Mystery of the Capitol Cake

Dear Family and Friends,
Yesterday morning Zing! and I were the only ones on Capitol Mall so we decided to walk down the middle, on the lawn, not the sidewalk. After a few steps we came upon a cake sitting silently amid  the dandelions -- double layer, frosted and studded with strawberries. It looked like one slice was missing, although that part had melted into itself. We circled it as if it was a wild thing -- it was real and strange. Zing! didn't try to eat any and neither did I. Maybe it was an offering to the gods. We didn't want to mess with it. This morning there was no trace of cake.

Are you stumbling on such wondrous surprises?
Love,
k

Zing! and the Capitol Cake

Cake and chamber music

Dear Family,

Today I made a birthday cake for my friend, who lives in this building. 

“Maybe you could give her something small, like a cupcake,” her husband said the other day. Janie told me he doesn’t love sweets. But she does.

It was so hot last Wednesday that I skipped my regular 8-block walk to hear noon chamber music. But today was breezy and fine, and I got to hear the Pacific Arts Trio — harp, flute and cello.  Most interesting and maybe beautiful were three Irish airs and a concerto by Turlough O'Carolan (1670-1738). They told us he was a blind harpist who traveled the country offering to write a piece of music for every person in the household in exchange for room and board. 

Love,

k

Dealing with accompanying smell of dog-life

Written last night:

Dear Friends,

Where did the day go? A bit of looking at numbers, then I had fun making a chocolate cake for Patrick’s birthday, then more being hypnotized by numbers, then dinner at Chicago Fire Pizza with Patrick and Steph. It was wonderful to talk with them, and the pizza is so good you’ll all have to try it when you visit. 

Zing has found a dog-sitter named Tony, who lives in our building. I couldn’t let Zing sit on someone else’s couch without a bath. Zing’s hair — like mine — gets prettier when it’s grittier, so he doesn’t need many baths, but after a while there’s an accompanying smell of dog-life. I could have taken his photo in the tub, but he asked me to be respectful please. 

Love,
k

Here's the cake recipe. I got it from Mary. It's easy and delicious.This time I used heavy cream for the frosting and it was better than  ever. Keep it in the refrigerator. 

Mary's Chocolate Cake

1. Bring just to a boil in the microwave 2 sticks unsalted butter, 1 C. water, 4 T. unsweetened cocoa. (I use Ghirardelli.)
2. Mix together 2 C. sugar, 2 C. flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. soda. Add to cocoa mixture.
3. Add 2 eggs & 3/4 C. sour cream (not lowfat). Don't overbeat.
4. Pour into two greased & floured 8" or 9" cake pans. Bake 30-35 min. at 375°.
5. Cool on raised cake racks & frost. 

Notes: 

1. I rub the butter papers onto the pan, then add a tablespoon or 2 of flour. Tap pan so flour adheres to bottom & sides, then dump extra flour into sink. 
2. I've also used 2 heart-shaped pans: bake for 25 min.; 9" x 13": bake 30 min.; jelly roll pan: bake 20 min. 

Frosting

Melt 1 bag Ghirardelli milk chocolate pieces & a lump of butter (2 to 3 T.) in a glass bowl in microwave. Then put this into mixer bowl & beat it with confectioner's sugar, about a teaspoon of vanilla, & some half & half. If you need a lot of frosting, put in a lot of sugar. If you want a candy bar-like frosting, use less sugar. Add enough cream to make it spreadable. It will harden a bit. I never measure, & it turns out different every time, but always perfect. Use darker chocolate if you like.

Notes: 

1. Put the rounded tops of the cake together. 
2. Don't frost until cool, or your cake will crumble. 
3. I love those cardboard cake circles that you can buy at JoAnn's. They enable you to move the cake to a plate easily.
4. Cut four 2-inch pieces of waxed paper & place them on the four sides of the cardboard circle; then put the first layer down. Frost top & sides. Put the second layer on the first, rounded side down, & frost top & sides with a flourish. Pull out the waxed paper strips & you will have a neat edge, no dribbles of frosting. 
5. Put the beauty on a cake pedestal, maybe on a doily. 
6. And light a candle.

Prettier on a plate: fig cake

Fig cake with almonds on top
It looks homely here -- I bake it in a skillet -- but it gets pretty on a plate

I decided to use figs in my pear cake recipe. Then I couldn't find that recipe. The possibility that the delicious, easy, adaptable cake would never again be made in my kitchen made me wild. I guess I've collected so many recipes that I get lost trekking through them. I did find it, finally. Once you try this cake you too will never want to lose it; it's great with apples, pears, berries, and now I know it is best of all with figs. This time I added 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom and topped it with toasted slivered almonds and a sprinkle of sugar.

Patricia Wells' pear (or fig) cake

 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, for buttering the cake pan 

2 or 3 large ripe pears (for a total weight of 1 1/2 pounds) peeled, quartered and cured, with each quarter cut into 4 slices 

7 tablespoons (3 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature 

1/2 cup sugar 

2 large eggs, at room temperature 

3/4 cup sifted cake flour 

2 tablespoons pear brandy or eau de vie (I skip this and add a teaspoon of vanilla.)

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

2. Butter the inside of a 10 1/2-inch springform cake pan or a tart pan with a removable bottom. Sprinkle with one teaspoon of vanilla sugar.

3. Arrange the pear slices in a circle just inside the outer edge of the pan, slightly overlapping them. Fill in the interior ring with remaining overlapping slices. Sprinkle with one tablespoon of pear brandy. (I skip the brandy and it tastes fine.)

4. In a medum-sized bowl, cream the butter and the remaining sugar with an electric mixer. Add the eggs, one by one, mixing until well blended. Add the flour and mix just until the ingredients are combined. Mix in the remaining one tablespoon of pear brandy.

5. Spoon the batter over the pears in a thin layer. Do not be concerned if the batter does not completely cover the pears, because it will spread out as it bakes.

6. Bake until the cake is firm and nicely browned, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven to cool. To serve, unmold the cake and serve it as is, or with a dollop of whipped creme fraiche.

Yield: Eight servings.

Making my own birthday cake

Is it pathetic to make your own birthday cake?

Not at all.

C has bought me many cakes, but we both agree mine are better. Besides, it's days before my birthday. I have a habit of celebrating the entire month of November -- with the ultimate goal of celebrating all year long when I get really smart. Thus, today's dessert (Dinner was leftovers), inspired by Smitten Kitchen and my mother. The SKithchen blog suggests a cake topped with bittersweet chocolate and pears chopped small. Instead of her recipe, I made Mom's sponge cake and topped it with 3/4 C. bittersweet chocolate chips and three Bartlett pears chopped smaller than bite-size. It took 45 minutes to bake, more than Mom's recipe. The pears are still a little hard. Next time (and there WILL be a next time!) I will let the pears ripen well, or soften them in the microwave before adding them to the cake. I considered using Kallebut chocolate, but Ghirardelli bittersweet  chips are perfect. It's festive and delicious. Don't wait for a birthday!

Mom's sponge cake with pears and chocolate

1 C. sifted flour

1 tsp. baking powder

dash salt

1/2 C. milk

1 T. butter

2 eggs

1 C. sugar

3/4 C. bittersweet chocolate chips 

3 soft pears, chopped

1. Sift dry ingredients together.
2. Scald milk with the butter. Let butter melt. (I use a glass measuring cup & put it in the microwave until little bubbles form on the sides, but it doesn't boil. Takes less than a minute.)
3. Beat the eggs a lot, until they lose that eggy look & become light.
4. Gradually beat in the sugar.
5. Then add the dry ingredients. Stir until just mixed.
6. Add hot milk with butter & vanilla.
7. Pour into buttered & floured 9" cake pan (I used a skillet.)  Bake 30 min. at 350° (45 minutes for pear and chocolate cake).
8. Top with 3/4 C. bittersweet chocolate chips and 3 soft pears, chopped. These will sink into the cake. 
9. Cool & then remove cake from the pan. (Don't use a skillet if you plan to remove the cake from the pan.),
10. For Boston Cream Pie split the cooled cake carefully with a long serrated knife & spread bottom layer with cream. Put second layer on top of the cream. Decorate with powdered sugar or a thin chocolate glaze.

Almond-fruit Cake for Fathers Day

Blueberry-almond cake

More pastry than cake, this delectable dessert inspired C to say, "You've got to make this again!" That was a couple of weeks ago. Yesterday, when I asked what he wants for Fathers Day, he repeated, "Make it again!" Don't tell C,  but the last time I'd made this was 2004 (I jotted it on the recipe!). I think he said "Make it again" that time too ... and I did, nine years later. Sunday -- less than a month since last time -- I'll be making this again. It is so delicious and relatively easy that I really should make it more often.

Patrice gave me the recipe. You see they call it Pear Cake, but my notes tell me I've also used apples, a combination of apples and raspberries, blueberries (above). This Sunday it will be cherries.

Patrice's Homely Pear Cake

2 C. plus one T. flour
3/4 C. plus 2 T. sugar
2 T. light brown sugar
1 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 stick plus 2 T (5 ounces) unsweetened butter
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 C. almond paste
2 T. fresh lemon juice
2 t. cinnamon
2 pounds firm but ripe pears -- peeled, cored, thinly sliced

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Butter an 8-inch square pan.
2. In food processor, pulse 2 C. flour with 3/4 C. sugar, light brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and pulse until it resembles cornmeal. Add egg and combine.
3. Turn the dough onto a work surface and knead several times. Divide roughly in half,  with one piece slightly larger. Flatten into disks, wrap in plastic or wax paper, and refrigerate 20 minutes.
4. Into food processor put the almond paste, lemon juice, cinnamon and remaining 2 T. sugar and 1 T. flour. Pulse until smooth. Scrape into bowl and gently stir in the fruit.
5. On an unfloured work surface (I think I may have sprinkled some flour first.), roll out the larger piece of dough into an 11-inch square. Fit it into the baking dish, pressing it three-quarters of the way up the side. Spoon the fruit in. Roll out the rest of the dough and press it on top, sealing the sides together by squeezing. Bake 55 minutes, or until golden. Make sure fruit (if apples or pears) is soft.
6. Cool at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. (This is a joke! It is delicious, if a bit runny, right out of the oven.)

Gretchen's best pound cake

Do you think they'll notice I stole a bite?

I am going to make a birthday cake for Melissa, and I know she loves pound cake. So I asked Gretchen, my baking guru (and niece) for advice. Gretchen has tried more than a dozen pound cake recipes (there ARE a dozen recipes?), and this is best. Easy too. Here's her email to me, with the recipe:

Hi!  

Here is the recipe for pound cake.  I promise you will not be disappointed!

Gretchen's Best Pound Cake

2 C sugar

2 C flour (DO NOT SIFT)

2 sticks butter (if using unsalted add about 3/4 teaspoon salt)

5 eggs

1 T of what ever extract you would like (vanilla, almond, etc.) OR the juice and zest of one lemon

Put all the ingredients in the mixer and blend for 10 minutes at medium speed.  Pour into a greased and floured tube pan or 2 loaf pans.  

Bake at 325 degrees for about 1 hour (I start checking after 50 minutes).

Enjoy!

love,

G

Cake sublime

Caroline made this ethereal creation for her sister Ana's fifth birthday party. When I visited their kitchen this morning, all seemed normal. Then Irene opened the refrigerator door, and -- I thought I was having a vision. The refrigerator pulsated with pink and white sublimity. Only she was real. As real as 13 sticks of butter in your icing dress can make a doll. And if you're wondering, yes, there's a Smitten Kitchen three-layer chocolate cake in there, each layer split, which makes six -- all covered with icing. Heavenly.

Meyer lemons

I barely knew about Meyer lemons until Ed left a bag of them on our porch soon after we moved to Tallahassee. Our neighbor was rich in lemons and bluebirds, and he loved to share both. Once when I was visiting him and his wife in their backyard, he placed a tiny worm in my hand, assuring me it wasn't squishy. When I opened my palm and held it out, a bluebird swooped down from the bushes to eat the worm. A tiny rose-breasted bluebird perched on my hand!

I felt much the same amazement when I learned about Ed's precious Meyer lemons. They are much desired by cooks. When Ed died last spring I planted a Meyer lemon tree out near our shed in his honor. This season it gave us two big yellow fruits. Thanks to Ed's family, we still enjoy his lemons too. This week I mailed some to family in Ohio. "Give us recipes!" they said. So:

In general, I use Meyers  as I would any other lemon. Here's a video from a grove in California with some useful storage ideas.

I also make Meyer Lemon Marmalade. Here's the recipe -- my adjustments to an Epicurious recipe.

A friend tried Smitten Kitchen's Lemon Cake. She liked it but didn't rave.

I'm sure Mom's sponge cake is better. Follow the suggestion midway down for dousing it with lemon syrup.

Here's an LA Times piece with 100 things to do with a Meyer lemon.

How not to bake

That's Janice's birthday cake in the oven--I think. 
I made it and it might flop. Last night I got a head start and measured out the dry ingredients. Then I thought, "Here's the flour and sugar and measuring cups -- Let's just measure some more." Brilliant time-saver. Besides, I was wishing for some biscotti. So I measured the dry ingredients for that too. You know what happened. This afternoon I blithely made the cake, and as soon as it was in the oven I saw the other pre-measured ingredients. Uh-Oh. I think I put the biscotti flour/sugar into the cake. In five minutes I'll find out. For now, it smells perfect.

Mary's Chocolate Cake

Mary gave me this recipe many chocolate cakes ago, and it is still our favorite.

Mary's Chocolate Cake

Boil together in the microwave:
2 sticks butter (1 cup)
1 C. water
4 T. cocoa


Beat in 2 eggs.

Add:
2 C. sugar
2 C. flour
1/2 t. salt
1 t. soda

Stir in 3/4 C. sour cream. Don't beat too much.

Bake at 375° in preferred shape until toothpick comes out clean. Use these approximate times
Two heart pans -- 25 minutes
Two 8"or 9"  pans -- 35 minutes
9" x 13" sheet pan -- 30 minutes
jelly roll pan -- 20 minutes
Cupcakes (Use paper cupcake liners -- the recipe makes about 24) -- 20 minutes

Icing
Melt a package of milk chocolate chips with a piece of butter. Watch so chocolate doesn't burn! Beat in powdered sugar and half and half. The more sugar and cream you add, the more icing you get. It's also better, I think.

Mary's Almond Cake

I'd forgotten how good this is. It's simple, too.

Mary's Almond Cake

Mix:
3/4 C. butter
3/4 C. sugar
12 ounces almond paste

Add:
grated zest of one lemon
grated zest of one orange
1 tsp. brandy (optional)
1 tsp. vanilla (I skipped the brandy and made it two tsp. vanilla.)
1/2 tsp. almond extract

Add:
5 eggs
Beat, but not too much. You don' want the top of the cake to end up frothy.

Add:
1/2 C. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder

Butter a 9" round cake pan and cut a circle of parchment or waxed paper to go in the bottom of it. Butter the parchment too. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 325° for 45-55 minutes, until the cake shrinks from the sides. Cool. Top with a glaze of 2 T. apricot jam, warmed with 1 T. water. (I prefer confectioners' sugar  and water.) Sprinkle with slivered, roasted almonds.

Angel Food Cake for Clark

Clark's birthday cake

It looks like a giant doughnut, but it's really Clark's birthday cake -- always angel food cake for him!

The recipe is from the Gourmet cookbook.

Angel Food Cake

1 cup cake flour (Don't use all-purpose.)
1 2/3 C. sugar
1 3/4 C. egg whites (usually about 13) Room temperature is best.
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cream of tartar
 1/2 tsp vanilla

for Glaze
1 C. confectioners' sugar
2 T. fresh lemon juice

Put rack in middle of the oven and preheat to 300°.

Sift flour 3 times (it says -- I don't), then sift together with 2/3 C. sugar. (I just mix the two and fluff them up with a fork.)

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar and salt and beat until whites barely form soft peaks. Beat in remaining 1 C. sugar 2 tablespoons at a time. Add vanilla and beat until whites hold soft peaks. Add the flour mixture, 1/4 at a time, and fold in gently but completely after each addition.

Spoon the batter into ungreased tube pan (If you grease it, the cake will not cling to the sides and it will be a fallen mess.) Smooth the top with the spatula and then rap the pan on the table a couple of times. This is fun and is supposed to burst bubbles.

Bake 1 1/4 hr. Invert on counter and cool for 2 hours.
Optional: make a glaze by mixing the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and spreading it on top of the cool cake. Serve with berries, whipped cream, ice cream or nothing.

Mocha fudge cake

Patrice wanted me to get to Miami a day early so I could make this cake, which used to be my contribution to Christmas Eve dinner. I didn't, and thought this would be a season without chocolate. But when I met Grace at Pam and Joe's, her face lit up. She remembered my cake, from  many Christmases ago. Memory prevailed: I made it for New Year's Day.

Mocha fudge cake

Set oven to 250°.

Butter a round 9-inch pan with a removable bottom. Line it with heavy-duty foil. Lightly but thoroughly butter the foil.

In a large saucepan combine:
1 C. strong coffee
1 lb. semisweet chocolate (I use Kallebut semisweet. Don't use bitter.)
2 C. sugar
2 C. unsalted butter

Cook over medium heat until it is the temperature of a warm bath. (Lately I've been putting it in a glass bowl and using a microwave. Watch it, because the chocolate can burn.) Take it off the heat. Let it sit, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is melted.

Beat eight eggs lightly and then add the chocolate slowly.  Mix until well blended. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake 1 1/2 hr. The center will be shaky. It firms up. Let the cake cool, then refrigerate it overnight.

Serve with 1 1/2 c. cream (I use organic. It tastes better.), whipped with 1/4 C. confectioner's sugar and 1/2 tsp. good vanilla. You can garnish with fresh strawberries, or a couple spoonfuls of crushed raspberries.

From the Frog cookbook.

Olive oil cake

Olive oil & oranges sound Mediterranean to me. The doctor might even recommend this cake from Epicurious. It's simple, but needs a shopping trip, for semolina flour & fruity olive oil. (I bought one that said fruity on the label.) Instead of honey syrup, I made a simple syrup, 1:1 sugar & liquid (water & orange juice). The top looks bumpy because I stabbed it all over with a fork.

Ricotta cheesecake, ricotta-spinach dumplings

I made the best, really the best cheesecake for Easter. Not all agree. It's from the New York Times archives. Try it!

Then with the rest of the ricotta I am making these, one of a collection of recipes from Venice; I'm sorry I've lost the book.

Ricotta dumplings 

*Here's a great guide to plain ricotta gnocchi: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/03/ricotta-gnocchi-homemade-food-lab-recipe.html
2 pounds spinach
1 pound ricotta, drained
2 C. grated Parmesan cheese

3 eggs, beaten

1 t. salt

pepper to taste

¼ t. grated nutmeg

flour

butter

• Wash spinach well. Drain it. Cook in a deep saucepan with no water. When cooked, drain again BE sure to drain it very well! Squeeze the spinach with your hands to extract as much liquid as possible. Chop fine. You can also use 2 packages chopped frozen spinach.
• Mix with ricotta, 1 C Parmesan, eggs, salt, pepper, nutmeg. Add 1/2 to 2/3 C. flour so dough sticks together.
• When all ingredients are well combined, shape into about 5 logs, each about 12"=13" long.Cut into gnocchi the size you like. Dust with semolina flour and transfer to a rimmed baking sheet that is covered with parchment. Dust again lightly with semolina flour. You can now freeze them and after they are frozen, transfer to a ziplock bag. Then you can cook them directly from the freezer.
  
  Drop gnocchi into boiling water, stirring gently at first so they don't stick to the bottom. Then cook them until they rise to the top and let them cook for at least a minute after they float up. Make sure the insides are fully cooked!
  
  
• Remove with a slotted spoon and drain them. Put them into a shallow buttered ovenware dish.
• Pour on melted butter and grated Parmesan.
• Keep them in a slow oven (300°?) until all the dumplings have been cooked. Continue to add melted butter and Parmesan as you add dumplings to the dish.
• Broil to brown, or serve straight from the oven. They are excellent with chicken in tomato sauce, or anything in tomato sauce. Or just tomatoes.

9. Serves 6 to 8.

Boston Cream Pie

All I have to do is say it's my mom's recipe: you know it's delicious.

Boston Cream Pie is festive but it's not hard to make. It's Mom's sponge cake, split & filled with vanilla cream, then topped with chocolate glaze. The heart pan made it special; I made it Wednesday for a little girl we love.

Mom's Sponge Cake

1 C. sifted flour

1 tsp. baking powder

dash salt

1/2 C. milk

1 T. butter

2 eggs

1 C. sugar

1. Sift dry ingredients together.
2. Scald milk with the butter. Let butter melt. (I use a glass measuring cup & put it in the microwave until little bubbles form on the sides, but it doesn't boil. Takes less than a minute.)
3. Beat the eggs a lot, until they lose that eggy look & become light.
4. Gradually beat in the sugar.
5. Then add the dry ingredients. Stir until just mixed.
6. Add hot milk with butter & vanilla.
7. Pour into buttered & floured 9" cake pan (I used a heart-shaped pan.) Mom often used a skillet (an 8" iron skillet or a frying pan that is about that size. Mine is 7 1/2" at the base and 10 1/2" at the top.) Bake 30 min. at 350°.
8. Cool & then remove cake from the pan. (Don't use a skillet if you plan to remove the cake from the pan.),
9. For Boston Cream Pie split the cooled cake carefully with a long serrated knife & spread bottom layer with cream. Put second layer on top of the cream. Decorate with powdered sugar or a thin chocolate glaze.

*Other Sponge Cake options from Mom:

• Pierce the top (a lot) with fork tines as soon as the cake comes out of the oven & immediately pour lemon syrup (made with equal parts lemon juice & sugar, maybe a half cup of each, that you boil until the sugar melts) over it so it seeps into the cake.
• Lightly sprinkle sugar on the buttered pan, top with two peeled & thinly sliced pears or apples, & pour the cake batter on top.
• In a skillet, melt a little butter, add enough brown sugar to cover the bottom of the pan, & melt it. Then add fruit such as pineapple (fresh is best). Pour the cake batter on top for Upside-down Cake.

Mom's Cream Filling

Mix together in saucepan:

• 2 tbl. flour
• 2 tbl cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 C. sugar
• lump of butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla

1. Add 2 C. milk. Cook over moderate heat until thick, stirring all the while or it will burn.
2. Remove from stove.
3. Add 1 egg, this way: Crack the egg into a little bowl & beat it. Then take a teaspoon or so of the still-hot cream & beat it into the egg. Then the egg is kind of prepared for the heat & is less likely to curdle. Mix the egg into the pudding. Stir in quickly & well. This is the trickiest step of making a pudding. If you don't do it right, the egg will start to turn to scrambled eggs. Don't worry – it's not hard to do it right, but it does take patience.
4. Put the mixture back onto the stove & cook 3 minutes longer, stirring all the while.
5. Remove from the heat & stir in the lump of butter & vanilla.
6. Cool.

*You can make chocolate cream by adding cocoa to the sugar mixture, or by stirring in good chocolate at the last step. If you use brown sugar you've got butterscotch pudding. I've never combined the two, but doesn't that sound good?

Chocolate Glaze

It's trial & error here: I mix some confectioner's sugar with some cocoa & add some water, a little at a time. Then I beat the lumps out.

You could also melt bittersweet chocolate with a lump of butter.