baking beast

Cupcakes, my new addiction

2006-01-16T22:52:00.000-06:00

Mmm.. I'm DEFINITELY buying into the whole cupcake craze right now... they are soooo darn good. And cute. And fun and easy to make. And great to share with friends. :)

So, for all of the above reasons, I made cupcakes recently! (Twice, actually) Both times, I used cupcake recipes from Julie Hasson's 125 Best Cupcakes. Coincidentally, they were on the two pages that were right next to each other! And actually, both coffee-themed. :) I only got pictures of my most recent ones, and these are the Malted Espresso Cupcakes. I made my own frosting off of the cream cheese frosting from More from Magnolia adding dissolved instant coffee to it. I doubled the recipe to feed plenty of happy mouths. (And have plenty of extras for myself!) I wasn't sure what the malted milk was going to be like in a baked good since I have never done that before...but it turned out great! The flavor isn't TOO strong but it's still there and matches with the espresso quite well.

The other cupcake I made was the Cappuccino Cupcakes and I made half the recipe for Coffee Buttercream in her book as well. Except I wasn't really thinking at the time so I thought the 1 cup of butter it called for equaled 4 sticks of butter so when I was halving it, I ended up using 2 sticks when 1/2 cup is only 1 stick of butter!! But no matter...the extra stick of butter was certainly not noticed and actually everybody loooveed the frosting, so that extra stick is staying there! I have to say, I like the Cappuccino Cupcakes more..it was definitely coffee-packed but sooo good that way. It was quite moist and with the chocolate chips mixed in and the coffee buttercream on top... it was just way too good. But both cupcakes were FANTASTIC! :) I can't wait to make more out of this book... it is strongly recommended to any cupcake fan! I also can't wait until my most recent purchase... Cupcakes Year Round, comes! I'm all set to go to make batches upon batches of cupcakes and am now a cupcake addict.

Malted Espresso Cupcakes
From 125 Best Cupcakes
Makes 12 Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup malted milk powder
1/4 cup freshly brewed espresso or dark roast coffee
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

1. In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together malted milk powder and espresso until smooth.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, butter and eggs until smooth. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and espresso mixture, making three additions of flour and two of espresso, beating until smooth.
4. Scoop batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated 350ºF oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack. Top cooled cupcakes with frosting.

Cappuccino Cupcakes
From 125 Best Cupcakes
Makes 12 Cupcakes

1 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp finely ground coffee
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp instant coffee granules
1 tsp warm water
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ground coffee.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together instant coffee and water.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil and egg until smooth. Whisk in instant coffee mixture and vnilla. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and sour cream, making three additions of flour mixture and two of sour cream, beating until smooth. Mix in chocolate chips.
4. Scoop batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated 350ºF oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack. Top cooled cupcakes with frosting.

Coffee Buttercream
Adapted from 125 Best Cupcakes
Makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes

2 sticks unsalted butter (The original uses 1 stick), at room temperature
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
Pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp instant coffee granules
1 tsp hot coffee (I just used hot water)
1 tsp coffee-flavored liqeuer, such as Kahlua

1. In a small bowl, using and electric mixer on low speed, beat together butter, sugar, and salt until well combined. Increase speed to high and beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, beating until frosting is smooth.
2. In a small bowl, mix together coffee granules, hot coffee and liqeuer. Stir until dissolved and cool completely.
3. Add cooled coffee mixture to butter mixture, beating until smooth, creamy, and well mixed.
4. Spread icing over cooled cupcakes with knife or pipe decoratively.

Golden Almond Cake

2005-12-29T15:21:00.000-06:00

I had low-fat sour cream I didn't use from Christmas cooking and decided to put it to some use in a nice cake before my brother left for Japan! So, from his choices, comes a simple almond cake with a buttercream frosting. I tried to fight off the buttercream choice as I have only made it once before and I don't feel like it is that easy to do yet, but he was pretty adament about it and persisted until I agreed and made a recipe from Martha Stewart. :) The cake is from Rose Levy Beranbaum's "The Cake Bible" and the frosting is from Martha's new Baking Handbook and also available on her website. It was originally almond buttercream but I substituted the almond extract for 1/4 tsp of Fiori di Sicilia flavoring I ordered from King Arthur Flour. It's like an orange dreamsicle all in a little flavoring oil..and it matched the almond cake really nicely. The texture of the almond cake was fantastic and was very flavorful. The buttercream was easy to make, which was nice considering how afraid of it I was! But it was the simple italian meringue kind, and not the classic French requiring whisking boiling sugar syrup into egg yolks, which I'm still afraid of since I screwed it up once. But! This was definitely a good step towards achieving buttercream mastery. The cake was light and refreshing and was enjoyed by all! :)

Golden Almond Cake

Orange Vanilla Buttercream

The Cake Put Together

A Simple Slice

Take a bite!

Golden Almond Cake
The Cake Bible

2 large eggs
2/3 cup (150 ml) sour cream
1 tsp (5 ml) almond extract
1/4 tsp (1 ml) vanilla
1-2/3 cups (400 ml) sifted cake flour
1/3 cup (80 ml) (finely ground) unblanched almonds
1 cup (225 ml) sugar
1/2 tsp (2 ml) baking powder
1/2 tsp (2 ml) baking soda
1/2 tsp (2 ml) salt
12 tbsp (175 ml) unsalted butter (must be softened)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175 C.).
Grease one 9 inch cake pan, line bottom with waxed paper or parchment, and then grease again and dust with flour.
In medium bowl, lightly combine eggs, 1/4 of the sour cream and almond extract.
In large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients and mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Add the butter and remaining sour cream.
Mix on low speed until dry ingredients are moistened. Increase to medium speed (high if using hand mixer) and beat for 1 1/2 minutes.
Scrape down the sides. Gradually add the egg mixture in 3 batches, beating 20 seconds after each addition. Scrape down sides.
Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth surface with spatula.
Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until wire cake tester inserted in center comes out clean.
Let cake cool in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Loosen sides with small knife and unmold.
Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar, fresh fruit, or a light buttercream frosting.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Martha Stewart
Makes 2 cups

3 large egg whites
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, room temperature
1/4 tsp fiori di sicilia flavoring (or 1/2 tsp extract of your choice)

1. In the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer, combine egg whites and sugar. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until the sugar has dissolved and whites are hot to the touch, 3 to 5 minutes.

2. Transfer the bowl to the electric mixer. Using the whisk attachment, mix on low speed, gradually increasing to high speed, until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 10 minutes.

3. With machine running on low speed, add butter to egg whites, beating until smooth. Add flavoring, and continue beating on low speed to get out the air bubbles.

SHF: Cookie Exchange!! - Browned Butter Crisps

2005-11-25T09:49:00.000-06:00

I couldn't pass up this SHF! I LOOOVVEEE making cookies for christmas... last year my favorites were Rose Levy Beranbaum's Chocolate Dipped Melting Moments... mmmm. I made these cookies yesterday to bring to my hostess for Thanksgiving... they were easy to make, especially since I HATE waiting for butter to soften!! That's one reason why I don't like making cookies sometimes... waiting for the butter to soften is something I'm usually too impatient to do. The recipe was quick enough to make to be able to get them done and ready for Thanksgiving .. giving! They have the delicious flavor of cinnamon everyone knows and loves.. with a subtle background tone of the cardamom.. all swimming in browned, nutty, butter! Delicious! The texture of the cookie is also delicious... crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside. They may seem like a plain cookie.. but that is why they're so great. They seem ordinary until you find that you can't stop eating them!! :)

Thanks for hosting this, Jennifer! It was a fun SHF to participate in and I can't wait to see all the other cookie entries! I plan on making tonnnsss of cookies this year.

Hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving!!

a close-up of the spicy buttery rounds

Browned Butter Crisps
From EGullet.com

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/8 tsp salt

1. In a small heavy saucepan, melt the butter and continue to cook until it browns. Watch carefully to make sure it doesn't burn. Let cool slightly.

2. In a large bowl, mix browned butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the egg and mix until smooth.

3. Stir the flour and spices until spices are distributed evenly; add to butter mixture and mix until blended thoroughly.

4. Drop by teaspoonfuls on parchment lined cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes, or until edges are turning golden and the tops have begun to crinkle.

5. Let cool on the sheets for a few seconds, then remove and cool completely.

Souffle Cake in the Pink

2005-10-09T12:39:00.000-05:00

So I haven't posted in quite some time.. again!! And I never did reply to that food tag event.. sorry!! I've been busy and not really in the mood for blogging much. But I wanted to participate in the In the Pink event hosted by la dolce vita for breast cancer awareness. This is a usual molten chocolate cake kind of dessert, and although they are called fallen chocolate cake, mine didn't fall much. But they were delicious anyway... and I accompanied them with a cheating strawberry sauce. I melted some vanilla gelato from Trader Joe's and mixed it with strawberry puree. The dessert was very tasty, although I thought the recipe was going to turn out something more of a dense, chocolate cake instead of the molten in the middle, airy on the outside, kind of cake when served warm. But it was still delicious! I tried it this morning when it was all cool and it is more of the texture I was looking for... So maybe when reheated it'll keep that denser texture and be even better. Experimentation will follow. In any case, this dessert was definitely pink! (I baked them in mini brioche tins for a more exciting shape) Thanks for hosting this event, Emily... It was a lot of fun to participate in (And I am glad I actually found out about this event in time to participate in it!! Hopefully I'll be able to do the same for the next SHF) and I can't wait to see all the other pink desserts that are promoting breast cancer awareness.

Individual Fallen Chocolate Cakes

You can substitute 5 ounces of unsweetened baking chocolate for the semisweet if need be, but you'll also have to increase the sugar by 6 tablespoons, for a total of 7/8 cup. To melt the chocolate and butter in a microwave oven, heat chocolate alone at 50% power for 2 minutes; stir chocolate, add butter, and continue heating at 50% for another 2 minutes, stopping to stir after 1 minute. If chocolate is not yet entirely melted, heat an additional 30 seconds at 50% power.

Serves 8

8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), plus extra for ramekins
8 ounces semisweet chocolate coarsely chopped
4 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour plus extra for ramekins

1. Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter and flour (or use cocoa powder) eight 6-ounce ramekins or Pyrex custard/baking cups; tap out excess flour and position ramekins on shallow roasting pan, jelly roll pan, or baking sheet. Meanwhile, melt 8 tablespoons butter and chocolate in medium heatproof bowl set over a pan of almost simmering water, stirring once or twice, until smooth; remove from heat. (Or melt chocolate and butter in microwave oven. See instructions above.)

2. Beat eggs, yolk, vanilla, salt, and sugar at highest speed in bowl of a standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment until volume nearly triples, color is very light, and mixture drops from beaters in a smooth, thick stream, about 5 minutes. (Alternatively, beat for 10 minutes using a hand-held electric mixer and large mixing bowl.) Scrape egg mixture over melted chocolate and butter; sprinkle flour over egg mixture. Gently fold egg and flour into chocolate until mixture is uniformly colored. Ladle or pour batter into prepared ramekins. (Can be covered lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerated up to eight hours. Return to room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.)

3. Bake until cakes have puffed about 1/2-inch above rims of ramekins, have a thin crust on top, and jiggle slightly at center when ramekins are shaken very gently, 12 to 13 minutes. Run a paring knife around inside edges of ramekins to loosen cakes and invert onto serving plates; cool for 1 minute and lift off ramekins. Sieve light sprinkling of confectioners' sugar or cocoa powder over cakes to decorate, if desired, and serve immediately with optional whipped cream.

SHF #10: Oh Honey, You Shouldn't Have!

2005-07-16T17:53:00.000-05:00

so for this shf, (the first one i've been able to or remembered to participate in a long time!) i made these honey bunches from the foodnetwork site. they are extremely simple to make and in little time you get little bunches of honey, nutty goodness! we enjoyed these but i think it was a bit too sweet so maybe reduce the honey to just 1/2 cup or so. and my oats were a little tough still so maybe after adding the honey and butter let it sit for a while so the oats could become a bit softer.. other than that, these are easy to make and pretty tasty! the honey flavor really comes through, i think. i actually even forgot about the shf this time until this morning when i saw a post for it on esuriente's blog! so i quickly scrambled to find a recipe and made these.. and now here i am, posting. so although i participated in this all on saturday, hopefully it will still be able to be part of the shf fun that i have missed!! looking forward to future ones.. thanks for hosting nic! :)

SECOND DAY VERDICT: i tasted one of these again today... i think they are a lot better the next day! the sweetness has mellowed out to the right amount of sweet and the oat is a bit softer i think.. so now these bunches are delectable!

Honey Bunches
Recipe courtesy Gale Gand

Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 24 cookies or more

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
1 1/2 cups quick cooking rolled oats
1/2 cup flaked sweetened coconut
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup honey
24 walnut halves

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter 2 mini muffin tins, or use 1 tin and bake in 2 batches. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the oats, coconut, walnuts, and flour and mix. Stir the honey into the melted butter and bring to a boil, stirring often. Add chocolate chips and pour the butter mixture over the dry ingredients and mix well. Press 1 heaping tablespoon of the mixture into each mini muffin cup. Bake until just beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately press a walnut half on top of each honey bunch. Let cool 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

savannah chocolate chewies

2005-07-05T19:16:00.001-05:00

these were the chosen cookies for the fourth of july party my friend hosted. i have been wanting to make these for quite some time and, even though they have no blue red or white spirit, were happy additions to the party. they have a nice crispy skin, but on the inside is all moist fudginess with nut goodness. try them! they're easy to make (you dump everything in a bowl and beat for one minute) and they're very tasty. no exotic ingredients, but a great cookie. mine made more than just 12 cookies.. i toasted the pecans before using them but i didn't chop the pecans up as much as maida had indicated for. they were fine that way though.

oh and i was nervous about making these before because they are supposedly best the day they are baked. but i had a cookie today and it is still delicious. maybe even better. ;) so don't hesitate to make these! they come from gottlieb's bakery and it is their number one best-selling cookie.

Savannah Chocolate Chewies
Maida Heatter's Cookies
12 large cookies

The cookies are large, very dark, very chewy, and since they have egg whites and no yolks (and no butter) they are a sort of meringue; a decidedly chocolate meringue.

8 ounces (generous 2 cups) pecans
3 cups confectioners sugar
2/3 cup unsifted, unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably dutch-process)
1 tsp powdered instant coffee or espresso
2 tbsp unsifted all-purpose flour
Pinc of salt
3 egg whites (they may be whites that were frozen and thawed)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºf. Line cookie sheets with parchment or with aluminum foil shiny side up. Pecans should be chopped rather finely. No pieces should be larger than a green pea, set aside.
2. Place sugar, cocoa, coffee or espresso, flour, salt, egg whites, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat slowly at first until the dry ingredients are moistened, and then beat at high speed for 1 min. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the nuts.
3. It is important now to spoon out the cookies as soon as possible. Once they are spooned out they can wait before baking, but if they remain in the mixing bowl for any length of time, they will not be beautifully shiny when baked. Use a tablespoon for spooning out the cookies (not a measuring spoon) -- make each cookie one rounded tablespoon of the dough -- and use another spoon for pushing off the mounds of dough. Place the cookies at least 1 inch apart on the prepared sheets.
4. I think these bake best if you bake only one sheet at a time. Bake for 15 minutes, reversing the sheet front to back once during baking to ensure even baking. When done, the cookies should be dry and crisp on the outside, wet and chewy inside.
5. If you have used parchment paper the cookies may be removed from the paper with a wide metal spatula as soon as they are done, and transferred to a rack to cool. If you have used foil, the cookies will have to stand on the foil until they can be lifted easily with your fingers (or, if you have trouble, peel the foil away from the backs of the cookies). Store these airtight.

cake and a cheesecake/custard fusion

2005-06-29T09:07:00.000-05:00

this cake is from maida heatter's cakes. i wanted to make something with mace or cardamom because i bought these two spices a long time ago but i haven't used them that much and i'm afraid of their losing their flavor. so! i looked through maida heatter's books for a good recipe to use and i chose this one as i had currants i also wanted to use and it included lemon and orange rind so i would have a chance to try out my new orange and lemon oils from king arthur! :) i soaked 1/4 cup less of currants than she calls for in rum instead of her called for water. and instead of caraway seeds on top (i don't have any), i used pearl sugar, also from king arthur.

this cake was simple to make, and the flavor is great! i really enjoyed the oils. i probably needed to use a bit more mace though, i think it's already losing its flavor! the currants were a delight. i thought my brother, who hates raisins, would not enjoy the currants either because they are the same idea of a dried fruit. but apparently he (and everyone else) really enjoyed this cake. i refrigerated this overnight as called for in the recipe, but i think after that you need to take it out again because it tastes better at room temp. enjoy this cake!

i made this cheesecake flan from foodandwine.com. i used a full 8oz cream cheese instead of 7oz called for because i wanted to use the entire block and not have 1oz left. this might have been a mistake since the texture was a bit more cheesecakey than i would've hoped for. but either way, it was very delicious. it was my first time making individual flans. it was fun, though! (and the recipe is extremely easy. just throw everything into the blender! that is a custard i can love to make.) popping out those cute little flans and seeing the caramel run down the sides is a treat. plus, if it's individual, you can keep the rest in the refrigerator and still have a lovely presentation each time you serve it.

Mrs. O'Shaughnessy's Cake
From "Maida Heatter's Cakes"
1 8 1/2 inch loaf cake

"This is an Irish loaf cake with a generous amount of currants that don't sink. It bakes with a richly browned crust, a nicely rounded top, and a mild lemon-orange flavor. It is delicious, easy to make, keeps well, and is lovely to wrap as a gift."

5 ounces (1 cup) currants (I used 3/4 cup which I thought was a good amount)
Boiling water (I used dark rum)
1 3/4 cups (7.75 oz) sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp mace (a bit more if your mace is starting to lose pungency)
4 oz (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup minus 2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
Finely grated rind of 2 lemons (I used 1/2 tsp lemon oil)
Finely grated rind of 1 orange (I used 1/4 tsp orange oil)
1/2 tsp caraway seeds (I used pearl sugar)

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Butter and flour a 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch loaf pan.
2. Cover the currants with the boiling liquid and let stand for 5 minutes. Drain in a strainer and turn out onto a paper towel to absorb excess liquid. Let stand.
3. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and mace. In a large bowl, beat the butter until it is soft. Cream with the sugar. Add the vanilla (and oils if you are using them). Then add the eggs one at a time, beating until thoroughly mixed after each addition.
4. On low speed add about 1/3 of the dry ingredients. Gradually add milk and beat until smooth. Then add the ramining dry ingredients and beat only until smooth.
5. Remove from the mixer and stir in the grated rinds and currants. Spread in the pan, then, with a rubber spatula or the bottom of a spoon, form a slight trench (about 1/2 inch deep) down the length of the loaf. That will keep it from rising too high in the middle.
6. Sprinkle the caraway seeds all over the top. Bake about 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean and dry. Let the cake stand in the pan for about 10 min, then remove it from the pan and cool on the rack.
7. If you can wait, wrap this and refrigerate it overnight or freeze it for about an hour before serving.

Cheesecake Flan
SERVES: 6

INGREDIENTS
·3/4 cup sugar
·1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
·3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons softened cream cheese (7 ounces)
·3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
·1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons evaporated milk
·1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons half-and-half
·3 large eggs
·1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
·Boiling water
·Whipped cream and fresh berries, for serving

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 275°. In a small, heavy saucepan, combine the
sugar and lemon juice and cook over moderately low heat until an amber
caramel forms, 6 to 8 minutes. Immediately pour the hot caramel into
six 1-cup ramekins, swirling them to coat the bottoms.
2. In a blender, combine the cream cheese with the condensed and
evaporated milks, half-and-half, eggs and vanilla and blend on medium
speed until smooth. Refrigerate the custard for 10 minutes, skim off
the foam and pour the custard into the prepared ramekins.
3. Set the ramekins in a small roasting pan; add enough boiling water
to reach halfway up the side of the ramekins. Bake the flans for about
1 1/2 hours or until they are set and a toothpick inserted in the
centers come out almost clean. Remove the ramekins from the water bath
and let cool, then refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight
before serving.
4. To unmold each flan, set the bottom of the ramekin in a pan of hot
water for about 1 minute. Run a thin blade around the edge of the flan
and cover with a plate. Invert the plate and shake once or twice; the
flan should release easily. Serve with whipped cream and berries.

baking as a saving grace

2005-06-09T20:42:00.000-05:00

through the stress and chaos in life, baking seems to save you time and time again. whether it be the soothing feeling that overcomes when the only thing on your mind is your devotion to creating a moist chocolatey muffin to greet you in the morning, the actual delight when biting into a ganache and buttercream layered espresso fudge cake, or being able to create a slice of chocolate and cream silk with a special someone.. baking comes through for me every time. and let's not forget the happiness that reflects off the faces of those who receive a share of the sugared joy made with care. even if sometimes it feels like friends love your desserts more than you. i have been quite busy lately..leading to enormous amounts of stress. but finally a sense of relief has come over and i can start to enjoy myself and life to its fullest again. and as fantastic as baking is, you can really enjoy it so much more when you don't have to do work or worry about it when it is in the oven and you are waiting to take it out. this saturday i'm leaving for philadelphia for a national speech and debate tournament.. but i will be sure to enjoy myself and the city, and of course the company of my friends whom i treasure. and there is not a better way to depart than making raspberry bars to take with us on the flight. so this is a tribute to baking that carries us through the toughest times and accompanies us through the happiest.

here is my new favorite pie to make, but an old favorite to eat.. with even more chocolate than the original by using an Oreo cookie crust instead of the usual pastry crust (although the classic is always good). nothing is more satisfying than serving yourself, a loved one, or anyone who would appreciate a taste of chocolate heaven, a slice of this pie after waiting for it to set in the refrigerator. i used pasteurized eggs, but the raw egg isue isn't that large.. and most certainly not large enough to stop you from making it. this pie is worth the risks... :)

French Silk Pie (Not pictured, sadly didn't get a chance)
Adapted from Pilsbury.com

Crust
~4 tbsp butter (2 oz), melted
A little less than two rows of Oreos, or any chocolate wafer cookies (About 30?)

Filling
3 oz unsweetened chocolate, cut into pieces
1 cup butter, softened (do not use margarine)
1 cup superfine or castor sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
4 pasteurized eggs or 1 cup fat-free cholesterol-free egg product

Topping
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
A few tsp powdered sugar

Chocolate curls, if desired

1. Mash up Oreo cookies until mostly crumbs, although leave a few larger chunks. Mix together with melted butter and press into pie pan. Refrigerate until the filling is ready.
2. In medium saucepan, melt chocolate over low heat; cool. In small bowl with electric mixer, beat butter on medium speed until fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in cooled chocolate and vanilla until well blended.
3. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating on high speed 2 minutes after each addition; beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy. Pour into cooled crust. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. Whip cream with vanilla and a bit of sugar and layer on the pie. Decorate with chocolate curls. Slice. Eat. Enjoy. Store in refrigerator.

Makes 8 delicious servings

chocolate cake squares

2005-04-09T10:15:00.000-05:00

i made the "chocolate cake squares (grandma hermalin's)" from maida heatter's book of great desserts this week.... sooo easy to make and sooo delicious!! it may not be the prettiest or fanciest cake, but it really hits the spot for some good ole chocolate cake squares that you crave in the middle of a busy week. the glaze called for was a semisweet one, but i only had milk chocolate left so i used that instead.. still delicious. in the cake batter, i added chocolate extract that i recently got from king arthur.. can't tell if it helped the cake taste better, as i have not had the cake without extract before. but the taste of the cake was fantastic. very chocolatey and moist cake!! no special ingredients in the original recipe, and it's even easier with cocoa powder as you don't need to fiddle with melting chocolate and such. i just used regular ole hershey's cocoa, which i thought had a weird flavor from previous baked goods experiences.. but no weird flavor in this cake. whew!! i was a little worried that it was going to come out tasting a little odd. the cake is very moist and somewhat dense.. and the glaze sets in later for a fudgy kind of frosting. anyway, for such a simple cake, i loved it and it was just what i wanted. :)

Chocolate Cake Squares (Grandma Hermalin's)
From "Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts"
Makes 9 portions

1 cup (4.5 ounces) sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup (1.75 ounces) unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp instant coffee
1/2 cup boiling water

1. Adjust oven rack one-third up from the bottom of the oven and preheat oven to 350ºF. Butter a 9-inch square cake pan and dust lightly with flour.
2. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a seperate bowl, beat the butter a bit to soften. Add the sugar and cream for a minute or two until fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. On lowest speed, add the cocoa. Then, in this order, gradually add one-half of the milk, one-half of the dry ingredients, remaining milk, and remaining dry ingredients, scraping the bowl frequently with a rubber spatula all during mixing. Mix only until smooth after each addition.
4. Dissolve the instant coffee in the boiling water. While it is still hot, add it very gradually on lowest speed to the chocolate mixture. Beat only until smooth. Batter will be thin. Turn it into the prepared pan and bake for abour 40 minutes or until top spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pan on a rack for about 10 min. Cover with a rack and invert. Remove pan. Cover with another rack and invert again to finish cooling right side up. Prepare the following icing:

Icing
4 ounces semisweet chocolate (or 4 ounces of whatever chocolate you wish to use)
2 ounces (1/2 stick) butter, cut into 4 pieces

In the top of a small double boiler over hot water on moderate heat, melt the chocolate. Remove top from the double boiler and with a small wire whisk beat in the butter, one piece at a time, beating until each piece is thoroughly incorporated before adding the next.
This icing may be used immediately, or if it is too thin, place the pan into ice water and stir constantly until icing thickens very slightly, but watch it closely to see that it doesn't harden. It should still be fluid when used.
Pour it over the cake and smooth with a long, narrow, metal spatula.

paper chef #5!

2005-04-03T16:15:00.000-05:00

proscuitto "crackers" with herbed chevre and balsamic caramelized onions

so for my second time participating in paper chef, the ingredients were chevre, proscuitto, sherry vinegar, and green garlic. well, i couldn't find neither the sherry vinegar nor the green garlic, so i used balsamic vinegar and green onion instead. what i did was fried pieces of proscuitto to make them crispy and used them as a "cracker base", if you will, to put on herbed chevre i got at trader joe's. then, i caramelized a white onion and glazed the onions with balsamic vinegar so in the end they were meltingly sweet and flavorful. gotta love caramelized onions!! i have some leftovers, too, so i can't wait to put those to use :) then i put the onions on top of the cheese, and garnished with some green onions. overall, it was quite tasty.. and i've never been a huge goat cheese fan but i actually quite enjoyed eating it this way. the herbed variety gave it a great punch of flavor. i might've had too large of a cheese portion though, so maybe if i were to do this again i'd put the caramelized onions on first, then top with a few dots of the chevre. i really liked the combination of flavors, even if i couldn't get the actual ingredients called for :( it was pretty fun coming up with something and putting together the parts. it also pushed me to use chevre, which i probably wouldn't have used in a dish otherwise. yay for another installment of paper chef!

caramel cheesecake bars

2005-04-01T13:14:00.000-06:00

i couldn't get enough of caramel from the shf, apparently... and made these caramel cheesecake bars. they're adapted from the strawberry cheesecake bars from king arthur flour cookie companion.. the great part is that you can take whatever you have on hand and swirl it in to make whatever cheesecake bars you want. i've made these before too with some leftover raspberry sauce. this time i didn't put nuts in the crust as i was making them for a big group and wanted to avoid nut allergy problems. still delicious. i would probably choose to put the nuts in next time if i could though, it gives the crust a great texture and taste. anyhow, these bars are very simple to make.. much easier than an actual cheesecake.. and this is easier to serve, transport, and makes more servings, too!! :) i like serving these chilled, like cheesecake, but they are fine at room temperature.

Caramel Cheesecake Bars
Makes 24 bars

Crust
1 1/2 cups (6 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks, 6 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (4 ounces) chopped pecans, toasted (optional)

Filling
1 lb cream cheese
3/4 (5 1/4 ounces) cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla paste (or vanilla extract)
2 large eggs
caramel sundae sauce to swirl in (or you can use 1/4 cup jam)

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 9x13 inch pan with foil and spray with nonstick spray.
2. Mix together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and butter. Stir in the pecans, if using. Press mixture into bottom of pan and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until it's set. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 min. while you prepare the filling.
3. Beat the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Gently beat in the eggs and vanilla. Spread the filling over the crust.
4. Squeeze lines of caramel sauce parallel to the 13inch side of the pan, about 3/4 inch apart. Use a knife to pull the caramel from side to side through the cream cheese at 1-inch intervals. (similarly, you can put the jam into a plastic bag and snip off the corner and pipe it onto the filling. warm the jam if it is too thick)
5. Bake the bars for 20 to 22 minutes, just until the filling is set. The middle should wobble slightly. Remove from the oven and run a knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the filling to prevent cracking. Cool completely, then refrigerate until completely chilled and firm before cutting.

IMBB 13: my little cupcake (or muffin)

2005-03-24T12:18:00.000-06:00

"frost yourself!"

lovin their new coats

no longer cute and cuddly, my army of cupcakes are ready for action..

not to worry, they still have a softer side that loves accessories like sprinkles

yay! my first IMBB event! and of course, it is a sweet one. i was very excited about this theme.. i love cake, so what is better than lots of mini, individual sized cakes?? i wasn't sure what to make though until earlier this morning.. one theme is hard enough to decide with.. but this was cupcake OR muffin.. twice the thinking to do! but i finally settled on cupcake and made marcel desaulnier's cupcake recipe from death by chocolate. i've owned this book and his chocolate cake book for a while but i hadn't yet made anything from them.. only admired the photos and drooled. but i decided that this event would be special and i would make one of his deadly recipes!! i didn't use his icing though, instead i made a whipped ganache frosting from 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, 1/4 cup heavy cream, and 1 ounce butter microwaved until melted, stirred, cooled to room temperature, refrigerated for about 10 minutes, and whipped until fluffy and creamy!

if you make these, make sure to brush the tops several times (i did so when they were still hot from the oven) with some sort of liquid! mine came out pretty dry and hard. i used coffee liqeuer, but any liqeuer will do, or simple syrup. nothing worse than a hard crust disrupting the fluffy lightness of a cupcake! i didn't do it liberally enough but it still helped things overall and next time i know that this is a great step to take if the tops come out somewhat dry.
then i iced with the ganache frosting and put sprinkles on a few and fleur de sel (a newly acquired ingredient that i'm excited to have fun with!)

these were the most chocolatey cupcakes i've ever had!! even though the tops came out dry (which wasn't a problem after soaking anyway), the insides were nice and moist and verryy chocolatey. i loved how there were chocolate chips interspersed in the batter that created little melty gobs of chocolate throughout the cakes. and the whipped ganache was fantastic with the cupcakes. creamy, chocolatey, and piled high on top, just how i like my frsoting. for little cakes, they packed a LOT of chocolate punch. make sure you eat these with a nice cold glass of milk. these definitely deserved their place in the death by chocolate book. :) can't wait to try more from his books!

this was a great first IMBB, and i'm looking forward to more events in the future. thanks, maki!

Granny Twichell's Secret Chocolate Cupcake Recipe
Recipe courtesy of Marcel Desaulniers from "Death by Chocolate"
Makes 18 cupcakes

10 ounces semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2-ounce pieces
1 cup heavy cream
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, broken into 1/2-ounce pieces
5 large eggs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Heat 1 inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. Place 10 ounces semisweet chocolate, 1 cup heavy cream and 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate in the top half of the double boiler. tightly cover with plastic wrap. Allow to heat for 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir until smooth. Set aside until needed.

Place the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Beat on medium until lemon-colored and slightly thickened, about 4 minutes. Add the melted chocolate mixture and beat on medium for 15 to 20 seconds more. Add the cake flour, baking soda and chocolate chips, and beat on low for 10 seconds. Increase to medium and beat for an additional 10 seconds. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Use a rubber spatula and thoroughly combine the batter.

Evenly divide the mixture into 18 bake cups that have already been positioned into muffin tins, filling the cups to within 1/4 below the rim. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

ICING:
1/2 cup heavy cream
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2-ounce pieces

Heat 1/2 cup heavy cream in a 1 1/2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Place 6 ounces semisweet chocolate in a stainless steel bowl. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth.
One at a time, dip the top of each of Granny's cupcakes into the chocolate icing. Sprinkle the grated white chocolate over the icing on each cupcake, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to set the icing.

Allow the cupcakes to come to room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

i've missed the blogging world!!

2005-03-22T16:16:00.001-06:00

so i've been taking quite the break from blogging lately! so very busy.. but thankfully things have calmed down.. and just in time for the shf, too!! now i shall take time to recap on what kinds of things i baked while gone from the blogging world... :) even through all the chaos going on, i always make time to bake lots of goodies.. i'm sure everybody can relate!! it makes everything seem like it's going great and in the end you have a delicious treat to comfort you.

nigella's fabulous chocolate cake

for valentine's day, i baked nigella's ubiquitous chocolate fudge cake from nigella bites that has been showing up on a lot of blogs lately! it was delicious, indeed. actually, before this one i also baked her old-fashioned chocolate cake from her new book feast to test out which one i actually wanted to make for valentines day as this was for a certain someone and i wanted to make sure it would be delicious :) anyhow, both cakes were good but i do like the chocolate fudge cake better. do make this cake! it's delicious. but just don't do what i did, which was forget to add the flour until you're about to put it into the pans!! the flour didn't blend into the very liquidy batter very well at that point so i had bits of white flour in the resulting cake.. :( but it was still delicious and moist!

more cookies more cookies!

mmm.. these are cook's illustrated thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies. i LOVVVEED these cookies!! the best ones i've made thus far in my baking beastliness... moist, chewy, large, yum yum and yum. i made these for a party and everybody had the same feelings towards these cookies. these were also the best looking cookies i've made.. i used an ice-cream scoop, chilled the dough thoroughly, and switched parchment paper in between each batch so the resultant oil from the previous batch didn't allow the next batch to spread out more. a good success.

other things i've been making include oreo congo bars from BetterBaking.com which i brought to school today...very easy to make, and made gorgeous, thick, gooey bars. everybody loved them as well. absolutely delicious! unfortunately, i don't have any pictures to present.. i had no bars left by the time i got back home! so you'll have to take my word that they were delicious. :) mouthfuls of chocolatey cookie delight.

Chocolate Fudge Cake
From Nigella Bites

I have a bad Amazon habit. You know the ‘when the going gets tough, the tough go shopping’ line? Well, the not-so-tough get their retail therapy online. Or I do: when I can’t sleep I start ordering books. And I comfort myself twice over by telling myself how useful they are, how they really help my work. I offer this recipe, adapted from a book that in itself soothes, Tish Boyle’s Diner Desserts, bought at 3am one unravellingly wakeful night, as proof.

This is the sort of cake you’d want to eat the whole of when you’d been chucked. But even the sight of it, proud and tall and thickly iced on its stand, comforts.

Serves 10. Or 1 with a broken heart

For the cake:
2 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated or superfine sugar
1/3 cup light muscovado or light brown sugar
1/4 cup best quality cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/2 cup corn oil
1 1/3 cups chilled water

For the Fudge Icing:
3/4 cup (6 ounces) dark bittersweet chocolate, minimum 70% cocoa solids
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Butter and line the bottom of two 8 inch cake pans.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugars, cocoa, baking powder, bicarb and salt. In another bowl or wide-necked measuring jug whisk together the eggs, sour cream and vanilla until blended.

Using a freestanding or handheld electric mixer, beat together the melted butter and corn oil until just blended (you’ll need another large bowl for this if using the hand whisk; the freestanding mixer comes with its own bowl), then beat in the water. Add the dry ingredients all at once and mix together on a slow speed.

Add the egg mixture, and mix again until everything is blended and then pour into the prepared tins. And actually, you could easily do this manually; I just like my toys and find the KitchenAid a comforting presence in itself.

Bake the cakes for 50-55 minutes, or until a cake-tester comes out clean. Cool the cakes in their tins on a wire rack for 15 minutes, and then turn the cakes out onto the rack to cool completely.

To make the icing, melt the chocolate in the microwave – 2-3 minutes on medium should do it – or in a bowl sitting over a pan of simmering water, and let cool slightly.

In another bowl, beat the butter until it's soft and creamy (again, I use the KitchenAid here) and then add the sieved icing sugar and beat again until everything's light and fluffy. I know sieving is a pain, the one job in the kitchen I really hate, but you have to do it or the icing will be unsoothingly lumpy. Then gently add the vanilla and chocolate and mix together until everything is glossy and smooth.

Sandwich the middle of the cake with about a quarter of the icing, and then ice the top and sides, too, spreading and smoothing with a rubber spatula.

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Cook's Illustrated
Makes about 18 large cookies

These oversized cookies are chewy and thick, like many of the chocolate chip cookies sold in gourmet shops and cookie stores. They rely on melted butter and an extra yolk to keep their texture soft. These cookies are best served warm from the oven but will retain their texture even when cooled. To ensure the proper texture, cool the cookies on the cookie sheet. Oversized cookie sheets allow you to get all the dough into the oven at one time. If you’re using smaller cookie sheets, put fewer cookies on each sheet and bake them in batches. See the illustrations below for tips on shaping these cookies.

2 cups plus 2 tablesthingys all-purpose flour
1/2 teasthingy baking soda
1/2 teasthingy salt
12 tablesthingys (11/2 sticks) unsalted butter,
melted and cooled until warm
1 cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 teasthingys vanilla extract
1–11/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Adjust oven racks to upper- and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl; set aside.
3. Either by hand or with electric mixer, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in chips to taste.
4. Roll scant 1/4 cup dough into ball. Holding dough ball in fingertips of both hands, pull into two equal halves. Rotate halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, join halves together at their base, again forming a single ball, being careful not to smooth dough’s uneven surface. Place formed dough onto cookie sheet, leaving 2 1/2 inches between each ball.
5. Bake, reversing position of cookie sheets halfway through baking (from top to bottom and front to back), until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool cookies on sheets. When cooled, peel cookies from parchment.

Oreo Congo Bars
From BetterBaking.com

Knock-out bars of brown sugar batter, stuffed with chocolate chips and thick chunks of Oreos. Get the milk.

3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
3 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cup Oreo cookie chunks
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
Melted white and dark chocolate for drizzling, optional garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Spray an 9 by 13 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a mixing bowl, blend butter, and sugar. Then add in eggs and vanilla and blend well. Fold in remaining ingredients. Spoon into the prepared pan, using wet fingertips to spread, if necessary. Pat batter down. Place the pan on the baking sheet.

Reduce heat to 325 F immediately and bake 35 minutes until set but still seems a bit soft. Cool 20 minutes and then drizzle on melted chocolate. Then freeze 1-2 hours. Cut into bars and wrap each in cello paper.

Makes 12 large bars, or 24 smaller ones

SHF #6: stuck on you

2005-03-18T23:22:00.000-06:00

coconut caramel candy bars

for this SHF caramel edition, i made the coconut caramel candy bars from the king arthur flour cookie book. the recipe is available on their website here, but in the book they used 3 cups (9 ounces) of coconut, reserving 1/2 cup for the topping (which i definitely enjoyed.. no problems here in that amount of coconut :) ). the bars were really VERY easy to make. and i sort of cheated by using this caramel sauce i had from starbucks. shhh!!! but it worked beautifully and i didn't have time to make my own caramel this week..and i didn't feel like going out and buying those caramel candies the recipe calls for. the recipe claims to taste like those samoa girl scout cookies (which are my favorite, by the way)... and they DO!!! they taste even better, if that is possible. :) the texture is very sticky and chewy and delicious... yummmmm!!!! the picture doesn't really do the bars justice.. i take awful pictures. :P i brought these for all of my friends to enjoy today.. and all of them absolutely loved them. one of my friends said that her last food she would eat if she were put on the death penalty were these bars. and another guy alone ate like 5 pieces of these. please, make them! they're fantastic. :) and amazingly easy to make, on top of that. now i won't have to wait until girl scout cookie time to enjoy the awesome taste of those samoas.

i just looked at our great host debbie's blog, and found out she made samoa-type cookies as well... those things just capture the hearts of so many.. :)
i had a lot of fun though making these.. and of course i enjoyed eating them even more. thanks for hosting the shf, debbie!! caramel is amaaaaazing!! great shf theme.

seeing alton

2005-01-21T16:15:00.000-06:00

it's alton!!!!!

wow.. what a crazy night! alton was supposed to be at the bookstore at 7pm.. so i left around 5:50 and got there around 6:30 ish almost.. the bookstore was already filled to its capacity.. which wasn't very large since it was a veryy small bookstore. so we had to line up outside and this proved to be very unpleasant as i thought it would be warm and left my coat in the car. i was #121 in line.. well. around 7 alton showed up! he talked for about 20 minutes inside the bookstore (yea.. had to miss that. i was almost in, too!! like 6th in line to be in the bookstore dang it..) so after that he started signing books and people left and we got circulated in, finally!! but that was only to buy the book.. then there were groups of 20 in line for signing. but we were just happy to be inside in the warmth! it was so cold outside. finally it was my turn to sign.. it was so cool to meet alton brown! i didn't really know what to say.. but he was very nice. after that, we left and headed towards the car... except it was nowhere to be found! apparently, we parked in front of someone's driveway without realizing it (it was dark..???) and they had it towed. SO!! we went back to the bookstore and called my mom for a ride...... but by this time it was around 9:30ish and there was basically no one left so my friend, my brother, and i went to talk to alton again. it was so weird and hard to believe that it was just us talking to alton.. we didn't talk much before my mom came.. but we talked about how it takes 3 days to make one episode and how his producing company doesn't make any money since it costs so much to shoot them. he didn't talk much, we could tell he was basically beat from the night. all in all, very fun. even though it was pretty crazy. and i got to see alton brown! and get a signed copy of "i'm just here for more food" yippeeee!!

AB's Cocoa Brownies

2005-01-20T17:24:00.001-06:00

FUDDGGYYYYY!!

CHEWWWYYY!!

in honor of the fact that i will see the man himself tonight.. i made his cocoa brownies! i chose this recipe mainly b/c i felt the urge to bake brownies but i didn't have a lot of chocolate but i had a lot of cocoa.. so .. made them i did. it's actually a pretty easy recipe.. if you don't manage to forget to add the butter like i did. i was halfway putting the VERY VERY DENSE batter into the pan and thinking how thick it was when it dawned on me that in the excitement of whipping the eggs i forgot to take out the butter and melt it.. and thus add it to the batter. and because the directions are so brief.. ("Add remaining ingredients") i forgot all about it. so i scraped all the batter back into the bowl and mixed in the butter. muccchh better. this was the first time i made brownies by whipping eggs until ribbon stage.. not sure how that changes the texture. (but it worked apparently!!) just a note for the recipe though.. i had to bake MUCH longer than 45 min.. almost an hour, i'd say.

well, i made them last night and let them sit overnight and had them for breakfast (of course, brownies for breakfast.). except i was pretty disappointed in the morning.. they were almost fluffy in texture! taste was good though. so i put them into the fridge to see if the chill would help it out.. and when i got home today i ate a piece.. YUMMMM!!!!! sooo much better this way. they were dense, fudgy, chocolatey, and ohhhh-soooo chewy. not like other brownies that are really just wet and fall apart on you. these brownies are thick and you can really sink your teeth into them. can't wait to see alton!

must.....see....alton....

2005-01-19T17:56:00.000-06:00

alton brown is coming to stl on thursday night!! who wants to go see him and get a signed copy of his new book?? emily does!! lol. that guy is so cool. and his new book is about BAKING! which i loove. no one ever comes to st. louis for book tours!! the oppurtunity is banging loudly on the door and i gotta take it. if only it weren't downtown.. must find a way......

edit: i found a way to get there! i can't wait!!!! soo exciting :)

chocolate and lemon madeleines

2005-01-17T13:54:00.000-06:00

made these cute little madeleines today! well, half made them today! made the batter last night and gave them an overnight rest until today. i had a little trouble with the batter.. i guess either my eggs or butter weren't truly at room temperature so even though i did the smearing (which i'm not sure if i did thoroughly enough??), the butter didn't mix into the eggs and appeared curdled. at first i tried whisking more and then tried to rub the butter into the mixture between my hands.. which was very laborious and i wasn't getting very far. then i remembered i had a hand blender and used that to blend the rest in. after that i finished the rest of the mixing and put it into the fridge. today when i was putting them into the molds, i thought the batter was reaaallyy thick and that i screwed up somewhere.. but after baking them they turned out fine! my humps aren't as pretty as i hoped them to be.. oh well. actually, these are my first madeleines so i don't really have anything to compare them to.. but i enjoyed them. good chocolate flavor.. but i didn't really notice any lemon flavor?? perhaps i didn't rub the zest into the sugar enough.. but they're still delightful cookies. nice texture and the shell shape is pleasing to look at and eat!

chocolate whoppers

2005-01-10T21:33:00.001-06:00

i made these "chocolate whoppers" from maida heatter's cookies book tonight. actually it is also listed in her book of great desserts as "mulattoes" but has 1 tsp of baking powder and uses all walnuts (which i decided to do anyway) instead of half pecans and walnuts in the new recipe..but i chose to use the new version with 1/4 tsp baking powder and i am glad i did. my friend's birthday was today and i didn't think about making her anything over the weekend.. and i realized it today!! i felt really bad and asked her to make a request for anything she wanted.. she replied with chocolate and walnuts. well, i think i embodied her request in a truly decadent cookie!! not much more than chocolate and walnuts, these cookies are crackled in appearance on the outside, and fudgy and dense on the inside. wonderfully chocolatey, chock full of nuts, and easy to make! also, the walnuts aren't overwhelmingly walnutty.. my brother, who usually hates walnuts, said these cookies were good and enjoyed them!!(which, for his criticalness, equates to a very good, according to my scale... ;) ) it amazed me that he would actually eat something with walnuts and deem it good! maida heatter never fails.. :) hopefully my friend will forgive me for being a day late!

cookies packed up ready to be received and devoured

Chocolate Whoppers
From Maida Heatter's Cookies

Makes 15 tremendous cookies

We were at the Soho Charcuterie, one of my favorite restaurants in New York City. They brought us a dish of huge, gorgeous, dark chocolate cookies that we had not ordered. They smiled secretively and knowingly, and watched me. I tasted one; it was wonderful. I was just about to ask for the recipe when they said, "These are yours." I soon learned that they meant it both ways: The cookies were mine to eat or take with me, and also, the recipe was from my first book. They had increased the size of the cookies and made a few other little changes and they called them Chocolate Gobs. They told me that they couldn't make them fast enough. This recipe is based on their adaptation.

At Sonrisa bakery, in beautiful Rancho Santa Fe in southern California, these are called Charlie's Cookies, in memory of a friend of ours who was a great World War II naval pilot. His name was Charles Stimpson, and he shot down 17 Japanese planes. These were Charlie's favorites.

2 ounces (2 squares) unsweetened chocolate
6 ounces semisweet chocolate
3 ounces (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons powdered (not granular) instant coffee or espresso
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 ounces (1 cup) semisweet chocolate morsels (see Note)
4 ounces (generous 1 cup) walnuts, broken into large pieces
4 ounces (generous 1 cup) toasted pecans (see To Toast Pecans, page 4), broken into large pieces

Adjust two racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat oven to 350°F. If you are baking only one sheet, adjust a rack to the middle of the oven. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or foil.

Place the unsweetened chocolate, semisweet chocolate, and butter in the top of a small double boiler over hot water on moderate heat. Cook, covered, for a few minutes. Then stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove the top of the double boiler and set aside, uncovered, to cool slightly.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and set aside.

In the small bowl of an electric mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, coffee or espresso, and vanilla at high speed for a minute or two.

Beat in the melted chocolates and butter (which may still be quite warm) on low speed just to mix. Add the sifted dry ingredients and again beat on low speed just to mix, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary with a rubber spatula to incorporate the ingredients. Remove from the mixer and transfer to a larger bowl.

Stir in the chocolate morsels, the walnuts, and the pecans.

Use a 1/3-cup metal measuring cup to measure the amount of batter for each cookie. Put five cookies on each cookie sheet, one in the middle and one toward each corner. Use a rubber spatula to push the mixture into the measuring cup and then to scoop it out onto the lined sheet (the dough is gooey). Do not flatten the tops.

Bake two sheets at a time, reversing the sheets top to bottom and front to back once during baking to ensure even baking. Bake for 16 to 17 minutes-no longer. The surface of the cookies will be dry but the insides will still be soft. There is really no way to test these; just use a portable oven thermometer before baking to be sure your oven is right, and then watch the clock.

If the sheets have four rims the cookies and papers or foil will have to wait on the sheets until cool. If you have used cookie sheets with only one or two raised rims, you can slide the papers off the sheets and let stand until the cookies are cool. (It is not necessary to let the sheet cool before sliding it under another paper with unbaked cookies on it.)

When the cookies have cooled, use a wide metal spatula to release them and turn them over to air the bottoms a bit.

I wrap these individually in clear cellophane, and I know of a few bakeries that do the same and charge up to $4.00 or $5.00 for each cookie.

Note: If you wish, in place of semisweet morsels, use 6 ounces of Tobler Tradition, Excellence, or any similar chocolate, cut into 1/2-inch chunks.

paper chef january 2005: sauteed chicken with potatoes, napa cabbage, and carrots

2005-01-08T17:18:00.000-06:00

well, this month's paper chef consisted of these ingredients: potatoes, savoy cabbage, lemon, and chicken. i tried to find savoy cabbage, but had no luck so i ended up using what i already had in the house, napa cabbage. and of course there was no way of me getting a meyer lemon in missouri.. so i used a regular lemon. for the dish, i decided to make sauteed chicken with potatoes and napa cabbage. so i browned some chicken thighs, add shallots and garlic, add white wine, and then dump in potatoes and cabbage. then i threw in rosemary for delightful flavor that i knew went well with chicken and lemon. later on, i added a quartered up lemon. well, after tasting after simmering for a while, i found it to be quite sour! guess i should've only used half a lemon or something. so i added chicken broth and carrots to see if it would help the situation any.. a little but not much. then i got a little desperate and threw in baking powder to neutralize all the acid. and then realized i added a little too much so i threw back in the lemons that i had taken out and added some white balsamic vinegar and dry marsala wine. sooo, after much toying around with ingredients, i finally served it up and it was actually pretty good! the chicken was very tender and tasted pretty good. went along with the vegetables nicely and even though i was a little skeptical about using napa cabbage it turned out well since napa cabbage doesn't have a strong flavor. all in all, it was a pretty good dish. thanks to tomatilla for hosting this event!! it was really fun to plan, execute, and enjoy. :)

my chicken dish cooking away

here's the dish, all finished up.

SHF #4: Let's Go Nuts!

2005-01-07T23:17:00.000-06:00

for the fourth edition of SHF: let's go nuts! i made the nutella tart from chocolate desserts by pierre herme. it has nutella spread on the bottom of a sweet tart shell and a ganache + egg/egg yolks on top, and a delightful sprinkling of toasted hazelnuts. i was sort of in a hurry when making this.....and eating it too. finished baking at around 10:40.. only let it cool off for around 20 min. before trying a little bit as i didn't want to wait any longer! even if it's meant to be eaten at room temperature. well, it is very tasty!! i love the nutella layer at the bottom, and the filling compliments it very well. the crunchy nuts on top complete it! it was pretty good warm, but will probably be better room temperature, so we'll see tomorrow i guess. anyway, very successful tart, and my first time using a tart ring! looks pretty good for first time, eh? but overall, very easy tart to make. try it out!

update: i tried it chilled this morning (for breakfast, of course), and it is AWESOME!! a lot better than warm, i must say. sooo good, can't wait to eat more. :)

update 2: put the recipe on here... btw, i only used about 1/2 cup of hazelnuts on the top and that was enough. love this more every time i eat it!!

Nutella Tart
from "Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme"

The Crust
-1 fully baked 8 3/4 inch (22 cm) tart shell made from Sweet Tart Dough (recipe below), cooled to room temperature.

Keep the cooled crust, with the tart ring still in place, on the parchment-lined baking sheet. (The crust can be made up to 8 hours ahead and kept at room temperature.)

The Filling
2/3 cup (200 grams) Nutella
4 3/4 ounces (140 grams) bittersweet chocolate, preferably Valrhona Noir Gastronomie, finely chopped
7 tbsp (3 1/2 ounces; 200 grams) unsalted butter
1 large egg, at room temperature stirred with a fork
3 large egg yolks, at room temperature, stirred with a fork
2 tbsp sugar
1 cup (140 grams) hazelnuts toasted, skinned, and cut into large pieces

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375ｺF (190ｺC).
2. Spread the Nutella evenly over the bottom of the crust and set it aside while you make the ganache.
3. Melt the chocolate and the butter in seperate bowls either over - not touching - simmering water or in a microwave oven. Allow them to cool until they feel only just warm to the touch. (104ｺF [40ｺC], as measured on an instant-read thermometer, is perfect).
4. Using a small whisk or rubber spatula, stir the egg into the chocolate, stirring gently in ever-widening circles and taking care not to agigate the mixture -- you don't want to beat air into the ganache. Little by little, stir in the egg yolks, then the sugar. Finally, still working gently, stir in the warm melted butter. Pour the ganache over the Nutella in the tart shell. Scatter the toasted hazelnuts over the top.
5. Bake the tart for 11 minutes -- that should be just enough time to turn the top of the tart dull, like the top of a cake. The center of the tart will shimmy if jiggled -- that's just what it's supposed to tdo. Remove the tart from the oven and slide it onto a rack. Allow the tart to cool for at least 20 minutes, or until it reaches room temperature -- the best temperature at which to serve it.

Makes 6 - 8 servings. The crust can be made ahead, but the filling has to be baked the instant it is made. Although the tart is best served at room temperature, if you refrigerate any leftovers, you'll find happy takers the following day.

Sweet Tart Dough

You'll get the best texture if you make a large quantity of this dough; make only enough for one tart, and you'll run the risk of overworking the dough. Once made, the dough can be wrapped in individual tart-sized packages and frozen for up to a month.

2 1/2 sticks (10 ounces; 285 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (150 grams) confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/2 cup (lightly packed) (3 1/4 ounces; 100 grams) finely ground almond powder or finely ground blanched almonds
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla bean pulp or pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
3 2/3 cups (490 grams) all purpose flour

To make the dough in a mixer:
Place the butter in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on low speed until creamy. Add the sugar, almond powder, salt, vanilla, and eggs and, still working on low speed, beat to blend the ingredients, scraping down the paddle and the sides of the bowl as needed. The dough may look curdled -- that's all right. With the machine on low, add the flour in three or four additions and mix only until the mixture comes together to form a soft, moist dough -- a matter of seconds. Don't overdo it.

To shape and chill:
Gather it into a ball and divide it into 3 or 4 pieces: 3 pieces for 10-inch (26 cm) tarts, 4 for 9-inch (24-cm) tarts. Gently press each piece into a disk and wrap each disk in plastic. Allow the dough to rest in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or for up to 2 days, before rolling and baking. (The dough can be wrapped airtight and frozen for up to a month.)

To roll and bake:
1. Place a buttered tart ring on a parchment-lined baking sheet and keep close at hand. Roll the dough to a thickness of between 1/16 and 1/8 inch (2 and 4 cm), lifting the dough often and making certain that the work surface and the dough are amply floured at all times. Roll the dough up around your rolling pin and unroll it onto the tart ring. Fit the dough onto the bottom and up the sides of the ring, then run your rolling pin across the top of the ring to cut off the excess. If the dough cracks or splits as you work, don't worry -- patch the cracks with scraps (moisten the edges with water to "glue" them in place) and just make certain not to stretch the dough that's in the pan. (What you stretch will shrink later.) Prick the dough all over with the tines of a fork (unless the tart will be filled with a runny custard or other loose filling) and chill it for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
3. When you a ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350ｺF (180ｺC). Fit a circle or parchment paper or foil into the crust and fill with dried beans or rice.
4. Bake the crust for 18-20 minutes, just until it is very lightly colored. If the crust needs to be fully baked, remove the parchment and beans and bake the crust for another 3-5 minutes, or until golden. Transfer the crust to a rack to cool.

Makes enough dough for 3 10-inch or 4 9-inch tart shells. The dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or wrapped airtight and frozen for a month. Frozen disks of dough take about 45 minutes to an hour at average room temperature to reach a good rolling-out consistency. Baked crusts can be kept uncovered at room temperature for about 8 hours.

"The Chewy" Chocolate Chip Cookie

2005-01-04T16:01:00.000-06:00

you can find the recipe here at food network -> The Chewy

I made these cookies a while ago actually.. but just haven't posted about them until now. they came out really well! very nice taste and were very delicious out of the oven. took a while to get them to be perfectly shaped (have to switch parchment paper so they can cling onto the fresh, nonoily surface) but in the end they turned out to be the best looking chocolate chip cookies i've made. i am still searching for that "perfect" cookie though, b/c when i tried a cooled cookie later they became quite dry... maybe something i did wrong. oh well. also, i'd advise to just use 1/4 tsp regular table salt instead of kosher because i occasionally came across a little crystal of salt that didn't dissolve fully and it wasn't that pleasant.

white chocolate raspberry cheesecake

2004-11-28T09:43:00.000-06:00

hehe.. yes. another cheesecake. my friend requested one.. so i had to deliver, right?? anyway, i made the white chocolate strawberry cheesecake recipe from epicurious but with many changes. i actually made a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake with swirled in coulis (raspberry puree).

i'll repost the recipe here with my changes...

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
adapted from Epicurious.com
Makes 12 to 14 Servings

Bake this at least one day ahead.

crust
1 9-ounce package chocolate wafer cookies, broken into pieces
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

filling
1 pound good-quality white
chocolate (such as Lindt or Baker’s), finely chopped
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons vanilla extract

coulis
12 oz. (1 package) frozen raspberries, thawed
1/4 c sugar + 2 or so tbsp
2 tsp lemon juice

white chocolate curls, to decorate (optional)
whipped cream, to decorate (optional)

for crust: Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 325°F. Butter 10-inch-diameter springform pan. Finely grind cookies in processor. Add melted butter; process until crumbs are moist. Press crumbs onto bottom and 2 inches up sides of pan. Bake until set, about 15 minutes. Cool on rack. Maintain oven temperature.

for coulis: Cook over medium heat the thawed raspberries and 1/4 cup sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 more minutes until all sugar has dissolved. Puree either with a hand blender, food processor, or blender. Strain out the seeds with a sieve. Stir in lemon juice and additional sugar until desired sweetness is achieved. Set aside to cool.

for filling: Stir white chocolate in top of double boiler set over barely simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from over water. Cool to lukewarm, stirring occasionally.

Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese in large bowl just until smooth. Gradually add sugar, then salt; beat until smooth. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape the bowl down occasionally. Add sour cream, whipping cream and vanilla; beat until well blended. Gradually add melted white chocolate, beating until mixture is smooth. Swirl in half of the coulis (keep the other half for serving), but don't blend in. Pour filling into crust.

Bake cake until top begins to brown but center still moves slightly when pan is gently shaken, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Open oven door slightly; turn off oven. Leave cake in oven 30 minutes. Chill cake uncovered overnight. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover; keep refrigerated.)

Run small knife between pan sides and cake. Release pan sides. Decorate with white chocolate curls and whipped cream, if desired. Serve each slice with reserved coulis.

recipe archives

2004-11-28T09:27:00.000-06:00

i'm going to keep an archives of all the recipes i post and the stuff that i make for easy reference. :P

apple financier tart
caramel cheesecake bars
"the chewy" chocolate chip cookie
chocolate cake squares
chocolate espresso bars
chocolate whoppers
cook's illustrated chocolate chip cookies
french silk pie
granny twichell's secret chocolate cupcake recipe
mocha chocolate chip cheesecake
nigella's chocolate fudge cake
nutella tart
oreo congo bars
pineapple upside-down cake
white chocolate macadamia blondies
white chocolate raspberry cheesecake

new books new books!

2004-11-18T21:24:00.000-06:00

yesssss... MORE cookbooks!!!! just what you need to keep you going through a slow week or for that matter, year. new acquisitions: feast by nigella lawson, luscious chocolate desserts by lori longbotham, flavors by donna hay, i want chocolate! by trish deseine.. and soon to come: the new best recipe by cook's illustrated, bouchon by thomas keller, sweet miniatures by flo braker, and appetite by nigel slater. OH MY!!!!!! i think i've gone crazy, i really do think so.... will someone help me?? i have a very large addiction indeed. but, on the bright side, i'm LOVING all of the ones i've gotten so far and i totally cannot wait until i get all the others. all the books i've already received are BEAUTIFUL and amazingly delicious looking. i'm sure the ones to come will be as well. quite excited about feast :) the luscious chocolate desserts is also very nice.. recommended. it's a cute little book full of pictures for almost every recipe and they seem great. i've tried the french chocolate macaroons.... tasty tasty! anyway, that's what i've been doing lately. allow me to go bury myself in more books! :)