Ah, watermelon season – our favourite! Make this delicious layered watermelon cake for a fun-in-the-sun day (or a fresh brekkie) with all your friends and family.

SERVES 8–10 // COOKING TIME 40 min

INGREDIENTS
1 large watermelon
2 apples, cored and sliced, plus extra to serve
2 cups strawberries, sliced, plus extra to serve
4 kiwis, peeled and sliced, plus extra to serve
½ cup raspberries, plus extra to serve
½ cup blueberries, plus extra to serve
1 cup full cream yoghurt
3 mint sprigs

METHOD
1. Cut the rind from the melon and shape into a cylinder. Slice into layers. Reserve the offcuts.
2. Place one layer of melon on a serving platter and arrange the apple, strawberry and kiwi slices on top. Fill any gaps with raspberries and blueberries.
3. Continue layering in this way, finishing with a layer of watermelon. You can use skewers to hold it together.
4. Spoon the yoghurt on top of the watermelon and decorate with extra fruit and mint.

Recipe & styling: Chiara Turilli
Photography: Samantha Pinto // HMimages.co.za

Katlego Mlambo’s watermelon granita will make another adult dessert favourite at your shindig!

The post COOK THE COVER: Layered watermelon cake appeared first on MyKitchen.

Make all your sweet-tooth dreams come true this festive season with a decadent caramel chocolate Christmas cake! Top it with toasted nuts and star anise for an even more festive look.

SERVES 10 // COOKING TIME 4 hours 15 min, plus cooling time

INGREDIENTS
800 g mixed dried fruit
410 g jar fruit mincemeat
2 oranges
125 ml brandy
250 g butter, melted and cooled
200 g brown sugar
300 g cake flour
150 g self-raising flour
160 g blanched almonds
2½ tsp mixed spice
4 eggs, lightly whisked
2 tbsp apricot jam, warmed

METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 150°C. Grease a 22 cm cake tin with melted butter. Line the base and sides with baking paper.
2. Mix dried fruit, fruit mince, 1 tbsp orange zest and ½ cup orange juice in a pot. Cook on medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring often, until the fruit has softened.
3. Set aside for 30 minutes, then stir in the brandy. Add the butter and sugar.
4. Combine the flours, almonds and mixed spice. Stir into the fruit mixture. Mix in the eggs.
5. Spoon the cake batter into the prepared tin and smooth out the surface. Lightly drop the tin on to the counter to settle the batter.
6. Bake for 3 hours 15 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. If it begins to brown on top, cover loosely with foil and continue baking.
7. Brush the hot cake with the warm apricot jam.
8. Cover the cake with foil, wrap in a large tea towel and leave to cool overnight.

Recipe & styling: Amerae Vercueil
Photography: Andreas Eiselen // HMimages.co.za

The post Caramel chocolate Christmas cake appeared first on MyKitchen.

What would this time of year be without some dense fruit cake doing the rounds? Give yours a fresh spin with juicy granadilla.

MAKES 1 // COOKING TIME 1 hour 30 min, plus soaking time

INGREDIENTS
For the fruit cake
400 g mixed glacé cherries
50 g raisins
50 g mixed peel
100 ml granadilla pulp (6–8 granadillas)
Zest of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
300 g flour
100 g ground almonds
100 g walnuts or macadamias
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
220 g butter, softened
200 g sugar 
5 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp almond essence
3 tbsp milk
Brandy, to feed, optional
For the granadilla icing
250 g mascarpone
3 tbsp icing sugar
Pulp of 2 granadillas, plus to decorate
250 g white fondant
Edible glitter

METHOD
For the fruit cake
1. Soak cherries, raisins and the mixed peel in granadilla pulp for at least 8 hours (or overnight). Add the zest after soaking.
2. Preheat oven to 170°C. Grease and line a cake tin.
3. In a bowl, mix flour, ground almonds, walnuts or macadamias, baking powder and salt.
4. In another bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating between each addition. Add both essences.
5. Strain the soaked fruit, reserving the granadilla pulp. Add the fruit to the flour mixture, stirring to coat.
6. Add ½ the flour mixture to the butter mixture; add the granadilla pulp and milk; add the remaining flour mixture.
7. Spoon into the cake tin. Bake for 1 hour 15–20 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
8. If you like your fruit cake with brandy, you can spoon some over the sponge a few days before Christmas. Allow it to absorb fully before icing. If you are not using brandy, you can ice your cake immediately.
For the granadilla icing
1. Beat mascarpone, icing sugar and pulp.
2. Roll out fondant and cover the sides of the cake. Spread the mascarpone on top. Decorate the cake with glitter.

The post Last minute granadilla fruit cake appeared first on MyKitchen.

As a special gift to you, LUST’s patron chef (and baker extraordinaire), Jean-Pierre Smith is sharing his signature traditional fruitcake recipe! Make it once, and we promise it will make an annual appearance on your Christmas table. Your family and friends will love this brandy-loaded cake filled with both classic and luxurious ingredients.

INGREDIENTS
67g dates, pitted
67g prunes, pitted
34g orange preserve
84g red glazed cherries
210 ml water
167g sugar
92g butter
175g raisins
50g cranberries
67g sultanas
67g dried figs
67g currants
67g dried pears
5g bicarbonate of soda
80 ml brandy
25 ml of the brandy.
2 eggs
208g cake flour
2g mixed spice
1g cinnamon
1g nutmeg
1g ginger
5g baking powder
84g cashews, roughly chopped
23 ml orange liqueur

METHOD
1. Line the bottom and sides of a 16 cm round baking tin with baking paper. Then line the outside bottom and sides with 7 layers of newspaper to regulate the heat throughout the baking process so that the cake bakes evenly).
2. Roughly chop the dates, prunes, orange preserve and cherries, and set aside.
3. In a 5L stock pot over medium heat, combine the water, sugar, butter, raisins, cranberries, sultanas, figs and currants. Cover with the lid and allow to simmer for 2 minutes.
4. Add the chopped dates and dried pears, cover and allow to simmer for 6 minutes.
5. Add the chopped cherries, orange preserve and prunes, cover and allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Switch off the heat and stir through the bicarb and 25 ml of the brandy. Allow to cool to room temperature.
7. Preheat oven to 170°C.
8. Once your mixture has reached room temperature, mix in the eggs.
9. Fold through the flour, mixed spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and baking powder.
10. Scoop the mixture into your prepared baking tin and level out the cake mixture on top with a wet spoon. Make a little well in the middle so that your cake rises evenly.
11. Loosely cover in foil so that it resembles a little cap.
12. Bake on the middle shelf for 20 minutes.
13. Lower your oven temperature to 140°C and bake for a further 2½ hours.
14. Remove the foil cap and bake for further 20 minutes.
15. Check that your cake is cooked through by inserting a skewer. If it isn’t, bake for an additional 5 minutes.
16. Combine the remaining brandy and orange liqueur.
17. Keeping the cake in its tin, place it on a wire rack and pour over the brandy and orange mixture.
18. Let the cake cool completely before turning it out of the tin and letting it rest upside-down for an hour.
19. Pop it into an air-tight container and store it in a cool, dry place. Dose it twice a week with more brandy and orange liqueur until you serve it on Christmas, by which time, in the words of chef Jean-Pierre, ‘it should be as drunk as Santa’.

And if you aren’t feeling up to the task, you can place your order now for your own 1.5 kg round naked cake, each one meticulously ripened for a minimum of eight weeks with a regular dousing of premium brandy for only R260! Limited goodness available so be sure to get there first if you aren’t making your own.

The post LUST Bistro’s Festive Fruitcake appeared first on MyKitchen.