Carrot Cake Cupcakes

My second son, Joshua, has had a girlfriend for almost two years. Gulp. I know relationships of even several years can break up, but two years is a long time, and these two seem pretty happy together. I think her mom and I are both realizing this isn't just a high school romance and she recently invited us over for dinner, the first time we have enjoyed each others company for longer than five or ten minutes.

I asked what I could bring and she said "dessert." This was back when I was not eating wheat, so I was in a quandary. I wasn't eating wheat, she is diabetic, and my Noah can't eat tree nuts or peanuts. Not completely limiting, but still. I decided to make a wheat free recipe and a recipe with wheat. For the wheat-free treat, I had it on good authority that Land of Lakes has some good gluten free recipes. We won't talk about it, but I will tell you I didn't follow the recipe exactly (I subbed agave for the sugar because I wanted an essentially sugar-free dessert).

This recipe, I am told (because I didn't try them), was awesome, however. They smelled divine and looked beautiful. The recipe is essentially the one Annie at Annie's Eats uses, except for just a few changes (Argh, can I ever just follow a recipe? No.).

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

makes about 24

2½ cups all-purpose flour
1¼ t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1¼ t. ground cinnamon
1/8 t. ground cloves

scant 1/8 t. nutmeg
½ t. salt
1 lb. (6-7 medium) carrots
1½ cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1½ cups canola, safflower or vegetable oil

12 oz. cream cheese (not softened)
7½ tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
3¾ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line two cupcake pans with paper liners.  

In a food processor fitted with a shredding disk, shred the carrots (you should have about 3 cups).  Place the carrots in a large mixing bowl and set aside.  Place the metal blade in the processor and  process the sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds.  With the machine running, add the oil in a steady stream through the feed tube.  Continue to process until the mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 more seconds.  Transfer the mixture to the large mixing bowl with the carrots. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Stir to combine thoroughly with carrots and other wet ingredients.

USe an ice cream scoop or spoon to spoon evenly into the prepared cupcake liners.  Bake for about 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool in the pan at least 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until well combined and smooth, about 2-3 minutes.  Mix in the vanilla extract.  Gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar until totally incorporated, increase the speed and then beat until smooth.  Frost cooled cupcakes as desired. (I did not have quite enough frosting to frost all the cupcakes using a decorator bag.)

Source: modified from Annie's Eats

Strawberry Yogurt Cake

I am loving Pinterest if for no other reason than I see a lot of recipes I would not otherwise see. This cake recipe is one of those, and as soon as I saw the words strawberry, yogurt, and cake in the same recipe, I knew it was a done deal. It took about two days for me to stop at the market and get what I needed.

This cake was like no cake I have ever had. It was so moist, almost like a cheesecake, and packed with flavor. Sweet, but not too, and tangy from the yogurt. Delish! As I said, I spied the recipe on Pinterest, but it came from A Spicy Perspective.Thanks, Sommer, for a great recipe.

I modified a little, to cut back on the acid and then just because. I omitted the lemon zest, but surely did not notice (though if acid is not an issue for you, go for it!). I also used a scant 2 cups of sugar, (maybe 2 cups minus 2 T) but might cut back even farther next time. I also used milk for the glaze instead of lemon juice and doubled the powdered sugar because I wanted a substantial glaze. (For less sugar, use the original measure.) I like a not-so-sweet cake with sweet icing.

Fresh Strawberry Yogurt Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

scant 2 cups sugar

3 eggs

3 Tb. lemon juice, divided (or use milk for glaze)

Zest of 1 lemon (optional)

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, divided

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

8 oz. plain or vanilla, Greek yogurt (I used plain)

12 oz. fresh strawberries, diced

1 cup powdered sugar (double for a white glaze like mine)

Preheat oven to 325*. Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan (10-15 cup pan.) 

Sift together the 2 ¼ cups of flour, baking soda and salt. Mix in the lemon zest, if using, and set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in 1 Tb. lemon juice. Alternate beating in the flour mixture and the yogurt, mixing just until incorporated.

Toss the strawberries with the remaining ¼ cup of flour. Gently mix them into the batter.

Spoon batter into the Bundt pan (I find using an ice cream scoop to be helpful). Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Allow to cool at least 20 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely. Once cooled whisk together the remaining 2 Tb. of lemon juice (or milk) and the powdered sugar. Drizzle over the top of the cake.

Source: Modified from A spicy Perspective

Apple Butter Cake

Faith and I made a trip to the apple orchard last weekend and we came home with a large jar of their apple butter. We all like apple butter during the season, but honestly we eat it a few times and then we are done with it. I guess we really prefer fruit jam on our toast and biscuits (and PB sammies), but like the "idea" of apple butter. I found a cake recipe that uses that wonderful butter to suffuse wonderful spicy flavor into a moist delicious cake. Oh Yum! The recipe (found at allrecipes.com) called for pecans in the streusel, but because of my son's nut allergies, I used an equal amount of old-fashioned oatmeal -- just for some texture. As it turned out he turned his nose up at the oatmeal -- give me a break! The rest of enjoyed it, however, with a dollop of whipped cream on top.

Apple Butter Cake 

 serves 15-20

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1 cup packed brown sugar 

1 t. ground cinnamon 

1/2 t. ground nutmeg

1/2 cup chopped pecans (I used old-fashioned oatmeal) 

2 cups all-purpose flour 

1 t. baking powder 

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt 

1/2 cup butter, softened 

1 cup white sugar 

3/4 cup apple butter 

1 t. vanilla extract 

2 eggs

1/2 cup whole bran cereal or wheat germ (I used wheat germ) 

1 cup sour cream 

  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray or grease 9x13 inch pan. 

Prepare the topping by mixing together the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and chopped pecans (oatmeal). 

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 

Blend together butter and sugar; add eggs and beat well. Add apple butter, vanilla, wheat germ or bran cereal. Add sifted dry ingredients alternately with sour cream; mix well after each addition.

 Spread 1/2 batter into pan, sprinkle 1/2 the topping over top. Spread remaining batter and top with remaining topping. 

Bake for 40 minutes until tests done with a toothpick.

Source: modified from allrecipes.com

Rich Chocolate Cake and Sweet Vanilla Buttercream

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My brother was in town from Maryland for his birthday this year. We usually don't see each other on our birthdays -- mine is just two days after his -- one year and two days apart, but this year he was in town for my grandma's 95th birthday party, the same day as my birthday -- we have a lot of late June birthdays in my family.

My brother asks every year for a chocolate cake with white frosting and this year I was able to oblige him. I made my favorite dark chocolate cake and a variation of my favorite vanilla buttercream frosting -- a wonderful combination. I split my cake batter up into three pans for a super tall cake -- makes for great presentation. I piped a pretty edge around the top and bottom, shaved some Lindt dark chocolate on top and studded the bottom edge with dark chocolate covered espresso beads. It was a sight to behold if I do say so myself. ;-) Fortunately it tasted just as good as it looked.

My house was nice and cool so the cake sat on the dining room table awaiting the singing of the birthday song, but if it's at all warm in your house you will want to make room on a refrigerator shelf -- this buttercream frosting is very soft and will not hold up to heat.

 

Deep Dark Chocolate Cake

2 c. sugar
1¾ c. flour
¾ c. cocoa
1½ t. baking soda
1½ t. baking powder
1 t. salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
3/4 cup oil
2 t. vanilla
1 cup boiling water

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour two (or three) round 9” pans.
In a large mixing bowl combine dry ingredients.
Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.
Beat on medium speed for two minutes.
Stir in boiling water by hand (batter will be thin).
Pour into prepared pans.
Bake for 30-35 minutes for two round pans about 20-25 for three (toothpick test).
Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans.
Cool completely before frosting.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 pounds powdered sugar
1 T. vanilla extract

milk as needed to make frosting of spreading consistency

2 oz dark chocolate for grating

dark-chocolate covered espresso beans or other decorative candy

Using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, stopping to scrape the bowl once or twice.

Reduce the speed to low and gradually add all of the powdered sugar. Once all of the powdered sugar is incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and add the vanilla, mixing until incorporated. Whip at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, adding milk by the tablespoonful and scraping the bowl as needed until frosting is fluffy and spreadable.

Frost cake (using a crumb coat first because the chocolate crumbs will show on the white frosting). Using a grater, grate a layer of chocolate shavings over top of cake. Pipe a scallop around top and bottom edge if desired and stud bottom edge with coffee beans.

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Annunciation Cake

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Last week's Solemnity of the the Annunciation had me quite whipped into a frenzy. I had not looked ahead, and halfway through the week I realized that the Annunciation, a solemnity on the calendar, was on Friday -- during Lent no less. As much as it is important to follow the rules of abstention during Lent, I think it's just as important to follow the "rules" of a solemnity -- to celebrate. While you're not obliged, of course, to eat meat, as you are never obliged to eat meat, I took the lesson provided by St. Francis of Assisi and planned a meat meal, and a lovely cake to celebrate for dessert.

This recipe is one I made up myself, using angel food cake for the Archangel Gabriel, and blueberry sweetened cream for Our Blessed Mother. It was a lovely, light, fresh dessert -- perfect for a Lenten Friday, not overly rich or sweet.

Annunciation Cake

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6 egg whites

3/4 t. cream of tartar

3/4 t. vanilla extract

1/4 t. salt

1/2 cup cake flour

3/4 cup sugar

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 heaping T. blueberry jam or preserves

1/2 cup fresh blueberries, washed

powdered sugar for dusting

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sift together flour and sugar.

In a large mixing bowl with whisk attachment, beat egg whites, with cream of tartar, vanilla, and salt until stiff peaks form. Fold in flour/sugar mixture, one third at a time, until completely incorporated. 

Spoon batter into a 9 x 5 loaf pan.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until top of cake is golden brown and cake springs back lightly when touched. Remove cake from oven and turn upside down, using coffee mugs or cans to rest ends of pan on (do not set cake on it's top -- you want to make sure it is hanging upside in the pan).

When cake is cool, remove from pan by running a knife around the edges and lightly lifting it with a spatula. Place on a plate -- preferably a rectangular or large oval.

In mixing bowl with whisk attachment beat 2 cups cold cream with 1/2 cup powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. Remove half of the whipped cream to another container. Add blueberry jam to the remaining cream and beat for a second until cream is purple/blue. Fold in blueberries gently.

Cut cake in half lengthwise so that you have a top and a bottom. Remove top and using a sharp knife cut a space in the bottom of the cake to fill with cream -- leaving about an inch all the way around and on the bottom.

Fill with blueberry cream and replace the top. Dust with powdered sugar and refrigaerate until ready to serve.

To serve, cut cake in crosswise slices and top with additional whipped cream.

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Lincoln Log

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Sorry to have two chocolate recipes in a row (I know it's a real hardship for you ::wink::), but I posted the picture of the Lincoln Log at Praying for Grace and I figured that I'd better follow up with a recipe here. No fair just sharing pictures, right?

This recipe is traditionally served by my husband's family on President's Day or President Lincoln's birthday. It's a yummy tradition to carry on, so I am happy to do it.

Lincoln Log

serves 8

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1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt
4 eggs, divided

1/2 t. vanilla

1/3 cup plus 1/2  cup granulated sugar, divided

2 cups whipping cream

1/4 cup powdered sugar

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup semi sweet chocolate (either chips or finely chopped pieces)

Grease and line a 15 x 10 jelly roll pan with parchment or waxed paper. Then grease and flour paper. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. In a mixer bowl, beat egg yolks and vanilla at high speed for 5 minutes or so until eggs are thick and lemon colored. Gradually add 1/3 cup sugar, beating until sugar dissolves. 

In another mixer with clean beaters, beat egg whites at medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/2 cup sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold egg yolks into whites very gently. Sprinkle flour mixture over egg mixture and fold gently until incorporated. Spread batter into prepared pan.

Bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. While cake is baking, sprinkle powdered sugar over a clean tea towel. When cake is done, immediately flip cake out of pan and onto towel. Starting at narrow end, roll up cake in tea towel. Cool on a wire rack. (You can see the rolling process here.)

Beat cream to stiff peaks with powdered sugar. When cake is cool, carefully unroll cake and fill with sweetened whipped cream and re-roll (If cake begins to crack, try to re-roll it -- the cream will probably hold it together).

Place rolled cake on a serving platter and prepare glaze. Heat 3/4 cup cream to steaming and pour over chocolate in a bowl. Let sit for a minute (leave it alone). Stir until chocolate melts and then let it sit to cool for a few minutes. Pour glaze over cake from the top slowly drizzling, back and forth, so it will slowly drip down over sides. Chill until ready to serve.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

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If there is any ingredient which says love to my family, it is, chocolate. Like so many people today, my kids, and husband, are chocolate lovers, and so I knew I would have to make a chocolate dessert for Valentine's Day last week. I have made a flourless chocolate cake before -- technically a souffle, but flourless chocolate cake I think sounds less intimidating -- but somehow lost my favorite recipe. I hunted on the internet and thought Tyler Florence's recipe sounded almost identical to the one I made before. I'm not certain it was, after tasting it, but then it's been a while since I've made it. It was very delicious and received raves from all parties. I admit that I left it in the oven a little longer than it was supposed to be, as I kept thinking that it looked too wet. It was a bit dry as a result -- at least around the outside, so do not wait for it to look done to take it out. I did modify the time a little bit and I also added a pinch of salt.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

serves 10-12

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16 oz.  bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces (I used semi sweet baking chocolate squares)

  1/2 cup unsalted butter
    9 large eggs, separated
    ¾ cup granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon

pinch salt
    whipping cream, for serving
        Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan.

Put the chocolate and butter into the top of a double boiler (or in a heatproof bowl) and heat over (but not touching) about 1 inch of simmering water until melted. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar in a mixing bowl until light yellow in color. Whisk a little of the chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture to temper the eggs - this will keep the eggs from scrambling from the heat of the chocolate - then whisk in the rest of the chocolate mixture and salt.

Beat the egg whites in a mixing bowl until stiff peaks form and fold into the chocolate mixture (This takes patience. Do not stir, just fold until there are no streaks of egg left.). Pour into the prepared pan and bake until the cake is set, the top starts to crack and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out with moist crumbs clinging to it, 35 to 40 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, then remove sides of pan.

While the cake is cooking, whip the cream until it becomes light and fluffy.

Serve at room temperature dusted with confectioners' sugar and topped with whipped cream.

Source: Modified from Food Network

       

Mexican Chocolate Cake

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For this past Sunday's dessert, on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, I baked this Mexican Chocolate Cake, the recipe for which I found at Catholic Cuisine. It was divine. Really. It was a lot like a Texas Sheet Cake, which I always enjoy, except for the addition of cinnamon. Mmmm. Cinnamon and chocolate seem to be a quintessential Mexican dessert combo, and they are so yummy. This cake is moist and the icing is rich and buttery and so good you could eat the whole recipe right out of the pan (at least I could!).

This would be a great recipe to enjoy during Las Posadas, the Mexican celebration which begins today, December 16, and remembers the trip that Mary and Joseph made by donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, arriving to find "no room at the inn."

I modified the frosting because I did not have a box of powdered sugar and I had no idea (nor the desire to determine) how much powdered sugar is in a box. I also omitted the nuts for allergy reasons.

Mexican Chocolate Cake

1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. oil
4 T. cocoa
1 c. water
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
2 c. sugar
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine butter, oil, cocoa and water in sauce pan. Heat until butter is melted.

Combine flour, baking soda, sugar, milk, eggs, cinnamon and vanilla in a large bowl. Combine with first mixture.

Pour batter into a greased 12-by-18-inch cake pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes.

Cool slightly and prepare frosting. Pour warm, liquid frosting over cake and spread to edges while cake is just slightly warm.

Mario Bosquez's Mexican Chocolate Icing

1/2 c. butter
4 T. cocoa
6 T. milk
3 cups powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla

1 c. pecans chopped (optional)

Combine butter, cocoa, and milk in saucepan. Heat until bubbles form around edge. Remove from heat.

Add vanilla, and nuts (if desired). Add powdered sugar and beat with a whisk until smooth. Ice cake while frosting is warm, not stiff.

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Source: Catholic Cuisine, originally from In the Kitchen with Mario Bosquez

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Lemon Buttermilk Cake

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Back to that list of yummy things I have made, yet not yet spoken about here. A few weeks ago I needed (yes, needed) to bake a cake. Having limited ingredients (no chocolate?) I decided on a lemon cake. And having a full two quarts of buttermilk in the refrigerator, I decided it needed to have buttermilk. Fortunately I found a recipe that fit the need and it was both lovely and delicious.

I altered the ingredients just the tiniest bit to make it a little easier to make.

Lemon Buttermilk Cake

grated rind of one lemon
juice of one lemon
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
3/4 t. salt
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 t. lemon extract
1 t. vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 cup low-fat buttermilk

Lemon glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 T. fresh lemon juice
1 T. or more half & half

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare cake, combine rind and 3 tablespoons juice in a small bowl. Set aside.

Coat a 10-inch Bundt pan with cooking spray or shortening; dust with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk.

Place butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Gradually add remaining 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, rind mixture, and extracts, beating until well blended.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and 1 cup buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beating at low speed, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar, 1 1/2 tablespoons juice, and 1 tablespoon half & half in a small bowl, stirring until smooth. Add more half & half to achieve a thick, but "drizzle-able" glaze. Drizzle glaze over warm cake.

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Source: modified from myrecipes.com

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St. Francis' Poor Man's Tonsure Cake

Just in case you are a reader here, but not a reader at Catholic Cuisine, I am posting the recipe for today's feast day dessert: St. Francis' Poor Man's Tonsure Cake. The tonsure is, of course, St. Francis' hairdo (for lack of a better word). St. Francis, in the practice which many monks, friars and other religious adopted, clipped his hair away from the top of his head, creating a ring of sorts, of hair around the sides of his head. A ring-shaped cake resembles the tonsure, and the cake recipe, a Poor Man's Cake, is a perfect cake for the saint who left the riches of his family to live among and serve the poor.

The cake recipe has been passed down from my 94-year-old grandma. It is called a Poor Man's Cake because when my grandma was young, butter and eggs -- traditional cake ingredients -- were dear (expensive), and raisins, nuts, and spices were plentiful.

This cake would also be wonderful for St. Anthony's Feast Day, on June 13, as he was also a Franciscan (and thus sported the tonsure) and is patron saint of the poor.

Poor Man's Cake

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3 cups flour
2 cups water
⅓ cup shortening
½ lb. raisins (I estimate this to be about 2 cups)
1 cup brown sugar
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. ground cloves
1 t. baking soda
½ t. baking powder
1 cup walnuts

Grease and flour bundt or ring pan.
Heat oven to 325 degrees F.

Place water, shortening, raisins, sugar, cinnamon and cloves in saucepan over medium heat. Cook to boiling and boil for 5 minutes.
Cool completely.

Mix flour and baking powder in a large bowl.
Dissolve baking soda in 1 t. water.
Add raisin mixture and baking soda mixture to flour mixture. Add nuts.

Spoon into prepared pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until toothpick comes out clean (my ring pan requires less baking time than my bundt).

Cool 15 minutes.
Turn out of pan and cool completely on a baking rack.

Frost with butter or cream cheese frosting of your choice, or top with the thick butter glaze below.

Glaze:
2 T. butter, melted
2 c. powdered sugar
2-4 T. milk
1 t. vanilla extract

In a bowl, mix melted butter with powdered sugar, 2 T. milk, and vanilla until blended (no lumps) and a thick drizzling consistency, adding a little more milk if necessary.
Spoon over the crown of the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides.

Chocolate Sorrow Cake

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Yesterday we remembered Our Blessed Mother on her feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. It has become a tradition to make a heart-shaped cake with seven "swords" depicting the seven sorrows that pierced the heart of Our Lord's mother. In the past I have used pretzel sticks for swords. This year I cut swords from craft sticks (aka Popsicle sticks, um, unused). The cake is easy to put together by making one round cake and one square (this method). I frosted it with vanilla buttercream frosting, ignoring my husband's pleas for chocolate frosting because, I argued, Our Blessed Mother's heart was pure white -- besides the cake was chocolate. The cake was a Chocolate Sour Cream cake. It's a moist and spongy cake with rich chocolate flavor. I used low-fat sour cream, so the end result is not a high-fat cake, though you definitely get a rich flavor and moist texture. The recipe for the cake came from the Pillsbury Complete Cookbook.

Chocolate Sour Cream Cake
serves 12 printer version

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/4 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
1 cup water
3/4 c. sour cream (I use low-fat)
1/4 c. shortening
1 t. vanilla
2 eggs
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans and line bottom with wax paper (or for the Our Lady of Sorrows cake a round and a square).

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and baking powder; mix well.

In a large bowl, combine water, sour cream, shortening, vanilla, eggs and chocolate; blend well. Add dry ingredients; blend at low speed until moistened. Beat 3 minutes at high speed. Pour batter into greased, floured and lined pans.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans.

Cool completely before frosting.

Source: Pillsbury Complete Cookbook
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Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

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We're back to dessert, and this one is a classic. Chocolate Mayonnaise cake is a cake made with, duh, mayonnaise, which replaces the eggs and the fat in a regular scratch cake. It's a dense cake, slightly moist, but not quite fudgy moist. It has great chocolate flavor, and a depth of flavor not found in a regular chocolate cake made with eggs and fat. I have, with success, used low fat mayonnaise and salad dressing in this cake, so it could be a low fat choice (if you skip the frosting and maybe just dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar).

This recipe was passed down from my husband's grandmother, and to me that makes it a better recipe than one found in any old cookbook. I've said before that a recipe that evokes emotion is a recipe to keep. I love thinking about my husband's father eating this cake as a little boy, and then my own husband eating it as a little boy. Those images make the cake even sweeter. The frosting is my own.

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
serves 12-20

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3 cups flour
3 t. baking soda
1/8 t. salt
6 T. cocoa
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
3 t. vanilla
3/4 cup mayonnaise
3/4 cup salad dressing (Miracle Whip)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 13 x 9 or two 8-inch cake pans.

Mix together in a large bowl the flour, soda, salt, cocoa and sugar. In another bowl, mix milk, vanilla, mayonnaise and Miracle Whip. Turn mixer on to medium-low and add about a third of the mayonnaise mixture, mixing thoroughly. Add the second third, then mix, and add last of mayonnaise mixture. Turn mixer on medium-high and beat until smooth.

Divide batter between cake pans (or put all the batter into 13 x 9). Bake for 30-35 minutes for round pans or 40-45 minutes for an oblong pan, until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.

Cool for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a cooling rack (not necessary for oblong pan). When cake is cool, frost with frosting of your choice.




Chocolate Frosting

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5 T. butter, softened, but not mushy
6 T. cocoa
4 c. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
1/4 to 1/2 cup milk added one tablespoon at a time (I used about 6 T.)

In a mixing bowl, beat butter and cocoa until well blended.
Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, blending thoroughly.
Add vanilla and milk, one tablespoon at a time.
Whip for about a minute after final addition of milk,
until spreading consistency is desired.

Frost top of bottom layer.
Add top layer and frost top and sides.

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Madeleines

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Last week, for the feast of St. Mary Magdalene, I baked my first batch of Madeleines (the name Madeleine is the French form of Magdalene). I had always been a little intimidated by these sweet treats, thinking they would be difficult to remove from their pan, and I would end up getting five whole cookies from a lot of work. I'm happy to say I was wrong and these yummy little French cakes could not have been easier to make. What a lovely little tea-time treat, or for a dessert -- we enjoyed them with a small dish of frozen vanilla custard. My niece said they tasted like little cloud cakes and she meant that as a really good thing.

I used the recipe found at Catholic Cuisine, and I would not change a thing (but I may go looking for more varieties now that I have a pan). I bought a tin plated steel pan and besides having to wash it between batches (because I only have one pan) it was great to use. I can't wait to make a batch for my son's French teacher when school begins.

Madeleines
makes 24

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2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Brush each mold with melted butter and dust with flour.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs, vanilla and lemon zest with an electric mixer on high speed for 5 minutes. Gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar. Beat for 5 to 7 minutes or until thick and satiny.

Sift together the flour and baking powder. Sift one-fourth of the flour mixture over the egg mixture, gently fold in. Fold in the remaining flour by fourths. Then fold in the melted and cooled butter. Spoon batter into the prepared molds, filling 3/4 full.

Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges are golden and the top s spring back. Cool in molds on a rack for 1 minute. Loosen cookies with a knife. Invert cookies onto a rack and cool. Sift confectioners' sugar over the tops or melt semi-sweet chocolate chips and dip the tips in the chocolate. Store in an airtight container.

Source: Catholic Cuisine

Mountain Dew Cake

You know how I am about cake. I'm a snob. A scratch cake, even an imperfect, slightly dry, fallen-in-the-middle scratch cake, is better than a box mix on any day. Which is why you are surprised that I present you with a doctored-up cake mix recipe, right? Well, I do believe that everyone should have one or two doctored-up box cake mix recipes in their cookbook. Just for emergencies (or days when you have too much going on, like Lemon Scones and Blackberry Pie and a cake all baked by 11 a.m.). And this one is not half bad. In fact, served with fresh summer fruit and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, it is most passable. It's very, very moist (almost fall-apart so), and very lemony and very sweet. If possible, I would have filled the inside cavity with the fresh fruit, but that would have been pretty messy, considering the fruit was very juicy, and the cake was very moist. It's a thought though.

Mountain Dew Cake
serves 12-16

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1 box lemon cake mix
1 box lemon-flavored instant pudding mix (3.4 oz)
12 oz. Mountain Dew
¾ cup vegetable oil
4 lrg. eggs


Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Lightly grease and flour a 10-cup bundt pan.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix. Add soda, oil and eggs. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.



Glaze

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
several teaspoons Mountain Dew

Stir together until glaze is a thick drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cooled cake.

Strawberry Coffee Cake

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Yes, it's berry season! Between freezer jam, berries in salads, shortcakes, and new dessert recipes we are certainly getting our share of berries these days.

On Sunday, I tried this recipe for Strawberry Coffee Cake for brunch and it was a huge hit. It's a soft, moist, buttery cake with a layer of strawberry filling in the middle. And while it doesn't look like much strawberry, the filling packs a big flavor punch. I found the recipe at Joy the Baker who used a 10 x 10 pan to bake her cake. I don't own a 10 x 10 and I was in a bit of hurry Sunday morning before Mass, so I didn't want to put it in a 9 x 9 and bake it longer. I decided to use a 9 x 13, and while using a larger pan thinned the filling out a little, it was not enough to affect the flavor or texture. I baked it for 45 minutes instead of the 55 - 60 minutes and it was perfectly done, but not dry. It was a little bit difficult to spread the strawberry filling, as well as the top layer of cake batter because I was spreading it a little farther, but I did my best and fortunately streusel, like charity, covers a multitude of sins.

Joy's cake looks different from mine, and other than the glaze drizzle and the pan size I followed the instructions, so I can't figure out why. But, who cares? It was delicious! I would even serve this cake for dessert. I've modified the instructions for a 9 x 13, but you can find the original recipe at Joy the Baker for using a 10 x 10.

Strawberry Coffee Cake
serves 12

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1 heaping cup sliced strawberries
⅓ cup sugar
2 T. cornstarch
2 t. water
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
½ t. salt
8 oz sour cream
1 t. vanilla extract

Topping:
3 T. cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
½ cup all-purpose flour
3½ T. sugar

Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
a few t. milk


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Make the strawberry mixture:

Combine strawberries, 1/3 cup sugar, water and cornstarch in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly until the sauce is thickened and strawberries are soft and somewhat broken down. Set aside to cool.

Make the topping:

Combine all the topping ingredients in a bowl and rub together with your fingertips until crumbly. Set aside.

Grease and flour a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, knocking out excess flour, and set aside.

To make the coffee cake:

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract, and almond extract if you’re using it.

Add one cup flour, baking powder, soda and salt. Add sour cream and then remaining cup flour. Beat just until combined.

Spoon 2/3 of the batter into the prepared pan. Spread the cooled strawberry mixture over the batter. Spoon the remaining batter onto the strawberries and spread evenly. Top with streusel topping and bake in the upper third of the oven. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cool for 15 to 30 minutes. Stir powdered sugar and a little milk together until you have a glaze that runs thickly from the spoon. Drizzle over top of cake.

Source: Joy the Baker

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Tiramisu Cake

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This cake is a celebration and nothing less. It's just a slight challenge to create, a beauty to behold, and a delight to taste.

I was having a dear friend and her husband over for dinner one night several months ago and I wanted a special dessert. These are very special friends, and she was bringing dinner for us, an Italian dish, her specialty, so I wanted a special dessert to compliment her dish. I thought about Tiramisu, but I wanted something more special even than Tiramisu. So I decided on the flavors of Tiramisu, with the beauty of a high, cream-filled cake. The recipe is my grandma's Hot Milk cake, which creates a tender, if slightly dry, crumb. It's perfect for soaking up all the sweet coffee syrup. To the whipped cream I add a small amount of instant vanilla pudding, which keeps the cream nice and firm so the cake lasts for a few days without the cream puddling all over.

I made this cake again recently for the faculty luncheon at our school, and it was just as well received. I made a special effort to write down every measurement and every step so I could share it with you. A few notes: the first time I made this cake (when I took the pictures) I baked it in two pans and sliced them in half horizontally. The second time, I baked it in three pans and had three layers instead of four. This decision is entirely up to you. The four layers certainly look pretty, but slicing the cake in half is another step -- and not necessarily an easy one. In the future, I will bake in three layers, but that's you're call. Also, If you would rather not use alcohol in this cake, you can substutute all coffee syrup. It's very little alcohol (no one could get tipsy on it, not even children) and I enjoy the flavor.

Tiramisu Cake

serves 12-14

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1 cup milk
½ cup butter
4 eggs
pinch salt
2 cups sugar
2 cups cake flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. vanilla

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 T. instant vanilla pudding
¼ cup powdered sugar
8 oz mascarpone cheese, softened
1 t. vanilla
⅔ cup strong coffee, cooled
½ cup sugar
¼ cup Marsala wine

3 cups heavy whipping cream
4 T. instant vanilla pudding
½ cup powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla

2 oz semi-sweet chocolate

Grease and flour two (or three) cake 8 inch pans (9 inch can be used, but bake for a shorter time). Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Scald milk. Add butter and let cool.

Beat eggs and salt for about 2 minutes until very foamy. Slowly "rain in" sugar, pouring slowly over the eggs. Slowly add flour and baking powder, mixing thoroughly. Slowly add milk and butter mixture and vanilla, thoroughly mixing.

Pour batter into prepared pans and bake -- 30 minutes for two pans, 22 minutes for three pans, until toothpick comes out clean. After 10 minutes, remove cakes from pans. Cool completely.


Cut off any hard edges of cake. I find that a kitchen shears work great for this task.


Dissolve sugar in coffee, heating coffee is necessary. Add marsala wine. Cool.

Place one layer of cake (if baked in two pans, split cakes in half horizontally for a total of four cakes) on plate. Tear foil or waxed paper in thin strips and place under cake around edges of cake to keep plate clean.



Whip one cup cream with 1 T. instant pudding and 1/4 cup powdered sugar until stiff, adding vanilla at the end. Gently fold in softened mascarpone cheese until completely incorporated.

Carefully and slowly, drizzle coffee syrup on top of cake, with a spoon or measuring cup with a spout, a little at a time until cake is fairly soaked (using less the one fourth for four layers and one third for three layers).


Top with one half -- for three layers, one third for four layers -- of whipping cream mixture and spread to edges. Using a microplane or small openings on a hand graters, grate a thin layer of chocolate over top of each layer of cream and cheese mixture.



Top with another cake layer, drizzling with coffee syrup, topping with whipping cream mixture and chocolate. If using four layers, repeat, using all the mascarpone cream in between the layers. At last layer drizzle with syrup.

Whip 3 cups cream with 4 T. instant pudding, 1/2 c. powdered sugar and vanilla. Whip until stiff. Frost tops and sides of cake with a thick layer of whipped cream. Grate chocolate over the top at the end. Remove foil or wax paper strips. Chill several hours or overnight (preferably) before serving.

Celebration Cake

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The First Holy Communion party is over and almost all of the goodies were enjoyed; just a smidge of cake is left, but I took a picture when I finished decorating it, so I could share it with you. I wish you had been here to enjoy a piece.






What I did: I used a vanilla pound cake and filled the Wilton cross-shaped pan halfway, aftergreasing sndflouring well. I think it was 1.5 times the recipe. I baked it until a toothpick came out clean. After cooling, I frosted it with buttercream frosting and then placed a white chocolate cross (purchased at Easter) on the center of the cross. Using a small round top, I piped the pink, squiggly line all over (to look lacey). I made pink roses and placed them on the cross and piped green leaves. I used a small star tip to pipe a pink scallop around the bottom edge. With just s few cake decorating tools and some time, it was easy to do.

For pictures of the big day, pop over to Praying for Grace.


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Taming the Beast

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This year's St. George dragon is, honest to goodness, a twenty minute dragon, not counting shopping and bake time. I simply ran out of time at the end of the day with a deadline in front of me (as evidenced by the sloppy icing and lack of both front paws!). I refused to stress, however, considering the fact that he was made to be slain and eaten with a side of chocolate ice cream!



Charlotte has an excellent tutorial at her place, so if you care to recreate this ferocious beast for a birthday or future St. George day, be sure to check her instructions first.


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Buttercream Frosting

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A friend of mine once gave me a Yankee Trader candle called "Buttercream Frosting." I finally had to get rid of it because every time I lit it, I wanted cake. Cake and frosting is one of my favorite treats and the Buttercream Frosting on this year's Easter cake was really yummy, so I wanted to write it down for safe keeping.

The recipe for the cake can be found here -- it's my grandma's Hot Milk Cake.

Buttercream Frosting

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1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened, but still cool
4 cups powdered sugar
4 -5 T. milk
1 t. vanilla extract

Beat butter until creamy.
Very slowly, add powdered sugar until all has been incorporated. Mixture will be very dry.
Slowly drizzle in 4 tablespoons of milk. Whip for a minute or two and if frosting still looks too thick, add more milk. Add vanilla and whip until frosting is very light and airy -- it make take several minutes.

Frost cake immediately.
If it is warm out, refrigerate the cake to keep the frosting from getting soft.


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