A birthday cake I made for Mom’s 52nd (she’s a cancer). The chocolate fudge batter and cream cheese frosting were thoroughly enjoyed by all, and the artwork turned out much better than I anticipated.
Category: chocolate
July 17th, 2008
A crab of a cake
July 12th, 2008
Conquering the kitchen: Meringue at last!
Conquering the kitchen: Meringue at last!
I got my mojo back. My meringue mojo, that is. After stumbling upon some tips for making meringue, I decided to give it another go. One secret is in the egg whites; the slightest smidgen of egg yolk will yield the entire batch unusable. The particularly heartbreaking part of this: my key lime pie recipe calls for four egg yolks, and my meringue recipe for four egg whites. It’s just meant to be.
But how does one ensure there are positively no traces of egg yolk? Why, with an egg separator, of course. This is a delightfully simple little gadget that will spare the baker much grief. Simply crack the egg into the separator; the yolk stays in place while the whites slide through into your bowl of choice. Secret #2: let your whites stand for about thirty minutes, allowing them to reach room temperature. This ensures maximum fluffiness.
By the way, how cute (and ironic) is this chicken egg separator?
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TOFFEE BARS
These looked irresistible in my baking book. Perks: easy to make, easy to eat, yields huge (very rich) batch so there’s enough to go around.
1 cup butter of margarine, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg yolk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, vanilla and egg yolk. Stir in flour and salt. Press dough into ungreased 13 x 9-inch pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until crust browns slightly. Crust will be soft to the touch. Immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over hot crust and let stand about five minutes, or until chips have softened. Spread evenly over crust. Sprinkle with nuts (I used diced pecans). Cool 30 minutes of wire rack.
I got my mojo back. My meringue mojo, that is. After stumbling upon some tips for making meringue, I decided to give it another go. One secret is in the egg whites; the slightest smidgen of egg yolk will yield the entire batch unusable. The particularly heartbreaking part of this: my key lime pie recipe calls for four egg yolks, and my meringue recipe for four egg whites. It’s just meant to be.
But how does one ensure there are positively no traces of egg yolk? Why, with an egg separator, of course. This is a delightfully simple little gadget that will spare the baker much grief. Simply crack the egg into the separator; the yolk stays in place while the whites slide through into your bowl of choice. Secret #2: let your whites stand for about thirty minutes, allowing them to reach room temperature. This ensures maximum fluffiness.
By the way, how cute (and ironic) is this chicken egg separator?
____________________________________________________________________________
TOFFEE BARS
These looked irresistible in my baking book. Perks: easy to make, easy to eat, yields huge (very rich) batch so there’s enough to go around.
1 cup butter of margarine, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg yolk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, vanilla and egg yolk. Stir in flour and salt. Press dough into ungreased 13 x 9-inch pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until crust browns slightly. Crust will be soft to the touch. Immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over hot crust and let stand about five minutes, or until chips have softened. Spread evenly over crust. Sprinkle with nuts (I used diced pecans). Cool 30 minutes of wire rack.
June 5th, 2008
Fudge Dominos
Fudge Dominos
I got this recipe from a Debbi Field’s dessert book I found in a used bookstore in New Orleans. The fudge seemed fun to make and looked so cute in the picture that I enlisted the help of my visiting 6-year-old nephew Shane. It turned out to be a little less kid-friendly than I had hoped, but he sure enjoyed taste-testing and decorating (and devouring) the finished bars. This recipe keeps you moving, as chocolate stubbornly resists its melted state, but a little exercise is always warranted when preparing this most scandalous dietary transgression.
It turns out, the fudge was delicious, although probably too rich for the faint of heart. The white chocolate middle presented some problems; for some reason it didn’t harden in the freezer like the milk chocolate layers and ended up with a less photogenic but equally tasty pudding texture.
Here’s how to make your very own domino delights:
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
8 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy cream
12 ounces white chocolate, chopped
Miniature white chocolate chips for decoration
1. Line 8-inch square baking dish with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray (you can hardly be too liberal here)
2. In a ceramic or glass bowl covered with plastic wrap, heat the semisweet and milk chocolate on High in microwave for 20-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Once melted, set aside.
3. In a separate ceramic or glass bowl covered with plastic wrap, heat milk and butter on High in microwave for 45 seconds. Pour mixture over melted chocolate, add vanilla and combine with rubber spatula until smooth.
4. Pour half of mixture into baking dish, pressing into corners and smoothing top (a smooth top makes for the neatest layers). Place dish in freezer, and set aside remaining mixture after covering.
5. In yet another bowl (Oh yeah, did I mention there’s fairly extensive clean-up involved?), heat cream on High in microwave in 30-second intervals until hot (I opted for 3 intervals, but maybe that’s why mine didn’t stiffen up). Pour hot cream over chopped white chocolate in a bowl and whisk until smooth.
6. After removing the baking dish from the freezer, pour the white chocolate mixture over the first layer, pressing into corners and smoothing top. Place back in freezer for 30 minutes.
7. Reheat remaining chocolate mixture in the microwave. Stir lightly, then pour over chilled white chocolate layer. Cover with aluminum foil and place in freezer for at least 1 hour. Using a sharp knife, cut the fudge into domino-sized rectangles and press chips face-down into desired patern.
Storing fudge: Covered, in refrigerator, up to three days. For best flavor and texture, allow fudge to warm to room temperature before eating.
I got this recipe from a Debbi Field’s dessert book I found in a used bookstore in New Orleans. The fudge seemed fun to make and looked so cute in the picture that I enlisted the help of my visiting 6-year-old nephew Shane. It turned out to be a little less kid-friendly than I had hoped, but he sure enjoyed taste-testing and decorating (and devouring) the finished bars. This recipe keeps you moving, as chocolate stubbornly resists its melted state, but a little exercise is always warranted when preparing this most scandalous dietary transgression.
It turns out, the fudge was delicious, although probably too rich for the faint of heart. The white chocolate middle presented some problems; for some reason it didn’t harden in the freezer like the milk chocolate layers and ended up with a less photogenic but equally tasty pudding texture.
Here’s how to make your very own domino delights:
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
8 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy cream
12 ounces white chocolate, chopped
Miniature white chocolate chips for decoration
1. Line 8-inch square baking dish with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray (you can hardly be too liberal here)
2. In a ceramic or glass bowl covered with plastic wrap, heat the semisweet and milk chocolate on High in microwave for 20-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Once melted, set aside.
3. In a separate ceramic or glass bowl covered with plastic wrap, heat milk and butter on High in microwave for 45 seconds. Pour mixture over melted chocolate, add vanilla and combine with rubber spatula until smooth.
4. Pour half of mixture into baking dish, pressing into corners and smoothing top (a smooth top makes for the neatest layers). Place dish in freezer, and set aside remaining mixture after covering.
5. In yet another bowl (Oh yeah, did I mention there’s fairly extensive clean-up involved?), heat cream on High in microwave in 30-second intervals until hot (I opted for 3 intervals, but maybe that’s why mine didn’t stiffen up). Pour hot cream over chopped white chocolate in a bowl and whisk until smooth.
6. After removing the baking dish from the freezer, pour the white chocolate mixture over the first layer, pressing into corners and smoothing top. Place back in freezer for 30 minutes.
7. Reheat remaining chocolate mixture in the microwave. Stir lightly, then pour over chilled white chocolate layer. Cover with aluminum foil and place in freezer for at least 1 hour. Using a sharp knife, cut the fudge into domino-sized rectangles and press chips face-down into desired patern.
Storing fudge: Covered, in refrigerator, up to three days. For best flavor and texture, allow fudge to warm to room temperature before eating.
May 19th, 2008
Black-Bottom Cupcakes
Black-Bottom Cupcakes
This recipe from Pip in the City caught my eye, presumably due to the sinfully genius combination of chocolate and cream cheese. The cupcakes, which are made in two parts (the cupcake base and the cream cheese topping), were pretty simple to make.
What you’ll need:
For the filling:
8 ounces cream cheese (I opted for fat-free)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (try Ghiradelli’s semi-sweet baking bar, which will leave an extra 2 ounces for snackage…Mmm)
For the cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
5 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/3 cup unflavored vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the filling, simply mix the cream cheese, sugar and egg until smooth. Stir in the chocolate pieces. Here’s how mine looked:
Now is a good time to set your oven to 350 degrees and start on the cupcake portion, which is a bit more involved but still easy.
For the cupcake:
1. Mix the flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix the water, oil vinegar and vanilla.
2. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and stir until smooth (Pip warns against overstirring, which may result in stiff cupcakes)
3. Prep a 12-cup muffin pan (butter or liners will do) and fill each cup about 3/4 full with cupcake batter. Add a couple spoonfuls of the topping.
4. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the tops start browning. Pip offers a good tip to test the readiness of cupcakes: they should feel slightly springy when gently pressed. I baked mine for 30 minutes and they were still super moist.
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Other notes:
I left the salt out. Accidently. But it was okay anyhow and offers an option for cholesterol-watchers.
Since oven temperatures vary slightly, be sure to check the cupcakes a few minutes before the scheduled pull-out time. And remember, they bake an additional minute after leaving the oven.
I refrigerated my batch overnight and they were delicious cold.
This recipe from Pip in the City caught my eye, presumably due to the sinfully genius combination of chocolate and cream cheese. The cupcakes, which are made in two parts (the cupcake base and the cream cheese topping), were pretty simple to make.
What you’ll need:
For the filling:
8 ounces cream cheese (I opted for fat-free)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (try Ghiradelli’s semi-sweet baking bar, which will leave an extra 2 ounces for snackage…Mmm)
For the cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
5 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/3 cup unflavored vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the filling, simply mix the cream cheese, sugar and egg until smooth. Stir in the chocolate pieces. Here’s how mine looked:
Now is a good time to set your oven to 350 degrees and start on the cupcake portion, which is a bit more involved but still easy.
For the cupcake:
1. Mix the flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix the water, oil vinegar and vanilla.
2. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and stir until smooth (Pip warns against overstirring, which may result in stiff cupcakes)
3. Prep a 12-cup muffin pan (butter or liners will do) and fill each cup about 3/4 full with cupcake batter. Add a couple spoonfuls of the topping.
4. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the tops start browning. Pip offers a good tip to test the readiness of cupcakes: they should feel slightly springy when gently pressed. I baked mine for 30 minutes and they were still super moist.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Other notes:
I left the salt out. Accidently. But it was okay anyhow and offers an option for cholesterol-watchers.
Since oven temperatures vary slightly, be sure to check the cupcakes a few minutes before the scheduled pull-out time. And remember, they bake an additional minute after leaving the oven.
I refrigerated my batch overnight and they were delicious cold.