Kitchen3N

Recipes and food fun from Apt 3N

A Tale of 3 Cakes

IMG_3206 There was the most chocolatey of cakes. There was the spiciest of cakes. There was the most citrusy of cakes. There was the prep time. There was the baking time. But most importantly, there was the eating time. IMG_3192 Ok, now that I’ve gotten that out of my system (thanks, Ms. Liu!) let’s talk holiday baking. Now, it’s probably obvious by now that we don’t do Christmas around here. Hence, no yule logs, reindeer cookies, or gingerbread houses on the blog. IMG_3194 Despite not celebrating the winter holidays, I, like many others, am grateful for the end of year break. Time to unwind with family, watch The Interview, or maybe get in the kitchen to do some baking (read: eating). IMG_3198 I kept it simple with these cakes. No fancy techniques here. Just some basic creaming together of butter and sugar, then flavoring, dry ingredients, and voila. You have cake. IMG_3203  My sous chef and the forever cluttered kitchen island. IMG_3214 IMG_3218 IMG_3232 All three recipes are from an old issue of Fine Cooking magazine that I got, oh, 5 years ago. Just been sitting on my shelf while I browse online recipes. WHY? Each cake turned out so wonderful. Your search for perfect pound cake, everyday chocolate cake and spicy, earthy gingerbread stops HERE. NOW. IMG_3235 Confession: I haven’t yet tried the pound cake. But as soon I do I will post my findings. I tweaked the original recipe by adding orange zest and orange extract to the batter. You could go the extra mile and drizzle orange icing on top – but I thought it would look pretty with a sprinkling of powdered sugar. I’m going to pretend I wasn’t an awful parent by not letting my kids eat the powdered sugar face down into the bowl.

I love the bundt pan I used for this cake. Not only is it out of this world pretty – it’s durable and has a non stick lining that requires minimal greasing to the get the cake out. Williams Sonoma really gets it right. You just have to take care not to use any metal spatulas or knives when loosening the cake. Those will scratch the surface and eventually reduce the effectiveness of the lining.

IMG_3241 Even this chocolate frosting is a newbie recipe. It’s made with creme fraiche and unsweetened chocolate. Fancy shmancy. Totally not necessary for this cake – I actually thought some whipped cream would have been great with it. But I don’t think anyone will mind the frosting.IMG_3242 I think this cake will make one pregnant woman very happy tomorrow. IMG_3254 This cake actually rose higher than the one pictured in the magazine. My baking dish may have been smaller than it’s supposed to be (I’ve never actually measured it – is it 8×8 or 9×9?? I may never know.)IMG_3258 The gingerbread got a dollop of some creme fraiche/maple butter concoction. SOO good.

Adapted from Fine Cooking.

Orange Pound Cake

If you’d like to stick to the original version, nix the orange zest and orange extract. Increase vanilla extract to 1 1/2 tsp.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 3/4 cups sugar
  • 1 tsp orange zest (from two navel oranges)
  • 2 large egg yolks, at room temp
  • 3 large eggs, at room temp
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp orange extract
  • 2 1/2 cups cake flour or 2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2/3 cup whole milk

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 12 cup bundt pan. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
  2. Cream butter and sugar for about 2 minutes at medium speed. Add orange zest. Turn the speed down and add the egg yolks, one at a time, then the eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl and continue mixing on low.
  3. Add the vanilla and orange extracts to the milk. Add half the flour mixture to the batter. When combined, slowly drizzle in the milk mixture. Add the remaining flour mixture until there are some streaks of flour still visible. Finish mixing with a rubber spatula, scraping down the bowl to incorporate everything.
  4. Pour into prepared bundt pan and bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Everyday Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

  • 10 tbsps softened butter
  • 1 2/3 cups sugar
  • 2 large eggs, at room temp
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsps all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 cups freshly brewed coffee

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×9 square baking dish.
  2. Cream the butter and sugar at medium speed for 1 minute. Add eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated. Add vanilla.
  3. With the mixer turned off, set a sifter over the bowl. Add flour, salt, cocoa, baking soda and baking powder. Sift directly onto the butter/sugar mixture. Add the coffee and mix gently by hand until combined (I did not do this by hand and got the dry ingredients ALL OVER MY COUNTER).
  4. Pour into prepared pan and even the top with a rubber spatula. Bake for 40 to 43 minutes – some crumbs may stick to toothpick but that’s ok. Let cool before frosting (if you are frosting).

Gingerbread

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups plus 2 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • pinch of salt (I did two pinches)
  • 5 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 3/4 cup dark molasses
  • 3/4 cup cold water
  • 2/3 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
  • 1/3 cup maple syrup

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8 baking dish. Sift together flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
  2. Beat butter a medium speed until light and fluffy. Add sugar and continue beating. Add egg and beat until incorporated. Stop to scrape down the bowl and continue mixing at low speed. Add molasses slowly. Add half the dry ingredients, then the cold water, then the remaining dry ingredients. Mixing until almost fully incorporated. Finish mixing by hand – scraping down the bowl as you go.
  3. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Toothpick inserted should come out clean.
  4. Combine creme fraiche or sour cream with maple syrup. Serve with cooled cake.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

IMG_1680This is one of the rare cakes I love as much as a chocolate one. It’s not overly sweet like many caramel cakes I’ve had. It’s a super moist bundt cake that gets most of its flavor (and moisture) from chopped, pitted dates boiled in water. I know – that in itself does not sound appetizing. But it works. It’s not heavy on the butter (there’s only half a stick in the whole cake) so the whipped cream on top adds the right amount of richness. FInally, the nuttiness in the toffee sauce just takes it over the edge.  IMG_1669Though I’m not sure why it’s called a pudding. It’s a cake, I swear. I was first asked to make this many Thanksgivings ago for dinner at a family friend’s. I’d never had it. Never known about it. I was handed a recipe, so I made it. And it. Was. Just. Divine. IMG_1670I remade it recently for a ladies’ luncheon (yeah, I live in the 1950’s). Needless to say, it was a hit. So you can imagine my surprise when I served my husband a piece of the leftovers…only to hear that he didn’t care for it! Just not a fan or caramel/toffee. Oh well. Tomato, tomahto. IMG_1673It’s perfect for post Ramadan if you have a ton of dates leftover and have run out of uses for them! I use Medjool dates. They’re nice and plump and sweet. IMG_1675I poke a few holes through the top with a toothpick to let the syrup soak through.   And let me just say how much I love bundt cakes for entertaining. They always look so beautiful and with half the effort of a layer cake. No layer breaking or leveling or aligning. Just pop it out onto a nice serving plate and drizzle with icing. The cascade over the curves and in between the ridges always makes for a show stopper.

But let me interject here. The popping out part has not been so smooth for me (punnnnn!). I’ve had to stick back parts of the cake that stuck to the top of the bundt pan and try to cover it with icing. I don’t know if you’re in the same boat, but I’ve actually had better luck recently! I don’t know if it’s because of the generous buttering of the pan that I do by hand (and subsequent flouring) or if it’s the fact that I’ve been letting it completely cool (overnight) before turning out. But I’d suggest you try both! IMG_1684

Recipe from Bon Appetit

Ingredients

For the cake

  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temp, plus more for greasing the pan
  • 1 1/2cups (or 6 oz) chopped, pitted dates
  • 1 1/4 cups water
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour, sifted, plus more for the pan
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt (I suppose the briny flavor complements the toffee better than table or kosher salt, but use whatever you have on hand)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs

For the sauce

  • 1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. In a medium saucepan, bring water and dates to a boil. Turn off heat and add baking soda. Take off the heat and let cool.
  3. Butter and grease your bundt pan.
  4. Whip butter in stand mixer or using an electric mixer. Add the sugar in slowly. Then vanilla. Then add 1 egg. Mix to combine. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the date mixture. Add the second egg. Finally, add the remaining flour mixture and date mixture.
  5. Bake in preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  6. For the sauce: bring the sugar, cream, and butter to boil in a small saucepan. Continue to boil while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon for 3 minutes. Turn off heat, add vanilla, and voila.

To serve: top with a dollop of whipped cream and a drizzle of the toffee sauce. Alternately, break off chunks with your hand in your groggy, kids-woke-me-up-too-early daze and eat to comfort yourself, as a sign that the day WILL get better.