Chocolate Decadence Cake

I will make this cake again! I discovered it searching easy decadent gourmet chocolate cakes to make for a friend's birthday who wanted chocolate.  Described as “The perfect, fudgy chocolate cake recipe” and originally from the Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé book I decided to give it a try.

Chocolate Decadence Cake

Ingredients:


8 3/4 oz. bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
(she used Valrhona, 71%, I used Lindt 80%)
2 1/4 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 1 Tb. all-purpose flour


Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a 9 inch cake pan, line the bottom with parchment, butter the parchment and flour the pan or I used a 9x3 spring form pan with baking spray.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, set it aside to cool. It should be just warm when you mix it in with the rest of the ingredients.

Beat the butter and sugar in a mixer with the paddle attachment for about 4 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating between each egg for about one minute.

With the mixer still running (not too high), add the chocolate and beat until just incorporated.

Again with the mixer still running (not too high), add the flour and beat until just incorporated. Finish mixing the ingredients with a rubber spatula, being sure all the flour has been incorporated into the batter.

Fill the cake pan and bake for about 28 minutes or so. When you take the cake out, the middle will look like it's not yet cooked. That is normal. A knife inserted in the center will come out with some batter on it. That too is normal. You don't want to over-bake the cake.

Cool on a wire rack. When the cake is at room temperature, place the cake in the refrigerator for an hour or two, this makes it easier to remove from pan. I did this, but with a spring-form pan it’s easier.

Un hinge the spring-form and place cake onto a wire rack and then invert onto a serving platter.

It said this cake is fabulous with whipped cream or ice cream, so I spread Jello’s white chocolate instant pudding made with whipping cream instead of milk over the top.  Then I simply decorated with fresh raspberries marking the 8 portions then drizzled a black raspberry vanilla syrup my husband previously made over it when plating it to serve.

The cake can be kept wrapped at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 3 - 4 days, or frozen for up to a month.

Poppy Seed Cake or Bread

We're visiting great friends this weekend and T is serving this yummy, easy cake.  I thank her for making it and sharing it.  Now I just made it as muffins as an after school snack.  Enjoy!

It's easy because it's a cake mix, with more added to make it much better.

Poppy Seed Cake or Bread

1 yellow or white cake mix

1 box instant vanilla pudding

1/2 c. oil

4 eggs

1 c. water

2 T poppy seeds

3/4 tsp. vanilla

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.  

You can use a Bundt pan, cake pan, bread pan or muffin tins.

Allison's Chocolate Torte

http://spindyeknit.com/2008/07/torte-reform/

Alison Hyde’s chocolate torte–makes two

Snap out the bottoms of two 8″ springform pans (flat bottomed preferred). Cover bottoms with foil, snap them back in, butter the sides and the foil-covered bottoms.

CAKE:

Melt 1 lb. butter, beat with 3 c. sugar and 2 tsp bourbon vanilla
Add in 1/2 c. manufacturing cream, 6 egg yolks

Add in: 1 1/3 c. cocoa that has been mixed with 1 c. flour till smooth. Dutch process cocoa will give you a different flavor from that of Hershey cocoa; my favorite is Bergenfield’s Colonial Rosewood cocoa. The non-dutched cocoas are healthier.

Beat separately: 6 egg whites and 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar. Underbeating is better than overbeating.

Fold egg whites into chocolate mixture. Put in the two pans and bake at 350 for 42-45 minutes. Center will not be solid and cracking should appear. Run a knife carefully around outer edges; cake will fall, and you want the top to fall in one piece.

Cool at least an hour. Loosen springform sides and remove. Put a plate on bottom of cake and flip over. Peel off bottoms of pans, then the foil. Glaze when cool.

GLAZE:

Chop one Trader Joe’s Pound Plus Belgian bittersweet chocolate bar (500 g) and melt with 1 1/3 to 1 1/2 c. manufacturing cream. Double boiler or microwave. Try not to incorporate extra air in as you stir. Also, it is important that every edge of every piece of chocolate be fully dunked down in the cream before heating or that piece of chocolate could possibly seize into a hardened, unmeltable lump with the combination of liquid and heat.

When glazing, I make a backwards J from the center, turn the cake slightly, and repeat all the way around. If you use the smaller amount of cream it holds the indentations better.

Glazes two cakes.

Enjoy!

Delivering Harvest Treats to Harvest Workers

Twice this week we made  my Mother's Finnish recipe for  Old World Fresh Apple Butter Cake. Click on the title above and you'll find the recipe from a post I made last year.  

This year one of our sons helped his Dad make this as a bundt cake for my birthday.  We visited the place I first had my birthday cake during harvest time and ate my birthday cake there.  

Notice the white icing on it?  

Well, when I was 3 my Mother made me a beautiful white cake with white frosting and took it out to the field to share

 with the workers.  

When my Dad brought the combine to a stop, 

the white cake was suddenly a "chocolate" (dusty) cake!!  After that, my birthday cakes became bundt cakes.  This one is a favorite of mine.  I had to laugh when he put a white glaze on it because we were in the spud field after all.   Thankfully, this year, it had already been harvested there and we avoided the "chocolate".  

 

Then then we went to the spud cellars and delivered mini bundt cakes they'd made to the Harvest workers.  

Then I made them for the Young Women's activity where we deliver a treat one day of harvest to the other Young Women who are working in the Potato Harvest.  

I just love the memories, smell, sight, sound and touch of "Spud Harvest"!  

A fan of flan

This summer we hosted 2 teen aged girls from Belgium who came with their dance and flag throwing group www.vredon.be to the International Dance and Music Festival. Soetkin turned 16 while she stayed with us. I asked her what her favorite cake was and she said flan. 

I immediately thought of the flan shells my Mother always made and made it for her birthday. It's also what I made when I was in college and won a cooking contest with.  I won a Hamilton Beach mixette with this recipe and I still use it today.  It turns out Belgian Flan isn't the same. Oops! Just goes to show you how our environment shapes our perceptions. I would have googled "Belgian Flan" had I not had this perception in my head, which I did later that night and found http://www.recipezaar.com/304379, but alas, it was the thought that counts, I guess.

I'll have to email her and ask for her Mother's Belgian Flan recipe.  Here are my Mother's recipes:

Flan Shell #1

Crumble together:
1/2 lb. margarine
3 c. flour
2 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Add:
3 beaten eggs
1 can evaporated milk
2 tsp. almond or lemon extract

For a lower fat and sugar version try:   

1 cube margarine

1 envelope Butter Buds mixed with 1/2 cup hot milk 

1 small pkg. instant vanilla pudding

1 1/2 cups sugar

Blend well then add:

3 beaten eggs

1 can evaporated skim milk

2 tsp. almond or lemon extract

Now add the 

3 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp salt.

Beat well. Grease and flour Flan pan. This recipe makes 2 large or 3 small Flan shells plus 12 muffins.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  These freeze well and are nice to have on hand.

Flan Shell #2

1 yellow cake mix (or chocolate)
1/3 cup flour
2 eggs
Use milk instead of water in the amount the mix calls for.

Divide the batter between 2 large Flans that have been well greased and floured. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Let set only for 1 minute, then take out of the pan to cool.

Filling #1

1 c. whipping cream
1 8 oz. pkg. softened cream cheese
1 c. powdered sugar
Mix the cream cheese and powdered sugar well.
Add the whipped cream.
Pour into 2 prepared Flan shells. Let set.
Top with one of the toppings.

For a less fat version try:

Prepare 1 small instant vanilla pudding

Add 4 ounces softened, light cream cheese

and 1 cup cottage cheese finely blended.

Filling #2

1 pkg. instant pudding
1 c. milk
1 c. sour cream
Mix as directed on box.
Top with one of the toppings.

Topping #1

2-3 cups fresh strawberries
Arrange these on the Flan. Make 1 pkg. Junket Danish Strawberry Dessert as directed on box for PIE, but adding 1/4 c. sugar more. Cool some and pour over strawberries. Enough for 2 flans.

Topping #2

2-3 pkgs. frozen raspberries thawed and drained. Mash some of the raspberries and add the liquid, thicken with cornstarch. When cool, pour over the rest of the raspberries Danish dessert.

Rich Chocolate Filling

3/4 large Hershey bar
20 large marshmallows
1/3 c. milk
Melt together in a double boiler or microwave. Cool.
Whip 2 cups whipping cream until stiff.
Add to chocolate mixture.
Then mix in 2-3 Heath bars that have been crumbled. Fills 2 flan shells.

You can fill the flan shells with anything your heart desires, like fresh fruits, whipped cream or maybe your favorite pie filling.

Family Favorites:

1 1 lb. 4 oz. can of pineapple (crushed or tidbits or chunks), well drained
1 c. whipping cream, whipped and sweetened or light cool whip or dream whip
Fold together and pour into Flan shell. Top with shaved chocolate.

Fill flan with wilderness pie cherry filling and top with sweetened whipping cream.

Chocolate flan filled with banana cream pudding and sliced bananas. Top with whipped cream.

Anita's Favorite-- Fresh Peach Flan:

Crust:  flan shell #1 (bundt cake)

Bottom layer: cream cheese and sugar

Top: layer of fresh peaches (or 5.5 oz. can, lower sugar amount some)

Glaze: 1 c. apricot nectar, 1/4 c. lemon juice, 3/4 c. sugar, 3 T corn starch, a little lemon jello powder

Boil until thickened.  Cool. Spread on top of the peach layer.  Serve!

Tuula's Chocolate Flan 

1 cube margarine

3/4 cup powdered sugar

cream together

add 1 oz melted chocolate

vanilla sugar -- liquid vanilla extract makes it runny

2 eggs, one at a time

beat 4-5 minutes each

Scrape bowl often.  Decorate with whipped cream and chocolate shavings and sliced almonds.

Cardamom Crumble Cake

My husband helped me make this red white and blue "Cardamom Crumble Cake" the morning of July 4th when we were headed to the parade and needed a breakfast to take with us.  Our neighbor who sat by us at the parade requested the recipe, so here it is.

Cardamom Crumble Cake
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup softened butter
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 cup frozen raspberries

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the streusel topping (recipe below). Beat remaining ingredients in large bowl. Gently add and fold in 1 cup frozen blueberries and 1 cup frozen raspberries (optional, as he added them for the 4th of July). Spread half of the batter into a greased 9x13 pan; sprinkle with half of the streusel; top with the remaining batter; sprinkle with the rest of the streusel. Bake until toothpick comes out clean about 35-40 minutes.

Streusel
1 cup chopped nuts
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cardamom
6 tbs. firm butter
* or use 1 tsp cinnamon and omit cardamom and vice versa according to your taste. This day it was only cardamom.

Mix all ingredients until crumbly.

Fun In The Sun Cake Contest

This year's Cake Contest theme for the annual Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet was "Fun in the Sun". On the upper left, is the sand Dad concocted for the "Building a Sandcastle" cake. We used the mold from the Hogwart's Castle bundt cake and recipe posted earlier. The sand is made of: plain sugar, brown sugar, raw cane sugar, graham crackers and oreos blended together. The sand looked so real that one parent couldn't bring herself to actually eat it because it seemed too real and others didn't dare eat it because it felt real to the touch. The other themed cake we made was "The Cub Scout Team". We used the Krazy Cake recipe posted earlier and used buttercream frosting. We used M&Ms for the "C". We found the idea on www.familyfun.com and altered it slightly. The baseball has some of the sand on it to make it look played with.

Whew! That's over and tomorrow is Valentine's Day. Good thing the kids already made their Valentine's for FHE activity.

We're crazy for Krazy Cake!

My kids are crazy about snowmen and penguins this time of year. I found some great penguin and snowman silicone cupcake pans in the after Christmas sales and needed a good dense cake recipe to make them up with.  I chose Krazy Cake or Wacky Cake as some call it . I got the recipe from another Mom whose son used this recipe in our Cub Scout cake contest last year.
Krazy Cake

In a large bowl, stir the following ingredients:

2 C sugar
3 C all purpose flour
1/3 C cocoa (I like Dutch processed when I can find it)
2 tsp soda
1 tsp salt

Add the following ingredients (don't stir until all wet ingredients are
in the bowl):

2 C cold water
3/4 C oil
2 Tbsp vinegar

Mix all ingredients well. You can stir by hand - an electric mixer is
not necessary. Pour batter into a well greased 9 X 13 pan and bake at
350F for 25-30 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

Old World Fresh Apple Butter Cake Tastes Great

Using the same castle mold I bought at Wal-Mart, I made this recipe, for our sister-in-law's birthday. I was worried the apples, may leave holes in the turrets, but it came out perfectly again. Also, I really recommend Pam with Flour.

Categories: Desserts Title: Old World Fresh Apple Butter Cake Description: My Mother made this every fall during apple harvest time. It is often my choice for my birthday cake. Ingredients: 1 cup butter 2 cups sugar 3 eggs 3 cups flour 1 1/2 tsp. soda 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 2 tsp. vanilla 3 cups peeled grated apples 2 cups chopped walnuts Directions: In a bowl, beat butter and sugar until well mixed. Gradually add the flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir in vanilla. Fold in apples and walnuts. Pour into a greased tube pan or bundt pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Glaze if desired. I don't. I did sprinkle powdered sugar on it, so the castle looked like it had freshly fallen snow on it.

Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardy Birthday Cake

Our son wanted a Harry Potter birthday party, 

so my latest entertaining was with several "first years" Friday. 

I used my mother's bundt cake recipe for the castle mold I purchased.

Here is the recipe,
1/2 lb. soft butter
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
crumble together
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
stir together
3 beaten eggs
1 can evaporated milk
2 tsp. almond or lemon extract

Beat well; grease and flour bundt pan well; Bake 350 degrees for about 50 minutes.


the mold,


the cake


and the final product with Professor Snape setting Hogwart's a blaze.