recipe #9: petits gateaux au chocolat.

i cannot stop thinking about the rich/moist/decadent/more delicious adjectives of the small chocolate cake i had in paris from stohrer so much that i decided to make my own version and justify them as christmas gifts. they were delicious and so easy! joyeux noel!

recipe #9: petits gateaux au chocolat.

soundtrack: ella wishes you a swinging christmas

ingredients: for main cake – 1 pound of bittersweet chocolate, 8 eggs, and 1/2 pound of butter. cake bottom – 4 oz chopped bitter chocolate and 4oz heavy cream.

directions: preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease up some cupcake liners and place them in a cupcake tin (you’ll make enough for 2 batches). heat heavy cream in the microwave for 45 seconds, then stir in the 4oz of chopped chocolate until melted. pour a drop into each cupcake liner so it coats the bottom – this will create a nice chocolate surprise on what’s usually the cake’s most boring part (well, to me anyways).

melt pound of chocolate and 1/2 pound of butter together using a double boiler (or heat-resistant bowl sitting in boiling water if you ain’t got one like me). in a separate bowl, beat eggs in a mixer until pale yellow and fluffy, then mix into chocolate/butter mix using a whisk until well blended. fill each cupcake cup 3/4 full, then bake for 30 minutes or until *just* cooked in center.

let cool, then coat tops with confectioner’s sugar and enjoy! and also don’t think about how bad they are for you.

recipe #5: pi(e) day.

okay well it was actually just a happy coincidence that i made pies for pi day, but the realization of the occasion and waiting until 12:01 AM on 3.14 to eat them not only provided enough time for my cinnamon ice cream to harden (i used a different recipe than my own and it was a try new things FAIL) but also gave people time to drink enough before eating them that they tasted amazing (a redeeming WIN!). the real occasion was my good pal sam’s 27th birthday/homecoming/housewarming, who left us for most of 2009 to explore the appalachian trail, drive across the country, build a house in south carolina, attempt to lead bike tours in guatamala, but recently found his way back to us, rightfully so, in NYC.

sam’s dislike of chocolate+my never having made a pie = me making two pies and also ice cream to overcompensate because the first pie looked wonky and i got nervous.

recipe #5: caramel apple pie.
soundtrack: carolina chocolate drops
ingredients: A LOT of these things – crisco, unsalted butter, flour, sugar, macintosh apples, caramel chews, cinnamon, nutmeg, water. oh, and a little salt.

the plan: ugh, i hate baking and making a crust from scratch is  a perfect example of why. so the first time i thought i used too much water, and also i was drinking wine and watching “30 rock” so i was distracted, but in the end the first crust i kind of made up held together much better than the recipe on the inside of the crisco box. so! do this: dump 2 cups of flour into a bowl, then “knive in” 1 1/2 cup of crisco, or use a pastry blender, which i didn’t have, so i just guessed and tore the crisco into little bits and then mixed it together until it was reasonably void of huge clumps. then i added a pinch of salt and tsps of water until it was easy to shape. split into two balls, one a little larger than the other, then rolled the small one out into a circle(ish) and lined a pie pan with it.

next, my favorite and most insanely delicious part. i chopped up about 5 macintosh apples and threw 3 tbsp of unsalted butter into a saucepan on high until it was melted. then, i dumped in the apples until they were coated and covered for about 3 minutes. then i cut up chunks of about 10 caramel chews and threw those in with a cup of sugar and pinches of cinnamon and nutmeg, and covered again for about 5 more minutes. zomg it smells so good. when it’s all melted and mixed, pour out onto a baking sheet until it cools to room temp. then, throw into the pie pan, roll out the other ball of dough, and cover the pie. mark some holes in the top, or if you’re me, carve a big “S” for your friend sam. cook at 350 until middle is boiling, about 30-40mins. i also decided to spread a little butter  and sprinkle cinnamon on the top before sticking it in, apparently you can do egg yolk too but mine were spoiled so, um, i couldn’t.

now, i eat and make a lot of things, but the next day all i could think about was the next time i make this pie. should i try throwing in pecans? or peanuts like a real caramel apple? what do you think? bring it on because i already look forward to testing many, many combinations.

birthday ftw! ignore my big head and focus on sam’s joy, please.

recipe #2: yellow cake with chocolate icing.

5: the number of times the german woman in the office next door to mine blasts george michael’s heartfelt hit “never gonna dance again” per day.
3: the number of fresh eggs in my fridge.
1: the number of post-neurosurgery/birthday parties i will be invited to in my life (i hope).
0: the number of times i’ve made a cake from scratch.

add ‘em up and i’ve got the inspiration to bake my very first homemade cake for my dear, divine friend kevin, who just bravely underwent brain surgery (unscathed…whew), turned 28, and threw a small party to celebrate the two. oh, and i’ve also got “gifted feet have got no rhythm” running through my head. anyways…

Kevbo Yellow Cake with Chocolate Icing
Soundtrack: The Best of Ray Charles – The Atlantic Years (sorry, george.)*
Time: 10 minutes for icing, 50 minutes for cake
Servings: 10 nicely sized slices

Ingredients:
Icing - 3 cups confectioners’ sugar, 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 cup of butter, 5 tablespoons whole milk, 4 tablespoons (cold) expresso, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Cake- 3/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 3/4 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ cup butter, 3 large eggs, 2 teaspoons vanilla, ¾ cup milk, 2 teaspoons nutmeg

*very important: keep a spare spatula handy for singing along to “night time is the right time”

The plan: i will admit that i only like cake because it is covered in icing, so i spent more time playing around with that than the cake. okay, yes that also meant i got to take lots of samples to check the taste but whatever, that’s not important. nor is the fact i had chocolate all over my face for a large part of this baking experience.
Icing: in a large bowl, mix confectioners’ sugar and cocoa together so the mixture is consistent – use a sifter if you have one. then melt the butter and stir that into the mix, next add the milk, vanilla, expresso and cinnamon. and taste. and get another spoon and taste again. and, oh, wait, sorry… hide frosting in airtight lid in fridge so you will stop tasting.

Cake: preheat your oven to 350 degrees. in a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg together. melt the butter and in a separate bowl, mix it with the sugar and then add eggs one at a time while stirring. add milk, vanilla and then dump liquid mixture into the dry mixture. then mix it on up with a handmixer until those bumps be gone.

grease a pan or two depending on how thick you want your cake to be or if you want layers. i think 9″ is best and chose to try out my new fancy-pants springform pan. pour the mixture into the pan and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes or until the top is a golden brown. test the cake by sticking a toothpick into the center and if it comes out clean, your cake is ready! you did it! it’s tempting, but please do not give the cake a high-five.

Things I learned: to be careful to use baking powder instead of soda unless you want one sorry looking cake (fortunately i found this out on the internet and not from experience). i also should have used a 9″ pan and not the 11″ one i did because my cake turned out – like me – very short. finally, that i don’t think i will ever be able to eat chocolate icing again unless it has expresso in it and that drizzling it on the homemade vanilla ice cream i also made (another post) was one of my most brilliant moments.