Hummingbird Cake

Anyone that knows me will know I love to make this Hummingbird cake and jazz up the toppings !! Both this cake and the Lumber jack cake are from Annabel Langbeins Essential Book Volume 2 and are on the same page !! page 117, 2 of the best cakes around in my opinion. I have added the bits of topping to this recipe as it does create quite the cake but toasted coconut flakes and toasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds  around the perimeter  of the cake on top of the icing also work well

Ingredients

  • 3 eggs
  • 1/1/2 cups caster sugar
  • 1 cup neutral oil
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 227g can crushed pineapple, well drained
  • 2 small ripe bananas mashed about 3/4 cup
  • 1 cup thread coconut
  • 2 cups self rasing flour
  • 2 tsp mixed spice
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda

 

Cream Cheese Icing

  • 45g butter at room temperature
  • finely grated zest of one lemon
  • 4 cups icing sugar
  • 1 cup cream cheese not low fat
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice

 

Toffee Shards

  • 1/3 cup Caster sugar

 

Caramelised Cornflakes

  • 2. cups cornflakes
  • 30 g butter
  • 1/3 cup caster sugar
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp Icing sugar

 

Honeyed Pumpkin and Sunflower seeds

  • 2 tablespoons both Pumpkin and Sunflower seeds
  • 1 tsp neutral oil
  • 1 tsp Honey

 

 

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180ºC Grease an line 23cm 9″ springform cake tin with baking paper
  2. In a large bowl or mixer whisk the eggs , sugar and oil and vanilla
  3. Add the drained pineapple and banana and coconut and mix to combine
  4. Fold in rest of ingredients until just combined
  5. Transfer into prepared tins and bake until the top bounces back when slightly pressed and skewer comes out clean  about 50 to 55 minutes
  6. Leave to cool in the tin  for about 15 minutes
  7. Once the cake is cooled spread over icing

 

Cream Cheese Icing

  1. Combine all ingredients either in mixer or food processor until smooth
  2. If mixture appears very soft place in the fridge to firm up abit
  3. Spread over the cake you can also slice through the cake to create a layer  cake  and spread the icing over

 

Toffee Shards

  1. Grease and line baking paper in a tin
  2. Put the sugar in a large saucepan
  3. Shake the pan so the sugar spreads over the bottom evenly
  4. Place over medium to high heat and leave without stirring ,you can swirl the pan around  even now and then
  5. As soon as it has all melted and caramelised , carefully pour and spread out in the tin to a thin layer
  6. Refrigerate to set but it does set very quickly
  7. Once set, break into shards  or store in baking paper in  an airtight container
  8. Place pieces of the shards into the cake so they stick up at random angles

 

Caramelised Cornflakes

  1. Grease and line a tin with baking paper
  2. Put the cornflakes into a bowl and set aside
  3. Heat the butter , sugar and honey and salt in a small saucepan and over medium heat, whisking constantly until the butter has melted
  4. Bring to the boil and gently boil for 2 to 3 minutes  or until golden and caramelised
  5. Immediately remove from the heat and pour over the corn flakes tossing to coat quickly
  6. Spoon into prepared tin
  7. Once it has cooled break top into pieces by placing it into a snap lock bag and using a rolling pin to bash it into small pieces , Add the icing sugar to coat
  8. Store air airtight container
  9. Sprinkle around the perimeter of the cake on top of the icing and if layering around the middle of the layer

 

Honeyed Pumpkin and Sunflower seeds

  1. Heat the oil and honey in a fry pan until it is bubbling add the seeds and stir for 2 mins until golden and crisp
  2. Place on a lined and greased baking paper
  3. Once set, break up and spread around the cake on top of the icing next to the cornflakes

 

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