How To Eat A Cupcake

Not Your Momma's Test Kitchen: Petit Fours

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 10:30:00 +0000

As some of you already know, I started a new blog called "Not Your Momma's Test Kitchen." It was supposed to be a blog where you send in recipes that you've been saving for a while but haven't gotten around to making. I would make them and show you my results, and then it would be your turn. Well, I decided it would be too much trouble, and really impractical, to have two blogs. So I'm making NYMTK a sub-chapter of this blog! Somehow, I have to figure out a way to rework this layout to include a tab to submit a recipe (like this page here on my NYMTK blog). Suggestions are welcome and much needed!

For my first NYMTK post, I took the very first e-mail submission I received. It was sent in by Andrea, and she bookmarked it from DianasDesserts.com. The recipe originally comes from "The New Food Lover's Companion 2nd Edition" by Sharon Tyler Herbst. Since petit fours are on my Top 100, I thought this was a perfect match! Reading the reviews on Dianas Desserts, I knew I was going to get one of two results. Either my petit fours would be delicious and adorable, or they'd be sickeningly sweet and fugly. Just browse through my photos below and then guess which result I got........................

Got a guess???? They were absolutely the sweetest things I've ever eaten! I know they're supposed to be quite sweet, and that is why they are portioned so small. But seriously, this was like literally dipping a spoon straight into a box of confectioners' sugar! And fugly doesn't even come close to describing them. I'm not exactly a beginner in the kitchen, and I couldn't even make them look respectable. I think they're so sickeningly sweet because of the amount of icing that has to go on them so they're no longer see-through. The cake itself was delicious with a thin coating of the fruit glaze, and after just one coating of icing they were sweet, but just as I'd imagine a petit four to taste like. However, once they were completely coated, they became inedible. Overall, I'd say my final opinion is that petit fours just suck! Sorry I don't have better news for you, Andrea. :(

Tea Time Petit Fours (from "The New Food Lover's Companion 2nd Edition" by Sharon Tyler Herbst)
Makes 2 1/2 dozen

For Cake:
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk
3 egg whites

For Fruit Glaze:
12 oz. apricot or raspberry preserves (or heated jelly may be used instead)
3 tbsp. water

For Icing:
9 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Food coloring, optional
Tiny edible sugar flowers or leaves, for decorating tops of petit fours

For Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C). Grease and lightly flour a 9-inch square baking pan.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, shortening and sugar. Beat in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. In a small mixing bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form; gently fold into batter.

Pour batter into prepared baking pan and bake at 350 degrees F (180 C) for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a plate or cooling rack; then chill cake in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. (I froze mine overnight before I continued.)

Remove cake from refrigerator. Cut a thin slice off each side of chilled cake. Cut cake into 1-1/4-inch squares. Place squares 1/2 inch apart on a cooling rack over a 15 x 10 x 1-inch pan. Apply fruit glaze (See Fruit Glaze Preparation Below) evenly over tops and sides of cake squares, allowing excess to drip off. Let dry. Repeat if necessary to thoroughly coat squares. Let glaze dry completely. (I put mine in the freezer for 15 minutes.)

For Preparing The Fruit Glaze:
In a medium size saucepan, heat preserves with the 3 tbsp. water on low heat. Drizzle or spread a thin layer of heated preserves over cooled tops and sides of petit fours before icing. (If using jelly, you do not need to add water to it, just heat jelly in saucepan on low heat and spread over cooled tops and sides of petit fours).

To Prepare Icing:
Combine all icing ingredients in the top of a double boiler. Heat over boiling water to lukewarm. Pour icing over tops and sides of petit fours. Once they are set, they should be coated with icing again. After icing hardens, decorate tops of each petit four with a tiny edible sugar flower or leaf. (I put each piece of cake on a dipping fork over the icing bowl then poured the icing over with a large spoon.)

Storage of Petit Fours
Petits Fours may be made up to 24 hours in advance. Let the icing (or if using a fondant frosting) dry completely before storing in an airtight container. Refrigerate petit fours if they contain perishable fillings and icings, such as dairy products or fresh fruit or berries. The fruit preserves or jelly used in the filling of these petit fours can go bad after 2 or 3 days because of the moisture from the wet fruit filling, so storing them in an airtight container at room temperature for more than 2 days is not advised.

Tips:
1) You can separate the icing, once it's made, into small bowls, and tint each with a different food coloring, adding color until you achieve the desired shade.
2) Icing colors that look nice for petit fours are: White, Pale Yellow, Pale Pink, Pale Blue, Pale Green or Lavender.
3) You may also drizzle melted white or dark chocolate over tops and sides of petit fours instead of using the white or tinted icing.
4) Another idea is to sandwich two of the cake squares together with the heated preserves or jelly glaze; then pour icing over the tops and sides of squares, then decorate when icing has hardened completely.

Boeuf Bourguignonne & Stout Batter Bread

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:27:00 +0000

A few months ago, I won another cookbook giveaway at Kate's blog Warm Olives and Cool Cocktails. I was so excited that I won my first choice, "Bon Appetit, Y'all" by Virginia Lewis. It's been on my Amazon.com wishlist for quite some time! As a rule for her cookbook giveaways, Kate asks that we make a recipe from the cookbook within 30 days after we get it. I recently saw the movie "Julie & Julia" for the first time, and as soon as I saw the recipe for Boeuf Bourguignonne in this book, I knew that's what I wanted to make (it's a pretty important recipe in the movie!). It's basically a French version of beef stew cooked in wine. I knew it would be a time consuming recipe, but I figured with all the time and energy it would take to make it, I'd have some sort of celestial experience upon take the first bite. Sadly, that didn't happen. I don't know why, but I thought my dislike for wine would take a back seat and let me enjoy this meal. Nope! If you're not a wine lover, or if you're like me and the taste of wine makes you gag, don't kid yourself into thinking you're gonna love Boeuf Bourguignonne just because it's some fancy French recipe. But if you consider yourself a wine drinker, then by all means, set aside 4-6 hours of your time to make this dish! The beef is extremely tender, and the entire dish is packed with deep flavors.

I served mine with mashed potatoes and the Stout Batter Bread that was mentioned in the cookbook as a nice accompaniment to the Boeuf Bourguignonne. By the way, if you have no idea how to pronounce that, go here and click the speakerphone symbol. It's something along the lines of "buhf Boor-geen-yahn." Anyway, the beer bread was the star of the show! It was PERFECT to sop up the sauce, and it had a nice bitterness from the Guinness. Mmmm!

Oh btw, did I mention there's even a VIDEO for this post! Yep, it's a new thing that I'll probably forget about. I'm calling it "Table Talk." Watch the clip at the end of the post for a lovely after-dinner interview. :D

How many baby carrots does it take to make a large carrot?? Bottom round, trimmed of excess fat, and cut into cubes Meat, veggies, and wine... ready for a 7 hour chill Browning the meat Sauteing the veggies Adding the flour as a thickener
My bouquet garni (I didn't have cheesecloth!)
Ready for a 2 1/2 hour stay in the oven!
While the stew was in the oven, I made the beer bread...
And I sauteed the veggies for the "garnish"
After 2 1/2 hours in the oven, it's reduced and smelling gooooood...
Add the garnish, et voilà!
Dinner is brought to you tonight by ALCOHOL! Woot woot!

Boeuf Bourguignonne (from “Bon Appetit, Y’all” by Virginia Willis)
Serves 4 to 6

In classic French cooking, each dish has a name that indicates its precise ingredients and correct garnish. Bourguignonne is a term for dishes cooked in red wine, as some of the most famous French wines are from Bourgogne (Burgundy). These dishes are garnished with pearl onions, button mushrooms, and lardons of bacon. Never choose stew meat already in precut cubes. It's more expensive and you have no idea if you're getting, for example, leftover bits from the shoulder or rib-eye, two wildly different cuts that won't cook at the same rate.

3 pounds lean rump roast, chuck pot roast, sirloin tip, top round, or bottom round, cut into 2-inch cubes (I used bottom round, trimmed of excess fat)
1 (750-ml) bottle red wine, preferably Pinot Noir
1 carrot, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 stalk celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 onion, preferably Vidalia, coarsely chopped
4 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into lardoons (matchsticks)
3 tablespoons canola oil, plus more if needed
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups homemade beef stock or low-fat, reduced-sodium beef broth (definitely use the reduced-sodium broth, as it will reduce during cooking)
Bouquet garni (5 sprigs of thyme, 4 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley, 2 bay leaves, preferably fresh, 10 black peppercorns, tied together in cheesecloth)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
24 pearl onions, trimmed and peeled
8 ounces white button mushrooms, halved or quartered if large

To marinate the beef, place the cubes in a large non-reactive bowl. Add the wine, carrot, celery, and onion. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight (I marinated mine for 7 hours).

Line both a baking sheet and a large plate with paper towels.

Remove the beef from the marinade and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Pat the meat dry with paper towels. Strain the marinade, reserving separately both the vegetables and the liquid (the liquid in one bowl, the veggies in another).

Preheat the oven to 350°F. To cook the beef, heat a large, heavy-duty Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to the prepared plate to drain. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat from the pan. Decrease the heat to medium, add 2 tablespoons of the canola oil and heat until shimmering.

Season the beef with salt and pepper. Sear the beef in two or three batches without crowding until nicely browned on all sides, about 5 minutes; transfer to the prepared baking sheet when done (At this point, the bottom of your pot has started to develop a very dark, almost burnt-looking film. Don’t worry, you haven’t ruined your expensive Dutch oven. This is called “fond,” and it‘s pure flavor!). Add the reserved vegetables from the marinade and cook until they start to color, 5 to 7 minutes. Sprinkle on the flour and toss again to lightly coat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the flour turns brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Return the beef to the Dutch oven. Add the reserved marinade liquid and enough stock to barely cover the meat.

Add the bouquet garni, tomato paste, and garlic to the pan. Bring to a boil on high heat on the cooktop. Cover and transfer to the oven. Cook until the meat is tender, 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Meanwhile, to make the garnish, in a large skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and the butter over medium heat. Add the peeled onions, mushrooms, the remaining sprig of thyme, and the remaining bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté until the vegetables are lightly browned and tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.

Remove the bouquet garni from the Dutch oven and discard. Transfer the beef with a slotted spoon to a bowl. In the Dutch oven, using an immersion blender, puree the sauce and vegetables until smooth. Or, once the beef is removed, ladle the sauce and vegetables into a blender and puree until smooth a little at a time. Cook the puréed sauce over medium-high heat until the sauce coats the back of a spoon; if needed, thin with more stock to achieve this consistency (Mine was already thick, so I added about 1/2 cup of broth to thin it out). Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Return the beef to the sauce and turn to coat.

Remove the sprig of thyme and the bay leaf from the mushrooms and onions in the skillet. Add the sauteed mushrooms, onions, and reserved bacon to the beef and sauce. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until warm and the flavors marry and blend, 5 to 7 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Stout Batter Bread (from “Bon Appetit, Y’all” by Virginia Willis)
Makes one 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf

Other than sharing the quickbread gene, this beer batter bread doesn't have much of a Southern heritage. For minimum effort and maximum results, it's hard to beat. This takes the phrase "dump and stir" to a whole new level. Different beers produce breads with different flavors and textures. This recipe calls for stout, producing a bread somewhat dark in color with a slightly heavy flavor. It goes well with a hearty stew such as Boeuf Bourguignonne or Old-fashioned Pot Roast. Lighter ale produces a lighter loaf and would be more appropriate with milder dishes such as Potato and Cheddar Soup.

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the loaf pan
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 (12-ounce) bottle stout, at room temperature (I used Guinness)

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Brush one 9x5x3-inch loaf pan with some of the butter.

In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Add the beer and 2 tablespoons of the remaining melted butter, stirring just until combined. (The batter will be somewhat lumpy.)

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Bake until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes (If you're using this bread to sop up gravy or soup, it‘s okay to leave it in for the full 40 minutes. I‘m a freak about taking things out early, so my bread was just slightly on the gummy side). Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly, then invert onto the rack to cool until warm. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Rustic Italian Bread

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 23:02:00 +0000

Sorry for the MAJOR delay between posts. I'm full of excuses, but my most current is Cafe World on Facebook! It takes up ALL my time! I made this bread about two weeks ago, and it was so good that I want to post it right away. But I had hungry customers to feed in my virtual cafe, and I can't let my buzz rating slip below 100! ;) Anyway, I'm posting it now, and I must say it's totally delicious! I'll put it this way, it's yummy enough to eat WITHOUT any butter smeared on top! The crust is extra crunchy, and the interior is so moist and chewy. I used the "same-day" variation of the recipe, and the flavor was incredible. I can't even imagine how good it would taste if I took the extra time to make the sponge a day ahead! This recipe makes a loaf large enough to feed 8-10 people alongside a nice spaghetti dinner. The four of us polished off half of it, and I took care of the rest as French toast over the next few mornings. Breakfast has never been better!! (Well, except for the amazing muesli my mom picked up for me at Grandma's Pantry while she was in Harrisonburg!) :D
Rustic Italian Bread (from "The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book")

This recipe requires a bit of patience—the sponge, which gives the bread flavor, must be made 11 to 27 hours before the dough is made. We find it makes the most sense to prepare the sponge (which requires just 5 minutes of hands-on work) the day before you want to bake the bread.

On the second day, remove the sponge from the refrigerator and begin step 2 at least 7 hours before you want to serve the bread. If you own two standing mixer bowls, in step 1 you can refrigerate the sponge in the bowl in which it was made. Use the second bowl to make the dough in step 2. Have ready a spray bottle filled with water for misting the loaves.

Variation: SAME-DAY RUSTIC ITALIAN BREAD
If you don't have time for a sponge, this loaf can be made the same day, but the flavor won't be as complex, and the crumb will be finer and more uniform (like sandwich bread).
Omit the sponge. When assembling the dough in step 2, increase the amount of bread flour to 5 cups, increase the water to 2 1/4 cups, and increase the yeast to 1 envelope (2 1/4 teaspoons).

Sponge
2 cups (11 ounces) bread flour
1 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1/4 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast

Dough
3-3 1/2 cups (16 1/2 to 19 1/4 ounces) bread flour
1 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees)
2 teaspoons salt

1. For the sponge: Stir all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature until the sponge has risen and fallen, at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.

2. For the dough: Combine 3 cups of the flour and the yeast in a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. With the mixer on low speed add the water and mix until the dough comes together, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.

3. Remove the plastic wrap, add the sponge and salt, and knead the dough on medium-low speed until it is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. If after 4 minutes more flour is needed, add the remaining 1/2 cup of flour, 2 tablespoons at a time, until the dough clears the sides of the bowl but sticks to the bottom.

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter, and knead by hand to form a smooth round ball. Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly with greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

5. Turn the dough in the bowl with a dough scraper or large rubber spatula. Gently lift and fold a third of the dough toward the center. Repeat with the opposite side of the dough. Finally, fold the dough in half, perpendicular to the first folds. The dough shape should be a rough square. Cover, let rise for 30 more minutes, then repeat the turning process. Cover and let rise until the dough has doubled in size, about 30 minutes longer.

6. Top a rimless (or inverted) baking sheet with parchment paper. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter, press it into a 10-inch square without tearing it, and gently dimple it with your fingertips. Fold the top corners diagonally to the middle. Using your fingertips and starting at the top of the dough, pull the underside of the dough up over the top, stretching it considerably, and begin to roll the dough up into a rough log. With each roll, press the seam firmly to seal. Continue to do this, forming the dough into a taut log, 5 to 7 more times. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, seam side down, and gently tuck the ends into a taut loaf. Mist the loaf with vegetable oil spray, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size and the dough barely springs back when poked with a knuckle, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

7. Meanwhile, adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position, place a baking stone on the rack, and heat the oven to 500 degrees. Let the baking stone heat for at least 30 minutes (but no longer than 1 hour).

8. (I dusted mine lightly with flour before I slashed it.) Cut three 1/2-inch deep diagonal slashes across the top of the dough and spray the loaf lightly with water. Carefully slide the loaf and parchment onto the hot baking stone. Bake the bread for 10 minutes.

9. Rotate the bread, reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees, and continue to bake until the center of the loaf registers 210 degrees on an instant-read thermometer and the crust is deep golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. (I think mine only took somewhere between 25-30 minutes to finish baking, so keep an eye on it.)

10. Transfer the loaf to a wire rack, discard the parchment, and let cool to room temperature, about 2 hours, before serving.

Lemon-Poppyseed Cake

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 19:11:00 +0000

Let me refer back to my past Twitter "tweets" and show you what Josh said when he tasted this cake...

josh just called me a "f#$%ing craftsman" and demanded that i make him a mattress out of lemon poppyseed pound cake!! ;D ;D
6:17 PM Jan 5th from txt

To be politically correct, I guess I'd be a craftswoman. Either way, this cake was BANGIN!!!! It was dense, tender, and moist. The cake itself had only a hint of lemon flavor, but the crust (which was soaked in a lemon sugar wash) packed a major pucker of sour lemon flavor! The sugar wash went on the outside while the cake was still warm, but it didn't crust over like the book led me to believe it would. That didn't matter, because it was sooo very delicious, and it kept the cake moist for quite a few days! Yeah, it was a HUGE cake, so it did last for a while in our house. The poppyseeds in the cake gave a unique crunch and a slight nutty flavor. Everyone loved it, and I'd definitely make it again!
Lemon-Poppyseed Cake (from "Baking by Flavor" by Lisa Yockelson)
Makes one 10-inch tube cake; about 20 slices

Lemon Peel Infusion (recipe follows)
Lemon-Poppyseed Sour Cream Cake Batter
3 cups unsifted bleached all-purpose flour (I always use unbleached)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 3/4 cups granulated sugar
6 large eggs (at room temperature)
1 cup thick, cultured sour cream
3 tablespoons milk
1/3 cup poppyseeds (I only used 1/4 cup)
Lemon Sugar Wash (recipe follows)

Mix the ingredients for the Lemon Peel Infusion; set aside for 15 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour the inside of a 10-inch tube pan; set aside.
Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Cream the butter in the large bowl of a standing electric mixer on moderate speed for 4 minutes. Add the granulated sugar in three additions, beating for 1 minute after each portion is added. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing for 45 seconds after each addition. Blend in the lemon infusion. On low speed, alternately added the sifted ingredients in three additions with the sour cream in two additions, beginning and ending with the sifted mixture. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl frequently with a rubber spatula to keep the batter even-textured. The batter will be creamy and moderately thick. Blend in the milk. Stir in the poppyseeds. Spoon the batter into the prepared tube pan. Shake the pan gently from side to side, once or twice, to level the top.
Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until risen, set, and a wooden pick inserted in the cake withdraws clean (mine was done after 1 hour and 10 mins). The baked cake will pull away slightly from the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Invert the cake out and turn it right-side up onto the cooling rack. Place a sheet of wax paper underneath to catch any drips of sugar wash.
Using a soft, 1-inch pastry brush, apply the wash over the top and sides of the cake. Cool completely before slicing and serving.
Store in an airtight cake keeper for up to 5 days.

Lemon Peel Infusion
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest (from 1 large lemon)
2 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons pure lemon extract.

Combine ingredients in a small non-reactive ramekin. Let the infusion stand for 15 minutes before using.

Lemon Sugar Wash
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup granulated sugar

In a small nonreactive bowl, combine the lemon juice and sugar. Stir well. Let stand 10 minutes. Using the wash now (while the cake is hot out of the oven) will give the surface of a baked pound cake a crackly, sugary veneer. (It just made mine look wet, but it kept it very moist!)

A Christmas Cookie... 12 Days Late!!

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 21:53:00 +0000

Okay, so I KNOW Christmas was 12 days ago, but c'mon! Don't act like you weren't up to your freakin' eyeballs in wrapping paper, cousins, Best Buy gift cards, and the same exact food you ate for Thanksgiving, too!! I made these cookies just before Christmas, and they were fantastic! I think they were Josh's favorite, and everyone loved them. They're called Pfeffernussen, which is German for "pepper nuts" or something like that. They're kinda soft, kinda crispy, almost cake-like, and deliciously spicy! Since I'm so late posting the recipe, let's just called them "Winter cookies" instead of "Christmas cookies!" ;)
PS: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from The Baker Family + Friends!

Left to right: my brother's g/f Jessica, my brother Lance Jr., Wrinkles, my mom Cathy, my dad Lance, me, and my b/f Josh!

Pfeffernussen (from "Martha Stewart's Cookies")
Makes 3 dozen

1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar (for dusting)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup firmly packed light-brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the confectioners' sugar in a brown paper bag.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, pepper, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and baking soda. Set aside.
Place butter, brown sugar, and molasses in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture; beat until just combined. Pinch off dough in tablespoon amounts; roll into 1 1/4-inch balls. Arrange balls 1 1/2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. (Dough can be frozen at this point, covered tightly with plastic wrap, up to 1 month.)
Bake until cookies are golden and firm to the touch with slight cracking, about 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer sheets to a wire rack to cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Working in batches, place cookies in paper bag; shake until well coated (I shook the extra sugar off my cookies in a large seive). Let cool completely on wire rack. Store in an airtight container.

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:43:00 +0000

Enjoy your holidays and vacations (if you're lucky enough to get one)! I'll be back home on Sunday, and I'll have plenty of Christmas cookie recipes to post. Sorry they won't be up in time for the festivities. :( Anywho, have a safe holiday, eat lots, enjoy your family, and don't miss the after-Christmas sales!

Merry Chrismas! :D

UPDATE! I realize it's January 4th and I'm still not back yet! When I'm not at work, I'm at home watching True Blood or Six Feet Under! I'm baking bread today so I' promise I'll be back soon! ;)

1 Pie, 2 Pies, 3 Pies, 4 Pies!!

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:19:00 +0000

It's that time of year again. The space between Thanksgiving and Christmas, dubbed by my family as "Thanksmas." And you know what that means... it's time for PIES!!! I started a tradition last year when I brought pies for my aunts and Great aunt to our Thanksmas get-together. This year was slightly more difficult because I now have a busy work schedule to get around. Over a span of 3 days I managed to crank out 4 awesome looking pies! I'm pretty darn proud of myself. I wish I could say I tasted 4 awesome pies, but sadly the aunts don't like to share! :( Oh well, I guess that's what I get when I say "Here's YOUR pie." I don't blame them. I wouldn't want to share my pie with a house full of 23 hungry people either! Thankfully, they all texted back honest reviews. With one exception, the pies were very delicious. The exception being the Bourbon Chocolate Pecan pie, which broke my aunt's hear to tell me it tasted too much of alcohol. Although I didn't taste any of the pies, I did notice that particular pie smelling greatly of alcohol. I don't think I would've liked it either. If you're not a fan of bourbon, it might be a good idea to reduce it from 3 tablespoons to 1 tablespoon. Other than that, she loved the pie and all aunts said the crust was fantastic, flaky, and delicious! *pat on the back* I might start calling myself "Lord of the Pies" ...too much?? ;)

UPDATE: The receiver of the Tollhouse Pie let me know that her children really did not enjoy the whiskey flavor in the pie. I didn't think only 1 tablespoon would make a difference, but if you don't like whiskey feel free to leave it out. It won't make a big difference on the finished pie.

Bourbon Chocolate Pecan Pie (from "Baked: New Frontiers in Baking" by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito)
YIELD: 1 (9-INCH) PIE
1 ball of pie dough (my favorite recipe)
2 cups pecan halves, toasted
3 large eggs
3/4 cup light corn syrup
3 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 tablespoons bourbon
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chip

Dust a work surface with a sprinkling of flour. Unwrap the ball of chilled dough and put it directly on the work surface. Roll out into a 12-inch round. Transfer the dough to a pie dish and carefully work it into the pie dish, folding any overhang under and crimping the edge as you go. Wrap and freeze the crust until firm, about 2 hours, or up to 3 months.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Coarsely chop 3/4 cup of the pecans. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until combined. Add the corn syrup, sugars, butter, salt, vanilla, and bourbon. Whisk again until combined. Stir in the chopped pecans and set the filling aside.
Spread the chocolate chips evenly along the bottom of the frozen pie shell. Slowly pour the filling on top of the chocolate chips. Arrange the remaining 1 1/4 cups pecan halves on top of the filling.
Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, then cover the edges of the crust loosely with aluminum foil and bake for another 30 minutes. (My pie was ready after only 40 minutes of baking.) Test the pie by sticking a knife in the center of the filling. If the knife comes out clean, the pie is done. If the knife comes out with clumps of filling sticking to it, bake for another 5 minutes and test again. (I’ve never fully baked a pecan pie like this. I always take it out when the edges are set and the center is slightly wobbly.)
Cool the pie on a wire rack and serve warm or at room temperature. The pie can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 2 days.

*One thing I noticed about the two pie recipes from "Baked" that called for the crust to be frozen before baked, the crust browned more evenly and kept it's crimp. As you can see by the Cinnamon Apple Pie and my Gooey Pecan Pie at the end of the blog post (the crusts were not frozen before baked), they did not keep their pretty crimp, and the gooey pecan pie crust browned unevenly.

Tuscaloosa Tollhouse Pie (from "Baked: New Frontiers in Baking" by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito)
YIELD: 1 (9-INCH) PIE
1 ball of pie dough (my favorite recipe)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into cubes
1 tablespoon whiskey
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
1 1/4 cups (about 8 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

Dust a work surface with a sprinkling of flour. Unwrap the ball of chilled dough and put it directly on the work surface. Roll out into a 12-inch round. Transfer the dough to a pie dish and carefully work it into the pie dish, folding any overhang under and crimping the edge as you go. Wrap and freeze the crust until firm, about 2 hours, or up to 3 months.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour and sugars together until combined. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs on high speed until foamy, about 3 minutes. Remove the whisk attachment and add the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour mixture. Turn the mixer to high and beat for 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and add the butter. Beat on high speed until the mixture is combined. Scrape down the bowl, add the whiskey, and beat the mixture on high speed for 1 minute.
Fold the walnuts and 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips into the filling.
Pour the filling into the frozen pie shell and spread it out evenly. Top the filling with the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
Bake in the center of the oven for 25 minutes, then cover the edges of the crust loosely with aluminum foil and bake for another 25 minutes (this will prevent the crust from browning too quickly). Test the pie by sticking a knife in the center of the filling. If the knife comes out clean, the pie is done. If the knife comes out with clumps of filling sticking to it, bake for another 5 minutes and test again. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool before slicing. The pie can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 2 days.

Cinnamon Apple Pie Gooey Pecan Pie

Sweet Potato Cheesecake w/ Marshmallow-Sour Cream Topping

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 10:30:00 +0000

Mooooooove over, candied yams! There's a new tuber in town (oh yeah, I know my botany). Why not dress your table with this big, honkin' masterpiece for Christmas?? It's a sweet potato cheesecake in a ginger snap crust with marshmallow-sour cream topping. I'm not sure if it's possible to fit more of my favorite words into a food description!

I don't make cheesecake very often. However, it must have been in the stars for me to make a cheesecake this week. Josh and I were in the car going somewhere, and somehow we got on the subject of cheesecake. He suggested I make one, and that's when I realized I've only ever made like two cheesecakes in my entire life! It also hit me that cream cheese had been on sale, and as a result, we had 3 lbs. in the fridge. Ummm I think that pretty much spells out c-h-e-e-s-e-c-a-k-e! I knew I wanted to use up my Murray ginger snaps before they went stale (as much as I love them, I just can't eat a whole bag!). I was going to go the pumpkin route, until I realized we didn't have any canned pumpkin. But we DID have canned sweet potatoes! You can't have sweet potatoes without marshmallows. I did a little googling and found this recipe on Epicurious.com. It's wonderful! I followed reviewers' suggestions and baked it in a larger pan. I still had a few tablespoons of filling that wouldn't fit. There's no way all of it would've fit in the suggested 9" pan. And somehow my cheesecake baked 20 minutes faster than the recipe suggested. Sounds like someone needs to go in and do some editing on that one! Other than that, the cheesecake is outstanding! The sweet potato flavor is subtle, of course, but you definitely recognize it. And the marshmallow topping is fabulous. You know I can't complain about a ginger snap crust. I give this cheesecake an A+!

(PS: It would make a great Christmas present... *hint hint*)
Sweet Potato Cheesecake with Marshmallow-Sour Cream Topping (adapted from epicurious.com)

For crust:
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs (about 9 ounces)
1 cup pecans (about 3 1/2 ounces)
1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tablespoons chopped crystallized ginger (I omitted this only because I didn't have it)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For filling:
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups sugar
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin (or 15 ounces, by weight, of pureed sweet potato)
5 large eggs
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I upped it to 1 1/2 teaspoons)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (I upped it to 3/4 teaspoon)
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vanilla extract (I reduced to 1 tablespoon)

For topping:
2 cups mini marshmallows or large marshmallows cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream (next time I would reduce to 3/4 cup to help marshmallow flavor come through more)

Crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides with nonstick spray (I definitely recommend using a 10-inch pan. Also, the cooking spray burned in the oven, so I would omit it next time). Grind cookie crumbs, pecans, brown sugar, and ginger in processor until nuts are finely ground. Add butter; using on/off turns, process to blend. Transfer mixture to prepared pan; press onto bottom and 2 inches up sides of pan. Bake crust until set and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Cool completely.

Filling:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in pumpkin. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating on low speed to incorporate each addition. Add flour, spices, and salt; beat just to blend. Beat in vanilla. Transfer filling to cooled crust. Bake until filling is just set in center and edges begin to crack (filling will move slightly when pan is gently shaken), about 1 hour 20 minutes (Mine was ready after only 1 hour). Cool 1 hour. Run knife around sides of pan to release crust. Chill cheesecake uncovered in pan overnight (I would never leave something like this uncovered! Wrap it in plastic unless you want it to taste like your fridge! Btw, I only chilled mine for 2 hours.).

Topping:
Stir marshmallows and milk in medium saucepan over low heat until marshmallows are melted. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and salt. Cool marshmallow mixture to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Add sour cream to marshmallow mixture; fold gently just to blend. Pour topping over cheesecake and spread evenly, leaving 1/2 inch uncovered around edges. Chill to set topping, at least 1 hour.

Favorite Deep-Dish Apple Pie

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:30:00 +0000

I've done it! I've finally mastered the apple pie! You may remember my apple pie post from two months ago. I loved that pie, but I overcooked the filling on the stove, so the apples were a little mushy. I wanted to try making apple pie again, but for some reason I moved on to a totally different recipe. My second try was with a Martha Stewart recipe. It's from her Baking Handbook, but I can't remember the exact name of the recipe. Anyway, it turned out horrible! I used my own crust recipe, but the problem was in the filling. It wasn't sweet at all, and the apples turned into complete mush! You would've thought I had made the pie with unsweetened applesauce! It was just horrible! So two days later I went back to the recipe I liked from "The All-American Dessert Book" by Nancy Baggett. This time I used the easy no-refrigeration oil-based crust from the grape pie because I just wasn't in the mood to wait around for my go-to crust to chill and rest in the fridge (FYI, my go-to crust recipe is here in my first apple pie post, as well as a link to the printable recipe). The oil-based crust is seriously a life-saver because you can use it as soon as you make it! It's a dream to roll out, but the only drawback is the lack of flavor. I guess you could add butter flavoring if you wanted to, but I'd rather just taste the slightly sweetened pastry. In my first apple pie I used 6 apples. In this pie I used a total of 9 apples: a combination of Braeburns, Granny Smiths, Honeycrisps, and Fujis. I spiced it up with cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. And this time I didn't overcook the filling on the stove! It baked up perfectly in the oven, and the apples still had a nice bite to them.

If you use the oil-based crust, it gets pretty soggy after a day or two, so make this pie when you plan on eating the whole thing quickly! Otherwise, go with the butter/shortening crust in the following recipe.

Favorite Deep-Dish Apple Pie (from "The All-American Dessert Book" by Nancy Baggett)

Double crust All-Purpose Pie Pastry Dough (recipe follows)
All-purpose flour for dusting dough

FILLING
10 1/2 cups peeled, cored, and thinly sliced apples (8-11 medium baking apples; choose at least three kinds, such as Stayman, Jonathan, Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Smokehouse, Sunrise, Granny Smith, Grimes Golden, York, and Gala) (I used 3 Braeburn, 3 Fuji, 2 Honeycrisp, and 1 Granny Smith)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or more to taste
Scant 2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3 1/2-4 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch (use larger amount if apples are very juicy)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I increased to 1 teaspoon and added 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice and 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg)
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits
1 tablespoon milk for brushing on dough top (mix with 1 egg yolk if using the oil-based crust as it does not brown well in the oven)
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar for sprinkling on dough top (I used turbinado sugar)

Lightly grease a 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie plate or coat with nonstick spray (I do not spray my pie plate). If the dough is cold and stiff, let it warm up until slightly pliable but still cool to the touch. Generously dust it on both sides with flour. Roll out one dough portion between large sheets of baking parchment into a 13 1/2-inch round. Occasionally check the underside of the dough during rolling and smooth out any wrinkles. (If the dough seems sticky or limp, place in the freezer for 5 minutes to firm up.) Gently peel off the top sheet of paper, then pat back into place. Flip the dough; peel off the bottom sheet. Center the round, dough side down, in the pie plate. Gently peel off the remaining paper. Smooth the dough into the plate and patch any tears, if necessary. Using kitchen shears or a paring knife, trim the overhang to 1/4 inch. Prick the pastry all over with a fork (I don't prick it at all). Loosely cover the pastry and place in the freezer while you roll out the top pastry and prepare the filling.

Roll out the second portion of dough into a 13 1/2-inch round as described above. Transfer the round (paper still attached) to a baking sheet and place in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F (I preheat a pizza stone as well). In a very large, heavy non-reactive saucepan, toss the apples with the lemon juice. In a medium bowl, stir together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt until well blended. Add the sugar mixture and butter to the apples, tossing until well blended. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer, stirring and scraping the pan bottom, for about 3 minutes, or until the apples cook down slightly; be careful not to burn (I cook them until the juice begins to thicken, about 5 minutes). Remove from the burner. Taste and add more lemon juice, if desired.

Turn out the apple mixture into the bottom crust, mounding it in the center. Gently peel off the top sheet of paper from the second pastry round. Center the round, dough side down, over the filling. Peel off and discard the remaining paper. Trim the overhang to 3/4 inch. Fold the overhang under the bottom pastry to form an edge that rests on the lip of the plate. Press the layers together firmly, then flute with your fingers or press the tines of a fork all the way around. Brush the dough top (not the edges) with the milk, then sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Cut generous slashes in the top for steam vents, using a sharp, lightly greased paring knife.

Set the pie on a rimmed baking sheet (or directly on the hot pizza stone in the oven). Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned. Spray the underside of an extra-wide sheet of aluminum foil with nonstick spray (or use nonstick foil). Make a foil tent over the pie top so the entire crust is covered. Continue baking for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the top is nicely browned and the filling is bubbly. Transfer the pie to a wire rack. Let cool for at least 1 1/2 hours and preferably 4 hours or longer (for neater slices) before serving.

The pie will keep, covered, at room temperature for up to 2 days or refrigerated for up to 2 days longer. Let come to room temperature before serving.

All-Purpose Pie Pastry Dough (Double Crust)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/3-inch cubes
7 tablespoons solid white shortening, cut or spooned into 14 pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cake flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar (I increased to 3 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6-9 tablespoons ice water

Freeze the butter cubes and shortening pieces for 20 minutes. (I used refrigerated shortening and butter, not frozen.)

In a large bowl, thoroughly stir together the all-purpose flour, cake flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Sprinkle the chilled butter and shortening over the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender, forks, or your fingertips, cut in the fat until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with a few bits the size of small peas remaining. Be sure to scrape up the flour mixture on the bottom of the bowl.

Combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in the processor. Pulse for 10 seconds to mix. (I re-wrote the next part of the recipe to show how I made it.) Sprinkle half the chilled butter over the flour mixture. Process with about five 1-second pulses. Stir, lifting up the contents on the bottom. Add the remaining butter, and pulse about 5 more times. Add shortening, and pulse 10 more times, just until the bits of fat are cut in and the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with a few bits the size of small peas remaining; stop halfway through and stir to redistribute the contents on the bottom. Turn out the mixture into a large bowl.

In a small bowl, measure out 6 tablespoons ice water. Using a fork, lightly combine the water mixture with the flour mixture, tossing until the water is evenly incorporated and the mixture just begins to form clumps, 15 to 20 strokes. Be sure to reach down to the bottom to be sure the flour underneath is dampened. Check the consistency by pinching a small amount of dough between your fingertips; it should hold together smoothly and be moist but not soggy. If it is crumbly or dry, sprinkle over more ice water, 2 teaspoons at a time, tossing briefly with a fork. When the water is evenly incorporated and the dough is sufficiently moistened to hold together when pinched, gather it up and firmly press it together with your fingertips into a smooth, dense mass. Divide the dough in half, and flatten the portions into 6-inch disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes and preferably 1 hour. The dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or wrapped airtight and frozen for up to a month; thaw in the refrigerator before using. Roll and bake as directed in the individual recipes.

The Cake Slice presents: Burnt Sugar Cake

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:30:00 +0000

First, sorry this is late. I was supposed to post on Nov. 20th, but with the holidays approaching things got a little crazy. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. My vacation was wonderful, and we had lots of fun shopping on Black Friday! Now, onto the cake.....

I actually made this cake earlier in the month, but I'm just getting around to writing about it! It was delicious, and Josh loved it (which is always a good sign because he's usually a non-dessert person). The cake layers were soft and moist and had a wonderfully strong burnt sugar taste. The frosting was way too runny and sugary. So you know me, I made SMBC instead. Since I used all the burnt sugar syrup in the runny frosting fiasco, I made a homemade dark caramel sauce and just added it a little at a time to my SMBC until I got the flavor I was looking for. The end result was a gorgeous, amber-colored cake with silky smooth burnt sugar frosting! To get a look at what the other Cake Slicers came up with, check out The Cake Slice blogroll.

The burnt sugar syrup...

Burnt Sugar Cake (from "Southern Cakes" by Nancie McDermott)

Burnt Sugar Syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup boiling water

Heat the sugar in a cast iron skillet or another heavy bottomed pan with high sides. Heat over a medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar melts into a clear brown caramel syrup. It should be the color of tea.
Gradually add the boiling water, pouring it down the sides of the pan so that if the syrup foams and bubbles up, you should be protected.
Continue cooking, stirring often, until the water combines with the syrup and turns a handsome brown syrup.
Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Store the cooled syrup in a sealed jar if not using right away.

Burnt Sugar Cake
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/2 cup Burnt Sugar Syrup (recipe above)

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 9 inch round cake pans.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and stir with a fork to mix well. Stir the vanilla into the milk.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and the sugar with an electric mixer at high speed for 2–3 minutes, until they are well combined. Stop now and then to scrape the bowl down. Add the eggs, one by one, beating well each time. Pour in 1/2 cup of the burnt sugar syrup and beat well.
Add a third of the flour mixture and about half of the milk, beating at a low speed, until just incorporated. Mix in another third of the flour and the rest of the milk. Finally, add the remaining flour.
Divide the batter between the cake pans and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the cakes are golden brown, spring back when touched gently in the center and begin to pull away from the sides of the pan (It took closer to 35 minutes in my oven. This is very strange because usually my oven bakes fast...??).
Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Turn out the cakes onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Burnt Sugar Frosting
3 3/4 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup Burnt Sugar Syrup (above)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 – 3 tbsp milk

In a large bowl, combine the confectioners sugar, the burnt sugar syrup, butter and vanilla. Beat with a mixer at medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl now and then to bring the ingredients together.
Add 2 tablespoons of the milk and continue beating until the frosting is thick, soft, smooth and easy to spread. Add a little more sugar if it is thin, and a little more milk if it is too thick.

To Assemble
Place one layer, top side down, on a cake stand or serving plate. Scoop about ¾ cup of the frosting onto the cake and spread to the edges. Place the second cake layer over it, top side down. Frost the sides of the cake, and then the top until it is evenly covered.

Italian Bread

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 23:04:00 +0000

Originally I wasn't planning on blogging about this recipe. My dad asked me to make some bread last minute for spaghetti dinner. Since we were rained in all day... oh yeah, I live in the Hampton Roads area of VA. If you haven't heard, WE'RE FREAKIN UNDER WATER thanks to the "November Nor'easter"! Google it to see if you can find the video of the guy rowing himself with a broom in a pool float to get to a 7-11! Anyway, back to the bread. It was very last minute, but it came out gorgeous so I twittered about it (tweeted about it? hmm...) Lots of you asked for the recipe, so here it is! It's super simple, and if you apply some basic baguette forming techniques you'll get a pretty fancy looking loaf! ;D

Italian Bread (adapted from The Taste of Home Baking Book)
1 package active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F), divided
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons shortening
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
4-4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup warm water. Add the sugar, shortening, salt, egg, remaining water, and 2 cups of flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn the speed to medium and knead for 8 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Flatten into a rough rectangle. Fold in half long ways and pinch the seem. Fold in half long ways again, and pinch the seem. Turn the dough seem side down and lightly roll from the center to the ends to double the length of the loaf. Place seam side down on a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with a dry towl and let rise until doubled.

Slash the loaf four or five times diagonally with a sharp knife. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

Fresh Apple Cake

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:59:00 +0000

I think my dad is playing me like a fiddle! He knows that any time he brings fruit home, I'm gonna turn it into something good. Lately, apples have been popping up frequently on our kitchen table. So what do I do? Apple pie, apple turnovers, apple crisp... but this time I wanted to make something different. I've never made apple cake before, and when I googled it, Smitten Kitchen's recipe was one of the top results. Cha-ching! The recipe is her mother's, and I can tell you it will become a staple recipe in our house. It was absolutely delicious! I read some of the reviews on her blog from other people who made it. A few people said it was gummy, dense, and had other strange complaints. I dunno what their problem was because the cake I made was out of this world! Her mom's original recipe calls for McIntosh apples, but my dad seems to always buy Granny Smiths. I thought they were excellent in the cake. They were very tart and provided a nice contrast from the sweet cake. The brown crust was my favorite part! Mmm... I halved her recipe and baked it in a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Umm let's keep this quiet... I ate THREE slices! ;PMom’s Apple Cake (from SmittenKitchen.com)

6 apples, Mom uses McIntosh apples
1 tablespoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons sugar

2 3/4 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a tube pan. Peel, core and chop apples into chunks. Toss with cinnamon and sugar and set aside.

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, orange juice, sugar and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ones, then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.

Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Spread half of apples over it. Pour the remaining batter over the apples and arrange the remaining apples on top. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a tester comes out clean. (If baking a half recipe in a loaf pan, bake for 50-60 minutes.)

Video: Making a Pumpkin Pie with a Fresh Pumpkin

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 10:30:00 +0000

Yay! Another video! I love making videos, and it sucks that I barely ever have time to make them. But here's a good one! As you know, I love pies. Me and pies are pretty much BFFs now. And you may also know that I have an infinity-long list of things I want to bake in my lifetime. One of those things is a pumpkin pie with a fresh pumpkin. I figured it would be a pretty fun video topic since I'd never done it before. We can learn together!

Whew! Well after all that work, was it worth it? Sadly, no. Don't get me wrong. It was extremely delicious. But it's a totally different flavor than what your mind goes to when you think of pumpkin pie. And personally, I prefer the pie made with canned puree. Not only because it's rediculously easier, but because it's what I grew up on and it's what I'm used to. But hey, if you've got plenty of time and you're curious... go ahead and try it. You won't be disappointed! ;) We ate ours with homemade caramel sauce, which I felt was the best part!! If anything, you'll definitely wanna try that!
Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Sauce (from Bubby's Homemade Pies)
Makes 1 9-inch single-crust pie

Par-baked 9-inch crust (or a fully baked 9-inch graham cracker crust)
1 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground nutmeg
2 cups fresh pumpkin puree or canned, unsweetened pumpkin
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
3 large eggs
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Caramel Sauce (recipe follows)

To prepare fresh pumpkin, halve the pumpkin lengthwise—stem to bottom—and remove and save the seeds, but leave the pulpy inner lining of brighter flesh they nest in—it's the sweetest part of the pumpkin. Chop the pumpkin in chunks and boil in unsalted water until tender. Drain very well. Remove the skin with a knife, discard the skin, and mash the flesh.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend the pumpkin, cream, eggs, sugars, and vanilla until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and blend just until combined. Pour the filling into the par-baked pie shell.

Bake the pie on a lipped baking sheet for 50-55 minutes, or until just barely set in the center. Wiggle the pie gently to test its doneness—look for a center that jiggles but doesn't slosh. The retained heat in the custard will continue cooking the middle as the pie cools off. Don't overcook it or the texture won't be as silky. Cracks in the custard are signs of overcooking. A cracked custard is still quite edible, but not optimal.

Cool the pie completely on a cooling rack before cutting, at least a few hours, then refrigerate. Serve it cold with Caramel Sauce. Store the pie covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Caramel Sauce
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed

Combine the sugar and water in a heavy pot over medium heat (check the heat setting or too much water will evaporate before the sugar has had a chance to melt.) Don't stir it. Clip a candy thermometer to the side so that the tip is immersed in the water but not touching the bottom of the pan.

Whisk together the heavy cream and sour cream. Set aside at room temperature.

Cook the syrup until it is a rich caramel color (340 to 380 degrees F on the thermometer) and remove it from the heat. You can choose how dark and intense you want your caramel flavor—the lower temperatures yield a light, sweet caramel, while the higher temperatures create a darker, less sweet caramel. If the syrup gets hotter than 380 degrees F, the caramel will be burnt and bitter, so start over.

Use caution during the next stage: The butter releases a lof ot steam when it hits the caramel, so be careful no to get burned by the steam. With the caramel pot off the heat, add the butter a little at a time, stirring quickly. Add the cream and sour cream and stir well.

Cool and store the caramel sauce in an airtight container. It will keep for 30 days at room temperature or up to 3 months refrigerated. To reheat, warm the sauce over a double boiler, stirring occasionally. (I reheated mine in the microwave, stirring between 15-second intervals.)

It's the Grape Pie, Charlie Brown!

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:20:00 +0000

Wow! Halloween seemed to go by like a blur! My mom and I spent days upon days decorating our house and preparing food for our annual "Super Awesome Halloween Party Deluxe." This was our third year throwing a big "h-ween" party, and I'm positive that it's been the best so far. We had a great turn out, and everyone had a great time! They loved the food and said our decorations were awesome. Thank you, thank you very much! After all our hard work and anticipation, I was asleep by 10:30! Haha, yeah that's how I roll. I'm a pretty fierce party animal! Anyway, here are a few pictures from the party, followed by an INSANELY good recipe for grape pie... yeah I said it, GRAPE PIE! ;D

Our kitchen... before all the food hit the table!
(Let's play a game called "I spy Josh somewhere in this picture!")The graveyard in the backyard by the fire pit!Me, my dad, and my mom! Desserts from left to right: Honey-Orange Marshmallows, pumpkin-shaped Spritz Cookies, Red Velvet Truffles

For the marshmallows, I added 1 teaspoon orange extract and some orange gel color to the recipe after the link. Our Halloween parties get better and better every year. And I'm pretty sure this year our collection of Halloween decor outgrew our Christmas stuff!!! :D :D

Now on to the grape pie! I made this pie a few weeks ago, and I meant to post it before Halloween, but time got away from me. Anywho, if you've never had grape pie before, you are SO going to be blown away! It got thumbs up from all the girls at work, and mom and dad said it was awesome. It was a bit of work skinning all the grapes for the filling, but the crust recipe was so freakin easy that it made everything worth while. Not only was the crust the easiest one I've ever made, it was pretty darn good. I think next time I'll add a bit of sugar for some sweetness, but other that it's a dream! The filling was a bit soupy, but it thickened a little in the fridge. I even cooked the pie for 10 extra minutes hoping to thicken the filling, but it didn't work. Maybe some cornstarch in the mix will help next time. We'll see, because I'm definitely gonna be making this again! If you like the taste and tartness of Welch's grape juice, you will LOVE this pie!

Cooking the grape pulp and mashing the grape skins...

"Easy-as-pie" crust (yeah I had to go there!)Ain't she purdy???It definitely could've used some refrigeration before the first slice, but it was still delicious as grape soup!!After being in the refrigerator, the slices were a little neater, but still pretty wet. Oh well!

Prizewinning Concord Grape Pie (from "The All-American Dessert Book" by Nancy Baggett)
Makes 1 9-inch pie (books says 8 servings, but we easily got 10 or 12)

Filling
1 cup sugar, plus a little more if grapes are very tart
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 cups stemmed Concord grapes (about 2 pounds)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into bits

Pastry
3 cups pastry flour, or 2 cups all-purpose flour and 1 cup cake flour, plus extra all-purpose flour for dusting pastry
Scant 1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup corn oil or other flavorless vegetable oil
1/4 cup cold water, plus more if needed

About 2 teaspoons half-and-half or light cream for brushing on dough top
1 tablespoons sugar for sprinkling on dough top

In a large bowl, thoroughly stir together the sugar and flour. Holding each grape over a heavy, nonreactive 2-quart saucepan (to catch the juice), squeeze until the pulp portion pops out into the pan; reserve the grape skins separately. Gently squeeze the excess juice from the skins and add it to the saucepan. If a fine texture is desired, coarsely chop the grape skins; otherwise, leave as is. Thoroughly stir the grape skins into the flour-sugar mixture and set aside. Bring the grape pulp and seeds and butter to a boil over medium-high heat. Adjust the heat so the pulp simmers gently. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 9 minutes, or until the pulp is soft and mushy and has boiled down slightly. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. Carefully turn out the pulp into a food mill or fine sieve set over a bowl. Press through as much liquid and pulp as possible; discard the seeds. Stir the strained pulp into the grape skin mixture until blended; you should have about 3 cups. Set aside. The filling can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Let come to room temperature before using.

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, thoroughly stir together the flour and salt. Stir in the oil with a fork just until incorporated. Add the water, gently stirring with the fork until the mixture is moistened and holds together. It may look streaked, but don't overmix. The pastry should not be at all dry; if necessary, add a bit more water until the mixture is evenly moistened but not wet. Lightly knead and shape the dough into a rough ball with your hands. Divide the dough in half, then shape each half into a smooth disk. Wrap one disk in plastic wrap.

Generously dust the unwrapped pastry disk on both sides with flour. Roll it out between large sheets of baking parchment into a 13 1/2-inch round. Occasionally check the underside of the dough during rolling and smooth out any wrinkles. Gently peel off the top sheet of paper. Center the round, dough side down, in the pie plate. Gently peel off the remaining paper. Smooth the pastry into the plate and patch any tears, if necessary. Using kitchen shears or a paring knife, trim the overhang to 1/4 inch. Turn out the filling into the pastry.

Generously dust the second pastry disk with flour, then roll it out into a 13 1/2-inch round as described above. Gently peel off the top sheet of paper, then pat back into place. Flip the dough; peel off the bottom sheet. Center the round, dough side down, over the filling. Gently peel off the remaining paper and patch any tears, if necessary. Trim the overhang to 1/4 inch. Fold the overhang under the bottom pastry to form an edge that rests on the lip of the plate. Press the layers together, then flute with your fingers or press with the tines of a fork all the way around. Brush the dough top (not the edges) with the half-and-half, then sprinkle with the sugar. Cut steam vents in the top, using a sharp, lightly greased paring knife.

Set the pie on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until nicely browned all over. If the edges begin to brown too rapidly, cover with foil (or a pie shield) during the last few minutes of baking. Transfer the pie to a wire rack. Let cool for at least 2 hours and preferably 4 hours (for neater slices) before serving.

The pie will keep, lightly covered, at room temperature for up to 24 hours or refrigerated for 3 days. Let come to room temperature before serving.

Halloween Recipe Round-Up!

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:30:00 +0000

Only 5 days until Halloween! What are everyone's plans and what are you dressing up to be? We get to wear our costumes to work, and Wendi and I are gonna be 1980's prom queens! Then I'm coming home to help out with the annual Halloween party at our house. I haven't even decided what our menu is going to be this year, but I know I want to make my own version of the chocolate pistachio cake on the cover of Phyllis Hoffman's Celebrate Halloween.

Here are some of the Halloween goodies I've made in the past. I put them into this handy little guide complete with pictures and links to the recipes. It should make your holiday menu decisions a little easier! ;)

Cupcakes
Halloween Cupcakes I
Hallowen Cupcakes II
Caramel Apple Cupcakes
Apple Cider Cupcakes
Mocha Spice Cupcakes
Pumpkin Pecan Cupcakes
Pumpkin Cupcakes with Spiced Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Also, check out last year's Booo-tiful Halloween Cupcake Round-Up for lots of fun decorating ideas!

Pumpkin Recipes
Pumpkin-Spice Cheesecake Brownies
Pumpkin Yeast Bread
Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie
Pumpkin-Swirl Brownies
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Pumpkin Roll Cake
Soft Pumpkin Cookies with Craisins and Walnuts
Other Recipes
Dirty Rat Brownies
Decorated Sugar Cookies
Red Velvet Truffles
Body Part Punch

E-mail me if you have any questions or suggestions you'd like to share. Have a safe and fun Halloween! ;D

The Cake Slice presents: Cinnamon-Pecan Coffee Cake

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:30:00 +0000

Hellooooooo Cake Slice! My, how I've missed you so! We just started baking from a new book, and guess what... The first cake isn't a layer cake! (And from the looks of next month's poll, the second won't be a layer cake either...but shhhh... you didn't hear that from me!) Our new book is "Southern Cakes" by Nancie McDermott, and our first recipe chosen is the Cinnamon-Pecan Coffee Cake. Wow, how insanely good did this cake smell in the oven!? As always, I used my new favorite cinnamon that I found at TJ Maxx. The coffee cake tasted great, and the dark, chewy raisins reminded me of an oatmeal raisin cookie. When I tasted the cake by itself, it tasted very plain. But luckily there's plenty of cinnamon-sugar, raisins, and pecans in every bite! Like a few of the other Cake Slicers, I had difficulty spreading the top layer of thick cake batter over the raisin/pecan filling. It looked like I had done it wrong, but once it baked up it looked great! A few things I'd recommend, don't toast your pecans first. The pecans on top get really brown. Also, some of the raisins on top of my cake got extremely dried out in the oven. Next time I'll plump them in boiling water first. Otherwise, a very fine recipe to begin our new year of The Cake Slice! To see the other bakers' coffee cakes, check out The Cake Slice blogroll!

Cinnamon-Pecan Coffee Cake (from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott)
(I halved this recipe and baked it in an 8 x 8-inch square pan)

For the cinnamon raisin filling
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
3 tbsp all purpose flour
3 tbsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups raisins
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted

For the cake
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 13 x 9-inch pan.

To make the filling, combine the light brown sugar, flour and cinnamon in a bowl and stir with a fork to mix everything well. Combine the raisins and pecans in another bowl and toss to mix them. Place the cinnamon mixture, nut mixture and melted butter by the baking pan to use later.

To make the cake batter, combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Stir the vanilla into the milk. In a large bowl combine the butter and sugar and beat with a mixer on high speed until pale yellow and evenly mixed, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl to ensure a good mix. Add the eggs and beat for another 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl now and then, until the mixture is smooth and light.

Use a large spoon or spatula to add about a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir only until the flour disappears. Add a third of the milk and mix in. Repeat twice more until all the flour and milk mixtures have been incorporated. Stir just enough to keep the batter smooth.

Spread half the batter evenly into the prepared pan (it should be a very thick batter). Sprinkle half the cinnamon mixture over the batter followed by half the melted butter. Scatter half the raisins and nuts over the top. Spread the remaining batter carefully over the filling, using a spatula to smooth the batter all the way to the edges of the pan. Top with the leftover cinnamon, butter and nut mixture, covering the cake evenly.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the cake is golden brown, fragrant and beginning to pull away from the edges of the pan. Place the pan on a wire rack and allow to cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before serving in squares right from the pan. The cake is delicious hot, warm or at room temperature.

Pumpkin-Spice Cheesecake Brownies

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:30:00 +0000

After making the Pumpkin Yeast Bread, I had a bit of pumpkin leftover. Again, trying to stray away from traditional recipes (and also wanting to make a dent in the cream cheese stock pile in our fridge), I decided to go with pumpkin spice cheesecake brownies! I ran the idea by my bestest pal from work, Wendi, and she thought it was a great idea. I browsed the internet until I found the perfect recipe at Cara's Cravings. First, let me say this. I'm fairly confident when it comes to baking most things, but I'll admit I'm a little brownie challenged. I suck at brownies! Every time I've attempted brownies from scratch I've underbaked them, and they came out too fudgy and raw-tasting. Even when I make brownies from a mix it's hard for me to tell when they're done. I usually end up overbaking those because I'm afraid of a goopy chocolate mess. In the case of these pumpkin cheesecake brownies, it's possible that I may have underbaked them. At room temp they were very soft and mushy. That could be because of the cheesecake factor, but that factor also means they had to be refrigerated. They firmed up nicely in the fridge, and boy were they delicious! The tang of the cream cheese compliments the pumpkin nicely. And the subtle spice mixed with the chocolate brownie is perfect! The brownies were pretty rich, so we made about 12 servings out of an 8x8-inch square pan. I'll definitely be making these again soon! :) Thanks, Cara, for a great recipe!Pumpkin-Spice Cheesecake Brownies
Brownie Batter
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon

Cheesecake Batter
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp each ground ginger and ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8x8" square metal baking pan.

Beat together melted butter, sugar, and vanilla, then beat in eggs one at a time. Combine dry ingredients and then gradually stir into butter mixture with a wooden spoon. In separate bowl, beat together cheesecake batter ingredients.

Spread about 2/3 of chocolate batter into prepared pan, and spoon cheesecake batter over. Dollop remaining brownie batter over cheesecake batter. Swirl the batters together by running a butter knife back and forth through the pan.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until center is set. Cool completely on wire rack and chill before cutting and serving. Keep refrigerated.

Pumpkin Yeast Bread

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:28:00 +0000

First, I was on a pie kick... now it's a pumpkin kick. At least I can't say I'm not celebrating my favorite season this year! I love Autumn because of the changing leaves, the cooler air, and the fantastic recipes I get to make with apples and pumpkins! After the Pumpkin Chiffon Pie, I've been really interested in making unusual pumpkin recipes (ie, NOT the traditional pie or pumpkin bread recipes). Most pumpkin bread recipes are quick breads. They're usually pretty spicy and chock full of chocolate chips or some type of nuts. I wanted to go the non-traditional route by making a slightly spicy pumpkin yeast bread. I googled for a recipe (which always makes me feel like I'm cheating on my massive cookbook library), and I settled on a recipe from kingarthurflour.com. The only thing I changed were the spices because I wanted to use my favorite cinnamon and a few other pumpkin pie spices. The end result was a delightfully soft, golden orange bread with a slight whiff of spice. I know you're not supposed to slice warm bread because it damages the interior texture of the bread, and usually I can restrain myself, but this time I COULD NOT RESIST!! The pumpkin flavor was faint, but it was definitely there. The crust was so delicious, and the bread was so soft and moist.

It also makes fantastic toast. I topped mine with spiced pear butter from the Shenandoah Heritage Farmers Market. Mmmm... perfect!
PS: To everyone who was offended by me considering a 1985 recipe to be vintage in my last post, it's vintage to me because it was written before I was born. I classify anything from before 1986 as being vintage, regardless of Webster's definition of the word "vintage." My apologies for making anyone feel old! =/

Pumpkin Yeast Bread (adapted from KingArthurFlour.com)
(I halved this recipe and made 1 9x5-inch loaf)

1/2 cup warm water
2 packages (2 tablespoons) active dry yeast (actually the packages are 2 1/4 teaspoons, so you would only need to measure 1 1/2 tablespoons)
2/3 cup warm milk
2 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups puréed pumpkin, either fresh or canned
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 1/2 cups (approximately) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (I used 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon each ginger and nutmeg, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves)
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (I omitted this)

In a large bowl, stir yeast into water to soften. Add milk, eggs, pumpkin, oil, 4 cups flour, brown sugar, salt, ginger and cardamom to yeast mixture. Beat vigorously for 2 minutes.

Gradually add remaining flour, a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, elastic dough.

Put dough into an oiled bowl. Turn once to coat entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Turn dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface. Divide dough in half. Shape dough into loaves and place in well-greased 10x5-inch pans or, shape half into a loaf, and other half into 12 large dinner rolls. Cover with a towel and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 375°F oven. Loaves bake about 30 minutes (my 9x5 loaf was done at 25 minutes), rolls about 20. Check the internal temperature of each with an instant-read thermometer; a reading of 190°F means bread or rolls are done.

Immediately remove bread or rolls from pans and cool on a wire rack to prevent crust from becoming soggy. For a shiny crust, brush tops of bread or rolls lightly with vegetable oil. Makes 2 large loaves, or 1 large loaf and 12 dinner rolls.

Vintage Recipe: Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:30:00 +0000

Good morning, class! Let's begin the day by saying a random fact about yourself. I'll go first. I collect vintage cookbooks. And you know how much I love to start little categories for my blog posts, so here's a new one: Vintage Recipes! The first one comes from The Culinary Arts Institute Cookbook from 1985. I can't remember exactly where this book came from, but I know my dad gave it to me a few months ago. It's HUGE! It's full of strange old recipes, and the vintage food photography is so fun! ;D Apparently, gelatin molds and mousses were a huge hit in the 80's. Sadly, I think I'll pass on those recipes, but today's recipe actually does use gelatin... go figure!

Josh and I went to Howl-o-Scream at Busch Gardens on Sunday, and it really got me in the pumpkin mood. On my day off this week, I decided to make a pumpkin pie. I didn't want to make a regular old pumpkin pie, so I browsed my cookbooks. I found this recipe for pumpkin chiffon pie. The original recipe is called Pumpkin-Crunch Chiffon Pie, but it calls for spreading crunchy peanut butter on the pie crust before adding the pumpkin filling. Excuse me while I go vomit. Ok, I'm back. Yeah, so I guess you can tell I wasn't too thrilled with that flavor combo. I ix-nayed the PB idea and just went the chiffon route. The result was heaven in the form of fluffy, pillowy, light orange, spicy pumpkin pie filling! I dunno if I'll ever make a plain pumpkin pie again. This is just too light and soft and delicious and fluffy and creamy and... omg! I died and went to pumpkin heaven!
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie (from The Culinary Arts Institute Cookbook; 1985)
1 baked 9-inch pie shell
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup cold water
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
1/2 teaspoon each ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg whites
1 cup chilled heavy cream, stiffly beaten (I used only 3/4 cup of cream and added 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla)

Soften gelatin in the cold water and set aside.
Combine pumpkin, sugar, milk, egg yolks, spices, and salt in the top of a double boiler. Cook over medium heat 5 minutes. Stir in softened gelatin and cook 5 minutes more. Cool.
Beat the egg whites (I added 3 tablespoons of sugar to the egg whites) until soft peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into thoroughly cooled pumpkin filling. Pour mixture into pie shell. Chill until set. Top with whipped cream.

My Best Banana Cream Pie

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 23:05:00 +0000

I'm extremely confident that Marilyn M. Moore truly did disclose the recipe for her best banana cream pie! And that's exactly what she named the recipe in "The Wooden Spoon Dessert Book." This is the first banana cream pie I've ever made, and I couldn't be more pleased with the way it turned out. The vanilla wafer crust is so yummy (even with reduced fat cookies). The custard is so creamy and delicious. Once it sits in the fridge layered with the bananas, the banana flavor infuses into everything and becomes so fragrant and wonderful! It seems like it would be such a heavy, rich dessert but somehow it feels light. I'm so pleased to finally have a recipe other than banana bread to use up ripe bananas!
My Best Banana Cream Pie (from The Wooden Spoon Dessert Book by Marilyn M. Moore)

Crust
1 3/4 cups vanilla-wafer crumbs (about 55 cookies)
3 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons melted unsalted butter (I used salted because I like a little salt in my crust)

Custard
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cold milk
3 large egg yolks, beaten
2 cups scalded milk
2 tablespoons soft unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ripe bananas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove 1/4 cup vanilla-wafer crumbs. Mix together remaining cookie crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press the mixture evenly into a 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until golden-brown. Cool on a wire rack.
For the custard, in a heavy saucepan stir together sugar, cornstarch, and salt, pressing out any lumps with the back of a spoon. Stir in the cold milk and beaten egg yolks. When the mixture is smooth, stir in the scalded milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. As soon as the mixture begins to thicken, turn the heat to low and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until thick and bubbly, about 1 minute longer. If the mixture threatens to become lumpy, remove it from the heat at once and stir vigorously until smooth. When thick, remove from the heat and gently stir in the softened butter and vanilla. Let cool 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent a film from forming on top.
Spoon 1/3 of the filling into the cooled crust. Peel and slice the bananas into 1/4-inch slices over the filling. Spoon the remaining filling over the bananas. Refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours.
Top with sweetened whipped cream and reserved vanilla-wafer crumbs. Refrigerate leftovers.

Fried Peach Pies

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:03:00 +0000

There are so many points I want to hit in this post that I literally had to open a Windows Notepad document to start typing them all out as soon as I turned the computer on. I want to touch on the history of fried pies A.K.A. "pasties" or "hand pies." I also want to talk a little about the German music I listened to while making them and the wonders of the "Sounds of the Season" Music Choice channel (and how I'm really sad that the German songs will end Oct. 5th). I want to talk about the memories these fried pies bring of when my dad used to work at the shipyard. I want to mention how awesome the cookbook is that this recipe came from, "Screen Doors and Sweet Tea" by Martha Hall Foose. And I can't forget to thank Stephanie Velez for sending me a copy of this book when her mother bought it for her not knowing she already owned it! Lastly, I want to say something about the banana cream pie I made last week that was supposed to be my next blog post, but these pies are just so awesome they skipped to the front of the line! Oh wait, that wasn't the last thing... I wanna thank my camera for being back in business and hooking me up with some GREAT photos, if I may say so myself! Ok, shall we begin?

I've seen the episode of Good Eats about fried pies/pasties, so if I tried really hard I could tell you some stuff about the history of them. But I made like 50 fondant bras at work today, and my brain is all mushy, so I'm gonna let Google and The NY Sun take over:

Fried pies are little hot-pocket semicircles of dough that are filled with fruit and, as the name implies, deep-fried. They're particularly popular in the South... Tradition claims that the "pasty" was originally made as lunch for Cornish tin miners who were unable to return to the surface to eat. The story goes that, covered in dirt from head to foot, they could hold the pasty by the folded crust and eat the rest without touching it, discarding the dirty pastry. The pastry they threw away was supposed to appease the knockers, capricious spirits in the mines who might otherwise lead miners into danger... The pasty's dense, folded pastry could stay warm for 8 to 10 hours and, when carried close to the body, could help the miners stay warm.

How's that for a history lesson? Well, I thought it was interesting. Anyway, on to my next point. The "Sounds of the Season" channel is playing the most awesome German music from now through Oct. 4. Usually, I have no interest in German music, but for some reason as the outside air becomes brisk and the season for pumpkins and apples falls upon us, German music just seems right! Lol, I'm sure you don't trust me, so if you get the Music Choice channels I encourage you to try it out this week. Don't be surprised when you find yourself wishing you had a German playlist on your iPod next time you leave the house.On to point numero tres. When I think of fried pies, I can't help but remember those Hostess pies my dad used to bring home from the Newport News Shipyard when I was a kid. He always picked my brother and I up from daycare on his way home, and a few times a week his pockets would be full of Hostess pies. His favorite was lemon, so all other flavors were scarce. But when I saw that red wrapper peaking out, I knew he'd brought a cherry pie for me! When I see those pies now at the grocery store I pass them up, but I enjoy the memory. :D Never fear, fried pies aren't out of my life forever. Thanks to Stephanie Velez, who was kind enough to send me her duplicate copy of "Screen Doors and Sweet Tea," I can make my own fried fruit pies (without the nasty Crisco film on the roof of my mouth, sorry Hostess, but you know it's true!). This book is really lovely for anyone who enjoys the history of food in the South. The stories, recipes, and pictures are full of nostalgia. For these pies, I used the filling recipe and instruction from "Screen Doors," but I used my go-to pie crust recipe for the crust. They are so delicious! The allspice makes them perfect to eat during the winter months. The only thing I'd change next time is to reduce the vinegar from 2 tablespoons to 1. The taste of vinegar didn't cook out like I expected it to and it was pretty noticeable. Other than that, these are perfect!I could just *hug* my camera for snapping this mouth-watering shot! ;)

Peach Fried Pies (from Screen Doors and Sweet Tea by Martha Hall Foose)
MAKES TEN 3-INCH PIES

PASTRY
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons vegetable shortening or lard
3/4 cups whole milk

FILLING
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen peaches (I used 3 large peaches)
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 tablespoons cider vinegar (I'd reduce to 1 tablespoon next time)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large egg
Canola oil, for frying

MAKE THE PASTRY. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the shortening until no pieces are larger than a pea. Add the milk and combine, using a fork. Gather the dough and knead lightly for 1 minute. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate while preparing the filling.

MAKE THE FILLING. In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the peaches, brown sugar, and allspice. Cook and stir over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the sugar is dissolved and the peaches are juicy. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and cornstarch. Add to the peaches and cook and stir for 10 minutes, or until the mixture is thick and glossy. Stir in the lemon juice. Transfer the mixture to a shallow dish to cool.

In a small shallow dish, combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

MAKE THE PIES. Roll the dough 1/8-inch thick on a lightly floured surface. With a sharp knife or cutter, cut ten 6-inch circles (I used an inverted cereal bowl). Place 2 tablespoons of peach filling in the center of each circle. Beat the egg with I teaspoon water. Brush a thin line of egg wash around the edges of the circles. Fold to form a half-moon shape. Lightly press out any air pockets. Press the edges with the tines of a fork to seal. Pierce one time on top of each pie with a fork to let steam escape while frying. Heat 1 inch of canola oil in a large skillet to 375°F. Set a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with newspaper or paper towels. Gently place the pies, two at a time, pierced side up, in the skillet. Fry to golden brown, turning once, 2 minutes per side. Remove from the oil and let drain briefly on the wire rack. Toss in the cinnamon sugar and allow to cool for 5 minutes.

Spicy Cinnamon Apple Pie

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 12:47:00 +0000

So apparently I'm the only person in the world who likes a REALLY spicy apple pie on the first day of Fall (I made it Wednesday). And I might be the only person in the world who likes a really spicy apple pie at all. I googled, I searched AllRecipes.com, I checked Flickr, I checked the food blog search engine. All of the recipes turned up with a modest amount of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg here or there. I was looking for something that resembled a spicy baked apple, but in pie form. Or better yet, you know those spicy red apple rings they sell in the grocery store? THAT'S WHAT I WANTED IN MY PIE!! I found nothing of the sort! I did see some yummy looking recipes for mincemeat pie, but no spicy apple pies! So... I made my own. I used the apple pie recipe in The All- American Dessert Book by Nancy Baggett. I spiced it up by increasing the cinnamon from 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon and adding 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon oil. Of course I used my brand new REAL cinnamon you saw me bragging about in my last entry. And because I like some things to be supermarket-cheesy, I added some red food coloring to look more like the red apple rings. The filling smelled so cook on the stove, and it tasted exactly like I wanted it to. I accidentally overcooked the filling so the apples were slightly mushy, but not too bad.Before you start judging me and thinking I only like apple pie as a vehicle for cinnamon, you're half wrong! During the summer I use a squirt of lemon juice, a pinch of cinnamon, and I'm good to go. But during the Fall and Winter months, I prefer my pies on the spicy side. However, I do think nutmeg in apple pie is a sin! Save it for the nog, people!!Now, let's talk about crust. I started making my own pie crusts last year, and I've tried a few recipes since the very first time. With every new recipe I say "I've found my go-to pie crust recipe!" Well, that was before I really knew what I was looking for. I don't like my pie crusts to be so flaky that they shatter when you touch them with your fork. I also prefer my crust a little on the sweet side, and I like to taste a tiny bit of salt here and there. Most importantly, I don't like a greasy crust. I've seen pie crust recipes that use double the amount of fat to flour. This crust recipe is perfect!! Part of it is in the technique. I pulse half of the butter in the dry ingredients a few times before I add the rest of the butter. Then, I pulse that a few times until there are some big chunks left. Then, I add the shortening and pulse until only small pieces remain (The size of tiny peas). This produces tiny, flaky layers and a very tender crust because the first addition of butter coats the flour and prevents gluten from forming. (Thanks, America's Test Kitchen, for your episode on pie crust!) I increased the sugar from 1 1/2 tablespoons to 3 tablespoons, and it's the exact amount of sweetness I was looking for. This is definitely my go-to pie crust recipe! ;DBtw, this IS an apple pie, not a peach pie... I guess the tiny bit of red food coloring I added only turned it pinkish orange! And those shapes on top were supposed to be apples... Oops.
Favorite Deep-Dish Apple Pie (from The All-American Dessert Book by Nancy Baggett)

Double crust All-Purpose Pie Pastry Dough (recipe follows)
All-purpose flour for dusting dough

Filling
10 1/2 cups peeled, cored, and thinly sliced apples (8-11 medium baking apples; choose at least three kinds, such as Stayman, Jonathan, Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Smokehouse, Sunrise, Granny Smith, Grimes Golden, York, and Gala) (I used 2 Pink Lady, 2 Braeburn, 1 large Granny Smith, and 1 large Fuji)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or more to taste
Scant 2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3 1/2-4 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch (use larger amount if apples are very juicy)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I increased to 1 teaspoon and added 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon oil)
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits

1 tablespoon milk for brushing on dough top
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar for sprinkling on dough top (I used turbinado sugar)

Lightly grease a 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie plate or coat with nonstick spray. If the dough is cold and stiff, let it warm up until slightly pliable but still cool to the touch. Generously dust it on both sides with flour. Roll out one dough portion between large sheets of baking parchment into a 13 1/2-inch round. Occasionally check the underside of the dough during rolling and smooth out any wrinkles. (If the dough seems sticky or limp, place in the freezer for 5 minutes to firm up.) Gently peel off the top sheet of paper, then pat back into place. Flip the dough; peel off the bottom sheet. Center the round, dough side down, in the pie plate. Gently peel off the remaining paper. Smooth the dough into the plate and patch any tears, if necessary. Using kitchen shears or a paring knife, trim the overhang to 1/4 inch. Prick the pastry all over with a fork. Loosely cover the pastry and place in the freezer while you roll out the top pastry and prepare the filling.

Roll out the second portion of dough into a 13 1/2-inch round as described above. Transfer the round (paper still attached) to a baking sheet and place in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. In a very large, heavy non-reactive saucepan, toss the apples with the lemon juice. In a medium bowl, stir together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt until well blended. Add the sugar mixture and butter to the apples, tossing until well blended. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer, stirring and scraping the pan bottom, for about 3 minutes, or until the apples cook down slightly; be careful not to burn. Remove from the burner. Taste and add more lemon juice, if desired.

Turn out the apple mixture into the bottom crust, mounding it in the center. Gently peel off the top sheet of paper from the second pastry round. Center the round, dough side down, over the filling. Peel off and discard the remaining paper. Trim the overhang to 3/4 inch. Fold the overhang under the bottom pastry to form an edge that rests on the lip of the plate. Press the layers together firmly, then flute with your fingers or press the tines of a fork all the way around. Brush the dough top (not the edges) with the milk, then sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Cut generous slashes in the top for steam vents, using a sharp, lightly greased paring knife.

Set the pie on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned. Spray the underside of an extra-wide sheet of aluminum foil with nonstick spray (or use nonstick foil). Make a foil tent over the pie top so the entire crust is covered. Continue baking for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the top is nicely browned and the filling is bubbly. Transfer the pie to a wire rack. Let cool for at least 1 1/2 hours and preferably 4 hours or longer (for neater slices) before serving.

The pie will keep, covered, at room temperature for up to 2 days or refrigerated for up to 2 days longer. Let come to room temperature before serving.

All-Purpose Pie Pastry Dough (Double Crust)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/3-inch cubes
7 tablespoons solid white shortening, cut or spooned into 14 pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cake flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar (I increased to 3 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6-9 tablespoons ice water

Freeze the butter cubes and shortening pieces for 20 minutes. (I used refrigerated shortening and butter, not frozen.)

In a large bowl, thoroughly stir together the all-purpose flour, cake flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Sprinkle the chilled butter and shortening over the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender, forks, or your fingertips, cut in the fat until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with a few bits the size of small peas remaining. Be sure to scrape up the flour mixture on the bottom of the bowl.

Combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in the processor. Pulse for 10 seconds to mix. (I re-wrote the next part of the recipe to show how I made it.) Sprinkle half the chilled butter over the flour mixture. Process with about five 1-second pulses. Stir, lifting up the contents on the bottom. Add the remaining butter, and pulse about 5 more times. Add shortening, and pulse 10 more times, just until the bits of fat are cut in and the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with a few bits the size of small peas remaining; stop halfway through and stir to redistribute the contents on the bottom. Turn out the mixture into a large bowl.

In a small bowl, measure out 6 tablespoons ice water. Using a fork, lightly combine the water mixture with the flour mixture, tossing until the water is evenly incorporated and the mixture just begins to form clumps, 15 to 20 strokes. Be sure to reach down to the bottom to be sure the flour underneath is dampened. Check the consistency by pinching a small amount of dough between your fingertips; it should hold together smoothly and be moist but not soggy. If it is crumbly or dry, sprinkle over more ice water, 2 teaspoons at a time, tossing briefly with a fork. When the water is evenly incorporated and the dough is sufficiently moistened to hold together when pinched, gather it up and firmly press it together with your fingertips into a smooth, dense mass. Divide the dough in half, and flatten the portions into 6-inch disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes and preferably 1 hour. The dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or wrapped airtight and frozen for up to a month; thaw in the refrigerator before using. Roll and bake as directed in the individual recipes.

French Cruller Doughnuts

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:30:00 +0000

Last weekend, my family and I worked at the Isle of Wight County Fair. We have a mobile concession business where we sell funnel cakes, hot dogs, corn dogs, french fries, shrimp baskets, lemonade, etc. During the large festivals, we work close to 20 hours in a day. Those early mornings usually mean donuts for breakfast. Sadly, our only options for donuts around here are chains like Dunkin Donuts. Every time I open that pink and orange box, I get a quick rush from the donut glory, but I'm quickly let down as soon as I take a bite. My favorites are French crullers, but they're usually flavorless and waxy, and they always leave that grossy film on the roof of your mouth. I haven't been able to find a good cruller around here, so I took matters into my own hands this morning by making my own!I saw the recipe in "A Passion for Baking" by Marcy Goldman. This book is in my top 5 faves because it has never let me down! This recipe didn't give me my perfect cruller, but it did get close enough to get an A-. The problem is not in the recipe, but in the bake temp and time. I like my crullers on the dry and crispy side. These were very eggy in the middle. I'm pretty sure if the second oven temperature was lower and the baking time was extended, these could very well be the crullers of my dreams!
UPDATE: I made these again and lowered the 2nd bake temp to 300F. I left them in the oven for 30 minutes, then I turned the oven off, cracked the oven door open with a wooden spoon, and left them in for about 10 more minutes. They were slightly more crisp, but still not my dream crullers... *sigh* =/

There are really only two components of a cruller, the pastry and the glaze. While I give this pastry an A-, the glaze definitely gets an A++! The secret is in the imitation flavoring! Not just any imitation flavoring... vanilla butter nut flavoring! Or as I like to call it: liquid gold! It's definitely lick-your-fingers good!

French Cruller Doughnuts (from "A Passion for Baking" by Marcy Goldman)
Makes about 8

Choux Paste Doughnut Base
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs

Vanilla Butter Nut Glaze (my own recipe)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla butter nut flavoring
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 tbsp hot water

Preheat oven to 400F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat.

For Choux Paste Doughnut Base: In a large saucepan, stir milk, water, sugar, and salt together over medium heat. Stir in butter and allow it to melt. Increase heat and bring mixture to a rolling boil. Stir in flour all at once. Blend well with a wooden spoon, adding vanilla and beating briskly until mixture forms a ball that leaves the sides of pan. Beat vigorously 1 to 2 minutes before removing from burner and turning out into a large bowl. Allow mixture to cool 5 minutes, but do not let cool completely.

Using a wide whisk or wooden spoon, add eggs, 1 at a time, until mixture is smooth and glossy. Spoon choux paste into a large pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch star tip (I used an Ateco 2D tip). On prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between each pastry, make a 4-inch circle of batter with another circle on top -- concentric circles. If you don't have a pastry bag, use a soup spoon to spread out a ring of batter as best you can. It will be fine once it puffs.

Bake pastry 15 minutes; then reduce oven temp to 375F and bake another 15 to 20 minutes or until doughnuts are light in texture and medium brown all over. Cool slightly, about 5 minutes.

To make glaze, whisk everything together in a medium bowl to a thick glaze consistency. If mixture seems thick, microwave for 10 seconds. Dip each doughnut once, let excess drip off back into bowl. Let doughnuts set on a wire rack.

Book Review: "You Made That Dessert?" by Beth Lipton

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:17:00 +0000

Recently, I was asked by one of my favorite bloggers, Beth of CookiePie, if I would review her brand new cookbook called "You Made That Dessert?" I was completely flattered that she thought of me, and I was totally awestruck that she got her very own cookbook published. How cool is she??? Lol! She sent me a copy, and I am in love with it! The pictures are fantastic. There is a wide variety of dessert recipes. I love the little stories that go with each one. The two recipes I've tried so far were completely delicious! I made the Gingersnaps (pg. 7) and the Peanut Butter and Banana Bread (pg. 80). The gingersnaps were robust and spicy, crispy around the edges with a great chewy texture. I took some to work and everyone loved them! The peanut butter and banana bread is a genius recipe! It takes a classic flavor combination and makes it new! I made it into muffins instead of a loaf, and they were perfect! Moist and dense, not too sweet, they would make a great breakfast or afternoon snack. I recommend this book to any baker, not because I love Beth and her blog, but because it really is a fantastic cookbook!

You can find it on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com

Gingersnaps
Makes 3 dozen cookies

2 cups (8.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (10.5 ounces) sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line three rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and pepper, and stir with a fork to combine.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer at medium speed, beat together the butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and add the egg, molasses, and vanilla, then beat until combined. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a flexible spatula. Beat again until the mixture is uniform. (The mixture may look curdled and separated at first, but don't worry; as you beat it, it will come together and turn a pale brown.)

Stop the mixer and add the flour mixture. Use a flexible spatula or wooden spoon to mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until a dough forms. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and stir well so that all of the dry ingredients are fully incorporated.

Place the remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl. Use a small ice cream scoop or two teaspoons to scoop out pieces of dough and roll them, one at a time, in your palms to form balls that are about 1 1/2 inches wide. One at a time, roll the balls in the sugar until they're coated, then place the dough balls 2 inches apart on the baking sheets (don't crowd them-they will spread a lot). Use the bottom of a glass to lightly press the balls into discs.

Bake the cookies for 10 to 11 minutes, until lightly browned. Let them cool on the pans on wire racks for 5 minutes, then use a spatula to remove the gingersnaps and place them directly on the wire racks to cool completely.

Peanut Butter & Banana Bread
Makes 1 9-inch loaf

1 1/4 cups (5.35 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (do not use "natural")
2/3 cup sugar
3 large ripe bananas, mashed with a fork
2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or chopped pecans (optional)
1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Mist a 5 x 9-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, and salt with a fork. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat the peanut butter and sugar together until well blended, about 2 minutes. Beat in the mashed banana and eggs; mix well.

Using a wooden spoon or flexible spatula, stir the flour mixture into the peanut butter-banana mixture, mixing until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a flexible spatula if needed. Stir in the chopped nuts and/or chocolate chips, if using.

Pour the batter into the pan and gently smooth the top with the flexible spatula. Bake 45 minutes. Cover the pan loosely with foil and bake 10 to 15 minutes longer, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the bread cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes in the pan.

Remove the bread by running a paring knife around the inside of the pan to loosen it, then inverting the pan to release the bread : onto a wire rack. Carefully turn the bread right-side up and cool completely. Slice and serve. Wrap any leftovers tightly in plastic wrap and foil; keep at room temperature for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 1 month.

I guess I'll go ahead and use this entry to tell you about this awesome cinnamon I found at TJ Maxx last week! It's made out of totally different stuff than most cinnamon sold in the United States. If you watch "Good Eats" religiously like I do, you've heard Alton Brown talk about the difference between cheap cinnamon (Cassia) and REAL cinnamon (Cinnamomum Zeylanicum). This is the REAL STUFF and it was only $4.99! It smells so much better than cheap cinnamon. It was really yummy in the gingersnaps, and I bet it's gonna make INSANE cinnamon rolls! I'm definitely gonna go back and get a few more.

The Cake Slice presents: Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake

howtoeatacupcake@yahoo.com (How To Eat A Cupcake) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:59:00 +0000

I'm not even going to begin this entry like a broken record by apologizing for being so late. That doesn't even matter. What matters is how freakin awesome this cake is! The September edition of The Cake Slice brought us the Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake. It was our very last recipe from "Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes." We sure did go out with a bang! Did I already use the term "freakin awesome" to describe it? The chocolate cake layers were probably the moistest cake I've ever baked. The chocolate flavor was so dead on. It was perfect! The white chocolate mousse filling was a delightful compliment to the rich, dark chocolate frosting. This cake is completely sinful. If you can eat an entire slice, you deserve a medal of honor. I barely made it through half a slice, and I was so satisfied I saved the rest for later! This recipe is a definite keeper.
Oh, I do have one warning for you. Don't do the "wax-paper-strips-under-the-cake-to-keep-your-cake-plate-clean-while-you-frost" trick. I tried it, and when I went to pull the paper out, the cake was so moist it started to break off and pull apart! I smudged it all back together, but it wasn't pretty!

Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake (from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes)
Makes a 9" triple layer cake - serves 16 to 20

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup milk
1 1/4 cups hot, strongly brewed coffee
2 eggs
1 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups sugar

1. Heat oven to 350F. Butter bottom and sides of 3 (9-inch) cake pans. Line bottom of pans with parchment or wax paper and butter the paper.
2. For batter, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside the dry ingredients.
3. Put chopped chocolate in heat-proof bowl. Bring milk to a simmer. Pour the hot coffee and milk over the chocolate. Let stand 1 minute, then whisk until smooth. Let the mocha liquid cool slightly.
4. In a mixer bowl, beat together the eggs, mayonnaise, and vanilla until well blended. Gradually beat in sugar. Add dry ingredients and coffee liquid alternately in 2 or 3 additions, beating until smooth. Divide batter among pans.
5. Bake 25-28 minutes, or until pick inserted in center comes out clean. (I also suggest doing the finger test. Lightly press the tops of the cakes to make sure they don't feel wet of spongy at all. These cakes are so moist, if they are even slightly underbaked, they might sink.) Let cakes cool in pans on wire racks 10-15 minutes. Unmold cakes. Peel off paper lining and cool completely, at least 1 hour.

White Chocolate Mousse
4 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 egg white
1 tablespoon sugar

1. Melt white chocolate with 1/4 cup cream in a double boiler or in a small metal bowl set over a pan of very hot water. Whisk until smooth. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
2. When it has cooled, beat the remaining 3/4 cup heavy cream until soft peaks form. In another clean bowl, whip egg white with sugar until fairly stiff peaks form.
3. Fold the beaten egg white into white chocolate cream. Then fold in the whipped cream just until blended (do not overwhip or your icing will split). Refrigerate until ready to use, but do not make too far in advance.

Sour Cream Chocolate Icing
12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 stick unsalted butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/4 cup half-and-half, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature

Melt chocolate with butter and corn syrup in a double boiler over barely simmering water or in a heavy pan over very low heat. Remove from heat and whisk until smooth. Whisk in half-and-half and sour cream. Use while soft. (If icing is runny, let it cool completely to room temperature.)

To Assemble the Cake:
1. Place one cake layer flat-side up on cake stand. Cover top with half the white chocolate mousse, leaving 1/4 -inch margin around edge. Repeat with second layer.
2. Set third layer on top and pour half the sour cream chocolate over the filled cake. Spread all over the sides and top. Don’t worry if cake shows through. The first frosting is to seal in the crumbs which is why professionals call it a "crumb coat". Refrigerate cake uncovered for at least 30 minutes to allow the icing to set. Cover the rest of the icing with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature.
3. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining icing, which should have the consistency of mayonnaise. If the icing becomes too soft, chill briefly. If icing becomes too stiff, microwave on high 2 or 3 seconds to soften, and then stir to mix well. Use an offset palatte knife or the back of a spoon to swirl the frosting decoratively around the cake. Keep cake refrigerated.