Tuesday, October 27, 2009

TWD- Cherry-Fudge Brownie Torte

Ohhhh this recipe is SO good!
That's how good it is- I had to start the post by saying that. Chocolate. Cherries. Cream cheese-y mousse on top. I know some people on the P&Q were saying they don't like chocolate and cherries together. Not me. No siree! Black forest? Yes. Cherry-dipped chocolate ice cream cone? Hand it over!
This recipe is a
moist and fudgy brownie base, filled with chocolate chunks and dried cherries (I omitted the kirsch).Then it's topped with a cream cheese marscarpone mousse. I confess here that I made a substitution. Made as is in the recipe, this would have cost me close to $15. For the topping, I used 8 oz cream cheese, 1/4 c sour cream, 2 T butter, 1/3 c sugar and 1T vanilla as in the recipe.
The torte turned out AMAZING and was a big hit with our guests. Check out April's blog for the recipe!

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Amazing Chocolate Brownies

Afternoons are kind of coveted in my house. It's the time when #2 and #3 are asleep and #1 is busy doing something that doesn't involve me. Today, however, she sat next to me and said, "Can we make brownies?" Since I was reading through a Confetti Cakes cookbook trying to figure out some fun Halloween ideas, I had a brownie recipe on hand. So I thought, why not?
Since this is from a kids' cookbook, I figured it would be a simple, no-frills brownie and a guaranteed hit with the kids.
I was not disappointed.
Melted chocolate and butter,
Mixed with sugar, brown sugar, eggs, salt and vanilla,
just until blended, and pour in a pan.
These brownies are moist and chewy, with crispy edges and papery top. Perfect. The girl who owns this giraffe plate ate 2 (after dinner, of course).
Amazing Chocolate Brownies
adapted from Confetti Cakes For Kids
makes 20
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate
4 eggs
1/4 t salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 T vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9" x 13" pan.

2. In a double boiler, melt the butter and chocolate over med-low heat.

3. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the eggs, salt, sugars and vanilla on low.

4. Slowly add the chocolate mixture and beat on low until combined.

5. Remove the bowl from mixer and fold the flour in using a rubber spatula.

6. Pour batter in prepared pan. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the top has formed a shiny crust and is moderately firm.

7. Allow brownies to cook for 20 minutes in the pan. Release the brownies by running a metal spatula or knife along the sides of the pan. Flip the brownies over onto another pan or cakeboard.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Vote for me!

I was chosen as a finalist in a Disneyland Giveaway by Just Spotted, an awesome blog full of great ideas and fun! Will you click here and vote for me (Click on "Jodie")?!!! Please??!!!

CS Bakers- Cinnamon Coffee Cake (TWD post below)

I'm back!! After a few months and a baby, I'm back to the Cake Slice Bakers. We've moved on to a new book, Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott. This month's recipe is for Cinnamon Coffee cake- a moist coffee cake with a cinnamon raisin filling and topping (I omitted the pecans). This cake was a MAJOR hit at our house. My 3 year old ate it three mornings in a row for breakfast (I know, not the most nutritious, but hey, whatever they'll eat!). I halved the recipe and made it in a 9" round. The cake is moist and the brown sugar-cinnamon topping/filling is so yummy!
October’s Cake: Cinnamon Pecan Coffee Cake

(Recipe from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott)

For the Cake

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup milk

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

For the Cinnamon Raisin Filling

1½ cups light brown sugar

3 tbsp all purpose flour

3 tbsp cinnamon

1½ cups raisins

1½ cups coarsely chopped pecans (I omitted)

¾ cup (1½ sticks) butter, melted

Method

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

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

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

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

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

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

TWD- Sweet Potato Biscuits

This week's recipe was chosen by one of my favorite blogs, Prudence Pennywise. Erin's blog is so fun to read and she has some really fun ideas. She also went to by alma mater so you know she must be smart. :)
The recipe is for Sweet Potato Biscuits- a light flaky biscuit, just slightly sweetened with brown sugar. The recipe recommends canned sweet potatoes in syrup. Since I used a fresh sweet potato, mine probably weren't as sweet as they should've been.I think I might have done something wrong because mine didn't rise to the "golden and puffy" that indicated they were done. More like golden and flat.
They were pretty tasty, though, and I really want to try them with pumpkin instead of sweet potatoes! Check out Prudy's blog for the recipe!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

TWD- Split-Level Pudding

I admit I haven't had the best of luck making Dorie's recipes that have pudding or custards. I think they turn out too eggy. Unfortunately, it happened again with this one. The pudding, which is a vanilla (I did cinnamon) pudding on top of (or in my case surrounded by) chocolate ganache. It looks and sounds wonderful- the picture in the book looks fabulous. I thought the flavor was really good, but the cinnamon pudding was eggy. I also thought there were a lot of steps- put things in the food processor, take them out, put other things in, pour them out, cook, and put them back in, blah, blah....Sorry, does this post sound negative? Maybe it's because I'm out of town and it was SNOWING today. :) Check out Garrett's blog for the recipe!