Ube Macapuno Cake

Like most food bloggers, I have a long "to do" list when in comes to creating new desserts in my kitchen.  This particular recipe has many variations and is not your typical American cake.  It contains purple yam-which is not commonly found here.  The other unusual ingredient is the macapuno, or preserved coconut. Both of these ingredients can be found at an Asian Market.

Overall, I found the cake to have a wonderful light flavor with great texture.  It is not as sweet as most American cakes, but it was a nice change of pace. The whipped cream and cream cheese frosting was the perfect topper.  As you can tell by the above picture, the cake color is very eye catching which is an extra plus.  However, concerning the macapuno, I did not find it to be particularly appealing according to my tastes. If you have not tried it, it would be a good idea to try it prior to baking this cake. 

This cake, due to its appearance, would be a perfect finale to an Easter meal.

Ube Macapuno Cake
adapted from Heart of Mary  

Ingredients/Cake
7 eggs, yolk and white separated
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup cooked &/mashed purple yam/ ube
3 tbs baking powder
2 1/4 cup cake flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 1/2 cups sugar
violet gel paste (optional)

Ingredients/Frosting
1/2 cup sugar
1-12 oz jar macapuno
1-8 oz package of cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Prepare 2-9 inch round cake pans and 1 8X4 inch loaf pan by greasing and lining the bottom interior with parchment paper.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In one bowl, beat together mashed purple yam, egg yolks, milk and olive oil until smooth.  If you are using gel paste beat 1/4 tsp.  Continue to beat in gel paste until desired color is met.  Set aside.

In another bowl, sift together baking powder, cake flour and salt. Using a wooden spoon, fold flour mixture into egg batter until smooth and no dry streaks remain.  Set aside.

Fill the bowl of a stand mixer with the egg whites.  Beat on high until foamy.  Then, beat in the cream of tartar.  Switch the speed of the mixer to medium and continue to beat. Slowly pour in a steady stream of the sugar.  Once all sugar is in the whites, switch blender back to high and beat until the whites reach a stiff peak stage.

Fold the whites into the purple batter until evenly distributed.  Separate and pour the batter into the 3 pans.  Place pans in oven and bake until tester comes out clean.  Bake time should be about 30 minutes.  Pans should be rotated at the 15 minute interval.

Remove pans from oven and place on rack to cool for 5 minutes.  Then invert cakes onto rack and let cool completely before removing parchment paper and frosting.

Using a food processor, grind the 1 loaf cake until it all becomes crumbs.  Set aside. 

To make the frosting, place the cream cheese in a small bowl and beat until smooth.  Then, in the bowl of a stand mixer, add sugar, vanilla extract and whipping cream.  Beat on high speed until mixture has a stiff consistency and all ingredients are thoroughly blended together.  Add the cream cheese and beat on low speed until smooth. 

Fill a sieve with the macapuno and let some of the syrup drain. Using 3 small bowls, divide the frosting into thirds..  Choose which of the two cake layers to use for the bottom and top.  Top the bottom layer with 1/3 of the frosting.  Then spoon on 1/3 pf the macapuno.  Place the second cake layer on top and frost top and sides with another 1/3 of the frosting. 

Sprinkle cake crumbs on top of the cake.  Then, using handfuls of cake crumbs, press into the sides of the cake until crumbs are completely used and cake is covered.  With the remaining frosting, pipe big rosettes around the top edge and small rosettes around the bottom edge. Lastly, spoon and smooth the remaining macapuno onto the top center of the cake.

Notes and tips:
1.  I found the amount of cake crumbs to be too much.  Use your own judgement when it comes to the batter amount for the loaf pan.  Bear in mind the less batter will mean less cooking time.

2. When using the gel paste for coloring, consider that the addition of the egg white mixture will lighten the color quite a bit.  It is up to you how dark or light you want your cake to be in color.

3. The cake is very moist, so when it is inverted onto the rack, invert again so parchment paper is touching the rack.  Otherwise there will be a lot of cake sticking to the rack.  Once the cake has completely cooled then your can invert again to remove the parchment paper.

                                **LAST YEAR: Chocolate Glazed Zucchini Cake Slice**

Peach Oatmeal Cookies

These cookies are more in the realm of healthy instead of indulgent.  If you crave a healthy treat, these cookies are quite satisfying.  If you crave something rich and chocolatey, this is not the recipe for you.

However, someone at work did make the suggestion of ice cream with these.  Perhaps using these cookies and sandwiching vanilla ice cream between them may get closer to the mark for those that are wanting something more sweet.

After some of the decadent desserts, this is a nice change of pace.  The cookies are soft and chewy with an occasionally bite of dried peaches. These cookies, since they have molasses, bake up to a dark color, but the molasses is something I would not skip in the recipe. I am not a big fan of raisins, so the dried peaches were very suitable for my taste. This recipe makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

Peach Oatmeal Cookies
adapted from Desserts from Loveless Cafe

Ingredients
3 oz dried peaches (1/4 inch chopped pieces)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbs of molasses
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/4 cup of flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/3 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup or 1 stick of butter (room temp)

Prepare two baking sheets by lining with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together the flour, baking soda and cinnamon.  Then stir in the oats and set aside.

In another bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar. Add the vanilla extract and the molasses and beat for 1 minute, scraping down sides of the bowl at the 30 second interval.  The end result should be a fluffy light batter.  Beat the egg into the batter, scraping down the sides of the bowl again to make sure all is blended. 

Using a wooden spoon, fold the dry oat mixture into the batter.  When only a few streaks of flour remain, add the dried peaches.   Stir until there are no streaks of flour and peaches are evenly distributed throughout the batter.

Drop heaping tablespoons of batter two inches apart on prepared baking sheets. You can use a scoop or a spoon.  Place pans in preheated oven and bake for 8 minutes and rotate and bake for another 8 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cookies cool on pan for 2 minutes and then transfer to a rack to completely cool.

Tips and Notes:
1. The recipe states you can also use sorghum in place of molasses.  The end result will be the same dark cookie but sorghum has more sweetness than molasses.

2. When I baked these, they took about 12 minutes to get done so keep a close eye on your baking time.
                                   **LAST YEAR: Barista Brew Pie**

Chocolate Chunk Cream Cake

It has been a little while since I have posted here.  Friends and co-workers have been asking about some baked goods, so I wanted to make something different that was not too big of a project.

These are actually bars, even though the title states cake.  This recipe hails from a label on some gourmet chocolate bars.  The chocolate bars are the Julia Baker chocolate brand.  The idea of reserving chocolate bars for baking may be a difficult task, but the effort to resist eating the bars by themselves does pay off.  The chewy, tasty texture of the cream cheese in the batter paired with rich chunks of chocolate make for one tasty treat.

Chocolate Chunk Cream Cake
adapted from Julia Baker via Bakingdom.com

Ingredients
2 eggs
4 oz of cream cheese
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
4 tbs melted butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup plus 2 tbs cake flour
1 cup confectioners sugar
3-4oz chocolate bar, coarsley chopped

Prepare an 8x8 inch pan by greasing the interior. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.  Whisk in the granulated sugar. Stir in the melted butter.  Then add 1 egg and mix until all is smooth.  Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula or back of a spoon to making sure all is even.  Place 1/2 of the chocolate bar pieces on top of the batter.  The pieces should be placed so the coverage is even and no pieces touch the sides of the pan.  Set pan aside.

Beat the cream cheese in a small bowl on medium speed for 30 seconds.  Then scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat for an additional 30 seconds.  The cream cheese should be smooth and fluffy.

Sift 1/4 cup confectioners sugar into the cream cheese and stir until no dry streaks remain.  Repeat this process, scraping down the sides of the bowl at each interval,  until all the confectioners sugar is blended.   Using a wooden spoon, mix in the egg and the vanilla extract.

Pour this mixture evenly over the first batter layer in the pan.  Then finish by placing the remaining pieces of chocolate on the cream cheese layer.  Again, take care not to have any pieces touch the sides of the pan.

Bake for 30-33 minutes.  Cake will have a deep golden hue when done.  Cool completely before cutting and serving.

Notes and Tips:
1. original recipe states that you can also use a 4X11 inch tart pan.  Since the removal of the cake does require a sharp knife to be run along the edges, do not use a tart pan with scalloped edges.

2. As stated above, the cake will not easily slip out the pan for removal.  The bottom has no issues it is just the sides due to the toasted edges.  The greasing helped a little, but it still needed a knife run along the edges.

3. I used caramel filled as well as regular dark chocolate bars.  Using the caramel filled bars caused  an occasional grit or crunch to the bite.  Based on that, I would use a plain dark or milk chocolate bar.
                                       **LAST YEAR:Fried Apple Hand Pies**
 

Pistachio Layer Cake

This particular cake may take some time, but the flavor combination of the pistachio and lemon curd is quite a treat.  In the cookbook, Momofuku Milk Bar, Christina Tosi does state that this cake became a bestseller.  After tasting this, I do agree.

As you know, food bloggers are not real big on making things twice.  However, I am ready to make this again so I can share it with more people.  Sometimes the big projects in the kitchen are well worth the time and effort, and I put this cake in that category,

This is a six inch layer cake that does require some special equipment.  You will need a six inch cake ring and 2 strips of acetate (3"X 20").  The acetate strips are sometimes referred to as cake collars.

Before starting on this cake, the layering components should already be made.  The recipes for these items can be found (here). Please read through all this recipe prior to making this cake.  This will insure that you are aware of the time and the special ingredients required.

Pistachio Layer Cake
adapted from Momofuku Milk Bar

Ingredients
1 cup of flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup of blanched almond flour
1 3/4 cup sifted confectioners sugar
2/3 cup pistachio paste
3 tbs glucose
1/2 cup pistachio oil
1/4 cup heavy cream
6 egg whites (separated/add each in increments)

Prepare a baking sheet by coating the interior with non stick spray and lining with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using a stand mixer, beat together the pistachio paste and glucose together until smooth.  This will take about 2-3 minutes on medium speed.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl when finished.

Put the mixer on low speed and add each egg white to the mixture.  Let the mixer run for about a minute before adding the next egg.  Repeat the same step with all the egg whites, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl after each 2 egg increment.

Keeping the mixer on low speed, blend the confectioners sugar and almond flour.  Continue to beat the mixture for about 3 minutes.  Stop and then scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Then turn the mixer back on low speed and slowly pour in the pistachio oil and the heavy cream.  Those ingredients should be fully incorporated into the batter after one minute.  Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl again.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Using a wooden spoon or spatula, fold the sifted ingredients into the batter until no dry streaks remain.

Spoon the batter onto the prepared pan and smooth to an even layer.  Bake for 20-22 minutes.  Cake is done when the edge bounces back when touched lightly and the cake starts to pull away from the edge of the pan.  Remove from oven and let cool in the pan completely before  proceeding.

Assembly Components (recipes here)

1/2 cup pistachio oil
1 recipe lemon curd
1 recipe pistachio frosting
1 recipe milk crumbs

Invert the cake onto another piece of parchment and peel off the top piece of parchment.  Using your cake ring, cut out two layers.  You will have some cake scraps left over which will be the bottom layer of your cake.

Clean the cake ring and place it on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Line the ring with one piece of the acetate strip.  Take the cake scraps and place inside and lightly press the pieces together to form and even layer. Brush that layer with 1/4 cup of your pistachio oil.

Spoon 1/2 the batch of lemon curd onto the pistachio soaked layer.  Smooth out the curd into an even layer using a small knife or the back of a spoon.  Then sprinkle 1/3 of the milk crumbs over the lemon curd.  Press lightly so the crumbs are adhered to the curd.  The next layer added is 1/3 of the pistachio frosting.  Smooth the surface in the same manner as the lemon curd.

Take the other strip of acetate and tuck it between the cake ring and the previous piece of acetate.  The acetate should only overlap by 1/4 inch.  Choose the worst of the two layers (good layer is for the top) and place inside the acetate, on top of the pistachio frosted layer.  Smooth on the components in the same order and manner as done for the first layer.  In this process, reserve 1/2 of the remaining pistachio frosting and milk crumbs for the top layer and use up all the lemon curd and pistachio oil.

Place the top layer onto the second and smooth on the remaining frosting.  Sprinkle the rest of the milk crumbs on top.  Place the cake in the freezer for 12 hours for flavors to meld.  3 hours prior to serving, pop the cake out of the cake ring (push from cake bottom up) and peel off the acetate. Transfer to cake stand or platter.  Wrap cake in plastic and let defrost for 3 hours.  This cake will last in fridge well wrapped in plastic for up to 5 days.

Tips and Notes:

1. It is important that you have a good sturdy cake pan to insure that the cake bakes evenly.  Older pans sometimes get warped and cause problems when baking.

2. The hardest process I found was installing the 2nd acetate strip.  Since the strips are 20 inches there is a lot of overlap that must be kept even.

3. The amount of pistachio oil brushed on the layers is personal preference, I found the 1/2 cup to be too much initially. However to my surprise, it did finally meld with the cake during the chill time.

4. Do not press or mash the cake scraps too hard for your first layer.  The cake pieces still have to be somewhat spongy to soak up the oil.
                                  **LAST YEAR: Citrus Pie**

Pistachio Cake /Stage 1-Components

Well, I finally got around to doing the project recipe from the above book. This particular cake takes several hours for the flavors to meld and has several components that make up the layers.

This post contains the recipes for the filling, frosting and milk crumbs.  However, if you do intend to try this delicious and unusual cake, please read over this as well as the actual cake recipe. The cake recipe will be posted tomorrow.  Review is needed to make sure you have all the ingredients and are aware of the advance hours needed to create the cake.

It is best to prepare these components prior to baking the cake, so once the cake has cooled it can be assembled without delay.  The components are more suitable for storing than the cooled cake by itself.

Lemon Curd

Ingredients
1/2 tsp powdered gelatin
2 tbs cold water
1/2 cup sugar
1 stick or 1/2 cup cold butter, cubed
4 eggs
zest from 3 lemons
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt

Fill a blender with the lemon juice, zest and sugar.  Blend on medium for 2-3 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved.  Add the eggs and blend on medium speed for an additional 2 minutes for the  color to change to a bright yellow.  Empty mixture into a sauce pan.  The blender will need to be cleaned for an additional use.

Pour the cold water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin evenly over the surface of the water.  Let sit for 2-3 minutes to bloom.

Place the saucepan of the lemon mixture over low heat.  Let it cook, while constantly whisking and keeping a close watch.  It will become thicker and eventually come to a boil.  Once it reaches that stage, transfer contents back to the blender.

Drop cubes of butter into the warm lemon mixture.  Add the gelatin and salt.  Blend on medium high for 2 minutes.  It should have a sheen to it and be thick and smooth.  Strain contents into a heat proof bowl and place in fridge to cool for at least 1/2 an hour. After this chill time, mixture is ready to use as a filling. If refrigerating beyond the 30 minutes, cover surface with plastic wrap.  It will keep for a maximum of one week.

Milk Crumbs

Ingredients
1/4 cup dry milk powder (for mixing)
2 tbs dry milk powder (for dusting)
2 tbs flour
1 tbs cornstarch
1 tbs sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbs melted butter
1 1/2 oz white chocolate

Line a baking sheet with parchment and preheat the oven to 250 degrees.  Whisk together 1/4 cup milk powder, flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt.  Set aside.

Using a fork, stir in the melted butter until there is no longer any dry mix. It should turn into clusters. Pour the mixture onto the prepared pan and use a fork to break up any large clusters.  Place pan in oven and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove and let cool completely.  Again, use the fork to break up any large clumps.

Transfer the cooled crumbs to a heatproof bowl and dust with the remaining 2 tbs of milk powder and set aside.

Melt the white chocolate in the double boiler and pour over the cooled crumbs.  Stir until all is evenly coated.  Let cool, taking time to stir the mixture every 15 minutes.  After 4 of these intervals, you can  place in fridge to all the crumbs to completely harden.  This should take an additional 30 minutes at the most.  Break up mixture and it is ready to be used in the recipe.  For storing, place in an airtight container to store in the fridge.  Storage time can be up to one month in fridge or freezer.

Pistachio Frosting

Ingredients
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 cup or 8 tbs of butter at room temp, cubed
1/4 cup of confectioners sugar
3/4 cup of  pistachio paste

Sift the confectioners sugar together with the salt into the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Drop in cubes of the butter. Beat the mixture at medium high for 3 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl at one minute intervals.  The mixture should be smooth and pale yellow when completely blended.

With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the pistachio paste.  Beat on low for 30 seconds and then on medium high for about 2 minutes.  Scrape down bowl at a one minute interval and at the end.  Turn the speed up to high and beat for 1 minute.  Frosting should be an even tone of green.  Using a spatula, scrape contents into an airtight container.  Frosting can be used immediately.  For storing, place in an airtight container and it will keep for 1 week.

Belgian Blondies

I have been trying different bar cookie recipes recently.  Last week I had tried a recipe for Margarita Lime bars that had an error on the liquid ratio, so the edges set up fine but the center was just a pool. There was no saving it, I even tried to microwave it so the center would get done, but that did not work.

Anyhow, this particular recipe did turn out to be a success.  The bars are rich, buttery and full of delicious white chocolate.  The recipe instructions had a method in which to melt the chocolate.  However when I made these, there was a certain amount of chunks that did not melt, which makes them perfect for the person that loves white chocolate.

The rich flavor makes them perfect paired with black coffee.  Also, forget the shortbread and serve these squares with a bowl of strawberries.

Belgian Blondies
adapted from Tea with Bea

Ingredients
1 1/4 cup plus 2 tbs or 2 3/4 sticks of butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 lb white chocolate (chopped into pea sized pieces)
2 eggs
1 1/4 cup of sugar
1 3/4 cup of flour
a pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 340 degrees.  Grease an 8X12 inch baking pan and line bottom with parchment, leaving an overhang on 2 sides so the bars can be lifted out of the pan prior to cutting.

Melt the butter in a saucepan and let come to a boil.  Place the chocolate pieces in a heat proof bowl and pour in the melted butter.  Stir until most or all of the chocolate is melted.  Set aside.

In another bowl,  blend eggs, sugar and vanilla extract until smooth. Pour in the chocolate mixture and stir. In another bowl, whisk together the flour and salt.  Then fold dry ingredients into the chocolate batter until no dry streaks remain.

Spoon mixture into prepared pan and smooth the surface.  Place pan in oven and bake for 28-33 minutes.  The bars are done when golden brown on top but still retain a gooey center.

Remove pan from oven and place pan on cooling rack.  After 1 hour, place pan in the refrigerator for  2 hours to set up.  After two hours, remove pan from refrigerator and run a knife down between the pan and the blondies on the sides without parchment paper.  Then lift out blondies and cut into squares for serving.

Tips and notes:
1. You can use a 9X13 size pan, but watch on the baking time. Also with a bigger pan, the blondies will not have the same height.
2. Do not use baking chips.  They are a different blend than the actual white bar chocolate and will not work in this recipe.  Use good quality white chocolate bars.
3. For a smoother bar with no chunks of white chocolate, use a grater disc in a food processer to grind the chocolate to insure that all chocolate will be melted with the hot butter.
                                  **LAST YEAR:Butter Cupcakes**

Raspberry Cream Cheese Braid

Outside of the wonderful taste of this breakfast treat, I really do like the ease of the recipe.  The appearance of this pastry gives the impression that this took a lot of effort.

The recipe makes two pastries, which means you can keep one and give another to the neighbors.  In my case I brought it to my co-workers.  Another good thing about the recipe is that it can be changed up, depending on your preference of fruit.


Raspberry Cream Cheese Braid
adapted from King Arthur's Bakers Companion

Ingredients/ Dough
3 cups regular or pastry flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp instant yeast
6 tbs sour cream or yogurt
1/4 cup water
1 egg
6 tbs butter (room temp)
1 tsp lemon zest

Ingredients/Filling
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 cup of raspberry jam mixed with 2 tbs flour
2 tbs butter
1- 8oz package of cream cheese
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
3 tbs flour
1/4 cup coarse sugar (optional for topping)

For the dough, mix together the yeast, warm water and 1 tsp of sugar (take from 1/4 cup measurement).  Then add 1/2 cup of the flour (take from 3 cup measurement).  Blend until the mixture forms a dough.  Shape into a ball and place back in bowl and cover bowl with plastic wrap. Set aside until the yeast becomes very active, about 10-15 minutes.

Once active, stir in all the remaining dough ingredients.  After all is blended into a dough, knead dough until it becomes soft and is no longer sticky.  You can do this by hand or with a dough hook in a stand mixer.  Grease the interior of a medium size bowl.  Shape the dough into a ball.  Put dough ball into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Place bowl in a warm, draft free place and let dough rise for about 45 minutes or until doubled.

While the dough is rising, you can prepare the filling.  In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Beat in the salt and vanilla extract. Take the cream cheese and cut into 8 portions. While the mixer is still running, add pieces of cream cheese at 15 second intervals. Scrape down sides of bowl and then beat in egg and flour.  Scrape down sides of bowl again and beat until all is incorporated.  Set aside.

Divide dough into 2 equal pieces.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Take 1 piece of the dough and roll out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle measuring 15 X10 inches.  Place sheet of dough on the center of the parchment lined baking sheet.  Repeat with second piece of dough.

Spread half of the jam in a 2 1/2 inch wide strip down the center of each piece of dough.  There should be a 1 inch border left at the top and bottom of the dough.  Then spoon and smooth 1/2 of the cream cheese mixture on top of the jam for each piece of dough.

On each 15 inch side of the dough, make strips by cutting 2 1/2 inches in length which are 3/4 inches wide. The strips should be at a 15 degree angle downward.  The end result is that the strips make like an upside down "V" with the filling in the center.

Fold in the 1 inch border dough on the top and bottom.  Then crisscross dough strips over top of filling, placing one left strip over the filling and then alternating with the right. Repeat the cutting and folding process for second piece of dough. Cover both braids with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until they puff up, about 30-45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Once the braids have risen, you can top according to preference.  An egg wash (one egg blended with 1 tbs water) will add shine and a deeper color to the braid.  Spritzing the dough with water was the method I used.  After that process, sprinkle the dough with the coarse sugar.

Bake the braids until they reach a golden hue, which should take about 32-36 minutes.  Once baked, let cool for about 15 minutes and then slice and serve.

Tips and notes:
1. Pastry flour will make the braids more tender.  If using regular flour, add 2 extra tbs of water.
2. You can use a product called Clear Gel in place of the flour in the filling.  Use 2 tbs to mix in with the raspberry jam instead of the flour and use 2 tbs to add with the egg instead of 3 tbs of flour.
3. This dough can be used for many sweet breads such as monkey bread and hot cross buns.
                                **LAST YEAR:Black Pond Cupcakes**
  

Chocolate Caramel Sandwich Cookies

I really do not make sandwich cookies all that often.  I believe it is the time factor.  My attitude is that if you are going bake something that requires a lot of time, make sure that the results are well worth it. 

These proved to be a worthwhile endeavor.  You will not find this type of cookie sitting on the grocery shelf, which makes it unusual. The flavors and textures really compliment each other.  Between the crumbly rich chocolate of the cookie and the buttery chewy caramel, these bite size morsels really do hit the spot.

This recipe states that it makes 30 cookies, but for some reason I ended up with nearly double that amount.


Chocolate Caramel Sandwich Cookies
adapted from Bon Appetit/Nov 2010 issue

Ingredients/Caramel
1/4 cup butter (cut into cubes)
2 1/4 cup of sugar
1 tbs light corn syrup
1/3 cup of honey
2 tbs vanilla extract or a lengthwise split vanilla bean
1 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Ingredients/Cookie
1 cup plus 1 tbs sugar
2/3 cup natural cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 egg
3/4 cup or 1 1/2 sticks of butter
1/4 tsp salt

Prepare an 8X8 square cake pan by brushing oil on the interior of the pan.  Then line the bottom with parchment paper and brush the surface of the paper with oil as well.

To make the caramel, fill a medium size saucepan with the sugar, cream, honey and corn syrup.  If using vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the mixture.  Place pan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.  Increase the heat and stop stirring.  Using a candy thermometer as a gauge, let the mixture come to a boil and cook until it registers about 250 degrees.  This should take about 8 minutes.

Remove pan from heat and add butter.  If using vanilla extract, add it at this time.  Stir until butter is completely melted and mixture is smooth.  Pour into prepared cake pan.  Let caramel cool completely.

While that is cooling, the cookies can be made.  Sift together flour, salt and cocoa powder in one bowl.  In another bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add the egg and beat for 15 seconds and then scrape down sides of bowl.  Beat for an additional 15 seconds.  Using a wooden spoon or spatula, fold in the sifted ingredients.

Form the dough into a flat disc and cover with plastic wrap.  Place in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Once the dough has chilled, roll out to a 1/4 inch thickness and cut out rounds using a 1 1/2 inch  cookie cutter.  Place each round 1 inch apart on cookie sheet.  Bake cookies for about 12 minutes.  They should have a firm center when done.  Remove baked cookies from pan and place on rack to cool. Repeat the process until all the dough has been converted to cooled cookies.

Invert caramel filled pan onto smooth clean surface.  Peel off parchment paper.  Take a 1 inch round cutter and cut out caramel disks.  Place each disk on the bottom side of a cookie and top with an additional cookie, with bottom side facing caramel.  Press lightly and repeat process until all cookies are sandwiched together.
                           **Last Year: Maui Pine Cream Pie**

 

Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookie Pie

The name "cookie pie" makes me think of those big chocolate chip cookies at the mall that you can have decorated.  However, this particular recipe does not fall into that category.

As you can tell by the picture, it looks to have a closer resemblance to pie rather than cookie.  There is a pie crust layer with melted butterscotch chips, pecans and a brown sugar filling.  As far as the oatmeal, it has enough to give it some chewy texture but is not overwhelming.

I have always considered butterscotch one of the forgotten flavors,  It was a nice change of pace and well liked by the crowd of eaters.

Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookie Pie
adapted from Pie by Ken Haedrich

Ingredients
1 basic single crust pie pastry, refrigerated
1/4 cup whole milk or light cream
3 eggs, room temp
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup or one stick of butter
1/3 cup cake or regular flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/3 cup rolled oats

Roll the pastry on a floured surface into a 13 inch circle.   Place the pastry evenly into a 9 1/2 inch deep dish pie pan.  Press the pastry into the pan, taking care not to stretch it.  Shape the top edge of the dough as desired.  Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.  In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To make the filling, use a mixer and cream the butter until smooth.  Then add the brown sugar in 1/2 cup increments, beating 30 seconds after each addition.  Then scrape down the sides and add one egg and beat for 30 seconds.  A the rest of the eggs, one at a time, and beat each for 30 seconds or until completely blended.

Beat in the vanilla extract.  Then fold in the flour, oats and salt until no dry streaks remain.  Mix in the milk until blended.  Lastly, add the pecans and butterscotch chips.

Place pie in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.  Then rotate back to front and bake for 30 minutes more.  Once the time is up, the pie should not jiggle when moved and should have a brown filling. Transfer to rack and let cool.  You can either serve warm or refrigerate for 2 hours and then serve cold.

Tips and Notes:
1. Feel free to mix up the type of chips in the batter.  The recipe also suggests 1/2 butterscotch and 1/2 chocolate chips.
2. For people with nut allergies, add an extra 1/2 cup of butterscotch chips and eliminate the pecans.

                                          **LAST YEAR: Jade and Suede Cheesecake**                    

Lemon Limoncello Cupcakes

It has been so overcast and gloomy here, so I was looking for a nice treat to remind me of summer.  When I think of summer, the flavor of lemon is the first to come to mind.

These cupcakes were the perfect fix.  They are bursting with tart lemony flavor.  The curd filling is really what put these over the top when it comes to flavor.  Also, nothing goes better with lemon than a cream cheese topping. This recipe makes 1 dz cupcakes.

Lemon Limoncello Cupcakes
adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

Ingredients/Lemon Curd filling
1 egg
1 egg yolk
zest of 2 lemons
1/2 cup of lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar

Ingredients/Cupcakes
2 tbs limoncello
3 eggs
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup or 1/2 stick of butter (room temp)
2 oz cream cheese (room temp)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups flour
zest of 1 lemon

Ingredients/Frosting
4 oz cream cheese (room temp)
1 tbs limoncello
1/4 cup or 1/2 stick of butter (room temp)
2 cups powdered sugar
sprinkles (optional)

Start with making the filling.  Place sugar, lemon zest and juice in a saucepan.  Put pan over medium heat, let come to a simmer and remove from heat.  In another bowl, whisk together egg and egg yolk until a little frothy.  Add half of the lemon mixture to the eggs and whisk until completely blended.  Then whisk in the remaining lemon mixture.  Pour back into the saucepan and put over medium heat again.  Let the mixture cook, while stirring constantly for a total of 5 minutes.  Remove and let cool completely.  Then pour into bowl, cover surface of curd with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

To make the cupcakes, start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease the top edge of the cavities of a 12 capacity cupcake pan and fill with paper liners.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.  Fill the bowl of a stand mixer with butter, cream cheese and and sugar.  Using the paddle attachment, beat the ingredients together for about 3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Then beat in each egg, one at a time, for 30 seconds.  Pour in the limoncello and beat for about a minute until distributed evenly throughout the batter.

Remove bowl from mixer and, using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in 1/3 of the sifted ingredients. Then mix in 1/4 cup of buttermilk. Repeat the process, ending with the last 1/3 of the flour mixture. Add the zest and the lemon juice and stir until blended.

With an ice cream scoop or a spoon, evenly fill each cavity of the muffin tin with the batter.  Place pan in oven and bake until tester comes out clean.  This should take about 18-20 minutes.  Remove pan, let cool for one minute and transfer cupcakes to a cooling rack.  Cool completely before proceeding to the filling and icing stages.

Using whatever tool you choose (knife, melon baller, opposite end of pastry tip, etc) core out a hole in the middle of each cupcake.  Remove the lemon curd from the refrigerator.  Spoon the curd into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip.  Fill each cupcake with the lemon curd. Using a knife, smooth over the surface of the curd, making sure that the top of the curd is flush with the top of the cupcake.

For the frosting, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth.  This should take about 3 minutes.  Then beat in the limoncello, running the mixer at medium speed for 1 minute.  Sift the powdered sugar into the bowl in 4 increments, beating until blended for each increment.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure that no powder remains.  After all is blended, fill a pastry bag fitted with a star tip with the frosting and decorate.  Top with sprinkles if desired.

                            **LAST YEAR:Banana Nut & Dulce De Leche Coffeecake**   

Tunnel of Fudge Bundt Cake

I have always had a thing for bundt cakes, especially the ones with another flavor wrapped inside.  I can remember the chocolate bundt cake with coconut running through the center.  However, out of all the flavors the tunnel of fudge is my favorite.  It is a great one to go to if you are really looking for a chocolate fix.

This one is different from the traditional since it has nuts.  Also, I could not resist using the dutch cocoa brand Cacao Barry.  I have read a lot about it and like it much more than the typical grocery store brands.  It has an dark amber color and is richer in flavor than other brands I have tried.

Tunnel of Fudge Bundt Cake
adapted from Serious Eats

Ingredients
5 eggs, room temp
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup boiling water
1 1/4 cup or 2 1/2 sticks of butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
2 cups flour
2 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder, dutch processed
2 oz or 1/4 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate or chocolate chips
2 cups finely chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt 1 tbs of butter and brush the interior of a 12 cup bundt pan, making sure are areas are covered.  Then dust with 1 tbs cocoa powder.  

Sift flour, cocoa and salt into a medium size bowl.  Whisk in powdered sugar and nuts. Set bowl aside.  Place chopped chocolate in a bowl and pour boiling water over it.  Let sit for 2 minutes and then stir until all chocolate is melted and consistency is smooth.

Then fill the bowl of a stand mixer with the butter, vanilla extract, light brown sugar and granulated sugar.  Cream together until light and fluffy.  Add each egg, one at a time, and beat for 30 seconds. Pour in the melted chocolate mix and blend until no dark streaks remain.

Remove bowl from stand mixer and fold in the dry cocoa/flour mixture.  Once all the dry ingredients are incorporated into the batter, fill the prepared bundt pan with the batter.  Smooth the top and place in oven to bake.

Cake is done when top springs back lightly when touched and cake starts pulling away from the sides of the pan.  This should take about 45 minutes.  Once finished baking, place on rack to cool for 20 minutes.  Once the 20 minutes has expired, invert the cake onto cooling rack.

Cake will take about 2 hours to completely cool.
                            **LAST YEAR: Lower East Side Nut Cake**
 

Aristocrats

Well with Valentines coming up, I could not resist the bright pink sanding sugar.  After buying it, I was on the hunt for a recipe that uses it.  I have decorated sugar cookies and russian teacakes with sanding sugar, so I narrowed it down to a cookie recipe.

I found a recipe that is basically a butter cookie with mini chips mixed in.  The dough is made into a log, chilled and wrapped with an thin layer of dough and then covered in the sugar.  These do have some crunch to them and they are perfect for dunking in hot tea or cold milk. This recipe makes about 6 dz small cookies.

Aristocrats
adapted from Gourmets Best Desserts

Ingredients
3 oz of mini chocolate chips
2 1/2 cups flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup and 2 tbs of butter (or 1 & 3/4 sticks)
2 eggs
1/2 cup colored sugar crystals

Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add one egg and beat for 30 seconds. 

Using a wooden spoon, mix in the flour in 1/4 cup increments.  The mixture should form a dough when all flour is completely mixed in.  Split the dough in half and seal one of the pieces in plastic wrap or foil and chill for 30 minutes.

While that is chilling, take the other piece of dough and mix in the mini chips.  Once evenly distributed, split dough mound into 2 equal pieces.  On a lightly floured surface, roll and form each piece into a log.  Each log should be even in diameter and be 10 inches long. Set aside.

Then take out the chilled dough.  Dust a flat surface with flour and roll dough into a rectangle, measuring 11 x 9.  Cut the dough in half , lengthwise, so you have 2 pieces.  Each piece should be 4 1/2 X 11.  Beat remaining egg in a small bowl. Using a  pastry brush, cover the face up side of  one piece of dough with the egg wash.

Place one log in the very center of the piece of the dough brushed with the egg wash.  Roll the rectangle around the log, sealing ends and seam.  Brush again with the egg wash.  Then sprinkle the colored sugar on a piece of wax paper and roll log in sugar until covered.  Wrap in foil and put in fridge.  Repeat the same process with the remaining log and dough rectangle, so you have 2 logs chilling in the fridge.  They will need to be in the fridge for at least 4 hours to firm up to the consistency you want.

During the last 1/2 hour of the chilling time, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Also, line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Once the logs have completed the chilling stage, remove from fridge and slice each log into 36 slices of even thickness.

Place each cookie on a baking sheet, spacing about 1/2 apart.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or when bottom starts to brown.  Remove pan from oven and place cookies on a rack to cool.

Notes and Tips:

1. Since the cookie dough is sealed at the end, your end pieces will not be as nice as the other slices.
2. The recipe also states to use chopped walnuts in the dough instead of chocolate chips, use 2/3 of a cup.  For variety, you can do 1/2 of each.

                    **LAST YEAR: Celebrity Factor Cookies**

Spice Donuts

I have been craving some donuts lately.  I was disappointed the last time I bought some, so I decided on homemade donuts.  I wanted to make a variety and  really was not interested in frying a bunch of dough.  Baked cake donuts would be easier and last longer than fried.  I split the recipes in half and made 2 dozen, with 6 in each flavor.  Out of all of them, my favorite were the spice ones.  They all were pretty good, but in my mind, the spice ones paired best with hot coffee and cold weather.

The recipe below is for 1 dozen cake donuts.  These are fairly simple to make and yield pretty tasty results.  You can glaze these or top however you want, but I feel that the cinnamon sugar coating brings out the best in texture and flavor.

Spice Donuts
adapted from 150 Best Donut Recipes

Ingredients/ Donuts
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup whole milk
1 tbs melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Ingredients/Topping
1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and spray 2-6 cavity donut pans with non stick spray.

In one bowl, sift together the baking powder, salt, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice.  Then mix in the sugar and set aside.

The next bowl should be filled with eggs, melted butter, milk and vanilla extract.  Whisk all the ingredients together and pour in the bowl with the dry ingredients.  Mix with a wooden spoon until  blended.  I added some more milk to mine because it was a little thick.  The consistency should be like a thick frosting, not doughy.

Cut  a small piece of the corner off of a quart size freezer bag and fill with the batter.  Use the bag as you would a pastry tip and fill all 12 of the donut cavities evenly.  They should be about 2/3 full.  Bake in oven until springy to the touch, about 10-14 minutes.  Mine were done in 10 minutes.

Remove pans and let cool for 5 minutes.  As they are cooling, mix the cinnamon and sugar together for the topping. Invert the donuts from the pans, let cool completely.  Dip each donut into the melted butter and roll in sugar.  You can just do the tops or the whole donut as I did.
                        **LAST YEAR:High Octane Mini Pies*     

Tiger Tea Cakes

I found myself looking around for a recipe that required almond flour.  It had been sometime since I have used any of the flour and that bag seemed to always be staring back at me, even though I packed it in the freezer.

I landed on a unique recipe for tea cakes that used the almond flour in the batter.  The other good thing that caught my eye was that these little cakes had mini chocolate chips in them.  They were made in dome molds, but I decided to make them in my pan which had mini 1/2 circle cavities. You can make these in muffin tins as well.

The batter does have a strange consistency, but the cakes turned out wonderful.  They were like little pound cakes, with a tight crumb and very buttery.  The crowd did like them and they made for such a great presentation.  A nice dessert with afternoon tea or coffee. This recipe makes 16 muffin sized cakes or 12 cakes using the 1/2 circle pan.

Tiger Tea Cakes
adapted from Paris Sweets

Ingredients/ Cakes
1/3 cup flour
2 1/4 cup ground almonds or almond flour
3/4 cup sugar
5 oz mini chocolate chips
1 stick plus 7 tbs butter
1 1/2 tbs light corn syrup
6 egg whites, room temperature

Ingredients/Topping
5 oz bittersweet chocolate
1 stick of butter
3/4 cup heavy cream (for swirl on top)

Whisk the egg whites lightly.  Then add the corn syrup, ground almonds, sugar and the flour.  Mix until batter becomes smooth.  Cover top of bowl with plastic wrap and place in fridge for a minimun of 2 hours and maximum of overnight.

15 minutes before chilling time is complete, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Also butter the interior of the cavities of your pans, making sure there is capacity of 16.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter.  Remove from heat.  Take batter out of the fridge and pour the warm butter into the batter.  Stir until all of the butter is incorporated.  Once the batter is back to room temperature, mix in the chocolate chips.

Fill each muffin cavity with about 3 tbs of batter.  Once all batter is in the pans, place in oven and bake until golden on the edges.  This should take about 15-20 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool for about 3 minutes.  Then transfer cakes from pans to rack to finish cooling.

While the cakes are cooling, you can prepare the topping.  Melt butter and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and spoon off the foamy layer on top. Pour the yellow butter into a bowl leaving the milky residue on the bottom of the pot.  Your bowl holds the clarified butter.

In a double boiler, melt the 5 oz of bittersweet chocolate.  Once melted, mix in the clarified butter.  Place the cooling rack with the cakes over a shallow rimmed baking sheet lined with wax paper. Pour the chocolate glaze over the cakes, making sure all areas are covered.

Place in fridge for 1 hour to allow the glaze to set.  Then beat the whipped cream and pipe a small swirl in the center of each cake.  Now they are ready to serve.
                         LAST YEAR: Cinnamon Topped Immortality Bars

Swedish Raspberry Almond Bars

With all the heavy food of the holidays gone, I am more in the mood for something lighter as well as a hot beverage.  Kind of ready for some tea time with a light snack.  I mainly wanted a bar recipe but something more of a shortbread fruit type of thing rather than a thick brownie.
I came across this easy recipe that was just perfect for my craving.  Shortbread is topped with raspberry jam.  Then a fluffy meringue batter that holds almonds and coconut goes on top with a final sprinkling of almond slices.

Swedish Raspberry Almond Bars
adapted from Taste of Home Best Loved Recipes
Ingredients
1 cup sliced almonds (divided into 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup sweetened coconut
3/4 cup seedless jam
3 egg whites
6 tbs of sugar
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
3/4 cup butter/room temperature
1 1/2 cups flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease the interior of a 9X13 size baking pan.

Beat together the butter and the confectioners sugar for about one minute on medium speed, scraping down the bowl at the halfway point.  The mixture should become very light and fluffy. Fold in the flour until the mixture is crumbly and all the flour is blended.

Pour it into the prepared pan and press evenly into a layer on the bottom of the pan.  Bake crust for about 18-20 minutes.  The crust should be a golden brown when done. Remove and place on rack.

Using a small offset spatula, smooth the jam evenly over the warm crust.  Set aside.

While the crust is cooling, place the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until soft peaks form.  Continue to beat and increase the speed of the mixer to high.  Gradually add one tablespoon of regular sugar and beat for 1 minute.  Follow this for each tablespoon addition until all 6 tablespoons are incorporated.  The beating process should end when the whites can hold stiff peaks.

Sprinkle the coconut into the batter, making sure there are no big lumps, and stir.  Then blend in 1/2 cup of the sliced almonds.  Empty bowl of mixture onto the jam layer of the bars.  Spread evenly, covering all sides and corners of jam. Then sprinkle the last 1/2 cup of almonds on top.

Place in oven and bake until the meringue layer becomes a golden brown, which is about 18-22 minutes.  Let cool on a rack completely before cutting and serving.

Tips and Notes:
1. I used canned raspberry pastry filling which I had to de-seed and warm up to spread.  I am sure the seedless jam would have been easier.
2. Parchment is not required, for I found that these bars came out of the pan easily with just greasing.
3. Make sure that you are not too heavy handed when smoothing the meringue layer, you want distinct layers, not a mixture of the meringue and raspberry.
4. None of the components are strong in this recipe.  I got good reviews even from one person that did not like coconut and another that had a dislike for meringue.
                           **LAST YEAR: Nut Drenched Chocolate Cake***

Chocolate Tres Leche Cake

Well the holiday is here.  It seems as if everyone has their "specialty" when it comes to food for the holiday table.  However, when it comes to bloggers, we always like to dazzle guests with something new.  However, I was advised that someone else was in charge of the baked goods this year and there would only be one dessert.

This did not bother me because of my co-workers.  Such as the guy that apologized for having to eat all the time at his desk, but as skinny as a rail. Others eat what they want and put on the tennis shoes shortly thereafter for a workout.  Then their are the bland eaters, who have ramen noodles every day for lunch.  All of them are always ready with a fork when it comes to dessert.

This recipe is a spin on the traditional tres leche cake.  I have never had the original, but when I came upon a chocolate version, it gave me the right incentive to try a tres leche cake.   Like most tres leches cakes this one was oozing with flavor.  The blend of chocolate, rum and dairy soaked into this chocolate sponge type cake made this cake a memorable one.  Also, the light whipped cream frosting was the perfect topper.

Chocolate Tres Leche Cake
adapted from chow.com website

Ingredients/Cake
8 egg whites
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
butter for greasing pans
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp instant coffee crystals
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp plus 1 pinch salt
1 3/4 cup cake flour and some for dusting pans
1/2 cup unsweetened dutch process cocoa

Ingredients/Tres Leche
1-12 oz can evaporated milk
1-14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup half and half
1/2 cup dark rum
4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chopped
pinch of salt

Ingredients/ Topping
3 cups heavy cold cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-two to four oz chocolate bar for garnish with curls or grated on top

To make the cake, prepare 2- 9 inch cake pans by buttering the interior.  Then line the bottom of each with parchment paper and butter the face up side.  Then dust the interior with flour and empty out excess.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Fill a small heatproof bowl with the cocoa.  Then put the water in a microwave bowl, or a saucepan bring to a boil.  Remove and stir in coffee crystals until dissolved.  Pour into the bowl of cocoa and whisk until there are no lumps.  Let mixture cool 15-20 minutes.

In one bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder.  Then stir in only 1/2 cup and 2 tbs of the sugar.  In the next bowl (which should be large) whisk together the egg yolks, vanilla extract and the oil. Pour the cooled cocoa mixture into the eggs and whisk, until evenly blended.  Then pour this batter into the sifted, dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Set aside.

For the egg white mixture, fill the bowl of a stand mixer with the egg whites, cream of tartar and pinch of salt.  Beat at medium high speed for 2 minutes.   Add the remaining sugar (1/2 cup and 2 tbs) slowly into the egg whites as you continue to beat.  This should take about a minute to blend and then continue to whip for an additional two minutes until the mixture has stiff, glossy peaks.

Fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate batter, being careful with the blending so as to retain the consistency of the whites.  Once no white streaks remain, add the rest in two increments, following the same process for each addition.  Pour an equal amount of batter into each pan.

Place pans in oven side by side.  Bake for 40-45 minutes and rotate at the halfway mark.  Cakes are done when tester comes out clean.  Cakes should cool in pans on racks for 10 minutes.  Invert and peel off parchment paper and let cool completely.  Then invert again.  Using a serrated edge knife, cut a thin layer off the top of each cake.  This exposes the sponge for the soak and also gives you an opportunity to even out the layers.

Wash and dry the cake pans and place each cooled layer back into a clean cake pan.

Then prepare the soak.  Fill a heat proof bowl with the chocolate.  Then bring the half and half to a boil, either in a saucepan or in the microwave.  Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate and let sit for 1 minute and then whisk to make sure it is blended and all chocolate is melted.  Stir in the rum, evaporated milk, condensed milk and salt.

Using one third of the soak, divide evenly and pour onto each cake.  Let sit for 1/2 hour.  Continue with the process until all soak has been poured on the cakes and 30 minutes has passed between each session.  Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or freeze for 1 1/2 hour.   After the chilling time, invert each onto a plate over the sink.  There still may be some of the soak mixture that drips off and was not absorbed.

For the filling/topping, beat the whipped cream on medium high for about 2 minutes.  Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until soft peaks form.  Put one layer of the cake onto a cake plate.  Top with 1/3 of the whipped cream.  Then divide the remaining whipped cream in half.  Place the other cake layer on top of the cream topped layer.  Then smooth one portion of the whipped cream over the top and the rest on the sides.  Refrigerate at least 20 minutes for whipped cream to set.  Then garnish the top with grated or curled chocolate prior to serving.

Notes and tips:
1. The longer the soak the stronger the rum, so use the chilling time as a guideline indicating the minimum amount of time required.
2. if you have issues releasing the cake from the pans after the soak & chill time, take a sponge that is rinsed with hot water and squeezed out and wipe over the bottom of the pans.  This make take 2-4 passes but it does help with the release.
3. I used whipped cream stabilizer and followed directions on the label to figure out the amount to
add to the topping.
4. I always measure batter before filling pans for more even layers.  The split batter worked out to
about 3 2/3 cup for each pan.
                         **LAST YEAR: Chocolate Banana Slices***

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

I am a big fan of cinnamon and nuts, especially when it comes to pastry.  However, the idea of having a special pastry every time I crave the flavor combination would be excessive indulgence.  So what is a person to do?  Looking around for the solution, I landed on the perfect item- a cookie with all the flavor of a cinnamon roll.

This cookie is thick and packed with pecans, brown sugar and cinnamon.  Also, the creams cheese icing is a must when it comes to cinnamon rolls and it was not left out of this recipe. The good thing here is that the icing is put on right before serving.  However, and even more convenient idea is to serve the cookies on a plate with the icing in a bowl for dipping.

Please allow plenty of advance time to make these, the dough does require a lot of chilling time.  The first session is for 1 hour but the second states 1 hour or overnight, noting that overnight is preferred.  Also, leave your cookie sheet in the cabinet, these are actually baked in muffin pans. The recipe makes 2 dz cookies. 


Cinnamon Roll Cookies
adapted from The Cravory in San Diego via nymag.com

Ingredients/Cookie Dough
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup or 2 sticks butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 cups plus 1 tsp flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup brown sugar packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Ingredients/Filling
1 cup chopped toasted pecans
1 tbs cinnamon
1/4 cup or 1/2 stick of butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar

Ingredients/ Icing Drizzle
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
3 tbs milk
2 oz softened cream cheese
2 oz softened butter
1 vanilla bean (scraped)
Zest of 1/2 orange (optional)

To make the dough, cream together the butter and the three types of sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Once smooth, add one egg and beat for about 30 seconds.  Continue with the process on the rest of the eggs, adding each one by one.  Then beat in the vanilla extract.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together the cornstarch, flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

Add 1/3 of the sifted ingredients to the egg batter and mix on low speed until no streaks remain. Add the additional flour in two increments, blending after each addition.  Form dough into a ball and cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.

While that is chilling, you can prepare the filling.  Melt the butter in a small saucepan.  Remove from heat and stir in the brown sugar and cinnamon.  Lastly, mix in the pecans until evenly distributed.

After an hour, remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to form a 10X10 square. Spread the filling over the dough evenly.  Then roll it up and wrap with plastic wrap and chill again at least one hour or overnight, preferably overnight.

Once the chilling time has completed, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease the cavities of 2 one dozen muffin tins.  Remove the dough roll from the refrigerator and slice evenly into 24 pieces.  Place each piece into one of the muffin cavities.

Put pans in oven and bake until lightly golden, which should take about 15 minutes.  At the 7.5 minute mark, rotate pans for even baking. Remove the muffin tins and place on rack to cool. Cool cookies completely in pan before removing.

Once you are ready to serve these, prepare the icing by beating together the cream cheese and the butter until smooth.  Then beat in the powdered sugar in 3 increments, scraping down bowl after each time.  Then beat in the vanilla bean and the orange zest (optional).  Lastly whisk in the milk until the icing reaches a smooth consistency.  Drizzle the icing on top and enjoy.
                            **LAST YEAR: Coconut Apple Walnut Bread***  

Crisp Apple Kolachy

I can remember the day when a salesman brought kolachy to a girl at work who had requested that he bring some by.  The salesman did bring some but they were prune filled.  Not exactly what she had wanted.  Prune filled as well as poppy seed are the traditional fillings of this Czech pastry.  Those fillings did not appeal to me either, so kolachy pastries were forgotten about.

However, as I was skimming through a cookbook, I found a recipe for apple kolachy.  With fall here, the apple filliing was a perfect choice. Concerning the dough, my first thought was that the process of making it would involve overnight refrigeration.  In this recipe, the dough chills in less than an hour.  The other thing I was worried about was all the sticky runny syrup that the apples are cooked in.  Then I read that the syrup was only to be used to cook the apples, not baked with the pastry.

Besides the chore of peeling, slicing and coring the apples, the whole process of making these was fairly easy.  It is great when something gives the impression that a lot of effort was made and in reality it was not.  The word "pastry" and "easy" rarely come together, but this time they did.

The cottage cheese in the dough did make the pastries quite flaky.  I had my doubts, seeing the white curds showing in the dough. I have never used cottage cheese in dough and was surprised at the wonderful results. This recipe makes about 16 pastries and is the perfect way to serve up some apple pie flavor to a group without the all the trouble of a traditional pie.

Crisp Apple Kolachy
adapted from Classic Home Desserts

Ingredients/Pastry
1 cup creamed style cottage cheese (I just used small curd)
1 cup or 2 sticks cold butter cut into 1/2 inch chunks
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp nutmeg or ground mace
ice water, if needed
pearl or sparkling sugar (for topping)

Ingredients/Filling
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter
4 medium sized apples (peeled, cored and sliced 1/4 an inch thick)***
***feel free to use more if you prefer a really packed kolachy
1 egg beaten with 2 tbs milk (for egg wash)

To make the pastry dough, place flour and butter in the bowl.  Use a pastry cutter to blend the two ingredients together until it becomes the consistency of coarse crumbs.  Then stir in the mace or nutmeg.  Add the cottage cheese and mix until it is evenly distributed throughout the dough. Your dough should be able to be formed into a big ball.  If not, add 1-2 tbs of ice water so the ball can be formed with the dough.

This particular dough will be slightly sticky, but take care that you do not "over flour" the dough when rolling out or it will make the dough dense.  Lightly dust a flat surface with flour along with the ball of dough.  Pound the dough into a disc and then roll out, forming a 16 inch square. Fold it up like you would fold a business letter.  Then pound it out again and roll. into a 12X7 inch rectangle.  Repeat the same business letter fold and tuck in the uneven edges.  Wrap in plastic wrap and place in fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

To make the filling, melt the butter in a medium size skillet.  Put the sliced apples in the pan and let cook, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes.  Remove the skillet from heat and sprinkle sugar on top of apples.  Let cool.  Once the apples are back to room temperature, sprinkle with cinnamon.

Take pastry dough out of the fridge and roll out on a floured surface.  The dough should be rolled into a 16 inch square again.  Then cut the dough into 16 four inch squares.  Place each piece on a flat cutting board or platter and put back in fridge for 10 minutes.

While the pastry is chilling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Take the pastry squares out and place a few tablespoons of apple slices on the center of each.  The syrup mixture that formed while cooking the apples should remain in the skillet. Once all the pastry squares are filled, discard the syrup mixture.    For each square, take two opposite corners and overlap ( about 1/2 an inch) in the center and pinch the dough to seal.

Place each pastry on a baking sheet about 1 inch apart.  Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with pearl or sparkling sugar.  Bake each pan of kolachy for about 15-20 minutes.  They will be lightly golden on the edges when done.

Remove baking sheets from the oven and place pastries on a rack to cool.  These can be served slightly warm or room temperature.  Also, to really indulge you can add a small scoop of ice cream on top.
                  **LAST YEAR: Sinbads Basra Treats***

Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes

Looking in the pantry the other day I noticed that I had two big containers of hazelnut spread, which did inspire me to make use of it.  It has been some time since I actually baked with it or actually eaten any for that matter!

I like the singular aspect of these cupcakes.  Lots of things I bake or make usually are combinations of more than one flavor.  Nothing wrong with that, but sometimes you crave just one flavor.  After baking these and having the aroma of nutella fill my kitchen, you can be I was craving one of these.

The cupcakes actually are crisp on the outside and light on the inside.  The airy texture and subtle flavor of the cupcake goes well with the thick rich taste of the spread on top.  Yes, that strip on top is not some mixed up frosting, it is purely the hazelnut spread. This recipe makes about 16 cupcakes.

Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes
adapted from Cupcakes Galore

Ingredients
1/2 cup whole hazelnuts
1 1/2 cups chocolate hazelnut spread
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
3 eggs

Grease the top edge of the cupcake cavities and fill with cupcake liners.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together flour, salt and baking powder.  Set aside.  In another bowl cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Beat in one egg at a time until blended.  Mix in 3/4 cup of the hazelnut spread until  incorporated.

Fold in half of the sifted ingredients so no dry streaks remain.  Mix in the milk and then add the rest of the sifted ingredients.

Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 full with the batter.  The batter was thick, so I tapped the pan on the counter to level it out.  You do not want any peaks or uneven batter, for it will reflect in the shape of the cupcake after baked.  Place pan(s) in the oven and bake until tester comes out clean 20-25 minutes.

Place pan on rack and let cool for 3 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan cavities.  Place on rack and let cool completely before frosting.

After the cupcakes have cooled, pipe the rest of the hazelnut spread onto the cupcake and place a few nuts on top or you can grind the nuts and sprinkle on top.

Tips and Notes:
1. You can leave to spread off and serve these plain with your morning coffee.
2. The flavor really stands out when these are slightly warmed in the microwave
              **LAST YEAR: Oatmeal Butterscotch Muffins**                  

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

I have always thought that bananas were one of those fruits you either really liked or hated.  I think it is because they do have a strong distinctive taste. It seems that a lot of people will eat banana bread yet you will not find them eating a banana.  Recently, someone told me that a convenience store here in Texas makes more money on selling bananas than anything else.  I find that strange because I have yet to see any bananas at the local convenience stores.

Since bananas are a healthy fruit and are not acidic, I decided to bake with them.  The only issue was that I wanted to find something different from banana bread.  I have made banana cookies before but the particular recipe I landed on included oats in the ingredients.  The other unique thing was the banana chip on top.  Even though it gets baked on, it still remains crunchy and makes a good topper.

These cookies were shared yesterday. There was one eater in the group that declared they did not like bananas. However, just like bananas vs banana bread, this person kept asking where the cookie jar was.  These cookies are cake-like and have all the great flavor of banana bread. There are some additional add ins for variations, however, do not skip on the banana chips! This recipe makes about 24-30 cookies 

Banana Oatmeal Cookies
adapted from Crazy About Cookies Cookbook

Ingredients
1/2 cup mashed bananas
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup or 1 stick butter
3/4 cup rolled oats (old fashioned, not instant)
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup dried banana chips

For add ins and variations
3/4 cup melted chocolate chips or
3/4 cup chocolate chips or
3/4 cup chopped pecans

Grease or butter the inside of two cookie sheets and preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.  Then stir in the oats.  Set aside.  In a separate bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar together.  Once it has a fluffy consistency, beat in the egg, vanilla extract and banana. Fold in the dry oatmeal/flour blend.

At this time, you can mix in the chocolate chips or the pecans, if you decided to include.  Then drop tablespoons of batter onto prepared cookie sheets, placing about 2 inches apart.  Bake for 5 minutes then remove and press one banana chip lightly into the center of each cookie.  Put the pan back in the oven and bake until golden, about 5-6 minutes.

Let cookies cool on pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to rack to finish cooling.

If you opted to drizzle chocolate, do so and let sit for about 30 minutes for chocolate to harden.

Tips and notes:
1. if I were to put chocolate chips in these cookies, I would use mini chips.  That way you do not have any chance of a big pocket of melted chocolate oozing over your banana chip.
2. if you are including the pecans, they will be better if toasted and cooled prior to mixing in the batter.
                          **LAST YEAR:Coconut Custard Bars***