Italian Plum Cake

During any type of orientation, you are guaranteed to be asked: "Please share one unique thing about yourself". In a lunch meeting with a group of students and my academic advisory dean, I said I liked to cook and bake, especially when stressed out.

My dean laughed, saying, "You just made a bunch of new friends".  All week, I thought what to bring in to our next lunch meeting. When I saw the plump little prune plums at the Public Market last Saturday, I knew just what to do.

This has always been a favorite cake of mine, and since it's so seasonal (as far as I know, prune plums are only available in the fall)---it always feels like a rare and delicious treat. The otherwise too-tart plums bake up golden and sweet, perfectly complimented by the vanilla cake below them. The recipe is a hand-me-down from a family friend, one my mom made only once or twice every year....

I brought in the cake to the next meeting of our advisory group, and it sat, awkwardly, in the middle of the table as we discussed topics about the upcoming year. "Does anyone have any other concerns?" my dean asked after a while. When silence ensued, he said, "Well, my concern is how we're going to divide up this cake!"

The cake was as good as I always remember it to be. It is beautiful and delicious, tart and sweet. A friend of mine who claims to have lost his sweet tooth as a teenager ate two whole pieces. It seemed to prompt my advisor's comment: "Maybe you chose the wrong career." While I'm not giving up medical school any time soon, I will continue to bake as much as I possibly can.

Italian Plum Cake

• 1/2 c (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 c sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 c flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• about 12 prune plums, halved
• 1 tsp cinnamon mixed with about 1/4 c sugar

Preheat oven to 350º. Cream the butter in sugar in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the other dry ingredients. Add the eggs to the butter and sugar, and beat in the vanilla. Add the dry ingredients to the wet one, and combine. 

Pour the batter into a well-greased 9" springform pan (a pie plate works as well--though I'll usually put a circle of parchment paper down before I grease the whole thing). Arrange the prune plums out (skin side down) in concentric circles, not overlapping, on top of the batter. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar over the top, and bake for 30-40 minutes.

**These pictures are not from the cake I made for my advisor (there was not even one crumb left from that version), but from a version I made this summer with a slightly different (non-dairy) cake bottom. If you are dairy-free, you can substitute this cake base for another recipe, but the batter I made this summer didn't hold up the plums as well as the version with butter. However, if your cake looks a little different, that's why!

Very-Close-to-Disaster-Cake, and its near relative: Rescued-from-Disaster-Cake

This is a post about mistakes. Delicious, frustrating, chocolate-y disasters.

Once upon a time, I made this really awesome chocolate cake recipe from Orangette. It worked perfectly that time, I remember it!

Upon getting back from the beach (at about 4 pm), I decided I would make the cake for my friend's 20th birthday that night. I was supposed to be there at 9:30. 5 hours is plenty of time to make and bake and frost the cake. I wanted it to be chocolate cake with raspberry filling and raspberry frosting (I know, I know--so much chocolate and raspberry! People keep asking for it though...).

The funny thing is, the recipe is called "Far-from-Disaster Cake".

I was in that crucial moment of adding all the dry and liquid ingredients when my neighbors came over. I got totally distracted, and completely forgot to put in the chocolate/coffee mix. I thought the texture of the batter was a little wonky, but figured it was just a different recipe than I was used to (there is both cocoa powder and the chocolate/coffee mix, so there was definitely still chocolate in the cake).

I rescued one of the two layers (both were somewhat dry) by pouring a coffee glaze over the cake and topping it with raspberries and powdered sugar.

The other one fell out of the pan.

But you know what? For a lot of people (especially four year olds whose eyes double in size at the site of cake--whether it has fallen apart or not), chocolate cake is, simply, chocolate cake.

So then I made it again, this time correctly (9:30 inched closer and closer). This time it turned out just fine--I filled it with raspberry jam mixed with raspberries (I used defrosted ones, separating the liquid from them after they melt and using it in the frosting). It looked fairly pretty when it was all together (not that you can tell because there is no appropriate light under which to photograph food after dark in my house)--albeit a rushed icing job.

Then, to my greatest dismay, a bit of the top layer fell off in the car. The cake was so moist that it could barely hold together (I'm sure if it had been on a real cake transporter-thing it would have worked, but I brought it on a little plastic plate).

But, as I remembered, it tasted AWESOME. And my friend said it was the most delicious cake he had ever had.

If you haven't guessed it already, here is the moral of the story: appearances aren't everything, especially when it comes to chocolate cake.

Eyeball Cupcakes: a Preschool Baking Project

         I love doing cooking projects with kids.  It can incorporate everything, from color mixing (frosting/food coloring) to math (measuring), to thinking about the senses (what does vanilla extract smell like? what does mixing flour feel like? etc.).  


         
         The kiddos I teach are 4 and 5. In the early spring, we do a "body unit", where we learn about our bodies. We start with emotions, then go into learning about our five senses, then germs, and then finally muscles, nerves, bones, etc. It's always my favorite unit of the year.... And of course, we needed to make cupcakes themed with the body (see Valentines Day cookies, Eric Carle cupcakes for environmental awareness/learning about our world unit). I thought about it, and realized that cupcakes lend their shape perfectly to EYEBALLS. We got to talk about why our eyes are different colors (genes="messages" from our moms and dads), what the different parts of the eyeballs are (iris, pupil, etc.), as well as remembering how our eyes help us see!

         The cupcakes are the same, reliable Lauren Chattman Vanilla Birthday Cake recipe (see Eric Carle Cupcakes). I made them with the kids, letting them do the adding and the stirring (and the reading of the recipe, if they were able to). I helped them spread on the white frosting, and we piped the irises and pupils on together.Here is my (very minimal) adaptation of her recipe, from Mom's Big Book of Baking (a much loved cookbook, I highly recommend it!).

Vanilla Cupcakes

• 4 eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 c milk
• 1 tbs vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 c cake flour (though I use regular all-purpose sometimes and it's fine...)
• 1 1/2 c sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 sticks butter, softened

         Preheat the oven to 350 and line cupcake tins.  Cream the butter and the sugar, and then add in the eggs.  In a separate bowl, mix the other dry ingredients together.  Add the dry ingredients slowly to the wet ones, and then fill cupcake tins to 2/3 full.  Bake for 20 minutes.




Buttercream Frosting:

• 2 sticks butter (I used salted butter for the frosting this last time and it was AWESOME.)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• dash lemon extract (this keeps it from being too sweet--around 1/8 to 1/4 of a tsp)
• 1 16 oz. box confectioners' sugar
• 1 tbsp milk

         Blend butter, vanilla, and milk in large bowl with a mixer; mix on medium high until fluffy.  Add the confectioner's sugar a little at a time until frosting is light and fluffy. Add more milk and/or powdered sugar to adjust the consistency. For a very cheap, workable way to pipe the frosting, cut the corner off of a ziplock bag and spoon the frosting into it.

Red Wine Chocolate Cake(s)

         Last week, I made the famous Smitten Kitchen red wine chocolate cake with mascarpone whipped cream frosting.  It was, as promised, unbelievably decadent and delicious.  It's one of those cakes you can make to impress people...

         For the surprisingly easy recipe, go here. 

****

         When I got back to my lovely vegan co-op house, I wanted to try my own version--sans eggs, whipped cream, mascarpone, or butter. 

         I took my favorite chocolate cake recipe and adapted it.  I love what Deb says about red wine chocolate cake, that it's the "true red velvet cake".  I agree completely, as this cake comes out a beautiful, dark red color.


Vegan Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

The Cake:

         Preheat your oven to 350º and line the bottom of two 8x8 pans with parchment paper and grease the sides. I made this cake square, but I think it might work better in round cake pans. Mix together in a large bowl:

• 2/3 cup oil
• 2 tbs vinegar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 c red wine 
• 1/2 c water
• 1 3/4 c sugar (you may want a little more depending on how sweet you want your cake--up to 2 c maybe)

Mix together dry ingredients in another bowl:

• 3 c flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 7 tbs (1/3 c + 2 tbs) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

         Gradually add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix together. Split the batter into the two 8 x 8 pans, and bake for 28 minutes or so, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool.

The Frosting:

• 1/2 c Earth Balance (EB) or other vegan butter substitute, softened 
• 20 oz powdered sugar (I used 1 1 lb bag plus a bit more)
• 1/4 c unsweetened soy milk (these amounts are adjustable depending on texture)
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp egg replacer (this gives the frosting a really pretty shine, but it's not necessary!)

         Using an electric mixer, beat the EB until somewhat fluffy (it doesn't fluff up as much as butter).  Begin adding the powdered sugar a little at a time and mix at medium-high speed until combined.  Add the soy milk, cinnamon, egg replacer (again, optional), vanilla extract and lemon zest and beat at high speed for a few minutes until frosting is fluffy and smooth (it will not get as fluffy as real buttercream). You want it at a texture that is spreadable but not drippy (mine was a little on the drippy side, but I ran out of powdered sugar). Add more powdered sugar if need be to make the frosting the consistency you would like it.

         Put the first layer down on the plate, and spread some of the frosting on the top. Add the second cake, and frost the top and sides. For the cinnamon flower, cut out a flower (or any shape you choose) our of a paper bag, and place it gently over the top of the cake after the frosting has hardened slightly. Sprinkle cinnamon over the top, then gently and carefully lift off the bag.

Update: The cupcake version...

Update # 2: It's also adorable as a birthday cake (the following is the SK version, but I made it with cinnamon buttercream):

Almond Macaroon Torte with Chocolate Frosting

        This, like many of the desserts I've been making, is a SmittenKitchen adaptation. My birthday is on Monday, and I celebrated it tonight with my family. I desperately wanted the almond and raspberry layer cake with chocolate frosting, but with a dairy allergy in the family the buttercream frosting was a no-go.

This torte looked just as beautiful and complicated---and it was surprisingly easy! I followed her idea to use bittersweet chocolate, but didn't read the amount right and so only bought 1 bar of Scharffenberger 70% instead of two. I ended up mixing semi-sweet chocolate chips and bittersweet chocolate--this worked just fine, but the sweetness of the chocolate overpowered the macaroon a little. If When I make this again, I will use all 70% chocolate and add some raspberry jam and more slivered almonds between the layers in addition to the frosting! Again, the following recipe is adapted from Deb at SmittenKitchen (very slightly...most of the directions are hers):

Almond macaroons

• 2 1/2 cups (10.5 ounces or 300 grams) slivered almonds (or an equivalent weight of blanched, sliced or already ground almonds)

• 1 c plus 3 tbs sugar

• 2 large pinches kosher salt

• 2 tsp vanilla extract 
• 
6 large egg whites

Frosting and assembly


• 1/2 c water
• 
1/2 c sugar

• 1/2 tsp orange oil or extract
• 20 ounces bittersweet chocolate (70-72%), chopped 
• 1 c sliced almonds, toasted (at 350 degrees for 7 to 9 minutes on a tray, stirring once or twice)

First, make the macaroons: 
        Position an oven rack in the top and lower third of oven and preheat oven to 325°F. Draw two 12 x 4-inch rectangles, spacing 2 inches apart (I like Deb, have a smallish oven--I used the 3 3/4 x 11-inch rectangles!) on a piece of parchment paper, then two more of the same size on a second sheet. In total, you’ll use 2 sheets of parchment paper and draw 4 rectangles. Turn each sheet of parchment over (so your ink or pencil lines don’t seep into the macaroon). There is no need to spray with oil, though if you are really worried about sticking you can (I used a flat metal spatula to help lift mine off after it was cool--I had no problems there!)
        Place almonds, 1 cup sugar and coarse salt in a food processor and blend until finely ground.
        Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in large, dry bowl with clean beaters (or a whisk attachment) until soft peaks form. Drizzle in vanilla extract, then slowly add remaining 3 tablespoons sugar. Beat until stiff but not dry. Fold nut mixture into egg whites. Spread 1/4 of macaroon batter evenly within each rectangle, filling completely.
        Bake macaroon layers until golden and almost firm to the touch in the center, reversing sheets halfway through — this took a total of 23 minutes in my oven as well as Deb's; the original recipe (from Bon Appetit) says it can take up to 40. 
Cool macaroons on their sheets on a cooling rack.


Make the frosting as the macaroons are cooling: 
        Simmer 1/2 cup of water and sugar in a medium saucepan until sugar dissolves. Measure 10 tablespoons from this and save it for another use (I ran out of frosting as I spread mine too thick so I used this to make more!). Put the 10 tablespoons syrup back in the saucepan and add the orange extract (or other extract of your choice). Bring the syrup back to a boil and add chocolate to the saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate until smooth. This should yield a medium-thick frosting, good for spreading. If yours is on the thin side, you can let it cool for 5 or 10 minutes until it is a good spreading consistency.

Assemble torte: 
        Trim your macaroon layers back to their intended rectangular sizes — for me, a sharp knife worked just fine. 
        Place one macaroon layer on a long platter. (Slip little pieces of parchment or waxed paper under the edges will help keep your platter clean; pull them out when you’re done frosting the torte.) Spread some frosting evenly over (my suggestion: after adding the frosting, spread a thin later or raspberry jam, and more sliced almonds). Top with another macaroon layer. Spread more frosting evenly over, and repeat process one more time. I had extra edges that were enough to make a 5th layer, but I also trimmed my macaroons to 9" in length rather than their original 11" so that they would fit on my pretty new platter! Top with the last macaroon layer, flat side up. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of torte. Press sliced almonds onto sides of torte.

        To make the hearts on top, cut a strip of parchment paper at least the length and width of the cake. Make a cutout of a heart (I used the same cutout so all the hearts would be the same. Crush some of the slivered almonds, and sprinkle them through the cutout. Repeat until you have the three hearts!

An extra reason to make this torte: this recipe also happens to be dairy-free, gluten-free, and kosher for Passover (my next opportunity to make it again!).

French Yogurt Cake with Mixed Berries

It's that weird season again, the one in between winter and spring but not quite either.  The weather is getting a little warmer, but the market is still full of only squash, root vegetables, and kale.

Missing summer, I decided to make a berry cake. It's based off of Chocolate and Zucchini's Gâteau au Yaourt à la Framboise. Her yogurt cake (apparently a French home cooking staple--something everyone's grandmother makes) has become famous in the food blog world, and everyone from David Lebovitz to Smitten Kitchen has come up with adaptations.

That adaptability is what makes this cake even more incredible---from lemon poppyseed to raspberry almond to chocolate (see SmittenKitchen's adaptation of David Lebovitz). My version calls for a bag of mixed berries (blackberries, raspberries and blueberries) and some orange and lemon zest. 

As soon as I took it out of the oven, it smelled amazing.  I brought it over to my neighbors' house, where my family was having dinner.  The three year-old's eyes got enormous as he looked at the cake. "What is it?" he asked.  "Cake! What do you think is in it?" I responded.  He got very close to me, and in a serious whisper, "Raspberries....."

Needless to say, he loved it--and it's a cake that will please anyone and everyone!

• 1 c plain yogurt
• 1 c brown sugar
• 1/4 c canola oil
• 1 1/2 c flour
• 3 eggs
• 1 tbs baking powder
• 1-2 tsp orange zest
• 1/2-1 tsp lemon zest
• a large pinch salt (maybe even 1/4 tsp)
• 1 c frozen berries (or so--however many you want to put in really)

Mix together the yogurt, brown sugar and oil in a large bowl, then add the eggs one at a time. Stir in the zest.  Combine the dry ingredients in another bowl; add this flour mixture (not all at once, but in 2-3 additions) to the wet mixture and stir until just combined. Pour half the batter into a greased cake pan (she calls for a 9" cake pan--all I had was a 10" pie pan and it worked just fine!). Layer half the berries on top of that, then add the second half of the batter topped with the second half of the berries. Bake in a 360º oven for 50-60 minutes.

Valentines Day Part II: Thesis Procrastination, or Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Glaze and Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

This afternoon, I was supposed to work on my thesis. I planned to get home from work and immediately head to the library to write.  

During work at the preschool this morning, we decorated some of the plain Valentines Day cookies we made yesterday. 

I decorated a couple of them too.

 When I got home from work I realized that I did not, in fact, want to edit and finish writing the 10 pages of my thesis for my advisor. So, against all better judgement, I decided to make a cake. A big cake. An Epic Valentines Day Cake.

Of course, I used my chocolate cake recipe, as it never ever fails.  I doubled it, and put it into two cake pans--one square, one round.  The diameter of the round pan was equal to one side of the square pan. while the cake was baking, I made the frosting.

(Pink) Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

• Pink food coloring
• Butter (a stick or so)
• Vanilla extract (maybe a tsp?)
• Milk (depending on texture)
• Powdered sugar (a pound or two...depending on how much you want to make)
• Raspberry jam, to taste
• Lemon zest (1/2 tsp? It takes the edge off of over sweet buttercream frosting)

Soften the butter, and whip with the electric mixer until fluffy. Add the vanilla extract, and then slowly add the powdered sugar, mixing with the electric mixer after each addition. Add milk, food coloring, lemon zest, raspberry jam, and more powdered sugar until the frosting is at the desired consistency and flavor.

When the cakes were out of the oven and had cooled, I turned both of them over onto a large cutting board. I cut the circle one in half, and "glued" it to the square with frosting. I then glazed the cake with some raspberry jam.   

Then, I frosted it pink. (I used aluminum foil to protect the serving board from frosting drips....)

I should have stopped there. I sat down at my computer, and wrote a sentence or two. I looked at the cake. I realized that I had a lot of frosting left over--why not decorate it more?  I added more pink food coloring, and some powdered sugar to make the frosting more stiff.  I cut a hole in the corner of a ziplock bag, and piped around the edges.

The Best Lemon Cake

Whether it's light or dense, frosted or glazed, the best lemon cakes always strike a perfect balance between tartness and the sweetness.  This is Maida Heatter's East 62nd Street Lemon Cake, and it is my go to cake for birthdays and special occasions. 

It's dense and moist, tart and sugary.  Every time I make this cake, I get so many compliments on it---and every time, I catch people sticking their fingers in the leftover glaze until every drop and crumb is gone.


Maida Heatter's East 62nd St Lemon Cake

The Cake:

• 3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 8 oz. unsalted butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• Finely grated rind of 2 large lemons

The Glaze

• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2/3 cup sugar

After preheating the oven to 350º, grease a Bundt or tube pan (photos of both are given--I think they're equally beautiful). Cream together the butter and the sugar, and then add the eggs. In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. Alternate adding the milk and the dry ingredients until just combined, then stir in the lemon zest. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for around an hour (I always find it's about 50-55 minutes, but some versions of the recipe say longer). While the cake is baking, combine the ingredients for the glaze in a liquid measuring cup (to make the next step easy). When the cake has cooled enough to turn it out onto a plate (around 5 minutes), do so and pour the lemon glaze over it.  

Let the glaze soak into the cake and serve either that evening or in the next day or two. If you can manage to not eat it right away (I know I can't)--this cake gets better with age!

Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Glaze

I have come across a perfect cake. This cake probably goes back to the Depression, when eggs and butter were hard to find. Its charm lies in its simplicity: few ingredients, quick preparation and bake time. I often make this cake in the evenings when there's no dessert in the house....start at 8, and there's warm, moist chocolate cake before 9. Nothing better than that.

The original recipe calls for 1 cup water, but I have substituted 1/2 c milk and 1/2 c decaf coffee (or 1 cup milk). Feel free to do any combination--omitting the milk makes it vegan!

Chocolate Cake

Preheat your oven to 335º and grease an 8x8 pan.

Mix together in a large bowl:

1/3 cup oil

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup coffee

1 cup sugar

Mix together dry ingredients in another bowl:

1 and 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Gradually add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix together. Pour the batter into the pan, and bake for 28 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

My favorite variation is to add raspberry glaze (as above) or raspberry filling if baked as cupcakes (I use a turkey baster to squeeze the jam into the warm cupcakes). The jam is easier to work with if it is melted in the microwave for half a minute.