Zebra Cake

It’s time for another fun cyber-baking experience with my good friend Chelle!  As soon as I saw this cake, I knew I had to give it a try.  Such a cool looking cake but not requiring any special tools - wonderful!  All it takes to get this fun effect is some patience.  And while I was putting mine together, (because I had a lot of time to ponder) I started to wonder why I have incredible patience for cooking and baking, but almost no patience in any other area….  I’m still trying to figure that one out :-)  I had a lot of fun layering the batter to create the stripe effect, hence the many process pictures below.  I would say this cake is definitely more about the look than the taste.  It tastes pretty good, but not any better than just an average cake.  However, the look is well worth it.  I topped mine with Hershey’s perfectly chocolate frosting, which made it taste even better.

I wish I had watched this cake a little more closely while it was baking.  Even though I baked it only 38 minutes, I felt it was a little overdone and more brown than I would have liked.  It also puffed up a LOT during baking.  Not really an issue for me, but if you wanted to make this into a layer cake (which would look REALLY cool!) you would definitely need to level the tops.  I did think the cake tasted even better after a day in the refrigerator. Chelle seemed to have a pretty similar experience to mine, but you can about her zebra cake here.

Just a few stripes…

Looking more like a zebra…

All ready to go in the oven!

Zebra Cake

Ingredients:

4 large eggs

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk

1 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/8 tsp. almond extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

2 ½ tbsp. cocoa powder

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Line a 9-inch round cake pan with a circle of parchment paper.  Lightly grease the bottom and sides of the pan.

 

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs and sugar until mixture is light and creamy and the sugar has been mostly dissolved.  Stir in milk, vegetable oil, vanilla and almond extracts.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Pour into wet ingredients and whisk to combine.  Measure out just over two cups of vanilla batter and put it back into the medium bowl.  Sift cocoa powder over the bowl and whisk until fully incorporated. 

 

Put 3 tablespoons of vanilla batter into the center of the pan and let it spread slightly on its own.  Put 3 tablespoons of chocolate batter in the center of the vanilla.  It will push out the other and, as it sits for a moment, will also spread itself.  Alternating spoonfuls of the two batters, repeat the technique until all the batter has been used up.

 

Bake for 38-42 minutes, until the cake is light gold and a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. 

 

Let the cake cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, then turn out the cake and remove the parchment paper.  Reinvert onto a wire rack and let cool completely.  Frost if desired.

Source: Baking Bites

Strawberry Mirror Cake

The first time I ever heard of the group Daring Bakers was the month that they made this cake.  I remember looking through blog after blog with gorgeous pictures of this complicated cake and thinking I would never be able to make such a thing.  However, after a year of food blogging I have gained much more confidence in my culinary capabilities and felt it was time for me to give this cake a try.  My good friend Chelle and I decided to tackle this recipe together.  It was nice to have her support throughout this complex process.

Believe it or not (I couldn’t believe it myself), I made the entire cake without a single problem.  With so many steps and an elaborate assembly, I was just sure something would go wrong.  Especially after reading stories from several Daring Bakers who did have problems with this cake.  But it was a huge success and after a year of anticipation, this cake was everything I had hoped it would be.  It is a visually impressive, light and summery dessert.  The Bavarian cream is (obviously) the best part.  I was thrilled that there was quite a bit left after assembling the cake :-)  Ben and I both agreed that the flavor reminded us of melted strawberry ice cream  - yum!  I brought this to my family as a belated birthday cake for my dad and it was a hit all around.  My only regret is being unable to photograph the cut cake in my own house.  The lighting and dishes at my dad’s leave much to be desired.

Because of the many parts to this recipe, there is no very clear way to write it.  I have reformatted it in a way that I think makes the most sense to me.  I list the instructions for assembly first so that readers will know exactly when they will need each part of the recipe.  All in all I was thrilled with my result and I cannot wait to make this again.  I had a lot of fun making something so involved.  I may also try playing around with other flavors in the future, as there are many delicious possibilities!

Strawberry Mirror Cake

For the cake:

3 eggs

3 egg yolks

¾ cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 egg whites

1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

2 tbsp. sugar

2/3 cup cake flour, sifted

 

For the soaking syrup:

½ cup water

1/3 cup sugar

2 tbsp. kirsch or strawberry liqueur

 

For the strawberry Bavarian cream:

2 ½ tbsp. unflavored gelatin

1 ½ cups strained strawberry puree

5 egg yolks

2/3 cup sugar

1 ½ cups milk

1 tbsp. lemon juice

several drops of red food coloring

1 ¾ cups whipping cream

 

For the strawberry juice:

1 ½ pints strawberries (18 oz.)

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup water

 

For the strawberry mirror:

1 ½ cups strawberry juice

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 tbsp. kirsch

1 tbsp. water

1 tbsp. unflavored gelatin

a few drops of red food coloring

 

Directions:

To assemble the cake, brush the sides of a 10-inch springform pan lightly with flavorless salad oil or almond oil.  Cut out a cardboard circle that is the exact same size as the bottom side of the pan; cover cardboard in aluminum foil and fit into bottom of pan. 

 

Center one layer of cake in the bottom of the pan.  Brush the cake with some of the soaking syrup to just moisten the cake.  Immediately after preparing the Bavarian cream, pour about half of it over the first layer of cake in the pan.  Set the next layer of cake on top of the cream.  Brush with soaking syrup to just moisten as before.  Pour remaining Bavarian cream over the cake and smooth the top with a spatula.  Refrigerate until the cream sets (1 to 2 hours). 

 

After preparing the mirror mixture, pour a 1/16-inch layer over the top of the cake.  Refrigerate until set.

 

To serve, wrap a hot towel around the outside of the springform pan for a few minutes.  Run a small sharp knife tip around the edge of the strawberry mirror to separate it from the sides of the pan.  The mirror will tear when the sides are unlatched if it is stuck at any point.  Slowly unlatch the pan and slide it off the cake.  Slice cake in wedges and serve in upright slices. 

 

_______________________

 

To make the cake, preheat oven to 450°.  Butter and flour the sides of an 11×17-inch sheet pan (rimmed baking sheet).  Line the bottom of the pan with a sheet of parchment paper cut to fit exactly.

 

Beat eggs, egg yolks and ¾ cup sugar together in a medium bowl until thick and light.  Beat in the vanilla.  Set aside.  In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy.  Add the cream of tartar and beat until the whites begin to form soft peaks.  Add the 2 tablespoons of sugar and beat until the whites hold stiff glossy peaks (do not overbeat).  Sift the flour over the egg yolk mixture and fold in.  Stir in one fourth of the whites.  Then carefully fold in the remaining whites.

 

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.  Bake until light brown and springy to touch, 7-10 minutes.  Cool in pan 5 minutes.  Run a knife along the edge to loosen.  Cut out two 8 ¼-inch circles of cake.  Wrap the cake layers, separated with wax paper, and set aside.  (Cake may be frozen at this point.)

 

To make the soaking syrup, combine the water and sugar in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil to dissolve sugar.  Cool to room temperature; flavor with liqueur.  Set aside or refrigerate in an air-tight container until ready to use. 

 

To make the strawberry Bavarian cream, sprinkle the gelatin over the strawberry puree in a small bowl and set aside until spongy.  Combine the egg yolks and the sugar in a bowl and beat until light.  Bring the milk to a boil in a saucepan.  Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly.  Return this mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until your finger leaves a clear trail in the sauce when drawn across the back of a spoon.  Do not allow the mixture to boil!  Immediately remove from heat and stir in the gelatin mixture.  Pour into a stainless steel bowl placed over a bowl of ice water.  Stir in the lemon juice and a few drops of red food coloring.  Cool over ice water, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens to the consistency of softly whipped cream. 

 

While the gelatin mixture is cooling, whip the whipping cream until it holds soft peaks.  When the gelatin mixture resembles softly whipped cream, fold the whipped cream into the gelatin mixture.

 

To make the strawberry juice, wash and hull strawberries; coarsely chop.  Place strawberries in a saucepan; crush to start juices flowing.  Place over low heat; add sugar and water; simmer slowly for 10 minutes.  Pour juice and pulp into a fine-mesh sieve placed over a bowl.  Allow to drain for 15 minutes.  Do not press down on fruit.

 

To make the strawberry mirror, place lemon juice, water and kirsch in a small bowl.  Sprinkle gelatin over this mixture; set aside until spongy and soft.

 

Measure 1 ½ cups strawberry juice into a small saucepan and bring to a simmer.  Pour over gelatin mixture and stir to dissolve gelatin.  Tint to desired color with red food coloring.  Place bowl over a bowl of ice water and stir occasionally until the mixture is syrupy and just begins to thicken (do not let jell).  Remove from the ice water.  When the mixture is syrupy, pour a 1/16-inch layer over the top of the assembled cake.  Refrigerate until set.

Source: originally from Cakes and Pastries At the Academy by California Culinary Academy, 1993.  Adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody.

Reese’s Cup Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

This past weekend we attended a dinner party celebrating two of my good friends’ birthdays.  My friend Allie cooked a fabulous dinner and I provided dessert.  I remembered that her husband (and the birthday boy) loves the peanut butter and chocolate combination, so the moment I saw this cake I knew it would be perfect.  This was definitely a huge hit with everyone at the party!  I think this is actually the best chocolate cake I have ever made.  It was incredibly fluffy and moist.  And combined with the wonderful peanut butter frosting, it was to die for.  Definitely make this cake - but make sure you have tall glasses of milk to serve alongside, you will need them!

Reese’s Cup Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
Ingredients:
For the cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled (optional)

For decorating:
1 ½ - 2 batches peanut butter frosting
miniature Reese’s cups, halved and/or chopped

Directions:
For the cake, center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°.  Butter two 9×2” round cake pans, dust the insides with flour, tap out the excess and line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper.  Place the pans on a baking sheet.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy.  Add the sugar and beat for about 2 minutes, until thoroughly blended into the butter.  Add the eggs and yolks one at a time, beating for one minute after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Beat in the vanilla.  Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk; add the dry ingredients in 3 additions and the buttermilk in 2 (beginning and ending with the dry ingredients).  Mix each addition only until it is blended into the batter.  Scrape down the bowl and add the melted chocolate, if using, folding it in with a spatula.  Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans.

Bake for 26-30 minutes or until the cakes feel springy to the touch and start to pull away from the sides of the pans.  Transfer to wire racks to cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them and peel off the paper liners.  Invert and cool to room temperature right side up.

To assemble the cake, place one cake layer on a cardboard circle covered in foil.  Spread peanut butter frosting on top of the cake layer.  (If desired, sprinkle with chopped Reese’s cups.)  Place the second cake layer on top of the frosting.  Frost the top and outside of the cake with remaining peanut butter frosting.  Decorate with halved and chopped Reese’s cups as desired.

Source: inspiration from Smells Like Home, cake from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, frosting from Ina Garten

Banana Caramel Cake

Ever since I saw this delicious looking cake on Peabody’s blog, I knew I absolutely had to try it.  However, I have no way of obtaining any peanut butter dulce de leche so I put it off.  Also, I had to wait for the right occasion to make such a huge cake, as we would never be able to eat the whole thing ourselves and I could not stand for it to go bad.  Last night my brother and his girlfriend came over for dinner so I decided it was the perfect opportunity to give it a try.  I sent the majority of it home with him, since college boys eat anything and his roommates love when I make them food.  Since I couldn’t use the peanut butter dulce de leche I decided to forego the peanut butter altogether and went for just a banana-caramel combo.  I used cream cheese frosting rather than a buttercream because it sounded awesome to me - and oh, it was.  It really was.  It is safe to say this was enjoyed by all, and I made sure to save enough so that Ben and I could have it for a few more nights  

Banana Caramel Cake

Ingredients:

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened

8 oz. mascarpone cheese

1 ½ cups sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup mashed bananas

¼ cup buttermilk

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 ½ recipes cream cheese frosting

caramel sauce

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Grease and flour a 9×13” cake pan or spray with nonstick baking spray.

 

Cream together the butter, mascarpone and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.  Add vanilla extract and mix for another 30 seconds.  Add banana and buttermilk.  Mix together all dry ingredients.  Then add to the sugar mixture.  Mix until combined. 

 

Pour batter into prepared pan.  Bake for 30-35 minutes.  Cool in pan, then remove cake to wire rack to cool completely.

 

For assembly, cut the cake in half into two long, equal rectangles.  Place one half onto serving platter.  Cover the top of the layer with cream cheese frosting.  Top with 3-4 spoonfuls of caramel sauce and spread it over the top.  Place the remaining cake layer on top of the caramel sauce.  Frost the outside of the cake with the remaining cream cheese frosting.  Drizzle caramel sauce on top before serving.

Source: cake adapted from Culinary Concotions by Peabody, frosting from Confections of a Foodie Bride

Perfect Party Cake

Those who read food blogs have probably already seen this cake on hundreds of other blogs in the past few weeks, thanks to the most recent Daring Bakers challenge.  I have actually had my eye on this cake for quite some time.  While I do not (yet) own Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, it is the first book I grab each time I am browsing at Barnes & Noble and I peruse it, wishing it was part of my home collection.  Since the weather is finally turning a corner and spring is here, fresh berries are worth buying again.  When I saw Jamie’s version of the Perfect Party Cake I knew it was the perfect adaptation for me.  Her brilliant use of white chocolate whipped cream and fresh berries between the layers looked wonderful to me - and it really was!  I chose a simple Cool Whip frosting for the outside to complement the abundance of the fresh berries, as it seemed much more fitting than any buttercream. 

I was thrilled with the final product.  It was every bit as gorgeous and as tasty as I had hoped.  My good friend Allie is celebrating a birthday this week so I brought this as her birthday cake to her birthday dinner last night, and it was definitely a hit.  The famous “Benchiladas” were the main dish for our celebration, as they are a favorite of my friends as well :-)  Happy birthday, Allie!

Perfect Party Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake:

2 ¼ cups cake flour

1 tbsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 ¼ cups whole milk or buttermilk

4 large egg whites

1 ½ cups sugar

2 tsp. grated lemon zest

1 stick (8 tbsp.) unsalted butter, at room temperature

½ tsp. lemon extract (I omitted this)

 

For finishing:

2/3 cup mixed berry preserves

1 recipe white chocolate whipped cream

fresh berries

1 recipe Cool Whip frosting (I actually used closer to 12 oz. Cool Whip - this recipe is very adaptable)

 

Directions:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°.  Butter two 9-inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a round of buttered parchment paper.  Dust both pans with flour, shaking out the excess.  Set aside.

 

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and egg whites.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugar and lemon zest.  Mix them with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant.  Add the butter to the sugar mixture and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.  Beat in the lemon extract.

 

Add one third of the flour mixture, continuing to beat on medium speed.  Beat in half of the egg mixture, then half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated.  Add the rest of the milk and eggs, beating until the batter is homogenous, then add the last of the dry ingredients.  Finally give the batter a good 2-minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated.  Divide the batter between the two prepared cake pans and smooth tops with a rubber spatula.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cakes are well-risen and springy to the touch – a thin knife inserted in the centers should come out clean.

 

Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes.  Run a knife around the sides of the cakes, invert the cake pans to remove the cake, peel off the parchment paper, and invert once more so cakes are right side up on the cooling rack.  Cool to room temperature.

 

Using a sharp, serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, slice each layer horizontally in half.  Place one layer on a cardboard cake round or a cake plate, cut side up.  Spread one third of the preserves on top.  Cover the jam evenly with about 1/3 of the white chocolate whipped cream.  Top evenly with fresh berries.  Top with another cake layer, and again layer with jam, whipped cream and berries.  Repeat once more with a third cake layer.  Place the last layer of the cake cut side down on top of the cake.  Use the Cool Whip frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake.  Top with fresh berries.

 

Because of the whipped cream filling and Cool Whip frosting, this cake should be stored in the refrigerator.  Remove from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature at least 30 minutes before serving.

Source: adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan and Good Eats ‘n Sweet Treats

Happy 21st Birthday, Bro!

I can’t believe my younger brother turned 21 this week.  It terrifies me and makes me feel very old at the same time.  Thankfully I still have one brother under 20, but when he hits 21 I just don’t know what I’ll do!  Anyway, I wanted to make Davy (AKA “Bro”) a fun, 21st-themed cake.  I came up with tons of different ideas but finally settled on this one - a nice simple cake, festive, and no alcohol in the cake so the pregnant baker could still taste it :)  Plus, the mini liquor bottles doubled as his gift which was nice.  I was so happy with the way this turned out and Davy loved it. 

Here’s a pic of us when we were little (Davy is sitting on the lawn mower and the other cutie is our brother Steven):

And here’s a pic of both boys now at one of their favorite places, Wrigley Field (Steven is second from the left being weird, Davy is third from the left):

And now, on to the recipes.  The whole cake turned out really well and I liked it so much, I was honestly a little sad to give the whole thing away :)  I especially loved the frosting.  It was soooo delicious, and very easy to make.  I kind of want to make a cake again just to have some more of that frosting.  My only change was to sift the powdered sugar before adding to the frosting.  I always do this when making frosting or icing because it just turns out better.

Fluffy Yellow Layer Cake
Ingredients:
2 ½ cups cake flour, plus extra for dusting pans
1 ¼ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. table salt
1 ¾ cups sugar
10 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
6 large egg yolks plus 3 large egg whites, at room temperature  

Directions:
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350°.  Grease two 9-inch cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper.  Grease paper rounds, dust pans with flour, and knock out excess.  Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and 1 ½ cups sugar together in large bowl.  In 4-cup liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and yolks.  

In clean bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites at medium-high speed until foamy, about 30 seconds.  With machine running, gradually add remaining ¼ cup sugar; continue to beat until stiff peaks just form, 30 to 60 seconds (whites should hold peak but mixture should appear moist).  Transfer to bowl and set aside.  

Add flour mixture to now-empty mixing bowl fitted with whisk attachment.  With mixer running at low speed, gradually pour in butter mixture and mix until almost incorporated (a few streaks of dry flour will remain), about 15 seconds.  Stop mixer and scrape whisk and sides of bowl.  Return mixer to medium-low speed and beat until smooth and fully incorporated, 10 to 15 seconds.  

Using rubber spatula, stir 1/3 of whites into batter to lighten, then add remaining whites and gently fold into batter until no white streaks remain.  Divide batter evenly between prepared cake pans.  Lightly tap pans against counter 2 or 3 times to dislodge any large air bubbles.  

Bake until cake layers begin to pull away from sides of pans and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 20-22 minutes.  Cool cakes in pans on wire rack for 10 minutes.  Loosen cakes from sides of pan with small knife, then invert onto greased wire rack and peel off parchment.  Invert cakes again and cool completely on rack, about 1 ½ hours. 

Source: Cook’s Illustrated, April 2008 

Easy Vanilla Buttercream
Ingredients:
20 tbsp. (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. heavy cream  

Directions:
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat butter at medium-high speed until smooth, about 20 seconds.  Add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds.  Scrape down the bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined, about 15 seconds.  Scrape bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 10 seconds.  Then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.  

Source: The Way the Cookie Crumbles, originally from Cook’s Illustrated, April 2007

Eat to the Beat: “Georgia On My Mind” Peach Pound Cake

Hooray!  My first blogging event!  I have never felt very compelled to participate in a blogging event before, but when Elly created “Eat to the Beat”, I was inspired and knew I had to take part.  I love music, especially while I’m cooking - just ask my husband, I dance around like quite a fool in the kitchen :)  When I first heard of this challenge, my mind was flooded with tons of great ideas and it was difficult to choose just one.  (Hint, hint Elly - let’s do this again!)  I finally settled on “Georgia On My Mind” peach pound cake.  This song is attached to great memories of my best friend and I laying on my bed, belting out the lyrics to this song one summer….don’t ask, we were very weird kids.  Every time I hear it, it puts a smile on my face.  It also worked perfectly because I had this recipe for peach pound cake which I was dying to try.  I love peaches and I’m always excited to bake with them.

This cake turned out amazingly well.  The “crust” created on the outside by dusting the pan with sugar is a nice complement to the incredibly soft, moist cake inside.  The peach flavor comes out very well.  My only change next time may be to add more peaches (I don’t think you can ever have enough!)  This goes perfectly with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.

Peach Pound Cake
Ingredients:
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. butter
2 ½ cups sugar, divided
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 tsp. baking powder
2 cups fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and chopped
½ tsp. salt  

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.  Grease a 10-inch Bundt pan with 2 tbsp. of butter and dust with ¼ cup of sugar; set aside.  

Using an electric mixer, cream together remaining butter and sugar.  Continue beating and add eggs one at a time.  Once fully incorporated, gradually add 2 ¾ cups flour, baking powder, and salt to mixture, beating until fully incorporated. 

 

 

Dredge peaches with remaining ¼ cup flour and fold into batter.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Source: The Fresh Market

Chocolate Buttercream Cake

I love my Barefoot Contessa Cookbook.  It has absolutely stunning, beautiful pictures and lots of wonderful recipes that don’t disappoint.  From the moment I got it, I have been dying to try this cake, as it is featured on the back cover and makes me drool almost every time I look at it.  However, the future doctor in me has a hard time making any recipe with nearly 1.5 lbs of butter in it, so I waited and waited for the right opportunity.  January is full of birthdays in our immediate families, with my mother- and father-in-law’s birthdays within nearly a week of my own.  We went down to visit our families and celebrate birthdays, and I saw my chance.  Finally I had a reason to make and taste my dream cake, but I also was able to just leave it at someone else’s house and therefore not feel quite so guilty about the ingredients.  Problem solved.

The cake was just as good as I imagined it to be.  Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture of the inside with the pretty layers, but you can imagine.  I ended up probably only using 1/2-2/3 of the frosting because I just couldn’t bring myself to use it all, but it was delicious regardless.  This cake is wonderfully rich and chocolatey - I would recommend a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a glass of milk on the side.

Chocolate Buttercream Cake
Ingredients:
For the cake:
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cocoa powder
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¾ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
½ cup sour cream, at room temperature
1 tsp. espresso powder
2 tbsp. milk  

For the frosting:
10 oz. bittersweet chocolate
8 oz. semisweet chocolate
½ cup egg whites (3 extra-large eggs), at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
pinch of cream of tartar
½ tsp. salt
1 lb. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. espresso powder, dissolved in 1 tsp. water  

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°.  Butter two 8-inch round cake pans.  Line the bottoms with parchment paper, butter the paper, and dust the pans with flour, knocking out any excess.  In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.  

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars on high speed until light, approximately 5 minutes.  Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well.  Combine the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee.  On low speed, add the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture alternately in thirds, beginning with the buttermilk mixture and ending with the flour mixture.  Mix the batter only until blended.  

Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a spatula.  Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes on a rack, remove from the pans, and allow to finish cooling.  

To make the frosting, chop the chocolates and melt in a bowl over simmering water until smooth.  Allow to cool.  

Mix the egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk.  Heat the egg whites in the bowl over simmering water until they are warm to the touch, about 5 minutes.  Whisk on high speed for 5 minutes or until the meringue is cool and holds a stiff peak.  

Add the butter, 1 tbsp. at a time, while beating on medium speed.  Scrape down the bowl, add the chocolate, vanilla, and espresso and mix for 1 minute or until the chocolate is completely blended in.  If the buttercream seems very soft, allow it to cool and beat it again.  

To frost the cake, place one cake layer on a serving plate, flat side up.  Frost the top of that layer with buttercream.  Place the second layer on top, also flat side up and frost the top and sides. 

Source: adapted from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten, Clarkson Potter, 1999

Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake

School has been keeping me very busy and as a result, I am a bit behind on my blogging.  Hopefully I will be caught up soon.  I recently had my first real pregnancy craving - cake.  Cake is what I wanted, in almost any form.  Every recipe I looked at sounded amazing.  However, since I have been sick on and off, and very tired lately, I decided to opt for something low maintenance and do a pound cake.  We had poppy seed wedding cake so I have kind of a “thing” for poppy seeds, and that is why I decided to make this variation on a classic pound cake.   The result was absolutely delicious and the cake stayed moist for days after baking (I wrapped it well to prevent drying out). 

Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
12 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp. poppy seeds
2 eggs, at room temperature
½ cup sour cream, at room temperature  

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325°.  Lightly grease a loaf pan (preferably glass) and dust with flour, shaking to remove the excess.  

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt until blended.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, lemon juice and poppy seeds until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until just blended.  Sprinkle half of the flour mixture over the egg mixture and stir until both are just incorporated.  Stir in the sour cream, then sprinkle with the remaining flour mixture and stir until evenly distributed.  

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 70 minutes.  Keep an eye on the cake near the end of baking and cover loosely with foil if necessary to prevent over-browning.  Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. 

 

 

 

Run a knife around the inside of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack and lift off the pan.  Place the cake on one of its sides and continue cooling.  Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Source: Williams Sonoma

Chocolate Decadence

So any dessert that starts out with “1 lb. chocolate” has to be good, right? Right! Tonight my best friend Amanda and her husband Travis came over for dinner and I decided to give this dessert a shot. I think it is safe to say that everyone really enjoyed it. I was concerned before serving it that it wouldn’t be sweet enough, but the raspberry sauce is a perfect accompaniment to this not-so-sweet chocolate cake. I think the sauce was my favorite part of the whole thing, but that’s probably just because I love raspberries so much.

I used bittersweet chocolate for the cake, and opted not to use the raspberry liqueur in the sauce but otherwise I followed the recipe exactly. I did run my sauce through a mesh sieve to remove the seeds for a smoother and prettier result. Delicious!

Chocolate Decadence
Ingredients:
For the raspberry sauce:
2 ½ cups fresh or thawed frozen unsweetened raspberries
½ cup superfine sugar
¼ cup framboise or other raspberry-flavored liqueur

For the cake:
1 lb. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
10 Tbs. (1 ¼ stick) unsalted butter
4 eggs, at room temperature
1 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs. all-purpose flour
whipped cream, for serving

Directions:
To make the raspberry sauce, place the raspberries, sugar and framboise, if using, in a blender or in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Puree until smooth. If you prefer a seedless sauce, pass the puree through a sieve.

To make the cake, position a rack in the middle of an oven and preheat to 425ºF. Butter an 8 or 9-inch springform pan or a layer cake pan. Line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper or waxed paper cut to fit precisely. Butter the paper and dust with flour; tap out any excess.

Place the chocolate and butter in a large heatproof bowl or the top pan of a double boiler. Set over a pan of gently simmering water but not touching the water. Stir occasionally until melted and combined completely. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.

Place the eggs and sugar in a bowl. Using an electric mixer set on high speed, beat until light, fluffy and tripled in volume, 5 to 10 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and beat in the flour. Using a rubber spatula, fold one-third of the egg mixture into the chocolate to lighten it, then fold in the remaining egg mixture, taking care not to deflate the batter. Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake for exactly 15 minutes. Let cool completely to room temperature. Do not refrigerate or the cake will stick to the pan. Invert the cake onto a flat serving plate and peel off the paper.

Cut into small wedges and serve each wedge atop some of the raspberry sauce. Top with whipped cream. Makes one 8 or 9-inch cake.

Source: Williams Sonoma