June DB: Bakewell Tart

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.
Bakewell tarts…er…puddings combine a number of dessert elements but still let you show off your area’s seasonal fruits.
Like many regional dishes there’s no “one way” to make a Bakewell Tart…er…Pudding, but most of today’s versions fall within one of two types. The first is the “pudding” where a layer of jam is covered by an almondy pastry cream and baked in puff pastry. The second is the “tart” where a rich shortcrust pastry holds jam and an almondy sponge cake-like filling.
The version we’re daring you to make is a combination of the two: a sweet almond-flavoured shortcrust pastry, frangipane and jam.

I am very late in posting this, though it was completely before the month was up! I made mine in 4 inch mini-tart pans, and made two using strawberry jam and two with cherry. I found the strawberry ones to be too sweet but the cherry was great! I also prefered them cold as opposed to warm as recommended in the recipe.

Interesting and different dish but a bit sweet overall for my taste! I guess this American Girl just prefers good ol American pie :)

DB: Strudel - not one of my favorite things!!!!

The May Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of CoCo Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafe's of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.

Sadly, my camera is broken and the disposable one I used to capture my attempt... well, stunk. So no pics! The result for me was ok... it looked great and came together easily. I let my dough rest for a full 2 hours so it stretched out very thin, very easily. I made mine with yummy raspberry and rhubarb filling - the filling was great! But the strudel itself... ehhh. I just didnt think it tasted that great. The butter that was melted and spread everywhere didnt really come through with the buttery flavor I love in pastries, and there was no sweetness (even though I sprinkled mine with vanilla sugar!) It tasted sort of cardboard ish and I didnt love the texture of the bread crumbs at all :( Disappointing! I guess crisp (apple) strudel ISNT one of my favorite things, and I had high hopes!

Paste function isnt working in dumb blogger right now for some reason, so no recipe here!!!

DB: Cheesecake!

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

This was a great challenge! We were given a basic (fabulous) cheesecake recipe and then were free to get creative! And some of the DBers sure did get creative!!

My initial idea was to do something a little different using one of my favorite flavors... balsamic vinegar. I have a bottle of good quality thich sweet balsamic that I use exclusively for dessert (usually macerate strawberries.... over vanilla ice cream... yummm) so I hoped it would work in this! I reduced the balsamic so I could get more flavor out of it without messing with the consistency of the cheesecake, and I added chopped strawberries to the batter. I used vanilla wafer cookies instead of graham for the crust. They were GREAT! Different, but they worked!

Because I was not sure how that would turn out, I decided to make them in cupcake form and split the batter into thirds. I omitted the lemon juice from all three so I could play with more liquid flavoring

My other two flavors were:

espresso-vanilla (with vanilla crust). I made fresh espresso and reduced it for the same reason as above... this allowed it to haev a really nice strong coffee flavor!

Vanilla Mint-chocolate. I added mint extract and kept teh vanilla to the batter, and I made the crust with chocolate wafer cookies. I added broken chunks of ghiradelli 70% chocolate bar to the batter. This I think was my favorite! The taste and texture was reminiscent of a Peppermint Patty - only better ;)

These came together quickly and easily, and cooked much faster thanks to the smaller size (about 25 minutes). Also, cooking in a cupcake pan with liners meant that it was foolproof to use a water bath.

Thanks for a great April challenge!

Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake:
crust:

2 cups / 180 g graham cracker crumbs

1 stick / 4 oz butter, melted

2 tbsp. / 24 g sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract
cheesecake:

3 sticks of cream cheese, 8 oz each (total of 24 oz) room temperature

1 cup / 210 g sugar

3 large eggs

1 cup / 8 oz heavy cream

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tbsp. vanilla extract (or the innards of a vanilla bean)

1 tbsp liqueur, optional, but choose what will work well with your cheesecake
DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (Gas Mark 4 = 180C = Moderate heat). Begin to boil a large pot of water for the water bath.
2. Mix together the crust ingredients and press into your preferred pan. You can press the crust just into the bottom, or up the sides of the pan too - baker's choice. Set crust aside.
3. Combine cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand-mixer) and cream together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Make sure to scrape down the bowl in between each egg. Add heavy cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and alcohol and blend until smooth and creamy.
4. Pour batter into prepared crust and tap the pan on the counter a few times to bring all air bubbles to the surface. Place pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. If cheesecake pan is not airtight, cover bottom securely with foil before adding water.
5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes, until it is almost done - this can be hard to judge, but you're looking for the cake to hold together, but still have a lot of jiggle to it in the center. You don't want it to be completely firm at this stage. Close the oven door, turn the heat off, and let rest in the cooling oven for one hour. This lets the cake finish cooking and cool down gently enough so that it won't crack on the top. After one hour, remove cheesecake from oven and lift carefully out of water bath. Let it finish cooling on the counter, and then cover and put in the fridge to chill. Once fully chilled, it is ready to serve.
Pan note: The creator of this recipe used to use a springform pan, but no matter how well she wrapped the thing in tin foil, water would always seep in and make the crust soggy. Now she uses one of those 1-use foil "casserole" shaped pans from the grocery store. They're 8 or 9 inches wide and really deep, and best of all, water-tight. When it comes time to serve, just cut the foil away.
Prep notes: While the actual making of this cheesecake is a minimal time commitment, it does need to bake for almost an hour, cool in the oven for an hour, and chill overnight before it is served. Please plan accordingly!

Daring Bakers: Flourless Chocolate Cake and Ice Cream

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.

We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

Well, except that we could make whatever we wanted for the ice cream so I deviated. I made a fabulous really dark and deep salted caramel ice cream (link to David Liebowitz recipe here) and an espresso ice cream with frangelico (link to Ice Cream Ireland recipe here - made without the chocolate and with Frangelico in lieu of Kahlua). YUM.

I think both came out well (after my first attempt was a flop, it wouoldnt freeze up... and actually the caramel would not freeze up either until late in the game I added a cup of heavy cream, whipped.) I dont think I would bother with ice cream again unless/until I have an ice cream maker... it is labor intense without!

The cake was good...I used 70% chocolate (the brand from whole foods.... I forget...) but it came out a bit dry... I didnt overwhip my whites so Im not sure if it just needed less bake time? I was looking forward to the gooey truffle-y texture but it was just... dry. Sad.

Chocolate Valentino

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped

½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter

5 large eggs separated

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.

2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.

3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.

4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).

5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.

6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.

7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter.

8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C

9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C. Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet. (NOTE: I recommend a much shorter bake time)

10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold

Excuse the awful camera pic. I forgot my camera, plus it is broken anyhow.

Candy Cane Biscotti

I saw this recipe on Culinary in the Desert, and thought it looked great... and it was! The recipe called for dipping in white chocolate - I did dark as well, and next year I would do just the dark... because why use white chocolate when you can go dark??

Candy Cane Biscotti (Adapted from Land O Lakes)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2/3 cup finely crushed peppermint candy canes
14 ounces fine-quality white chocolate, melted
extra crushed candy canes to sprinkle on top

Preheat oven to 350
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined - stir in crushed candy.
Evenly divide dough into 4 pieces on a lightly floured surface. Shape each piece into 9" x 1 1/2" round log. Place logs 3 inches apart onto parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake until tops are cracked and ends just start to turn light brown, about 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce temperature to 325. Cool logs 10 minutes on cookie sheet.
Cut each log diagonally into 1/2" slices with sharp serrated knife. [Discard ends]

Arrange pieces standing up back onto the baking sheet.
Bake until cookies are light golden brown and crisp on both sides, about 12 to 15 minutes. The centers may still be a little soft, but will firm up as they cool.. Place onto cool rack and cool completely.
Dip half of each biscotti into melted chocolate - shake off excess. Immediately sprinkle with additional crushed candy canes and set on a parchment or wax paper lined baking sheet until the chocolate has set.

DB: French Buche de Noel

A few days late thanks to holiday travel and general busy-ness... I made this recipe as given for my sister's Christmas Eve birthday dessert. It was very yummy, less difficult than appearing, though time consuming.

This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux.They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.

My only issue, which I think others had as well, was that the creme brulee layer did not thaw enough for serving and had an icy taste - not bad but not ideal either. Overall, a decadent and impressive dessert! Much fancier looking than it really was difficult. My chocoholic mother was in heaven :)

Please visit http://saffronandblueberry.blogspot.com/2008/12/hosting-daring-bakers-december.html (one of our lovely hosts) for the complete recipe. I went with the dark chocolate mousse and ganache and frosting, hazelnut for the dacquoise, vanilla for the creme brulee and milk chocolate/hazelnut for the crisp (which I used rice crispies for the crunch).

Yum! Thanks and nice job to all the Daring Bakers!
PS excuse the ugly photos... my camera is kinda broken :(

DB: Caramel Cake!

So this month the challenge was to make a caramel cake, with caramel frosting (making our own caramel). As an option, we can also make caramel candies. I accepted both challenges... however before I got a chance to upload my photos... my camera disappeared! Along with it, photos of my sisters and I from Thanksgiving :( I really hope it turns up soon, and if / when it does I will put my cake and candy photos as well! In the meantime though, you will just have to take my word for it... I completed the challenge!

- Name of the Cookbook - Shuna Fish Lyndon's recipe - (http://blogs.kqed.org/bayareabites/2006 … he-recipe/)

- Name of the Author - Shuna Fish Lyndon

- Hosts for the month - Dolores the host (http://culinarycuriosity.blogspot.com/) with Co-hosts Alex (Brownie of the Blondie and Brownie duo: http://blondieandbrownie.blogspot.com/), Jenny of Foray into Food (http://forayintofood.blogspot.com/). And since none of us know jack about alternative baking, we’ve once again turned to Natalie of Gluten-a-Go-Go (http://glutenagogo.blogspot.com/) to assist us.

CARAMEL CAKE WITH CARAMELIZED BUTTER FROSTING

courtesy of Shuna Fish Lydon (http://eggbeater.typepad.com/), as published on Bay Area Bites (http://blogs.kqed.org/bayareabites/)

FOR THE CAKE:

10 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

1 1/4 Cups granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 Cup Caramel Syrup (see recipe below)

2 eggs, at room temperature

splash vanilla extract

2 Cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup milk, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 350F

Butter one tall (2 – 2.5 inch deep) 9-inch cake pan.In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth. Add sugar and salt, and cream the mixture until light and fluffy.

Slowly pour room temperature caramel syrup into bowl. Scrape down bowl and increase speed. Add eggs/vanilla extract a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down bowl again, beat mixture until light and uniform.

Sift flour and baking powder.

Turn mixer to lowest speed, and add one third of the dry ingredients. When incorporated, add half of the milk, a little at a time. Add another third of the dry ingredients, then the other half of the milk and finish with the dry ingredients. {This is called the dry, wet, dry, wet, dry method in cake making. It is often employed when there is a high proportion of liquid in the batter.}

Take off mixer and by hand, use a spatula to do a few last folds, making sure batter is uniform. Turn batter into prepared cake pan.

Place cake pan on cookie sheet or 1/2 sheet pan. Set first timer for 30 minutes, rotate pan and set timer for another 15-20 minutes. Your own oven will set the pace. Bake until sides pull away from the pan and skewer inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool cake completely before icing it.

Cake will keep for three days outside of the refrigerator.

FOR THE CARAMEL SYRUP:

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup water

1 cup water (for "stopping" the caramelization process)

In a small stainless steel saucepan, with tall sides, mix water and sugar until mixture feels like wet sand. Brush down any stray sugar crystals with wet pastry brush. Turn on heat to highest flame. Cook until smoking slightly: dark amber.

When color is achieved, very carefully pour in one cup of water. Caramel will jump and sputter about! It is very dangerous, so have long sleeves on and be prepared to step back.

Whisk over medium heat until it has reduced slightly and feels sticky between two fingers. {Obviously wait for it to cool on a spoon before touching it.}

Note: For safety reasons, have ready a bowl of ice water to plunge your hands into if any caramel should land on your skin.

FOR THE CARAMELIZED BUTTER FROSTING:

12 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 pound confectioner’s sugar, sifted

4-6 tablespoons heavy cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2-4 tablespoons caramel syrup

Kosher or sea salt to taste

Cook butter until brown. Pour through a fine meshed sieve into a heatproof bowl, set aside to cool.

Pour cooled brown butter into mixer bowl.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, add confectioner's sugar a little at a time. When mixture looks too chunky to take any more, add a bit of cream and or caramel syrup. Repeat until mixture looks smooth and all confectioner's sugar has been incorporated. Add salt to taste.

Note: Caramelized butter frosting will keep in fridge for up to a month. To smooth out from cold, microwave a bit, then mix with paddle attachment until smooth and light.

GOLDEN VANILLA BEAN CARAMELS

from Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich, Artisan Press, Copyright 2007, ISBN: 978-1579652111

Ingredients

1 cup golden syrup

2 cups sugar

3/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 teaspoons pure ground vanilla beans, purchased or ground in a coffee or spice grinders, or 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks, softened

Equipment

A 9-inch square baking pan

Candy thermometer

Procedure

Line the bottom and sides of the baking pan with aluminum foil and grease the foil. Combine the golden syrup, sugar, and salt in a heavy 3-quart saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon, until the mixture begins to simmer around the edges. Wash the sugar and syrup from the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water. Cover and cook for about 3 minutes. (Meanwhile, rinse the spatula or spoon before using it again later.) Uncover the pan and wash down the sides once more. Attach the candy thermometer to the pan, without letting it touch the bottom of the pan, and cook, uncovered (without stirring) until the mixture reaches 305°F. Meanwhile, combine the cream and ground vanilla beans (not the extract) in a small saucepan and heat until tiny bubbles form around the edges of the pan. Turn off the heat and cover the pan to keep the cream hot.

When the sugar mixture reaches 305°F, turn off the heat and stir in the butter chunks. Gradually stir in the hot cream; it will bubble up and steam dramatically, so be careful. Turn the burner back on and adjust it so that the mixture boils energetically but not violently. Stir until any thickened syrup at the bottom of the pan is dissolved and the mixture is smooth. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, to about 245°F. Then cook, stirring constantly, to 260°f for soft, chewy caramels or 265°F; for firmer chewy caramels.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract, if using it. Pour the caramel into the lined pan. Let set for 4 to 5 hours, or overnight until firm.

Lift the pan liner from the pan and invert the sheet of caramel onto a sheet of parchment paper. Peel off the liner. Cut the caramels with an oiled knife. Wrap each caramel individually in wax paper or cellophane.

Variations

Fleur de Sel Caramels: Extra salt, in the form of fleur de sel or another coarse flaked salt, brings out the flavor of the caramel and offers a little ying to the yang. Add an extra scant 1/4 teaspoon of coarse sea salt to the recipe. Or, to keep the salt crunchy, let the caramel cool and firm. Then sprinkle with two pinches of flaky salt and press it in. Invert, remove the pan liner, sprinkle with more salt. Then cut and wrap the caramels in wax paper or cellophane.

Nutmeg and Vanilla Bean Caramels: Add 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg to the cream before you heat it.

Cardamom Caramels: Omit the vanilla. Add 1/2 teaspoon slightly crushed cardamom seeds (from about 15 cardamom pods) to the cream before heating it. Strain the cream when you add it to the caramel; discard the seeds.

Caramel Sauce: Stop cooking any caramel recipe or variation when it reaches 225°F or, for a sauce that thickens like hot fudge over ice cream, 228°F. Pour it into a sauceboat to serve or into a heatproof jar for storage. The sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for ages and reheated gently in the microwave or a saucepan just until hot and flowing before use. You can stir in rum or brandy to taste. If the sauce is too thick or stiff to serve over ice cream, it can always be thinned with a little water or cream. Or, if you like a sauce that thickens more over ice cream, simmer it for a few minutes longer.

MY NOTES: I added much more heavy cream to the frosting than called for (and less sugar) and I was heavy handed with the salt. I beat the heck out of it so t was nice and fluffy and I think that all helped with the sweetness. My caramel was a nice deep amber color - I think a key is to get that great burnt caramel flavor - it really does help cut the sweetness.

The caramels were fabulous. LOVED them! I added salt when cutting htem but next time I would add more. I cooked them to a bit of a lower temp than called for because I really didnt want to have to go to the dentist due to eating candy. They were very very soft, but still shapeable. Perfect since I gave half to my elderly grandfather - and he loves caramel but normally cant eat them as they are so chewy.

Great challenge - thanks to our hosts! I will definitely make at least the candy again :)

DB: Eclairs!

August's Daring Bakers Challenge was eclairs - something new to me (again). I really liked this one! Even though I ran into some hiccups... they were still scrumptious!

The challenge rules required that we use the given pate a choux recipe, and either the given glaze recipe OR the given chocolate filling. I felt that a chocolate glaze and filling would be too much, so instead I made the given chocolate glaze and two different fillings: cappuccino flavored, and the given chocolate filling... just without the chocolate (thus, vanilla).

I got the cappuccino recipe from a recent issue of Bon Appetit magzine (linked above). I really liked the flavor, but the filling didnt set up as well as the given recipe, so it was too runny.

I encountered two problems with this challenge: first, the pate a choux. It came together GREAT - perfectly! I piped them (used a ziplock with the corner snipped - perfect!) and threw them in the oven. They rose nicely... I pulled them out... and POOF. Fell flat. To the point that it was hard to slice them later! I made a second batch, this time trying the trick of letting them slowly cool in the oven after they were done baking. Same thing.

After reading some tips on the forums, I think they probably just needed more baking time (hard to tell since they were golden and puffed as the recipe says they should be when done). It was ok though, still tasted great!

Me second issue was with the glaze, and I am still not sure what happened. I followed the directions to a T, and yet after adding my first tsp of butter, the glaze broke. It became a beautiful choclate glaze, swimming in melted butter. I ended up adding double the chocolate sauce to it, and that mostly fixed it... regardless, it was deeply dark (I used half unsweetened and half bittersweet chocolate) and tasted beautiful :)

Overall, a great challenge! It really did challenge me, and it tasted great! Thanks!

Check out the recipe here!

DB: Filbert Gateau

This cake was the Daring Baker's Challenge for July... but my July was CRAZY busy, and ended with a nasty nasty summer cold... so I had to postpone completing it. I finally made it this week (served it for dessert for my brother's last dinner before college )

I am SO glad I still made it... WOW! This cake was SO GOOD! The buttercream alone was worth it... All the elements worked well. I didnt really have any issues with any elements. My ganache wasnt the smoothest, but for a first ever ganache, Ill take it!

And the taste... ohhhh the taste! I followed the directions for flavors - hazelnuts, cointreau for the liquor (though I forgot the rum in the buttercream), apricot glaze. I am really glad I made it since it is somewhat similar to the Opera Cake which was such a flop for me. This one, YUM!

Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream

From Great Cakes by Carol Walter

1 Filbert Genoise

1 recipe sugar syrup, flavored with dark rum

1 recipe Praline Buttercream

½ cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

1 recipe Apricot Glaze

1 recipe Ganache Glaze, prepared just before using

3 tablespoons filberts, toasted and coarsely chopped

Filbert Genoise

Because of the amount of nuts in the recipe, this preparation is different from a classic genoise.

1 ½ cups hazelnuts, toasted/skinned

2/3 cup cake flour, unsifted

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

7 large egg yolks

1 cup sugar, divided ¼ & ¾ cups

1 tsp. vanilla extract

½ tsp. grated lemon rind

5 lg. egg whites

¼ cup warm, clarified butter (100 – 110 degrees)

Position rack in the lower 3rd of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10” X 2” inch round cake pan. Using a food processor, process nuts, cake flour, and cornstarch for about 30 seconds. Then, pulse the mixture about 10 times to get a fine, powdery mixture. You’ll know the nuts are ready when they begin to gather together around the sides of the bowl. While you want to make sure there aren’t any large pieces, don’t over-process. Set aside.

Put the yolks in the bowl of an electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, and beat until thick and light in color, about 3-4 minutes on med-high speed. Slowly, add ¾ cup of sugar. It is best to do so by adding a tablespoon at a time, taking about 3 minutes for this step. When finished, the mixture should be ribbony. Blend in the vanilla and grated lemon rind. Remove and set aside.

Place egg whites in a large, clean bowl of the electric mixer with the whisk attachment and beat on medium speed, until soft peaks. Increase to med-high speed and slowly add the remaining ¼ cup of sugar, over 15-20 seconds or so. Continue to beat for another ½ minute. Add the yolk mixture to the whites and whisk for 1 minute. Pour the warm butter in a liquid measure cup (or a spouted container). * It must be a deep bottom bowl and work must be fast.* Put the nut meal in a mesh strainer (or use your hand – working quickly) and sprinkle it in about 2 tablespoons at a time – folding it carefully for about 40 folds. Be sure to exclude any large chunks/pieces of nuts. Again, work quickly and carefully as to not deflate the mixture. When all but about 2 Tbsp. of nut meal remain, quickly and steadily pour the warm butter over the batter. Then, with the remaining nut meal, fold the batter to incorporate, about 13 or so folds. With a rubber spatula, transfer the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the surface with the spatula or back of a spoon. **If collected butter remains at the bottom of the bowl, do not add it to the batter! It will impede the cake rising while baking.

Tap the pan on the counter to remove air bubbles and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. You’ll know the cake is done when it is springy to the touch and it separates itself from the side of the pan. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Invert onto a cake rack sprayed with nonstick coating, removing the pan. Cool the cake completely.

*If not using the cake right away, wrap thoroughly in plastic wrap, then in a plastic bag, then in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If freezing, wrap in foil, then the bag and use within 2-3 months.

Sugar Syrup

Makes 1 cup, good for one 10-inch cake – split into 3 layers

1 cup water

¼ cup sugar

2 Tbsp. dark rum or orange flavored liqueur

In a small, yet heavy saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add the liqueur. Cool slightly before using on the cake. *Can be made in advance.

Praline Buttercream

1 recipe Swiss Buttercream

1/3 cup praline paste

1 ½ - 2 Tbsp. Jamaican rum (optional)

Blend ½ cup buttercream into the paste, then add to the remaining buttercream. Whip briefly on med-low speed to combine. Blend in rum.

Swiss Buttercream

4 lg. egg whites

¾ cup sugar

1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly firm

1 ½ -2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier or liqueur of your choice

1 tsp. vanilla

Place the egg whites in a lg/ bowl of a elevtric mixer and beat with the whisk attachment until the whites are foamy and they begin to thicken (just before the soft peak stage). Set the bowl over a saucepan filled with about 2 inches of simmering water, making sure the bowl is not touching the water. Then, whisk in the sugar by adding 1-2 tablespoon of sugar at a time over a minutes time. Continue beating 2-3 minutes or until the whites are warm (about 120 degrees) and the sugar is dissolved. The mixture should look thick and like whipped marshmallows.

Remove from pan and with either the paddle or whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and sugar on med-high until its a thick, cool meringue – about 5-7 minutes. *Do not overbeat*. Set aside.

Place the butter in a separate clean mixing bowl and, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter at medium speed for 40-60 seconds, or until smooth and creamy. *Do not overbeat or the butter will become toooooo soft.*

On med-low speed, blend the meringue into the butter, about 1-2 Tbsp. at a time, over 1 minute. Add the liqueur and vanilla and mix for 30-45 seconds longer, until thick and creamy.

Refrigerate 10-15 minutes before using.

Wait! My buttercream won’t come together! Reheat the buttercream briefly over simmering water for about 5 seconds, stirring with a wooden spoon. Be careful and do not overbeat. The mixture will look broken with some liquid at the bottom of the bowl. Return the bowl to the mixer and whip on medium speed just until the cream comes back together.

Wait! My buttercream is too soft! Chill the buttercream in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes and rewhip. If that doesn’t work, cream an additional 2-4 Tbsp. of butter in a small bowl– making sure the butter is not as soft as the original amount, so make sure is cool and smooth. On low speed, quickly add the creamed butter to the buttercream, 1 Tbsp. at a time.

Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or can be frozen for up to 6 months. If freezing, store in 2 16-oz. plastic containers and thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for several hours.

Praline Paste

1 cup (4 ½ oz.) Hazelnuts, toasted/skinless

2/3 cup Sugar

Line a jelly roll pan with parchment and lightly butter. Put the sugar in a heavy 10-inch skillet. Heat on low flame for about 10-20 min until the sugar melts around the edges. Do not stir the sugar. Swirl the pan if necessary to prevent the melted sugar from burning. Brush the sides of the pan with water to remove sugar crystals. If the sugar in the center does not melt, stir briefly. When the sugar is completely melted and caramel in color, remove from heat. Stir in the nuts with a wooden spoon and separate the clusters. Return to low heat and stir to coat the nuts on all sides. Cook until the mixture starts to bubble. **Remember – extremely hot mixture.** Then onto the parchment lined sheet and spread as evenly as possible. As it cools, it will harden into brittle. Break the candied nuts into pieces and place them in the food processor. Pulse into a medium-fine crunch or process until the brittle turns into a powder. To make paste, process for several minutes. Store in an airtight container and store in a cook dry place. Do not refrigerate.

Apricot Glaze

Good for one 10-inch cake

2/3 cup thick apricot preserves

1 Tbsp. water

In a small, yet heavy saucepan, bring the water and preserves to a slow boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes. If the mixture begins to stick to the bottom of the saucepan, add water as needed.

Remove from heat and, using a strainer, press the mixture through the mesh and discard any remnants. With a pastry brush, apply the glaze onto the cake while the cake is still warm. If the glaze is too thick, thin to a preferred consistency with drops of water.

Ganache Glaze

Makes about 1 cup, enough to cover the top and sides of a 9 or 10 inch layer or tube cake **Ganache can take on many forms. While warm – great fudge sauce. While cool or lukewarm – semisweet glaze. Slightly chilled – can be whipped into a filling/frosting. Cold & solid – the base of candied chocolate truffles.

6 oz. (good) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, like Lindt

6 oz. (¾ cup heavy cream

1 tbsp. light corn syrup

1 Tbsp. Grand Marnier, Cointreay, or dark Jamaican rum (optional)

¾ tsp. vanilla

½ - 1 tsp. hot water, if needed

Blend vanilla and liqueur/rum together and set aside. Break the chocolate into 1-inch pieces and place in the basket of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Transfer into a medium sized bowl and set aside. Heat the cream and corn syrup in a saucepan, on low, until it reached a gentle boil. Once to the gently boil, immediately and carefully pour over the chocolate. Leave it alone for one minute, then slowly stir and mix the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate is melted and incorporated into the cream. Carefully blend in vanilla mixture. If the surface seems oily, add ½ - 1 tsp hot water. The glaze will thicken, but should still be pourable. If it doesn’t thicken, refrigerate for about 5 minutes, but make sure it doesn’t get too cold!

Assembling Cake

Cut a cardboard disk slightly smaller than the cake. Divide the cake into 3 layers and place the first layer top-side down on the disk. Using a pastry brush, moisten the layer with 3-4 Tbsp. of warm sugar syrup. Measure out 1 cup of praline buttercream and set aside.Spread the bottom layer with a ¼-inch thickness of the remaining buttercream. Cover with ½ of the whipped cream, leaving ¼-inch border around the edge of the cake. Place the middle layer over the first, brush with sugar syrup, spreading with buttercream. Cover with the remaining whipped cream. Moisten the cut side of the third layer with additional sugar syrup and place cut side down on the cake. Gently, press the sides of the cake to align the layers. Refrigerate to chill for at least 30 minutes. Lift the cake by sliding your palm under the cardboard. Holding a serrated or very sharp night with an 8-ich blade held parallel to the sides of the cake, trim the sides so that they are perfectly straight. Cut a slight bevel at the top to help the glaze drip over the edge. Brush the top and sides of the cake with warm apricot glaze, sealing the cut areas completely. Chill while you prepare the ganache.

Place a rack over a large shallow pan to catch the ganache drippings. Remove the gateau from the refrigerator and put it the rack. With a metal spatula in hand, and holding the saucepan about 10 inches above the cake, pour the ganache onto the cake’s center. Move the spatula over the top of the ganache about 4 times to get a smooth and mirror-like appearance. The ganache should cover the top and run down the sides of the cake. When the ganache has been poured and is coating the cake, lift one side of the rack and bang it once on the counter to help spread the ganache evenly and break any air bubbles. (Work fast before setting starts.) Patch any bare spots on the sides with a smaller spatula, but do not touch the top after the “bang”. Let the cake stand at least 15 minutes to set after glazing.

To garnish the cake, fit a 12 – 14-inch pastry bag with a #114 large leaf tip. Fill the bag with the reserved praline cream. Stating ½ inch from the outer edge of the cake, position the pastry tube at a 90 degree angle with the top almost touching the top of the cake. Apply pressure to the pastry bag, moving it slightly toward the center of the cake. As the buttercream flows on the cake, reverse the movement backward toward the edge of the cake and finish by pulling the bag again to the center. Stop applying pressure and press the bag downward, then quickly pull the tip up to break the flow of frosting. Repeat, making 12 leaves evenly spaced around the surface of the cake. Make a second row of leaves on the top of the first row, moving the pastry bag about ¾ inch closer to the center. The leaves should overlap. Make a 3rd row, moving closer and closer to the center. Add a 4th row if you have the room. But, leave a 2-inch space in the center for a chopped filbert garnish. Refrigerate uncovered for 3-4 hours to allow the cake to set. Remove the cake from the refrigerator at least 3 hours before serving.Leftover cake can be covered with foil and kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Favorite Brownies

I love brownies. Homemade brownies are probably my fav dessert, and the food for which I demonstrate no control at all... I could eat an entire pan in a day, no problemo. And these are my favorite ones! The recipe is my moms... where she got it I dont know but she has been making them for as long as I can remember. The beauty of brownies is to make them from scratch is EASY. You dont need a mixer - best to mix by hand so you dont overbeat. Throw it all in a boal, mix until JUST combined, pour in a greased pan and bake! Easy as pie - except pie can be tricky. Easy as BROWNIES! :)

Deep Dish Brownies:

3/4 c melted butter

1 1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

3/4 c flour

1/2 c baking cocoa

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 c choc chips

Heat oven to 350. Grease 8x8 pan. In medium mixing bowl blend melted butter, sugar, and vanilla. Add eggs and beat well w/ spoon. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually add to egg mixture, beating until well-blended. Stir in chips. Spread into prepared pan. Bake 40-45 min or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. (always err on the side of undercooking brownies, and I often add a bit more cocoa to these :) )

Latest DB EVER!

I made my May Daring Baker's Opera Cake in May, within the allotted time... but when post date came along I was travelling on business and posting from my laptop didnt seem like a fun idea. So, the post date came and went... and because I was late already... I didnt get around to posting. Until today. My June DB entry is currently in process so I figured it was about darn time I blogged may! Part of my delay is due to the fact that I really did not like my opera cake :( The reason is, I think, three-fold:

1) I really did not care for the white chocolate flavor in the mousse and ganache... like I hated it!

2) The flavors I chose (hazelnut/frangelico, vanilla, and caramel) really didnt come through very well - they were not strong enough and really just didnt work for me. I think Iwould have been better of with fruit, or more acidic flavors

3) I struggled through my buttercream - it wasnt firming up for me - so I kept tasting it. Finally it came together (I just kept beating it... and beating it... and finally like 15 minutes later it firmed up) but by then I had had WAY too much. Also, I follwed the posted recipe (more sugar, less butter) but it was just WAY too sweet for me... so I kept adding butter... and tasting. Blech!

Now, I gave it all away (Ryan brought into work) and I fully expected a poor review but he said it was enjoyed. So, maybe it was just me... but I wasnt a fan. I think I would have prefered it if I have followed some other DBers lead and cheated... with chocolate :)

Not going to bother posting the recipe since y'all have either a) seen it already or b) wont make it anyhow but you can see it on all the other DBers blogs here - they all have the recipe posted :)

Tiramisu

I got this recipe from America's Test Kitchen, via Chelley. She raved, and I trusted her rave. I also tend to think that America's Test Kitchen tends to be fab! And... I was not disappointed. This came together easily and well and was so so good - I would not be surprised if I owe 5 pounds to this concoction! Well worth it.

This was Ryan's birthday "cake" since it is a dessert he loves and he is slightly picky about cake and buttercream - so I knew it would go over well - as well as the mother's day dessert. See Chelley's notes below - I followed her version of the recipe.

Tiramisu (Source: Cook’s Illustrated November & December 2007 issue)
2-1/2 cups strong brewed coffee, room temperature (I used espresso)
1-1/2 Tablespoons instant espresso granules
9 tablespoons dark rum [I substituted Kahlua and cut the amount down to 4-1/2 tablespoons]
6 large egg yolks
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1-1/2 pounds mascarpone
3/4 cup cold heavy cream
14 ounces (42 to 60, depending on size) dried ladyfingers (savoiardi)
3-1/2 Tablespoons cocoa, preferably Dutch-processed
1/4 cup grated semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (optional) [I omitted this]

1. Stir coffee, espresso, and 5 tablespoons rum [2-1/2 tablespoons Kahlua] in a wide bowl or baking dish until espresso dissolves; set aside.

2. In bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat yolks at low speed until just combined. Add sugar and salt and beat at medium-high speed until pale yellow, 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula once or twice. Add remaining 4 tablespoons rum [2 tablespoons Kahlua] and beat at medium speed until just combined, 20 to 30 seconds; scrape bowl. Add mascarpone and beat at medium speed until no lumps remain, 30 to 45 seconds, scraping down bowl once or twice. Transfer mixture to large bowl and set aside.

3. In now-empty mixer bowl (no need to clean bowl), beat cream at medium speed until frothy, 1 to 1-1/2 minutes. Increase speed to high and continue to beat until cream holds stiff peaks, 1 to 1-1/2 minutes longer. Using rubber spatula, fold one-third of whipped cream into mascarpone mixture to lighten, then gently fold in remaining whipped cream until no white streaks remain. Set mascarpone mixture aside.

4. Working one at a time, drop half of ladyfingers into coffee mixture, roll, remove and transfer to 13 by 9-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. (Do not submerge ladyfingers in coffee mixture; entire process should take no longer than 2 to 3 seconds for each cookie.) Arrange soaked cookies in single layer in baking dish, breaking or trimming ladyfingers as needed to fit neatly into dish.

5. Spread half of mascarpone mixture over ladyfingers; use rubber spatula to spread mixture to sides and into corners of dish and smooth surface. Place 2 tablespoons cocoa in fine-mesh strainer and dust cocoa over mascarpone.

6. Repeat dipping and arrangement of ladyfingers; spread remaining mascarpone mixture over ladyfingers and dust with remaining 1-1/2 tablespoons cocoa. Wipe edges of dish with dry paper towel. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 6 to 24 hours. Sprnkle with grated chocolate, if using; cut into pieces and serve chilled.

I stuck with the kahluah in the lower amount and it was still a strong flavor. I also mistakenly got fresh ladyfingers... then hunted and found the hard ones - they worked great!

HomeGrown Gourmet - Peanut Butter Gobs

This is my entry for this month's HomeGrown Gourmet, a challenge in which you make a dish based on the host's theme that somehow represents your area.

This month's theme was... peanut butter. Ill admit, I was thrown and had no clue what to make - figured I would skip out this month. THEN I had an epiphany... Ryan's birthday was in mid-May and I was planning to make him Gobs anyhow - a favorite treat of his from his hometown of Johnstown, PA and something that really doesnt exist outside of J'town under that name (they are everywhere else as Whoopie Pies though). They don't even get their own wiki entry (but are noted under whoopie pies) they are THAT unique to the area!

Basically, they are chocolate cake cooked in large cookie form with fluffy white frosting in between. So, I added peanut butter to have of them and VOILA! Peanut Butter Gobs!

I got the recipe from someone on the local Pittsburgh Nest board (since really, they dont exist anywhere else!) and THey turned out well with the addition of some PB - ryan said they were authentic :)

Recipe Courtesy of Amber (waltsgirl102503) on the Pittsburgh Nest's Grandma

CHOCOLATE GOBS
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup shortening
41/4 cup flour (sifted)
2 t soda
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup cocoa
1 cup sour milk
1/2 cup boiling water
2 t vanilla
Cream together eggs, sugar, shortening until fluffy.
Sift together all dry ingredients.
Alternately add dry ingred. and milk.
Finally add boiling water and vanilla
Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.
I like to use a small ice cream scoop to make gobs so they are the same size annd bake evenly.
CREAM FILLING
1/2 cup white shortening
1/2 cup margarine (butter will work but stick margarine is the best)
1 cup sugar
1 egg white (room temp.)
2 t vanilla
1/2 cup hot milk (microwave about a minute)
Cream shortening, margarine, and sugar until fluffy.
Add egg white and then vanilla.
Keep beating while adding hot milk a little at a time.

When the cake is cooled scoop filling in between two and wrap in plastic and refridgerate until serving.

I added about 1/2 a cup of peanut butter to the filling (only half the filling) for this challenge.

Check out the rules here and the other entries soon!

Panko-Fried-Mango

This is the dessert I made as part two of Platinum Chef 7. Again, the ingredients for this round are: Mango, Mint, Yogurt, Panko, and Bok Choy. This dish for me had all but the bok choy.

I peeled, pitted and diced a mango and then combined in a bowl with: about 1/2 cup of panko, 1/2 a cap of cocnut milk (or enough to bind the panko) and 10-15 mint leaves, minced. Then, I pan friend them in a bit of butter and served over vanilla frozen yogurt. Really good! May make it again, but with toasted coconut instead of the panko.

Strawberries and Mint

I have always loved the flavor combination of strawberries and mint. Is this a normal combo? I feel like it is weird but I love it. I got soem berries from the store that were so-so so I didnt want to just serve them plain.... so I minced about 15 mint leaves (chiffonade then cut those crosswise so the pieces are teeny - big pieces of mint leaves are just way too overwhelming) and tossed them with a pint of sliced strawberries and about 2 spoonfuls of sugar (to help draw our the juices). Then let the macerate for an hour or two in the fridge.

Served over really good vanilla ice cream... heavenly.

Daring Cheesecake!

This month's Daring Bakers Challenge is a recipe for mini cheesecake pops! THese looked and sounded so fun; I was really excited to try them with a few recipes. I made this recipe so it was ready to serve alongside birthday cake on my mom's birthday. I changed the recipe slightly, substituting the flour for cornstarch since my sister is allergic to wheat. There is a 2:1 flour:cornstarch ratio for that substitution, and it was not really an obvious change. The flour is really just there to provide some structure.

I doubled the recipe because I wanted to try a variety of flavors: I made half of my popsicles following the recipe exactly (other than the flour) and added some vanilla beans for an extra pop of vanilla. I dipped them in dark chocolate, which was melted with a little shortening, and I added some cinnamon and cayenne to make it a bit of a mexican chocolate - I really liked that layer in the flavor. These were decorated in colored stars.

With the other half, I made half coconut using a tsp of coconut extract, and dipping the chocolate in toasted coconut flakes. The remaining part was flavored with a tsp of lemon extract. These were dipped in multicolored sugar.

The pops were really good but I think I liked them better in theory than in practice. They were a bit too rich for me, and for ryan. I think I prefer cheekacake, straight up. Too much going on with these. But, dont take my word for it: my family enjoyed them, and the leftovers did not last long at Ryan's work!

Overall the recipe was a success. It took a bit longer to set in the oven, about 55 minutes. I just pulled them when they were set in the center. They were somewhat of a pain to roll - the cheesecake softened very quicklywhen I was rolling them and my hands got gooey quickly, I found them hard to get into uniform balls. The biggest difficulty I encountered was freezer space. After rolling the balls and sticking in the sticks the pops need to freeze in the freezer for a few hours. They defintely took longer for me for them to get really hard, and it was very hard to find the space in a standard side by side fridge/freezer, especially when the freezer is packed ;) I had to do small batches in the freezer which made the process longer than it should have been.

Had I had a second freezer or just less junk in mine, it would have been much easier.

Check out the recipe here at Taste and Tell, one of our esteemed hosts for this round!

Birthday Cake!

For my mom's birthday, we had the whole family over for dinner to celebrate. She looooves a good rich chocolate frosting and wanted a moist cake, maybe with caramel, maybe with brown sugar. I think I achieved success!

Brown Sugar Butter Cake

(Adapted from Gourmet)

This recipe makes 1 - 9 inch round so I doubled it. My other changes in italics

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar (I subbed 1/2 of sugar for dark brown sugar)

1 whole large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons grated orange zest (Omitted)

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup whole milk

Garnish: Confectioners sugar (omitted)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan, then line bottom with a round of parchment paper and butter parchment. Lightly dust with flour.
Whisk together flour (1 3/4 cups), baking powder, and salt.
Beat together butter and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add whole egg, yolk, zest, and vanilla and beat 1 minute. At low speed, mix in flour mixture and milk alternately in batches.
Spread batter in cake pan and bake until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack.

The cake was great - so buttery and moist!

Caramel Sauce for Layers

(Adapted from Gourmet)

I cut each cake layer in half and in between I layered some homemade caramel sauce. I used this recipe:

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (I used Dark)

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Equipment: a candy thermometer

Bring cream, brown sugar, corn syrup, and a pinch of salt to a boil in a 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Boil until glaze registers 210 to 212°F on thermometer, 12 to 14 minutes, then stir in vanilla.
Put rack with cake in a shallow baking pan and pour hot glaze over top of cake, allowing it to run down sides. Cool until glaze is set, about 30 minutes.

I let the sauce set in the fridge and it separated into a thick layer on top which it what I used between the layers. I drizzled the remainder over the frosted cake.

Chocolate Frosting

(From Cooks Illustrated)

This recipe was so so easy, quick and is fabulously rich. I also made it here.

Foolproof Chocolate Frosting

Makes 3 cups

20 T unsalted butter, softened
1 cup confectioners sugar
3/4 cup cocoa
pinch salt
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla
8 ounces chocolate (I used unsweetened), melted and cooled slightly

In food processor (NOT your KASM), process butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt until smooth, about 30 sec. Scrape sides as needed. Add corn syrup and vanilla and process to just combined, 5-10 sec. Scrape sides, and add chocolate and pulse to smooth and creamy, 10-15 sec. Frosting can by used immediately or held (longer than 3 hrs, chill covered and let stand at room temp for an hour prior to use). Yummmmm

Faux Key Lime "Souffle"

This is a recipe (if you can even call it that!!) that I picked up from the free william sonoma demo class on Souffles a few weeks back. They share a more complicated recipe that involved homemade curd but as a simple, quick option, store bought curd was just as good (we even did a taste test in the class :) )

I used the Key Lime curd, 1 jar. Take 1 cup of heavy cream and whip it. Whip it good. :-p When the cream has formed stiff peaks, stir in 1/2 of the curd until combined. Then, fold in 1/3, and then fold in the final third.

Add to dish (one large souffle dish, I just did individual servings in little pyrex dishes) and chill in the fridge until ready to serve (a few hours minimum). Top with addl whipped cream, fresh fruit, etc. Very refreshing, easy!

Chocolate 'Covered' Banana Cupcakes

I made these cupcakes to bring to a party. There was going to be a 20 month old there who cant yet have peanuts or coconuts (or booze probably!) so I wanted to make some cupcakes with something else to kick them up. I had saved this recipe ages ago from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody that I used to make cupcakes (the explosion of overripe bananas in my freezer helped too!)

Banana Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup shortening

8 ounce Mascarpone cheese

2 eggs

1/4 cup buttermilk

1 cup mashed bananas (I used 2 overripe frozen then thawed bananas)

Cream together the sugar, shortening and Mascarpone cheese. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down after each addition. Add vanilla extract and mix for another 30 seconds. Add banana and buttermilk. Mix together all dry ingredients, then combine sugar mixture with dry ingredients. Pour into 9 x 13 inch pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes. (This made 22 cupcakes, on the full side, and took about 15ish minutes to be done).

I picked up the April issue of Cooks Illustrated and decided to test out their "Foolproof Chocolate Frosting' claim. After all, my mom's birthday is coming up and she loves a good chocolate frosting. This recipe lived up to its claims: easy decadently deeply chocolatey...

Foolproof Chocolate Frosting

Makes 3 cups

20 T unsalted butter, softened

1 cup confectioners sugar

3/4 cup cocoa

pinch salt

3/4 cup light corn syrup

1 tsp vanilla

8 ounces chocolate (I used unsweetened), melted and cooled slightly

In food processor (NOT your KASM), process butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt until smooth, about 30 sec. Scrape sides as needed. Add corn syrup and vanilla and process to just combined, 5-10 sec. Scrape sides, and add chocolate and pulse to smooth and creamy, 10-15 sec. Frosting can by used immediately or held (longer than 3 hrs, chill covered and let stand at room temp for an hour prior to use). Yummmmm

Strawberry Crepes

Ryan requested that I try making crepes when I asked for breakfast suggestions last weekend. Man they are HARD! Definitely a few went in hte trash! But then I got the hang of it... yum! I used this recipe from william sonoma, with the addition of some vanilla beans mmm.

These crepes can be used with a variety of sweet or savory fillings. They're the perfect foundation for our souffléd crepes
Ingredients:
1 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1/2 Tbs. melted unsalted butter, plus 8 tsp. butter
1/2 tsp. salt
Directions:
In a blender, combine the milk, egg, flour, the 1/2 Tbs. melted butter and the salt and blend until smooth. Refrigerate for 2 to 8 hours. In a crepe pan over medium heat, melt 1 tsp. of the butter to coat the pan evenly. Lift the pan at a slight angle and pour 2 Tbs. of the batter into the center, tilting the pan to spread the batter to the edges. Return the pan to the heat and cook until the crepe is golden underneath, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a spatula, flip the crepe over and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and cover. Repeat with the remaining batter. Makes 8 crepes.
Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.

Simply served with sliced strawberries and fresh whipped cream. Sooo good...