Banana Pound Cake

Posted on January 16, 2015 by Lorinda

I’m usually pretty fearless in the kitchen. If something doesn’t come out the way I’d hoped, I can almost always salvage it, even if it’s for another purpose. But after failing miserably at making pound cakes in the past, I’ve been hesitant to try again. There are so many other types of cake to enjoy, right?

But…a pound cake is just perfect for making petits fours, and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner (now you know what my next post will be), so I ~~girded my loins~~ pulled up my big girl panties and tried again, learning a few things in the process. My goal was to make a banana pound cake. I came up with two versions, slightly different, both of which met the approval of my tasting crew. A pound cake shouldn’t be heavy, but it is supposed to be dense, with a velvety crumb. If you want something lighter, keep looking; this is NOT an angel food cake! Pound cake is good on the first day, but better on the second – and fantastic on the third. Covered well and left at room temperature, this cake just gets more flavorful as it ages.

I love making traditional recipes, so tried to stick with the basic measurements our great grandmothers probably used: one pound of flour, one pound of butter one pound of sugar, one pound of eggs. I did use some leavening for insurance, though theoretically the cake should rise because of all the air that is beaten into the batter.

Should be 8 eggs there, but you get the idea 🙂

My first cake seemed a little too dense – more like banana bread. While I pondered the situation, I peeked at other recipes on the internet and found that most people use only half a pound of butter. I stalled long enough to test the cake again on it’s third day on the counter. Amazingly, it seemed even more flavorful, and the texture had improved. I loved this cake!

Still, I wanted to tweak the recipe a little, aiming for a lighter texture and color.

A little richer, a little heavier…yum!

I replaced one cube of butter with an extra half cup of sour cream, and even though I’m usually adamant about using real vanilla extract, this time I used Wiltons clear vanilla flavoring to keep the color from turning light brown. (Bananas and vanilla extract will do that!) I also reduced the leavening a little bit and paid more attention to beating the butter and eggs longer.

The result was a cake with a finer crumb, a beautiful yellow color, and a sweet, mild flavor. (Some of the credit for the yellow color should probably go to my hens, who lay eggs with vibrant yolks! If you use store bought eggs and want the cake to be banana-yellow, add a drop or two of yellow food coloring.)

I’ll give you the recipe for the lighter cake, since I’m guessing that’s what most of you will be interested in, but under that recipe I’ll tell you how to make the first cake, in case it sounds better to you. Personally, I think I preferred the heavier cake with the little brown specks. And I think the extra butter made it a bit more flavorful. Your call!

Banana Pound Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

A sweet, dense cake with a fine crumb and subtle banana flavor.

Ingredients

1½ cups salted butter, room temperature (if using unsalted, add ¼ teaspoon salt to dry ingredients)
1 pound sugar (about 2⅓ cups)
1 pound eggs, room temperature (Weigh them in the shell! About 8 large eggs.)
2 teaspoons clear vanilla flavoring
2 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1 cup sour cream
1 pound cake flour (about 3 cups) sifted
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
ICING:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
4 tablespoons heavy cream

Instructions

Grease and flour (or spray with a flour/oil mixture like Baker's Joy) a large, 12-cup bundt pan.
Heat oven to 325 F.
In a large bowl, beat the butter at medium speed for at least 3 minutes.
Slowly trickle in the sugar, beating continuously and scraping the sides of the bowl often. Beat until light and fluffy.
With mixer on low, add eggs one at a time, beating between each egg for at least 30 seconds. Yes, this will take you 4 minutes, but don't cheat - it's really important!
In a small bowl, mix together the vanilla, mashed bananas, and sour cream. Pour slowly into the mixture in the large bowl, mixing just until combined.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, and baking soda (and ¼ teaspoon salt if using unsalted butter). Gradually add to batter, stirring just until combined.
Spoon into bundt pan and smooth the top.
Bake on middle rack of oven for approximately 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and a bamboo skewer comes out clean when inserted into the cake. Don't underbake or the texture of your cake will not be as smooth. If in doubt, give it 5 more minutes!
Cool on a rack for 20 minutes, and then turn out to cool completely.
Once the cake is cool, make icing:
Combine chocolate chips, peanut butter, and heavy cream in a small pan.
Heat on low, stirring frequently, until completely melted. Mixture should be thick, but spoonable. If too thick, add a small amount of cream or peanut butter, heating until smooth.
Drizzle (okay...glop) over the cake. Chill briefly to set the icing faster, if desired.
Keep covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.

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To make the more traditional cake, follow the instructions above, except:

Use 2 cups of butter (1 pound)
Use 1 tablespoons vanilla extract
Use 1/2 cup sour cream
Increase baking powder to 1 teaspoon

Smoothing the batter in the pan.

Slowly melt ingredients for icing.

The chocolate icing I used is really more of a ganache. You can use a regular chocolate glaze if you prefer; I wanted thick and fudgy on this cake. I pictured a chocolate covered banana, and almost added chopped peanuts, but figured that might be going too far. Gilding the lily, huh? I think melted white chocolate with the peanut butter would be good too. (Think peanut butter and banana sandwiches.)

A few hints, words of wisdom:

This is one of those times when weighing your ingredients is very helpful. Hey, I’m pretty sloppy about measuring things, but I weighed my flour, eggs, and sugar on a digital scale for accuracy this time.
It’s really, really important to have your eggs and butter at room temperature. Please don’t use a microwave to soften your butter – just let it sit out until it can be beaten. Not too soft, not too hard.
This is pretty obvious, but the top of your cake will become the bottom, so if you want a smooth line at the bottom, take a sharp knife and cut off the top of the cake where it puffed up in the middle!

Now that I’ve found that I actually can produce a decent pound cake, I have a feeling you’ll be seeing a lot more of them. If I have some failures, pffft…they’ll just be made into trifle.

I’m moving into Valentine’s Day mode now though, so first…heart shaped EVERYTHING!

Lorinda

Maple Nut Cupcakes

Posted on October 26, 2014 by Lorinda

If you’ve been following my blog, you already know that I’m a maple addict. I fell in love with maple everything when I was very young, and my obsession hasn’t abated with age. Today I indulged myself in the kitchen, and used almost an entire bottle of my beloved Mapleine. May I just say it smelled like heaven in here?

Not only did I make Maple Nut Cupcakes, I made maple crumbles and hard candy maple leaves for decoration. The cupcakes delighted me, because they came out extremely light and fluffy. The crumble was just as I expected, too. The leaves – those were a bit of a challenge. I know what NOT to do now, and can steer you in the right direction if you want to try making them.

If you like to lick cake beaters, you are going to love this batter. Seriously. It tastes just like maple nut ice cream, and is irresistible.

I used cream cheese frosting for these cupcakes, adding Mapleine (my favorite maple flavoring) to about a half cup of it for painting stripes in my pastry bag…giving the frosting some pretty brown accents when piped.

This recipe makes at least 36 cupcakes – maybe a few more. I have a tendency to fill my cupcake liners too full, giving my cupcakes that dreaded “muffin top” look. If you are more restrained, you’ll probably get 40 much more attractive cupcakes. The folded in egg whites are what make the cakes so light and tender, but also a little more delicate, so I recommend that you walk gently and avoid slamming doors while they are baking, just as a preventive measure.

Maple Nut Cupcakes

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes 36-40

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
2 cups plus 1 tablespoon white sugar, divided
4 eggs, divided
1 tablespoon maple flavoring (more if you want a stronger maple flavor)
1 tablespoon vanilla
3¼ cups cake flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk
1 cup finely chopped walnuts

Instructions

Heat oven to 350 F.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and 2 cups of sugar together until very light.
Separate eggs. Put whites in a small bowl and set aside. Add egg yolks to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl often.
Add maple flavoring and vanilla and beat well.
Sift the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together twice.
Combine the sour cream and milk. Stir well, but don't worry about getting all of the lumps out.
Add approximately ⅓ of the dry ingredients to the batter and stir until combined. Add ⅓ of the sour cream/milk mixture and stir until combined. Repeat until all has been added and mixed.
Stir in the walnuts.
Beat the egg whites until foamy and slightly thickened. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Gently but thoroughly fold the egg whites into the batter.
Spoon into lined cupcake pans, approximately ⅔ full.
Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center.
Cool in the pans on a rack for 5-10 minutes, then remove from pans, letting the cupcakes cool completely before frosting.

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Ingredients

Cream butter and sugar together

Add egg yolks and flavorings

Stir in walnuts

Fold in egg whites

Fill liners 2/3 full

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
8 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)
1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 pounds powdered sugar, divided (about 7 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Beat the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until light and creamy.
Add salt, and gradually add 6 cups of powdered sugar, beating well.
Slowly add whipping cream, beating well for 1 minute.
Add additional powdered sugar if needed for desired piping texture.

To make the Maple Crumble, all you need is a candy thermometer and pure maple syrup. I used Grade B organic syrup from Trader Joe’s for two reasons:

Grade B maple syrup actually has a stronger maple flavor, which is a good thing in my book!
My sister had just given me a bottle, so I didn’t have to go to town and buy some.

The recipe for making crumble is the same one you would use to make those lovely little Vermont maple candies that come out during the holidays. The pure-sugar-melt-in-your-mouth candies that many of us have overindulged in, making ourselves sick even after our parents warned us not to eat more than one or we’d be sorry. Whew. I feel better.

To make crumbles, you simply stir the mixture a little longer than you would if you were pouring it into molds. Spread out on a lightly buttered cookie sheet, it dries quickly and can be crumbled easily with your fingers. If you have any left over, it would be wonderful on hot cereal or mixed into a streusel topping for muffins!

MAPLE CRUMBLES:
1 cup pure Grade B maple syrup (don’t try using regular syrup – it won’t work!)

Lightly coat a baking sheet with butter.
Pour syrup into medium sauce pan (to give it room to foam) and turn heat between medium and medium-high.
Cook, stirring gently, until it reaches the soft ball stage – 235 F.
Remove from heat immediately and allow the mixture to cool for 2-3 minutes.
Stir until the mixture begins to thicken. Spread onto the prepared pan. If it is too thick to spread evenly, cover with a piece of foil and press to flatten.
When dry and firm, crumble it with your fingers and keep in a airtight container until ready to use.

Syrup is at soft ball stage.

If too thick, cover with foil and press to flatten.

Hard candy leaves would have been easy if I’d had hard candy molds, but I had to improvise, using a small maple leaf cookie cutter. The recipe made a little more than I expected, so my candy was thicker than it should have been, making it hard to form the leaves. So…I learned how to get around that, and am passing it on to you.

You’ll need a small leaf-shaped cookie cutter, a large baking sheet with sides (think jelly roll pan) and a candy thermometer.

This recipe was slightly revised from a Taste of Home recipe.

HARD MAPLE CANDY
1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup water
4 teaspoons Mapleine (or other maple flavoring)
a stick of butter for greasing the cookie cutter

Butter a large baking sheet with sides.
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup, and water. Turn your burner to a temperature between medium and medium-high. Stirring constantly, bring the mixture to a boil.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until the candy thermometer reads 300 F. Immediately remove from heat.
When the bubbles have settled a bit, add maple flavoring. Stir well and pour into pan. Lift and drop pan several times to spread the candy. You may have to help spread it with a metal spatula.
Watch the candy carefully. Once it is beginning to firm, but is not yet hard, press the cookie cutter lightly into butter and then into the candy. Butter the cutter for each leaf. Once all of the leaves have been cut, go back over them with the cutter to make sure they are still cut clear through.
Once the candy is hard, carefully punch out the leaves. The extra candy can be eaten in broken pieces or crushed as a decoration for cookies or pastries.
Too thick! Pan was too small, but you get the idea, right?

Hard candy maple leaves

The most important part of this post is the cake recipe. I loved eating mine without any frosting or decorations, which – with my sweet tooth – is saying a lot! Whether you use canned frosting, sprinkles from a jar, or jump through all the hoops above, what really matters is that cake. I think I’m in love!

Lorinda

Apple Pecan Whiskey Cake

Posted on October 8, 2014 by Lorinda

I’m one of those rare people who look forward to summer’s end. During the summer my time is stretched to the max between the garden, the house, visitors, and the blog; the thought of being free to play in the kitchen again is just heaven – like a kid bursting out of the classroom on the last day of school!

Of course, adding to my joy is the satisfaction of baking and cooking hearty cold weather foods. Right now I have a big basket of apples in my kitchen, so I used one to make a rich, dense, finger-licking Apple Pecan Whiskey Cake.

I’ve never been one to sneak tastes of cake batter (cookie dough is a different story) but after one taste of this batter, I was like a little kid with those beaters. I’m willing to risk salmonella for that batter any day! Besides, I use eggs from our own chickens, and I trust my girls implicitly.

I was going to leave the cake plain, but at the last minute I added a simple drizzle of glaze. I was in a tearing rush and didn’t beat it well enough, so you will see tiny little powdered sugar lumps where they do NOT belong. I’m sure you’ll plan your time better than I and mix it better…right?

This recipe has been husband AND neighbor approved!

Apple Pecan Whiskey Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Ingredients

3 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ginger
¼ teaspoon cardamom
1 cup oil (I used peanut oil)
3 eggs
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
½ cup whiskey (or you could substitute apple juice)
1 tablespoon vanilla
½ cup buttermilk
1 cup chopped, toasted pecans
1 cup peeled, cored, and chopped apple (about 1 average size apple)

Instructions

Heat oven to 350F. Set rack in the center of the oven.
Sift together twice: the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, espresso powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom. Remove 2 tablespoons of flour mixture and toss it in a small bowl with the chopped apple. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together the oil, eggs, brown sugar, white sugar, and molasses for 2 minutes.
Add the whiskey and vanilla and beat well.
Alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk, beginning with the dry ingredients and ending with the buttermilk, adding one-third of each at a time. Beat on low with each addition, just until incorporated. Don't over beat!
Fold in pecans and chopped apple.
Grease and flour (or use a flour/oil combination spray like Baker's Joy) a bundt pan. Spoon batter evenly in pan an place in preheated oven.
Bake for approximately 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick or wooden skewer comes out clean when inserted into the cake.
Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn cake out to cool.
This cake is delicious when served barely warm with a dollop of whipped cream or ice cream.

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To make the glaze, combine 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons whiskey, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Mix together well. Slowly add milk until the glaze is the correct thickness for drizzling over the cake.

To make whipped cream to serve with the cake, beat 1 cup of heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form. Add 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla (clear vanilla if you want the cream to be white) and beat until stiff peaks form.

There is no turning back now, you know; it’s officially fall and all of us “Foodies” will be inundating you with pumpkin, apple, maple, and cranberry recipes! Oooooh…and doughnuts. Maybe pumpkin apple maple cranberry doughnuts….

Lorinda

Apple Blossom Cake

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Lorinda

My head is always swirling with little bits and pieces of recipes. Sometimes they come together into something I can work with, and sometimes no amount of brainstorming will make them turn into a cohesive recipe. For months now I’ve had an idea for a cake that’s been haunting me. I got out the colored pencils and put it down on paper (and I’m no artist) to exorcise the demons, but this cake demanded to be baked!

My original concept. Time was not a consideration, apparently.

My original concept. In a perfect world where free time is not a consideration…

If I sound a bubble off of level, you are very perceptive. I think this passion for baking has turned just a wee bit obsessive. Not “They’re coming to take me away, ha ha” obsessive…just a teensy weensie bit neurotic. Cool, huh?

I thought I would make this cake a couple of weeks before Easter in case anyone else was crazy enough to attempt it. I also imagined it with many different gum paste birds and cute little bees with slices of jelly beans for the wings. I had made a test bee, and loved it, but life and deadlines got in my way. I made the cake, but it was after Easter, and there were only two kinds of birds and NO bees. I’d run out of time and I’d eaten all of the jelly beans.

So much for my “Birds and Bees” cake. I did, however, manage to make pretty little apple blossoms out of gum paste. Oh, and my cookie branches turned out well, if you don’t count the ones that broke as I was moving the cake from counter to table. Several went crashing to the floor, blossoms and all. I may have had a few choice things to say about that, and swear I heard Austin Powers chastising me:

My concept was to make part of a tree, seen from a viewpoint high in the branches. So the frosting would be in glops (that’s a fancy-shmancy baking term I learned ~~at Cordon Bleu~~ somewhere) to represent clusters of leaves, and I would have branches coming out from all over the cake, loaded with nests, birds, and bees. I stayed fairly true to the original idea except I decided I should add a large trunk coming out of the middle. In retrospect, the cake would have been prettier without it.

The branches were the hardest part of the cake. I used the recipe for Nonpareil Cookies, (without the last 3 ingredients, of course) and they held up pretty well, except when they were loaded with flowers and sticking out of the cake at an angle. The cake originally had several long, dainty branches coming from the sides where you see only stubby branches now. So go easy on the flowers unless the branch is upright, and make sure you bake them long enough. You want them hard and crunchy!

Roll the dough into “snakes”, narrower at one end, and snip with a scissors to create branches.

Forming chocolate cookie branches

Lots of branches

I have a thing about making everything on my cakes edible. I wouldn’t want to pull a toothpick or a piece of floral wire out of my mouth mid-bite! This can be challenging at times. Gum paste is almost perfect – it is edible and dries like porcelain. Unfortunately, it doesn’t taste very good. But…it was my best option for flowers.

Shaping gum paste apple blossoms

I took a lot of photos of the apple blossoms in progress, but they are nowhere to be found. My best guess is that I didn’t have the SD card in my camera at the time. Sigh. There are really good tutorials for flowers online, but it isn’t that hard, really! I cut them out with gum paste cutters (like little cookie cutters), used a round tool to thin and shape them a bit, and then put some yellow royal icing in the middle of each one. Some were left open in full-bloom; on others I pressed the petals toward the center to look like a bud.

Gum paste is fun to work with, but it dries very quickly when you’re working. The trick is to only work with a little at a time and to keep the rest of the dough in a tightly sealed plastic bag. Then let the flowers dry thoroughly before using them. Overnight is best! If flavor and texture is important, you could also use candy clay. Wiltons candy melts work well for this. Here’s how you make it: Wiltons Candy Clay

Leaves were cut with gum paste cutters also, and bent into different shapes. Attach leaves and flowers to the chocolate cookie branches using royal icing or melted chocolate and let them set until firm before sticking them into the cake.

Leftover apple blossoms

So…you’ve made your branches, flowers, and leaves. The nests were made from meringue and the birds were made from gum paste. Here’s the link for the nests from Mom Foodie. You could skip the gum paste birds and just make meringue ones as shown in her post.

All that’s left is the cake and icing. I used buttercream frosting, and LOTS of it! Those thick green branches really go through the frosting. However much you think you might need, double it! I won’t bother with the recipe for buttercream – I’m sure you have a favorite recipe – but I must mention that I added the grated peel from a couple of limes, a little of the lime juice, and some green food coloring.

That leaves us with the cake itself. I made two batches, which gave me three layers (with one leftover cake to put in the freezer) and baked them in deep 9-inch cake pans. Seriously, any cake will do. If you have a favorite cake recipe, by all means use it! I wanted a little lemon flavor, so here’s what I came up with:

Lightly Lemon Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes two 9-inch layers

Ingredients

2¼ cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup shortening (or coconut oil), room temperature
1½ cups sugar
grated lemon peel from 2 lemons
1 cup buttermilk
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
¼ cup milk
yellow food coloring if desired
5 egg whites

Instructions

Heat oven to 350 F.
Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar. Add the grated lemon peel and mix well.
In a small bowl combine the buttermilk, lemon juice, and milk.
To the large bowl with the shortening and sugar mixture, alternately add the dry ingredients and milk mixture, beginning with the flour and ending with the milk mixture, adding about a third of each at a time.
Beat for one minute at medium speed.
In a medium bowl, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold into cake mixture.
Divide between the cake pans. Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle. Allow to cool for 10 minutes on a rack and then turn out of the pan to finish cooling completely.

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My “Big Bubba” pastry tip. I used the smooth side out, of course.

Whew. I think that’s it! I just iced the cake with a thin coat of frosting and let it sit until firm, then used a huge tip (Wilton #789) to glop on the green frosting. I think a metal spatula would have worked well too – just slap it on like plaster! The rest is up to you. Just let your artistic side take over and decorate your heart out.

My next post will be something simple. Honest.

Tres Leches Cake Shooters

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Lorinda

Though Cinco de Mayo isn’t something I get very excited about, and I really don’t like tequila at all, I do appreciate any excuse to run with a theme, especially when it involves baking. So I’m adding my ~~two bits~~ dos pesos to the festivities with these Tres Leches Cake Shooters.

No, you can’t actually tip up the little paper holder and dump the cake in your mouth, but each one packs a small hit of tequila. I don’t recommend going with the expensive stuff, either; even though it’s smooth and less painful to barf back up the next morning, it doesn’t have that knock-you-upside-the-head cheap tequila flavor needed to make these babies scream “Cinco de Mayo!”

I used 1.25 ounce paper Jello shooter cups. These are great to have around for so many things: spice portion cups, condiments, dips, nut or mint cups, medicine cups, and for craft items like beads. They’re also known as souffle cups, but as small as these are, that would be a very small portion…especially since souffles are mostly air.

Two little shooters, in their cups.

I think the little shooters are easiest eaten with a spoon, but they willingly come out of the cups and can be eaten like a normal mini-cupcake if you can tear the cup off. The cups I bought are surprisingly strong, with a hard to tear rim, so you might want to use a small pair of scissors and just give each cup a tiny snip on both sides before you add the topping. Or you can watch people struggle with it…which could actually be pretty entertaining.

Tres Leches Cake Shooters

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes approximately 48 mini-cupcakes.

Ingredients

6 eggs, at room temperature
⅔ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 small can (5 ounces) evaporated milk
1 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons tequila (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla
.................
TOPPING:
1 pint heavy cream
⅓ cup confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons tequila
thin strips of lime peel for garnish

Instructions

Heat oven to 350 F.
In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Continue beating, and add sugar a tablespoon at a time. When all the sugar has been added, beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
In a large bowl beat the egg yolks until thick, about 4-5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon milk and 2 teaspoons vanilla and stir to combine.
Add the egg whites to the yolk mixture and fold in carefully.
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt over the egg mixture and fold in gently.
Set 1½ ounce paper souffle cups on baking sheets, leaving an inch between each cup to allow heat to circulate. For best results, spray with a flour/oil spray like Baker's Choice.
Fill each cup no more than ½ full and bake for 12 minutes. Cool on a rack.
Combine the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, cream, tequila, and vanilla in a small bowl.
Poke holes in cooled cupcakes with a fork, just to break the surface and allow the milk mixture to be absorbed, and pour a scant tablespoon of the milk mixture slowly over each cake.
When all of the cakes are done, cover them loosely with plastic wrap and let them chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
To make the topping, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and whip until stiff peaks form. Add the tequila slowly, whipping continuously. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe topping onto each cake. Garnish with thin slices of lime peel if desired.

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Bake the little cups directly on a baking sheet.

Poke holes with a fork.

If you are careful and tidy, you can soak them like this.

If you are impatient like I am, you’d better soak them over a bowl!

Honestly? I didn’t think I’d like these very much. My enthusiasm usually grows proportionally with the amount of chocolate in a dessert, and these had none. But I was very pleasantly surprised, and “tested” them more than I should have. The Man seems to be appreciative too, so I don’t think the chickens are going to get any of this experiment!

Speaking of experiments, Mother’s Day is coming soon and I believe that for the sake of nostalgia I will make something I’ve never ever EVER made before. My mom’s green jello salad with pears and walnuts and cheddar cheese. Sure hope the chickens like pears…

Lorinda

Deviled Cakes!

Posted on March 16, 2014 by Lorinda

For a fun spin on traditional Easter food, make these sweet little cakes that look like deviled eggs! The cake is tender and white, and is covered with a light coating of white chocolate, then decorated with yellow whipped buttercream icing. A dash of red sprinkles gives the appearance of paprika. At first glance, they will really fool you!

You can’t fool everyone…

We may have an eensy-weensy problem here, though. The pan I used (Wilton’s Petite Egg Pan) is no longer available. If you are lucky enough to have one, or there is someone you can ~~steal~~ borrow one from, you’re set. OR if you are wealthy and money is no object, there is a similar pan on the market that runs around $100. Such a deal! Worst case scenario, Wilton has a small egg pan that has designs on it. Since you really only see the top of the egg anyhow, I think it would work just fine. Hopefully you’ll figure something out, because these are just so much fun to make!

I’d love to say I thought up this idea, but The Man was the one who came up with it. I guess now he’s the idea man, and I’m the lowly person who does the grunt work. Meh…that’s okay. He deserves his moment in the limelight for this.

I tried to make the whitest cake possible, so used coconut oil instead of butter (it adds a lovely coconut flavor, but you can use shortening if you’d like) and didn’t use vanilla. If you have clear vanilla, go ahead and put a teaspoon in when you cream the oil and sugar together. Also, because I used whipping cream in the frosting to make it look fluffier, these really should be refrigerated.

Oh, I love these!

Deviled Cakes!

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes a LOT. At least 7 dozen, maybe more. You could also make 2 dozen and bake the rest of the batter in a 9" cake pan for another use.

Ingredients

½ cup room temperature coconut oil (or you may substitute shortening)
1½ cups sugar
1 teaspoon clear vanilla (optional)
2¼ cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1½ cup buttermilk
5 egg whites
1 pound white candy melts (get the whitest ones possible. I used Wilton's "Bright White"
½ cup butter, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
½ cup heavy whipping cream
Yellow and orange food coloring

Instructions

Heat oven to 350 F.
Prepare pan by greasing and flouring, or by spraying with a flour/oil combination spray like Baker's Joy.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
In a large bowl, cream the oil (or shortening), sugar, and clear vanilla. I used less oil than normal, so it won't get fluffy. Just mix it together really well.
Alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk, beginning with the flour and ending with the buttermilk, about a third of each at a time.
Beat for one minute on medium-high speed.
Fold in the egg whites.
Fill each egg cavity almost to the top.
Bake for 8-9 minutes, or until the edges are beginning to turn golden brown and turn out onto racks to cool.
Slice the domed tops off of each egg.
Melt the white chocolate melts in the microwave at 15 second intervals, stirring each time until completely melted.
With a table knife, spread a layer of white chocolate on the flat side (top) of each egg.
In a large bowl, combine the butter and powdered sugar. Mix well.
Add the whipping cream a little at a time until it reaches the desired consistency for piping, adding a little more cream or powdered sugar if necessary.
Add a little yellow coloring and a TINY bit of orange or red. Whip the frosting to combine. Adjust the color to resemble deviled egg filling. Continue to beat the frosting until it is light and fluffy.
With a star tip, pipe the "yolk filling" on each egg. Dust with red sugar sprinkles.

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Whip egg whites until stiff peaks form.

Fold the egg whites into the batter.

Fill the eggs ALMOST full (I overdid it just a little in this photo)

Bake about 9 minutes.

Level the tops (eat the scraps) and “frost” with white candy melts.

Pipe the frosting and add sprinkles. TA DA!

Brownie Bombe

Posted on December 6, 2013 by Lorinda

On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…

Printable recipe at the bottom of the post!

A Brownie Bombe with a chocolate brownie shell, three kinds of ice cream, layers of dark chocolate ganache, and a whipped cream icing.

Hey. Sometimes I just crave ice cream!

When Amy from Crumbs in My Mustachio came up with the brilliant idea to post a Christmas cake each day made by twelve different bloggers, I jumped right in. I may have even muscled other people aside in my enthusiasm. What a blast! I dithered over this to a ridiculous degree, considering and discarding all different kinds of recipes. And even though my final choice wasn’t technically a cake, it’s a refreshing and crowd-pleasing dessert for any time of the year! I used pistachio-almond, vanilla, and peppermint ice cream for a traditional Christmas color scheme. You may use any flavor or color that appeals to you, of course.

I also put ganache between the ice cream layers because…well…because I love ganache! This is optional. It’s one more step, but I love the way it delineates the colors.

It isn’t a hard dessert to make, but you do have to give yourself a lot of time. Like at least a day ahead of the occasion, because it gets popped in and out of the freezer countless times. This was made in a 4 quart mixing bowl, so it’s huge. I’m guessing it will serve 16-18 people. Scale it down if you’d like. You’ll need:

3 half-gallons of ice cream. (I know…they aren’t half gallons any more. Do they really think we haven’t noticed this???)
2 batches of brownies. Guard them with your life; you will need ALL of the brownies. Trust me on this – I had to make a third batch because I let the guys “test” them.
10 ounces of dark chocolate. Good dark chocolate, not chips!
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream
A large tub of non-dairy topping. I usually avoid this stuff like the plague, but it holds up so much better than whipping cream that I caved it this time.

Begin by baking the brownies. Chewy or cake brownies? Doesn’t really matter. Cool them thoroughly. Line a bowl with foil, smoothing it out as much as possible. Don’t lose any sleep over this; the weight of the brownies and ice cream will flatten out most of the little ridges.

Line bowl with foil.

Firmly press large brownies all over the bowl, covering the foil completely, and bringing all the way to the top of the bowl. Save enough to cover the top when you’re done!

Press brownies along sides and bottom of bowl.

Stick the bowl in the freezer for an hour. This is the perfect time to make your ganache if you’re using it.

Chop 10 ounces of dark chocolate and put it in a medium bowl.
Heat 1 1/4 cups heavy cream until it’s beginning to bubble but not boil.
Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate. Let it sit for a couple of minutes, then stir gently until it is blended. Cover and set aside to cool. Give it a stir occasionally.

When the hour is almost up, bring out your first carton of ice cream and allow it to soften. I can tell you through experience that you don’t want to try to flatten lumps of frozen ice cream. Let it soften, and maybe stir it around in a bowl first. It will make the next step a LOT easier! Press the ice cream (yes, the whole carton) over the brownie layer, bringing it almost to the top. Leave a generous 1/2″ at the top, because there will be a brownie “cover” added at the end. Smooth the ice cream as much as possible with a spoon, rubber spatula, or (brrr) your fingers. Return the bowl to the freezer.

Add ice cream flavor #1.

When the ice cream layer is firm, pour enough ganache into the bowl to coat the ice cream. Tip and rotate the bowl to spread the ganache, or use a pastry brush. Work quickly so the ice cream doesn’t melt! Return to the freezer.

Add ganache.

Soften the second tub of ice cream. Spread over the hardened ganache in the bowl and (you guessed it) return it to the freezer. When firm, repeat the ganache layer and freeze again. Fill with the remaining ice cream. (You’ll have a little left over. Grab a spoon; you know what to do with it, right?) Return the bowl to the freezer. Cover the ice cream with the remaining brownies, pressing firmly. Cover the bowl with foil, and freeze until solid. (Overnight is best.) When you’re ready to serve, remove the foil from the top, cover the top of the bowl with your platter, and flip it over. Peel the foil off of the bombe and frost it with whipped topping.

Frost it with whipped topping.

Sprinkle with sparkly edible glitter, add chocolate shapes, cookies…whatever is appropriate for your theme, or just leave it a beautiful fluffy white. Slice and serve! Use a knife that’s been dipped in warm water if your bombe is hard to cut. If you have any left over, put it in the freezer until the whipped topping is firm, and then cover well with heavy foil.

Brownie Bombe

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Ingredients

3 half-gallons of ice cream
2 batches of brownies, baked and cooled
10 ounces of dark chocolate (the good stuff, not chips!)
1¼ cups heavy whipping cream
Large tub of non-dairy topping (16 ounces) softened

Instructions

Line a large mixing bowl (mine was about 4 quarts) with foil.
Firmly press brownies over the inside surface of the bowl, reserving enough to cover the top at the end of the process.
Put the bowl in the freezer for an hour. While it's freezing, make your ganache.
Ganache:
Chop 10 ounces of dark chocolate and put it in a medium bowl.
Heat 1¼ cups heavy cream until it's beginning to bubble but not boil.
Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate. Let it sit for a minute or two, then stir gently until it is completely blended. Cover lightly and set aside to cool, stirring occasionally.
When the hour is almost up, put your first tub of ice cream on the counter to soften. You may want to stir it in a bowl so it is evenly thawed. You're looking for soft, not runny!
Remove bowl from freezer and press the entire carton of ice cream over the brownie layer, bringing it almost to the top. Leave at least ½ of brownie showing around the top of the bowl. Working quickly, smooth the ice cream as much as possible.
Return the bowl to the freezer.
When the ice cream layer is firm, remove from freezer and pour enough ganache into the bowl to coat the ice cream. Tip and rotate the bowl to spread the ganache, or use a pastry brush. Return to freezer for at least ½ hour.
Bring the second tub of ice cream out to soften. Spread over hardened ganache. (You may have a little ice cream left this time.) Return to the freezer.
When firm, repeat the ganache layer and return to the freezer.
Soften the third tub of ice cream.
When the ganache is firm, fill the rest of the space with ice cream and return to the freezer.
When the ice cream is firm, cover with the reserved brownies, pressing firmly. Make sure all of the ice cream is covered.
Cover the bowl with foil and freeze until solid (overnight is best)
Remove the foil from the top and turn the bombe over onto a serving platter. Peel off the foil and frost with whipped topping.
Cut with a knife dipped in warm water.
To freeze remaining bombe, put it uncovered in the freezer until the whipped topping is firm, and then cover with heavy foil.

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Here are the links to the first five cakes. I’ll add a link for each new cake, so make sure you come back and visit each day!

December 1st: Lemony Thyme’s Chocolate Truffle Pirouette Cake December 2nd: Cooking From a SAHM’s Strawberry ‘n Cream Cake December 3rd: Moore or Less Cooking Blog’s Coconut Tres Leches Cake December 4th: 365 Days of Baking’s S’mores Cake
December 5th: it’s yummi’s Pomegranate Lime Bundt Cake
December 6th: My Brownie Bombe.
December 7th: Hun What’s for Dinner’s Chocolate Roll with candy cane whipped cream.
December 8th: Chocolate, Chocolate and More’s Eggnog Pound Cake.
December 9th: Manila Spoon’s No-Bake White Chocolate Cranberry Cheesecake.
December 10th: Baking in a Tornado’s White Chocolate Peppermint Cake.
December 11th: Crumbs in My Mustachio’s Hot Cocoalicious Cake.
December 12th: Tampa Cake Girl’s Red Velvet White Chocolate Cheesecake.

I hope you’ve enjoyed our twelve cakes as much as we enjoyed presenting them!

ABUNDANCE

Posted on November 12, 2013 by Lorinda

School is in session, the weather changes, kids don costumes and it’s dark before dinner; all signs that holiday time is right around the corner. Before we know it plans are made, preparations have begun, and Thanksgiving is just weeks away.

Thanksgiving is the perfect occasion for ushering in the holiday season; it’s a time for stories, projects, cooking and sharing. That’s exactly what this post is about. I’ve linked up with 5 other bloggers, each sharing a piece of what the season has to offer. We have humor, thought, family projects and food.

I hope you’ll click on all the links below to see what we’ve all put together for you:
Home on Deranged has a family post about the first and last Thanksgiving spent with mom.
Kiss My List is sharing a simple but meaningful family craft project that does double duty as Thanksgiving decor.
Writer B is Me will share a humorous story about what happens when someone is asked to make the mashed potatoes one too many times.
Pink When shares a project you can display for Thanksgiving dinner and guests.
And Baking in a Tornado (the genius behind this group post) will share a recipe for that leftover turkey.

And I, of course, bring you dessert!

It’s so hard to leave room for dessert when your table is groaning with rich Thanksgiving food! My family always had a fairly late dinner, so we’d manage to tuck in a tiny slice of pumpkin pie after the meal, but serious damage to the pies had to wait for breakfast the next day. And oh, it tasted good the next morning.

As much as I love pumpkin pie, sometimes it’s nice to change things up a bit. Here is the dessert I’ll be serving this year instead of pie – Pumpkin Cake Roll with Butterscotch Cream Cheese Filling.

Pumpkin Cake Roll with Butterscotch Cream Cheese Filling

Most people don’t frost cake rolls, but I wanted a whipped cream icing to lighten it up a bit. The leaves were made with white chocolate and a little food coloring. The Pumpkin Roll can be made ahead and frozen…just let it thaw for an hour and smother it with whipped cream before serving. If you don’t think it will be all be eaten right away, I would recommend that you use a non-dairy whipped topping or (my choice) stabilized whipped cream.

I believe this was the first cake I made from scratch. Had it not been foolproof, I probably would be using Duncan Hines mixes to this day – but it was so simple to make, I never looked back. My recipe is really old, and probably adapted from the original Libby Pumpkin Roll recipe. It calls for a 10-inch by 15-inch jelly roll pan. I don’t happen to have one, so I use a larger pan and spread mine a little thinner…and it works just fine!

Pumpkin Roll with Cream Cheese Filling

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
⅔ cup pumpkin
1 teaspoon lemon juice
¾ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt
......................
BUTTERSCOTCH CREAM CHEESE ICING
¼ cup heavy cream
¼ cup powdered instant butterscotch pudding mix
8 ounces softened cream cheese
4 tablespoons softened butter
1 cup powdered sugar
½ cup (or more) chopped, toasted pecans

Instructions

Heat oven to 375 F.
Prepare a 15"x10" jelly roll pan (or cookie sheet with sides) by lining the bottom with waxed paper or parchment. Grease and flour the paper, or spray with an oil/flour spray like Baker's Joy.
Beat eggs on high for 5 minutes.
Beating continually, gradually add sugar.
Add the pumpkin and lemon juice and mix until well combined.
Sift together the dry ingredients and fold into pumpkin mixture.
Spread batter evenly in prepared pan, and bake 12-15 minutes, or until the top springs back when touched.
Coat a cotton dish towel generously with powdered sugar and turn the cake out onto the dish towel. Peel off the waxed paper or parchment.
Starting from the short end, slowly roll cake and towel together. Place in the refrigerator to cool completely, approximately one hour.
While the cake is cooling, make the butterscotch filling:
In a medium bowl, combine the cream and pudding mix. Add the cream cheese and butter and mix together at medium-high speed. Add the powdered sugar and mix well. Refrigerate until needed.
Unroll the chilled cake carefully. Spread with filling and roll it back up (without the towel this time, of course.) Refrigerate at least one hour.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar, or ice with sweetened whipped cream and serve.

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Folding together.

Spreading the batter.

Roll up cake AND towel!

Add filling and pecans.

To make the white chocolate leaves, melt white baking chocolate (if you have candy melts, they’d probably be a lot easier to work with) in three bowls, with just a little bit of chocolate in two of them. Add green and orange Wilton candy coloring to the two small bowls. Note: chocolate does NOT like water, so regular coloring can make it seize up. Use powdered or oil based food coloring! Melt a small amount of dark chocolate in another small bowl if you wish. Put the melted white chocolate on a waxed paper covered baking sheet, drizzle it with the colored and dark chocolate, and spread it out thinly with a spatula, with as few strokes as possible.

Let it harden at room temperature and then cut leaf shapes with cookie cutters. Cut more leaves than you think you’ll need – a lot of them may break! Move the entire sheet to the refrigerator and let it harden completely. Separate each leaf carefully with a small spatula. If you want to shape the leaves, put each one on a square of waxed paper, melt in the microwave for 2-3 second intervals until the leaf is flexible, and shape by draping over scrunched up foil or a spoon handle, or by setting it in a small custard bowl. Chill again and place on cake.

Ready to melt

Mixture of white chocolate colors.

Cutting out chocolate leaves

Too much trouble for you? One word: SPRINKLES. Everyone loves sprinkles.

From my kitchen to yours, have a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving!

Angelberry Cake

Posted on August 2, 2013 by Lorinda

One of the simplest and most delightful cakes to make from scratch is an angel food cake. It doesn’t have the bitter tang of a boxed angel food cake mix, and can be gussied up with an endless variety of flavors and additions. As long as the additions are relatively dry and in moderate quantities, the sky’s the limit. I’ve used chopped cherries, shaved chocolate, lemon, and lavender so far with great results.

You don’t even need a tube pan; the batter works wonderfully in lined cupcake tins or even bread pans. For a beautiful presentation, however, nothing beats an angel food cake with the hole in the center filled with fluffy whipped cream. During the holidays of my youth, the whipped cream was flavored with crushed candy canes and marshmallows – a light, festive treat.

I was afraid that juicy huckleberries would weigh down the batter and keep it from rising well, but was pleasantly surprised to find that they didn’t affect the loft at all…just added an amazing pop of flavor and color. How could anyone resist a slice of huckleberry heaven? Of course you could use blueberries instead, but there’s just nothing like the flavor of a ripe mountain huckleberry. Take your chances with the bears, bees, mosquitoes, and fallen logs, and hit the hills for this precious bounty.

ANGELBERRY CAKE

1 cup sifted cake flour
1 1/2 cups superfine sugar (important to use superfine)
1 1/3 cups egg whites (11 or 12 eggs), room temperature
1 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond or lemon extract, if desired
1 cup huckleberries (or small blueberries) – divided

Heat the oven to 325F.
Prepare a tube pan by cutting a circle of parchment the size of the bottom of the pan and cutting a round hole in the middle so that it will fit over the tube. Do not grease or flour the parchment.

In a small bowl, sift flour 3 times with ½ cup of the sugar.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Sprinkle the salt and cream of tartar over eggs and beat until they hold soft peaks.

Add the rest of the sugar, ¼ cup at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in flavored extracts.

Remove 2 tablespoons of the flour mixture and place in a small bowl with 3/4 cup of the berries (the remaining 1/4 cup will be used later for the glaze.) Toss the berries in the flour and set aside.

Add the flour and sugar mixture ½ cup at a time, folding gently after each addition. Add the berry and flour mixture last and very carefully fold into the batter to keep from deflating the precious air bubbles.

Put batter into the prepared tube pan and bake approximately an hour at 325 degrees, until deep golden brown on top. Turn pan upside down on rack. When cool, lift pan. If cake doesn’t come out, slide a knife around the outside to release it.

Note: You can also bake the batter in cupcake pans with liners, or in two loaf pans with a piece of parchment paper in the bottoms only. Don’t grease the pans! Cool the loaf pans upside down so the cakes don’t deflate. You may have to get creative—balance them between two pans or even coffee mugs.

HUCKLEBERRY GLAZE:

1/4 cup huckleberries
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon powdered egg whites (optional..this just makes the glaze dry firmer and faster)
powdered sugar

In a small pan on low heat, combine 1/4 cup huckleberries and 1 tablespoon of water. Heat on low for approximately 10-15 minutes to soften the berries and release the juice. Stir in the lemon juice and salt.

Combine 1 cup of powdered sugar with the powdered egg whites and gradually whisk into the berry mixture. At this point, depending on how juicy your berries are, you can adjust the glaze by adding more water or more powdered sugar to achieve a pouring consistency. Drizzle over thoroughly cooled cake.

Since I can never resist “gilding the lily”, I like to fill the center with fresh whipped cream with a few berries on the top. Dig in!

“The Guys” going huckleberry picking!

Fly on the Wall – May

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Lorinda

Wow, the last month went by quickly! It’s time for Fly on the Wall again – a chance for you to see what’s really going on in the homes of 13 bloggers when they think no one is looking. As a fly on the wall in our homes, you’ll be privy to the dirt (in my case, figurative and literal) that others never see. Quick…someone’s getting ready to open the door. Get ready to zip inside!

Babies – we have babies! Out of ten eggs under our broody hen, seven hatched. And you, my little fly friend, are missing a huge opportunity. The brooder box is very fragrant right now, because Mama gets really annoyed when I try to clean it out!

Six are little Buff Orpingtons, but one was a green egg, which makes it half Buff and half Araucana. The little misfit has sergeant stripes on its wings – so cute! Can’t play with them because Hoochie Mama freaks out and stomps all over them, trying to scoot them under her wings. Wish they could stay little and cute. And oh, I wish they could all be girls, since roos will ~~get nuked~~ go to “Freezer Boot Camp” this Fall.

Speaking of chickens, I just have to tell you…cleaning out the coop is a BIG job. I shoveled it out last time, so The Man got the duty this time. You’re a fly, right? So you’d probably feel right at home buzzing around this guy:

Isn’t this your long-lost cousin?

I’m a ham. I have many humiliating examples I can produce to prove this, but believe me…it’s a fact. So when I was asked to be the “Zonk” for our “Let’s Make a Deal” tea for Homemaker’s Club, I was very pleased to put on my flowered dress and dorky hat, and – padded from boobs to bum, with front tooth blacked out – become “Daisy May.” I don’t know why anyone chose what was behind the curtain, because it was usually me, in a housedress sweeping dirt under a rug with (fake) cigarette hanging from my mouth, pruning a dead tree (and sharing some of my wine with it), in a lounge chair at the “beach” in my mumu, or playing “Clementine” on the guitar. Fun times!

Oh my darlin’…oh my darlin’…

I settled on “Clementine” because everyone knows that song, and I wanted them to sing along. But I also realized the my father had left me a real legacy when he sang songs to us around the campfire; I have a lot of “hillbilly” type songs filed away in my brain. Some of them start with catchy lyrics like “There’s a pappy at the gate with a loaded 38” and “Slap her down again, Pa – slap her down again.” It made me sad, made me smile, and made me wish I’d taught these old songs to my children. I guess that’s what grandchildren are for!

You were hanging out here during the 10th annual World Naked Gardening Day. Did you see anything interesting? Uh…no. Huh uh. I have been known to weed topless in the back garden just because it feels awesome and no one can see me, but naked is too scary. Yikes.

Gardening did get done, however. The beautiful weather led to hopes of an early Summer. We have a short season (usually can’t plant most things until Memorial Day) so this was very exciting. Many things went into the dirt with high hopes and crossed fingers. Just in case you’re curious, THIS is what my arm looks like when I take my gardening gloves off!

A common occurrence here in the summer!

So just when I was feeling hopeful, THIS happened.

May? Really?

Bet you’re glad you were safely stuck to my wall, huh? We had five minutes of heavy rain and hail at the same time, blowing sideways at what I would determine was hurricane force. Accompanied by thunder, lightning, and barking dogs. Seriously scary stuff. There will probably be no fruit in our little orchard this year – the stupid hail tore off blossoms and some of the new leaves. Other than that, most of the newly planted garden wasn’t affected. Except for some of the strawberries. And the celery. And the basil.

“He Who Shall Not Be Named On Facebook” was here for a brief visit. I love my son, but the butthead has a real fascination with letting our yellow lab on the couch and petting him vigorously – with fur flying everywhere. He made a modest attempt at scooping some of it up this time (for a change) but instead of putting it in the garbage he made poor Otis a toupee and laughed uproariously. Idiot. Don’t tell him, but I know what he’s getting for Christmas. I’m brushing Otis regularly and saving all his hair, and I’m going to make him a pillow! I think that’s only fair.

Poor Otis and his “toupee”

He is not amused.

Yesterday was another ladies’ luncheon. There was a cake baking contest and my S’mores cake took first place. Did I mention that only three of us entered? Still…it’s a yummy cake, and worth posting a recipe. For the 3 layer version, you can go to my original post at Yummy Northwest S’mores Cake

2 layer S’mores Cake (after the judges tried a piece.)

S'mores Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (I used peanut oil)
1 cup hot coffee
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 recipe Graham Cracker Layer
1 recipe Chocolate Ganache
1 recipe Marshmallow Frosting

Instructions

Make one recipe Graham Cracker Layer (see below)
Heat the oven to 350 F.
Grease and flour two 9-inch round pans. (I use parchment on the bottom of the pan and spray it and the sides of the pan with Baker's Joy.)
Divide the graham cracker mixture evenly into both pans, reserving 2 tablespoons for decorating the cake if desired. Press firmly.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together dry ingredients.
Add oil, coffee and milk and mix at medium speed for 2 minutes.
Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat for 2 more minutes. Expect the batter to be thin.
Pour into prepared pans. Bake for about 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle.
***While cake is baking, make your ganache! See below for the recipe.***
Cool in pans on racks for 15 minutes and then turn out and cool completely on racks.
To assemble, place one cake on a plate or cake board, graham cracker side up. Spread with ganache. Place the second layer over the first, graham cracker side down. Frost sides with ganache and pipe around the top and bottom.
Fill the top with marshmallow frosting (see recipe below) and sprinkle with reserved graham cracker mixture.
Decorate with marshmallows, Hershey bars, and pieces of graham cracker if you wish.

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GRAHAM CRACKER LAYER
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped (optional)

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl

Pouring cake batter over graham cracker layer.

CHOCOLATE GANACHE
16 ounces good quality dark chocolate (don’t use chocolate chips!)
2 cups whipping cream, preferably ultra-pasteurized

Chop chocolate into very small pieces and place in a medium bowl.
Heat cream in a small pan until it just begins to boil, and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for a couple of minutes and then stir gently until blended.
Let the ganache sit at room temperature, stirring occasionally, until it thickens to spreading consistency. This will probably take at least 2 hours. The longer it sits the thicker it gets! If it gets too thick, you can place the bowl in a larger bowl of warm water and stir gently. Don’t ever add liquids to ganache!

MARSHMALLOW FROSTING
2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup

In medium bowl, beat egg whites, salt, and vanilla at medium speed until foamy.
Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating at high speed until soft peaks form and sugar is dissolved.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring corn syrup just to a boil. Holding the pan high above the egg mixture, pour in a very thin stream, beating at highest speed until frosting is thick.
If you make this ahead, keep it lightly covered until needed.

Pouring a thin stream of boiling corn syrup into egg mixture.

I actually left for the luncheon with an almost clean kitchen. Unheard of. Usually I cover every surface with dishes and pans, but I made a valiant effort to clean up after myself this time. Of course, there were those pesky chocolate cake batter spatters from cupboard to floor, and a few assorted bowls and measuring cups, but all in all it was amazing, since I was finishing the cake and baking croissants at 5:30 AM. BEFORE COFFEE! A tidy kitchen made for a more pleasant homecoming after the luncheon, but spoiled my whole “look at what a freakin’ mess I make” photo shoot idea. Next time!

I’ll leave you with these “before” and “after” action shots of The Man:

BEFORE BREAKFAST

AFTER BREAKFAST!

Yep, he’s a keeper!

Well…if you hurry into the kitchen there are probably still some sticky bits on the countertop for your pleasure. Oh, who am I kidding? There’s no rush; it’s not going to get cleaned until tomorrow anyhow. When you’re through, please buzz over to these other blogs and check out what THEY have on THEIR counters.

Baking In a Tornado
Stacy Sews and Schools
Just a Little Nutty
Menopausal Mother
The Sadder But Wiser Girl
The Momisodes
Follow Me Home
Moore Organized Mayhem
Hypnotic Bard
Tiny Steps Mommy
Spatulas on Parade
Mom Rants and Comfy Pants

The Rowdy Baker

Irreverent offerings from a compulsive baker.

Category Archives: Cakes

Banana Pound Cake

Maple Nut Cupcakes

Apple Pecan Whiskey Cake

Tres Leches Cake Shooters

Deviled Cakes!

Brownie Bombe

ABUNDANCE

Angelberry Cake

Fly on the Wall – May