Gingerbread Cake

A couple days ago, I received my December Bon Appetit magazine. This issue has SO many amazing recipes that I'd like to try. The first one up was the "Gingerbread Pudding Cake" that is in the letters section of the magazine. It looked simple, I had all the ingredients and one of my colleagues had a birthday today - so the fates declared it was time to bake the cake.

After reading over the recipe several times, and deciding that I needed to double it to make a 9x13" pan rather than an 8" square pan's worth - I also made some adjustments to the recipe on the fly - as I was putting things together. This recipe here reflects those changes.

Gooey Gingerbread Cake
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t ground cloves
1/2 t allspice
1 t ginger
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 t kosher salt
1 t baking soda
1 egg
3/4 cup molasses dissolved in 1 cup warm water

Topping
1 cup brown sugar
10 T (1 stick + 2T) unsalted butter

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously butter a 9"x13" cake pan.

With stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the egg and continue beating. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and spices. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in 2-3 additions, alternating with the diluted molasses.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, then evenly sprinkle the brown sugar over the top of the batter. Pour the melted butter over the sugar (it will likely dissolve in).

Bake for 45 minutes at 350F.

Scones

These are the scones that Keely made to go with our crab apple butter. They were delicious - especially warm with warm apple butter.

Scones
2 cups flour (or 1 cup flour, 1 cup powdered oats)
1 t cream of tartar
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
2 T sugar
4 T unsalted butter, chilled & cut into pieces
3/4 cup milk
1 t extract - vanilla or almond

Preheat oven to 450F. Whisk the dry ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry blender, add milk and extract. Free form scones and bake on a parchment paper lined baking sheet for 12 minutes until lightly browned.

Peach Drop Cookies ala Martha

On occasion, when faced with some ingredients that MUST be used, inspiration just won't strike. That is the situation I was in tonight with some extremely ripe peaches. But you know, that is what cookbooks are for.... and magazines and the internet.

These peach drop cookies come to us by way of Martha Stewart. They seem to be OK - nothing to rave about and I'm not sure yet how I would fix them.... look for an update later.

UPDATE: the main problem with these cookies was that they really weren't very "peachy" - I would up the jam to 3/4 cup, add an additional 1/2 cup flour and then I think they'll be tastier.

Martha Stewart's Peach Drop Cookies
2 cups flour
3/4 t kosher salt
1/2 t baking soda
8 T unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 t vanilla extract
3 medium ripe peaches, peeled and diced
1/3 cup peach jam

sanding sugar mixture: 1/2 cup sugar, 1 t ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375F.

Sift together the flour, salt and soda. Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla, then stir in the flour mixture. Add the jam and peaches.

Drop onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. I would recommend using a teaspoon (these things spread) and spacing them well. Bake 12-14 minutes at 375F, switching top and bottom pans midway through. Look for a nice golden color on the bottom of the cookies.

Cool on the pans, then transfer to paper towels to absorb excess oils. Enjoy.

Note: something just isn't right with these. They are very soft - maybe I need to cut back the baking soda..... add a little less fat..... hmm, tweaking is definitely needed. We'll see how they go over at work.

Oatmeal and fruit bars

Inspiration strikes at the oddest of times - and depending what is in the kitchen, you just never know what you might end up with. This recipe was cobbled together - inspired by several and modified to deal with what I have on hand. Tonight it happened to be peaches and blueberries and oats.

Fruit Cobbler Bars
There are two parts to this recipe - the crust & cobbler topping and the fruit layer.

Fruit Mixture
2 1/2 cups blueberries (any fruits will do - these were just what I had)
2 1/2 cups diced peaches
3/4 t almond extract
1/3 cup honey
3 T whole wheat flour
generous sprinkling of cinnamon


Crust
4 cups oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 375F. Mix crust ingredients and spread 2/3 of crust mixture into a well buttered 9x13 pan. Tamp the bottom layer down.

Toss fruit mixture together in a bowl, then spread over the crust. In small chunks, drop the remaining crust over the the fruit.

Bake 30-4o minutes at 375F, until the top is golden.

Bwok Burgers

I love chicken burgers - I am not sure why, but I do. But, like everything else - they get boring after a while, so tonight's jazzed up version is as follows. OOO - were they moist!

Bwok Bgok Burgers
1 pound ground (white) chicken meat
1/3 cup mayo (I like Hellman's - I'm picky)
2 Tablespoons "Just the Peppers" dried bell peppers
1 Tablespoon "Just the Tomatoes" crushed dried tomatoes
4 spring onions (scallions), chopped nicely
1/3 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese

Fire up the grill. Then dump all ingredients into a bowl big enough for mixing. Mix it all together with your hands - go ahead, get them dirty! When nicely combined, form patties and grill on medium low heat for 10-12 minutes until cooked thoroughly (it will depend on your patty size... I like to check for done-ness with a meat thermometer. I don't like food poisioning).

I enjoy these burgers as is or with some sundried tomato mayo (blend up some sun dried tomatoes until they are powdered, mix with mayo - to taste). Mmmm.

Sweet Things

It is funny, because from the majority of the recipes I post - it totally has to look like I'm obsessed with baking.... (the recipes I post now will support that....) but the thing is, while I do bake quite often, I am just as obsessed with cooking non-dessert food as well. It is just much more socially acceptable to take a plate of brownies or a cake to work than to take a roasted leg of lamb or a pot of risotto. Anyway, that said - here are some recent things that appeared next to the coffee pot....

Coconut Bundt Cake with Chocolate Ganache
3 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup softened unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously butter a bundt pan.

Sift cake flour and salt, set aside. Beat the butter in your handy stand mixer until fluffy. Gradually add the sugar (1/2 cup at a time), beating until well blended. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then both extracts. Slowly add in the flour mixture alternating with coconut milk. Fold in 2 cups flaked coconut. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top.

Bake cake until top is golden brown and tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool cake in pan 15 minutes. Turn cake out and cool completely before glazing. I glazed this one with a ganache made with sweetned condensed milk (made is a little caramel-y) and then topped it with more shredded coconut.

Fudgey Cocoa Brownies
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cold large eggs
1/2 cup cake flour
(you can add nuts if you want, I usually do)

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom and sides of the baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.

Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium heatproof bowl and set the bowl in a wide skillet of barely simmering water. Stir from time to time until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth and hot enough that you want to remove your finger fairly quickly after dipping it in to test. Remove the bowl from the skillet and set aside briefly until the mixture is only warm, not hot.

Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Stir in the nuts, if using. Spread evenly in the lined pan.

Bake until a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20 to 25 minutes.

A couple of cakes - just for fun.

After my cooking class at UT the other night, I am pretty sure that I am more than an elementary baker. It may make me sound snobby, but I have some standards on the quality of my ingredients and I already knew how to proof yeast. I also know how to tell if bread and pound cake (BO-ring) are done cooking. The ones the instructor cooked for us -> were not.

I decided to see if I could create some original recipes using things that I like and ingredients that I have. I read about nut meals and fruit based cakes and had some sparks fly. Creativity is fun.

Pecan Meal Cake
3 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 Tablespoon brandy
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously butter a springform cake pan (I used my square one).

Beat the eggs until they increase in volume, add in the brown sugar, vanilla, brandy and buttermilk. Stir in the pecan meal. Sift the flour and baking powder, then add them in small amounts to the wet batter.

Bake 30-45 minutes, until the cake passes the toothpick test.


Fresh Pear Cake
1/2 cup unsalted butter (Plugra!)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup pastry flour
3 ripe pears (I used the Bartlett kind)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously butter a springform pan (used my 9" round here).

Sift together the dry ingredients and set aside. Beat together the butter, sugar and eggs until light and fluffy. Fold in the dry ingredients. Transfer the batter to the pan.

Slice the pears and lay them skin side up. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until the cake passes the toothpick test.

I plan to cover the top of the cake with more fresh pear slices and drizzle with honey - doesn't that sound good?

The Famed Potato Starch Flour Cake

Potato starch flour is one of the rarer culinary treasures. Certainly not as rare as truffles or ramps, but let me just say, the local Kroger doesn't carry it.

I was lucky enough to find some at the Gourmet Market on Kingston Pike, and stored it in my pantry in hopes of making this cake.

When I asked my mom and then my aunt for the recipe, they had vague notes from my grandmother that I found troublesome. I tried to follow the directions as best I could - but the result was less than satisfying, though the frosting that my aunt described was delicious.

Recently, I have learned that my nana (in the traditional Italian sense) had given the recipe to a friend of her back in the 1950s to be used in an Italian cookbook. The Complete Italian Cookbook [La Cucina] by Rose L. Sorce to be precise.

Luckily, though this book is out of print, I was able to secure a copy for myself from Amazon.com (for $4!) and now have the full story.......

Rose Carini's Potato Starch Flour Cake
6 eggs, separated
1/2 cup potato starch flour
1/2 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Pre-heat the oven to 350F.

Beat the egg whites until stiff, then add 1/2 cup of sugar and beat some more. Beat egg yolks until lemony in color, then add 1/2 cup sugar and beat until thick. Fold in the egg whites, then add the flour, baking powder and vanilla.

Bake in torte pan for 20 minutes.

Ricotta Filling (also works as cannoli filling)
2 cups sugar
8 Tablespoons cornstarch
2 pounds Ricotta cheese
1 chocolate almond bar, chopped (alternatively, a cup of chocolate chips)
2 1/2 cups milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla
4 Tablespoons candied fruit (optional)
pistachio nuts

Scald the milk, add the sugar, cornstarch and vanilla. Cook until it forms a thick custard, then cool and add Ricotta, fruit and chocolate.

Split the cooled cake into 2 layers and spread with filling, with a generous portion on top. If the filling thickens too much, it can be thinned with a little milk.

Lemon filling
1 package cooked lemon pudding
2 cups heavy cream
powdered sugar

Cook the pudding according to package directions, whip the cream - fold together once the pudding cools.

Cooking Marathon

My friend Missy had mentioned that she needed several meals for her in-laws, who are in poor health and cannot cook for themselves. Missy, the very busy mother of two children, didn't know where she would find the time to cook for them - so I volunteered to test out several of my "save to try" recipes for them. Here is a selection of what I made.

Chicken Pot Pie
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 cups diced red potatoes
2 cups diced onion
2 cups sliced mushrooms (I used canned)
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrot
1/4 cup parsley flakes
2 teaspoons thyme
3 Tablespoons flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken (I boiled chicken in broth first for this)
1 cup frozen peas
1 teaspoon salt
pepper to taste
frozen phyllo dough, thawed

Preheat oven to 375. Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add the oil, potatoes, onions, mushrooms, celery, carrots, parsley (some rosemary and sage too if you are feeling musical) and thyme. Saute for 5-10 minutes, then reduce the heat to low and sprinkle the flour over the vegetables. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring.

Stir in the milk and the broth, increase to medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and stir in the chicken, peas, salt & pepper.

Spoon the mixture into a casserole dish or individual crock dishes. Roll out the phyllo dough and cover the dish(es). Place the dish on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until top is golden.

Meatloaf
1 pound of ground chuck
1 roll of Jimmy Dean sage sauage
3 eggs
1 cup of italian style breadcrumbs
1/2 cup parsley
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup classico, four cheese pasta sauce

Preheat the oven to 350F. Mix the ingredients together by hand or using a mixer. Form a loaf and bake for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until the center reaches 160F.

Parmesan Chicken Risotto
3 Tablespoons olive oil
6 green onions
1 cup risotto rice (arborio)
1 cup dry white wine
1 quart chicken broth
4 Tablespoons butter
1/4 cup parsley flakes
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken (I used some of the boiled chicken)
(package frozen vegetables, if desired)

In a large (deep) sauce pan, over medium heat, saute the onions in olive oil. Add the rice, cook for 3 minutes, or until you hear a clacking noise (similar to glass beads knocking around). Add the cup of wine and stir until the wine is absorbed. Add the chicken broth one cup at a time, adding the next cup only after the first is absorbed (when you can stir the rice and get a path cleared behind the spoon). Cook until the rice is soft (past al dente) and has a creamy consistency, about 20-25 minutes.

Remove from heat (mixture will thicken slightly) and add the butter, parsley flakes and cheese, then the chopped chicken and frozen vegetables.

Enjoy!