4th of July Cake

Hey everyone! Sorry about the absence. We have been moving and I haven't had a chance to really cook anything too exciting. Luckily are move is possibly the shortest move in history. To the other side of our duplex. You may be wondering why move to the other side of a seemingly identical unit. Well, the other side has a finished attic! Which means we now have space for Will's office and all of our extra stuff that was overflowing in our house. Yay! There are also ceiling fans in every room and a kitchen with a little more counter and cabinet space for all my kitchen stuff!

I did get a chance to bake a 4th of July cake, but I haven't had a change to get onto my computer since we have been so busy. So, better late than never, here is the Independence Day cake.

Cake Decorating and Royal Icing Flowers

I've been taking Wilton cake decorating classes for a few weeks now. I just finished the second class that focused mainly on royal icing flowers. It was a lot of fun. I really enjoy making these tiny decorative flowers that can be stored and used whenever. I will whip up a batch of royal icing and then get to work piping the icing onto tiny pieces of parchment paper to make edible versions of daffodils, apple blossoms, and roses. These flowers last a very long time so all you have to do is let them air dry and then place them in storage containers and save them for when you are short on time and need a little extra something to top off your cupcakes and cakes.

I had a bunch of these little flowers in different styles, shapes, and colors stored in boxes and decided that it was time that I put some of them to use. We had a get together at our professors house and I decided to make cupcakes (of course) and bring them along. Since Spring is in full bloom I picked out a bunch of different flowers to put on top of the chocolate mini cupcakes. Sadly, the photo isn't great of them. My new camera hadn't arrived yet so I had to use my cell phone.

In addition, I also had to make a cake for my final course 2 class. For this one though I had my new camera. I played around with some of the various settings that it has. I really like the Toy camera effect. It makes the photos look vintage. The miniature effect is also fun and really makes the central image pop.

Clumsiness Strikes Again

Clumsy me dropped my camera the other day. It was in its case so I was hoping that it would be okay, but no. When I went to use it the images came out extremely blurry. Thankfully the camera was older, well used, and was not outrageously expensive. Plus, I've been on the look out for a new camera with higher resolution and zoom anyways. I think this is a sign. I'll be heading to Atlanta this weekend anyways so there won't be too much to post. I leave you with some random dessert decorations that I have yet to post. Hopefully, I will be able to get a new camera soon. Please send me your suggestions for cameras. I am clueless in the realm of technology.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Pink Rosettes

Royal Icing Eyes!

Royal Icing Carrots

White Blossom Trees

Brightly Colored Flower Cake

King's Cake for Mardi Gras

My friends had yet another opportunity for me to try new recipes. They threw a Mardi Gras party over the weekend and requested that I bring a King's Cake. I had never tried King's Cake and when I searched for them online I thought they looked absolutely disgusting. Cover in icing and sprinkles, I could hardly even see the cake, let along imagine what it was supposed to taste like. But my friends insisted that I make it. So I did. And you know what? It was actually really good and everyone loved it! It tasted like coffee cake. 

If you haven't made this recipe before or even ever had a King's Cake then you should try it. Traditionally the King's Cake has a trinket inside of it. Usually a baby or a bean. I couldn't find a baby to put in it and the only beans I had I thought would present a choking hazard. So I improvised and used a orecchiette pasta. Large enough to find and delicate enough to not chip a tooth. Whoever finds this trinket in their piece of cake is supposed to host the party next year. 

There are many recipes for King's Cake, but I used the one from Epicurious.com. It received good reviews and looked fairly simple to make, good for someone who has no idea how this recipe was supposed to turn out. Some recipes have fillings but this one doesn't. This recipe also calls for you to braid the bread dough, I've seen some that don't. I dyed my icing purple because I thought I was out of purple sprinkles, only to discover them hiding in the back. Oh well. I got to use my green and gold sprinkles. Overall I think this recipe came out great and will be making it again as a breakfast treat.

King's Cake

Adapted from Epicurious.com

For the cake: 

1 cup lukewarm milk, about 110°F

1/2 cup sugar

2 tbsp yeast

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup melted butter

5 egg yolks, beaten

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp grated fresh lemon zest

3 tsp cinnamon

Several gratings of fresh nutmeg

For the icing: 

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup condensed milk

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Purple, green, and gold decorative sugars

1 fève (fava bean) or plastic baby to hide in the cake after baking

1) Heat the milk in a saucepan then add to bowl and whisk in the sugar, yeast, and 1 tbsp of the flour, let sit until foamy

2) Whisk in butter, egg yolks, vanilla, and lemon zest then fold in the flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon

3) Knead in mixer or by hand until smooth and elastic

4) Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours

5) Divide dough into 3 pieces and braid together then connect the ends in the shape of a circle and place on sheet pan

6) Preheat oven to 375 F and let dough rise for 30 minutes

7) Cook for 25 minutes, check after 20 minutes to make sure top isn't getting to brown

8) Let cool and tuck in trinket into bread

 9) Make the icing by mixing ingredients together, adding more milk or sugar to adjust to taste and consistency then pour over cake and top with sprinkles/sugars and enjoy!

Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake

I've had a jar full of poppy seeds sitting on my spice rack for a while now. I'd never bought them before or ever baked with them, so they lay in wait of inspiration. Who knew that inspiration would be something so familiar, I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it before. Lemon poppy seed bread. So simple, so light, and so fulfilling. I love the subtle hint of lemon that flavors this cake and the delicate crunch of the poppy seeds, adding the perfect texture to the soft bread. I made this cake for a breakfast meal, but I think I have been enjoying it at every meal: a snack after lunch, and a dessert after dinner. I think next time I will make a raspberry sauce to serve with it.

Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
Adapted from TLC Cooking

1 cup sugar
1 stick butter
1 egg
2 egg whites
3/4 cup milk (I used 2%)
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tbsp poppy seeds
Zest of 2 lemons
Juice of half a lemon
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1) Preheat oven to 350 F and butter and flour a bundt pan
2) Beat sugar, butter, and eggs until fluffy, then add milk and vanilla until combined 
3) Add in dry ingredients, poppy seeds, and lemon zest and juice

4) Pour into bundt pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until done

5) Let cool, then slice, serve, and enjoy!

Salted Caramel Frosting

This may in fact be the most delicious frosting ever created. If I had known how easy caramel is to make I would have been making it along time ago. It doesn't seem like it should be that easy. Candy making was always one of those things that I thought only a scientist could make, or someone a lot more patient than I am. Yet caramel is so simple. Water, check, sugar, check, heavy cream, check. You don't even have to stir it! Just watch it to make sure it doesn't burn. Amazing. Then, to make this frosting, you add  butter AND salt. So this frosting has those basic, delicious flavors that everyone craves. Sweet, salty, and buttery. You're taste buds can't get much happier. So needless to say, these cupcakes were a hit and I will be adding them to a list of my go-to cupcakes.

Salted Caramel Frosting
Adapted from CHOW

1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp water
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 sticks butter, at room temp
1 tsp kosher salt
1 cup powdered sugar

1) Stir together sugar and water in pan and bring to a boil

2) At medium heat, allow caramel to continue boiling, DO NOT STIR
3) When caramel has turned a light amber color, remove from heat, about 6 minutes

4) Add heavy cream and vanilla and stir until smooth, then let sit for 25 minutes

5) Cream butter, salt, and sugar in a bowl until fluffy, then mix in caramel until combined and fluffy

6) Let frosting cool in refrigerator for 45 minutes, then frost cupcakes of choice, I used chocolate, end enjoy!

Halloween Treats

My friends through a huge Halloween party Saturday night. So of course, I had to bring treats. I made Chocolate cookies with Candy Corn, Brown Sugar Spice Ghost Cookies, Chocolate Mini Cupcakes with Halloween Sprinkles, Pumpkin Mini Cupcakes with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting (piped in the shape of brains), Mexican Hot Chocolate Mini Cupcakes with Spicy Ganache, and Pumpkin Cupcakes with a Chocolate Ganache filling and chocolate buttercream frosting. An epic amount of desserts for an epic party.

Pumpkin Desserts

My friends were having a Fall Festival over the weekend so I thought pumpkin desserts were in order. I decided to make Brown Sugar and Spice Cookies, in the shape of pumpkins of course, and decorated with royal icing (my first time using this icing). I don't like sugar cookies. I'm not much of a plain vanilla kind of person, but I found a recipe that adds a little spice, and I knew I had found a new sugar cookie.

In addition I wanted to make a Pumpkin Carrot Cake in the shape of a pumpkin, with the addition of some Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting. The pumpkin cake was a little difficult to assemble, but if you cu a little of the bottom off, it sits right on top of the other cake. The cake is also enormous, so it makes a great dessert for a crowd. Fair warning, this is a very time intensive cake.

Brown Sugar and Spice Cookies
3 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. allspice
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 sticks butter
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla

1) Preheat oven to 350 F
2) Combine butter and sugars and cream until fluffy, then add egg and vanilla
3) Combine dry ingredients, then add to butter mixture and combine
4) Roll out cookies to desired thickness and cut with cookie cutters (I used pumpkin shapes- thanks Mom for the new cookie cutters!)

5) Place cut cookies on baking sheet for 9-12 minutes
6) Let cool and frost. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Carrot Cake
Adapted from Woman's Day
Each ingredient list is for 1 cake (you will need to double to make two cakes)

3/4 cup canola oil
3 cups flour
1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice (or mixture of your preferred flavors)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 15 oz. can of pumpkin puree
1/4 cup whole milk
2 tsp. vanilla
2 medium carrots, grated (about 1 cup)
1 cup walnuts (optional)

1) Preheat oven to 350 F
2) Butter and flour bundt pan
3) Combine dry ingredients in bowl and set aside
4) Whisk eggs with oil, sugars, pumpkin, vanilla, and milk then mix in dry ingredients, then add carrots and walnuts if using

5) Pour batter into bundt pan and bake for 55-60 minutes until done

6) Let rest in pan for 10 minutes then remove from pan and let cool on rack
7) Prepare second cake
9) Let cool and assemble with frosting (see below)

Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting
4 8-oz. packages of cream cheese, at room temp.
2 sticks butter, at room temp.
4 tsp. vanilla
6 cups of confectioners sugar
1/2 cup bourbon
Orange and green food coloring
1 wafer cone (which I forgot and wasn't going back to the store so I used a cup filled with candy)

1) Whip all of the ingredients, except food coloring, together until fluffy
2) Cut each cake in half and spread 3/4 cup of frosting on each bottom and place top back on top

3) Transfer 1/2 cup of frosting to be colored green to create stem
4) Dye the remaining frosting orange
5) Take one of the cakes and flip over so that the top is not the bottom, frost the top with orange frosting then place second cake on top
6) Frost the combined cake with orange frosting and mold frosting in shape of pumpkin
7) Color ice cream cone with green frosting and place in hole of cake
8) Serve and enjoy!

Lemon Ricotta Bundt Cake with Rosemary Syrup

I finally bought myself a bundt pan a week about a week ago. I bought it for a pumpkin cake which I will be making next week. But since I had never made a bundt cake before I thought I would get some practice and use up some ricotta I had in the fridge, as well as some lemons. I found a recipe for an Italian Lemon Ricotta Cake that I thought sounded delicious and a perfect end to a meal we would be having with friends Friday night. In my new Bon Appetit cookbook on desserts there is also a recipe for a pound cake with rosemary simple syrup that I had been curious about. So I thought I would give it a shot and add it to cake. I think it made a great addition. The rosemary simple syrup is sweet but has that wonderful almost savory flavor of rosemary that really compliments the lemony cake. This would be a perfect cake to serve on a warm day after a light meal.

Lemon Ricotta Cake
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
Juice and zest of 3 lemons
Powdered sugar for dusting

1) Preheat oven to 350 F and butter and flour bundt pan
2)Combine dry ingredients and lemon zest in a bowl and set aside
3) Cream butter and sugar, then add eggs, vanilla, and lemon juice
4) Add ricotta cheese and flour mixture a little at a time, alternating until combined
5) Pour batter into bundt pan and bake for 50-60 minutes

6) Let cool on rack for 10 minutes then remove from pan and let cool completely
7) Dust with powdered sugar

8) Slice and serve with rosemary syrup

Rosemary Simple Syrup and Candied Rosemary
4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of water
Sugar for tossing with rosemary

1) Combine sugar and water in pan and simmer until sugar has dissolved
2) Add rosemary and let simmer in syrup for about 5 minutes

3) Remove from heat and let sit for 30 minutes
4) Remove rosemary sprigs and toss in sugar
5) Refrigerate until ready to use

*Simple syrup can also be used in mixed drinks

Dinosaur Cake

I was on a hunt the other day for a deep dish pie pan. It is just about apple pie season. But instead I came across a mold for a dinosaur cake! I love dinosaurs. Maybe its because when I tell people I study archaeology they think that means I study dinosaurs. Well I don't. But it could also be because I think dinosaurs are just awesome. So I was very happy to have found this cake mold.

I wasn't having a great day yesterday and I knew what would make it better. Having my friend come over and bake a cake. I made my usual chocolate cake only I made a green frosting to go on top and used chocolate chips and craisins for the eyes and white chocolate chips for the teeth. I don't think he looks as intimidating as a dinosaur should, but hey, this was my first time making it. And it did the job and cheered me up!

Balsamic Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake

I'm back from Bolivia and a quick trip to Michigan and Chicago. I was ready to be back in the kitchen. Cherries were on sale at the store so I thought I'd pick up a few. I remember seeing a recipe for Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake on Smittenkitchen.com. The recipe is originally from Bon Appetit.

I didn't have high hopes for this cake as I poured the batter over the cooked cherries. It all sort of meshed together and I was sure it wasn't going to come out right. It didn't really come out as an upside-down cake, but it tasted amazing! The cornmeal adds the perfect texture to the cake. The cherries were wonderfully sweet and the balsamic added just the right touch. My only regret is not making two!

Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake
Adapted from Bon Appetit, June 2008
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
1/4 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
3 cups whole pitted fresh Bing cherries or other dark sweet cherries (about 21 ounces whole unpitted cherries)
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal (preferably stone-ground medium grind)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, separated
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole milk
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Combine 1/4 cup butter with brown sugar and vinegar in 10- to 11-inch ovenproof skillet with 2-inch-high sides. Stir over medium heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Increase heat to high; add cherries and bring to boil. Remove from heat.
Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat 1/2 cup butter in large bowl. Add sugar; beat until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with milk in 2 additions each, beating just until blended and occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Using clean dry beaters, beat egg whites in another medium bowl until foamy. Add cream of tartar and beat until whites are stiff but not dry. Using rubber spatula, fold 1/4 of whites into batter to lighten slightly. Fold in remaining whites in 3 additions (batter will be thick). Spoon batter over cherries in skillet, then spread evenly with offset spatula to cover cherries.
Bake cake until top is golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool in skillet on rack 5 minutes. Run spatula around edges of cake to loosen. Place large serving platter upside down atop skillet. Using pot holders or oven mitts, firmly hold platter and skillet together and invert. Leave skillet atop cake 5 minutes. Remove skillet. If necessary, rearrange any cherries that may have become dislodged. Let cake cool at least 45 minutes. Cut cake into wedges and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Fourth of July

Currently in Bolivia so I haven't had time to post anything new. I do however want to post the cake I made for Independence Day. I wanted to make something that really celebrated the holiday so I decided to make a layer cake with the colors of red white and blue. Before I baked the cake I went on the search for red and blue sprinkles. This turned out to be impossible. I would have thought that blue and red sprinkles would have been the easiest to find, especially around the holiday. The only red sprinkles that I could find in the store were cinnamon flavored. I thought this was odd. But as it turned out I had a few left over in the back of my cabinet, but no blue ones to be seen. Luckily they make marshmallows that are in the shape of stars and red white and blue. So I figured this would work. I don't have the recipe with me since I left in at home but it is a basic white cake with a lemon cream cheese frosting. I'm not much of a vanilla cake person, but everyone else enjoyed it. It was very festive in the end.