Finally the recipe!

So this picture above is the chocolate version of the cake, but I liked the lemon one better so here is the low down.

Lemon Lavender Cake

Cake
1 cup butter
1 3/4 cup white sugar
6 eggs whites
1/4 tsp lemon extract
3 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp lavender flowers (you can get them in loose tea form at Whole Foods or Health Nuts)
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

Soak the lavender flowers in the buttermilk over night. Pour through a mesh sieve to get the flowers out.

Sift your flour with the salt and leavening. Sift it. I mean it. It really helps. Also, make sure to let your eggs and butter come to room temp. It's important!

Cream your butters and sugars together. Add in the flavorings. Add the flour and buttermilk in alternating thirds.

Beat the piss out of the egg white until they are glossy and fold them in to batter. Pour batter into 2 floured 9" cake rounds and bake in a pre-heated oven at 325 for about 35 mins.

Lemon Filling
I cribed this from Martha

6 large egg yolks
zest of 2 lemons
juice of about 4 or 1/2 cup
12 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup butter cold and cubed

Get an ice bath ready with a bowl. Whisk together yolks, zest and juice and sugar in a small sauce pan over medium heat and stir constantly. Cook until think enough to coat the back of a spoon. Like a hot lady.

Remove from heat and add the butter in piece by piece. Letting each one melt. Pour through a mesh sieve in to the bowl in the ice bath.

Place a sheet of plastic wrap onto the surface of the curd so it won't form a skin and chill at least 1 hour.

Frosting
1 lb butter
5-7 cups icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup whole milk
1 tsp lavender

Let the lavender soak in the milk over night.

Bring the butter to room temperature and beat until fluffy. Add in the vanilla and milk. Sift in the sugar until you get a nice icing consistency.

Once the cake layers are fully cooled, cut them each in half and assemble that bitch!

Lavender and Lemon Birthday Cake

It was a steamy weekend, perfect for baking right? RIGHT. A fancy cake for a fancy man. And a great excuse to dry run an experimental recipe. A cake made with the herb lavender. I've long wanted to try baking with this relaxing and fragrant flower. I adapted my buttermilk cake recipe and stepped the milk overnight with the flowers to get the aromatic taste in with out being overwhelming. I filled the layers with a lemon curd and infused the frosting with lavender as well. I will be reprising this cake for Kelly's birthday and perfecting the recipe. I will post it then!

Praline King Cupcakes

Just in time for the Saints to win the Superbowl, just before Lent starts I suggest some indulgent buttery, nutty cupcakes. I whipped these up for the Neighborsman Superbowl fiesta. I made the mistake of trying to put a baby in one of the cupcakes, but I didn't have a baby. So, I used a toy soldier, but it was too big. I cut off the legs, but it still didn't fit. The tip of the gun stuck out! But if you do put in a baby or anything else, be sure to put it in after baking. No one likes the taste of plastic!

Praline King Cupcakes

yield 24 cupcakes

2 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 cups brown sugar
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup milk
3 eggs, at room tempurature
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup chopped pecans

Pre- heat the oven to 325. Sift all the dry ingredients together. Beat the butter until light and fluffy and beat in the sugars. Add in the eggs one at a time and beat thoroughly. Beat in the vanilla. Add in the sour cream and the milk. Add in the flour in thirds and mix thoroughly. Fold in the pecan last. Fill the cupcake liners 1/3 of the way and bake for 15 - 20 minutes.

For the icing:
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 lemon juice
1-3 tablespoons water
food coloring

Sift the powdered sugar. Beat in the lemon juice and add water to achieve the desired consistency. Add the food coloring to get the colors you'd like.

Peache Cobbler for our Southern Belle

For Lynly's birthday this year, they threw an old school BBQ! In honor of all things southern and pig based, I baked a complimentary Peach Cobbler. We drank plenty of wine and ate until we just couldn't and of course had the karaoke through down!

Peach Cobbler

10-12 ripe peaches, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus some for greasing the pan
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
juice of half a lemon

for the crust
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 tablespoons brown sugar
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons brown sugar, to sprinkle on top

Pre-heat the oven to 400. Generously butter a rectangular baking dish.

You can blanch the peaches to peel them, but I never so that. It's such a pain in the ass and to have a 400 degree oven AND a huge pot of boiling water going would be just unbearable in this small, Chinatown apartment! I just peeled and sliced them up.

In a large sauce pan, melt the butter, add the peaches, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon and lemon juice. Simmer over medium low heat until the peaches are relatively soft.

Combine the flour, the rest of the brown sugar, baking powder and soda together with a whisk. Then cut in the butter using a pastry cuter or knives or your fingers. What ever you have and what ever works. I love my pastry cutter, but I hate cleaning it. Once the dough has formed that grainy pastry texture add the milk to make a relatively sticky dough.

Pour the peaches in the dish, dollop the dough over the top and sprinkle some brown sugar on top. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until the top of the biscuit dough is brown and firm.

Serve with vanilla ice cream. This is not an option!

Three years down the line

The birthday girl getting down (via Webber)


Your hostess getting down with fellow revelers! (via Webber)



Three years into my annual tradition of baking up something special for Ms. Jackson, I already decide to mix it up with cupcakes. This year felt classic all over. Ms. Jackson celebrated her actual birthday on the 4th by singing the national anthem at the Nathan's Hotdog eating contest. Watch it! And we got to celebrate the 4th with the time honored American tradition of breaking the law and blowing stuff up! I am feeling a little cheeky today. It's reflected in the recipe below. Comments from the eaters included, "I think my mouth just had an orgasm." and "I can die happy and fulfilled now that I have eaten that." and also "Holy Crap!"

Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate and Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

yield 2 dozen
3 cup of all purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
4 eggs, also room temp
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup buttermilk

Pre-heat the oven to 350. Line your baking trays with cupcake liners. If you're me, get your shims ready for your really uneven oven!

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugars and vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly for each egg. Beat them like you would beat a bad school girl/boy. *Wink

Sift together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking soda.

Add 1/3 dry to the butter mixture and blend well. Add 1/3 of the buttermilk and mix well. Repeat two more times. Pour into the liners and bake 15-18 minutes until a tooth pick comes out clean.

For the frosting
1 stick butter, softened
1 pound of confectioners sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 teaspoon raspberry flavor
5-6 tablespoons milk

Beat the butter until very light and fluffy. This is even more beating than the eggs, so it must be very bad! Sift in the powdered sugar and add the flavoring. Add milk to get your desired consistency.

cupcake calvalcade

Todays post at A Softer World got me thinking about cupcakes and what kind to make next! I have a big birthday coming up at the end of the month and I am already thinking about what kind of cake to make for that. Maybe as a run up I can do some excellent cupcake sized experiments. Any suggestions as to the kinds of things that you would like to see take cupcake form?

Here are a few from the archives:
Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Whiskey Butter cream
Lemon Lingonberry Cupcakes
Triple Ginger Cupcakes with Lime Buttercream Frosting

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Whiskey Butter cream

Being invited to a potluck is an excuse to bake which I would never squander. So for last nights festival of deliciousness complete with bacon infused vodka, I contributed dessert!

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Whiskey Buttercream

makes 24 cupcakes
2 cups flour
1 cup of butter (2 sticks) room temperature
2 large eggs room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 12oz bottle of Guinness
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Pre-heat the oven to 350.

In a bowl combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt and whisk together.

In a large bowl, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add in the sugars and whip until well combined. Add one egg and beat until fully mixed and the batter gets fluffy again. Add the second egg and the vanilla, repeat. Add the sour cream and beat well.

Add about 1/3 of the flour and beat well. Then add 1/3 of the Guinness and beat well. Repeat in thirds until the batters is free of streaks and well mixed.

Fill the cupcake liners with about 1/4 of the batter. bake for 17-20 minutes, until a tooth pick comes out clean Rotate half way through if your oven bakes unevenly or if it's like mine is on an actual incline.

for the frosting
2 sticks butter room temperature
5-7 cups of powdered sugar
6-8 tablespoons of whiskey or bourbon

Whip the butter until fluffy. Sift in the powdered sugar cup by cup, whipping thoroughly in between each addition. Add the whiskey near the end for flavor. Frost the cooled cupcakes!

C is for Cookie

Once again and to the delight of the hostess, 312 Square Feet is haunted by the hungryghoast. It's helpful to have things levitate to you in the kitchen, but not helpful when you turn your back only to find all of the chairs stacked in a precarious yet artful pile.

Tonight, we got to performing the Oatmeal Rum Raisin Cookie experiment. It was relatively successful but the results are still coming in. There should be more rum and the raisins should soak in the rum over night to really plump them and get the taste.

Oatmeal Rum Raisin Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3 cups oatmeal
1 cup raisins
6 tablespoons dark rum

Mix the vanilla with the rum and the raisins, cover and soak over night, ideally. If not over night, at least two hours.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Beat the eggs and add to the raisin mixture. Let rest and come to room temperature.

Cream the butter and the sugars together with a beater. Sift the flour, spices, salt and baking soda together, make sure they are well combined. Add the dry ingredients to the sugar and butter and mix well.

Add the raisin and egg mixture, beat well. Lastly add the oats.

Roll into balls and place on un-greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes depending on the size of your cookies.

Comforting Continued - Bourbon Pecan Pie

It's still cold out. Ronnie and I are still kind of nursing ourselves back to some kind of health, emotional and physical, what ever. What better way to do that than to whip up a pie that has three or four of my favorite things:
1. Pecans!
2. Bourbon
3. Dark Chocolate
4. Butter
With the added bonus, it's PIE!

So we spent this Saturday after class napping and baking and feeling self indulgent.

Bourbon Pecan Pie - HungryGhoast told me that this is also called a Derby Pie. He had a hand in suggesting the chocolate addition.

Bourbon Pecan Pie

for the crust
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4-6 tablespoons ice water

for the filling
1 1/2 cups roughly chopped Pecans
3 generous shots bourbon
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
3 egss
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate (you can add more for more chocolately goodness)

Soak the nuts in the bourbon for several hours. I put mine in and then went for a 3 hour nap. Then made the crust, which needs to be refrigerated for an hour, while I watched Dollhouse. So, I'd say mine were soaking in the sauce for 4.5 hours.

Make the crust. I tell you how here.

Pre-heat the oven to 350. Combine all the ingredients, except the nuts and chocolate. Beat well. Add the nuts and chocolate. Pour into the shell. Bake for an hour. Don't over bake. It will continue to cook and set when you take it out of the oven. Mine was undulating, popping and hissing like a cat in tub of water.

Also, this pie is delicious and very addicting. In fact, it was my breakfast.

Another added bonus, here is Ronnie yesterday, enjoying her favorite treat of lettuce. I know, she's a weird cat. She takes after her mother.

Comfort Food

It's cold out and changes of all sort have been a foot. The best thing to turn to is an old friend. One that you know will always be steadfast no matter what the window dressing is. And this week, that friend is the apple pie or my take on it.

Tart Apple Pear Pie with Gruyére

for the crust
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup butter cut into 1/2" cubes and chilled
1 teapoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
6-8 tablespoons of ice water

for the filling
6 Granny Smith Apples
2 large Comice pears or Barlett pears
Juice of half a lemon
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Gruyere Cheese for grating on top

In a food processor or the old fashioned way with a pastry cutter, mix the flour, salt, and sugar together. Add the chilled butter. I like to put it in the freezer for about 15 minutes and I also freeze my flour. Storing flour in the freezer saves space in my tiny kitchen! Plus the food processor 6 - 8 times until the butter is broken up into the flour but not thoroughly blended. Add the ice water a tablespoon at a time and pulse, repeating until the dough forms small beads and sticks together with a pinch. It should not be wet all all. Roll into two balls and wrap in plastice warp and chill for at least an hour. It will keep up to a week.

Thinly slice the apples and pears. Squeeze the lemon over them and toss. In a large bowl mix the flour, sugar and spices, add the apples and thoroughly toss.

Pre-heat the oven to 375. Roll out the dough and line a pie dish.

Add the filling and cover with the other piece of dough. Brush with water and sprinkle with a little sugar. Cut in slits at the top for venting.

Bake for 45 minutes on the low rack. Then add lots of cheese grated on the top and bake for an additional 15 minutes until the cheease just starts to brown.

Let cool and serve how you like, with ice cream, more cheese or whipped cream.

Lemon Lingonberry Cupcakes

photo courtesy Lisa Webber

So the semester has begun and with it, the precious dwindling of my free time. I will try desperately to bring you quality recipes, but the postings maybe far and between for the next few months. As I learn to balance work, school and life, bare with me! This might be a phase of using pre-made foods and sprucing them up to become more healthy and quality meals.

For now, here is a wonderful Lemony Cupcake recipe I created for the return of our prodigal Swede, Malin. We feted her in fine fashion a few weeks ago with a spread of modern takes on traditional Swedish food. An excellent herring and egg salad a top fresh toast points, Nordic cheeses, fine wines and the required, Swedish meatballs from Ikea rounded out the food table.

Lemon Lingonberry Cupcakes

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
3 eggs, separated, room temperature
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
juice and half the zest of one fresh lemon

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Sift dry ingredients, except sugar, together.
Cream the sugar, butter, vanilla, lemon juice and zest together. Add in the egg yolks, beating thoroughly in between each.
Add the flour and buttermilk in three additions, alternating dry and wet, mixing completely between each.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff.
Fold the egg whites into the batter.
Put in baking cups and bake for 20-25 minutes, until they pass the Toothpick Test!

Frosting
2 packages cream cheese, softened
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3-5 cups confectioner sugar

Beat the cream cheese, vanilla and lemon zest together. Sift in the sugar until desired sweetness and consistency is reached. Feel free to add more lemon for zing!
Chill until spreadable.
Frost each completely cooled cupcake and top with a dollop of tart lingonberry preserves. You can sub this with any other tart fruit spread, but it won't be Swedish!

Mole Cake Redux

The fantastic Lynly celebrated her birthday this past weekend with a home karaoke throw down! Chock full of delicious food like mini chopped beef sandwiches with pickles and bean and cheeses empanadas, and of course, amazing conversation from Lynly's ragtag of friends from all over the city and country.

To celebrate, I decided to take her Texas/South of the boarder flavor and re-work my Mole Cake. Less dense than the first and with a Dark Chocolate Ganache (sans the chilies this time), the cake was still richly spicy and had the perfect moist crumb. I love the Mole Cake! No one expects the sweet and the spice. It makes a cooling dessert on a hot night, especially when topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Mole Cake 2.0

2 sticks butter, softened
2 cups sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups cake flour, sifted
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon ground pequin pepper
1 whole dried ancho chili
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
2 tablespoons ground pumpkin seeds

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease, flour and line the bottoms of two 9" cake pans with parchment paper.

Finely grind all the chilis and sift in with the cocoa powder and dry seasonings. Whisk together with sifted flour, baking powder, soda and salt.

In another bowl, beat the butter with the sugars until very fluffy. Beat in each egg, one at a time, beating thoroughly for each egg.

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, combine very well, then add 1/3 of the butter milk, combine well. Continue until all combined into a smooth batter.

Bake 25-30 minutes until it passes the cake test and cool in pans for 10 min. remove from pans and cool completely before frosting.

Honey for the First Year

We celebrated Miss Jackson's transcendence to her 29th and the 1 year anniversary of 312 square feet, in fitting fashion with a decadent, yet almost savory cake. The request this year was to honor the missing bees and bake with honey. I created a pistachio sponge cake with a deliciously rich, but not overly sweet French buttercream frosting.

The cake came out with a perfect sponge crumb, and next time I will take advantage of that by sprinkling the layers with combination of simple syrup and orange liqueur. You bake, you learn!

Pistachio Cake with Honey Buttercream

2 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
10 eggs, room temperature and separated
1 cup pistachios shelled and finely chopped

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Flour and line the bottoms of three 9" cake pans with parchment paper.

Whisk the four and baking powder together to combine. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until thick. Longer than think about 15 minutes.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites together until light and fluffy and stiff peaks form. Again, this will take longer than you think! Get a magazine in one hand and your mixer in the other. (Please! Some one get me a Kitchen Aid!)

Fold this into the egg yolks, fold in the flour and then fold in the pistachios.

Bake until the cake test comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes.

for the icing
6 egg yolks at room temperature
1/3 cup honey plus 1/2 cup honey to add to taste
2 cups butter, softened

You see "room temperature" in all of my cake recipes. I can not stress enough how important it is to bring you butters and eggs to room temperature. They bake better cakes, especially butters. Since they will combine better with your sugars.

This recipe is not for an American buttercream, which is basically butter and powdered sugar, which I love, but can have over power sweetness. I wanted to have an icing that really emphasized the savory cake and the deep floral nature of the local farmer's honey.

Beat the egg yolks until pale yellow, again longer than you think! they should be very, very light.

Heat the honey over medium heat until just bubbling. Slowly pour in stream into the eggs. Be careful to avoid the beaters. Beat until very well combined.

Beat in the butter, pat by pat until you get the consistency you like. It will be much more shiny and soft than other frostings. Add more honey until you get the flavor you desire.

Smoothest Birthday Ever

Lisa's birthday was a day long meander through Brooklyn's best! Masterminded by the other habitant of the 381, Miss Kelly. We all surprised her at the Botanical Garden and spent a leisurely morning walking barefoot on the grass, smelling the flowers, embarrassing the other patrons and fully enjoying the beautiful spring day.

Then we moved on the Macy's, where we scandalized the genial photographers at the portrait studio. Our dysfunctional family portraits came out, well, nice? We get them tomorrow, so expect to be scandalized as well!

We rounded out a full day with a late lunch at Brooklyn Heights outpost Frannies. Washing down excellent appetizers of Bruscetta with Ramps and Marscapone and an excellent salad of pea shoots and ricotta salada with 2 bottles of a refreshing Lambrusco ($42 and worth the splurge!). The sparkling, dry red had a lush deep garnet color and a lovely lavender froth from the fine bubbles. Served chilled, this is going to be the summer jam! Frannies has flavorful thin crusted pizzas in a variety of tempting flavors. We sampled the Provalone with Red Onions and the Margherita. Both were delicious and a value at $14-$16 a piece. If you are out in that part of Brooklyn, I highly recommend paying a visit to the friendly staff at Frannies.

And the denouement to the day was, or course, the grand fete at 381 complete with Red Velvet Cake. I ended up using the recipe from the Buttercup Bakeshop but I did experiment with frosting. I made several chocolate versions before landing on a classic chocolate butter cream with the twist of almond.

Chocolate Almond Buttercream Frosting

1lb confectioner's sugar
2/3 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
1 stick butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
5-6 tablespoons milk

Sift powdered sugar, mix in cocoa and salt and sift again.

In a large bowl, beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add in about 1/3 of the sugar/cocoa mixture and beat until well combined. Add 1-2 tablespoons of milk near the end to wet. Repeat two more times with the rest of the sugar. At the end add milk in little spoonfuls to get the desired consistency.

Frost your cake!

Indian Influenced Brunch

Lazy Sundays are meant for creative kitchen expression. This morning, I decided to make something I hadn't made in a few years, waffles! Though my old roomie and I loved to make whole wheat waffles, since I have live alone, I haven't broken out the waffle iron.

These Indian influenced waffles have ground almonds and orange flower water. Though the y didn't have as much almond taste as I had hoped, they were still very delicious. The recipe below contains almond extract which was not in what I made but I will add next time to help punch up the almond flavor.

Almond and Orange Flower Water Waffles with Cardamom Apricot Spice Syrup

makes 6-8 waffles
1 cup whole wheat flower
1 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
6 tablespoon butter, melted
3 eggs, separated
1 tablespoon orange flower water
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup almonds, ground

Sift together all the dry ingredients except for the almonds. In a large mixing bowl beat with an electric mixer egg yolks, melted butter, milk, almond extract, and orange flower water. In a non-reactive bowl, beat the egg whites until very stiff.

Add the flour mixture to the liquid, beating until relatively smooth. Beat in the ground almonds. Fold in the egg whites. Pour on to a waffle iron and enjoy!

For the syrup
1 cup grade A maple syrup
8-10 dried, canned or fresh apricot halves (if using dried, soak for 10-15 minute in water to rehydrate)
3 dark cardamom pods
1 stick cinnamon
3 cloves
1 star anise pod

Over lower heat, combine all the ingredients and let simmer until the fruit is soft and the syrup is aromatic. Remove all spice pods and serve over the waffles.

Red, Red Research

image from Cake Man Raven

Dearest Lisa's 30th birthday party is coming up soon and the birthday girl requested the classic red velvet cake with the twist of chocolate frosting, inspired by the Sexy Red Velvet Cupcake from Sunshine Sweet Bakeshop on the Lower East Side. I am torn on the myriad of recipes that I have found on the web. Oil verse butter? Red food coloring or fruit/vegetable juice reduction?

I am inclined to use butter since I love butter and the flavor of it in cakes. I am also inclined to use food coloring to keep it more authentic, since no one I know has a food dye allergy and it's no longer toxic (one hopes). Though I did find a very interesting recipe that incorporates less sugar and subs in strawberry syrup rather than red food coloring.

Many of these recipes also call for all purpose flour which I am a little against when baking a large cake. Cake flour is ground finer and it really does improve the texture of cakes, especially ones that are suppose the be lighter and airy. A dense chocolate like my Chocolate Chili Cake can use all purpose flour but any buttermilk or chiffon cake should be made with cake flour.

Here's a list of links to recipes that I have collected. I will post what ever adaptation I come up with after the cake has been properly devoured by revelers celebrating another fantastic year of Lisa!

Cake Man Raven's Red Velvet Cake
Buttercup Bakeshop Red Velvet Cake
New York Times - Adapted from "The Confetti Cakes Cookbook" by Elisa Strauss
Tartlette Red Velvet Cakes
Red Velvet Cake IV from All Recipes

Annual Fulbright Dinner

One of the perks of my job is the annual Fulbright hosted evening. When the foreign Fulbright students convene on New York City in early spring, we get the pleasure of having these very talented, interesting individuals over for dinner. It is always an evening of interesting conversation and exchange of ideas, two of the things the IIE really stands for.

For this years evening, I was able to host Stephen, a lawyer from Canada, Tim, an English major from Germany and Ari, an Education Administration student, as well as 312 square feet regulars Octavio and Kelly. The conversation ranged from their experiences studying in the US to the current election season, a topic that has been on the lips of most of my friends. We talked about the merits of the No Child Left Behind bill and the drawbacks of high stakes testing.

I served a meal that drew on mainly on the influence of the Wildwood cookbook from the Pacific Northwest and my New England upbringing. It was a successful meal of Two Color Tomato Salad, Herb Salmon Baked over Salt with Fennel Mashed Potatoes and finished off with old fashioned Apple Brown Betty.

Here are some of the recipes that I cooked.

Fennel Mashed Potatoes

adapted from the Wildwood Cookbook

1 fennel bulbed
1 cup cream
2 tablespoons cracked fennel seeds
4-5 Yukon Gold potatoes
salt and pepper to taste

Slice the fennel bulb, add the fennel seeds and cook it over medium-low heat, don't boil the cream, until the fennel is soft, about 30-40 minutes. At the same time boil the potatoes until soft. In a food processor or blender combine, fennel cream mixture and potatoes, add plenty of salt, who doesn't love salty potatoes! and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Apple Brown Betty

5-6 large Granny Smith, Mitsu or other tart baking apple
juice of one lemon
1/2 stick butter
1 1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 granulate sugar
1 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch ground cloves
pinch of salt

Pre-heat the oven to the 375 degrees. Generously butter a deep baking dish.
Slice the apples thinly and toss with the lemon juice. Combine the sugars, bread crumbs and spices. Layer a third of the bread crumb mixture onto the bottom of the dish, put half of the apples and dot with butter. Layer another third of the bread crumbs, then apples and dot with the rest of the butter. Top off with the remaining third of the bread crumbs and bake for 40-50 minutes until the apples are soft and the juices are bubbling.

I served this with ginger ice cream from the Chinatown Ice Cream factory!

Casey's Molé Cake

I love a challenge, especially when it involves a cake. This year for Casey's very special birthday, I was tasked to make a cake for someone who loves savory and chocolate. I wasn't about to make a bacon cake (her other favorite food). We decided on chili and chocolate. Taking influence from Casey's request and 312 square feet's boyfriend, Octavio's homeland, I made a Molé Cake with Chocolate Ganache Frosting with Pequin Chili. It had a creeping spice and was definitely rich.

I combined a classic chocolate buttermilk cake recipe with the ingredients for a traditional mole. The only thing I couldn't find was pumpkin seeds, so I would substitute with ground sesame seeds or even 2 tablespoons of creamy peanut butter.

I also was able to bust out my birthday present for the first time! I got a Quisenart from Octavio and I finally got to use it to grind up the chilies to a fine powder. I was so excited by this gift. I finally get to retire my pour abused blender!

Not for the faint of heart, this adventuresome cake was loved by the birthday girl, but the spice was too unexpected for some palates!

Molé Cake

8 onces unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups water
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon ground pequin chilies
1 whole dried ancho chili seeded and ground
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon dried cloves
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, ground or creamy peanut butter or 1 tablespoon ground sesame seeds
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 sticks of butter
5 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla

Pre-heat oven to 375. Grease and flour 2 nine inch cake pans.

Bring the water to a boil and pour over the chopped chocolate and cocoa powder. Let sit for about 1 minute before beginning to whisk until smooth.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a bowl. Add the ground chilies, cinnamon, clove and if you are using ground seeds add those.

Cream the butter and sugars together in a large bowl. Add each of the egss one at a time, beating well in between. Add vanilla, buttermilk, peanut butter if you are using it, and beat until well combined.

Add about 1/3 of the four mixture and mix. Add in half of the chocolate and combine. Repeat adding in chocolate and flour until all is just mixed.

Pour into to the cake pans and bake for 45-55 minutes depending on your oven. This yields a very dense rich chocolate cake.

Chocolate Ganache Frosting with Pequin Chili

12 onces good quality dark semisweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups cream
4 tablespoons butter, sliced into pats
3/4 teaspoon ground pequin chilies
2-3 cups powdered sugar

Heat the cream until just bubbling. Pour over the chopped chocolate and chili. Let stand about a minute to melt the chocolate then whisk until smooth. Add the butter and mix until well combined. Let the mixture cool completely, stirring occasionally. Beat with an electric mixer and sift in the powdered sugar until it has a nice smooth texture.

Assemble the cake by cutting each completely cooled layer in half. See my post on the Black and White Cake for the technique. Layer the frosting and the cake layers. Top with some red sugar for effect!

Easter Brunch

Taking a lazy morning, Octavio and I decided to bake some bread to offset the lack of heat in my apartment this week and have a nice and hearty brunch.

312 square feet mascot is feeling better and begging for some of my baking! Or mayer she wants some of the delicious eggs that Octavio whipped up for us.

Easter Brunch
Scrambled eggs with Smoked Salmon and Goat Cheese
Sauteed Swiss Chard
Golden Raisin and Fennel Irish Soda Bread
Lattes

Golden Raisin and Fennel Irish Soda Bread

2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup softened butter + 2 tablespoons melted for brushing
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup yogurt
1 egg
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon cracked fennel seeds
1 cup golden raisins

Pre-heat oven to 375. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add softened butter and mix. Add in milk, yogurt and egg and mix until all the doughs is wet. Turn out on to a floured surface and knead lightly. Cut an X into the top with a sharp knife and brush with some melted butter. Bake for 45-55 minutes, brushing periodically with butter, until a toothpick comes out clean.

6th Annual Easter Party at 381

This year marked the 6th year of Kelly and Lisa's annual feast of debauchery in the honor of Easter. There was an excellent cheese platter and dips galore. Of course there was no lack for libations with everyone supplying many wonderful and varied bottles of wine.

I baked up an experimental batch of cupcakes inspired by an amazing cookie that I had at a friends baby shower. Triple ginger cookies with a lime icing, the cookies were sublime. These cupcakes came out pretty well, though I will increase the amount of spice in the cupcakes for more of a gingery bit. In the recipe I will put the amount that I will put in next time! Basically I would double it.

Triple Ginger Cupcakes with Lime Buttercream Frosting

makes 24 cupcakes

2 3/2 all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 sticks butter, room temperature
1 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
2 inch cube of ginger grated and any juice
1/2 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
1/2 teaspoon ginger

Pre-heat oven to 350. Cream the sugar with the butter. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating for 30 seconds in between eggs. Add in the vanilla, lemon zest and grated ginger. Sift together all the dry ingredients. Add the milk and the dry ingredients alternating between dry and wet in six additions. Fold in the crystallized ginger. Bake for 15 - 18 until they pass the tooth pick test.

For the Icing:
1 lb. confectioners sugar
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/8 teaspoon salt
juice of one lime (about 2 tablespoons)

Beat the butter until it gets fluffy and sift in the sugar beating until well combined. Add the lime juice and beat until fluffy. Add more sugar or lime to suit your taste.

Frost the cupcakes with a large ridged pastry tip and decorate with some strips of powdered ginger.