If you have brought Octobers edition of Good Food you are in for a treat as Edd Kimber has a fantastic section in there showcasing his heavenly cakes. You may remember Edd from last years Great British Bake Off, I was a total addict to the show last year and I am totally addicted again this year, everything stops on Tuesday nights for the show.

Last year my three favourites were Miranda, Ruth and of course Edd, well chosen favourites I would like to add as they ended up being the top three. This year my three favourites are Holly, Jo and Jason, I wonder if again this year I have managed to predict the top three, only time will tell.
 
Last weekend I made the gorgeous Red Velvet Cake, there are quite a few ingredients involved but Edd’s instruction’s are so clear and easy to follow that even if you are a novice baker you can’t help but get wonderful results.
 
Edd’s new book “The Boy Who Bakes” comes out this week and I can not wait to get my hands on a copy and get baking, but first I will be making the Raspberry Ripple Cake also in Good Food, but what we all want to be able to do is make macaroons as wonderfully as Edd, so when I am feeling brave I will be giving these little blighters ago, anyone that saw the show last night knows just how tricky they can be to make, so wish me luck.
 
Buon appetito
 
 
Sponge
225g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
350g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
3 tablespoons boiling water
1 tsp red gel food colouring
40g cocoa powder
250ml buttermilk
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
350g caster sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon white vinegar

Cream Cheese Frosting
250g unsalted butter, again at room temperature
500g icing sugar
400g full-fat cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 160c/ 140c fan/ gas 3.

Lightly grease 3 x 20cm round cake tins, line the bases with baking parchment, then grease these too. Dust with flour and tap out any excess. In a small bowl, mix together the boiling water, food colouring, cocoa powder and buttermilk until fully combined, and set aside.

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, until fully combined; mix in the vanilla extract. Turn the mixer to low and add a third of the flour mixture followed by half of the buttermilk mixture. Repeat, then add the final third of flour mixture. Stir in the vinegar.

Divide equally between the cake tins and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a cocktail stick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes before inverting onto wire racks to cool completely.

For the frosting:
Use an electric mixer to beat the butter until light and smooth, about 5 minutes. Slowly beat in the icing sugar until combined (I always put a clean tea towel over the bowl when doing this so that the icing dust doesn’t go everywhere), then increase the speed and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the cream cheese and the vanilla extract until just combined. Do not over-beat at this stage or it will be to thin. It was a really warm day when I made mine, so I put the frosting in the fridge for a little while before icing, just to make it a little firmer and easier to handle.

To assemble, put a layer of cake on a serving plate. Spread a layer of frosting onto the top of the cake and put the second cake layer on top, then repeat. Put the final layer of cake on top and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Sprinkle with a very light dusting of cocoa powder to finish.