Yum...Cake

Photo from Urban Comfort

Geez Louise, has it ever been a long week.  About half-way through, I began requiring wine and vast quantities of cake to make it to Friday.  Last night, I spent a couple of hours just looking at pictures of cake.  It was weird. I really have never just sat around, looking at pictures of food before, I swear.  But really, there are some cakes out there in the blogosphere that are really inspiring, and not just for baking. I also recently saw the latest issue of Martha Stewart Weddings in the grocery store.  While I certainly don't miss planning most parts of a wedding, I'm still interested in looking at wedding cakes (as if you hadn't guessed). Some of the cakes featured looked like wallpaper or embroidery.  And so, I give to you some of my picks for the best of inspirational cakes.

From Martha Stewart Weddings--I think you could hang this display on a wall!

From The Knot--this would make a great girl's birthday cake.

From Martha Stewart Weddings--I love the classic Art Deco style.

The Doldrums

I believe that we have entered that period known to many as the Winter Doldrums. I don't know about you, but I am bored. This boredom has sapped my energy and creativity, leaving me a dull and somewhat crabby person who is no fun to be around. I try to think of ways to help with the boredom, but one look at the piles and piles of snow sends me back to the couch. I'm trying not to complain, since I gave it up for Lent, but it's hard when it snows nearly every day and you haven't seen the sun in weeks. See, I told you I was crabby!

Anyway, enough whining. Sean and I had a lovely day last Friday, when we went to look at the Orchids at Phipps Conservatory. It was lovely and refreshing. And, since we went at night, you couldn't tell that the sun wasn't shining!




And today, many of our nearest and dearest will be joining us at Sean's friends house for an engagement party! I am so looking forward to that.

On Tuesday, my office had a Mardi Gras party. I had planned to make Pralines, but there was an ice storm on Monday night (or maybe it was snowing. I no longer differentiate between days of the week--I may even have worn the same clothes twice this week, but I'm not sure). Anyway, I decided not to go to the store for brown sugar and pecans, and instead relied on my personal stash of baking ingredients to make something. I find that it is good policy to have enough ingredients to make brownies or cake at any given time. Especially brownies. I've tried many brownie recipies over the years, most of them delicious, but I think I've found the holy grail of brownie recipes this time. They're nothing wild or unexpected, but that's the beauty of them. You could add whatever you wanted to these, and they'd be fabulous. Or, you could just follow the recipe, and they'd be fabulous. You could slightly over or undercook them and then drop them on the floor, and they'd still be fabulous (I normally hate it when people use the word fabulous, but the chocolately, crisp-on-the-outside, gooey-on-the-inside qualities of these brownies are enough to make me say anything)!

This recipe came from Martha Stewart, who, I must say, usually has the best classic, no frills version of many old standbys. These are no exception. The texture is neither cakey nor chewy, both of which I despise in a brownie. Since they call for real chocolate, the flavor is perfect, chocolately without being overwhelming. And they use real butter, not oil or shortening. Plus, they are nearly as easy to make as brownies from a mix, and so much better. No icing, peanut butter, or nuts needed.

Perfect Chocolate Brownies

Adapted from Martha Stewart at marthstewart.com

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for the pan (or use Pam with Flour cooking spray)

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used Ghiraradelli bittersweet chocolate chips with no problem, but most chocolate chips contain stabilizers and won't melt properly)

1 1/2 cups white sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature. To get the eggs to room temperature quickly, I fill a bowl with lukewarm water and place the uncracked eggs in it for at least ten minutes. I find that room temperature eggs really improve a recipe, especially brownies.

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an inch square baking pan or oven proof glass dish, then line with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Do not use wax paper. Grease the liner, and set aside.

If your butter is colder than room temperature, place the stick in a microwave safe bowl or large glass measuring cup and soften it a little in the microwave. It's ok if it starts to melt. Place the chocolate in the bowl with the softened butter and microwave for about 20 seconds at a time, stirring carefully in between. Make sure the chocolate is not scorching. When the butter and chocolate are mostly melted, remove from the microwave and stir until the mixture is smooth. Alternately, use a double boiler over the stove. Allow the chocolate mixture to cool for about 10 to 15 minutes. If the bowl you used to melt your chocolate and butter is not big enough to hold all of the other ingredients too, move your chocolate mixture to a larger bowl.

Stir sugar into the cooled chocolate mixture until combined. At this point, the mixture will be grainy. Whisk in the eggs one at a time, until smooth after each addition. Whisk in vanilla. Gently fold in flour and salt with a wooden spoon.

Pour batter into the prepared pan and smooth top with a spatula. Bake until a cake tester placed in the center of the brownies comes clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

When cool, run a knife around the sides of the pan. Using the parchment or foil, carefully lift the brownies out of the pan and onto the rack. Brownies can be stored in an air tight container for 3 days.

S'More Pie, Please

Last Saturday, Sean and I attended a picnic that a co-worker was having at a local park. With no refrigeration or even running water available, it becomes something of a conundrum to decide what to bring. I have to assume that many people have a similar problem, since there was a glut of brownies and pasta salads. Everything was very good, but it got a little monotonous. However, I wasn't much more creative myself: in situations where there is no refrigeration, I almost always bring a dessert.






But I still need to show off a bit.







This pie is easy to make, I promise. Regardless, people who see the finished product simply won't believe you. I found the original recipe here. The finished product looks delicious, and I love the idea. But there is no way that I am going to make my own marshmallow for the topping! I also got lazy and simply bought a graham-cracker pie crust. This was for the best, since it meant the pie had a disposable pan that I could leave behind at the picnic, with no worries. I also decided to make the top of the pie resemble more of a fruit tart, with the marshmallows arranged in a circular patten over the chocolate layer. With a little browning under the broiler, the whole marshmallows make for a more dramatic finish, I think.

That said, when you brown the marshmallows, watch carefully! On my first attempt, I stepped away from the broiler for literally 30 seconds. When I came to retrieve the pie, the marshmallows were on fire! It blew out easily, but it gave me quite a scare. I only wish I had a picture of that for you. If your marshmallows catch on fire, blow them out promptly and carefully remove from the broiler. With a pair of tongs, remove the marshmallow, being careful not get charred bits on the chocolate. It should come off in one or two pieces. Then begin again.


S'more Pie

Adapted from Gourmet, November 2006

Ingredients:
7 oz. good quality bittersweet chocolate, no more than 70% Cacao and not unsweetened, finely chopped or broken into small pieces
1 cup (or one pint) heavy cream
1 large egg, beaten and placed at room temperature for 30 minutes
Pinch of salt
1 graham cracker pie crust
Mini-marshmallows, for topping. Have a whole bag on hand, in case of charring.

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Put the chocolate in a large bowl. Bring the cream to just to a boil in a heavy-bottomed sauce-pan over low heat, stirring frequently. Pour the cream over the chocolate and stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Gently whisk in the egg and a pinch of salt until combined. Pour the chocolate into the pie crust (place the pre-made crust on a baking sheet, like the packaging says!). The crust will be half-full. Cover the edge with a pie shield or foil and place in the oven, and bake until the filling is set, about 25 minutes. When the pie is fully cooked, the filling will tremble only slightly when gently shaken. Cool for about an hour, and then cover and refrigerate, three hours to one day.

Take the pie out of the refrigerator and allow to come closer to room temperature, about five or ten minutes. Place the marshmallows in a circular pattern (or however you would like) over the chocolate. Place the pie shield or foil over the crust so that it doesn't burn in the broiler. Place the pie back on the cookie sheet, if you have removed it, and place in the broiler. Watch carefully and turn the pie frequently. When the marshmallows are appealingly browned, promptly remove the pie from the broiler.

Slice the pie with a knife that has been dipped in warm water, and then dried with a towel, if possible.

Notes:
Marshmallows can be browned with a creme brulee torch, instead of in the broiler. Before adding the marshmallow topping, the pie can be covered and refrigerated for up to one day.

No More Than a Pretty Face...

I had really high hopes for these cookies, as found on The Wednesday Chef. Despite all of the chocolate and butter the recipe contains, the flavor really isn't there.

However, they look perfect.




After reviewing other recipes online, I've found that the majority of chocolate crinkle cookies contain espresso, vanilla, or cognac. I have to assume that this additional flavoring is what is missing from the San Andreas cookies. However, I have attempted an espresso-chocolate crinkle cookie from the December 2008 issue of Cooking Light. This recipe called for instant espresso granules, which I couldn't find. Since several commenters stated that they used a shot of espresso instead, this is what I used. The cookies tasted fairly good, but they were not pretty to look at, and I didn't care for the texture.

However, the point of this post is not to complain about failed attempts at chocolate crinkle cookies. I want to perfect a recipe for these cookies, maybe using cognac, though espresso or vanilla would be easier. Does anyone have any ideas or alternate, better recipes for such cookies? I am not an extremely experienced baker, so I am not entirely sure where to begin here, except to add vanilla to the San Andreas recipe. As you can probably tell from the picture, these cookies look beautiful, so the flour and baking powder ratio is correct, I think. In place of almond meal, I crushed some slivered almonds in a zip-lock bag with a rolling pin. This doesn't really add to the flavor, but it does lend a nice, crunchy texture to the otherwise rather cake-like cookies.

I used Ghiradelli chocolate chips, which I have had success with before, and they melt down (and taste) much better than most chocolate chips. However, now I am wondering if that was a good idea.

If anyone has any thoughts, or experiences making this type of cookie, please share. I'd love to find a way to make them more flavorful. When I make them again, I will report back to record my progress. I'm looking forward to hearing your ideas.

An Imperfect Recipe?

Today, I am presenting a recipe that seems to be rather flawed. However, it is so delicious that I feel it deserves some mention. My original intention was to make this . I have been reading a lot of Orangette. The writing is just so good, and the stories are really entertaining. The recipes that are featured really appeal to me. I especially liked the idea of a rich chocolate cake like this one, but then I came across a similar recipe in one of my cookbooks. This second recipe uses fewer eggs and less sugar, so I figured it would be less filling, but it would taste richer.
As the cake came out of the oven, it smelled delicious. However, it looked a little dry. When it came time to serve dessert, the cake proved to be dryer than I would have liked, though there were pockets of moist (how I hate that word), rich cake. It was really similar in texture to a brownie, but the flavor was more sophisticated than most brownies I have tasted. While it crumbled apart and was impossible to eat with anything but a spoon, it was undeniably delicious.
My belief is that the temperature of my oven is off, and the delicate nature of this cake could not properly endure the extra heat. As a result,the cake was slightly overcooked. I intend to buy an oven thermometer to prevent future problems like this one.
At some point, I would like to try this cake again, in order to perfect the texture. If this doesn't work, then I will turn to the Orangette recipe above. The extra eggs should prevent dryness in this type of cake. And so, though I have ideas on how to fix this problem (and it really is worth it!), the cost of ingredients and the calories of the recipe discourage me from remaking it right away. When I do, however, I promise to tell you about it. Does anyone else have thoughts on how the cake could be less crumbly?
I have reprinted the original recipe below.

Charlie's Afternoon Chocolate Cake
reprinted from Chocolate Ephiphany by Francois Payard.

Ingredients:
Vegetable cooking spray, for the pan
All-purpose flour, for the pan
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 oz. (usually two bakers' chocolate bars) 60% chocolate, chopped
2 large eggs
2/3 cup of sugar
3/4 cup all purpose flour

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray the sides and bottom of a round 9-inch cake pan with cooking spray. Dust with flour, shaking off the excess, and set aside.
Bring the butter to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir to prevent from burning. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate to the pan. Stir the mixture until the chocolate is melted and smooth
Whisk together the eggs and sugar in a large bowl, until well-combined. Add the flour and mix well. Add the chocolate to the batter and stir until the mixture is just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
Bake for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 300 degrees and bake for an additional eight minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely in the pan. Unmold, and serve.

Makes one 9 inch cake; serves eight to ten.
Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, or powdered sugar, if desired. This cake freezes well.