everything except the fruit and sugar it works out at. I haven't counted the tea as I make a pot and drink the rest!

8oz SR flour 7p (45p for 1.5kg)
4oz Sugar 12p if granualted (approx £1 / kg), 40p if brown (89p for 500g)
8oz dried mixed fruit 45p (approx £1 / 500g)
1 egg 17p (6 large free range £1)

Version with white sugar works out at 81p. I think it will be a challenge to buy a cake as nice for that price. Even with the brown sugar it will be £1.09.

A nice cheap and very easy chocolate cake (sounds really strange but does work) is cockeyed cake which is a chocolate cake made without eggs. It uses cooking oil rather than butter / marg as the fat.
http://www.food.com/recipe/cockeyed-cake-62430

Its difficult to do an accurate pricing for this as its all cup measurements but as you can see most of the ingredients are cheap. Only the vanilla is expensive - you could probably miss this out if you haven't got any. It's a useful recipe as its the sort of thing you can make from store cupboard ingredients when you've got nothing in.

• 1 1/2 cups sifted flour
• 3 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup cold water

iris

"Moist" Lemon Cake
I costed the recipe and it was about 60p and cuts into 8-10 slices
Ingredients

100g margarine - 10p (£1 kilo in Farmfoods)
75g sugar - 5p (3 x 1 kilo £2 in Farmfoods)
2 eggs - 13p (15 for £1 Farmfoods)
175g self-raising flour 9p (45p in Aldi )
1 jar lemon curd(smartprice/value is fine ) - 22p
1 level teaspoon baking powder

Method

1. Pre heat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade (170 in fan oven). Grease a 2lb loaf tin (I line my loaf tin)
2. Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix together for about 5 minutes (I use an elec whisk)
3. Pour the cake mixture into the prepared tin level the top.
4. Bake for approximately 45 minutes until browned.

This cake gets moister the longer you leave it, if you can!!!

no.1swimmum

I haven't got the recipe to hand as I am at work, but an internet search will find a mincemeat cake recipe and there is still some cheap post christmas mincemeat bargains to be had and save buying different dried fruits, this also keeps lovely and moist. I have also added a mashed banana or chopped over ripe apple/pear to the mixture and the boys love it. I would also second a fruit cake where the fruit is soaked in tea it makes a moist cake.

Alison_Funnell

Made this recipe this afternoon. LOVE IT! I made it with cinnamon. Really delicious though it was a much thicker batter than I was expecting.

phizzimum wrote: »

It's the butter and eggs that can make baking expensive. For everyday family baking I like recipes that use sunflower oil instead of butter. It's also much quicker than beating in the butter! I also substitute a tablespoon of vinegar for one egg.

Adding grated veg makes cakes moist and a tad healthier. Carrots are cheap all year, but in the summer I make beetroot or courgette cake when the allotment is in full production.

This is my fave carrot cake recipe as it's so quick ( especially if you have a food processor to grate the carrots). It's a combo of several recipes I've picked up from the boards...

8oz self raising flour
1/2 tsp spice of choice (cinnamon or ginger or garam masala)
4oz sugar (Demerara is nice if you have it)
5oz grated carrot (no need to peel before you grate it, just wash)
1 egg
1 tablespoon ordinary vinegar
1/4 pint sunflower oil
2 tablespoon milk

Mix it all together and put in a lined cake tin. 180c for 40mins for a cake or make muffins and cook for less time - about 20 mins.

A lot of my friends love my cake - they have no idea it has vinegar and garam masala in it! If I told they'd prob think I was joking...

chrisfreelander54

LV_Sue wrote: »

This is my standby fruit loaf cake. A big hit with my family & friends.

Soak 8oz mixed dried fruit (or whatever is cheapest) in a mugful of hot tea (no milk or sugar!;)) overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Mix 8oz SR flour with half teaspoon mixed spice and 4oz sugar (soft brown is best, but granulated will do if you haven't got any). Pour in fruit & tea and 1 beaten egg and mix well. Mixture should easily gloop off spoon but if it seems too dry add a little milk. Put in loaf tin at Gas 4, 180*C/170*C fan for about an hour. Leave to cool in tin then store in airtight container/tin. A slice is lovely on it's own, but even better spread with butter .

Just come across your recipe and have decided to give it a whirl, just popped it in the oven, can't wait for it to come out.

donny-gal

No arguing HM is tastier, and you know what is in it, however, make sure you do enough baking or other cooking to fill your oven, just making one thing in an oven is not economical. DG

chrisfreelander54

donny-gal wrote: »

No arguing HM is tastier, and you know what is in it, however, make sure you do enough baking or other cooking to fill your oven, just making one thing in an oven is not economical. DG

Made good use of it today.

1 loaf
2 baguettes
2 pizzas
1 fruitcake

And all HM. :T

fed_up_and_stressed

chrisfreelander54 wrote: »

Made good use of it today.

1 loaf
2 baguettes
2 pizzas
1 fruitcake

And all HM. :T

Well done .... When I used to bake i'd go into my so called "baking frenzy" and produce enough cake to feed an army

pinkparrott

lizalloareds wrote: »

Do you melt the choc or just throw it in, how long do you bake it for and what temp?

I usually break up chic in to chunks and put in a pirex jug with the butter / marg then put it in oven to melt whilst oven's warming up (works fine and saves double pan method) better than putting in whole as if you melt it all cake looks chocolate rather than choc chip.
Def more moist / sticky if you add a mashed banana or two.
Usually bske on about 180 (gas) for 45 mins ( as I do mine in a 2lb loaf tin) or until a skewer comes out clean