Simple Cake Flour Recipe

A lot of recipes call for a cake flour, but naturally your local grocery store isn't always going to carry cake flour.  Why??  Because 80% of the people buy already made cake mixes.   All you add is eggs and oil.  Yet what about those people that love to actually cook from scratch and in your cook book it states "Cake flour".  If you are like me..the first thing you would do is head to the store. Again...like I mentioned.  There is no cake flour at the store.
I was frustrated. But I wanted to know what on earth is cake flour and is it possible to make a batch at home. I search through recipe books on creating an old fashion cake. The one thing I noticed in these old fashion recipes is cornstarch. 
Viola!!

Simple Cake Flour Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  1/4 cup cornstarch

Utensils

• Large Bowl
• Tablespoon measuring spoon
• 1-cup measuring cup

Part 1: Combination

1. Grab your ingredients and place them on a clean surface
2. To gently even out the starch and flour ration.  Place the 2-tbsp of cornstarch in the bottom of the 1-cup measuring cup.
3. Fill the rest cup of with the all-purpose flour.
4. Pour in the bowl or a container
5. Repeat the process until you make 2-cups of cake flour.

This simple cake flour recipe will always be a gem to have on hand when you come across that "Cake flour" in your recipe.  Have fun and happy baking

~Irenia Guajardo~

Hellz Writer's Tres Leches Cake

The name tres leche means three milk, because of the 3-different milks that are used to soak into the cake.
The one thing I have heard about the Tres Leches cake is that many people say the same thing. Some love it and some really don't think it's sweet enough.  Now that is where the challenge began.
To create a Tres Leches that everyone can appreciate. When I first created it...it made a 8" inch circle cake pan.  Just one and well that wasn't enough to feed everyone.  I went back and recreated this sweet recipe
Naturally when you make a cake via a package...you tend to loose a lot of the home cooked feel to it.  I think a lot of people get afraid of trying new things, even though they want to try new things




~Hellz Writer's Tres Leche Cake Recipe~


Ingredients
Cake

• 3 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup milk
• 6 large eggs
• 2/3 cups oil
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• Strawberries **Optional**

Creamy Sauce

• 12 oz. Evaporated milk
• 14 oz. Sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Whipped topping

• 1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp sugar

Utensils

• 2 ~9x13 pans **try to use baking pan that is slightly smaller than the other dish**
• Variety of measuring cups
• A large mixing bowl
• 4 ~Medium sized mixing bowls
• A whisk
• Hand held blender
• Cutting mat
• Can opener
• Knife

  

  Picture A

Directions

Part 1: Prep

1. Heat the oven to 325 degrees.  
2. Grab all your ingredients and utensils and place them on a clean surface
3. Pour the 12 oz. Evaporated milk, 14 oz. Sweetened Condensed Milk, and 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream in to a medium size mixing bowl.
4. Use the whisk and mix the milks together.  Don't over whisk.
5. Place the 3-milks mixture in the refrigerator to chill.
6. **Optional** Wash and dry strawberries.  

• Grab mat and knife. Thinly slice all but 5 of the biggest strawberries {{Set aside}}.
• Place them in a medium sized bowl.
• Grab 5 the left over strawberries and add thin slices to them, but not all the way to the top. This will allow you to fan the strawberry {{Picture A}}
• Place these 5 fanned strawberries into strawberry bowl.  Place in refrigerator

Part 2: Combination

1. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cinnamon into the large mixing bowl. Whisk it all together.
2. Combine the eggs, oil, and vanilla into the medium mixing bowl.  Whisk them till they are combined together.
3. Gently fold the egg mixture with the flour
4. Slowly add the milk into the flour

Part 3: Baking

1. Grab your 9x13 and lightly grease it
2. Pour the cake batter {{I preferred to use the smaller baking pan, because you will be soaking}}
3. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until your toothpick comes out clean
4. Allow your cake to cool at room temperature for about 20-minutes
5. Grab your second pan and flip your cake into it.  
6. Pierce cake with a fork 10 to 20 times
7. Pour 1/2 the 3-milk cream sauce on to the cake
8. Refrigerate for about 30-minutes.
9. Pull cake out and pour the other 1/2 of the 3-milk cream sauce on to the cake.
10. Refrigerate for another hour. Spooning the cream sauce on it during the hour

 Part 4: Whipped topping

1. Combine heavy whipping cream, sugar and vanilla into medium mixing bowl
2. Beat on high till you have peaks forming.
3. **Optional** add a thin layer of strawberries on top of the cake
4. Spoon whipped topping in a circular motion{{if you are using strawberries, this way it won't spill over}}.  All over top of cake
5. Refrigerate cake for 20-minutes
6. **Optional** add the fanned strawberries in each corner and one in the center

This cake was a lot of fun to make.  Especially when you hear those that don't like Tres Leches cake and seeing them go back for seconds. Now that is the greatest compliment to ever receive.
I always love a challenge and trying new things, especially the yummy batter....it was so good to lick up.


~Irenia Guajardo~