Chocolate Sponge Cake

The weather is changing and the last of the tomato crops, chilli's  and apples have been brought in.  The tomato's have been blanched, skinned and placed in a container and placed in the freezer.  The chilli's frozen flat on an open tray, in the chest freezer and they will be left for a couple of days before being placed into small freezer bags.  And the last of the apples stewed and will be used for a sweet.

Knitting

To continue with the Christmas present making, the Fondant Fancies and the Swiss Roll slices have been made and I thought some Chocolate Sponge Cakes would be nice to do.

Taking milk chocolate coloured double knit wool, 10 stitches were cast on to 4mm knitting needles.  41 rows were garter stitched and then cast off.

The cast on and cast off edges were over sewn together and fastened off. Stitches were picked up, using a wool needle and milk chocolate double knit wool, at one of the row ends, pulled up tightly and fasten off. The chocolate sponge was turned the right side out.  A 4.5cm diameter circle of cardboard was pushed inside the knitted piece, so that the centre of the circle is at the centre of the gathered row ends.  The second set of row ends were gathered using the wool needle and double knit milk chocolate wool.  The chocolate sponge is stuffed lightly, the ends pulled up and gathered tightly, then fastened off.

To make the cream 10 stitches were cast on and garter stitched for 4 rows. The wool was cut, leaving a tail and pulled through all ten stitches.  It was pulled tightly and fastened off.  This made a dome-shaped piece and then flattened in the palm.  Glue was spread inside and around the lower edge of the cream and then pressed in the position at the centre top of the sponge.

Have spent a little while making the paper patches to hold the material in shape for my retirement quilt.  The quality of some of the envelopes are not as thick as they used to be and I chose to shred them for the composter.