Wedding Cake Testing

Let's eat cake! Lots of it...

 

I have made three cakes in the span of a week and it was awesome… if I could bake cakes forever, I would be the happiest girl on Earth! The reason behind all this cake baking frenzy is because DFJ and I want to make our own wedding cake. Well, maybe I want to do it more than he does, but he’s always been agreeable and easygoing… a true keeper! Oh, and he’s also one happy cake tester… too happy that I have to give away half of the cakes each time because it’s just not ok to eat three entire cakes in one week.

All three cakes that I made were delicious. Each one is very special in its own way, but the third one was the charm. It really makes for a great wedding cake!

Cake # 1: Rosemary Olive Oil Cake (101 Cookbooks)

It sounds like a totally crazy combination, right? So crazy that I knew it was just going to be good and I had to make it, pronto! This cake had a really interesting flavor. I know that the word interesting is something that most people use to describe something that is not really interesting or exciting and use the word anyway because there’s nothing else to say. But, that’s not the case for this cake. It really has interesting flavors, simple and complex at the same time. I would consider this cake more of a quick bread since it isn’t too sweet and soft. Dark chocolate, rosemary, and olive oil are three of my favorite ingredients in any recipe and these three ingredients all thrown together into a cake is too good to be true. Friends, this is a good one… simply lovely, subtle yet intense, with a magic touch that makes it so good, yet you can’t quite place what it is that makes it good. This would be a perfect cake to serve for brunch parties or just an everyday, snack cake.

Cake # 2: Chocolate Bundt Cake (101 Cookbooks)

 

This cake is for dark chocolate and stout lovers! If beer isn't your thing, worry not, because once the simmered down beer goes into the cake, there is nothing left but a rich, dense, moist, chocolate cake that has a mild sweetness and full body.

The icing is amazing. Really, it is! Powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and buttermilk... so rich, chocolatey, and perfectly sweet. I am in love with it and couldn't stop licking it off the whisk, the bowl, and the sides of the cake. This might be my go to quick icing from now on!

 

Cake # 3: Also Known as My Wedding Cake!

 

After searching all of my cookbooks for a promising cake recipe, I came upon this particular Ina Garten recipe in Barefoot Contessa at Home: Beatty’s Chocolate Cake. Even before I finished reading the directions, I knew that this would be the one and it had to be made in my kitchen soon. Now that the cake problem was solved, I needed to find the perfect frosting. That was when I remembered the best buttercream frosting I have ever had in my entire life. It was at Delancey’s in Seattle. DFJ and I happened to be there on the night of their 3^rd anniversary last year. So, I emailed Molly Wizenberg and asked her for the cake and frosting recipe. She was very sweet and happily shared it with me… it is the best coincidence that the Delancey cake recipe is so close to the Ina Garten recipe that I found. In the end, I decided to make Ina Garten’s cake with Delancey’s Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting.     

 

Absolutely lovely! This cake is perfectly sweet with a rich chocolate flavor and notes of coffee… Every bite is surprisingly light and airy with its moist and spongy texture. A truly delicious and decadent cake with a delicate softness that just makes you smile and fall in love with it. The frosting is just as heavenly… buttery sweetness with hints of salted caramel. What could be possibly be better than this? After the first bite, DFJ and I knew that this would be the perfect celebratory cake to welcome us into our new life together.

As much as I would like to share the Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting, I am not sure if it is my place to do so. But I would be happy to tell you that there are two components to the frosting: the Swiss Meringue Buttercream (I made meringue for the first time!) with a homemade salted, caramel sauce that has real vanilla beans in it for added flavor. So very special!   

 

Wedding Chocolate Cake

Very slightly adapted from Ina Garten’s Beatty’s Chocolate Cake; Barefoot Contessa at Home

a teaspoon or so of butter to grease two, 9-inch round cake pans

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus a little bit to dust the pans
1 ½ cups sugar (the original recipe calls for 2 cups)
¾ cup cocoa powder (non-Dutched)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
½ cup olive oil (the original recipe calls for vegetable oil)
2 large eggs (the original recipe calls for extra-large eggs at room temperature)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
 
Frosting (I made Delancey’s Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting that I got from Molly Wizenberg; Ina Garten uses a Chocolate Frosting; and I believe any chocolate or buttercream frosting that you love would be great with this cake)
 

Set an oven rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease every inch, space, nook, and cranny of both cake pans with butter. Lightly dust with flour, tapping the bottom and sides of the pan to spread it around. This will help ease the removal of the cake from the pan once it has slightly cooled.

Brew a pot of good coffee… I used the French press method, but I believe that drip would work just as well.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk well together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Make sure that everything is well combined. In a separate large bowl, pour in the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Use a hand held electric mixer set on low to combine everything together.

Slowly and gradually pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix on low speed until just combined. Use a flexible spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl and carefully pour in the coffee into the mixture. Mix on low speed until just combined and once again, scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure all the dry ingredients are incorporated.

Carefully pour the batter into the prepared pans, making sure to place an even amount in each. Bake for 38-40 minutes. Test both cakes for doneness using a cake tester poked in the middle. If it comes out clean, the cakes are done. Cool the pans on a cooling rack for 30-40 minutes. Turn the cakes carefully by placing a cooling rack on top of each pan (one at a time) and flipping it over. The cakes will lie on the racks flat side up. Let the cakes cool completely.

Gently place a plate or a cake stand on top of one cake. Hold both sides of the plate or cake stand and the cooling rack (with the cake sandwiched in between) firmly with your hands, and flip the cake onto the plate or stand. The flat side of your cake should be on the bottom. If you’re particular with how your cake will look, you may want to even out the top of the first layer since it is rounded… but I don’t care about that too much so I didn’t bother to do anything. Frost the top of the first layer using whatever frosting spatula you have (offset spatula, a frosting knife, what have you). Place the second layer on top, with the rounded side up. This is tricky… I carefully slid the second layer off the cooling rack onto my outstretched palm, then held it gently with both hands, and carefully but surely placed it on top of the first layer. Whew! Spread the rest of the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

Savor every bite and enjoy!!! I have one more slice left to have as dessert tonight!            

   

Dal with Lots of Vegetables

See that bowl of soup? DFJ and I just finished it off a minute ago… We ate off of the same bowl and shared the same spoon, passed it back and forth between us, exchanged a few words every now and then, and sometimes just enjoyed the comfortable silence.

Now I sit at the dining table, typing this post and he is in the office reading news. There is just enough of an opening in the door that divides the short distance between us so we can glance at each and talk when we need to. Moments like these make me appreciate so much the life we have together… sweet and simple.

This warm and spicy bowl of soup was inspired from Mark Bittman’s Dal with Lots of Vegetables. Anita, the author behind the beautiful blog, Cooking Poetry, chose this recipe for this week’s Food Matters Project.

I made this soup yesterday morning before going on an out of town shopping date with my friend, Elissa. More on this later… for now, I will suffice it and say, we had a blast! I sure am lucky to have her as a friend.

As I was making the soup, my mind was elsewhere and from what I remember, the following ingredients went in the giant pot: a sauté of diced onion, minced ginger, and minced garlic + a whole head of cauliflower and the stalks, chopped + two carrots, chopped + leftover cooked beets, chopped + a bunch of kale, chopped into ribbons. As I was sautéing the cauliflower, I threw in a tablespoon of mustard seeds, 4 cardamom pods, 4 whole cloves, a dried chile, and black pepper. After sautéing all the vegetables, I added a cup of green lentils + a generous amount of homemade chicken stock and water to cover everything about an inch. I let everything cook for about 20 minutes and added salt one pinch at a time. The flavors seemed off and bland, so I threw in some curry powder but it still wasn’t enough and I gave up.

DFJ picked up after my slack and somehow managed to pull everything together. When I asked him what he did, he said he added more cardamom, some coriander, some cumin, and lots of salt. The result was excellent! A heartwarming bowl of soup that only gets better with time.

My apologies for the terrible recipe directions… Worry not though, Anita has the original Mark Bittman recipe posted on her blog and the other FMP members will have recipes of whatever delicious creations they came up with!

Have a great week friends!  

Easy Tangelo Poppy Seed Cake

I work with a special group of people. It is surprising how all of us get along so well and help each other do our duties given that we all have such different personalities. Last week was Classified Staff Week and to honor the wonderful ladies who give me utmost support every day in my classroom, I baked a cake. These hardworking, passionate, and caring professionals deserve an award every day for their service.

This cake was a small token of my gratitude for their awesomeness and I am pleased to say that everyone loved it! It’s a very basic cake recipe that I adapted from Alice Water’s 1-2-3-4 Cake.

 

A simple white cake that is anything but… It is elegant in an understated way. Lovely and moist, with citrusy notes and a good touch of sweetness. Every bite is simply delightful!  


Easy Tangelo Poppy Seed Cake (Makes 2, 9-inch round cakes)
Adapted from Alice Waters’ 1-2-3-4 Cake, The Art of Simple Food
 

4 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites

3 cups cake flour, plus a teaspoon or so to dust the cake pans

4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
 
1 + 2/3 cups sugar
zest of 1 tangelo
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened, plus a teaspoon or so to coat the cake pans
egg yolks (from the 4 eggs above)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
juice of 1 tangelo, make sure to remove seeds
 
1 cup soy milk
 
egg whites (from the 4 eggs above)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter two, 9-inch round cake pans and lightly dust with flour. Tap the bottom and sides to spread the flour dust all over the pan. This will prevent your cake from sticking to the pan and breaking when you turn it upside down onto your serving platter. 

Carefully separate the egg yolks and egg whites. Place all the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.

Sift the cake flour into a large mixing bowl. Add the baking powder, salt, and poppy seeds. Whisk everything well together.

Pour the sugar in another large mixing bowl and massage the zest of the tangelo into the sugar granules with your fingertips. Add the butter into the bowl. Using a hand held electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar over medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time. Pour in the vanilla extract and tangelo juice. Mix on low speed until everything is well-combined, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Alternately add the flour mixture and soy milk, starting and ending with about 1/3 of the flour. Stir just until the flour is incorporated but make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Set aside.

Take the bowl of egg whites and using a hand held mixer, mix the egg whites on high speed until foamy and soft peaks form. Stir about 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter using the electric mixer on low speed. Gently fold in the rest with a flexible spatula.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 35-40 minutes. The cake should slightly pull away from the sides and turn a nice, golden color on top. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick in the center. The cake is done if it comes out clean.

Cool the cake pans over a wire rack. When the cakes have cooled, flip them onto a serving platter one at a time. Place a plate on top of one pan and carefully flip the pan to remove the cake. Then place a serving platter on top of the cake bottom and carefully flip to move the cake to your serving platter. Do the same with the other cake.

You may frost the cake if you want… add some filling… or what have you… but I like this cake just the way it is. The perfect dessert, snack, or even breakfast!

Have a great week my friends!

Spiced Cauliflower, Potatoes, and Snow Peas

Winter is almost over and before bidding goodbye, I want to take advantage of the produce that is in season during these cold months.

 

Let’s talk about cauliflower, potatoes, and throw in some snow peas in the mix too. What makes this vegetable combination even better is the garlic-onion-bell pepper-ginger purée that is cooked with warm Indian spices that blankets them with exotic flavors.

 

This dish will transport you to a different world… it will welcome you with its wonderful aroma, tickle your taste buds with delicious spices, warm your heart, and fill up your belly. (I’m not exaggerating, promise!)

 

 

 

Spiced Cauliflower, Potatoes, and Snow Peas

Slightly adapted from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Asian Cooking recipe for Spiced Potatoes, Cauliflower, and Peas

 

2 yellow potatoes, 11 oz

½ teaspoon salt

 

1 head cauliflower

1-2 handfuls of snow peas, cut in half

¼ cup olive oil

 

Onion Paste

1 small onion, roughly chopped

2 inch piece fresh ginger

3 cloves of garlic

1 mini bell pepper or a small bell pepper, roughly chopped

 

Spice Mix

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon cayenne

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

 

Tomato Paste Mixture

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

½ teaspoon sugar

1 cup water

 

fresh basil leaves, to garnish

 

 

Fill a medium size pot ¾ full of water and bring the water to a boil over medium high heat.

 

While the water is heating, peel the potatoes and cut into approximately 1 inch cubes. Cut the cauliflower into florets by carefully trimming the stems and removing the core.

 

When the water is boiling, lower the heat to medium and add ½ teaspoon of salt. Put the potato cubes into the boiling water and cook for 5-6 minutes. The potatoes should be partially tender with a bit of resistance. Pierce a few potato cubes with a sharp knife to test for doneness. Turn off the stove and drain the potatoes into a colander. Rinse the hot potatoes right away under cold, running water to prevent from further cooking and set aside.

 

Put the chopped onion, ginger, garlic, and chopped bell pepper into a food processor and purée into a smooth, thick paste. Set aside.

 

In a small bowl, whisk the following well together: salt, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cayenne, and cinnamon. Set aside.

 

In a medium size bowl, stir well together the tomato paste, lemon juice, sugar, and water. Set aside.       

 

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a deep, large frying pan. When the oil is hot, sauté the onion paste until brown bits form here and there and the paste thickens considerably, about 5 minutes. Add the spice mixture and stir to mix, about 15 seconds. Add the cauliflower florets and sauté until each floret is coated with the paste, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste mixture, the potatoes, and the snow peas. Cover and let cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to medium low, put the cover back on, and let cook for about 8 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Make sure to stir gently so as not to mash the vegetables. Turn off the stove and move the pan away from the heat.

 

Move the vegetables into a serving platter or bowl and garnish with fresh basil leaves. Serve immediately.